I’m here for you (c)

Scorchlight wanted to keep the clan cheery, and she was pretty optimistic. So, she thought the job fitted her. She was sick herself but didn’t let that nonsense get to her head. Through coughs and dizziness, she searched for an apprentice she had observed for a while—Duckpaw. Duckpaw never seemed to eat in the little times they were awake, so the best Scorch could do was help them in their troubles.

She searched for the light-furred cat in hopes she herself would help the young apprentice to eat. It was unfair Duckpaw had to deal with this sickness, but Scorchlight was sure she could brighten their mood. Even if Scorchlight couldn’t cheer another clanmate, she could accompany them. When she was sad about being in the lake, cats helped her return to her normal mood—cheery, optimistic, happy as ever!

More sneezes. She stepped back to give herself a break. She was trying to help a cat, but rest was something she desired too. She may have been happy and all, but that wouldn’t always fix sickness. She stumbled backward, coughing, then perking her head up. She shouldn’t waste any more time, but she felt pretty dizzy. Ignore the sickness, she thought. Ignore it, and you’ll feel… better, right? That’s how Scorchlight ran things, though. She got back on her paws.

"Duckpaw!!" Scorchlight called for the cat, flexing her claws before touching her light pink paw pads into the ground. Padding towards the temporary fresh kill pile, she grabbed a trout for herself and a fair-sized minnow for the apprentice. She started licking her paws, waiting to see if Duckpaw had heard her call. Her ears anticipated a reply. She wouldn’t want to search for Duckpaw if they were sleeping. Duckpaw needed rest as much as Scorchlight did, maybe even more. She continued grooming herself, patiently waiting for the RiverClan apprentice. She was a fairly new warrior and a sick one, but that wouldn’t stop her ambition of helping cats cheer up or just helping them in general.

Duckpaw was awake, but they weren't pleased by it. They were curled into a tight ball, nose tucked beneath their tail and paws draped over their eyes, quietly wishing for once that sleep would take them again - anything to get away from how vile they felt. Their head pounded and every breath was a laborious effort - often interrupted by coughing fits that often turned so hard that they were left spitting up crimson which had dried into their nest and paws from their attempts to stifle the noise. With how much it felt to be a struggle just to think - the fact that they were painfully aware of their own existence was a feat with how often they were lost in a hazy fever when they were awake - they couldn't deny the small nagging fear that to sleep would lead to them never waking up...But that reality seemed so much kinder than the pain and misery they were forced to wallow in.

But that fate had yet to grace them and despite how often they were taken by their tiredness, for once they felt actually awake...If only they  had the strength to do anything but whimper in their ill state. So when their name was called out, they curled even tighter into a ball - they didn't want to be bothered, they wanted to be left alone but... Maybe... Maybe a distraction would be good - to focus on anything other than how miserable they were. So with a grimaced, they lifted their tail and pulled their paws away from their eyes - only to wince at the light as their eyes worked to adjust. "...I'm awake," the called out - their voice raw and crackling with the effort as they scanned around. The knew their name had been called but hadn't the energy to place who had called out to them.

"I’ve noticed you were sick, so I decided to get you something." The trout she got for herself laid next to her; the minnow in her jaws, she dropped it and nudged it towards Duckpaw. "I’m sorry if I’m disturbing you; I just wanted to help. It’s me, Scorchlight." Scorchlight meowed softly, trying to comfort Duckpaw. Scorchlight was usually way more cheerful than this, but if she was too enthusiastic, she might irritate Duckpaw. Her green eyes were filled with sorrow; the clan was in a worse state than she expected. Even she was sick. Scorchlight pressed her dark orange, nearly red fur on top of Duckpaw and licked them. "Everything will get better, I promise, but if you don’t eat, you won’t keep yourself healthy," she meowed, trying to comfort them relentlessly to make them feel better. She stood up straight and padded into the dark shadows of the den, sitting close to Duckpaw. "I know you need rest, but you need food as much, Duckpaw." She wasn’t that wise, but this truly made her feel wise. She padded away from the den, giving herself some distance from the apprentice, starting to munch on her trout, letting Duckpaw focus on themself and the fresh kill Scorchlight gave them.

It took quite a bit of effort for Duckpaw to even manage to lift their head, finally locating - and recognizing - Scorchlight. Their eyes followed the minnow as it was dropped and shoved towards them, carefully wiggling their paw free from their nest to reach out and touch the fish. Their ears flickered as the listened to the warrior - she was just here to help, to make sure they ate... Ate. When was the last time they ate? At the acknowledgement, there was a sudden pang in their stomach that caused them to grimaced. Their belly growled, but yet... All they could taste was the blood and vile that they had been coughing up which caused them to withdraw, ears slicking back in shame.

"Prey sounds...Good but..." they started, licking their lips in the hopes that it would somehow free them from the terrible taste that lingered in their mouth. "I don't...I can taste the...The bile in my mouth. I...I wouldn't be able to enjoy it," they murmured with a sad shake of their head. They wanted to eat but to have the memory of what a trout should taste like...The fear that maybe they would ruin the prey for themself was... But their stomach lashed out at the thought of being denied, causing the apprentice to hesitate before reaching out again to draw the trout closer. "But...I-I should try..."