fledging yet never free (c for paledove fam)

Subject: fledging yet never free (c for paledove fam) Thu 11 Jan 2024 - 12:34

The nursery was quieting, the first few rays of moonlight piercing through the brambles. Paledove lay to the side, curled around her kits, keeping them warm with her own long fur. It was too cold for separate nests, but they were large enough for them. They had grown up so fast; their apprentice ceremonies would be here before they knew it. She needed to speak to them about that, but for a moment, the old queen simply relished the feeling of their pelts against hers. They were wonderful. They were perfect. They were hers.

She’d been distant much of that day, thoughts away with her lost litter as they all-too-often were, but before her kits dozed off, Paledove spoke to them in a low voice. “Are you comfortable, dears?”

A thousand other questions lay heavy in her words (are you safe, do you know that you are loved, do you love me in return), but she banished them to the back of her mind, rasping her tongue over Cricketkit’s head. Her little quiet dear. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you were apprenticed soon, all of you.”

Ospreykit, especially, would be excited about that, but some of her kits (Cricketkit, Yewkit) might need a little extra encouragement. She would, of course, provide.

Last edited by ChaoticCrow on Thu 21 Mar 2024 - 16:06; edited 1 time in total

Myrtlekit
Kit | Skyclan | She/Her

Myrtlekit looked up at her mother with sleepy eyes and let out a soft mew as she pushed closer to her mother, "I am comfortable and warm". She rested her head on Paledove's front leg, "What's it like being an apprentice? Will our mentors be nice?" Myrtlekit was ready for apprenticeship but was rather nervous to be away from the nest and without her mother at that.

Discord: ChaoticCrow | Timezone: Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) | Code (c) Kieer

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Yewkit was intertwined in the cramped nest with the rest of his siblings and his mom. It was warm. He liked it this way. His eyes were slowly closing despite his wishes to remain awake, though they snapped open when Paledove broke the silence in the nursery. He lifted his head off of Myrtlekit to look up at her, nodding and releasing a soft mm-hmm. "I'm okay mama." He reassured.

Though, Myrtlekit's questions were pressing. He wanted to know the answer too. "Is it scary out in the territories? Will we be safe?" He sleepily added to her questions, his words soft and slurred. He was afraid of him or his siblings getting hurt. He wasn't sure if he could live without any member of his family.

Cricketkit purred softly under the rasp of her mother’s tongue. Her mismatched eyes were half-lidded as Paledove’s voice broke the fragile silence of the nursery. Everyone seemed to be keen to discuss apprenticeship. It was the next step, the big step. The tabby and white kit snuggled a little deeper into the queen’s thick chest fur, like maybe the future wouldn’t find her hidden there. She wasn’t sleepy anymore, she was focused now, the gears in her head whirring as she tried to wrap her mind around the concept of growing up. Sure she was as eager as the next kit to hone her skills, to use her claws for something greater than snagging moss and terrorizing leaves. She was quick, and stealthy and fierce, in that quiet unassuming way, she was ready to be dangerous. But that meant leaving her mother behind, abandoning their warm nest and safe walls. It meant change and Cricketkit wasn’t sure she liked that very much.

The kit didn’t voice her own opinions, keeping them safely to herself, but her ears did slick back in displeasure. Maybe if she could learn to hunt and fight and kill while still hidden by Paledove’s shadow the notion of apprenticeship might be easier to swallow. She knew she couldn’t stay in the nursery forever, but could she serve both her clan and her mother? The thought of being too busy for Paledove’s attention was sickening. Cricketkit’s fluffy tail flicked uncertainty before she finally decided to risk a question. “You won’t love us any less when we move dens, will you?” The she-kit asked softly, her voice almost lost in the background noise of shuffling bodies and quiet purrs. Though selfishly Cricketkit was more concerned specifically if Paledove would forget her. Would another kit come along to snatch her place at her mother’s side? The idea almost made her want to growl. If she had to choose, Cricketkit would always strive for her Mother’s favor over her clan’s. There was no one more important to her than Paledove.

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fledging yet never free (c for paledove fam) Copper11

Daisyfang-------Cricketpaw-------Tallshadow

WindClan Medicine Cat------SkyClan Apprentice-------WindClan Warrior

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