[The Cannibal]

Originally Posted by AbsurdJinx

[ You're too nice xD ]
[ I love what you wrote here - ``GrouseStar liked birds`` - it sounded so innocent in my mind; absolutely adorable cx ]

FeatherPaw flinched at GrouseStar's touch, but as soon as she adjusted, she sank into the warmth he offered her. ``I'm sorry,`` She cried, shaking her head softly. She continued to look sadly at the ground, her head turned so she was facing away from the tomcat. Her ears were folded back, and her eyes were shut tight as if it would clear her of tears, as if nobody would be able to see her embarrassing panic attack if she couldn't see them. She had fallen into a crouch, her chin resting on her paws, and her tail having quit moving due to nerves. She feared moving, but she didn't know why. She was eager to hide her face beneath her paws, but she was much too scared to move her head to do so.

She found comfort in his soothing voice that told her she wasn't being forced to stalk the leaf - er, mouse. Unfortunately, it was not enough to relax her as she continued to release dry sobs, and her muscles didn't stop being tense. FeatherPaw's chest heaved with every shaky inhale and exhale of breath, and she even dared to flex her toes despite her fear of movement at the moment. ``I-I can't breathe,`` She complained, leaning into GrouseStar as she focused on evening her breaths.

I can't. I can't. I'm sorry. I can't. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. These were the two statements that were being repeated, non-stop, in her mind. Otherwise, FeatherPaw couldn't think straight. Almost like she was lost in a flood, fighting to keep her head above the surface. Meanwhile, blurred figures threw objects at her, yowling harsh words, like they wanted her to drown. The figures were safe, on land, and every time she would try to lift herself onto the terrain, she would be pushed off. It was frustrating, and scary, as well as exhausting - she simply could not understand it. Her frequent panic attacks were frustrating, scary, exhausting, and difficult to understand.

FeatherPaw, unbeknownst to her, was cursed with severe anxiety and depression, and her self-confidence was exactly in the high range. She feared nearly everything, including herself. There was never an escape. If she were to pounce on a leaf pretending to be a mouse - panic attack. If she were to leave camp - panic attack. If she were to curl up for bed - panic attack. Not to mentions that her dark thoughts often put her down. However, she did try to add a positive touch to her mainly-negative nature. She'd tell herself `today will be the day! The day I have the confidence to face my fears!`` but it never happens. This only put her down even more.

GrouseStar had quite a challenge on his paws.

{Aw, well I'm glad you think so xD}
{Yeah, Grouse is an innocent little babe, he doesn't even understand what love is, so pure }

"Don't apologize, there's nothing to apologize for, you're alright." Breathed the tom gently, brushing the tip of his tail along her shoulder and gently resting his chin on tom of her head, in a way trying to shield her from the outside world, to shield her from whatever demons plagued her mind and caused her to react so negatively. That's what Grousestar wanted to do so desperately bad, to shield her from that fear, her inner demons, so that she could live a normal life because he knew, he just knew that this young molly had to be suffering if she were this nervous and scared all of the time. He wanted to help her so desperately bad, she was his apprentice and she was a valuable member to his clan.

Nonetheless, the tom continued to gently brush the tip of his tail along her shoulder as a human might gently rub someone else's back to help soothe them, lifting his chin from her head to look over her nervously, almost seeming to make sure there was no outward sign of injury, just wanting to be absolutely positive that she didn't have an illness or infected wound, anything of the sort. "You can breathe Featherpaw, you're just breathing too fast and shallow and are scaring yourself. You're alright." Reassured the tabby, continuing to soothingly brush at her shoulder with his tail that was loosely curled around her.

"It's alright, just focus on getting your breathing back to normal. Just know you're in a safe place and I would never let any harm occur to you, alright?" Purred out the tom quietly, his gaze slowly looking up at the canopy again to find that the black bird was back, a small smile turning the corners of his muzzle upwards.

"Do you see that bird up there Featherpaw? That's a black bird. They're just like a crow and a raven, but they're smaller. They're not as smart either, but aren't they just so pretty? Don't you think it's beautiful how they can fly wherever they want, just on the whim of thought?" Questioned the tom, still looking up at the bird with bright eyes, his tail still brushing along her shoulder. It was a genuine question, but also a tactic to get her mind off of whatever had caused her panic attack. He's never actually dealt with a cat who's had one, but he's got a decent idea of what to do and figured he was helping, or at least helping to the best of his ability. Grousestar might have a challenge, but I believe you just happened upon one of the most patient cats in Skyclan.

Grousestar would be more than happy to spend an eternity helping this young molly best her anxiety and depression and that was the absolute truth.