Midnightpaw
Shadowclan
She/her
72/100
Midnightpaw had a set schedule that she liked to follow each day. It had been this way since she was small, since she was able to put together a coherent thought. She needed consistency as soon as she could understand the term, and not a single day went by where she was not
consistent.
With how easy it was for her to follow a schedule, to be as dependable as she was, she thought it would be easy for everybody around her to do the same. Her pa, he had been a good warrior. One of the best around. An
enforcer born and bred from consistent dedication. Her brothers, a blood bound constant in her life. Her friends, companions to grow old with, to achieve warrior status with, to battle alongside and confide in–lifelong bonds… How had consistency been so easy for her, but so
difficult for everyone else?
Sue the girl for seeing life in black and white, but never grey. There was no such thing as in-betweens for Midnightpaw, you either tried your best or did nothing at all. How could everyone do nothing at all?
Each and every one of them. Her pa, that ridiculous joke of a parent that she couldn't even put a face to, both of her brothers in succession, each of her friends one by one–
Batpaw? Nothing at all.
With each disappearance, her standards for those that she could consider an
equal got higher and higher. She simply could not follow through with a friendship if she did not see the cat in question on the same level as herself. Not in skill, not in power, but in
consistent dedication. Slim pickings, so she decided on nobody at all. She kept her nose up high, shooting for the stars. Always aiming to land herself with those that she looked up to–the consistent ones. Hazelstripe, Hawkbite, Darkfall, Dawnstar (of course) just to name a few. The cluster of stars that she could only pray, each and every morning, to be considered even remotely similar to. Always wishing to be a part of their constellation.
According to her schedule, it was time to settle down for the night. Midnightpaw believed that she had a good day today, that she had done well. Following her routine, she sat beside her moss bed, carefully kneading at her nest to make sure that it was cozy, the way that she liked it. She was a picky molly, yes, but it was well worth it for a good night's rest.
For a moment, her nose caught a familiar scent. Not an entirely outlandish concept. Over the last few moons, she found that her mind would play tricks on her like that, filling her mind with hopeless thoughts of,
‘they've finally come home’. No such trickery would work on her now, no.
Her fur suddenly puffed up when someone had taken it upon themselves to
headbutt her–albeit gently, it wasn't a necessarily welcome action. Midnightpaw's head quickly snapped to her offender, green eyes narrowed in offense at the odd affection before her gaze softened.
He's back?
The molly's icy exterior cracked for a moment, her jaws parting in a quiet gasp. With her fur still puffed up, she rose to her paws, taking a quick step backwards as she dropped into a crouch–just to
look at him. There were a few differences in his appearance since the last time she had seen him, most notably his eye, but… This was still him. With her mouth still agape, she just stared at him in shock.
Batpaw. Her very first in-between. One of many who had disappeared, but also the
only cat to ever return to her. It was difficult to see him in the usual black and white colors that she often painted the world with. She just
couldn't. Batpaw was the only splotch of grey among the black and white… And she wasn't sure what that meant.
“You… You? Where have you been? Whe–what? Where did you go? Why did… Why?” The questions came tumbling from her lips, a stream that she couldn't bother to stop. Still, despite her curiosity, despite that need deep within her chest for her to step closer to him, to bunt his shoulder the same way that he had done to her… Something told her not to.
[ @
silver. ]