[ti]Private[/ti]Shade or Shine?

[Mama]

Shadepaw was doing pretty well adapting to her new... sight. Her mentor had been the least of help and she'd started to train with Silverfang more then him, making Jasperfrost seem awfully happy about that. It slightly stung at the thought of him hating her, but the apprentice shrugged it away as she glanced around.


The Mistclan Apprentice had started to sneak out to the borders, learning them by herself, but in the back of her mind she wondered if she would ever bump into Rivershine. Would the pretty she-cat still remember her? Or would she be like her mentor, and run away with fear. Now that made her nervous, and she gave a gulp as her ear perked up. The leaves were crackling and she wondered what it was, but it was just the wind... again. With a huff she continued on her lonely stroll, near the border of Ivyclan.

Meow

[Meow]

Rivershine always stopped by the MistClan border when she was out hunting- which meant she usually stopped by at least once a day. She likely wouldn't have admitted it if asked, but she didn't only do it to make sure there weren't any trespassers on their territory.

She hoped that she'd eventually get to see Shadepaw. After their night out in the meadow, chatting excitedly and prancing through the fragrant flowers, Rivershine had come to truly enjoy the apprentice's company. While many other cats were turned away by her shyness, Shadepaw had embraced it and accepted her just as she was. Shadepaw was someone she really wanted to get to know, someone she wanted to truly befriend, and it was that desire that dragged her paws here every day.

Like every other day, though, the familiar, sleek black and gold pelt was nowhere to be seen. The she-cat let out a quiet, sad sigh as she looked into MistClan's forest, her ears drooping slightly. If only she could cross the border and check on Shadepaw... was she okay? Was the new territory treating her well? Did... did Shadepaw even want to see her again? Rivershine swallowed down the thought, turning away from the border as she readied herself to head back to camp. However, just as she started to walk away, the sound of quiet pawsteps reached her ears, and a familiar scent wafted past.

Rivershine immediately perked up, her ears standing at attention as she turned her wide-eyed, excited gaze towards the form of Shadepaw, taking a stroll a few yards away from the border. She couldn't make out the other cat's face, as her form was cloaked in the shadow of a tree, but she could tell exactly who it was. "Shadepaw! Rivershine gasped out the name happily as she hurried back to the border, stopping just short of crossing it as her heart pounded joyfully in her chest.

[Mama]

Shadepaw, of course, didn't notice her until she'd called her name. "Shadepaw!" A familiar voice echoed out, and her ear perked excitedly. Her stubby tail stuck up, the tip twitching happily as she rushed towards the sound. "Rivershine!" The apprentice purred, her eye bright. A grin was on half her face, the other half completely ripped away with her ear, and leaving deep scars. Her tail wasn't the usual length it was, as now it was about 3/4th of what it used to be. But Shadepaw had forgotten her new appearance, and a purr grew in her throat as she skidded to a stop by the border.

"I've missed you! Silverfang said the clans had moved, I didn't know if you were ok or not!"

{sorry its short }

[Meow]

Rivershine's long, fluffy tail raised, waving happily as Shadepaw hurried towards her. "I've missed you so-" But the she-cat's words seemed to disappear from her tongue as Shadepaw moved into the light. Half of her face was as bright and beautiful as she'd remembered, her lips parted in a wide smile as she greeted Rivershine. The other half, though, was a mess of scars, and a quarter of her tail was missing as she came forward.

Rivershine was quiet for a moment as Shadepaw cheerfully greeted her, stunned by the apprentice's appearance. Her eyes had widened... not from disgust or fear, but with the horror that something bad had happened to Shadepaw since the last time she'd seen her. "...Sh-Shadepaw, wh-what... what happened?" Rivershine's voice was as quiet and sweet as it always was, though the horror on her face remained.

[Mama]

"I've missed you so-" Rivershine mewed, before stiffening up. Her eyes widened, and Shadepaw could practically feel her heart stop with terror. Was she going to run off like her mentor, in fear? "...Sh-Shadepaw, wh-what... what happened?"

The apprentice's smile faded, and her ear slowly pinned back. Rivershine had the same beautiful voice, it wasn't that, it was her expression and words that threw her off. "P-please j-just don't run away on m-me." She quickly said, her voice shaky with fear. "T-There was a b-bear... and..." 

Shadepaw had no words to really explain it, and she silently pleaded her friend would understand... hopefully. Her tail had tucked against her, and she lowered herself with a gulp, a nervous energy filling her body as her heart pounded and rung in her ears.

[Meow]

Rivershine's eyes only widened at Shadepaw's request for her not to run away, and the she-cat's expression filled with pain at the apprentice's mention of a bear. Rivershine didn't need Shadepaw to explain what had happened- it was clear that these injuries came from said bear. Rivershine had selfishly thought that Shadepaw hadn't been showing up because she maybe didn't like Rivershine as much as Rivershine liked Shadepaw, but, instead, she'd been recovering from life-changing injuries. After a few moments of tense silence, the pretty calico stepped over the border, leaning down to touch her nose to the top of Shadepaw's head.

"I-I'd never run away from you, Shadepaw," Rivershine reassured her softly, doing her best to keep her tears in. She'd always cried easily, but she didn't want to add to Shadepaw's clear anxiety by letting them fall now. "I'm sorry, I was just surprised... I-I've been visiting this border every day so that I could see you, and I thought maybe you just didn't want to see me, but... but, instead..." Rivershine sniffled at the thought of what Shadepaw had likely endured, and the she-cat felt wetness welling up in her eyes. Don't cry. "...a-are you okay?"

[Mama]

As the moment of silence was broken by Rivershine's touch, and words, Shadepaw could feel herself relax and even go a little red. The energy from the connection made the hairs on her back stand up slightly, and she closed her eye. "I-I'd never run away from you, Shadepaw," The pretty calico softly mewed. "I'm sorry, I was just surprised... I-I've been visiting this border every day so that I could see you, and I thought maybe you just didn't want to see me, but... but, instead..."

The apprentice opened her eye again, remaining silent for a moment before the she-cat continued on. "...a-are you okay?" Rivershine asked, and Shadepaw looked up to see her eyes watering up slightly. Slowly sitting back up, she pressed against the warrior's soft neck fur, trying to calm her down. She didn't want her to cry, which was odd for the she-cat as she usually would have found the situation awkward. "I-I'm still alive." Shadepaw said with a half-hearted chuckle. "I slept most of it off, Silverfang told me I was sleeping for more then a moon." She muttered with a small shiver, before taking in her friend's scent with a sigh.

[Meow]

Rivershine sniffled as Shadepaw pressed into her fur, her strong but pleasant, foresty scent flooding Rivershine'se senses. When Rivershine was upset, it could be hard to calm her down... but something about Shadepaw put her at ease, even if she was sad that the apprentice had gone through something so terrible. The she-cat reached up a fluffy paw to quickly dry her own tears. "A-a whole moon..." It really was no wonder that she hadn't seen Shadepaw in so long. Rivershine leaned back, hesitantly pulling herself away from Shadepaw's warmth as she took in the other she-cat's injuries one more time. She wished she could have been there for her, but... was there sense in continuing to cry over something she couldn't have done anything about? Of course not! She would say what she came here to say, and she would let Shadepaw know how much she missed her.

"...I'm really happy to see you again, Shadepaw," Rivershine mewed after a moment, sniffling. "A-after we met up the first time, I kept thinking about you all the time, because I really, really wanted to see you again... but then that earthquake happened, and I kept wondering if you were okay, or if we'd ever meet again." Rivershine let a small, teary smile come onto her face. "These last few moons have been really hard on all of us, but... but I think we can be happy now, so... I never want either of us to have to worry like that again. I want to be there if anything happens to you again, and I want you to know what happens to me. So... I'll keep stopping by here every day at sunset, and... and I hope you'll be here, too, when you get the chance..." 

[Mama]

"A-a whole moon..." The other cat said, and as she moved away her ear pricked up and she met the calico Ivyclanner's gaze, her eye flickering with sadness. "...I'm really happy to see you again, Shadepaw," Rivershine mewed after a moment, sniffling. Shadepaw blinked slowly, before starting to purr lightly. "A-after we met up the first time, I kept thinking about you all the time, because I really, really wanted to see you again... but then that earthquake happened, and I kept wondering if you were okay, or if we'd ever meet again." At that, her sadness faded, and she gave a gulp as her purring seemed to grow louder and louder. "These last few moons have been really hard on all of us, but... but I think we can be happy now, so... I never want either of us to have to worry like that again. I want to be there if anything happens to you again, and I want you to know what happens to me. So... I'll keep stopping by here every day at sunset, and... and I hope you'll be here, too, when you get the chance..." 

"Of course I'll come! My mentor, he's a featherbrain, and I doubt if I tell Silverfang I'm practicing walking around the territory she'll let me come out; Besides, I wouldn't be lying. I've missed you since the earthquake, and I'm so happy to see you again.." Shadepaw said to Rivershine, going a faint red as a grin softly grew on her face.