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clangenrising · 8 months ago

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Month 13 - Newleaf

Slatekit was worried about Fogkit. Since the day of the funeral, her sister only left the den once or twice a day for sanitary breaks and stayed in her nest most of the time, staring at the wall. Slatekit had started bringing her meals for fear she would starve if she didn’t. Fogkit said “thanks” and picked at the meal and usually turned away halfway through, saying “I’m not that hungry.” Slatekit had tried to convince her to finish once and she had whipped around with a “I said I’m not that hungry, okay?!” and a burning glare. Slatekit hadn’t pushed her after that.

Instead, she had tried to find ways to busy herself around camp. Sitting in the den with Fogkit and no one else, the den seemed to loom darkly around her, threatening to swallow her whole. She didn’t want to stay there anymore. She didn’t want to be alone with her thoughts and Fogkit’s periodic sighs.

So she’d taken to helping with the chores around camp - checking the prey pile for crowfood, fixing up the nests and carrying away the used bedding, that sort of thing. She’d even asked Oddstripe if he had any jobs he needed help with and he’d taught her how to search for ticks and fleas. It was a bit early in the season but he had her check some of the warriors, just in case. Thankfully, she found nothing.

She liked helping. It made her feel like she was like her mama and it made the other thoughts quiet down for a while. She couldn’t stop worrying about Fogkit though. It seemed like other cats were worried too which did nothing to reassure her own worries. They tried not to talk about their worries around her, though. She didn’t know how she felt about that.

One day, while Slatekit was plucking feathers from the prey pile to put in peoples’ nests, Goldenstar approached her with a cat she’d never seen before. The stranger was a pretty, tortoiseshell she-cat, all speckles and spots. She smelled very different from the kittypet in camp, like greenery and rotting undergrowth. She smiled as she saw Slatekit and Slatekit couldn’t help but smile back.

“Hey, Slatekit,” Goldenstar said brightly, “I wanted to introduce you to someone. This is Poppybird, FallenClan’s mediator.”

“Hi,” said Slatekit shyly.

“Hello, Slatekit,” purred Poppybird, her voice warm and smooth. “What are you doing?”

“I’m helping pick out feathers for everyone’s bedding,” she said.

“That’s very kind of you,” said Poppybird. Slatekit smiled, puffing up with a little pride.

Goldenstar was smiling too. “Poppybird was a friend of your mom’s and she wanted to come spend the day with you and Fogkit.”

“Really?” Slatekit’s eyes widened. She really wanted to spend time with them? She’d never even met them.

“Mhm,” nodded Poppybird. “I thought maybe we could go on a little adventure together.”

“O-okay,” Slatekit said, standing from her work, “but, um, Fogkit might not want to come. She’s been grumpy lately.”

“She has?” Poppybird asked. “How so?”

“Um…” Slatekit glanced over at the nursery where she knew Fogkit was probably sleeping or staring at the wall. “Well she doesn’t like to get out of her nest anymore. And she bit me.”

“She bit you?” Poppybird’s face softened sympathetically. “Do you know why?”

“Um… She said that the effigy was stupid and then started ruining the flowers so I tried to push her away and then she bit me. It really hurt.” She gave a few licks to the paw that had been bitten as she thought about it.

“That must have been really upsetting,” said Poppybird gently. Slatekit nodded. “I’m sorry that Fogkit’s grieving hurt you, Slatekit.”

“It’s alright,” Slatekit mumbled, looking down. “I still love her anyway.”

“That’s good,” smiled Poppybird. “She’s lucky to have such a loving sister.” Slatekit blushed, shuffling her paws. She didn’t know what to say to that but it made her feel fuzzy inside.

“Why don’t you guys go get Fogkit,” Goldenstar said. “I’ll make sure these feathers get where they’re going.”

“Okay,” Slatekit nodded.

“Walk with me, won’t you?” Poppybird invited, stretching her tail out to her. Slatekit nodded and curled her tail with the mediator’s and started towards the nursery. She stopped in the entrance though, a sudden hesitance seeping into her as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Fogkit was curled in the corner of the nest, staring at the wall with a bored and weary expression. Slatekit was grateful that Poppybird stepped up to talk first.

“Fogkit?”

Fogkit sat up, frowning, and squinted at them. “Who are you?” She sounded angry. Slatekit’s tail fell to the ground.

“My name is Poppybird,” the adult seemed unphased, her voice still warm and gentle. “I was a friend of your mother’s.”

“So?” said Fogkit.

“With Goldenstar’s permission, I wanted to take you both out on a little adventure today, have some fun together. I was thinking we could go down to the river, what do you think?” Slatekit held her breath hoping her sister said yes. Going to the river sounded like a really fun adventure and she didn’t want to go alone.

Fogkit shifted in the nest. “I dunno…”

“You don’t have to come,” Poppybird said, “but I’m going and if Slatekit wants to go she’s welcome to come. You can even come along and then, if you decide you’re done, you can come right back.” She took a step back to leave the den entrance wide open. Fogkit pulled her paws underneath her, hips shifting like she was about to start hunting. Her brows were still pinched together angrily but there was something else in her expression, something that said ‘wait for me!’

“Okay,” Fogkit said after a moment of chewing on the thought. She stood up and padded towards them slowly. Slatekit smiled despite the worry that Fogkit’s slightly matted, ungroomed fur was stirring in her. Poppybird seemed to have no reaction to the kit’s disheveled appearance.

“Do you need to eat or anything before we go?” asked the mediator, watching them as Fogkit stepped out into the daylight, squinting harshly in the afternoon light.

“No,” said Fogkit, “I’m not hungry.”

“Okay,” smiled Poppybird. “Then there’s only one thing we have to do before we go. Goldenstar said we have to take someone with us to keep us safe. Who do you think we should bring?”

“Ospreymask is nice,” Slatekit said.

“No,” Fogkit said immediately. “Not Ospreymask.”

“Why not?” Slatekit asked, ears pressed back.

“Cause!” Fogkit hissed. She dropped her gaze, pouting at the dirt. “I don’t like her anymore.” Slatekit frowned in despair. Why? What had Ospreymask done? She was afraid too ask.

“That’s alright,” Poppybird said gently, laying her tail over Slatekit’s back. “Who do you think would be fun to bring along, Fogkit?”

Fogkit chewed her cheek for a moment before she said, “Floodpaw.” Slatekit was baffled by that. Floodpaw hated them! Or at least, he hated hanging out with them. She didn’t want to say anything though, in case Fogkit got angry again.

Poppybird asked, “Does that sound okay to you, Slatekit?” Slatekit wasn’t sure. She shuffled her paws and shrugged. “You don’t know?” She nodded. “Is there any reason why bringing Floodpaw would be bad?” Slatekit considered it. Probably not, especially with Poppybird there.

“I guess not.”

“Okay, would it be alright if we invited him then?” Poppybird’s smile set her at ease.

“Yeah, okay,” she nodded again.

“Great,” said Poppybird.

A few moments later, they were heading out of camp, Floodpaw following behind them begrudgingly. Slatekit still didn’t understand why Fogkit had invited him but at least it seemed like he wasn’t going to say anything mean to them. As they ventured out into the grass, Slatekit remembered their snake encounter with a little gasp.

“Oh! Um, it’s good that we brought Floodpaw with us,” she said.

“Why’s that?” Poppybird tilted her head with interest.

“Cause,” started Slatekit, “cause, um, last time-”

“Last time we saw a snake,” Fogkit blurted. Slatekit nodded.

“Wow!” Poppybird gasped, “What happened?” Floodpaw rolled his eyes.

“Bar- um, Barleypaw killed it,” Slatekit said excitedly.

“Yeah, she smacked it until it died,” Fogkit whispered conspiratorially.

“That must have been very exciting,” marveled Poppybird.

“Yeah,” said Fogkit, sounding tired again. “I never got to tell mom the snake story.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Poppybird said, her voice soft. “I bet she would have liked it.”

“Oh, yeah?” Fogkit glared up at her. “How would you know?” Slatekit held her breath as best she could while walking. Please don’t start yelling, please don’t start yelling. She didn’t want Fogkit to get held back from becoming an apprentice. She didn’t want to have her ceremony all alone!

Poppybird didn’t seem to react at all. “I did the same job as your mother and we talked often. She was a friend of mine.”

“She never mentioned you,” Fogkit huffed boldly.

“She mentioned you,” said Poppybird.

“Really?” Fogkit blinked in surprise.

“Mhm,” nodded Poppybird. “She was so proud of you two. She told me all about your stories and adventures. I’m really glad I finally got to meet you.”

“Me too,” Slatekit said. Knowing one of her mama’s friends made her feel all light and cozy. Fogkit frowned and looked down at the ground.

They walked for what felt like a really long time. Poppybird told them the stories she’d heard about them and answered their questions about FallenClan - it was in a deep forest and the camp was surrounded by brambles and they ate mostly the same stuff but not rabbits and sometimes frogs and there were two kits named Lionkit and Wishkit and they weren’t related - and by the time they reached the river, Fogkit seemed to be mostly back to normal. She was a little quieter than usual and her fur was still matted and dirty but she was smiling and asking questions and Slatekit couldn’t help but follow suit.

“Look at it!” Fogkit cried at the sight of the river. It stretched out before them, at least three fox-lengths across, shining in the sunlight as it rushed noisily over the stones of the riverbed. Slatekit gasped excitedly.

“Okay,” said Poppybird, “There’s a few rules to keep us safe that you need to know. Never go deeper than your belly and be careful where you put your paws to make sure you don’t slip. Got it?”

“Got it!” the girls chorused brightly. Floodpaw sighed and sat down, looking away.

Poppybird looked at him and said, “Feel free to have some fun too, Floodpaw. Do whatever you want to do, all I need is for you to be ready if something dangerous happens.”

“Really?” he perked his ears a little.

“Really,” she nodded with a smile and he brightened significantly. Back on his paws, he started down towards the river.

Fogkit took off running, shouting, “I bet I can beat you there, Floodpaw!”

“Huh?” he paused out of surprise then frowned as he realized she was nearing the water pretty quickly. “No way!” Taking off across the pebbles, he sprinted after her. Thanks to his long legs, he made it into the shallows a good body-length ahead of her and she cried out in disappointment.

“No fair! You’ve got longer legs!”

“You’re the one who started the bet!” he laughed, splashing her with a pawful of water. Fogkit shrieked and puffed up to twice her size, tumbling back.

“It’s cold!” she cried.

“It’s not that cold,” Floodpaw rolled his eyes and lowered himself down to crouch in the shallow water so that it came up to his shoulders.

“He’s in too deep!” Slatekit cried but Poppybird shook her head.

“No, he’s alright. As long as you can stand up and it only touches your belly, you’re not too deep.”

“Oh, okay,” Slatekit relaxed. She ventured up to the edge of the water cautiously. Fogkit was playing with her reflection in the water while Floodpaw stretched himself out on his belly until his head was the only thing above the water. Slatekit carefully stepped into the water then reeled back with a squeak of discomfort.

“Ah!” she cried, “I don’t like it!”

“That’s okay,” said Poppybird, coming up behind them. “You don’t have to touch it.”

“I wanna swim like Floodpaw!” Fogkit declared. He snorted to himself.

“Okay,” Poppybird said, “just remember the rules. Floodpaw, do make sure she doesn’t drown, yes?”

“Yeah, of course,” he said, twitching his ear against the river bugs starting to cloud near his face.

Satisfied, Poppybird twined her tail with Slatekit’s and said, “There are lots of interesting bugs by the river. Why don’t we walk down the bank and look for some?”

“O-okay,” Slatekit nodded. They padded off down the river, leaving the splash radius just in time for Fogkit to leap straight onto Floodpaw’s back, sending water flying in all directions.

“Hey!” he snapped, and Slatekit glanced back worriedly. He reached up and shoved Fogkit into the river face first.

Slatekit’s stomach flipped in fright and she stopped in her tracks, but then Fogkit burst out of the water squealing in delight and cried, “Again!” so she tried to relax a little.

“She’s alright,” Poppybird said.

“I know,” Slatekit said, convincing herself as she said it. “I just don’t like to play rough like that.” She started walking again, eyes searching the pebbled shore for the bugs that had been mentioned.

“That’s okay,” Poppybird said. “Everyone is different. Some people don’t like to play rough and some people do and that is completely fine as long as they show consideration for how the other person wants to play.”

“Yeah,” Slatekit nodded. She liked how Poppybird talked. It reminded her of her mama.

“Fogkit and you are pretty different, huh?” asked Poppybird.

“Yeah.”

“Can you tell me some ways you’re different?”

Slatekit hummed thoughtfully. “She’s loud but I’m just quiet.”

“Oh, yes,” Poppybird smiled. “I bet it’s nice to have someone loud to help you when you’re quiet.”

“Yeah,” nodded Slatekit again. “She says the stuff I don’t wanna say. Although sometimes she says mean stuff too.”

“Like with the effigy?”

“Mhm.” Slatekit frowned a little and paused to roll some stones out of place to look underneath them.

“What kind of stuff did she say?”

Slatekit’s voice was very soft when she spoke. “That it was stupid ‘cause it was just wood… And that it was, um, bee-brained to pretend it was mama. Oddstripe said pretending helps you feel better but Fogkit said that was dumb.”

“Mm,” Poppybird hummed in understanding. “How did that make you feel?”

“Sad…” said Slatekit. “I liked the effigy.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, it made me feel less lonely about it.” She rolled one of the rounder pebbles under her paw, back and forth. The smooth texture was nice on her paw pad.

Poppybird smiled. “I’m glad that it did. It can be really lonely to lose someone you love. It’s good to find things that make you feel less lonely.”

“But Fogkit hated it,” Slatekit said. “I don’t understand why she was so angry.”

“You and Fogkit are very different,” restated Poppybird. “When she gets lonely because she misses your mother, it makes her angry. I haven’t spoken to her yet but I know other cats who are the same and it can be really hard not to get angry when they get that sad.”

“Why though?” Slatekit looked up at her. “I don’t get angry, I just get sad.”

“It might be because it feels unfair,” said Poppybird, “or because being angry feels less powerless than just being sad. But sometimes there isn’t a reason. You can’t control the way you feel and sometimes being sad makes people angry, that’s that.”

Slatekit hummed and rolled the pebble under her paw. She looked back over her shoulder at her sister who was cackling between gulps of air as Floodpaw repeatedly shoved her head under the water, smiling madly. She didn’t understand Fogkit at all. But Fogkit was happy and that was good.

She looked up at Poppybird again and asked, “What do I do if she gets sad again? She spent a long time in the den not talking to anybody. It’s scary, honestly.”

“Just have patience,” Poppybird smiled. “She’ll feel better eventually. All you have to do is wait and keep showing her you love her. If you can, it wouldn’t hurt if you could get her to come out and play with you sometimes. It’s good for her to get some sun and move her body.”

“Okay,” Slatekit said determinedly. “I can do that.”

“That’s great,” Poppybird said.

After that, they went bug hunting in earnest. They found a worm but nothing else of note and Poppybird explained that it was probably too early for bugs like damselflies. Slatekit carried the worm back to a drenched Fogkit and they both took the worm in their mouths from either end and tore it in half, Fogkit cheering when she came away with the bigger half. Slatekit was just glad to see her sister smiling again.

They all laid down on the bank to sun themselves until Fogkit and Floodpaw were dry and then they went home. Poppybird stayed for dinner and, afterwards, Slatekit went to play with Ospreymask so Poppybird and Fogkit could talk by themselves. When it was finally time to settle down, long after dark, Slatekit made sure to tell Poppybird goodnight before she and Fogkit went to bed.

“Today was fun,” Fogkit said as they shared tongues in their nest.

“Yeah!” purred Slatekit. “I’m glad you came to the river with us.”

“Yeah, me too,” said Fogkit. “I wish you wanted to swim though.”

“Maybe next time,” Slatekit said, although she very much doubted that.

“When we’re apprentices, we’ll go swimming whenever we want!” Fogkit said. Slatekit grinned and bumped her head against Fogkit’s as the purr overtook her.

“I love you, Fogkit,” she said.

“I love you too,” said Fogkit and Slatekit felt the happiest she had in weeks.

#clan gen #clangen #warrior cats #warriors #warrior cats oc #warriors oc #clangen oc #clan gen oc #Clangenrising #Goldenstar #Poppybird #Wishkit #Newleaf #mediator #Fogpaw #Slatepaw #Lionpaw #Floodstrike

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lymoncat · 10 months ago

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AOT HCS MODERN AU! What pet you guys own

Eren-

he has a dog I’m not even gonna lie, he comes across as a dog person, he doesn’t care what breed but prefers big dogs specifically German shepherds he bought a dog when y’all moved in together and he’s actually really close with the dog, you named the dog bobo you chose the name cuz you thought it would be cute, the dog is very attached to eren

armin-

a cat, an orange tabby cat. Armin comes across as a more calm less crazy person meaning he would want a cat to chill and read with. He named the cat tangerine cuz it’s orange. You bought him the cat for Christmas one year since you didn’t know what to get him. It’s the wholesome moments, when you see him on the couch after work holding the cat, you fall in love all over again with your gentle small ray of sunshine

Jean-

you may think that he has a horse but your very wrong, he has an annoying green parrot that calls you mom, you can simply walk by the change and you’ll hear “food mom?” And you eventually get used to it and get another parrot for them to play together and stop bugging you

connie-

oh you poor unfortunate soul, him and that tortoise. Jk he has a dog still, you poor unfortunate soul, him and that dog do everything together, he has a border collie that joins you two in everything, taking a shower, the dog is at the door, using the bathroom?, the dog is staring into your soul, trying to leave? The dog is following you out the door. The dogs same is bacon cuz the dog loves bacon

Reiner-

Bull dog off the bat, he has a big dog strong like him, they wrestle on the living room floor all the time, go on walks, play fetch, chase little kids- wait- what?! Yeah, they think it’s funny to chase children in the park especially the snotty teenager brats over in the corner doing some not so innocent things, the dog is a female named Presley very energetic and playful but don’t expect any unwanted visitors there will be none, middle of the night a robber comes ain’t no way that person getting out alive, maybe in a body bag but not alive.

Bertholdt-

a tortoiseshell cat with gold eyes, you guys went to an animal rescue center for your anniversary and he fell in love with this cat, he was begging you until you said yes I mean how could you not?! He’s batting those pretty green eyes while on his knees with the cat “please can we get her? I’ll do anything my love” it was a yes in that very moment and next thing you knew you were on your way home with a cat named pineapple don’t bother asking how that name came across his mind but it’s always nice to see him in one of his weird sleeping positions with pineapple splayed across his chest on her back

Erwin-

a lazy pug named Mr. There’s no question just a fat lazy pug that sheds buckets of fur.

Levi-

you begged him to get an animal and he kept saying no until he came home to you having bought one without his permission, he glared and looked pissed until that fat fluffy black cat looked him in the eyes with her emerald ones. He caved in. The cat was named jasmine and he allowed you to keep it because cats are very hygienic and easy to take care of. He hates changing the litter box but will do it for Jasmine. And when he does actually sleep it’s curled up with you and jasmine and absolutely precious, jasmine sits on his lap when he’s doing work and he shares his food with her all of the time strangely enough she loves lettuce, you’ll be in the kitchen making salad and she’ll prance over and sit there meowing for lettuce

I hope you guys liked this, please comment your thoughts and send me requests and don’t be afraid to give me feedback ❤️✨

#connie springer #connie x reader #aot x reader #aot headcanons #levi ackerman #levi ackerman x reader #bertholdt x reader #bertholdt hoover #aot x reader fluff #jean x reader #jean kirstein #eren jaeger #eren x reader #reiner braun #reiner x reader #erwin smith #erwin x reader #armin arlert #armin x reader

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catiecat1320 · 21 days ago

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Sonadowtober Prompt 19: Cat Cafe

Sonic brings a new cat to the cafe Amy runs… and finds Shadow there as well

Happy Sonadow Gens Release!!! (To the people without early access lol)

Read Below🔽

“Amy?”

“Yeah, Sonic?” The pink hedgehog doesn’t even bother looking up from the computer she’s furiously typing into. Sonic shifts the pet crate in his arms, trying to be as discreet as possible as he throws glances over his shoulder.

“Why is Shadow here?”

“What?” Amy looks up, confused. “Oh! Shadow’s here regularly, and helps out a lot with the little guys. He’s a cat whisperer, I’m telling you. All of them love him.”

“I… wouldn’t doubt that.” He peeks at the striped hedgehog again, who’s sitting on the floor to the far side of the wall, surrounded by half the cats in the cafe.

“And… registered! You’ll just need to come up with a name, Sonic. Hey Shadow!” Sonic spun around to stare at Amy, wondering why she would call for Shadow’s attention. “We have a new addition to our crowd!”

Red eyes lock onto him intently, face wiped of emotion as he gestures to Sonic… or at the crate Sonic was holding.

Awkwardly, the hero shuffles over and sets it down. A hiss drifts out, but Shadow’s unfazed as he kneels and peeks in, gently cooing at it as he unlatches the door. “C’mon… c’mon…”

Miraculously, at least, miraculously to Sonic, Shadow manages to coax the little gray cat out without trouble. No hissing, no biting, no scratching, nothing. Not even as the hedgehog picked it up and sat back, placing it in his lap. It’s like this random stray Sonic saved on one of his runs had known Shadow for its entire life.

Cat whisperer indeed…

Amy guides him over to another table for a snack, but Sonic’s barely hearing her. He sits down in a dainty little chair, distracted, ending up nearly spilling his coffee once he gets it. His attention was entirely stolen by Shadow and the cafe cats.

Their interactions were so gentle, so soft. There seemed to be no hitch between them despite their difference, as if they understood each other wholly and completely. To have such a connection…

“Hedgehog.”

He almost didn’t hear that. Almost. He pretended not to.

“Hedgehog. I know you can hear me.”

“Eh, worth a shot,” Sonic shrugged. “What’s up?”

“What’s up? Do you hear yourself?” Shadow deadpanned, petting a cat that nudged him for affection. “You’ve been staring at me for the past 10 minutes. What do you want?”

Sonic laughs sheepishly as he realizes he’d been caught, and quite a while ago at that. Embarrassing.

He attempts to nonchalantly sip his now cold coffee but chokes instead as pitched meow sounds right next to him, causing him to jump, much to the amusement of Shadow and his cat squad. The black and white culprit yawns at Sonic, baring its little teeth as if it were laughing.

“This isn’t fair,” he pouts. The cat just leaps onto his head, settling in blue quills without a care in the world. “Hey! Get out of there! Those are sharp y’know!”

Shadow rolled his eyes. “They won’t hurt her if you don’t raise them. You know that.”

“But still—”

“No but. Sit.”

An… order? Shadow points to the spot next to him, expression completely serious, gaze locked onto Sonic expectantly. The latter’s eye twitched with confusion as he complied. “So…”

“Oreo,” Shadow whistled, and the spotted cat immediately leaped from Sonic’s quills into striped ones. The hero’s awed at the display of obedience.

“How do you get them to listen to you?”

“I don’t. They do whatever they want.” A different cat, a tortoiseshell, rubs itself against Shadow’s leg, purring like an engine. He chirps at it and it jumps into his lap, settling belly-up as it plays with white tufts of fur from his chest. “It’s a matter of understanding them. Working with them. Then, you can align your wants with their wants.”

Sonic hums, watching the cafe workers scoot around tables and cats to get to their patrons. His cheeks puff out as he traces circles on the floor. “Hm. That’s deep, man.”

“...Why do you choose to act so stupid?” Ruby eyes bore into the other hedgehog, demanding an answer.

“What…?” Sonic laughed awkwardly. That was such a random question. “What do you mean?”

“If you were truly stupid, you wouldn’t be alive.” The tortoiseshell left Shadow’s lap to go seek another customer to bother, and Oreo jumped out of his quills to follow. “You understand the concept. You’ve applied it everyday: you adapt to your surroundings, you bend with the flow, you live and you learn, you grow and you conquer. Why must you choose to pretend you don’t?”

Sonic shrugged, cocking his head in half-attempted thought. “Maybe you’re wrong. I’m a simple guy, y’know? You’re overthinking it.” The kitten he brought in comes up to him, having well adjusted to its new home already. Gently, he reaches a hand out to pet it, grinning in triumph when it lets him.

Shadow watches the whole interaction with a distant expression on his face. “I’m not wrong,” he decides aloud, straightening. “You just don’t realize your own act.”

“Well, if you say so. That’s good enough for me!” Sonic’s cradling the kitten in his palms, petting it with his thumb. Cheekily, he holds it up, grinning as the little thing meows at him. The hero plants a kiss on its head and places it in Shadow’s open hands. “It wants you.”

“...How do you understand so well, yet not at the same time?”

“Dunno, man!” Sonic scoots closer, reaching over and petting the cat with two fingers. “Maybe you can find out for me!”

“I don’t think I ever will,” Shadow muttered under his breath. Sonic pretends not to hear. It’s not like he needs to listen.

“So what should we name this lil’ guy?”

It only takes a heartbeat for Shadow to respond. “Storm.”

“Strong name for such a tiny cat, don’t ya think?”

“He’ll grow into it. It’s the innocent ones that are the most trouble.”

#sonadowtober #sonadowtober 2024 #sonic #sonic the hedgehog #shadow the hedgehog #sonadow #fluff #cats #cat cafe #oneshot #writing #writers on tumblr #writeblr #fanfic #fanfiction #ao3 #cross posted on ao3 #CatieCatWorks

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novvaable · 2 years ago

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15 questions for 15 mutuals

thank you for tagging me @satellite-sims <3

Are you named after anyone? not that I’m aware of! I think my mum decided she wanted to choose a unique name.

When was the last time you cried? this is so silly but I cried a couple of nights ago because I love my cat so much and he was looking real cute. (I think work stress got to me lol)

Do you have kids? no human children.. but fur babies yes.

Do you use sarcasm a lot? not a lot! only with people that know me. I don’t wanna come across as mean if they don’t know I’m being sarcastic.

What sports do you play/have you played? n/a.. sports was never my thing lol

What’s the first thing you notice about other people? someone’s eyes! I feel like they say a lot about someone

Scary movies or happy endings? 100% happy endings, i really don’t like scary films

Any special talents? nope …🥲 maybe the ability to literally complain about anything

Where were you born? i was born in london, specially west central kind of area. I lived in london up until about 8 months ago where I moved to the countryside and it was the best decision ever!!

What are your hobbies? I feel like I have quite a few!! I like to bounce between loads of different ones so I don’t get bored. during covid I got super into houseplants. I love drawing / painting / colouring. gaming, reading and occasionally writing too.

Do you have any pets? yes!! I have two cats. i have a three-legged tabby cat called rocky, he’s around 4 yrs old. i also recently adopted a kitten, she’s an 11 weeks old tortoiseshell and is called neite :)

How tall are you? I haven’t measured myself in a long time.. but I believe 5”4, or somewhere around that figure.

Fave subject in school? history <33 i loved it so much I even went and got a history degree lol

Dream job? interior designer or something in politics. ik they’re super polar opposite but a girl can dream.

Eye colour? green :)

looking forward to hearing your guys answers 🫡

@pixelevia // @thesims0 // @plasticpinkheart // @smallsimmer // @simimpala // @hurricanesims //@littlefrenchsims // @polrbearsims // @simplysimpixels // @nessysims // @spnmoosejerk// @skeksi-sims // @doka-chan //@reverieinsimlish //@rachel-homeanddesign-sims

#non sims #personal #tag game

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cryptidswitch · 1 year ago

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Get To Know Me Tag!

LI was tagged on my old blog by the ever gracious @salemssimblr

So now I’ll answer it here :P

Show your wallpaper and the last song you listened to

Currently I have a wallpaper from Wallpaper Engine (so the rain and the leaves move!) which is the Mystery Shack from Gravity Falls! This is the night version and then there is a sunny version for the day time it automatically switches to!

The last song I listened to was Anything You Want by JAWNY!

Currently reading?

Right now I’m about to hop back into listening to Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir! My boyfriend read through Gideon and I told him when he started listening to Harrow I’d go back and listen to the rest of it so we could talk about it.

Last movie?

Ponyo! Watched it with the kiddo (not that she paid any attention to it haha)

Last show?

Guys Grocery Games! We finally got access to Food Network on streaming again (thank you MAX) and my mom, Matt, and I binged like half a season today lmao

Craving?

Currently craving these microwaveable shepherd’s pies things that I’m not even sure if they make anymore but the brand was called Crikey’s lmao. I know that’s weirdly specific but cut me some slack, it’s shark week

What are you wearing right now?

Ohhh, are you so curious ask game? ~eyebrow waggle~ God I need to go to bed lol. Currently in a pair of super soft grey jogger pj pants and an olive green crop top cami

How tall are you?

For the longest time I measured in at like 5′4″ and some change but that’s because they always told me to put my back against the wall and I couldn’t do that and stand straight apparently so I’m actually 5′6″ and some change!

Piercings?

Just two lobe ear piercings!

Tattoos?

Currently none, I’ve got several I want but the money and time never seem to line up x.x

Glasses or Contacts?

I have glasses that I need to wear more! I don’t think I’ll ever do contacts tbh

Last thing you ate?

Right now I’m eating Skittles :P

Favorite Color?

Emerald green, any shade of purples, and black!

Current Obsession?

So, I’m an absolute slut for stationary and back to school/college season is coming up and I’m practically frothing at the mouth for all the new stationary coming out! Otherwise I’ve been really into stuff from the Edwardian era lately!

Any Pets?

I’ve got two cats that hate each other lol. One is a one eyed, black and white, manx cat named Ciel (after the anime character) and Smudge who is a teeny tiny tortoiseshell cat

Favorite fictional character?

This is such an evil question lmao. I have fallen deeply in love with Gideon and Harrow from the Ninth House series. Jude Duarte from The Folk of the Air series made me obsessed with the name Jude and I just adore her. Charlie from The Book of Night is a complete and total badass! Kaz Brekker and Inej from Six of Crows, Delilah Greene from Delilah Greene Doesn’t Care, Booker and Elizabeth from Bioshock Infinite, Iron Bull and Blackwall and Cullen and Josephine from Dragon Age Inquisition, Arthur and John from Malevolent, Jon and Martin and Bashira from The Magnus Archives, Caduceus Clay from Critical Role campaign 2, and many MANY more! I can’t pick favorites lol

Last place you traveled?

Last place we went to beyond our usual haunts was the mall down in Cincinnati to attempt to go to the Squishables store for Mother’s Day (it hadn’t actually opened yet in spite of what google said)

I will tag anyone who would like to do this!

#tag games

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vlad-theimplier · 4 months ago

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WIP "Wednesday": Custos Custodium

Oops. Anyway.

They say to write what you know, so I decided Malik's roommate has a cat. Also in this episode: Jensen learns how to skydive, and everyone is shitty to Augs. Find the fic at: https://archiveofourown.org/works/55686901/chapters/141357007

He met Malik at her apartment—a matchbox indeed, with a galley kitchen occupying most of the shared space and two closet-sized bedrooms holding a lofted twin apiece. One of her absent roommates had filled the living room with potted plants whose vines crawled across the windows and turned the sparse rays of sun that crept between adjacent buildings a brilliant emerald. A tortoiseshell cat followed her out of the back and inspected him. He ran a careful finger down its back, from one ear to the base of the tail, and it purred and shoved its head into his shin.

“Good to see you! You want to pass out on my couch for a minute?” she asked. “Fair’s fair.”

“Slept on the train. Can I drop my bag, though? Hotel doesn’t do check-in until four.”

“Sure.” She made a face. “You know you could’ve crashed here, right? London’s expensive as hell.”

He surveyed the minuscule accommodations deliberately. “You said it was cramped. You share it with three people I don’t know. And this fellow.” The cat twined happily around his ankles, rumbling like an old muscle car.

“They’re friendly! And two of them are gone at any given time. The Duke of Hork doesn’t take up much space, and he only ever throws up on Sarah’s bag.”

He raised an eyebrow at the title. The cat did have an aristocratic portliness to him. “Didn’t want to impose. It’s fine. The Task Force keeps me housed and armed. Prague’s not pricey like London.”

“All right, well, if you’re sure. Hungry?”

“How’d you guess?”

“Tear yourself away from His Grace, and let’s hit a chippy.”

An entire cod and an acre’s worth of insuperable fries later, he sat back on the bench they shared and basked contented in the sun. His black clothing soaked up the sparse rays, and though the weather was chilly still, it lacked bite. “What’s the plan?” he asked. “Not that I wouldn’t happily just bum around and clean out the North Sea of seafood.”

Malik surveyed the smaller chunk of fried fish half-eaten in the paper tray before her and admitted defeat, consigning it to a nearby bin. “Want to jump off the top of the London Eye?”

He snorted, but she continued: “I actually think I can line up another pilot friend of mine for tomorrow if you want to learn how to skydive. You owe it to yourself, with the Icarus.”

“Seriously? Yeah, for sure. Sounds like a blast.”

She nudged his shoulder. “You’re gonna be a natural. You probably won’t even need supplemental oxygen for the altitude.”

“Uh… how high were you planning on going?”

“You ever heard of HALO?”

He pondered. “Like the angels, or like the video game?”

“That’s what I thought. High-altitude, low-open. Ask your coworkers—I bet one of them was a paratrooper or something, the way you guys operate.”

“Mmm, yeah. At least one of the grunts. And I think the E-SEALs train with chutes, so Jarreau back in Chicago’s probably done it. How high is high? And more importantly, how low is low?”

She fought a smile with limited success. “How’s thirty thousand feet sound?”

“High. Cold. I see why you’d need oxygen.”

“And you can pop under two kay, but it’s not advised for beginners. I’ve gone down to two-fifty over water. I know someone who was showing off and pulled at two hundred… but he broke both ankles.”

Jensen looked at her. “Twenty-eight thousand feet of free fall? As in five miles?”

The smile won out. “Hell of a thrill. What do you say?”

“If I break my ankles, you get to pay for the replacement parts. And explain it to Sarif.”

“I’m telling Nils you’re a ‘yes,’ then. Speaking of ankles, when did you get yours repaired? It was in rough shape when I saw you in Singapore, but it seems fine now.”

“Huh. I’d… forgotten about that. Must’ve gotten fixed up while they were reviving me.” He flexed the ankle thoughtfully, then pulled it up over his right knee. It looked fine. “Guess they had Sarif spares.”

“Well, as long as it can take a landing. Not like I’m gonna get you on a dance floor… am I? I assumed pubs over clubs, for tonight.”

He remembered the Hive and winced. “Yep.”

“Too bad. I wanted to see what would happen. Figured you’d panic in under a minute.”

“Remind me why I spent fourteen hours on a train to hang out with you?”

She laughed. “I thought it was so you could drink me under the table in front of all my friends. I didn’t tell anyone you had a Sentinel—didn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

“That’s terrible.” Jensen chuckled. “Can’t wait. How many friends are we talking?”

“Just three. My roommate Maggie—she’s more or less on my schedule. She’s a flight attendant, and we’ve gone bouldering a couple times. Nils, who’d be flying us up to the stratosphere tomorrow on his way to Johannesburg. And Laura, another pilot friend. She does helo tours around the British Isles, mostly. That okay with you?”

“Shocked you have three whole friends besides me. I figure I can just about carry four people home after a couple of pubs. Especially if anyone else is a shrimp like you.” “Bold words to your future skydiving instructor, Jensen,” she said, and socked him in the arm. He pretended not to notice her nursing her knuckles as she stood.

#deus ex #wip wednesday #adam jensen #faridah malik #cats

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stars-tonight · 5 months ago

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hi! i would love to request a haikyuu matchup if that’s okay! i don’t have any preference for a long or short matchup so you can just do whatever you’re feeling like! if you’re feeling up for a long matchup go for it but if you’re not feeling like a long one short is totally fine! i’m good either way:)

i’m bisexual so no preference for gender!

an ideal partner for me would be someone who wants to get to know me as a person & really likes me for who i am. i’d also like someone who loves animals because i have a ton of pets! i’d also appreciate someone who won’t belittle or make fun of me for the things i like (more on that below!) i have no height or looks preference other than someone who’s taller than me! (which won’t be hard to find because i’m very small)

okay a little bit about myself! hi my name is chloe & i use she/her pronouns! i’m 4’10 & curvy which brings a lot of insecurity to me because i’ve got a very large chest for such a petite frame. i have medium length curly light brown hair & green eyes. i love pop music & my favorite artists are taylor swift, gracie abrams, chappell roan, olivia rodrigo, & sabrina carpenter. i am absolutely obsessed with movies & shows too. i just love media. my favorite movies are the twilight series & whiplash (psychological drama!) my favorite shows are greys anatomy, criminal minds, gilmore girls, & bridgerton! i also really love to read & enjoy practically any genre. i collect vinyl & crystals. i dry flowers and just got a kitten! she’s a dilute tortoiseshell named rory and she’s the love of my life i adore her. i grew up with tons of animals so i have chickens, dogs, cats, bunnies, & a lizard! i just graduated high school a year early & now i’m taking a gap year to work & save for college! i have multiple anxiety disorders and i tend to be kind of shy and awkward about meeting new people but when i’m close with someone i’m much more open. i tend to be somewhat brutally honest in certain situations but in others i’m really passive and quiet. i have a tendency to feel like i don’t belong anywhere & i feel really hurt by people in my past so it’s difficult for me to trust that anyone actually wants me for me & not just my body or the idea of me.

my giving love languages are probably quality time, physical touch, & acts of service. my receiving love languages are probably quality time, physical touch, & words of affirmation.

my mbti type is infp!

that’s all i can think of right now but feel free to dm or go in my asks if you have any other questions!

headcanons

🥛 akaashi is very observant so he'd definitely notice if you were ever feeling insecure or anxious

🥛 he'd be the KING of words of affirmation like he'd always know what to say to cheer you up

🥛 i definitely don't see akaashi as the kind of guy to date for fun so he'd definitely be in it for the long run

🥛 hence wanting to get to truly know you

🥛 he'd NEVER laugh at you for something that makes you you

🥛 he's the kind of person to be the only one to listen to you when people talk over you in conversations

🥛 akaashi is also a big reader so i imagine you’d go to the library super often to pick up movies and books

🥛 the librarians and the employees at the local book shop know your guys’s names because you go there so often

🥛 akaashi is also very calm so he’d probably get along with rory

🥛 he might be a bit overwhelmed at first with the chickens or the lizard but he'd definitely read so much about how to take care of them

🥛 and bokuto is like a huge puppy so he already has experience with dogs

🥛 i'm just kidding

🥛 BUT

🥛 i imagine he'd be a great dog trainer, like to where if you sneeze your dog will go get you a tissue

🥛 he’s a tall boy so no need to worry about getting things off high shelves :)

🥛 he doesn't know much about crystals or vinyl records but he'd be so willing to learn

🥛 similarly, he'd always be interested in hearing your movie / show recommendations

🥛 he's just so sweet he'd want to learn everything that makes you happy

🥛 if you teach him how to dry flowers he will 100% spend hours just doing it with you

🥛 gentleman to the max

🥛 pulls out chairs and opens car doors for you

🥛 would offer a massage if you feel stressed out from school

🥛 holds your hand everywhere you go

🥛 especially in crowded areas so you won't get separated

🥛 i imagine sometimes you'll just lay together in silence, sharing a pair of earbuds, and just holding hands or touching each other in some way

runner ups for you are kozume kenma and shimizu kiyoko! (i'm sorry i couldn't decide between the two lol)

A/N: there you go! i hope you like it <3 and thank you for including so much detail it gave me so many ideas!

*i really love akaashi, this man is boyfriend material

#haikyuu #haikyuu!!#hq #haikyu x reader #haikyuu matchup #matchups #haikyu headcanons #haikyuu headcanons #haikyuu hcs #hq headcanons

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elbowreveal · 2 years ago

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I will now introduce you to my cats because I don’t blog about them here much

This is Peeko. Peeko is like a mob boss and he’s built like one too. 19 pounds of extreme attitude. He slaps you if you walk by without saying hello. He bites the houseguests. He bites us. He cries and screams if he’s alone for longer than one hour. He runs away if there’s a mouse. He snores so loud you can hear him two floors away. Even if he wasn’t overweight (yes he’s on a vet orders special diet!) he would still genuinely be a huge cat. He has a massive forehead to store all of his evil plans.

This is Peeko’s brother, Charlie. Charlie has never bitten or harmed a soul. He drinks water with his feet and eats goldfish crackers out of the trash. He watches Minecraft YouTube videos by tilting his head sideways and follows me around close to 24/7. Charlie is built like a bag of raw chicken breasts in marinade. He is a homosexual.

This was Oscar. Oscar was an old stray we fed for 3 or so years and took to the vet when he needed a checkup. He drooled whenever you pet him and he had the funniest croak for a meow. He would bring us mice in exchange for his food. We didn’t see him much but I still consider him my cat. He vanished a long time ago but was a good boy! (I personally couldn’t do much because I was literally a child) RIP Oscar

This was Korra. Korra loved EVERYONE she ever met, it was amazing! She would run to the door to greet every person joyfully, friend or foe. Her favorite thing in the world was to be pet. She could see invisible dragons and was obsessively clean. She was an uncommon color: long haired dilute tortoiseshell. Sadly she unexpectedly passed away this April. She was a rescue so we never knew her full story. RIP Korra miss you!

This is Marvin (tentatively). I met him two days ago but he is my third kitten (after Peeko and Charlie) and my first tabby. I don’t know what evils he will commit but I hope his list of future crimes is extensive and remarkable. He is already very friendly and brave!

Marvin is seven weeks old at the time of this post and Peeko and Charlie are currently almost 13.5 years old.

And those are my cats! I don’t blog about them as much as I used to due to my situation right now but I will occasionally talk about the little guy probably!

#my cats #cw animal death #cw animal injury #cw animal sickness #tw animal death #just in case

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sparklywolfcycle · 2 years ago

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I would love some help picking out Marauders Era patronuses or Animagus

That’s not sarcasm, validation please. I’ll be happy to have some opinions

Its a poll, just say what you think fits best

Notes:

-credit to moldycrustyvoldy (Only Mine Not Yours) who had Dorcas’ as a dragon (and also Marlene as a Tigress)

-getting the information from fantasytopics.com so credit to them

-I didn’t come up with Barty as a crow, Regulus’ various options, or Barty as a swan as those are popular (don’t know exact origin

-Marauders aren’t changing and not on the list since the characters are recognized in the fandom by their Animagus/Patronuses and characters are too ingrained in that to change

-Probably sticking with Lily as a doe but I felt like exploring her options anyway

I’ll shut up and get to the list

DORCAS~DRAGON, ORCA, CHEETAH

-Dragon: powerful, leader, inspires respect and fear in opponents, requires talent

-Orca: a brave leader who isn’t afraid to stand up for beliefs, excellent communication

-Cheetah: fiery and confident, would do anything for their lifelong close friends, independent, common Slytherin patronus

-I picked out Cheetah for Marlene before I realized it sounded a lot like Dorcas

-She would probably have a large, powerful patronus

PANDORA-BLACK BEAR, DOLPHIN, RED SQUIRREL, RUSSIAN BLUE CAT, THESTRAL, TORTOISESHELL CAT, WOOD MOUSE, BROWN HARE, WHITE MARE, SALMON

-Black Bear: gentle, clever, free-spirited, protective, able to adapt

-Dolphin: intelligent, people-oriented, lovable, social, caring, graceful

-Red Squirrel: Curious, unique, caring, excellent at communicating, fierce when there’s danger

-Russian Blue Cat: harmony, peace, life, light, enjoy simple things, caring, intelligent, emotionally aware

-Thestral: Powerful, gentle, and kind

-Tortoiseshell Cat: wise, protective and loyal

-wood mouse: easy-going, brillant, and wise, fights back when provoked

-Brown Hare: underestimated, poised, intelligent, patient

-White Mare: caring, free-spirited, fighter, looks out for people, protective

-Salmon: resilient, wise, driven, good instincts

-I literally don’t know what to pick for Pandora if that wasn’t obvious

BARTY~CROW, PEACOCK, MARSH HARRIER

-Crow: cunning, crafty, misunderstood, intelligent, outside thinkers, dependable, social, protective, and has an eye for detail and dangers most others wouldn’t be aware of

-Peacock: show offs, prideful patronuses who try to intimidate any potential threats, easily irritated and good friends keep them in control, but they can keep calm when the time calls for it.

-Marsh Harrier: witty, intelligent, think outside the box, creative, sneaky, can get themselves out of sticky situations

-I’m willing to guess Barty’s would change to Evan’s but it could be either way

-Crow makes sense but Peacock is funnier when I imagine not evil Barty trying to intimidate bad guys and strutting to attack

-Also his reaction and nicknames from the Slytherin Skittles

-But as a crow he could caw at bad guys for fun and it would blend in better

MARLENE~HIPPOGRIFF, LIONESS, HYENA

-Hippogriff: very powerful and dangerous, they have a loving side to the passionate and fierce personality; highly regarded by many.

-Lioness: confident in choices and themselves, protective

-Hyena: they are clever, creative, protective, and loyal, with a great sense of humor

-no clue which patronus would change between her and Dorcas

LILY~DOE, GREAT GREY OWL, CHESTNUT MARE

-Doe: love and protects whoever they love no matter the cost

-Great Grey Owl: excellent at listening, adaptive, strong morals, high standards, fiery when provoked, dominant personality

-Chestnut Mare: headstrong, passionate, adventurous, fiery, protective

-Probably going to stick with doe but I thought these were also interesting

-Morph to Mary later or vice versa

MARY~CHESTNUT MARE, SPHYNX CAT, ST BERNARD

-Chestnut Mare: headstrong, passionate, adventurous, fiery, protective

-Sphynx Cat: friendly, loving, loyal, energetic, very protective

-St. Bernard: sweet, protective, loyal, resilient, strong

-Mary being a Mare is almost enough to pick that

EVAN~WHITE SWAN, BROWN OWL, BLACK SWAN, KINGFISHER

-white swan: graceful, beautiful, loyal, protective

-Brown Owl: brilliant, wise, visionary, guardian, quick-wit, devoted to one partner they pick

-Black Swan: loyal, protective, caring, empathetic, open-minded

-Kingfisher: confident, stunning, value the opinions of others, ambitious, hard-worker

-him and Barty are birds

REGULUS-FOX, EAGLE OWL, GOSHAWK

-Fox: cunning, ambitious, intelligent

-Eagle Owl: Introvert/Loner with close knit friend group they would go to the end of the earths for, fast, agile has magical healing abilities that make feathers useful in potions

-Goshawk: ambitious/driven, observant, wise and intelligent, sneaky(?)

-maybe a cat but he’s all over the board

-his would change to a stag later

FRANK~ROTTWEILER, DEERHOUND, HUSKY, CAPUCHIN MONKEY

-Rottweiler: confident, gentle, kind, seen as more aggressive when you’re not, protect you no matter what, devoted to a few carefully picked people

-Deerhound: hard-worker, ambitious, loyal, determined, endurance

-Husky: emotionally aware, good coping, humble, intelligent, affectionate, loving, go to ends of the earth to protect

-Capuchin Monkey: brillant, value loyalty and friendship, reliable

-Mostly dog vibes

ALICE~ROBIN, CALICO CAT

-Robin: cheerful, friendly/welcoming, kind, protect loved ones at any cost

-Calico Cat: lovable and loving, sweet, quirky, independent, observant, unique

-small animal

-I want to pick a cat because of Frank but Robin is also promising

#jegulus #rosekiller #fralice #marylily #marauders #dorlene #evan rosier #regulus black #barty crouch junior #alice fortescue #frank longbottom #mary macdonald #lily evans #dorcas meadowes #marlene mckinnon

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carelessannie · 4 years ago

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the five times steve gives bad dating advice, and the one time it actually works

Or, the Starker Shifter and College AU no one asked for

Link to AO3 Main pairings: Tony x Peter, (background) Steve x Bucky Word count: 5.6k Major Warnings: smut (not shifted), everyone’s a complete idiot, discussion of canine and feline mating behavior, excessive cursing Aaaaannnnnddddd I’ll tag @the-mad-starker because I said I would and I really hope you enjoy it bb

---

The door slams, startling Steve out of his afternoon nap. Peter must be home. He’s pretty sure Sam said he was gonna be out until the evening, and the stomping, slamming of cabinets, and various clanging dishware are usual signs of Peter’s afternoon fury.

Steve shakes out his coat, rolling his eyes as he stretches in the sun— his roommate is a damn idiot.

He doesn’t even bother shifting as Peter storms in the room, throwing his backpack to the ground and perching on the nearby armchair. He’s learned by now that when Peter wants to talk, Steve doesn’t need to speak. In fact, his friend probably prefers it that way.

So instead, he lets Peter brew, slamming his fingers onto the keys on his laptop, and viciously eating apple slices and… nutella. Oh. One of those days.

They only bring the nutella out on bad days.

Steve throws him a bone— metaphorically— and opens an eye, making an inquisitive noise deep in his throat.

Peter looks up, his delicate features squished together in an angry pout.

“First of all, your boyfriend’s an idiot.”

Offended, Steve bares his teeth and squints his eyes, sending Peter a menacing snarl that the smaller man waves off. His boyfriend is an idiot, but Peter has no business noticing that.

“I’m right and you know it,” Peter sniffs, turning his nose and inspecting his nails, “and his roommate is the absolute worst. And I’m not talking about Clint.”

There it is. Steve chuffs, feigning indifference. If he waits long enough, Peter will tell him more. So he lounges back, keeping one eye open, and letting the sun warm his fur. As he watches, he sees the moment Peter gives up his act. He jumps off the chair, making his way into Steve’s sunbeam, and slowly curls up next to the larger wolf.

“I’ve never met another cat so absolutely infuriating, Steve,” Peter whispers, petting through Steve’s golden fur, distractedly, “I can’t stand it. Always purring at me and calling me fucking kitten— no sir! I’m not a kitten, and it doesn’t matter how… how…”

He trails off, gripping tight onto Steve’s coat. When Steve turns to look, he realizes Peter’s tiny fangs have lengthened, poking through his rosy lips, as he runs his tongue over them absentmindedly. If he looks close enough, he can even see where Peter’s small, shifted ears are pushing through his curls.

Peter mumbles something that even Steve’s enhanced hearing can’t pick up. He nuzzles under Peter’s arm, urging him to repeat it.

“It doesn’t matter...” Peter murmurs, “... how beautiful he is, right?”

Steve’s ears perk up.

“Don’t act so surprised. Bucky told me you guys talk about it all the time. I just… I didn’t see it, okay? Not until today. Not until Tony fucking brought me coffee. I had no idea he was so sweet, Steve. I guess I always thought he was a dumb male cat shifter, like the stereotypes paint us out to be. But… he’s not. He’s so kind and funny and sexy, and oh my god, I bet his shifted cat is absolutely gorgeous.”

Steve rolls over to let Peter pet his tummy as he continues, “So naturally, I cornered Bucky to get him to spill. To tell me more about Tony, and how to date him, and… and… how you guys got together. But he said to come talk to you—” Peter crawls closer and tries to look him in the eye, “pleeeeeease, Steve? Help me?”

With a sigh, Steve sits up, shaking out his fur and letting his wolf recede, until he’s stretching out long arms and wiggling his fingers. His gym shorts are nearby, so he slips back into them, doing a customary once over to check for a full shift. Then he settles against the couch, opening his arms in an invitation for Peter to curl up on him.

Peter scoots closer, marginally, and Steve chuckles, “Want some dating advice, Pete?”

“Mhm, yes please,” Peter hums, closing the distance and leaning into Steve’s leg.

“Okay, I’ll tell you some things that worked for me, when I was courting Bucky.”

One.

Later that evening, Tony and Steve are set up in the dining room, comparing notes for their Econ class, and steadily working through their midterm project. Bucky and Peter should be back in a moment with pizza, and hopefully the four of them, plus Sam, will spend the night watching movies. It’s Friday, after all.

Steve hears the front door open and close, quiet conversation drifting down the hallway, but is surprised when just Bucky walks into the kitchen, setting down pizza and making his way over to where the two of them are seated.

Bucky leans down, planting a sweet kiss on his lips, before claiming a seat.

He opens his mouth to ask, but Tony beats him to it, not even looking up, “Where’d Pete get off to? You didn’t lose him, did you?”

Bucky just huffs, “No, you moron. He had to grab something from his room.”

Tony just shrugs, turning back to his notes. Steve spares Bucky a glance, curious about what Peter could be up to, and Bucky gives him a wink. Great.

It’s quiet as the three of them shift pages, typing gently on their laptops, and only exchanging conversation when there’s an issue with the material. Steve gets up once to grab a glass of water, and tries to look down the hallway— no sign of his roommate whatsoever.

With the smell of pizza filling the apartment, they decide not to wait any longer to eat. Steve hollers down the hall for Peter to come get some dinner, but still, his roommate is nowhere to be seen.

As he sits back down at the table, Steve can hear light footsteps coming towards them. He turns his attention back to their homework, and watches as Tony and Bucky pass out glasses, uncorking a bottle of wine.

“How fuckin’ fancy are we?” Steve wonders, giving Bucky a smirk as Tony starts to pour.

“Okay, there’s nothing wrong with a nice bottle of—” “YEEEEOOOOOWWWWWLLLL—”

Tony drops the bottle, flipping backwards out of his seat at the ungodly screech. Steve hops over into Bucky’s lap, picking his feet off the floor as his boyfriend flounders around, cursing and gasping for air.

“Holy shit, what the hell—”

“ReeeRRROOOOWWWWLLL—”

The noise continues, splitting through the air, and Steve watches Tony shift down, fangs lengthening, ears and whiskers emerging, as he drops to four legs. From where they sit on the dining room chair, neither of them can see what happens as the noise suddenly stops, a long, hissing growl taking its place.

Steve peeks under the table, and sees both cat shifters arched up, fur fluffed out in a clear challenge, teeth bared and hissing. Dammit. Peter’s cat— a yellow tabby— is slowly backing up as Tony’s cat— dark and tortoiseshell— follows him, spitting and growling, until Peter finally turns his back, relaxing his coat, and slowly retreats.

“Holy shit,” Bucky breaths, starting to laugh, “what the fuck was that.”

Steve just shakes his head in disbelief, watching Peter sprint down the hall to his room as Tony licks his paws, tail still fluffed in irritation, and eyes pinning them with a deadly glare.

The table is a mess— wine spilled across their notes, Tony’s laptop, and pizza overturned, smeared across the soaked pages. Once Tony starts shifting back, Steve slides off of Bucky’s lap and takes stock of the damage. What the fuck indeed.

He looks over at Bucky, “Can you… take care of this,” he gestures to the table, “I’m gonna go talk to Peter.”

Bucky nods, still shocked, and Steve turns to follow Peter back to his room. He stops outside, knocking gently— careful not to intrude into the shifter’s territory.

“Peter, it’s me. Can I come in?”

There’s a rumble, and then the lock clicks, letting the door swing open. Peter struts back towards his window seat, fully shifted back and wearing just a pair of black briefs, and curls up by the window.

“Uh, Pete? What happened?”

Peter sniffles, looking out the window, “You told me that you and Bucky like to show affection by making noises at each other in your wolf form. So why didn’t it work?”

“Oh my god.”

“He attacked me, Steve!” Peter whines, burying his face in his hands.

It takes everything in Steve’s power not to laugh. Poor kitten. He slowly approaches, sitting nearby and in Peter’s view, extending a hand for Peter to take if he wants.

“So… maybe that wasn’t the best advice. I swear, it’s one of the easiest ways we bond, as wolves. But not that screeching noise, Peter— more of a growl, or other small noises.”

Peter pouts, looking into his hands.

“Here,” Steve stands up, holding out his hand, “let’s go get some pizza and help clean up. You can apologize, come up with some dumb excuse, and we can find some other way to hit on Tony, okay?”

“Fine.” Peter joins him, pulling on a sweatshirt and some shorts, “Let’s hope I didn’t spill all the damn wine. We’re gonna need it.”

Two.

A few days later, all of their friends are lounging across Steve’s furniture, taking a lazy afternoon after midterms to drink some Coor’s and watch Japanese game shows. Steve’s not even sure who’s interested in this, but doesn’t really care, as he lets himself drift off to the sound of Bucky’s deep breathing, his mate settled close on his chest.

It’s rare that everyone is in the same place, especially without homework or projects taking up their time, and Steve feels a deep sense of peace as his pack is settled, warm and safe, around him.

“Stop it, Stevie, you’re givin’ me thoughts,” Bucky mumbles, pinching him in the side.

Steve just hums, smiling down at his mate, and looks over to where Peter’s laying across the floor, partially shifted, and tail flicking slightly. On the other side of the room, Tony watches with his arms crosses, eyes following the striped tail.

“Let's go for a walk.” Steve announces, lifting Bucky off and getting a grumpy noise in protest. He makes a show of stretching, and gives Peter a wink. His eyes go wide in understanding.

“Fine,” Peter pushes off the carpet, shaking himself to shift back fully, “but only if I can get ice cream.”

Bucky ends up agreeing, and muscles Tony into joining them as well. Sam and Natasha decide to stay, enjoying the silence, but demand delivery from their friends. Clint stands up as they’re leaving, and follows them out the door.

It’s a quick walk down to get ice cream, just a block away, and Steve tries to make a show of brushing up against Bucky, reminding Peter of their last conversation.

Peter saddles up next to Tony, walking side-by-side only a few steps in front of them. He glances up, batting his eyelashes, and bumps his hips into Tony’s.

Tony whips around, on instinct, and pushes Peter in the chest, sending him careening off the sidewalk and landing in a heap, right in the middle of the road. All of them freeze, looking between Tony and Peter in disbelief, as the younger boy’s eyes brim with tears.

“Oh my… Peter, oh my god,” Tony shakes himself, and sprints into the road, thankfully clear of traffic, and pulls Peter to his feet, leading him back to the sidewalk. “I don’t… I don’t even know what happened, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay, it’s fine,” Peter pulls away, giving Steve a dirty look, “can we just go get ice cream, please?”

Tony nods, sticking close to Peter as they walk away, and Steve can hear him promise, “I’ll buy yours, really, I’m so sorry.”

When they’re out of earshot, Clint ambling along after them with a shrug, Bucky turns to him and smirks, “What was that, Stevie?”

“I… I told him about the rubbing thing we do. You know… when we walk together?”

Bucky laughs all the way to the ice cream parlor.

Three.

It’s a week or so later when they have Tony and Bucky over for another movie night. Peter was mortified, and furious, about his latest attempt, but Steve can tell he’s determined to make a move tonight.

And Steve thinks this one will work, too. He’s not sure, at this point, if he should still be giving Peter advice, but he’s seen cat shifter mates do this, so he’s pretty sure it’s gonna work.

Bucky just smacks him in the head, annoyed that Steve wants to meddle.

The four of them are watching the Hobbit trilogy, per Tony’s request, and have piled blankets and pillows on the floor to lounge on. Steve takes the leads and shifts down, kicking off his clothes, shaking out his fur, and stretching out in his wolf form on the floor. He feels Bucky join him, the familiar warmth of his mate comforting against his side. They both look expectantly at their friends, hoping they take the hint.

Peter squints at them, irritated, but shifts down anyway, pushing out of his clothes and settling against Steve’s side, purring when the giant wolf starts to groom him, licking long strokes down his back.

Steve can see the adoration on Tony’s face. He’s completely captivated by the sweet kitten, and he shifts, stretching out and pacing closer to the three of them. Steve can’t help but wag his tail, bumping up against Bucky and wiggling closer to get a lick on Tony’s face.

Tony yelps, bouncing away, and pretends to clean himself. Peter just watches on, intently, as Tony takes his time to walk back over, carefully avoiding the wolves. His eyes are wide and unblinking. Tony curls up nearby, and Peter takes his chance, slinking closer, and reaching out to lick Tony’s cheek.

Tony shifts, moving out of Peter’s reach. Peter crawls closer and tries again, but Tony pulls away. One more try, and Tony stands, jumping up onto the couch and out of reach.

Peter just mewls, soft and sad, before tucking himself back underneath Steve’s front leg. Bucky growls, low in his chest, and Steve can tell it’s aimed at Tony. Dumb cat.

They stay shifted for the better part of an hour, grooming and cuddling together, until Tony finally comes back down from his perch. Out of the corner of his eye, Steve can see him approach, slowly, and try to get near Peter. Bucky growls again, not even opening his eyes, and the tortoiseshell cat scrambles away.

So much for that.

Four.

Spring break— fucking finally.

Classes have been hard this semester, and all of them are feeling it. Steve’s thankful that Tony’s parents have a place in the woods for them to escape to, because he’s itching to shift, let loose, and run away with his mate. Hopefully for the whole week.

Somehow, Steve got stuck driving their car, packing Bucky in the passenger seat, Sam and Peter in the middle two, and Clint, Nat and Tony in the backseat. He’s not sure how they make it there alive, with Bucky’s Cool Vibes playlist, Sam and Tony’s backseat commentary, and the thick mix of pheromones swirling through the air.

“What is that, Buck?” he murmurs in a low tone, squeezing his boyfriend’s hand over the center console.

“Hm?” Bucky looks over, blinking lazily.

“The… tension. The smell. What is it?”

“Oh, uh—” Bucky takes a moment, scenting the air and grimacing, “— yeah, that’s rut.”

Steve almost slams on the breaks.

“Rut? Like cat rut?”

Bucky just nods, making a point to roll down his window, “Yeah, Stevie. It’s springtime. We’ve got two, male cat shifters in the car. The rest of us ain’t gonna feel nothin’, but they’re definitely feelin’ it.”

He turns around and glances behind him, smiling at the sight of both cat shifters arguing and flirting behind them. Sam looks horrified.

Steve just rolls his eyes, “I’m tired of their bullshit. Hope they spend some time together this week, ya know?”

“Hope they spend more than time,” Bucky laughs, giving Steve’s hand a squeeze in return.

In the rearview, Steve can see Tony, fully turned around in his seat, gesturing wildly as Peter shakes his head, the two of them clearly caught in a deep discussion. When he looks closer, he sees the way Peter flutters his lashes, how Tony rubs up against the seat and the wall of the van.

Idiots.

Steve focuses back on the road, sighing and trying to enjoy how warm Bucky is next to him, how settled he is with his mate nearby.

Less than an hour later, and with every window rolled down, Steve parks the van outside of the cabin. If anyone would call it that. Three stories tall, the cabin looms over the driveway. Dark, aged wood is contrasted with sleek and modern architecture, blending back into the treeline and standing out of it at the same time. Gorgeous. Breathtaking.

As they carry their bags into the cabin, Steve catches sight of the lake in the backyard. Apparently Bucky and Clint see it as well, because all three of them are dropping their stuff, stripping out of their clothes, and racing to the water.

Steve shifts mid-stride, barking in joy as his pack follows him into the lake. Around the cabin, down the hill, off the dock— he’s first. First! And Bucky follows after him, their splashes large and in sync.

Clint ambles, albeit slower in his shifted golden retriever, and flops gracelessly in after them. The water is heavenly, and the three of them swim and play, bounding through the water and jumping off the pier.

That is, until their friends join them.

It seems as though Tony let the others into the house, put away their bags, packed a cooler, and found a few beach chairs and towels. The four of them set up a row of chairs and open an umbrella above them, settling down in skimpy swimwear to enjoy the afternoon sun.

Clint barks up at them, no doubt encouraging Nat and Sam to shift down and join them in the water.

“You guys are idiots,” Sam yells back, popping the tab on his drink, “the beer’s up here!”

Steve treads water, huffing a bit in amusement as he watches his pack— which is how he catches Tony moving closer to Peter. Tony passes him a beer, which Peter takes with a smirk and quick comment that makes Tony laugh.

Gag.

And he almost misses it— he goes to turn away, and sees Tony dart across, pressing a swift kiss to Peter’s blushing cheek. Peter gasps, meeting Tony’s eyes in shock, before grabbing his shoulders, leaning closer, and—

“Ow!”

“Oh my god, I’m sorry, Tony—”

“You bit me!”

Steve swims over to the ladder, shifting down as he goes, and grabs a towel as he climbs up to investigate. Both men are standing now, blushing and holding their faces— Peter in shame, and Tony in mock horror. So dramatic.

“— how could you think that was what I wanted?”

“I didn’t! I just… I asked Steve, and he said—”

“Woah woah woah,” Steve cuts in, hands up in surrender, “I never said to bite him.”

Peter covers his face again with a groan, flopping down in his seat and throwing a towel over his face.

Tony looks down at him, bewildered, and back up at Steve, shrugging. “What did I do?” he mouths, lips turning down into a sad, sad pout.

Steve doesn’t even know what to say.

“Let’s go start the grill,” Sam suggests— thank god for Sam, and grabs Steve and Tony’s shoulders to lead them away.

A few minutes later, working over the grill together, Tony peers up at Steve, giving him a pointed look. Steve just sighs, again.

“Canines do this thing— instead of kisses on the cheek, when we’re shifted, we like to nibble on each other’s faces. It’s the same thing,” he pauses, taking in the disbelief written across Tony’s expression, “... for canines.”

“So he was… trying to kiss me back?”

Sam huffs, clapping Tony on the shoulder, “More than that, Tones.”

Tony sits down, hard, in light of this revelation.

Five.

Bucky corners him, later in the evening, and it’s not for a sexy reason.

“You’ve gotta stop meddling in their shit, Stevie,” he hisses, pinning Steve to the wall.

Steve looks down to where their bodies are pressed together and groans, “Buck, this is a serious conversation, but you gotta let me up, pal.” Bucky’s eyes go wide and he grimaces, letting Steve up.

The two of them take a deep breath before Steve continues, “I’ve got a plan.”

“No.”

“It’s a good one.”

“Absolutely not.”

“We should force them to sleep together.”

“...”

“I mean. Not like… Buck, not like that. I mean, like, den together, like how we did when we were bonding for the first time.”

Bucky crosses his arms, giving Steve a less than impressed look.

“So you think that would work? How would you even pull that off?”

“I told you, I have a plan.”

---

Steve and Bucky corner Tony, later, and tell him their plan. Steve explains how he’s spent almost a month trying to help Peter court Tony, and Tony, for the most part, looks absolutely baffled.

“Yeah, I didn’t get that.”

Bucky covers his laugh with a hand, turning away so Steve can’t see him. Idiot.

They try to convince Tony to go along with their plan— sneaking into Peter’s room, fully shifted, and curling up next to him.

“It’s not gonna work, Steve. Felines are territorial—”

“— so are canines—”

“— and he’s not gonna want me in his space uninvited!”

“— but it’s not his space! It’s yours, it’s literally your territory,” Steve insists, “and it’ll show him that you want more, Tony.”

Tony just sighs, looking off into the fireplace, roaring with life. Warm and inviting. Steve aches to get out of here, but he’s committed to getting his friends together first.

“Fine,” Tony concedes, rising to his feet and starting to shift. He points at Steve as he shrinks down, “but I’m blaming you when thisss goesss to shhit.”

Fully shifted, Tony stalks across the living room, disappearing up the stairs to the guest bedrooms. Steve pulls Bucky close, both of them nuzzling close and enjoying their shared scent, shared warmth. They hear a door shut. Silence. Bucky turns to dot a light kiss on Steve’s jaw, and Steve returns it with a teasing growl.

“When this is over,” he rumbles, “we’re shifting for days, baby.”

Bucky sighs and wiggles closer, “Can’t wait, Stevie. Been itchin’ for it. Needin’—”

BANG, CRASH!

MrrrOWWWWWWWW

“Not again,” Bucky groans, hiding his face in Steve’s chest.

Tony, still fully shifted, tears through the living room, tail fluffed out and fur raised along his back. He darts under their couch, breathing hard and hiding, as Peter stomps down the stairs. He’s half shifted— fangs and ears and paws and tail all displaying aggression and annoyance.

“I really like you Tony,” he hisses, crossing his arms and standing so that Tony can see him from under the couch, “but that was a real dick move. Sometimes I feel like you hate me, and want me to hate you. Don’t try to talk to me, Tony. I don’t wanna see you until the morning.”

Peter stalks away, leaving Tony under the couch. Bucky tugs on Steve’s sleeve, “We really shouldn’t be here when Tony shifts back.”

Steve spares a glance under the couch, watching Tony clean his paws and glare back at them, and nods. The two of them beat a quick retreat, heading for the kitchen to pack some snacks for their time in the forest. Tony said the deer in this area are free to hunt, but sometimes they like fruits and pastries for breakfast. It’s a whole thing.

Before they run off into the woods, Steve stops, looking back to where Tony, still shifted, is sulking under the furniture.

“You should do it.”

Both Tony and Bucky look at him in shock, the latter already protesting.

“No, no— you don’t have to take my advice, Tony. I know I’ve screwed a bunch up already. I’m just saying, you should talk to him tonight, show him that you care. Follow your instincts— because they’re obviously different than ours. We know…” he glances over at Bucky, who nods, “we know you love him, Tony. Go fight for him.”

Tony just turns around, showing his back.

Bucky grabs Steve’s hand, “Let’s go, Stevie.”

One.

Tony watches them retreat out the backdoor, letting it close with a soft click! He slinks out from under the couch and sits by the fire, thinking about what Steve said.

Follow your instincts.

He thinks about the kiss earlier. How pretty Peter’s blush had been, how much he wanted to rub up against Peter’s cheek and mark him, claim him. He wishes they got to run together, fight and wrestle away their pent up energy. He knows both of them are rutting, he just thought… he really thought…

It doesn’t matter now. He closes his eyes, lets his ears twitch in thought, as he focuses on his instincts. He lets the rage and the desire and the animal need wash over him, and all he can think, all he can feel, is chase.

Chase. Catch.

He doesn’t even register getting up, prowling up the stairs, moving down the hallway.

Chase. Catch.

The door to Peter’s room is open.

Chase. Catch.

He creeps inside, taking a peek over to the bed.

Mate.

Peter turns his head, making eye contact.

Run.

Tony leaps into the air, sprinting out the door— Peter hot on his tail. He flies down the stairs and slides around the corner, slamming into the trash can. Dammit. Why is that always there? As he growls at the metal can, Peter catches up to him, tackling him to the ground with a loud shriek.

They wrestle, growling and biting, until Peter breaks free with a hiss, bouncing on the pads of his feet to assert dominance. Oh no. Not in Tony’s house. Tony spits, rising up on his toes, until Peter freezes— both of them growling, low and angry.

Peter takes off. Spinning on his feet, the yellow tabby slams, hard, into the wall— fuck, he’s so strong— and bounces off lightning fast, out the door and into the front yard. Tony runs after him, dodging bushes and trees to follow Peter’s agile trail, secretly admiring his speed and the cleverness of his path. Beautiful.

He follows Peter all the way up a tree, forcing him out on a limb. Tony arches his back, sending a signal of dominance across to Peter, but Peter refuses to back down. He meets Tony’s gaze, raises his haunches, and spits back. Holy shit.

Tony leaps, tackling Peter off the branch, and sends both of them tumbling into the grass. In a flurry of nails and teeth and yowling, they fight for dominance, pinning and repinning until they come to a stop, teeth mutually clenched in the other’s scruff, and completely tangled together.

They’re breathing hard. Tony can feel it on his neck, and realizes both of their penises have unsheathed, rubbing together and catching on the barbs. It’s a crazy sensation— ramping up both of their rut pheromones.

As they lay there together— intertwined in the dark of the spring night— Tony feels himself start to shift back. He closes his eyes, gripping tight to Peter’s neck, his bare skin, as he flexes his fingers. He feels Peter shifting in his arms, and they hold on tight, neither willing to give up their prize.

“Mine,” Tony growls, unlatching his jaw as he feels Peter do the same.

His friend, his new mate, smiles— his gorgeous, bruised lips pulling back to reveal delicate and deadly fangs, “Mine,” he agrees, leaning forward hesitantly.

Tony closes the gap, rubbing their cheeks together and earning a satisfied purr from deep in Peter’s chest. He rolls them until he’s on top, and takes a few moments to kiss and lick around Peter’s chest, his tummy, his neck.

He grins mischievously before biting down on a pale pink nipple, earning him a gutted moan in response. Peter’s definitely hard against Tony’s thigh, but he’s been waiting way too long for this to rush it. Damn if he isn’t gonna take his time tonight.

“Mine,” he growls again, fiercer, and drags his nails up Peter’s hips, down his back. He drowns in the small gasps and moans he’s able to coax from his mate, marveling in the way his pale skin glows in the moonlight.

Peter paws at his back, spreads his legs wide, and grinds up against Tony’s erection, desperate for his touch. Every Mine is echoed between them, sung like a mating call for all to hear in the thick, springtime haze. They dance together, flipping time and time again for dominance— although, this time gentle. Caring and full of playful adoration.

When Tony finally takes them in hand, Peter throws his head back, yowling into the open air— “Tony! Tony, fuck fuck, touch me, goddammit, please touch me,” and Tony bends to his wishes, stroking their cocks together, long and firm.

He loves how Peter feels next to him, a tiny bit smaller, but the perfect size to compliment Tony’s own length. Tony spits down into his hand, slicking the way, and thrusts forward, urging Peter to follow his lead as they fuck into his grip.

“C’mon Pete, c’mon love— fuck me, baby, please.”

“Yeah, oh Tony, please. Need more, Tony,” Peter begs turning his wickedly innocent doe eyes on Tony in desperation.

Tony grips tighter, thrusts harder, and returns Peter’s molten gaze. What can he… oh.

He throws himself forward, bracing with one hand above Peter’s head, and seals their lips together. Peter gasps, stuttering his hips, and Tony can feel the warmth spilling over his palm, coating both of their cocks. He strokes Peter through it, kissing him deeply, thoroughly, until his mate starts to whine in discomfort.

Tony pulls away, feeling his orgasm pooling deep in his belly, and crawls up closer on Peter’s chest. His eyes are half-lidded, lips swollen and hair matted and messy— and Tony’s never seen anything more gorgeous.

“Please,” he pants, speeding up the stroke on his cock, “Pete, please let me, let me come on you, please. Mine. Mine, Peter. Let me mark you, please.”

“Yes, yes—“ Peter moans, reaching up to cup Tony’s balls, “mine, give it to me, Tony— it’s mine.”

At his words, Tony lets out a breath, crumpling forward as his release drains him, throwing him over the edge and right into Peter’s waiting arms. He watches as hot stripes of cum paint Peter’s chest, drip down his chin, and even land in his mouth. It’s too much to see his mate, covered in him, licking it off his fingers— so he falls to the ground, exhausted and spent.

A moment later he’s grabbing for Peter, humming in pleasure as his mate saddles close, burying his face in Tony’s neck.

And then Peter giggles. A soft, barely there laugh that tickles the side of Tony’s throat.

“What?” Tony rasps, looking down at Peter in amusement.

Peter keeps laughing, sitting up fully to bury his face in his hands and get out full, gasping belly laughs. He holds onto Tony as he wipes away tears, and Tony just chuckles, happy to see his mate so joyful.

When Peter settles down, he sighs, giving Tony a lopsided smile, “I can’t believe what just happened,” Tony shakes his head, returning the smile, as Peter continues, “I’ve been taking dating advice from a fucking wolf for a month— when all we had to do was,” he gestures wildly, “whatever this was,”

Tony laughs, he gets it now, “Well, it was kinda inconvenient that every suggestion they had was actually a severe act of aggression between male felines.”

“Oh my god,” Peter giggles again, “what the hell were you even trying to do tonight? When I found you in my bed?”

Tony blushes, looking away, and mumbles, “Steve and Bucky thought if we slept next to each other—“

“— but that’s a breach of territory for unmated felines!”

“— that’s what I said! Somehow they convinced me otherwise, and… well…”

Tony trails off, letting his words fade to a comfortable silence. Peter snuggles closer, letting Tony wrap and arm around him. It’s chilly outside, but until they go and lay by the fire, both of them are content to find warmth in each other.

“I’m glad you came to find me,” Peter whispers, dotting a kiss onto Tony’s collarbone.

“I’m glad I did, too,” Tony nuzzles into his curls, inhaling the new scent of mate and home that he’s come to associate with Peter, “and you know what? In the end, that idiot’s dating advice ended up bringing me to you.”

“We don’t have to tell him that do we?”

Tony shakes his head, “No. No we don’t.”

Bonus:

Clint and Sam and Nat stare at each other in horror, refusing to acknowledge what they just heard going on inside and outside of the house.

“Do you think the coast is clear?”

“Can’t be certain. It’s way too quiet out there.”

“They’re both in rut, it could be days.”

“Maybe we should go find Steve and Bucky, they’d know what to do.”

“If I know them at all, and I think I do, those two are gonna be knotted up for the next few days. I don’t wanna witness that.”

The three of them are silent, listening for any movement or sign that their newly mated friends are alive.

“I vote we shift down and doggy pile.”

“Yes, okay.”

“Fine.”

“And in the morning, we can talk about feline mating patterns.”

“... and boundaries.”

#starker #tony x peter #shifters #college au #shifter au #peter parker #tony stark #background #stucky #feline shifters vs canine shifters #fluff #smut #tw: cursing #nff #tw: boys are idiots #idiots in love #steve pov #tony pov

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redux-iterum · 3 years ago

Text

A Kindling: Chapter Twenty-One

(AO3 counterpart here.)

The sun was sitting high in the sky when the ThunderClan party left Barley’s home for the second time. Barley saw them off with well-wishes and offers of more mice, to which Spottedleaf politely (and slightly forcibly) declined, much to Greypaw’s despair. Their bellies were full enough, as far as the seer was concerned, so off they went, through the hedge and back down WindClan’s hill.

Clouds were slowly returning eastside, but the air was still warm and gently breezy. Firepaw shook his fur once or twice to let that pleasant breeze through, and a couple times more to get the last of the grass (Barley had called it “hay”) off of him. Greypaw and Spottedleaf were still coated in the stuff, with Ravenpaw occasionally pausing to tug a straw out around his neck. If the smell were not pleasant by this point, Firepaw would have been annoyed. As it was, the hay was more amusing than anything else.

They didn’t run into any more WindClan patrols, though the dusty smell of them was everywhere. Spottedleaf, as usual, was unbothered, and that spread to the apprentices. The entire walk down the slope was quite pleasant, occasional chatter fluttering back and forth about nothing in particular. Firepaw was gradually blinking back sleepiness before Ravenpaw suddenly stopped and peered into the distance.

“What?” Greypaw stopped too. “Smell something?”

“Seeing, rather…” Ravenpaw squinted, tail slightly raised. Firepaw and Spottedleaf stopped and watched him as he chattered his teeth a little in focus. “Who’s that?”

Firepaw followed his line of sight. Barely close enough to make out any details, a large grey cat stood with their back to the road. They were facing the marshes of ShadowClan, tail swishing back and forth as they stared down at something that was hidden by the mounds of gravel all along the road.

“That's…that’s, uh…” Greypaw tilted his head. “Huh. I don’t know. Spottedleaf?”

Spottedleaf didn’t respond. She was completely still, down to the tip of her tail, like a stone.

Firepaw offered, “It must be someone in ShadowClan, right?”

“Not anyone I’ve seen.” Ravenpaw’s neck craned forward. “They’re way too big to be a native.”

Greypaw came to stand beside Ravenpaw. “And they’re pretty pale for a marsh cat, too. But what would a loner be doing on the ShadowClan border?”

“Maybe they took in someone,” Firepaw said. “Like you guys did me.”

“Maybe,” Greypaw said doubtfully. “They’d have to be desperate if they wanted to be in ShadowClan, of all places. Their territory sucks for hunting, everyone knows that.”

Firepaw blinked. “It does?”

“Sure. Why d’you think they’re so tiny and skinny?”

The memory of those skeletal little cats now made perfect sense to Firepaw. He nodded thoughtfully, mulling this over with immediate sympathy for how hungry ShadowClan must be. He opened his mouth to ask why the other Clans didn’t help feed them when his eyes drifted to Spottedleaf.

Her face was barely visible from this angle, but she looked… it was hard to tell what she was thinking. Her eye that Firepaw could see was dull and unfocused. She was still stiff as a stone, the only movement being what small breeze rustled her fur. Her ears were turned back and her tail hovered halfway to the ground.

Firepaw took a worried step forward. “Spottedleaf?”

Spottedleaf’s eye blinked and she jolted. Her tail raised to its usual high position, but Firepaw didn’t miss the slight tremble it had. Her ears swiveled forward again.

“Yeah, Spottedleaf, do you know who this is?” Greypaw looked over at her. “Or have a guess?”

The tortoiseshell-tabby returned the glance with a small sigh. “I have a feeling I know.”

“Is it something we should warn ShadowClan about?” Firepaw asked.

“Oh, no.” Spottedleaf turned back towards the forest. “They know him. We don’t need to do anything except get home before your mentors scold us for taking so long!”

Ravenpaw and Greypaw seemed content with that and followed her as she picked up into a trot. Firepaw trotted as quickly as he could without running to catch up to her, his friends a way behind them.

“Is something wrong?” he asked in an undertone, trying to catch her eye. “You looked like you were—”

“Everything’s fine, chrii,” Spottedleaf purred. “Thank you for checking on me, though.”

Firepaw balked a little at the interruption. He wanted to press, but the memory of her rare anger when talking to the hag kept him quiet. Besides, if she didn’t want to talk, then he shouldn’t force her. He instead fell silent and let her take the lead so he could walk with Ravenpaw and Greypaw, who were currently debating on whether a frog was even worth the hassle of hunting. Firepaw did not offer any part of this argument; he just let it coast through his ears while he tasted the heavy lavender scent they were walking through.

It was a long, exhausting, unremarkable walk beyond the sighting of the loner. The sun moved just ahead of the cats, sinking beyond the forest by the time they reached ThunderClan’s border. Firepaw noticed with mild disappointment that the stars had popped out just in time to be mostly blocked by the trees overhead. Did that mean StarClan couldn’t see them? The moon was mostly gone, too—was that a sign also? He had a lot more learning to do about the Clans’ ancestors.

It would have helped if they’d said something to him in a dream.

He was about to collapse as he passed through the camp entrance, and by the looks of it, so were his friends. Spottedleaf happily kept up her pace and went to greet her brother, Redtail. Several cats looked her way, then back to the apprentices, with a round of greetings.

“Glad to see you all made it back in one piece,” Teaselfoot said. “Greypaw, you smell like Barn-mice.”

“He ate a lot of them,” Firepaw said.

Teaselfoot snorted. “Figured.”

“Welcome back,” Speckletail said, with a slightly stern look Teaselfoot’s way. “Get some rest before your mentors find you.”

Greypaw yawned. “Will do.” As he walked past Teaselfoot, he jokingly batted at his chest. Teaselfoot, equally joking, stared at him with mock-offense and leaned back like he had been slapped across the face.

Ravenpaw kept his head low and nodded to whoever looked his way, but no one said anything to him. He scooted along to the apprentices’ den without a word.

Firepaw yawned, saying “hello” to everyone who gave a greeting, disheartened by Frostfur barely looking his way as she leaned against Lionface, who grunted at Firepaw. He was about to follow Ravenpaw when a trill caught his ear. Goldenflower was sitting outside of the nursery, purring as Firepaw trotted up to her.

“Did you have fun?” she asked, greeting him with a touch of her nose to his head.

“I did!” Firepaw’s exhaustion was forgotten as he recalled the adventure. “WindClan’s territory is huge, and it’s way prettier up close. And this cat I know, Wrenpaw, he showed up with the leader of WindClan, and—”

Before he knew it, he was raving about the whole trip, Goldenflower’s eyes creased in amused endearment as he went on about the walk, Rookstar, the Barn, and the return trip. At the mention of the supposed loner in ShadowClan territory, the matriarch tilted her head curiously, but she didn’t interrupt, letting him run out of breath as he concluded, “And then we reached the forest, and, well, we’re home now.”

“I’m happy for you, Firepaw,” she said warmly. “You got to see a lot of the world, didn’t you? How did you do in the Mother?”

“Oh—” Firepaw belatedly realized he had forgotten to mention that entire part. “Um… am I allowed to say? I don’t know.”

“You can talk about whatever you like,” Goldenflower replied. “It’s up to you what you want to keep to yourself.”

“Okay. Well…” Firepaw’s left ear swiveled as he considered this. “Well, the tunnel inside is dark—I have no idea how Spottedleaf knows where to go in there! And the stone—the heart? The Mother’s heart?” Goldenflower nodded. “Yeah, that. That is the coldest thing I’ve ever touched in my life— and it was really cool, because Spottedleaf did these speeches about all of us getting blessings—”

Goldenflower leaned forward a little. “I was wondering about how that would go for you. Did you feel it?”

“I felt it!” Firepaw’s tail danced above his back. “This heat in my chest as Spottedleaf was talking, it was amazing. I swear, the Three really were in there with us! I mean, I didn’t see them, but it felt like it, you know?”

Goldenflower purred loud. “They always are, even if we don’t know. You’ve been recognized by the Three, Firepaw. That’s wonderful.”

Firepaw shivered as an echo of the heat he’d felt in the cavern flowed through his body, disappearing before it could linger. Goldenflower chuffed affectionately, then looked over the little tom’s shoulder. Firepaw twisted his head around; Tigerclaw was walking up to them.

“Hi,” Firepaw said, turning quickly to greet the behemoth. “Sorry I didn’t say it before, I was telling Goldenflower about the trip…”

“That’s fine,” Tigerclaw said quietly. He bumped his head against Goldenflower’s and looked down at Firepaw. “How did you fare?”

“I’m really tired, but it was a lot of fun. The Mother’s huge, and it’s really cold in there, and the ceremony was really cool, and…” Firepaw was interrupted by a yawn. “…and I think Horoa likes me—or at least I got blessed by him, I’m pretty sure.”

“Good.” Tigerclaw nodded once. Though his tone was a little flat, his eyes were warm. “You should get some rest. You’re wobbling on your feet.”

Firepaw didn’t protest this, though he hadn’t noticed until just now. He admitted, “I could sleep a little.”

“Go ahead and sleep,” Goldenflower suggested, seeing him off with a lick to his head. “We’re glad you came home safe.”

Firepaw glanced around, catching sight of Bluestar sitting with the elders, Redtail and Spottedleaf close to the apprentices’ den. “Do—” he yawned “—do we train when we come back?”

“Bluestar should give you the night off,” Tigerclaw said. “I can talk to her if she doesn’t.”

“Okay. Thanks.” Firepaw nodded respectfully to the pair and headed for the den, his exhaustion catching back up to him. The massive tabby said something to his mate, but Firepaw didn’t quite catch it, so he let it go.

As he passed Bluestar, she paused in her conversation and said to him, “Spottedleaf tells me your ceremony went well.”

Firepaw paused and tried to stand straight. “I think Horoa blessed me.”

Bluestar gave him an approving look. “Welcome back, then, little hunter. Get some sleep while you can.”

Firepaw yawned and nodded to her as well. Right as he passed through the den’s entrance, he caught her talking again.

“Her words are questionable,” she said in a low voice. “I don’t believe her to be a liar, but I’m not sure what to think.”

Patchpelt spoke next. “I have to wonder why ShadowClan hasn’t come looking for her yet. If a cat went missing from ThunderClan, we’d all be searching hard throughout the territories.”

“She’s ditched her name, too, so she says,” Smallstorm growled. “Can’t be a good sign, even if she’s telling the truth.”

“The loner you saw,” Redtail said, presumably to Spottedleaf. “You’d never seen him before?”

Spottedleaf responded slowly, with the slightest hesitation. “I’m sure they know him, but I’ve never spoken to him before, at least.”

Firepaw curled up close to the entrance, ears angled to listen in. Ravenpaw was already asleep far in the back corner, his gentle breathing barely audible over what Firepaw could hear.

“They’ve got loner friends in the Aulmir, no?” One-eye piped up. “Probably an ambassador of some kind.”

“He was awfully far from the Aulmir, is the only thing,” Redtail said. “Right?”

“We weren’t off of the moor yet, yes,” Spottedleaf said.

“That’s something to keep an eye on, then,” Halftail muttered. “Missing a seer, nameless, and a random loner on the border.”

Bluestar hummed in thought. “What she said, I don’t know that we can trust. She has her reputation and safety to regain by speaking poorly of Brokenstar.”

Patchpelt now. “She’s not a liar, like you said. I think we can at least keep an eye out and follow up on what she’s told you if anything unusual comes along.”

“Until then, are we really going to let her stay here?” Smallstorm groused. “She’s eaten enough of our prey.”

There was a pause, before Bluestar spoke again. “Spottedleaf, I want you to speak to StarClan about her again. And if you can, test to see if she still has their favor. That will decide a few things.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Spottedleaf said softly. “But I believe we should keep her with us. She’s going to be useful soon, I can feel it.”

“If you believe that, I trust you,” Redtail replied, then added, “My vote is to keep her. I think she can be trusted by now. She freely gave up that information once she knew she was safe. We could have someone accompanying her if we need to, but I don’t think we will.”

Not me again, Firepaw thought. I want to go back to training!

“I say we keep her too,” One-eye said.

“As do I,” Patchpelt agreed.

Smallstorm grumbled something and Halftail grunted, seemingly in agreement.

“I can watch her,” Spottedleaf said. “Give Firepaw some time to train again. She’ll be all right with me.”

Bluestar sounded vaguely amused. “She certainly got under your fur the other night. Are you sure?”

“I am.”

“Very well, then. I’ll have a talk with her now. Redtail, Spottedleaf, come with me. Thank you for your input, my elders.”

“Just make sure she doesn’t sneak off and betray us,” Smallstorm growled.

“She won’t,” One-eye said. “We’ve been too kind.”

No one responded to this; Firepaw assumed they were all going back to their business. Bluestar walked past the den, accompanied by her deputy and seer. Firepaw shut his eyes and rested his chin on his paws. He hardly had a heartbeat to ponder this conversation before he was dead asleep, deaf to the world outside.

#warrior cats #warriors redux iterum #iteurm #chapter #chapter twenty #arc one #book one #a kindling

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warriorsbutnotreally · 3 years ago

Note

If you don't mind, can we see hypokits of Sol and Snowstar from your AU?

Okay so

I had sketched out 3 kits

but then hyperfixated on one

and so that one was the only one lined and colored

so-

Eclipse!!!

They are agender and uses any pronouns! [preferably they/them and xe/xem! of course, she/her and he/him are allowed, just to a lesser degree]

Xey also have limited hearing on their left side and was taught how to communicate without noise!

Eclipse grew up with xer father, Sol, taken away from the Clans before xe ever had the chance to know xer other father, Snowlight/Snowstar, and was born between the time that Sol was accused of murder and Sol coming back during OoTS, making them close to the same age as Dovewing and Ivypool

Eclipse would come in sometime during OoTS and will be the new love interest of Dovewing during that time, being this mysterious loner with ties to the Clans

Maybe xe even received some sort of vision or omen about the fight between StarClan and the Dark Forest without understanding what it meant [while avoiding telling xer dad, Sol, where xey went]

Xe would finally meet Snowlight right before the great battle and there the father and child duo would finally meet

Snowlight would be so happy to meet Eclipse and in turn Eclipse is happy to learn Sol isn't their only family

Snowlight would offer his child a place in the Clan, but I can see Eclipse being hesitant and not accepting right away, but still being there in time for The Great Battle

Bumblestripe would try to ask Dovewing out, but at this time she and Eclipse are much closer than she is with Bumblestripe and she turns him down

After the battle, Dovewing and Eclipse start visiting each other more and more often and sometime between Dovewing's Silence and AVoS, they would ask her to be their mate

Eclipse still isn't in a Clan, but Dovewing accepts and the two are a happy couple with Eclipse fretting over xer mate because she'd vent about how things are going in the Clan and mostly about Bumblestripe

After Purdy passes and Bumblestripe makes his gross scene at Purdy's funeral, Eclipse decides xer going to join ThunderClan and the first thing they do is tell Bumblestripe to back off and leave Dovewing alone

After a couple moons, Sol confronts Eclipse about joining the Clans, having raised them to never trust a Clan cat

There's a large argument and Eclipse is left feeling hollow afterwards, especially since xe doesn't want to fight

Eclipse tries to make up with Sol, but is just met with coldness

Eventually xey talk with their other dad, Snowstar, and bring him alone to talk to Sol

The two have a long conversations and, though they don't end up together, Sol agrees that Snowstar had the right to know their child and that he got in the way of that because of his personal feelings

He quietly adds Snowstar could always run away, but the leader denies, informing the rogue that he has responsibilities now and can't just run away from them

Sol says that's always an option before they leave

Snowstar goes, but before Eclipse can follow, Sol apologizes to them, stating he had become like his mother, Cinders, by letting his spite keep him from giving his kit a good life

Eclipse offers a place in ThunderClan for Sol, but he denies

He only asks that, if he has any grandkits, he'd get to meet them

Eclipse agrees

After some moons and casual visits to xer father, Eclipse and Dovewing do end up having kits together

Featherkit, Lightningkit, and Solkit [the last one being insisted by Eclipse]

Lightning is a tricolor kit like her zaza, Eclipse

Feather is a dilute calico

and Solkit is a tortoiseshell with white patches and looks somewhat similar to his grandfather, Sol, but with Dovewing's build

this was all I managed to get together, but!

If you guys like these more ramble ones, let me know!

If not, I can go back to the bullet points!

Also the two sketched but undrawn ones was -

a black and white she-cat named Swiftstorm [she was going to have been left at Clan borders and adopted into either ThunderClan, ShadowClan, or WindClan]

and a ginger and white cat who I had still been deciding a name for, but would've been raised with Eclipse

#hypokits #hypos #sol #snowkit #snowstar #eclipse #dovewing #warriors #warrior cats #giving snowstar and eclipse their own tags #just for the hell of it

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tallstars-rewrite · 3 years ago

Text

Chapter 34

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Recovery did come, slow as it was. Some days later, Talltail sat by the big glass window. Jake was curled up pressed against his side, snoring loudly. It still felt a bit strange that the kittypet didn’t have even a small qualm about letting a stranger into his home, and treating him as though they were clanmates their whole lives. Talltail certainly didn’t dislike it. It felt safer than sleeping alone, and even if the water the twoleg put down had an unpleasant metallic tang to it, at least he could be sure it wasn’t going to kill him.

Another oddity he’d found in the den was the twoleg sometimes lit a small fire inside at night, in a little stone cavern in the sitting room, and somehow kept it contained. It was more than a little frightening at first, but also incredibly warm. It was his first sight of real fire. Talltail couldn’t help but be mesmerized at the rare opportunity to closely watch such a dangerous unpredictable thing, feared by all the clans, without having to worry.

But that was about where the benefits stopped.

In the couple days he’d been there, he had also suffered getting slobbered on by a dog multiple times, and the twoleg constantly trying to stroke his fur. Once it had made the mistake of trying to pick him up, but Talltail had quickly made it clear that was not going to fly. He also had to deal with letting it take on and off the uncomfortable soft wraps and smearing his cuts with a foul smelling goo. The twolegs paws where clumsy and shaky. It made him long for Briarpaw’s much more gentle touch. I will never complain of the smell of herbs again, Talltail thought. Not that he’d get the chance either way. But however unpleasant it felt, he suffered captivity with as much dignity as he could manage. And his wounds did feel a bit better.

The twoleg came up behind them and crouched down, making strange high pitched noises at Talltail, a sound he noticed the twoleg only made at cats. Talltail ignored it, tail lashing when it had the nerve to start touching his back. He turned slowly with a searing glare.

“You are an ugly hairless lumbering fool. You smell of fox-dung. I’d rather sleep in the dirt place than breathe in your stench.”

The twoleg made a pleased crooning sound and went on stroking his fur.

Talltail continued, “you have a kits’ senses and wouldn’t be able to find your own stupid ugly nose even though it’s attached to your face. You are lower than a worm, and I despise you and everything you stand for. You are too flea-brained to understand a word I’m saying, aren’t you?”

The twoleg meowed back at him. It sounded like garbled nonsense.

Talltail narrowed his eyes. “What is that supposed to mean? Are you mocking me?”

The twoleg meowed again.

Talltail bit its paw.

Jake snored himself awake while Talltail still held one of its long digits in his jaws.

“Are you getting along?” he yawned.

Talltail spit out the paw and the twoleg made an amused sound and lumbered away. “We are getting along great,” he said through gritted teeth.

“That’s good. You’ve only bit him five times so far, that’s much better than the last cat he tried to take in,” Jake purred.

“Your twoleg does not take hints very well.” Talltail replied, ears flat in annoyance.

“Well I never claimed he was wise. He’s really very fond of you though.”

“Then he truly isn’t wise at all."

Jake yawned and stretched “How’s your brooding going? Anything go by outside?”

“Nothing more than some birds,” Talltail sighed.

“Oh!” Jake said suddenly. “I forgot to mention...I had an idea about what you can do. My friend Nutmeg has seen lots of strays go through here in the past moons. There’s a chance the cats you're looking for were among them.”

“You forgot to mention that?”

“In my defense, there’s been a lot of other things to think about.”

“In which case,” Talltail stood. “I think I have stayed here long enough. My cuts aren’t bad. I can manage on my own without that terrible goo.

He expected Jake to argue, but instead he nodded. “I’d never expect you to stay in a house like this, even I find it a little cramped sometimes. A promise is a promise. Follow my lead and you can sneak out.”

Jake took a couple paces towards where the twoleg was sitting and let out a very loud yowl.

“Hey! Time to open the door!”

Eventually the twoleg grumbled, stood up slowly on creaking limbs, and shambled over to the side door. He looked down at Talltail and tried to nudge him back with his long hind leg. Talltail let out a small hiss. Who does it think it is, pushing me?

Jake winked at Talltail. “Just be casual. Act like you don’t care.”

Talltail pretended like he was busy grooming his chest fur. As soon as the door was open, Talltail shot out faster than a hare, across the yard, and clammered through a gap in the fence. Jake squeezed after him a heartbeat later. The twoleg made a hooting sound, but Talltail was already out of sight.

He huffed in the fresh air as soon as he set paws on grass. Never had he been so relieved to feel it.

With a contented sigh of relief, he turned to dip his head to Jake. “Thank you for everything. I’ll think of you often for being so kind to me. You’ve more than repaid your debt.”

Jake blinked at him. “It wasn’t just to repay a debt! And I want to go with you.”

Talltail stared. “G-go with me? This could be really dangerous. I may not like your home, but you're safe here. Where I’m going isn’t, and who knows how long it will take. Do you even know how to fight?”

Jake puffed out his chest “I’ve been in a fight! I got into a tussle with an old stray once, sort of by accident, but I held my ground! See this scar on my ear?”

He turned his head to show off the very, very small nick in his right ear.

When Talltail didn’t respond, Jake gave a dramatic sigh of defeat. “Well, all right. I can’t make you take me. But be careful of the neighbor dogs. And the alley cats. And the rude twolegs. And the cars. The paths and alleyways can get really confusing if you don’t follow them all correctly, and you can end up turned around and running nose first into all kinds of danger. You know where to watch out for all of that, right?”

He was giving Talltail a very pointed look as he spoke. Talltail flicked his long tail in annoyance, but couldn't help looking out at the town with unease. This place was unfamiliar and completely strange to him, not anything his warrior training had prepared him for. Obviously, because warriors aren’t supposed to come out this far in the first place.

It was hard to admit to himself after he’d been so determined to do this on his own that weaving through this loud foul smelling town made him nervous, and he didn’t even know where to start.

Jake had an amused glint in his eyes. “I know you’re on a super important mission, but if you want to accept this 'kittypets' help, I'd love to show you around.”

Talltail eventually had no choice but to accept that maybe he did need a guide. For a little while at least.

Jake perked up immediately. “Great! Then I’ll take you to see my friend Nutmeg. You guys seem like you're a similar breed of paranoid, maybe you’ll get along. You can describe those cats to her, and we’ll decide where to go from there.”

Talltail still wasn’t sure about this. He felt deep down that he really did want Jake’s company, remembering a time when it felt like such a relief to go see him. And he didn’t realize until after he left WindClan how empty it would feel to be completely alone for so long. But at least unlike back then, he didn’t have to feel guilty about seeing Jake because it was no longer a simple excuse to get away from his clan duties. But still... I came out this far because I needed to do this on my own, didn’t I? Why should another cat be bogged down with it?

“This could take a while, Jake,” Talltail warned again as they walked. “Are you sure you don’t have anything more important to do?”

Jake’s eyes smiled brightly in the greenleaf sunlight. “I assure you, I have absolutely nothing better to be doing.”

***

Talltail followed Jake, leaping down off the fence into Nutmeg’s yard.

“Wait here, I know how to get her attention,” Jake said, trotting up to a tall glass opening in the nest. He began pawing at the window until a disgruntled looking tortoiseshell poked her head through an opening flap.

Nutmeg pushed her way into the yard and regarded Jake suspiciously. “I haven’t seen you in a couple days. Is that weirdo still in your house?”

“Actually he’s in your garden.” Jake replied.

Nutmeg’s eyes bulged as she had apparently only just noticed Talltail sitting with his tail wrapped tightly around himself, trying not to look awkward.

“Um. Hi.” Talltail said.

The bristling tortoiseshell flicked her gaze from him back to Jake, not hiding her obvious unease. “Ah. I see.”

“I know, I know, you don’t like strangers in your garden, but I promise we’ll be gone quick. We just wanted to ask about the cats you’ve seen.” Jake looked back at Talltail. “Nutmeg keeps tabs on all the cats in the area, she sees everyone that goes by. Spying is like, her main hobby.”

“I am not spying, it’s a matter of safety. When I see dangerous looking strangers, the cats that go outside ought to know.” Nutmeg’s tail lashed and Talltail knew she was clearly still unhappy about him being there. He remembered suddenly, now that he’d caught her scent, that she was almost certainly one of the kittypets he had frightened not long after arriving.

“Right I'm er...sorry for scaring you before, I suppose.” Talltail muttered. Nutmeg simply flicked her tail in vague acknowledgement.

Jake nudged her and she sighed. “Fine, I suppose I'm sorry for calling you weird.” She then added, quieter, “but what exactly am I supposed to think when a big stranger shows up covered in blood and talking to himself?”

“Anyway,” Jake interrupted before Talltail could respond, “his name is Talltail and we’re going on a quest to find a group of strays.”

“‘We’?” Nutmeg stared at Jake. "Why are you going?"

“Yes we, because we’re friends and I’m a good guide.” Jake retorted. Nutmeg looked very doubtful, which made Talltail a bit nervous. He hoped Jake wasn’t exaggerating his navigation knowledge, but it was too late to turn him down now.

“Well…” Nutmeg hesitated, “A lot of strays have passed by here. Who exactly are you looking for?”

Talltail did his best to describe the five cats. “The only one I need to find is the smallest of them, dark brown almost black, sort of long messy fur, one ear tip sliced off. His eyes are two different colors. Looks obnoxiously aloof all the time. It would have been a couple moons ago.”

“A couple moons ago, that’s not encouraging.” Nutmeg said. “But surprisingly, I think I know who you mean. They’d passed by here before. Made themselves very known, weird bunch, too friendly for their own good if you ask me. I remember because it was a little before I met Jake. Before him, they were some of the oddest cats I’d ever seen. And before you I guess. They stopped to talk to Quince, I think they mentioned something about staying in the big wooded park in the center of town. It’s supposed to be a big area with no cars, and there’s lots of food, and apparently housefolk will feed you too if you know the right ones to ask. I overheard them saying were going to stop traveling for a bit, I guess they just had a loss or something. Mind you, that was some moons ago, I don’t know if they’re still there, but that’s what they said last I saw them.”

“Wow you remember all that? You’re positive?” Talltail asked.

Nutmeg sniffed, as if she were offended. “Of course I’m sure! I’m sure of every cat I see, especially weird ones.”

“Alright, alright. Do you know where this park is?” Talltail pressed.

“Um...well no, I have no need to go that far outside my house myself.”

“I think I know!” Jake piped up, “I haven’t been there, but I’ve seen it from a distance. We just have to cut through some alleyways to avoid the cars.”

“If you think it’s safe to do that…” Nutmeg narrowed her eyes, “Not every stray likes you, you know.”

“I’ll be fine. I know exactly where I'm going.” Jake nudged Talltail “See, aren’t you glad you have me?”

“Sure. We should get going though. Thanks for your help. As a reward, I promise never to come into your garden again.”

She snorted. “Actually, as my reward, you can try to keep Jake from doing anything fluff-brained.”

“I never do anything fluff-brained!” Jake purred as he turned with a flick of his tail. “Come on, no time to waste.”

He scampered back up the fence and beckoned Talltail to join him. Jake was far too excited about the grim mission, and Talltail was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable about not giving him all the details. “You’re only going with me a little ways,” Talltail reminded him quickly. “Just to the park. Then I have to continue on my own.”

“Sure, sure, but let's get going! You’ve never seen a town before, I remember how intense it felt the first time I saw it, I’ve got so much to teach you!”

Talltail allowed himself a small purr of amusement. There was still a distance to go. No need to be a drag the entire way when Jake was being so helpful, right? As long as he didn’t slow down.

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#FRU34 #chapter 34

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