Tunnel's Light

STONESTAR

Discomfort crawls against Stonestar's pelt as he and his brother edge closer toward Fennelsong's Tomb— the grey tom knows that although he's feeling horribly uncomfortable at the moment, he has to push on for the sake of his clan. He's done enough to damage Soaringclan's reputation and his clanmate's trust in him, and the only way that he can see himself pushing forward with his leadership is by doubling down on doing all of the right things, no matter how scary or uncomfortable it is. Maybe that's part of his reasoning for bringing Brookshine with him. Trying to break the tension that he can feel forming in the air ( likely due to his own anxiety ), the tomcat offers a flick of his tail tip and then a glance toward his brother, cracking a grin. 

"So uh... What do you think of all of this shit going on recently?" He offers a bump of his shoulder against his brother's, along with a purr. "I'm sure Raccoonspring doesn't care much about it, but... Maybe you've got some bigger thoughts on it? I'd love to pick your mind a bit." Maybe Brookshine will have something interesting to bring to his attention. Or even better, a way to avoid heading into Fennelsong's Tomb... Not to avoid productivity, but to avoid the creepy atmosphere of the supposedly haunted tunnels.

BROOKSHINE

When Stonestar had come up to him and requested his presence for an outing, he hadn't exactly expected this. By all means, he always wanted to spend time with his brother... But in the catacombs of Fennelsong's Tomb? He probably couldn't think of anything worse. His skin prickled with goosebumps as they made their way through the horrifying chilling tunnels, his heart thundering in his chest at any little noise that echoed down its length. Ever since the cave-in, Brookshine had been very cautious of tunnels, though they were impossible to avoid in Soaringclan territory. Guess he'd have to get over it.

He notices his littermate's grin and tries to return it, albeit very shakily. Stonestar had always been the braver of the two... Or, well, at least the one that didn't always worry about having the worst luck imaginable. The question that hung in the air was light-hearted, but it felt much heavier than perhaps Stonestar had meant it. "Where do I even start?" He scoffed a little, though his fur had begun to relax as his mind became distracted, "Raccoonspring doesn't seem t'care about much that isn't beauty rest, t'be fair, so it isn't hard competition." Brookshine laughed, flicking an ear.

"T'be honest... Well, you know how I failed a lot of my novice training. I don't think I'm really the best to ask for thoughts on things I definitely don't understand." He cringed a little as the memories of said training returned to him. "But I do have to wonder... Do you really think a big predator can fit down here? Where are we even goin'?"

STONESTAR

Stonestar can’t keep from scoffing as he listens to his littermate, affectionate annoyance prickling at his pelt at the mention of Raccoonspring. He loved his brothers, he did, but Raccoonspring left much more to be desired when looked at from the eyes of a leader. ”I wouldn’t even call it beauty sleep at this point, Raccoon’s lazy.” The grey tomcat replies bluntly, giving a flick of his tail. He momentarily wonders if he was too harsh, and then… Well, he recalls the last time that he had recently seen Raccoonspring, lounging about like always. ”Maybe having Specklepaw as his novice will kick his hide into gear.”

His frown deepens as his brother continues, and Stonestar feels a familiar sense of discomfort lodge itself underneath his pelt. Brookshine does make a good point, but… ”I mean. You did graduate in the end.” Stonestar points out before clearing his throat. Stars, this is awkward… But Stonestar had opted to bring Brookshine with him because he wanted to spend time with his family member. … Which sounds a little too similar of a thought to a failing novice that he does know. 

It’s better to just mull over Brookshine’s questions than think about that, though. The tomcat takes slow and calculated steps down the tunnel path, heterochromatic eyes searching his surroundings. With a deep breath, he glances back toward his brother. ”We don’t even know what the predator is,” He points out. ”Theres a chance that they could fit down here. … Call it a gut feeling, I guess. But believe me when I say that I don’t want to be down here anymore than you do, Brookshine.”

BROOKSHINE

A laugh escaped him at his brother’s words, and he shook his head as he followed behind the bigger tom. “Yeah, that’s fair enough. I get annoyed that he sleeps all damn day, too, but that’s just him, I guess. We gotta learn to love it ‘cause I don’t think he’s gonna grow out of it any time soon.” Maybe Stonestar was right that having a novice to train would help motivate him, but from what he’d seen so far… Brookshine felt a little bad for Specklepaw. Maybe he’d have to offer the novice some extra advice at some point if he ever needed it, just in case. He’d managed to train one novice successfully so far, so he couldn’t fail too horrendously trying to help another, right?

“That’s true enough— I did graduate, but we both know it shouldn’t have taken that long. At least I’m doing what I’m good at now, though. Plus… Branchprowl didn’t come out too bad, did he?” He sent a pleased smile his brother’s way, chest rumbling with a proud purr. Whatever he might doubt about himself, Brookshine knew that his novice had graduated into a fine excavator and would help benefit the clan for moons to come. He picks up on his littermate’s slight discomfort, though he doesn’t truly know the extent of it. Rustlepaw doesn’t cross his mind, but he flicks his tail comfortingly against Stonestar’s, anyway, to tell him everything is okay. He didn’t want his brother to distance himself again— He’d missed him terribly for the moons he avoided them.

At his brother’s response to his nervous rambling, he could only nod his head. Stonestar’s gut feelings were always worth listening to… Starclan had chosen him, after all. They couldn’t be wrong, could they? He snorted quietly, shaking his head, “Then I guess we better hurry it up then, huh?”

STONESTAR

Shrugging his shoulders at the idea of Raccoonspring being annoyed ( something that Stonestar isn't very certain is possible, considering the tom in question is a bit of... Well, an airhead ), the tomcat can only shrug his shoulders with a faint smile. "No, I don't think he or his sister came out bad at all." Stonestar dips his head, smile visibly growing— just a smidge, if you ask him. "You did well with Branchprowl." He praises, before rolling his shoulders in an attempt to redirect their focus to the task at hand. 

Stonestar gazes at the endless pit that proves itself to be Fennelsong's Tomb with a deep breath, anxiety further spiking at the thought of walking forward. But they don't have a choice, and need to search for these clues. "Yeah... The sooner that we're out of here and back in camp, the better. C'mon, Brookshine."

STONESTAR

A beam of pride warms his chest and he can't help the purr that fights to escape him. Stonestar's praise meant more to him that could really put into words-- All their lives, it was evident that his siblings would achieve more than him (or have the potential to, in Raccoonspring's case) and he'd hated it at the time. Now though? He understood what he was good at and what he lacked... Plus, there was no denying that Stonestar was one of the greatest cats he knew, biases aside.

"Thank you." He answered, conscious of the slight prickling of his eyes. He wasn't going to cry in front of his brother, that would be mortifying. They hadn't cried since they were kits! Brookshine's attention was returned once more to the dark tunnels they were travelling, but the shiver down his spine wasn't as sever this time. He knew, somehow, that as long as he stayed close to Stonestar's side that he'd be safe.