fresco refresco -- private

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Maplefrost was half-dozing in his nest; it was an oddly warm afternoon and there wasn't much happening in camp. The whole place seemed to have been taken over by a wave of relaxation and sleepiness. Going against the flow was too much effort.

However, the calico's ears swiveled forward when he heard footsteps in the entrance of the elders' den, and he made a muffled noise that might've been an attempt at a half-awake greeting.

[Tanglepelt]

I was surprised the elders were alive still, honestly. Maybe it was because I hadn't been too active myself. Everyone in the clan probably thought I was dead or close to it. I carried a fish in my jaws, a customary treat I brought with me every time I went to visit Maplefrost. As I entered, I heard him make some noise. An amused snort was my response as I sat near his nest, dropping his fish. "Hello, Maplefrost."

[Deleted]

He might not have been paying much attention before, but Maplefrost was quite suddenly jolted to full alertness when he received a response. That voice is too familiar. Is that…?

"Tanglepelt?" he asked tentatively, completely ignoring smell of fish for once as he sniffed to get a trace of the visitor's scent. "Is that really you? I…"

Thought you were dead, like everyone else from before, he finished silently.

[Tanglepelt]

I narrowed my green gaze momentarily, my ears flicking as he sniffed me and questioned my existence. Maybe I really was gone longer than I thought. "Yes, it's me," I replied, my voice soft. "Sorry. I kind of... disappeared for a while, so to say. But, I'm here." I tilted my head.

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"You did," agreed the older tom solemnly. "I can hardly believe you're back; I thought… you haven't heard about what happened, have you?"

Oh, he was going to have to break the news, wasn't he? That really sucked.

[Tanglepelt]

I opened my mouth to speak, but I stopped when he mentioned something. "What... what happened?" I asked, curious but dreading at the same time. His tone didn't sound too happy. What could I have possibly missed?

[Deleted]

Maplefrost hesitated for a moment. "Almost everyone from our younger days is gone now," he told her eventually. "Some are dead but most are missing. There's still Windflurry, and a few of the others like Tigerblaze and Wolfmist, except I don't see them very often. Well - I don't see anything anymore," the tom added in a vain attempt at humor.

"My mother was killed in a raid, and I think my father is also dead, not that I care much about him. I haven't heard from my brother in seasons. Even Redstorm passed away last leaf-fall… wait, no, the one before that."

"I just… where have all the older IceClanners gone?"

[Tanglepelt]

It took a moment to process everything he just said. Everyone? Gone? Dead or missing? I felt myself shudder, my eyes dropping to the ground. "Everyone...?" It was almost like I couldn't believe him. "Wait, what happened to you? You can't see?" That explained how he didn't know it was me until I spoke. I thought he was just half blind, or his nose stopped working.

"Shadefrost was killed? Redstorm?" Hearing my mentor's passing made my heart shatter. "It... it can't be! He's Redstorm. He just doesn't die!" I heaved a loud sigh, shaking my head. "Why did that happen? Why did I let myself become like that?"

[Deleted]

"To tell you the truth, I don't even remember how I went blind. It was a long time ago - probably towards the start of my days as a senior warrior, if I had to guess. I used to be able to see in my dreams but now there's not even that." He sighed, trying to remember what colors had been like. It wasn't easy. He knew the world in a different way now; through the warmth of the sun rather than the distinctive hues of the mountain sky, and the scents of his Clanmates instead of their appearances.

Remembering Redstorm still hurt a little, despite the fact that it had been so long ago. "I don't know why. I was there… he seemed fine and then he wasn't." The elders' den had seemed too empty ever since then.

"At least you're back," Maplefrost murmured quietly after a while.

[Tanglepelt]

I just grunted, my green gaze flicking away. I suppose I was rather lucky that I haven't gone blind or lost a body part yet. Then again, Maplefrost had a rough life as well. "Not even in dreams? Did that come with age, or was pain inflicted on you?" I was determined to figure out if some cat had hurt him. He was really all I had left now. Mossfeather and Darkwing were gone, Redstorm too. As much as I hate to say it, so was Emberstorm. He turned tail and ran for FireClan a long time ago. Who knew if he was still alive.

"Did he go peacefully? Or was there blood?" I was so curious. I felt bad for interrogating my friend. I reached over to nudge him with my nose. "I am. I won't leave you, Maplefrost." I settled beside the calico tom.

"Fish? I remember bringing it to you many moons past."

[Deleted]

"At first it was only partial blindness. I don't know if you remember, but I used to have a bitter rivalry with a FireClanner named Hawkbreeze; he ended up taking the vision from one of my eyes. From there, it was just the result of age, if I recall correctly. I'm just glad that Flamingthorn was able to fix my leg a while back. I'd hate to be blind and half-crippled."

Of course Tanglepelt would want to know more about Redstorm; he couldn't blame her. They had been pretty close. "Redstorm's death wasn't pretty but… he seemed at peace, when it was mostly over," Maplefrost sighed. He leaned up against the senior warrior, happy to have his old friend around once again.

At the reminder, his nose twitched and he stretched a paw out to bring the prey closer. "Thanks. I can't believe you remembered that," the calico meowed, starting to nibble at the fish.