Posts by ICARUS.`

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ "That's terrible," he murmured, his voice tinged with sympathy, "I'm sorry ... but, if you are ever in a situation like that again, just call for me; some cats here can be vicious."}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ "Wh- What?" He felt his life tearing apart at the seams at this point. The very fabric of his happiness ripping apart before his very eyes, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing. "Why? You are still a great leader ... What about me, Cypress, Kai, Louis, and Eva?"}

^{His gaze focused on Asher for a moment, as if somehow the gray tom could change his father's mind. Turning to Nathanos once more, his neck swiveling slowly in thought, he meowed desperately, "Well ... then I'll follow you." It was a bold proposal, one filled with words he wasn't sure he meant in his worried haste. As if to shoot himself in the foot once more, he added with conviction, "I'll follow you anywhere, dad!" Because the truth of the matter was he couldn't stand to see his father the way he was. How could he not worry about the man, especially now?}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ He watched the strange creature with light interest, some might even say a bit chary to even lounge by it. While the tabby was sunbathing, he felt restless now, as if he should tell the others to get away. Still, they were fine; the deer seemed docile. The horns, however, seemed sharp, too sharp, and in his entire life Icarus had learned they were all fragile creatures. If the deer so wanted, it could likely dance among the cats in a frenzy of hooves and decimate the Clan in a few measly blows. How sad was it to admit such a fact to oneself when all Icarus wanted to do the most was protect his Clan? The deer ticked him off, and he flicked an ear in irritation, wondering what might occur if he tackled the creature head on someday.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ His throat clenched, stinging regret flooding over him at Cypress's words, and he realized the consequences of his actions then and there. He could not leave his family or abandon his father, but the choice was made for him. He couldn't leave even if he wanted to, even if he tried. "I ... I can't leave my brothers and sisters, you're right ..." He had made his decision to live here, and unlike his father, he was bound by the choice.}

^{Icarus slightly understood what his father meant, but his ears flattened as he was told to stay where he was, in BloodClan. A place that preyed upon the weak. A place that drove his father away, and had severed his family again. A place that had ruined his life. "He isn't weak." He had no reasons, no evidence, and no stories to back the lone statement up.}

^{Here they were, Ike dependently begging to follow his father, Cypress confused and even accusing the tom of weakness, and Evelyn straight up renouncing him altogether. The words bit but he understood where she was coming from. In a way, Nathanos was being a deadbeat dad, but it was for his own reasons. The litter were not exactly kittens either; surely, they would be fine without him. Despite what his siblings were saying, he shouldered his own words in. "We are all hurting right now, with everything that's happened ... but you were a good father. We love you, too, dad."}

^{Unintentionally, he felt as if he had taken on the role of the mediator as the situation. If that was what his family needed right now, so be it. His eyes were filled with love for the monstrous, mangled tabby, and despite how conflicted he felt, he smiled for his father.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ After the move, so much had happened in such a short amount of time. Reja had become his mentor, replaced their father, and their father had left them again. First it had been Pearl he turned on; then, his children. Meanwhile, Icarus was stuck trying to tie the frays of his family into knots, and being the strong tom they needed to keep them together. He was pulling his weight. To be a BloodClanner of use, he had started working for Sinclair as a Hawk: another muscle man put to work. The title was almost flattering.}

^{On his arrival, he had been so terrified of BloodClan, terrified of the world; even terrified of Nathanos for a time. But understanding the world he had gifted his children, and the life which the tom lived himself, had led to Icarus's admiration and fear of the man. He was a force to be reckoned. There was no mistake about that.}

^{Until his leg had cleaved off, sending Ike into tears. Nathanos was weak; he resigned; he left. Icarus could not let the same thing happen to himself or his siblings. The world left no survivors. The world took mercy on no one.}

^{Especially not Icarus.}

^{And that was why the tabby had not slept all night, simply sitting and wallowing in the shadow that had swallowed his mind. In front of the station, right by the tracks, he waited for the sun to come, and it did, bringing dawn with it.}

^{EVELYN ;}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ He couldn't stand how he pointed it out almost immediately. He hated it, so much. He hated this. He hated-- "Dogs. Dogs are what happened." John Wick would be furious with him. Rather than having a vendetta against those that killed them, he hunted down the canines instead. He was truly a stereotypical cat, through and through, wasn't he?}

^{He wondered, for a moment, how Juno managed to expend so much energy on healing the weak, the lesser of the Clan.}

^{"I'm fine ..." he muttered, maybe with a touch of embarrassment, before tucking his tail between his legs and following the shadowy healer. There was no use arguing about it. It was a fact that he was hurt. He just wished it wasn't.}

^{Look at me. I will never be as strong as my father if I can't even handle a scratch.}

^{As if on cue, another flame of pain soared across his shoulder-blades. He gritted his teeth, eyes gently crinkling in a silent wince.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ At her critique, he would stammer inaudibly as he uncomfortably shuffled his large weight around. He tightened his back legs, spread his front paws, and released his breath. He scanned her form; yes, he had done this right. Alright, now it was just time for the leap.}

^{He knew leaping if his breath was out of tune with his muscles he would likely land off. Being so large, his breaths shook him more than most cats. He knew this was just practice, but it was quite important to take the training seriously, even if he did not think much of himself. He had to be a strong hunter someday, to prove himself to his Clan. A slow stream exhaled from his coal nose, his muscles bunching together.}

^{He steadied himself. He kept his eyes on the prize: the black piece of thunder monster. Narrowing his eyes, he sprang, flying through the air even if for only a heartbeat, and slammed his paws together onto the tire. His claws embedded into the tough substance with ease. His tail was still, not necessarily out of instinct, but out of absolute focus. He still felt dazed, in a trance from the muscle coordination pulling the stunt off had taken.}

^{Of course, this was just an immobile object, however. The real deal would be more cruel and punishing to accomplish.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ Icarus's eyes, unlike Gaia's, were not virgins in the sense that the gore of life was new to him. He had grown to learn BloodClan's native tongue of violence, blood and pain and scars all the same to him. It was an acquired taste; one that was hard to swallow. After witnessing his father being torn from limb, apprentices scarred from their mentors for their mistakes, and had even gotten hurt trying to earn a place in the Clan himself, Juno's injury was commonplace. It almost seemed inappropriate to ask anymore, as he recalled how he had asked one child and gotten an answer that only broke his heart.}

^{And his heart; well, it was broken enough.}

^{It was rare he ever showed his sense of humor, but now seemed like a good time. "If you want, me and the chipmunk," he joked lightheartedly, tossing his tail to gesture to Gaia, "can take that work off your paws. It's just those yellow flowers and spiderwebs you'll need, right?" He vaguely recalled what he had picked up from the dark tom, after having to call for his aid so much. He respected the tom, despite the fact he was indeed weak; he had healed his father. Even the best of them could be reduced to nothing at any moment. At least, thanks to Juno, his father wasn't dead ... and Reja was very much still alive and kicking. Without the healer, he may have never had such great role-models in his life. It was only fair to offer the same kindness to the tom he had offered them.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ The tom was thinking about the boy, coincidentally. He couldn't forget the other day when he had approached him in front of the station. The scar across his face was concerning, but as if that wasn't gruesome enough, he revealed his own father had given them to him. While his siblings hated his father for leaving the Clan, he knew the tom was not cruel; at least, not intentionally. At least Nathanos was not a monster, despite the fact he looked the part. He was only sad he could never say the same for Pryce. That was what had brought him by the tracks, his mind reflecting on life in the early morning.}

^PRYCE

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ Icarus was grateful Reja had taught him how to hunt.}

^{It wasn't easy, but the tom had spent a considerable amount of time hunting for ... rats. Okay, maybe he was ungrateful instead. Neither notions kept him from regarding Cricket's actions as disgusting, having coincidentally becoming an onlooker of his antics in hunting for prey. He grimaced at the tom, who was so eagerly picking at twoleg leftovers, it seemed. Dropping his catch, he called after the quick cat, "Hey, I have some fresh-kill right here; you don't have to eat ... that." He couldn't hide his disgust to save his life. Both options were disgusting, actually; that was why, despite his shriveled, growling stomach, he was not inclined whatsoever to dig into his own catch.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ "It was a lie that was ... more to convince myself," he stated sheepishly, unsure of what to say. Here he was, battered and vulnerable, and Juno was only encouraging him. There was no harsh words, and no signs of farce to his tone. He shuffled his front paws modestly, the kind gestures hard to swallow. As for simply 'not fighting dogs' the tom was even less confident of what to say. He didn't want to ruin the mood with his dark, dreary, and definitely depressing backstory, so he simply smiled eventually, petite and tight-lipped.}

^{At the suave doctor's proposal, he raised a wintry white paw to his cheek, tracing the outline of his squared jaw in thought. "If it keeps me away from you more, sure," he mused, a rare laugh to his words. Placing his paw down, his face grew more stressed once again. Eyebrows pressed, he continued, "And ... it will make me better at protecting everyone. It seems like everyone is injured lately ..."}

^{He stared down, as if seeing something that wasn't quite there, and recalled the past few days. There had been Reja's wounds. There had been the SkyClan kitten, who Cypress had nurtured better than he. There had been his father's missing leg, his anchor to BloodClan dropped in the middle of an asphalt ocean, never to return. There was poor Pryce, a kitten too young to be harmed, yet bore a scar. Even Juno himself had been injured which begged the question to the entire Clan what they would all do without him.}

^{He had to admit he had thought of the question in everyone's mind long before the incident, however; call him paranoid but he feared reliance on others. He feared loss, as he had lost his late mother. He feared the fear he felt as he stared at Nathanos's leg -- or what was left of it, sadly. Of course he accepted Juno's offer: it was one he couldn't refuse.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ Accident prone.}

^{Well, they were named BloodClan for a reason. Nicks, scars, and injuries collected on them like candy; in contrast, the cats themselves were far from eye candy. They were littered in collectibles of misfortune and scuffs from scuffles: a mayhem of mishaps. So it was no surprise the entire Clan gathered at the healer's word, young (painful for Icarus) and old (to be expected, sadly) alike.}

^{The hot cocoa colored tom recalled what Juno had taught him the other day while patching the stripes of red across his spine. Icarus was well aware that nicks and cuts would forever be the least of his problems. Juno had to have known this too. Whether the tom was trying to teach the entire Clan how to play doctor or had some ulterior motive, Icarus wasn't sure.}

^{At Rocco's question, while it was evidently not directed at him Icarus had a sick fascination with being of use to others. It was ... obvious, as to what they were, yet a small answer of, "Spiderwebs. Old spiderwebs, cobwebs," squeaked out of the young behemoth. He knew the question wasn't serious ... at least, he really hoped it wasn't. Because if it was this entire lesson suddenly would have made more sense to Ike.}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ Icarus could distantly recall a time from his childhood where he had done the same. The event before him stole the forgotten memory and discarded it on the forefront of his mind. His life on rewind, he remembered the sweet, succulent, savory taste of mysterious twoleg meat; yet also violently recollected his dry heaving, his stomach retching up a slew in distaste for the food. There was often something sprinkled, peppered, poisoned into their delights that made so delectable and still so dangerous. Icarus was starving as it was. With a pang of pain and pity in his heart for the two, hoping they would not suffer his same fate, he mewed, "Normally, I would take you up on that ... but I don't feel like puking right now. I hope you enjoy the meal, I suppose."}

^{❝ oh, i wonder what it’s like to be the type who doesn’t burn ❞}

^{✧ The male blinked hard, gazing down at his claws. It would likely be foolish to make a mess of his reinforced claws. Therefore, he used his right paw. He stepped forth and dipped a milky paw into the gossamer's silk touch. The webs wove around his retractable round, round, and round again like white cotton candy. He hadn't taken too much, and made sure to sever the connection with a free claw once his web padding was adequate. His claw by this time looked more like a fluffy cocoon. The spider silk was ... oddly comforting to feel.}

^{Still, he had noticed he had been sloppy; upon further inspection there were bunches of loose strands here and there. Not bad for a first try, at least. He lapped the material off gently with his tongue, as if ripping off a bandage. He felt the adhesive undo over the pile of webs he had retrieved them from. It was only polite to be conservative of Juno's cobwebs, after all.}