Username: SkyWishes21
Cat Name: Firewind
Gender: Cis Molly, She/Her
Rank: Builder
Clan: Overlook Station Age: 3 years
Prompt: The spring storms were a'coming. Firewind could feel it in her tangled whiskers, in the ache of her bones. Durn things hadn't worked right since she'd fled her old clan. Even the clouds were darker.
Before the rain fell, she'd have to ensure all the stores were secure. She'd spent tireless hours stacking stones into walls and weaving leaves and sticks into mats to keep the rain off precious goods. Firewind trudged around the abandoned train station she now called home to a little outdoor ledge the humans had left behind.
Out here was her supply yard. Stones were built in a wall around the outside, leaving an entry way for her to drag large rocks and oversized branches through. The biggest rocks and sticks would be all right in the incoming weather, but the smaller ones were a concern. She wound her way through the paths between to her covered back corner. There were the leaves, far enough beneath the ledge that the rain shouldn't rot them. Firewind swept a couple loose leaves back into the pile and rearranged her smaller sticks. The rain shouldn't get them. They'll be fine. Probably. Maybe she'll check them once more to be safe.
Next on her list of structures was the fresh-kill pile. It was kept in a corner by a broken window to better allow the clowder to control the temperature so prey would keep longer. Unfortunately, this also meant that it was more susceptible to rain. Early on Firewind had managed to weave a mat from sticks and leaves to protect it. It'd been long enough that she had to triple check to ensure it was still waterproof.
Ah. There were some leaves missing. She trekked back out to the stores to pick out the perfect leaves, thin and elongated to fit into the gaps that had developed. Weaving them back in was a tedious chore, but when she stepped back she was confident that the rain would not fall through the window and soak their hunts.
Next on her list was to check the herb storage. Early in the week Firewind and the medic had gone through and reorganized everything, so there shouldn't be too much of a problem. Even better, it was in one of the least exposed places in the station; rain had very little chance of getting in and ruining live-saving herbs. Never hurt to check though; what if the roof started to leak?
All good, as it should be. Okay, so all the was left were the various dens. Most of them were unused right now, so Firewind wouldn't have to worry about their state until later. Well, maybe she should worry. What if someone showed up during the storms and needed a warm place to stay? Fine. Maybe she'll straighten out a couple of them and make sure the rain won't be able to leak through.
While she's at it, she might as well triple check her and her sister's den. That might be a good idea. It'd be awful if she put in all this effort just for her favorite person in the world to get wet in the storms. Firewind checked every corner, every possible nook and cranny, moving sticks and replacing den moss and re-insulating chilly human walls.
When all was said and done, she took only half a moment to breathe before padding back outside. Just because she checked once doesn't mean she got it all. There's probably still gaps that rain could get in through. Firewind will have to check again and again to make sure.
"Hey."
A gentle tail on her face stopped her pacing. She looked up to see her sister
Skyfire staring at her, an amused little smile in her eyes. Even her cardinal Poppy seemed to be laughing. Firewind flushed with embarrassment.
"You can stop now," Skyfire said. "It's about to rain."
"But that's why I can't stop!" Firewind mewed, frantic urgency beating in her chest. "What if the herbs get destroyed? What if my leaves rot?"
Skyfire licked her ear, stopping her in her tracks. "Your craftscatship is the best I've ever seen. Seasons will change. Even if you miss something now, you'll learn and fix it and we'll recover. Okay?"
Firewind nodded. "Okay."
"Good. Now come on inside, it's warm and safe and you need to be groomed."
Yes... that would probably be nice. Inside the den would be safe indeed. Firewind was sure of it. Probably.
