“Hey, you!” A startlingly bright voice calls from a startling mouselength away, making you flinch. You turn to see wide blue-green eyes darting across your face and body before settling somewhere slightly off to one side. The cream tabby’s hooked muzzle is wrinkled in a friendly smile as he distractedly flicks a curled ear.

“...Hey,” You reply flatly.

“I don’t think we’ve met, but you’ve been gone for a while, haven’t you?” He gives you another once-over, making your fur prickle. “Is it the cut on your face?”

You try to fix him with a look, but he just stares blankly back before his eyes drift to the middle distance again. “Yes, I was in the healer’s den after I got blinded in one eye,” you bite out.

He’s unphased by your attitude. “Oh, StarClan, that’s terrible! You’re alright now, though?” He mews, voice sickeningly sympathetic. He talks so fast, too.

You shrug. When you don’t respond, he stares around at the rough walls of the crater, then back at you. “I’m Lightningpaw, by the way.”

“Applepaw.”

He tilts his head, then snaps back to attention. “Wait, are you ThunderClan’s Applepaw?”

“Um- yeah, yeah, I am. Why?”

“Dude, I’ve heard about you! I remember now, Redstar mentioned it when you first didn’t show up at a Gathering. That wound is from ShadowClan, wasn’t it-”

“First of all, don’t call me dude,” you snarl. He finally reacts to that, shrinking back slightly. “Second, I don’t need anyone asking for the gory details of my injuries. Can't you just go back to your clanmates?”

“I- I’m sorry,” Lightningpaw mumbles. The brief apologetic look disappears and he’s back to swaying as he sits. “I don’t really talk to anyone in SkyClan, though, except my mentor, Gingerleap. There are two other apprentices, but they’re littermates and pretty close, so they don’t really need me to have any fun or socialize. And Cherrypaw’s a healer apprentice, so she’s super busy anyways, and…”