EBC - A Mother's Touch

Ok, so for the short story, that's... 2 EP, I think?
And for the art, that's 6 EP. 
So, +8 EP to Penny, right? c:

- - -

This had been something the lynx had been struggling with for a long, long time.  It was funny how just a single event could change a cub so quickly, and remain with him or her.  That was certainly the case for young Penelope.  The striped horror had lunged at Master, so mercilessly crushing his life and throwing him aside, then approaching her... it had been traumatizing, and the start of the nightmare her life would soon become.  But that was over now.  The apprentice's life had changed, drastically.

She'd made friends here, like Plato and Kivuli, and was adopted by the liger Eli, which was really the big turning point for Penelope, because it helped draw her out of her shell, and that family grew very quickly.  Family, the one thing Penelope had never really had the chance to experience, but she had the opportunity to do so now. 

But as they say, old habits die hard, and Penny's fear of tigers was getting in the way of progress.  As a healer's apprentice, as a potential family member, and as a growing, developing cat in general.  And it didn't help when your adoptive mother was the leader, either.

Unlike how she appeared to be, however, Penny was not naive.  She was a big girl now, even if she could be meek and timid from time to time.  She knew that not all tigers were like that scary gladiator she met long ago.  Aikaterine was part tiger, Eli and Plato were both half tiger, and Crispus was a tiger, after all.  And there was Ceres, too... Penelope had only seen her from a great distance, respectively, but she'd heard others talk about her, and Eli would often spend time with Ceres... Penny would usually run away when that happened, but now she couldn't help but feel... ashamed.  She was older, so she knew better now.  It wasn't fair to look at one member of a species, and judge them all that way.  She was sure Ceres was a great cat, especially the way everyone talked about her... and though it was overwhelming for a few days, she wanted to become part of this family.  But she couldn't help feeling the way she did; how was she supposed to move past this when there was such a blockage preventing her from doing so?

The answer came from Eli and, to Penelope's surprise, Crispus.  They were both encouraging and supporting, which is just what she needed to come to a decision... as Penelope began walking, with the assurance that they were with her, she knew it was the only way she would ever be able to resolve her problem.  

Quietly, she approached the large tigress, until a twig snapped.  As Ceres turned her head, and caught sight of the lynx, the apprentice froze.  She was so close, that she couldn't help but tremble in place a bit.  She felt one of the two cats behind her touch her back gently with his paw, and the other nudge her a little.  She didn't look behind to see which was which - she didn't need to.  It was enough to remind her that she could do this.  The lynx gave the slightest of nods, and stumbled forward shakily.

One foot in front of the other... that's it... almost there... just a few more steps...

Penelope didn't meet the leader's gaze as she looked down at the apprentice with a confused expression, for she feared she might lose her composure if she did.  Slowly, and still trembling, Penny pressed her body against the tiger's, not moving as the larger feline embraced her.  

After a few minutes, the lynx closed her eyes, and her shaking started to grow weaker, until she was still.  She was still scared, and it wasn't much, but it was a start.  Hopefully, the first step in getting over her fear, and in getting the chance to feel the presence of the one thing she'd always wanted deep down, but had very little memory of ever having.  

A mother.

- - -

I've been wanting to do this for a while.

Stray, I know we've never talked about this directly, so if any of this isn't ok with you, let me know.  Hope you like it though, and I hope we can work with them in the future.  ;w;  

Penny doesn't really have memories of her parents, and in a way that isn't painful at all, which is why she'll come to see Eli and Ceres as her parents rather easily.  She and her siblings were all too sick to have relationships with Sophia or eachother, and Arkita was never around, so it shouldn't take too long for Penelope to accept all her new family members, including the incoming litter.  She might be a little awkward around Ceres for a little bit, but she is trying, and that will lead to new things.

Also, nifty brushes were linked by Luna-Lovegood12 c:

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^{Brushes used (c) Mar-ka 
Penelope, Art, and Arkita (c) PancakeShiners 
Ceres (c) stray-thought 
Crispus (c) Sky-Lily 
Eli (c) AskTyranno 
Plato (c) DappledSun 
Aikaterine (c) Akyia}