New Beginnings

[Beaan]

Rainpaw
He/They - 17 Moons

Three moons. It has been three moons. And at last, Rainpaw could return home. But, he was coming with a friend this time. He was still glad ramen decided to come with him - in the past three moons, Rainpaw had grown close to him, Ramen Noodle was one of his friends now. So, the one-eyed tabby waited a bit after sunrise before waking up his companion. "Come on, let's head to RiverClan," he purred softly.

Once Ramen awoke, Rainpaw led his companion to the forest. It wasn't long before the two reached the scent markers. "Almost there," he purred. His one blue eye shone brightly as they walked through Rainpaw's home. It was nice to be here again. Soon, the scent of RiverClan grew stronger and stronger, so Rainpaw decided to stop. "HEY! FADINGDUMB! ITS ME!" he called out happily. "Fadin'sun is our leader and my former mentor," he explained before sitting down, waiting for fades to show up.

[ @Dolomedes @occultation ]

[Dolomedes]

Ramen Noodle

Ramen Noodle followed after Rainpaw. Despite being nervous because of everything that has happened, Rainpaw seems to be happy leading them back to his home, so Ramen Noodle allowed himself to find comfort in that. But at the same time, wasn’t this the same group that kicked Rainpaw out in the first place? Why would they ever do that anyways? Ramen Noodle knows the story a bit from when Rainpaw and him first met but getting to know Rainpaw better, it seems strange that a clan worth their name would throw out a cat like him. Rainpaw had even saved Ramen Noodle’s life and stayed with him despite everything. What would Rainpaw do if this Fading-whatever cat didn’t allow Ramen Noodle into the clan?

What would Ramen Noodle do? Where would he go? He has nothing anymore, the only thing he has left is Rainpaw. His home and housefolk were gone. Most of the entire folk town he lived in was gone surely in a blaze like that. He has no idea if any of his friends were alive! His siblings or family. Everything was gone. What would he do if he can’t continue following Rainpaw? The burnt cat looked through the trees, trying to catch any sign of movement that could suggest another cat approaching. He found himself wishing for a moment that this Fading-cat had a bell. Ramen Noodle misses his bell. The golden chime had fallen off of his red collar at some point and he hadn’t been able to find it.

“W..What if they don’t want me?” The golden Tom half whispered as he continued to stare out into the forest. The world was hazy, but it wasn’t too bad all things considered. He could make out closer leaves and world, but just a couple tail lengths away things started to blur together. Would they want a burnt up cat. He’s heard the stories about clan cats before Rainpaw. He’s sure there’s stories of kittypets ( as Rain had called him ) in the clans and he’s sure they likely didn’t paint him in a good light. Clan stories weren’t flattering in the alleys. Talk of cannibalism and torture were the norm.

[ @occultation - Fadingstar | @Bean - Rainpaw ]

[occultation]

( @Bean @Dolomedes )

Fadingstar was out (again) when he heard a familiar voice he hadn't heard in a long time, and honestly wasn't sure if he'd hear again. His ears perked, the ache in his chest momentarily forgotten.

Pushing through some brush, his eyes widened as they confirmed what his ears had heard. It was Rainpaw- and he had an unfamiliar cat with them. Their companion looked to be in quite rough shape, but Rainpaw didn't look too worse for wear.

It still bothered him to be called Fadingdumb, but he was trying to take these things more in stride these days (especially since he could tell it was said jovially).

"Rainpaw," he greeted, surprise in his tone. "I'll admit, I'm surprised to see you back here, but in a good way I suppose. I hope you've done a lot of reflecting during your time away, and you're ready to come back and be fully committed to being a great warrior for RiverClan."

He gave a curt nod to Rainpaw's companion, not wanting to seem rude. "Hello; I'm Fadingstar, the leader of the group that lives here- although I'm sure Rainpaw probably told you about RiverClan."

[taillow]

Stormstar - RiverClan Leader

Things were feeling... better. More stable. Even though each night she closed her eyes she still had nightmares that haunted her, Stormstar felt better about RiverClan's future now that she had Owls as her deputy. Outside of Stags (and, of course, Bites, Fury, and Lions), she was the cat the leader looked to most for advice and stability and just... a shoulder to lean on. It felt nice to have, after moons of... well, whatever had happened.

But such calm thoughts couldn't last, because - of course - outsiders. Slinking low against the ground, Stormstar used her dark coat to her advantage to hide among the undergrowth, blue eyes peering out to detect who was there. A loud voice shot through the forest and she flattened her ears as a pair of crows squawked high into the sky. Whoever it was, they were gonna get their ears shredded for scaring away prey.

Moving quickly yet silently the RiverClan leader unsheathed her claws to attack when she halted. She knew that voice... it belonged to a cat that she hadn't seen in some time. A low growl rumbled in her throat as she finally slid out of the bushes, hackles up and tail lashing. "Dunno where the hell you've been," she snapped as her eyes narrowed fiercely, "but if you're tryin' to rejoin, this isn't the way to do it, Rainpaw. 'N you should know that." And oh look, he had an outsider with him. Great.

"You've got three seconds to explain yourself, or 'm sendin' you 'n your outsider friend out of RiverClan territory." First it had been scaring away the prey, and now this cat who had gone missing saw fit to just prance right back onto her territory as if he hadn't been gone for the last several moons. Seemed fitting enough, considering she recalled who his mentor had been - both failures.

[ @Beaan @Dolomedes ]