resilience. [p]

[taillow]

DUSKLION
she/her | riverclan deputy | 30 moons
go with the flow, rapid recovery, beefed up t3, mind reader

Another night spend just outside the temporary came entrance staring up at the stars eventually found Dusklion's eyes starting to flutter. Exhaustion pawed at her like an incessant kit, demanding attention at the most inopportune times. The deputy was able to keep the waves of unconsciousness at bay for a little while, but eventually it won her over as her jaws parted in a large yawn and she settled into a more comfortable position. Her eyes closed on the scene of a peaceful territory stretching before her... despite it not being home...

---

When she opened her eyes again to see the familiar sight of RiverClan's old territory, Dusklion's heart clenched in grief. Stars above, she missed it. The deputy's jaw tightened as she glanced around. Home... a place they couldn't get to right now. Not for at least another half-moon. It made her head spin with guilt as she ducked down, unable to look at it anymore. Was StarClan set on constantly reminding her of the territory they had lost? Or was this another nightmare courtesy of Fallownose?

But there were no claws coming for her. No odd noises or weird scents. In fact the air itself even felt peaceful in a way, leaving Dusklion to lift her head again. It was the time just after the setting of the sun, and the deputy found herself peering further down the line. This wasn't just RiverClan territory... this was near the ShadowClan and outskirts border.

Stepping forward the deputy glanced around, wondering what StarClan cat could've called her here. It never occurred to her that the conjurer was a cat she would know...

[ Eaglepaw - @Mica ]

[Mica]

Eaglepaw
Outsider
she/her | 10 moons
[Golden and white tuxedo tabby with green eyes and a heavily scarred face]
Purrks: Dreamwalker [ACTIVE], Herbal Knowledge T2
⋆˖⁺‧₊☽ The Star ☾₊‧⁺˖⋆
· · ────────────── · ·
[Dusklion - @taillow ]
· · ────────────── · ·
Her Place had changed. What used to be rolling mountains and colorful tundras was now the familiar RiverClan territory. The river roared nearby, made up of stars. As they bashed against the rocks, they twinkled and sprayed over the banks, lighting up the grass before fading. The river meandered into a marsh that faded into a dark forest, one She recognized as ShadowClan's border.

Eaglepaw sat on the border between RiverClan and the Outskirts, scanning the horizon as dusk settled over her. Had someone brought her here? Had she come here herself? Though while she wasn't ready to return to RiverClan and the horrors within it, Eaglepaw did find the familiar territory stretching out in front of her to be comforting.

Off to the side, Eaglepaw spotted something. A familiar pelt. The apprentice squinted, trying to see over the mound of... flowers? That covered her maw. She started, bringing up a paw to gingerly pluck them off. She expected pain, but there was nothing. Not even a petal flaked of. Oh. She supposed in Her Place, her injuries weren't exactly gone, but were turned into something more pleasant. But over the pink, purple and yellow flowers, Eaglepaw could see the familiar dark pelt of...

"Dusklion!" She called, then stopped to marvel at how her mouth didn't hurt when she spoke. "D-Dusklion!" Her voice cracked, and Eaglepaw sprinted towards the RiverClan deputy. She was here--she was really here! Eaglepaw could finally see her again! Was Dusklion alive? Was everyone else? Maybe her questions could finally be answered!

Then, she paused. Fear clouded her gaze, and the apprentice took a tentative step back. Maybe... maybe she shouldn't. It was... better, in the twoleg place. She didn't have to watch anyone get killed, she didn't have to fight battles to stay in her home, she didn't have to watch her mentor descend into a darkness where she had tried and failed to follow him to. She remembered getting close, watching him order Dusklion to brutalize Fogmuzzle and thinking nothing of it. She had thought it was a good call. After all, Fogmuzzle was a troublemaker. But that night, she had shivered in her sleep and imagined again and again that it was her under Dusklion's paws, Fadingsun staring hatefully at her from his stone throne. Or even worse, her up there, ordering another cat to kill someone else. And she had promised to never approach that precipice again.

Going back to RiverClan was like going to that precipice again. If she returned, would she ever be able to find her way out of the darkness? If Dusklion told her that they were back in their home and asked her to return, would she be able to refuse?

By the time Dusklion had noticed her, Eaglepaw was halfway over the border, staring at her with watery emerald eyes and a face half obscured by delicate flower petals. Her leg was similarly wrapped in the flowers, indicating that these were injuries. And bad ones.