Fandom A Runaway’s New Home [Private 1x1]

[Chill Alley Cat]

If you'd like, we could time skip to the hunt after this : ) //

"Maybe if we hunt close to ThunderClan we could catch a rabbit?"

“That’s a great idea!” SnakeShine congratulated CherryPaw’s idea, his chest puffing in pride at his and his apprentice’s like thinking as to how to get on HoneyPool’s good side.

The Tom couldn’t help but internally match CherryPaw’s excitement, his own pelt tingling at the thought of the potential new gossip that could stem with befriending the new Windclan cat with a mysterious backstory. Deep in the heart of the gray tabby, he should be at least a touch shameful at how edger of a rumormonger he is, but he couldn’t help but be weak to anything new and interesting.

“The Thunderclan border should be a great start for her to hunt. Nice and flat through the northern rocks and clean up to the marshes.” SnakeShine spoke, waving about a single claw. Thornmask squinted at the two of you, with an amused smile on his face.


“It’s gonna take more than a rabbit to get that jitterbug to open up, you know.” ThorbMask teased, looking pointedly at her brother.

“You just don’t understand what it mean to play the long game ThornMask.” SnakeShine frowned at his sister, looking pointedly at her knowing she'd be too upfront and bold to even charm a beached fish back into the water. ThornMask, however, only rolled her eyes, unfazed by SnakeShine’s snappish tone.

SnakeShine grumbled, shrugging off her lack of reaction before his eyes moved back to CherryPaw. His blue gaze flickered to the elder's den before returning to the group.


“I think SporeFlank is trying to get your attention.” The mentor nudged the ginger cat, his chin pointing to the pale brown and skinny she-cat. She obviously scratched behind her ears with the long white talons of her back legs, her beady eyes glaring pointedly at the apprentice as she picked a flea off her neck.

“Ugh.” ThornMask groaned at the gross sight.

“We should probably get back to our duties… I still haven't gotten any prey for the nursery yet.” SnakeShine admitted, his ear flickering as he stood, signing for the group to return to their responsibilities but waiting for another cat to make the first move to turn away. The excitement of the coming hunt with HoneyPool still lingered in his pelt however.

 

[Honeypool]

Cherrypaw turned to look back over at the elder's den. Her blue eyes instantly meeting the pale brown she-cat. She waved her tail before looking back over at the two siblings before sighing. "I guess Ill go see Dewspring for some bile." She mentally groaned at the thought of the smell of the waste product. "Don't you dare leave without me." She mewed quickly before charging off in the direction of the leafy burrow without looking back at the two.

//Skipping!

The sun had almost fully set sending the sky to look like fire with its mixes of oranges and yellows. A calm fire. Honeypool had managed to wiggle herself out of the warriors den and was sitting beside the spiky den with her paws firmly planted in the dirt. Her claws flexing with anticipation as she cautiously waited for the group to appear. Her eyes flickered from cat to cat with a mix of unknown emotions. To say she was scared was an understatement. The fur along her spine refused to flatten no matter how badly she wanted it to. She had tried licking it smooth over and over but nothing worked in her favor and she eventually ended up leaving the patch alone.

She had finally gotten her fur back nice and neat that she was sure her mother would be beaming with pride. The blend of creams and browns now had a silky and glossy look to it from her grooming. For once since she left she felt a smidge of confidence in herself as she stood up a bit straighter, but her gaze told a completely different story as she avoided gazes from cats entering the warriors den. She didn't want to make her way out with a batch of cats in the den so she decided to wait outside, a few pawsteps beside the den.

The clear air helped a bit with the suffocating feeling in her chest as her tail laid curled out beside her. The settings suns ways warmed up her pelt from the chilly new-leaf air as she gently shook off a breeze that ruffled her. This weather made her feel slightly bittersweet as she pushed down the memories that flashed through her mind for a few seconds. She could faintly still smell the scents of milk, heather and fresh dewy grass as she cleared her head from the unwanted memory.

Her amber eyes gazed over as she looked away from the clearing to look up at the sky through the canopy. The rays of sun dappled her pelt slightly as the pine trees began to look black. It felt weird not being able to see the stars at night, to barely see the sky at all in that matter. Her ears twitched at the sudden realization of it. None of the clans would even be close to resemble WindClan's openness and she wondered if the homesick feeling would ever go away. She sighed and lifted a paw to fix the tuft of fur on her head, gently brushing it to the side as she now wondered where they were going to hunt in this bumpy terrain.

 

[Chill Alley Cat]

ThornMask is the last to join the group again, meeting the tom and apprentice at the foot of the warrior’s dens a tail away from trail up the small muddy elevation.


The clan split in half between those heading to their nest and those still lounging about in the last remnants of sunset, a brief calmness before the a surge of cats would awaken and raise with the night. Shadowclan never seemed to properly sleep, but always manage to rise and lower with the cold of the days and nights.



“Sorry about that! You know, duties and such.” The tabby spoke with a smile, coming back after having to pull away from a talk with SweetHare and DustWatcher. Not duties.


SnakeShine rolled his eyes, not bothering to address the blatant lie. “Anyways, as I was saying-” the tom spoke, having to stop mid-conversation with CherryPaw for ThornMask’s arrival.

“Me and CherryPaw will go collect HoneyPool for patrol-” SnakeShine paused for his gaze to flicker up to the she-cat, the brown and cream cat stiffly waiting outside of the warrior’s den.

“-And you should wait for us outside of camp.” ThornMask seemed reluctant to agree, her mouth opening with pause, before deciding against it with a shrug and padding away along the clearing.

“Whatever you say boss!” she threw over her shoulder in a teasing tone.


SnakeShine sighed, glad she didn't put up a fight, as he and CherryPaw discussed it would be better for the more well-adjusted and less threatening members to make their acquaintance first.

The tabby turns to his apprentice with a confident smile, and his head nodded up the slope to the warriors dens.
“You first.”

 

[Honeypool]

Cherrypaw looked over at her mentor not expecting him to give her permission to go ahead. The she-cat turned her head to look over at the warrior's den almost star-struck as she could make out Honeypool's figure against the covering. For once Cherrypaw felt like she didn't know what to say. Her paws had been itching with excitement as soon as she was told the she-cat would be joining them for a hunting trip and now that the moment was upon her she felt slightly overwhelmed. She looked back at Snakeshine before breathing in deeply.

Her dark pelt fluffed up as she finally got to her paws and padded up the slippery slope with a sudden quickness. She could feel a wave of questions rush over her as she made her way closer. She could hardly stop herself from quickly rushing up to the newcomer and just bombarding her with question after question, but Snakeshine had told her to contain her excitement, at least until they were out of camp.

Her ears were ringing as she poked her head around the corner of the den and stopped in front of the she-cat, her blue eyes gazed over every inch of her mixed fur, just wondering what brought her here of all places. "Hello! I am Cherrypaw." Her normal high pitched mew called out as she was finally within talking distance of the WindClan cat.

Honeypool's ears twitched as she quickly looked down to meet a bundle of dark ginger fur with round eyes. The apprentice in front of her had tussled fur, as if she had been rolling all throughout camp nonstop. The bits of moss and bracken were very visible in her fur that it looked like she was part plant. She blinked, taken back as to why this she-cat had just wandered up to her. She opened her mouth slightly but was quickly cut off. "You are going hunting with us, right? Snakeshine said you would come so we came to fetch you!" Cherrypaw quickly filled her in and Honeypool nodded and cleared her throat. Had he said something about an apprentice?

The ombre she-cat rose to her paws and nodded. She looked up to see Snakeshine approaching and suddenly she regreted her decision to go out with the tabby tom as a wave of uncertainty hit her. "Yes. I'm still coming." She spoke out while looking at Cherrypaw from the corner of her eyes. The ginger she-cat was almost shaking with excitement as she never took her eyes off of her, almost as if she did Honeypool would vanish from her sight.

Her amber gaze fell upon Snakeshine and then Cherrypaw with a neutral expression but inside she was mentally screaming at herself. "I'm going to show you the best spots to hunt." Cherrypaw added in quickly falling to Honeypool's side, but still keeping her distance. Honeypool just nodded her head politely at the apprentice wondering where they would hunt at as a small feeling of doubt ran through her. How well would this hunting trip actually go for her?

 

[Chill Alley Cat]

SnakeShine pauses as HoneyPool speaks, noticing the hesitant tone of her wording. The striped tabby made note of the she-cat’s possible nervousness, or even annoyance, as a sign to turn up the friendliness in hopes of not scaring off the skittish warrior.

He took HoneyPool’s right side, opposite to CherryPaw, as the three cats trotted down, making their way across the increasingly darkening clearing. The wind blowing in from the horizon before the night chilled and crisp the air.


"I'm going to show you the best spots to hunt."
CherryPaw meowed, the tom grateful for the naturally friendly sound of her voice to bounce his own excitement off of.

“Oh yeah, Cherrypaw has been looking forward to meeting you all day.-” SnakeShine commented with a chirp, before addressing only the brown she-cat with a playful wink. “And I can’t help but share her sentiment.”


SnakeShine was first to the thorn barrier, crouching as he spoke. “CherryPaw thought it best we hunt by the ThunderClan border, across the northern stones before stopping along the lake to circle back.”

The entrance caught on the tabby’s fur, drawing messy patterns through his striped pelt as he crawled through. The sound of what he assumed to be his apprentice following him closely behind, rustling the bramble.


ThornMask turned at the noise, looking ready to bounce off the pads of her paws in impatience before her eyes lit in interest. The nosy cat grinned at the entrance as SnakeShine emerged, excited to greet the ex-windclan warrior and likely bombard her with questions.

 

[Honeypool]

Honeypool's pelt warmed slightly unable to ignore the tabby toms comment. She had to regain herself for a split second as she almost tripping over her own paws. Her ears dropped slightly as she wondered if this tom was also so coquettish. "I'm sure everyone has been talking about me." She softly mumbled out. Even now she could feel eyes burning into her pelt as she walked in the middle of the group. She was trying to keep her gaze from wandering as she really didn't want to be bothered with meeting some cats unfriendly gaze.

"ThunderClan?" Honeypool echoed back. An uneasy feeling about being closer to WindClan set in and she couldn't stop the hesitation in her voice. Why in the world would they make her hunt there? She didn't have time to answer or question anything before the tom slipped through the barrier and Cherrypaw was quick to follow. The brown she-cat sighed before pushing herself through. The harsh brambles scratching her pelt making her feel slightly frustrated as she popped out on the other side.

Her eyes quickly landed on Thornmask and she couldn't help but slightly flinch at the overbearing she-cat as she remembered their encounter from earlier. Honeypool could still feel the sharp pain in her back, but she would have to try and get along with them, at least for this small hunting session.

"I was hoping we would catch a rabbit!" Cherrypaw's shrill mew echoed as she suddenly got a burst of energy now being with the rest of the group. Her blue eyes were large and round with excitement as she looked over at Honeypool, almost as if asking for her approval in the spot she had chosen.

Honeypool looked down at the ginger she-cat. Her own eyes dropping slightly with sympathy. The apprentice was just trying to be nice and she was thinking the worst. She opened her mouth to argue against it but she didn't want to be questioned about it. She didn't know this land well and even if she did want to hunt somewhere else, where? She looked off in this distance for a second. ThunderClan would still be bordering her from WindClan and she doubted she would see him. She was hoping that she wouldn't. What would he be doing in ThunderClan anyway?

Looking for you?

She swallowed down the thought as it bubbled up in her throat before clearing it with a slight cough. "That's fine." She finally breathed out. She could feel a slight shake in her paws.

Cherrypaw stood there smiling as Honeypool finally gave her approval. The new she-cat's demeanor did throw her off and fill the air with a slight panic feel, but the apprentice brushed it off hoping this hunt would go as she planned. She looked over at the two siblings wondering if they had picked up on the brown cat's aura. Just what was wrong with her? What had she done? Her head began to spin with ideas on top of other ideas. "Lets go." Her mew was less ecstatic as she began to walk off in the direction of the border, falling into step beside her mentor with an unwavering bounce in her step.

 

[Chill Alley Cat]

“...Thunderclan?” HoneyPool said low, nearly under her breath.

SnakeShine couldn't help but dwell on the she-cat’s behavior, always drifting away in her thoughts and nervously shifting around. He recollects the few memories he had of his new clan mate, only to find he couldn't think of a single moment where HoneyPool wasn't looking over her shoulder.

The tom’s ear twitches in interest, now even more eager to pry open the secrets of the she-cat like flesh beneath tough snake scales.

His blue eyes flickered back between CherryPaw and ThornMask, sharing a curious look with his apprentice who seemed to take notice of HoneyPool's strangeness. It was brief though, quickly cut off by the red cat bolting ahead and leading the group charging onwards.


The sun was just a sliver over the horizon, the moon quickly rising to loom over the dark woods of the ShadowClan territory to take its place. Just as the bird songs and frog calls were replaced by the ghostly calls of owls and chirps of bats. The pine trees seemed to grow taller in the night, their nettle tops disappearing among the dark skies, making the forest feel more still and blend together.

It was amazing the group seemed to know where they were going at all, every tree and patch of bramble beginning to look identical. CherryPaw confidently led the way to the northern rocks.


ThornMask destroyed whatever ambiance was festering; however, her non-stop babbling as she stuck to HoneyPool’s side was an odd mix between comforting and annoying.

“-I actually ran off a few times myself as an apprentice.” The gray tabby she-cat smiled a toothy grin, attempting to relate to the she-cat with her tail held high and wiping about.

“To be fair, it was only because I got completely lost, but I was off ShadowClan territory nonetheless.” She muttered, before continuing on just as confident and unfazed as before.

“Hey, HoneyPool. Why choose to run off all the way across the lake anyway?” ThornMask asked, squinting her yellow eyes in curiosity. The warrior has been asking vaguely invasive questions the whole time as the group walked, but luckily seemed too scattered to bother pressing on them.

“That reminds me-” SnakeShine cut her off, placing his tail on the she-cat muzzle and, as graceful as a disgruntled tom could manage, shoved her aside to take her place by HoneyPool’s side.

“How do you like it in ShadowClan so far?” SnakeShine smiled, his tone much cooler than his sister’s, briefly pausing as the texture beneath them changed.


The Northern Stones, breaking off the trees, allowed a glimmer of moonlight to reflect off the large rocky surfaces. The sounds of odd insects and scampering crawlies sounded all around the apprentice and the warriors, now clearer away from the nocturnal birds and bats of the trees.

 

[Honeypool]

Honeypool felt unsettled even more as the sun began to set more. Everything now felt more disorienting to her. Her eyes flickered from object to object unsure if she was looking at a rock or a stranger. Her ears were pricked as she carefully listened to the group, hoping to not lose sight of them in this eerie forest. She looked up hoping to make out the sky through the trees, but she was only met with unfamiliar objects and small specks of light. She frowned. Back in WindClan she would've been able to see the stars for miles and miles.

She sighed and turned to look forward. Her paws catching on something as she stumbled a bit. Her nose twitched slightly as she regained her balance. She hated this dark forest. She hated all the odd smells and sounds. She hated the bumpy terrain. Her fur bristled with a flurry of emotions, mainly annoyance at her lack of composure.

“-I actually ran off a few times myself as an apprentice." Her dark ears twitched as she turned to meet Thornmask's gray pelt. What? Honeypool blinked wondering when the she-cat had fallen into step beside her and what she was talking about. Ran off?

She blinked in realization as she felt a familiar but sickening feeling in her stomach. She bit her tongue slightly, not wanting to say what was really on her mind as the tabby continued to speak to her as the feeling grew. She quickly felt nauseous and paused for a second as she breathed in deeply, hoping to clear the feeling that was burning her throat before walking again. Of course they were going to question her about what she was doing here.

“How do you like it in ShadowClan so far?” Her eyes rounded in surprise. That wasn't a question she was expecting to be asked tonight and she mentally thanked the tom for not prying into her business. She truly didn't even know what she was doing here or what she had agreed to join this clan. She had lied and dug herself in a deep hole she didn't know how to get out of. She wouldn't admit to that though or her little hate rant from earlier.

"Its...." Her voice trailed off as she tried to think of something nice to say or something decent enough to say. "Something." She mumbled out. It was dirty and filthy and she missed the scent of heather and flowers around her. She missed the misty clear mornings and the scent of fresh dewy grass in the morning. "I've only been to the caves and to that abandoned twoleg nest." She explained unsure of what to say about the clan anymore than that without offending anyone.

"The caves are great for catching shrews." Cherrypaw suddenly called out spooking the brown she-cat with the sudden burst from her tiny body. "The twoleg nest are just full of rats." The she-cat now looked black in the shadows of the night but her blue eyes were as bright as ever as she peered over at Honeypool with a smile. "You still need to see the scorched woods and the marshes. Though frogs and fish are very hard to catch." Her ears pricked up and she nodded her head to herself.

Honeypool's skin crawled at the thought of any slimy prey. "I see. I guess they aren't your favorite then." She mewed hoping to make small talk.

Cherrypaw's face scrunched up with disgust. "Fish is gross." Her tongue stuck out in an animated way as she shook her head at the thought and smell of a fish. "I prefer voles and stuff like that." Her cheerfulness rang from her voice as she stopped walking to properly look at the ex-WindClan cat. "I am sure you prefer rabbits thought. Or hares? I don't know the difference. Is there a proper difference? Do they taste the same or different? If so which is better to you? Are hares harder to catch or rabbits?" Cherrypaw began to ramble on and Honeypool's ears flattened at the overwhelming amount of questions she was bombarded with.