PASSING GLANCE I SEE — intro

[GILLSIGHT]

Sunny eyes stare upon the newcomers, observing them with wonder.

Who were they? Where did they come from?

His parents always told him to keep away with strangers - especially as of late, with whatever was going on within the forest on the outskirts of the river. But, this new group of strangers, they looked like they were here to stay! And Gill couldn't just not know why they were here, or who they were, right?

Snowy white paws shift under the kit as he watches new cats pass by, some interacting with river cats who had been there longer than the new group had. If everyone else who had already been living along the river could speak to the newcomers, why could he?

A peace offering. He'd need a peace offering, if he were to talk to the newcomers. That way they would know Gill comes in peace, and all that. The black and white kit looks around for something, anything, to give the strangers. Yellow eyes catch sight of a glimmer along the riverbed, and he bounds over to it - a pebble! It was all sorts of pretty colors, reds and greys and whites swirling together, glittering in the sunlight. The newcomers would have to know he meant no harm, if he gave them such a pretty stone!

Gill picks up the pebble in his jaws, and it isn't long before he makes contact with the nearest unidentifiable face. He sets the rock in front of the feline, eyes bright as he looks up at them.

"W-Welcome to the river!" he squeaks out. "M-my name's Gill, what's your n-name?"
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[SWIFT]

Staring dully at the riverbank and the slight impressions made by his paws, Swift feels...wrong. Like some of his bones aren't in the places they were before, like they shifted around to make room for somethin' new that isn't supposed to be there. He's nauseous with it, his stomach all out of sorts and folding in on itself so many times he knows that there won't be a thing he can keep down. Maybe a gulp of water if he's lucky. Less if he's unlucky, as he often is.

He just wants everythin' to be as it was, wrapped up warm and snug 'tween his parents' bodies come bedtime, rumbling breaths lulling him to sleep better than any lullaby or cricket's song. Wants his brother there, too, but the thought of him is a sting from a different beast, rot on its breath and decay caught in the gaps of its teeth.

Swift blinks slowly. There's a pebble in front of him, still wet and shiny from the river. It's pretty. But he doesn't understand why it's at his paws, why the other kitten has presented it to him and acting friendly. He doesn't smell like the pine cats; must be he's a loner, here before their new RiverClan. Still doesn't explain why he'd offer Swift anythin'.

"...Thank you," he says haltingly and awkwardly. He doesn't want to be rude— the kitten seems so earnest and kindly. "Swift." Gill should have found someone else to talk to; he knows he's no good for company. "You like rocks, do you?"
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INFORMATION​

 

[CLAYFUR]

Clay’s not the type to think too much. He doesn’t notice the black and white kitten until the child has approached one of the other new RiverClanners, a tabby he doesn’t recognize by anything except name. Swift, he recalls. Or something like that. He catches the end of the unfamiliar kit’s greeting, and all of Swift’s response, so he trots over to butt into the conversation, as he does so well. "Gill, like on a fish?" He asks, tail curling up against his back. "I’m Clay," he introduces himself, giving a silly little bow of his head. It’s pointless, really—a formality that Clay doesn’t normally partake in—but it’s humorous to him. And Clay makes most of his decisions based on how amusing the choices are.

Sliding down to sit beside Swift, Clay shoots the younger tabby a hopefully encouraging grin. Kids, man. He loves them. He’s sort of disappointed that he’s only got the one niece right now, but he’s hopeful that his sister will have at least one more litter. He’d never tell her that much, though; he’s perfectly happy with Lily just as she is, and doesn’t want her to feel like she’s not enough just because he wants more niblings to dote on. "That’s a really sick rock, little pal. Where’d you find it?" He adds onto Swift’s question with one of his own, hoping not to overwhelm either of them with his attention.
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[ PENNED BY FOXLORE ]​

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[GILLSIGHT]

It's another kit that Gill ends up giving the pebble too - one with fur just about as dark as his own. The kit seems a bit... off... to him, but Gill pays no mind to it - he's made a new friend, after all!

"N-Nice to meet you, S-Swift!" he excitedly squeaks out, "D-Do you like the river so far?" He hopes his new friend does, hopes his new friend's group does as well. It would be sad, to see them all go - so much excitement came from them being around! There were so many new faces to meet!

Of which, another feline steps towards them - an adult, this time, Gill thinks. Or, maybe just a really big kit? He's brown and white, and tall nonetheless, but he seems friendly. More friendly than his new friend, even. He's called Clay, the black and white kit learns.

"Y-yeah! Like... Like on a fish!" Gill tells him, answering the older feline's question to the origin of his name.

His eyes light up at Swift's question - one of rocks. "Oh, yes! Rocks are neat! Especially the shiny ones." His second new friend asks where he got Swift's gift from, and he raises a paw to motion toward the riverbed. "O-over there! The best ones c-come from the riverbed, though, my ma says I can't get too close to the r-river. She says I'm t-too small, that I might fall in. But, I bet there's even prettier ones in the river! M-Maybe... Maybe you can swim in and get some, since you're bigger than me!"
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[Frostdrop.]

GOT A HEAD FULL OF SPIDERS​

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When Frost thought today would be anything but not quiet, she started to hear chatter from where she lounged in the shadow casted by some overhanging tree, her curled ears twitched a bit as she swerved them to try and pick up the voices, recognizing two of the three voices, the third being that of an eager kit who had perhaps strayed far away from their home. A gentle sigh slipped from the young she-cat's lips as she got onto her paws and began to follow the chattering voices.

Her eyes first towards Swift, remembering him from her first initial introduction to him dunking his head into the river with a much older cat, Hound, and then Clay, whom she remembered well from his... kit-like fearful of a cry from his own thoughts of drowning and then those pools of green and blue crystalline eyes landing onto the tiny black and white cat. She gently approached with a hum a bit before tilting her head slightly at the little one. "Where is your mother, kit?" Frost would ask, voicing her slight concern that the kit, barely yet able to defend themselves would approach strangers, especially when the chances are they would take easy advantage of a quick kill that this defenseless kit provided. Lamb to a slaughter, truly. However, Gill was lucky that one was fish-brained, Clay, and the other seemingly confused and lost in their head, Swift.

Narrowing her eyes as she only came at the last end of the conversation, noting how this kit seemed quite chatty despite being around a bunch of strangers but it did bring a gentle smile to her maw, realizing she too was like this and had scared not only Spider, her dear friend but her own parents before they met their untimely deaths. "Stones eh? Don't reveal where they are all hidden, don't want them getting stolen now little one" she quickly placed in with a soft wink, despite her worrying earlier, Frost would silently come to the conclusion that his mother isn't far away and she will soon realize that her kit has strayed off and soon will grab him and drag him off to give a good stern talk about how not to approach strangers, especially when they could see him as an easy meal of a target.​

"speak""Thoughts"​

 

[GILLSIGHT]

Another potential new friend approaches, and Gill is more than prepared to greet the blue feline. However, he's barely able to get a word out, before he's asked where his mother is. Right. Her.

"Oh." Ears flatten against his head as he looks around for the inky pelt that he's supposed to recognize the most, only for such a shade to not be in sight. Funny, how his mother so often told him to stay away from strangers, only for him to be left within the midst of them as often as he did.

"Around," he simply says. She was bound to be around the river somewhere, Gill knew this. Gill also knew that she probably wouldn't turn up until later that night to feed him, only to be gone again once dawn broke. But, it was fine. Gill was fine, right?

His third new friend speaks of rocks again, and he pushes his attention towards that, instead. Because, talking about rocks, about anything, would be better.

"But, if... If there's so many new c-cats along the river... Then... Then they should know where the best rocks are t-too!" Maybe they could use them to decorate their nests with, as Gill did - sparkly pebbles outlining the clump of moss and reeds he usually curled up in during the night.
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[CLAYFUR]

Frost is quick to join the gathered group, seeming a bit less thrilled than Clay, but more comfortable than Swift. When she questions the kit about his mother, Clay merely blinks. Because oh yeah, kits are supposed to be with their mothers, not wandering the riverside and talking to strangers. Clay would never dream of harming a child, and he’s sure Swift is too small to pose much of a threat, but this encounter could have easily ended much differently for little Gill. The child says his mother is around—and that’s a familiar response, isn’t it? That his mother isn’t nearby, but she’s around here somewhere, and he just has to complete the hard task of finding her after drifting far from her side as they walked.

The conversation shifts back to the black and white kit’s pebbles, and Clay’s expression brightens once again. Gill mentions prettier pebbles perhaps being out in the deeper parts of the river; and who better to dive for such rocks but a tall, long-legged, river-dwelling, good-looking cat such as himself? "Yeah, I could grab you prettier pebbles. Just… just not today, maybe tomorrow I can get you some!" A wave of discomfort rolls through his stomach at the lie, and the thought of having to go through with it, but he doesn’t shed his grin. "It’s super nice of you to want to share the cool rocks with us! Our camp would look a lot prettier with them lying all over the place," he adds, tail flicking happily over his paws.
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[ PENNED BY FOXLORE ]​

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