they call me tenderfoot [open/kit joining?]

[CLOUDPAW !]

I'LL BE THERE FOR THE HIGHS AND LOWS
GIVE YOU MINE IF YOUR HEART GETS BROKE​

---

"Your far from home little one."

While typically a little on the shy side when meeting new cats, Cloud wasn't typicaly the sort to go jumping at every little noise he heard. He wasn't a coward after all, he just liked to feel out his surroundings before deciding to jump in head first. And so, when the sudden cough and voice from his left was heard and Cloud quite literally jumped four inches into the air before spinning to face Hyacinth, he could really only chalk it up to the fact that this was the first cat he'd gotten close to in over a week. Aside from the natural ambiance of nature and his own habit of talking aloud to fill the silence, Cloud hadn't really heard the voice of another cat since the day his mother was hit on the thunderpath.

And so it was a bit jarring for the young tom to suddenly hear a voice that wasn't his own.

His surprise was short lived however, because the more pressing matter -for young Cloud at least- was the fact that he was apparently doing something he shouldn't be. And if his mother had raised him to be anything it was a good boy who respected his elders and followed the rules. So when he was informed that he had somehow wandered into Windclans lands and that it wasn't safe, he was quick to lower his ears and offer up an apology.

"Oh, im-i'm sorry! I didn't know anyone was living here." he explained, shuffling a bit akwardly as a second younger cat joined the first. He was sure his uncertainty was visible to them, but he couldn't help but feel a little nervous in that moment. He didn't have much firsthand experience with other cats, the only two that had ever come close to him and his mother having resulted in rather aggressive fights that left Cloud unsure of just what intentions these strangers held toward him. The older shecat didn't seem as if she was too angry with him for being there, but the younger cat was giving him a look that made him feel as if he were most certainly doing something wrong. "Usually my mom would pick where we go, but its.. it's just me now."

It felt weird saying it out loud. After those first few days of hysterical grief and confusion, Cloud had gone into survival mode. His mind had been consumed with simply finding enough food to stop the gnawing in his stomach, leaving his sorrow to catch up with him only during the cold, lonely nights when the dam would finally break. But through it all, aside from the pitiful cried for a mother who'd never come, he'd never actually admitted that she was gone for good out loud.

Biting his lower lip to keep it from wobbling, he was pulled from his thoughts as when the shecat suddenly dropped her catch in front of him. Blue eyes widened in grateful excitement as the feline -Hyacinthbreath- told him to eat. "R-really?" he asked, as if he couldn't believe another cat would take time out of their day to help him. The younger cat, name still unknown, pushed the bird closer to him as they scolded him for eating bugs, and Cloud had to forcefully blink the tears from his eyes as he realized these cats were being serious- they were actually going to give him this bird. He could only nod eagerly as his mouth began to water at the smell of the fresh prey, not trusting himself to speak without bursting into tears.

Small teeth tore into the bird ravenously, ripping out feathers to sink into the still-warm meat beneath. Flavor burst over his tastebuds as he got his first taste of real meat in over a week, and he couldn't stop the raspy purr that worked its way out of his throat as he ate. It was so much better than the grass and bugs he'd been eating, filled his crying belly so much better.

"My name's Cloud." he finally said after swallowing down his first couple bites, remembering his manners after his brief lapse in self control. Now a little more confident that these cats weren't about to try and chase him off or fight him for being in their territory, he seemed to relax a little in the presence, a small smile tugging at his lips as he looked up to them from where he crouched over the bird. "Thank you for the bird, miss Hya- it's really good!" It was the best thing he'd tasted in days. "And I don't know your name, but thank you, too! I'm not really a good hunter yet, so bugs are the only thing that can't get away from me. They taste really bad, though!" he said, making a face before taking another large bite to munch on happily.

---

cloudkit - windclan - single - a small, brown and white tabby with amber eyes​

 

[hyacinthbreath]

Hyacinthbreath was never graced with much patience when it came to dealing with the hawks- after they had discovered a way to take them down, she was wary to allow any of her kits- even the apprentices- to stray far from the safety of camp. Her kits, whom still didn't know the truth of their parentage, were still important to her. They were her legacy, her blood- and she had to protect them. Moonshadow would be safe as long as she didn't go out alone, she knew. She'd sent Spiritpaw with the molly a few times during hunts, to teach her how to listen properly, she'd claim. Moonshadow was much more patient than her. But she knew it was her own paranoia that kept her from allowing her family to go into the face of danger.

Holding a blackbird in her jaws, the small silvery molly made her way through the clearing- ducking under trees whenever she saw the massive shadows sweep overhead. Ears twitching, she hears the sound of tiny claws on rock and her stomach sinks. Was one of her kits out of camp without permission? Was Aspenpaw training with Weaselclaw right now? She pushes past a patch of grass, spotting the little brown and white tabby that smelled faintly of the Thunderpath. But he wasn't from ShadowClan, he didn't smell like the muddy smog of their camp.. She carefully makes her presence known with a cough, clearing her throat for the kit. "You're far from home, little one." She meows softly, awkwardly attempting a more welcoming posture. "Where are your parents? It's not safe to venture so far into WindClan's lands." She adds on, head tilting to the side.

She watches as the kit crunches on a bug, and her own stomach gurgles with disgust- she'd eat lizards, sure, but bugs? This kit was so scrawny, was all he ate bugs? She glances around for a moment, hoping that a more parental cat would come around before she sets down the tiny blackbird in front of her. "Here, eat. What's your name? Mine's Hyacinthbreath, you can call me Hya." She introduces herself, knowing that she would have to hunt for another prey to bring back to camp. But she couldn't be as horrible as she used to be- kits were kits, they didn't know any better. She had failed Eventide even if he was apprentice-aged, but she wouldn't fail this one. ​

 

[WINDSTRIDER]

Windpaw isn't amused with the idea of a kit wandering the territory. The idea their keen eyes missed something, albeit small and scrawny skipping through the moorlands, filled them with determination to look harder next time. Furiously affirming this to themself as they approached, Windpaw hid the disgusted wrinkle of their nose from Hyacinthbreath (while allowing Cloud to see) as they stared at his insect feast.

"Don't eat those bugs," the snow-dipped smoke lectured, though their tone was careless. "That's weird. Might be poisonous." They felt properly condescending looking down their nose at Cloud, but ultimately nudged Hya's gift closer, emphasizing it's superior tastiness compared to the odd beetles the tabby seemed to have a diet of.

Which, they weren't overexaggerating -- he genuinely seemed to live off bugs. His thin stature wasn't even moorlander-lithe, he was depressingly small. Windpaw almost felt bad for him.​

 

[CLOUDPAW !]

I'LL BE THERE FOR THE HIGHS AND LOWS
GIVE YOU MINE IF YOUR HEART GETS BROKE​

---

"Your far from home little one."

While typically a little on the shy side when meeting new cats, Cloud wasn't typicaly the sort to go jumping at every little noise he heard. He wasn't a coward after all, he just liked to feel out his surroundings before deciding to jump in head first. And so, when the sudden cough and voice from his left was heard and Cloud quite literally jumped four inches into the air before spinning to face Hyacinth, he could really only chalk it up to the fact that this was the first cat he'd gotten close to in over a week. Aside from the natural ambiance of nature and his own habit of talking aloud to fill the silence, Cloud hadn't really heard the voice of another cat since the day his mother was hit on the thunderpath.

And so it was a bit jarring for the young tom to suddenly hear a voice that wasn't his own.

His surprise was short lived however, because the more pressing matter -for young Cloud at least- was the fact that he was apparently doing something he shouldn't be. And if his mother had raised him to be anything it was a good boy who respected his elders and followed the rules. So when he was informed that he had somehow wandered into Windclans lands and that it wasn't safe, he was quick to lower his ears and offer up an apology.

"Oh, im-i'm sorry! I didn't know anyone was living here." he explained, shuffling a bit akwardly as a second younger cat joined the first. He was sure his uncertainty was visible to them, but he couldn't help but feel a little nervous in that moment. He didn't have much firsthand experience with other cats, the only two that had ever come close to him and his mother having resulted in rather aggressive fights that left Cloud unsure of just what intentions these strangers held toward him. The older shecat didn't seem as if she was too angry with him for being there, but the younger cat was giving him a look that made him feel as if he were most certainly doing something wrong. "Usually my mom would pick where we go, but its.. it's just me now."

It felt weird saying it out loud. After those first few days of hysterical grief and confusion, Cloud had gone into survival mode. His mind had been consumed with simply finding enough food to stop the gnawing in his stomach, leaving his sorrow to catch up with him only during the cold, lonely nights when the dam would finally break. But through it all, aside from the pitiful cried for a mother who'd never come, he'd never actually admitted that she was gone for good out loud.

Biting his lower lip to keep it from wobbling, he was pulled from his thoughts as when the shecat suddenly dropped her catch in front of him. Blue eyes widened in grateful excitement as the feline -Hyacinthbreath- told him to eat. "R-really?" he asked, as if he couldn't believe another cat would take time out of their day to help him. The younger cat, name still unknown, pushed the bird closer to him as they scolded him for eating bugs, and Cloud had to forcefully blink the tears from his eyes as he realized these cats were being serious- they were actually going to give him this bird. He could only nod eagerly as his mouth began to water at the smell of the fresh prey, not trusting himself to speak without bursting into tears.

Small teeth tore into the bird ravenously, ripping out feathers to sink into the still-warm meat beneath. Flavor burst over his tastebuds as he got his first taste of real meat in over a week, and he couldn't stop the raspy purr that worked its way out of his throat as he ate. It was so much better than the grass and bugs he'd been eating, filled his crying belly so much better.

"My name's Cloud." he finally said after swallowing down his first couple bites, remembering his manners after his brief lapse in self control. Now a little more confident that these cats weren't about to try and chase him off or fight him for being in their territory, he seemed to relax a little in the presence, a small smile tugging at his lips as he looked up to them from where he crouched over the bird. "Thank you for the bird, miss Hya- it's really good!" It was the best thing he'd tasted in days. "And I don't know your name, but thank you, too! I'm not really a good hunter yet, so bugs are the only thing that can't get away from me. They taste really bad, though!" he said, making a face before taking another large bite to munch on happily.

---

cloudkit - windclan - single - a small, brown and white tabby with amber eyes​

 

[hyacinthbreath]

With a face that could scare any young child, it wasn't a surprise when the little tom looked like he was about to cry from fear after he leaped into the air. Hyacinthbreath would have found amusement in the frightened kit- if he wasn't so scrawny and dirty, lacking the proper attention that a kit should be shown. It was obvious the little tom was alone, he didn't smell of anything other than the Thunderpath and bug juices, at this point- no distinct smell of a Clan or a mother's milk. She worries her lip between her teeth for a moment, sorrow in her eyes as he mentions how his mother wasn't around anymore. "You don't have to talk about it, liebling." She meows softly, germanic accent gentle against small ears as she watches the tom eat the meal she had caught. Another kit wouldn't die on her watch, she wouldn't allow it. They had plenty of food to go around, with the hawks and plentiful birds before leaf-bare began. They weren't a huge clan, either, so it was easier to hunt for everyone- especially since not many of them were elders or kits any longer.

Cloud, he calls himself- he has no home to return to, and he was forced into the wilds on his own to fend for himself. "Resourceful, eating bugs so you don't starve. I've seen cats die from being too stubborn to think of their survival first." Hyacinthbreath mutters softly, casting a baleful glare towards Windpaw for a moment- as if speaking to her indirectly. "Eating bugs is resourceful when you don't know how to hunt for yourself. Good job, little one." She praises Cloud with a soft chuckle, not having seen Windpaw's disgusted look behind her. It didn't take much to notice their attitude towards the kit, however. Hyacinthbreath lays not far from the tom, listening to him as he speaks with content interest. He thanks her for the bird, and she gives him a lazy smile before shaking her head. "It is a Warrior's duty to feed kits first. I can catch myself something else later. Thank StarClan for the food, not me." She remarks with a shrug, glancing up at the sky above them. Then, when she realized Windpaw hadn't introduced herself, Hyacinth gestures a paw towards the apprentice. "This one's name is Windpaw. My apprentice Spiritpaw isn't far from us, she's hunting as well." She introduces them steadily enough as to not confuse the tom.

She watches him tear further into the bird, and a satisfied feeling overcomes her- she'd done something right for once, helped someone who needed it instead of hurting them. Was this what it felt like, to be a good person? She swallows her anxiety, before she glances back in the direction of camp. "Do you need a home, Cloud? I could take you to WindClan, you could become one of us. You could learn to properly hunt when you're old enough, learn how to fight- or heal, whatever you prefer if your destiny calls for it." She asks the tom curiously, tail twitching against the ground- though it showed none of her usual irritation. "You would be called Cloudkit. I have three other kits that I think you'd get along with just fine, ja? A new family, one that could take care of you?"

// obligatory tag for @spiritpaw ​

 

[spiritpaw]

As Hyacinth said, Spiritpaw had been hunting not too far away, doing her best to heed to her mentors words (admittedly, Spiritpaw couldn't exactly remember all that she had said). She teeters over when voices begin to arise nearby, notably Hyacinth's (Hya could say jump, and she'd ask how high), eyes wide as she stumbles upon the scene. Why was Hya talking to a little rat? She begins to giggle, though they fizzled out soon after once she realized that nope, it wasn't a rat, but a kitten.

"HELLO!" her voice bellows, a bit too loud, accompanied by a large, stupid grin. "I'm the great Spiritpaw!" her introduction is more than grandiose, with a dramatic paw placed on her chest as she straightens out her posture. Then Hyacinth speaks of bringing the kit to Windclan and she stops in her tracks, blinking a few times (can she really do that, spirit swore you had to get that approval of the scary ghost woman). Her gaze falls upon Windpaw, offering a shrug as she prances to sit right back besides Hyacinth, where she feels like she belongs.

"speech"​

​

 

[WEASELCLAW]

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮​

Weaselclaw trails behind Hyacinthbreath, Spiritpaw, and Windpaw, his own apprentice padding dutifully behind him. He tastes the stranger's scent on the air and frowns, but it's only a tiny scrap of a tabby kit, their ribs pushing through their patched fur.

"Is Moonshadow going to be willing to raise him until he's fit to begin apprentice training?" He looks at his co-lead warrior shrewdly before turning his attention on the loner kit. "Sootstar would not turn him away, but your mate might." He flicks his tail, wondering if the pitiful scrap is in any shape to refuse Hyacinthbreath's offer. He's sure Moonshadow would not turn the kit away, but surely she would not be pleased.

// @ASPENPAW obligatory tag

- ,,​

​

 

[ASPENPAW_]

( ♬ ) Right on Weaselclaw's heels comes Aspenpaw, trotting quickly in order to keep pace with her longer-legged mentor. When she spots the other cats gathered, her interest is piqued, and as she comes to a stop the apprentice quietly listens to the conversation, trying to pick up on what was happening with this strange kit who was trespassing on their territory. As Hyacinthbreath offers him a place in Windclan, she can't help but feel a bit surprised, though she's not sure why - after all, Spiritpaw, who was right there beside the rest of them, hadn't been born into the clan either. Weaselclaw mentions her mother and Aspenpaw glances his way for a moment. Would Moonshadow take Cloud in? She knows that her mother has only just gotten back to her warrior duties - would she mind giving that up for a bit longer?

Though, all that depends on whether or not Cloud actually wants to join Windclan, she supposes. It doesn't even have to be Moonshadow who looks after him, anyways - she's sure they could find somebody willing. As they continued to discuss how to handle Cloud, Aspenpaw steps a bit closer, offering him a smile. "Hi there - my name is Aspenpaw," she greets with a twitch of her whiskers. Whether or not he's going to be her clanmate, she supposes it's only polite to at least introduce herself like most of the others seemed to have done. She finds herself hoping that he would accept the offer, as he clearly seemed to be struggling on his own, and admittedly she thinks it would be exciting to have someone new around her age around.​

( WE'RE ALL JUST SEARCHING FOR SOMETHING ☾ )