Ripley frowned as he crouched on a large rock outside of the barn, eyes narrowed as he stared out into the forest. The young tom was only around six moons old, but he was already the size of a cat nearly double his age. A few scars littered his pelt from various fights and 'training sessions', and although his fur was still kit-soft, his muscles were beginning to harden as he grew more and more battle-lean each day. His dark fur rippled under the soft wind, and he closed his eyes against it and lifted his head. The wind was soothing and cool, unlike the stuffy heat of the barn. He opened his eyes and watched, as he had before, in fascination as the wind made it's patterns in the grass, making the strands wave elegantly. It was this beauty that inspired him. Bear and his strength was interesting, but his fighting was messy and without respect. He wanted to fight like the wind. Beautiful, elegant, and meaningful, and yet it could also be full of rage and strength that would make any cat hide in fear. The wind was a thing that demanded respect, and even cats as strong as Bear would go inside when the wind kicked up too high. Ripley watched the grass stalks move with glowing eyes. He didn't just want to fight like the wind; he wanted to live like the wind. Free and endless, joyous and angry, sharp and gentle, all in one swoop. It was nothing like life at the barn.
The tom frowned, eyes narrowing. The cats in the barn wouldn't see the beauty and strength of the wind, they'd just see it as an annoyance, a setback. Or they wouldn't notice it at all in their plight to end the clans. Ripley didn't understand what the big deal was about the clans. What had they done to earn these cats' anger? To him, it seemed like the clans had a greater reason to be angry. After all, his group had stolen and murdered countless clan cats. Really, the tom couldn't see the difference between the two groups and why they had to be enemies. The clans fought together, trained together, hunted together, and ate together. His group did exactly the same. The clans have a leader, a deputy, a medicine cat, and warriors that protected the rest. His group had the same, if only with different names. What was the difference? Why were they enemies? Ripley growled softly, long claws digging into the rock. He hadn't heard much of the clans; every time he'd ask he'd only get battle stories, and if he ever asked a clan cat everyone else would just hiss until he went away and stopped asking questions. But he'd managed to learn a few things. ThunderClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan. It didn't surprise him that the clans had chosen those as the names of their clans. They were all strong, unbeatable forces. A small pang of envy rang sharply in the young cat's chest. He desperately wished he'd been born in the clans. He wouldn't have been good in WindClan, as much as he admired the wind, though; he was simply not fast enough to be a good warrior for them. But maybe ThunderClan or RiverClan would be good for him. But then, what clan leader in their right mind would accept him as their warrior when he was born to this group?
Ripley sighed and set his head down, staring out into the forest with hunger in his eyes. He needed to get out of here. That was the only option that might allow him to join the clans, but...he wasn't going to leave knowing cats were in danger here. But were they? Bear was...well, Bear, but he wasn't devoid of loyalty or honor. He protected his group with everything he had, often returning with wounds from cats that attacked him. But still...something in him screamed that everyone he loved was in terrible danger, and it was all he could do to not howl to the stars. StarClan...are you really out there? Do you only care for your clan cats, or would you answer the prayers of a cat like me? He looked up at the sky, the stars reflecting in his eyes. I don't know if you can hear me...but please... He blinked. What was he asking for? He wanted to ask for his loved ones to be protected, for the clan cats to be safe from other dangers as well as the rogues that made up his group, and for his family to be safe from it all. But his fur burned as he realized what he was really asking, and he was almost ashamed at the selfish wish. Please make me a warrior.
//Just a bit of insight as to what's going on in Ripley's head ^^//
