A Wild Kit Approaches!

She didn't know where she was. The little puff of white fur was alone, hungry, and scared. She shook with every step she took as she took in the surrounding area. Where am I? Where's my mother? I don't know where I am, she thought. Nothing looked familiar to her, she couldn't see any animals nearby-and in any case, the smallest sounds made her squirm already, she couldn't imagine an animal coming up to her would help.
The kit mewled. Then mewled louder, clenching her eyes shut as she desperately cried for help.

ooc- I didn't know if you wanted her to be found by anyone specific, but if you did I can delete this;;

Out as part of a patrol, Deerpaw expected to maybe find a rabbit or hare. A high-pitched crying caught his attention, and his ears pricked. It wasn't quite the sound prey. It was something different. Rabbits certainly made a similar sound, but this reminded him more of someplace he couldn't quite remember. Wary, he padded through the grasses until the faint scent of milk made him stop in his tracks. Had a kit somehow escaped camp without being noticed? The apprentice rushed forward to see the little scrap of white fur, though this wasn't any kit of WindClan. She didn't smell of the clan, or any clan, for that matter. He glanced around for any other cats, this kitten's parents or siblings, yet there were none. What was he supposed to do?


Shaking his head, he moved towards the she-kit. It was too hot and dangerous for such a young kit to be out alone. He couldn't just leave her. He tried to lighten the usually harsh look on his face as he bent to pick her up by the scruff. "You'll be fine. We can help you." Deciding to abandon the patrol, the tom trotted back towards camp with the kitten in his jaws. He hoped that this was the right thing to do in this situation. Upon crossing the camp entrance, he realized that he didn't know what to do now. Should he tell Brindlestar? Or bring her to Goosepaw first?

OOC: I asked someone but they haven't posted sooooo

The small floof kit gave a small squirm, nothing enough to have her dropped, but enough to gain the attention of the cat carrying her (giving them more of a mouthful and perhaps even her long fur down the poor stranger's throat). She was so hungry! And there were all new smells and she was somewhere new! She let out a soft mewl, half for help and the other half for food. "Hungry..." was all she could manage to whimper out. And so... "Cold..." Her statement was emphasized by another shiver.

It wasn't entirely unusual for hunting patrols to bring back a wide variety of freshly-caught creatures- in fact, they often brought back anything from rabbits and hares to the occasional stray woodland creatures. But rare was the day that they brought back a kit!

Abandoning the tedious task of speaking with one of her Clanmates, Brindlestar's features were shadowed with a faint frown as she made her way towards Deerpaw, who appeared to be merely lingering uncertainty on the edges of camp. Whoever the little bundle of white fluff was, it was clearly not a WindClanner. Tail giving a sporadic twitch as she hurriedly made her way towards the dark-furred tom, her whiskers gave an uneasy twitch. The last time a stray kit showed up, Ivystar wasn't far behind it. "And what is this?" Brindlestar eventually questioned, expression unreadable as she leaned forward to give the little white-furred molly a curious inhale. Although the kit's scent was soured with the faint, acrid scent of sweat, she didn't catch any remnants of Clan scent clinging to the kit's fur. Likely abandoned.

The young tom straightened at his leader's approach and waited for Brindlestar to finish sniffing the kitten before putting her down between his paws. The white she-kit's mumbled words were concerning. 'I'd expect her to be hungry, but cold? In this weather?' Unease prickled at his pelt, but he didn't allow it to show on his face. "I found her out in the territory, Brindlestar. I couldn't find any other cats or foreign scent trails nearby." Deerpaw, not usually the most affectionate cat, bent down to warm her. Feeling how thin she was beneath her fur brought out a feeling of pity in him. How long had she been alone?

"She's thin," came his slightly irritated reply. What sort of caretaker would abandon such a young kit, especially where any predator could snatch her up? What situation had they been in? The red-brown tom moved his head to meet Brindlestar's gaze. "What do we do with her?"

The fluffy kit quickly took to Deerpaw's affectionate move, and huddled close to the apprentice for warmth. She wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but at least she had that going for her. She couldn't quite remember why she'd been so cold. Was it her mother's absence? Or wind? Maybe she was just scared, but she could swear she was cold. The she-kit couldn't help but enjoy the warmth offered to her. This kit devoted their conversation time to cuddle with the first stranger until he asked about her fate. At that point, she'd moved her head to stare at the second stranger. Blue eyes, as soft and sweet as her milky fur, looked up at Brindlestar with curiosity. She had so many questions: Who were these cats? Where was she? What was happening?

Withdrawing entirely from the undeniably pitiful duo, Brindlestar's features still stubbornly displayed a dispassionate, stoic expression. Lips twisting into a subtle grimace as she carefully concluded her search for any identifying scents that clung to the kits weakened form, she held a resigned silence as she watched Deerpaw free himself of the kit's weight. For a brief moment, at Deerpaw's quiet onslaught of questions, the scarred molly appeared quite tired. What could she do for a cat whose blood apparently held no trace of a claim to any Clan? The tightly confined area of darkness that resided within the deepest recesses of her mind whispered to refuse the young she-kit out of fear of the unknown, but thankfully she rarely acted upon such fretful, unwarranted paranoia. After experiencing the bleak life of a Rogue at such a young age firsthand, she knew she couldn't turn away such a helpless case.

"For now, she'll stay here. There's no sense in needlessly condemning a kit to face the moorland by their lonesome in heat like this." Brindlestar eventually answered, gaze finally waning to the small bundle of fur who peered back with equally attentive eyes. Although speaking the words aloud felt like a slight reassurance, she couldn't help but acknowledge the nagging uncertainty that still whispered within her mind. "If no cat or rival Clan comes to claim her in the next few sunrises, then I suppose we shall consider the idea of fully adopting her into the Clan. For now, it'd be in your best interest to find a Queen willing to care for her."