new seasons; greener grasses [closed; departure]

The fire that had ravaged the stretch of forest nearest the upwalker settlement had been tamed days ago, even the smoke reduced to a memory one could taste on the air. Summer had watched in horror from the safety of the settlement; upwalkers were strange beings, and, though often stupid beyond imagination, they possessed great power to shift stones, rivers, and fires themselves. Their screeching beastly large cars, "trucks" Summer had heard them called in the last few days, had begun to wail and flash and roared towards the blaze as it spread. They fought the fire back desperately, oblivious to the many cats relying on their might, too. The drifter knew that the Clans lived in the forest, unlike the upwalkers. SkyClan was just over the wooden fence.

As the days went on after the fire was subdued by the upwalkers, Summer had feared for SkyClan, but knowledge of the devastation of fires on the precarious balance of wild cat territories kept her from seeking them out. She didn’t dare tread on the scarred land of a frightened Clan cat. After a night or so, she was confused, but relieved and grateful, when she began scenting them around the settlement. They had likely found shelter there. It would protect them until their land was safe again. She felt at peace again despite the devastation beyond the wall.

In the meantime, Summer had come to the conclusion that her time in these territories was drawing to an end. Tensions would be high at the tail-end of a disaster such as this, and admittedly the stress of worrying about her SkyClan friends and how she would cross the forest or hunt there when prey had been driven out by the fire was unwarranted and unwelcomed. The ginger-cream she-cat had the prowess to flourish anywhere. She had no reason to starve or struggle for water in a place like this - not when the Clans she had come to know and appreciate were determined to stay where she had found them. They were even more dependent on the sparse resources that remained. No, she was moving on, and the thoughts of the Clan cats would be locked into glorious memories and tales that she brought with her to share with strangers.

The ginger-cream pointed she-cat rose with a haze golden dawn, illuminated in its light like a sunrise of her own. She was energized and invigorated with the promise of new adventures to come. Wispy clouds on the horizon promised her reprieves of shade throughout the day, but a hot, clear journey awaited her. Summer did her morning routines a final time in the upwalker settlement, and she dared a final glimpse to the wild cats’ land. She leapt onto the fence gracefully. The immediate charred forest she found threatened to dampen her mood, but she breathed deeply and let it go. SkyClan was fine. Too far to see, the marshy forest of ShadowClan and the dense foliage of ThunderClan still stood; the sandy shores of RiverClan and rolling hills of WindClan lay safe, too. She wondered if Morningdove would have been disappointed not to have seen the fire.

”I suppose we’ll never know, darling,” she mused breezily to herself. Summer turned and slipped down the wooden fence then, landing gracefully in the grass below. Her bully was full, her thirst was quenched, her fur was groomed to silken perfection, and she was ready to depart. She flicked her ginger plume tail behind her as a final goodbye to the Clans. Then she disappeared into the world beyond, as she always had and always would. Summer never returned to the adventures she had already experienced.

Nothing could ever compare to the first time, and there were countless more “firsts” to find.