Put my worries to rest [closed]

Pace steady and quick, Elsa walked alongside the thunderpath, the smell of Skyclan filling her nose. Every time she heard a rustle of leaves she stopped in her tracks and turned around to scan the area before returning to her quick walk. She was clearly paranoid, mainly because her last encounter with a Skyclan cat was unpleasant, to say the least. Alongside that paranoia was guilt, guilt that it had taken her so long to visit the clans. The last time she had been to their borders she was informed that the Asylum had captured the clans, and she hadn't returned since. The smell of Asylum had long since disappeared from the borders, but the worry they brought still lingered within the loner. She couldn't be sure the clans were okay until she talked to one of their cats herself, and Thunderclan was the clan that she had the most positive experiences with. She could count on them to return her kindness- or at least she hoped.

After what felt like moons she caught the scent of Thunderclan, relived the finally be out of Skyclan territory. She had to admit, it wasn't as bad as she expected. Maybe she ought to visit Skyclan again soon, perhaps she won't be attacked again. Pushing Skyclan from her mind, she stepped over the scent line into Thunderclan territory, unsure of what to do from there. It had been so long since she had been to the clans that she forgot how she would usually approach cats. Slowly, she walked through the underbrush, which was rapidly growing denser as she walked deeper into the forest. The shrubs on Skyclan territory weren't this bad. A few moments had passed by and she still hadn't seen any cat. It worried her even more, so she called out. "Hello, is anyone out there?" She fell quiet, desperately hoping an answer would come.

Waterlily decided to go on a walk.  It was more peaceful then being in the busy camp.  It also gave her more of a chance to think and reflect on everything that happened, from her warriors ceremony to Kitefire leaving.  It wasn't all bad, though.  She felt that she was getting closer to Shrikesong and now she was a warrior, so those were nice.  It was just so nice and quiet out there... at least until someone called.

Her ears immediately went up and her head turned to the side.  Someone was calling to see if anyone was there.  She felt like just leaving, but she thought that she should say something to this cat.  Slowly, she walked towards the other cat.

She walked behind a tree to see the other cat.  "Y-yes," she responded shyly.  "Hello, uh, I'm Waterlily.  Um, who are you?"

A wave of relief washed over the loner when a voice- an unfamiliar voice- met her ears. "Oh thank goodness." She breathed, rushing toward the sound, soon catching sight of Waterlily. "My name is Elsa. Nice to meet you, Waterlily!" She introduced herself, unaware of any possibility that the Thunderclanner could be uncomfortable. Without wasting a moment, she immediately began asking questions. "I'm sorry for my urgency, but, how are the clans doing? Is the Asylum still here?" She spoke with a concerned tone. "The last time I visited the clans they were under control of something called the Asylum. I'm not too sure what it was about, but Lilacstar made it seem like it was really bad. I just want to make sure you guys are okay." A soft sigh escaped her once she had finished. Waterlily didn't seem particularly stressed and it didn't seem like any Asylum cats were following her around. Maybe they really had disappeared.

Waterlily took a few steps back, keeping at least a fox length between them.  She didn't know who this cat was and although she didn't seem like a bad cat, there was no way to tell for sure, so Waterlily thought that she would prefer to be safe than sorry.  Then Elsa asked about the cats that wore other animals pelts.  "Um, yeah.  The Asylum was bad... they took over the clans for a while."  She briefly thought about how Cedarheart protected her from one of them.  A wave of sadness rushed over her as she thought about her adopted mother.  Quickly, she brought herself back to the conversation.  "They, uh, they're gone now though, so that's good..."

Elsa made sure to listen as the Thunderclanner explained how the Asylum was gone. She felt happy for Waterlily, along with the rest of the clans. If she were in their situation at the time, she wouldn't have known what to do. Not missing the subtle details that hinted at Waterlily feeling sad for a brief moment, she spoke again. "I'm sorry that they showed up in the first place, but I'm glad you guys are doing okay. How did you get rid of them? I have a feeling they didn't just leave on their own..." She ventured, her curiosity taking control of the conversation.

"No, they didn't," Waterlily responded.  "There were some cats who secretly made a plan to defeat the Asylum... I don't know all of what happened, just that there was a big battle and that one Tunderclanner lost their lives in it."  It has been a while since the Asylum left, as she remembered being just an apprentice when this happened.  It was honestly strange for her when they left, because for her entire life in Thunderclan they were there.

"Oh dear, I hope they didn't cause you too much grief." She sympathized, lowering her rump to sit down. "Do you know the specific cat who passed? Sorry if that's personal. It's just that I know a few Thunderclan cats, give me a moment to remember their names." She paused, letting her gaze drift upwards as she thought. "Now, let's see. I think I've met Daisybloom and Murmur. There was one other Thunderclan cat I recall, although I don't believe I caught her name. She was a brown tabby with green eyes that fought me moons ago, I believe she was carrying kits at the time." She drew her paws closer to her body, wrapping her thin tail around them. "Does she sound familiar to you? Surely you don't know that many brown tabbies." Although she couldn't say that she enjoyed fighting the tabby, she hoped that she was doing okay. As far as she knew, clan cats were supposed to fight outsiders. She just wished that they could all realize that she meant no harm.

[OOC: The brown tabby was Cedarheart ;) Elsa fought her a while back]

Elsa asked which cat was killed and Waterlily could only remember half of there name, because they died when she was an apprentice and she didn't know them that well.  Being born a rogue and taken into the clans had its downs, like not knowing everyone.  She only knew a few cats at that time.  She was about to say what part of the name she remembered, when Elsa started describing the cats that she knew so far.

One of which sounded very familiar.  So familiar that she was sure Elsa was describing that specific cat.  Waterlily's head dropped as she thought about that cat.  "I... know who you're talking about."  She meowed.  "That's not the one who died at the paws of the Asylum, though.  There was a brief pause as she thought.  "You're talking about Cedarheart.  She is... was my adopted mother.  She died fighting a predator not too long ago."

Elsa's ears perked with intrigue. "You knew her?" Her curious expression faded into a sad frown as Waterlily went on. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear. It's awful, losing the ones you love." For a moment she thought about her own mother, a cat who she hadn't seen in many moons. She knew if she were to return to see her she wouldn't want to leave, though. She took in a deep breath before continuing. "I can't really say that I enjoyed my interaction with Cedarheart, but I know that she was just doing her job. I'm sure that she was a lovely cat." Her gaze slowly drifted upward toward the sky, noticing the placement of the sun. It reminded her that she couldn't spend too long here. She needed to be home before the stray dogs woke- they were worse during the night than during the day.  "Oh- I'm afraid I must go, I have to make it home before sunset. It was great talking to you, though! It's nice to know that I have one more friend in Thunderclan." She looked at Waterlily for a moment more before dipping her head in farewell. She turned around and walking the way she came, hurrying back to the twolegplace.