Returning (Open)

The border. She scented it. It had been so long since she had seen her fellow Clanmates. The mere thought of returning to her Clan brought tears to her emerald green eyes, making them shimmer even brighter than before. Moons ago, Streamtail had been kidnapped by several Twolegs and was brought into their den. She had tried to escape, but failed many times as she couldn't find her way out of the large patch of grass the Twolegs had outside of their yard. They also happened to have a dog, which also hindered her escape plan. After a few moons of trying over and over again to escape, the blue-gray she-cat had finally escaped...only to find herself lost in the forest, rather unclear of where she was supposed to go. So Streamtail lived as a rogue, hunting down mice and occasionally fish if she got lucky. The she-cat had no luck trying to get back to her Clan, until today, when she finally scented the border of RiverClan. "...Maybe they'll still remember me. Maybe they won't. Oh stars, I do hope that Ivystar still remembers me."

Bearspirit had been stalking through Riverclan territory for most of the day. He followed the twolegs and their dogs as stealthily as he could, desperately trying to learn their patterns. His hatred for the four-legged companions ran deeper and deeper with each passing day. They had taken his original family from him... and now they were a threat to his new one. He'd kill them... he swore by all of the stars above that he was going to tear out all of their throats. There was a time or two when something that could only be described as insanity overtook the marbled tom. He'd rushed at hunting dogs, and they, used to seeing prey run away from them, had barked out a few times in alarm only to turn tail and gallop away.

Bearspirit had been lucky enough so far so as not to be shot by a twoleg. Maybe the clan cats didn't know what guns were, but Bearspirit certainly did. He knew what happened to animals on the receiving end of the Fire Teeth. A flash of blue-gray caught his eye and he stopped, ears pricked forward and alert. A she-cat that he didn't recognize approached the border. His fur bristled, but he began to approach anyway.

"You! Miss! You need to get out of here! It's not safe!" He calculated that he had maybe five minutes to convince this crazy rogue that she needed to leave. He wouldn't be the one to threaten her... but a dog or a cruel twoleg with a gun might.

The she-cat padded along the territory, tummy giving a quiet rumble. Shimmerdust knew very well that coming out here to hunt was a horrible idea, but she did it anyways. Maybe she was just stubborn and wanted to keep up her old habits. In any case, Shimmerdust had yet to find a single interesting thing.

The sudden scent drifting through the air stopped her. Shimmerdust turned her head up, frowning-it was familiar to her, but mingling with a little something else in the scent that felt foreign.

And suddenly, she recognised the cat whom the scent belonged to.

Springing multiple steps forward, she called out. "STREAMTAIL!" She then turned to Bearspirit. "She went missing from RiverClan a while back." She quickly added.

The she-cat cautiously walked near the border, debating whether or not she should cross it. Knowing that she had left for a really long time, some of her fellow Clanmates wouldn't recognize her on the spot, and others may not even recognize her at all. Just as Streamtail was getting ready to cross the RiverClan border, an unfamiliar voice rang out. Her head whipped around, tail flicking slightly behind her as she spotted a RiverClanner, a tom-cat she didn't know. Registering his words, Streamtail slowly surveyed her surroundings, not spotting any predators around. Frowning slightly, the blue-gray she-cat nodded towards the tom-cat. "Ah...I don't seem to have seen anything while I was wandering around...Is something wrong in RiverClan? Perhaps you should take me to Ivystar, I'm-" The former warrior broke off as another voice called out her name, and Streamtail's eyes lit up as she spotted the familiar pelt of Shimmerdust, a Clanmate of hers she recognized. "Hello, Shimmerdust! It's good to see you again." Streamtail nodded towards the tom-cat at Shimmerdust's explanation. "I was captured by Twolegs while out on a hunt a few moons ago... Is RiverClan okay?"

Bearspirit flicked an ear in Shimmerdust's direction when she bellowed out the she-cats name. A wayward Riverclan she-cat had returned home? He offered her a friendly smile, but his eyes and ears went to his surroundings. He doubted they had much time before dogs and their masters showed up.

"Riverclan is overrun with dogs and twolegs. There is almost no food here. We've been given permission to hunt on the moor by Lilacstar. I'm sorry you have to return to your home in such a state. Hopefully they'll be gone soon."

The snapping of twigs had Bearspirit spin and a growl ripped from his throat.

"You two should go. I'll make sure you're not followed." Something had changed in the tom's soft green eyes just then, as a dog appeared from the bushes. The soft, welcoming face had abruptly changed to one of rage and a lust for blood. He didn't wait for a response from either she-cat. Bearspirit charged. The dog was close enough to the river that it was about to receive a nasty surprise.

Let's see how you like being drowned, monster! The large tom tackled the dog and sent it sprawling into the river. Bearspirit wasted no time trying to drown it as it struggled to get back to the bank.

Bearspirit used Underwater Clinch, dealing 5 damage and -10SP

Bearspirit
50HP / 110SP (-10SP)

Dog
Stunned for One Turn
95HP / 200SP (-5HP)