Finding Home (Ebony, Kayalee, River)

[Meesh]

Her scent's getting stronger. I think I'm getting closer
It had been some time since Ebony had last seen his friend River, ever since he had chickened out before going to explore the world with her. He still regretted not going, though perhaps his leaving her was a good thing. If Ebony wouldn't have stayed, no one would have discovered the sickness in the Annab tree, and there might be disease in the Orchard.
He still felt bad though. But now it was time to make things right. Ebony had been following River's scent to the edge of the Blue Plains, but once he arrived, he wasn't quite sure where to go.
He chuckled as he looked down at his much longer fur and much larger paws. The biggest problem, he reflected, would be getting her to recognize him, now that he was nearly twice his size when he had first hatched and certainly much longer and sleeker looking. He wasn't quite sure what had made him evolve, but strongly suspected that it was the shock of seeing that diseased Annab tree that had matured him so quickly.
As Ebony padded through the grasses, he recalled one of his and River's first conversations, about joining a group. He wondered if she had found one yet. It was getting pretty lonely in the Orchard by himself. Perhaps he could join the Starpack Silva had suggested? He wasn't sure, though. He felt overcrowded with so many trees around, at times. The plains though, the plains seemed just right, with their wide open expanses, and pretty grasses.
Now just to find someone

[Hazelstar]

Kayalee was out for a stroll, half watching the borders and half looking for foolish prey that she could catch easily. She stopped suddenly and took a deep breath through her nose. "Who in the world?" Kayalee murmered, she smelled an unfamiliar scent, she could tell it was a male and that it was a feline. She sunk low to the ground and creeped towards the scent, she was pretty sure she was mostly downwind of whoever this was.

After a few minutes passed Kayalee noticed a distinct feline shape not very far from where she was. She could tell it was an Occult, but whoever this male was, he didn't seem to be of an age as old as Kayalee herself. She decided to take a risk, she stood up and called to the feline. "Who are you, and why are you so near The Plains Tribr border?"

[Deleted]

River had been sleeping peacefully up until a short while ago. She woke up, and - finding herself alone in the den - headed outside to see what there was to do. As a hunter, it was her job to make sure the tribe - namely herself and Kayalee - had plenty of food, so her first duty of the day was to check the prey rock. It still had plenty of food, and a few cautious sniffs told her that nothing had started to spoil yet, so she considered that particular duty done for the day.

She debated on eating right there and then, but decided against it. She had her eye on one of the fish, and she wanted to make sure she was hungry enough to at least eat most of it. Best to wait a while. She tasted the air - catching Kayalee's scent - and made her way toward the feline.

As she padded along, she heard a familiar voice - Kayalee's - calling to...someone. She sprinted the rest o the way, encountering another feline - a male about as large as the tribe leader - that looked vaguely familiar. She stared at him, trying to place where she had seen him before. She shouldn't think him familiar...should she?

((Sorry for not doing this last night. I thought I had the focus when I started, but turned out I didn't. x.x))

[Meesh]

It didn't take long for a silvery female to appear, large, like himself, though perhaps a little smaller, though she did look to be older than Ebony himself. He was immediately surprised and greatful to see that she, too, was evolved. Ebony had only ever seen Silva and Nerah in evolved forms, he thought it was only a canine thing, and had been quite surprised and scared when he evolved. He was glad that he wasn't the only one. So, there really are packs around here. Or, I guess Tribes, according to this female Ebony thought with some surprise. He dipped his head quickly, indicating her meant no harm. "My apologies for trespassing on your territory, madam" he began quietly. "I was following a friend's scent here. Tell me, do you know of a black and white feline named River?" Hesitating, he added. "And, may I know a little bit more about your uh- Plains Tribe, you called it?"

Another scent filled his nostrils before he could speak further. This one, however, was familiar. "River!" he called, purring as he saw his friend appear. Seeing the look of confusion on her face, he padded over, crouching down so he was at eye level with her. "Don't you recognize me? It's me, Ebony!"

[Hazelstar]

"Yes, I do know River." Kayalee meowed, padding closer to the slightly larger male occult. "The Plains Tribe is a peaceful tribe which is centered around family, working together, fighting together, and living together." Kayalee added, answering the feline's question. Kayalee glanced over at River. "You do know this cat, right? I want to make sure he isn't a spy or something." Kayalee whispered to River, glancing curiously at the occult who had identified himself as Ebony. "Ebony, I ask that you state your business here, or that you leave. We may be a tribe of peace but we will force you out if necessary." She half growled, staring at the occult with her large, aqua eyes and twitching her silvery tail.

[Deleted]

((I will try to be more active today. x.x))

The male seemed to know her, and her confusion must have shown on her face because he introduced himself as Ebony. She did know Ebony, but Ebony was...small. Like her. They were both young felines who recently hatched from their pods. No way was this that same Ebony!

But...

When Kayalee asked if she - River - knew the male, River hesitated. "I do know an Ebony, and his pelt coloration does match this male's, but the Ebony I knew was as small as me." She stepped forward, addressing the not-quite-unfamiliar feline. "Is that really you? ...Yes...I think. No one else has those eyes, that I'm aware of. But...what happened?"

[Meesh]

Ebony blinked, startled at the silvery feline’s challenge. “My business here is simply finding my friend and learning more about your way of life. I promise I do not have any malicious intent. If I am truly unwelcomed here, then I shall leave as soon as I speak to my friend. It was never my intention to come where I was unwelcomed” he dipped his head briefly to the silvery feline before turning his head back towards River. Her confusion was evident now, she didn't seem to recognize him at all. He had been expecting it, he supposed, but to know that his first friend didn't even recognize him did strike a blow within Ebony." His ears drooped once before he forced out a cheerful meow, explaining his story.

"You remember how I said I'd go to relax at the Annab tree after we said goodbye at the gate of the Orchard? I was relaxing there when I found that the tree had sickened" he shuddered, the memory still fresh in his eyes. "The wood was rotting, some of the pods were already dead" Shivering at the memory, the feline continued "A canine who looked to be even bigger than Silva- she called herself Nerah- helped me bury the bodies. I think that experience was so shocking to me that it changed something within me- the moment I set paw off the Orchard I changed into this" he indicated his huge form. "I don't know if it's permanent or not- it may well just undo itself if I ever go back to the Orchard, but I know you can recognize me if you try, River. Doesn't my scent smell familiar?"

He paused, glancing at Kayalee. Did the silvery Occult have a similar story? Her shape was much the same as his, after all. "Did something similar happen to you, or were you born like that?"

[Hazelstar]

Kayalee stared curiously at the other occult as he talked to River. A tree in the orchard has sickened? That cannot be good. Kayalee thought, startled. She had never, ever heard of that happening before. But she had to assume this occult was telling the truth, since he said he was only searching for his friend. "When I was hunting for my territory with Silva I evolved into this form." Kayalee meowed, she then realized she had never state her name to this occult. "By the way, my Name is Kayalee." She added hastily, then leaned back on her haunches and sat comfortably in the grass. She shook her head slightly. "Evolving, it was the strangest thing that ever happened to me." She breathed, then added. "Do you ever see visions? Silva told me they happen in this form." Kayalee meowed, staring intently at the occult.

[Deleted]

River watched the two, unsure of what to do or say or even if she should do o say anything. This confrontation was between her and him, as leader of the tribe and…trespasser was not exactly the right word to use, was it?

Her eyes widened at the news about the tree. If that tree was getting sick, what about the others? They were in danger, too! What could be done about it? Maybe Kayalee would know. She was an experienced feline, after all.

When Ebony asked if his scent smelled familiar, she shook her head. “Maybe it is, but I can’t tell. It’s more…erm…powerful than before.” Not her most graceful sentence ever, and probably not the most flattering thing she had ever come up with, but she was trying. It was clear she had hurt him by not recognizing him, and she didn’t want to make the situation worse.

He asked how Kayalee’s evolution happened, and she listened, trying to pick out a connection. It seemed evolution was triggered by a significant event. Would she evolve if she took part in something like that?

[Meesh]

Ebony blinked at Kayalee's question, eyes widening as he nodded. "I- right after I evolved, I got a flash of the Blue Plains, where I had never been before. That's what bought me in this direction, but I thought I was just imagining things." A thought occurred to him, and he asked Kayalee "Silva could do this odd teleportation thingie. She said it was because she evolved. Can we do that too, now that we're also evolved? He had tried it twice in the Orchard, both times with no results, but maybe things would be different now that he evolved? "And it is a pleasure meeting you, Kayalee. I am, as I stated, Ebony, though I suppose River doesn't recognize me anymore"

He turned back to the smaller feline, adding. "I don't know if this helps, but do you remember any of the day we- you and the tiny feline Ebony- met? I still remember it perfectly. We both met Silva before we met each other, and we caught that rodent hiding under a rock. I would have gone on to explore with you, but I was afraid, and stayed behind. Which now ranks as the biggest regret of my life, if you no longer remember me" he paused, wondering what else he could add to make her remember. "I was calling you madam when we first met, but you didn't seem to like it, so I stopped" he paused, glancing over at River. Surely some of it would trigger any sort of memory?

[Hazelstar]

"I saw an image of the camp here, so no, you were not imagining anything." Kayalee meowed. "We cannot teleport, I am assuming that there is another evolutionary stage for felines. Three for canines, three for felines." Kayalee meowed with a shrug. "Are you hungry, Ebony? There is plenty of food in camp if you are." Kayalee added, flicking her tail in the direction of camp. Kayalee glanced curiously down at River as Ebony talked about how they had first met. Kayalee's mind wandered back to her first real encounter with anyone.

Kayalee stood with her face to a light breeze which ruffled her silvery pelt, she sighed and opened her eyes. The rays of the sun cast the shadows of trees in elaborate patterns across the orchard. Kayalee breathed deeply of the scent of growing things and sighed once again. It's so beautiful here, how the trees grow fruits.... The smell of the wildflowers.... The sound of frolicking newborns.... Kayalee thought in wonder of it all. I wonder how large this orchard is.... Maybe it goes on forever! Kayalee thought, excitement colored her eyes. Kayalee turned her head towards the sun and was ready to face the exciting adventure of her life.

She had met Konan there, and planned to explore with him, but he seemed to have disappeared off the face of the earth, she hadn't heard much of him since they had met when she was a newborn, her tail drooped, where was he? She shook her head, she probably would never see him again.

[Deleted]

The two continued to discuss the merits of evolution. River didn’t want to admit it to herself or especially them, but she was getting jealous. It was okay for Kayalee, who had always ranked above her, but Ebony had been an equal. Apparently, not anymore. Not only that, he was still clearly upset with her for not recognizing him in his new form. Well, she was trying? What did he expect, when his appearance and scent changed? That she’d know him right off? Her claws dug into the ground, though the rest of her managed to seem calm on the outside. On the inside, she was raging. Whether he was purposefully trying to make her feel horrible or not, he succeeded, and – clearly – her presence here was only going to make matters worse until he calmed down.

“I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you with your new appearance and scent, all right? I don’t know what else you want from me!” It wasn’t quite a hiss, but she was upset and she knew it would show in her tone.

After a moment, she sighed. “I should hunt.” If she didn’t leave right now she was going to do something nasty. She just knew it. She ran off, waiting until she was well out of sight before stopping to sniff around for prey.

((I hated to do that, but River does have a temper and can be violent. x.x She’ll be back after she’s killed a few somethings, and I’ll keep posting as normal.))

[Meesh]

Ebony dipped his head to Kayalee "I thank you but I couldn't possibly take from your own foodpile without offering something in return. Perhaps I could find some way to repay the kindness?" He was about to say something more when a hiss from River startled him. He turned, surprised to see the black and white she-cat looking about as upset as he'd ever seen her. After a brief scolding towards them both, she turned and disappeared in the blue grass. "River, wait!" Ebony called. He paused, giving Kayalee one last respectful dip of his head before turning and bounding after his friend.

It didn't take long to catch up to her- perhaps his longer legs were good for something after all. "River, I'm sorry" gasped Ebony, still panting. "It doesn't matter if you remember me or not. We didn't know each other much anyway. Just, don't be angry, alright?"

[Hazelstar]

"I guess you can." Kayalee meowed with a flick of her whiskers. Kayalee heard a hiss from River and her head snapped towards the feline, she had a look of confused anger contorting her small features, then she raced off. Ebony called after her, nodded to her then fled towards the smaller cat. Kayalee stood for a moment, then whipped herself around and pelted after the pair of felines.

Kayalee slowed her pace when she got close enough to see the pair, she could faintly hear Ebony saying. "Just don't be angry, alright?" She padded up between River, given River's attitude of running away furiously, she didn't want this to end in scars. She gave a quick glance at both the cats, but kept herself in between the two.

[Deleted]

She hadn’t even caught a whiff of prey when she spotted the larger felines coming toward her. Her ears flattened against her head and her claws dug into the ground. Now what? Couldn’t they see how close she was to being dangerous? Or did they think her harmless because they towered over her?

Whatever it was, they weren’t going to let her go easily, were they?

“You weren’t listening!” she growled when Ebony spoke. “Or you’d know that I did remember you! How was I supposed to know you’d evolve that soon?”

Kayalee placed herself between the two. River looked from her to the newcomer. She could flee and try hunting again, but they’d just come after her. Not only that, the thundering of several pawsteps in the area was likely to have scared off everything, anyway. “You both really should have let me hunt! You have no idea…” She shook her head. How was she supposed to finish that? No idea how close she was to losing control and killing something? Yeah, that’d go over smoothly. They’d find out eventually, though. Why not now when she couldn’t hide her bad side anymore, anyway? “Look – my teeth and claws are going to find flesh to sink into soon, one way or another. Better for it to be a bird or rodent than a feline, you hear me? How do you think I'd feel after I've calmed down if I ended up hurting either of you?”