LEADER ❝ RHINE ❞ PALMCLAN

If the world were truly controlled by Rhinestone, he would've made it so that nobody bothered Medusa a long time ago. He knew that the hybrid didn't deserve any of the scorn or suspicion that was leveled her way, especially not with how much she had proven herself already. He could admit that he had been somewhat unnerved by her in the beginning, but the leader was also willing to admit when he was wrong, as well. He was wrong to have ever thought of her as a threat, and he only wished he could make others see things the same way. However, he knew that he couldn't make change happen overnight. He could make all the announcements he wanted, and glare sharply in the direction of anyone who so much as coughed at Medusa, but he still couldn't make it all go away. He tried to help in the ways that he could, such as offering her extra jobs and hanging out with her quite often, but things needed to happen gradually, as frustrating as that really was. It was especially frustrating when one was leader, considering you were supposedly in charge of everything – although Rhine had never considered Palmclan such a straightforward dictatorship.

The tom wasn't exactly sure of what had woken him up that night, but it really could've been anything. A strange noise, a shift in the wind, a nightmare he could no longer remember... either way, Rhine found himself blinking open his pale eyes, gaze darting around the walls of his den. After several minutes of trying and failing to get comfortable enough to fall back asleep, the male just pushed himself up onto his paws. He figured he would go for a late night walk, just to burn off any energy that was still lingering within his system. Naturally, this walk led him towards the shore, one of the places where he had always felt the safest. Ever since he had been a kit, he had seemed as though he was one with the sea, knowing the ins and outs of swimming and aquatic hunting. After all, there was a reason that was where he had chosen to excel. Once Rhinestone reached the edge of the water, he was somewhat surprised to see that someone else was there, and that someone was Medusa, of all people. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her swim before, and she seemed to be doing it with surprising elegance.

The weak waves were gently lapping against Rhine's paws as he watched Medusa swim, eventually realizing he should probably say something. His muzzle opened, ready to say hello, but he found himself pausing when a strange hum reached his ears. Eventually, he realized that the hum was Medusa's voice. Her singing caught him even more off guard, although not in an unpleasant way. Rather, Rhinestone found a soft smile coming to his muzzle, and a strange sense of serenity passing over him. Sitting down against the sand, the leader waited until Medusa's voice had faded to clear his throat, speaking up so the hybrid could hear him, "Hello, Medusa. That singing... it was very beautiful. Where'd you learn that song?" He hoped that she wouldn't be too upset with him for hearing. After all, it wasn't as if he had intentionally followed her out here.

LEADER ❝ RHINE ❞ PALMCLAN

Honestly, Rhinestone occasionally found it extremely easy to forget that Medusa didn't truly remember all of her past. She acted with such kindness and calm wisdom that it was easy for him to think that the hybrid had her entire life together, even if she'd probably disagree. Despite this, Rhine let out a soft hum of confirmation upon hearing Medusa's words, sitting down and wrapping his tail around his paws, "I'm sure that you make it sound far more appealing than she ever did, then. It sounded very nice when you were singing it." He enjoyed giving others compliments on their skills, even if some unintentionally thought his words took on unintended hidden meanings – he was starting to get real tired of people thinking he was flirting with them. Shoving that from his mind for now, the leader responded to Medusa's questioning with an awkward little chuckle, "Well... I can say honestly that I wasn't following you. As for what woke me up, though... I'm not exactly sure. I think I might've had a nightmare, but I can't remember it for the life of me." The tom shook his head in frustration, far too used to the memories of nightmares being ejected from his mind as soon as possible. His brain just didn't like to linger, knowing that thinking about such things would only make him anxious.

LEADER ❝ RHINE ❞ PALMCLAN

Medusa's comment about compliments caused Rhinestone to sigh, even if it initially had been meant simply as a joke. It stung, mainly because he knew that the hybrid wasn't entirely just kidding around. He felt the need to say, glancing back at camp with a little bit of a withering glare, "I can imagine... I'm not sure how many times I can say I'm sorry before it stops being words." Deep down, the leader knew that Medusa didn't think it was his fault that she occasionally faced some less than nice opinions of her. However, the tom still felt as though he should've been able to wrangle people better – or at least scare them into being nicer. Much like Medusa herself, Rhinestone wiped this from his mind for the moment, tilting his head before he questioned her, "Sounds like a case of insomnia. Have you tried asking anyone about any herbs or anything to help with that? I know that Featherear isn't around at the moment, but we're got other people around here who are medically inclined. Or at least, enough that they'd be able to recommend something." Rhinestonestar wished he could've recommended something himself, but medicine was hardly his strong suit. He had considered getting lessons from Featherear, but that unfortunately wasn't an option at the moment.

LEADER ❝ RHINE ❞ PALMCLAN

Unsafe and insecure. The words caused Rhine to sigh, a feeling of guilt spreading through the leader's chest. He knew that Medusa didn't intend for him to take that as his fault, but he couldn't help it. The only thing the tom could hope was that he could circumvent things before anything got worse, and things really did break. Rhinestone briefly dug his claws into the sand below him, glancing back towards camp before he spoke, "I see... I wish that I could be of some assistance, Medusa. I've tried to make this place feel as safe as possible, but I can understand why you might feel insecure." He then suggested, lifting one of his paws and pointing it back towards the boardwalk in the distance, "If you really don't feel safe within camp, perhaps you'd be better off finding a place on the boardwalk? After all, it is part of our home now. I wish I could make camp feel more welcoming, but if you'd like to stop losing sleep, that's always an option." He had considered getting a home of his own on the boardwalk, but had ultimately ended up deciding against it. After all, the main camp was his home, and it was difficult to think of remaining anywhere else.

LEADER ❝ RHINE ❞ PALMCLAN

As sad as he was to hear that Medusa didn't feel entirely safe within camp, he couldn't deny that her idea was a sound one. It wasn't as if she'd be completely isolated from everyone else, and she'd easily be able to hear when there was a meeting, or some other kind of gathering. He initially hesitated, not wanting the hybrid to feel as though they were "kicking her out", as it were. Eventually, he just nodded his head, speaking in soft tones, "Well... if you'd truly feel more comfortable with a den outside of camp, then I won't stop you. I'll even help you dig it out, if you want. I just want to make sure you don't feel as though we're forcing you out. I'd... I'd never want anyone to feel like that within Palmclan." Part of him wanted to march right back into camp and scold everyone for making Medusa feel this way, but as she herself had said, it wasn't entirely the looks, or the words they said. It was also her instincts, and the general way she struggled with her memories hidden away inside. The rusty red tom just wished that there was some way to help with that, as well.