Breathe in. Breathe out. His first new breath was harsh and erratic, a gasp taken in as he flailed to life, dark eyes flicking around to take in his newfound surroundings. It seemed as though Rhine was far from the familiar grounds of Palmclan, if the towering trees and unfamiliar scents on the air were anything to go by. Despite this, the leader found that he didn't feel scared. Instead of fear, or sickness, he felt a sense of being invigorated. Above everything else that was currently on his mind, the most important fact was that he wasn't dead. He was alive, and healthy, even. No longer did every step bring with it a burst of agony, or every breath bring with it a harsh surge of pain in his chest. He was free, free of the illness that had caused his death in the first place, indirectly or not. That was an amazing feeling, even if he wasn't sure of where he was going, or who he even was, at this point.

Eventually, in his wandering, he managed to come across a small pond, able to get a good look at himself. Needless to say, what he saw shocked him. He was no longer a ruddy colored feline with pale blue eyes. Instead, a serval was staring back at him. Not just any serval, but one with patterned blue fur, and eyes that looked like never-ending pits of darkness. That certainly explained why the world was bathed in garish shades of pink and red, considering there was definitely something wrong with his eyes. However, it didn't seem to be a life-threatening issue, and that alone was enough to settle his fur, at least for the moment. With a new sense of what he looked like, Rhinestone focused himself entirely on finding his way back home, his head tilted up and his jaws parted as he searched for any signs of Palmclan. He was met with very little, as expected, but it was enough. It was enough to guide him back through the trees, until eventually the land around him started to look familiar, as strange as it was to see it dipped in bloody shades, rather than bright and vivid greens. Overall, the long trip home certainly gave him time to think.

Once he reached camp, Rhinestone was unsurprised to see a variety of different looks thrown his way. Some were full of suspicion and hostility, and some seemed outright baffled by the presence of the seemingly unfamiliar serval, with pitch black eyes. He could tell that the crowd had been mourning, from their wet faces and weary looks. It caused his own heart to ache, although it also made him even more glad to be home. With a deep breath inwards, Rhine leaped atop the meeting rock, not missing the startled and scandalized hisses that were shot in his direction. However, he ignored them, turning to the crowd and calling out in a strong voice, no longer held back by sickness, "All those old enough to brave the waves, gather for a meeting!" Even though most of the crowd was glancing at each other in confusion and fear, they still gathered, staring up at him. He took in their faces for a moment, smiling even as the cold breeze whipped at his newly shorter fur.

Once a decently sized crowd had gathered, he began to speak again, "I'm sure that all of you are wondering who I am, and what right I have to stand up here, on this rock. Well... I know this will sound bizarre, but... I'm here because I am Rhinestonestar." Unsurprisingly, gasps spread throughout the air, along with wide-eyed looks of intrigue, or horror. He pressed on, sighing, "I died, out in the forest, at the jaws of a massive white wolf. I was unable to escape, due to the sickness that was rendering me immobile. However, I've come back. I'm not exactly sure how, if I'm honest. All I remember is the shifting of air, and suddenly I was... back. In this body." He tapped gently against his own blue chest, dark gaze focused downwards, before he continued, "Some of you may think that Starclan brought me back, as they're supposed to with leaders, but... that is not what happened. I believe that I came back as the result of a power, not as the result of Starclan's intervention." His voice hardened a bit at the end, and he took a step forward, black eyes blazing.

His voice was firm as he snarled, obviously unforgiving, "Starclan did not bring me back, because they no longer care about us. They have forsaken Palmclan, and left us to die. They did it with the hurricane, and they continued to do so with the snowstorm. Even when I initially became leader, and went to the Starshell... they refused to speak to me. They never gave me my lives, which makes it clear that this wasn't their work." It was hard not to notice the shocked gazes that stared up at him, clearly stunned by what he had to say. It was hard for him to get out, considering how much time he had spent trying desperately to get them to speak to him. However, it was also... freeing, in a way. He snapped, his dark gaze moving off in the direction of the Highwind Cliffs, and the Connection Cave, "I know this may come as a shock to some of you, but I don't believe that Palmclan could bend our will to Starclan's any longer. It is clear that they don't care about us, and if it wasn't for the powers that presented in me, then I would still be dead."" He sounded angry, but he hoped that the crowd could tell that it wasn't with them, and it was instead with their false gods. Ancestors that had supposedly cared about them, yet had also thrown his life away, and very nearly let Medusa's life be lost as well.

Short tail lashing behind him, the leader said confidently, "Ultimately, I will bend my knee to the whims of all of you, obviously. You are the warriors that make up this group, and without you, I am nothing. However, I will put this simply – I propose that we cease our worship of Starclan. Not only that, but I believe that a name change would be in order. Palmclan was a name given to us by our ancestors. Ancestors that clearly no longer watch over or care about us. So, I propose that we change our name, to The Palm Glades. It not only reflects our moving away from a group that betrayed us, but also retains our spirit, and stands for the lands that we watch over." As he watched many different faces in the crowd look at each other, deliberating and wondering, he lowered his voice slightly, "As I said... whether we go through with this change or not, is ultimately up to all of you. However, I feel as though as I should say, if it were up to Starclan? I wouldn't be standing here once again before you all." The serval then fell silent, black gaze focused on the crowd below to see what they would say in response.

Rhinestone's gaze moved over to Medusa, his short tail flicking behind him as he took in her hostile posture. It was pretty clear that his death had taken a toll on her, and he couldn't say that he blamed her. It wasn't as if his death hadn't taken a toll on him, but he couldn't afford to take a rest right now. He would allow himself to relax once this meeting was over, and the changes of the group were firmly in place - if they were accepted, that is.

He spoke confidently as he kept his dark black gaze on the senior warrior, mainly because he knew who he was, and he knew how to show that it was him, "My name is Rhinestonestar, although I was better known as Rhinestoneeyes when I was a senior warrior. I was born to Sprucefleck and Otterswirl, although neither are around to see me anymore. I grew sick after a freak storm hit our territory, and had to deal with constant rumors questioning my authority. You were one of the ones to comfort me in this time, along with Vaas and Foamkit. My first deputy was Sugarspice, although she ended up stepping down. And you... you are Medusa. One of my dear friends, and a senior warrior within the group." He hesitated momentarily, his dark gaze moving down as he considered whether to continue on or not.

Eventually, he did move on, shaking his head from side to side, "You confided in me, and told me that you felt like an outcast within the group because of the fact that you're a hybrid. I was an idiot, and I just tried to comfort you by claiming that there was no reason to be upset. I made a mistake back then, and never got a chance to truly apologize, since you ended up disappearing. And then... I ended up dying." A soft sigh left him, and he bit down on the inside of his cheek briefly before stating firmly, "Truly, I'm hoping to get a chance to properly apologize, once... everything is in order." He felt as though that was enough to prove who he was, taking a step back and settling down on his haunches. No one else would be able to know his life so thoroughly - not unless they had stalked him his entire life.

( recap at the bottom! )

Rhinestone felt a soft chuckle bubble up from his chest at Medusa's comments, unable to truly disagree with her. He certainly felt more confident, and it wasn't hard for him to tell why. After all, how could he be so nervous and insecure, when he had actually faced death and come back? The hybrid's words also emboldened him to continue on, nodding his head firmly before he spoke, "If everyone else is in agreement, then I believe this will be a change for the better. It's pretty clear that Starclan no longer cares for us, if they ever really did. We shouldn't continue to worship them and sing their praises, not if they'll only bring us grief." He shook his head from side to side, his jaw briefly clenching before he let out a sigh, "In addition to that... I should go over our regular meeting business. I'll need some time to recuperate after such... unpleasant events, but we can't just come to a stop because of me." His belief was still firm in that, even after what had happened. He would no longer push himself to death, but the group still came first, no matter what.

He glanced downwards for a moment, pitch black eyes thoughtful as he went over what he had planned for this meeting before everything happened. Eventually he made a soft noise of affirmation, nodding his head before he continued, "Ranks... no demotions this time. Things have been pretty stressful, so I don't think that'd be fair. Although, Quasar, I would like to see you around a bit more. In terms of shout outs, I'd like to shout out Medusa, Vaas, and Dovah. You're all doing very well, and I'm glad to see you around. Dovah, I'm interested in making you a senior warrior at some point, but I'd like to give you some time to adjust to your new circumstances. I don't want to put more pressure on you." It didn't seem right, promoting the other immediately after such a horrific event that had left him blind. Sighing softly, the serval then moved on, his eyes lighting up a bit, "It took me some time to think about these, since I didn't want to cause any undue stress... however, both of you have been around a great deal, and I think you deserve it. So, Foamkit, Drifting, I'd like the both of you to be waverunners." He searched the crowd for their faces, wondering if they were even present. He hoped they were, since they both deserved it. And if either found that it was too much, then they could always step down.

Eyes once again scanning the crowd, Rhine's smile then grew even more as he spoke, "We also have a couple of newcomers to welcome into the group. So, everyone welcome [member=16650]Onyxkit[/member] and [member=16707]Cherry Noriaki[/member]. We're glad to have you here, and hope that you can make this a great new home, even with the occasional bout of... excitement, shall we say." Hopefully, the amount of stressful things happening would wind down in the coming days, and they'd all be able to take a moment to breathe. He almost snorted at the thought, knowing that it was unlikely to be true. After a brief shake of his head, the feline continued, "Recent and upcoming events... well. Medusa is doing some training for the upcoming raid. Vaas is also holding a hunting patrol to help with our prey supply. Finally, I'm going to be holding a battle plan discussion, so that we're all ready for the raid with the Coalition. Be sure to try and attend if you think you'll be joining the raid." There was a lot to discuss there, but this meeting was already getting kind of long, and Rhine wanted a bit of time to rest. Just enough to regain his bearings.

Activity. He hadn't been around for some of it, but he knew that it was good. Could feel the thrum of discussion in the air, as well as the general antsy vibe in the air as the raid grew ever closer. It caused him to smile, since he knew that they were in a good place, and would hopefully continue to be now that he was back. He took a deep breath inward before he said, chuckling, "Overall activity has been great, as always. I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but I really am grateful for you all, and so glad to see you all around so much." Feeling the sense of drowsiness cause his eyelids begin to droop, Rhine knew that he needed to wrap things up. He concluded with a hum, lifting his chin as he spoke, "Lastly, more changes may be coming in a couple of weeks. Nothing as big as this, but perhaps some rank name changes, as well as the specifications of what we do. I've realized that some of our ranks don't really fit as more generalized things, and some have to be altered with us breaking off from Starclan. In addition to this, I'm hoping to choose a new deputy very soon. So, if you're interested, keep your eyes out and stay active. And helpful, obviously. With all that said... meeting dismissed." With everything on his mind out in the open, the dark eyed serval jumped down from the meeting rock, coming to a bit of a clumsy landing down below. He didn't retreat into his den just yet, so that anyone who wanted to talk to him was able to do so.

Dovah's question was a fair one, and Rhinestone had little intention of ignoring it. Despite his own anger and contempt that he held towards Starclan, that didn't mean he was about to force others to give up their worship. That would make him a dictator, and the mere thought of that left a sour taste in his mouth. Palmclan – no, The Palm Glades, – would never be a dictatorship. They were driven by their members, and if he ever forgot that, then it would surely lead to his downfall. It was because of this that he nodded in Dovah's direction, wincing afterwards when he realized the other wouldn't be able to see it. He spoke plainly, his dark black and faintly red gaze scanning over the crowd, "Good question, Dovah. Of course others will be allowed to continue following Starclan if they wish to do so. I would never outlaw the worship of them. However, Starclan will no longer be the clanwide religion, and will not be forced on those that joined. Nor will any clanwide religion that rises in the future, if one does. That just wouldn't be fair to all of you." His eyes briefly lingered on some of the members of the group that he knew had been rather devout followers of Starclan. He wasn't about to make them lose their worship and turn against him – although even a few of them looked unsure now.

It was after this that Rhine was about to return to his own den, and get some rest, but he was caught off guard by the sudden approach of Vaas. The male's dark eyes temporarily widened, wondering if the tiger was about to attack him because he didn't believe that he was actually Rhinestone. However, the leader was even more surprised when he felt Vaas's limbs wrapping around him, and pulling him close. The serval felt a rush of heat come up to his face, suddenly grateful for the thick blue fur that hid his face from full view. After a mere moment of hesitation, the tom chuckled, leaning into Vaas's hold and pressing into the larger male's fur. He could feel his heart soaring with affection, undeniably glad that the other was so happy to see him back. Part of him just wanted to spill the strange twisted up feelings he felt inside immediately, but he refrained from doing so. He'd probably just end up screwing it up if he did it now, in his exhausted state with his mind running rapidly. Instead he just looked up at Vaas, a crooked grin settling on his muzzle as dark black and red eyes gleamed, "Vaas. It's so good to see you again. And I'm glad that you agree... your opinion means a lot to me." Those last words were a bit more quiet than the rest, a secret whisper meant only for the two of them.