Running away was probably a bad idea.

Drayden liked his caretaker in The Typhoon, don't get him wrong, but he was angry at how his mother had abandoned him - claiming that he was useless and using his disfigurement as an excuse as to why she couldn't take care of him. He was fortunate that an NPC had taken care of him but after the news of Aphra visiting and trying to bring 'home' one of his half-siblings, the young snow leopard cub ran off, partially blinded by his anger and betrayal.

He had no idea where he was going or where he currently was, honestly, but he was exhausted now. Drayden crashed onto the sand, his disfigured forepaw pulled close to him. He was tired, angry, and his paw hurt from the running; the fact that he could be on a group's land hadn't even crossed his mind.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[table][tr][td][/td][td][/td][td][/td][/tr][/table]

Rhinestone knew nothing of Aphra or her actions, which was honestly a very good thing for the pure white Cipher. If the legate had known how Aphra acted, and what she had done to the majority of her kids, she probably would've beaten the hell out of her just for the fuck of it. Although, Rhine probably would have looked at Aphra with suspicion anyways, considering her relation to the Cipher family. The tasmanian tiger did now know that not every Cipher was an absolute bastard, thanks to the recent visit from Atbash, however, this didn't make her trust the entire family. This also, unfortunately, meant that there was a chance that Drayden would be met with a bit of suspicion from the female, although that would quickly fade once she heard what had happened to him. She would never turn someone away after they had been tossed aside by their family – not unless they had done something truly awful.

Seeing a child collapsed in the sand from afar was never a good sign, and when Rhine saw Mazekit approaching him, she quickly sped up her step, a frown of worry on her muzzle. Coming to settle nearby, the brightly colored tasmanian tiger spoke softly, her tail twitching and moving from side to side behind her, "Mazekit... please be careful. I'm sure that your parents wouldn't be happy to see you randomly approaching a stranger, even if he is just a boy..." Turning his attention then towards Drayden, the canine hesitated for a moment before lowering her head to the ground, nudging very gently at the male's side. She questioned, her voice softer and less excitable than Maze's, "Hey there... you smell of The Typhoon. Do you know where you are? You're on the lands of the Palm Glades." She didn't really have a problem with Drayden being around, considering it seemed like he was from The Typhoon. However, he also didn't seem as though he was doing well, something that filled Rhine with concern.

Maybe the fact that there was shuffling among the sand should have alerted to Drayden that he was somewhere he wasn't supposed to be, but in all honesty, he was far too exhausted to care at the moment. When Mazekit prodded him, followed by Rhinestonestar's gentle poke, the cub let out a startled yowl, half-rolling over, half-jumping to look over at the perpetrator. "I'm.. I'm alive." Drayden almost sounded shocked, though he had no time to really realize this before he heard Rhinestone's questions.

"I... don't really consider The Typhoon my home," Drayden admitted with a frown, ears flattening at the fact that Rhine pointed out.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

Oh, geez, there was another. As Winterhymns approached, Drayden got up from his laying position and sat up, keeping his disfigured paw close to his body as he did so. "My name is Drayden. Drayden Cipher." If there was one thing that might annoy his mother, it was that he kept her surname and considered himself apart of the Cipher family. Not that she would care for that in of itself, but knowing that she gave birth to an 'imperfect' son might.

"Is this Palm Glades?" Drayden asked, his gaze switching between the three Gladers. "Do you think... I could stay here for a while?" At least until he could muster up the energy to look elsewhere.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

Drayden Cipher. Rhinestone hated the way that the other's last name made her stomach turn, and she had to remind herself that not all Ciphers were bad. Atbash had been quite kind when she had come to visit, and had seemed like she genuinely disliked the actions of the rest of her family. Considering how down in the dumps Drayden currently seemed, Rhine had an inkling that the boy probably felt similarly. It was because of this that she just offered him a smile, instead of sneering or getting upset upon hearing his surname. She simply wagged her tail from side to side, her voice soft as she introduced herself, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Drayden. My name is Rhinestonestar, but you can just call me Rhine or Rhinestone, if you'd rather. I'm the legate or leader around here... don't worry, there's no problem with you being around here." She hoped that the boy wouldn't be worried about anyone attacking him here, but not every group was too friendly about trespassers. The Glades was supposedly one of those groups, but they still didn't just attack others without reason.

When the other asked about staying for a while, Rhinestone chuckled before nodding, still speaking warmly, "This is the Palm Glades, yes... and yes, you can feel free to stay for as long as you like. I know you said you don't consider The Typhoon to be your home, but we're also allies with them, so if you ever want to go back, or visit... you can feel free to." It didn't seem as though Drayden was in a hurry to go back to The Typhoon, but she still wanted to present him with the chance, just in case.

Ironically enough, Drayden had no idea there were other Ciphers out there, other than his mother (obviously) and his three half-sisters, Vayne, Inferno, and Alia. So if they had a bad reputation, he didn't know about it. Sure, he knew his mother was awful, but that was about it. Drayden did appreciate the smile that Rhinestonestar gave him, feeling a little bit more confident about this play he was deciding to stay at.

I doubt I'll want to visit anyone. Drayden thought to himself at Rhine's offer about visiting The Typhoon whenever he wanted. He didn't really have any ties there, other than the one who nursed him; he wasn't close to any of his half-siblings and Aphra was gone now (not that he would want to be around her anyway). "Thank you, Rhinestone. I appreciate it." He replied to the leader with a dip of his head out of respect. It seemed like they didn't notice - or at the very least, didn't comment on - his paw, though maybe that was because of how he kept it close to his body.

It was appreciated, though. He liked being treated as if he was normal.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]