STREET RAT • joiner

[athenii]

"speech"

Now of all the things that Tanglewood had seen, Riffraff was certain she was probably among the strangest. Prey animals, as many called her, rarely joined the clans. Usually they stuck to themselves, seen as nothing worth more than a quick hunt. Perhaps she hoped to change that. Or perhaps she was just naive enough to believe they wouldn't try to eat her.

You see, Riffraff was a rat. Yes, a tiny little rat. Commonly, rats were seen as, at worst, vermin. At best, they were considered prey. However, this little black rat was different. That much could be seen as she hopped from branch to branch in the trees above before spreading her front legs and gliding down. Now, she may have possessed the gliding membranes of sugar gliders, but make no mistake. Riffraff was pure rat. Not a drop of sugar glider blood in her.

She landed rather smoothly just before the border, her ears twitching. The female shifted uneasily, gathering all her courage. Once she was certain that her nerves had settled enough, Riff opened her tiny jaws. "Hello? Anyone here?" she called, small voice carrying but a few feet before being carried away in the wind.

//yay, Riffraff is officially started woop woop

[rhosmari]

AND IT'S HALF PAST THREE
[align=center]AND I GOT ANGEL WINGS

BUT A DEVIL'S GRIN

AND ONLY ONE CAN WIN

elsweyr — tanglewood — three years

The sound of something caused the woman to pause. Her croc skull covering her head and facial features, only her glowing eyes visible. Their was stress within her body and it showed from the intense heat that leaked out of her figure. Her steps left burnt imprints upon the ground as she pulled her rounded ears forward. The clicking of the beads in her braided mane gave her some semblance of comfort. She was trying to keep herself as calm as possible. Not fuel the fire that threatened to consume her since that awful raid on the Typhoon's island. A small limp was noticable in her back leg, a minor injury as she made her way toward the border. It was the direction that she had heard the voice come from that much was certain. Tilting her head slightly the tribal woman allowed her gaze to narrow slightly and she seemed to find the culprit that had called out. "Was it she who spoke?" Her tail lashed back and forth as she examined the rat.

This was not her first encounter with one and often times she played with them. Not really big enough for a full fledged meal. Slowly the king cheetah sat down and she inclined her skull covered head slightly. "There are many here. She is one of them. Does this one need something? She can call her Elsweyr. She has a name, yes?"

[athenii]

"speech"

Riff sat up on her back legs, scrunched her nose together and let out a tiny snort. "Well, it wasn't the trees!" she exclaimed, shaking her head slightly. Indignation was written on her face, plain as carvings in stone. "The name's Riffraff." The addition tacked on the end, her name given not so lightly to a stranger she did not know. The coursing of blood through her small frame, pounding in her ears and humming through her chest, was a small reminder of how nervous she truly was, despite the brave front she kept placed between them. The rat twitched her nose, small black eyes narrowing a fraction. "I'm looking for a place to stay."

[wormwood.]

NOTHING BESIDE REMAINS — To be honest, it had been a long time since Aurum had seen any species of animal as just prey, or just predator. Ever since he had made a habit of making friends with animals that others within the groups would traditionally consider "feral," he had pretty much abandoned those old stereotypes. He still hunted, obviously, but he tried to confirm that whatever he was hunting wasn't a walking talking person before he did anything. He would've done the same with Riffraff, but thankfully it seemed as though she had dealt with that part herself. It was pretty hard to see her as just prey, when she was flying around and asking for a place to stay. Her upbeat initial nature reminded him somewhat of Feza, and that brought a smile to his face, albeit a slightly sad one. It was nice to remember the old party-throwing snow leopard, but those memories always brought with them memories of her death as well.

Shaking off the sadness that was threatening to grip his mind for the entire day, Aurum half padded and half glided over, eventually coming to a landing beside Elsweyr. Even taller and more massive than his cheetah companion, the angel was fairly sure he'd be even more intimidating to Riffraff. Hopefully the friendly grin upon his face would be enough to set her mind at ease. With his colorful wings shifting upon his back, he spoke warmly, "Hello there, Riffraff. If you're looking for a place to stay, you're in luck. This land here belongs to Tanglewood, and we'll let pretty much anyone in, as long as they're safe. My name is Aurum, and I'm a member here. I've been here for quite a bit, so if you've got any questions, feel free to ask." He considered warning her about the Wanderers, but held off for now. They were seemingly significantly less of an issue as of late, considering how little he was actually seeing of them. — OF THE MAN WHO WAS BORN AND DIED A KING.

[athenii]

"speech"

The rat nodded, hopping forward a few steps. "Can someone show me to the camp? Maybe help a girl out and give me a lift?" she squeaked, whiskers twitching. She was exhausted, and gliding could only get her so far. Without the help of others she'd fall behind, and likely end up lost as she had not a clue where anything was. "I promise I don't bite. Well, not often, anyway."

[rhosmari]

AND IT'S HALF PAST THREE
[align=center]AND I GOT ANGEL WINGS

BUT A DEVIL'S GRIN

AND ONLY ONE CAN WIN

elsweyr %u2014 tanglewood %u2014 three years

She was quiet after a moment. Lacking luster for much of the conversation as she concentrated on how hot it was. How it seemed to seep through her flesh. It was discerning and she needed prayer, she needed answers. Shaking her head a but she would focus back on the end of what was said. "Sha warns that there are undesirables here currently. She will know them when she sees them." It was fair in her mind to warn her before she made a mistake. Before things got worse. Flicking her tail back and forth she would lift her head to Aurum then as the question was asked. The king cheetah was not comfortable with the prospect. Not only because of the idea but she felt as if the heat from her body would burn her. So she merely shook her head on denial and hoped that Aurum would allow the rat to ride upon his back. Turning she would begin to walk off. "She will see them both at camp." Then she was gone within the foliage.

[wormwood.]

NOTHING BESIDE REMAINS — It was surprising, seeing Elsweyr being so evasive and curt about what she needed to say. Aurum was used to the tribeswoman being fairly friendly, at least in her own way. It was obvious that whatever Stryker had done had gotten to her somewhat, but the lion hadn't figured it would be that bad. The cheetah always seemed as though she was able to pull through a lot of different things. Despite this, Aurum didn't see fit to push her right now, simply nodding his head in her direction as she turned and walked away.

It seemed as though he would be responsible for escorting Riffraff back to town, then. It wasn't as if it was a particularly intensive job, considering how tiny the mutated rat was. In fact, that most difficult part was just making sure he didn't hurt her as he leaned down to pick her up. He dropped her onto his shoulder blades, shifting his wings as he spoke, "Here, I'll take you back to our camp. There are plenty of different kinds of homes to choose from in our main town." He doubted that Riffraff would need much, but it wasn't as if he was going to stop her from picking wherever she wanted to stay. Turning around, the lion took long strides on his way into the large central town, eventually coming to a stop near the headless statue that currently sat in the middle of everything. — OF THE MAN WHO WAS BORN AND DIED A KING.