death of a childhood / open, intro

[RHINESTONE.]

LEADER ❝ RHINE ❞ PALMCLAN

Rhinestone knew that he had been lucky in life, in many different ways. One of those ways was in how his family had interacted. He had never been forced to watch the slow decay of his parents' health while only a kit, instead attending their vigils once he was well past the first point of adulthood. It had still hurt – oh Starclan, how much it had stung – but at least he had gotten to know them. At least they hadn't died violently, with his last image of them bathed in their own blood or desperately shouting for help. It was a luxury that surprisingly few got to enjoy, even in a relatively peaceful place like Palmclan. The same could not entirely be said of the rest of his family, however. One of his siblings was still missing, one had only just come back into his life, and the last had been dragged away from him by the storm, losing her life away from the one place she had called home. Just the thought of Redpond's death still made his heart ache, and his jaw clench. He wasn't sure he would ever get over it, especially considering he had been forced to attend her vigil alone... but at least his parents had passed peacefully, right?

The day still hadn't fully awoken when Rhine padded silently along the wet wooden boards of the boardwalk, his paws occasionally slipping before he dug his claws in to stop himself. He intended to do more thorough exploring of the new territory later on in the day, but for now he just sought to satiate his hunger, having been woken from his sleep by a displeased growl of his stomach. It wasn't as if he had been starving himself this trip – there was still prey to catch on the boardwalk, after all – but he also hadn't been trying to gorge himself. He was trying to cultivate at least a somewhat positive relationship between Palmclan and the group that already inhabited the boardwalk, and he doubted that would be possible if they went catching the whole prey supply. For now, he just found himself looking for rats hiding within the splintered wood beneath him, looking for any of the holes they seemed to scamper in and out of. Rats were much more common, but the thought of eating them made his stomach twist, and his tongue briefly flicked out in disgust. He'd rather take more time hunting, rather than eating the possibly disease-ridden creatures.

However, the leader's early morning hunt was cut off by yelling, a desperate voice cutting through the air and making him jump. After a moment of hesitation, the tom turned and headed towards the voice, unsurprised that the scent of the boardwalk's group was on the air. He hesitated upon coming across Quasar and Toadwhisker, wondering if his presence would actually be appreciated, or whether it would just be a nuisance. Ultimately, he took the last few steps to stand beside his brother, putting a comfortable distance between the two of them. He couldn't afford to just ignore someone who was suffering, especially not someone like the pup before them. After taking a deep breath, Rhine spoke with a sagely nod, "He's right, you know. It's difficult to keep a promise like that, especially when the world can be such a rough place. I'm sure that whoever broke their promise to you... they were trying their best to keep it. Sometimes, though... it's impossible to do that." A large part of Rhinestonestar wanted to just grab the brightly colored pup and pull him into his arms, giving him a hug that would hopefully provide him with some comfort. However, the feline resisted, not wanting to scare the child or make him uncomfortable.

NEVER OPENED MYSELF THIS WAY
LIFE IS OURS, WE LIVE IT OUR WAY

— Reggan