angel of the first degree • joining

[bottleblonde]

[div style="margin: 0 auto; border: 0%;width:60%;text-align:justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 13.5px;"]The peaks and valleys she traced through to get her were littered with the small paw prints that carried a heavy soul. An essence that'd seen the world start and end, flower and bloom with joy, just to crumble and rot between dirty fingers. It was an endless cycle of life and death that she'd come to know and simply accept. She tried her best not to think in the grand scheme of things, but oh my, she just couldn't help herself. Especially when she thought of herself her mind tended to implode and balloon, expanding till she was but a little speck on this plane. Some marks on the map of mortality were bigger than others, but that didn't matter much to her. If she tried her best, then she did her best, and that would always guarantee she would land in the right place.

So the tortie van, her sweet soft body speckled with caramels and savanna browns, made her way through the mountain range, being her own little white speck surrounded by the lush greenery. Her gait was staggered, limping with her twisted dead foot, but smiling as two mismatched eyes stared ahead at her future. Though it was hard for her to get to where she wanted to be, she was doing her best, with all of her might, to reach the border. The anticipation was building, squirming her way between branches and foliage, but it was beginning to set awkwardly in her stomach. Nerves, now fluttering up all through her throat, drying out her mouth, made her look teeter a bit. Her lips twitched downward, and she stopped for a moment to anxiously lick at her chest fur, as if it would soothe the burning sensation of dread within her. But it only distracted her momentarily, and when she looked back up to continued onward, she'd lost her sense of direction. She was lost! Where was Sunhaven's border again? Her soft face, rippled with concern, stared upward at the window of sky between the trees, trying to figure out where she was. But, to her dismay, there was no indicator of where to go. Bottleblonde truly was lost, and struck with panic in the moment, felt that all of her motivation was gone.

[Ilijas]

ilijas arthur valentine

reckless wanderer | noble stag

It was rare moments such as these that Ilijas cast aside his feline body in favor of something different, something adorned with a magnificent set of horns and a stature that far surpassed that of most of his clanmates. He was not a lethal force while in the form of an elk, but he was something that represented nobility and power, the type of power that did not physically take and destroy but rather, the sort of power that was admired. Respected. Very rarely did he utilize his elk body, finding that it was often too much of a hassle to keep up with, but for some reason, the desire to further explore the mountains had seized him that morning and it had become his only option. A bengal could only navigate the rocks and ledges so well, an elk was practically made for the peaks and valleys that a mountain range, however shallow, provided.

In his pursuit of the wilderness, Ilijas hadn't expected to stumble across anyone in particular. While the occasional joiner dotted the border, hardly ever did he see someone in the true thick of things. Interesting. She appeared disoriented, lost even, and the Dawnkeeper idly wondered if he should shift back into his domestic body in some attempt to assist her. An elk was hardly a credible source, he believed, and he didn't want to intimidate her even though he was nothing more than a gentle giant. Heaving a sigh, the hoofed mammal resigned to that outcome, shaking out his pelt as he now regarded Bottleblonde at a more appropriate size.

[color=#454843]"You okay?" Came Ilijas' low inquiry, a metaphorical brow arching. He knew that the answer to that question was probably not 'yes' but asked anyways, figuring that it was the least he could do before he began to question her. [color=#454843]"I'm Ilijas and you're kinda near Sunhaven territory. What's your name? Are you lost?" He didn't mean to bombard her with so many questions but it just sort of happened that way. Whoops.

cause god, i never felt young

[align=center][sub]TEMPLATE BY FAUNA[/sub]

[PIERCE]

[div style="margin-top: 30px; text-align: center; font-family: timesnewroman; font-size: 35px; color: white;"]pierce parker

☀ — just two ghosts standing in the place of you and me

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Pierce knew what it was like to be lost. Both literally and figuratively, Pierce had found himself hopelessly lost so many times. At only five months old, he'd had to leave the home he was abandoned in to seek shelter, been thrust into the unknown with no knowledge of anything outside his little home. He had stumbled across his first clan by complete chance, which was a slightly different situation from Bottleblond's. Figuratively, god, he'd been "lost" so many times, but he wasn't going to get into that- he still wasn't emotionally stable enough to think about any of those things right now.

He had been on his usual walk around the territory, which usually consisted of him pausing every couple of steps to either pick a flower or to sketch something down that he might want to repaint later. However, the sight of two figures in the distance, one of which he was pretty sure was Ilijas, distracted him from the little bumble bee he had stopped to look at. Could it be a joiner, or an aggressor? Or perhaps it was just some lost traveller. Abandoning the buzzing insect, Pierce lifted his head, shifting the satchel slung over his shoulder to mask the large burn scar beneath it as he approached. Considering the girl looked overwhelmed enough and Ilijas had already asked the appropriate questions, he settled for a gentle greeting of, "Hey," accompanied by a warm smile for the time being.

"speech"

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[GORDON CIPHER.]

Honestly, Gordon felt kind of lost right now, without her brother by her side. Billiam had always been with her since birth and it was strange not having him with her, but she had to get through it. He would want her to, after all. Gordon waddled after Pierce, sticking close to the large tom as she came over and blinked at the stranger that was in their territory. The other feline looked scared, the poor girl and Gordon frowned. She honestly couldn't imagine the amount of worry and fear the poor female was going through right now, being alone in a strange territory. Er... she wasn't alone now, but she was before.

★ i am a lion born from things you cannot be ! ━

[rhosmari]

MONROE

MALE — SUNHAVEN — SUNBEARER — HARD

Perhaps one day he would journey across the mountain range and see what there was to see there. After all while most joiners and officials came by land the shark creature had come by sea which had been easier for him to do considering what he was and how long he had lived in the ocean after his curse. Though he did know that if he went over land there was a good chance he would get lost but he was never terrified of getting lost. It was just another adventure that needed to be take head on. A smile was always on the creatures face, rather he was sad or anxious and he was always hoping to do something with his life and what was given to him. Even now as he moved through the forest, eyes of pearls shifting over the land he was humming a small sea shanty to himself. One that was familiar to his ears but others might not know it. A singer he was not so he mostly just hummed to pass the time as he worked. Most of the time he needed to do something to keep his mind off of things and his ears pricked up when he heard voices near by. Some familiar and one that wasn't. Oh, was there someone else upon the border today?

Curious the mutant changed his course and instead he moved to go and see what was going on. After all he supposed it was his job? He wasn't too sure but all that mattered was that he kept his clanmates safe. So he ventured forth through thick green foliage, slipping around trees as he looked out for any signs of the group. And when he did find them he looked to the stranger first, a domestic feline with what looked to be a dead foot. Immediately he was concerned but he chose not to say anything about it and instead he joined the others where he sat down. He lightly thumped his thick tail against the ground before he curled it around his body. "Oi there, lass. The name's Monroe. Are ya tired afta travelin' so far? We got room here if ya want tae rest."

#psychosocial.

[buckingham barnes]

Without a doubt, there have been instances where Buckingham felt lost figuratively. One major instance Buckingham could think of was during his final days as the Asset. For weeks, Bucky was the perfect Asset- he went through with missions and orders with no hesitation, did not seek for his old memories that his 'enemy'(now he knows that enemy was his old home, and were lies from Ximen) stole, never questioned his handler, and only lived for his job. He firmly believed back then that he was a living weapon- a weapon who shouldn't have his own thoughts, opinions, or emotions. Bucky remembered expecting punishments if he ever slipped up, or how his handler would phrase it, malfunctioned. During those finals days as Ximen's 'perfect' soldier, memories began to surface. Memories that he knew he wasn't actively seeking- as he thought if he got his memories back, they'd interfere with his job, and he wouldn't be performing his job to his full potential. Well, he wasn't wrong- without a doubt, as soon as they began to surface, it left him in confusion and panic. For weeks, Bucky believed what Ximen told him- he was convinced he was always a clanmate of Ximen, and that their enemy stole everything from him. He was certain if he ever wanted his memories back, they'd be exactly what Ximen said- but they weren't. They were the exact opposite, they told an entirely different story.

When he approached his handler, he almost got killed for bringing up- he was lucky to escape with his life. Not long after he approached Ximen, the mutated cheetah left the clan. Bucky didn't run back to his true home- the guilt he felt towards what he did to them could never be redeemed. He felt lost- he felt himself getting mentality drained the more he thought of who he's suppose to be. It felt horrible to realize he lived weeks and weeks of his life on lies, and that it'd be nearly impossible to return to what he used to be. While he left his handler and returned to his original name, he wasn't exactly the same. It's like the Asset and pure Bucky Barnes fused into what he is today. A cold, yet caring, former assassin who has difficulty expressing his emotions. A former assassin who's longing for change, which almost feels impossible to accomplish.

The next one to pad into the scene happened to be Buckingham, sneaking his way in shortly after Monroe. Each step the male made was with delicacy, as if the ground was thin ice, and Bucky didn't want to fall into the below freezing water. His gaze scanned the small crowd around Bottleblonde- which happened to be Ilijas, Pierce, Gordon, and Monroe. As his eyes scanned the crowd, they eventually found their way onto Bottleblonde. He didn't have to look at her for long to notice that concerned expression on her soft face. Like others suggested, he assumed she was lost, but didn't bother to ask if she was- considering Ilijas already asked her. He didn't want to repeat the question or press more questions on her. The male frowned slightly, deciding not to say a word until she spoke up herself.

[bottleblonde]

[div style="margin: 0 auto; border: 0%;width:60%;text-align:justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 13.5px;"]”A-ah! Uh .... uhh ... !” Suddenly the van tortie has whipped around to face Ilijas, mismatched eyes going wide as she staggered back on three legs. She sniffed cautiously for a moment at him, at the looming crowd of others. At first, her worry just seemed to layer on top of the discomfort that’d been building from before, but when that key word clicked in to her thoughts, she broke with a smile. ”S-Sun, Sunhaven!” Bottleblonde repeated back to the feline, blinking excitedly. But she settled from her outburst, retreating with a warm face to lap at the feathery white fur on her chest. Her gaze was stammered, flickering back and forth between the five animals and the forest floor. So long ago, she might’ve not been able to even face such a gathering crowd of people, espesically with the attention seemed to circulate to her. But now, though it was no easy feat, she could still manage through it, because she knew the purpose of standing up and not backing down from such a thing.

So she opened up a bit, stepping towards the Sunhaveners again with a sheepish nod of her head. ”I’m Bot-Bottleblonde. I’ve been, been looking f-for this pla-place. Sun-haven.” She spoke softly, the jaggedness of her stutter complimented by her light and willowy tone. By now it was apparent, the shaking of her voice, a stutter that had once blossomed because of anxiety and stress, but now stayed with her as a reflexive speech impediment. Of course, she was still so doelike, fretful and wide-eyed, but the braveness of her soul made it very clear that she wasn’t exactly struggling to speak to them, it was just the difficulty of getting the words from her brain to our her lips. ”I came. Came here t-to join. To s-st-stay here.” Boo dipped her head, glancing towards Monroe and nodding, with a grand smile. Yes, rest, she would definitely need it. This place would soon enough be her new home, and being able to start fresh, begin new plans, it would take a lot of energy!

[CROSSFADE]

[align=center][div style="text-align: justify; width: 60%; font-family: georgial; font-size: 11pt;"]With flying still out of the question for another week or so, it didn't seem wise for the owl to venture out past the walls of the camp. Vicious beasts roamed around every corner, and the closer he got to the mountain ranges, the closer he got to potentially butting heads with his mother and father once more. Both things weren't ideal for someone so vulnerable, but Corryn still pushed himself regardless. The owl had followed the various patrols that seemed to come in and out of home, mapping what directions they took and which trees they marked (which seemed really, really gross) and even how they hunted. There wasn't any preperation that could be had for encountering another stranger lost within the vast Sunhaven lands though, for everyone reacted to the sights of another differently. Some would be scornful and wary, others would be shy, the fledgling would have to be amiable.It just didn't make sense to be rude to someone who didn't deserve it, and judging by the wisp of a tone she had, the avian presumed that Bottleblonde was alright.

Coming to a standstill, the grounded Corryn would suddenly bend his legs, the tremors in them suggesting that he wasn't used to walking about so much on them. One was still bandaged following a dog attack as well, which made him put in more effort than something like a feline would've just by traversing a small plain. "Ha... Hi," he breathed, wide eyes slowly blinking as he took in the appearance of the tortie. It would seem rude to ask for a lift back on the spine of a newcomer, especially one who seemed to have their own leg injury, but Corryn was tempted just to stop the burning sensations from overexertion to get any worse. Perhaps he'd sneak a request in to one of his clanmates. "I'm sure you'd be able to stay, we're a pretty nice bunch, merchant folk we are, plenty of empty houses that the Art Guild could decorate up for you," he beamed, hoping that it wasn't too much exposition for someone who didn't currently live in the clan. "Name's Corryn by the way, where do you come from?" he tilted his head like a dog. Perhaps living with a bunch of four legs had a bigger impact on him then intended.