[ti]Private[/ti]And Ever Since that Day...

[silverfang218]

Goodbyes said, Shadowgaze turns in a circle in the middle of camp, taking in what will likely be the last time he ever sees the place he’s called home for the last nine moons. Most of his life he’s lived here, and now he’s walking away from the place that holds so many memories, good and bad. It’s a bittersweet moment, but it lasts for just a brief second before Shadow trots out of camp along with the two cats that Shadow loves the most. His father and his beloved mate. The adventure has begun.

Shadowgaze quickly steps up and takes the lead, memory guiding his pawsteps. He hasn’t told any cat yet, but he’s been secretly visiting Starling ever since Rainfur and Scorchpaw came to them with the news that Starling had become a loner. Since Starling had left the clan so young, she had been more than grateful for Shadowgaze’s visits as he often taught her new hunting techniques. Starling has become a great huntress under Shadow’s mentorship, though both cats would readily admit that fighting is far from a strength for either of them.

Not too far outside of IvyClan territory but also not all that far from the twolegplace, Shadowgaze stops. Starling’s scent, now a scent that still contains IvyClan but is also a twist of MothClan, grass, dirt, and prey, is everywhere and is even fresh like she’s still nearby but there’s no sign of her nor is there any obvious place for her to hide. “Starling- I’ve brought some company this time.” Shadow calls, confident that he knows she’s here.

After a few moments of silence, there’s a soft rustle from a nearby bit of undergrowth. A familiar small face pops out from a hole that is almost completely invisible unless a cat already knows it’s there. There’s a scraggly bush growing near the hole, so it may actually look like Starling magically popped out of the bush’s roots to any cat who’s really unobservant or isn’t actually watching where she came from. The hole itself is covered with leaves and is about half overgrown with grass and other weeds; Starling’s little home is tiny, barely large enough for the slender young she-cat, and the entrance is only just wide enough for Starling herself to fit as she likely dug the hole herself.

Starling starts to open her mouth to purr a greeting to Shadowgaze… before her eyes find the two other toms behind her adoptive brother. Her eyes widen with shock, having never expected her father and her brother’s mate to suddenly show up at her home. “Dad! Wildwing! What are you two doing here? Hi!” The flustered she-cat bounds over to Rainfur to rub against him, purring softly. She might not understand why he’s here but she’s still happy to see him. Though she’ll likely be (or act, at least) less happy once she hears why they are here. Shadowgaze simply watches with a chuckle.

[Meow]

Rainfur hadn't said anything else after his goodbye to Owlstar, his eyes remaining almost glued to his paws as Wildwing and Shadowgaze broke away to say their farewells to the rest of IvyClan. Rainfur didn't have anyone else to say goodbye to, so he simply remained in the center of camp, waiting for his companions to join him so they could leave. When the two finally returned, the used-up warrior pushed himself to his paws, though he continued to remain silent as Wildwing pranced around him, a bit too happy to be leaving his birth clan.

Rainfur and Wildwing followed after Shadowgaze as he lead them out of camp and into the territory. Rainfur was too far gone to notice the confidence with which Shadow lead them, and Wildwing was too happy to care. They carried on like that in an easy silence as they headed further into the forest, until Shadowgaze came to a sudden stop. As the young tom called out Starling's name, Rainfur finally lifted his head, a spark of life returning to his clouded eyes, while Wildwing cocked his head curiously, wondering just where Starling was.

When the she-cat's head poked out of the ground, Rainfur's ears perked up. It had been moons since he'd seen his precious daughter. Even before the she-cat had bounded over to him, a rumbling purr began to sound in Rainfur's throat, and a rare smile crossed his face as she rubbed against him in greeting. "Hello, my dear daughter," Rainfur hummed warmly. "I've missed you so much- and, my, you've really grown." The now-loner took a step back as he took in his daughter's appearance. She wasn't the kitten he'd always known her as, that's for sure. "You're so beautiful. So strong, so pretty," Rainfur gushed, his eyes shining with the threat of overemotional tears.

"Hiya Starling!" Wildwing broke into Rainfur's tearful reunion as he bounded up to the dark she-cat. "It's been a really long time since I last saw you! Like, forever! Is this where you've been all this time? Do you live in that li'l hole over there?" Wildwing blinked at the hole that Starling had appeared out of. It didn't look big enough for all of them to fit! Maybe it was bigger on the inside? "Are all of us really gonna be able to fit in that hole? It looks kinda small!" Wildwing giggled as he looked back to his sister-in-law. "That's okay, though! I don't mind sleepin' in tight spaces!"

[silverfang218]

Starling continues to rub against her father’s side, happily basking in what she believes will be a brief visit. While she has seen Shadowgaze and Scorchpaw on occasion, she’s never known Rainfur to visit. She thought she might never see her father again for as long as she lived, yet here he is. A purr rumbles in her chest. “You’ve grown thinner.” She responds, noting how Rainfur’s sorrow had changed him ever so slightly. She also wants to say you look sadder too but she holds back. The benefits of being more or less Shadowgaze’s apprentice is that Starling has begun to notice a lot of things that would have easily slipped passed her before. None of Rainfur’s words stop her from looking up at him with straight sass warring with the joyful expression on her face. The sass part is warning Rainfur that if he starts breaking down and crying on her, then she will have to kick his tail.

Her joy at being reunited with her father is somewhat interrupted by Wildwing. “Hiya, Wildwing.” She laughs at his scatterbrained greeting as he turns his attention towards her tiny den. “Yeah, this is where I’ve been living. That’s my little den there.” She pauses for a moment as he asks whether all of them will fit. “I mean, you are all welcome to try, but it is only made for a single cat of my size.” The hole is small enough that the two larger toms would quite frankly be lucky to get all the way inside. It’d be about impossible for either Wildwing or Rainfur to turn around once inside, and it would be truly impossible for all four of them to have any hope of fitting in there together.

After a heartbeat, Starling seems to realize what they were talking about and jolts in surprise. “Wait, all sleeping here? What do you mean?” Not confident that she’ll get a detailed answer from Wildwing, she looks up at Rainfur. Realizing that if there’s any serious answer besides they wanted to sleep with her for the one night then Rainfur will likely get emotional and no answer will be provided there either, Starling glances at Shadowgaze. Shadow simply shrugs his shoulders and nods towards Rainfur. If Rain doesn’t provide an answer, then Shadow will speak up but for now he’ll allow their dad to explain. Starling’s gaze turns to Rain once more, confusion showing on her face.

[Meow]

Rainfur's tears quickly dried up as he almost glared at Wildwing for refusing to ease into the subject of them coming to live with Starling. He'd wanted to talk to his daughter a little bit first, though, as everyone turned to look at him (even Wildwing), Rainfur knew there would be no stalling.

"IvyClan became a place where none of us felt we belonged. Many of the cats we loved are dead, and those who aren't have changed too much," Rainfur started, glancing away from Starling for a moment. He didn't want to think about his goodbye to Owlstar right now. "So... we decided to seek out the family that remains. We... want to be loners with you, Starling. We want to, uh, live here."

Rainfur swallowed as he looked back to his daughter, knowing she probably wouldn't be pleased by their out-of-the-blue request. Someone had to say it, though.

Wildwing had abandoned the talk, already pushing himself into Starling's hole as Rainfur explained himself. It was clear, though, that the large tom had no chance of actually fitting inside it. He'd managed to force his head and shoulders through the entrance, though his backside was displayed proudly to the world as he struggled to make any progress.

[silverfang218]

Starling listens to Rainfur’s entire reasoning, her expression unreadable. As Rain finishes, telling her that they all want to live here with her, she glances at Shadowgaze who nods in agreement. Starling’s expression becomes a glare as she looks at Shadow, but her expression is much softer as the young she-cat turns back to her father. “Well, I’m not complaining. More paws makes life easier and I would love nothing more than to have this little bit of my family back together.” She gives a loud purr as she rubs against Rainfur once more before turning towards Shadowgaze, the glare reappearing on her face. “Though SOMEBODY could have given me some warning.”

“Well we only really decided we were leaving yesterday. Or at least, that’s when I decided. Late yesterday night.” Shadow explains as Starling lets out a sigh.

The wheels are clearly turning in Starling’s head as she ponders how to take care of her new little group. “Um, Shadowgaze, do you think you could go hunting for us?” She gets a nod as a response, though Shadow clearly isn’t going anywhere until Wildwing is out of the hole. Shadow’s expression is clearly amused as he watches his mate struggle; Wild is just putting on a show for all of them. Starling, who had not been paying Wildwing any mind, follows Shadow’s gaze. She lets out another show. “Rainfur, once Wildwing decides to join us then we’ll go look for a new den. We might have to go into the twolegplace to find a den big enough for all of us, but that should be fine.”