Bittersweet song (open)

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw looked up at Chasinglight. She opened her mouth to speak, but a voice interupted her.

"Okurrein? What are you doing here?" She turned slightly, her eyes wide. Who...? The tabby tom stared down at her with a slight frown on his face. His glossy coat and harsh grey-blue eyes were the same as the time she'd met him.

"W-Wolfhowl!" She breathed.

[kelsey .]

Okurrein.

Could that be Weepingpaw's real name? She wondered for a bit, and then more questions streamed into ehr mind. How did she know Wolfhowl? she wondered. she didn't want to voice her questions though. Would that be rude?

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Wolfhowl frowned.

"Why are you here? Where are Mourningwraith and Foxgaze?" he demanded.

"They... they're dead. I buried them." She cast a glance at Chasinglight, hoping she picked up that that's where she'd been. Wolfhowl stared at her for a moment and then closed his eyes and bowed his head slightly.

"I'm sorry to hear that. They died honorably, I am sure." He murmured. Weepingpaw - or Okurrein - nodded but said nothing. Sorrow tainted her heart and made her feel sick.

"What of Warrior?" He asked.

"He's gone, too." She murmured.

[kelsey .]

Chasinglight blinked. "Okurrein?" she said slowly. "That's your real name? It is very beautiful" She wished she had a different name, Chasinglight seemed to be an off name. Did she really Chase Light? Or did She Chase dark? She thought she chased light...

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw turned slightly and looked at Chasinglight. She was silent for a few moments, her eyes fixed somewhere near her adoptive mother's paws.

"Yes. It is." She murmured. Wolfhowl looked at her and then at Chasinglight.

"So you've been here a while? I heard something about a ceremony eariler... so they all know you as Weepingpaw, then?" he asked, looking at her. She nodded.

"Yeah. I wanted to keep it that way. I thought it would be better if they didn't know what I was destined for." She murmured. Wolfhowl looked at her and then her injured shoulder.

"Well you've obviously been working hard to hide that fact." He mused.

[Brambleclaw]

Madness. Clutching at thin air. Falling. Fear. Pain. Scarcely a breath. Dead. Not dead. Halfway there. Can't tell. Breathing. Nothing but sand. Can't believe it's you. No, it can't be. It isn't. Scream. Gone...

Ghostpaw looked out at the river, seeing her friend with some other cats in the distance. Silence passed through her face as she thought, and she didn't hear them. Just watched. She was thinking about something...

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw turned slightly away. Yeah, but little good it's doing me. She thought. She looked up and saw Ghostpaw sitting some ways off. I wonder what she's doing... Weepingpaw remembered how the she-cat had turned her back on her so quickly. I told her that I had to go, and she shut me out at once. I guess I can't blame her... but still. The loyalty of a true friend that Mourningwraith spoke about...

"What's loyalty, Mourningwraith?" Okurrein asked curiously, her big blue eyes glowing. The she-cat turned and looked down at her, smiling. Okurrein's mother had always called her stupid and made her feel that she couldn't learn to speak clearly, but Mourningwraith had been paitent and said she was a quick learner. Okurrein was always proud to be called smart, and she looked forward to every lesson with her adoptive mother.

"Loyalty is what friends should have towards each other. Like Lala had for you. She was loyal enough to lay her life down for you. A true friend would put you above all else, and that is what true loyalty is, as well." The she-cat meowed. Okurrein's eyes widened.

"A true friend?" She mewed.

"Yes. You will have one someday, I am sure. Lala and Warrior are your kin but they are true friends to you." Mourningwraith said, smiling a little.

"Are you my true friend, Mourningwraith?" Okurrein asked excitedly. Mourningwraith stooped and licked Okurrein's head gently.

"Yes, dearest. I will always be there for you."

Weepingpaw looked into the sky and sighed. You're not here now, Mourningwraith. I need you. I need a true friend to help me through. She thought. The aching loneliness in her heart was too much to bear.

"Okurrein?" Wolfhowl's soft voice brought her back. She looked at him and frowned.

"No cat here knows of the prophecy. They don't understand. But if they did know, I do not think they would be so quick to welcome me." She growled softly, then stood. She didn't want to talk about it anymore. Wolfhowl stared at her for a moment, his face grave, and then he turned away.

"I wouldn't be so sure..." He whispered softly, so that she wouldn't hear him.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw decided she needed to apologize. She had wronged Weepingpaw, a good friend, and did not like feeling alone and empty. She had no idea who she was anymore. With a sigh, she stood and padded up to her friend and the other cats.
"Weepingpaw, I'm sorry. I just... hate not having anyone to rely on, you know? It scares me to think that I don't know who I really am." She said with a sigh, looking away. If Weepingpaw didn't forgive her, it was understandable.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw turned slightly at Ghostpaw's voice. She looked at the she-cat with little emotion on her pretty ginger face. She then sighed, and closed her eyes.

"I understand how you feel. It is hard to trust when one is lost and locked away from everything you've ever known. I forgive you, of course." She murmured. She looked at Wolfhowl and frowned at his expression.

"You've grown, little Wolf." He purred.

"I don't like you calling me that. Never did." She growled.

"Yes, I know. As I recall you didn't like Foxgaze calling you that, either." He said, flicking her ear with his tail. Weepingpaw ducked and hissed softly but then smiled crookedly.

"Yeah, I guess. He always liked to get on my nerves." She sighed and turned back to Ghostpaw.

"I suppose it won't do any harm to tell you now. My real name is Okurrein." She said gently, and the way her soft, melodic, yet troubled voice trilled over the name made it even more beautiful and mysterious.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw smiled.
"That's a beautiful name." She said, flicking her tail and looking away. She wondered if she would ever truly know who she was. Probably not. But then again, she was probably Rootclaw's daughter. But would she know for sure? With a sigh, she shook her head and looked back at Weepingpaw. Or Okurrein now, I guess.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw watched Ghostpaw for a moment and then sighed. Her friend was confused. She didn't know where she belonged. And Weepingpaw had no answers for her.

"Thank you. You can still call me Weepingpaw, though. I don't want news of my arrival here to spread. Especially not to SilenceClan." She meowed gravely. Wolfhowl nodded slightly, a hard glint in his eyes.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw nodded hub said nothing. What could she say? She sat down, looking away sadly. She would miss Weepingpaw when the cat would leave.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw turned and looked at her friend closely. I would ask her... but would it be too much? Maybe. She blinked and sighed.

"What are you going to do, little Wolf?" Wolfhowl asked softly. She turned and looked at him with thoughtful blue eyes.

"I will stay here for a little while. I am still worn from being thrown into the river. I was never built as my father." She growled. She remembered him faintly from her early kithood. He had been much larger than her mother, Chaos. Weepingpaw sometimes wished that she'd inherited his strength as well as her mother's brains.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw smiled, glad that her friend would be staying with her for at least a little while. She wished Weepingpaw would stay permanently.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw flicked her ear and rubbed her shoulder a bit with her paw. It was swore, and she wished she didn't have to hide herself and live seperate from everyone else. But the image of her friend's graves came to her mind and she shuddered at the thought of the same thing happening to anyone in RiverClan. I cannot put them in danger. She thought, looking up at Ghostpaw.

"Well, I am quite tired... I think I'm going to take a rest." She murmured.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw nodded, wondering if her friend wanted someone to accompany her. No, she's not a kit anymore. She can care for herself. She said with a sigh, wishing that maybe her friend needed her again. Or at least more. Maybe then she'd have to stay a bit longer. With a sigh, she shook her head and sat down, looking up into the cloudy sky with a sad sigh. Life was hard on the young apprentice.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw took a few steps and then turned to Ghostpaw.

"Do you wish to come with me?" She asked, tilting her head to one side. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be alone or not, but either way Weepingpaw wanted Ghostpaw to not look so dejected.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw shrugged. It didn't really matter anymore. Rootclaw seemed to be right about friends, but why did it have to be that way? It wasn't fair to the kind-hearted.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Weepingpaw blinked. She sighed, giving up. If Ghostpaw didn't want to keep her company she would brave the wilderness on her own. I don't need anybody... She thought, turning and walking dejectedly towards the Apprentice's den. She looked well enough, with tail raised and twitching and her eyes and ears focused ahead, but there was a strange lurch to her gate that was small enough not to be too noticable.

"She's nervous." Wolfhowl noted, his blue eyes filled with a smug sort of amusement.

[Brambleclaw]

Ghostpaw shrugged and turned, padding away grudgingly. Who needed friends? She scented he father and... Willowsong? Blushing, Ghostpaw turned and hurried in a different direction. They deserved some alone time.