POSEIDON
Drizzlepaw
Drizzlepaw
.
The young cat could still barely believe it - not only the fact that he left Sonja, the girl he had lived most his life next to, begging for attention and love, but also being here. In RiverClan, next to all the other wildcats, sleeping under the stars. Not as a stranger, but as a clanmate.
Though not officially deemed as one, Poseidon knew that during the next meeting, he would be named an apprentice and assigned a mentor - just like Thunderpaw had explained to him. Yet something gnawed at his fur, making him uneasy - it wasn't being part of the clan, part of something bigger than him, rather the not fitting in that made him uneasy. How was he meant to feel like a wildcat, when his name was something the twolegs had made up, or someone the twolegs had invented? He knew his name represented greatness and strength and might, but he did not feel any of those things. He did not know who he was named after nor why.
He thought back to the moment he first realised how much he admired Thunderpaw - when she found him along the riverbank, lost. What was it she had said about names? She had taught Poseidon that apprentices are called -paws, just like her own name - Thunderpaw. Though, soon, she would get her name, hopefully the one she wished for. But Poseidon was younger and so not accustomed to clan life, he was sure he would not get a warrior name anytime soon. But why not join the clan cats with a fitting name as well?
But what could it be? Poseidon wished not for a name he would not feel connected to again, he had spent his whole life being Poseidon and he didn't even know who that was. No, he needed to find something that was him.
He liked the way Thunderpaw spoke of her own warrior name, or the one she wished for at least. Thunderstorm. He had thought then as still thought now that it was a powerful name, just like the she-cat. A thunderstorm cares not for what others think of it, it takes up space and fills the silence, because it knows it deserves to be heard and seen. One should know not to anger it, for an angered thunderstorm is an opponent that cannot be conquered. He believed it all, still. She was strong and stood tall (okay, maybe not next to her sibling, who Poseidon still didn't truly comprehend, but at least compared to Poseidon himself). She was mighty, just like the storm. Just like a thunderstorm.
Him? Oh he was mere drizzle next to her. How could I even begin to think I could ever shine as bright as you? A mere drizzle is insignificant next to the storm. He was small, his frame round from living with the twolegs all his life, his lungs lacked the capacity to even walk next to these cats - let alone run or dive with them. He wasn't powerful like the storm, nor could he change the life of others. At best, he was a little inconvenience others could deal with. And yet...
And yet a storm without the drizzle is nothing but noise. Thunderstorms need to saturate the land with water; otherwise, nothing can thrive. You can't have one without the other.
He felt heat rush to his cheeks and ears just at the memory of those words, barely remembering how he reacted, flustered and shy all the same. Where he felt small, Thunderpaw made him feel important, made him feel like he mattered. Found meaning and reason even behind the drizzle. Though small and often ignored, the drizzle was just as important. He was just as important.
The answer had been in front of him this entire time and yet he had not seen it. It seemed so obvious now, the young cat thought. He had said it and she had said it too - the name that felt like him, that described him perfectly. The young cat smiled to himself, lifting his chin high.
"Welcome to RiverClan... Drizzlepaw."
Though not officially deemed as one, Poseidon knew that during the next meeting, he would be named an apprentice and assigned a mentor - just like Thunderpaw had explained to him. Yet something gnawed at his fur, making him uneasy - it wasn't being part of the clan, part of something bigger than him, rather the not fitting in that made him uneasy. How was he meant to feel like a wildcat, when his name was something the twolegs had made up, or someone the twolegs had invented? He knew his name represented greatness and strength and might, but he did not feel any of those things. He did not know who he was named after nor why.
He thought back to the moment he first realised how much he admired Thunderpaw - when she found him along the riverbank, lost. What was it she had said about names? She had taught Poseidon that apprentices are called -paws, just like her own name - Thunderpaw. Though, soon, she would get her name, hopefully the one she wished for. But Poseidon was younger and so not accustomed to clan life, he was sure he would not get a warrior name anytime soon. But why not join the clan cats with a fitting name as well?
But what could it be? Poseidon wished not for a name he would not feel connected to again, he had spent his whole life being Poseidon and he didn't even know who that was. No, he needed to find something that was him.
He liked the way Thunderpaw spoke of her own warrior name, or the one she wished for at least. Thunderstorm. He had thought then as still thought now that it was a powerful name, just like the she-cat. A thunderstorm cares not for what others think of it, it takes up space and fills the silence, because it knows it deserves to be heard and seen. One should know not to anger it, for an angered thunderstorm is an opponent that cannot be conquered. He believed it all, still. She was strong and stood tall (okay, maybe not next to her sibling, who Poseidon still didn't truly comprehend, but at least compared to Poseidon himself). She was mighty, just like the storm. Just like a thunderstorm.
Him? Oh he was mere drizzle next to her. How could I even begin to think I could ever shine as bright as you? A mere drizzle is insignificant next to the storm. He was small, his frame round from living with the twolegs all his life, his lungs lacked the capacity to even walk next to these cats - let alone run or dive with them. He wasn't powerful like the storm, nor could he change the life of others. At best, he was a little inconvenience others could deal with. And yet...
And yet a storm without the drizzle is nothing but noise. Thunderstorms need to saturate the land with water; otherwise, nothing can thrive. You can't have one without the other.
He felt heat rush to his cheeks and ears just at the memory of those words, barely remembering how he reacted, flustered and shy all the same. Where he felt small, Thunderpaw made him feel important, made him feel like he mattered. Found meaning and reason even behind the drizzle. Though small and often ignored, the drizzle was just as important. He was just as important.
The answer had been in front of him this entire time and yet he had not seen it. It seemed so obvious now, the young cat thought. He had said it and she had said it too - the name that felt like him, that described him perfectly. The young cat smiled to himself, lifting his chin high.
"Welcome to RiverClan... Drizzlepaw."