A sharp breeze whipped by, blustering and blowing through the trees, twirling, whipping, waving branches and casting leaves away. Sunlight streamed through the canopy, dappled light wavering as the wind attacked the trees. In one of these patches of dappled light, which flickered in and out of shadow, a tall tom cat sat, eyes cast upwards, peering through the gaps in the leaves towards the sky. He pushed himself into a standing position, letting out a slight huff of irritation. The Prince's wisps of golden gossamer fur became an annoyance, lashing into his face as he turned to the direction of the wind. Hemlock hissed, but continued in this direction, his light body struggling against the raging gusts. Yet, he was helped by the protection of the trees of which he weaved among, more nimbly now that he was used to the forest. It had been four moons since he had arrived here, and four moons he had spent getting to know this place. He knew so few cats here, only his father, and of course Kuni. He blinked, shaking his head slightly, but continued onwards. It didn't take long for the shining expanse of water that was the sea to come into his view. A long stretch of sand, a shining ocean of bluish green. He gazed out into the seething waters, at the place where he used to live, at the place where he was born, at the place that was now submerged among the waves. The glorious catacombs of the dynasty, waterlocked. The memories of those who passed away in the flood, just whispers on the sea breeze. He padded out from the shelter of the trees, his ears pricked up, his eyes set on the horizon. He pulled his gaze away, turning back to the forest, but- wait. Wait. What was that? A shimmer in the sand. Hemlock stared. A piece of metal? Perhaps the ocean had cast it from its depths. He made his way forward, and brushed the thing with his muzzle. Curiosity piqued, the tom began to scrape away at the sand surrounding the thing. The grit that lodged itself in his paw pads irritated him, but not enough to force him to stop his digging. As he continued, more and more of the thing was revealed. It was a strange object- a circlet of metal, spikes running along the top, a gap in the front. A crown, he supposed. It was dark, almost black in colour, but it shone in the light of the sun. The wind continued to rush alongside him, but Hemlock paid it no heed, focused as he was on the creation in front of him. The Prince. That was who he was, was it not? At least how he considered himself. Would it not be fitting for the prince to wear a crown? He considered this, but his moment of hesitation soon faded. Upon his head, he placed the dark crown. It was slightly too big for him, slipping over one of his ears. Yet, in due course, it would sit neatly on his head. It felt strange, sitting there, almost as if his mind had been opened, yet, whatever it had opened to was just beyond reach. The dark crown had finally found its bearer. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Summary: Hemlock walks through the forest, and reaches the ocean, where he considers the loss of TSD. He then finds the dreamwalker's crown among the sand. More info on the Dreamwalker's crown here >>
