After the Gathering (Open)

As the Shadowclan gathering patrol returned to camp, Wolfpaw trailed behind. She stuck close to Mudfoot, shock silent. It was unusual for the young she-cat to be holding her tongue, but after everything that had happened, she didn't want to say anything. No cat would accept her protest that Owltalon had antagonized her. They would still blame her. Anger still built up inside of her, but after the incident she was mostly numb. The was Puddlepaw looked at her and cats from all clans accused her of angering Starclan would always stay with her. Well, I guess they're not wrong, She thought bitterly, remembering how she had over and over again been drilled on how gatherings were about peace. Where was the peace when Frostpaw was accusing me of being disloyal? And he's even in the same clan! Undoubtedly he would share his doubts with the other apprentices.

From her place next to her mentor, she shuddered at thoughts of the future. Thrushstar would be furious. Cats wouldn't look at her the same anymore. It would be even worse when the news got out she was half-clan. Already Frostpaw, without knowing the real truth, accused her of not being true to the clan. Things would only get worse. Her tail dragged across the forest floor, and her ears were flattened firmly against her bowed head. The only thing that changed once they reached camp was she sat down, eyes fixed firmly on the ground. Her posture almost dared others to say something as she waited to hear what the clan leader would do.

Snakeblaze walked back from the gathering. He glared at Wolfpaw. 'He and Frostpaw started the tussle that ruined the gathering, they should be caring for the elders for the rest of the day.' he thought.

The walk back to camp was almost as agonizing for Thrushstar as it was for Wolfpaw. He stayed silent, his anger brewing inside of him, openly seething in his features while he sat on his thoughts for a while. Even when they made it back to camp, he had not calmed down in the slightest as he paced back and forth trying to think of what to say to the apprentice who was obviously upset by the ordeal that unfolded in the gathering. She looked like she was sorry for her actions but that would solve their problems. His claws dug deep into the soft earth below him, leaving tracks as he moved all about the camp. It had been a long time since he had been this furious with one cat alone.

After what felt like ages had passed, Thrushstar finally stormed over to Wolfpaw, his eyes glaring as he stifled another growl at her. "What were you thinking?!" he rasped, paired with a low but intense hiss. "You weren't thinking, were you? Attacking another... cat at a gathering! You broke the sacred rule of the Gatherings! Only Riverclan is supposed to do such... things!" his hiss turned into an angry yowl as he continued to speak. "I should rip your pelt off for this! You embarrassed our entire clan for your impulsive mistake just after... I called out Skyclan and Thunderclan for their own mouse-brained decisions! The other clans see us as a joke... now because of your actions! Do you know what can happen now?" It was funny how his furious howling quickly turned into a father-like lecture even as his rage built up through his speech.

Wolfpaw's ears flattened against her head and she shrunk back as Thrushstar finally began to scold her. Her eyes matched his, blazing with fury. She didn't try to cut in at all while he ranted, and while she felt guilty under the leader's disappointed anger, her own rage won out. It took every bit of her not to yowl back at Thrushstar. As she glared at him, she bit back sharp remarks. Instead, the apprentice answered coolly.

"He wouldn't leave me alone, Thrushstar. I asked several times. Which if the other leaders recognized, they would quickly realize that it's true Skyclan doesn't know how to control their own clan. On top of that, I had Frostpaw confronting me about being disloyal. He started challenging me at the gathering. Maybe you also can't control your cats?" Her hiss was low and unwavering. Internally, the logical part of the she-cat cowered at the thought she had just confronted the leader. However, she was too aggravated to feel that reason.

The leader gritted his teeth, trying his best to ignore Finchpaw's prodding, but a low growl escaped from his throat. His tail was lashing behind him now in every direction as he tried to keep his anger down, but nothing was working. And now Wolfpaw was accusing him of not controlling his own cats? As if she weren't one of them either? "I'm not talking about Frostpaw right now. This is... on you and your decisions!" He quickly retorted, feeling his mind unraveling with the fury that pumped through him at this apprentice. "And my cats? You speak like these... cats aren't your clan. You are held to the same expectations as everyone else here! Do you not realize this? Or are you... too much like your father to understand this?" He snapped rather loudly. However, as soon as the words left his mouth, he realized what he had said. He instantly regretted his word choice, but it was out there, so he stood firm on it. The leader continued to stare at the apprentice, knowing that she was going to have some kind of retort to his statement, and he prepared himself for it. He deserved it.

Smokestripe's ears were flat on his head as he padded into the clearing, everything that had happen leaving a bad taste in his mouth. ShadowClan was working so hard to sake the bonds of the idea that they were nothing but coldhearted cats yet there went Wolfpaw, attacking another cat at the Gathering. He came to a sudden stop as Thrushstar suddenly snapped at the apprentice, his eyes going wide as he watched the two square off. His tail curled as he watched with wary eyes as the two argued before a familiar voice sprung up. Finchpaw! His eyes widen as he saw his apprentice leave the apprentice den and make a beeline right for the leader and tried to pester him.

"Finchpaw!" he hissed sharply as he darted across the clearing, weaving around Thrushstar just in time to hear the leader snap at Wolfpaw. And for a second, Smokestripe came to a pause as his eyes widen. He stood there for a few good senses before he pulled himself together. "Finchpaw, now isn't the time to bother Thrushstar," the warrior hissed quickly and sharply as he reached his apprentice, gently shoving Finchpaw away from the angry duo. "I'll tell you everything that happened at the Gathering later but now..." he glanced over his shoulder at Thrushstar and Wolfpaw, his voice now nothing more then a whisper. "Now we stand back."


Larksong wanted to huff in anger, her fur pricked in annoyance of how the Gathering had ended. She couldn't blame StarClan for covering the moon - no she was much more angry at Wolfpaw. What had that toad-brained apprentice been thinking, starting a fight at the Gathering like that? She moved close to Smokestripe but came to a stop when they entered the clearing and Thrushstar quickly turned on Wolfpaw. Larksong watched with narrowed but still slightly worried eyes as the two argued back and forth. Snapping at Wolfpaw like this wasn't going to help but she dare didn't raise her voice against Thrushstar. And so she stood there on the sidelines, watching with held breath in hopes that this all ended well. Or at least as well as it could.

The angry retort building in her throat fell away instantly as Thrushstar finished speaking. Her expression went blank and she stared at him with emotionless eyes. Not only had the gathering been a living nightmare, but so was this now too. There was only so much the young she-cat could handle. The once bristled fur felt flat along her shoulders. The way the Shadowclan leader spoke of her father helped to splinter the kit-like, innocent belief that Eagleheart was a noble and great warrior. While she acted tough and was typically irritable, there were still parts of her that clung desperately to the ideal that her father was a great warrior.

All-in-all, the comment was the breaking point for her. Not only had she spent the having her loyalty and parentage questioned, she now faced hatred from all of the clans because she had tried defending herself against a tom that kept antagonizing her. The white hot rage that burned in her stomach was temporarily pushed to the back burner. Wolfpaw's eyes betrayed no emotion as she spoke in a quiet, cracking hiss, "I'm sorry for making yo--the clan look bad. That was not my intention. I simply couldn't handle the Skyclan warrior's harassment after I asked him to leave me alone several times. I'm sorry."

As she replied, her words were caught, tripping over the mistake of almost calling it Thrushstar's clan. Is it not my clan? Do you think its not my clan? Wolfpaw thought to herself, silently questioning the Shadowclan leader. Half of the time she didn't feel like she belonged at all. There was a brief, silent pause and she took a deep breath, choking back any emotion that could possibly be betrayed. The apprentice didn't do anything emotional, especially not in front of other cats. In one final remark, almost pleading, she meowed, "Don't talk about him like that." As the words drifted out of her mouth, her eyes lowered to the forest floor, ready to simply be done with it all.

That was the last response that Thrushstar expected to get, making the guilt in the pit of his stomach deeper and practically eating at him from the inside. Even though he wanted to say something, he didn't. Instead, he stood there, watching the apprentice for a moment. Even still, after what felt like ages, his expression softened and his whole body seemed to relax as he heaved a rather heavy sigh. "I will discuss this further with Frostpaw. He doesn't get away from this that easily. As for the Skyclan cat, at the next gathering, I'll make sure to keep someone with you either to keep him away from you or to keep you out of trouble. Maybe both. You are still part of this clan whether you lie it or not right now, and I will continue to treat you that way." The leader's voice was soft but it had a sternness to it that showed that he was serious. It was shockingly father-like for a cat that was never a true father to his own kits. Funnily enough, Thrushstar never noticed it.