November Gathering 2019

Ah, rats. First. Spottedstar had hoped to be last so he could not waste time explaining and get the gathering done and over with before they all froze to the ground. Secretly, though, he didn't want cats looking at him and whispering about SkyClan's business. He stared down the empty clearing from the ridge, his tail straight up to keep his clan from entering. It would have to happen sooner or later. He brought his tail down, the signal to enter, and lead his group into Fourtrees at a steady trot. He would get on the Great Rock when he was ready, and not before then. He stood aside to speak with Sagelight and Foxfire. "Alright guys. This meeting will be a first for all of us. Things are going to be uncomfortable... Others will want explanations. I'll handle all the important talking, alright? I'm proud of you both. We'll do great together. And... Don't upset the ShadowClan cats. They're pretty temperamental." He purred, joking as a way to self-soothe.

To think that a whole moon had already passed since the last Gathering. To think... that so many days had already passed since Dappleshine had left the clan. No, since he had chased her out. The very thought made Torrentstar feel sick. He could still remember every word they had exchanged during that conversation, as well as the agony that had shone from his adopted daughter's eyes as his speech had torn into her. He had done something so terrible that it could never be undone. He had been given a choice, and he had shoved her away with all his might. Perhaps Dappleshine was right; he had changed. While his heart wept tears of blood, the rest of him felt nothing but the cold. He was encased in ice, ice so terribly thick that it felt as if he could barely breathe. If he screamed, no one would hear him, not even himself. "Why has it turned out this way?" When he closed his eyes, and the images played on the back of his eyelids, he asked himself the question again. But the answer that came was one that he already knew. The mocking voice in his ears was none other than his. "You were afraid of being hurt. You couldn't accept one more cat abandoning you. So you cut her off first, before she could do it to you."

"Coward." The voice rang in his head. "Fish-heart!" Yes, that was the kind of cat Torrentstar was. He was well-aware, and he utterly loathed himself for it. The thought that he might see Dappleshine in WindClan's ranks was almost enough to keep him from stepping paw into Fourtrees. The large tabby lingered at the edges of the clearing for a moment or two, the entirety of the RiverClan patrol waiting behind him. What his clanmates thought of his decision was not something he had ventured to find out. He had told them nothing but the truth regarding Dappleshine's departure. Even so, he knew that there were those who sided with her, cats who were as traitorous as a deserter in spirit. Little mattered to him anymore. If they thought that he was unfit to be leader, all they had to do was get rid of him. It would be simple enough for RiverClan. After all, Tinystar had not stood a chance either when his clan had risen up against him. The title of "leader" only meant so much.

"... Let's go down." Torrentstar did not so much as spare a glance back to his clanmates. They must have been waiting for him, watching in anxious silence. He did not care; they could think of him whatever they wanted. And so he led RiverClan into the clearing. Until the Gathering drew to an end, the hour would pass in a painfully slow manner.

Foxfire slowly padded after the leader, relived to see that they were the first cats in the clearing. He wasn't sure how the other deputies were going to accept him sitting beneath the Great Rock with them...He hoped he would be on the other side of the pack than ShdowClan's, that was for sure. His ears perked as Spottedstar spoke up, glancing toward the leader with a soft nod. "Of course," he murmured, before taking a few steps forward to awkwardly sit in the shadows of the giant boulder, sitting far to one side to give the rest of the deputies - once they arrived - room to...Stay away from him and give him room to breath.

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Honeytongue spared a sad look at her father as she padded after him and the rest of RiverClan. She prayed that he remembered that she was there for him - that things were going to be okay...She hated seeing him being so hard on himself, he didn't deserve it. He didn't deserve none of his self-hate. But she kept her mouth shut, ears slicked back as she filtered off to find her own spot to sit as he headed for the Great Rock. She settled down, slowly letting her sadness about her father's situation slide off of her and take her normal...Perky attitude, once more. SkyClan had arrived...Spotting a group of three at the bottom of it, talking among themselves. She recognized two of them - the deputy of SkyClan and the medicine cat but the third one...Tinystar was nowhere to be seen. Had he...As the unknown cat took their spot at the bottom of the rock, she realized that Spottedleap was no longer deputy of SkyClan, no...He must have been leader as she silently wondered what had happened with Tinystar.

OOC: Honeytongue is open to be talked with!

It appeared Skyclan was the first to slip from their trees, the coats of her clan being bathed in a pale, eerie moonlight. Basilpaw's eyes were bright. Despite the creeping cold breezes, there was enthusiasm to be had at this first gathering of hers. The tan and grey she-cat was significantly under-cultured, only ever having the one experience with Shadowclan cats. Most of them had been unfriendly. Hopefully the rest of the forest would be kinder at this gathering. It was supposed to be a time of peace and yet the stories spoke suggested it was instead more of a tense meeting.

Glancing around, Basilpaw decides that while she waited, she would follow after Foxfire. When the other deputies arrived with their clans, then it would be time to briefly abandon her companion in seeking out new friends. Or even just to learn more of the fabled territories that surrounded their own. After picking her way towards the deputy, she greeted him with the usual soft purr and began to chatter on, "This is a mightly big place, Fox. It's way bigger than camp! Are we allowed to climb the oak trees? It looks like a lot of fun. Besides, with all the other clans showing up late, we have time. I sure would like to warm my fur... brr."

The chill of the leaf fall wind but through Oakstar’s pelt as he padded to the edge of the clearing. His amber eyes observing the clans present. He blinked as he realised no cat was on the great rock yet, but he recognized the form of Torrentstar. It was enough for him as he turned to check on his clan mates, before giving the signal with a nod of his head and leading the clan into the clearing.

As the clan settled in, he noticed that Torrentstar seemed more withdrawn, more… off. He blinked slowly, then padded up to the other leader, concern evident in his gaze.
"Torrentstar, how has this moon faired for you?" He asked as he sat down beside the other leader. As though he hadn’t killed him once. As though there was no strife between them, even though Torrentstar seemed to cling to anger.

Amberpaw stepped slowly into the clearing. Her amber eyes glowing with excitement. She followed her mentor, Spottedstar. Excited and ready for her first gathering. "Woah.." She gasped "It's so.. big!"


Treepaw followed his clan into the clearing. He had no excitement and was not ready for anything.


Shadepaw and her clan hasn't arrived yet

Lynxtail padded into the gathering with his clanmates. His tattered ears twitched as he trotted down the steep slope that lead to fourtrees, his breath unfurling in a fine mist behind him. He was exhausted, and his thin fur did little to keep the cold at bay; although he'd only just arrived at the gathering, he was already looking forward to departing.
He didn't seek out any friends from other clans. Minkpaw was long gone. Shadowclan had yet to arrive, but he didn't have the energy to talk to Moth or her sister, and Aspenpaw– was he still a 'paw? –hadn't spoken to him in moons.

So instead, the young warrior sat down in the midst of his clanmates, his eyes focused on the pale yellow moon. Nobody seemed to want to talk with him, but Lynxtail didn't mind, really. He'd grown accustomed to the wide berth they gave him. Talking was exhausting, anyways.

OOC: Lynxtail is open for conversation!

Brindlepaw came in alongside RiverClan, walking somewhat between the other apprentices and where her mentor was at. The attitude of the rest of her Clanmates was something she still didn't entirely understand, but hoped to very soon. Her typical attitude of being somewhat apprehensive in regards to new surroundings definitely existed, but she was nowhere near as shaky as she typically found herself in new situations. Perhaps the many other cats being around soothed her anxiety.

OOC; Feel free to interact with Brindle!

If her kits didn't come soon, Ivybrook thought she might explode.

She hated it with a passion. The pregnancy was already getting in the way of her duties, and she knew without a doubt that once the kits were born, Mistlepaw was going to bar her from leaving the nursery for a while, so leaving camp was out of the question. The fluffy deputy just wanted to keep up with her own responsibilities, and how was she supposed to do that when she had to take care of kits? The same general string of thoughts continued to cycle through her head as she stood behind Torrentstar, waiting for him to signal the Clan forward into the gathering. When he finally did so, she quickened her pace until she was walking next to him, and finally stopped at the base of the Great Rock. She flicked her ear with disinterest at the new deputy, from SkyClan presumably. 'That short old bat of a leader must have finally croaked,' She mused, sitting down a fox length away from the young tom. She didn't waste time introducing herself, as her SkyClan counterpart was hopefully old enough to know who she was.

Foxfire was waiting in anxiety at the foot of the great rock, eyes searching through the arriving cats for his fellow deputies. He didn't really want to talk to them but...Perhaps it was best to put his best paw forward when it came to the other Clans? Being far to distracted, he hadn't actually realized that Basilpaw had padded up to him until she spoke. He jumped, fur prickling as he swung his head to stare at her. "Bug!" he gasped in surprise, before shaking his head as she rambled on. "I...No, you cannot climb the Great Oaks, mostly with it seems the other Clans are that late," he pointed out, flickering his ear in the direction of where ThunderClan and RiverClan were stepping in. "...You should go mingle with the other Clans, Basilpaw," he said as he tried to spot the somewhat familiar pelts of the other Clan deputies - granted none of them had a recent change in leadership like SkyClan had... "Try to make friends. I...I gotta introduce myself to the other deputies and...Well, non-deputies aren't suppose to be up here. Sorry, Bug," he murmured, gently using his shoulder to push her toward the crowd of cats. "We can chat all you want on the way back thought - you can tell me about all of the friends you made, alright?" he added with a soft smile.

Close movement caught his attention, stealing his gaze from Basilpaw and onto who he recognized as the RiverClan deputy - looking rather plump even for a RiverClan cat...Oh. She must be expecting, he realized although he held his tongue lest he be wrong on that conclusion - he didn't want to insult her. He only prayed that if she was expecting, there wouldn't be a repeat of what had happened with Leaftwirl. He had been lucky enough to escape the sight of kit-birth so far. "Hello! Ah...Ivybrook, is it?" he meowed, trying to push down the idea of this being a deputy-to-deputy talk. He....Found he worked better when he pretended he was a warrior and didn't have part of the burden of leadership on his shoulders at all time. So much better for his mental state. "My name is Foxfire! New de-deputy of SkyClan. Its a pleasure to meet you."

Sitting among the growing crowd of cats, Sunflower silently watched and observed. Not being one to talk, he didn't mind staying quiet and listening in onto other cats' conversations, as long as he didn't dare speak up. It was weird, not having his father sitting above with the other leaders, but he knew every-cat would get used to the change sooner rather than later.

OOC: Sunflower is open for convo~

✢ Beartooth arrived, following obediently at Oakstar's heels as he had many times now. As they split away, he dutifully joined the other deputies at the base of the highrock. He had intended to site without much of a ceremony or even considering he is counterparts beyond a quick nod. But it appeared that there was another new deputy. He frowned softly. So many of the clans had faced a change in leadership in recent moons. Hopefully that was not a bad omen for the clans. Leafbare had yet to even come into full swing. It was jarring to even consider the possibilities of death that only grew throughout the cold season. Warring between clans was one thing, but hunger was an unavoidable beast. Glancing out over his clan, a soft sigh left the bulky warrior before he turned to Foxfire. The Skyclan-scented tom was seeing off what appeared to be a young apprentice. Although, the tom himself looked like he had just recently gained a warrior name. Was Skyclan that short on warriors? Not thinking into any of it all that much, he offered the newcomer a dip of his head and a brief, "Hello." The word was merely a learned formality. If it were up to him, nothing would have been said.

Then, he swung his head slightly to look at the Riverclan deputy. Their brief encounter by the river had been nothing exceptional, marked specifically by the social adversity of both cats. But it was for that encounter and their shared similarities, that he had grown a respect for Ivybrook. Of all clans, it was strange to find himself appealed to a Riverclanner. He looked over her. Although never the perceptive type, it was noticeable her sides had swollen. Cocking his head slightly, the tabby tom considered the stories he had heard of the river being thick with fish for some time going into leafbare, "Has the prey been plentiful since we last spoke?" ✢

ooc; will post in this topic with Houndheart later^^