August Gathering 2020

Flintstar's ears twitched as he stood on the cusp of the clearing, his gaze focused in the direction of SkyClan's territory. There was no denying that something had transpired - he had checked the border himself to see traces of the flame that had ravaged SkyClan's territory. He had heard rumors and stories of fires but he had never seen the damage first-paw but even from a distance...He couldn't help but be worried. There were a couple cats in SkyClan he actually...Liked and he could only hope that they would safe. He shook his head, motioning for his Clan to follow him as he led them into the clearing and he took his spot on the rock...His gaze remaining focused on where SkyClan always appeared from.

Vinetail bounded into the clearing after flinstar, waited excitedly for the other clans to arrive, especially riverclan...

[Vinetail is open to talk!]

At the edge of the Great Oaks’ branches, Ravenstar stopped to squint upward. Since he’d woken up that morning, he’d heard his older Clanmates whispering a word he’d only heard in names and stories, a threat he had never considered despite the increasingly brittle grass around him. Fire. Smoke loomed over the farthest part of the forest, darker than any storm cloud he’d seen in his life. He eyed it for a long moment, half-expecting it to stretch out toward Fourtrees. Of all the Clans, WindClan had the least reason to worry; even if the fire hadn’t stopped burning, it was still an entire forest away, happening to a Clan they weren’t particularly fond of. But the others, ThunderClan especially, could be in danger—and SkyClan was already facing it. Sure, Ravenstar had sorted out his feelings on Spottedstar enough to know he didn’t like the cat, but that didn’t mean he wanted him—or any of his Clan, for that matter—dead.

With a nod over his shoulder and a wave of his tail, he hurried into Fourtrees. SkyClan’s section of the clearing sat empty…as did RiverClan’s and ThunderClan’s. Early in the night as it was, it didn’t mean anything. Ravenstar’s legs carried him to the Great Rock; for all he remembered of the climb, he could’ve sprouted wings and flown up there. ”Flintstar,” he said as he dropped into his own spot on the rock, ”did you hear anything? I thought, since you’re closer…“ His voice trailing off, the short tom turned back to SkyClan’s part of Fourtrees, wondering if they’d be able to show up—and if they did, what Spottedstar would say.

News traveled around the forest like... well, wildfire. Olivestone had certainly seen the billowing clouds of smoke that hovered over the wooded portion from the moor, and despite her own general distaste for the Clan that resided there, she couldn't help but worry about them. Even though she didn't agree with SkyClan or their policies and that their general attitude rubbed her fur the wrong way, she couldn't bring it in herself to hate them, let alone want them dead by any means. Despite the news of the fire being contained to SkyClan's land for now, a little fear nested in the back of her mind that it could spread to ThunderClan, then the rest of the territories.

Still, she made her way to Fourtrees, walking at Ravenstar's shoulder. She was glad to see that the clearing and the forest that led to ThunderClan looked untouched, and she settled down at the base of the Great Rock, waiting for the other Clans to join them.

---

Redwolf slunk into the clearing with her Clanmates, and settled down in a clump with the others. She watched as WindClan filed in, with Ravenstar at its head and Olivestone not two paces behind, and the rest of them fanning out to seek conversation partners.

---

ooc: olivestone is open to talk if it's important, but she'll be chatting with the other deputies
redwolf isnt looking for conversation, though she'll reluctantly oblige if you try anyway

Spotlake padded into the gathering, worry for Skyclan at the back of her mind. She was concerned for the clan. Sure she may have had a skirmish with Redfall, a cat who her mate strongly disliked, she couldn't help but feel worry for the tom and his clanmates. Maybe if she could find a Skyclan cat (if they came at all) she could offer reasurrence and hopefully lift their spirits. Hopefully.

OOC: Spotlake is going to try to find a Skyclan cat but is open to talk with other cats!

Wildflower padded into the gathering, ears twitching nervously. Word had gotten around, and almost every cat in the Clans knew about SkyClan’s Twoleg problems, and more recently, fire. She wished them good luck. Maybe she’d be able to talk to one tonight. The tree-dwellers were not yet in the clearing, so Wildflower hung near the edge of the clearing, hoping she’d get to talk to a SkyClan cat or none at all. Licking her lips, trying to restore a vestige of moistness to her dry mouth, she sat down, ears turned towards the hopefully arriving Clans. Surely they weren’t all dead, or something like that. They’d have a night guard, probably, someone who’d seen the fire and started to evacuate... She could only hope for the best.

---

Redfall has left SkC by the time of this Gathering
Wildflower is open to talk

Flashpaw had never ventured into the forest before— his paws belonged on the moor, and he dutifully kept them there. What probably would have once been an impressive sight was now covered with soot and ash having been carried on the breeze from SkyClan territory. The young apprentice couldn’t help but wonder about just how fast a fire could spread as he stalked forward through dry underbrush with the rest of his Clan. Out of all the things he had been taught to fear, somehow fire never came to mind. But now it was all he could think of as he stared out into the treeline, half expecting to see flames dancing around and lighting up the night.

OOC: Flashpaw’s a little jumpy but he’s open to talk!

Goldenpaw treaded softly as she entered Fourtrees, trying to keep her paws clean despite the dust and ash that came up in clouds every time she took a step. The heat was killing her; it felt like her fur was melting off. It was all she could do to stay in the shade, far away from the sun. Thankfully it was night now, bringing a warm but tolerable temperature and a cool breeze. Only ShadowClan and Windclan were here for now, though she was sure there were more to come.

Ooc: Golden is open to talk to!

Mothglow followed Flintstar into Fourtrees, worry lining her face. She'd never had many issues with SkyClan, her general dislike of their leader aside - after all, the closest thing she'd had to a medicine cat mentor had been a SkyClan cat, even if she left them. For now, Mothglow only hoped that Sagelight would be present tonight to provide an explanation, or that perhaps another of her colleagues had more knowledge of what happened. At the very least, that they were all alright - it was too soon for more heartbreak.
~
Zinnia trailed after the rest of WindClan with the sort of distant, dreamy expression that was typical of her - though if one looked closely they would see hints of concern, as she occasionally stole a glance in the direction of SkyClan's territory. She had very little respect for their leader, and their choice to abandon the Clans to so-called divine retribution, but one cat was only one; and why should an entire Clan pay for their leader's cowardice?

[Mothglow & Zinnia are both open to talk to!]

Goldengale followed behind her apprentice, blue eyes gazing around the clearing. Stopping at his side, she looked down at him with a small smile. "Feel free to talk to the other apprentices, but do stay close." Her gaze wandered up to the far side of the clearing, where the fire had been. "I'll be just over here if you want or need me, okay?" She pointed to a nearby spot with her tail before settling there, trying to keep an eye on both Ravenstar and Flintstar and also Flashpaw.

Fogpaw was quick to follow her father who was leading WindClan into the clearing where the rest of the clans would soon appear. What surprised her was that no other clan had actually shown up besides ShadowClan though these meetings tended to pack many surprises. Some of these surprises lead to watch attentively the other warriors gather in their respective groups. Harrowing as her first gathering had been the apprentice made no haste to meet one of the other cats lounging around. She treaded carefully across the clearing albeit confident she wouldn't bump into anyone intentionally. It wasn't until she spotted a new face, an apprentice that could have been around her age did she approach them. "Hello!" She greeted Goldenpaw cheerily, "I'm Fogpaw of WindClan, who might you be?"

Ivystar padded into Fourtrees with her head held rather low, not knowing what to expect when she stepped paw into the clearing. She'd seen the dark clouds of smoke rising from SkyClan territory, and knew very well that there was no true river to keep it from spilling into ThunderClan or potentially RiverClan's territories- and StarClan forbid, envelop the entire forest. There was no denying that each Clan had suffered in their own ways as a direct result of the drought, and she had a feeling that there was more trouble in the future. Shaking out her fur, the she-cat pushed her way through the growing crowd of cats, noting SkyClan's absence. They were usually the last Clan to arrive, but the lack of SkyClan cats was still concerning. Would they show?

She hardly remembered walking past a myriad of cats and ascending the Great Rock. She found herself settled between Ravenstar and Flintstar, fur on end as she debated whether she should weigh in on the situation. With an inward sigh, she wrapped her tail around her body. "We could still see the flames from the river when we left camp. Does anyone know where SkyClan is sheltering?" Her voice portrayed no emotion, but she felt sorry for the Clan- she might not be particularly fond of Spottedstar, but she didn't wish anything bad on him or his Clan.

Spiderquill sighed softly as he entered Fourtrees, following close behind his mother. He hadn't been at the last Gathering, he'd been taking care of Lilykit in the medicine den, but returning now felt like a breath of fresh air from the unchanging scenery of RiverClan. Well, he said unchanging. In reality, it was changing by the day. The temperature was hotter, though Spiderquill didn't mind much. It was the sun that bothered him; he was currently sporting a bright red face after a particularly long herb patrol. He'd put aloe on it, but it still burned like there was no tomorrow. Hopefully the other medicine cats wouldn't comment on it, though maybe their advice would be helpful? He sighed again as he sat down in his usual position, waiting for the other Clans to arrive. Now that he mentioned it, a thought popped into his mind. Where was SkyClan? Had they escaped the fire? He hoped they got away unscathed, but the fire had left an entire section of the forest in ashes. His heart pounded with anxiety, worried for Sagelight and the other SkyClanners.

Flintstar's gaze flickered over to Ravenstar as the leader joined him on the rock, shaking his head at his question. "I've seen the damage for myself but I didn't see any SkyClan cats when I was investigating the border to make sure our territory was safe. Worrying, when I seem to have quite the luck in running in to them...So no, I am not aware of the state of the Clan," he mused, twitching his ear. He didn't have anything else to say until RiverClan arrived and Ivystar took a seat between the two toms, asking about SkyClan as well. He could only shake his head at that, giving a shrug of his large shoulders. "No, there was no trace of SkyClan at our border. If they fled from their territory, it was not in my direction."