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Badgerpaw was curled up not far from the medicine cat's den - having elected to take a moment to gain breath air. Her focus was however on steadily and carefully grooming around her still healing injury - a series of slashing on her side from where the dog's claws had swipe her in its effort to knock her away from its muzzle. Apparently the wounds wouldn't end with any scarring once it was fully healed - at least none visible with her long fur. Even now, only the cobwebs still haphazardly stuck to her side was the marking that she was injured at all.

Speaking of... She drew back her head with a spat - having strayed a little too close to the cobweb in her grooming. She raised a paw, trying to wipe the web from her tongue as she spared a glance around the camp. It seemed their series of hardship was over - thought work would have to be done to fix the camp. She was eager to put her paws forward to wherever her mother would have her once her healing was complete - but at least in the down time, she had been given a moment to dwell on her new world view.

Honestly, it was almost silly how much energy she had spent terrified of what others would think of her. She had so many doubts - and even then, she could feel them lingering within but her zero hesitation to fight for her family's sake had made her realize how...Silly those worries from within were. The moment she had chosen to forget them, she had fought two dogs and was one of the few cats still standing at the end! It was... Well, it had been something, that's for sure. She knew it was silly - no, stupid - to focus on what others thought of her. It didn't matter, did it? Even if her Clanmates did have the doubts she was so worried of proving right....Well, she hadn't! She had proven herself to be stronger than she could have ever imagined.

...But it was still hard to shake the feelings she had lived with for so long - unsure of how to merge what she felt with her new realizations. She...Still didn't like strangers, even if she didn't want to care about what they might think of her. Even some of her Clanmates who she had barely spent time with made her wary... The next Gathering was going to be...Something, that was for sure but she at least felt better prepared for it than she would have just a few sunrises ago. She rested her head on her paws with a soft huff, curling in a little on herself. Well, it was all things she could figure out on her own - she was just an apprentice after all, it wasn't like she had to have everything figured out right this moment...

Missing again. His camp had been invaded, and he was off messing around in Fourtrees. That had been a worthwhile patrol since it had brought back the rest of Shadowclan's missing warriors, but he could have been of much more use defending his clan. Anyone could have taken his place on that patrol.

One of the cats that had defended camp had emerged from the medicine den, and she was far enough from the entrance that Sablestrike was sure there wouldn't be a surprise encounter with Burdockroot. He stared at the apprentice for a while, eyes scanning the injuries that she had acquired. It was clear that she had been a valiant defender, her wounds an indicator of such a thing. Familiar, he had taken the time to learn her name, what was it again? She was one of Leopardsun's, hopefully not a troublesome cat like Batswarm. Bat, Moon... Stars, he was already forgetting their names. A moon ago he could have recited the names of every one of Leopardsun's children.

Sablestrike picked a lizard from the fresh-kill pile, not daring to let a mouse anywhere near his mouth. Those things still sickened him for the moment. Padding over to the apprentice Sablestrike lifted his tail in greeting. "Apologies if I'm interrupting something." He meowed around the prey. That was rude, wasn't it? Sablestrike dropped the lizard before continuing. "I brought this for you, if you're hungry." A black paw prodded at the lizard between them, and then it hit him. Badgerpaw! The tom cracked a smile, his inner triumph impossible to fully hide. "Those wounds show your bravery, Badgerpaw. Thank you for defending our clan, and against dogs no less!" The dog that his patrol had run into had been a bit difficult to deal with. No matter how much distance he had tried to put between them that persistent beast had been able to follow him and pay back his slashes with a painful bite. The thought of having to deal with three of those wasn't necessarily terrifying, but it wasn't appealing either. "Cats like you are the reason Shadowclan fared as well as they did. You have my thanks, Badgerpaw." Sablestrike's tone was unusually lively, filled with respect for the apprentice. At least one of Leopardsun's spawn was respectable.

"And mine." Nightstar meowed simply, catching the tail end of Sablestrikes statement as he hobbled close to the pair. Nightstar's hip and leg did not feel strong enough to put to ground just yet, and it was as such that he still carried his leg like a dead limb, but that did not prevent him from making his way around camp. Burdockroot and Locustcall had decided that he mustn't leave camp, and he was not willing to fight or argue with his medicine cat or his friend, so now was a perfect opportunity to bond with some of his clanmates. One of those cats stood out against the dog fight, and that was Badgerpaw, who he'd happily make a warrior the moment her mentor said, but until then he'd wait.

The tall, looming leader settled himself near Badgerpaw, - giving Sablestrike a silent nod in the process - and keeping a respectful distance from her, not wishing to be too close to any cat really. "We won that battle because of all who risked their lives, but that does not devalue the fire in your heart, Badgerpaw." Nightstar complimented, adjusting his focus from the conversation to washing his paws.

Harriertalon had just come back from a hunting trip, one of her kills still dangling from her mouth, and was silently scanning the camp. All things considered, their situation could be much worse. But ShadowClan was whole again with their returned warriors and slow rebuilding. With the dogs driven out, there wasn't much else to ask for but some good company to relax with.

Ah! Her green eyes locked onto Sablestrike and then Badgerpaw nearby the medicine cat den. Nightstar limped up to join the two, though she didn't catch what was being said. "Baderpaw!" Harriertalon was about to drop her bird at Badgerpaw's feet until she saw the lizard that already rested there. She opted for plopping it down in front of Nightstar, taking a seat next to Badgerpaw, happily ready to ignore any and all rejection of her gift. "Wonderful night, isn't it?"

Rising from his temporary nest in the Medicine Den, Tigershriek eagerly stretched his legs. He had heard cats talking, and it was better than staying in his nest. The wound on his jaw and neck had been healing well, and the tom certainly wasn't afraid of it scarring. It'd just be another memory. With the cobwebs still plastered near his mouth, however, it had been more difficult to speak, at least if he didn't want to get some in his mouth.

Stepping out, he spotted Nightstar immediately but chose to sit away from him. Tigershriek had seen how he left the battlefield, how he kept his distance. The tom wasn't stupid, even if he could be occasionally. One of the closest things he had to a father needed space, so, he'd give him space. "What's with the mini-gathering out here?" The tom asked jokingly, spying Badgerpaw. She'd been injured too. He remembered when he had sparred with Swiftheart, when she chose to sit out, to learn. He wondered if she had learned enough. At least enough to keep far from death.

Removing himself from his thoughts, Tigershriek settled on laying down with his paws tucked underneath. He didn't really have many friends, maybe this was a chance to make some.

At the sound of approaching paws, Badgerpaw lifted her gaze to stare at the tom. While he had to take a moment to figure out her name, she knew his right away. Sablestrike. Hm, her ear twitched raising an eyebrow as he dropped the lizard and pushed it towards her - thanking her for her actions against the dogs. ...Was he after something? The apprentice's eyes narrowed for a few heartbeats as he went on, trying to figure out his angle. ...Well, even if he was just showering her with praise, at least he had brought her something to eat. "...Thanks," she meowed, reaching out a paw to pull the lizard closer to her - before she paused as Nightstar also approached, gave his thanks and settled down a good distance away.

She thought about replying, but was caught off guard as her name was called out - glancing over to see Harriertalon approached. Her semi-cold gaze warmed within an instance, a soft smile gracing her lips as the newly named warrior dropped the bird she had been carrying at Nightstar's side before settling down next to her sister. She was honestly proud of her sister for finally gaining her warrior name - for all of the preening the apprentice wanted to do about being the last apprentice standing, she couldn't deny how valiantly Harriertalon had fought until the last of her energy was spent. She deserved her warrior name far more out of anybody. "It is," she responded, sparing a glance up towards the sky.

She hadn't always taken the time to bask in the night - hiding in the corner of the camp or in her nest had served her just fine but there was something...Welcoming about laying in the moonlight itself, watching the stars twinkle within Silverpelt. Her gaze was brought down to the small gathering as another cat spoke - Tigershriek. Her whiskers twitched at the 'mini-gathering' comment, a good-nature huff escaping her as she rolled her eyes. "That is what I would like to know. I was just laying here and now here we are..." she glanced down at the lizard resting at her paws, then back at Harriertalon with a smile. "Not that I object to the company - its...Nice. I haven't really..." she drifted off, her smile turning into a quick frown as her whiskers twitched.

There was no simple way to put 'was terrified of nearly everybody within the Clan' - or well, there was...But it wasn't something she actually wanted to admit. She still found herself wary - why had Sablestrike chose to lavish her with so much praise? She recalled Tighershriek being a bundle of energy when she had watched him in the training spar, which she hadn't been sure of how to react with. But she liked Harriertalon - and she guessed Nightstar was alright, thought she didn't know how she felt about him either. But...She wasn't terrified of what they thought, which was...Welcoming. She could actually relax for once in her life - it was freeing.

"Well...Its a nice change of pace from normal, I suppose."

At Nightstar's arrival, Sablestrike's gaze snapped to the tom's leg, lingering there until the leader seated himself. Could he have avoided such an injury if Sablestrike hadn't been sent to Fourtrees? No, thinking about things like that was useless at this point. "Right, and yours. Shadowclan as a whole seems to have fought valiantly." Not that I'd know.

Sablestrike greeted Harriertalon with a dip of his head, and soon after another warrior joined them. A mini-gathering? Stars, Sablestrike hoped more of his clanmates wouldn't join in on this conversation. It wasn't that he didn't want them to, but with their little group already growing as big as it had the tom was finding it hard to keep a decent conversation. Having Nightstar close by didn't help matters either, though he still had to try.

"I just thought it might be nice to not have to fetch your meal. The patrol that went to Fourtrees seems to have fared better than the cats that stayed here, might as well make ourselves useful, right?" Sablestrike and Forestbreeze had been the only two of their party to sustain injuries, and while he couldn't speak for Forestbreeze, his own injury hadn't been bothering him too much. It was the least he could do while his clanmates recovered, though in an odd sense Sablestrike was envious of their injuries. They showed the triumph of a hard fought battle, his own was less than a shadow compared to theirs.

Harriertalon purred. "Perhaps there are more cats who enjoy your company than you thought." The warrior couldn't think of any reason why anyone wouldn't want to hang out with Badgerpaw. Tigershriek's mini-gathering comment tickled her funny bone, though. She nudged the lizard slightly closer to Badgerpaw, encouraging her to eat it. Maybe she just didn't trust Sablestrike. But Harriertalon did. One in a million around here, she's learned.

The increased number of injured cats concerned Harriertalon. Perhaps... They could all do with just a mini-gathering. "I hope you've all been resting while we can. There are plenty of extra paws around to give others a moments rest. And..." She eyed Tigershriek. She hadn't much interaction with Nightstar since their one on one moons ago, but this tom he brought back with him while she was gone seemed to have hold of the leaders attention. One might question whether or not she was jealous, but Harriertalon saw it more as trying to see whether or not those around Nightstar had ulterior motives, or if they truly were loyal to him. "...We could get to know each other a little better while everyone's wounds heal."

Nightstar was silent as his young clanmates conversed, nodding silently as Harriertalon dropped a bird at his paws. If there was one benefit of being the leader was that he rarely had to get up to get his own prey, often having it delivered to him by apprentices or cats that just wanted to give some respect. While he preferred frog, the bird was not too bad of an option either, the wings were a satisfying crunch between his teeth after he tore at its flesh after pulling their feathers.

Now was a good time to learn what his young warriors thought, as long as he wasn't acknowledged by the small group too much, or dragged into the conversation. He knew that even if he had made himself distant from the group, his mere existence within their earshot or line of sight would mean that they'd hold their tongues.

Tigershriek shifted his legs into a more comfortable position, careful to not move his own neck too much. It was still sore, still a reminder of not quite being fast enough. He'd have to be better, he would be better, or else how would his clanmates ever respect him. Flicking his clipped ear, he felt a pair of eyes burning into his fur, and caught Harriertalon staring as she spoke about getting to know her clanmates better. With a flicker of a frown, his own eyes looked awkwardly at his paws, heat rising in his pelt, and a small bit of anger rising in his heart. He could hear the small amount of suspicion in her voice, it was what he listened for after all, not being clan-born and all, feeling like he had to earn his place every day he lived.

Golden eyes looked back at Harriertalon, then the rest. "Sure, why not." Less jovial now, Tigershriek proposed, "Let's get to know each other better. Best hunt. I'll start. When I brought back an owl with Locustcall." Looking at the group that had gathered, the tom watched to see who would speak next. He was trying to not sound annoyed with everyone... but he wasn't sure if it was working.

A soft snort escaped Badgerpaw at Tigershriek's suggestion - giving him a flat look, but beneath it her eyes were glimmering in amusement. "Easy - haven't had one," she admitted, giving a shrug of her shoulders as she shifted her weight. "My one attempt to go hunting with Leopardsun ended when Twolegs were poking around. Don't even know if I am a good hunter or not yet - but at least I know I'm pretty good in a fight." It was a little funny - once admitting that she had no idea where her hunting talent were would have terrified her but...She had comfort in knowing one of her strengths at least. As Leopardsun had pressed to her during that patrol - there were many skills that would make her an asset to ShadowClan. If she could find pride in one of them, then it didn't matter much to her if she was good or not with the others.