Grief [CLAN EVENT]

Continuation of this. I'm sorry I cut that topic short, but I had absolutely no idea what was going on there and figured that this could straighten things out.

The storm was still thundering outside the barn, but Reedstar could hardly hear it.

He felt numb. As numb and empty as he had felt before when he'd been attacked by that badger; when he killed that Deomilite; when he saw Froststar dying painfully on the side of the Thunderpath. Rain is a bad omen... Reedstar told himself as he stared at the bodies laid before him. His heart was twisted in grief to see them lying there. The warrior had liked the rain once, but now he saw that all it brought was pain.

His old apprentice, Sandwhisker, was among the casualties. So was young Frogpaw, Mintcloud, and Nightbird, who left a kit behind. It was all too soon. Why did StarClan seek to claim his warriors now? There was no worse death than drowning, especially for a RiverClan cat. It was shameful and a terrifying experience to go through. Why did you have to make them suffer when you took them?

That wasn't all. They had found that Cinderfur wasn't with them when they had reached the Twolegplace farm, but Reedstar had forbidden any search parties in fear of losing more. That hurt him most of all, although he promised to comb the area for her body when the storm subsided. Leafstream had also been wounded somehow. Lichencloud was working on that, but things didn't look hopeful. There were doubts that she would be able to carry out her duties as a warrior from then on.

Reedstar turned away from the sight. The barn they had found was not empty, unlike the one near WindClan territory. Many strange terrified animals had been found inside, the likes he had never seen before. Luckily, they were all corralled inside their pens, but he had still forbidden any of his Clan from going near. The hooves on some of them were like to crush somebody in an instant.

Lightning cracked outside through the pounding rain. I will go to the Moonstone soon... he vowed. If StarClan would forsake RiverClan, then I will forsake them too. Reedstar brooded silently in the corner, anger welling up inside of him in place of sadness.

Blinded Leafstream had been able to escape the medicine cat apprentice, and with the help of Silvercloud, got over to Reedstar. "Somethings troubling you, and I know the disappearance of Cinderfur worries you." She said, her eyes staring into space. Even though her eyes didn't work; she could see that Reedstar was in a sort of pain. "But don't make it a burden; Reedstar. You have a clan to live for, and we need you; and each other." She added, and her expression was sorrowful. Cinderfur; Mintcloud; Frogpaw; it made her almost sob. Her apprentice was gone, and she felt as if Starclan had decided to punish them for something.


But her gaze then turned sad. "Reedstar; what will I do now that I cannot see? I know that my days of a warrior are over; but is there anything I can still do? I wish not to be sent to the Elders den alone..." She said, troubled. She longed for comfort, and because she looked upon Reedstar as her mentor due to the death of Froststar; his words had more of an effect on her. With the knowledge of her sentence to the Elders den, it pierced her heart. This tragic upcoming had let her slip from her duties; and have to retire to a lone den.

Stormclaw watched Reedstar, a look of sadness in his eyes, constantly. Though a flicker of anger went across his features, which made him surprised. Was he mad at Starclan? Though he could clearly see why he would be. Though, he wondered, why did Starclan do this? It was the worst way to go to the cats that had died. Drowning, especially for a Riverclan cat. He padded next to Reedstar and nudged him shoulder, trying to give him slight comfort. He quickly receded, hoping no others saw him give any sort of affection, he was a tom wasn't he? He shouldn't show weakness like that, even to his clanmates. He wasn't the type for touchy-touchy stuff, but he couldn't bear to see his leader like this.

"There, come on this way." Stormpaw urged gently to her sister, who was shaking terribly now, occasionally mumbling something to herself. They had lagged behind a little, so the young silver tabby had to make sure Hailpaw was able to keep up, though the whole walk to the barn, though not really even that far, had kind of been a pain since she would barely take a step forward without Stormpaw helping her. What had gotten her poor, innocent sister so shaken up? She had been one of the most upset about Mintcloud's death, despite not knowing her that well.
Stormpaw nudged Hailpaw and told her to lie down on some hay. Where was Lichencloud? Surely the medicine cat apprentice had something for shock, or maybe see if Hailpaw had any wounds that her sister hadn't seen? At the moment, Stormpaw couldn't seem to calm the poor apprentice down.

"Clouds...And thunder...A-and rain!...So much rain...Mint...Why...?!" Hailpaw continued to quietly whisper these things to herself, eyes wide with terror. The seen kept replaying in her head; Hailpaw panicking as she looked around wildly for her clanmates, grabbing a kit and frantically trying to avoid the steadily rising waters. Putting the kit down and daring to go down again, just to see the camp getting torn apart by floodwater and her almost slipping in to the deep water and then Mintcloud grabbing her and getting her to swim back to the bay and then getting swept away as Hailpaw cried out desperately and...Why hadn't Mintcloud fought back? Why didn't the she-cat come back with her, to where the rest of the clan had been waiting? She was so confused and felt that somehow this was her fault. All her fault that the friendly, respected Riverclan cat had to drown a horrible, shameful death that she did not at all deserve. She remembered her paws guiding her numbly towards the voices of her clanmates, desperate not to lose more, but arriving just to see two more dead. Sandwhisker and Frogpaw; both good cats. Then when her sister led her back she heard about another death that had occurred: Nightbird, drowning as well.

A growl came from Mapleclaw as she paced back and forth at the entrance of the barn, only pausing to  stare at the rain as it poured on outside. A soft hiss came from the warrior as she went back to her pacing, her tail trashing as she moved back and forth. They had lost their home! To what, water? She had always dislikes water, and this only proved of her reason to dislike it. Of course, she paused once again she shook her head, sighing. However, water was what was made RiverClan as strong as it was.

Her gaze shifted over to Reedstar and the bodies that laid in front of him, before she quickly turned her gaze back into the pouring rain. A shiver ran down her spine as she thought about how easily that could of her been joining StarClan...Her eyes narrowed as she raised her eyes to the sky. Why had such a terrible storm fallen upon them? They had done nothing! They were loyal and faithful! They shouldn't have lost any of their Clanmates tonight...And Cinderfur...She narrowed her eyes, gazing out into the rain. It had been hard enough losing so many Clanmates, but with Cinderfur's fate unknown...So hard did Mapleclaw want to pray to StarClan to stop the rain, but she had a feeling that it wouldn't be happening soon. She wanted to go and look for their lost Clanmates, to put her mind at easy to know whither or not they had to grieve over one more tonight.

A bright pelt stooped in a shadowy corner. His eyes were clouded with grief, and disbelief lurked deep inside. He didn't want to talk with anyone, his heart was broken and the young cat almost didn't want to pick up the shards; for he was afraid of it would fall apart yet again. There was nearly nothing left of Ashpaw's soul. Many cats had died that night. Only one cat shrouded him, however. A dark shroud of black.

He had heard whispers that his lineage wasn't pure.. was it true? The apprentice rubbed his muzzle with both of his front paws. He didn't want to believe the rumors. He wanted to be full clan. But if that couldn't be, was killing Nightbird her punishment? Or was it his, for being her son? Or maybe both. He felt numb, and his mind had run deep inside to escape unforgiving reality. His heart wanted to believe, no, it needed to believe that she was still alive. That everything would be okay. That this was some gruesome nightmare. That he would wake up; to wake up and see that everyone was alive.

He hid his eyes from shame, for they were red after quietly mourning for his mother. It could have been blamed on debris from the flood, or the hay, but who would believe him? He backed farther into the hay to escape his thoughts, and of course; it didn't work. He watched the strange animals, how they seemed so close. So much like.. 'the perfect family.'

Lichencloud was frantic. He had only managed to make a bundle of poppy seeds and tansey before his den had flooded. Usually, Lichencloud was calm. He almost never got worked this up. But this made him furious. All of his supplies were gone. Washed away into the wretched river. He had nothing, or next to nothing, left to treat his clanmates. The only thing useful really would be the poppy seeds; tansy was for infection.

He had taken a few breaths in the corner to calm down before forcing a calm look to cross his face. He slithered around, trying to see if anybody was physically wounded. He didn't see anything besides shock. Which he couldn't do much to help. Letting out a small sigh, Lichencloud stepped in front of Reedstar.

"Reedstar." He said softly. "May I speak to you alone?"

Reedstar hardly seemed to notice the cats moving around him until Leafstream spoke up and broke him out of his stupor. He hesitated to answer. Yes, she definitely couldn't continue her duties as a warrior without sight. But she was so young, and it was a cruel fate that StarClan would damn her to live out the rest of her days as a blind cripple. Such squandered potential... Leafstream could have had many moons ahead of her as a warrior, but her life had been changed forever in one night. "I don't know." he admitted with a scowl. It pained him to say it, but he didn't wish to dash her hopes. "Perhaps there will be use for you in the medicine den, or as a sentry... I will find some way for you to serve RiverClan, don't worry. You're still as strong and sharp as you ever were." Reedstar paused momentarily to look the she-cat over before resting his tail comfortingly on her shoulder. "If it would please you, you may remain in the warrior's den... I won't let you retire quite yet."

He dismissed her with a lash of his tail before realizing his mistake. This will take some getting used to... Berrysplash had been blind as well, but she'd died when he was still a warrior, and he had almost forgotten what it was like to not be able to use tail signals to communicate. "That will be all, Leafstream. Go comfort some of the other mourners, if you would. We've lost too many of our Clanmates tonight."

Reedstar had scarcely finished talking to the blinded she-cat when Lichencloud approached him. With a sigh, he nodded and stood up. What could this be about? The medicine cat was looking quite frankly distraught. It wasn't a surprise; four cats dead, one blinded, and another missing. Thinking about Cinderfur made it feel as if claws were digging into his heart, remembering their talk in the old fox den. Did they have to take you too? He remembered when she was just a kit. She had been so kind, much like the others, yet StarClan saw fit to wash them away. You mustn't think the worst... she may still be alive. Yet that was foolish thinking, wasn't it? Where could she have gone to, if not the bottom of the river?

"Yes, Lichencloud." he mewed wearily. For all his anger, it had not inspired much passion in him. It had been a long and trying night, but his duty as leader would prevent him from getting much sleep tonight. He had to stay awake to comfort his grieving Clan. Reedstar cast a glance to the more shadowy half of the barn, past all the strange animals the Twolegs had penned up. Perhaps the young medicine cat wished to discuss funeral preparations. It was a macabre subject, but their fallen comrades would need to be buried sooner rather than later. Without rosemary or mint, the corpses would begin to smell. The younger ones did not need to be put through further trauma.

Lichencloud nodded, silently turning around and heading to the shadows. The thing he needed to discuss wasn't something that didn't need to be overheard; he just wanted to make sure that there wasn't much interruptions. As soon as the medicine cat was bathed in the shadows, he sat down in his regular way; back straight, head tilted slightly down (as his height usually made him slightly taller), and fluffy tail covering his skilled paws. He waited for Reedstar to sit before launching into the conversation.

"I have two matters I wish to discuss." He spoke quickly and urgently. No use of wasting time beating around the bush. Lichencloud paused, studying Reedstar. "Maybe three." he decided, but before the other tom could say anything, he launched into what he wanted. "We should hold a clan prayer. Since everything that happened, maybe it would be the best thing to do. I would lead it, of course." He puffed out his chest, his heart racing just at the thought of his starry ancestors. "We should do that before we bury the fallen warriors." Lichencloud took a deep breath. "Next thing I need to talk about is the fact that we need to give the fallen warriors a funeral. Now, we don't have any elders to bury them, nor do we have the correct place to. I was thinking we could send out to or three warriors to find a dry place as close to the river and as deep into our territory as possible. Then, as a clan, we go and bury them. Sending a prayer to StarClan, of course. Once the floods have gone down, we can send a few apprentices to build some sort of... rock structure near the graves." Lichencloud nodded, letting Reedstar know he was done speaking for now.

Reedstar sat himself down with a small grunt and with little of the grace that the medicine cat had shown, and slouching ever so slightly. The leader wasn't old, far from it, but he had always been a little uncouth and rough around the edges in more ways than one. On more than one occasion he had snapped at a leader or spoke up at a Gathering as a warrior. When one thought about it, it was odd that Froststar would choose such a cat in place of a tried and experienced deputy who had been combed for leadership for moons beyond count. One might even think it was just the delusions of a dying mind, but if anybody ever thought to say that to Reedstar's face, they had better prepare to get clawed to ribbons first.

He nodded solemnly as Lichencloud spoke. The idea of praying to the same StarClan that had sent them this horrible storm was one that almost repulsed him, but it would cast him in a poor light to refuse. There was no harm in wishing their fallen Clanmates a safe passage to Silverpelt. As for the funeral preparations, though... "I do not think it would be wise to bury them anywhere near the riverbank." Reedstar said. "If the water is to rise again, maybe higher, there is the possibility of the bodies being uncovered and washed away... perhaps ashore. It would be a very grisly affair if any young cats were to stumble upon it. We should make the graves somewhere near here. Sooner rather than later." It might be unseemly to rush out the funeral, but they had to be pragmatic. The fact that the corpses were drenched would make it all worse.

The leader paused before continuing, wondering for a moment if he ought to say it. I might as well. I should not be afraid to speak my mind to my medicine cat. "I am fine with praying, to make sure those who died tonight make the journey to Silverpelt without issue." He paused, but was feeling all the more confident now. Anger and determination began to burn again. "However, I will not beg for mercy from StarClan as we pray, if that is your intention. This storm, if not a freak coincidence, was an awful show of force. RiverClan does not bend to intimidation."

Lichencloud had nodded as the leader spoke. He happy with the fact that Reedstar agreed to the clan prayer. He nodded to the fact about the cats being buried closer to here than to the river. Yes, Lichencloud was very pleased with the other tom about these certain matters. However, as Reedstar finished his last sentence, the fur along Lichencloud's spine began to rise, drawing up a fury with it that Reedstar might later regret bringing up in the usually very calm tom. Green rage sparked in the medicine cat's eyes and he opened his mouth to shame the leader for his words.

Something stopped him. Morningfur crossed his vision and he forced his fur to relax. Reedstar was merely angry, and he had every right to be. The flood had killed many of his warriors, blinded one, and lost another. Lichencloud took a deep breath, oxygen filling his lungs and drawing in a new sense of peace. After a few heartbeats of deep breathing, he finally was ready to talk again.

"I can't say I agree with you, Reedstar." Lichencloud began slowly and carefully. "But I respect that you wish not to beg to our ancestors. After all, you are a prideful cat..." Lichencloud let his words trail off and hang in the reeking air. "Remember when I was just a young kit, coming out of the nursery for the first time?" he started suddenly, his eyes wide but this time with amusement.

For a moment it seemed as if Lichencloud was uncharacteristically angry, but it passed so quickly that he could hardly be sure if that was the case. Reedstar twitched his tail at the medicine cat's words... Yes, he was prideful, nobody could deny that, but it seemed like some kind of veiled insult. He let the comment slide. We're all frustrated right now. The last thing I need to be doing is fighting with my medicine cat over something trivial.

The warrior nodded in slight confusion at that next part, though. "Yes... I think so. You were in Froststar's den with Morningfur."

Ooc: This is suddenly turning into a medicine cat and leader private discussion. Everyone else should jump in and help each other a bit!~ :3

Ic: Stormpaw sighed, not seeing Lichencloud or Reedstar anywhere. Perhaps the were talking about important stuff or maybe taking care of others? She didn't know, but there were plenty of cats who needed calming down; including her sister.
The tabby looked around, spotting a sulking Ashpaw over by himself. She wondered if she should go talk to him, but he looked like he wanted to be alone. She turned and saw Mapleclaw pacing near the barn entrance, looking agitated. Stormpaw could perhaps see what was bugging her? Then again, the looks she seemed to be giving to...The air supposedly, gave the young apprentice a feeling that told her to avoid the deputy for now. Lastly, Stormclaw seemed to be quietly sitting by the bodies, looking a bit sullen. She had always admired the young warrior, like an role-model in a way. Maybe she could talk to him? Not that the pile of her clanmates' carcasses was very welcoming...

Meanwhile Hailpaw was still sitting alone, murmuring to herself some odd things. Her sister had decided it was best to let her rest for now, since no matter what she said, the snow-colored apprentice was incapable of focusing on her due to severe shock. Poor, innocent Hailpaw. Her young mind was having a hard time wrapping around all that had happened during the night. Her thoughts were so jumbled that I'm more just narrating Stormpaw's view on her since Hailpaw can't seem to think straight yet.

Ooc- Dammit people stop sleeping on the floor.

 Ic-Ashpaw gave himself a nice, healthy slap to the face with a paw. (If slapping yourself is considered healthy.) It didn't help him, nor his Clanmates to sit there and mope like 'Oh woe is me..'. He needed to help, even if it was simple. His gaze swept across the barn, noticed that almost everyone was knocked out on the ground. If they slept like that all night; well, he could imagine how cold it would be. Cold led to sickness, and sickness right now would only weaken the clan further.

 He shook off his weariness and tore at the huge bales of hay lining the barn. The dust drifted into his eyes, but he didn't care. After a while, he had a large pile of yellow hay stacked behind him. Letting himself rest for a moment, he glanced back at his tower of dead grass. It wasn't moss, but it was far better than a hard dirt floor. He moved them into nests, making one every other minute. The tom thought for a moment. Should I bring the nests to everyone, or everyone to the nests?

 The white cat did both by dragging each makeshift nest in turn towards the center of the building. After doing so, he nudged each cat in turn, and motioned to the nests. Hopefully he had made enough. He said this to each of them, "If you don't want to sit vigil, you can sleep in a nest over there. They're scratchy, but somewhat comfortable. If you do, you can lay down until it begins." Ashpaw himself needed sleep from the shock and exhaustion, but he wished to sit vigil for his mother.

Stormclaw noticed little Ashpaw making and dragged cats into nests. As he came to him, he shook his head before going to the entrance of the barn. He should keep an eye out, or maybe go hunt. If Reedstar said he could that it. Padding up to the leader, he quickly waited until his conversation had dimmed down before asking. "Reedstar, may I go hunting. I'm sure everyone is hungry. I will be careful, and if you would like, I could ask any warriors or experienced apprentices to come along also." He knew Reedstar wouldn't like anyone going out, but the clan was sure to be very hungry and exhausted. And bringing some not too tired cats could help.