July's Gathering 2017

Swiftpaw had gone with Emberpaw and sat beside her. "Emberpaw! Aren't you excited that this is your first gathering?" He asked his friend.

"Yeah! Its so crowded, I've never seen so many cats in one place! Is it your first gathering?"She added, embarrassed that she hadn't thought about her friend first.

Darkpaw, could felt her fur bristling every second, sh was sure they will have kits together sooner or later, Darkpaw knew Ryeheart was being unstable and falling in love with the enemy.

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Blackpaw looked at Lightdrop and Ryeheart, then at her sister, she knew what it felt to see someone you love with other cat or worst, a cat from an enemy's Clan.

Spottedbear

The young Thunderclan warrior, who had been at the gathering the whole time obviously looked up at the high rock listening to the leaders talk about the mist that was creeping in around the clans. She flicked her tail trying to look like a warrior ready to respond to whatever was thrown at her.

Orchidpaw

The Riverclan apprentice flicked her ears forward listening about the mist. She wasn't sure where her mentor was but all this talk about the mist was worrying her. She could feel her brother pressed against her side, his tail tapping rhythmically beside her.

Elmpaw

The young Riverclan tom tapped his tail against the ground in time with his heartbeat. He didn't like thinking about this mist. It sounded like it could steal anyone away that it wanted. He lifted his head trying to search out Tinypaw and make sure she was still here.

Finchpaw

The Shadowclan apprentice could see the nerves etched on the leaders faces. Their worry was starting to penetrate into the gathered cats. He loked around trying to remember if Thrushstripe had come to tonights gathering.

Quietpaw

Her scratches were healing and her belly, though still devoid of fur had caked over and she had been allowed to go to the gatehering. The windclan apprentice had been filled with shame when she woke up in the medicine cats den. She'd lost her fist battle. She blamed it on her mentor who had taught her nothing. And now there was this mist everyone was talking about. She didn't know how to fight a cat, let alone a mist.

The news was certainly disturbing to Thrushstripe. As he listened to the leaders, he tried his hardest to keep his mouth shut and let them handle things, but part of him wanted to stop this gathering immediately and begin searching for the missing cats. This 'mist' had caused enough trouble already, but it now had two of Shadowclan's warriors which was hard enough for the elder to deal with. Adding the news that it had taken several cats from other clans made his heart sink.

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Barkpaw listened intently as the leaders spoke, particularly Blizzardstar. He always admired her courage and how she handled things, and now she was the head of Thunderclan, speaking on top of the Great rock. Even as his younger brother Coyotepaw joined him, Barkpaw couldn't bother to look away from the rock. However, he did find a bit of peace to have his brother by his side. It was only when a new and almost familiar voice spoke to him did he rip his eyes from the leaders. Instanty, he turned to face Flamestrike. "I, uh..." The apprentice was taken aback by the question as he stared at the older warrior. The older tom certainly looked familiar, but his name escaped Barkpaw. His fur bristled a bit, but he kept his cool as much as he could as something finally clicked in his head. "You're... You're the cat who took me from the barn, right?" he asked rather timidly.

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This mist had taken more cats? As Stoneteller sat at the bottom of the rock listening to the leaders, his mind started to wonder about this mist. Storm had told him about his encounter with the mist. Thank the Tribe that nothing had happened to the Healer's right-hand tom, and instead, it had muttered something. It was a disturbing thought -- one he hoped never to experience again -- but here the other clans were talking about how it had taken more than just a few cats. It had taken so many from everyone. Suddenly, the Healer was a bit more on edge. How many more would it take before it was satisfied?

Lionpaw shifted uncomfortably from the back of the crowd. There were so many cats, and they were mostly bristling or meowing under their breath in alarmed tones. The young tom didn't like this news one bit and slipped through the crowd in search of Dandelondapple.


Leopardstar's pelt bristled visibly as he listened to the reports of missing cats from all over the forest. It was alarming and upsetting, and suddenly he had an idea of how his clanmates disappeared. It seemed like no one in the whole StarClan-forsaken forest knew what to do; even StarClan themselves had admitted ignorance! The ShadowClan leader hardly acknowledged Blizzardstar's ascension to leadership and stepped forward last of all. His voice was cold like ice and clearly not as calm as usual.

"ShadowClan flourishes. We welcome Copperpaw, Lizardpaw, Breezepaw, Olivepaw, Falconpaw, Cobrapaw, Flintpaw, Brownpaw, Nightpaw, Sootpaw, Ashpaw, Curlypaw, and Cedarpaw as they begin their training. We also congratulate Ryeheart, Redstorm, Rowantalon, and Badgerstorm on earning their names and becoming warriors." Even the joy of his children's apprenticeship couldn't lift the tension from his chest. He was scraping the Great Rock with his claws without realizing it. "A pack of dogs attacked our camp, but we ran them off without any deaths or difficulties." Leopardstar lied through his teeth with the practice of moons of reporting news at gatherings without so much as blinking. He turned to address Fishstar's question, gaze steely. "I have lost two warriors; an apprentice has been slain. My own deputy has been taken right from my own presence! I have seen the mist with my own eyes. There was nothing I could do but watch as Magpiewing was taken. If StarClan is ignorant and we are ineffective, what are we to do?" He meowed, more to the leaders than anyone else.

With every leader's speech proceeding Fishstar, the sharp knot in her belly only grew all the more tense. He skin began to prickle. All of them had the same thing to say. This mist phenomenon had been claiming cats from all over the forest - including the SkyClan leader and ShadowClan deputy. It was stealing cats. It was killing cats. It was stirring up a mass confusion and panic. How many more cats would it murder and whisk away before it was satisfied? Would it ever be satisfied? It was a swift, cold, silent assassin that no one could identify, capture, or fight off, and had been terrorizing the Clans for sunrises, now..

.. And no one present seemed to have even the slightest inkling of why it was happening.

Fishstar swallowed the lump in her throat, eyes sweeping across each and every face below her. All of the voices around the clearing, and the rustling of the trees above, and the swishing of pelts-on-pelts slowly began to fade into one long, continuous string of white noise. Mouths moved, but no sound came out. Everything seemed to slow down, as if she were in a dream. The only thing the RiverClan leader could hear over the screeching ambiance was her own ragged breaths.

StarClan had been dead-silent about this chaos. Though is angered Fishstar, it didn't exactly surprise her. They had done nothing good for her in the past, so she hadn't expected them to give her any assistance in trying to find out what the deal with the missing cats was. As far as she knew, the cats taken shared nothing in common. There hadn't been any sort of pattern to the disappearances and deaths, really.. Although now that she thought about it, perhaps it had some sort of relation to the fires that had spread around the forest a moon ago. Both the mist and the fires had appeared inexplicable out of seemingly nowhere, causing widespread destruction and fear. The disappearances had started right around the time the fires had occurred, too hadn't they? All this chaos in the span of two moons, and...

And..

Suddenly, Fishstar's gaze settled on one particular face, and all the sounds of the Gathering came flooding back into her ears all at once. At that moment, all the puzzle pieces of her many suspicions slowly began to fall into place within her mind. The fires. The mist. The death. The confusion. The timing of all these disasters was just.. Too.. Perfect for Fishstar's liking. It had all started to happen at the same time. It all coincided with something she had foolishly placed in the back of her mind for a long time.

Her voice cut abruptly through the clamor like an icy claw. "Might I ask what you make of this mist, Stoneteller?"

Laurelpaw, broken out of her slump by the interesting news of this mist, and Leopardclaw, listening intently to the leader's conversations in hope that his missing children might be found, had their attention fixed on the Great Rock, but Ryeheart had his attention elsewhere. Nodding agreement as Lightdrop replied, the pale ginger tabby tom let out a sympathetic sigh. I hope the clans can get over their differences and work together to stop....whatever this is. We need to get all these missing cats back as soon as possible! The young tom didn't like to spend too long dwelling on serious or sad issues though, so a light-hearted smirk once again spread across his face. Raising his fluffy tail, he rested it across Lightdrop's back and bent forward, speaking in her ear with a confident tone. "Well, don't you worry! I'll be here to protect you m'lady." Chuckling slightly, he removed his tail quickly after; he didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable. Still, the ShadowClan warrior couldn't help but feel a surge of protectiveness towards the odd-eyed she-cat. If that 'mist' attacked here and now, he would keep his promise.

The comments from the leaders were hard to listen to. At this point, it was true that the mist had taken several cats from each clan. Leopardstar had even seen it himself. It was dreadful to hear about so many lost souls with no information on where they could have possibly gone. To make matters worse, there were cats who were dying to this thing. However, Stoneteller found an awkward peace within this situation that despite so many others being taken, his own tribe cats went untouched. Even Storm had seen the mist firsthand and was left alone. After hearing his story, the Healer could not deny that the mist was protecting the tribe cats. While he felt the losses of the clan cats, he knew that he could take some solace in the fact that his tribe mates were safe.

Suddenly, his name rang in his ears as his gaze shot up to Fishstar whose glare and words felt like several thorns stabbing him through his pelt. "The mist?" he echoed, standing up from his place below to rock to get a better look at the leaders. "It is a tragedy about what has been happening in the clans regarding this mist. I pray that we find your clan mates soon and get to the bottom of this mysterious... thing." In all honesty, Stoneteller wasn't sure what to call it. It moved on its own so it had to be some kind of living thing... right? "Although, if we are admitting who is missing, it is relieving to say that none of the cats of tribe origin have been kidnapped. In fact, it seems to be protecting us somehow. I wish I knew why this might be happening to best try to stop this thing from wreaking more havoc in the clans." He tried to make sure he didn't separate his tribe too much. He was pushing for integration with Skyclan, after all. But this was a trend that needed to be pointed out. It felt important, somehow.

Before Brindlewhisker could continue the rather friendly small-talk with Leopardclaw, the Gathering began and the WindClan Deputy found herself more attentive towards the Leader's respective reports. The eerie similarities in each of the reports made her belly twist anxiously and caused her paws to shuffle nervously- so other Clans had been experiencing same things! The she-cat continued to gaze up at the Leaders upon the Great Rock with a frown etched heavily into her features, her ears fully perked as she waited for the next response from any cat. And perhaps for the only time in her life, Brindlewhisker found herself slightly intrigued by where Fishstar was taking the conversation.

After Fishstar's somewhat ominous question, Brindlewhisker turned to gaze Stoneteller with a mild interest, curious as to what the Tribe Healer had to say for himself. She watched as the tom rose to his paws to address the Leaders, feeling a tad bit impressed at the way that he carried himself and addressed the crowd of cats, but the Tribe Healer's next words made her blood run cold and her belly roil.

"Protecting you?" Brindlewhisker echoed, disbelief and anger evident in her voice as she whipped around to face Stoneteller with a scathingly suspicious glare. The Mist was protecting the Tribe?! The thought of the Tribe being spared from the strange wrath of the Mist made her blood boil- especially after watching Mottleheart suffer so greatly from Raccoonfang's disappearance in the clutches of the terrifying fog- why were they being 'protected'?! Her fur began to bristle slightly as she continued to glare at Stoneteller who now seemed more menacing in her eyes. "The Mist that's kidnapping our Clanmates is protecting your Tribe?!" Brindlewhisker spat out the words vehemently, her shocked eyes still as wide as the full-moon above them.

Fishstar felt a hot bolt course through her.

"Is that so? It's been protecting you, has it?" The volume of her voice remained moderate, but the pitch in her words were drenched in a sudden, vicious distaste. She rose to her paws and turned to face the other four leaders. Her heart was already pounding steadily in her chest, overflowing with a steadily growing fury. "Tell me. How has it treated your Clan, Blizzardstar? Or your's, Ashstar? And how about SkyClan and ShadowClan? Have you fared well following the arrival of this mist? Not very well, has it? From what you've all told me, you've all lost cats to it."

She swiveled around and looked back down on Stoneteller, sea-green flames leaping about in the depths of her eyes. "That's certainly intriguing, now, isn't it? Our Clans have been suffering for the past two moons, be it by flame, or by some sort of unexplained mist, and you have all remained completely unscathed? Protected, even? Remind me again, when was it that you all arrived..? Was it two moons ago?" Her tail lashed behind her, and her eyes narrowed to slits.

The RiverClan leader could still picture the moment they'd marched into the Gathering unannounced, and the unease that had flooded her system when thinking back to when the Dark Forest had done the same. She could still feel the stinging frustration at how accepting Ashstar and Crowstar had been towards them - strangers from a faraway place no one had heard of, claiming to be of old SkyClan blood. Now, her daughter was gone - whisked off by a mysterious, misted foe. "If I recall correctly, most of the forest rejected you when you arrived, and now most of the forest is suffering for unknown reasons. We're losing daughters, sons, mothers, fathers, and friends, but you aren't. That seems like quite a miraculous coincidence to me." Her claws slid out instinctively, scoring at the rock beneath her. "I suggest you stop being coy, Stoneteller."

Blizzardstar looked at Fishstar with confused eyes as she asked the former tribe leader about the mist, but decided to not interrupt. Maybe the older and more experienced leader had managed to pick up a clue that had managed to escape her own grasp? Hopefully.

She, however, couldn’t help but feel like a stone had fallen in her stomach with Stoneteller’s words. The mist was protecting the tribe cats? “Well…it is true that the only clans that mist did help during the fire, if I remember correctly, were WindClan and SkyClan, the only two clans that spoke in the tribe’s favor when they arrived” She said, barely loud enough to be heard by the cats and the other leaders “However, I would like to point out that ThunderClan has a former tribe cat within our ranks as well and we were also the most affected clan by the fire, as well that the mist is starting to take cats from the clans that it was previously protecting, including the leader of the clan that the tribe supposedly shares blood with” She quickly added the final statements so it didn’t seem like she was against the tribe.

She turned around to look at Fishstar as she started to speak once more, her usual talent to pick up clues towards the other cat’s emotions quickly working to let her know some of the emotions bubbling up deep within the RiverClan leader, though sooner than later those emotions started to become evident even to the most apathetic cat in the gathering. She felt her fur stand on end, hoping the cats at the gathering wouldn’t start to try and start a fight against the tribe cats after Fishstar’s statement. She could understand perfectly how she felt, knowing that the tribe cats could have something to do with the disappearances and deaths her clan as well as the rest had been experiencing leaving an awful aftertaste in her mouth, even worse than if she had gone into the Medicine Cat’s den and drank all the reserves of mouse bile they had. However she tried to stay calm and, being the kind hearted cat she was, try to give the tribe the benefit of the doubt.

Feeling her on claws unsheathe and scratch the stone under her, she closed her eyes tightly and took a long deep breath to put her own fears and worries to rest even if just for a couple seconds. If she was going to speak she wouldn’t want to let her emotions drive her to say something she could regret later on “While I agree that the timing of the mist and the fire was just way too perfect, I don’t want to start throwing blame left and right without more evidence. As long as I know, the tribe hasn’t caused trouble since their arrival and even has been struggling to adapt to our ways of living without complaining, so even if this mist may be on their side I highly doubt they ever wanted to cause us any harm” She turned to face the former Healer, her tone way more calm and polite though clearly still worried as she spoke to him “Stoneteller, while I don’t want to blame you nor your tribe and I pray to StarClan this is nothing but an awful coincidence, I understand Fishstar’s suspicion and I find myself forced to consider all options even if I don’t like them. If you have any information or even just a clue towards what this mist may be, what it wants or how to stop it, please, share it now. Have you seen it before? Or any of your tribemates?”.

Shadowleaf didn't like what she was hearing, while some of it was true she still didn't have a clue as to what was happening with the mist. Who cares if the clans were suffering now? The tribe had suffered on the way here. They lost many cats on the way here. Maybe it was just the clans turn for bad luck.

The gray and white she-cat stood with a growl. "You have no right to say anything! We as a tribe on our journey here lost cats left and right, and when we arrived we were skin and bone! You all saw it! As we made way from our dangerous home to here we lost our loved ones, our mothers, and daughters, and sons, and fathers. Maybe its just your turn for bad luck huh? Don't relate something back to us when you have no proof!" They were lead here by the tribe of endless stars, which seems like goes by another name of Starclan.

Shadowleaf didn't like this one bit. She was proud of Thunderclan being able to fight through the fire, and sustain itself from such a weakness. Riverclan wasn't that devastated yet they were the ones calling out the tribe. "Our ancestors lead us here, which I have come to think isn't so different from your Starclan. If you have an issue with us take it up with them! As for the mist, figure it out what it is for yourselves instead of blaming us for being lead by our ancestors like you do." She was sure Stoneteller could have handled something like this, but she couldn't stand to be threatened by Fishstar like that. She was angered by this. Sure they 'seemingly' showed up at the same time, but that didn't mean they were connected.

Even hearing what Stoneteller said, he had no clue as to what this mist was, she was sure of it, but this cats were too mouse brained to see it. She was going to have to talk with Blizzardstar later after this gathering and apologize for speaking out, but she couldn't take it anymore.

The ShadowClan leader wasn't sure why Fishstar was so interested in Stoneteller's opinion on the matter. A jolt of rage shot through Leopardstar when the Tribe tom began to speak about the mist protecting the strange group of newcomers, and his already bristled fur felt like it couldn't rise any higher. A low growl began in his throat as the RiverClan leader began making her case against Stoneteller, and Leopardstar's green eyes narrowed in suspicion. He wanted to push Blizzardstar off the rock for her weak attempts at mediating, but instead settled with shoulering past her roughly on the rock as he stepped forward to address Stoneteller and the patched she-cat that spoke up for him.

"This is not a game!" The angry tomcat snarled, glaring down at Stoneteller from the Great Rock. In the back of his mind, a sharp sense of fear for the safety of his deputy and warriors was nagging, but his face and features only showed fury. "We went to our highest authority and they had nothing for us. The only hint we have as to what is going on is you and if I have to personally chase you out to find my clanmates, I will do so without hesitating!" Leopardstar snapped, leaving thin white clawmarks in the rock beneath his paws.


Shrikepaw gasped audibly when Fishstar called out the Tribe. He really didn't know what to make of the situation as he didn't personally know any of the missing cats. The silver tom's head jerked towards Shadowleaf when she began speaking; he actually had forgotten that she was from the Tribe and he wondered what had made her leave them to join ThunderClan. His head tilted to the side as she spoke. He had not heard much of their journey, or why they had left, and he felt sympathy for the she-cat and her former Tribemates. Shrikepaw could see that she was passionate about protecting their name and he admired the way she spoke fearlessly to the rival leader. Slipping through the crowd to her side, he remained silent but offered an encouraging flick on her back with his fluffy tail.


Lionpaw shrunk away into the background, horrified by what he was hearing. How could his Tribe be responsible for a force of nature they hadn't even seen? These ruthless clan cats were just accusing them because they couldn't find the real cause! The cream tom's tail lashed in anger, but he stayed silent. He had been overstepping his bounds too much lately and didn't want to anger Ripped Skies, so he let Stoneteller and Shadow of the Dancing Leaf tell them how it was, although his fur was prickling and he was seething at the very suggestion. His ears flattened against his skull and he looked around for Dandeliondapple, wondering if she suspected the Tribe as well.

And there went the tense peace of the night.

Ashstar's fur had been prickling with unease the entire evening, but when Stoneteller finished his words, her hackles raised, bristling with anger and disbelief. This whole issue with the Mist had been unbelievably terrible for every Clan, some more than others, and hearing the Tribe leader's comfortable observation that all of his cats were safe. "None of the cats of Tribe origin have been kidnapped." All of the foreign cats were protected and safe in their little group and all of the Clans were losing their cats left and right. Of course. How had she not seen this before? It was all connected. All of it was. But how? They were still missing that crucial puzzle piece. What in StarClan's name was the Mist? So far, not even StarClan, the warrior ancestors who had been with them for as long as the Clans existed, who had brought the Tribe of Endless Skies here for whatever high and mighty reason that they wouldn't deign to share with even the medicine cats, knew what had been taking and even killing warriors and apprentices alike from the forest. And now the Tribe cats seemed to know more than they were letting on- and they refused to admit it!

Though she usually preferred peace over fighting any day, the gray-furred she-cat's pelt stood on end with fury as she glared down at the former leader of the Tribe, her light green eyes hard and cold. Taking into account all that had happened these past moons- losing Raccoonfang, seeing Mottleheart's pain, receiving nothing but empty words of consolation from their all-powerful ancestors, worrying over her Clan's well-being until it made her absolutely sick, and now the events of this Gathering- made her heart want to burst with frustration and annoyance and panic and, above all, anger. Her blood ran hot with passion, but her mind stayed calm and cool. Never had she agreed more with any words that the RiverClan leader spoke- for once, Fishstar's suspicions were echoed wholeheartedly in her mind. The newly named Blizzardstar seemed to be trying to make peace, and though the WindClan she-cat would have once agreed with her, the times were too drastic for misplaced trust and kindness. After the hot-headed interruption of one of the former Tribe cats had died down and Leopardstar had said his piece, Ashstar stepped up.

"I cannot believe this." Her voice was calm and quiet, but sharp at the same time. The words she spoke were aimed at Stoneteller, thorns aiming to prick his smug, self-satisfied pelt and burst his confident bubble. "I welcomed you into this forest. Despite my dislike of rogues, I believed your tale and trusted you. I took those of you who would accept me into my own Clan. And this is how you would repay me? Repay us?" Ashstar let out a snarl of fury and frustration, eyes now finding the "warrior" who had spoken out, and then traveling to the rest of the foreign cats that they found. Her claws unsheathed instinctively. "How dare you imply that we have not sacrificed as much as you have! We and our ancestors have lived in this forest for countless moons, generation upon generation. As long as we have lived here, nothing like this has ever happened to us. You are the outcasts here, 'ancient SkyClan blood' or not. Every single Clan in this forest is suffering because of this Mist, and all conclusive evidence points to you as the ones who brought it here! You know something, Stoneteller. Spit it out."