February’s Gathering 2018

Violetshine had watched from the periphery, not feeling comfortable talking to the ThunderClanner as she viewed most outsiders with deep mistrust, but she had remained there for her Firestone. Just a pawstep's away, watching him carefully in case the warrior was going to pick a fight with them over that annoying she-cat. But instead, they spoke animately, and she let down her guard, choosing to instead watch the leader's interact and scan for signs of trouble. She missed the point where everything went wrong as Firestone heard the news of Specklefang's death, and bristled with anger when she noticed him walk over to her all dejected and weak. She was furious, until she saw the pain in Leafstorm's eyes that made her rethink things. It wasn't an attack, bad news then.

When Firestone all but fell into her paws, she clung to him equally fiercely. Her expression hardening, as if she was getting ready to fight the world for him. She wasn't the best speaker, like her father, she was stilted and awkward in her phrasing, but this she could give him. She would be his solace, as he was her rock. She licked his shoulder gently, and gave him her support.

And when Foxpaw came over, all bushy-tailed and eager, she meowed after Firestone. "Go have a look at the medicine cats near the rock, Foxpaw. It is good to know what each of them look like, and remember their scent. Ask Scorchfang for help, if you need."

It was a clear dismissal. Firestone needed a moment alone, and she didn't like his false tone. It grated on her ears, every word ringing hollow. She liked him for his honesty, and hated it when he was put in a moment like this. "Do you want to leave? I will head back with you."

Rippedsky's expression grew grim as he listened to the other deputy's response. First, their medicine cat was attacked by a Windclan cat, then more leafbare deaths. He assumed for a moment it was due to sickness. However, watching Jaystream's face and the start of a sentence, he was able to piece it all together. Their clanmates lives had been taken due to the war between the clans. Given his clan was not involved and Crowstar had given no inclination they would be, the deputy did not feel called to ally himself with either side mentally. Both had made mistakes, and both had lost cats. It was an ugly time for each side. His tail tip flicked as he briefly considered what he would do in that position. Would he one day lead Skyclan into war? Hopefully not.

"I'm sorry to hear of your losses, Haystream... death of any kind is a loss for all." He meowed softly, blue eyes showing his genuine nature. If he were to switch roles with the Riverclan cat, he wasn't sure how he would feel. The tom was much younger in nature and his position. It was a lot for him to deal with, "I hope that Starclan will bring an end to all this conflict." Trailing off, Rippedsky looked back to Twistedtail. Guilt caused him to glance away for a second as he straightened his posture. The she-cat did not deserve to be ignored. But, her overly friendly nature with him, issues from the past, and many other factors played into his curt manner of handling the Windclan warrior. When he spoke again, his words were just as stiff as before.

"Yes. Everything is fine. How is Windclan fairing?" Unfortunately still going after apprentices, I see...
and now medicine cats. Rippedsky did not hate his former clan, but he was still disappointed with what he saw at times. The very things that had led him to leave the clan had not entirely disappeared. Maybe someday that would happen.

***

"Well... I was born without mine." Mumblepaw muttered softly. He always felt awkward about being different, both in looks and personality. But, standing next to another cat who kind of was like him put the young tom more at ease. Realizing it was out of place to be standing, he shuffled into a sitting position. As Brichheart spoke of the cold, he found himself nodding. She was right. A chill ran down his spine. That made him remember the last gathering, which in turn made him remember Bonestrike. The apprentice's head whipped around to search for his friend. Much to his surprise, the Shadowclan cat was nearby. With a nod of his head, the black and white tom called the other cat over.

Once the large, pure white tom had joined them, Mumblepaw managed out a quick introduction, "B-birchheart, this is Bonestrike. He's Shadowclan." It was new to him to be talking to others, especially at a gathering where things were rather overwhelming. Although, in the presence of a tom he trusted and a she-cat whose tail, or lack thereof, was strikingly like his own, Mumblepaw seemed to be more at ease than ever.

Twistedtail felt unhappy with how curt her friend's reply was. Where was the old Rippedkit that she and... and Sprucekit played with in the nursery? Had so much time really passed?

Twistedtail looked away uncertainly as she tried to think of a proper answer to her question. Really so many bad things have happened to the point she wanted to die, but did she want Rippedsky to think she was helpless or something?

"Well, times have been tough," she started, "Heathershade... she joined her sister in Starclan. My little babies have found their places in the stars quite some time ago. I didn't come to the recent Gatherings because I just... wanted some time to recover. I know she's happy and she's with Echopaw now."

Twistedtail sighed. The next bit was harder to talk about since it involved the whole clan. "And recently, one of the Windclan apprentices, this little guy named Wolfpaw, he accidentally attacked another apprentice in the clan. There's something in his mind, plaguing him. He freaked out once he realized what he done and brought her-- Dovepaw-- back to the camp, confessed that he attacked her, and begged for Ashstar to punish him. That's not really what I'm worried about, honestly. I was the only person who defended him really. What I'm more worried about is just about the whole clan wants Ashstar to murder him or they'll do it themselves. It's real scary since they all want to hurt him and I'm worried that if they're so quick to wish death upon a kit... what if they try worse things?"

"Well... besides that bit of rambling I just did... that's just about the bulk of the drama. One of my fellow warriors Fernfeather just lost... both her eyes and her tail. I feel bad for her since she no longer can hunt or fight. If she comes to a future Gathering I think you should go over and just wish her that she gets better, okay?"

OOC: woop big text block

"This past moon has been cruel to RiverClan, two of our cats murdered by ThunderClan, and our medicine cat apprentice mauled by WindClan. It seems our worst fears are upon us, yet ShadowClan and SkyClan have yet to respond to our offers. I urge both leaders once again to reconsider their positions, see the danger that lurks just beyond their borders." Ivystar did not hesitate in airing her grievances, as she recognised that this was potentially her last chance to try get these stubborn old toms on her side. Ashstar was growing bolder, having forgotten what she'd lost the last time they went against RiverClan. And though Blizzardstar was cowed, she didn't trust her to remain that way for long. Hunger turned cats into beasts, and Leafbare was far from over. "Other than interference from other clans, RiverClan have endured this harsh Leafbare well. Though prey is short, we've yet to lose a kit to hunger. We have some new apprentices with us, Bluepaw, Petalpaw, Shadepaw, Sleetpaw, Pinepaw. And two new warriors, Wolfsong and Reedclaw. We pray that they will live long and healthy lives that do not get tragically cut short as Rowanpaw and Fawnsong's were."

Spotpaw looked down. All that Riverclan had lost... He had only felt more helpless once in his life.

Shadepaw puffed out his chest proudly as his name was mentioned by Ivystar. At the mention of the deaths of the apprentice and warrior he never got to know by the claws of ThunderClan, he glared at the Clan cats in question and snarled, his hackles raising. "You hear that, you filthy dung-eaters? Cross over our territory again and we'll slaughter your entire Clan!"

Scorchfang heard the RiverClan apprentice speak out of turn, and he shot a glare at the cat sitting next to him, Silverfang. "It's not my place to tell your Clanmates how to raise their apprentices, but please do teach them not to speak out of turn, let alone threaten other cats at a Gathering."

Lionpaw’s hackles rose at the arrogant words of the Riverclan apprentice, “I’d like to see you try fishbrain.” The large Tom spat, no matter what had happened, murdering an entire clan would never be allowable by the warrior code. The words just confirmed what he’d heard about Riverclan, they were arrogant war mongers who needed to be knocked down a peg or probably three.

"Cross the border, we'll see who wins." Minnowslip sneered at the WindClan apprentice, her yellow eyes glinting dangerously as she stood by Shadepaw with pride. She wouldn't back down, not after all they'd lost. She still mourned her brother's loss, and the thought of drawing blood from the clans that had brought hers ruin was very tempting.

Rippedsky, who was sitting down at the base of the rock listened intently. There had been no time to respond to Twistedtail, and for that, he felt another pang of guilt. Their conversation would have to wait for another time. Although, the deputy knew that time would likely never come. It was not surprising when Ivystar's words caused a bit of an uproar in the crowd. High tensions now seemed to include Windclan as much as they did Thunderclan and Riverclan. Apparently, this was only getting worse. He longed for the warmth and life of newleaf to come sooner to soothe the aggravation between clans.

Not far off from where he was at, Riverclan and Windclan cats seemed nearly at each other's throats. They could not break the peace. With a quick glance at Jaystream, the black and white deputy abandoned his place underneath the leaders. Once he stood in front of the Riverclan pair and the other cats, he meowed lowly, "Not at the gathering. Your issues can be resolved later. This is a time of peace." Rippedsky made sure to fix each of the younger cats with an intense stare. While he had already resolved not to get involved unless his clan demanded it, this was one issue he could not let go unanswered. He stood with his paws planted firmly on the ground, prepared to stand in the way if they attempted to escalate things further.

The she-cat nodded. "I lost mine in a battle." She let out a soft laugh. "That sounds like a kit story, doesn't it? Oh well." Birchheart dipped her head in welcome to Bonestrike, smiling warmly and growing more comfortable around the strangers.

However, when Ivystar spoke, her smile fell and her gaze dropped. She shouldn't be sad that Specklefang was dead! Why was she? It was wrong to morn a cat that had done such a horrible thing even if she was her mother. The warrior looked over at Spotpaw, remembering how he'd wish her well last time they spoke. It hadn't been too long ago where he declared her niece would slaughter all the RiverClan kits if she could.

Shaking her head, she blinked back tears she didn't know where there and cleared her throat. "Sorry about that." Her mew started shaky but grew to just a slight waver as she spoke. Birchheart pushed snow around them further away, clearing more space in case Bonestrike came closer.

"Make me?" Sedgepaw questioned the orange apprentice with a laugh. He glanced around, confident that this would be unseen as most of the gathering was in front of highrock, unless one of them yowled for help, he doubted they would pay attention to two apprentices. His lighter green eyes glared down at Featherpaw's darker ones. "You can't make me do anything." The silver tom sneered as he leaped into Featherpaw's path. The orange tom had turned to avoid conflict, but Sedgepaw felt his ire rise every second. This was one of the Thunderclan cats that had beat him and Poplarpaw... and now it was time to show him how much he had improved. Sedgepaw hissed and leapt towards Featherpaw, claws unsheathed to land a solid blow on the other tom's shoulder. "What's the matter Featherpaw, too delicate to fight back?" He taunted his opponent as Featherpaw glared back at him.

"Sheath your claws! This is a gathering!" Featherpaw spat angrily, forced to back up and take the blow to his shoulder with a wince. "If I beat you once, I can do it again." He growled, his ears flattened as he heard Ivystar speaking from Highrock and he knew this needed to stop. They couldn't fight here, he wouldn't fight here. He at least, would respect the code even as he felt his ear tear from a vicious slice of claws. His body suddenly fell out from under him as the skyclan tom pinned him to the ground. "Get off!" He hissed, sheathed back paws pushing at the other tom's bulk.

OOC: Don't worry, Ripped will interrupt this scuffle)

Scorchpaw scanned the crowd from where he sat with his clanmates, bright green eyes unreadable. Although the cats of the gathering seemed to be talking to each other and acting friendly, he could still sense the slight tension that hung in the air. RiverClan's dispute with ThunderClan had surely reached the ears of the other clans by now. Ivystar's words suddenly reached his ears, and the young tom directed his attention to his leader sitting atop the Great Rock. Breath bated, he waited for Crowstar and Magpiestar to respond to Ivystar's offers of allegiance. For a few moments, a fight seemed about to break out between some Riverclanners and Windclanners, but a black and white tom--Scorchpaw noticed that he was a deputy, probably of SkyClan--stepped in to prevent a fight. Scorchpaw looked up at the swollen full moon, its glow bright and clear. Let this gathering end before the truce is broken. The apprentice thought. He wanted to spend as little time as possible in this clearing crowded with strangers and atmosphere of unease.

xxx

Tigerpaw looked away from Rosepaw when RiverClan's leader began to speak. Staring up at the Great Rock, she felt a chill slip down her spine at the sight of the five imposing leaders. Her bright yellow eyes widened at the words she heard. ThunderClan had killed two RiverClanners? And RiverClan's medicine cat... attacked by WindClan? She cast a nervous glance at the cats around her. But why would ThunderClan do such a thing? And why would WindClan attack a medicine cat? It was against the warrior code. "You hear that, you filthy dung-eaters? Cross over our territory again and we'll slaughter your entire Clan!" At the words of a nearby RiverClan apprentice, she felt the fur along her back bristle slightly. A fight looked about to break out. Before it could, however, Rippedsky stepped before the angry-looking cats and muttered something to them. She was a little distance away, so she could not make out his words clearly. The she-cat let out an inward sigh of relief. The truce had not been broken... yet.

Shadepaw lashed his tail in surprised frustration when he got cats arguing with him instead of backing him up. He was doing exactly what Sweetheart wouldn't do! Isn't that what he was supposed to be doing? He snorted, then decided to take a calmer, more logical approach and grunted, "Alright, fine. Suppose leaf-bare is the worse time to start another battle. Why not newleaf, then? I just don't want those fox-hearts getting too cocky and trying to attack us again, that's all. They need to know the full gravity of the situation they've gotten themselves into. Surely someone agrees with me. Or are we going to do what Sweetheart suggests we do and roll over on our backs and let ThunderClan take what they want from us just so they can survive leaf-bare?"

Spotpaw flicked his tail and looked at the younger apprentice. "Of course we don't want them taking our land, that's easy to determine. But we don't want to be too battle-hungry, Shadepaw. I think that if someone attacks us, we'll stop them from taking anything like we did with Sunningrocks- and we'll do it without killing. We don't want a repeat of history. Use your head. We don't want battles, but it's inevitable. Clans get greedy, Clans will take territory, cats get cocky, it's our way of life.
"

Silverfang sighed, annoyed by this stupid that arguing that her apprentice had started thanks to his fiery and impulsive personality. He glanced at the Shadowclan tom with deadly glare but he had a point. She hissed at him before standing up. "Yes, you're right. You're no one to tell another clan how to raise their apprentices so mind your own business. I'll handle Sweetheart's bold kit now." She mewed that last part to herself rather than to the other warrior.

The young warrior approached Shadepaw she pushed him to her with a paw. "Okay, Shadepaw. That's enough talking for today. Come and sit with me unless you want to clean the den of the elders for the next moon."

The she-cat carried her apprentice to the place where she was sitting and looked at him with narrowed eyes. With a low voice that could only be heard by Shadepaw, Silverfang started talking. "I dislike Sweetheart as much as you do and I honestly agreed with almost everything you said there. But like Spotpaw said, we don't start wars unless is extremely necessary. Thunderclan might be a piece of scum and believe me, I would love to kick their butts but what you suggest goes against the Code and the peace of this Gathering. Killing an entire clan is not okay and you can't ever suggest something like that or you will be seen just like your mother: like a traitor. Understood?" Her voice was strict and severe. The she-cat liked the initiative and fierceness of her apprentice, but he had to control it for his own well-being and the well-being of the clan. Riverclan didn't need a future murderer in their lines.

Once everything was settled, the she-cat sat down with Shadepaw by his side but she suddenly noticed something strange. He... somehow looked similar to the ShadowClanner that talked to her before. Tilting her head, confused, the she-cat looked at the older tom with curiosity. "Hey, you! I think I didn't catch up your name. Who are you, ShadowClanner?"