Won't Stay There. [closed for Rainy]

Boarpaw's fur was more ragged than usual as he dropped his catch off in the pile. He couldn't do this. Not after what had happened to Gingerstripe. He wouldn't let it go that far. Though he felt sick to his stomach, he grabbed a vole and spotted Leopardclaw. The tom felt as if their pelts truly displayed them now. Leopardclaw was golden while he was gray and dusty. One was untouched, regal while the other was coarse, in patches. "...Leopardclaw? Can I... speak to you about something?" He meowed softly after dropping the vole at his paws, nudging it forward to the deputy. His tail twitched and he awaited an answer with baited breath.

Leopardclaw lay near the base of Highrock, his hazel eyes that once glowed with determined intelligence now reduced to a dull expression of worry as he gazed down at his paws.  When he heard Boarpaw approach him though, he seemed to snap out of it, and he turned his gaze upward to rest on the patchy-furred apprentice's face.  He forced a half-smile, trying to appear enthusiastic, before purring  "Of course."  His voice rasped in his throat; the deputy patted the ground beside him with his tail tip, inviting the younger tom to rest beside him.  He only gave the vole a sideways glance, he didn't have much of an appetite.  He was aware though that it was rude to refuse a meal, so he pulled the fresh-kill closer to him with a forepaw, but didn't dig in quite yet.  Instead, he blinked calmly and meowed; "What's on your mind?"

"Where to start?" Boarpaw shook his head, settling down next to the deputy. His whiskers drooped. "Something awful happened recently. I offered to help Sharptooth stretch her legs since she had broken one and was stuck in the nursery. It was going well for a while." The tom stared down at his paws and took a breath. "But, apparently, my old leader back in DawnClan had come looking for me. She had her own motives outside of DawnClan to have me back and she planned to take me dead or alive." The tom's shoulder dully ached at the memory of the slash he'd received rather than a death blow. "I wasn't going to go alive. Nothing would be worth leaving ThunderClan. And so, she was ready to kill me. Sharptooth knocked her off before I could be killed and..." He grit his teeth. "Something must have been wrong with Pigeon, she must have been sick! Her back broke under the weight and she died then and there." He took in a breath again. "I haven't been around Sharptooth for any considerable amount of time but, I know that at that moment, she had no intention of killing her. You can't predict that your weight will break the back of a fully grown cat with so much outward strength. Leopardclaw, the only one there that had the plan to kill was Pigeon. She would have stopped at nothing to get to me." He looked up at the leader nervously. "I've already witnessed the outcome of keeping such serious secrets. I knew that it was better to just speak about it before any truth could be blurred with time. If there is any guilt in defending a clanmate, I will bare all of her's. She's done so much for me already."

Leopardclaw listened in patient silence as Boarpaw spoke, the deputy's eyes narrowing intently with every word that exited the young tom's mouth.  With a slow, tense exhale of air that he had been holding in, his mind whirled with worry, and a small bit of frustration.  Oh StarClan, another cat killed on our territory, by one of our warriors...why is this becoming so commonplace?  He had to remind himself though, that this was a much different case than with Flickerpaw and Specklefang.  Once Boarpaw had finished his speech, the broad warrior closed his hazel eyes and sighed deeply, before blinking them open once again.  When he turned his gaze finally onto Boarpaw though, he tried his best to look comforting.  "Thank you for coming forward and telling me this information Boarpaw, I know it must've taken a lot.  It is clear to me from your words that this rogue she-cat only has herself to blame for her death, and I trust what you say.  I will notify Blizzardstar of what has happened, but I doubt that you will be put on trial like...others have in the not-so-distant past.  You two were clearly defending yourselves, and that is what we expect of our warriors; the bravery to defend and fight for your clanmates, above all else."  For the first time that day, Leopardclaw gave a genuine smile.  "I know how hard it is to prove yourself to a camp full of strangers, and if anything this incident shows that you are no longer a rogue Boarpaw; you've cut ties with that part of your life forever, and I respect you for that."