A Long Overdue Conversation [Closed]

After speaking with Riverclan, the black and white tom headed for Thunderclan with Blossomheart in tow. Tomorrow they would head for Shadowclan, today the other forest-dwelling clan. There was a deeply buried part of him that was eager to speak with the fluffy, Thunderclan leader. For the past few moons, tensions between the clans had grown and his cats had been caught in a number of border skirmishes because of it. How had they gone from being on at least friendly terms to attacking one another on sight? Well, he had an idea. Crowstar's choice to side with Riverclan negated any past instances of aid or connection. Although the leader had made the decision to fight alongside one clan, if it had come to that, he had also longed to give aid to Thunderclan. This was something passed onto Rippedstar. He hoped that they would be able to be friendly despite the opinions of their allies. Once upon a time, he had mourned the friendship lost, but now he was more focused on pressing issues and believed they might be able to find some sort of peace through it. More than anything, he wanted to avoid a fight.

As they neared the territory, there was a cat who looked like a young warrior. The tom's fur bristled, but before he could speak, Rippedstar greeted him, "We're just here to speak to Blizzardstar. I need to discuss a few things with her, nothing more." His blue eyes bore into the aggressive and muscular young warrior. Although he and Blossomheart could take the massive tabby, he was not here to shed more blood. With narrow eyes, he waited for what he assumed was a warrior to concede. Although a growl left his throat, the words that followed after were reassuring.

"Fine. I'll take you to Blizzardstar. But, one false step and I won't hesitate to chase you off the territory." Eaglepaw hissed at the other leader, before swallowing his pride. While all he wanted to do was defend his clan, this was a leader, after all, one ordained by Starclan and it would be stupid to be disrespectful. The apprentice turned towards the camp. After a moment, he glanced over his shoulder and meowed with a little less hostility, "My name is Eaglepaw, by the way." Amber eyes looked at the pair for a moment before returning back to the path ahead. Internally, he doubted himself a little bit. Was it the right thing to bring enemy cats straight into the heart of their territory? While this didn't look like a battle patrol, he had his doubts. Would Specklefang have handled it this way? Eaglepaw pushed away the thoughts as they neared camp and nodded to the guards before padding into camp at the head of the trio. He marched over to his leader's den before a warrior could question him and called, "Blizzardstar! Rippedstar and some Skyclan cat are here. They say they need to speak with you. It better be good." There was a hint of a challenge as he glanced back at the pair.

Blossomheart tagged along with Rippedstar. Her spirits were not as low as when they left, but there was still work to do.

Blizzardstar smiled as she padded out from her den with head and tail high, the defeated look she had during the past moons seemed to have melted away with the snow of leafbare “Greetings Rippedsk-star” She had to quickly correct herself at the last second, flinching lightly as she remembered that Crowstar was no longer between them and the tom before her was now their leader, some info that she hadn’t been able to fully process yet “What brings you and your warrior to ThunderClan?” She politely nodded to the warrior that came with him as a greeting, she would’ve addressed her by her name but she lacked knowledge of it.

Rippedstar didn’t seem to be specially nervous, and not him neither the warrior were showing signs of hostility or anger, so she felt sure to affirm they weren’t here for anything her clan had caused. Those were always god news, especially towards a clan which, regardless of their current alliances, she liked to consider as a friend. She doubted they had come to ask for herbs or prey though, as even if it was known that ThunderClan had been blessed this season, said things should also be plentiful enough for all clans at the current time…but then what kind of news could be serious enough to get their neighboring clan to trespass instead of waiting until the next gathering arrived?

He could see the confusion in her eyes and hoped that he would be able to quickly clear things up for the fluffy, white leader. Rippedstar had always known her to be sensible. When she briefly stumbled over his new name, the tom felt his chest tighten, once more considering the loss of his dear leader and friend. Pushing away the thought, he tried to refocus himself on more important matters. There were so many things to say, but he felt it most important to address the situation from leafbare before launching into the specifics of why he had chosen today to have this conversation. He dipped his head respectfully to the more experienced leader before meowing, "I meant to come earlier to discuss things, but Skyclan has been a bit... busy. But, I wanted to apologize for our inability to help more during the cold season. You know that we were an ally to Thunderclan, and I had hoped that would not change. Unfortunately, that is the way of clan matters. I am glad to see your clan thriving again."

Part of him considered addressing the fact that since their alliance with Riverclan, his clan had seen an increase in an outbreak of border scuffles, several of which he had been the target of himself. However, he recognized that the warriors had a right to be upset. Leafbare had been harsh to them and most of the clans, as cruel and unforgiving as it had been. Crowstar's decision not to stand by them in the case of war likely felt many cats feeling hopeless. Blizzardstar had likely shared in those feelings, at least somewhat. But, knowing her forgiving nature, he considered the fact that perhaps the leader had not harbored a hatred towards Skyclan. With that out of the way, he knew that it was only right to be direct about their reason for coming. A sigh left his maw and he shook his head ever so slightly before continuing, "I'm afraid I did not simply come all this way to apologize and talk, although as I had mentioned at the gathering, that was my intention."

Rippedstar glanced over her expression, trying to read the emotions settling in there, but he was too focused on what he was about to say to decipher them, "I have reason to believe that Windclan will be planning an attack on our camp. Not even a sunset ago, a patrol of Windclan cats somehow found their way to the Skyclan border. My warrior told them to return to their own territory, and for it, they were attacked." He paused to let that sit for a moment, "One of my apprentices, young and reckless, bit his throat and did more damage than she intended. A Windclan apprentice is dead." The words tasted sour on his maw. As much as he did not like the fact that this had happened, as much as he hated unnecessary death, the leader stuck by his cat in her defense of the clan. Nothing more than that.

Flicking his tail, he spoke once more, "A Windclan patrol showed up, demanding justice for their lost cat. After hearing from my patrol, and seeing the horrified look in Hazelpaw's eyes, I knew she was no murderer. Because of this, she is being put on strict battle training under me until she is deemed ready to be a warrior. Ashstar was not satisfied with this and has vowed to come punish the apprentice herself. You can only imagine what that might mean..." There was no fear in his voice, and while he kept a neutral expression, there was an obvious tone of genuine concern for his clan. When he met Blizzardstar's gaze, the black and white tom's eyes showed more emotion than they had since Crowstar's death. For once, he allowed the facade to melt away for a brief moment, surprised that moment happened to be with the Thunderclan leader. Even though it was only in his expression, Rippedstar's words sounded that much softer accompanying them, "I have come to ask that if Windclan comes to ask for your aid in battle, that you refuse. I don't want to see anymore unnecessary bloodshed. For our clans alike."

As he waited, the tom swallowed softly and stood a little higher, regaining the bits of composure he had lost in pleading with the Thunderclan leader for her assistance in avoiding the potential battle that was to come. Once more, his features hardened as he awaited a response. With Riverclan's assistance, he was not worried about winning. What concerned him more was his cats being injured in the first place. Rippedstar had not told her about the rogues on their territory or mentioned how they were still recovering from the dog attack. Despite his lack of emotion as of late, he was bound to his duty to protect Crowstar's clan, and a much deeper desire buried deep inside... the fact that he genuinely loved and cared for his clan. Even if he was not thinking about all of this, hopefully, Blizzardstar would recognize that.

Butterflies danced in Blossomheart's stomach as Rippedstar spoke, especially as he mentioned her daughter. Not by name, but they both knew exactly who it was. She admired Rippedstar for asking Windclan's ally not to fight. That had to be hard.