hopeful, hopeless ⚜ closed

The ceremony was finished, the temporary deputy had been named, and now it was time to seal Poplartooth's fate. It sounded like a hyperbole, but it was nowhere close to one. The tom's fate literally rested on whether or not he found Rippedstar. There was still plenty of time in the day, and if the tom left now, then he'd be able to return early enough to be on time for his trip to Highstones... if he even was going to Highstones. The smallest hope in the back of his mind told him that Rippedstar still had a chance of being alive. The fluffy tom padded through the dispersing crowd of warriors, and he offered a small nod to Tinylegs, before he disappeared through the camp exit. He had a job to do, and he had to be quick yet thorough. Poplartooth didn't even bother to check back over his shoulder to see if he was being followed. He didn't expect any cats to follow him. Sure, he hadn't made an explicit command for the others to stay in camp, but he figured that they would go ahead and assume to not go after him. SkyClan couldn't risk losing anyone else. That was a very hypocritical statement considering that Poplartooth was sending himself out there to find Rippedstar, but he couldn't just send out a search patrol while he hid behind the walls of the camp like some coward.

His thoughts were suddenly crushed when he heard a familiar voice behind him. Even though he was used to hearing it, he still felt a rush of annoyance and irritation rush through him from the tip of his ears to the tip of his tail. Why couldn't this cat just give him a break?Turning around swiftly, Poplartooth came face to face with the one cat he dreaded to see at a time like this.

The moment Poplartooth had declared his intention to leave and make sure of Rippedstar's fate, Sedgestrike knew he had to come. This time, there would be no failure. He would make sure Poplartooth was telling the truth, or if Rippedstar was still there, alone and unaided. Abandoned. A snarl escaped him as he tailed the deputy, his long strides easily allowed him to catch up through the bushes.
"You don't really think I trust you." He stated bluntly. The words Poplartooth had spoken in the gathering rang in his ears. How dare he insinuate that he was not worthy of being a friend. That he must be a burden on the clan when he did a good job. His hunting and fighting prowess all proved that.

Did Sparrowpaw prove it though? His thoughts crashed to a halt as he remembered his poor kit. She had barely woken up at all, barely stirring in her nest at the medicine den. His throat tightened as hatred clawed at his belly. Shade-whateverhisname still had to pay. He was startled out of his thoughts by Poplartooth's green eyes glaring back at him. Lamenting thoughts aside, he glared back, then hissed at the deputy as he abruptly shouldered past him.
"Don't even try to stop me." He warned, his silver and black specked pelt gleaming in the light, while his green eyes glared back at Poplartooth from his shadowed face. "I don't have to be a friend to any cat. SkyClan needs Warriors not friendly kittypets." He spat, ruthlessly shoving down the thoughts of how wrong his line of thinking was.

A frown of pure frustration formed on Poplartooth's maw. What was wrong with Sedgestrike? Why couldn't he learn to simply swallow his pride and fall into line? Perhaps, if that was a lesson he knew, Sparrowpaw wouldn't have been suffering and unconscious in the medicine den. If Rippedstar was dead, and he became leader, then his job would be one hundred times harder considering that he'd have to constantly deal with Sedgestrike.
"Oh, believe me, I never expected you to trust me," Poplartooth growled, narrowing his green eyes, "I expected you to follow the others and stay put in camp. I'm the one who shouldn't have trusted you to do that."
Poplartooth thought back to how the silver tom had acted when they were just apprentices. The saddest thing was, Sedgestrike hadn't changed a bit. If he had changed, he had only become a worse form of himself.

The brown-and-white tom was a bit shocked when Sedgestrike shouldered past him, and all he could do was turn back around so that he could look at him with pure disgust. On top of everything that was happening, he didn't need Sedgestrike to become another issue.
"You're right, SkyClan does need warriors. You're not acting like one of them - you're acting like a whiny kit whose mother just told them to stay in camp and behave. Any cat can tell the difference between right and wrong. Any cat can listen to orders. However, a warrior acts upon what's right instead of what's wrong, and they follow their orders instead of just listening to them. SkyClan does have warriors, and I'm afraid I can't say that about you."
Lashing his tail in a very dismissive manner, Poplartooth reclaimed the lead by pushing past Sedgestrike and continuing on his trek. There was absolutely no time to waste, and if he had to ignore Sedgestrike for the rest of the trip, so be it.

The silver tom's head lifted, proudly at first as Poplartooth spoke, but slowly his words became sharp criticisms. Sedgestrike wanted to argue back that trusting Poplartooth is what might have gotten Rippedstar into danger in the first place, when he was compared to a kit. He blinked at the thought. His tail stilled behind him as Poplartooth continued on his thoughts without pause. The want to deny every single one of Poplartooth's words were on the tip of his tongue, but the dangerous path he was about to step onto warned him. A flash of silver in his vision, the chill of those StarClan forgive us nightmares in his bones. The days were Rippedsky trained him, looked out for him... made him do stuff he didn't want to in order to help the clan.

He was a warrior, he had earned that title, whether Poplartooth respected that or not. His tail flicked as he turned in the direction the other tom had gone. Slowly, his paws began to follow Poplartooth again. His mind on the memories that he shared of his mentor. Of when they sat on that branch, and Rippedsky showed him the world that lay at his paws. The Clan he was supposed to protect, the thought of Sparrowpaw flashed through him. Was this really protection? Or was this really... selfishness?

Sedgestrike forced himself to breathe as his chest tightened. He followed the brown and white tom without a word for awhile. He wasn't wrong about his anger, Poplartooth had abandoned Rippedstar hadn't he? Except... Rippedstar would never have chosen Poplartooth if he had expected that to happen. He trusted Poplartooth in a way he didn't trust Sedgestrike and the very thought burned his mind and his heart, but it was the truth.

The truth hurt more than he liked.

"I'm just... worried." He muttered. His strong and accusing tone oddly gone as he padded at Poplartooth's shoulder. His green eyes focused on the twolegplace in front of them as his pelt felt too itchy. He had never been here, had never bothered with twolegplace and the large world brought a sense of terror he hadn't felt since he was a kit to his paws. He shoved the feeling aside as he looked at Poplartooth, really looked at the deputy, for the first time since they were apprentices. Words on his tongue that he chose not to say as he flicked his tail uncomfortably.

Poplartooth let his white ears rest against his head once silence greeted his little speech. That's all he really wanted right now. Had what he said really made that much of an impact on Sedgestrike? So much of an impact that he had been stunned into silence? Shrugging, the tom decided to shrug it off and appreciate it. As he padded along through SkyClan's territory and toward the ever infamous Twolegplace, his thoughts began to carry him away. What was he supposed to consider himself right now? He had no idea if Rippedstar was alive or not, so was he a deputy, or a leader? If SkyClan had a temporary deputy, then what was Poplartooth supposed to be? A heavy sigh echoed through the trees. All of this would be solved soon enough.

All Poplartooth could do at the time was stay hopeful and hopeless at the same time. On the outside, he had to remain positive for the sake of the cats around him. He had to stay strong, he couldn't expose how helpless he actually felt. What were the chances that Rippedstar was alive? Was it only pure paranoia that was driving the brown-and-white tom to actually go and look for him? He thought back to the young voice that he had heard before the deputy ceremony that he had conducted.
'Maybe, if you're so scared about becoming a leader now, you weren't fit to be the deputy in the first place.'

Just like he had thought back at the ceremony... perhaps his apprentice-self was correct.

A voice dragged him out of his thoughts, and Poplartooth suddenly remembered that Sedgestrike was there with him. Twolegplace was in clear view, and the brown-and-white tom couldn't help but wrinkle his nose as the smell of twolegs and monsters began to overwhelm his scent of smell. Why was Sedgestrike suddenly acting so... soft. A small pang of confusion struck the tom's heart, and he glanced over at the silver warrior beside him. No, Poplartooth felt no remorse for what he said to Sedgestrike. The truth was something that could hurt, and it was about time that someone shoved the truth into Sedgestrike's face. However, the fluffy tom let out a quiet sigh as he spoke a little quieter.

"I know. I'm worried, too. Let's just get this over with, okay? I don't wanna spend more time here than I have to. Follow me."

Poplartooth turned sharply to the right, beginning to follow the path that he and Rippedstar had taken when they went to track down the rogues. It all seemed to come to his memory easier than he thought it would, and his pace soon picked up to a jog. Twoleg den after twoleg den went by, and it began to make the tom feel dizzy. He felt enclosed. Even though he was used to constantly being surrounded by trees, the twoleg dens made him feel utterly trapped. He passed familiar landmarks, places that he and Rippedstar had stopped to rest for the night, and a rush of relief went through him once he made it to the place he wanted to be.

The patch of tall grass located directly behind one of the twoleg dens was where he and Rippedstar had stayed the night before Poplartooth had returned to SkyClan. It was the last place he had seen his leader. If only he had known then that he would never see Rippedstar again... Poplartooth never would've left his side.

"We were here last," The feline explained, shaking his head, "The smell of monsters is making it too hard to pick out Rippedstar's scent. It would probably be stale by now, but at least it would've given us some sort of hint."

Sedgestrike nodded at Poplartooth's words and stayed at the other tom's side as they headed into the twolegplace. It reeked of filthy twoleg things and monsters. His muzzle grimaced as he caught a scent of kittypet and looked at the strange wooden structure at their side that looked unstable and strange. The glint of monster eyes as they passed occaisionally ruffled his fur and made it spike uncomfortably. His claws dug into the concrete as much as they could as they both hurried to get to the first place in their search.

The small patch of grass made him sigh in relief. The indent in it was old, but he padded forward in the desperate hope of catching a wisp of his mentor's scent. Beneath the scent of grass and monster, beneath what the twolegs put on it... he couldn't find it. Part of his mind thought he had it, but it fled far too fast for him to get a clear idea of where Rippedstar could have gone. He stood and looked around them. His tail flicked as he thought about his mentor and his habits.

Perhaps he had chosen to go deeper into twolegplace... but there was few places to run or climb. Sedgestrike wasn't foolish, but surely Rippedstar hadn't...
"You don't think he..." Sedgestrike looked pointedly deeper into twolegplace. The shadows of an ally not far loomed onto the street. The darkness of it was intimidating, but worse, the stench of kittypet, of ... dog. His pelt bristled in alarm. He hadn't encountered one since the attack that killed Crowstar, and he wasn't eager to repeat the experience.
"Maybe he went back towards the forest. No rogues are worth chasing in here."

Poplartooth quietly watched as Sedgestrike padded closer to confirm that Rippedstar's scent wasn't there. Perhaps it was pure desperation that made Poplartooth think that he picked up the scent of the black-and-white leader. Where else could he have possibly gone? Upon hearing his companion's voice, the fluffy tom glanced deeper into twolegplace as well. It made no sense to wander deeper into a dangerous place. The rogues could only be a true threat if they were lingering around SkyClan's territory, not in the depths of twolegplace. Rippedstar was an intelligent cat. Truly he couldn't have believed that it was worth it to risk so much and go where most Clan cats would never even dream of going?
"But... if he went back towards the forest, then he probably would've been home by now. We didn't pick up the scents of any predators on the way here, so nothing could've attacked him. I don't think Rippedstar would've risked wandering onto rival Clan territory, but I also don't think he would've risked going so deep into twolegplace."

Poplartooth found his ears pricked and alert as a soft yet sickening sound began to fill his sense of hearing. The tom took a small step forward, trying to figure out what it was, when the threatening, tall figure of a dog made itself known from its place in the shadows. It's fur was black, like the darkness of the night, and only the sunlight from the current day made it visible to the eye. The sickening sound had been the creature's throaty growls. It was far too late to make a run for it. The dog had locked its eyes on the two cats. It had spotted its prey, and it seemed like it was willing to spring out of its shadowy spot and start a chase if they fled.

"Wait," Poplartooth breathed out, "Rippedstar's scent stops here, and this dog was right near the place we slept for the night... d-do you think the dog-"

He couldn't finish his sentence.

The dog, in all its horrifying glory, padded swiftly out of its little spot and glared intensely at Sedgestrike and Poplartooth. The tom felt his blood run cold as he met the yellow gaze of the creature. He had hoped that a fight wouldn't be involved during this trip... but most of the things he had hoped for today hadn't happened. It was starting to become a nasty trend. There was no running away from this one. Unsheathing his claws, the tom lowered himself closer to the ground and let out a growl that rivalled that of the dog's. Hopefully, Sedgestrike wouldn't act irrationally.

⚜ a dog has appeared. ⚜

dog ⚜
150/150 HP
350/350 SP

poplartooth ⚜
100/100 HP
280/280 SP

The fact that Poplartooth was right in his observations sent a chill down Sedgestrike's spine. One he refuted and fought back with clenched claws and a glare in the other tom's direction.
"Maybe he realised his mistake and was too ashamed to return." He meowed, though his voice didn't carry the spite half as well as he felt it should have. It was more empty, hollow. The realisation that Rippedstar was truly gone sinking into his bones unsettlingly. The black and white tom was like a father to him, the idea that he suddenly up and dissappeared hurt like claws in his chest.

His ears twitched at an unfamiliar sound. Fur brushed against something, he turned towards it to analyze what he immediately assumed to be another cat. Instead, he was met with the shadow of a large dog. Sedgestrike's green eyes widened in terrified recognition of the enemy. A dog. Not the same one as the ones who killed Crowstar, but a dog that was definitely a danger. Poplartooth's words were barely heard to his flattened ears, but when they were...

The silver tom's anger surfaced. When the beast padded out of it's spot, the chill from his spine vanished. Replaced by fury that Rippedstar must have met his end to the beast. It was not a fate he deserved, he was meant to be a long leader, to lead SkyClan to glory. Here this dog had ended it all. So Sedgestrike would end it.

With a flash, the silver tom's body rushed to the black dog's. A mighty leap throwing it onto the beasts back as his teeth and claws dug into the dog's back with a furious yowl that echoed in the street.

Sedgestrike used Jumping Strike on the Dog.

Sedgestrike
60/60
180/200


Dog
138/150 (-12)
350/350

⚜ poplartooth ⚜

Poplartooth watched as Sedgestrike flung himself at the dog, and it didn't take much time for him to do the same. With an angry screech, the fluffy tom lifted himself up on his hind legs and swiped at the black dog's hideous face with unsheathed claws. There was absolutely no mercy involved. This creature had killed his leader. After serving SkyClan as the deputy and gaining nine lives, Rippedstar hadn't deserved to have everything ripped (haha) away from him so quickly. It was time to shove this dog's victory and pride down its throat.

⚜ poplartooth used front paws strike on dog, dealing 15 damage and costing 25 stamina. ⚜

poplartooth ⚜
100/100 HP
255/280 SP

dog ⚜
123/150 HP
350/350 SP

sedgestrike ⚜
60/60 HP
180/200 SP

● dog ●

Harlem's muse had decided to mercilessly abandon her, and she honestly did not feel like going into any depth with the thoughts or actions of the dog. So, simply, the dog was mad and decided to attack the cat that had attacked him first.

● dog used thrash on sedgestrike, dealing 20 damage and costing 20 stamina. sedgestrike is stunned for one turn. ●

poplartooth ●
100/100 HP
255/280 SP

dog ●
123/150 HP
330/350 SP

sedgestrike ●
40/60 HP
180/200 SP

The member 'Gharem' has done the following action : Dices roll

---

'Effect Dice' : 1

Sedgestrike couldn't contain his yowl of pain as he fell and was grabbed by the dog's cruel jaws. Pain lanced through his leg as he felt the world twist around him as he was thrashed.

Sedgestrike was stunned this turn

Sedgestrike
40/60
180/200

Dog
123/150
330/350

ooc; i've officially given up.

⚜ poplartooth ⚜

Poplartooth attacked the dog.

⚜ poplartooth used half-turn belly rake, dealing 16 damage and costing 20 stamina. ⚜

poplartooth ⚜
100/100 HP
235/280 SP

dog ⚜
107/150
330/350

sedgestrike ⚜
40/60 HP
180/200 SP

● dog ●

The dog attacked Sedgestrike.

● dog used heavy blow on sedgestrike, dealing 25 damage and costing 20 stamina. sedgestrike is no longer stunned. ●

dog ●
107/150
310/350

sedgestrike ●
15/60 HP
180/200 SP

poplartooth ●
100/100 HP
235/280 SP

OOC: RIP Harlem's muse.

Sedgestrike used Half-turn belly rake

Sedgestrike
15/60
160/200 (-20)

Dog
94/150 (-13)
310/350

Sedgestrike yowled as he launched himself at the head of the dog again. The slavering jaws narrowly missed as his claws raked down the beast's eye.


Sedgestrike used Rear-up to slash

Sedgestrike
15/60
145/200 (-15)

Dog
67/150 (-13)
290/350