July Gathering 2019

"That's not Scorchstar," Emberheart whispered. "He's not here, as far as I can tell.... And I don't know who that is." Her gaze remained fixated on the Great Rock. It must be a ShadowClan cat, but... "Their deputy doesn't seem to be here, either... Stay close, and if I tell you to, you will run." She hoped he wouldn't need to, but felt the need to prepare for the worst possible outcome; and Galepaw's safety was the first thing on her mind should it come to pass.

A purr rose in her throat as the small cat next to Raventail raised her voice, firing question after question her way. Smiling at the introduction, Dappleshine nodded her head to the apprentice. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Goldenpaw. It's true, I have a tendency to throw fish at anyone who makes fun of my doing so, Raventail learned this first paw as an apprentice!" She winked at her before looking back to Raventail, smile widening. "Congratulations, my friend, I wish you the best of luck in your training sessions! I also got my first apprentice, Ospreypaw." She turned to find him in the crowd, pointing him out with her tail. "He's been wonderful, eager and learning quickly. Have the moors been treating you all well? It's been much calmer hunting in RiverClan, despite the occasional eagle. Make sure you watch the skies, especially if you're carrying a hare I discovered." Dappleshine rolled her shoulders, the wounds, fairly fresh, crisscrossing over them. "Don't worry, I was able to add the eagle to the fresh kill pile as well, it didn't get away with my hare."

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Eyes narrowed at the introduction of the strange cat, and Goldenpaw sniffed aloud, nose wrinkling. "She smells like water... And fish." Her next words confirmed her suspicions, that this cat was from a different clan... RiverClan to be precise. As she continued to talk, Goldenpaw felt more and more out of place, and found herself searching for where her siblings had been. Her search hastened when she started to speak of her apprentice, and she found herself not wanting to hear what Raventail had to say about her. He'd probably talk about how she had volunteered to help with the tunnels and gone against him. Her paws shuffled and ears lowered as her eyes finally met a familiar pelt in the sea of cats swarming across the clearing, and she nudged Raventail lightly and spoke quickly and quietly. "I'm going to umm... I'm gonna go." She started to walk away before turning back, remembering her manners, and nodded to the she-cat, who gave one in return. Then she wiggled her way through the throng of cats to the familiar one at the edge of the clearing, settling next to her father. They had mended things, but she was still nervous about disappointing him again, so she stayed quiet as she waited for what would come next. 

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Mosspaw watched from her place with the other medicine cats as she saw Amberdawn and Aspenpaw pad in with their clans, their respective leaders making their way up the great rock. Soon the only clan left was ShadowClan, and as time went on the warning that Mothpaw had shared rang in her ears. She found herself worrying for the state of the black she-cat, hoping that all was well. Just then, the crowd parted, revealing a strikingly familiar calico pelt. "Burntstag?," She gasped as the tom made his way up to sit with the rest of the leaders, and before she knew it her eyes were searching behind him for the hauntingly familiar grey pelt of Flintfang. It wasn't long before she saw his eyes staring back at her, and she let out a gasp when after only a heartbeat he turned his back on her. She blinked furiously as the tears threatened to flood her eyes, feeling as though the breath was being squeezed out of her lungs. She turned towards the cat on her other side, who happened to be Aspenpaw, and began to chat with him, anything to hide her shock at what was going on. Her voice sounded strained and shook with the effort of pretending everything was fine, slightly higher pitched than normal. "So, uh, Aspenpaw! How's things in um... WindClan, is your training going.. well?" She didn't know what was going on with Burntstag and Flintfang, but if she was being honest with herself she didn't think she wanted to know, until she had a sickening realization. Mothpaw was not among the group, and the group was far smaller than any she had ever seen. Her brow furrowed in confusion and concern and she lightly mentioned it. "Have you... heard from Mothpaw recently? It seemed like you guys were friends... But something is weird here..."

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Sunstrike walked silently behind the rest of StagClan, settling at the edge of the circle by Flintfang. She nodded once to him before turning her eyes to the great rock, staring up at Burntstag atop it facing the other leaders with a silent fire in her eyes. Change would come tonight, she was sure of it.

I might need that luck. Raventail bit his tongue and focused on Dappleshine’s next words—apparently, he wasn’t the only one with an apprentice. Ospreypaw’s fluffy pelt was fairly easy to find once Dappleshine motioned toward him. Upon spotting the silver tabby, Raventail rocked back on his paws. ”Congrats to you, too! He’s…really tall, isn’t he?” He shook his head. ”The moor’s the same as ever, just warmer. Hunting’s been good, I caught a lizard the other day…wait." Falling silent, he blinked as if he'd only just realized what his friend had said. "A hare? Are you sure you’re not a WindClanner?”

A faint nudge brought his attention back to his own apprentice, who was…leaving? ”Oh.” Disappointment flashed across Raventail’s face, but he covered it up quickly. Goldenpaw wanted to see the sights, rather than spend the whole Gathering sitting by her mentor. Wasn’t that a good thing? Still, he couldn’t help but wonder if she was still upset with him after all. ”Uh—have fun,” he meowed to her retreating form. ”Make sure you find me or your parents before we leave, though, all right?”

Holding back a sigh, the dark warrior faced his friend once more. As much as he wanted to tell her what had happened, there was a time and a place, and a Gathering was neither. ”Ouch,” he said, looking over the lines in Dappleshine’s shoulders with concern in his narrowed eyes. She hadn’t had those when they’d last seen each other… To Raventail, who had woefully little battle experience and still less knowledge of medicine, they looked pretty bad, even though they were healing. ”I’d say ‘nice catch,’ but...that couldn’t have been a fun fight. I'm glad you're okay.” Once again, his gaze passed across the wounds. "Mostly okay."

---

Galepaw’s next question would have been ”who is it, then,” but Emberheart answered it before he had a chance to open his mouth. From his point of view, it was rare for her not to know anything. That more than anything clued him in to the fact that something wasn’t right. The gray tabby sat up straighter, pinning his tail under a paw to stop it from twitching. There was that tone again, the “danger” one; Galepaw had never heard Emberheart use it when he was in actual peril—mostly because he had yet to be in actual peril while she was around—but he knew well enough what it meant.

If he’d been the slightest bit better at fighting—or if he hadn’t tangled with those two SkyClanners some sunups ago—he may have disregarded the command. But he was merely average, pride still aching from that fight; and so, with a nod and a quiet ”okay,” he joined his mother in staring up at the cat who was not Scorchstar. He’d wanted his first Gathering to be interesting, but this was a bit much…

Mistyrain trotted into the clearing of Fourtrees close behind a rather downcast Tinystar. She was not at all affected by his mood, and she had a bit of a skip in her step as she parted ways with him and took her seat with the deputies. She greeted Scorchclaw, next to her, with a bright smile. Marshstorm seemed to be on top of the rock with the leaders, which piqued her curiosity. Had something happened to Leopardstar? The other point of interest at the moment was the other cat who had joined the leaders on the Great Rock. She noted a few ShadowClan cats around the clearing, though Scorchstar and his deputy, Wildstrike, were not among them. She had learned, though, that it was best to wait for the Gathering to begin than to wonder too much. She instead turned to Scorchclaw. “I hope RiverClan is faring well since Greenleaf,” she mewed brightly. She had come to learn that he was not much one for conversation, but it was worth a try anyway.

Minkpaw's attention was brought back to the tom on the rock as Batbite noticed him, and he frowned slightly, tail twitching. "I've seen him before, but I don't know who he is. He was with us on the way back to the Clans." The only thing he remembered about the tom was his chilling gaze when Minkpaw had once passed close enough to catch it briefly. He hadn't ever tried talking to the other. There was something... strange about him, an odd sort of calm confidence that encased something he didn't want any part of.

But still, he embraced the chance to take his mind off the situation back in RiverClan territory. It would almost be nice if he never had to go back. Somehow just stay here, away from the places that haunted him, the Clanmates he didn't seem to fit in with any more. He didn't belong there. The realization that had been building up ever since he returned came with a pang. It didn't feel like home any more; most of those he'd known from kithood were gone, and he couldn't even walk through the clearing without feeling like he was walking among strangers who didn't know him. Every rush, every tree held a memory, and he couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more, something beyond the ethereal memories of what had been that followed him everywhere he went.

Something more... A faint thought brushed across his mind, the whisper of an idea. But he shook it away as he settled in, tucking his tail around his paws as he waited cautiously to hear just what was going to happen this gathering. The only gathering he'd ever been to had been relatively peaceful, but from what he'd heard, others could get very... interesting.

Mistlepaw didn't know what to expect of the Gathering, since it was her first time. Would it be like the lake shore, when every clan was merged and together? Or would it be different? The prospect of being in an unfamiliar place surrounded by so many cats excited her, yet frightened her at the same time. What if all the other cats thought she was strange or smelled like fish? "I can't help that. I'm literally a Riverclan cat," she mentally tried to ease herself, but it was no use. The anxiety of coming off as too strange was practically crippling the young she-cat, so much so that she seemed to shrink as Riverclan strode into Fourtrees. She glanced around for anyone she might know; perhaps Pricklebush, and the other medicine cats would be attending? Oh, Starclan, how would she find them with so many cats present? The gray and white tuxedo remained rooted to the forest floor, trembling like a leaf. What was a lost, terrified, and overwhelmed medicine cat to do?

ooc; mistlepaw is open to talk to <3 someone come save the poor g0rl

~~~

Swallowpaw bounded into the gathering alongside Skyclan, amber eyes shining with excitement at the sheer amount of cats present. It was kind of like at the mountains, but better! As much as he wanted to go explore (and perhaps find a pretty she-cat to flirt with,)  Maplepaw was super accident prone, and needed to be watched by at least one of the brothers at all time. So, for the sake of his brothers, the Skyclan tom was forced to babysit his sister. Which he had already failed to do since a Thunderclan she-cat caught his attention. After staring at the marvelous creature for a couple more moments, he turned back to the flame-colored tabby..who had conveniently disappeared. "Starclan help us.." He thought, rolling his eyes as he padded deeper into the growing crowd.

"Maplepaw? Maplepaw, where are you? If I return home without you, Firflower and Tinystar might as well kill me!" He called, scanning the crowd for his missing sibling. Ah well. She couldn't be that dumb, right? She could fend for herself just as well as he could. Shaking his head for worrying, he sauntered towards the nearest cat that had caught his attention (Cloverpaw). They couldn't be much younger than him, and they smelled faintly of rabbits. While he wasn't completely appalled by the scent, it was...a surprise. Surprise in a good, endearing way. With a purr, he flashed his best smile and spoke in a smooth voice, "Why, hello there. What beautiful name belongs to such a beautiful cat like yourself?" 

ooc; swallowpaw is talking with cloverpaw

Aspenpaw purred as Mosspaw came to sit by him. She was a sweet, patient cat, and he quite liked her. It was a wonder that Pricklebush hadn't soiled her with his moody attitude yet. At the mention of training, he couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Well, you know how standoffish Mintwhisker can be. I hope Amberdawn is okay, running SkyClan by herself. I'm doing a lot better than expected. The biggest problem has been working around all my little physical quirks. Did you see me walk in? Was I moving in a straight line this time?"

The entire clearing had a very unsettling energy about it. Eyes from every cat shifted around, murmuring to each other, talking about ShadowClan. When the calico mentioned Mothpaw, his head lifted and he began to look around. "Great StarClan, is she even here?"  he gasped, "Where is everybody and who in the name of LionClan is up there with the leaders?"

To say that Swiftstep was confused would be an understatement. When he had arrived alongside Finchstar and the rest of Windclan, things seemed to be going like they normally do. Clans arrived and cats settled. That was until an unfamiliar tom took Scorchstar's place. He had the Shadowclan scent but something seemed off. It was unnerving and a bit suspicious. Not even Shadowclan's deputy was present. What was going on? What happened? Who is this cat taking the place of Shadowclan's leader? He knew they'd find out when the gathering began but Swiftstep was feeling a bit impatient to know. He kept his guard up as he continued to pretend to mind his own business.
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"Huh?" was the only thing that Birdflight could utter when she took a glance up at where the leaders stood. Who in Starclan's name was the cat that was standing where Scorchstar was supposed to stand? Now fully staring, the she-cat wrinkled her nose as she tried to scan for any indication of what might have happened. Honestly, the tom struck Birdflight the wrong way. She felt uncomfortable. She could also see the confusion on other faces. The one-eyed calico averted her gaze as she continued to wait for the gathering to start. She could never shake off the feeling of uneasiness though.

"I understand your concern, Jaystar. And the rest of you as well, I am certain. I will explain shortly." Cats milled about below, interacting with those from other clans, while small pockets merely sat with their own kin and said little. It was strange to see everything from this perspective, so high above the forest. How did leaders like Scorchstar see thise every moon and not desire such a beautiful peace for the entire forest? Without a doubt, had the gathering started as normal and without his interruption, leaders would have yowled their disdain with others or mentioned crossed borders and broken code with disdain. Burntstag had learned long ago the pretense of peace was merely traditional and less of a genuine desire from all cland involved. Some would rip each other's throats to shreds given the chance, revealing at the opportunity of war. And yet, hadn't there been despair when this very same clearing had been painted with bloodshed moons ago by the doing of his own father? They had to understand his desire, his cause. Although, the confrontation in the clearing had already proven some cats were far less driven by logic than they were the soft comforts of conformity.


He nodded to the leader's once more, smiling softly as a gleam came to his intense gaze. Who upon this rock would stand for change? Would they even consider his proposition or simply yowl displeasure at the concept of change? Regardless, this was not the time to hide in the shadows and wait for change to simply fall over the forest. No, this was the time to speak up. Burntstag's burden had been placed upon him for a reason. And it was that reason that lead his paws to stand upon the great rock, no matter how much he held disdain for the typical leadership standards. He preferred to place his steps among the cats he served and not seclude himself to a leader's den, opting to sleep in the center of camp if his claws were required for the security of the clan. Sucking in a sharp inhalation of breath, the imposing calico stepped forward and allowed his voice to fill the clearing in a rather untraditional greeting, "Cats of the forest, listen and hear my words!"


Once the chatter settled down and they were called to attention, he continued on with a strong and clear tone that rang throughout fourtrees, "I am Burntstag, formerly of Shadowclan and a seeker of peace within the forest. My words are those of a cat who only wishes a better world for the ones who live in it. For moons, seasons even, the clans have follow the code and traditions set by long-dead ancestors. Starclan brought us Lichenmask, my father who sought to bring the clans back to the code and only left devastation in his wake. In my life time, many cats have died at the paws of Starclan. Little warning of flood or guidance left us without bodies to bury. Countless wars have been fought over broken code and divisions between clans. Why do we uphold a code that our paws do not follow? And ancestors who hide in distant skies? I wish for better lives for the cats I love. A future I can only see by abandoning the code and leaving the ancestors behind in the times in which they lived." As he spoke, the words felt more true, louder, invigorating. Burntstag's gaze trailed over the warriors below for a moment, meeting eyes with several cats of all clans. 


"Scorchstar wrote us off as delusional and simple minded but this is greater than the desire of any one cat, it is for the good of all. Stagclan now stands where Shadowclan once stood. Those who chose not to stay were simply asked to leave. What you do with those cats, I have no desire to meddle in. I came only to bear this message and ask that those who desire peace and a secure future join our ranks. To the leaders of other clans, I plea for peace. Stagclan has no intent to war with other clans, we seek to build ourselves up on this new path and invite any cat to join us if they feel called. But we will not hesitate to defend ourselves if theatened for the sake of our cats. May your gathering be continued in the normal fashion. But do not forget my words, consider this new world. Instead of ruling as five separate clans, we could rule as one and bring this forest to places it has never been before." With that, he dipped his head to the clearing and leaped down from the rock. With a flick of his tail, the tom called Stagclan behind him. He hoped to see more faces trailed behind him, or in the territory soon. Burnstag left the clearing unceremoniously, having said his piece.

Graypaw looked up at Burntstag. The tom offered something that the apprentice had only dreamed of. Peace. A world where she wouldn't have to kill, and StarClan knew she didn't want to kill. Perhaps StagClan was her calling? Maybe that was where she was meant to be? But she couldn't just abandon everything she knew, could she? She shifted in place, unsure of whether to follow Burntstag or stay with her Clan. With her home.



Mistypaw was naive,yes, but even she knew this was bad. It just didn't feel right. Could a utopia like this even exist? Surely not! She looked around her. Was any of the other cats buying any of this? She looked at her brother next. Was Cloverpaw considering joining? "What,what do you think of all this?" She asked her twin tentatively. She wanted a second opinion on what was going on.

argh late post: i'll edit this later, just want to get this in while i can
Otterpaw was slightly confused at Scorchclaw's wish, but nodded anyways. There was no telling of if she would actually abide by it, however.

Asterspark followed after Burntstag as he led the new StagClan to their first Gathering. He wondered how many Gatherings Burntstag would attend as leader before his inevitable downfall at the claws of Scorchstar and his loyal followers. Of course ... those followers included many of his friends and family. It had broken his heart when he learned Poppyheart had chosen to remain loyal to Scorchstar and ShadowClan, but he had expected Thornbriar and Redwing to stay by his father’s side as well. Of course, that didn’t mean it had hurt any less to see them all leave....

His thoughts had been broken by the excitable mewing of an apprentice smelling of SkyClan. He turned to face her, and immediately his heart twinged painfully. She looked almost exactly like Poppyheart....

That smile he often used to mask his true feelings came into play the more the apprentice spoke, though it was partially genuine, not having expected her jokes, but not at all disappointed. He chuckled and swished his tail casually. ”Heh, nice t’ meetcha, Maplepaw. You seed t’ bee a pretty sweet cat. I’m Asterspark. Asterspark the ShadowClanner. So, you’re from SkyClan, right? That’s pretty fly. Oops, my j-oaks are gettin’ a lil’ too acorny. If ya need me t’ make like a tree and leaf ya alone, all ya gotta do is bark. I’ll be sure to give ya some pine to yourself, aight?” He couldn’t seem to help a purr of amusement as he exchanged jokes with this young molly, and he didn’t even seem to notice Burntstag’s and the rest of StagClan’s departure from the clearing.

Marshstorm's attention was drawn to Tinystar as the tiny tom clambered onto the rock with them. Then, to a strange new tom that joined them. He frowned a little. His scent was distantly familiar. He'd smelled it at least once before, but as the tom spoke he found himself at a loss for words. Suddenly he understood. Lichenmask's son. Marshstorm found himself taking a deep breath. It felt like it had been yesterday when he found those tiny kits with Froststone. The litter had been split apart to prevent danger, but appearently at least one of those kits wanted to take after their parents.

The idea of StarClan not existing was ludicrous after all they had done.
"What do you expect StarClan to do. Hold our paws?" He meowed curtly as Burntstag leapt down from highrock. His words ignored, as his ears flattened against his skull in disdain for the awful announcement. Concern in his gaze as he looked at Finchstar, then Jaystar and Tinystar. "I don't think Scorchstar would have just turned tail and run... but if that tom did take control of his clan... where Is he?" Marshstorm kept his voice low, but the concern was clear.

Shadowclan wasn't his home, hadn't been for moons, but it was another Clan. It felt wrong. What if Scorchstar was laying injured? His gaze flicked up towards the stars, then back down. He had faith that things would be corrected, but so much had to be resolved... and now this mystery was thrown in.

Maplepaw grinned. This was the best thing in the whole wide world! This other cat, Asterspark, seemed to be the only cat in the forest who liked puns as much as she. "Ice to meet ya too, Asterspark! Beleaf me, these jokes rock. The question is, are you gonna stick around, or is it set in stone that you're going to leaf? Making puns really lights a spark in me. May-ple Starclan light your path if you can withsand this mountainous amount of puns." She too, as usual, was entirely oblivious to what was going on, too excited to see through the tom's facade. To be fair, he was really good. Regardless, she was wholly unaware of the disappearance of who seemed to be Scorchstar and the rest of Shadowclan.

The Riverclan leader's annoyance and rage finally showed up at the words of this son of Lichenmask. He remembered meeting one of them in the past, here, in the Fourtrees. But she was far different from the tom standing in Scorchstar's place. Jaystar stood up, his green gaze meeting Burnstag before he could leave the clearing. "I don't jump into your throat just because there's a truce but your words are not to be ignored. I myself know of all of Starclan's games. It may be seen as unfair... I've received a lot of pain of them, losing lives and loved ones, yet I know they are up there, looking after us because they had proven it to us dozens of time. They guided us home. They told us to find the Tribe where we will find shelter and food. They reunited us in the darkest times.  The Code makes us who we are and without it, everyone would be free to do whatever they pleased: killing, stealing, mauling... Tell me, what's exactly the difference between you and filthy rogues, who follow no one's law?"

When the tom finally left the Great Rock, the silver tabby raised his tail high to the sky and with his claws unsheathed, he faced all those cats who decided to turn their backs to Starclan. "You come here with sweet words of a utopia which does not exist! Like Marshstorm says, you say you come here in peace yet I doubt Scorchstar would have let you take his place just like that. You are not a clan of the forest! Riverclan will not recognize Stagclan as the fifth clan who replaces Shadowclan and instead, you will be seen and treated by my me like a band of traitors and rogues!" With those last words, the leader was done talking to that traitor, son of discord and chaos. Lichenmask's legacy was not going to ruin the forest again... no matter how... Jaystar had to do something to stop it. He turned his gaze to the other leaders, hoping they could agree with him. "I know none of you is Shadowclan's ally but I hope you can agree with me on this. Stagclan is a threat and I doubt Scorchstar has left his camp willingly. Like I said... I won't let my clan tolerate their presence and I truly hope... you do the same."

The Riverclan tom let out a sigh, trying to calm down his nerves from all the situation. He just wanted to come back to his camp soon so he could start working on how to find Scorchstar's loyalist and help them out. But first, other matter had to be attended. "I want to finish this soon so I'll be quick. Riverclan is fairing well. We've received a couple of new kits into the nursery who will become apprentices soon. Dapplepaw has earned her warrior name and she's now known as Dappleshine. We've also welcomed Ospreypaw into the apprentice den. However, I do not have only good news to share... recently, we've lost Fallowlight, our medicine cat. She was not only my friend... but a daughter into my eyes. She didn't deserve such fate and I can only pray she's now in peace, resting in Starclan." His tone went from serious to sad as he remembered the white and orange she-cat who died in front of his eyes. Again... there was nothing he could do save her... just like Galepaw, Cinderpaw... and Meadowpaw.

The Riverclan leader then looked from the corner of his eyes at Marshstorm, who came as the representative of Thunderclan. "I was honestly hoping to speak this matter with Leopardstar but I hope you're able to answer me clearly, Marshstorm. A few days ago, one of our patrols found the dead body of one of our oldest apprentices, Meadowpaw. She was badly injured and hold deep wounds, unlikely of a cat. However, it was odd to see her in your lands and looking back at our history, you have to understand that I can't assume this as a mere accident. Do you have an idea of what could have happened?"