March Gathering 2020

Rainstrike typically took it upon herself to stay back behind in camp during the Gatherings. So many cats wanted to go that it made sense to leave capable warriors back behind to protect the kits and elders, and the pointed tabby was more than willing, and capable, to do so. But this Gathering was one that she couldn't bring herself to miss. The last two, from what she'd heard, had been very interesting... rumors of StarClan taking revenge on the leaders who had betrayed their clans were circulating, and Rainstrike needed to see if they were true.

So she followed the rest of the clan to Fourtrees, keeping quiet for the most part, and sticking close to Cedarpaw. When they arrived, she found a spot near the center of the clearing and sat, curling her tail around her paws and staring up at the great rock and those who sat atop it. Interesting. Very interesting.

Robinpaw shivered with excitement as she arrived to her very first gathering. Though most cats didn't seem too optimistic, she didn't let that effect her mood. She was happy to finally interact with another cat besides meeting them in battle. Her eyes widened as she stepped into the large clearing, seeing more cats in one place than she'd ever seen before. She scrunched her nose as the scents of all five clans collided and filled her nose. The smell of fish from Riverclan, the stink of Shadowclan, the scent of rabbits and heather from Windclan, and so on. She padded into the near middle of Fourtrees and looked for someone to talk to while she waited for the gathering to begin.

(Robinpaw is open for conversation)

---

Smallpaw walked with his head somewhat low to the ground as he traveled with Windclan to the gathering, his stomach twisting into the familiar tight knot. According to rumors that he'd heard around camp, something disturbing had happened during the last gathering, but he didn't know. What the apprentice was most worried about was the amount of cats that would be there. He often got anxious around large amounts of cats, especially if he didn't know them. He'd been debating whether or not to attend the gathering for this reason, but decided that he would go, because it'd be his first gathering.

He took a deep breath as Windclan approached Fourtrees, and memories of the many border skirmishes he's had here flooded him mind. He hoped that the cat's he'd met in battle wouldn't see him there. He jumped into the clearing and found a spot near the outside of the group, not wanting to draw much attention to himself and sat down.

(Smallpaw is open for conversation)

Driftingpaw padded cautiously into the clearing, the memory of his last Gathering here making him nervous to be around others again in the crowded area. He kept as far away from the Thunderclan cats as he could, pressing closer to Riverclan and Windclan. He had lost Poppypaw in the shuffle of the Clan making its way into the clearing and he sort of awkwardly shuffled about as he tried to find a relatively safe spot to sit where he didn't run much of a risk of being plowed into. He wove through the gathered cats carefully, stumbling a little as he tried to avoid stepping on any tails that weren't neatly wrapped around their owners. His pelt lightly brushed against someone else's and his blue eyes went wide as he turned to look at the gray pelted and amber chested she-cat. The scent of Thunderclan his his senses and he felt his heart clench in his chest. If this she-cat was anything like Vixenpaw, he knew he was in for a tongue lashing and without the support of his friends, the young white tom feared he wouldn't have the same courage as he did before. "I-I-I'm sorry," he stammered, eyeing the Thunderclan apprentice carefully.

Ferretnose and Beepaw walked side by side into the great, open clearing where the Gathering would soon begin. It had taken a great deal of begging (and slight guilt-tripping) for her son to openly acknowledge her in public. Try as she may, she scorned the thought of apprenticehood rebellion as being beneath her family. And yet, for all of her efforts, Beepaw resisted her, and no amount of space was enough. Ferretnose's brow furrowed as she touched her flank to his and he skittishly jerked away. It seemed that overnight he suddenly decided he wasn't her kit anymore! The warrior anticipated her son to wander off, but to her shock, he remained plastered to her side for just a moment longer.

"Hey, why are RiverClan and ShadowClan's leaders gone?" Beepaw whispered with a harsh lisp, his amber eyes darting around to spot possible eavesdroppers. "They didn't die, did-"

Ferretnose sucked in a sharp breath, cutting off her son's sentence and causing him to jump. A deep frown ingrained itself on her maw. "Best not to speculate, Bug," she whispered. The former queen shuffled around until she found her spot to be comfortable. Ferretnose had a feeling that the clans were in for a long and troublesome night. Poor Beepaw seemed entirely startled by her sudden change in demeanor, and there was most likely nothing he wanted more in the world than to escape this awful conversation. "Oh, go find somebody to romp with! Don't worry yourself with warrior problems! Go, go!"

---

As the bulky apprentice padded after his mother, he noticed how he met her height exactly. It was a wonder how she managed to give birth to him at all. He felt bad for being so distant, but Ferretnose could be so awkward to talk to sometimes. He sometimes looked at the she-cat who made him and realized it was entirely possible that they didn't share a single quality at all. She was always agreeable and sociable and proud. Not only was Beepaw apparently a clone of his dear dead dad, but he was the opposite of her in every respect. Quiet pushovers were for WindClan. How dumb must he look, standing at the height and weight of a warrior but with the mannerisms of an ancient elder!

Beepaw's questions were met with something truly unnerving. Watching Ferretnose sit down in near silence shredded his terrified heart. She talked like there was an omen written across his face! He didn't spare a minute before backing away from her and scoping out the clearing for a friendly-looking face. He didn't happen to see one, which didn't bode well for him or his childish interpretation of his mother's warning tone. It surely seemed like everybody was in on something that he didn't get yet. Beepaw opted to flop sideways in the dirt with little mind to his poise or maturity. Not everybody could sit like a deputy... not even the son of one.

---

Tanglepaw tilted her receded chin up with feigned nobility as she strutted with the speed of a monster after her clanmates. While some wore their grief and pain on their paws, Tanglepaw didn't want to give any cat the impression that she couldn't handle it herself! So far, a Gathering looked like a silly excuse for all the clans to pretend they liked each other for an evening. When they went home to ShadowClan, the sun would come up and Tanglepaw would sleep with the same wariness of the borders that she had before she got to Fourtrees, and that was that!

A plain white tom that looked to be her age was standing alone against an array of tabbies. She hustled towards him adamantly. Shadestrike told her to act friendly, so friendly she would act. She mewed to get his attention and yelped when his bicolored eyes met hers. "Your peepers are almost as cool as my nose!" Tanglepaw snorted, tapping her flat face with a messy-furred paw. "They should call you Blueeye, y'know!"

---

Aspenheart's frame was near skin-and-bones, but what else was knew? He had always looked a little raggedy, but WindClan had lost one of their best warriors, and he felt entitled to mourn. He would have skipped the Gathering if not for poor Softpaw, who deserved a proper escort from her mentor. The other medicine cats had assembled, and he bowed his head gently in greeting. "If these Gatherings are anything, they're exciting," he sighed, blinking at Ivybrook and Flintshard's shadowed forms atop the Great Rock. "Mothglow, Eveningpaw, what's going on in your neck of the woods here?"

---

ooc: ferret and bee are open, tangle is talking to snowpaw (rhin), and aspen is talking to the meddies!

Robinpaw turned around at the feeling of a pelt brushing against her own. Her gaze rested upon a white apprentice, who looked quite a bit older than she was. "No worries!" She replied with a smile. "My name's Robinpaw, what's yours?" Her smile faded for a moment when she noticed how uneasy the tom looked. And the way he replied, he sounded a bit nervous, and she even detected a hint of fear in his voice. "Hey, are you alright?" She asked, her large green eyes curiously looking the tom up and down.

Talking to Driftingpaw))

Ravenmist turned her head towards Raventail, paws shifting against the ground. She smiled gently and shook her head. Better to keep on good terms with other cats than to act rudely, or whatever Thornstar had called proud. "Not an issue. Ravenmist, of ShadowClan." The blind deputy introduced herself before falling silent, ears tilting as Ivystar spoke, confirming her suspicions. She half wanted to say something about Thornstar beng killed by a StarClanner, but that seemed more Flintstar's place to speak.

___

Crowspirit bounded into the Gathering behind Raventail and Finchstar, his usual grin on his face. The young tom seemed to be characterized by boundless energy and passion, no matter how grave the circumstances. Hardships bent him, but he had always been able to stand himself back up. He took note of the new deputies, a shy-looking black and silver molly, and a fiercer gray cat, both heavily scarred. The dark tom figured there would be plenty of time to learn their names, and his multicolored eyes scanned the crowd for an interesting cat to speak with.

(OOC: Crowspirit is open for conversation!)

"You'll see, soon enough," Mothglow whispered to Aspenheart. "I don't..." I don't have the words to explain, she wanted to say, but even that explanation died on her tongue. She struggled to find her voice, loud enough to be heard, as Ivystar - it must be Ivystar now, surely - spoke, and her heart sank even further. "Oh, oh no..."

Of course. If they'd seen one as unfit to live, then why leave the other? Why had they felt the need to get themselves tangled up with one another in the first place, she had to wonder, when it was everyone else that had to live with the fallout - but they'd paid their price, steeper than she would have liked it to be, and it wasn't the former leaders she had any sort of quarrel with now. As bitter as she'd grown to be toward Torrentstar, as much as her mother's decisions frustrated her, as uncertain as she was now that they'd been left on their own - she couldn't find it in her to be angry with them. Not when their lives had been torn away so cruelly already.

"I think I know what happened," she whispered, unable to raise her voice. "It's... It's the same, of course it's the same--"

ooc; content warning for some faintly elaborate spider talk, arachnaphobes~ :)

The sound of her name being called from across the clearing distracted Dacedream from her conversation partners, and she felt the sorrow in her gaze immediately evaporate, replaced with delight. "Duskrain!" Dacedream mewed eagerly. Her green-hazel eyes spotted the pretty dusty she-cat quickly bounding across the space between them. As she drew nearer the cobwebs spattering her fur and stretching from tuft to tuft became clearer, and the ThunderClan cat knew that Duskrain must have some little creatures along for the ride. Dacedream had been desensitized to the creepy crawly bugs moons ago, for Duskrain was an avid fan of tiny creatures from worms to moths, beetles to bees, and the nestmate frequently brought little unwitting companions to their den - much to the dismay of other warriors.

Dacedream welcomed her nestmate with an affectionate nuzzle of her own, feeling the spindly legs of a desperate spider trying to grip onto her ear tufts. The she-cats separated, though, leaving Duskrain with a dangling ornament of a little harmless spider. Dacedream looked at it and the shimmering of its thread of web in the moonlight and the glistening of the hairy bands on its legs, and she purred, "It's pretty!" Movement indicated there were others - at least two that Dacedream could see - and her green eyes flickered between them with amusement. "I don't think I've seen this spider before, have you, Duskrain?" she asked with bright curiosity. They'd seen lots of black and brown spiders - one big fuzzy gray one even tried to attack Dacedream's tail once, so she batted it like a moss ball - but this odd golden-brown was pretty, and it was slow and almost confused.

Dacedream looked from Duskrain to Honeytongue, and briefly Foxfire, and purred in introduction, "This is Duskrain! She's my Clanmate. Duskrain, these are Honeytongue and Foxfire. I grew up with Honeytongue, before I came to ThunderClan. Foxfire was the SkyClan deputy!" Unaware of Foxfire's discomfort with his former position, Dacedream announced the fact with pride and delight, as if expecting that he would see the honor in the position he once held, too. Even if he wasn't deputy anymore, it said plenty that he'd been chosen before!

Suddenly the Gathering was called to a start, and Auntivystar was the first to call out. Dacedream immediately swung her head to face the beautiful silver-gray tabby, listening with apprehension and sorrow as she announced what Honeytongue had told her: that Torrentstar had been killed by an assailant unknown. Auntivystar sought the solution to his demise, but no one spoke. Dacedream drooped, disappointed to have no further answers, but at the same time it was a relief - if someone had confessed, she had a feeling that Auntivystar would've taken their hide right there are the Gathering whether StarClan was watching or not.

---

Grief still touched Clovertwist's heart in most his waking hours, but the WindClan tom had come to peace with many of the bitter happenings that had befallen the moor cats over the last several moons. Losing his father was the deepest cut, but trying to maintain a good relationship between his 'uncle' Aspenheart and young brother Downpaw at the same time when the latter hated the former's guts and blamed him for Barleytuft's death was the most draining. Clovertwist simply wanted to make the best he could of the situation. He'd mourned, and he would continue to mourn, but mostly he wanted to move on and to live - just like Barleytuft would've wanted. Just like he'd tried, but his body hadn't been with him for the task. The thought of getting out of the camp for a while, even if it meant experiencing some of the others Clans' hardships, sounded like a good idea to Clovertwist, and so he followed Finchstar and the rest of WindClan to Fourtrees under the half-clouded sky glowing with a full moon.

Seeing three new leaders and deputies atop the rock made him Clovertwist let out a chirp of surprise as Finchstar stopped at the top of the clearing; the warrior recognized Oakstar and Finchstar, and he was fairly certain that he recognized the RiverClan and ShadowClan leaders (though not by name), but the SkyClan cat atop the rock was altogether unfamiliar to Clovertwist. He looked down to the base of the Great Rock and spotted only four deputies, and he furrowed his brow. There were some leadership changes he clearly didn't know or understand, and all he'd be able to do to remedy that was listen. WindClan descended into the clearing, and Clovertwist padded off towards a little open space to sit and watch the other Clans convene.

The RiverClan leader - or who Clovertwist had suspected was the leader - called the Gathering to order, and swiftly she dlivered shocking news: Torrentstar had been killed at the border of ThunderClan and abandoned there, leaving this new cat whose name Clovertwist didn't know to stand commanding RiverClan. She named her deputy as a cat named Stormbringer; the gray she-cat had a slight scowl on her face, perhaps at the mention of the tragedy that had befallen Torrentstar and the rest of their Clan. Clovertwist's kinked tail flicked, and he mused to himself, "Remind me not to get on RiverClan's bad side." He wondered what Torrentstar's body was doing beside the ThunderClan border with no trace of any other cats, and moreso he wondered if anyone else could possibly have any answers. He watched for the next leader to step forward.

ooc; Clovertwist is open for conversation!

Crowpaw padded alongside the others; the moonlight above them casting a pretty gleam across the land. The black and white molly stayed up front close by her mentor as she padded alongside the others towards the gathering were she could already smell Riverclan gathered. Her mentor Flintstar paused a moment before entering the gathering place and she twitched in uncertainty. She had not yet met other clanners before since she became an apprentice and she honestly didn't like cats all that much besides her clan even if she herself did not befriend a lot of her clan to start with but the idea of gathering with so many unknown faces and scents put her on edge. Sighing she loped down the slope with the others bracing herself for the barrage of scents and voices. Her gaze trailed Flintstar watching him to on his own towards the tall rocks were others were gathered; she figured those were the other leaders and deputies of the clans. Amber eyes scanned the unknown faces and watched as her clan mates who came with her scattered to go mingle. She on her other hand just took to her best and worst habit. Sinking into the background and in the shadows and buckled down to watch and listen all around her at the gossip. She knew as an apprentice she should probably go and make friends and weed out those who she could and could not trust but she did not need interactions to actually do that and she was not too keen on being approached if she was noticed. What good would it do to have meaningless conversations while she was here? Befriending others from another clan would be messy in the end if one day someone ended up going into battle against one said so called friend. And after what happened with Flintstar's mother Thornstar Crowpaw would rather not mingle with anyone.

She worried about Flintstar silently as this would be his first time as leader to go to this gathering. He had much to say if he was willing to speak about what happened and she hoped that he would be strong and mentally prepared for it. She could not speak up among these clans like she had at her own camp to encourage him so her silent support in the background had to do for right now.

(oc-open for chatting)

Bonewatcher and Streamsong walked into the gathering, looking around in silence for once. Tension was in the air, even more than the previous gathering, none would be as naïve as to not notice it...

They went their separate ways, Bonewatcher staying around the borders of Fourtrees to avoid the larger crows while Streamsong took a spot among the rest of the clans, waiting to see if anyone else would be willing to approach him before he did a move of his own.

Both cat looked up as the new leader of Ivystar spoke.

Boneatcher’s ear twitched when the shocking news of Torrentstar’s death were delivered but didn’t react further…at least not visibly. His mind, however, was acting as quickly as possible, trying to remember everything between this gathering and the previous one, trying to see if he could remember any suspicious behavior from ant of his clanmates, just in case ThunderClan was responsible for this death.

Streamsong, on the other paw, was visibly shocked and distraught by the news. The dead leader had been found in the border with ThunderClan of all clans, and that put the clan on top of the suspects lists, even if no ThunderClan scent could be found on the body. He had heard stories of the terrible war between RiverClan and ThunderClan before, and dear StarClan, he didn’t want that happening again.


(OOC: Streamsong and Bonewatcher are open to talk)

Flintstar watched quietly as Oakstar and Finchstar finally arrived...Along with Wolfcall. He took a moment to lean over to look at the deputies that were gathering at the base of the Great Rock, noting that it didn't look like a new SkyClan cat was in their place which must have meant that Spottedstar was still alive. Hm. He simply nodded his head to the other leaders as he settled back in his spot as Ivystar brushed past and started the Gathering. The news that left her mouth didn't surprise him - Torrentstar was killed...And judging by what she was saying, it matched up with how Thornstar had been killed.

Well, at least StarClan was fair enough to take out both of the offending party.

His ear twitched as Ivystar called out for somebody to step forward with an answer - and it was true he had one...It might as well wait until it was his turn to speak. As Ivystar stepped back, he stood up and took her place. "I'm...Afraid I believe I have your answer for you, Ivystar," he retorted as he gave her an even look and turned to the cats of the Clans. "Torrentstar was not the only leader to die - half a moon ago, Thornstar was killed. ...By Starclan themselves," he revealed, sparing a look towards where the medicine cats were sitting and his eyes landed on Mothglow as he sighed softly. She was crouched, head turned faintly as if she was whispering something to the other medicine cats. He watched for her a heartbeat before he looked away to focus once more on the crowd. "The only reason I am aware of this is because I was...Unlucky enough to witness Thornstar's death personally. I saw the stars that lined their coat and know it could be nobody else.

"...StarClan has grown tired of us disrespecting their Code. The threats they've made in recent moons are not idle ones. The fate of Thornstar - and Torrentstar - only serve to prove that. They have seen fit to recognize me, Flintstar, as the new ShadowClan leader, and I have named Ravenmist my deputy. The Warrior Code exists for a reason and it is not our place to question the rules that govern us. And StarClan has shown that it is willing to take...Drastic measures to remind us of our place," he added, the barest of a sneer at the end of it. He was not happy about this - to rip Thornstar away from his younger siblings, to take her life so coldly before she could even have a hope of defending herself. But this was the world they were facing, he knew it was a cruel one. "StarClan has more than proven their point and I will do whatever it takes to keep ShadowClan safe," he said as he turned to look at the other leaders - and Wolfcall. "I recommend you take a similar action unless you want to test StarClan's wrath upon your own Clan," he said before he padded back to his spot and settled down, now rather...Bored of the entire thing now that his bit was done. There would be some curiousity in seeing how the other leaders reacted seeing how he was unable to make even the slightest guess at it but that was about it.

-----------------------

Honeytongue blinked as another she-cat came racing up, covered with cobwebs and...Spiders. The RiverClan warrior blinked as she tilted her head in surprise, watching as she proudly showed off her collection to Dacedream. She took a moment to peer closer at the spiders, noting that it was somewhat...Cute, she supposed. She hadn't really seen a spider before or so up close and watched with quite wonder as the two ThunderClan she-cats admired it. Her ears twitched as Dacedream suddenly turned to speak up, a soft smile on her face as she straighten up. "Oh! Its nice to meet you, Duskrain! Those are...Some very nice spiders," she said, dipping her head.

At the sound of Ivystar's voice, she turned to glance up at the Great Rock and her smile slowly faded as she slowly accepted what she was going to say. Her eyes closed as she took in a deep breath, bracing herself for the leader to echo the truth - that Torrentstar was dead and that nobody knew what happened. She listened quietly...She didn't dare open her eyes until a new voice spoke from the Great Rock, a burly and fluffy tom that seemed to loom. That was...The deputy of ShadowClan, right? Flintshard or something. She straighten up to listen to whatever he had to say...

And felt her heart shatter at the news. Thornstar was dead. Not only that, she had been killed by...StarClan? Her eyes narrowed to pin-points as her breath caught in her lungs. S-She didn't doubt the tom. He seemed far to serious to be lying but if that was so...The tom seemed to have gather the same conclusion. StarClan had also killed her father. Her ears slicked back, remembering her moment of anger where she had hoped that StarClan would punish her father harshly for his actions. But she...She never wanted that! What had her father done to deserve to be killed by StarClan themselves? What... Her gaze fell to her paws as she tried to form an answer, words failing her as she listened in shock as Flintstar finished what he had to say and stepped back.

She felt unsure of what to do with the truth.

-----------------------

Foxfire took a couple scoots back when Duskrain came running up covered in cobwebs and spiders, being far less interested in the small creatures than the she-cats were. He watched somewhat awkwardly as Dacedream cooed over the spiders and Honeytongue leaned forward to inspect them. He watched safety from a distance, not seeing what was so...Cute about the spiders and hoped that none would be thrown upon him. He straighten up as finally Dacedream introduced the group, wincing once more at the mention of him once being deputy. It wasn't that the title wasn't an honor, but it was the idea that he hadn't been good enough to remain. Sure it had been his choice in the end but that was because he knew he couldn't handle it... And that was the biggest shame he would always have to carry. "Ah...Yeah, its nice to meet you, Duskrain," he said before the sound of the Gathering started caught his ear.

He turned to see Ivystar stepping forward, explaining that Torrentstar was dead...And that somebody had killed him. His blood ran cold, suddenly realizing why Honeytongue had been so terrified that something had transpired in SkyClan and that was why Spottedstar was missing. Stars, he was dead? But... He was such a young leader, certainly he still had his lives! His whiskers twitched as he shifted as Ivystar demanding information...Only to step back when nothing was given. He would hate to be the cat who killed Torrentstar as he was certain that Ivystar wouldn't stop hunting until she got her answers.

The next cat to step forward Flintshard, or...Flintstar, as he quickly revealed. Thornstar was dead, sharing the same fate as Torrentstar but she had been killed by... StarClan. S-Stars, he was claiming that StarClan had killed not only Thornstar but Torrentstar? N-No, no way that couldn't be true but... His ear twitched, recalling the threat that StarClan had forced the medicine cats to reveal those moons back. They had been rather...Forceful in not just revealing that something was coming but the relationship between the two leaders and now both were dead and Flintstar was claiming it was StarClan? He spared a glance toward the sky, wondering if anything would happen - if it was a false claim surely they wouldn't take that well... He swallowed as Flintstar stepped away with no issue, seemingly confirming that...

Stars.

Crowpaw had been people watching the entire time; ears burning from one conversation to another. She noticed some cats were too shy to actually start talking to other clan members so like herself they sat apart and watched and waited probably hoping someone would talk to them because they were too scared to look for conversation. Other's stayed by their clan mates sides. Crowpaw had no interest in stuff like that and instead continued trying to pick up conversations that would be useful for her later on. She blinked when a loud call came from the rocks and her attention turned towards the leaders and deputies of the clans that started their gathering. Her eyes narrowed as her ears; even from the back of the group by the edge of the clearing did not like the sound of what she heard. Members of all sort of ranks and clans were being struck down. Shadowclan was not the only one to lose a leader it seemed and much was about to change she knew that much.

She just hoped others would prepare themselves wisely from now on and be on their guard. The black and white molly straightened up and turned her full attention back to the meeting; voiding out all other possible noises so she could hear better and be on full alert so that she could hear what the other leaders had to say. So far two leaders had been struck down and replaced. What else would there be left to say? She knew sickness was probably among them as she had heard whispers among the gathered cats and hoped that Shadowclan would not suffer as some had in the other clans.

The black-and-silver she-cat turned toward him first. Raventail realized she was blind, either from her injury or some time before; he also realized she wasn’t mad at him, which mattered more considering they’d be sharing this spot for a few more seasons. Hopefully. ”I’m glad. Didn’t want to be rude, you know?” A huff of surprised near-laughter escaped him as Ravenmist introduced herself. He’d lived to see a Scorchstar on the Great Rock and a Scorchclaw below, but hearing half of his own name out of someone else’s mouth was no less jarring. ”That’s some kind of coincidence—I’m Raventail, WindClan’s deputy,” he meowed. ”It’s good to meet you.”

Ivybrook’s yowl shut him up before he could take a stab at conversation. Torrentstar, dead; Ivybrook, leader for nine lifetimes. Raventail arranged his expression into something somber. His mind turned over on itself. Ivystar said “no neighboring Clans,” yet she didn’t accuse the non-Clan cats who shared their forest, either. Sure, he preferred the idea of them all being at peace, especially now—but who else was left? How could that scene have looked, that RiverClan’s own leader stated how little of it they understood? Ivystar demanded anyone with answers come forward; Raventail shook his head, for the first time feeling a faint pang of unease. Nobody spoke.

…Until Flintstar.

So StarClan had murdered Thornstar. No, both of them. Raventail pressed his back against the Great Rock, trying to gather strength from its solidity—trying, at least, to stall the flood of realization until he could escape the clearing. He glanced at Aspenheart. Though he’d been firmly on Softpaw’s side since that incident had come to light, he understood now. They’re killing us. At least he could believe his mentor had no paw in that. A small comfort, if anything at all. When he looked up again, the sky remained clouded.

---

A demanding meow from his right split the haze like a fin splitting water. Snowpaw turned in an attempt to get both eyes on the stranger without losing track of her voice. The stranger yelped, then stared. ”I know,” he said, ever the picture of modesty, and stared right back. The scent that had come with her reminded him of RiverClan’s banks on warmer days, except with more mud and less fish. Something like judgment lingered in his expression as he processed this, along with her tangled fur.

Then she tapped her muzzle, and that judgment evaporated in favor of a grin. Her nose was cool. Weird like his eyes; weird in the good way. He reached out, considered how he might’ve felt if she’d poked him in the eye, and put his paw back down. ”They should, but I’m not a warrior yet, so they can’t. What they actually call me is Snowpaw.” Snowpaw dipped his head in a gesture that even he felt was exaggerated. By the time he straightened, the voice on the Great Rock had changed. Not that it mattered. ”Do you have a special name, then? ‘Cause you don’t look old enough to be a warrior, either.”

Eveningpaw nodded to Mothy before turning to see the new cat that approached. "You know my name?" She asked. "Mothy, you seem sad tonight, I thought you'd be expecting Flintsh-star's announcement." Her tail flicked. She already knew, the fact that Torrentstar was dead too wan't shocking either.

More cats filtered into the clearing. Oakstar watched them in a calm silence as Wolfcall joined them, the brown tom’s unease evident as he stared down at his paws. Oakstar stepped forward, to the youngest tom among them. His shoulder pressed firmly against the other’s.
"Deep breaths. You’ll be fine." The encouraging words rose from a hoarse throat. Oakstar’s amber eyes watching their youngest member for a moment before he pushed himself to ask. "Is Spottedstar alright?"

Before the tom could answer, Ivystar began the gathering. Her words echoed in his head as he wrestled with the realisation that Torrentstar was no longer among them. His dreams of peace felt like they had just slipped through his paws as he choked back a pained yowl. Thornstar’s death… his head turned to Flintstar, who’s tale of what had killed them both made him stare in disbelief.

StarClan had never intervened in such ways before. They had never raised claws to the very clans that they swore to protect… and yet if this tom was to be believed… it was exactly what had happened. He frowned, a deep sense of unease in his chest. The snake… no. That had been an accident. He still had his lives after all, there was no chance it was a starclan driven thing.

"Perhaps we have been a bit lenient with the code." Oakstar admitted, his gaze lowered to the cats below. His gaze rested in Dacedream, then Mossbloom… his own kin. None of them were pure ThunderClan, but they didn’t have to be. "ThunderClan will do it’s best, however, Thunderclan has almost always accepted cats from other clans, as well as outsiders. I have no desire to end that now." His gaze lifted to Ivystar, and Flintstar in turn. Their amber gaze narrowed.

"Each of those have become good warriors of the clan, and even Mossbloom has thrived as a medicine cat, I couldn’t have asked for a better one." He paused, gaze turning towards Finchstar guiltily. "I will discourage forbidden relationships, but I also won’t make them suffer worse should they do so."