high times, hard days [closed]

Primrospaw instantly sensed something unfamiliar as she padded into camp. Unusual scent, similar to the river that ran along one of their old borders. Could it be RiverClan? She'd never met a cat from another clan, as she had missed her first Gathering. Voices filled the drab camp, and her ears caught a few words like Ivystar. She must be RiverClan's leader, she thought, are they here to bring us home? By the time she got close enough to properly hear what was going on, Ivystar seemed to be talking to Spottedstar, but she heard another mew. It's origin was another unfamiliar she-cat, but this one's didn't remind her of the river - it was woody, a little similar to her own clan, but still very different. "You're all alive!" Her comment wasn't true. They had only lost two clanmates, but the small clan had taken it roughly. Many more were so trapped in spirits, with their livelihoods gone.

She could tell the warrior wasn't facing her, but responded anyway, "Not really all of us... - we lost two in the fire." she had planned to speak a little more, but she felt a lump start to grow in her throat. Swallowing, she tried to continue, "We.. we lost Murkpelt and Mistrain." Her great grandmother and aunt. The question may have been directed at Wolfcall, but he had lost his daughter and mother: it would be best if someone intervened.

Beechpaw lifted her head at the sound of voices, then pulled herself to her paws with a quiet sigh. Her parents, Dawnpaw and Primrosepaw... and several other clanmates had already gotten a look at the newcomers to their 'camp' it seemed.

Beechpaw glanced at the newcomers curiously, all of them were unfamiliar to her. Ivystar had been greeted by name, at least, so that was one important face that she should make the effort to memorize. Still, Tinylegs' greeting seemed unusual, and offered little explanation as to why the Riverclanners and Thunderclanners were here.

Slipping into the crowd beside Primrosepaw, she quietly listened to the words that were exchanged, tail briefly moving to rest on her sister's shoulder in a small gesture of comfort. The other she-cat's comment had given them a clue, but Beechpaw wasn't inclined to trust that the other clans had good intentions for seeking them out.

OOC: Uberlazy, I just need that rank up ;;
Adderpaw could hardly see from behind the thick swathes of cobwebs that covered up half her body, but what was left of her fur stood on end as she saw a group of strange cats enter their makeshift camp. Ignoring the searing pain shooting through the right half of her body, she hobbled over to the outskirts of the gathering crowd. Her brother, as always, appeared to be angry about something. She didn't particularly care what, or so she told herself as she tore her gaze away from him and focused her good eye on the newcomers. She'd never seen them before and she couldn't recognise any scents from them, mostly due to the fact that her nose was all but burned to a crisp. They didn't look violent, though, so the tuxedo she-cat laid down on her good side. She'd ask Father about the odd cats later.

The recent events have had Dustpaw thinking far more than usual on things, and once again she was stuck mulling over what exactly she should be doing as a mentor-less apprentice but quickly shooed the thoughts away when she caught a smell unfamiliar to her. Other cats in the clan were gathering yet again, the reason for it currently unknown. She would have to get closer. Dustpaw scowled because yet again the point of interest was not within proper hearing range and she had to move to be able to pick up on what was going on. She made her way over to what seemed to be the aforementioned 'point of interest' and caught sight of what probably caused the commotion this time around. There was a small band of cats, cats she didn't recognize from sight or from smell. They smelled odd and she wasn't quite sure where to place them but...they were probably from other clans?

Moving into the crowd she took up a spot near Beechpaw and Primrose paw, acid-green eyes gazing harshly in the direction of these unknown cats. Primrosepaw had just let slip that two of their own had died in the fire and Dustpaw wasn't so content that her sister had said something so easily to cats they did not know, but kept her mouth shut for the moment.  She was wary, and sure a small band of what was maybe five cats would seem like they might not be able to do much damage but with most of SkyClan as apprentices or somewhat injured warriors...there was still a possibility.

Pause.

She couldn't do it anymore, her fur was on end and keeping her mouth shut was just too much for her in this moment, "What brings cats from other clans here? Are you here to mock us? Shame us for living in such poor conditions at the moment? Well I'll have you cats know that I do not trust you, small as your group is compared to who we have around here in SkyClan at the moment. I will not stand for a mockery, if any of you unknown cats wants to try something I will not hesitate to defend myself or my siblings." Her voice was tinged with rage, and shook ever so slightly because of it. After her little...'outburst' Dustpaw batted a paw at the ground and lashed her tail, still staring harshly in the direction of the unknown cats. All the rage that had been missing the past few days had come rushing back at once and she simply could not keep it to herself. She wasn't even ashamed of it, be the unknowns 'friendly' or not, she simply did not care. Every cat in the vicinity had to know at this point that she would not stand for a mockery of any sort.

Blossomstep's head lifted, tear trails have crusted their path on her cheeks as she mourned the loss of her daughter. Distantly familiar voices had roused her, and she wearily stood to look over at the strange, but familiar, cats. The other clans..... Padding forward warily, ears pricked for anything suspicious, she pushed forward through the crowd until she was at Wolfcall's side. Her mate had been distant, but even if he could take no comfort in her.... She took comfort in him. The words of the smaller, odler she-cat that smelled of ThunderClan lifted the fur along her back, and she resisted the urge to hiss at the she-cat, there was no way she would know. None of them could. Primrosepaw spoke up then, and Blossomstep nodded curtly. "Yes, not all of us made it..." Her voice trailed as she seemed to choke on her words before pulling her tail loosely over her paws, looking away from the newcomers and to Wolfcall. Another voice sounded from near Primrosepaw, and Blossomstep shifted to try to find Dustpaw's shape in the gathering of cats. Her anger was understandable, as well as her hostility... But it didn't seem as though these cats were there to mock or attack them. Looking back to Wolfcall, she tried to gauge his reaction.

A quick glance over his shoulder as Spottedstar's voice sounded behind him had Wolfcall's ears flatten in irritation. He should have been resting, not catering to unwelcome visitors. But the deputy stayed silent, his paws kneading the earth beneath him as the rest of the clan gathered around them to see what was happening. The older, half-blind she cat from ThunderClan spoke up, and Wolfcall's lip lifted at her words, one tooth bared in an annoyed grimace. But he didn't get the chance to respond before Dustpaw went off, and though he agreed with the majority of her speech, the fact that she'd spoken out of turn, and to a leader no less, with such hostility made his hackles raise. As Blossomstep moved to his side, her words soft where Dustpaw's has been harsh, Wolfcall turned to look at his granddaughter. "That's a quite enough, Dustpaw!" he snapped, uncharacteristically angry. "If you've so much energy that you need to spend it berating a group of visiting warriors perhaps you can go change out some bedding, or check the elders for ticks?" His golden eyes narrowed on her form, tail lashing once and then stilling, and then he turned back to Ivystar and the rest of the group, nostrils flared, ears pinned. Primrosepaw and Blossomstep had corrected the ThunderClanner's assessment. There was no need for him to comment on it.

Bloodstrike had been silently listening to all of what was going on around him. He noted Wolfcall's agitation towards Spottedstar, and Bloodstrike didn't have to ask what it was. If Wolfcall had been paying attention, Bloodstrike probably would have shot him a brief "How surprised are you, though?" look, but otherwise kept quiet and kept his eyes on the other cats. When Dustpaw... had her outburst... Bloodstrike was surprised enough that he could only stare with wide, disbelieving eyes. Oh boy... she was definitely his daughter. Wolfcall berated her immediately, and although Bloodstrike agreed with his daughter, she was also wrong for speaking out of turn as an apprentice. He had known to keep quiet as an apprentice, but apparently Dustpaw had inherited his lack of patience when she felt a situation was pure foxdung.

Honestly, Bloodstrike had to choke down laughter and force a smile to stay off of his face once the initial shock was over. It was cute. Inappropriate yes, but incredibly adorable at the same time. What a hot head! He walked over to Dustpaw after Wolfcall had made it clear that she was not to speak again.

"My apologies," He said, both to the other clan cats and to Wolfcall and Spottedstar. Gently, but still with some authority, Bloodstrike grabbed Dustpaw's scruff in his mouth and began to pull her away. She was an apprentice, so she wasn't as small as she was as a kit, but Bloodstrike was still plenty big enough to pick up even average sized adult cats as if they were fairly large kittens. He walked Dustpaw back to the "apprentice den" and set her at the entrance to it.

"I completely get it," He said to only her in a hushed voice away from the gathering of other cats. "But you can't speak like that to anyone until you at least have your warrior name. No one has any respect for apprentices and no one will listen to one either. I'm sorry, but that's just how it is, even if you are correct in what you say. Don't do that again. Alright?" It was about all of the punishment she was going to get as long as she agreed to just relax for now. If he needed to take further action, he certainly would, and it would not be pretty.

Ivystar watched in silence as Tingylegs emerged, offering a rather grim smile to the tom as she continued to observe SkyClan's condition. Perhaps it would've been wise to bring Spiderquill along... Her gaze lingered momentarily on a cat who'd lost half of her pelt, unable to tear her eyes from the outrageous sight. "Well, Tinylegs... That's up to Spottedstar, really." The fluffy leader commented, not really sure if the tom would accept her offer. She nuzzled Tinylegs back, unable to muster any real show of affection beyond that. It wasn't that she didn't still love the tom, but she was almost in shock. The tabby wasn't exactly sure what to expect, and she knew after such a blaze SkyClan couldn't possibly be doing well... But actually seeing it was another ordeal entirely. Ivystar shifted slightly to listen to the apprentice who decided to speak, dare she say it, out of line. She kept quiet as Wolfcall and another warrior handled the situation, feeling no need to comment. Clearing her throat as Spottedstar approached, the grey she-cat sat down and straightened her posture.

"I've come with an offer." She mewed, short and to the point. SkyClan needed food and care, and they needed it now. "The Twolegplace is far too dangerous, and your Clan is... visibly starving, and in great need of medical care. Our Clans don't have the greatest track record, but regardless, I'd like to offer a place to stay. We've got enough warriors to help provide for your Clan until you can get back on your paws, and Spiderquill and Thornpaw certainly wouldn't mind providing aid to each of you..." She trailed off, gaze wandering back to Adderpaw's singed pelt. The leader quickly returned her eyes to Spottedstar's, some sort of genuine concern evident in her emerald gaze. "Once your warriors are fit enough, I'd expect them to help hunt at the very least. But until then, knowing your Clan is safe within RiverClan borders is enough for me." Ivystar knew that the tom wasn't in much of a position to say no, and she could only hope that pride wouldn't cloud his decision.

Wolfcall turned to look as Bloodstrike hauled Dustpaw away, his tail flicking in irritation. He'd handled it, he didn't need his son going behind his back to contradict his word. But he didn't get a chance to dwell on that for more than a second before Ivystar started speaking again. With every word, the deputy's eyes widened more and more, his mouth dropping open despite himself. Was she serious? They were supposed to go live with RiverClan?

His hackles raised, and he looked over at Spottedstar. He couldn't possibly be thinking about accepting that offer? Angrily, the deputy whipped around, turning his back on the visiting cats and stalking towards the back of their "camp" to wait it out. He no longer had any interest in contributing to the conversation.

Blossomstep's eyes widened as Ivystar made her proposal, and she looked to Spottedstar. Wolfcall tensed beside her, and she tried to brush her tail over his back. Concern drew her eyes to his face as she felt his fur on end, and in the same instant he turned and stalked away, leaving her side before she fully registered it. Blinking, her tail still frozen where his back had been, she sat still in shock for a moment before her tail drooped. She wanted to hear what Spottedstar would say, what his decision would be... StarClan knows that she was starving, and so were so many others.... But to stay with another clan? She bit her tongue and looked back to where Wolfcall had disappeared. Should she go after him again? He had been impossible to find last time, and he had maintained a cold distance when she could find him. Turning back towards the guests, she lowered her head slightly in a silent farewell before rising to follow her mate. Perhaps this time would be different.