November Gathering 2020

Wisteriabloom was surprised when a SkyClan tom came to sit beside her and tried to make conversation. She only acknowledged him with a small nod of her head, even though he was definitely one of the many that had sheltered in her camp after the fire, but she had taken no care in learning the names of their guests. As long as they had kept in line, she hadn't been too concerned with them. "No..," she said vaguely, not knowing whether it was obvious she was lying. Of course she had suspected SkyClan - who hadn't? But she was worried about how he would react. She didn't want him getting all huffy when she wasn't in the right frame of mind to deal with it.

"So who are you missing?" she questioned, "Clearly not one one of your own." Was that a bit harsh? Grief made Wisteriabloom pricklier then usual. Judging by the grey-and-white tom's expression, she expected just so, but she didn't feel like apologising.

"I'm doing okay." Nightwolf said. He tilted his head when Snowflight whispered something but he couldn't really understand what he said.

Mossbloom greeted Beechpaw warmly as she approached, but her smile quickly faded as she noted the look on the she-cat's face. Fortunately, the medicine cat apprentice didn't keep her waiting long, but the news was shocking all the same. She vaguely noticed Daisybloom's arrival nearby as Fourtrees seemed to spin. First Aspenheart, then Mothglow, now Sagelight.... Grief washed over her expression, eyes closing as her head lowered in a silent prayer to Starclan before a dreadful thought interrupted. I'm next. Her thought was interrupted by a loud wail, and she opened her eyes and turned to see Softbreeze nearby, and her heart twisted for the young she-cat. She had lost so much recently as well... They all had. Sagelight had been Mossbloom's first apprentice, taken on shortly after becoming a full medicine cat. Another WindClan tom approached quickly, and her eyes narrowed slightly at the uncalled for hostility. He began to comfort her, and she turned back to Beechpaw, standing to rest her nose briefly on her head. "I'm so sorry to hear that Beechpaw. I don't know what happened, but Sagelight was a great medicine cat and friend. He will be missed by us all. I lost my mentor young as well, Pricklebush. If there's anything I can do to help, please let me know. Once you return to SkyClan's camp, I'm sure you'll need to replenish your herbs - I can help with that. We have some extras, and Daisybloom can look after ThunderClan while I'm gone. Maybe I can bring Cinderpaw along, if you'd like that?" She mewed, having stepped back as she spoke to give Beechpaw some space and also look for Cinderpaw. Finally she spotted her on the edge of the clearing, and gave a brief nod her way. If Cinderpaw didn't want to join them quite yet, she wouldn't force her too. However, it would probably be good for the apprentices to get to know each other.

Beechpaw had been expecting a reaction. She hadn't been expecting the one she-cat to start wailing, however, and she cringed at the reaction, ears flat and tail bristling with evident discomfort. Another Windclanner approached, growling at Beechpaw and the other medicine cats, and Beechpaw had to struggle not to curl her lip and growl right back in response. What was with the windclanner? It hadn't been her mentor, and she seemed more prone to crying than Sunflower was. Beechpaw had done her fair share of crying and lashing out recently, but she at least had the sense not to do so in public and make a spectacle of herself.

And the overprotective tomcat that was growling in her direction certainly wasn't helping. Would Softbreeze (at least, that's who Beechpaw thought she was) cry even more if she raked the tom's ears in response?

But that would only draw more attention, and that was the last thing Beechpaw wanted. Claws flexing into the snow once more, she was pulled from her own thoughts by Mossbloom's voice.

"We're back in our own camp, have been for... a few days now... Foxes attacked the scouting patrol Sagelight was with." Beechpaw shivered, closing her eyes for a moment, struggling to not let out her own tears. Her voice wavered slightly, as much as she tried to hide her own emotions, it proved difficult. Still, none of the cats needed to know how truly desolate Skyclan's territory was. They could draw their own conclusions from within their own borders.

"I would be grateful for the help. Sagelight told me I was to be his next apprentice and the fire happened the next night. He was doing his best to train me and hold the clan together with everything going on, but..." Her quiet voice trailed off, the apprentice not quite willing to verbalize that she was only half-trained in the middle of a group of mostly-strangers, but her meaning was clear enough. For much of their time in twolegplace, Beechpaw had still hunted and fought as a warrior apprentice, and her training had only truly started in full force when they'd been on the way to Riverclan's territory, but the middle of a gathering wasn't the place to discuss it. Still, Sagelight had worked his tail off to get Beechpaw to where she was now. Resentful and doubtful she might be, but she was learning to appreciate how much the older tom had taught her.

Beechpaw's gaze followed Mossbloom's, landing on the large apprentice that had been at the last meeting. They hadn't spoken, and from what little Beechpaw knew, she was Shadowclan. She'd seemed about as awkward and not-thrilled as Beechpaw had been to be at that meeting solo, from what she could recall. Gaze turning back to Mossbloom, Beechpaw nodded.

Eagletalon padded into the Gathering place where tension filled the air. She tasted the air and looked around to see Wolfcall and Ivystar bristeling at each other accusing everyone of their lost and or stolen kits. She sighed and turned around to look at Zinnia. "You know, Lilacpaw isn't going to disappear like your other daughter." she said softly. "There are plently of cat's here that would take good care of your daughter." she said with a small smile. It seemed that every since Eagletalon was part of Windclan disaster after disaster seemed to strike. When she had first joined as a kit, she had heard about the Rightous Few and then this. Kit's were missing out of thin air and no one seemed to know where they went. It would seem horrible that the clans were stealing each other's kits, however that was the only possible solution.

Without a deputy of Windclan, it seemed like Olivestar was struggeling just a bit although she would never believe it nor admit it. Eagletalon had hoped to be choosen as the new deptuy but quickly dismissed the idea. A warrior needed to have an apprentice first and she was hardly the first warrior that Olivestar would pick.

"Zannia, you can stop staring at your daughter. She won't dissapear." Eagletalon said, trying to reassure the she-cat.

Eagletalon is talking to Zannia

Addershade nodded as both of his sons responded to his question. He was glad Nightwolf was alright, and he couldn't exactly fault Snowflight for feeling like things were tense, because they certainly were.

He perked his ears as Snowflight leaned in and whispered a further question.

Who did it?

Addershade had no clue. It could have been anyone or anything-- there were so many in the world capable of doing terrible things, he couldn't possibly narrow it down to make any real guess. But there were, in his mind, a couple suspects more likely than others. He shrugged lightly before speaking, and whispered back to Snowflight, "I honestly don't know, but...SkyClan certainly had the opportunity. Or-- and it hurts to think about, but it is possible-- it could've been someone from within RiverClan, too. I don't know who or why, but it's always possible. And I suppose it also could have been a predator sneaking in and getting lucky about leaving no trail, or a passing rogue trying to cause trouble, or even the kits sneaking away on their own and, again, getting lucky about leaving no trail. But I would say someone from their clan or ours-- those are the two most likely suspects in my mind,"

Bloodstrike listened to all of the leaders speak, lazer focused on even the tiniest facial twitches on any of the cats. None of them appeared to be hiding anything. He agreed with Nettlestar. A large group had done this, and certainly not a group of amateurs. They must have done something like this before. A growl rumbled quietly in the back of Bloodstrike's throat. He was ready and willing to fight when he figured out whoever had done this. He wouldn't speak still, knowing it wasn't his place to speak among the leaders during a gathering. There were a lot of other cats around him right now, but they may as well have not been. He was too busy with thoughts of how he could go about finding the missing kits, not just Blazingkit.

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Dawnhawk sighed and stretched out his legs. He had been listening to what was being said but hardly reacted much. None of the kits were his, so what did he care? He had a small hope that Wolfcall and Ivystar would trade blows, but now it didn't look like that was going to happen.

How boring...

Dawnhawk is open for conversation from anyone.

Stormbringer's eyes followed Ivystar's movements, watching her closely. She understood her mates anger, and concern. She felt the same but maybe on a different scale. The gray deputy stayed in her spot at the bottom of the rock. Her tail tucked neatly around her paws, but her posture remaining closed off. With the current situation, she wasn't in the mood to talk in the slightest.

As the other leaders murmured amongst themselves, all of them telling of similar experiences of kits lost without a trace, a thought bubbled to the forefront of Olivestar's mind, fueled by stories she'd heard in kithood of predators, uncannily smart and agile, and the memories of torn fur, blood-scent, and pain in the aftermath of the terror they'd wrought upon WindClan. The first inklings of a hunch began forming in the gray leader's mind, and she brought her attention back to the conversation at hand.
I need more evidence before I say anything.

With that, she noticed the night beginning to grow old, and she stepped forward, speaking once more.
"If anyone figures out anything more regarding the missing kits between now and the next Gathering, feel free to send a messenger WindClan's way. That aside, we have a Gathering to start."

She turned away from the other leaders, and moved to the front of the rock, letting out a yowl to silence the chatter below.
"Let the Gathering begin!"

She gave a few moments for the chatter to die down before she began to speak.
"WindClan is faring well, despite the cooler weather setting in, and we welcome Eagletalon and Amberfluff to our ranks as full warriors. Additionally, Lilacpaw, Daypaw and Yarrowpaw have joined us as apprentices."

"Lastly, WindClan has lost three kits this moon, and we have not been able to find them anywhere within our territory. If any of the other Clans find them or traces of them, all I ask is that WindClan is notified, and if possible, our kits are brought home. That is all."

She then stepped back, and sat down, leaving room for the next leader to speak.

Swansong glanced up in concern as the leaders hissed among themselves on the Great Rock, pelts bristling and flashes of teeth fading into confused wariness, with a hint of dread. Something's going on.... A flash of white caught her eye, and she looked to the side to see Dawnhawk, a vague boredom expressed in his sigh and the way he stretched his legs. She nodded to him, and then her ear twitched around as a voice on the rock caught her attention, WindClan's leader stepping forward.

More lost kits? Is that what they were all hissing about...? A feeling a bit like a rock slowly sank to the pit of her stomach. Losing Blazingkit, Maplekit, and Flamekit without a trace was bad enough, but more...? She glanced aside at Dawnhawk nearby, murmuring, "Do you know what could have happened to them?"

Swansong is talking to Dawnhawk

Dawnhawk hadn't expected anyone to talk to him. In fact, he had been in his own little world when Swansong's voice interrupted his thoughts. He blinked them away and gave Swansong a shrug.

"Kits go missing sometimes. Maybe these kits all had bold personalities and decided to run off and all of them got snatched up by predators. Or maybe twolegs. I don't know. It's unfortunate, but this is forest life. It can't always be glorious." Dawnhawk spoke with a fairly neutral expression. He hadn't known the kits in his clan very well anyway. If they held any relevance, he would find out once they were made apprentices. Not for this group apparently though.

"That probably sounded cruel of me. My heart does go out to their families, not just the ones in Skyclan. Losing kits sounds horrible. It's really no wonder Ivystar is so angry." His eyes settled on her, wondering if she had heard her name being called. If she ended up looking in his direction, Dawnhawk offered her the most sincere-looking expression of his condolences.

Swansong slowly blinked, one ear twitching downwards slightly, and chose to brush over his remark about Ivystar for now, idly noting the sympathetic look he'd put on his face. "It's true enough, I suppose. Though I wouldn't say the point of forest life is to be glorious," She said calmly, picking her words carefully, and resisting the urge to raise her brows at his words. Almost a... flippant tone behind them, his expression neutral. But then, he didn't have much of a reason to feel for the others outside of their own Clan. Still, it prickled a bit. "But usually they don't disappear without a trace, no matter how bold. I think Ivystar wouldn't be nearly so angry if there wasn't that element of not knowing just what happened to them. No mother wants to lose a kit - especially not like this."

Nettlestar stepped forward after Olivestar was finished speaking. The scarred gray she-cat took a pause before speaking. Though she no longer suspected that one of other clans in their entirety were behind the disappeared kits, she still felt the most reasonable explanation was that it was some group of dissidents within one of the other clans independently trying to stir up trouble. Perhaps in an attempt to cause some in-fighting? She didn't know, but she didn't want to play into whatever her potential enemies wanted her to do. So she paused, took a breath, and spoke carefully, being conservative in the amount of information-- and emotion-- she shared.

"ThunderClan has been fairing fine, for the most part. But, unfortunately, like WindClan, we have had a kit go missing," she said with detached matter-of-factness, "And we, too, would appreciate if anyone has any information regarding their whereabouts, that they come to us as soon as possible. That is all I have to say at this time,"

She took a step back, so that another one of the leaders could step forward in her place.

Wolfcall shouldered his way to the front of the rock, staring at the crowd of cats below, and launched into his own speech with little forethought. "SkyClan has returned to our own territory. While we are thankful for RiverClan's assistance, I would like to make it clear that we stand on our own, and from this point forward are entirely unaided and unassisted by any clan." His voice was firm, confident, and left no room for argument as he continued. "Spottedstar is gone. I do not believe he will return, but if any cat sees him, I implore you to contact me directly. I will be traveling to the Moonstone soon to receive my lives, and become SkyClan's official leader." Another pause, and he swallowed hard. "Our medicine cat, Sagelight, is dead. He was killed by a fox as SkyClan fought to reclaim our camp. He was a great medicine cat, a brilliant advisor, and he will be missed."

Wolfcall took a breath, "Three kits are missing from SkyClan's camp. I now know this to not be an isolated incident, but in any case, I will reward any cat with information on the missing kits, and grievously punish those responsible for their disappearance. That is all."

There was so much more he could have said, apprentices named, births announced, but it all seemed moot in the current circumstances.

Daisybloom stiffened immediately as Beechpaw addressed their mentor. Her eyes dropped to her paws, clawing at the ground anxiously. She hadn’t known Sagelight very well, but he had been so kind, always there even when the world seemed to be crumbling. She sniffed sharply, unsure of what to do. She wanted to comfort Beechpaw, Mossbloom, everyone, but she didn’t know how. She didn’t know any of them (besides Mossbloom) much more than a name or a clan. It had been nice for a cat like her who liked to keep a low profile, but when it came to being blunt, she didn’t really have friends. She was friendly with her clan, but the only cats she really talked to outside of healing were her family, and Mossbloom, who she considered almost like a second mother.

After a moment, she finally choked out some words. "I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine what that must have been like." She looked up, blue eyes shining. It was such a genuine statement that she didn’t stumble over words like she normally did. She couldn’t imagine it. Because unlike every other medicine cat her, Daisybloom hadn’t lost her mentor. She knew it was coming. The bouts of illness, the slowing down. It was obvious. Leaf-bare was approaching, and she was very scared that the very thing she had been dreading would happen.

Softbreeze didn’t take the news well, which was understandable. Although she was quiet, like Daisybloom, she had known him pretty well. And after recently loosing Aspenheart, everything would hurt. A tom approached, and she tensed up again, but he seemed to be comforting the fellow medicine cat. She just stiffly nodded at him before turning back to Mossbloom, who was speaking. "Of course." she replied quickly, dropping her gaze to the ground again.

She felt selfish for thinking it, but she didn’t like being alone so much. She missed when it was just her and Mossbloom, before the sickness and everything. But now there was Cinderpaw, and Beechpaw. Not that she disliked either of them, she disliked being alone. Her parents were elders, her sister was leading the clan, and that left little Daisybloom in the den with the herbs. One of the only cats she spoke to comfortably. She was so lucky, and she knew that. Her mentor was alive and well. But still, sometimes her heart yearned for the way everything used to be.