When Silence Booms [Open]

Copperfox waited in a nearby tree for a good portion of the morning waiting on his brother to return from his early morning hunts. He hadn't been great at getting up just before the sun like Dawnhawk had been, so he knew he would have to wait and delay his own hunting patrol. It was time that Dawnhawk learned that his brother could speak again... and Copperfox wanted his voice to be heard today. Maybe it was him being naïve, even he acknowledged it, but no one had tried talking Dawnhawk out of this? No one?? Then how could anyone tell him it wouldn't work or it wasn't the right course of action? Copperfox was willing to risk his own safety to at least give a peaceful solution a try, as fighting just wasn't an option when they were outnumbered like this. Finally, after what felt like an agonizingly long time of waiting, Copperfox spotted Dawnhawk coming back towards camp with a sizeable mouse in his mouth. The nightstrikers carried birds and squirrels, which told him those kills were probably all of Dawnhawk's. The outsiders struggled to catch squirrels, at the very least, he noticed.

The pale tom halted at the edge of camp while the nightstrikers dropped food in the fresh-kill pile, taking nothing for themselves. Dawnhawk plopped down where he was and began to nibble away at the mouse, almost as if he was bored or didn't really want it. Something was on his mind... But whatever it was, it would have to wait. Copperfox took in a deep breath to slow his heart that he just realized had been picking up it's pace. Calm down Copperfox... you've got to calm down... He thought to himself willing his nerves to be strong. He slowly climbed down out of three and locked his coppery eyes onto his brother, whom seemed content to dismiss his existence for now as he plucked the feet off of his kill and spat them out. He wasn't even really eating it... just dismembering it. Frustration?

Copperfox got within one and a half fox-lengths of him before Nightstrikers closed in around the edges of Copperfox's vision. Another piece of useful information: Dawnhawk was very well guarded at all times. Attacking him would be suicidal. At least Copperfox was aware of that and had no intention of trying to lay claws on his brother. Showing that he meant no harm, Copperfox stopped in his tracks to calm the nightstrikers down. He opened his mouth to speak just as Dawnhawk finally bit a good half of the mouse off and was hastily trying to swallow it.

"Dawnhawk!" Copperfox barked, much louder and with far more authority than he meant. He immediately inwardly cringed. The pale tom's head shot up in surprise... followed by a gagging fit as the mouse caught in his throat. For a few seconds, Dawnhawk couldn't breathe, desperately trying to throw the mouse back up out of his esophagus. Copperfox froze as nightstrikers closed in around the white and gold tom and smacked him roughly on the back several times. After a few tense heartbeats, the mouse finally was dislodged and spattered against the ground in a bloody, spit-filled mess. Dawnhawk gasped for air and coughed.

Copperfox tried to speak... but his voice had left him again. His heart was like thunder in his chest and his fur stood on end. I didn't mean to... I didn't mean to... I didn't mean to... He wanted to say it, but he couldn't. Eventually, Dawnhawk's eyes were upon him after he had caught his breath. The expression on his face was unreadable, but only because it was a mix of so many emotions. Anger and surprise seemed most dominant.

"You can talk..." Dawnhawk growled. It wasn't a question. "Care to explain why you chose now of all times to talk, Copperpaw?" Just in time, Copperfox found his voice again.

"Copperfox. My name is Copperfox now." He managed to say, and kept the shakiness that was present in his legs out of his voice. It was enough of a distraction that Dawnhawk seemed to lose some of his anger and just stared for a moment.

"... Fox? Seriously?"

"... Yep. I know." Copperfox actually smirked a little, which surprisingly got a chuckle from Dawnhawk. "Can I please talk to you without your guards? I'm hardly a threat to you on my own anyway. You wouldn't need them." The question brought puzzlement across Dawnhawk's face, but after a moment of silence, he nodded.

"They'll be out of earshot, but I won't be out of their sight. I'm sure you understand why." Dawnhawk didn't wait for an answer. He turned away from his guards and the mouse carcass that he no longer had an appetite for. Copperfox followed, though he spared a glance at the rest of the warriors around. He tried to offer them an encouraging smile before he moved just passed the very edges of camp with Dawnhawk. The asylum cats watched, their eyes not leaving Dawnhawk for an instant.

"Speak, now that you can. Thanks for almost killing me with that mouse."

"Imagine the shock if my voice and a field mouse was all that was needed to kill you, Dawnhawk." Copperfox sat down calmly as he spoke. The comment made Dawnhawk snort.

"At least I'd be dead and spared the humiliation after." The two brothers smiled at each other, probably for the first time... ever. As quickly as it appeared, their smiles faded and the tension filled the air between them once more. "So... what did you want?" Dawnhawk asked, his face set in stone once more. Copperfox took a breath before opening his mouth to speak.

"I want you to take your Asylum cats and leave." Copperfox went quiet and kept his mouth firmly shut. Dawnhawk waited for more, but when nothing else came, he hesitated. Eventually, he shrugged.

"Well... I admire the simple effort. I do. But my answer is no. Anything else?"

"I think I know why you brought them here. I'm not saying I approve, but I understand. Very few cats in this clan had anything nice to say about you even before all of this. The little bit I heard you and mom talk about that one day... I understood. I couldn't talk but... "

"Don't." Dawnhawk's voice was slightly higher pitched than normal, though his face remained hard and expressionless. Copperfox tensed, but he forced his voice to stay with him. He forced himself to keep talking.

"I understood that you didn't feel wanted or accepted and that is probably why you'd rather have them in charge. I didn't need to stay and listen to the whole conversation you and mom had, I already understood. I think more cats in this clan understand than you realize." Copperfox's own voice was getting higher-pitched. He could see Dawnhawk's eyes hardening and his claws tensing beneath his paws. He wanted to get his point across before his brother snapped, but he wanted to speak clearly and be heard. A slight panic was building as he tried to balance the two. "I know Ashstorm still loves you. I'm disappointed in you but I don't know that I hate you. Mom... I'm sure mom still loves you. Dad will be mad for awhile but he'd let it go..." Copperfox was cut off by a callous chuckle from Dawnhawk's mouth.

"I doubt that very seriously. You're young, you're naïve, and you know nothing. I chose this because I hate Starclan and I hate what they're doing to us. I'm not doing this because I need a stars-cursed cuddle, my brother. I'm not a weak little mother's kit like you." Dawnhawk spat. A tense silence passed between them, the entire time with Copperfox looking wholly unconvinced by his brother's words. He'd heard about how much he struggled with sparring against Smokefeather, and he saw it first hand. He hated to lay his paws on his mother, even if just for practice. He was a mother's kit... just an unwanted one. And all of that sneering and jeering behind his back his whole life had lead to this.

"You are lying. You know it. You lie to yourself. Maybe you do hate Starclan. A lot of cats do. I know dad isn't very religious... But Starclan isn't why-"

"I'm telling you it is! Now bite your tongue and-"

"You will not take my voice away from me again!" Copperfox snapped back, now on his feet and leaning forward. His fur had bristled, but only just. He wasn't looking for a fight, and would back down if it came to that, but he would be heard or he would die trying. Both toms had tension in their stances now, both of them flicking their tail tips in agitation. The nightstrikers began to close in, but a warning glare from Dawnhawk stopped them short. He didn't need them for Copperfox. If his brother didn't learn his place and learn it soon, Dawnhawk would help him figure it out.

"I know the truth," Copperfox spoke again, his voice softer this time, but no less assertive. "Disagree with me if you want but I am begging you to take your foreign "friends" out of here. Please go... Please go before you make an even bigger mistake. Go away from here, maybe return next leaf-bare and see if we're ready to forgive you for this. Let dad come home, undo everything you have done so far to the best of your ability and go away for awhile." Copperfox was pleading at this point. Dawnhawk's face hadn't changed much but if he had anything to say, it was stuck in his throat. For a few moments Dawnhawk had lost his voice. His fiery blue eyes suddenly seemed distant and glazed over... like he was somewhere else.


OOC: Join in if you want. I will leave this up and open for a few days before I finish their conversation and close it, leaving it a solo between Copperfox and Dawnhawk. No pressure to join, but if you want to, the thread is currently open.

Primroselight's ears pricked up as she heard Dawnhawk's name being called. The camp being fulled with cats meant that it was far too noisy for the blind she-cat's liking, but still her brother's name caught her attention. Brother? She thought, realising that they were barely littermates now. He had almost gotten their dad killed, and Smokefeather had disowned him. Although, they were still related. Even the gentle warrior didn't know if she would ever truly forgive his treachery and betrayal.

Not immediately recognising the voice, she didn't put much thought into it. He seemed to have almost all the Asylum cats wrapped around his paws. Until he addressed the speaker. Copperpaw? Clearly Dawnhawk hadn't been around his own clan enough. Their younger brother had earned his warrior name several days ago, even though he rarely ever talked. At least that was changing now. Primroselight had tried to persuade him to open up to her, but his mouth had stayed clamped shut every time. It had been a while since she had heard the young tom's voice, an explanation as to why she didn't recognise it.

They padded away, meaning that she could only hear their tone of voice and not the words being shared. Edging closer and closer to the two toms, she managed to pick up more on their conversation. She stayed mostly hidden from the Nightstrikers nearby, but she didn't really care if they saw her. After all, they were both her brothers (even if she didn't want to admit it) so she had a reason to know what was happening between them. However, her plans changed when the tension began rising. If this ended in a fight, Copperfox would end up in a bad state. And that was if he was lucky.

Feeling an urge to intervene, she confidently padded towards her younger brother. She hadn't had the chance yet to let Dawnhawk know how she felt, and she was (in a way) looking forward to it, even if she wished the situation hadn't come around in the first place. "Copperfox..." She said gently brushing the fluffy tom's side calmingly. Turning her back completely on Dawnhawk to cut him out the conversation, promising herself that she would deal with him later. "I feel the same as you do, I promise, but maybe there are other ways to do it. We'll get dad back and deal with this -" She swivelled around fire blazing in her pale blue eyes, "Rouge" She spat the word out as if it were sour, meaning it clearly as an insult to the once-Skyclan member, "some point soon."

Tears welled up in her eyes, and she tried to fight them away. She hated how easily she cried. It made her feel vulnerable. She had never felt this way before; like she wanted to hurt him, to betray him as much as he had betrayed her. It was certainly a new side of the mild-mannered warrior that no-one had seen before, but extreme circumstances called for extreme measures. But she couldn't hold back. She needed to take it a step further.

"GO!" She said, raising her voice. As she lost her concentration, tears flooded freely down her face, "Just like he said. I thought you were getting better. I thought you were my brother. But I guess all of us are wrong sometimes."

Ashstorm had nothing to do. She saw Primroselight and was about to talk to her, she heard someone say her brother's name. It sounded like... Copperfox? Primroselight began to following them, so Ashstorm followed her, trying to stay far enough away were her sister could not smell or hear her, but did not know how well she was doing. When she got there, Primroselight began to walk up to their two brothers. Ashstorm did not hear most of the conversation, but had a fairly good guess of what it was about. The Nightstriker inched closer when Primroselight walked towards them and even closer when she yelled. When she yelled, Ashstorm suspicions about what the argument was about was confirmed.

Ashstorm looked at all the Nightstriker's begining to get on guard and the Scout's watching carefully. Ashstorm wanted to stay out of this as much as possible, she could not let her two family members be attacked by some of the new cats. They already were ready to attack and she could not let it get to the point were they did. She already nearly lost a member of her family, she could not stand if she really lost two others. She could tell that her two brothers were beginning to get angry at Primroselight, she was mad at Dawnhawk, and Copperfox was mad at them both.

"All of you please stop!" she yelled coming out from the bush she was hiding behind. "We are family, have you forgotten that?" She said that loud enough so the Nightstriker's could hear that she was not coming to fight, but then she made her voice quieter so only her brothers and sister could hear. She looked at Primroselight and Copperfox. "I get how you two feel, I really do, and you both have a just right to feel like that, the same as I did when the Asylum first came, but although a lot of what you are thinking is right, but some of it you are just feeling because you are hurt. For instance, yes Dawnhawk pulled dad out of the tree so the Nightstriker's could get him and nothing he can say will justify that," those last few words were more meant for Dawnhawk than they were meant for Primroselight and Copperfox. "But he also stopped the Nightstrikers from killing him."

She really hoped that this did not sound to harsh. "Also, look at the other clans. Dawnhawk did not lead the Asylum there, or if he did I can't see how, but they still got taken over too. It's not like if Dawnhawk did not assist them they would not have come." She turned towards Dawnhawk. I know that this really is not your personality, but you should at least try to be a little empathetic. You did somewhat help them and we are all hurt because of it. Because of your help Copperfox's father could not be part of his warrior ceremony, same with me, and it is a painful reminder of what happened."

She again looked at all of them. "Also, think about it, besides us all annoyingly and constantly being watched, what else has really changed." She took a deep breath. She did not mean to be speaking as much as she was, but she thought it was important for them to hear what she had to say. Ashstorm felt sort of bad, because she desperately did not want to hurt any of their feelings, but needed to make sure that this did not turn into a fight. If that meant she needed to leave after she finished speaking that was fine. If it meant her staying there the entire time that was fine too.

"No matter what any of you think, I don't have a side in this. Both have pros as well as cons." Ashstorm interrupted them if they tried to speak well she was talking, she was not in the mood to get into a fight or stray off topic, but she also felt sort of bad about that. She looked at them with a serious look in her eye. "Now if you all want to continue barking at each other like a pack of angry dogs, go for it, but I will do whatever I can to make sure that none of this ends in death on either side."

Beechface jumped slightly as Copperfox called out to Dawnhawk, glancing over curiously from where she was finishing a small sparrow near the entrance to the medicine den. Eyes narrowed slightly as she focused on the conversation, ears twitching back in irritation. She didn't know what Copperfox was up to, but she didn't trust Dawnhawk to not let his goons jump him if he said something he didn't like.

She fell into step beside Primroselight, affectionately brushing her sister's flank with her fluffy tail as she followed her over to the brewing conversation. A quiet scoff escaped her at Dawnhawk's comment on Copperfox almost killing him.

A shame it was 'almost,' would serve you right. Beechface thought, shooting her brother a nasty glare, though she managed to refrain from speaking the thought out loud.

She hadn't heard Copperfox speak this much in... well, ever, really. Beechface wasn't sure if she agreed with parts of what he was saying, but she listened without interrupting. He'd been quiet so long, and clearly he'd been thinking during that time. Beechface wouldn't tell him off for that, even if she didn't think that talking things through would solve anything.

Then Primroselight spoke... And Beechface took a step back, blinking at her sister in surprise. Primroselight was angry. Dark eyes slid to Dawnhawk in an incredulous look. He'd made their sweet little sister angry. Primroselight, who never got angry at anything. Not even at their constant arguing. She'd never heard her sister raise her voice before. She and Dawnhawk had plenty of times, mostly aimed at each other. Dustpaw had, on occasion. Bloodstrike did, even Wolfstar had. But Primroselight? Beechface remained silent, sure if she opened her mouth it would drop to the floor and stay there.

Perhaps the family blood ran true after all. Or maybe Beechface really had been sniffing too many plants, and this was the beginning of the end for her. Hadn't Mossbloom told of Sagelight's mentor going insane? And Sagelight himself had certainly not been all there if he'd chosen her for an apprentice... Yes, it had to be the herbs. That was part of why Beechface hadn't wanted to be a medicine cat, right? And now it was coming back to bite her, she was going to go insane.

And then Primroselight began to cry. Tears of obvious anger, and Beechface could absolutely sympathize with that unfortunate effect. Still, they were tears, and Beechface's gaze snapped back to Dawnhawk, the fur lifting along her spine as claws dug into the ground beneath her. How dare you make her cry.

Before Beechface could move or do anything else, Ashstorm's voice broke through, and Beechface curled her lip as her younger sister spoke, dark eyes settling on the other tabby. What she was saying was absolute nonsense. Plain and simple. The bewilderment from Primroselight's outburst on Beechface's expression was very quickly morphing into one of rage as Ashstorm continued to speak.

"And they stopped me from doing my job and dragged him off who-knows-where. We have no word on Bloodstrike at all. Do not act as if Dawnhawk saved him or try to downplay what he did when they were all ready to kill us and happy to do such, if it came to it. They put their claws on Primroselight when she was already injured and defenseless!" Beechface growled at her sister, eyes flashing. "Flowerthorn could have died from that added stress causing her to give birth in the middle of that. Her kits could have died. Mom was stressed enough before she found out she was expecting." Beechface exploded on her sister now, though Dawnhawk had initially been the one she was angry at. She was sure Dawnhawk would be happy that he wasn't the one on the receiving end of her fury, maybe the smug piece of foxdung had planned it. If Ashstorm had done this of her own volition, maybe Beechface should rethink her notion of family entirely.

"The other clans are irrelevant. What matters is what happens here. Dawnhawk and those rogues have caused- are causing- both direct and indirect harm on your clanmates and family. Have you no shame in supporting that, Ashstorm? How could you be that blind and naive?"

"ENOUGH!"

Wolfstar's voice boomed across the camp, rising above the siblings' bickering in an angry exclamation that was enough to cause several of the Asylum cats nearby to startle and flinch at the outburst. The leader, who had been napping in the warriors' den when the hullabaloo began, strode from the den with his long tail lashing angrily, amber gaze flicking from each of his grandchildren to the next in rapid succession before settling intensely on Dawnhawk. He held the golden tom's gaze a second longer than the rest, and then looked away and faced them all, ears pinned back in irritation.

"If you've got enough energy to stand here snarling and bickering at each other, I suggest you channel it into something useful like putting food in the fresh kill pile," Wolfstar snapped at the group. He then rounded on Beechface, taking a step towards her. "And you - have you learned nothing? Do you think perhaps it's wiser to urge your clanmates, your siblings, away from violence rather than towards it, or are you in such a hurry to have company in the medicine den?" He bared his teeth, turning to all of them again. "If I haven't made myself clear by now, there will be no fighting here. Not between SkyClan and the Asylum, and certainly not between SkyClan and SkyClan." With a disgusted snort, the dark tom shook his head.

"Bloodstrike is a dozen times the warrior any of you are. Do you see him here right now?" Wolfstar fell silent, offering opportunity for a response he knew wouldn't come. Finally, though, he continued. "No, you don't. Because he tried to fight, and now he's gone. I suggest you remember that the next time you think of doing something so incredibly foolish."

With that, he fell silent, his gaze challenging each of them in turn to retaliate.

Copperfox held his breath for several tense heartbeats while Dawnhawk seemed at a loss for words. He found at least one thing that he was looking for, and that was his brother's uncertainty about the future. The older tom was too smart to not have doubts about the future, despite his overwhelming success for the time being. The tense silence was killing Copperfox, for once, but he held his tongue as he eagerly awaited Dawnhawk's response. Just as the pale tom opened his mouth, another voice cut him off. Copperfox snapped his head in Primroselight's direction and his ears swiveled backward. He let her speak, but by her body language and the way she put her back completely to Dawnhawk made him instantly regret it. She spoke... and the more she did, the more Copperfox's fur bristled.

"If you knew how I felt, Primroselight... you would have stayed out of this conversation that you were not invited to to begin with." He growled, fixing his blind sister in a tense stare. "This was a conversation only meant for myself and Dawnhawk." As if that summoned the others, Copperfox stared with his jaw open as Ashstorm and Beechface approached as well. His jaw clenched, but he listened to Ashstorm speak as well. Maybe she could have repaired the bit of damage that Primroselight had done, whether intentionally or not. Just when it seemed like Copperfox might be able to smooth this over and get what he needed out of Dawnhawk... Beechface of course opened her mouth.

Copperfox fixed her in a hard glower. He was shorter than his older sister by a lot, but he had put on a fair amount of bulk the same as her. His claws gripped the earth below him, rooting him in place so that he did not pounce at either of these foolish she-cats that he called sisters. His lips twitched and his tail lashed. He wasn't even bothering to hide how furious he was. Didn't they understand how difficult talking still was for him? It had taken him days to come up with what he wanted to say to Dawnhawk and even longer to finally find his courage and do it. This was meant for him alone... and just when he got his voice back again and the bravery to say what he thought would help this situation, his sisters of all cats show up and completely ruin all of his efforts.

"You are especially not invited to be here or speak. Go away!" He hissed at Beechface, unapologetically livid. All of his effort and all of his planning... gone. Because a couple of she-cats were incapable of keeping their jaws firmly closed. Then Wolfstar's voice boomed across the camp and he snapped his head to look. His raging fury instantly died down to an angry smolder and he stepped aside for Wolfstar to claim whatever space he needed. He plopped his rump onto the ground and his mouth remained firmly closed with his eyes at Wolfstar's paws.

It was over. Everything he had planned for was now dust in the wind. Once Wolfstar had finished speaking, Copperfox finally looked up into his amber gaze and nodded.

"I'm sorry, leader." He spoke quietly, but there was a razor's edge to his voice still. "I only meant to try to fix... this." Whatever this was now. He stood to his feet and turned away. If Wolfstar didn't intend to stop him, Copperfox stormed off in the direction of the forest, his tail lashing violently to and fro as he made his exit.

---

Dawnhawk hadn't expected anything that had happened to happen today, nor anything that was about to occur. He had stared at his paws for a few moments, thinking. Leave Skyclan for awhile? I guess that could be an option if things go badly.

...

When they go badly. It was only a matter of time before that happened. It didn't necessarily mean it would end well for Skyclan and bad for the Asylum, but it could. This wasn't something he had given much thought about as he had been given little need. Now that Copperfox had brought it up... he didn't have a choice in the matter but to mull it over. Would he even want to be in Skyclan after this? Where would he go if not? He did need to plan for that, he supposed. As far as leaving now though? Unlikely. He'd have to have a reason beyond that his brother just wanted him to. He would give the idea more thought later, but for now, he was content with the way things were. He honestly didn't feel like his clan hated him any more or less than they did before the Asylum. The only difference now was that now he was noticed. He opened his mouth to speak... but then Primroselight cut in. She turned her back completely on him, which caused Dawnhawk to raise an eyebrow at her. She... was aware that she wasn't invited in this conversation... right?

She raised her voice at Dawnhawk and even cried... Parts of Dawnhawk felt guilty, but just as many felt anger. Why did no one want to give Asylum a chance? He agreed that their introduction had been rough. He would have done things very differently if he'd had any rank or pull back then, but he didn't, so here they were in the situation they were in. Copperfox snapped at Primroselight, which caused his eyes to widen in surprise. This... was getting interesting...

Then Ashstorm showed up along with Beechface. Dawnhawk listened to Ashstorm speak and was actually... fairly surprised by her words. She said most of the things that he might have said, so he remained quiet and watched the rest of the conversation unfold. Beechface of course had nothing constructive to say, being the ball of raw emotion and zero brain that she was. Out of everyone, she still was the one that irritated him the most. It wasn't that anything she said he felt held any weight... but that she was directing her anger at Ashstorm, the sister he was closest to, though he would never say that out loud in public for Ashstorm's sake. He didn't believe that she had done herself any favors by isolating herself from her family.

Well now what? He thought about giving Ashstorm guards at this point, as he knew his clan to be mostly a bunch of self-righteous fools that would pat themselves on the back for dealing with a "traitor" even they were their own flesh and blood. But if he did that... he would absolutely isolate her further from Skyclan. He wasn't sure he wanted to do that. Not to her. Beechface brought up something about Bloodstrike and how no one knew where he was. Dawnhawk sighed... and sighed loudly.

"Bloodstrike is actually at-"

"ENOUGH!"

Wolfstar's voice made Dawnhawk nearly jump out of his skin. He watched as the leader of Skyclan approached and met his fierce amber eyes with his own fiery blue ones. Despite feeling intimidated by Wolfstar, Dawnhawk held his ground and kept all traces of fear firmly away from his face. Wolfstar eventually turned away to address everyone, not just Dawnhawk....and the pale tom let out a silent sigh of relief. Watching him whirl on Beechface and chew her out was probably the best thing he'd seen in moons. It brought a smug smirk to his face, but he only allowed it to linger for a moment before it vanished. He wasn't about to argue with Wolfstar, whether that was out of habit or fear, he couldn't quite place it. Maybe both.

"I prefer to avoid violence as well." He spoke, his voice unsure at first. He steeled his nerves and straightened up a bit, forcing his uncertainty away. "As Ashstorm has pointed out, not much has changed. If she has noticed, then I'm sure the rest of you have noticed as well, whether you choose to acknowledge it or not." His voice gained confidence the more he talked, but his eyes never went back to Wolfstar. "If any of these Nightstrikers or any Asylum cat at all threatens anyone in this clan with violence I will deal with them. Harshly. Our goal is to become friends and to keep the peace." He paused for a moment and finally rested his eyes on Wolfstar. "We're not going anywhere. We may as well learn to at least tolerate eachother, lest we make leaf-bare even more unbearable than it normally is." And with that, he looked across camp to where Copperfox had made his exit. He stared for several seconds, debating on whether or not he wanted to seek him out and finish the conversation that his brother had been robbed of.

Until then, he would remain quiet and allow others to speak, if they wished. He thought he managed to at least look confident, like another clan leader speaking from the Great Rock, but Wolfstar being this close to him made him feel uneasy. He would need to speak to him later... though he was dreading that conversation. Maybe Iniko should do it... He'd have to speak with the calico soon... and Dawnhawk might start planting more seeds amongst his clan for the Asylum. By the way Ashstorm had spoken... he believed that his seeds were finally beginning to sprout.

When Beechface stormed out from the trees and started yelling at Ashstorm, she jumped.  She was not aware that she was there.  Ashstorm hated being yelled at, especially by Beechface.  Ever since she was a kit, Beechface always seemed to be kind and there for her.  She had helped her with her wounds she got from fighting the Owl and she had never, ever yelled at Ashstorm before.  But this time, it was not even yelling... she just seemed to explode.  With every new sentence Ashstorm's legs grew weaker and weaker and she kept getting closer to the ground.  She hated to cry and rarely ever did, but this time tears were streaming down her face and they seemed to be impossible to stop.  She closed her eyes, attempting to drown out the noise of her sister's voice.  She took a couple steps back that she did not realize she was taking.  She did not mean to make any of her family upset.  She wanted to stay out of these arguments that were caused by all of her family members, including Dawnhawk, being stubborn fools.  The only reason she came out in the first place was to try to stop the argument and make sure some of her family did not get eaten by the heartless Nightstrikers.  All she wanted to do was stop the yelling, but now she seemed to be part of the cause.  At least some of what she wanted to do succeeded, the Nightstrikers seemed to be less on guard and going to fight when her sister decided to yell at her.  She succeeded in protecting her family, even if none of them actually realized it.

"I'm-" she started to say to Beechface threw tears, before her grandfather's yell seemed to make her and her sister stop and them all just stand in silence.  

Some of her siblings jumped, but because she was on the ground, she just stood up.  She expected her tears to stop, but her sister's words continued to ring in her head.  She listened as best as she could to Wolfstar.  She had tried to do what Wolfstar was telling them to do now, but when you only have one cat that wants to stop all the arguing and all the rest that seem to want to fight with each other to just fight with each other, she learns that trying to stop it would be of no use.

She really wanted to tell Wolfstar that she was trying to stop the fight, but she began to wonder if that would start more fighting, so instead she dropped her head, not wanting to look at any of her siblings, and just said, "you're right Wolfstar.  I'm sorry."  She did not like that Copperfox left.  She wondered if part of the reason he left was because she joined the conversation.  He deserved to talk to Dawnhawk, just him, but she was stupid enough to feel like she could do something to help.  She did not really want to talk to any of them right now.  It was too painful to look at Beechface, to hard to see Primroselight's disappointment, to confused on what she felt about Dawnhawk to talk to him and to sad about what she did to go talk to Copperfox.  She did not know what to do.  All of them were stubborn and no one would ever admit anyone else was right.

She did not like that the Asylum came, but when she started meeting the cat's she realized they were not that bad.  She just did not get how easily all her siblings could turn on each other.  She loved them all, but they seemed to want her to pick a side, which she could never do.  Her family was more important to her than anything else.  She would prefer for them all to just except that she could never take a side, but she knew that she could not make them.  She turned towards her siblings, her head still down, not wanting to look any of them in the eye and see their disappointment in her in their eyes.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled.  "I only wanted to help, I never wanted to hurt anyone, insult anyone, or anything else I may have done.  I'm so sorry if I did any of that.  I should not even have gotten involved."  She did not walk away.  It felt like she could not move.  She did not want to stay there, but she did want to keep an eye on the Nightstrikers.  She was not about to get yelled at and then just leave, possibly letting her siblings get hurt.  Even if they did, she would prefer to die with them than she would leave and know that she could have protected them.

So caught up in her own rampage of emotion, Primroselight barely paid attention to the fact that Copperfox had clearly said she wasn't invited. She didn't care. She needed her revenge, a chance to get back at Dawnhawk for what he'd done. When everything had gone back to normal after the fire, she had planned out in her head how everything should happen. How they would be happy as a family. But then Beechface and Dawnhawk had never stopped their bickering. And Dustpaw had died. Each thing tipped the balance of her perfect idea of her life, where she had all her hardships behind her. But this was how it was now. Everything was a mess, mostly thanks to her 'brother'.

She greeted Ashstorm with a friendly flick of her tail, glad that her sister had also seen the issue. But she immediately regretted it when the young warrior opened her mouth. No..No! NO! Dawnhawk must've persuaded her with false words and fake confidence - she couldn't see any other way that Ashstorm would blindly follow a cat who nearly got their father killed. And now she was trying to downplay it. Act as if almost none of it was Dawnhawk's fault, that it would've happened anyway. It might have, she thought, but it wouldn't hurt so much if it was any old rouges. However, no matter how much Primroselight disagreed, she still tried to listen to her sister. What had changed? I lost my brother. That was the real pain, that couldn't have been inflicted by a cat she didn't know.

Another sister of hers joined the shouting match, this one much more welcomed by Primroselight. Beechface was like a study boulder, always there and ready to help when needed, even if she did grumble from time to time. Her reasoning was a lot more sound and well-spoken, probably due to the fact that she was much more used to being angry.

Wolfstar's yell cut across the camp, making Primroselight jump in fright. She hated it when things came without a small warning first. She hoped that her grandfather was there to help, maybe belittle Dawnhawk for being the fox-heart he was. His comment about Bloodstrike raised her head, and now a blazing anger for a different cat was awoken within her. She had never been angry at Wolfstar of Spottedstar before, even though she had had her moments of annoyance with the latter. He tried to fight? Yes, of course the deputy had battled back, and Primroselight (and definitely Beechface as well) would've fought if they could. She herself had still been recovering from her climbing injury, and the medicine cat had had five rouges holding her down.

Copperfox stormed off, and (if they had been on good terms) Primroselight would've followed him to escape the mess that was this conversation. She listened to how paw steps as they faded away into the forest, probably being followed by and Asylum cat. Ashstorm's pitiful apology meant nothing to her, but she didn't argue about it. The fire within her had burned down to just embers, ready to be ignited again sometime in the - hopefully far - future.

But it wasn't all gone yet. Taking a step closer to her leader, she raised her head to him. She wasn't sacred. "When our clan falls apart thanks to him," She flicked her tail at Dawnhawk, "It'll be your fault as well. I used to look up to you, but clearly you're more blind than I am. It doesn't take much to see that dealing with him is the best way to get Bloodstrike back. So I guess I've lost all my love and respect for three family members now." She glanced at Wolfstar, Dawnhawk and Ashstorm in turn, purposely trying to hurt each one with her words.

Yet again she broke down, unable to face those who she had addressed. Quietly, she whispered to Beechface. "Do you wanna talk about this somewhere else? I think I need we should talk everything through together." She hoped that her sister would listen and padded off towards the medicine den to wait for her.

Copperfox snapped at the she-cats, and Beechface winced, wanting to apologize to her younger brother. Ashstorm stumbled her way over an apology, evidently not having expected the argument that had ensued. Beechface couldn't find it in her to respond, not at the moment, anyways. She was still seething over her younger sister's apparently defense of Dawnhawk.

Dawnhawk interjected to say something about Bloodstrike, forcing Beeechface's gaze to settle on him before Wolfstar's yowl cut him off.

Dawnhawk wasn't the only one who jumped at the sudden interruption, and Beechface spun to face her leader, not bothering to hide the frustration (not that she'd ever been good at hiding such, in the first place) she felt. Here Dawnhawk was, possibly giving her something, finally. And Wolfstar had to interrupt??

The dark tom launched into a lecture, and Beechface felt her hackles rise at what he said, glare now burning a hole through him as she fought down the urge to snap at him. His words made her flinch slightly, swallowing back an outraged hiss. Her gaze dropped to her paws, not quite quick enough to hide the flash of hurt in her eyes from her grandfather probably. Dawnhawh said... something, but she'd tuned her pathetic excuse of a littermate out. Copperfox stalked off, and Beechface wished she could go after him. But what else could she say that wouldn't just make things worse. Clearly that was all she was capable of. Such a great medicine cat, Skyclan had been stuck with.

Before Beechface could figure out how to speak past the lump forming in her throat, Primroselight was speaking again. Beechface blinked at her sister, stunned. Where had sweet Primroselight gone, and what stars-cursed dark forest-sent creature had replaced her? She faced Wolfstar without a trace of fear, ripping him, Ashstorm and Dawnhawk to shreds in a few short sentences. Beechface could only stare, at a complete loss for what to say. Her gaze flicked back to Wolfstar, trying to gauge his reaction to all of this.

Tirade over, Beechface listened as Primroselight spoke to her quietly, fluffy tail absently curling around her sister in a show of support. She opened her mouth to say... something. What, she didn't know. But it snapped shut with a click as Primroselight stalked away from the group. For a moment Beechface could only stare after her, paws rooted to the spot. The ball of mixed emotions in her throat was enough to choke on.

Finally finding the will to move, Beechface turned to follow her sister, posture tense. She refused to meet any of their gazes, especially not Wolfstar's. Her pelt felt hot, and the last thing she wanted to do was go back to her own den. She wanted to stalk out of camp and put distance between herself and... all of this. But if Prim wanted to talk, she could do that much. At least she had one family member who understood.

Spotting Ashstorm, a she-cat who'd piqued his interest, chatting with her family, Himbo Bob felt his paws drawn to head over to her and chat. After all, if that whole family were as nice as they were pretty, then there should be no issues becoming friends with them all. However, the first thing he heard upon his approach was Beechface's reply.

"The other clans are irrelevant. What matters is what happens here. Dawnhawk and those rogues have caused- are causing- both direct and indirect harm on your clanmates and family. Have you no shame in supporting that, Ashstorm? How could you be that blind and naive?"

Himbo Bob's long cost bristled, creating a spiky effect and he narrowed his eyes, showing the first sign of anger since arriving here. "Actually, Ashstorm isn't blind. I believe that's your other sister, that one," he gestured to Primroselight, his voice filled with no malice at all towards the she-cat "Primflowerlight, was it? Something like that. Sorry if I got it wrong, Clan names can be confusing." With a polite nod and smile to the tabby, he turned his glare back to Beechface, "If you ask me, you're the naive one, you won't even give us a chance! Not all of us are bad, you know. Do you think we wanted it to go like this? I, for one, know for a fact I did not! So stop acting all entitled because you get the fancy smancy title of medicine cat. So what if you know how to rub plants onto pelts? You are no more deserving of respect than the youngest kit! In fact, your attitude makes you worthy of less respect! And you-" he turned to look at Copperfox, "Bronzewolf, or whatever your name is, what right do you have to talk to Primflowerlight and rude healer like that? Almost every cat here is older than you, mind your place! Where I come from such disrespect would be punishable by claws and fangs! She may be rude but she is still your elder, show some respect! Youngsters these days." he huffed, furious.

He was about to continue, when Wolfstar interrupted. "Thank you, Whitescar. At least SkyClan is lead by a sensible head." He nodded, and blinked sympathetically at Ashstorm. "Are you alright? They were oddly mean to you for littermates and siblings. You didn't do anything." He asked, concern in his voice. He looked at Dawnhawk, giving the tom a respectful nod. "Are you alright as well?" The concern was noticably gone from his tone, replaced by a tone similar to respect, but a bit adrift from it. The flame-point sat down, giving Ashstorm another long glance. Hopefully she wouldn't take those words to heart.

Water started uncontrollably dripping down the new Warrior's face when the sweetest of her sisters basically disowned her.  Both the She-cats that had hurt her the most had left, before even giving her the chance to actually tell them why she spoke.  Ashstorm dropped her head.  It took her a while till now to even realize that large Tom, who was part of the Asylum, was even there, and even a moment longer to comprehend what he said.  That was the first comfort she had received since the Asylum came, besides from Beechface, but the comfort she got in the medicine den was hard to this about at this moment.  She looked up at Himbo Bob.

"Please, don't insult Primroselight like that," she mumbled through tears.  She said the word "rose" louder in her sisters name so he knew.  She spoke kindly, but also in a somewhat demanding voice so he knew that was unacceptable.

She laid down and put her paws over her head.  She wished that she would wake up in a warrior den right now and realize that this was all just a nightmare.  But she did not.  She also knew that it was not, but she did not want to believe it.  She sighed.  I don't deserve your sympathy.  I made the mistake of talking in the first place, it's my fault this became a giant mess.  It's my fault that that I decided to follow Primroselight.  And... and it's my fault that Beechface and Primroselight probably will never talk to me again.  She thought all this, but of course did not say it out loud.

She looked back up at Himbo Bob.  Surprisingly, her tears were gone, but in it's place was this hole that she felt was in her stomach.  "I am not alright," she responded.  "But it's my fault I'm... in this mess, so I'm not upset at anyone but myself." That was the truth.  She felt like just saying, "I'm fine", but it would have been a lie.  She stood up and turned towards Dawnhawk.  "I also hope you know that, although I stood up for you, I am not on your side.  Or, any side for that matter." She told him.  She turned to Wolfstar.  "I really wasn't trying to do anything bad.  I'm sorry if it seemed that way," she exclaimed to her grandfather.  "The only reason I came out in the first place was because I saw some of the Nightstriker's about to attack Primroselight and Copperfox and I would be able to live with myself if I watched anyone hurt my siblings.  So, I decided to try to stop the fight, but I guess it did not work." she paused.  "I am really sorry though."

She finally let them know the reason she came.  "And I really hope all of you know how sorry I am if I said anything you did like." She wished she had not come at all.  How did everything fall apart so quickly?  She felt like leaving, but was waiting to see how or if anyone would respond to what she said.  She blinked and looked at the ground, knowing all these cats were around her, but feeling completely alone.

Dawnhawk stayed quiet, though he was taken aback by Primroselight's response towards Wolfstar. That might not go unpunished. Now thoroughly fascinated and invested in this new development, Primroselight's words stung a bit, but the more she did it, the less it hurt. Dawnhawk was quick to grow accustomed to rejection and exclusion. It had happened to him his whole life, with the exception of Bloodstrike and Blossomstep. His father had had to be stopped or he would have fought until he died from exhaustion anyway. Bloodstrike had been so ready to just die, he wondered how his father was handling his imprisonment. Was that a worse fate than death? Probably, for the proud tom.

Himbo Bob showed up as well, and Dawnhawk hardly even knew the overly large tom. The little he did know about him had less than impressed Dawnhawk so far, but as far as actually having a grudge against him? None at all. He had approached to comfort Ashstorm and for that he was grateful. Dawnhawk himself had been debating whether or not he should do it. At this point however... maybe it was in his own best interest and to some extent, Ashstorm's. Dawnhawk felt like he had seen enough of what would transpire here and as fascinating as it was and how little he wanted to interfere at this point, it was just time.

He nodded once to Himbo Bob, assuring his fellow Nightstriker that he was well. "I get this all of the time. I imagine it's a lot easier for you to see why I decided to help the Asylum without guilt. That" He nodded harshly in the direction of his venom-tongued sisters. "Is all I have ever gotten. Scorn from my siblings and scorn even from my mother. I didn't betray my clan, my clan betrayed me." And with that, he turned his attention to Ashstorm.

"Ashstorm," Dawnhawk spoke gently, despite her saying that she "wasn't on his side", at this point, she might not have a choice. "I assure you that none of the Nightstrikers will attack my siblings, no matter how mouse-brained they may be, so long as no one lays their claws or teeth on me or any of the Asylum cats. However," He turned his eyes to a retreating Beechface. The golden tom leaned in closer to Ashstorm. "Beechface has always been nasty to those that don't agree with her right away. You owe her no apologies, but she owes everyone at least one, trust me." He didn't care so much if Wolfstar heard, but it was obvious that he meant to keep the words between only himself and Ashstorm rather than any of his other siblings.

Dawnhawk's tail rested on Ashstorm's back, though he certainly made sure Himbo had room to comfort her if he liked. Ashstorm needed it right now. The pale tom then leaned in towards Himbo and whispered to him quietly, though Ashstorm would likely hear, being so close.

"My sisters can be nasty and vengeful. Please watch out for her for awhile, in my absence." He gave a nod to Himbo, placing his trust in this tom that he didn't know much about. Still, Dawnhawk thought he had seen enough in his character with just this one meeting to know he could be trusted.

Ashstorm nearly jumped when Dawnhawk's tail touched her back, but thankfully stopped herself. As much as she hated to admit it to herself, the comfort that the two cats were giving her made her feel a little better. Like, maybe not everything was her fault, although she still knew it was. She looked up at Dawnhawk. She was nearly as tall as him, but still had a small way to go. When he first trained her as an apprentice, she was pretty sure that he would have let her die beneath the talons of the owl, and she never thought in a million moons that he would be there comforting her now.

"Thank you," she said to Dawnhawk, then turned her head towards Himbo Bob. "Both of you."

Her happiness ended as soon as it began when Dawnhawk's words sunk it. She again turned her head towards him, but instead of her gaze filled with happiness, like it was the last time, it had a sad tint to it. "You're leaving?" She questioned, feeling numb again. "Where are you going?"

As Copperfox quit the camp, Wolfstar was half tempted to go after him. He sympathized with the young tom, he understood, and agreed with him, even... but the new warrior was naïve and inexperienced... and this wasn't the way to go about what he was trying to accomplish. Eventually, hopefully, he'd learn that. Until then, though, he'd have to deal with the rejection. The leader ignored Dawnhawk's words, and began to reply to Ashstorm, but his attentions were pulled Primroselight as she confronted him.

He let her finish without commenting, and then waited for her to whisper whatever it was to Beechface, but as she turned away, he replied for all of them to hear, not specifically directed at Primroselight though he didn't take his eyes off her as she spoke. "The unity you're desperate to protect is the very unity you destroy by tearing into each other in a time where you should be supporting instead. You fear the Asylum is breaking SkyClan, but I see no Asylum cats here, only siblings bickering and disowning each other over harshly spoken words and opinions." He paused then, long enough to slide his gaze from each cat present to the next.

"These are the actions of apprentices and kits, not warriors as you are supposed to be. Until I say otherwise, the lot of you are on apprentice duties. And should this happen again, I'll be strongly considering a fresh apprenticeship for each of you, because clearly you have a lot still to learn."

He'd not caught Himbo Bob's initial words, but the Asylum cat was steadfastedly ignored, too - that was, until he approached Ashstorm. Wolfstar grit his teeth, slinking over to his granddaughter and flicked his tail to lay across her shoulders, the rest of him blocking her from the rogue's view as he leaned in to whisper to her, "I understand things are confusing right now, but if you ever need to talk, you can come to me," he whispered. "It was very brave of you to stand up for them like that. Give Primroselight some time... she'll get over it."

Turning finally to Dawnhawk, Wolfstar said nothing, just pierced him with a stare for several long, awkward seconds until he just turned away and padded away in Smokefeather's direction.