An Eventful Discovery [c]

Traveling along the gorge, Tawnyflare kept an eye on RiverClan territory, wearing her fox pelt (although the hood was currently down. It has been a bit since she had a pelt, and it was also much hotter now than it had been when she had earned her first pelt.) She thought it would be quite entertaining to give some of the Clan a little fright to bring back to Ivystar. Did she hold a grudge against the Clan? Perhaps she did. The Clan that had been her home had also been her place of torment, berating her before she had even committed a crime. Just her being there had been all the reason they needed to make her suffer. She was still young, she had known no better. What had they thought would happen before she killed Shrikefrost?

Had Brick not chosen to stay, Tawnyflare would find a way to burn the entirety of RiverClan down. How ironic would that be, a Clan of water going up in flames? But as Brick had, for some reason she could not fathom, decided to remain among the mangy fish-eaters, the calico would simply continue these pranks. Subtle mayhem, as she called it. She need only spot her victim, and she would raise her hood. Or simply allow them to believe that Asylum was returning after all. Either way, it would be beautiful chaos. It was a shame Fawnstep was not present as well, he would enjoy watching this. For reasons that were not as clear as her own, the tom also held a distaste for the Clan.

Yarrowpaw had an idea, which is never a good sign.

Stepping cautiously over the sleeping bodies of his fellow apprentices, Yarrowpaw sneaks his way from the apprentice den to RiverClan's entrance. The tom was now, for the first time, looking up at the entrance alone and in the dark. Yarrowpaw stared into the night and silent, inky blackness stared back, gripping the young tom with a sudden and icy-cold fear. I'm really doing this, he thinks, shaking off the fear and stepping into the shadow. I'm really going to go hunting alone.

Taking soft, tentative steps, the apprentice finds himself nearing The Gorge, having been unsuccessful in his hunt but excited nontheless. This dark, still moment was the first time the young tom has ever been in this area, forbidden to go alone, and the danger of it only seemed to add fuel to the flame. Yarrowpaw had kept his eyes and whiskers at full attention, attempting to catch the movement of a passing bird, but all he managed to feel was the soft spring wind in his face. However, that's not all that he saw; just a streak of movement, a flash of dusky red in the peripherals of his vision.

A fox.

Yarrowpaw freezes in terror, oblivious to the hard-packed dirt and rock crumbling and crunching beneath his paws.

As fun as it was to torment these Clan cats, watching as they cowered in fear, this particular one was teetering a bit too close to the edge, and Ivystar would have her pelt if she caused the death of another RiverClan cat. With a sigh, she shook off her fox, kicking it slightly away.

"Hey, fish-brain, quit cowering like a kit. Look, I'm a cat, not a fox alright? Even if I was a fox, what do you expect me to do from way over here? So just back away from there before you break your neck, alright?"

Catching the cat's eye, Tawnyflare let out an alarmed gasp. This was impossible. She left her kit for dead. But she knew those eyes. Any mother would know the eyes of her own kit, even one as awful as her. But if this was her kit, then he would never hear her yowls. Stupid brat, it seemed like everything was wrong with him. Still, she couldn't just let him fall.

A pebble! Of course! If she could hit the tom with one, perhaps it would make him leap back. Grabbing one from the edge, she heaved it across the large gap. For the sake of her kit, she hoped it reached.

Yarrowpaw attempts to side-step the pebble, but the small, sharp rock still manages to graze his shoulder blade. The tom winces, swiveling his head back towards the other cat, incredulous look painted on his face. Did that cat really just throw a rock at me? He thought, blinking. At least he was now farther away from the mouth of The Gorge, now that he's noticed.

Now, staring at the cat, Yarrowpaw can see recognition in the orbs of the other cat... a worryingly familiar cat. Why did Yarrowpaw recognize her? Why did she recognize him? Just who was she, and what was she doing here?

No matter. Yarrowpaw has to defend his clan. Taking charge, the young tom galloped on his short legs over to the other cat, taking a swing at her with uncoordinated paws.

Yarrowpaw used Front Paw Strike, Dealing in -6 Damage & Costing -10 in Stamina

Yarrowpaw:
15/15 HP
40/50 SP (-10)

Tawnyflare:
54/60 HP (-6)
200/200 SP

Tawnyflare let out a hiss of annoyance as Yarrowpaw swiped out at her. Yup, he was definitely her son, hot-headedness and all. Still, his form could definitely use some improvement. But if she was going to get anywhere with this boy, she needed to get him to calm down.

Raising her paws in a bit of a surrender, she pointed her tail at the gorge. "You would have fallen." She spoke slowly, hoping that maybe he could at least read her lips.

Then, looking at the claw mark her son had given her, she smiled. He really did have a fire in him.

"Watch me." Slowly, she began to repeat the move that Yarrowpaw had used on her, with better form, before nodding to Yarrowpaw. Maybe he could give it a try now.

Yarrowpaw watched with wide eyes as the familiar cat copied his own move, precision and raw power emanating from every outstretched claw. He flinched, waiting, preparing for impact, but the hit landed just millimeters away from Yarrowpaw’s soft fur. It was clear that this cat was much more powerful than Yarrowpaw was, and could easily take him out in mere seconds, yet she was instead opting to teach him how to perfect his moves. She baffled Yarrowpaw to no end, it seemed, and Yarrowpaw was beginning to believe that she was mad.

Her explanation for her rock-throwing did little to quell the confusion. She had saved him? But why? This cat was becoming more and more of an enigma every second Yarrowpaw spent with her, but the fear of her claws was enough to keep Yarrowpaw complacent in her strange version of training. Clumsily, Yarrowpaw attempted to copy her movements, unsheathed claws batting helplessly at the cat’s chest

“Why are you doing this?” he asked wordlessly, little staccato chirps bubbling from between his lips. Yarrowpaw was, if nothing else, a curious cat, and even though the strange cat scared him to no end, Yarrowpaw still desperately needed answers for her behavior.

Yarrowpaw had brought up a good point. Why was she doing this. Was it because they were kin? But she had never cared before. Why start now? What had changed, seeing the wretched brat now, when she was able to leave him behind with no regrets moons prior? Had she grown soft?

Outwardly, though, Tawnyflare just shrugged. “You are weak. I was once weak as well. Perhaps I see myself in you, young one.”

Just to make sure the point had gotten across, Tawnyflare pointed to her son, and then to herself. Then she lowered herself to be the same height as Yarrowpaw. His equal.

“Name?”

Yarrowpaw gaped. This situation was getting stranger and stranger by the second, yet Yarrowpaw felt no intention of turning tail and leaving. The familiar cat felt warm, almost comforting to Yarrowpaw, despite the hostility she seemed to emanate from her being.

Yarrowpaw felt like she was home, in a way. It was strange even to him.

"Im Yarrowpaw. What's your name?" He silently asked, his deaf ears twitching.

It kind of stung to be called weak, especially by this cat, but Yarrowpaw took it in stride, smiling widely. She was going to show him how to fight better! He was going to become a better warrior with her help, help he was more than excited for, especially since she said she saw herself in him.

Maybe they were more similar than he initially thought.

Yarrowpaw. So that was the name of her son. Truthfully, it was not a bad name. And speaking of truth, perhaps he deserved to know who she was.....

"My name is Tawnyflare. Yarrowpaw, there is something I must confess. Moons ago, I had been in a....bad place, to say the least. At some point, I had given birth to a kit I could not take care of. I now realize that, after all this time, you are that kit. That is the true reason I take interest in you now. To be here when I could not before. Yarrowpaw, now that you know this, you have a choice that you must make. You can stay in RiverClan, or you may join me in WindClan, with your family. You have WindClan blood in you, Yarrowpaw. You do not belong in RiverClan. It will never be a true home for you. So, will you come with me?"

Were her reasons for doing this selfish? Oh, absolutely! She could just picture the look on Ivystar's face when she found one of her Clan members chose HER over RiverClan. And...maybe a part of her did want to make things right with her son, too. Despite being deaf, he was incredibly smart, having absolutely no problem communicating with her. She had been wrong about him in the past. He was not worthless. He had proven that to her today. Maybe she could be a mother, after all.

Yarrowpaw blanched. Surely this was just a dream, right? He must be dreaming. Yet, the wind whistling through his fur felt all too real.. Tawnyflare. His birth mother.

He knew Ivystar wasn't his mother, nor was Stormbringer or Honeytongue. They told him they had found him, just a little thing, all alone in the deep dark wood. Some cat had left him there. Some cat had abandoned him. If what Tawnyflare was saying was true, then she was the one who abandoned him.. why? Why did she leave him to die in the woods? He was just a kit, never did anything wrong. Sure, she said that she was "in a bad place", but did that really forgive such a crime as leaving her own kit to rot?

Yarrowpaw looked up at his mother in contemplation. She had given him an ultimatum- RiverClan, where he had always found a home, where Ivystar was, where Cloverpaw was, or WindClan, a territory wholly unfamiliar to him, full of unfamiliar cats and unfamiliar terrain..

And his mother.

She wanted to connect with him again. She saw a greatness in him she hadn't seen when she abandoned him all those moons ago. Yarrowpaw felt himself yearning to learn more about her, his lineage.

His family. His true family.

"Um.. can I.. think about it?" Yarrowpaw asked uncertainly. "I need time to think."

There was a pleased smile on Tawnyflare's maw. While he had not said no to her request, he had also not said yes, either, and somehow she was proud of that. She knew he was scared of her, and yet he still stood his ground. He was going to make his own decision, instead of simply deciding to stay on her good side. It took a lot of strength to do that, Eris knows she didn't always have that strength. Yarrowpaw was shaping up well.

"Very well. I will come back in a moons time. Meet me here if you do decide to come back with me. If you do not come, I will assume you have chosen to stay in RiverClan, and I will make my leave."

With a final nod farewell, Tawnyflare turned, heading back to her own territory. And somehow, she found her mood lightened through this encounter.