Ashes From the Dawn [C]

Ashfall had questions, and her father would have some kind of answers, that much she knew. So when she woke up early that morning, with the last of the stars disappearing from the sky, the mostly white warrior decided to grab her father for a conversation. "Da-" She hesitated for a moment, letting out a small sigh, before continuing, "Dawnhawk, let's go out on the moor, maybe hunt if your leg is up to it." She still fondly recalled the last time they had been out together when she was an apprentice. Ashfall was unsure about how his leg was feeling, but it didn't matter, she'd still talk to him. She just might end up the only one hunting. Without another word, she padded away to wait at the entrance to camp. As Ashfall waited for Dawnhawk to follow, she looked up at the remaining stars, questioning them silently. As soon as she saw him out of the corner of her eyesight, she looked at him emotionlessly for a moment before remarking, "Time to go", and leading them both out of camp farther out onto the moor.

After a short walk, Ashfall began to speak. "So, I'll say it outright, I had an ulterior motive in bringing you out here. I'll get this all out of the way right now so maybe we can actually hunt. When I went on my Moonstone Journey, I spoke to your brother, Copperfox. I was all ready to ask you questions in private and tell Lilacstar that you weren't telling the clan everything if I needed to, but you actually ended up telling the whole clan, which was the last thing I expected you to do. So I'm doing that now. I want the truth, not whatever you decided to tell the clan so you could stay in it. Do you really care about Windclan, about the family you made? Or are you using Windclan as a shield against Skyclan's wrath?" Ashfall had stopped walking at this point, bringing her gaze up to her father's. Her eyes were cold, and her tone revealed nothing about what she really felt. Ashfall knew that Starclan didn't give information for no reason, meaning that her father could very well be one of the cats who didn't like the code, who resented Starclan. She secretly hoped that her questioning would make her believe that couldn't be the case, and that she could begin to trust her father again.

Dawnhawk hadn't slept much at all. His leg for once had nothing to do with it. It would ache a bit here and there, but he was definitely on the mend. He wouldn't need his splint for much longer, maybe one more week or so. Ashfall entered the warrior's den, he knew the sound of her footsteps. He knew her better than she thought he did. He hadn't been paying much attention to her lately, thinking she wanted to be left alone for awhile to take in what had just happened, and understandably so. When she spoke part of his name, his ears swiveled in her direction, but he didn't move. She spoke his full name, an odd sound on his daughter's lips, and he turned his head just enough to look sideways over his shoulder at her.

At the offer to "hunt" he was aware of what this was going to turn into. He said nothing as he got to his feet, though he snorted quietly at the mention of "if his leg was up for it". It was understandable. She had no idea who he was. She didn't know how little pain actually bothered him. It was a trait that he no doubt inherited from Bloodstrike, whom was seemingly unaffected by any sort of pain whatsoever. He hardly even reacted to it most days.

He followed her in silence, waiting for the inevitable conversation to come. She turned to face him a certain way and opened her mouth. Here we go. He thought to himself before she had uttered a single word. The fact that she told him she had an ulterior motive from bringing him out here almost made him smile. Almost. Her news of the moonstone journey and the mentioning of Copperfox being her Starclan Cat had him raise an eyebrow, but he didn't interrupt her. Of course his brother, even while dead, had to be a pain in his rear end. He very carefully listened to how she phrased each question.

Unfortunately for her, she was the very honest type, as was obvious from the get-go. Being honest with Dawnhawk worked about as well as being honest with the devil. He returned the cold gaze that she gave him, having worn the frigid, arctic stare long before she was born. He wasn't Nightwind anymore. There was no shimmer of gentleness or a soft, soothing gaze any longer. Still, he felt a small swell of pride from how similar she was to him, albeit unknowingly. The cold stare, the mind games (although she was not as experienced at it as he was just yet and it showed)... the only thing that she got from her mother seemed to be honesty and innocence. But for how long?

"Forgive me for answering your question with a question," He spoke slowly and methodically as he gauged her for a reaction. "But as you said, I have already done something that you didn't expect me to do, which was be honest with the entire clan. Whatever Copperfox has told you is old news; Old news from a long dead relative of ours. You must have some idea of the old me to compare the new me to, or you wouldn't have been surprised with my decision to reveal my true identity. The seeds of doubt in your mind were placed there by an uncle that saw me at my absolute darkest moments... and every experienced warrior has dark moments. You are asking me if I care about Windclan and my current family because of the confusion and doubt Copperfox decided to... "enlighten" you with. I want you to think about that for a moment and I will now ask my question: Do you honestly believe that Copperfox did you a great service by informing you before I could?" He paused for a moment to let her think before he finally gave her the answer she thought she wanted.

"But yes, I do care about my new family. And Windclan a shield against Skyclan? Ashfall... Windclan is a clan of tireless idealists that mean well and try to extend love and compassion to everyone, even those outside their borders. Skyclan is a very angry, very vengeful, militarized clan that chases off even the most innocent of outsiders simply because they are not Skyclan. I have fought alongside Windclan warriors and gotten to know most of you and I was raised within Skyclan. If Windclan and Skyclan were to ever go to war, I'm willing to bet my tail that Windclan would be absolutely annihilated. So no. I'm not using this clan as a shield against anything but having to fight rogues for scraps of food in Twoleg Place again."

And with that, he went silent and allowed her to process his words and make her own decisions about things.

Holding her gaze, Ashfall took a moment to process this. One, Dawnhawk assumed she was confused because of what her uncle sent from Starclan told her, and two, he was asking questions to figure her out too. He could be trying to get a more emotional response? Clearly, he didn't like Copperfox, and assumes he told me something specific. Only after a few heartbeats did she respond, in much the same way her father had. "Starclan doesn't make a habit of giving out information just because they can. Obviously, there was a reason I was given information by your brother. Those seeds of "doubt" in my mind? More likely a warning against you, but why would actual Starclan be warning me against you? How many cats that murder do Starclan give warnings to apprentices on their Moonstone journeys about? I believe Copperfox's information was a fine service, and honestly, Starclan did me a favor, usually, their information is usually so much more cryptic." Ok, the information was still just assumed, but Ashfall hoped that her father wouldn't call her bluff here. He probably would, but all Ashfall cared about was his reaction, yet Dawnhawk certainly seemed more experienced at this sort of thing, which was another of the many alarm bells ringing in her mind.

After her pause, she pressed on, "Feel like telling me if you care about Windclan yet, or do you feel like answering with another question first? We've got time, I'm sure. Don't worry, as long as your not feeling like murdering anyone in this clan, I probably won't be telling anyone anything I hear today. I would recommend maybe talking to Mom though if you haven't already, you can make all this sound much nicer for her sake. After all, she's Windclan, an idealist as you said." Her tone remained cold and detached, even more so as she realized that both she and her father were playing the same game here. Ashfall hoped that mentioning her mother might get some kind of reaction from Dawnhawk, but even no reaction might be able to tell her something. So much of this conversation felt like an alarm, why had Lilacstar let him stay? Why not just be straight with her? Why not just give an answer and be done with it? Ashfall could feel him trying to create doubt against what Starclan said. He wasn't denying what Copperfox may or may not have said about him, all he said was that there were dark moments that everyone had. There were just so many worrying implications, and this had her gray-tipped tail flicking back and forth as she continued thinking about the terrible possibilities that could come of this. Yet she held his gaze, despite her increasing worry.

Dawnhawk gauged her emotions as carefully as he could. Any facial twitch, any slight rotation of an ear, any tail flick that would give him a single sign as to what she was thinking was absorbed and analyzed. He allowed her speak, zeroing in on her tone and the way she worded things. A few things he certainly picked up on was her impatience to get an answer, which wasn't characteristic of anyone who already knew the answer to their question. She gave off a vibe less like a patient leader waiting for their subordinate to give a report and more like an excitable kit hoping to catch a mouse before apprenticeship. There was anxiety there too. She was worried. Worry only came from the unknown, or not knowing. Dawnhawk had won this conversation already, as far as he was concerned.

"...why would actual Starclan be warning me against you?" Aaaand bingo. She didn't know the whole story, and that tiny slip up confirmed it. Still, he allowed her to finish speaking. This was still a delicate matter and he didn't want her to know she had been defeated just yet. The question was merely a distraction, a way to keep her talking so that he could analyze her further. It had worked.

"Copperfox was a good cat... he really was. We had our differences, we had a spat a time or two, but I never really hated my brother." Which was true. He wasn't even entirely sure that he hated Beechface, and she had driven him the most crazy and had been the loudest in protest when the Asylum came. She had been a friend to Tornshadow, from what his daughter had told him. For that, if they ever crossed paths again and he was given an opportunity to kill her, he would let her go instead. She might go home with an extra smack or two, but alive.

"I don't think he hated me either... but maybe I'm wrong. He didn't seem capable of hating anyone. Did he bother to mention that when one of the Asylum soldiers attacked him, I defended him? He was a new warrior, but a peaceful soul and a pacifist, and the Asylum didn't like that. It actually bothered them. So one of their soldiers beat him to a pulp thinking I would turn a blind eye, but I beat them in turn, in front of the entire Asylum that occupied Skyclan as a lesson to never harm a member of my family again. That was the last time we had a problem like that." He paused to let her think about that too before he continued. "I know you're angry and you should be. Lying to you, your mother and your brother wasn't right, but don't you dare assume you know me after one meeting with your first Starclan cat. They, too, are imperfect and prone to their own bias as much as any cat that walks physically among the clans."

His eyes had hardened and his mouth was set in a firm frown. He took a breath and his facial features softened a bit.

"I care about Windclan to the extent that they protect my family, because I care about my family more than any one clan." That much at least was true. He loved Tornshadow so much it was physically painful sometimes. While he and Moonshine had never gotten close, he would still not hesitate to kill any other Shadowclanner... but would have a hard time choking the life force out of her. Windclan was far from terrible, but his kits mattered more still. "Relax... I have no interest in ending the life of any Windclan cat. I like all of them more than most of Skyclan at this point. As for your mother, I want to give her whatever time she needs before trying to talk with her, as I have given you your space and your brother as well. This is a delicate situation, and I will not force anyone to come to me until they are ready."

That was final, and he made that very clear on his face. His eyes scanned the moor around them, noting hares and rabbits all over the place, as they had been the last time they went out hunting together.

"I named you after one of my sisters. Her name is Ashstorm. Out of all of my siblings, she still loves me for me. Maybe you'll see her at a gathering one day. She's big, she's got long, dark gray fur and she's very nice for a Skyclan cat. Despite the supposed "warnings" Copperfox has given you, she is still around to speak to and can do it on a more consistent basis than he can, if you were so inclined to speak to her. Maybe you should ask her why she still cares about me, despite the fact that I am apparently so terrible. Or you can speak to Blossomstep. She's my grandmother and she was my mentor." The conversation that he and Blossomstep had by the river flashed through his mind. The pain they both shared that day still remained with him. He revealed to her the truth as to why he betrayed Skyclan to begin with: An abusive mother and an absentee father proved to be too much for the young tom. It was information that Ashfall might need, and information that had probably prevented Lilacstar from banishing him, but he couldn't bring himself to tell his daughter.

Fathers had to be strong for their kits, especially their daughters, and to reveal all of that information would put him in a position too vulnerable for him for the time being.

"Blossomstep is a silver tabby with long fur as well. She..." He blinked. His vision was getting blurry and his chest was beginning to ache. He stopped and took a breath to calm himself. "She is also very kind." He finished, instead of saying what he wanted to say. "She could tell you more." Or "She might help you understand." would have been better, but this was all he could manage for now.

"Are we actually hunting or did you just want to pull me aside and talk to me?" He needed a subject change. He regretted even bringing Blossomstep up. He should have known some things were still too painful to remember and would unbalance his position of power within the conversation that they were having. "Even with my leg in a splint, I am just as capable of hunting as any warrior, and I'm certainly still more dangerous to predators than you are, newly named warrior." There was a tease in his voice now, but it was no lie. He'd been fighting and hunting for a very long time under many different circumstances. A leg splint was just one more challenge he was eager to overcome.

Ashfall listened to her father in silence, her stare still unwavering. She got what she wanted, a semblance of security for her family, and the hope that Dawnhawk would be no danger to them. Still, she couldn't trust him. Perhaps, if Dawnhawk tried, then it could come back, Ashfall wasn't opposed to trying to have that relationship back with her father. Not yet though, his reveal was too soon, too fresh in her mind. Finally, she broke his gaze at his slight tease, letting out a small chuckle. "Alright then 'old man', let's do some hunting, would hate to seem like we were slacking..." Continuing to look away, she began scanning the moor as she continued. "Thank you for answering my questions." Her tone wasn't warm, but it was not as cold as it had been. The game, for now, was over. She nearly asked for tips on his way of deflection, of answers and questions, but she held her tongue. Not worth asking, not today.

With a swift glance over her shoulder to look at Dawnhawk, she began to stalk a rabbit she had spotted downwind of her. It was a chubby-looking thing, likely getting fat off the plentiful grasses Newleaf had provided. Perfect, she might even impress someone in camp. Ashfall began the approach, a well-practiced movement at this point, of crouching down so low it burned, and her belly fur touching the ground. Skulking in the taller grasses, she got as close to the prey creature as she could before the grass thinned and shortened. With a slight forward tilt of her ears, she exploded from the grass, bounding toward the rabbit. Within a few bounds, she was close enough to the fleeing creature to pounce. With a leap, she caught the rabbit in her outstretched claws, tumbling for a moment with it in her grasp. Quick enough, she closed her jaws around its neck, ending its life then and there. Without pause, she began the process of digging a hole for the prey, no use in it getting taken now.

The member 'Alexcentria' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 8

As Ashfall seemed to be satisfied with his answers, he was more than happy to move on from the conversation. Ashfall caught a rabbit with swiftness and skill. He snickered at being called an old man. Was he old? He thought for a moment and decided no, he wasn't. He was nearing three years old, the age of a mature adult, but not old. He didn't blame his daughter for calling him such. She was hardly more than an apprentice after all.

"Slack? For me, work is never over." He bolted after a hare, sheer burning will and determination lighting his eyes. The lashes of pain from his leg were ignored aside from a grimace, but it only worked to fuel his determination to kill that hare. He hadn't even bothered to sneak. Ashfall was about to learn more about her true father was. He had been fast even as a Skyclan cat, but with some Windclan training, he was nearly akin to a white flash across the green moor. He was not about to allow a leg injury to disrupt him.

Even with his leg in a splint, significantly slowing the pale tom down, Dawnhawk gained on the hare quickly. He got within the range that he wanted to and the hare panicked. It jumped up into the air to try and avoid capture, the moment Dawnhawk had been waiting for. He kicked off of the ground too, combining Windclan speed with Skyclan leaping ability, and dropped his weight down onto the hare's head. With the hare's face firmly planted in the dirt, it's hind end sailed over it's neck and snapped it. Dawnhawk landed on top of it as it kicked, but he knew it was dead. He'd had no need for teeth or claws on this hunt.

"Of course..." He answered Ashfall, though he wasn't sure what else he'd need to say about it. "I don't plan on going to any gatherings. I don't want trouble for Windclan, if that's any consolation." The hare kicked a few more times, one of which swiped Dawnhawk's haunch. In response, the pale tom gave it an annoyed snort before stomping down on it's head again. Maybe more damage to the neck vertebrae would put an end to the death throes. It gave a weaker kick twice more before finally going still.

Dawnhawk attempted to catch a hare. He was successful! -3SP

The member 'Tara' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Hunting Dice' : 3

Ashfall, dropping her rabbit into the hole she made, watched her father hunt. He was fast for a Skyclan cat, just about as fast as she was, and she was born and raised Windclan. This was with his leg in a splint, and he could give even full-bred Windclan cats a run for their prey. Dawnhawk was skilled, that was pretty obvious the whole time she had known her father. This was pretty crazy though, knowing that he was this good. With a leap Ashfall would only describe as Skyclan training rearing its head, her dad had brought the hare down in spectacular fashion.

Her tail twitched in surprise when Dawnhawk spoke to her again, Ashfall had thought their conversation was over. As she opened her jaws to give a short answer, she saw his brutal takedown of the hare. With a grimace, she spoke. "Thanks. With luck, maybe Skyclan will think you're dead or gone and finally stop warning everyone at the gathering about you. I bet they'll do it at the next one, they did it at the last one I went to." Grabbing her rabbit from the recently made hole, she approached him. "Ready to head back?" Ashfall tore her gaze from Dawnhawk to look at the horizon, the sun was mostly up now, and others would certainly be getting up or would already be up. Not that it mattered, but she wondered how many would think that Dawnhawk had left for good, and would be disappointed to see him return.