September Gathering 2021

Flintstar halted at the edge of the clearing, staring at the scattered bits and pieces of the branches, deeply questioning his desire to actually be here. He didn't want to - he never did and the events of the last Gathering didn't exactly raise his hopes that things would go well this full moon but it was still his responsibility as a leader. With a huff, he pressed forward and carefully stepped around the twigs - making no noise as he reached the great rock and scaled it to wait for the rest of the Clans to arrive. Hopefully the other Clans would have learned their lesson from last time and things could go smoother tonight but he doubt it.

As SkyClan crested the hill, finally able to look down into Fourtrees, Wolfstar raised his tail for the clan to stop, and then turned to face the group of cats who had been chosen to come tonight. His eyes swept over them all, expression tired, but his voice was firm, and held no room for argument as he spoke. "If any SkyClan cat steps a single toe out of line tonight, they'll find themselves back in the apprentice den, or worse, when we get back home." He let that threat linger in the air for a few seconds, and then dipped his head and signaled that they could enter the clearing.

Wolfstar was exhausted. Even though his condition was improving, nearly two moons of neglect and starvation had slimmed him to a shadow of his former self, and the trek here had been rough on him. Waiting until his clan has dispersed, Wolfstar cleared his throat, the tickle at the back when he inhaled making him wish he'd stopped to get something to drink when he had the chance. Then, silently, he padded down until he was at the base of the rock. Only Flintstar was here, and Wolfstar allowed himself a moment of brief respite as he looked up, dreading the energy it would take to climb aside him. Shakily, he leapt, hooking claws into stone and hauling his dark, striped pelt up to sit next to ShadowClan's leader.

"Flintstar," he acknowledged raspily. "I do hope ShadowClan fares well on this night."

Leading WindClan to the Gathering was enough to terrify Daystar, but knowing that she actually had to speak again this time and announce the transfer in WindClan’s leadership was what scared her the most. Her splint was finally off, thank StarClan, but walking on it normally felt odd. It was going to take a bit of time for her to get used to having full control of her forelimb. As she led the Clan into Fourtrees, she kept her eyes glued to the Great Rock. There was no reason to glance around and make herself more nervous than she already was. Without a word, she leaped onto the Great Rock to join the other two leaders that had already arrived. There was no need for her to open her mouth. She already knew that she would end up rambling if she tried to say a word. All she could do was give both leaders a respectful nod before turning her head to look down at the Clan cats below.

Flintstar twitched an ear as Wolfstar jumped on the rock, a little surprise to see the leader after his deputy had taken his spot the last moon - and even Flintstar could see that Wolfstar was a shell of his former self but he said nothing, only letting out a huff at the leader's comment. After all, ShadowClan was not faring all that well - not with the rogues that continued to be a thorn in his side, along with a good deal of deaths and missing cats in the recent moon... But he wouldn't waste the words to speak about it here - not until the Gathering was properly started. There was a flicker of movement as another form jumped on the rock to join them, a pelt that Flintstar didn't quite recognize but the smell was clear - WindClan. ...Lilacstar had failed to speak up at the last gathering, causing her deputy to have to speak in her stead. Was Lilacstar still unable to find her voice or had something happened in the moon since? Hm... He simply flickered his tail at Daystar in greeting, before he scanned the clearing for the signs of the last two Clans to arrive.

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Muddyleap padded along side his mother as WindClan entered the clearing, the tom giving the cracked great tree a long look. It had been...Terrifying - the crashing sound and blinding light. He leaned into his mom, curling his tail around hers. "...Do you want me to stay with you?" he asked softly, glancing over at Hayglow as she stared forlorn at the loose pieces of branches and bark that littered the clearing.

"...Only if you want to," she murmured back, pressing back into her son as they both leaned on each other. She had thought nothing about her son being off on his own in the last Gathering but when the thunder struck and she had no idea where he was in the panic... She feared so much for him and his sister - if anything was to happen to them... A shudder ran through her body.

"I'll stay with you then, momma," Muddyleap replied as the two took their seat, giving her a small smile. "Besides, you might finally get to meet Newtpaw!" he purred, before there was a moment of hesitation. He had last seen Newtpaw racing towards the remains of the tree - he had wanted to follow but WindClan was leaving and... He hoped Newtpaw was okay - that nobody he knew had been hurt or if they were, that they were at least alive...

Nobody had died from that...Right?

Beechface padded after Wolfstar, jaw clenched. She was through staying in camp and laying around idle, fully recovered or not. As they paused before entering fourtrees, Wolfstar spoke, and Beechface's only acknowledgement that she'd heard was the twitch of one tattered ear. A single eye swept over fourtrees below, and for a moment all Beechface could smell was burnt flesh. That had been the one thing to stick in her mind, it seemed, and the medicine cat took a slow breath, giving herself a shake. Wolfstar was padding forward again, striding towards the great rock, and Beechface's gaze remained trained on the thin leader as he managed to make his way to the top of the rock where Flintstar sat.
Beechface took a few steps to be on the edge of the hollow and sat, not willing to go further... And pointedly staying as far away from the trees as she could get. Given this was fourtrees, it wasn't particularly far.

Movement in her peripheral vision made her head snap in that direction, coldly watching Windclan's arrival. Lilacstar wasn't among them, and Beechface had to wonder if she'd stayed behind out of embarrassment after not being able to speak at the previous gathering. Her gaze drifted, scanning the cats in the clearing, and once more was drawn to the remains of the scorched branch and bits of twigs. It was impossible to miss, and impossible to keep her thoughts from. Beechface kept her head slightly turned so that her blind side was away from most of the crowd, tension creeping into her shoulders as she unconsciously flexed her claws into the grass.

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Swiftspirit padded behind Daystar as they made the trek to fourtrees, fur prickling with unease as she caught sight of Skyclan already in the hollow. Still, Skyclan wasn't what held her attention for long, the remains of the tree branch that had been hit by lightning were hard to miss. Whatever had happened, she was just glad that none of her clanmates had been injured by the thing, though she did wonder how Skyclan's medicine cat had fared, if she'd even made it out of the clearing at all.

Eventually she spotted the massive she-cat, who was sporting quite a few more scars than she already had. She sat quietly on the edge of the hollow, the tension in her shoulders obvious even from across fourtrees. She kept her head turned slightly, one piercing yellow-green eye scanning the crowd before dropping to study her paws. Her ears were flat against her skull, and the burns that Swiftspirit could see across her chest and leg stood out starkly against her pale fur. Evidently, being struck by lightning had left a mark.

Curiosity satisfied, Swiftspirit settled among her clanmates, though she was curiously scanning the crowd still.

Beechface is.. unwillingly open to talk to.
Swiftspirit is open to talk to and will be much more welcoming.

Dawnfeather] was… in awe. The last time she’d been here, everycat had been arguing and StarClan sent down lightning (lightning) to hurt Beechaunt and she’d been kinda on her own and lost-like. She was going to enjoy this time. Wolfstar’s words at the edge of the hollow made her freeze. Wait. What was she supposed to do? What if she messed up? She didn’t mean to do anything (if she did)! Argh! The golden she-cat wrapped her tail nervously around her hind leg, looking around for someone to ask as she slowly followed SkyClan into the hollow. It was a nice, mysterious-like place, very starry-like, hard to feel worried in… but she was worried. Very much so worried. What would Wolfstar do to her? Was this a usual thing? Was she overthinking this? Yes. Still, she couldn’t help but feel slightly nervous.

A familiar pelt caught her eyes. Beechaunt! Beechaunt would know what she was supposed to do, she was sure. She made her way over quickly to where Beechaunt was, a slightly worried smile on her face. “Beechaunt!” She called. “I’m not quite sure what I’m supposed to do,” she murmured, sitting down next to Beechaunt with a sigh. “I wasn’t worried about it very much, then Wolfstar was very mad-like. I don’t want to lose my warrior name on my first Gathering after earning it!” Dawnfeather was rarely worried, but she really liked her name and didn’t want to lose it, it fitted her so well, she really liked it, and now she might lose it!

Henpaw trotted into Fourtrees with a drooping tail. The last moon… catastrophic, to say the least. Her father. Her mentor. Her brother. At this point, the only thing keeping her going was her drive to protect WindClan. That, and Thrushflight, and the rest of WindClan, who were generally nice and made her proud to be a WindClanner, and the fact that at least her brother hadn’t died. But right now, although the searing first shock and pain had somewhat faded, she felt depressed. Like the fox-lengths of earth above a tunnel were pushing down on her. Still. She would not give in. She represented WindClan.

The calico glanced up at the Greatrock, spotting Daystar. Heh. They were both in the same position, representing their Clan for the first time. At least Daystar had had some time as deputy to get used to it. Henpaw waved her tail with a look of encouragement, trying to show her support for the new leader. That was her job, after all. She sat at the edge of the hollow, scanning the crowd for WindClan cats. Making sure they were safe. Protected. WindClan must be safe.

Dawnfeather is talking to Beechaunt.
Henpaw is open to talk!
Pricklepaw will be here as soon as ThunderClan arrives.

Minkstar led his Clan into the clearing, his eyes immediately flicking to the mess of ashen branches from... last time. From when SkyClan had antagonized WindClan, Bloodstrike had given his version of events about the battle between them, and Beechfall had fallen. Wait, is that her name? Honestly he couldn't quite remember, though she'd been involved in that prophecy about Robinloft.

He panned his gaze over the cats gathered as he padded towards the rock, a flicker of pleasant surprise touching his eyes as he spotted Wolfstar on the Great Rock, the pleasant part of the surprise quickly fading as he considered what they needed to speak about. At least Beech.... whatever - face? - was there, though he felt a sympathetic wince ripple over his shoulders at the state of her - said face still pretty raw to his eyes, though most of it was turned away. Focusing back on the rock, he leapt up to join the rest of the leaders, dipping his head to them. "Wolfstar, it's good to see you here. I have a matter I'd like to ask you about." With a glance at the others, he added with a twitch of his ear, "Though a more in-depth discussion would work better at a different time."

Charred branches and woodchips greeted ThunderClan as they entered Fourtrees. Thrushnose swung away from her Clanmates to get a closer look at the scarred Great Oak, gaze lingering on the gashes where layers of bark had been stripped away. But a Gathering night wasn’t a time for investigation. After a few moments’ staring, she forced herself and her attention back toward the Great Rock (though not before she snagged one of the more solid-looking fragments of wood, held in her mouth as gingerly as a kitten’s scruff). Lilacstar was gone, Dayspring standing in her place sans last moon’s splint; on the other paw, SkyClan’s leader had returned. He looked more like an empty pelt than a cat. Thrushnose couldn’t bring herself to care why. It hadn’t been Wolfstar yowling out WindClan and Dawnhawk’s crimes before the forest, aiming to prove the night attack was justice in action—but to her, it didn’t make a difference. No Clan acted as a whole without their leader’s guidance.

Hypocrites. Squeezing her eyes shut against the flash of anger, she pushed out a breath through her nose. Her father—Minkstar was already on the Great Rock, angled toward Wolfstar as he greeted the other leaders. Diplomacy first. Diplomacy only, she hoped. According to Dovefrost, SkyClan’s own medicine cat had helped put the pieces together; not all of them were interested in sheltering a killer, and Thrushnose guessed even fewer than that would want another Clan on the warpath. But if they insisted this Briarthorn’s life was worth more than Robinloft’s… Well. They’d cross that branch when they came to it. If they came to it.

Of course, staring at the leaders wouldn't change anything. With a shake of her head, Thrushnose took a seat in the Great Rock's shadow. As she settled, she slipped the chunk of wood beneath a paw for safekeeping. The space beneath the Great Rock never stayed empty for long, and though the deputies rarely spoke to each other, she refused to be caught off guard.

Thrushnose is open to talk!

It wasn't long before someone decided to make their way over to Beechface, though her habitual irritation was tempered by the offending cat being her niece instead of someone else. Dawnfeather's concerns were somewhat surprising, but at least that was something Beechface could answer. Beechface struggled to keep her gaze away from the fallen tree branch, heartbeat just a touch faster than it should've been as she gazed at Dawnfeather.

"There should be no fighting at gatherings, no bloodshed." Beechface responded, tone slightly raspy. "That sort of thing has consequences. Don't be the one to start something here and you'll be fine." Probably. Dawnfeather would probably be fine.

Or Starclan would strike her with lightning for the crime of being witness to any bloodshed tonight. And knowing Starclan, Beechface was inclined to think the worst. They'd done nothing but prove those thoughts right, time and time again.

Ashfall limped into the clearing with a cold neutrality, what had happened last gathering was horrible. That last gathering had just simply been horrible for multiple reasons. Skyclan was right to want justice... even on Windclan. Yet they went too far as well... she herself was proof of that fact. It was all just a terrible mess that would never be resolved because Skyclan wanted blood for their plight. Ashfall wanted them to get their blood, but not from her clanmates. Quietly brushing her tail against Daystar's flank as a show of support, she broke off from the main group, pushing her way through the gathering crowd to the front. She'd still be watching out for Daystar, even if she did have nine lives now.

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Wolfblaze's normally excitable attitude was dimmed, after her daughter going missing she had been more down than usual. She tried to keep positive, hope that she would return miraculously, but that hope faded every day. She knew Kestrelswoop must be terribly sad as well, but she had tried to keep a decent outlook on it all. She still had two beautiful children, that was enough, she didn't want them feeling any lesser simply because her attention had been focused on Burdockkit. With a short huff of air, she sat down in the middle of the gathering. She didn't care much for the announcements, the only thing she really wanted to hear was Wolfstar announce that he'd give Thunderclan that cat who killed Robinloft. Murders deserved no mercy.

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Frostgaze padded into the gathering, gracefully avoiding the broken sticks and flakes of bark from the last gathering. Nature had not retaken them... yet. It was fascinating, a whole moon had passed and many signs of Starclan's wrath remained. Perhaps nature would reclaim them next moon? He would have to keep track. The short tom always had a tough time seeing at the gathering, so he opted to get close to the front. Not that he wanted to talk anyway, he would much rather listen to what the leaders had to say.

Ashfall is open to talk to!
Wolfblaze is open to talk to!
Frostgaze is open to talk to!

Quaildock wandered into the gathering, sticking close by to his sister. Hopefully this gathering wouldn't be as disasterous as the last one. He sat down close by the great rock, and softly murmured to Thrushnose, "Hopefully nobody tries any funny business this time around, or else I'd like to have talk with them."


Spotlake padded into the gathering, glancing around at all the other cats. She hadn't been present for the last one, but from what she heard, it was a very big mess. She instictivly padded close by the medicine cats, before realizing. Smallbean wasn't among them. He wasn't even in the camp. He was gone, despite what Spotlake tried oh so despretly to believe. Great. Now she was sad. She started to lower her gaze, when something caught her eye. Henpaw. The poor apprentice must be suffering more than Spotlake. She lost her mentor, and Spotlake wasn't so sure some miracle would happen, and that Smallbean would come back so quickly. Spotlake's paws began moving towards Henpaw, and she forced a smile onto her face, and waved her tail in hello. "Evening Henpaw. I hope your doing alright."

Quaildock is talking with Thrushnose, and Spotlake is talking with Henpaw!

Kestrelswoop padded into the Gathering not far behind from his mate, face stoic but eyes portraying a sadness in them not seen before. After the disappearance of his daughter Burdockkit, the warrior had thrown himself into his chores, task after task completed as a way to distract himself from mourning or breaking down. He'd searched for a while but he never found a sign of her. He was struck with déjà vu as this situation reminded him of the time he and the rest of his siblings had gone to search for their missing sister, Hickorypaw. Sadly, she was never found. They mourned but eventually came to terms with their loss and time moved on. This time, it'd be no different... but that didn't mean it didn't make his heart ache.

Once Kestrel had been given his new apprentice, he no longer had time to search. With juggling his family, work, and mentorship, he'd be lucky to even get much sleep at all. Burdock's disappearance had clearly strained the little family. However, they needed to give their remaining kits the attention and care they need and deserve. Wolfblaze's enthusiasm was noticeably dimmed but he knew she was trying her best to lighten them up, give them motivation and positivity to make it through the day. It's why he was trying now too. They needed to have faith that their daughter would one day return to them. For now, they had to continue and focus on all that's happening in the clans... just in case.

"You think Robinloft's murder will be mentioned at the Gathering or after?" he asked Wolfblaze after a few moments of silence. He wasn't sure what else to say but that topic was why most of the clan was there for, at least, most of the older cats were wanting justice for the cold murder, him included. Robinloft's murderer needed to be taken care of to finally bring her family peace.

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The last gathering had been an utter disaster all around. They had all been forced to evacuate- a stern reminder of StarClan's power and how easily the clans could be put in their places if they step too out of line. SkyClan was already under fire for their lack of discipline and morals but attacking a medicine cat apprentice during the Gathering? Now that was low. Did they even care for the warrior code anymore? Or have SkyClan's higher positions eradicated it from their lives completely? The silver-furred tom wasn't sure but what he did know is that WindClan will not fall no matter how hard their enemies try nor will they turn their backs on their ancestors anytime soon.

Silverlight sat wandered around for a while after WindClan had arrived to the Gathering, eyes scanning the clearing with a hidden wariness that stemmed from all the chaos that had been thrown their way during these past few moons. He now knew that he could no longer allow himself to ignore rising issues or be caught unaware. That had been a lesson well-learned.

After some time walking, he decided on joining his fellow clanmates instead of chatting with someone new. He honestly wasn't in the mood to anyway. Henpaw and Spotlake caught his eye. Perhaps he should go check up on his half-sister. It should also make for a good opportunity to get to know Spotlake better. She was one of the older warriors in the clan.

"Mind if I join you two tonight? I don't really feel like talking with anyone else. Although, I did get to hear some gossip on my way here. Even if I don't chat with anyone, that won't mean that I'll just ignore other conversations. It's good to listen in. Keeps me aware." As the warrior waited for a response from the two she-cats, he looked over to where Daystar was standing. He was glad that he leg had healed and she no longer had to struggle walking so much. However, as a new leader, there were bound to be countless questions thrown her way from the other clans and he prayed that she had some responses ready to give. He had faith in her. They all needed to have faith in her.

Dandelionpaw tried to contain her excitement as the clan made their way to Fourtrees. It would be her first gathering! She almost ran into the cat in front of her, as the whole clan stopped before entering the clearing. Wolfstar then told them that they would be punished harshly? Why was Wolfstar threatening them? Is this normal? Dandelionpaw wondered as she ran down in the clearing. She was a little taken aback at what she saw, one of the great trees was burnt and cracked! The ground was also littered with ash and branches. She sat in shock and silence for a while, before noticing WindClan streaming into the clearing, followed by ThunderClan a bit later. Dandelionpaw decided to sit with the rest of SkyClan and waited for a cat to talk to.

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Cherrypaw followed her Clan in Fourtrees, her ginger fur glowing pale in the moonlight. This would be her first gathering, and she decorated her pelt for the occasion. She didn’t have much, but her collection would grow over time, she was sure of it. Cherrypaw was a little surprised at what she saw. The ground was covered in shattered bark and one of the great trees was blacked in areas. She knew something had happened, but didn’t quite expect it to be this bad. It looked like ThunderClan was one of the last Clans to get here, as the clearing was almost filled up. She carefully picked her way through the litter and sat down. She scanned the crowd of cats to find anyone that looked like they might want to talk. A WindClan she-cat stood out to her and Cherrypaw decided that interacting with cats from other Clans would be useful. Maybe she could persuade other cats to give her treasures. She got up from were she was sitting and padded over to her. “Hi, I’m Cherrypaw. What’s your name?” She asked hoping to make a good impression.

Dandelionpaw is open to talk to!
Cherrypaw is talking to Swiftspirt.

Applepaw charged into her first ever Gathering, eyes bright with anticipation. Finally, a chance to meet cats of other Clans! None of them were as great as ThunderClan, of course, but this would be a good time to meet people and just experience the forest. After all, she would need to know how the other Clans functioned for when she was leader one day. She barely even noticed the wreckage of last moon's Gathering strewn around the clearing, but instead scanned the crowds of cats to find some entertainment. Every pelt color under the sun, and every size and shape of cat was present. It was so exciting! Leaving her siblings behind (they could eat her dust), the small tortoiseshell apprentice scampered over to the first cat she saw, a tabby who looked about her own age, and smelled like one of the borders she'd crossed with Minkstar the other day. "Hi! My name's Applepaw, I'm the best apprentice in ThunderClan. Who are you?"

Applepaw is talking to Dandelionpaw.