World, Revolving [Sitewide]

The decision to go to Four Trees unsettled the currently-queen Coyotegrin. Her instincts were screaming to protect her kits. Even though Sleepypaw was now an apprentice, she was hardly one at that. Whisperear and herself ushered Vulturekit and Vixenkit on their tiny legs. Their apprentice ceremonies were supposed to be happening now, so now what? Sleepypaw helped as well, always the nurturing one. When they made it to Four Trees, her mate instructed her and Smallbean to make sure everyone was there. With a nod, she turned to Whisperear. "Can you please watch them?" She already knew the answer- she could depend on her former apprentice for anything. Pushing her anxieties of her kits and her tunnels aside, she focused on the task at hand. Smallbean was freaking out, so at least one of them needed to be strong and confident in this moment. The queen weaved her way through the crowd, keeping track of names. As she passed Blazefang, and Russetpaw, she gave them a nod. Daisybreeze was missing, as was Birchpaw. Batsong should be here soon, she had been in the camp with them. On one of her loops she spotted Moorbite, worse for the wear...

Coyotegrin is walking among her clan and keeping tally.

Moorbite had made it to Four Trees, but had somehow been parted with Mintheart along the way. And, he was not happy about it. "Our camp was fine!" He declared to nobody in particular. He plopped down, a shakiness to his movement. "Can't you let an old man rest? I don't feel good!" He huffed one last time, curling into a ball to sleep.

Moorbite is sleeping in the corner.

Trufflesnap walked alongside her brother and her mother, only an occassional cough instead of words. If they were going to Four Trees... Perhaps Beetleshade would be too? As they entered, she blindly followed the group, her head swiveling from side to side.

Trufflesnap is looking for Beetleshade.

A familiar voice caught her attention, and Russetpaw grabbed onto it like a lifeline, heading straight for Blazefang and joining the older she-cat near the edge of the WindClanners. “Thank you,” she mewed heartfeltedly, having to raise her voice in order to be heard over the chatter. “I- I dunnae know what’s goin’ on, whe- where’s Silverwing? A- are these- all these cats ta other Clans? They just- there’s jus’ so many a’ them… great stars above…”

Even though she didn’t know Blazefang all that well, she was still a familiar face and Russetpaw felt enormously better knowing the older she-cat was here, and that she wasn’t alone. She- she shouldn’t feel alone in the midst of her Clanmates, should she? But- she was still so young-

There, Coyotegrin! And Sleepypaw! Russetpaw waved her tail energetically at her friend, hoping she would come over along with her siblings- still ‘kits, their apprentice ceremonies would likely have been happening now- and that tall whitish cat that hovered about them. Probably an older sibling, Russetpaw decided.

“Sleepypaw? Are ya’ all alright? Have ya’ seen Silverwing?” she yowled over the cacophony, with no pity for Blazefang’s ears, or anyone else between her and her friend.

Russetpaw is sticking to Blazefang like a burr and is shouting at Sleepypaw.

Brackenwing hobbled along with Windclan, trying and failing not to lean against Birchpaw's shoulder any more than necessary. Her head was pounding in time with the agony from her leg, which was twisted at an awkward, most definitely unnatural angle. Looking and thinking about it seemed to make it hurt even more. A trek to fourtrees was almost certainly not what she should be doing right now, but that was where Windclan headed, so the marbled tabby grimly focused on putting one paw in front of the other, teeth bared in a silent, defiant snarl, ears flat against her skull. She would fight through the pain, she had no choice.

Starclan could eat dung for this. The twolegs that had slowly crept into the territory could fall into that massive tear across the territory. Shrikestar could choke on crowfood. As Birchpaw supported her weight as they crested the final rise that led to fourtrees, she reflected, Shrikestar could choke on crowfood a few times. Windclan was far from the only clan present, and even the high, terrified mewls of kits reached her ears.

There would be no peace and quiet, nowhere secluded for her to lay down and attempt to ignore the agony spiking through her leg with each unwanted movement. Brackenwing was absolutely sure of it. Birchpaw's voice pulled her attention, and she couldn't say she was glad to hear it, even if his words offered some glimmer of relief to come soon for the injured and overtired warrior.

"I don't think it's supposed to bend that way." Came Brackenwing's low hiss through gritted teeth. She grimaced, and kept her face resolutely forward as she sank to the ground. "Thank you." She added, tone hardly betraying a hint of gratitude. She would have been more grateful if this was being done in her own camp, but here they were... In Fourtrees... With the other clans.

Nothing could possibly go more wrong.

---

"Crowspirit!" Harechaser's ears had indeed caught the voice of her niece, and she was relieved to glance from Redpaw's horrific behavior to the silvery she-cat. "Are you alright? What about Murkyhope, and Swiftheart?"

---

Wolfblossom padded next to Birdchaser, stubbornly refusing to leave her sister's side and continuously offering a shoulder to lean on, her pale fur still fluffed out even as the earth finally came to a standstill beneath their paws. All around them as they fled Skyclan territory, churned grass, felled trees, signs of horrible disarray. Wolfblosssom wouldn't admit she was scared, but the violence of the earth's movements, and the chaos it had caused, was simply terrifying.

Equally terrifying was the thought of Briarstar back at camp, with Wolfblossom's grandfather and mother and other cats. Would she send Beechfang away even though she had helped? Would she even recover, or would the others show up with a body? A shiver ran down her spine at the thought. From what she'd seen, the leader's condition had... Not been good. Neither had Birdchaser's condition been good, but at least her sister and deputy was standing, even if she really should've been in a nest and not moving.

Her thoughts whirled as they made the trek to fourtrees, but her eyes took in the devastation around them, cataloguing just how disheveled the territory had become. The ground had never moved before, and she didn't know how bad it could possibly get if it decided to move again, save for that it would be bad.

The devastation had continued all the way up to fourtrees, and that Skyclan hadn't been the only one affected was more apparent than ever. The other clans were there, looking every bit as rattled as Wolfblossom felt. If the damage had been so terrible far away from fourtrees and had only gotten worse, she could only imagine what lay beyond parts of the forest Skyclan hadn't trekked through. At least, she thought rather morbidly, Skyclan wasn't alone in this disaster.

Birdchaser called the clan to her side, sounding shaky and worn out, and when she'd finished speaking Wolfblossom rested her tail against her sister's flank for a moment, before speaking softly. "Do you need anything, Birdchaser?" She needed Plumleaf to look at that leg, she needed to rest. She needed Briarstar and Fogfeather with the clan, too.

They all needed to not have this disaster thrust upon them, but that leaf had blown away, already. All they could do was hold steady, survive, reclaim their territory. Skyclan had done so before and would do so again, Wolfblossom was sure of it. She gazed out over the forms of her clanmates, noting the other clans briefly before her gaze returned to watching over her own.

They would survive this. They had to.

Brackenwing is talking with Birchpaw, and very much not a happy camper.
Harechaser had turned her attention from scolding Redpaw to talking with Crowspirit.
Wolfblossom is talking to Birdchaser, and keeping an eye on her clanmates.
Beechfang may or may not show up. That depends on Briarstar :)

The earth had begun to shake.

Astraeus, halfway up one of the Fourtrees, clung to the sturdy limb as though his life depended on it- which, glancing down why did he do that oh shades the earth was so far away, he realized it just might. The great tree quivered beneath him, jerking him to and fro like a kit playing with a mossball. Oh shades, oh shades, oh, oh oh oh oh. “Foxing shades, foxing foxing horse-dung-“ The rushing noise of the wind and distant rumbles of falling trees suddenly stopped-

And then Astraeus bolted down the tree, head-foxing-first like a foxing squirrel. It might be a fair few days before he dared to set paw anywhere other than on the firm solid ground. The silvery tom darted over to where he’d stashed the prey he’d already managed to catch, a reasonably sized hare, and huddled at the base of the Greatrock for a solid few minutes until he was finally convinced that the earth had stopped shaking.

Phew. Astraeus shook out his fur, picked up his catch, and started foraging around the clearing, looking for a decent place to spend the night while he collected himself from that… experience. Not one he was looking to relive. He needed to rest, now, somewhere safe whilst it was possibly dangerous to travel. The Clans never ventured to Fourtrees during the day, and certainly wouldn’t now, what with the quake. They were likely huddled up in camp, waiting for a sign from their beloved ancestors.

…

Or not.

Astraeus, nestled under a bush just outside Fourtrees near-ish the ThunderClan border, suddenly picked up the sound of paws. And lots of them. He poked his head just outside his little dip in the ground, ears straining. The sound was coming mainly from the other sides of the Fourtrees clearing, to his relief, but just in case he ducked under the undergrowth, counting on his striped coat to adequately camouflage him in the dappled light.

Finally, when the sounds of paws had largely faded to worried mews from the clearing, Astraeus slunk out from under the shrubbery and headed to the clearing. He could check on his siblings while here… and make some friends. Maybe get some of the important cats acquainted with him- it never hurt to have cats in high places have a good opinion of him. But as he crested the rise and looked down, it suddenly struck him that wow. Cats were injured. Anyone who was anyone would be busy- and hey, maybe that was good. No one would care ‘bout a lone cat offering them some prey.

There- near the edge, a silver tabby- a pretty one, too, with an interesting shimmer in one of her eyes. Well aware that his scent was faint and mostly of Fourtrees, Astraeus skirted the edge of the clearing, coming to a stop besides the molly. Next to her was a mostly black molly with some white spots, who seemed to be sleeping through the noise somehow, as she wasn’t obviously injured.

He set down the hare and gently flicked her shoulder with his tail to hopefully dispel some of that distant look in her eye. Ana had looked that way, before she passed. “Want to share a meal?” he asked gently, keeping his voice somewhat low as to not startle her. She was the most interesting cat in this clearing that didn’t look like she might sink her claws into his pelt. “The hare’s plenty fat enough for the both of us.” By her scent she was ShadowClan… according to that golden molly he’d met in Twolegplace, they rarely ate hares, but he didn’t know whether that was preference or necessity.

Astraeus has approached Lighttail and is speaking to her.
I’m waiting to post with Russetpaw.
I’m waiting to post with Dawnfeather- she’ll likely come with Beech & Blood if they arrive.

It hurt to walk. Each step felt like a hot searing fire running from his back, down to his legs, and down his tail. But Nightstar was glad that he still had use of his legs, that he was able to come back at all, and intact as well was nothing short of a miracle. Using Leopardsun to keep himself standing, albeit with displeasure because he wanted to walk on his own power, but Leopardsun had insisted and the leader wasn't a completely prideful meathead. His breath was coming in huffs and puffs, breathing heavily through his nose, but this didn't prevent him from smelling the steadily increasing scents of Riverclan, Skyclan, Thunderclan, and Windclan, swiftly followed by the stench of blood.

Voices raised, anger, pain, and grief, mixing with the distance calls of twolegs. Cresting over the hill, and being able to look down into the clearing revealed truly the carnage of the clan's situations, so many clans de-homed, so many injuries. With nary a sound or prompt, Nightstar started down the hill, the work was not yet done and he hadn't seen his medicine cats other than a glimpse of Fuzzybelly along the way. He could not yet rest, there was work to be done and a clan to manage.

"Leopardsun, make sure we have everyone. While you're doing that, please see if you can find our medicine cats, and if you can't do it get some other cat too, we need to get our wounds taken care of. I've got to meet with our allies. And if our medicine cats ask, they can worry about my wounds last." Nightstar meowed, not at all feeling confident he could stand on his own but forcing himself away from his deputy with great difficulty.

It took a few moments for Nightstar to find Shrikestar among the growing refugees, his paws shaking as he made his way over. "Shrikestar. Windclan fairs well?" He asked, settling himself into a sit not at all gracefully, but at the very least keeping his gaze even. Blood wept from his back wound and clogged his long black fur, but he was confident that Starclan had healed him enough to be well enough to do what he needed to do.

Thalia dashed into Fourtrees with an intensity she hadn't felt in a long time- not since the night of Asylum's fall, she was pretty sure, though that drive hadn't been quite so strong when she first arrived back then. She had to hope that the rest of ShadowClan would arrive safely before long. In the meantime, the fox-clad warrior made her way to Iceheart, feeling the need to verify that her former apprentice was alright. She found her with Forestbreeze and Roseburn, as well as some of Marshmallow's kits. "Is anyone hurt?"

---

Nightdancer followed the rest of ThunderClan into the clearing, looking around- ostensibly to assess the situation, and to an extent that was her goal, but she couldn't help looking over the crowd of cats for a certain familiar face. Was Roseburn alright? Then, shaking her head, she turned to cats that it was more sensible to worry for- Mottlestar, Dayquill, Briarrose. Were they alright?

---

Leopardsun nodded once as Nightstar stepped away, biting back her own worries. He was right, she knew, to prioritize the others; despite his own death, he had lives to spare and the rest of them had only one. "ShadowClan, to me! I want to make sure we haven't lost anyone," she called, the feeling of taking initiative in disaster surprisingly familiar by now. Time and again, disaster struck ShadowClan- this time, though, they weren't alone. Cats from all the clans dotted the clearing, and she supposed it was indeed the whole world that had been shaken; not just their small corner of it.

"Fuzzybelly, Burdockpaw!" she called to the medicine cats by name, hoping that they'd already arrived. "We need you to tend to the injured! For now, if you've been hurt, or if you need anything- come speak to me."

She wondered vaguely if any herbs had survived- she had been busy with the kits, and then with Nightstar. She shot a grateful glance in Iceheart's direction for taking the kits.

Leopardsun is calling for ShadowClan to gather in a portion of Fourtrees!

Nightdancer's attempts to shift her focus from Roseburn were for nothing, it seemed, as the cat in question ran toward her. "Roseburn!" she purred in greeting. "Yes, I'm fine- I'm glad to see you're alright. ...You are alright, aren't you? Entirely unharmed?"

Her concern was only slightly veiled; enough to be acceptable for a friend who was meant to be an enemy warrior. "I suppose that means it reached beyond ThunderClan," she murmured, looking around them. It seemed every clan had shown themselves somewhere in the clearing. "And just when things had seemed to settle. I suppose there's nothing to be done for it now, except to wait."

Granted, before it had just been her own world shaken time and again. Oh, ThunderClan had lost something with the passing and departure pf each of her kin, but she- she had lost her family, one by one. It felt like she had only just begun trying to recover.

Despite that, she regarded Roseburn with a smile, softer than most she wore. The message it conveyed was wholly silent, but she hoped it would be received nonetheless.

Maybe it's not all bad, at the very least.

It had been slow going for Burdockpaw through the flooded territory. With 80% of the herbs on her back and mouth, she could hardly move without them slipping out of her pelt. It was difficult to breathe as well, and the taste was disgusting. She had to constantly swallow saliva filled with various herb tastes, and her stomach was paying the price for it. But her herbs, her pride and joy and friends, would make it safe. She wished Fuzzybelly had been in the den to grab the rest. Losing even a little hurt. But soon, she saw the slope of the hill down to Four trees, and she heard it too. The loud chaos. Twoleg sounds. All she was focused on though, was delivering the herbs safely to dry ground.

She created the hill, and must be a sight to see. With her badger pelt on her back, lumpy and swollen from herbs, and a bursting mouthful of herbs in her mouth. Waddling slowly but with a warrior's confident step. She took her time here, too. But as she made it to the floor, she heard her name called sharply by Leopardsun. With an inward sigh, she started to slowly walk to the sound of the voice.

'Burdockpaw, carry almost all the herbs our clan has across the entire territory with no help. Burdockpaw, tend to our wounds instantly.'

Such a thankless job.

Finally she made it to the concerned Leopardsun. She stopped, staring at the deputy for a second before spitting out the large bundle in her mouth, gasping for the first breaths of clean air. Once she caught her breath she turned back to face Leopardsun. "The rest is on my back." She said simply. She could not get them off her back alone without scattering them everywhere.

Blazefang’s ears pricked as she caught sight of Sleepypaw. Her pelt prickled with embarrassment. She’d gotten so distracted by looking for Dayquill and dealing with Russetpaw that she’d almost forgotten about her own apprentice! Mouthing a “thank you” to Whisperear, she turned back to the younger cats. “Yep, girls, these are all the Clans. Of course usually there’s not this many cats here. It looks like everyone else had to evacuate as well, so they brought their kits and elders, who usually don’t attend Gatherings. Speaking of which, I’m sorry you both had to have this instead of a proper first Gathering. If it’s any comfort, I didn’t have my first real Gathering until I was almost a warrior. When I was growing up, the Dark Forest was in control of all the clans, so we didn’t have Gatherings then.”
Blazefang is telling Russetpaw and Sleepypaw about the last sitewide.

Lighttail was staring off into nothing when a voice broke through the mental fog. She looked up to see another silver cat, this one a bit darker-pelted than herself, whose scent she couldn’t place. She was suddenly very aware she was covered in mud (and a little of Nightstar’s blood). “Um, thanks,” she stammered. “I- I should probably share this with Duskflight though. I mean, y’know, he’s an elder and I kinda hafta make sure the old and injured are okay- oh snap I just called him old- um, anyway, I’m Lighttail.” Then another cat approached. “Oh, hey. No, sorry, I was with ThunderClan. Thanks, though. Yeah it kinda sucks to have another disaster right after the flood. Um, you two know each other?” Then she heard Leopardsun. “Oh, I probably better go. Sounds like they’re doing a headcount.
Maybe I’ll see you again sometime?” she mewed to the first cat.

Lighttail.exe has stopped working.

Russetpaw relaxed as Sleepypaw appeared next to her, letting her fur lie flat. Everyone was fine. Everyone would be fine. Silverwing was somewhere nearby, no doubt. Blazefang was here, and… Whisperear? Sleepypaw’s older sibling. Was here. Russetpaw listened to Blazefang intently, wondering how the warrior had made it through the Dark Forest occupation. Sleepypaw was here. Blazefang was here. Silverwing would be here, soon.

Astraeus let a grin spread over his face, and a snicker as the molly- Lighttail- called someone- Duskflight- old. Yeah, this was why he wasn’t joining a Clan- having to feed others before himself- but this molly made it sound almost amusing. “Maybe he just is,” he chuckled. Wait-

Aether, of all cats, trotted up to them, and though mildly displeased at the interruption, Astraeus kept his annoyance to himself. The molly- Lighttail- had to leave anyways, for a headcount, and at her question he nodded with another smile. She was a pretty thing, really, with silver fur just a few shades lighter than his own.

“Ah, yes,” he replied to Aether as Lighttail headed off, nudging the hare towards his brother. “Any of your Clanmates fancy a meal? Turns out that molly wasn’t hungry-” he himself bent down to take a bite, tail twitching. Aether wasn’t the best company he could ask for, but, hey, better than none, he guessed. “Where’s Achelois?”


Russetpaw is sticking to Blazefang and Sleepypaw
Astraeus is chatting with Aether/Crimsonflame
Dawn hasn’t arrived yet.

Stoatpaw stood at the edge of the gathered Skyclanners, scanning Fourtrees for his friend Lighttail. The quake hadn't treated him too poorly, though it had been a thoroughly scary experience. He was curious about how she had fared during the event, or maybe he just wanted to hear her voice again. Eyes falling on her, Stoatpaw froze. Stars she looked exhausted, perhaps he could bring her some prey? Before he could set off to procure anything however, another cat approached her with prey of his own. He had never seen the tom before, was he new? From Stoatpaw's place in Fourtrees it was impossible to hear the two, but it seemed like Lighttail was being a bit awkward around the tom. That couldn't be right, Lighttail was a confident cat that wouldn't back down from anything. Still, the sight of her acting like that with the tom sent a strange feeling through the apprentice, one that he definitely didn't like.

The panic of the earthquake and Blackbear's worry for Crookedpaw had all melted away once the shaking stopped, making way for anger. She growled to herself as she approached Fourtrees with the rest of SkyClan. The slog there was agonisingly slow, every other step interrupted by a fallen tree or branch that had to be jumped over. The slowness of it all made the molly's fur crawl. And the noise was just unbearable. The clamouring of her clan as they rushed to Fourtrees felt like claws raking her ears. Her own claws were unsheathed, half to traverse the destroyed territory and half in preparation to tear something to shreds in irritation. She strayed further and further from her Clan as she walked, eager to get away from the noise. She knew the way herself, anyway. She wasn't a kit.

As she walked, a weak noise made her ears prick up. It was some sort of wail, thin and high pitched. Prey? Her mind conjured up the image of a rabbit, trapped beneath the debris of the quake. Her stomach rumbled and she growled in agreement- she was starving. Her paws and ears led her a couple fox-lengths until the noise was loud enough for Blackbear to recognise what it was. Not a rabbit. A kit. She didn't know the sounds of kits well, but she didn't think rabbits could call for their mothers. Was it SkyClan? She wasn't too far off from the rest of the group, some queen must have left her kit behind. She rounded a tree and there it was. It was small, as she was discovering most kits were, and cream in colour. She stood there, staring at it. Should she take it with her? If it was SkyClan, leaving it here would deprive them of a warrior. If it wasn't... She thought of Rainpaw, who was apparently quite a good apprentice according to Crookedpaw. Birdchaser had found him out in the woods alone, right?

Not bothering with any more consideration, she leaned down and nudged the kit with her nose. "Hey. I'm Blackbear. Where's your ma?" It probably didn't have one. She wasn't a queen and never would be, but she couldn't imagine a queen would leave their kit alone on a day like this. "C'mon, m' taking you with me." She reached out and picked the kit up in her jaws. If his mother came back, she could have him. But if she left him out here he'd probably die.

The tall molly stepped into the clearing, tiny kit in tow. She didn't bother congregating with the rest of her Clan, though she spared Birdchaser a nod to assure her she was at least half listening to the speech. She dropped the kit on the edge of the clearing, far away enough from other cats that the noise didn't make her claws flex in discomfort. "Hope it's not too loud for ya. You got a name?" she asked, slightly awkward.