unfortunate circumstances [open]

Birdstar

Stoatclaw’s disappearance, however recent, had Birdstar feeling agitated and on edge. They had just recovered most of their missing Clanmates, and there was still one warrior yet to be seen. Had he been caught in one of the few traps left in the forest, carried away by a straggling twoleg? Or… she refused to entertain the idea it could be something worse. She was antsy following the patrol out of camp.

Birdstar stayed close to the rear of the group, keeping a careful eye on the ground below as they moved through the trees. The scent of ShadowClan, stronger than it should’ve been, struck her nose, but she had yet to see the pair waiting for them. When Wolfblossom’s voice and the sound of her moving down through the branches caught her ears, Birdstar pushed forward, leaping gracefully between boughs until her figure loomed above the ShadowClanners.

Eyes narrowing, Birdstar flicked an ear quietly towards Stormwatcher. She wouldn’t scold him now, but hopefully he would understand to be careful with his voice. Still, Birdstar understood. She wanted to groan and hiss about their appearance, too. Instead, her tail twitched and she crept as close to the edge of the branch as was safe. “Enough time hasn’t passed since I saw you last, Leopardsun.” As for the cat beside her… Birdstar was at least grateful it wasn’t Burdockroot.

Birdstar

The unrecognizable of the pair speaking first was a bit of a surprise, though Birdstar offered him a flicked ear in acknowledgment of his reassurance. I would assume. This isn’t exactly a war party. Her teeth showed briefly with the desire to sneer out loud, but she kept the thought private. Despite her own poor mood and the tension in the air, she afforded him her trust. If for no reason other than Leopardsun’s presence, she granted that this was a peaceful endeavor.

His next words made her eyes sharpen though. The curtness, the lack of explanation… just that one of their warriors was hurt. ShadowClan had taken it upon themselves to take him to their camp.

Stoatclaw. Birdstar’s claws dug into the bark below her, resisting the urge to throw herself at the tom and demand an elaboration. She didn’t resist her bristling fur, not fighting when every hair started to stand on end. Leopardsun’s voice provided ample distraction, and Birdstar’s attention snapped to her. She largely ignored the brief formalities, but every word of the following story was deeply absorbed. Some ShadowClan warrior, apparently with all the tact and bloodlust of a dog. Her stomach churned with every detail, however vague.

Stoatclaw was not only missing– he’d been brutalized. Hunted and gutted like a hare, injuries so severe he couldn’t even make the journey home. And the warrior who’d done it, put to death before the pair had even arrived at their borders.

She wasn’t sure want to think. A very, very large part of her wanted to rip Nightstar’s throat out for allowing a cat like that to make it to warriorhood, let alone to trust him enough to be on his own. Or maybe she wanted to rip his throat out for assumedly giving the order to execute him. Whatever the tom’s name was- Redice, was it Leopardsun said?… Birdstar wanted to kill him herself. Maybe string him up in the trees, as a warning to anyone foolishly bold enough to attack one of her warriors so brazenly again.

Shaking her head, she straightened, body entirely stiff. She could not retroactively kill Redice, nor could she justify killing Nightstar when they’d gone through with an execution. She respected the justice dealt– she wasn’t sure if she would’ve been able to, not to put down one of her own. Unless they haven’t. Birdstar’s nose wrinkled. She wanted to doubt the idea. She wanted to see the corpse just as much.

Her head turned towards Wolfblossom, studying her sister for a moment, before she maneuvered slightly further down the tree, dropping onto a branch that put her shoulder-to-shoulder with her deputy. “Yes.” Birdstar echoed dryly. Cold green eyes flicked between Leopardsun and Rookfire before settling once more on the former. “I appreciate the blunt end you put to this– as much as I can, at least –but if this is where you expect things to end, I’ll say I don’t think I can take a final message of utter violence with grace.” Birdstar’s whiskers quivered. Would Stoatclaw even survive? If he died in Burdockroot’s care… a low, shivering breath left her. “I only have to repeat Wolfblossom’s questions. I’d love to visit my warrior and the body of yours.”

Birdstar

As Leopardsun and Rookfire spoke in turn of each other, the large she-cat’s ears remained flattened to her head, gaze unblinking and unkind while she stared silently down. She had yet to gather any words that were more than a senseless string of curses– until Creamsky, thankfully sensible, spoke. Without turning around, Birdstar answered, “Yes. Both of you, go back to camp. Tell everyone Stoatclaw has been found, and that Wolfblossom and I will return later today.” With that and a flick of her tail, they were dismissed from the conversation.

The next moment, Birdstar was on the forest floor, looming over the ShadowClanners. “So, to be clear: a ShadowClan warrior gutted one of my cats like a mouse– an attack so severe that he can’t even return home. Supposedly, the offender was executed and left for the rats. And if I’m either to confirm that or make sure the SkyClan cat in your custody is still breathing, I get to walk blind through your notoriously treacherous marsh. That doesn’t sound like safe passage.” Birdstar’s tail flicked, and a puffing breath left her. Still, after only a moment she was continuing, “Wolfblossom, we’re going to ShadowClan.”