Can you hear the drumming? [TC MEETING]

What once had been an open, empty camp was now bustling with new life. Scents of numerous Thunderclan cats constantly bombarded his nostrils, ones he was quickly beginning to identify. The clan was quick to welcome back their kin as they swiftly fell back into a sense of normalcy. But for the young tom, this was anything but normal. His fanciful dreams had always been far away and unobtainable. It was hard to grasp they were now so close at paw.

As Mottlestar called a meeting, he settled down in the center of the clearing. A former itch to flee from congregations of other cats had melted away with time. In fact, with the return of Thunderclan, his true kin, the tom's undue confidence had grown in an instant. The tip of his tail twitched curiously as he listened. War? With a clan came clan politics, a duty, and tensions were high. Even though he knew nothing of the other clans beyond the stories his parents had told, hearing what the Thunderclan leader had to share drew a growl from his throat.

Instead of dwelling on what little experience he had, or considering how easily predators had bested him in combat, Chad's claws flexed into the cold earth. For a tom who lacked a sense of justice, he immediately felt the need to right such a wrong to this clan he'd vowed allegiance to in his youth. He was lost in the idea, not considering they would need to accept him too as his name rang through the clearing. Without hesitation, the young loner, whose pelt reflected that of Stoatfur and Appledapple padded forward.

For moons he had pushed away the life his parents had given him, seeking to forge his own path forward. But as he stood here now, ready to fight for Thunderclan with untested claws, it became obvious what he had to do. He wanted to growl, grumble, at the admittance but his true name felt more real than anything as he declared it before the clan, "I traveled for moons to find this forest and waited here for your return. My name is Auburnkit and I am a Thunderclan cat."

Acornstem was a mess of inner turmoil - pacing back and forth within the center of the camp clearing since Mottlestar had left to speak with Birdstar... And simply moved her pacing towards in front of the leader's den when Mottlestar had returned and slipped inside with nary a word to her deputy. This had left Acornstem to dwell on her own conclusions of what had happened, but it was easy to suspect the truth of the situation... That the one thing that the deputy didn't want was to happen.

War was on the horizon.

And so she had paced, helping turn away anybody who wanted to speak to Mottlestar while she waited on held breaths to know what her leader was thinking. It gave Acornstem time to think but the confluent  emotions threatened to drown her. She had been...Desperate in her hopes that in the chaos of the border patrol, Sunfire's actions - to rob Mottlestar of a life - had been an accident. That SkyClan was better then that, that their disregard for the alliance wouldn't go so far...

But then, when on the cusp of returning home... Sunfire had taken another ThunderClan life. She hadn't seen it, but she had heard Crocusfrost's account of events and it shook her to her core. Softpaw - the last remaining of the ferals who had yet to gain their warrior name - had been killed, her head dashed against a rock. Perhaps...Perhaps even that was an accident, he had thrown her off of him from what she had gathered. That, she could see - understand.

It was the fact that he had apparently walked away without a shred of concern which didn't sit right with her. That he had thrown her, seen her lay unmoving...And didn't even bother to check or show a whisker of worry. A cat who didn't care that they had taken a life was... Whatever excuses she could make for his actions at the border, there was nothing she could offer for a tom who carelessness had taken a life and he had not the energy to even mock sympathy.

But even then... She knew of Mottlestar's promise to march with RiverClan. She didn't like it - to waste energy that should have been spent fortifying their home and settling in on bloodshed instead. She had sympathy for what Perchstar was going through, she understood the leader's rage against SkyClan but... She couldn't deny the hope that after all of the hardship that the Clans had gone through, the rage had dwindled enough to call off - or at least further postpone  - the war... But from what she could grasp from talking with the RiverClan warriors at Sunningrocks, no such luck.

She had come to a stop, staring at her paws. The sun had long set and she wasn't sure how much longer she had the energy to pace back and forth. Perhaps she would give in and seek her place at Firefly's side, settle in and try to find a moment to speak to Mottlestar in the morning... But then there was the sound of rustling as Mottlestar marched from her den and leapt onto the Highstone without a word. The deputy spun in surprise, before her ears slicked back.

The cat in front of her... It wasn't the leader she knew. Wh-Where was the compassionate she-cat who had treated her like a daughter? A cat so racked with grief over her betrayal to the Clan that she had moved into the warrior's den and accepted whatever punishment they would have seen fit? The leader who had smiled so brightly when the alliance was first agreed upon? Who loved her Clan more than anything else? This... It was like a pit had swallowed her heart. She had not wanted war before - and she certainly was less interested if it had robbed Mottlestar of her joy.

Mottlestar's voice rang out, calling together a Clan meeting as the deputy closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. Circling around the rock, she took her place at its base as she tried to squish down her doubts. It wouldn't do for the Clan to see their leadership divided - but there was no denying the flinch at Mottlestar's opening words... The confirmation of war. Open bloodshed was the last thing Acornstem had wanted!

M-Maybe RiverClan was forced to go to war over Beechfang, but was Birdstar truly so determined to protect Sunfire as well...? But every word that continued sent a painful scratch down Acornstem's spine as the deputy fought the urge to just collapse into a pile right then and there. Birdstar hadn't just defended Sunfire but her entire Clan - saying they were the victim despite the cats within their midst that had taken lives. That Birdstar had not tried to defend herself or her Clanmates.

...And so they would march together. Acornstem took in a deep breath, before letting out a shaky exhale. A matter of sun-rises. Stars, she didn't... She didn't know how to feel. She wanted it to be over and it hadn't even started. She...She wanted her Mottlestar back - the cat she could speak freely with. Her eyes flickered up to stare at the leader, trying to hide the flicker of fear - of how Mottlestar would react if she mentioned her distaste for the war...

Not that it mattered - the choice had been made without her it seems.

Leader and deputy, huh...?

Her eyes flickered down to stare at her paws, ears barely twitching as Mottlestar went on to speak of Stormsong and Sleepycloud, that both them and their kits would be members of the Clan. It was the next announcement however that caused her to jolt, staring up in surprise. Nightstalker was...? She...She had agreed to allow him in moons ago but that had been from Mottlestar's earnest plead to allow her to save a tom she might still have feelings for - but now it was hard to say such a feeling was there anymore. It had also been under the thought that ShadowClan would be told about it, but she didn't... Stars, she would have to tell them but...

Her tail thumped, grimacing. She would have to speak with Leopardstar after the war - there would be too much focus on preparing even if she didn't agree with it. Vipershade... A heavy sigh escaped her, before she shook her head as the final newcomer was addressed - this 'Chad' who was apparently a child of late ThunderClan members, including the leader before Mottlestar herself. She, at least, had no problem with him staying but it was obvious he would need a full set of training if he did.

Sleepycloud, even if it was from RiverClan, had received warrior training. Nig- Vipershade also had the same training but Chad? With a name like that, it was rather clear that he had likely never received training from a Clan. She couldn't be certain he could hold his own as well as any of her Clanmates and if war was transpiring in a few sunrises... Her thought was briefly pulled away as Chad spoke up, revealing his given name as Auburnkit. So - he wanted to stay. That was fine, but already her head was racing with who would serve as a good mentor before she suddenly froze.

There was a sinking feeling in her chest as she glanced up at Mottlestar with a flicker of sadness.

...Acornstem wasn't going to get a say in this either, was she...?

As always, Silverdusk had not dawdled at their leader's beckoning, she was sat awaiting what was to follow. Except this was different, the fury on Mottlestar's face was unmistakable, and their leader's isolation over the past few days had also not been unnoticed. While Silverdusk had no intention of seeking her out, it paid to be observative, especially when Mottlestar emerged the picture of rage itself. It was a certain indicator of what was to come, of what the new warrior, and most of the clan had probably feared was coming. Slights had become battles, and battles had become deaths. Now whispers amongst gossiping cats were to be named true, and actions to be taken. In a matter of moments all would be revealed, so Silverdusk braced themself for the inevitable.

The extent of SkyClan's wrongdoing had never dawned on them until this moment. As Mottlestar listed them off, her voice rising in anger it was like Silverdusk was hit with blow after blow. Needle like claws slid from their sheathes, gauging the hard dirt below. Mottlestar's rage was infectious and now they too were burning with it. Too many chances had the Foxhearts been granted, and too many they had disregarded like they had the lives of their neighbours. Softpaw's death in particular sent a fresh wave on anger coursing through them. While they had never been close, the murder of a cat so young and one who they had spent so much time around in the sick den was shocking. Softpaw had just gotten better, and now Sunfire had taken what should have been a long life from her. In particular though, they found themself mourning for Wiggleworm they knew how close he had been with Softpaw.

Swiftly though, Mottlestar was moving on, hardly giving time for the tall molly to process what had come before. There would be time for that later she supposed - not much though. There was a slight shift in what now followed, a good shift. More warriors for ThunderClan, which certainly they would need, and a ceremony too. Still even with good news the vibe remained sombre and the air stagnant. The tortoiseshell atop the high rock was asking for questions, and Silverdusk with their mind racing already had several.  "Will we be sending out increased border patrols then, If they are encroaching on our territory already what is not to say they are planning a takeover?" they asked, cocking their head 'If I may suggest also... SkyClan seems to have little care for those who cannot protect themselves would it not be wise to ensure everyone is well accompanied when leaving camp? I apologise if I am overstepping my place Mottlestar, I only wish for ThunderClan's safety." The silver molly dipped her head, avoiding the leader's gaze in case they had been too forward. She had already corrected Auburnpaw for his brashness and Silverdusk did not wish for themself to undergo the embarrassment of being reprimanded in front of the entire clan too - especially after just gaining their name.

Blazefang felt time stop and her blood grow cold as Mottlestar spoke. No. No, no, no! This couldn’t be happening. Mottlestar was not this mousebrained! Images flashed through her mind of clanmates, former and current, bloodied and beaten. Some of the wounds were real ones that had been dealt by the criminal himself, others only her mind’s dark predictions.

“Mottlestar,” she hissed, approaching the leader. “I must speak with you. Now.” She made for the leader’s den, making no attempt to involve anyone else. She would not be Batsong.

Sleepycloud let out a breath, green eyes blinking thankfully up at Mottlestar. Her family was safe here when they could have been chased off. Instead, they opened their camp to Sleepycloud, Stormsong, and their kits. Wrapping a tail around the forever curious Hopekit, she brought the rest of her litter in close. Poor Softpaw. Too young to go up to StarClan. Her ears flicked backward, knowing that her kittens would soon become apprentices. It could be any of them dead at the SkyClan border.

While dread of a war clawed at her belly, the aching in her chest at the thought of losing her kits was much stronger. ThunderClan was her clan now, and she wanted nothing more than to protect those who had given her family shelter.