June Gathering 2024

Silverdusk regarded gatherings with a very neutral manner. They didn’t enjoy gatherings, but they didn’t hate them as many cats did either, though in recent times she had found them less and less endearing. As of late they had served the purpose of glamourised announcements for suffering and heartache. Her green gaze was dragged up to where the leaders had gathered, Perchstar not amongst them. The molly’s ears fell back, a lump forming in their throat as a new face amongst the deputies all but confirmed that Perchstar no longer resided on the mortal plane. It was like Honeydew all over again, the God of Death continuously stalking those that would better the forest, had bettered the forest. At least in RiverClan’s case they held faith in Poppyshine (Poppystar?), but there had been no such consolation when Honeydew had passed. The tall warrior drew in a breath, as much as they cared for the RiverClan empress it was unbecoming, almost treasonous to mourn her. Especially at a gathering, they were ThunderClan, that was where there loyalties lie.

Silverdusk had come to the gathering already bearing their own terrible news, but hoping maybe she would receive some sort of closure to the disappearance of their mate and niece. Her gaze swept over th crowd trying to pick out their spotted pelts and giant size, but like usual there was no sign. She could ask around, hopefully some cat knew something, anything was better than nothing. If only they knew where to start…

Silverdusk is happy to be approached

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His favourite day was here! Nettleweaver trotted into the gathering, ears perked and eyes alert. The clans were growing again and he practically trembled. So many new cats to meet, so many secrets to learn! Perhaps speaking to them he’d figure out a little more about himself too. Lately he had felt lost and untethered, his friends were dwindling -not by any fault of his own- ShadowClan just didn’t feel all too much like home. Perhaps the other clans would have more enticing benefits, maybe they’d value his opinion and his knowledge. It was time to make some connections. He didn’t bother to see why his own clan was up to as he hurriedly weaved through the masses, eying a cat of his fancy. Clan and outward appearance were of little concern, he was almost face blind when he began to address his chosen cat. “Excuse me?” asked Nettleweaver sweetly “Would you sit with me this evening, it is not often I get to enjoy the company of a stranger, though I hope after tonight we won’t be strangers. I’m Nettleweaver, and you are…?”

Nettleweaver is making friends, feel free to insert yourself as the random cat!

A yellow-eyed tortoiseshell came to sit near Swandive, and the Riverclanner's lip curled in distaste. She had no desire to interact with someone who wasn't her own clan, couldn't this she-cat see that? "This might be a night of peace, but that doesn't mean we need to sit together." She muttered, tail tip twitching. The she-cat didn't smell like anything Swandive recognized... But she would keep her claws sheathed. For Poppystar's sake.

Swandive isn't happy about being approached by Grub Jr!

They were all here, and this had gone on for long enough. With a glance toward the other leaders, Wolfstar stepped forward. "Skyclan is doing well. We've defeated two dogs that were making a mess of the territory. We have new kits in the nursery, and new apprentices - Snowpaw, Honeypaw, Hickorypaw and Palepaw. One of our older apprentices, Hornetpaw, has gone missing. If anyone sees him, he is very much missed. That is all." With that the leader stepped back to let the others speak.

Mountainpaw couldn't care less about the gathering, quite frankly. She was there because she had to be-and if the apprentice had it her way, she would have been at home, sleeping. But there were rules to abide by, and she would do so begrudgingly. Having followed in near the end of Thunderclan, she wished her father had come. At least then, she would have had someone to sit with and grump by. But instead, she came, and found a place to settle. There'd be plenty of conversation to overhear.

Mountainpaw is open to conversation... ish.

[OOC: Too tired to deal with code so mobile-in-spirit post lol]

The Gathering began officially and Poppystar took a deep breath. She listened silently to announcements shared and when Leopardstar stepped back, she stood and moved forward.

“In this past moon, Perchstar lost her final life and has joined our ancestors in the Silverpelt. I have since gained my nine lives from StarClan and have named Cindersky as my deputy. Additionally, we have a new medicine cat apprentice by way of Pigeonpounce.”

She spoke clearly and as neutrally as she could manage. Poppystar would not get choked up about the loss of her friend here on the Great Rock. She continued, “Despite recent losses, RiverClan continues to prosper. We welcome Oleanderpaw and Twilightpaw as new apprentices, and Wrensong, Elmstorm, and Duckfeather as new warriors.”

Poppystar spared a glance over her clan amidst the gathered cats, and let the sight of them grant her strength. “With the change in leadership, I look forward to working alongside all the leaders of the forest. RiverClan remains strong and our borders secure.” She willed herself to step back and slowly sit again. Her heart beat hard in her chest after delivering the announcements. Hopefully next moon will be easier.

Acornstar's ears perked as Leopardstar stepped up - her Clan seeming to thrive as always. Poppystar was next, confirming her new title as leader. A swirl of emotions rushed through Acornstar, sorrow for the leader going through the same thing she had just a few moons prior but also...Relief? It felt terrible but there was always the bitter truth that Perchstar would never respect her the same way she had Mottlestar and...She could hardly blame her - even now, she still didn't feel fit for the duty. But Poppystar... It would be a chance to start new at least. As Poppystar stepped back, she took the chance to step forward. "I'm sorry to hear of the loss of Perchstar," she meowed, glancing back at the new RiverClan leader. "I know it is not easy to fill the void, having recently gone through it myself but I'm sure RiverClan is in good paws with you at the head."

With that said, she turned to glance out across the clearing. "Onto ThunderClan news - with the loss of our medicine cats, one of our warriors Sleepycloud has chosen to step forward to fill the void. We also contuine to grow with many new apprentices; Emberpaw, Adderpaw, Lakepaw, Bearpaw, Mountianpaw and Blackpaw and a new warrior in Sunleap.However....One of our warriors, Wiggleworm, has gone missing along with Bearpaw," she meowed, a stab of shame to have to admit having more cats go missing. It felt like a further stain on her leadership - another proof that she shouldn't have taken the mantle even if StarClan approved. "If any sighting of those two are seen, please inform me - We...We wish to see our cats home." With that, she stepped back to let either Wolfstar or Tigerstar to go next.

Snowvixen didn't really want to come to the gathering, especially as she felt so tired from earlier in the day, but it was good for her to go. Coming in towards the end of the group, the molly found herself listening to the beginning of the announcements. There was a mild blink of surprise as she heard that Riverclan's leader had passed, especially as she had thought the molly to be rather young with all things considered. After all, with nine lives, she would have assumed them to be ancient. Or perhaps she had been, and Starclan's blessing acted as some sort of code to stay eternally young. She wouldn't know.

Thunderclan came next, and she'd unfortunately missed out on those from Shadowclan, but she wasn't very interested to hear about their apprenticeships. She flicked an ear at the notion of cats missing, making a small mental note to not attack any wayward Thunderclanner just in case they were those missing two. But otherwise, she would simply get through the night half-awake, then return home to her sweet nest...

Snowvixen is sleepily there.

Forest Speak
Feral Speak

Mismatched eyes widened with delight as Adderpaw spoke. She was very much mistaken, Adderpaw was exactly the cat he looking for. Another of ThunderClan’s giants, and better yet she had no clue who Nettleweaver was. He wished Orchidspark were here, she would have loved to have found out there were more giants than just Vinecrawler. That being said… Adderpaw was a lot smaller than Vinecrawler, the top of her head was around eye level. The white tom was far from large, but he knew he was a little taller than most cats in ShadowClan, for an apprentice she certainly was a giant. Another similarity was that she spoke with the same accent as his friend. He wondered if they were close. “I’m from ShadowClan, we smell like the earth and rain, but other clans seem to think we smell bad. I strongly disagree with that sentiment.” he mewed.

Nettleweaver briefly paused to hear the announcements, even if he was engaged with Adderpaw he could not afford to not know what was happening in the forest. Pointed ears fell back, it seemed the other clans were also missing cats. Were they all taken by the same force, perhaps if one cat returned they could lead them to the others, and hopefully… Hopefully, Crabpaw and Batpaw and Orchidspark would be amongst them. Of course, Leopardstar didn’t mention his friends, lest she admit ShadowClan wasn’t perfect. A false image was more important than his friends. He shook his head, trying to quell his rising temper. He turned back to Adderpaw seeking distraction. “Do speak, Adderpaw?” he asked in broken feral, he could not wait to see the surprise on her face. There was no way she could have guessed his secret. “Friend, Vinecrawler, teach a little.”

It seemed her new friend was impressed with her greeting. She supposed that was fair; she picked it up from New Sister a while ago. Maybe he was embarrassed that he didn't think of it before her. He moved his mouth as the others had. It was too bad he couldn't speak the new language that Hopepaw was developing. The apprentice felt bad, tilting her head with a pitying look. 'You. Friend.' She pointed at her new friend and weaved the sign for a friend, interlocking paws. A trademark purr rumbled through her body. Oh,she loved it when the moon was full. She got to meet new cats! Hopepaw waited a moment before nodding towards him, encouraging him to try it.

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The tired weight on her paws took a step back in her mind as the smell of RiverClan approached her. Half of her expected someone she knew, but the odd anxiety vanished as she met Pigeonpounce's gaze. "You would be correct." Sleepycloud purred, shifting her paws to sit up slightly. "At least, partially. I'm a medicine cat apprentice...in theory." She hesitated; an awkward laugh escaped her. Her introduction paused as two cats appeared. Heatherberry and Nightpaw. Heatherberry seemed to agree with Sleepycloud's idea of resting.

"I'm Sleepycloud, ThunderClan's Medicine Cat Apprentice...still need to do a ceremony. Not sure how to learn anything about being a medicine cat." Fawnshine's absence spoke for itself. Sleepycloud's ears flicked at the mention of her name from Acornstar. "Any tips or help would be appreciated." Being open about weakness was not something the former warrior was familiar with or comfortable with. But, from what Sleepycloud heard from Wolfstar, they were intended to help each other.