February Gathering

[BEAR.]

Please wait for your respective Clan leader or deputy to post before you arrive!

HIGH RANKS - PLEASE USE THIS CODE FOR YOUR ARRIVAL AND ANNOUNCEMENTS!

[announcement ] [/announcement ]

Make sure you close the brackets for your post coding!

Roleplayers, feel free to have your cats react to what the leaders are saying! You can search #hrannouncement in this thread to find all the high rank posts you get to respond to!

RedHead, hxneysuckle, Casper, Undertaker, Dirtfur, Moonraven, Fuzzy

[BEAR.]

Lionstar was the first to arrive with RiverClan in his wake, waving his tail proudly as he crossed the sandy clearing to scale up the large boulders that overlooked their surroundings. He was always happy to beat the other Clans here-- it was going to be his specialty at this rate!

"Dirtfur!" he called down to his dirt-puty as he caught sight of the tabby tom. "Don't forget you're sitting below me!" It made him giddy, for a change-- to have a deputy he could have complete faith in beneath him. Frostfall was always.. wishy-washy, and Eagleflight was too soft-hearted to maintain the position. He could recognize Dirtfur's confidence and he loved it.

The only thing he'd love more at this point is Icestar's reaction when he told her His News. Hehe.

[ RIVERCLAN HAS ARRIVED! Dirtfur ]

[Dirtfur]

snip.

The dirt-cat nodded to the leader's (who he is behind of) reminder. He glared over his shoulder at the warriors and apprentices who came to the gathering, giving them a You better behave look. Frankly, Dirtfur's seriousness hid his inner anxious, but also eager, feeling. His first time sitting below the leader as deputy in a gathering.

[Moonraven]

Gatherings, she hated these things. The sand always got into the most uncomfortable places, it felt gross, and don't even get her started on the scents and sounds. She was tired and wanted to go home! The new WindClan leader didn't bother hiding her displeasure with having to come to this beach. Honestly, she was this close to up and quitting right then and there. She always got herself into a decent amount of trouble so she wouldn't have to go to gatherings as an apprentice, it worked out well until her mentor found it was more of a punishment to sent her to gatherings. The monthly visit to this hell on earth was almost her breaking point. Ugh! The things she did for her clan.
Twilightstar glanced over her shoulder at her skeleton called a clan. WindClan was not faring the greatest and this leader wasn't going to bother acting like they were. They were doing better, but still had some ways to go before they could recover. Her clanmates could do as they please so long as they don't start trouble or all suddenly decide to up and desert her for clearly better clans... although if they did all leave she wouldn't have to deal with the dungheap nor this horrible gathering place. Well, until they did decide to give up she was stuck.
The pink nose twitched as she scented RiverClan, she could see they had arrived since a certain shiny smug star was already sitting on the boulders. But she was smelling it all over the place if she didn't know any better she'd wonder if Riverclan had taken over the beach?
The lilac molly had half a mind to to call out reminders to certain cats, Coldsong, Foxpugde, Warblerpaw and a few others came to mind, but she'd leave that to Brightsky. Approaching the tall slabs of stone, she managed to jump up and land without making a complete ass of herself. Glancing in the direction of Lionstar, she arched the whiskers above the right eye in a wordless 'sup' before promptly circling three times and laying down. She figured she might as well as have a nap until the rest of the leaders graced her with their presence.

[WINDCLAN HAS ARRIVED Fuzzy ]

[Fawn]

[open for anyone]

An echo of a memory fresh in mind, Fawnsqueak's heart twisted approaching the Seastones. The last time he'd been here was the discovery of Willowpaw's death, and it was the mist off the ocean, the moisture in the air that weighed his lungs with sorrow. It was tough to breathe, and even after forcing a shuddering exhale, his chest felt tight. On autopilot, he trailed behind RiverClan to take a spot in the forming crowd but didn't even spare a glance at whoever had the misfortune of being seated next to him. Fawnsqueak was busy choking down the bubbling discomfort within him, then stifling a wheeze, but finally doubling over to let out a rough cough. "Sorry," he mumbled, clearing his throat from hoarseness, "it's just-- the air here. It's thick." That conveniently skipped over the recent tragedy aspect, but he doubted whoever was next to him wished to hear about it anymore than he wanted to retell it.

[Moon Lily]

[Both Eagle and Running are OPEN]

Eagleflower purred as Riverclan entered the gathering space, gaping in awe at the sheer size of it. W-wow, so big! Although it wasn't his first gathering, it got him every time. As a junior warrior, he was probably supposed to be a role model, but he couldn't help but act like an excited kit at gatherings. He was always skittish at this time. Then again, he was most days. He waive through the crowds, looking for familiar faces. Cascadespirit and Kiwibounce didn't seem to be here yet, but then again, no Shadowclan cat was there yet. His gaze flicked among the Windclanners and Riverclanners alike. No one he recognized. At least, not yet. He shuffled over to his usual spot around the edge of the clearing and thunder down with a frown. Most. Boring. Gathering. Ever.t

~~~

Runningpaw dashed into the clearing, pushing through the cats. She kept her head low, and barges through, as she liked. She didn't mind their nutters and whispers- it may be rude, but honestly, she couldn't care less. She hissed at Riverclanners, glaring at them through her blue orbs. Their stench, and attitude, bothered her. They always acted so snooty and braggy. But Thunderclan was worse, much worse. And the leaders? HAHA, no. What an amazing time to be a clan cat, she growled in silent sarcasm. She couldn't help but be moody. It may have been one of her first gatherings, but she couldn't care less...I already said that, didn't I? Runningpaw frowned, dodging all friendly looking cats with ease. That was her specialty, after all. She'd never been this moody. But after Rabbitpaw dissapeared...
Let's not think about that...

[Jesse]

Before they’d left for the gathering, Mistyfern was considering staying at camp and just sending Coyotesnarl in his place- it wasn’t as if he could say no. Now that they’d finally arrived, he wished he’d followed through with it. His bad leg was killing him and sand had managed to become wedged in between the webs of his toes. All just to listen to their moron of a leader bicker with a handful of other like-minded morons. He glanced woefully around at his clan, noting just how scrawny and flea-bitten they seemed standing alongside the plump and silky-furred Riverclanners. What a sorry sight.. He craned his neck to stare down at his flanks, which were normally firm and defined with muscle. His ribs were just barely distinct under what bulk he’d managed to retain. It was shameful.

Mistyfern knew it would do no good to mope the entire gathering, so he hurried to reserve himself a seat with a decent view. Luckily he didn’t have to bully anyone out of the way this time. As he plopped down and tucked his tail around his paws, he wondered if he’d be forced to mingle with the other medicine cats. That was, if they even showed up.

[Open to anyone.]

[MagicCat99]

Deerblossom padded up towards the gathered cats, sitting down by his clanmate. The Windclan warrior licked his paw as he waited for the gathering to start. His tail was curled over his paws.
(Open)

[Leucos]

( open )
Sootpaw and BrambleBlaze hurried on into the gathering grounds . Sootpaw had his fur all groomed and clean , the handsomest he's ever looked probably . Confidence was booming and he had a cheeky little grin to complete it.
BrambleBlaze...was presentable . But she still had anxiety which was due to the raid that happened a few moons ago...She just didn't want anything to break out because of that fact. But she fought to remain confident as well..nobody likes a cat who has low confidence ..

The two cats parted off in their own directions . Sootpaw sat near the front far left while BrambleBlaze sat near the middle . Both eyes were on the leaders spots.

[Cloudsky]

( open )
Sootpaw and BrambleBlaze hurried on into the gathering grounds . Sootpaw had his fur all groomed and clean , the handsomest he's ever looked probably . Confidence was booming and he had a cheeky little grin to complete it.
BrambleBlaze...was presentable . But she still had anxiety which was due to the raid that happened a few moons ago...She just didn't want anything to break out because of that fact. But she fought to remain confident as well..nobody likes a cat who has low confidence ..

The two cats parted off in their own directions . Sootpaw sat near the front far left while BrambleBlaze sat near the middle . Both eyes were on the leaders spots.
Fallenstorm entered the gathering looking pristine. After all, she should look good for the other clans, and the leaders as well. Before getting herself seated, she looked for Mirepaw and Sootpaw, and although Mirepaw wasn't in her view, she saw a very confident Sootpaw near the front.
"Hey, Sootpaw!" She purred to her apprentice. "What do you think of the gathering so far?" While she had anxiety, sitting with one of the apprentices made her feel more confident. She sat down, tail wrapped around her body, and waited for an answer

[Sweetie]

Shimmeringpaw stayed close to her brother, her nerves getting the best of her. Baby blue eyes glued to the ground, one paw in front of the other. Her silver and white pelt fluffed out against the chilling air, the moonlight offering her to see. So many cats..., so far only Riverclan and Windclan were present but it seemed like it was more than two clans. The fellow clan's scent made her nose wrinkle, the moor and dirt surrounded them like a cloud.
x ghostie


-----

The slim calico raised his head high, staying in front of the group of cats. His pelt was presentable but he didn't care what others thought he followed by his own rules. Mossythorn looked at the others, wondering what the night would bring


(Open)

[Leucos]

Cloudsky
Ears flicking at fallenstorm s voice the tom whipped his head around to see the very feline. "to be honest . I think it's awesome . And I can't wait to see what icestar has to say . Get wrecked shadowclan !" he grinned . Would icestar be pissy as she took her seat? Have a defeated sense about her? Or still think she's top dog? If top dog was the case then he couldn't wait to see lionstar put her back in her place.

[Cloudsky]

Cloudsky
Ears flicking at fallenstorm s voice the tom whipped his head around to see the very feline. "to be honest . I think it's awesome . And I can't wait to see what icestar has to say . Get wrecked shadowclan !" he grinned . Would icestar be pissy as she took her seat? Have a defeated sense about her? Or still think she's top dog? If top dog was the case then he couldn't wait to see lionstar put her back in her place.
"That's great! You have to remember, though, don't be starting fights with other clans. I know it sounds weird, but if you can make friends with other clans, you can get some info from them." She meowed to Sootpaw, hoping no one else heard her advice to him.

[Doom]

[both open!]

Coldsong trotted proudly into the gathering, chest puffed proudly behind his leader. He absolutely loved gatherings; it was the perfect place to make an impression, pry in on the other Clans, and make some possible friends....or enemies. He took a seat among his Clanmates, eyes excitedly looking around for someone to speak to.

----

Honeyflame was nervous about the gathering...she would be seeing her old Clanmates again. She wasn't particularly close with anyone back in ThunderClan, but she wondered if somebody even noticed she left. Taking a seat close to the RiverClan crowd, she let her green gaze wander, curling her tail tightly around her small paws. Hopefully, this night would go smoothly and she could head back home with some sort of closure.

[Storm Flower]

She looked up at the sky

[Leucos]

Cloudsky
Flicking his ears with a small frown the tom nodded in understanding "I guess your right .." he meowed . However he spotted a windclan warrior that caught his eye. "see you later fallenstorm" with that he walked up to coldsong with confidence " nice night huh? Aside from it being leafbare" the riverclanner meowed to the older tom.
Fae

[tye]

Head lowered, eyes glinting with every head movement he followed the stream of cats to the gathering area. Greenfur didn't utter a word only raising his head looking around for any other clans and huffed, taking a place next to his clanmates. This is his first gathering and probably his last if things start to go left. What annoys him the most is loud, stupid cats hollering over each other. Greenfur yawned, sitting down with tail curled around his big paws.

--

Warblerpaw high-stepped over behind Twilightstar and his clanmates entering the scene. Ugh! What smells like that? His nose crunched up at the fishy scent of Riverclan. It's been a while since he interacted with them nor sat next to the fish faces. Quickly veering off into his own path the calico took over his rightful place up-hill on a flat stone with a nice view to watch everything unravel. But, something stopped him mid-way. His mind kept telling him to sit front and close this time so the apprentice turned around to take a place up close. His blue eyes stared at the glorious yet pesty Lionstar and his.. wait, where's the deputy? Tipping his head at a moving dirt pile that sat beneath him it's eyes gleaming bright. Dear Stars..is that a cat? He's so..so filthy!! Warblerpaw gagged out loud, ripping his gaze away to face elsewhere for a second before returning back a vexed glare. If what's going through his mind is right then send him flying because it doesn't sit right with the calico.

--
A funny bounce walk a spotted tom was last behind all his clanmates because he met a green friend along the way and some other distractions! Cowpaw accidentally bumped into some warriors who gave him a few tongue lashes along the way but it only dimmed his spirit for only mere second. Color streams of scents and cats blinded his eyes for a moment, lifting his paw he rubbed his eyes blinking. What a view! He couldn't contain his excitement and dashed forward to look around some more before it gets super duper crowded. His green eyes lifted up seeing the leaders though Lionstar really caught his eye for sure. In amazement the apprentice sat up close front view to watch them all.

[all open hh..]

[SuspiciousMindz]

[all open]

Cedarbug (https://suspiciousroleplays.weebly.com/cedarbug.html) trotted into the clearing holding the Gathering. It appeared that RiverClan and WindClan were the only ones here right now and secretly, he was hoping Apple would be here tonight. In fact, he was praying to StarClan that his friend would be here. His eyes desperately searched the cats, looking for the familiar pelt. wren

---

Coconutbreeze (https://suspiciousroleplays.weebly.com/coconutbreeze.html) followed her clanmates into the clearing. She wasn't very sociable so she kept to her own clan. She avoided eye contact with even them though. She just wanted to listen to the news and go lay back down in her nest.

[RedHead]

Flintstar padded into the seastones clearing in high spirits, his gait light and carefree as he walked in front of his clanmates. He cast a sideways glance to Duskfeather, flicking his tail towards the bottom of the seastones. "I assume you know where to sit." He meowed, giving a light laugh before he padded closer to the seastones. Bunching his muscles, Flintstar leaped upward and made his way to the top of the seastones. He cast a confused look at the she-cat curled up on the seastones... Was she sleeping? And where was Brightstar at? Flintstar glanced around for the Windclan leader, but couldn't seem to spot her atop the seastones. Did she die? Or get demoted? The Thunderclan leader only assumed that he would have to wait and see what the sleeping Windclan she-cat would announce.
His green gaze then turned to Lionstar as he sat himself on the opposite side of sleepycat, and he tilted his head at the Riverclan leader, giving a small smirk. Flintstar didn't have any inside joke or anything here, he was simply not going to let the Riverclan leader walk all over him. Goldfish could prattle on as annoying as ever tonight, and Flintstar wasn't going to pay him much bother. Then only cat that was bringing Flintstar a small sense of worry was Icestar. Thankfully, she wasn't here yet.

THUNDERCLAN HAS ARRIVED
hxneysuckle

[Starfall]

Runningpaw dashed into the clearing, pushing through the cats. She kept her head low, and barges through, as she liked. She didn't mind their nutters and whispers- it may be rude, but honestly, she couldn't care less. She hissed at Riverclanners, glaring at them through her blue orbs. Their stench, and attitude, bothered her. They always acted so snooty and braggy. But Thunderclan was worse, much worse. And the leaders? HAHA, no. What an amazing time to be a clan cat, she growled in silent sarcasm. She couldn't help but be moody. It may have been one of her first gatherings, but she couldn't care less...I already said that, didn't I? Runningpaw frowned, dodging all friendly looking cats with ease. That was her specialty, after all. She'd never been this moody. But after Rabbitpaw dissapeared...
Let's not think about that...


He lugged behind his clanmates, ears swiveled forwards as he watched them fan out in the clearing. So far it seemed as though Windclan was here, still no Shadowclan or Thunderclan? At the thought the tom twitched his nose. It wasn't like he had to worry about Thunderclan being too much of a threat, they were wimpy and pushovers. Did the bare minimum to help. Though his thoughts were inturupted by a rather solid hit to his side, that made the Warrior stumble to the side a bit. As if on instinct he reached his paw out and attempted to stomp down on the Tail of the Rude apprentice it belonged to.

[B]"Hey brat. Careful you could knock someone over." Gentlethunder snorted.

[Vessel]

Shrewpaw
[OPEN]

The silver tabby padded slowly into the gathering, careful to look every which way. Even after a moon of being back to camp, the small apprentice was still a bit paranoid about the whole rogue situation. That, and after hearing about the battle between Riverclan and Shadowclan from some mumbling voices, he was gonna try his best to stay out of the whole thing and just keep a low profile. Bickering clans was a horrible thing. Padding to a spot not too far from the middle, Shrewpaw glanced around, wondering what to do exactly. He didn't really know anyone and sure didn't want to start up a conversation. Sighing in frustration, he just lowered his head in wait for the announcements to begin. Suppose that was kinda the main purpose of the gathering anyways.



Darkpaw raced into the clearing, black fur fluffed in excitement and against the cold.

My first gathering! Ohmygosh, I'm finally meeting cats from the OTHER CLANS WHO SHOULD I TALK TO FIRST?

It was then that he spotted a smallish silver tabby standing off to the side.

Hmm. Is it his first gathering too? Maybe we can be FRIENDS! That would be SO COOL!

With that thought training through his mind, Darkpaw skipped over and plopped down beside him.

"Sooooooo." He began. "I'mDarkpawhowareyouwhat'syournamewatclanareyoufrom areyouanapprenticetooit'sgreattomeetyou!"

He sat there looking at the other tom, a great big goofy grin plastered on his face.

[Vessel]

(OPEN to anyone willing to be pranked)

Hawktalon had settled down near the back of the crowd, gazing listlessly into the distance trying his best to look lonely. He sighed for dramatic effect.

I hope someone comes along soon.

He had it all planned out in his head; a cat would come along, and he'd pretend to be deaf. It'd be SO hilarious when he revealed he wasn't! Maybe. Now that he thought about it, perhaps he could've planned something with a bit more... flair. He shrugged it off.

Nah, it's fine. Besides- too late now!

[Vessel]

(OPEN)

Embercry yawned, stalking into the clearing. Although his muscles had atrophied while he'd been held hostage by twolegs, he'd gone on a handful of patrols since then and was as lean and muscular as his clanmates.

The tom picked his way between the clusters of other cats until he finally found a spot near some apprentices who smelled strongly of Thunderclan.

I don't recognize about a quarter of these cats. How long have I been gone, really?

[Dirtfur]

(Open)

Shadepaw padded alongside his fellow ThunderClan mates. He couldn't admit to being amazed to see many cats from other clans when it is of course a gathering. He walked away from his home-clan and sat alone in a small clearing. Maybe he could find some prey here that need to catch! Or maybe the prey can mouse-brainingly walk towards to the predator!

[wolfie]

Shimm
wormpaw // riverclan apprentice // black, white speckled lanky tom with pink-tinted eyes //
it was the apprntice's first gathering. first actual interaction with anyone outside his clan too. however while you should be excited and happy, wormpaw was not. in fact he had decided gatherings were horrible and he was never attending another one. why? whY? well you see, there were lots of things. first of all, the rest of the cats at camp was a perfect weak spot to be targeted on. second of all, the tension was rising. while only windclan, riverclan, and thundercan was here-- he could feel shadowclan's impending doom. so yes, it was safe to say the lanky apprentice was anxious. he pressed against shimmeringpaw, trying to hide in his sister's fluffy fur. while he wouldn't admit it, he was also struggling gratefully to find his way around without stumbling. things were so blurry,, and he kept having to squint his eyes. wormpaw was sure she was also anxious with all the cats here so he thought it would be best if he stuck close to shimmeringpaw. his pink-tinted glare was focused on thunderclan at least the cats scented like thunderclan, not hiding his aggression one bit. his thin fur was bristling, his tail flickering in annoyance. the one positivity thing was, wormpaw was grateful for the new scenery at least. the cold winter ear was a pang to his lungs. he stalked towards the edge of the crowd stumbling not so secretly but at least he made it without falling. wormpaw glanced to see if shimmeringpaw wanted to go somewhere else or wanted to go alone in her adventure. her blurry figure brought comfort to his anxious beating heart.

[wren]

Applefluff padded into the clearing, the scent of riverclan overwhelming and salty. He’d stressed coming to a gathering.. he hadn’t been to one since his father died. So realistically he had no need to otherwise.. but after seeing Cedarbug the other day he felt.. a want to come? Just in case the warrior was there as well. He sheepishly smiled to himself and anxiously shuffled through the crowd looking for the familiar orange and white pelt before- there! There he was! A sense of relief washed over him. Padding around a few clanmates he approached the tom from the side before gently bumping shoulders with him. “Cedar” he greeted kindly ”I was hoping you’d have come tonight” he mrrowed quietly to him smiling

SuspiciousMindz

[Wings]

Open to anyone!

~Wow, My first gathering! Chilly nonetheless but hopefully I'll make some friends~ The young apprentice excitedly padded onto the sandy beach. It felt weird on her paws. She had felt a little sand here and there in the camp but not like this. It was squishy, grainy, and just odd. After thinking about the sand she smelled Thunderclan, her clan, Windclan, and Riverclan! Then she noticed that idiot Shadepaw wandering off. ~Stupid mousedung of a cat.~ She began spitting insults in her head at the tom as she walked away. Duskpaw looked around realizing she had no one to talk to, no one to sit by but, patiently she waited for an apprentice or kind looking warrior to stroll by that she could talk to.

[lio]

[ RedHead ]

Duskfeather padded lightly behind Flintstar, her tail swaying. This was her first Gathering as the deputy of ThunderClan, and she had to represent her Clan well. The Torbie puffed up her chest, holding her head high as she stepped into the clearing. She gave a nod in response to her leader's question and took her place beneath him, looking out over each of the Clans. ThunderClan, RiverClan, WindClan. ShadowClan had clearly yet to arrive- where was Icestar? Duskfeather would prefer if the Gathering started soon, as she had a feeling that plenty of drama would arise. And she didn't wish for it to last long.

--

Toadbounce made sure to remain close to Flintstar as he walked, side-eyeing him with a smirk over his lips. He wondered if he could distract the pretty tom during his announcements- it'd be quite fun! His tail flicked and he gave a wink toward the leader as he broke away from the group to take his place on the Seastones. Toadbounce's ears perked and he couldn't help but giggle at the glare Duskfeather seemed to send toward him. Aw, taking the place where she should be, walking beside the precious leader of ThunderClan. Boo hoo, he enjoyed toying with Flintstar far too much to care. And so he took his place at the very back of the crowded area, making sure he was in a spot where Flintstar could easily see him.

--

Stoatdance limped into the clearing after RiverClan, her ears perked as she looked over the gathered Clans. She grimaced as her shoulder felt the need to ache horribly, giving a quiet growl. The warrior sat near the edge of the crowd and looked up toward each leader. As she did so, her eye caught sight of Dirtfur taking his place as deputy beneath Lionstar. Stoatdance flattened her ears and looked away, a quiet hiss breathing through her throat.She should be up there. Not that filthy weirdo. The warrior sighed and waited for the final Clan to arrive, allowing the Gathering to begin.

--

Palepaw's eyes were wide with wonder as he followed RiverClan to the Gathering, his maw parted in awe. It was so pretty! He froze as he saw the crowd. So many scents, so many cats! It was overflowing almost! The marbled tom bounded down into the clearing and sat down, looking around quietly. He was awe-stricken into silence. His first Gathering, and it was already amazing!

--

Hogpaw followed Twilightstar into the clearing, his stumpy tail waving back and forth. He cowered away from all of the faces, all of the eyes. Don't look at me! he begged, ears flattened against his head. The muddy tom took a place at the very edge of the crowd, hoping he could hide in the shadows.

--

Bramblebear walked after the others with a stoic expression upon her face. She could only hope that Coldsong hadn't followed along to start trouble with the other Clans. Her eyes traveled over the crowd, finding a place to sit before she curled her tail over her paws and silently sat waiting for the news to begin.

[Fuzzy]

Brightsky brought up the back of the WindClan cats. She liked doing that better then being up front. It felt more fitting... Plus it gave her a chance to make sure the whole Clan got to the gathering safely. Much better then just assuming with the condition of the Clan.
Nearing the Seastone's Brightsky prepared herself to climb them. Wait... no, no. Not leader anymore B. You stepped down remember? The creamy molly reminded herself before joining the deputies. She knew none of these cats. Did all the other deputies die? It was hard but surely they wouldn't have all died at once.
Bright couldn't say she was pleased to see that Twilightstar decided to lay on the stones. Or was she asleep? Either way she wasn't going to bother saying anything. Even though that was crazy it would be a waste of her voice.
Sadly Flintstar beat her to the stones but she payed him no mind. He was quiet annoying last gathering so it'd be best to just ignore him this gathering. He could deal with Twilightstar, she had her ways of getting out of things. "Evening." She greeted the cats with a curt nod.

[BEAR.]

Foxpudge caught sight of Hogpaw soon after WindClan had settled in, and he padded over to join his apprentice at the edge of the crowd. "Hey, are you okay?" His voice was gentle as he lightly moved to nudge his shoulder to get his attention. [ hxneysuckle ]

---

Thistlestep joined the RiverClan crowd, tail twitching as he straightened out his back to watch the crowd. WindClan and ThunderClan were there so far. He was surprised ShadowClan was running behind-- he expected Icestar to be more punctual.

Ah, well. He didn't really care. He was curious to hear her report following the battle. Two cats alone fell to Thistlestep's claws, though only one was one he could say he didn't regret without a doubt. That apprentice would have suffered longer if he didn't snuff her out.

---

Buckfrost was among the RiverClan crowd, but his ears were perked as he watched for the arrival of ShadowClan. He was curious about the fate of the apprentice he had spoken to during the raid, and he hoped he'd see him again this Gathering-- he wanted to make sure the young tom was okay after the loss of his mentor. [ Dirtfur for when ShadowClan arrives if you're bringing Redheart! ]

---

Firehawk lingered at the edge of the RiverClan crowd, content to splay out away from the mass of cats for the time being. He'd be happy to chat with someone, but the journey was hard on his elderly bones and he needed to rest for a moment.

[ all of these are open, will duplicate these nerds if needed ]

[lio]

[ BILL. ]

The chubby tom looked up as Foxpudge approached, fear briefly flashing in his eyes before he relaxed. Foxpudge was nice, he wouldn't judge him. Hogpaw gave a weak smile and shuffled his paws, nodding. "Yeth, I'm fine," he said quietly, though he cringed as he realized how it was covered by the bustling crowd. The apprentice swallowed and forced his smile to widen despite shrinking further into himself. "I'm fine," he then repeated, much louder than he had spoken before.

[Starfall]

Honeyflame was nervous about the gathering...she would be seeing her old Clanmates again. She wasn't particularly close with anyone back in ThunderClan, but she wondered if somebody even noticed she left. Taking a seat close to the RiverClan crowd, she let her green gaze wander, curling her tail tightly around her small paws. Hopefully, this night would go smoothly and she could head back home with some sort of closure.

The Apprentice stumbled into the Clearing, excitement radiating off the tom. His curled and incredibly messy fur was fluffed up, eyes wide and filled with nothing but awe, mouth open. He'd never seen so many cats in one place! How was it he was told this worked again? Everybody just kinda sat around in a circle? Or was it they were organized from oldest to youngest? Geckopaw couldn't remember, all he remembered was that there was absolutely no fighting! Starclan said so!

The Bengal was hopping and skipping about, doing his absolute best to avoid all the other felines scattered in the clearing. However a familiar face made the smaller scoot to a stop and whip his head, folded ears perking up as much as they could. [B]"Honeybrume?" he squacked once he realized it was really his mentor. He took a few steps towards the molly, confusion clear in his expression as he looked around the feline. "What are you doing?Where have you been I've been waiting for a training session but..."


Open to anyone!

~Wow, My first gathering! Chilly nonetheless but hopefully I'll make some friends~ The young apprentice excitedly padded onto the sandy beach. It felt weird on her paws. She had felt a little sand here and there in the camp but not like this. It was squishy, grainy, and just odd. After thinking about the sand she smelled Thunderclan, her clan, Windclan, and Riverclan! Then she noticed that idiot Shadepaw wandering off. ~Stupid mousedung of a cat.~ She began spitting insults in her head at the tom as she walked away. Duskpaw looked around realizing she had no one to talk to, no one to sit by but, patiently she waited for an apprentice or kind looking warrior to stroll by that she could talk to.


Poppypaw followed behind the warriors as Windclan arrived, no matter how many time's he's attended gathering's he was always...nervous. He never got used to all the different smells and the smothering amount of cats in one space. So he branched off, trying to get away from the crowd and constant loud chatter. Spotting a feline in his usual 'hiding away' spot, his worried expression was swiftly replaced with a soft smile. "Hi! The sand feels nice doesn't it? And you can play with it too while the Leaders are talking if you don't ever understand what they're saying." the Bengal purred.

[Fuzzy]

[All open for multiple interactions~]

Petuniapaw couldn't believe this. How had she not heard of these gatherings? They happened every full moon right? This was really cool!
The ginger and white molly scampered through the growing crowd of cats. "So many different cats and smells!" She exclaimed spinning around to see all these cats. Hundreds of them! And she thought RiverClan alone was a lot of cats! Who should she talk to? Was she allowed to talk? Other cats were.
In her excited bouncing Petuniapaw bumped into another furry figure. "Oh sorry!" She apologized dipping her head. Yet her whiskers couldn't stop fidgeting.
~*~

Icedust trotted confidently after the rest of ThunderClan. She enjoyed going to gatherings, they we're such fun. Meeting and messing around with new cats. It was also a nice time to just talk to cats you didn't know. Not bothering to go search for a cat who looked like they wanted to talk the white warrior sat down by the nearest cat she saw. "Hey, nice night for a gathering." She greeted looking over to the cat with her mismatched eyes.
~*~

Oh this wasn't what Smallbear wanted to do tonight. Going to the gathering was so hard for him. Not only was it hard for him to keep up with his stubby legs but he got so nervous around all the cats! Yet, he came so he could keep an eye on Poppypaw. The cream colored tom didn't expect his apprentice to get into trouble but Smallbear didn't want him out here alone. "Excuse me... sorry..." The tiny tom mewed as he moved through the cats, yellow eyes down. This wasn't what he wanted to be doing right now...

[Madelaine]

| BILL.; hxneysuckle; |

Willowrose walked into the gathering with her new clanmates. Her pelt shook at seeing most of her former clanmates. She hoped her father wasn't among these cats. She couldn't deal with him right now. What she didn't know is that he stayed back to help guard the camp, so she would not be seeing him today. Willowrose stood next to a cat, not being able to scent that it was a cat from Windclan. A familiar cat at that. She glanced over and saw Foxpudge with Hogpaw. Her ears lied flat. She wanted to move, but her paws wouldn't allow it.

[Moon Lily]

He lugged behind his clanmates, ears swiveled forwards as he watched them fan out in the clearing. So far it seemed as though Windclan was here, still no Shadowclan or Thunderclan? At the thought the tom twitched his nose. It wasn't like he had to worry about Thunderclan being too much of a threat, they were wimpy and pushovers. Did the bare minimum to help. Though his thoughts were inturupted by a rather solid hit to his side, that made the Warrior stumble to the side a bit. As if on instinct he reached his paw out and attempted to stomp down on the Tail of the Rude apprentice it belonged to.

"Hey brat. Careful you could knock someone over." Gentlethunder snorted.


Runningpaw jolted at the feeling of the warrior's paw, her pelt spiking as the force slammed through her. Her heart pulsed like scattering mice. She swiveled around to face the grumpy warrior, glaring back in defiance. If she was fast enough, she could get past the tom, but opted not to. She'd have to deal with this herself. She squared her shoulders, hissing in warning. This tom wouldn't call her a brat and get away with it.

"Watch who you're calling a brat, fox-face! Let. Me. Go." She growled tensely, grinding her teeth together. She forcefully tugged her tail away, eyes glittering with challenge.

[Dust]

[OPEN]

Pebblepaw was always excited by the time the Gathering rolled around! So much drama, and he was always doing his best to take in the other clans around him - WindClan, ShadowClan, ThunderClan. So different, but still so alike. With a flick of his tail and a bounce in his step, the apprentice made his way into the clearing. Eyes glittering with the possibilities of who he could talk to, he settled on a small group - turning his attention to a single cat in particular,

"Hey there! I'm Pebblepaw!"

[Pepperkins]

Darkpaw raced into the clearing, black fur fluffed in excitement and against the cold.

My first gathering! Ohmygosh, I'm finally meeting cats from the OTHER CLANS WHO SHOULD I TALK TO FIRST?

It was then that he spotted a smallish silver tabby standing off to the side.

Hmm. Is it his first gathering too? Maybe we can be FRIENDS! That would be SO COOL!

With that thought training through his mind, Darkpaw skipped over and plopped down beside him.

"Sooooooo." He began. "I'mDarkpawhowareyouwhat'syournamewatclanareyoufrom areyouanapprenticetooit'sgreattomeetyou!"

He sat there looking at the other tom, a great big goofy grin plastered on his face.


Shrewpaw

The apprentice almost jumped out his fur as the apprentice now next to him started talking a mile a minute. Noticing he meant no harm fromt he goofy smile given brightly, he let his fur fall but still kept on guard. He still didn't trust other clans, even if their was a truce tonight. "I'm Shrewpaw of Windclan, and could you possibly calm down? You're irritating me a bit," he mumbled in reply as bluntly as possible. It was obvious this kitten's intentions, but Shrewpaw wasn't here to make friends. Now to think of it, did he have any friends? His thoughts we cut off just as he realized he didn't know what the appprentice's name was. "Nice to meet you too, what's your name?" And clan, he added but didn't say out loud.

[Ever]

[OPEN]

Pebblepaw was always excited by the time the Gathering rolled around! So much drama, and he was always doing his best to take in the other clans around him - WindClan, ShadowClan, ThunderClan. So different, but still so alike. With a flick of his tail and a bounce in his step, the apprentice made his way into the clearing. Eyes glittering with the possibilities of who he could talk to, he settled on a small group - turning his attention to a single cat in particular,

"Hey there! I'm Pebblepaw!"

Pinepaw trotted in with a confident head held high behind her leader. This was the first gathering she'd gotten to go to and she was beyong thrilled. She had never even met a cat from another clan yet! The smells overwhelmed her for a minute as she stood in the clearing, dazed and looking around. So many smells she recognized from patrols, so many unfamiliar cats. Her golden eyes looked this way and that- unsure of where to go and start. She watched as her clan dispersed throughout and met with others. She twitched when behind her another apprentice introduced themselves, turning to look at the young tom.

Hello! My name's Pinepaw." She replied cheerfully, sniffing at him to try to recognize the clan. It took her a moment to recognize the scent of Riverlcan. "I can't believe how many cats are here, this is my first gatherin!" She kept the second part of her greeting a little quieter, leaning in close to tell him as if it were a secret that she was feeling unsettled.

[BEAR.]

Foxpudge purred softly at Hogpaw, trying to encourage him to relax because he didn't miss how uncomfortable his apprentice seemed. Despite his assurance of being fine, Foxpudge wasn't very convinced.. but he wouldn't push the matter unless Hogpaw felt like opening up to him. "If you're sure. I'm here if you want to talk, okay?"

His ears twitched as Snailblossom approached them, and he looked at her with a combination of surprise and relief. "Snailblossom!" Foxpudge even rose to his paws to greet her, taking a step toward her to bop her nose with his. "Where have you been?! Stars, I've been worried sick about you.." His ears flattened back, noticing the reek of fish that clung to her. "... did you join RiverClan?"

[ hxneysuckle, Blissie Bliss ]

---

Of course Icepudge would be running late. Lionstar wasn't surprised, and he honestly found it hilarious after her arrogant display of power. The black beast could run her mouth all she wanted, but it wouldn't change the fact Lionstar was on the top of the food chain.

When the WindClan leader arrived, he didn't recognize her-- she definitely wasn't Brightstar, she wasn't as pretty. Good Stars, why did the female version of Ratpaw have to replace her? It was like looking at an ugly ass batcat and Lionstar wasn't digging it. Not one bit. Was it against the truce to push her off the Seastones and end the nightmare that was her appearance? He was tempted to find out.

At least she seemed interesting.. if not lazy, given how she immediately curled up to presumably sleep. "No wonder WindClan's in the dump right now." Cannibalism, insanity-- starvation. Yeah, Lionstar was still inclined to leave that circus alone to deal with their own problems. It wasn't fun to pick on a Clan that couldn't attempt to fight back, besides. He didn't like the thought of being eaten by a savage.

Flinnystar, he could care less about right now. If his little buddy wanted to act confident he'd encourage it, but Lionstar didn't really get his behavior. He was Icestar's puppet with no backbone, bending over to her overdue rescue like a pawn in a game Lionstar was growing bored of.

"Do you think the black bear will be here anytime soon?" Lionstar took a moment to wink at Flintflight as he continued. "Or is she running late because our last meeting left her out of breath?" If Flinthead didn't get that, he was more special than Lionstar thought.

[ Moonraven, RedHead, Casper ]

[wren]

( open )

Coyotesnarl expected to see some sort of Medicine cat hollow but instead they were dispersed amongst the throng of cats. Not that he would really recognize the cats anyways, the panel of deputies was intensely different then it had been a few moons ago. Everybody was new except for Brightsky he supposed. He turned to the crowd sweeping his tail along his paws.

The thought dawned on him, he was just as brand spanking new as all of those deputies up there. Nobody would recognize him or know.. and he doubt anybody would approach him either. He felt an itch on his jaw and slightly adjusted as the discomfort of the mangled wound was brought back to his mind.

[plum]

[OPEN]
The Gathering already seemed so huge, that by the time Elderpaw found herself among the sea of strange faces, the little gray tabby had no idea what she was meant to do. She supposed that she should sit among Clanmates, but it was suddenly just a little bit difficult to discern even her own scent from the numerous others. It didn't matter how outgoing she was, the apprentice just couldn't fathom how many other cats there were. It was indeed, truly an awesome spectacle!

But Elderpaw wouldn't get anywhere just standing in the way with her mouth agape and eyes unfocused. The newly made apprentice pushes herself to move among the throng of other cats, searching for a space to sit or someone to chat with. That seemed to be the right thing to do, after all. It was a pity she didn't have anyone to follow right off the bat, but taking matters into her own paws was easy enough too. It isn't long until she catches sight of the first familiar face of the evening: Coyotesnarl. He was WindClan's own, and that was the only way the young she-cat knew him. He seemed just as lost as she felt. But the apprentice was in a vastly different world than he was, and she didn't want to put her paws where they didn't belong.

She turns her eyes away from her Clanmate and tries to spot anybody closer to her own age. It was worrisome, the idea of spending her first Gathering alone. But even that wasn't the worst that could happen. With a little sigh, the she-cat gives up and sits right where she was- curling her tail around her paws in a stubborn gesture of defeat. With as much going on around her as there was, she couldn't find the energy to thrust herself into it.

[duckie]

[open]

Sootflare followed Lionstar and his clan to the seastones with a hint of reluctance he did his best to suppress. As much as the tom enjoyed supporting his clan, the seastones and beach in general were an unpleasant place through and through. It wasn't the warrior's first meeting and he knew all too well the feeling of a pelt full of sand and salt. Simply breathing in this place was a terrible experience; the air had a bite to it with all the saltspray. All the same, he attended without a single uttered complaint. He settled down with his clan, toward the edge of the crowd where he might have some interaction with the other clans.

[Vessel]

Slushie

Sunsnow walked into the clearing with a yawn. He shook out his pelt, golden in the moonlight, and went in search of Buckbranch.

He knew he should interact with cats from other clans, but every time he was apart from Buttercup he missed him. It was like a hollow emptiness in his chest, a place that could only be filled by the tortoiseshell tom.

At last, he spotted him. It seemed that he'd just gotten settled in a spot near a clump of bushes. Although it was quite a distance away from the leaders, Sunsnow would follow him anywhere.

He lifted his tail and padded over.

[dino.]

[ Vessel ]

Buckbranch was, decidedly, totally bored out of his mind.

Normally, he loved Gatherings, and if he was still deputy, he would have gladly taken his place below the leaders and payed attention to what they had to say, and how they did it, because one day he would have to do that to.
But he wasn't deputy, and so he figured he didn't have to pay attention, unless something either interesting or important came up. He settled down near a small patch of raspberry bushes, tail flipping to-and-fro.
Orange fur caught his eye, and he looked over to see Sunshine padding towards him. A flame of nervousness sparked in his chest, though he wasn't entirely sure why. I mean, we made up, right? So... why do I feel like something is going to happen? It was a stupid thought, but he was thinking it anyway. He gave Sunshine a smile, hoping it was convincing enough to cover up the emotions tumbling around in his brain. The last thing he needed was someone else holding his problems on their shoulders. "Hey, Sunshine."

[Vessel]

Slushie

The tom's smile Sent butterflies flying in Sunsnow's stomach, but it also filled him with a pleasant warmth. Sunshine. I forgot about that!

He smiled back. "Buttercup." He went to touch his nose to his ear, but hesitated.

It's just a friendly gesture, isn't it? But what if he takes it as... something else? What if he only takes it as a 'friendly gesture?' Uh-

Before he could think any more about it, the orange and white tom leaned forwards and instead touched noses with Buckbranch. Almost instantaneously, little sparks danced up and down Sunsnow's body. His pelt warmed and he leaned back, wishing he could stay like that forever but not wanting to seem strange.

"It, uh, sure is cold! I mean, so windy and all... right?"

[Wings]

[ Starfall ]

Duskpaw looked up as she heard someone talking to her. She got a little annoyed at how he treated her like a kit. Nonetheless, she curled her tail over her paws, a little nervous. She had never really interacted with other clans before. "Kinda, it still feels weird though and I'm Duskpaw by the way." She sent back a friendly smile to the older apprentice and looked down at her paws.

[Terrestrial]

( every cat is open! )
Flamepelt padded into the clearing settling down next to Scarface.
-
Scarface sat next to Flamepelt and licked her ear affectionately.
-
Blueheart walked toward a small group of ThunderClan cats " hello I'm Blueheart. " she mewed as she settled down in front of them.
-
Nightheart followed Twilightheart's scent and settled down " hello Blueheart and Twilightheart how are things in your clans? " she purred.

[Dirtfur]

Dirtfur sat down with the rest of the deputies, except for ShadowClan. What took those frogbreathers so long to get here? The tabby nodded to Birghtsky and Duskfeather, not caring what happened to the last two deputies. Though he took note that it seemed Brightstar -now Brightsky- stepped down while Twilightshine is now leader. It seems the stress crept to into the molly's head. The brown deputy looked empathetically at the WindClan deputy, knowing how much stress can do to you.

[dino.]

[ Vessel ]

The tortioseshell blinked pale green eyes at Sunsnow as the orange cat leaned forward, and albeit hesitantly he responded with the same gesture. Why do I feel so awkward around him right now? He hasn't done anything, just said hi. Nose bumping is a normal greeting, isn't it? He stilled his tail, smile faltering for an unnoticeable moment before he hurriedly replaced it. Even the nickname felt odd. Granted, Mountaingrowl had started it as a cruel jab, do there was sense in that, but he'd grown used to it. Or so he thought. At that moment he felt terribly conflicted. Why was he so confused? Dammit, Buckbranch, pull it together! Talk to your friend, for stars sake! His fur was warming, as if he were feeling embarrassed, but he couldn't figure out what was causing it. "Uh, yeah, I guess so," he answered after a short moment. "I mean, you've got thicker fur than I do. It's a little chiller for us cats who've got fur as short as mouse hairs!" He pushed past the awkwardness pressing against his lungs, let out a good-natured laugh and nudging Sunsnow with one paw.

[pidgeon]

Icestar trudged along the frozen ground, leading her clan to the seastones. She had a lot to announce at this gathering, including RiverClan's savage actions. Just wait until the entire forest hears how Lionstar left his deputy behind to die, she thought maliciously. She couldn't give two mouse-tails about that frosted creature, but she reveled in the idea of making that golden annoyance look bad.

She flicked her tail to her clanmates, signalling them to enter the clearing. Great, she was the last one to show up. How unfortunate. She shook her irritation aside and climbed upon the seastones to take her place, glancing around for her deputy. Undertaker

ShadowClan has Arrived

[Dirtfur]

BILL.

The young warrior was trembling from excitement. His first gathering as a warrior is now! He dashed towards the gathering area, ready to talk to other clan members. He studied around the area, then looked back at the big rock where leaders and deputies sat down. Redheart glared fire at Lionstar, upset by his clanmates and the golden tabby raid on ShadowClan. Checking around again, he spotted the same brown marked fur of a warrior he met in the raid....
The event took place when Redherat -Redpaw back then- sat beside his dead mentor. An older warrior came up to him and talked. The red warrior wouldn't forget that....
He walked up to the RiverClan warrior, greeting him, "Hey!"

[Terrestrial]

Twilightheart padded into the clearing she followed Nightheart's scent and sat next to her friend " Hello my friend cat how are thing's doing in WindClan? " she purred as she swiped her paw over her ear two or three times.

[duckie]

[open]

Sootflare looked up as Icestar finally arrived with ShadowClan,'About time,' he thought,'It's not like we have all the time in the world for these gatherings.' The warrior's gaze followed the leader and she hopped up onto the Seastones. The gathering would surely get underway now that all four clans were present and it was undoubtedly going to be interesting, judging by recent events and the expressions of the various leaders.

[Sweetie]

One black as the night the other a shimmering light, yin, and yang. The paw didn't take the opportunity to leave her brother, knowing him so well she sensed that the tom deep down didn't want her to leave him. The way his eyes squinted at everyone and how he pressed against her as if he wanted to disappear into her silky fur. Placing herself next to him the molly quickly pressed herself against Wormpaw in comfort.
x ghostie

----

Mossythorn carried himself with pride. The calico tom walking around, looking for a cat who seemed open enough to talk to.


---------

Owlwatcher sat down, the brown-hued tom taking in the numbers of cats who were mingling.


---------


The black tabby blended in perfectly with the shadows surrounding him. His light yellow eyes observing anybody who came close. Ravenspirit enjoyed how the clans meet once a month to enjoy each other's presence and accomplishments.


----


Creekwind tried to navigate herself around the flood of cats, it was hard due to being half-blind but the russet cat tried her best.


(All are open)

[pidgeon]

BILL.

Hailstorm padded quietly along, checking occasionally to make sure Falconpaw was keeping up. It was his first gathering, and she was excited for him. She remembered hers, but not quite as fondly. Her mother had been watching and controlling her every move, making sure she didn't make a fool of her. She would be far different with this apprentice. She didn't want him to have a bad memory of this.
"Are you excited?" she turned to ask him, a gentle smile on her face.

---

[OPEN]

Pigeonpaw hurried into the clearing, looking out for any familiar faces. The crowd was already huge, and she wasn't sure where to sit, or even where to look. Her huge paws kept tripping her up as she waddled around.

[wolfie]

sheeplight//shadowclan//fluffy lilac tabby with big emerald eyes and burn scars on her legs// the sleepy warrior trudged behind her clanmates. being one of the last to enter the clearing. she really didn't want to attend the gathering but truefully, sheeplight wanted to see the other clans. her eyes were narrowed at the others but she didn't display the aggression the rest of her clanmates really carried. her feathery tail sway as she found a comfortable place to listen in the clearing. sheeplight's ears were perked, listening to the annoying chatter. it was interesting. everyone was doing their best to be civil but the tension was so thick.. sheeplight was enjoying it.

[ open ]

[Dust]

Pinepaw trotted in with a confident head held high behind her leader. This was the first gathering she'd gotten to go to and she was beyong thrilled. She had never even met a cat from another clan yet! The smells overwhelmed her for a minute as she stood in the clearing, dazed and looking around. So many smells she recognized from patrols, so many unfamiliar cats. Her golden eyes looked this way and that- unsure of where to go and start. She watched as her clan dispersed throughout and met with others. She twitched when behind her another apprentice introduced themselves, turning to look at the young tom.

Hello! My name's Pinepaw." She replied cheerfully, sniffing at him to try to recognize the clan. It took her a moment to recognize the scent of Riverlcan. "I can't believe how many cats are here, this is my first gatherin!" She kept the second part of her greeting a little quieter, leaning in close to tell him as if it were a secret that she was feeling unsettled.

"Your first gathering?!" Pebblepaw almost shouted with glee, perhaps happy that there were still apprentice's younger than him! This had to be at least his third.. but he could remember the first time he'd seen the stones - they had been beautiful! Now? They were just the same old stones, but he wouldn't tell Pinepaw that. Her first gathering had to be a fun one! Come to think of it, he was teetering on the verge of becoming quite an older apprentice. Hopefully more training with Firehawk would keep him ready and on his toes! Though, with a twitch of his nose, the apprentice found it hard to determine what clan the other was from.

"Is this really your first gathering?" He breathed with excitement, his green eyes sparkling, "Here, here! Let me introduce you!" Pebblepaw flicked his tail towards the Seastones, where all the leaders were now perched, tall and proud.

"That golden tabby up there... that's my leader, RiverClan's leader, Lionstar!" Pebblepaw's cheeks puffed, clearly admiring the tom from he stood. He continued in a hushed voice,

"He's awesome! And that..." Pebblepaw craned his neck to try and spot Dirtfur in the crowd, "...That one over there, he's our new deputy, Dirtfur! I don't know him that well, but he's alright so far. Oh! Oh! and that big black cat - the one that just arrived, that's Icestar!" Pebblepaw's breath seemed to catch in his throat, but he continued on,

"I think she's scary.. Look at her size! I'm not sure who her deputy is though.." At this point, Pebblepaw would probably be chunky enough to match her size. Pebblepaw continued on, his tail flicking towards Flintstar,

"That's Flintstar right there, but I don't know who his deputy is either... and that other cat?" Pebblepaw squinted his gaze at the WindClan leader with confusion. He couldn't remember seeing that cat on the stones before.. and that definitely wasn't Brightstar! Rather, the apprentice cast an embarrassed gaze to Pinepaw,

"Sorry... which clan are you from?"

BILL.
(If Fire would like to interject <3 )

[Terrestrial]

Twilightheart said her goodbye's to her friends and padded off. A strong sweet herb scent filled her scent glands and the blind she-cat tripped over a tail yowling in surprise. Twilightheart unsheathed her claws startled and yowled " you dumb piece of crow-food! move before slit your throat! " she yowled. (she means Creekwind) Shimm

[Fawn]

Twilightheart said her goodbye's to her friends and padded off. A strong sweet herb scent filled her scent glands and the blind she-cat tripped over a tail yowling in surprise. Twilightheart unsheathed her claws startled and yowled " you dumb piece of crow-food! move before slit your throat! " she yowled. (she means Creekwind) Shimm
Fawnsqueak jolted in surprise at the nearby commotion and was alarmed to see someone's claws unsheathed at the gathering. Even more alarmed when she opened her mouth and began to yell a detailed threat, which had his body going stiff and hackles raising with anxiety. "Um, I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be... doing that-- well, saying that at a gathering." He wasn't entirely certain what'd brought it on, but any indication of violence was going to send ripples through the crowd.

[Terrestrial]

Fawnsqueak jolted in surprise at the nearby commotion and was alarmed to see someone's claws unsheathed at the gathering. Even more alarmed when she opened her mouth and began to yell a detailed threat, which had his body going stiff and hackles raising with anxiety. "Um, I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be... doing that-- well, saying that at a gathering." He wasn't entirely certain what'd brought it on, but any indication of violence was going to send ripples through the crowd.
Twilightheart's ears pricked at a new voice " leave me alone! " she snarled facing the wrong way. The blind cat's black fur bristled as she swiped the air.
Dipper

[Fawn]

Twilightheart's ears pricked at a new voice " leave me alone! " she snarled facing the wrong way. The blind cat's black fur bristled as she swiped the air.
Dipper
"Whoa!" Fawnsqueak chirped a surprised noise and sloppily managed to duck away before the swipe had a chance at hitting him, a blow that could've landed a nasty scar if he hadn't been watching. Or if she'd been facing the right direction. He scrambled a pace backward to get a bit of distance between them. "I really, really think you might want to calm down...!" he tried again in a strained hiss to attempt to avoid drawing attention to the scene if they could settle this without alarming the others.

[BEAR.]

"Hey, if you can't handle being here maybe you should go back home, WindClanner."

Thistlestep had slithered in beside his brother, narrowing his eyes at the aggressive she-cat. "Gatherings aren't a time for fighting."

[ Dipper, FlameSta ]

[Terrestrial]

WindClanner?! Twilightheart's hackles raised " i'm not putrid WindClanner! My leader is Icestar! Now leave before I kill you both! " she snarled as she pounced completly missing both of them.

[Fawn]

Still standing rigid, Fawnsqueak shot a wary look at Thistlestep but was at least feeling slightly more confident with his presence. The stranger's inability to land a hit was also reassuring. "..Oh. I guess that kind of makes sense that you're one of Icestar's warriors," he mumbled to himself. The fighting style and attitude matched up. Patience thinning, he continued to be optimistic. "Look, we don't have to escalate this or anything. We can talk it out-- what's going on? Do you not want to be here, because I'd get that. I mean, there are a lot of cats and the air quality's not that great..."
FlameSta BILL.

[Terrestrial]

Twilightheart stumbled to her paws then turned trying to face the voice the tension in her muscles fading " I'm fine! jeez can a blind cat get a little sympathy? " she muttered as she sat swiping a paw over her ear two or three times. Dipper

[BEAR.]

Was she trying to be intimidating? She couldn't even use her nose to figure out where they were. Thistlestep recognized his mistake-- with the mingling scents of everyone, he must've gotten a whiff of WindClan on accident.

But even so.. "Remarkable, I would have guessed you were a kit by how you're acting. Do you honestly think Icestar will be pleased to see you tried to attack your own Clan-mate?" Thistlestep let out a little huff, the corner of his muzzle twitching. "Us talking to you to get you to either calm the hell down or get out is going to be the least of your concerns."

[ Dipper, FlameSta ]

[pidgeon]

Dipper FlameSta BILL.

"Twilightheart!" Icestar snarled into the crowd, having been spectating her warriors. "Calm your nerves, or I will send you straight back to camp! You don't need to cause such a scene around the other clans. You'll only make us look bad! If you act like an apprentice, I'm going to treat you like one! Am I understood?" The dark leader would not tolerate this sort of behavior from grown warriors of her clan.

[Sweetie]

Creekwind was startled at the snarling molly, she didn't even notice that she accidentally stepped on one's tail. Once getting over the shock the half-blind molly was offended at the outburst she received. "I'm sorry for stepping on your tail but there is no need to get so angry about it." Her voice curt as she tried to look at the voice with her good side. Hearing an extra voice the russet molly nodded in agreement with it, "Yes, good point. You are not even supposed to threaten to hurt someone at a gathering. Thank you...uh what is your name?" Her sapphire blue eye looking at the other molly.


FlameSta Dipper

[Terrestrial]

Twilightheart finally recognized Thistlestep's scent " I-i'm sorry Thistlestep, I couldn't recognize your scent. " she mewed calmer her blind cloudy gaze showed how she felt why would I attack a cat I want to be mates with? she asked herself. @BILL

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak relaxed as she did and was grateful for Icestar's intervention. "Okay, uh, nice," he commented with a cough, "glad you guys have this under control." So Twilightheart, he silently committed the name and face to memory, this odd encounter that luckily was resolved without issue. "I'll just... see myself out."

BILL. FlameSta

[BEAR.]

Errr...

What?

Thistlestep's fur along his spine rose in alarm at her comment. He didn't know this she-cat-- how the hell did she know him? "Uh.." He didn't know where to begin? "How do you know my name? We've never met before tonight, Twilightheart.." That was what Icestar called her, right?

And more pressingly.. he took a step toward her. "Have you been stalking me???"

[ FlameSta ]

[Terrestrial]

Twilightheart turned to where she heard Icestar's voice " y-yes Icestar " she mewed as she bowed her head. then stalked off toward Nightheart.

[plum]

[open]

Sootflare looked up as Icestar finally arrived with ShadowClan,'About time,' he thought,'It's not like we have all the time in the world for these gatherings.' The warrior's gaze followed the leader and she hopped up onto the Seastones. The gathering would surely get underway now that all four clans were present and it was undoubtedly going to be interesting, judging by recent events and the expressions of the various leaders.


It seemed like there was an unending torrent of unnatural, or unfortunately normal occurrences tonight. There was a lot of commotion in the crowd, which still managed to just keep growing and shifting about as new arrivals found their cliques. And it seemed that ShadowClan just made their appearance, as well. But Elderpaw was still on her own, and she was beginning to feel just a little more daring than when she'd first come.

The female stands and begins to pad through the cats once again, seeing that she still had some time to settle before the Gathering officially began. There seemed to be some sort of event going on off in the distance with a lot of shrill shouting- Something about being blind and murderous. The apprentice pushes back her alarm at that one, and turns to look for somebody who gave off a bit of a more inviting vibe.

It is then that she spots Sootflare, who didn't appear to be too occupied by much other than the ShadowClan leadership. She pauses at a short distance from them and waits to catch their eyes, blinking as though asking for permission to settle and strike up a conversation. And to the warrior, Elderpaw seemed just like a nervous little apprentice.

[Terrestrial]

Blueheart rose to her paws as she heard Twilightheart's threat and raced toward Thistlestep " don't mind her Thistlestep, she can be... well.. uh weird? " she mewed searching for what to say. (RC warrior) BILL.

[BEAR.]

She left before he could get answers, but that didn't change how downright uncomfortable Thistlestep was.

WEIRD didn't even touch it.

"How did she know my name?" This was to Blueheart, his voice filled with his confusion as he backed away from the direction the ShadowClan cat had gone. "I don't know her. Haven't seen her before in my life."

[ FlameSta ]

[duckie]

It seemed like there was an unending torrent of unnatural, or unfortunately normal occurrences tonight. There was a lot of commotion in the crowd, which still managed to just keep growing and shifting about as new arrivals found their cliques. And it seemed that ShadowClan just made their appearance, as well. But Elderpaw was still on her own, and she was beginning to feel just a little more daring than when she'd first come.

The female stands and begins to pad through the cats once again, seeing that she still had some time to settle before the Gathering officially began. There seemed to be some sort of event going on off in the distance with a lot of shrill shouting- Something about being blind and murderous. The apprentice pushes back her alarm at that one, and turns to look for somebody who gave off a bit of a more inviting vibe.

It is then that she spots Sootflare, who didn't appear to be too occupied by much other than the ShadowClan leadership. She pauses at a short distance from them and waits to catch their eyes, blinking as though asking for permission to settle and strike up a conversation. And to the warrior, Elderpaw seemed just like a nervous little apprentice.


Feeling a pair of eyes boring into him, the warrior glanced around before catching the gaze of Elderpaw. It was hard to distinguish individual scents amongst the crowd of cats but he thought he smelled WindClan scent coming from the apprentice. Smiling, he used his tail to pet the ground next to him in a welcoming gesture. Sootflare could sense the nervousness coming from the she-cat and he knew first-paw what a gathering could feel like being that young. So many unfamiliar faces and tensions high. "Hey there, bud," he meowed,"You're welcome to come join me, if you'd like."

[Terrestrial]

Blueheart looked at her friend " I've no idea Thistlestep, I heard she used to stalk cat's she wanted to be mate's with. Like I said ignore that blind lump of fur okay? " she purred. BILL.
-
Flamepelt padded to where Blueheart was " well hello Blueheart I wondered where you went " she purred her flame colored pelt reflected the moonshine and a look of amusement showed in her green-blue eyes.

[marshy]

Foxleaf had finally found his way to the gathering. Took 'm long enough. After getting only a little lost, he had finally found all the cats. He sat down in the back, trying to not be noticed for his lateness.

-----
(Open)

Morningmeadow made it to the gathering, a bit late. But it hadn't been too long, right? No, it had definitely been long. She shivered, this was her first time being late for a gathering! Dumb butt. She thought as she sat down.

[BEAR.]

Yeah, that wasn't reassuring.

Shaking his head, Thistlestep opted to make his way away from Blueheart to find Fawnsqueak. He didn't really want to interact with another cat for the time being.

[ Dipper if you wanna do thistlefawn snugs ]

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak crept away from the scene but not without throwing a (poorly executed) wink in Thistlestep's direction that hopefully conveyed the message: we should talk later. Raising his eyes to the rest of the crowd, he gave a sheepish smile to anyone who was still noticing the commotion, but it was a relief that most of the attention had vanished. It left him to seek a new spot underneath the Seastones, and he waded through the cats in hopes there'd be somebody who let him sit by them; however, his journey was cut short upon realizing Thistlestep was following him. "You're not going to stick around, uh... whoever those ladies were?" he asked, eyebrows furrowed.

BILL.

[BEAR.]

"Good StarClan," Thistlestep damn near groaned as he wiped his paw over his face, taking a seat beside his brother. "If I see that cat again, it'll be too soon. Apparently Blueheart thinks she's some sort of stalker? I don't really want to be stalked by some dirty ShadowClan cat.. I don't want to be stalked at all." Ugh.

[ Dipper ]

[Fawn]

"Yeah, it was kind of weird that she knew who you were. Maybe she was planning to get to know you-- well, I mean, in the not watching-from-afar-without-your-knowledge-or-consent way." Fawnsqueak's half-wince fell into a chuckle at the notion. "She saw you across the border and decided, 'I want a piece of that.' Uh, heard. Heard you." It wasn't as if she seemed to be able to actually see anything... "Unless it was your handsomeness that blinded her, I don't know." Shrugging, he was just grateful to be removed from that interaction that reminded him of the other incident they'd had with a ShadowClanner at a gathering. Trying to strike up a deeper meow, he impersonated, "I don't condone it, but I won't discipline you because what if you decide to abandon our Clan to be with the one you love? I'll let you decide for yourself whether this is right or not. And if you decide yes, then shouldn't that be something to celebrate?"


BILL.

[plum]

Feeling a pair of eyes boring into him, the warrior glanced around before catching the gaze of Elderpaw. It was hard to distinguish individual scents amongst the crowd of cats but he thought he smelled WindClan scent coming from the apprentice. Smiling, he used his tail to pet the ground next to him in a welcoming gesture. Sootflare could sense the nervousness coming from the she-cat and he knew first-paw what a gathering could feel like being that young. So many unfamiliar faces and tensions high. "Hey there, bud," he meowed,"You're welcome to come join me, if you'd like."


At the warrior's welcome, the molly visibly relaxes and dips her head thankfully before taking another step closer and sitting down. "Thank you," she meows. "I didn't realize that these were going to be so..." Trailing off, the apprentice looks around as she searches for an appropriate word to use to describe the evening so far. "... So loud?" She concludes with a laugh.

It was obvious that the WindClan apprentice was a fresh 'un, sure, but once she had established that she wasn't as alone as before, Elderpaw seems to melt into a far more sociable little thing. Though, she does turn a slightly embarrassed gaze upon Sootflare. "I- I'm terribly sorry, sir. I have no idea what your name is, or even which Clan you're from. It's... A little bit hard for me to distinguish the different scents here. I haven't even truly begun training yet either..." Perhaps that last part was something she shouldn't be admitting to a stranger, but the apprentice hadn't yet learned the art of selective honesty. And hey, she was glad to have someone to talk with. "I'm Elderpaw, though."

[BEAR.]

Now that the loser club was here, they could get started.

Lionstar didn't plan on waiting for the others to bicker about who would start, no. His time was valuable, and unfortunately for the lame-os that sat beside him, they weren't worth much of it. The only exciting thing they'd done so far was have Icestar yell at that savage she called a warrior.

"Let's get started.

"RiverClan is booming, as always! The river has frozen in some parts and remains a hazard, but there are still plenty of spots to fish in. Unfortunately, RiverClan has recently dealt with some coyotes near here. They were picking off some of our Clan-mates, their grisly remains left in their wake, and we had no choice but to send a patrol to drive them off. Be cautious: while we have not seen them, these coyotes were acting peculiar. They attacked regardless of the sun position and seemed.. ill. They may be around still, and they may attack one of your Clans.

"Ceremony wise, a lot has happened. Grousestar has resigned since the last Gathering, and has joined the ranks of the elders as Grouseheart. Some of other our Clan-mates have received new names: Angelwing has become Birchsnow, Jazzpurrpelt was renamed Blackpelt, Stormgaze became Stoatdance, Spiritflight is now Hickoryblaze, and Platypaw was renamed Alderpaw.

"Many apprentices received a new mentor reassignment, as listed: Silverpaw, Honeypaw, Littlepaw, Leafpaw, Tinypaw, Shimmeringpaw, Wormpaw, Eveningpaw, Owlpaw, Ringpaw, Littlepaw, Willowpaw, Ratpaw, Blazepaw, Snowpaw, Chestnutpaw, Wolfpaw, Darkpaw, Bugpaw, Sootpaw, Cinderpaw, and Dawnpaw. We also have a few new apprentices: Petuniapaw, Palepaw, Mosspaw, Asterpaw, Honeypaw, and Harepaw!

"A couple cats have also rejoined us after disappearing. Truthpaw bravely fought her way back from the cold jaws of Twolegs to return to us, and has been given the name Cougarpaw. Fazekit has returned from a stupid baby adventure in the territory.

"I'm happy to announce we have a new warrior! Everyone, please give Eagleflower your congratulations. He's such a darling.

"A few cats have also joined our Clan, some as refugees. Palepaw, Snailblossom-- who has been renamed Willowrose, Flowerpaw, Duck who has become Goosepaw, Midnight who is now Ravenshade, Scarlet who has been renamed Ashpaw, Honeybrume who I've renamed Honeyflame.." He was still confused about the whole -brume thing. "And finally, Goldenshade."

Wow, that was a mouthful. And he wasn't even done yet. "I have made the decision to exile a traitor. Clans, be wary of an ugly skinpatch named Spider. She was a slothful creature, who refused to adhere to Clan customs and tradition. She preferred to spend her time lounging in camp and sucking up our food instead of bothering to do anything to provide for the Clan.. and then decided to try to kill one of our Clan-mates by encouraging him to leave camp without the company of a warrior. She pressured him to go in freezing water, then watched as he struggled to escape the current. Had Eagleflight and Stoatdance not intervened, he would be dead. She is a liability to any Clan that may take her in, so tread cautiously.

"Now, onto some grimmer news.. I regretably have to report the deaths of some of our Clan-mates. Blackpelt, Alderpaw, and Frozenpaw were both lost to the coyotes. Nightsky was found crushed beneath a tree, and Willowpaw was trapped in a sea-side cave where we found her remains. Fallenstream was brutally murdered by a rogue while on a walk near the ThunderClan border, and that flea-bag is still at large. He fled the scene when our patrol approached him. And..

"Frostflight has died, with his burial being at sea under the cover of the Stars so they may Forgive him for his misdeeds. In his place, I have appointed Dirtfur."

With that done, Lionstar turned his attention to the Ice Queen herself. "By the way, you can have Lionsgrove back, darling. This whole 'grrr I'll get my land back Lionstar!!!' thing was fun at first, but it really lost it's luster when it became your entire personality. Lionstar this, Lionsgrove that. 'I hate RiverClan soooo much I'm going to make ThunderClan my puppet.' Well, good for you, sweetheart, but-- that's old news, now. I had patrols cease to mark your side of the river a while ago so you're free to mark it as yours whenever you want. That land was crappy, anyway-- could hardly find a mouse over there.

"Thank the Stars, that's all RiverClan has to report. Enjoy your reclaimed territory, Icepuff."

[ Moonraven, Casper, RedHead, ]

((anyone can react or have input, though!!))

[Undertaker]

Beastspark's eyes danced around as he looked around at the gathered cats. All the scents intermingled and it didn't smell all that great. The deputy padded in behind his leader, he assumed the cats in his clan wouldn't cause any trouble. He nearly began making his way off to search the cats to talk to till he recalled that he had to sit in the up with other deputies. He had is paws rerouted so that they led him up towards the Seastones. He glanced at the cats up on the stones already, he recognized the original three, his leader, Thunderclan's and Riverclans, but the one sleeping was new.

Had Brightstar already died? He puzzled the question a moment before spotting the she-cat on his mind amongst the deputies? He was beyond confused but didn't bother asking about it. He was sure it would be explained, Beastspark took a seat with the other four cats. None of the deputies he recognized from the last gather were here, taking a seat he decided to keep quiet while looking out at the members of his clan.

His attention is drawn back to the leaders as Lionstar begin talking, He wasn't even going to try and keep up with the fishbreath right now, Icestar could handle herself. He was somewhat concerned as to why they were getting their territory back, honestly, just getting it back without a fight was somewhat humiliating. It was almost like Riverclan was pitying them. Beastspark twitched the tip of his tail and looked up at Icestar, waiting to see what she had to say about this.
BILL. Casper

[Dirtfur]

The dirt-puty lifted his chin up as Lionstar called out Dirtfur's name, proud swelling the tom's heart and chest. Het scooped up dirt and debris and patted it on his tail and hindlegs. Lifting his amber eyes up at the other deputies, he gave a smug at the others and stick his tongue out at them. How childish!

[Madelaine]

Linnetwing looked up at the leader's ready for this meeting to start. Her body ached from her injury, but she just had to come and be a part of her beloved clan. The Thunderclan leader listened as Lionstar was the first to start. Did he always have to be the one to start the gathering? Give another leader a chance, but she wasn't going to say it out loud.

~~~

Blackfoot sat among his fellow shadowclanner's not feeling up to talking to the other clans. He hated cats outside Shadowclan especially Riverclan. The tom let out a hiss as Lionstar spoke first. Anybody in Riverclan was his enemy. That wrong doing that one cat did was the reason why he hated all of Riverclan. They all killed his mother and was responsible for her death a year ago.

~~~

| BILL.; |

Willowrose looked at her old friend with her ears flat. She didn't know quite what to say, but she had to say something to him. The molly struggled to find the words, but then she came up with something. "My name's Willowrose now and yes I joined Riverclan.", she meowed. There was emotion in her voice. She missed Windclan a little bit, but was glad she made the decision to leave. Willowrose hadn't been disloyal to Windclan. Not in her book at least.

~~~

Sparkheart listened as Lionstar spoke. It was all things he had already known. The tom looked around the clearing to see the other cats reaction. He watched a couple of Shadowclanners as they spoke to one another, but he didn't seem to care what they were speaking. Sparkheart began to think of his former best friend and remembered hearing that she had passed away. He didn't care all that much for her anymore anyway. She was just dead meet to him. She deserved everything that came to her.

[wolfie]

Shimm

wormpaw // riverclan apprentice // black, white speckled lanky tom with pink-tinted eyes //
wormpaw felt himself relax a little as shimmeringpaw lean into him, deciding to stay with him afterall. he lower his head, very much hiding from the watching gazes. he focused on lionstar's words but they went in one ear and out the other. wormpaw blink, skinpatch? "what's a skinpatch?" he murmur softly to his sister, it sounded like a fun word. considering this was pretty much the first time the apprentice had heard it, he assumed it was a lionstar word. which meant shimmeringpaw probably didn't know. or wormpaw was clueless. he shuffled with his paws, his pink-tinted eyes-squint- flickering to dirtfur-- the deputy who was currently teasing the others. wormpaw stifled a chuckle, gleaming with amusement. he glance towards the rest of the deputies then to the other leaders. he squinted his eyes, trying to lean forward to get a better look at the group. ''can we get closer?" he mumbled to shimmeringpaw, tilting his head.

[duckie]

At the warrior's welcome, the molly visibly relaxes and dips her head thankfully before taking another step closer and sitting down. "Thank you," she meows. "I didn't realize that these were going to be so..." Trailing off, the apprentice looks around as she searches for an appropriate word to use to describe the evening so far. "... So loud?" She concludes with a laugh.

It was obvious that the WindClan apprentice was a fresh 'un, sure, but once she had established that she wasn't as alone as before, Elderpaw seems to melt into a far more sociable little thing. Though, she does turn a slightly embarrassed gaze upon Sootflare. "I- I'm terribly sorry, sir. I have no idea what your name is, or even which Clan you're from. It's... A little bit hard for me to distinguish the different scents here. I haven't even truly begun training yet either..." Perhaps that last part was something she shouldn't be admitting to a stranger, but the apprentice hadn't yet learned the art of selective honesty. And hey, she was glad to have someone to talk with. "I'm Elderpaw, though."


Sootflare paused to listen as his leader spoke up to begin the meeting. Name changes, reassignments, new apprentices, so on and so forth. All things he had heard already at clan meetings. He cringed slightly at the mention of Fallenstream and the patrol. That was certainly not his greatest moment,'If I had just stopped to think, we might not have a murderous rogue running around in the territories any longer.'
he thought. He would have to work on that short-temper of his in the future. Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Sootflare returned his attention to the apprentice.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Elderpaw. Loud is certainly a way to describe these things. I prefer cacophonous, personally," he said with a laugh,"It's quite alright. It's easy to get disoriented here. I'm Sootflare, from RiverClan."

It was nice to see the apprentice relax with a little bit of company. Despite the differences between the clans, Sootflare did his best to be friendly where he could. It's better when fewer people were on edge - less of chance for tempers to spark despite whatever the leaders may get up to during their announcements.

[lio]

Duskfeather narrowed her eyes at the sight of Icestar. She glanced up at her own leader, a blatant questioning in her expression. How did he accept her alliance? She could neither understand it nor agree with his decision. Flintstar was a lovely leader... though his choices were questionable at times. Remaining silent through Lionstar's announcement, though her pupils were slits as he spoke, she took note of each important piece of news. ShadowClan receiving their territory back? How strange. What was the reason for him to just be giving it up like that? Duskfeather tried to make sense of it.
With a glance toward the other deputies, she gave a curt nod, keeping her chest puffed and head high. She would continue to represent ThunderClan despite her distrust towards the others.

--

Stoatdance raised her head as her name was mentioned, her tail twitching. She stifled a growl as Dirtass was named, rolling her eye and turning back to the shadows. She didn't wish to listen. She hadn't wanted to come. ShadowClan's presence brought remembrance to her failure, to her mistake. Pure hatred pulsed through her veins.

--

Hogpaw's eyes widened as Snailblossom also approached, not remembering who she was. He sidled closer to Foxpudge and hid his face in the warrior's fur, ears pressed flat to his head. Although the she-cat appeared familiar, and even more deformed than he was, he didn't know her. She could be an evil bully for all he knew! The chubby tom simply nodded in response to his Clanmate's assurance.

--

Palepaw nearly squeaked as his name was mentioned, ears perking and a wide grin spreading over his face. He looked around, taking note of all the cats surrounding him. So many scents were intermingling in his nose, he couldn't tell who was who! The apprentice stood on his tiptoes in order to try to look over tall cats' heads.

[Sweetie]

Shimm

wormpaw // riverclan apprentice // black, white speckled lanky tom with pink-tinted eyes //
wormpaw felt himself relax a little as shimmeringpaw lean into him, deciding to stay with him afterall. he lower his head, very much hiding from the watching gazes. he focused on lionstar's words but they went in one ear and out the other. wormpaw blink, skinpatch? "what's a skinpatch?" he murmur softly to his sister, it sounded like a fun word. considering this was pretty much the first time the apprentice had heard it, he assumed it was a lionstar word. which meant shimmeringpaw probably didn't know. or wormpaw was clueless. he shuffled with his paws, his pink-tinted eyes-squint- flickering to dirtfur-- the deputy who was currently teasing the others. wormpaw stifled a chuckle, gleaming with amusement. he glance towards the rest of the deputies then to the other leaders. he squinted his eyes, trying to lean forward to get a better look at the group. ''can we get closer?" he mumbled to shimmeringpaw, tilting his head.


The silver and white molly was thankful for her brother's warmth from the cold. "Uh...I'm not sure...maybe a patch of where fur didn't grow?" Shimmeringpaw whispered, their leader wasn't the best at explaining or helpful with his vocabulary. While her brother avoided the cat's stares she met their eyes for a brief heartbeat. She wasn't about to pass up a good opportunity to see through the tiny window of what the other clans were like. Nodding to her brother's request the two shuffled a bit closer to the crowd.

[Ever]

"Your first gathering?!" Pebblepaw almost shouted with glee, perhaps happy that there were still apprentice's younger than him! This had to be at least his third.. but he could remember the first time he'd seen the stones - they had been beautiful! Now? They were just the same old stones, but he wouldn't tell Pinepaw that. Her first gathering had to be a fun one! Come to think of it, he was teetering on the verge of becoming quite an older apprentice. Hopefully more training with Firehawk would keep him ready and on his toes! Though, with a twitch of his nose, the apprentice found it hard to determine what clan the other was from.

"Is this really your first gathering?" He breathed with excitement, his green eyes sparkling, "Here, here! Let me introduce you!" Pebblepaw flicked his tail towards the Seastones, where all the leaders were now perched, tall and proud.

"That golden tabby up there... that's my leader, RiverClan's leader, Lionstar!" Pebblepaw's cheeks puffed, clearly admiring the tom from he stood. He continued in a hushed voice,

"He's awesome! And that..." Pebblepaw craned his neck to try and spot Dirtfur in the crowd, "...That one over there, he's our new deputy, Dirtfur! I don't know him that well, but he's alright so far. Oh! Oh! and that big black cat - the one that just arrived, that's Icestar!" Pebblepaw's breath seemed to catch in his throat, but he continued on,

"I think she's scary.. Look at her size! I'm not sure who her deputy is though.." At this point, Pebblepaw would probably be chunky enough to match her size. Pebblepaw continued on, his tail flicking towards Flintstar,

"That's Flintstar right there, but I don't know who his deputy is either... and that other cat?" Pebblepaw squinted his gaze at the WindClan leader with confusion. He couldn't remember seeing that cat on the stones before.. and that definitely wasn't Brightstar! Rather, the apprentice cast an embarrassed gaze to Pinepaw,

"Sorry... which clan are you from?"

BILL.
(If Fire would like to interject <3 )


Pinepaw smiled shyly at his enthusiasm. It was nice though to have someone teeling her about everything since her mentor was obviously busy with the other leaders. She listened carefull, watching as he pointed out the other leaders and named off the ones that he knew. Lionstar, Dirtfur, Icestar... a lot to remember. Her ears perked as Pebblepaw said he didn't recognize the cat beside Flintstar, she could actually help with that.

"That's Duskfeather!" She piped up, looking back to the other apprentice. She debating saying why she hadn't come to any gatherings yet- but decided to not. Not all cats were so inviting towards used-to-be kittypets. "I'm from Thunderclan, thanks for telling me about who everyone is. My mentor's rather busy down there."

She nodded towards Flinstar, noticing that the leaders had started sharing news. She probably aught to be listening better and not chatting. It was exciting to meet a new cat though. Distracted, her eyes swept over the streamstones watching with awe at the moonlit space. She didn't mind the salt brine on the air either. It was a welcome new scent. She stared out and around with wide golden eyes, watching in wonder before focusing back on the leaders' discussion.

[plum]

Sootflare paused to listen as his leader spoke up to begin the meeting. Name changes, reassignments, new apprentices, so on and so forth. All things he had heard already at clan meetings. He cringed slightly at the mention of Fallenstream and the patrol. That was certainly not his greatest moment,'If I had just stopped to think, we might not have a murderous rogue running around in the territories any longer.'
he thought. He would have to work on that short-temper of his in the future. Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Sootflare returned his attention to the apprentice.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Elderpaw. Loud is certainly a way to describe these things. I prefer cacophonous, personally," he said with a laugh,"It's quite alright. It's easy to get disoriented here. I'm Sootflare, from RiverClan."

It was nice to see the apprentice relax with a little bit of company. Despite the differences between the clans, Sootflare did his best to be friendly where he could. It's better when fewer people were on edge - less of chance for tempers to spark despite whatever the leaders may get up to during their announcements.


Alarmed by the seemingly sudden beginning to the actual Gathering, the apprentice also jerks her attention away from Sootflare. She sits as straight as she could, craning her neck for a chance to peek over the heads in front of her to see Lionstar as he began RiverClan's announcements. The she-cat was suddenly awestruck again by the leaders- All of them, not just the tom who spoke first. They were all so regal, so... Big. The air about them even looked different! Without her even noticing, the apprentice had begun to knead at the ground underpaw excitedly until her company captured her attention again.

"You're from RiverClan?" she echoes wondrously. So, that meant that the warrior knew Lionstar! However, she was less concerned about the leader and more curious about what he was talking about. "So, what is that place that Lionstar just talked about? He seemed annoyed with Icestar. Is it that nice of a place that you guys fought over it?" Oddly enough, Elderpaw didn't seem all that fazed by the leader's mention of deaths in the Clan. They had plenty of their own in WindClan, and it felt normal to hear about, which to an outsider, was probably a tragic thought.

[Doom]

The Apprentice stumbled into the Clearing, excitement radiating off the tom. His curled and incredibly messy fur was fluffed up, eyes wide and filled with nothing but awe, mouth open. He'd never seen so many cats in one place! How was it he was told this worked again? Everybody just kinda sat around in a circle? Or was it they were organized from oldest to youngest? Geckopaw couldn't remember, all he remembered was that there was absolutely no fighting! Starclan said so!

The Bengal was hopping and skipping about, doing his absolute best to avoid all the other felines scattered in the clearing. However a familiar face made the smaller scoot to a stop and whip his head, folded ears perking up as much as they could. "Honeybrume?" he squacked once he realized it was really his mentor. He took a few steps towards the molly, confusion clear in his expression as he looked around the feline. "What are you doing?Where have you been I've been waiting for a training session but..."


"Geckopaw?" Honeyflame froze as her former apprentice approached her. Oh stars, she completely forgot to say goodbye to him! Goldenshade convinced her that nobody would miss her if she left, so she didn't worry about it...but now...

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry..." Her ears flattened and her cheeks puffed. She shied away, looking down at her paws. "I...I should have told you I was going to leave. Has no one even realized...?" Honeyflame looked back up at the apprentice, her throat becoming strangled by her own nerves.

[pidgeon]

Icestar stared in furious shock as Lionstar pulled whatever stunt this was supposed to be. No, this wasn't how it was supposed to go! She was going to claim that grove back on her own terms, to prove that her clan had gotten stronger! But the raid had derailed everything, shoved ShadowClan back into the dirt, forcing her to start from scratch. If he wasn't fighting for the territory, then what was the point of all of this? What exactly was he getting at? She offered a nasty snarl at the pompous golden tom before stepping forward for her own announcements.

"Yes, Thank you, Lionstar, for your oh-so-humble and gracious gift of our land back," she growled, her voice dripping with scorn and sarcasm. "I regret to inform you that we've adjusted well to life without it. ShadowClan has expanded our borders, and it has given us ample prey even in these freezing cold moons. We have claimed a large chunk of the outskirts, as well as a decent portion of formerly WindClan land, which they simply rolled over and let us have.

I suppose I'll begin with the more lighthearted news." The dark she-cat glanced around the clearing, hoping to see most of the cats who had received ceremonies since the last gathering.

"ShadowClan is proud to announce that we have had many apprentice ceremonies, despite the icy chill of leaf-bare. Our kits continue to grow strong and healthy. Please welcome Silentpaw, Foxpaw, Falconpaw, and Dawnpaw, our newest apprentices.

Alongside them, we have a new warrior among us. Redheart has received his warrior name, following his bravery in our recent struggle.

And lastly, my sister, Citrusflower, has given birth to two healthy kits, Mirekit and Ebonykit. They are growing quickly and will prove to be valuable assets to the clan. Nothing less to be expected of my own kin." She paused to allow the crowd to absorb the information, and for cats to shout out the new names.

"Now, on to less savory news. As I'm sure you all have noticed, Crowtail, my former deputy, is no longer standing here with me. That traitorous rat betrayed his clan and sparked a battle that ended in many needless deaths. I have appointed my loyal warrior, Beastspark, in his place.

This particular battle was wrought on us by RiverClan, who savagely raided our camp in the dead of the night, sparing not even the kits and queens. All over that pathetic scrap of land which has now been ever so kindly returned to us. In the battle, Lionstar and his lot took the lives of several of our clanmates. Leaftail, Puddlepaw, and Rosethorn now hunt with StarClan. They have been and will continue to be missed by their families and clanmates. It is with great shame that I look upon the cats who took their lives, here in the crowd tonight." She glared at the RiverClanners, recognizing many of the cats who had participated, before her booming voice returned.

"Unfortunate that you've lost your deputy as well, Lionstar. I hope your new one will be more respectable. That Frostfly had been savagely attacking one of our apprentices, and Beastspark here had to jump in to defend him, which unfortunately lead to his injuries. Perhaps it was StarClan's will that such an unrespectable creature died from his wounds.

But all of that aside, ShadowClan is doing well for prey, all things considered, and we are recovering flawlessly, already at full strength once more. When we are faced with a challenge, we overcome it, as simple as that." Icestar chose not to include anything about the alliance with ThunderClan, and barely even cast a glance at Flintstar as she took a step back, finished with her announcements. She expected some petty banter from Lionstar, and was prepared to retaliate.
BILL. RedHead Moonraven Dirtfur Undertaker Fuzzy hxneysuckle

[Freesia]

( open )

Coyotesnarl expected to see some sort of Medicine cat hollow but instead they were dispersed amongst the throng of cats. Not that he would really recognize the cats anyways, the panel of deputies was intensely different then it had been a few moons ago. Everybody was new except for Brightsky he supposed. He turned to the crowd sweeping his tail along his paws.

The thought dawned on him, he was just as brand spanking new as all of those deputies up there. Nobody would recognize him or know.. and he doubt anybody would approach him either. He felt an itch on his jaw and slightly adjusted as the discomfort of the mangled wound was brought back to his mind.

Tallmarsh trailed behind the rest of her Clanmates lazily. She didn't bother to hide her distaste for this event, especially after the way ThunderClan was treated by ShadowClan. The medicine cat moved through the crowd of cats, looking for a place to sit. She was almost out of the crowd when she bumped into a tabby cat she didn't recognize. He was from a different Clan, and the faint scent of herbs clung to his pelt. "Watch where you're going," she snapped.

[BEAR.]

"Good for you. It's nice to know ShadowClan is proud of petty theft from a Clan in need." No wonder WindClan was resorting to cannibalism if they were low on territory.

Oh, how cute of her to try to talk down Frostflight and RiverClan.

"Did you forget how your deputy and that warrior of yours trespassed on our land?" Lionstar asked her sweetly. "Then you had the gall to threaten my Clan's safety when I confronted you about that? Did you think I wasn't going to do something about that, Icy? I'm not Fallenstar, darling. I'm not going to sit back and run my mouth and let the other Clans walk all over us." RiverClan had been driven out once. It would not happen again while Lionstar was in power.

"That apprentice of yours spent half the battle chasing after Frostflight's tail while he tried to ignore him. Frostflight hardly touched him. That savage of your deputy tore Frostflight's stomach open, did you know that? Frostflight's guts were spilling out of his body when I found him in Lionsgrove. He was still alive, begging for help, for someone to save him-- but what can any medicine cat do about a wound so deep his guts were caught on the bushes?

"And let's put this as a reminder: not a single kit or queen was harmed in this raid. Don't try to make us look like the villains here when your cats were out for blood first. You talk big, Icestar, but this just goes to show when push comes to shove you can't handle everything that's thrown at you. Stop the pity act. It wasn't even night when we attacked you, honey. Get your facts right."

The loss of cats willing to kill his Clan-mates first was meaningless to Lionstar after the savageness of the ShadowClan deputy alone. If the other leaders sympathized with Icestar, they'd be foolish to-- if one cat alone was willing to tear a deputy open, that only indicated the uncultured fox-hearts had the heart to do a lot worse. "At least your Clan-mates were fully intact. Frostflight's body was so mangled we had to wait for it to freeze before we could transport it in one piece."

[ Casper, Moonraven, RedHead ]

[marshy]

BILL.

Foxleaf felt rage flow through him. First they raid Shadowclan, now they lie at a gathering?! "You Liar!" Foxleaf yelled. "My sister, A QUEEN, wasn't spared AT ALL. She was attacked by you ruthless fish-heads!" Foxleaf winced as he finished talking. I probably shouldn't have said that. He shook his head. He didn't care anymore, there wasn't any going back now.

[psyche]

LARKSONG
[open]
✧✧✧
The lanky, spotted she-cat peered up at the four leaders with curiosity, tuning out the cats murmuring around her as Lionstar and Icestar made their clan announcements. She couldn't bear to hear of the tragedy and warfare between ShadowClan and RiverClan, it made her fur prickle at the thought of such hardships to bear. It wasn't like everything was sunshine in WindClan for her either, but at least she didn't have to fight off any intruders this past moon. She made a mental note to keep her senses sharp when heading in RiverClan's direction. Who knows where they could strike next? We're also barely making it through the winter. But we aren't taking lives for a few extra mice, she thought. She decided to keep her mouth shut while, even though she was known for her long outbursts, she wasn't stupid enough to talk over the leader's quarrels unless Twilightstar and her clan needed it.

Moving her attention to the cats around her, the she-cat listened quietly to the cats chatting around her. She wasn't too familiar with anyone outside of WindClan, of course other than the higher-ranked cats of each clan. She was relieved to recognize a lot of her clan members despite the sea of different faces and scents.
✧✧✧✧✧

[BEAR.]

"Oh, that queen that stood in the middle of the battle with her kits tucked so far up her fur no one could see them?" Lionstar asked the tom that spoke out.

"Why the hell was she even out there, anyway? She was right next to a den-- she could have easily gone inside one. One of my warriors mistook her for a warrior because of her odd behavior and moved to attack her. But! She didn't land a hit, and once she realized those kits were hiding behind her she immediately backed off and found another opponent. So tell me, frog-face, how was that ruthless? Your sister and her precious darlings weren't injured in the slightest, and they had every possibility to leave."

[ :Grimm: ]

[Terrestrial]

Nightheart stalked across the crowd and sat next to Larksong "hello Larksong." she purred. psyche

[marshy]

BILL.

"Oh Yeah? Then tell me how she got all scuffed up?" Foxleaf retorted. "Also, SHE WAS LEAVING CAMP! And besides, how could someone not see or hear her kits? A mouse-dung warrior, thats who!" Foxleaf hissed.

[Madelaine]

Blackfoot wanted to defend his clanmate, but that would anger Starclan. This wasn't his battle even though he was the one that had helped his sister out, which was his job. "I was battling that wartior that fidn't know about the kits. That molly who attacked her didn't have any idea that they were there. I hate Riverclan more than anything, but even I saw what happened.", he meowed.

| BILL.; :Grimm:; |

[BEAR.]

"Cats get scuffed up all the time, genius. She could trip over a rock and be ruffled and you'd think it was RiverClan. When Silverlight attacked her, she was in the middle of the fight and she immediately backed off upon realizing she was a queen. She did not hurt her or the kits. Frankly, I'm beginning to wonder if you had something to do with 'scuffing' her up since you're so adamant on my warrior being the perpetrator."

If Foxleaf thought Lionstar hadn't witnessed the little spat, he was wrong. No RiverClan cat hurt a queen or a kit, period. "Perhaps you should reconsider the fact that they were hiding behind her? In the middle of a bunch of fighting cats? I'm honestly surprised no one stepped on them with how careless your sister was."

[ :Grimm: ]

[psyche]

LARKSONG
✧✧✧
She she-cat was so deep in her thoughts, the mention of her name nearly made her jump. Slightly embarrassed by being so spooked, she gave her chest a few licks before responding. "Nightheart, thank StarClan, someone I recognize from this cluster!" she greeted she she-cat. She lowered her voice as much as the loud-mouthed she-cat could, murmuring to her clanmate; "Can you believe all this stuff with RiverClan and ShadowClan? I'm glad we weren't at either of their throat's this moon. The last thing we need is another problem."
✧✧✧✧✧
FlameSta

[marshy]

BILL. Blissie Bliss

"ME? Attacking my own sister?! You must be mouse-brained if you'd ever think i'd do that! Carefree?! My sister cares about those kits more then anything! She didn't let her guard down at all in that raid!" Blackfoot words only angered Foxleaf more. "WHAT?! You're standing up for those Mouse-brains?!" He felt the urge to unsheathe his claws and attack Lionstar. But he held it back, Don't act like a Kit, Foxleaf. He thought. He took a few deep breaths and said "You think all your warriors are good and light-hearted, but are they really?"

[BEAR.]

"Look, toad-breath, even your Clan-mate who fought my warrior is collaborating what I'm saying. If you're too dense to recognize the foolishness of your sister, that's your own problem." Lionstar made a short nod toward Blackfoot. "At least one ShadowClan cat here has the capacity for honesty. This is pretty pathetic. And no, frog-brains, I didn't say that. I told you my cats did not harm a queen or kit. I didn't say they were 'light-hearted' or whatever else you decided to spew out of the blue."

[ :Grimm:, Blissie Bliss ]

[Madelaine]

Blackfoot realized he was angering his clsmate, so he bscked up. The warrior sat down and kept his jaws shut. He didn't feel like it was right for him to accuse that one warrior. She saw her mistake and left to go fight him. He was angry at her at the time, but it was time to put that aside. Blackfoot listened as Lionstar spoke back to him. The black tom felt awkward that Lionstar had said something to him, but he shouldn't look into it too much. "I saw the kits and they ere completely unharmed. There's no reason for this.", he meowed, looking at Foxfur.

| :Grimm:; BILL.; |

[Fawn]

This went from typical to awkward in exceedingly fast, and Fawnsqueak's mind was still reeling from the announcements when that loud-mouthed warrior spoke up from the crowd. Despite Icestar's odd speech on 'pity us' directly after she announced they were doing excellently, he almost wished the bulky leader would chime in again and make it stop, the second-paw embarrassment causing his ears to lie flat as if that would block out the noise. It was ridiculous, this fight with a single warrior who didn't have a shred of sense in him when even his own clanmate was trying to set the record straight. Everyone could appreciate Blackfoot's input, but he doubted they were as thrilled about whenever Foxleaf opened his mouth. It was... such a humiliating experience, and that guy just kept digging himself deeper with every word. Leaning over to the ShadowClanner, he was earnest as he said, "Hey, can you... not. Like, it's getting kind of disruptive and it's ...maybe not having the effect that you think it does..." That was his kindest way of putting it: you're looking like a mouse-brain in front of the entire forest, stop before you make it worse.

:Grimm: BILL. Blissie Bliss

[marshy]

BILL. Blissie Bliss hxneysuckle Dipper

Foxleaf finally backed away. I got myself embarrassed and called out, what more can I do? He thought. He slowly nodded at Fawnsqueak, He was right. Foxleaf was being a little kit right now. "Whatever, Mouse-Brain." He said as he sat down. He looked at Stoatdance and hissed without saying a word.

[lio]

[ :Grimm: BILL. Blissie Bliss ]

Stoatdance's eye narrowed at the argument. After many heartbeats, she stood, raising her voice. "One of your warriors attacked a RiverClan apprentice much younger and smaller than him. If I hadn't leaped in front of the strike, she would have been killed. Try standing up for that, frog-muncher," she stated, looking toward the ShadowClanner with accusation in her eye. Even if it had been a regrettable mistake, Stoatdance would still stand up for her Clan in an argument.

[BEAR.]

Thistlestep twitched his ears at all this nonsense, opting to pitch into the chaos. "I'd also like to add that the apprentice.. Puddlepaw? Her death was completely accidental. She was fighting another apprentice and her throat was crushed due to a misplaced paw. It paralyzed her and she was suffocating slowly, so I put her out of her misery so she didn't have to die a slow death.

"I don't know the name of the other cat I killed.. that.. creamy.. annoying one? But I killed her out of self-defense. If a cat is fighting so viciously they're tearing into stomachs, going for throats, and trying to blind you, you should have every right to protect yourself as needed. I'm not proud of killing either of them, but I don't regret it. If you wanted your fatality rate lower, Icestar, perhaps you should consider teaching your cats to not be crazy..?"

[ Casper, @anyone else who wants to pitch in ]

[Terrestrial]

[open for anyone]

An echo of a memory fresh in mind, Fawnsqueak's heart twisted approaching the Seastones. The last time he'd been here was the discovery of Willowpaw's death, and it was the mist off the ocean, the moisture in the air that weighed his lungs with sorrow. It was tough to breathe, and even after forcing a shuddering exhale, his chest felt tight. On autopilot, he trailed behind RiverClan to take a spot in the forming crowd but didn't even spare a glance at whoever had the misfortune of being seated next to him. Fawnsqueak was busy choking down the bubbling discomfort within him, then stifling a wheeze, but finally doubling over to let out a rough cough. "Sorry," he mumbled, clearing his throat from hoarseness, "it's just-- the air here. It's thick." That conveniently skipped over the recent tragedy aspect, but he doubted whoever was next to him wished to hear about it anymore than he wanted to retell it.
Scarface padded toward the seastones grief filled his mind. The tom ran into someone tripping "ah sorry" he mewed grimly.

[ponyapan]

:Grimm: hxneysuckle

Dawnpaw had been about to pad closer to her mentor, glad to see a familiar face in this gathering of strangers, when the dispute broke out. While the raised voices made her want to curl up in a corner somewhere, she also felt defensive. As far as Foxleaf had shown Dawnpaw in her apprenticed time, he wouldn't just snap at someone like that for good reason. Besides, he'd already walked away when this cat continued to attack the, personally.

For a moment, she felt a wave of humiliation and unjustice take over her as the Riverclan cat continued to spit derogatory curses, and she opened her mouth to interject. Her senes, or fear, took the better of her, so instead she fluffed up her pelt with a hurt look and hurried to her mentor's side to show her support. Would Foxleaf appreciate her presence, or would that just be another blow to his pride?
In the end, Dawnpaw decided to mutter it under her breath.
"That was very unfair of them."

[mochi]

Rabbitpaw
The small apprentice had been rather subdued lately. From border patrols to the constant hunting to help keep the clan fed, it seemed that her head was just filled up with tasks upon tasks. Though when she realized she could go to the gathering tonight, she felt a new wave of excitement rush through her, enlivening her previously solemn and tired spirit.

What she didn't expect from her first gathering however, was the sharp and hateful words thrown back and forth from the mouths of not only the other clans, but her own. It made sense, she figured, since so many lives were lost in the battle with RiverClan. It made her own pelt bristle because of it. She was no fan of RiverClan, that was for sure, but even she felt hesitant to throw out any harsh words herself with everything going on.

From the tones of the voices around her it seemed like a fight might break out. She hoped it wouldn't come to that. Her soft white-and-gray tabby pelt looked a bit more fluffed out than usual in her unease, and she crouched against the ground as if it were some kind of safe spot. She made sure to stick as close to the cats from her clan as she could, close enough to feel someone's fur brush against her own. Wide yellow eyes flicked back and forth between the other cats warily as they argued. Though while she looked like she was ready to bolt, if RiverClan, or even ShadowClan broke the rule and started a fight, she'd do her best to help her clan out. Even if that meant getting her own claws dirty.

[ open for anyone ]

[Wings]

[ Starfall ]
Duskpaw was extremely confused. Before she came, cats had told her that there was a truce but, this looked as if it was going to end with Icestar and Lionstar tearing each other apart. "Is this how gatherings usually go?" The young she nervously looked up at the other apprentice, kneading the sand.

[ponyapan]

(OPEN to anyone willing to be pranked)

Hawktalon had settled down near the back of the crowd, gazing listlessly into the distance trying his best to look lonely. He sighed for dramatic effect.

I hope someone comes along soon.

He had it all planned out in his head; a cat would come along, and he'd pretend to be deaf. It'd be SO hilarious when he revealed he wasn't! Maybe. Now that he thought about it, perhaps he could've planned something with a bit more... flair. He shrugged it off.

Nah, it's fine. Besides- too late now!

The darkness lulled Silverpaw's steps all the way to the gathering, so she'd been tired even before she'd arrived. Then, she'd seen a white pelt with a black tail-tip moving towards her, and she definetely felt like she should have stayed at home. Well, there was nothing she could do about that now, except if there was some way to escape... Quickly spinning around, Silverpaw's eyes locked on a cat sitting by themselves, and smoothly changed direction, like she'd meant to talk to him all along.
"Err, hey there. "

[marshy]

ponyapan

"Dawnpaw!" Foxleaf said as his apprentice came near. His face lit up, Finally, Someone I actually know. He smiled and patted her head with his tail as he sat down. He whispered to her. "Yeah, it was a bit unfair, But its fine." He touched noses with her and said "But thank you for defending me." His anger slowly melted away, he felt... happier now his apprentice was by his side. It made him feel as if someone agreed with him.

[ponyapan]

[OPEN]
The Gathering already seemed so huge, that by the time Elderpaw found herself among the sea of strange faces, the little gray tabby had no idea what she was meant to do. She supposed that she should sit among Clanmates, but it was suddenly just a little bit difficult to discern even her own scent from the numerous others. It didn't matter how outgoing she was, the apprentice just couldn't fathom how many other cats there were. It was indeed, truly an awesome spectacle!

But Elderpaw wouldn't get anywhere just standing in the way with her mouth agape and eyes unfocused. The newly made apprentice pushes herself to move among the throng of other cats, searching for a space to sit or someone to chat with. That seemed to be the right thing to do, after all. It was a pity she didn't have anyone to follow right off the bat, but taking matters into her own paws was easy enough too. It isn't long until she catches sight of the first familiar face of the evening: Coyotesnarl. He was WindClan's own, and that was the only way the young she-cat knew him. He seemed just as lost as she felt. But the apprentice was in a vastly different world than he was, and she didn't want to put her paws where they didn't belong.

She turns her eyes away from her Clanmate and tries to spot anybody closer to her own age. It was worrisome, the idea of spending her first Gathering alone. But even that wasn't the worst that could happen. With a little sigh, the she-cat gives up and sits right where she was- curling her tail around her paws in a stubborn gesture of defeat. With as much going on around her as there was, she couldn't find the energy to thrust herself into it.


As Pebblepaw watched his sister turn around, it felt like his heart was squeezed under a rock. Hadn't she seen he was trying to talk to her? Because he was almost certain they'd gotten eye-contact for a moment... After all the trouble he'd gotten into to visit- Sigh, there was nothing he could do if she was busy.

Instead, Pebblepaw noticed another apprentice sitting not far from him, who also smelled of Windclan. I'm still feeling a bit lonely, so... why not?
"Um, hi there!" Pebblepaw called out.

[Star child]

Springpaw crept around the gathering cats, looking for a group of apprentices that he could talk to. Would he have to approach someone, or could he just sit and wait for someone else who wanted to chat talk to him?
(Open to anyone who wants to talk!)

[Fawn]

Scarface padded toward the seastones grief filled his mind. The tom ran into someone tripping "ah sorry" he mewed grimly.

Fawnsqueak was nearly bowled over by the stranger and made a little 'oomph' noise as he picked himself up from the ground, shaking his pelt free of the debris. He was grateful he had the sense to apologize and gave a lopsided smile. "It's fine, man. Don't worry about it." Maybe it'd be a bruise tomorrow, but he wasn't keen on starting any trouble.

[ponyapan]

ponyapan

"Dawnpaw!" Foxleaf said as his apprentice came near. His face lit up, Finally, Someone I actually know. He smiled and patted her head with his tail as he sat down. He whispered to her. "Yeah, it was a bit unfair, But its fine." He touched noses with her and said "But thank you for defending me." His anger slowly melted away, he felt... happier now his apprentice was by his side. It made him feel as if someone agreed with him.

"Yes, of course." Happy that it made a difference, Dawnpaw nodded eagerly. Even if she hadn't actually said anything, she felt a bit braver than usual.

[cmdR_Paige]

Silversky, one of ThunderClan's newest recruits, shyly padded her way into the crowd of cats already gathered there. Her namesake-colored tabby fur bristled and she lashed her black-tipped tail. She had no idea what was going on. Should she say something? Should she just stay quiet? Other cats were talking to each other, but she didn't want to intrude. They seemed to know what they were doing. She on the other paw, decided to just keep her distance and wait until someone invited her closer. Maybe someone could explain it to her. Was she even supposed to be here?

[Vessel]

Slushie

When the other tom touched him, the very same electric sparks sent shivers down his spine. He sat there for a moment, briefly stunned, the shook himself and responded;

"Y-yeah, I guess so! So, um... yeah..."

Sunsnow turned, giving Buckbranch a lopsided grin while inside of him his mind was whirling with embarrassment.

Yeah, I guess so? So, um... yeah? Ugh! I'm an idiot. Starclan, if you're watching please help me!

[Dust]

Pinepaw smiled shyly at his enthusiasm. It was nice though to have someone teeling her about everything since her mentor was obviously busy with the other leaders. She listened carefull, watching as he pointed out the other leaders and named off the ones that he knew. Lionstar, Dirtfur, Icestar... a lot to remember. Her ears perked as Pebblepaw said he didn't recognize the cat beside Flintstar, she could actually help with that.

"That's Duskfeather!" She piped up, looking back to the other apprentice. She debating saying why she hadn't come to any gatherings yet- but decided to not. Not all cats were so inviting towards used-to-be kittypets. "I'm from Thunderclan, thanks for telling me about who everyone is. My mentor's rather busy down there."

She nodded towards Flinstar, noticing that the leaders had started sharing news. She probably aught to be listening better and not chatting. It was exciting to meet a new cat though. Distracted, her eyes swept over the streamstones watching with awe at the moonlit space. She didn't mind the salt brine on the air either. It was a welcome new scent. She stared out and around with wide golden eyes, watching in wonder before focusing back on the leaders' discussion.

How embarassing! Was Flintstar her mentor?! Or Duskfeather?! Of course she knew who they were then. A facepalm...paw.. was in order. However, Pebblepaw was too choked up with an awkward moment of silence to do anything! As his eyes skirted anywhere but Pinepaw's direction, his attention was redirected back to the Seastones. Oh, what was this? The apprentice tilted his ears to get a better listen in on the drama. Lionstar and Icestar squabbling - what was new? ..But warriors chiming in from below the rocks? All the drama made Pebblepaw squirm in his spot -

"You think there will be a fight?" He whispered, leaning over to ask Pinepaw.

[Ever]

How embarassing! Was Flintstar her mentor?! Or Duskfeather?! Of course she knew who they were then. A facepalm...paw.. was in order. However, Pebblepaw was too choked up with an awkward moment of silence to do anything! As his eyes skirted anywhere but Pinepaw's direction, his attention was redirected back to the Seastones. Oh, what was this? The apprentice tilted his ears to get a better listen in on the drama. Lionstar and Icestar squabbling - what was new? ..But warriors chiming in from below the rocks? All the drama made Pebblepaw squirm in his spot -

"You think there will be a fight?" He whispered, leaning over to ask Pinepaw.

Pinepaw watched with wide eyes. She'd never seen cats raise their voices so much. Sure, at gatherings cats spoke their minds and fought a little- but it didn't feel like this. Her tail tapped against the ground eagerly. As Pebblepaw leaned in and whispered, she shrugged.

"Who knows? Might be fun... But I don't think this is really the right place for that. Aren't there rules about it?" She frowned, she wasn't really sure. There were still rules to the warrior code and the balance between the clans that she was learning. She'd only heard whispers about what had happened between Shadowclan and Riverclan though. She hadn't talked to Flintstar about it either so she the details and accusations she was hearing were very intruiging. Her eyes shifted over to the tom beside her and away from the fiesty argument below. "Also... were you there at the fight between the two clans? I never asked Flintstar what happened when he was training me- but he seemed on edge about whatever had happened."

[Undertaker]

Beastspark let out a low sigh as the verbal brawl between the two leaders' started already. He was willing to sit out of it until Lionstar started spinning a tale. If he was going make Beastspark look like a monster, he should at least get the facts right. He really didn't feel like bickering about it and decided to at least say his piece and be done. "That scum you call a deputy you say I killed so brutally decided to shred all the prey my clan had caught. I doubt you or anyone in your clan knows what it's like to go hungry, but my clan needed that food, like you, we have queens, kits, and elders to look after." Beastspark growled, looking up at Lionstar. "Perhaps I was too harsh on the poor fellow, I just assumed if he was arrogant enough to go after our prey he could handle the repercussions. Clearly, he could not." Beastspark couldn't remember every detail of that battle, not with all that blood rushing through his brain. If that weakling of a tom's body was as torn up as Lionstar stated, he deserved. Destroying their food during a raid in winter was like sentencing them to death. If Icestar hadn't decided to extend their borders they might have been in some serious trouble. The tom took a seat, tail twitching in agitation. His clan lost three clanmates, ending the life of a deputy who sinks as low as that piece of dung had... well Beastspark didn't see how Riverclan lost anything with that death. They should be happy he got rid of that fiend for them.
BILL.

[Vessel]

The darkness lulled Silverpaw's steps all the way to the gathering, so she'd been tired even before she'd arrived. Then, she'd seen a white pelt with a black tail-tip moving towards her, and she definetely felt like she should have stayed at home. Well, there was nothing she could do about that now, except if there was some way to escape... Quickly spinning around, Silverpaw's eyes locked on a cat sitting by themselves, and smoothly changed direction, like she'd meant to talk to him all along.
"Err, hey there. "

Hawktalon swallowed, trying his best not to smile. A younger cat, perhaps an apprentice- she might be more susceptible to my antics! Instead, he cocked his head in question and spoke;

"I'm deaf. Can't hear ya."

The words came out broken and warbled, as they would for any cat that didn't know what it sounded like or what it was supposed to sound like.

[duckie]

Alarmed by the seemingly sudden beginning to the actual Gathering, the apprentice also jerks her attention away from Sootflare. She sits as straight as she could, craning her neck for a chance to peek over the heads in front of her to see Lionstar as he began RiverClan's announcements. The she-cat was suddenly awestruck again by the leaders- All of them, not just the tom who spoke first. They were all so regal, so... Big. The air about them even looked different! Without her even noticing, the apprentice had begun to knead at the ground underpaw excitedly until her company captured her attention again.

"You're from RiverClan?" she echoes wondrously. So, that meant that the warrior knew Lionstar! However, she was less concerned about the leader and more curious about what he was talking about. "So, what is that place that Lionstar just talked about? He seemed annoyed with Icestar. Is it that nice of a place that you guys fought over it?" Oddly enough, Elderpaw didn't seem all that fazed by the leader's mention of deaths in the Clan. They had plenty of their own in WindClan, and it felt normal to hear about, which to an outsider, was probably a tragic thought.

The warrior couldn’t help but cringe at the aggressive back and forth between the leaders and clan members. Hopefully this gathering wouldn’t get any more heated or they might have another battle on their paws. That certainly wouldn’t be pleasant.

“Yeah, RiverClan,” he repeated, not fully paying attention.”It’s not really, it’s not really that nice, I don’t think. I think he got bored, that’s why he’s giving it back. And it’s probably a bit of a power play, too.”

[BEAR.]

Beastspark let out a low sigh as the verbal brawl between the two leaders' started already. He was willing to sit out of it until Lionstar started spinning a tale. If he was going make Beastspark look like a monster, he should at least get the facts right. He really didn't feel like bickering about it and decided to at least say his piece and be done. "That scum you call a deputy you say I killed so brutally decided to shred all the prey my clan had caught. I doubt you or anyone in your clan knows what it's like to go hungry, but my clan needed that food, like you, we have queens, kits, and elders to look after." Beastspark growled, looking up at Lionstar. "Perhaps I was too harsh on the poor fellow, I just assumed if he was arrogant enough to go after our prey he could handle the repercussions. Clearly, he could not." Beastspark couldn't remember every detail of that battle, not with all that blood rushing through his brain. If that weakling of a tom's body was as torn up as Lionstar stated, he deserved. Destroying their food during a raid in winter was like sentencing them to death. If Icestar hadn't decided to extend their borders they might have been in some serious trouble. The tom took a seat, tail twitching in agitation. His clan lost three clanmates, ending the life of a deputy who sinks as low as that piece of dung had... well Beastspark didn't see how Riverclan lost anything with that death. They should be happy he got rid of that fiend for them.
BILL.

((quoting bc of the lack of announcement code))

"Are you saying some prey being destroyed was worth ripping a cat open?" Lionstar shook his head at the brute. "Of course, ShadowClan is so full of itself it thinks mutilation is justified by some lost prey. Your leader went on a spiel about how well ShadowClan's doing, did you miss that? So well the land she's been crying over since she became leader isn't even necessary! Cut the sob story about your food-- he probably did you a favor, everyone knows ShadowClan can spare a few pounds when your entire battle strategy is throwing around your weight."

[plum]

The warrior couldn’t help but cringe at the aggressive back and forth between the leaders and clan members. Hopefully this gathering wouldn’t get any more heated or they might have another battle on their paws. That certainly wouldn’t be pleasant.

“Yeah, RiverClan,” he repeated, not fully paying attention.”It’s not really, it’s not really that nice, I don’t think. I think he got bored, that’s why he’s giving it back. And it’s probably a bit of a power play, too.”



Her companion seemed to be just a little bit distracted, but by this point, it was safe to say most of the gathered crowd had fallen into a beguiled hush as they watched the disagreement unfold among leaders, then others who felt unhappy. Elderpaw was intrigued by the politics of the meeting, but she could hardly wrap her mind around it without becoming confused and winded. "I don't know..." She murmurs slowly after hearing the warrior.

"I'm just a new apprentice, but isn't there something about fighting with honor? Ripping prey up in leaf-bare sounds cruel." Her mew was soft, and she casts a delicately imploring gaze at Sootflare. "I know a few cats who could use some prey, anyway..." Her own Clan was going hungry. She could sympathize with ShadowClan on this one.

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak winced at the exchange between Beastspark and Lionstar, the former drawing particular interest as his opponent during the battle. In retrospect, he could concede that was out of line when there was an unspoken but understood pact to only fight within their ranks. Maybe... he would have to see if amends were feasible later, not that he was going to get his hopes up. The mere thought had his stomach in knots.

Behind him, he could hear two voices whispering about the news, and although he wasn't intending on interjecting, the bit about Frostflight had his interest. Fawnsqueak turned around with furrowed brows, observing the two for a moment and debating if this was worth the breath with it over and done with. "Look.." he started, pawing at the ground, "I know it's not really, uh, my place here, but Frostflight... he-- wasn't.. okay during that battle." Those last couple moons of his life had been so strange, extremely volatile. Fawnsqueak still couldn't quite wrap his mind around how the sweet tom had flipped one day. Keeping his voice lowered, he added, "Lionstorm didn't-- well, none of us, told him to do that. He just kind of lost it."

shortstack ; implimm

[Dirtfur]

Dirtfur watched and listened for Icestar as the fat molly shared her announcement. He took note that she left some things like not mentioning ThunderClan's involvement. He eyed Breastspark's with sympathy. The gray marked tom was right, a prey-less clan is a poor clan. he listened to the rest of the new deputy's argument.
It was Lionstar's turn to argue back. He glared at the golden leader as he spitted about how ShadowClan is full on themselves, clearly not seeing the problems in Dirtfur's opinion. He looked back at Beastspark with an apologetic look.

[lio]

The ThunderClan deputy didn't quite enjoy the argument that took place, finding it rather childish. She looked between Lionstar and the ShadowClanner, then at the presumed RiverClan warrior that had spoken. Duskfeather resisted the urge to sigh, scooting her paws closer to herself and looking out amongst the crowd. So much more could be seen from her new spot, it was honestly beautiful. It'd be much better without all of the cats admittedly, and silence echoing through the clearing would be much more relaxing. Instead she listened in on the words spoken between each cat, taking mental notes of what they all share. "ShadowClan is doing well after the raid. RiverClan is thriving. WindClan has a new leader, albeit... choosing to sleep on the Seastones. Interesting," she mumbled to herself, voice as quiet as it could be. Her gaze focused on each leader before she flipped her attention to the deputies.
"All new deputies- is that Brightstar? Strange. Dirt covered cat. His name is quite literal, isn't it? Wouldn't have expected that from Lionstar. Why is he glaring at his own leader?" Duskfeather continued, "ShadowClan deputy, strange name. Who names a cat Beastspark?" She flicked her tail, falling silent as her observations could go on no further. Her focus returned to the leaders as she waited to see who would continue the announcements.

[dino.]

[ Vessel ]

The tortoiseshell tossed Sunsnow a quizzical look. "Are you alright?" he asked, voice laced with concern. "You seem a little... fidgety." Maybe he was just cold. Even with that thick coat, the biting wind still had to be getting through somehow. Buckbranch shuffled a little closer, until his body was pressed against Sunsnow's. They could keep each other warm.
But great StarClan, that dopey grin of his. Buckbranch didn't know why that smile made him want to smile back. Sunshine's joy was practically contagious, and Buckbranch found himself curling his tail around Sunsnow's flank.

[plum]

Upon accidentally catching the attention of the feline sitting just in front of her, Elderpaw ducks her head apologetically. "I'm sorry," she whispers softly. It was difficult for the young apprentice to wrap her head around the concept of taking such actions, regardless of how her life had been going. What would possibly make her go haywire? What would send her over the precipice of doing something so hard to forgive? Her pondering casts a momentary shadow over her expression, and it is apparent to Fawnsqueak that what he'd decided to say had gotten the apprentice to think a little more about it.

Shuffling her paws, she looks back at Sootflare. "I'm sorry," she repeats. She wouldn't tell him nor the warrior who turned around to interject that she still considered the act of ruining prey to be wrong, but now she was aware that she also needed to think about the cat who did it, and how they were feeling the night it all happened.

Dipper shortstack

[wolfie]

Shimm
wormpaw // riverclan apprentice // black, white speckled lanky tom with pink-tinted eyes //
wormpaw made a note to question lionstar about it when they got back. big curious cat he was. indeed. he followed after his sister, blinking as his vision got better. then, backlash started to happen. his tail flicker with annoyance, shooting the cats who were speaking up with glares of daggers. "the action of one cat doesn't equal the worth of a clan,, unlessit'salargergroupthatisdoingthe, " wormpaw spoke up but his voice trailed off at the end. he lower himself to the ground in mild embarrassment, too cryptic. so,, very,, cryptic. he coughed, trying to brush off his words. "anyway," the lanky apprentice turn his attention back to the highranks. all very different appearances and personalities together. yet thunderclan and riverclan seemed so tame compared to riverclan and shadowclan. hold up-- why was there a cat sleeping? could they sleep here?

[Freesia]

Glazewing padded through the crowd of cats head on, not worrying to say sorry when his shoulder bounced off of one cat's, then another's. He just kept going, an uncomfortable expression on his face. This was his first Gathering in a while. He couldn't remember if he'd been to a Gathering since Moonlily died. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know. Even the scent of ShadowClan made him recoil a little, bringing back painful memories of her last days. He had first met her when they were both apprentices at a Gathering. Ugh.

[OPEN]

[Solstice_X]

Morningsun | TC | Large ginger tabby (a maine coon mix) w/ green eyes
Her fluffy - feathery - ginger tail swished silently behind her as she weaved her way through the throng of cats. When was the last time I came to a gathering? She mused silently, her green eyes scanning the gathered mass of cats for any familiar faces. All around her sat cats of different clans - albeit slightly divided due to current tensions for some - yet she felt out of place. Perhaps it was because her time was so long ago, or maybe it was just the feeling of realizing how much time she's let slip away from her until now. Either way, it didn't help to satiate the slight awkwardness that prickled her spine.

Focus; focus on the leaders. She reminded herself, trying to keep that depressing thought out of her mind. With that, she switched her green gaze from looking at each foreign clan's cats in turn to looking at said clans' leaders. Big black one is Icestar...the grey one is...Twilightstar, was it? Her muzzle twitched with irritation as she tried to recall the names, And the flamboyant ginger is Lionstar no doubt...now, who did they say the deputies were again?
----------------------------------------
Aspenbrook | RC | small (for a maine coon mix) tortoiseshell & white w/ amber eyes
The tortie trotted alongside Chestnutstripe, her eyes wide with amusement at the forwardness of their leader. Leave it to him to be bolder than his ginger pelt in leaf-bare. Honestly, she couldn't tell which was more prominent: his sun-colored coat, or his big mouth. Regardless, she found the combination amusing to observe from a fair distance away - which is where she liked to stay: far away from the attention. She circled around the gathered cats until a familiar silver coat came into view. Her heart almost burst from her chest with excitement. Silverminnow's here! It was like she were a kit - or newly made apprentice - venturing out of camp for the first time.

Calm yourself, the gather is still going on. She reminded, before silently padding up beside the cat she hadn't seen in moons with Chestnutstripe following closely behind. No words escaped from her lips as she settled herself down, neatly tucking her tail over her paws, waiting to see how Silverminnow would react.
----------------------------------------
Chestnutstripe | RC | brown tabby molly w/ yellow-brown eyes
As she padded alongside the tortie that was formerly her mentor and now currently her friend, who she was formerly an apprentice of, she couldn't help but think of her own: Silverpaw. The younger molly hadn't taken a liking to her since being reassigned, and boy oh boy was she definitely feeling the pressure of being a mentor now. Her eyes couldn't help but wander off, searching for the increasingly familiar silver-grey coat. Was she here? Her ears lowered. She didn't want to stay on bad terms with her, but she wasn't exactly sure as to what she could do to get Silverpaw to warm up to her.

After silently taking her place beside Aspenbrook - on the opposite side of Silverminnow - she set to searching the gathered for the apprentice. A hint of anxiety flickered in her eyes. Then, she spotted her.
----------------------------------------
Silverdust | WC | blue-grey burmese-mix tom w/ green eyes
Silverdust sat on the opposite side of Silverminnow to Aspenbrook before the Riverclan duo came up to join them. He offered a curt nod to both she-cats before focusing his attention back on the leaders. Is this what the other clans are coming to? His ear twitched with annoyance at both Icestar's and Lionstar's near kit-like behavior. They're leaders and here they are behaving like three-moon-olds: clamoring for approval and notice from others. Then again, he most definitely preferred that they pick their quarrels with each other than his clan. After all, he had little faith that Windclan would be able to stand an assault. At least, not with how pitiful the clan looked now while it was in recovery.

It was a stark difference, scarily made more apparent by the leaders more-less assembled in their haphazardly shaped row. Twilightstar's smaller, dare he say starved, frame was dwarfed by the larger sizes of Lionstar and Icestar. Honestly, despite how annoying it is to watch those two trying to one-up each other, he'd rather they do that between themselves than with his clan's leader. He shuddered at the thought. There's no way we would stand a chance.
----------------------------------------
Stormjump | WC | blue-grey tom with amber eyes
Having settled beside Silverdust, Stormjump fixed his amber eyes hungrily up at the leaders - not in a cannibalistic way; it was more of an ambitiously hungry stare. He wanted news from them - preferably news that his clan could use to strengthen themselves. After watching his own form regress and thin with the rest of his clan, he wanted nothing more - and couldn't help but envy - the fatness of the other clans. Why is it Windclan that has to suffer like this? The anger fueled the flames in his gaze. Why?
----------------------------------------
Silverminnow | WC | spotted silver tabby (egytian mau) with green eyes
She buried her reddish-pink nose in the familiar fluffy pelt of her Riverclan friend, deeply inhaling the scent she had spent moons in her past with before they parted ways. A very quiet purr rumbled in her throat before she pulled away to return to watching the leaders, attentively awaiting other news. Aspenbrook was here now, and she was going to enjoy her old friend's company while she could.

[ALL ARE OPEN]

[Terrestrial]

Flamepelt sat near the seastones waiting for someone to talk to her. OPEN

[doghouse]

Glazewing padded through the crowd of cats head on, not worrying to say sorry when his shoulder bounced off of one cat's, then another's. He just kept going, an uncomfortable expression on his face. This was his first Gathering in a while. He couldn't remember if he'd been to a Gathering since Moonlily died. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know. Even the scent of ShadowClan made him recoil a little, bringing back painful memories of her last days. He had first met her when they were both apprentices at a Gathering. Ugh.

[OPEN] Thrushfeather's tail twitched slightly as he gazed around at the gathered cats. He wasn't really a huge fan of crowds, and had often opted out of coming to most gatherings. But, he did still come ever once in awhile, and this happened to be one of those times. And yet, the Shadowclan had somehow ended up a short ways from the rest of his clan, not that he really minded. He could still see and hear just fine, minus the chatter going on around him. And upon feeling a cat bump into him, the tom startled. Whirling around to face the other cat with a wide eyed expression, the ginger warrior was quick to apologize. "I'm sorry, was I in your way?" He hoped not, but regardless, he hoped this other cat would accept. Taking a step back so that the other cat- and himself- had more space, Thrush hesitantly sat back down and gave his chest fur a few quick licks to calm himself. He really shouldn't be so jumpy, but he was. And he couldn't really help that, as surrounded as cats as he was.

[lio]

Mm. The pretty ThunderClan leader hadn't said much, had he? What a shame. Toadbounce would have loved to hear his voice over the filthy bickering of the others, though he didn't mind hearing Lionstar's voice. The RiverClan leader was quite handsome and Toadbounce certainly couldn't resist eyeing him with a smirk on his face. Icestar and the other leader weren't very pretty, though. And the deputies? All so ugly! Duskfeather was pretty, as well as the WindClan deputy, he could admit... but how could the other leaders chose such vile cats? A dirt-covered filth creature and that thing for a ShadowClan deputy. Toadbounce couldn't believe it- ShadowClan was run by such ugly cats!
With a scowl, Toadbounce returned his gaze to his own leader. Ah, Flintstar. So easy to fluster, so pretty. His scowl turned to yet another smirk. If the leader could see him, it'd be quite fun to cause a little distraction! Toadbounce stood and stretched, making sure his fur was hit by the light of the moon. His muscles rippled beneath the fluff, and his sunshine eyes were glued to Flintstar. Come on, gorgeous, I want to see you blush, he thought, perking his ears and standing up, omce more, tail flicking. With a final wink at Flintstar, his gaze holding mischievous intentions, Toadbounce sat down and waited for the leader to begin speaking- his eyes glued to the pretty tom.

[RedHead]

And..... There is was. The fighting, the bickering, the arguing once again. Flintstar had remained silent for most of it, glancing over to the Windclan leader to see if she'd awoken from the commotion. No such luck. He couldn't even share an exasperated look behind goldfish's and Icystar's back. He was grateful though that at least Icestar wasn't... glaring at him or anything. Her saying nothing to him was better than her... saying anything really. The tomcat took in a breath as he stood, padding past the two bickering leaders, to the front of the seastones to make his announcement.
"Thunderclan has been doing well." He started in a loud voice, hoping to be heard over the bickering going on between the cats below as well. "We've expanded our territory to the outskirts, an area of land that is lush with evergreens and full of prey, as much as a leaf-bare forest can be full of at least." He meowed, eyes glancing across all the cats below. He spotted Toadbounce, and Flintstar had a sinking feeling the tom was trying to get his attention, so the leader purposefully averted his eyes to a different side of the clearing. I'm doing important leader stuff right now Toadbounce, stop it. He'd talk to the tom later about his behavior.
"Many of our apprentices have been assigned new mentors, those including Linnetpaw, Raccoonpaw, Foxpaw, Darkpaw, Pinepaw, Amberpaw, Herringpaw, Squirrelpaw and Hazelpaw." The leader then paused, ears twitching as he thought about what he wanted to announce next. "Many outsiders have joined our clan, pledging their loyalty to us and starting to learn our ways. Duskpaw, Shadepaw, and Quillpaw have all received new names, and then Sorrel and... Phoenix are in the process of joining the clan." Flintstar had to pause for a moment to remember how to pronounce the new cat's name, but he assumed he succeeded, and gave a moment for the cats below to take in his words, before he continued on with the news. "I have also appointed Duskfeather as my new deputy, following Buckbranch's demotion." Flintstar didn't say anything more on the subject, there was nothing he needed to describe about the situation to every clan cat in the forest. He waved his tail towards the she-cat at the bottom of the seastones, before returning his gaze to the gathered clans.
Then his voice took on a more somber tone. "Unfortunatley, one of our apprentices, Honeypaw, was killed by a fox. Thunderclan has grieved for her, but she is now hunting with Starclan." Flintstar paused to give a moment of silence for the late apprentice.
"Our warriors took care of the vicious fox though, so no other clans will have to worry about it. That is all Thunderclan has to report." Flintstar gave a bright smile to the gathered cats below as he finished, sending a wink in the direction of his warriors. Then he turned and strode back to his place on the seastones, sitting down and wrapping his tail around his paws. Goldfish and Icystar could bicker all they wanted, but Flintstar wasn't going to be disturbed by them. For once, Flintstar was sure Thunderclan was growing stronger. Soon, they'd be up to par with anything thrown their way.

[Terrestrial]

Scarface listened to what Flintstar had said then came the announcement about Honeypaw's death. The tabby tom's face turned from an okay look to pain and grief all his kin was dead and it was his fault that she had died, Scarface flashed a look of pain at Flintstar then stood up and raced back to camp not caring if he was going to get yelled tears fell down his face as he ran. OPEN

[lio]

Duskfeather allowed her ears to perk as Flintstar gave his announcement. She listened closely, nodding along with each piece of information. He didn't seem to miss anything. The she-cat smiled and looked out over the crowd once more, her tail twitching where it laid beside her. Duskfeather wondered if Buckbranch had come along with the Clan, her gaze searching the crowd for him. Would the other Clans have anything to say about the change in deputy? She listened for any reactions, though she didn't turn to face the leaders. Instead, she took time to pinpoint the location of each ThunderClan cat in the clearing, glad that they were all able to mingle. It felt almost strange to have so many eyes facing her at once, though she didn't shrink back from it. Duskfeather only puffed up her chest more, showing no discomfort or weakness as she held her place. ThunderClan was strong. No matter the situation with Buckbranch, she would take her time as deputy to help the Clan. It was her home, her pride and joy. And she would protect it with her life. Offering a smile to the crowd, Duskfeather puffed up her chest, straightening her posture and maintaining a formal stance.

[RedHead]

Warblerpaw high-stepped over behind Twilightstar and his clanmates entering the scene. Ugh! What smells like that? His nose crunched up at the fishy scent of Riverclan. It's been a while since he interacted with them nor sat next to the fish faces. Quickly veering off into his own path the calico took over his rightful place up-hill on a flat stone with a nice view to watch everything unravel. But, something stopped him mid-way. His mind kept telling him to sit front and close this time so the apprentice turned around to take a place up close. His blue eyes stared at the glorious yet pesty Lionstar and his.. wait, where's the deputy? Tipping his head at a moving dirt pile that sat beneath him it's eyes gleaming bright. Dear Stars..is that a cat? He's so..so filthy!! Warblerpaw gagged out loud, ripping his gaze away to face elsewhere for a second before returning back a vexed glare. If what's going through his mind is right then send him flying because it doesn't sit right with the calico.



Flowerpaw had stalked confidently into the clearing behind all the water-lovers, but as soon as she reached the clearing, she bee-lined it away from all the stink. She could smell Windclan heat, that was good. And Thunderclan scent soon drifted in after, she didn’t mind their scent. It was musky and earthy, but also not super strong like the scent her new home-clan boasted. Ears flicking, teal eyes scanned the clearing for the one cat Flowerpaw felt connected with from Windclan. She soon saw him, sitting on a slightly raised part of the clearing. Smirking, Flowerpaw made her way over, giving a flick of her tail as she approached. “Fancy seeing you here fluff-face.” She greeted.

Flamepelt sat near the seastones waiting for someone to talk to her. OPEN

Blazepaw was hanging around the edge of the clearing, ears flat against his head as he stared at the ground. After a moment he stood and decided to move a bit closer to the gathered cats, knowing he probably should interact with someone. Even though he really didn't feel like it, he knew it would be good for him to talk with someone. Though, unfortunately, he hadn't been looking out where he was going, and bumped right into another cat. "Oh, sorry." The tomcat mumbled, lifting his head to look at the cat with dull green eyes.

[BEAR.]

Thunderhowl had come in with ShadowClan, but he wasn't as eager to join the crowd.

No, he was here for a select couple cats he needed to speak to, and he took his time surveying the mass of cats until he found one of them: a gray-blue tom.

Good. Maybe the miniature female version of him would grace Thunderhowl's sights soon, but for now he hobbled over to Mistyfern like a man on a mission.

"You. We need to talk."

[ Xeno, Moon Lily - iris doesn't seem to be here yet? but feel free to hop in whenever! ]

[Terrestrial]

Flowerpaw had stalked confidently into the clearing behind all the water-lovers, but as soon as she reached the clearing, she bee-lined it away from all the stink. She could smell Windclan heat, that was good. And Thunderclan scent soon drifted in after, she didn’t mind their scent. It was musky and earthy, but also not super strong like the scent her new home-clan boasted. Ears flicking, teal eyes scanned the clearing for the one cat Flowerpaw felt connected with from Windclan. She soon saw him, sitting on a slightly raised part of the clearing. Smirking, Flowerpaw made her way over, giving a flick of her tail as she approached. “Fancy seeing you here fluff-face.” She greeted.



Blazepaw was hanging around the edge of the clearing, ears flat against his head as he stared at the ground. After a moment he stood and decided to move a bit closer to the gathered cats, knowing he probably should interact with someone. Even though he really didn't feel like it, he knew it would be good for him to talk with someone. Though, unfortunately, he hadn't been looking out where he was going, and bumped right into another cat. "Oh, sorry." The tomcat mumbled, lifting his head to look at the cat with dull green eyes.

Flamepelt stared at the cat her dull green-blue eyes had nothing but pain showing "it's fine." she mewed grimly as her tail flicked side to side in annoyance.

[Ever]

Mm. The pretty ThunderClan leader hadn't said much, had he? What a shame. Toadbounce would have loved to hear his voice over the filthy bickering of the others, though he didn't mind hearing Lionstar's voice. The RiverClan leader was quite handsome and Toadbounce certainly couldn't resist eyeing him with a smirk on his face. Icestar and the other leader weren't very pretty, though. And the deputies? All so ugly! Duskfeather was pretty, as well as the WindClan deputy, he could admit... but how could the other leaders chose such vile cats? A dirt-covered filth creature and that thing for a ShadowClan deputy. Toadbounce couldn't believe it- ShadowClan was run by such ugly cats!
With a scowl, Toadbounce returned his gaze to his own leader. Ah, Flintstar. So easy to fluster, so pretty. His scowl turned to yet another smirk. If the leader could see him, it'd be quite fun to cause a little distraction! Toadbounce stood and stretched, making sure his fur was hit by the light of the moon. His muscles rippled beneath the fluff, and his sunshine eyes were glued to Flintstar. Come on, gorgeous, I want to see you blush, he thought, perking his ears and standing up, omce more, tail flicking. With a final wink at Flintstar, his gaze holding mischievous intentions, Toadbounce sat down and waited for the leader to begin speaking- his eyes glued to the pretty tom.


Cedarstream had been along the edges of the crowd but couldn't help notice the wide eyed sunshine stare of Toadbounce as Flintstar began his announcement to the clans. She swept in from the outskirts and stalked up behind the tom, hoping to surprise him. Hopefully her distracting Toadbounce would offer Flintstar some relief from that annoying yellow gaze. She crept up on quiet paws behind Toad before leaning in to whisper.

"Don't you know it's rude to stare, didn't your mother teach you anything as a kit? Her voice lulled with the teasing sarcasm she often delivered when opening her mouth. Then veered to the side and settled down on the cold, splaying stones to listen to the leader's discussion from this closer point. Not that Cedarstream cared much for the banter of the lesser clans, but it was good to keep an eye and ear out for any threats to the glory of Thunderclan.

[Jesse]

Thunderhowl had come in with ShadowClan, but he wasn't as eager to join the crowd.

No, he was here for a select couple cats he needed to speak to, and he took his time surveying the mass of cats until he found one of them: a gray-blue tom.

Good. Maybe the miniature female version of him would grace Thunderhowl's sights soon, but for now he hobbled over to Mistyfern like a man on a mission.

"You. We need to talk."

[ Xeno, Moon Lily - iris doesn't seem to be here yet? but feel free to hop in whenever! ]

Mistyfern was practically dozing off on his paws, tuning in and out of the drama every now and then. Of course, it was never enough to hold his attention for very long and soon he’d just find himself drifting into another mini-nap. Then Thunderhowl came along and nearly gave him a heartattack. The burly blue tom’s haunches arched instinctively and his tail went stiff as a branch until he realized he wasn’t being jumped. Ugh, he hated being snuck up on.

He glared at this new pest before responding with an agitated growl. “Need to?” Mistyfern gave the older tom a quick assessment and snorted to himself. What was this fossil doing here? He didn’t smell right. Shadowclan, but not quite. Whatever he wanted, Misty knew he had no interest in it. He sharply cracked his tail. “You mean you’ll just bother me if I don’t.” His miry green eyes hardened into slits. “What do you want?”

BILL. Moon Lily

[lio]

[ Ever ]

Toadbounce found himself pouting as Flintstar blatantly ignored his antics, a frown on his lips. I'll have to try again later, he thought, a plan formulating in his mind before he was jumping in the air, tail fluffing up in surprise. The warrior whirled around to see Cedarstream, his eyes narrowing as he flattened his fluff and tried to remain cool. Fear wasn't a good look on him. His pout deepened and he gave a mock roll of his eyes, letting his posture fall into that of relaxation. "Aw, come on, sweetheart, I'm just having a bit of fun," Toadbounce purred, tilting his head to the side innocently.

[Moonraven]

Noooooooooo! Whyyyyyyyyyyy! She had just found the perfect moss, made the most wonderful bed, and was curling up to sleep in her early retirement dream at Starclan. Then the most infernal racket dubbed Lionstar's voice, the banshee himself, woke her. No one understood what it was like waking to that! It felt like nails on a blackboard, possibly worse. The Windclan leader shook the sleep from her mind and slowly sat up, stretching, while doing her best not to pin her ears against her head. Compared to the other leaders, her average build looked petite, she might have been all skin and bones if not for her fluffy coat and slender muscles.
Twilightstar wasn't actually listening, just hearing and picking through little bits of pieces she found worth paying heed too. Such as the fact that he has taken in their lost drama queen? She couldn't bother to care enough about it. If she was allowed to she'd honestly ship herself off to one of the other clans too or just say screw it and go live on her own.
Did anyone else notice how Lionstar and Icestar fought like a married couple, or maybe a divorced couple might fit better? She wondered if they were one or both mates and exs in their previous lives? It was the only way she could fathom the reason for this back and forth between them.
The lilac molly found it fascinating hearing that Lionstar was just giving Shadowclan their territory back. As much as she hated the very sound of him, why couldn't the other clans just get tired of stealing territory and give it back to WindClan? Twilightstar just wanted her territory back that way she could deal with her potential cannibal problem, her entitled medicine cats, and try and clean up the mayhem her predecessors left her, in peace. She didn't think she was asking for that much at all.
But nooooo! They couldn't just do that. The huge black blob of stinginess and anger made that clear when she added the fact that she stole territory from her clan. Miss Prissy I'm-upset-so-I'm-going-to-take-it-out-on-WindClan just had to make things difficult. She wasn't sure what Iceblob was hoping to accomplish with this whole fiasco. She already extended her borders to the outskirts and was getting the territory back from Riverclan! If she was trying to prove a point and act all high and mighty stealing from a clan that was barely running on logic let alone sanity, Twilightstar pretty sure that was going to fail.
She did not care about who this dead Frost cat was, he was already dead so why were they discussing him? It was somewhat infuriating hearing ShadowClan's deputy whine about prey being lost in a raid when her clan was on the verge of starvation or were they all acting like they couldn't see her clanmates? If they wanted to know what true hunger was like ShadowClan could swap territories with WindClan.
The "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" ThunderClan leader's report wasn't any better, ThunderClan wasn't going to give back the territory either, he didn't even mention that he stole her territory! ThunderClan was the most hypocritical clan here, the clan of compassion and heroes her ass! Twilightstar could understand if they actually need the territory but ThunderClan and ShadowClan were just being pains for no reason. They both extended their borders into the Outskirts, which meant that WindClan was most likely going to have little to nothing to take in the Outskirts. Were these cats trying to kill her and her clanmates? They needed territory to hunt on!
It's not like either of them were going to get some sort of grand thrill out of a fight with WindClan. A few of her cats were all for the whole spirit, pride, and strong-will, and just blindly assumed that violence was going to solve WindClan's problems... those cats had a problem with their brains that caused it to turn off and on at random times, they couldn't help it. Still, if she couldn't get things to change she was going to have her clan fight a losing battle, it was better then starving to death.
After Flintstar finished with his little speech, Twilightstar, groaning and moaning internally about not wanting to be here, decided to make this as fast as possible. "Windclan's okay, although we could be doing better. With Brightsky's decision to step down as leader and take up the role of deputy, I, Twilightstar, have taken over caring and leading over what is left of WindClan. " She wondered if the leaders noticed Brightsky down with the deputies. She wasn't going to bother elaborating the reasonings and whatnot, too much of a hassle.
"An odd affliction swept through the clan causing the deaths of Moondrift, Alpinekit, Dandelionkit, Windpaw, and several more members." She allowed herself to lapse into silence for a moment before she began speaking again. "While we were burying many of our dead, morning our losses, and dealing with this tragedy, my clan became rather lax on marking our borders and as you've heard, ShadowClan took our territory. Why he's neglected to add this, I can't say, but Thunderclan has also taken a lot of our territory as well." Freaking bullies!
"Slowly, but surely we are recovering and our borders are getting marked again. Despite the chunks of territory stolen from us, I have decided to focus on organizing my clan and will be leaving the borders alone. My clan isn't exactly up to fighting standards since we've been combating hunger for the whole leafbare. One of my clanmates did foolish move Shadowclan's border before I gave this order and I do apologize for that. It was moved back and hasn't been touch since." She nodded to the dark mass of hot air and rage known as Icestar. Who in the world named her that? That cat did not have an ounce of chill in her! "WindClan will be working on securing some land in the outskirts for hunting with hopes we don't starve." She added the last part bitterly.
"In other news, some of our apprentices were reassigned mentors; Eveningpaw, Cranepaw, Warblerpaw, Wolfpaw, and Fireflypaw. Goatpaw joined the ranks of the apprentices."
"A pawful of our missing cats have returned to the clan. Embercry had a nasty run-in with Twolegs and returned a little traumatized but otherwise unharmed. Moorfoot and Pebblepaw returned from an attempt to visit relatives which will not be happening in the future. Shrewpaw ran into some rogues but got out of it intact. Littlewish and Runningpaw apparently got lost on their way home. Cowpaw.... well he's back." Twilightstar for the life of her had no clue what happened to the last apprentice nor the last two.
"That is all Windclan has to report." Twilightstar breathed, faintly wondered if it was over now and she could go back to sleep. She had a lot of stuff she needed to contemplate thanks to two no good jerks gang up on her clan! She was done playing the passive-aggressive card with power-hungry oafs who were taking it out on her clan just because they couldn't touch RiverClan.
@Bill. Casper RedHead

[duckie]

Sootflare's ears perked up as Flintstar spoke. At least someone had the sense to not start any trouble at a gathering. He waited patiently for the ThunderClan leader to finish before turning to address Fawnsqueak,"I'm sure he wasn't. I try to reserve judgement till we have both sides of the story and, well, we can't really get his side can we?" he said, with an apologetic smile,"I don't mean to accuse anyone of anything, and I'm sure Elderpaw here doesn't either."

Glancing back at Elderpaw, he continued,"No need to apologize."

[ Dipper implimm sorry for the sory reply aaaa]

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak blinked as the point seemed to be missed. "No, uh, he was kind of a jerk at the end. I don't think you have to reserve judgment." What they'd said about Frostflight was true: he'd destroyed their fresh-kill pile (as much of a mercy as that was) and had briefly fought an apprentice, plus a whole mess of personal issues that were never resolved between the two.. and now wouldn't be. Besides, Sootflare surely had some experiences of his own with the fallen-from-grace deputy that colored his perception. To Elderpaw, he clarified, "I'm just saying, make sure you're judging him? And not... everyone, in RiverClan. We don't support what he did." His gaze swept over her in sympathy, another WindClanner going hungry; this maybe wasn't the most appropriate time or place to mention they were actively taking in starving refugees from WindClan, but Lionstar hadn't exactly hidden it in his announcements.


implimm shortstack

[BEAR.]

"If I ain't botherin' you, who will?" Thunderhowl quirked his brow at the crackling tom. "You're a medicine cat who don't got a clue on how to heal, so we're gonna fix that."

It was to the point, and Thunderhowl didn't feel like pussyfooting around when there was work to be done. "Here's the deal, Mistyfern: you and Irispaw, when she gets over here-- you're both gonna accompany me back to ShadowClan for tonight. We're goin' over basic remedies and what they're used for, then you can go back home and show that Coyotesnarl of yours what to do. I ain't teachin' your apprentice, too. You're competent enough to do that yourself."

[ Xeno, Moon Lily ]

[RedHead]

Thunderclan taking Windclan's territory? Now that piqued Flintstar's interest. So it seemed as if Windclan had finally noticed his move into their quiet little moors. "I neglected to mention it because it's moons-old news sleepyhead." Flintstar meowed, his voice taking on an amused tone as he addressed the new Windclan leader. It seemed as if Brightstar, well, Brightsky now had stepped down, and had left this.... Interesting cat in her place. Flintstar wasn't going to complain though, at least this Twilightstar had finally noticed what was happening with her clan. He respected her for taking charge, it seemed as if Windclan had needed something like that. "You can hardly call that area used to be Windclan territory anymore though, it's full of Thunderclan scent. You're a little late to the game miss." Flintstar gave a small shrug of his shoulders, knowing full well he was right. And even when the Windclan patrols had marked the border, they strayed clear of Thunderglade. Flintstar was beginning to think that Windclan didn't even know that territory belonged to them in the first place. But Flintstar assumed, come new-leaf, if they didn't need Thunderglade anymore, he'd move the borders back. He'd much rather keep the large chunk of territory form the outskirts than the small chunk he'd taken from Windclan. Maybe he could use it as a welcoming gift to Twilightstar, she seemed to have her head on straight. Much more so than the other leaders at least.

Moonraven

[BEAR.]

Lionstar almost choked on his laughter at Flintstar's response to Twilightstar. And they thought Lionstar was the bad guy here? The ThunderClan's response to WindClan's plight was so insensitive it was beyond amazing. This was why Lionstar had chosen to pick on ShadowClan. It was so painfully obvious WindClan needed a break and the other Clans were choosing to pick on them because.. why? Neither of them even needed the land at this point, with their outskirts expansions. They were just being assholes to be assholes.

That actually gave Lionstar a bit of an idea, and he twitched his ears. "If you're done mocking the less fortunate, Flinny, the Gathering's over."

And he wasn't going to wait for his response, already gliding down from the Seastones. "RiverClan, let's go home!"

[ RedHead, Casper, Moonraven ]

[ I WILL BE LEAVING THIS THREAD OPEN FOR A COUPLE DAYS FOR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO FINISH UP THEIR ROLEPLAYS! ]

[Terrestrial]

Blueheart padded back to camp.

[plum]

The molly listens to the two, tilting her head so that she could better hear the softspoken Fawnsqueak above the others surrounding them. At least neither of the warriors were upset with her initial statement, and this one who caught her attention even apparently encouraged her judgement. Still, the apprentice learned a lesson she would do her best not to soon forget.

When it came time for her own leader to finally speak up, Elderpaw makes sure she pays the female her undivided attention. While it was just a little bit embarrassing to have a leader who seemed more inclined to have another nap in front of everybody, the apprentice was in no place to wonder, and when Twilightstar spoke, there was much to be proud of. Not in her words, of course, but in her tone and mannerisms. The apprentice shifts beside Sootflare after the announcement- Here she was, speaking to two RiverClanners!

But the slight shame really settled in when the ThunderClan leader mocked WindClan for never even noticing their territory being stolen. Elderpaw tears her sage eyes away from the four leaders up front and looks instead at her paws, slouching down. Her excitement at being among the cats at the Gathering was quickly diminishing. Why did it seem like the older you were, the more you took pride in picking on the weak?

After several long heartbeats in which the young she-cat tried to gather her thoughts, she looks up at Sootflare and Fawnsqueak. These two were warriors, older than herself. Did they feel similarly about her Clan? Or did their rivalries hold more honor than contempt in their minds? "Is that really all we mean to your Clans?" she questions neither of them in particular.

shortstack Dipper

[RedHead]

Mocking the less fortunate? You're one to talk. Sure, Flintstar knew what he said was probably a little insensitive due to Windclan's plight and all, he could empathize with them. Thunderclan's territory was still burnt, and prey could only be found near the borders. And now in their new territory in the outskirts. But the Thunderclan leader was handling his own problems. Thunderclan had it's own problems to handle. Just like Windclan he presumed, but the mention of the loss of a small section of territory, especially so long ago, that was just being petty to Flintstar. He had to say something about it. Might as well own up to it though. "Yes, I'm done." Flintstar meowed, giving both goldfish and sleepyhead a nod, a small smirk on his face. "Thunderclan, let's get home as well!" He announced, glancing back towards Icestar, giving her a small, inquisitive tilt of his head before he leaped down from the seastones. Flintstar didn't know where he stood with any of the leaders as of now, but he'd realized he could care less. If they wanted to be annoying and rude, maybe he'd be annoying back. Everyone should get their fair share of being irritated.
Padding towards Duskfeather, Flintstar waved his tail for his clan to follow him, turning and heading towards Thunderclan's territory once they had gathered.

[lio]

Stoatdance almost scoffed at the other Clans' reports, rolling her eye at the rivalry between each of them. She stood and began to limp her way back to camp, her tail lashing.

--

Palepaw hopped to his paws, clueless about the arguing between Clans. He followed after RiverClan and made his way back to camp, wonder still filling his copper gaze.

--

Bramblebear eyed the other Clans with a frown. Thunder cat. River cat. Shadow cat. The leaders of the other Clans were so indescribable. She found herself stifling a sigh as they all spoke, ignoring the urge to roll her eyes. So much babbling, couldn't they all relax for just a moment? WindClan had it worse than any of the Clans. Starving cats, brainless healers, a lazy leader and magical disappearing deputy. Bramblebear was honestly surprised Brightsky had shown up for the Gathering. With a shake of her head, the silver tabby stood and began to make her way back to camp, not listening for Twilightstar's call to leave the clearing.

--

Hogpaw looked around as RiverClan began to leave, though he didn't move to join WindClan in preparation. Instead, he buried his head further into Foxpudge's fur, ears pressed flat against his head as he waited to move with the warrior.

--

[ Ever ]

Toadbounce moved to join Flintstar's side, though he stopped and looked over his shoulder at Cedarstream. "Are you coming, darling?" he purred, raising a brow at the she-cat.

[Terrestrial]

Nightheart left to camp not caring for Twilightheart's signal.

----------
Darstorm padded to join Flintstar his tail held high as always with a smirk on his face.

----------
Flamepelt joined Flintstar and the others eyeing Cedarstream and Toadbounce.

[lio]

Duskfeather quickly rose to her paws, sending a distrusting glare toward the other leaders and deputies before she bounded to join Flintstar's side. Mocking the less fortunate? How hilarious. ThunderClan was still on the verge of starvation due to the burnt territory. They needed those Outskirts as leaf-bare held no mercy. The Torbie didn't comment, however, not wishing to have the leaders or deputies direct any of their childish words to her. She simply held her head up and looked around the clearing, making sure all of the ThunderClan cats were following. She turned to Flintstar and smiled. "I'll take up the back and make sure nobody gets lost along the way home," the deputy stated, flicking her tail, "Come on ThunderClan, let's go! Everyone needs to rest before the morning patrols, I don't want to catch anyone being lazy!" She let her voice rise, repeating the call for ThunderClan to usher everyone out of clearing faster.

[duckie]

Sootflare was taken aback by the apprentice's question and for a moment wasn't sure how to respond. It was a fair question to ask. For all the leaders' squabbling, it didn't seem like they could be at all bothered to care who might be hurt in their little game. He glanced around and it wasn't hard to catch sight of the WindClanners - skinny bodies and tired, desolate faces. Their clan was being trampled on without remorse. Who is really to blame when you're following orders? The one who gave the command, or those who followed it? Yellow eyes caught Fawnsqueak's gaze, hoping for some help - some tactful way to answer the question.

He glanced up as Lionstar called an end to the gathering and began collecting his clanmates to leave. It would certainly be an easy out, to just answer the leader's call and go home but it would leave the warrior with a heavy feeling of something left unfinished. He didn't want Elderpaw to believe he condoned the leaders' recent actions but wasn't sure how to convey that without taking responsibility for something they hadn't done, Lionstar had chosen to leave WindClan alone, after all. It wasn't like he could simply say sorry. Besides, what good was 'sorry' when your clan was starving?

"We should probably head out," he said, with another pointed look at Fawnsqueak, "Elderpaw, just- Just know we're not the bad guys, all right? We're not -... I just-... We should go."

implimm Dipper

[Moonraven]

Twilightstar didn't bother dignifying the insensitive Flintstar's words. This day and age the world was a harsh place, she didn't expect empathy or pity from him. It was nice and all that the tom was so blindly devoted to his clan, but could he not cut her clan a little break. If they had new territory to hunt couldn't they give back WindClan's? Every cat knew that even a sliver of territory could turn the tide between life and death during leaf-bare. She watched as Lionstar gathered his clanmates, uncertain on how to feel about his comment to Flintstar before his departure. Her eyes glanced in Flintstar's direction as he took his leave, uncertain what was going on between him and Icestar as she caught that small nod he gave to the Shadowclan leader.
That was it! In their former lives, Lionstar, Icestar, and Flintstar were in a love triangle! Since Lionstar and Icestar clearly weren't together anymore, Icestar has sunk her claws into the naive yet irksome Flintstar. It could be vice versa but she doubted it considering their personalities. Or maybe Icestar and Flintstar were having an affair behind Lionstar's back so he left her and that's why they fought like cats and dogs all the time? This could also explain why Lionstar was sort of standing up for Windclan. Twilightstar was an unfortunate extra in this soap opera and she wished they'd leave her and her clan out of.
The WindClan's leader's head was screwed on a little oddly, she blamed her mother for her former thoughts. Spotting Bramblebear as she walked off without any orders, Twilightstar parted her maw and called out. "WindClan, wrap up your chatter, we're heading back." With that she leaps off the rock, grimacing with at the nasty feeling of sand between her paws and began to head out, although she pauses as she spotted Mistyfern's familiar bulk with the medicine cats. Now, what were they up to?

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak was a bit puzzled by Twilightstar's nonchalant attitude at the gathering, but her professional address appeased any feelings of uncertainty over her qualifications. She seemed more involved and knowledgable than Bright... Brightsky, was it? He just wished they were doing better and hadn't been forced to resort to...

He shuddered. No, not the time to think about that. It was still as disturbing as the first time he'd stumbled across that WindClan cat eating another.

His attention was stolen by Flintstar speaking again. He wasn't even ThunderClan and wished he could hide under a rock after that string of embarrassments. The nicknames, the lighthearted tone, the mocking... it was gut-twisting to kick a Clan already down, one that had been out of the game for moons on end. It was just so tone deaf that it had Fawnsqueak, socially inept himself, cringing from how far from the mark it landed. "Wow.." it was an awed murmur, and he glanced around at the ThunderClan cats as if to measure if they were hearing this too. If they were proud of this, or if any of them had enough integrity to step up and tell their leader his bully behavior was atrocious. That was when his eyes paused on Duskfeather, recognition sparking-- the new deputy, according to a previous announcement. She'd been the one to receive him and Ferretwatcher, and have given a collected, serious appearance. Maybe she should be the one providing the announcements, as he was certain she'd have greater tact. An apprentice would, or perhaps a mature kit!

On behalf of Flintstar, he murmured with burning cheeks, "I... am so, so sorry. I don't know why he'd do that." Even Fawnsqueak had to hang his head a little, a thick swallow forcing its way down his throat. "You guys-- all of WindClan, are worthy of respect. And.." And they weren't getting it, at least from Flintstar. He missed Sootflare's silent cry for help, pawing at the ground in sheepishness.

Fawnsqueak's head raised when he was spoken to, trying to shake away the clawing guilt in order to actually focus. "H-hm?" He spared a glance from the Seastones to Sootflare, realizing. Lionstar had already jumped off. "Oh, I guess we're leaving?" That was probably for the best, he didn't think he could stay longer. The mention of not being the 'bad guys' had him grimacing, averting his gaze-- it sounded far too close to what Lionstar said when he was in the wrong. His jaw was working with no sound coming out, awkwardness catching up to him. With the rest departing, he felt confident enough to drop his voice to meow to Elderpaw, "If things ever get... really bad-- like, you need somewhere to go, or... something to eat..." Fawnsqueak peered at her pleadingly in hopes she understood.


implimm shortstack

[Freesia]

Thrushfeather's tail twitched slightly as he gazed around at the gathered cats. He wasn't really a huge fan of crowds, and had often opted out of coming to most gatherings. But, he did still come ever once in awhile, and this happened to be one of those times. And yet, the Shadowclan had somehow ended up a short ways from the rest of his clan, not that he really minded. He could still see and hear just fine, minus the chatter going on around him. And upon feeling a cat bump into him, the tom startled. Whirling around to face the other cat with a wide eyed expression, the ginger warrior was quick to apologize. "I'm sorry, was I in your way?" He hoped not, but regardless, he hoped this other cat would accept. Taking a step back so that the other cat- and himself- had more space, Thrush hesitantly sat back down and gave his chest fur a few quick licks to calm himself. He really shouldn't be so jumpy, but he was. And he couldn't really help that, as surrounded as cats as he was.


Glazewing looked the tom up and down. He didn't recognize this cat, but from his scent, he seemed to be in ShadowClan. He scrunched up his nose a little in disgust. He knew it was very out of character for him to act this way, but he justified his behavior by saying that he was grieving. "Yeah, you were," he answered bluntly. His reply came out a bit colder than he'd intended, and he tried to soften his expression. He sat down across from the tom. This ShadowClanner looked a little uncomfortable and skittish after Glazewing bumped into him, so the RiverClan warrior wanted to make up for that. He wasn't in a great mood, but he wasn't cold-hearted, either. "So...You're in ShadowClan?"

[Ever]

"Of course." She replied hastily, jade eyes rolling at his purr. She pushed her way past and through the dispersing cats to get to her gathering clan. Trying to make her way closer to the front. Cedarstream was eager to be back in the comfort of her territory.

hxneysuckle

[plum]

All around her, it seemed like cats were rushing to say their farewells and leave. Nobody wanted to look another in the eye for long. Nobody wanted to linger, lest the truth bite them in the neck after being delicately avoided all night long. Elderpaw saw her leader leave her station and heard the summons for her Clan to follow her away. Overhead, the moon stared down at them and lit them up, exposing everything that laid in the shadows.

Earlier that evening, the apprentice had been so excited and anxious. Her first debut into the rest of the World among all the Clans and not just her own, it was meant to be a good night. She was supposed to be feeling good about herself! Shutting her eyes against Fawnsqueak and Sootflare, Elderpaw wills herself to be calm. And after a heartbeat passes, she reopens those green eyes of hers and looks from one tom to the other. They seemed so nervous all of a sudden. Speechlessness gripped them both as they struggled to find something, anything to tell her. She felt sorry for them, too, suddenly, as a similar question runs through her mind. Did the warriors carrying out their duties deserve her resentment, or just the ones who commanded them?

It felt like everyone was giving up on Windclan. Letting it become a perished, once-prosperous memory. Even Fawnsqueak, who meant nothing but the best in his pleading suggestion to her, only ventured that far because a part of him didn't believe in her Clan. She gazes at him in a span of silence in which she slowly rises to her paws, tail lifting high.

"The stars themselves can turn their backs on us before I do," she mews in a trembling voice. The words were heavy for the young cat, who thought of her father for a brief second as she uttered them. Even him... "Twilightstar will bring us back to our full potential. But she needs warriors who want the same." When Elderpaw first arrived at the Gathering, she didn't think she would be speaking the words rolling off of her tongue now. But as she takes a step away from the two, her aching chest felt moons older. After she had been apprenticed, Quincetail left her alone to seek a safe place to live with more prey and less company. Now she had a stranger offering another alternative. Their faith in Twilightstar was slim to none, and she only had so much time to prove they could survive before her father came to collect her or another Clan found her too weak to say no anymore.

"Thank you, both of you. I'll remember tonight. And I'm sure we will meet again at the next Gathering." Elderpaw forces a proud purr to bid the RiverClanners a good night before turning and trying to keep pace with her Clanmates.

Dipper shortstack

[BEAR.]

BILL.

Hailstorm padded quietly along, checking occasionally to make sure Falconpaw was keeping up. It was his first gathering, and she was excited for him. She remembered hers, but not quite as fondly. Her mother had been watching and controlling her every move, making sure she didn't make a fool of her. She would be far different with this apprentice. She didn't want him to have a bad memory of this.
"Are you excited?" she turned to ask him, a gentle smile on her face.


"Yes." To say he was excited was an understatement. Falconpaw was eager to explore the sandy shoreline, to pester cats from the other Clans..

But it seemed they didn't have long before the leaders began to talk, and Falconpaw was quick to lose interest in the news of the other Clans as he focused his attention on his surroundings. Who could he bother? There were so many cats here, he didn't know where to begin even as it seemed some were leaving.

[open if anyone wants a brief interaction]

[Fawn]

Oh good! This trash ship had sailed and crashed before Iceflower even got tired of sitting on her rump. A new record and truly wowing experience since the leaders hadn't sat there and done nothing the entire time, and she was proud of her son for being a golden star of brilliance in a sea of stupidity. Iceflower rose from her spot and stretched, trotting toward where her clanmates were trickling out toward RiverClan territory. On her way, a small puffball caught her attention, and she gave him a mild smile. "Oh, what a little tiny cute," she said. "Cute because you not mine, but still cute." Not her problem, specifically. "With the little tiny cheek!" Iceflower papped him on the side of the face with her paw.


BILL.

[Jesse]

Mistyfern flicked an ear. No beating around the bush, huh? He liked that. Perhaps they’d get along. But who was this weirdo? Certainly not the Shadowclan medicine cat, he thought. And far too old to be an apprentice. Then what did they know about healing? Whatever, he didn’t have the patience to interrogate the guy about it and sure as Starclan wasn’t about to pass up on an opportunity to actually learn a thing or two.

Mistyfern’s silver-ticked maw tugged upward with mild amusement. “Alright.” He shrugged. “Fine.” If nothing else it meant he wouldn’t have to see that stink’s face for a while. Before he could say “lead the way”, another voice butted its way into the conversation. One look at its owner and his heart skipped a beat.

Oh.. For a moment he’d thought.. He let out a shaky breath. No, he was dead. He’d been dead for a long time.. But still his heart wrenched with disappointment. “.. Who the hell are you?”

Moon Lily BILL.

[doghouse]

Glazewing looked the tom up and down. He didn't recognize this cat, but from his scent, he seemed to be in ShadowClan. He scrunched up his nose a little in disgust. He knew it was very out of character for him to act this way, but he justified his behavior by saying that he was grieving. "Yeah, you were," he answered bluntly. His reply came out a bit colder than he'd intended, and he tried to soften his expression. He sat down across from the tom. This ShadowClanner looked a little uncomfortable and skittish after Glazewing bumped into him, so the RiverClan warrior wanted to make up for that. He wasn't in a great mood, but he wasn't cold-hearted, either. "So...You're in ShadowClan?"Thrush had been paying close attention to the other cat's expression, and he hadn't missed the way he'd scrunched up his nose, nor the coldness with which he'd replied. It made the warrior want to turn and slip away into the crowd, but he was also curious. Why or about what exactly, he couldn't be sure. It wasn't like Thrush had really done anything apart from get in his way. The guilt that he felt for that was quite clear in his expression, too. But as the other tom sat down, he seemed to relax a little bit. It was for the best that he didn't walk away, because he didn't want to leave this on a bad note. "I am.. My name is Thrushfeather," he said after a few moments, glancing over at the Seastones and then back at the other tom. He smelled quite a bit like Riverclan, but that did nothing to really deter him. "And you? Riverclan, correct?" He could be wrong, though it wouldn't matter much regardless of clan.

[BEAR.]

Weh! Falconpaw's mouth open in a quiet protest as his cheek was bapped.

He wasn't expecting the fishy lady to approach him, let alone to harass him so! His ears flattened back at her comments-- he wasn't little! Falconpaw was pretty sure he was bigger than her, minus her swollen belly. "I am not small!" He objected, puffing up his chest to show her just how strong and big he was! .. But he deflated at the mention of his tiny cheeks. "You have the tiny cheeks, they are very .. soft!"

[ Dipper ]

[Fawn]

Iceflower wasn't amused by his correction but ran with it anyway. "Okay, not small, just fat! Poof and fat." He still had to be young with that baby face of his, no matter what he did to try to bulk himself up. With another goodnatured bap to the cheek, she instructed him, "Save it for lady your age." Maybe they would be more interested in his silly masculine stances.

BILL.

[duckie]

Watching Elderpaw go, he opened his mouth to say something- something more, something to give her faith, something to make everything seem alright. But he came up short. It must be terrible watching your clanmates suffer and having everyone else turn a blind eye to your troubles. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil, right? If you pretend nothing's wrong then surely it will come true. How, exactly, do you start to fix that kind of transgression?

"I will be glad when we meet again, Elderpaw," he called back. There wasn't much he could say or do, but hopefully, she would find some solace in the difference between 'when' and 'if'.

[ Dipper implimm short post, sorry]

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak let out an uncomfortable cough in lieu of goodbyes, once again attempting to keep his gaze anywhere but on Sootflare or Elderpaw. He didn't know what to add, uncertain if he should voice his concerns about Elderpaw being WindClan's next snack since they'd been stooping to eating one another for food, but if she was confident in their ability to continue surviving, he wouldn't question it. Regardless, his heart hurt as she departed and simultaneously was a reminder they should do the same.

"Do.. you want.." Fawnsqueak was about to inquire Sootflare, then trailed off with a breathless laugh devoid of joy when he recognized how this might sound. "Not like a-- a.. romantic thing, or anything like that, I just.. did you want to walk home together? Um, as.. RiverClanners. Fellow RiverClanners. . . . Sorry." Fawnsqueak managed an apologetic, fleeting look. Yeah, he was just going to stop there and count his losses with socialization tonight.

shortstack

[Dirtfur]

Well it seems the end of the gathering is now up. As Lionstar calls for RiverClan to return to camp, Dirtfur padded down besides the leader. He looked back at the other High Ranks, giving them the stinky eye and stuck out his tongue at them. "Alright warriors, time is wasting, all behind me and Lionstar." he ordered his clanmates, padding towards his home-camp.

[BEAR.]

"I am not fat!!" That might be even more insulting than being called small! Falconpaw had to huff a little at the silly she-cat. She was strange, and despite her less-than-favored comments about him he found her endearing. "I am going to be the biggest, fiercest warrior in all the forest!" To showcase that, he let out a little hiss-squeak.

[ Dipper ]

[duckie]

The tom couldn't help but echo Fawnsqueak's half-hearted laugh,"I would be glad to accompany you home completely platonically, as fellow RiverClanners, not as a romantic thing or anything like that."

He didn't mean to make a mockery of the other warrior, just couldn't help but try and make a light joke to ease the weight of the evening. Someone could probably question the morals of such a thing but that wasn't something he was going to think about at the moment. He didn't wish to dwell in heavy thoughts any longer tonight.

"I will be glad to get back to the den and sleep. It's been a long night."

Dipper

[Fawn]

Iceflower papped him on the top of the head, apparently never really getting enough of prodding this puffball with her paw since his baby face was truly a wonder. And she didn't have to hear it complain when she left the Seastones, which was the best part. "Oh yes! Very very nice!" she complimented at his fierce hiss. "You already give me a big frighten with that!" With a flick of her tail, Iceflower moved on past the apprentice to join her departing clanmates.

BILL.

[BEAR.]

Falconpaw flattened his ears back as the weird but funny lady went on her own way. If all RiverClanners were like that, why did Icestar have so much beef? It must be her She-catly Emotions, he decided as he waited for ShadowClan to be dismissed.

[tye]

[late w. everything ha-]

"Oddly, it's nice to see you again. Wait, you..- you. Where have you been?!" his mind reeled back from the leader's speeches. It was boring to hear really. Blue eyes focused on Flowerpaw. "You know what? Don't bother explaining. It's understandable if you switched sides," sighing loudly he continued. Good thing he cleaned up before coming to the gathering or else he wouldn't hear the end of her insults. Seeing the leaders throw intense glares like swatting ball of flames in a blink of an eye the gathering was pretty much over. Great. Cats headed back in different directions and he stood up to follow the crowd. He tossed a questionable look at his ex-denmate wondering if she will join Windclan again. "Heading back to Riverclan?"

RedHead

[Fawn]

The tom couldn't help but echo Fawnsqueak's half-hearted laugh,"I would be glad to accompany you home completely platonically, as fellow RiverClanners, not as a romantic thing or anything like that."

He didn't mean to make a mockery of the other warrior, just couldn't help but try and make a light joke to ease the weight of the evening. Someone could probably question the morals of such a thing but that wasn't something he was going to think about at the moment. He didn't wish to dwell in heavy thoughts any longer tonight.

"I will be glad to get back to the den and sleep. It's been a long night."

Dipper
Fawnsqueak's ears flattened against his head in embarrassment at his stumble, and he was already convinced this was a mistake, he shouldn't have asked, shouldn't have subjected himself to this because he knew he wouldn't be smooth enough to just casually ask someone to walk back with him. Stars, he was the worst at this. And the most humiliating part was that Sootflare also now knew he was the worst too. "Okay," he said, the word squeaked out dryly when he remembered he should probably say something. As an afterthought, Fawnsqueak nodded definitively and repeated, "Okay. Yeah. Platonic walk. That's... normal." The comment about the den had Fawnsqueak's eyebrows quirked. "I'm not going with you to your nest though, if that's what you meant." A cough. Gaze sliding to the trail, Fawnsqueak asked, "You want to, um...?" Lead the way?

[duckie]

He laughed again, not fully registering the other tom's nervousness. Even if he had, he wouldn't comment on it. It only ever made things worse when other people pointed out your mistakes. Better to just gloss over them.

"No-, no that's not what I meant, bud. Even if it was, I'm sure Lionstar would have my hide for such a thing," he replied. Sootflare wanted to laugh that off too but found it shifting into a nervous cough. The idea of sharing a nest with another tom was a foreign thought to him, and certainly not what he meant. Though looking back now, he could see how it might seem that way... Nope. No. Certainly Not. Time to Move ON. Feeling his face flush, Soot quickly made to follow his clanmates.

"Right. Well, let's go, then." He began to pad along after the rest of RiverClan.

Dipper

[Vessel]

Slushie

Sunsnow's smile didn't falter. "Yeah, I'm fine!" Always am, when I'm with you.

Then Buckbranch leaned in and pressed his flank against his, curling his tail around him. Sunsnow's pelt immediately warmed, and not just because part of him was suddenly blocked from the cold. He was rendered speechless as those mysterious sparks once again danced through him, and the orange tom leaned against his clanmate, closing his eyes in pleasure.

I- I should tell him. I mean, I think he already knows, but maybe- maybe if I say it outright, he might admit he has the same feelings for me! Oh, I hope so. I hope this is a good idea, too.

[Vessel]

[CENTER]
Shrewpaw

The apprentice almost jumped out his fur as the apprentice now next to him started talking a mile a minute. Noticing he meant no harm fromt he goofy smile given brightly, he let his fur fall but still kept on guard. He still didn't trust other clans, even if their was a truce tonight. "I'm Shrewpaw of Windclan, and could you possibly calm down? You're irritating me a bit," he mumbled in reply as bluntly as possible. It was obvious this kitten's intentions, but Shrewpaw wasn't here to make friends. Now to think of it, did he have any friends? His thoughts we cut off just as he realized he didn't know what the appprentice's name was. "Nice to meet you too, what's your name?" And clan, he added but didn't say out loud.


Darkpaw's smile faltered a bit.

Me? Annoying? He couldn't really think that, right? I mean, he's probably jealous that he was born in stinky old Windclan and I Was born in the bestest clan of the forest!

His smiled returned one again, and he responded with; "The name's Darkpaw, and I'm from Thunderclan." The little tom leaned forward to tough his nose to Shrewpaw's.

[dino.]

[ Vessel ]

Buckbranch glanced up at Duskfeather's call, then looked to Sunsnow woth a gentle smile. "We'd better get going, huh? I don't want Flintstar angry at me for something else. Or Duskfeather, for that matter." He stood, short fur already fluffing up against the cold again. He was completely oblivious to the conflict Sunsnow was harboring, but still noticed something, and he turned, blinking at his friend with warm eyes. "Are you sure you're ok, Sunshine?"

[Vessel]

Slushie

It's now or never, Sunshine. He took a deep breath, nodded, than said;

"I- I really like you. I might even- I might even-"

Love you, was what he wanted to say, but he worried that it was too soon to tell.

But I should probably be more specific, just in case he thinks I'm just saying I like him as a friend.

"I- I mean, when I'm around you I always want to smile, and it hurts when I'm not, and you have the most beautiful eyes in all the clans, and when you look at me my heart starts to thrum and there a mice running around in my stomach and I just feel all warm and fuzzy when I think of you and- and-"

He broke off, pelt warming. Was that too much?

[dino.]

[ Vessel ]

The tortoiseshell searched Sunsnow's face, blinking in bemusement. He couldn't understand what was happening. "Wait, what are you- I don't-"

Oh. Oh, StarClan, no. It couldn't be. He took a step back, slowly shaking his head. "Sunsnow, I can't..." Deep breath, Buckbranch. You have to do this without hurting him. I can't afford to hurt him. Deep breath in, deep breath out. Eyes closed, eyes open. He stepped forward again, pressing his nose to Sunsnow's cheek. "I am so, so sorry," he breathed. "But I don't... I only see you as a friend, and if I'd had any idea you'd felt that way..." Stars, Sunsnow probably hated him now. He drew back, eyes sad and reproachful. "I'm sorry. I don't know what to say. I mean, you flatter me, and I wish I could say I harbored the same feelings, but... maybe we can still be friends?"

[Moon Lily]

BILL. Xeno
[Sorry I'm so late!]

Irispaw wandered through the crowd, gawking at the hoard of cats. It would be much harder to navigate through without Tallmarsh around. She darted through the mob, carefully dodging any cat she encountered. Picking out the herb-ish scent that she interpreted as medicine cats, she followed it with care. She approached two toms, one a blue-grey, and the other a ginger. She approached them carefully, avoiding the remaining cats. She looked up at the blue-grey tom. He smelt like a Windclan cat through all those herbs. The ginger smelt...like Shadowclan, but...not...like Shadowclan? That was strange. The blueish one seemed to question someone, but she wasn't sure who it was directed at.

"What do you mean, 'who are you?'" She mewed, confused. could be have asked the ginger cat? She realized she had just butted in, and silently cursed herself.
"Erm, hi! Are you medicine cats? Sorry to barge in... " She mewed, glancing between the two.

[BEAR.]

"Good." Thunderhowl was glad this was so easy. He almost expected him to be more suspicious about the proposition, but he wasn't going to complain. He looked over at Irispaw as she approached, the tip of his tail twitching. "Ah, Irispaw. Glad you could make it-- I'm takin' Mistyfern back to ShadowClan in a moment for trainin'. Care to join us? Could do you some good, I know learnin' ain't been so great recently."

He was cautious-- doing his best to not outright insult Tallmarsh despite his dislike of her. He didn't want to scare Irispaw off. [ Xeno, Moon Lily ]

[Dust]

Pinepaw watched with wide eyes. She'd never seen cats raise their voices so much. Sure, at gatherings cats spoke their minds and fought a little- but it didn't feel like this. Her tail tapped against the ground eagerly. As Pebblepaw leaned in and whispered, she shrugged.

"Who knows? Might be fun... But I don't think this is really the right place for that. Aren't there rules about it?" She frowned, she wasn't really sure. There were still rules to the warrior code and the balance between the clans that she was learning. She'd only heard whispers about what had happened between Shadowclan and Riverclan though. She hadn't talked to Flintstar about it either so she the details and accusations she was hearing were very intruiging. Her eyes shifted over to the tom beside her and away from the fiesty argument below. "Also... were you there at the fight between the two clans? I never asked Flintstar what happened when he was training me- but he seemed on edge about whatever had happened."

Pebblepaw thought for a moment, "I think there are rules, yeah. I'm not too sure, I'd have to ask my mentor!" But as Pinepaw prodded on about the fight, he grew a bit solemn. With wide eyes, Pebblepaw shook his head.

"I wasn't there," The apprentice meowed in a hushed tone, his normally playful demeanor gone, "But it was dangerous from what I know. We lost our deputy, Frostfli- err- fall... I think that's what they're fighting about up there." He nodded towards the Seastones. "ShadowClan lost a few clanmates too, I think at least.. and a few of our cats got injured -" As Pebblepaw was about to continue on, the sudden call of Lionstar's voice made him jolt with surprise, turning his head to spot the leader.

"We're leaving already?" Pebblepaw whined, turning his attention back to Pinepaw. "Looks like we'll have to catch up later.. Sorry, Pinepaw!" Back to his usual self, he jumped up to his paws, beaming at the other apprentice. "See ya!" With a wave of his tail, he was off - following his clan-mates out of the gathering!

[RedHead]

[late w. everything ha-]

"Oddly, it's nice to see you again. Wait, you..- you. Where have you been?!" his mind reeled back from the leader's speeches. It was boring to hear really. Blue eyes focused on Flowerpaw. "You know what? Don't bother explaining. It's understandable if you switched sides," sighing loudly he continued. Good thing he cleaned up before coming to the gathering or else he wouldn't hear the end of her insults. Seeing the leaders throw intense glares like swatting ball of flames in a blink of an eye the gathering was pretty much over. Great. Cats headed back in different directions and he stood up to follow the crowd. He tossed a questionable look at his ex-denmate wondering if she will join Windclan again. "Heading back to Riverclan?"

RedHead


“Switched sides? I did no such thing. There’s no sides here Warblerpaw, right now it’s about survival.” Flowerpaw meowed, flicking her tail flippantly in his direction as she sent him a glare. But, she did grant him a smile afterwards. He’d said it was nice to see her again, that was something Flowerpaw liked to hear. Meant he missed her, that was... sweet. The she-cat stood as she spotted her new clan beginning to leave, but she turned back to address Warblerpaw. “For now, yes.” She grinned, tail curling behind her as she took a couple steps towards the gathering Riverclan cats, eyes still locked on Warblerpaw. ”I’ll be seeing you around though fluff-face, maybe hanging around the Riverclan border more would be good for you. You won’t have to miss me so much.” She purred, her tone sickly sweet as she gave a deliberate wink. “I’ll come back to you soon enough pretty-boy.”
Then the calico turned and trotted down the hill, tail held high behind her, joining the throng oF Riverclan cats.

vermin

[Jesse]

Mistyfern quirked a brow at his mini doppelganger. Oh.. Irispaw.. Who was she again? He didn’t know and didn’t really care enough to ask. Whatever.

“Are we going or not?” He pressed impatiently, his tail kicking up the sand behind him.’

Moon Lily BILL.

[tye]

Survival.
Thinking back to when his painful hunger took over, eating whatever- whoever in order to quiet down the beast in his belly. Blazing disgust and hate darkened of those green and blue eyes of his higher ups. He shuffled his paws, clawing the ground at just thinking of how close he was to being exiled. It was like being sentence to death. But, maybe if he'd followed the pawsteps Flowerpaw took- his life wouldn't be so difficult. Let's face it! Windclan is a mess and he's miserable. Flowerpaw's intense locked gaze made him a tad nervous. What is she up to..? Though, ignoring all the red flags her alluring tone definitely sent a static wave through him. The calico's mouth open yet the words was stuck in the back of his throat. Her dripping sweet words kindled his heart just ever so slightly. "Riverclan border? Hm..okay," his tail swayed high in delight. Once she turned head, he did the same and exit out the scene.
[ RedHead ]

[Moon Lily]

BILL. Xeno

Irispaw stepped back at the order, stunned. What in Starclan!? Why would he tell me this? Would Tallmarsh let me? I want training, but...Oh, I wish Tallmarsh was here! She gathered enough courage to talk.
"Excuse me? I don't even know you, and now you're offering to take me to Shadowclan? I can't! I have so much responsibility, and Tallmarsh doesn't know, and, and..." She huffed, catching her breath.

"What are your names anyway? I don't even know...and you, the ginger one? You just smell weird. Look, as long as Tallmarsh knows where I've been, I'll come. Alright?" She offered. She was quietly leaping with joy at the new opportunity - She hadn't had much training, and she was excited to receive some.

[Ever]

Pebblepaw thought for a moment, "I think there are rules, yeah. I'm not too sure, I'd have to ask my mentor!" But as Pinepaw prodded on about the fight, he grew a bit solemn. With wide eyes, Pebblepaw shook his head.

"I wasn't there," The apprentice meowed in a hushed tone, his normally playful demeanor gone, "But it was dangerous from what I know. We lost our deputy, Frostfli- err- fall... I think that's what they're fighting about up there." He nodded towards the Seastones. "ShadowClan lost a few clanmates too, I think at least.. and a few of our cats got injured -" As Pebblepaw was about to continue on, the sudden call of Lionstar's voice made him jolt with surprise, turning his head to spot the leader.

"We're leaving already?" Pebblepaw whined, turning his attention back to Pinepaw. "Looks like we'll have to catch up later.. Sorry, Pinepaw!" Back to his usual self, he jumped up to his paws, beaming at the other apprentice. "See ya!" With a wave of his tail, he was off - following his clan-mates out of the gathering!

Pinepaw drank in the details, the shift in his humor meant that it must have been bad for both clans. She shivered to think if such a fight fell upon her clan. She hoped it wouldn't for some time, she needed to finish her training so that she could put up a good fight.

She opened her mouth to protest his quick retreat, but noticed her clan doing the same. A small gap of frustration left her parted maw as she watched cats everywhere begin to shift and move, returning to their leaders. This had all happened so quick! She'd barely had time to take in everything! With one last longing look over the smoothest stones and the large expanse of water beyond, Pinepaw finally turned and dashed after her clan.

[SuspiciousMindz]

Applefluff padded into the clearing, the scent of riverclan overwhelming and salty. He’d stressed coming to a gathering.. he hadn’t been to one since his father died. So realistically he had no need to otherwise.. but after seeing Cedarbug the other day he felt.. a want to come? Just in case the warrior was there as well. He sheepishly smiled to himself and anxiously shuffled through the crowd looking for the familiar orange and white pelt before- there! There he was! A sense of relief washed over him. Padding around a few clanmates he approached the tom from the side before gently bumping shoulders with him. “Cedar” he greeted kindly ”I was hoping you’d have come tonight” he mrrowed quietly to him smiling

SuspiciousMindz

Cedarbug was taken by surprise as someone said his name. The warrior turned his head to see a familiar WindClanner. Eyes brightening with elation, Cedarbug got to his paws and gave the other warrior a friendly shoulder nuzzle before realizing what he had done. He felt his face and ears grow hot and he smiled sheepishly at Applefluff. "Ah-" he gave a small chuckle "I'm glad you came! I was hoping you'd be able to make it, I feel like I've never seen you at these before," Cedarbug replied, trying to act like the nuzzle hadn't happened.

[BEAR.]

Well, this one wanted to be annoying. "You ain't doin' anything with that responsibility if you can't properly heal a cat, kid. Who cares if Tallmarsh don't know? She ain't your ma." He liked the older one better. Indifferent and to the point, not.. childish.

"Name's Thunderhowl, and that one there is Mistyfern. He's WindClan's medicine cat, and I'm the sorry fella overseein' Bearpaw's trainin' in ShadowClan." Thunderhowl flicked his ears at her request. "Hey, Tardymarsh! I'm takin' your apprentice for some trainin'!"

And he didn't plan on staying around for her to respond, if she even heard his bellow. "Let's go."

On his way out of the thinning clearing, he didn't wait to see if they were following him. He wasn't here to kitsit them-- they were both old enough to make decisions for themselves.

[ Xeno, Moon Lily, Delta [ since tall was briefly yelled to ] ]

[Moon Lily]

BILL. Xeno Delta

Irispaw glared briefly at the tom, fur prickling with annoyance. Who was he to tell her what to do with her responsibility?! To act like she was a kit!? Fox-heart., she thought angrily. She stamped her anger down, opting to place her chin high and act like she didn't care. She could do that. After all, arguing would just keep them here.

"Tallmarsh." She shot back at Thunderhowl. She despised the nickname he'd decided to give her mentor. She let the butterflies in her stomach settle as she followed the toms out of the clearing- her thoughts swimming with excitement. She'd never been to another camp before. Looking back at Thunderclan, she tried to look for Tallmarsh in the crowd, to no avail. Sighing, she continued to tramp after them.

[Freesia]

Xeno Moon Lily BILL.
Tallmarsh’s ears pricked up at a nickname yelled across the clearing that sounded like her name. She turned to see Irispaw leaving with two other unfamiliar cats. Immediately, she made her way over. “Where do you think you’re going with my apprentice?” she snapped at the two toms. She noted that one of them smelled like herbs and WindClan, and the other reeked of ShadowClan. One of the medicine cats, perhaps? Whoever they were, she didn’t care. She was just concerned with Irispaw being swept off by strange cats from different Clans.

[Moon Lily]

Xeno Delta BILL.

Irispaw turned in the direction of Tallmarsh's voice. She recognized the dark-furred she-cat and smiled, stepping forwards.
"Tallmarsh! I was looking for you!" She yelled happily. Tallmarsh was here! She could help! She could get the strange ginger cat under control! But in the midst of her fantasies, she realized not all of it was true. Thunderhowl certainly wouldn't let her. She turned to the tom, glancing up at him, to see how he'd react.

[pidgeon]

Icestar simply cast harsh glares at the cats who dared speak up against her, but didn't give them the satisfaction of a sharp response. Nothing really had changed since the last gathering. The same clans were at odds, cats were still bickering, the usual. She cast a scowl at Lionstar when he spun his tale about her deputy. Maybe part of it was true, but she believed that Beastspark had been entirely valid in what he did. That silvery weasel deserved to die. She remained un-intimidated by Twilightstar and her empty threats to reclaim her territory. WindClan wouldn't stand a chance against ShadowClan. She did, however, like the spirit of this new leader. She could respect her determination.

When the last leader finally finished their announcements, she saw no further reason to stay. She glanced to Thunderhowl, no doubt enacting the plan he'd mentioned to her, and gave him a nod.

"ShadowClan, we're going home now," She yowled into the clearing, leaping down from the stones. She had no interest in staying and chatting with the other leaders this time.

BILL. Undertaker Moonraven RedHead

[Vessel]

Slushie

Sunsnow could feel his whole world crumbling beneath his paws. It all... shattered. Suddenly, the cavern in his heart that Buttercup had managed to fill was empty once more.

He doesn't want me. I'm an idiot for thinking anyone could.

The tom's eyes brimmed with tears that he could hardly hold back, and he let out a choked sob.

No, I have to hide it. Have to. I can't let anyone feel sorry for me, especially not him. What kind of warrior would I be then?

After a few moments of him sitting there, glassy-eyed, Sunsnow took a deep breath and said; "Yeah. We can still be friends, absolutely." Then he smiled again, but he knew that it would never be the same.

With that, the orange tom flicked his tail and led the way out of the clearing.

[Leucos]

getting up sootpaw head on back home.

[Pepperkins]

[CENTER]Darkpaw's smile faltered a bit.

Me? Annoying? He couldn't really think that, right? I mean, he's probably jealous that he was born in stinky old Windclan and I Was born in the bestest clan of the forest!

His smiled returned one again, and he responded with; "The name's Darkpaw, and I'm from Thunderclan." The little tom leaned forward to tough his nose to Shrewpaw's.


Shrewpaw

He almost hissed as all his fur stood on end from the touch. He absolutely hated being touched and he especially didn't want to touch noses with this mangy cat from Thunderclan. He jumped back angrily, growling lowly as he forced his fur to lay flat again. Finally gaining his composure, he sat back down, a tail length away from the apprentice, Darkpaw it was. "Don't touch me," he hissed simply, ending it at that. He wasn't up for conversation, and this cat surely had ruined his mood now, "What makes you so proud to say your clan's name like that any ways, not like their any better than the rest of us."