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Spider-Leap
[OPEN]
Owlfeather trudged into camp, her paws covered in soot and her mouth full of soggy prey. She dropped her mouse and a few frogs on the fresh-kill pile, sighing at how pitifully small it seemed to look. At least she knew why prey had been so scarce now. She was followed by Greythrush and Larkpaw, who seemed equally shaken up.
She didn't dare go to the highbranch. It wasn't right; it wasn't her place to stand there, to shout the summons that a leader normally would. She refused to do it, out of respect for Windystar. Instead, she waited in the center of the clearing, for cats to return from patrols or to emerge from their dens. She would speak to the other senior warriors first, with any luck.
She waited for the presence of her clanmates, of cats whose presence made her feel safe and strong. She felt like a speck of ash floating through an infinite forest of bare trees, just coasting along, going where the wind took her. She knew that the news would spread through the camp as quick as that fire had spread from ThunderClan.
As cats filed around her, the camp beginning to buzz with life, she quietly asked each one that passed her if they would wait here for a moment. It was important. She cherished the presence of her family members among the group, their kind eyes giving her a silent charge of confidence. She gazed towards the two cats who stood beside her and nodded.
"The fire has spread from ThunderClan," She spoke at last, once a fair number of cats had gathered.
"Thank StarClan it didn't reach our camp, but a fair chunk of our territory has been affected. Greythrush, Larkpaw and I had a difficult time finding prey this morning when we stumbled upon what was left of the stretch of land closest to the ThunderClan border. The rains seem to have doused it, but we must use caution when going out, just in case. I'd imagine that there are many loose branches that could fall and hurt a cat." She carried on, her voice uncertain. Her tail was curled defensively around her paws, in a small gesture of self-comfort.
"A lot of our prey seems to have fled due to the damage." At this notion, her eyes flicked towards the small pile of fresh-kill nearby. She hoped there was enough left to at least feed them for a day.