March Gathering

[Levi 99]

Originally Posted by lio

NIGHTHOUND
huge, dark grey tabby tom with orange eyes and many scars.
he/him

Nighthound was both shocked and unsurprised by the explanation Dawnstar had given. A young cat had been killed brutally, yes, but that did not change the fact of what Dawnstar had said. If that Dawnpaw apprentice had crossed the border... well, that was his own fault. Even if the conclusion was less than satisfactory. He shook his head and sighed, but turned as he heard his own Clanmate begin to spew needless words, pointed toward a ThunderClan cat who had said his own opinion. Really, cats needed to learn to shut up.

Orange eyes narrowed and he frowned, stepping toward Shadefrost with an unimpressed expression. "Keep your claws to yourself, Shadefrost. There is no need for such gruesome threats at a Gathering. Dawnstar has already said what she wanted- it is time to be mature and leave it be," Nighthound growled. Really, did anyone not know how to keep their emotions in check and their words to themselves? He didn't stand for needless killings, or even threats for that matter. ShadowClan was more than just a group of bloodthirsty fiends awaiting any chance to kill every cat they get their paws on. At least, Nighthound thought of it that way.

In regards to the ThunderClanner, the huge tabby tom shared only a brief flick of his ear. "Whilst skinning was a bit harsh... there is no reason for us not to believe the apprentice crossed our border. According to Dawnstar's words, Vixensnarl did was she saw was fitting for our Clan, and that is that. No amount of arguing or throwing blame will bring a dead apprentice back to life," Nighthound spoke, his voice gruff.

As he stood, his eyes trailed to the sky. There were clouds above with a roaring in the distance. The moon was nowhere to be found. He didn't particularly believe in Starclan, but... if there was something up there, it didn't seem the most pleased.

@Levi 99 @Octavia!

”Are you my mother,” said Shadefrost with a warning, ”I didn’t think so. Now mind your business, I was only telling this one what WOULD happen if he decided to be stupid.

[carmen]

cw: hate, emotional distress

Up until now, Foxflurry had sat by herself. The corner of the clearing, uncomfortably close to one of the enforcers, but still out of the way of the others. She was here for one reason alone, to watch Pebs and Wolfie and make sure there wasn't a single cat out there who touched them. Not again, not again. She had been ignoring the furious looks of Shadowclan, the blank looks that came from idiots filled with fantasies of bloodlust. They'd all be dead one day, dust and bones and under the dirt. She'd laugh at them as they fell, and whether that was from the stars or the earth, she didn't care. No one lived forever. Hell, if she didn't know that.

Freezing, eyes dilated at Thrushfur. Talk talk talk. Dawnpaw. Talk talk talk. Dawnpaw. Hub-bub and words and Dawnpaw. Dead dead dead. Poor Dawnpaw. Blood blood blood. Dead Dawnpaw. Just a kid, just a kid. Flashes of his body, colors of red and red and that small bit of gold. Just the face, just the face. Nothing left. Nothing left. Head snapped towards one of the idiots, neck aching from tension, ears pinned back as he began to whine whine whine. Teeth flashed but she didn't move. Dawnpaw Dawnpaw Dawnpaw. And suddenly Cinderpaw was there, speaking talking moving. Saying the things that she couldn't see and mentioning her and mentioning what had been there. And still all the other guy did was whine whine whine.

A pretty she-cat came to his defense and still she couldn't move. She couldn't breathe as she watched him lie lie lie. Don't make another mistake. Don't give in to what they want. Whine whine whine. Thunderclan were the ones whining? Of course, they had certainly brought up that someone had crossed the border, brought up that murder was fine, brought up that they deserved to be thrown to the crows without a pelt. This wasn't whining, this was truth, the words falling around her as the night darkened filled with decaying conscious.

Not a word or they'll break you. They'll tear you apart and call you weak for caring, though she didn't see them mourning. She didn't see a single tear regarding the four that were just mentioned. A smirk touched her lips, fake, not reaching her eyes. Four. There was another, wasn't there? Thornscar? The villain her claws had torn apart. Five. And Thunderclan- four. They hadn't won, the scars adorned by those around her proof of this, yet look around. They had survived. And maybe it would all be okay, maybe she'd be able to ignore it, until the clod threatened Darkpetal and she snapped.

Cold again.

"I'm sorry." A purr rumbled in her throat as she meandered over to the trio. "I happened to overhear your scurry of half-witted threats. Truly though, I find those unfair. Blood was spilled already, haven't you heard? And if you wanted to be such a cad, you really should have been there. Here, I'll give you a summary." She cleared her throat, eyes still dull and uninterested. "My sister, being the light-hearted child that she is, accidentally crossed the border. The rest of her patrol following to keep her safe. They came across their own group of your cats, and though none of them deserved death, true to your rules, they were killed." A glint of hatred. "The result of course, was that those who didn't know what had happened arrived to the scene to see the border bathed in the blood of the fallen and it went on from there."

"I'm not defending Thunderclan, but keep up with that, act like you're so special, and maybe you can join them. Mossfang and her attempt to murder a baby who wasn't fighting. Thornscar and his attempt to leave me dead. We paid in blood and so did you, so please, keep talking and I'll see you after the gathering. Five can become six." Words still stayed bland and angry. "Cause while Vixensnarl was killing a child on our side of the border, I ended up finding the body of my apprentice. And you sit here making threats you can't back up."

She knew Dawnpaw, she knew he was stubborn, but stupid? No. He hadn't crossed the border. The blood was on both sides, but there were no teeth on the skinned body, no sign it had been dragged. He had been killed on their side. She could vaguely recognize Nighthound, trying to mend his clanmates mistake. Because Dawnpaw hadn't crossed the border. She had found the body. "Whine, whine, whine. You don't deserve to live."

@lio.
@Octavia
@Levi 99

[Red Dawn]

A dark fury took him, and a low and angry growl came out of his throat, the only thing that retained him from just ripping that cat was his self-control, he calmed himself down with a huge difficulty, who was the leader to speak like this about his clan? But Dawnstar spoke, sending a verbal missile to Thrushfur, he had a small smile, take that!

[iliri]

{Springpaw}

cw: possible panic attack warning, mentions of death

So many mentions of death. Death of children. So much anger. Springpaw couldn’t help but drag her eyes over towards every cat that had decided to speak. Dawnstar’s vulgar words echoed in the ThunderClan’s apprentices head. All of the arguing felt like a rock had decided to plummet down upon her small body. It made her feel small. Weak. Vulnerable. Her paws felt numb and weak, almost as if they were bound to buckle beneath her at every given moment. Every time a word would bubble up her throat, it would always seemingly drag itself back down again. She couldn’t handle this sudden arguing. This was supposed to be a gathering. A peaceful gathering of all the clans. Not… this. What clan should she believe? Her own? ShadowClan? Hell, her brain just felt out of place. She couldn’t properly think of each word the suppressed out of each leader’s mouth. What could she do? She was just an apprentice.

That’s when it hit her. That horrible, tightening feeling hitting her right in the face.

Her chest suddenly felt tight, her throat suddenly felt like it collapsed on her. Her legs felt so weak that her back legs gradually just gave up. Her breathing gradually quickened, her claws sinking themselves into the murky snow below. No… No, no, no… not now. Desperation and fear began to strike through Springpaw, tears suddenly prickling at the corners of her sore eyes, her shaking muscles tensing up. She couldn’t help her now suddenly pounding heart against her chest. It felt so hard to breathe. So hard to speak. She felt like she was surrounded and vulnerable to any given threat to hit at her. She wanted this night to end. StarClan was already angry enough. The booming sound of angered voices already filling her head, sounding rather distorted and chilling to her. She wanted to speak. She wanted to be heard. Only staggering rapid breaths and sobs escaped the overwhelmed molly. She tried to keep it down, but her desperate attempts only managed to worsen the situation. The tightening feeling worsening and her inability to speak raising. Her dilated, fear-filled eyes kept darting back and forth between cats from all clans, her breathing hitching as her throat tightened itself completely that she couldn’t utter a singular sound.

She wanted help. No, she needed help. Where was she espoused to find that when all she heard was the loud screeching of angered cats and such vulgar words? She didn’t know, nor could she think about it.

[OPEN]

[Ian]

╔══════ ❀•°❀°•❀ ══════╗
Vixensnarl
╚══════ ❀•°❀°•❀ ══════╝

The Enforcer took note of the lack of deputies on the Seastones, an inquisitive gleam in her green eyes. Fallownose's was quickly explained by sickness, so perhaps RiverClan had the same issue. It seemed Thrushfur had taken over leadership when Sparrowstar went and got herself caught by twolegs. Then he brought up a dead apprentice by the name of Dawnpaw. That must have been the one she had killed.

When Dawnstar spoke on it, she sat a bit straighter but, other than that, gave no reaction. If her Clanmates wanted to taunt the kittypets about it, they could, but she would continue to do her duty of watching for outsiders. Mirehound had already dealt with one, which went to show that her job needed doing.

[Open]

[elaif]

~ Haven'gaze~

Sitting far in the back of the gathered cats, Haven'gaze continued to add reasons to why Dawn'star deserved to rot in the pits of hell. Fight after fight, accusation after accusation, and it just continued to add up. He felt nothing but pure embarrassment and shame for being associated with Shadowclan.
And these feelings only grew when the mention of a dead apprentice arose. Not only had the poor scrap been murdered, but he had also been skinned. Skinned as if he was nothing more than a piece of prey. And who had committed such a heinous act? An enforcer. Vixen'snarl to be exact.
It seemed that Dawn'star would have a new roommate in the boiler rooms.
A painful mixture of guilt, grief and hatred stirred within his chest, how could anyone try to prove this as an act of justice? It was nothing but an excuse, a rather pathetic one at that...
It was obvious that Vixen'snarl was just a transparent coward, who fulfilled her bloodlust by slaughtering a child... Wishing he could say this came as a surprise, Haven'gaze certainly expected nothing less from Shadowclans Higher Ranks. And what a pitiful thing it was to conclude on.
The tom was in too much of a mental disarrange to speak up, and while he had missed his chance now, there was still plenty of time in the future. And during that time, he wouldn't be sharing words. After all, it was impossible to argue with idiots, but perhaps if spoke their langue, his point would be made.
Actions essentiality spoke louder than words.

( gahhh- just a small reaction to this mess, also @/NinjaBloss for Vixen mentions )

[poppy]

Dear god, what a mess. The caramel furred Rosecougar listened to Shadefrost piss off cat after cat, and she rolled her eyes lightly as he threatened some molly. "Christ, Shadefrost." She murmured, but decided not to intervene because she wasn't the one being threatened. Her Clanmates weren't being in danger, so the tiny warrior frowned playfully as an overly assuming warrior came over. "I'm sorry, were you present during his death? That's the only way you would know so much, because there were two cats that know what happened and the only one able to talk has already shared what went down. Otherwise, you're just assuming that the ShadowClanner was in the wrong, and that your high and mighty beloved Dawnpaw was purely innocent. Contrary to popular opinion, and unlike yourselves, we don't kill young or let kids die just because. We set boundaries, and they were disrespected and ignored multiple times, and you're just pissed off because you don't like the consequences. If you don't want your kids to be punished, might I suggest actually effectively teaching them where the border is? Because they seem to not know."

Nighthound's words echoed in her ears, and she glanced back at him, icy blue eyes flashing with a slight challenge as she debated whether or not to listen, but she eventually decided to listen, nodding with a small purr, sitting down, still beside the very pissed Shadefrost, ready to shut him up if needed. Her eyes flashed to the same molly that Shade was threatening as Icestar's name was speaking up.

A primal, guttural growl rumbled in the molly's throat, like a beast sat within the confining walls of her body. "Keep Icestar's name out of your filthy mouth, squirrel. In case you haven't noticed, Dawnstar and Icestar aren't the same cat, and Dawnstar can command this Clan as she pleases." She warned breathily, claws itching to rip down the lass's face but she restrained herself. "Your beloved medicine cat apprentice wasn't present when it happened, and if you were listening, you would be able to hear the true circumstances of Dawnpaw's death. Open your ears and shut your ego up for a few seconds to actually listen."

Glancing up and over at Shadefrost as he decided to mouth off to Nighthound, who she truly believed was trying to help, she reach over to lightly tap the ground next to him to get his attention. "Oh, be nice to Nighthound. He's just trying to keep the squirrels from losing their tempers. Just take a deep breath, dude." She paused, then added, "And maybe don't threaten. The poor things are sensitive enough already." Then, turning to the ThunderClanners gathered, she flattened her ears slightly, tawny pelt bristling with slight frustration.

"If you don't want to deal with the consequences, then teach your children about the borders. Our boundaries have been made clear and the expectation has been repeated over and over and over again. It is your own ignorance that is leading to the carnage on the border. Care for your young, instead of blaming us for enforcing the rules we put in place. And I think Dawnstar said it best; the way we choose to punish trespassers is our business, and if you don't like it, then simply don't trespass. It's not that complicated." her eyes moved to a diluted calico cat, who was panicking. Of course. A child that ThunderClan wasn't taking care of.

She pointed her tail at Springpaw, knowing that any attempts at helping her would be taken as an attack, so she tried to redirect the Squirrel's attentions to the very clear problem. "Here's your chance to start taking care of your kids. Take it."

[ @carmen @Levi 99 @ares @lio @Octavia! ]

[carmen]

Cardinalpaw

Being they absolute genius they were, Cardinalpaw wasn't surprised as the other apprentice began to calm. She knew it would work, her own experience with the feelings of safety that came from the talk of her sister. Cardinal was safest around her, and she wouldn't be surprised if that was the same for Springpaw. Oh? One of them was there? Her ear twitched and eyes glanced around, stopping on the orange calico spoken of. Oh! They grinned suddenly at her name and stared back at Springpaw. "Your names!" They matched. Spring and Autumn, opposites. And boy, they seemed to be opposites. The sister moved around with a grave, a confidence that was unmatched. And here in front of her was a cat that seemed to be anything but. Afraid of the world, she was, and Cardinalpaw didn't know how to fix that. Or know how to fix it. The side of their face moveed up a bit at the mention of adventures, something fun and unusual that had them grinning. Adventure sounded nice, though they weren't one to do anything to get them in trouble, they liked the sound of it. Really like the sound of it. Explore.

"Oh dear, what has he gotten himself into?" The most words she'd said in a sentence since she had gotten here, the most words to someone outside of her family. But Springpaw had earned it. Besides, they wanted to learn more about Winterpaw, how did someone get themself into such a situation where they couldn't come to a gathering? How interesting. Oh? "My- my sister. Robinpaw." Head tilted as once again she looked for the sign of her sibling. "She is not here." And while she wanted to stay silent, keep their words for later, the best they could do was hold back the most of it. "She is funny." Honestly, she didn't understand much of her sister, the twittering bird twin being her opposite. Just like Autumn and Spring. Except, Robins and Cardinals were the same, both birds. "She looks like me? Eyes are reversed, though." A gesture from one eye to the other, showing that blue eye and green were the opposite. They were siblings, nothing but siblings, and that's all they knew.

Of course, everything was going right, so something had to go wrong. Eyes widened at Shadowclan and Thunderclan being snappy and angry and hating each other. They didn't shrink back, but a few blinks showed nothing but confusion. Dang bro, maybe they should start paying attention at their words. A quick glance was given to Twilightstar, though upon her saying nothing, they turned back to Springpaw, only for Springpaw to seemingly be falling apart again. Come on, man? All they wanted was for their first gathering to be alright, and now it was like this. Moving around to block Springpaw's view, they blinked once, slowly. "It's okay. Don't look. It's okay." And they meant it.

Sorta.

@ares

[Levi 99]

Shadefrost hardly paid any mind to Cinderpaw as she spoke, though he heard his name being mentioned at least once. However, his attention was mainly focused on this new cat who’d openly challenged him to a fight. “Alright then,” he said with a tiny smile ”I’ll see you at the border,” he paused and turned toward Cinderpaw. “And of course you’re welcomed to join as well, I wouldn’t mind.”
@carmen @jupiter

[lio]

NIGHTHOUND
huge, dark grey tabby tom with orange eyes and many scars.
he/him

Okay, really, was this guy just stupid?

Nighthound could hardly stifle the urge to roll his eyes as Shadefrost avoided his attempts to get the tom to calm down. His tail lashed, annoyance beginning to bubble within him. Really, was Shadefrost keen on single-pawedly making ShadowClan's reputation even worse than it already was? Please! This imbecile just needed to calm the hell down and shut the hell up.

With the addition of Rosecougar, Nighthound nodded his head as a silent show of thanks before returning his gaze to Shadefrost. He would focus on the ThunderClanner's speaking, but... his mousebrained Clanmate was all he could think about currently. Please, just keep your mouth shut for once.

Then Shadefrost decided to do another threat. In front of everyone. At a Gathering. After ShadowClan had already mentioned another border skirmish like three heartbeats ago. Nighthound could hardly contain the frustrated groan that wanted to escape his lips. Was this guy that stupid? And what the hell did the ThunderClan medicine cat have to do with a border fight? Nighthound glared at Shadefrost and frowned.

"I said to keep your claws to yourself. You only look stupid throwing baseless threats everywhere. And really, a border skirmish? Are you not aware that we just had one? I may not be your mother, but I'm also not an idiot," the huge tabby growled, ears flattening against his head.

@jupiter @Levi 99 @ anyone else