May Gathering

[Orion]

|| Centipedepaw & Hornetpaw - Shadowclan | @TheNyanCatMinecart @Bliss. OPEN! ||

(NyanCat and Bliss tagged for mentor interactions, if they wish)

The boys were fashionably late to the gathering, choosing to stay behind for a while to help out at camp before scampering off to socialize. Thanks to them, the elders and queens had more moss in their nests… old prey had been removed from the freshkill pile… they’d asked around if anyone needed their assistance, and then the pair had taken off running in the direction of Dawnstar. They followed her scent and the mix of their clanmates, pace rambling faster as excitement overtook them. Gifts were held between their teeth: sprigs of fresh evergreen, a few marsh flowers, and feathers from birds found in ShadowClan. Things that smelled and looked of home, which they hoped strangers would appreciate.

If they met any strangers they actually liked, that is. Centipedepaw and Hornetpaw weren’t holding their breath.

They moved like fire and ashes, a pelt of rich russet and smoky grey that flowed through the undergrowth as if they were a part of it. The rumble of multiple voices sunk into their bones… soon their eyes made out the motley shapes of many gathered felines all gathered beneath the seastones. A rainbow of pelts. An ocean of scents, all wrapped together with the clean salty spray blowing off from the sea. Stunned, Hornet bumped into Centipede, nearly dropping the “presents” he carried with him. Aqua eyes met amber in astonishment. Woah… This was a gathering?

“Let’s… find a place to sit, I guess?” Centipedepaw signed to his brother, quirking an ear. They decided to situate themselves somewhat at the periphery of the space, so they could observe what went down. And—oh—did it go down.

To be honest, the brothers could care less about the drama unfolding on the Seastones or the way dissent slithered through the gathering like so many venomous snakes, sewing discord and malcontent. Barring their shared hatred of SquirrelClan—sorry, ThunderClan—Hornetpaw and Centipedepaw held scant regard for anyone outside their own faction, positive or negative. They hoped that attending their first gathering might help them make their minds up about the other clans that shared their borders… but dang. With all the tension stringing the atmosphere, that may prove difficult. How could they start a decent conversation with anyone with the thunder-cowards hissing at the fish-eaters?

Awkward…

“We missed a lot…” Centipedepaw signed to his brother, paws moving covertly as he gazed around the clearing. Everywhere he looked it seemed that someone’s fur was bristling, someone’s claws were unsheathed, someone had their fangs bared. “We came at a bad time.”

“Noooo kidding,” Hornetpaw scoffed back. “Kinda regret showing up, to be honest—”

The yelling started. Accusations of which clan was at fault for a battle tossed like knives between RiverClan and ThunderClan. Emotions soaring high, fury sparking, separate meltdowns happening all at once in different locations so that the ShadowClan siblings about broke their necks peering from one locus of rage to another.

Centipedepaw’s ashen hackles bristled. Eventually he lost track of all the lips moving at once; he glanced to his brother, and Hornetpaw immediately began translating as much conversation as he could, gestures flying as he conveyed the absolutely dung-show that this gathering was slowly devolving into. The Deaf sibling brought a shocked paw to his mouth as he began to understand what the hell was going on. “Oh my stars… I wish I had some prey to eat.”

“Dinner and a show!” Hornetpaw laughed, tossing his crown back. “Gatherings are hilarious, I totally get why people want to waste their time at these.” His grin glinted ferociously; even if nobody approached them, the two toms would certainly enjoy themselves with their excellent seats to the show.

[Undertaker]

High Rank Announcement [#hrannouncement]

Dawnstar just smiled at Skystar's reply about not murdering Bounceyball. Dawnstar didn't really think RiverClan did it, Skystar made a point about having to deal with ThunderClan already, why get ShadowClan on their backs. Logically, WindClan was really the only culprit who had enough reason and resentment to kill her former medicine cat, but that didn't seem like a Twilightstar type of move. She supposed both clans' warriors could have acted independently, without informing their leaders, but that was a stretch, and what warrior would be reckless enough to endanger their clan like that? Ugh, Dawnstar hated missing pieces of the puzzle. She should go skin something to make herself feel better.

As ThunderClan and WindClan finished their announcements, Dawnstar's interest peaked at Twilightstar's offer. She wanted to gather all the leaders and deputies to discuss whatever. Oh, it sounded like fun. Typically, such a thing would probably bore her. Still, the tension in ThunderClan and RiverClan, plus the mystery of Bounceyball's death, and WindClan's and ShadowClan's fragile neutrality, could make it far more entertaining. "A get-togethering and I'm invited." Dawnstar raised a massive paw and placed it over her broad chest with mocking surprise on her face. "How sweet, Bunnystar. ShadowClan will be there, but I'll send my deputy to your camp to confirm when I should arrive in WindClan within a few sunrises" The ShadowClan leader didn't bother elaborating on who that would be, she wasn't completely certain about it, she just knew she'd have a deputy by the next moon. Dawnstar also didn't bother asking what Twilightstar would like done. Dawnstar knew what she was going to do and Twilightstar was just going to have to deal with it. They were meeting in WindClan since Twilightstar would be the one to take responsibility if anything went wrong.

"ShadowClan, we're done here. The gathering's over." Dawnstar yowled to all the clans as she leap down from the seastones. "Ivysnake and Elmshadow, go ahead and start leading the clan home, I'll be right behind you momentarily." Dawnstar hadn't forgotten that Sundust wanted to speak with her before she left. She'd give him about five seconds before she walked away.
@Naiad @Moonraven @marshall
[Cats in ShadowClan don't need to leave immediately, they can stick around and wait for Dawnstar if you have interactions you wanna finish up.]

[beau]

High Rank Announcement [#hrannouncement]

"Thunderclan, you're dismissed. Cindersky, Jaystride, and Sparrowflight, if you would lead Thunderclan back to camp. I'll join you all shortly." Sundust leapt off of the rock, releasing a huff of relief now that it was older. He took a moment to shake out his thick, curly fur and gather his thoughts before padding over to Dawnstar.

"I won't take much of your time. I had an apprentice come into the medicine den a few days ago with a mangled leg. One of your apprentices, a she-cat, had crossed the border unprovoked and attacked one of ours." Sundust recalled how shaken Cloudyflight had been that night as he and Rosepaw hurried to stop Rainhound's bleeding. "I only have Thunderclan's account of what happened, however I have no reason to believe the two cats who reported the incident lied. I thought I would inform you so you could investigate the situation." There really wasn't much more to be said, but the medicine cat figured Dawnstar would want to be aware of any unruly apprentices in her clan so she could act acoordingly.

@Undertaker

[marshy]

High Rank Announcement [#hrannouncement]

”When did I ever blame an apprentice?” Skystar hissed. "Robinpaw got the rest of RiverClan's aid, and for that I'm grateful. I see you are not above putting words in others mouth." Skystar was surprised when Bumblebeak just kept talking. Even after being called off by Sundust. "Is it really impossible for you to stop acting like ThunderClan is such a victim? Because you're not. Dear STARCLAN you all are hypocritical. Cheap tricks are all you have. Without them you'd be nothing. RiverClan at least can stand on its own unlike you. Just because you're whining doesn't discredit the fact that you fight dirty. Nothing will change that." Skystar thought the cat was finally done but apparently not. "If saying that seems to make you feel better about anything, then you can go ahead. It doesn't change the fact that you're wrong. Maybe if you were able to get your head out of your ass you'd realize that. God you really like to manipulate don't you? I guess its only typical for a clan that has to rely on such a thing." After Dawnstar's smirk at Skystar, he was done. "RIVERCLAN, we're done here. Let's go home. Twilightstar, RiverClan will have no problem attending." Skystar didn't give a second's glance to ThunderClan, and simply got off the Seastone and watched to make sure all of his clan exited.

@Moonraven @marni @Jayvines @Undertaker @Slushie @zenosaurus]

[Captain]

High Rank Announcement [#hrannouncement]

Snowleap breathed a sigh of relief as the leaders slowly began to withdraw their clans and everyone started heading home. Gatherings always gave the tomcat a headache and he never really did the best in crowds, to be honest. Why did Skystar make him deputy of RiverClan again? With a roll of his single eye, the oriental longhair looked to Shadepaw and Lynxfall. “Come on.” He meowed, slowly standing up, “Let’s get these little ones settled back home.” Snowleap bowed his head and gently picked up sleeping Sunkit by the scruff of her neck, hoping that his mate would pick up Nightkit. At least there was no bloodshed or murder at this Gathering. Just a lot of arguing and judgmental cats, which was the norm for these kinds of events. With that, the RiverClan deputy started to walk back down the path to their clan camp, along with his clanmates in tow. Right now, nothing sounded better than flopping down into a soft moss nest and being with his family in a big cuddle pile. The dark-furred tomcat never was one that enjoyed politics and being out so late at night when it was super cold like this.

{ Snowleap has left the Gathering. | @Belle @Memento Mori }

[wolfie]

>>> Lotuspaw | Thunderclan Apprentice | @NinjaBloss @marshall @Ravensong

A roll of their eyes was mainly the response Purekit received from the bobtail. They couldn't be damned to pick a true argument with someone who was clearly not supposed to even be here. The last part was what stirred a reaction from Lotuspaw, a look of confusion and genuine concern for Purekit flashed across their face. "Don't ya realize that ain't right? Nothing to brag 'bout, it shouldn't be that way. You're yapping about Thunderclan being bad when Shadowclan is pitiful for treating their kits like that." They rolled their shoulders back in annoyance, their gaze flickering to Elmshadow when he received Purekit.

They lowered their eyes, returning the cold gaze that they received. Lotuspaw stuck their tongue out, a childish gesture, but well deserved. With a snort, they turned back to face the clan leaders. They startled at the vibrations of someone sliding close to them, turning their head to face the clancat. Lotuspaw's ears pulled back, a low growl rumbling from their throat as Vixensnarl began to throw insults towards them. It was possible they were misreading a few words; the murmuring was hard to pick out - only frustrating them further.

"The hell? What did you think was going to happen? You strolled into Thunderclan's camp under the invitation of one singular warrior! You were fools to believe Thunderclan would just - just be fine with it. We put up a damned fight, and we definitely put in the work. Didn't you hear? Thunderclan has like, six amazing new warriors, " Lotuspaw sneered, their fur bristling at the audacity this Shadowclan rat carried. How could she just invalidate everything they've done? Lotuspaw has worked so hard.

They've did everything they were supposed to do. It wasn't fair, it just wasn't. When did they become enough?

Pathetic insults shouldn't have phased the apprentice but it did. It hurt to have everything you believed was wrong about you be proven right by another. Vixensnarl, not even their own clanmate, had noticed it. Was this what everyone thought of them? (did they truly think they were nothing better?)

Lotuspaw stood up abruptly, cats pushing against their side as the gathering began to come to a close. "Shut your mouth before I tear out your tongue to show you what barbaric is. There is a whole difference between actions and threats. I'm telling you a promise. My Mama raised good kits, don't you dare try and say she didn't. My siblings are better than every single rat you have. You are the smallest of cats, you absolute fox-dung. I'll show you!" They hissed, unaware of how their volume rose with every sentence. Their stub tail lashing back and forth with rage, tears blurring their vision. Lotuspaw jerked away from Vixensnarl, hadn't realized they had leaned in so close. They spit onto the ground before turning away, yeah.

They'll show 'em.
[Lotuspaw has left the gathering.]

[taillow]

Cindersky
It seemed as though ThunderClan would be attending, and briefly Cindersky wondered what reaction Twilightstar would have in seeing that it was her and Sparrowflight who showed up. A curious thought that could be gone over later perhaps.

Skystar was spouting more lies - cheap tricks, huh? Someone must have forgotten about the poison that coated his claws. But Cindersky was done arguing with a kit playing at leader so instead she simply nodded to Sundust and stood up. "ThunderClan! We are heading out." With that she nodded to Sparrowflight and began to lead the Clan out.

But not before noticing the scene between Vixensnarl and Lotuspaw. How fitting it was to find a ShadowClan cat picking on an apprentice. Flicking her ear to notify Sparrowflight that she could finish leading the cats out, Cindersky strode over to the duo. It was clear there was tension, and the senior warrior fixed her gaze onto the ShadowClan she-cat.

"Lovely to see that a ShadowClan warrior has nothing better to do than to pick fights with an apprentice. Perhaps that is what you sat around all the time doing in our camp instead of what Dawnstar asked of you; coming up with pathetic insults. If you have not noticed, your leader called your Clan back. I would suggest you follow them." Her voice was stern, though Cindersky could care less if Vixensnarl had any sort of retort; she honestly was not worth a single second of her time.

Turning to pad after Lotuspaw, Cindersky was too late to notice that they were already bolting from the gathering. Her heart sunk a little, and she started to pad after them before stopping. Lotuspaw knew their way back to camp well enough without a warrior hanging over their shoulder. Still though, the silver she-cat trotted out of the gathering, turning around every once in awhile to make sure that the rest of ThunderClan was following.

[ @Jayvines @NinjaBloss @x ghostie ]

[Karlos]

{ Stream'Paw }

{ Stream'Paw quickly followed after Sky'Star, his mind completely vacant. She had not focused at all, they'd have to admit. Gatherings were so chaotic these days. Stream'Paw looked over to Cinder'Sky and Lotus'Paw, feeling bad for the apprentice, no matter RiverClans and ThunderClans relations at the moment. The silver apprentice flicked his tail to Lotus'Paw in a "It'll be okay" way, though uncertain the apprentice would notice, Stream'Paw quickly continued, leaving the Seastones. }

Stream'Paw has left the Gathering

[Ian]

Vixensnarl simply watched impassively as Lotuspaw snapped back at her. Wow, it really is easy to get under a squirrels skin, huh? she thought with an amused purr, watching as they stormed away. As Cindersky padded over to confront her she simply tilted her head to the side in a faux perfect picture of innocence. "We were simply having a friendly chat, I've no idea what they got so riled up about," was all she said before turning and weaving her way among the cats, waiting for Dawnstar to call for ShadowClan to leave.

@x ghostie @marni

[Rainee]

Originally Posted by zenosaurus

High Rank Announcement [#hrannouncement]

Snowleap breathed a sigh of relief as the leaders slowly began to withdraw their clans and everyone started heading home. Gatherings always gave the tomcat a headache and he never really did the best in crowds, to be honest. Why did Skystar make him deputy of RiverClan again? With a roll of his single eye, the oriental longhair looked to Shadepaw and Lynxfall. “Come on.” He meowed, slowly standing up, “Let’s get these little ones settled back home.” Snowleap bowed his head and gently picked up sleeping Sunkit by the scruff of her neck, hoping that his mate would pick up Nightkit. At least there was no bloodshed or murder at this Gathering. Just a lot of arguing and judgmental cats, which was the norm for these kinds of events. With that, the RiverClan deputy started to walk back down the path to their clan camp, along with his clanmates in tow. Right now, nothing sounded better than flopping down into a soft moss nest and being with his family in a big cuddle pile. The dark-furred tomcat never was one that enjoyed politics and being out so late at night when it was super cold like this.

{ Snowleap has left the Gathering. | @Belle @Memento Mori }

Sun'kit snorted as Snow'leap picked her up. The dream continued and she smiled.


Night'kit waited.
@zenosaurus @Memento Mori