The Starcave

[dino.]

goosefury === >

At Brokenstar's call, Goosefury pulled himself away from the pool of water he had been frustradedly observing to join the rest of the group. His displeasure was clear - RiverClan had crumbled into a right mess in his absence. Perhaps this would provide a distraction. Or the opportunity to fix it. He'd take either at this point.

[BEAR.]

"You would be correct." Brokenstar's gaze lingered on the RiverClan cats, unsurprisingly the latest to the party. He did not expect much from them - he knew them to be slothful and complacent. Perhaps with time they would grow to impress him; but for now, they had much work to do.

As for ThunderClan: "Thrushstar, specifically. As most of you know, I have put a restriction in place when it comes to new leaders of ThunderClan. Since Cindersky, they have not been able to receive them just because of the rank they've claimed. It needs to be earned." A considerable pause, before he added. "That said, I do not desire these tasks to be easy. Thrushstar has shown promise with how he has handled the sinkhole, but being a leader means one needs to be consistent. I propose granting him a single additional life - the others, he still has to work for."

For now, he figured this would be a good morale boost. If Thrushstar recognized the potential of being engaged with his Clan, he could go on to do many great things.

[ @Poprock, @perseus., @naiad, @marshall, @Jester, @Lillian, @Starfall, @dino. ]

[Doom]

Coldsong perked up at Strawberryswirl and Brokenstar's words, weariness dissipating. This was all news to him. Thrushstar had yet to earn his nine lives? Interesting...brilliant, actually. Part of him thought it could be clever if that was the norm for every new leader, but he figured that was not his territory to speak on. He looked down at the Starstone before them, whiskers twitching in thought before finally giving a faint nod. "I like how you went about this, and I definitely agree Thrushstar has earned a life."

[ @Poprock, @perseus., @naiad, @marshall, @BEAR., @Lillian, @Starfall, @dino. ]

[perseus.]

☄. *. ⋆ Ghostblaze

The large bengal hummed at the knowledge he had gain, truly he had thought it would be best for all the leaders to go through that, but the only ones who needed to be taught a lesson really was Riverclan and Thunderclan. He had watched from the shadows of the forests that he called home that they could barely keep a leader.

Though what Brokenstar had said was right, Thrush'star' had done well in the sinkholes. So he nodded, "It seems Thunderclan is finally proving themselves to have a stable leader." he spoke with a sarcastic edge, he had seen what Cindersky and Sparrow'star' had done.

[ @Poprock, @Jester, @naiad, @marshall, @BEAR., @Lillian, @Starfall, @dino. ]

[BEAR.]

Only a couple of the council felt compelled to input, and Brokenstar wasn't going to sit here for another eternity awaiting their response. Prepared to set things into motion, his gaze drifted from the two that spoke to rest on the chaos below.

...

Okay, maybe he had spoken too soon.

An old familiar sting struck him, watching a promising individual fester away in their own slothfulness. Thrushstar had started off strong, but was already floundering in his role - struggling to push the Clan forward and maintain a sense of direction. This realization was a stark contrast from where he had expected the so-called-leader to be, and he was seriously reconsidering if the new 'leader' had actually earned that life. Brokenstar was not going to reward this behavior. "... We will put a pin in this for now, to see how he handles the rest of this obstacle." His voice had a hardened edge, a defensive manuever to not betray his own emotions. He really needed to stop getting his hopes up about these cats. They always seemed to find a way to shred them.

Perhaps the curse he pondered of was real all along, and ThunderClan was truly doomed. It was beginning to seem like every time things looked up, they came crashing down like the tunnels had.

He was done with this, disheartened and exhausted from the same game, and wanted to move on. He would keep a close eye on Thrushstar but for the moment, he was trying to abstain from getting his hopes up. "Before we depart, is there anything else to discuss?"

[ @Poprock, @perseus., @naiad, @marshall, @Jester, @Lillian, @Starfall, @dino. ]

[dino.]

goosefury === > @BEAR. @Poprock, @perseus., @naiad, @marshall, @Jester, @Lillian, @Starfall

Well. Unfortunate, but not unexpected. Goosefury's whiskers twitched as Brokenstar doubled back. If only the old tom's Clan could get their act together. At the invitation to speak, he stood and cleared his throat.

"I've got concerns about RiverClan. Ever since Lionstorm's death, the majority of leaders have been sorrowful excuses, and I'm about sick and tired of watching them falter and fail, yet still think they're entitled to lives. I gave one to Sparrowskip, who wasted it and his leadership with no concern; I did the same with Snowleap, when I thought he would actually make use of it, but he's only proven to be a dissapointment. With how the recent mutt disaster played out, I'm denying their next leader access until they prove they actually deserve it. I'm tired of watching my Clan flounder in the shadows of what they could have been."

[marshy]

➵ pebblepool ❀⋆˚₊⁻∘･
// ➵ @BEAR. @Poprock @perseus. @naiad @dino. @Jester @Lillian @Starfall

pebblepool felt a chill, one that was familiar. something was off about thrushstar, and that thing warped her view on this life that he had so 'deserved'. "oh dear, it seems our favored leader isn't ready. pity really, though its not something to dwell on of course! let us see if he'll get his act together." pebblepool had hopes for that one, that he'd break the endless cycle of leader after leader gone. it started with that.. aspenstar, and it continued through every leader that followed her. if you wanted to squint at it you could say that the curse followed even in leaders before aspenstar, but pebblepool didn't like to squint. it hurt her eyes and gave her headaches, she much preferred what lay in the present.
her gaze turned to goosefury, he seemed adamant about riverclan and its leaders being deadbeat. pebblepool had liked their leaders up until skystar. she paid ill attention to him, as she somewhat mourned the death of kestrelstar as she quite enjoyed him. but as quick as he became leader, he left leadership. then with snowleap.. he was dormant his entire leadership. no flare, no action. it was unfortunate really, she was looking to him to bring riverclan forward. "i'm waiting to see this new leader before i decide anything, though concerns do plague me despite that. time will only tell how the next in line will handle leadership."

[Ian]

Shimmerbird remained silent as Brokenstar brought up the issue of Thrushstar. Being one of the more recent cats to join StarClan, she didn’t feel her input would be worth much since she wasn’t entirely sure of ThunderClan’s situation. RiverClan, however, was a different matter. It was the Clan she had been born into and she had a special attachment to them.

“I also have concerns about RiverClan, but is denying lives the way to go? It doesn’t seem like it’s helped ThunderClan at all, so how can we know it will help RiverClan?”

@dino. @BEAR. @marshall @Poprock @perseus. @Jester @naiad @Starfall

[BEAR.]

"It has not." Brokenstar's disappointment knew no bounds. Where Goosefury's rage was a new spark, Brokenstar's had cooled with the constant stream of carelessness. "I do not care what you fish do, but changing the course may be for the best." Whether RiverClan rose or fell concerned him very little, but he was interested in seeing how the Clan would fair if changes were implemented.

It'd either confirm his suspicions, or prove this issue ran deeper than some ancient curse.

[ @dino. @Lillian @marshall @Poprock @perseus. @Jester @naiad @Starfall ]

[dino.]

bumblebreak === > @lio @Lillian

Bumblebreak's fur still prickled with the chaos of the meeting, and hot words still burned unspoken on her tongue. She didn't understand what had even happened. The pushback with her choices (except for Roseraven, that she could see) didn't make a lick of sense. They were all ThunderClan, couldn't they all see what was right in front of their faces? She tossed Gentledoe and Hazelpaw quick glances as she walked, trying to calm herself down for their sake. She'd brought Gentledoe for the she-cat's peaceful presence, and Hazelpaw for simply the experience and because the apprentice had been calm throughout the chaos (Bumblebreak was choosing to ignore the last jab at Goldenpaw).

The trek was shorter than Bumblebreak had expected. With Gentledoe and Hazelpaw behind her, she stopped briefly at the entrance of the cave. Outlined by dark, moss-covered stone, the tunnel stretched deep beyond a bend that dipped under the earth, leaving much to the imagination. Her ears pointed forward as she studied it, before glancing at the two she’d brought along with her.

“Wait out here,” she said. “I’ll see you in a minute.”

She would wait only briefly for any response they might give. Then, with a breath, she began her descent into the cave.