@
BILL.
The somewhat colder weather was beginning to take effect on Grousestar's bones, they ached in the early morning and the quiet reaches of night, but he never considered it worrisome enough to take a trip to Shiverpetal. It was just something he dealt with, kept it to himself, let no one know but himself.
Fallenstar had just announced his resignation, not explaining why, and the brown tabby truly hoped that he was okay. That he wasn't dying of something incurable and was just trying to keep it covered so he could live the rest of his days in peace. He wasn't sure if he could handle anymore death. It seemed all the cats he knew, befriended, at one point cared for, were dying around him. Auroraflame, Shinefang, his parents though they died long ago, other leaders he's hardly had a chance to know. Sometimes he felt like all he had in this world now, was himself. Himself with his aching bones in the morning. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen or spoken to Rabbitfluff. Did he have friends anymore? The prey social helped to brighten his mood, as do most social events, but most of the time it seemed his warriors stuck to themselves, as with the Riverclan warriors. There were groups, cliques, and if you weren't one of the members, they wouldn't talk to you. And so most of the time, he sat alone, not quite feeling a part of them even though he was the cat that led them, if only partially.
Sinking into his nest, a shaky sigh escaped the older leader. White hairs began to dot his muzzle, a sign of his age that he didn't want to accept. He felt there was still much he had to teach Frostflight, to teach Skyclan even if they weren't really Skyclan anymore.
He was tired, physically, mentally, and as he sunk into his nest, he found his eyes focusing on the interest. Lionstorm would make his way here eventually and the two would need to talk. The headstrong, loyal golden tabby of Riverclan would need to take the reigns and Grousestar would try and help him to the best of his ability, but he was getting older every day. Time would never slow, no matter how much you wished it to. That was beyond the powers of even Starclan.