Gathering 6/17 - 6/22

[Crowzerplorodon]

ooc| And this marks the first Gathering for FoF! Please do not post until your leader has posted. This Gathering will end on Monday, June 22^st. The leader's will begin giving their news on Sunday, June 21^st.

This post is of Cloudstar, which technically means SteamClan is permitted to post. Because this is the first it would be best to wait for ALL the leaders to post before regular cats do. Please keep this in mind.

Sabor will be playing Cedarstar and Essie will be playing Kestrelstorm until Laur returns. Until an official setting is decided on, the gathering place will be similar to the gathering place used in the first six books.

Fourtrees stood out against the star-dappled night sky. It's great shape caused a spark of pride in the large, white cat as he looked out at the open field which surrounded the trees. From behind him he could hear the breathing of his clan, some of them unused to the sudden journey for the Gathering. Their scents mingled as one, something that Cloudstar had come to recognize as his own clan in the last few moons.

Dull green eyes blinked as he sniffed the air. StreamClan was the first tonight, it seemed. The hollow was empty of noise and sound and for a moment, Cloudstar wondered if it was even the right night. But the sight of the large, full moon in the sky confirmed it was. "StreamClan," he began, not turning to face his clan but instead looking at the silvery moon. "We seem to be the first ones here." It was obvious he was amused. "Remember, these cats may be your friends, but clan secrets are clan secrets. Do not expose them."

A friendly flick of his tail was the sign for them to go. The white tom watched as his clan streamed down the small hill that led to the clearing. A purr rose in his chest from pride before the leader followed the rest of them, bounding into the open area that encircled the four trees where the leaders would sit.

Cloudstar watched his clan for a moment as they settled, talking amongst themselves as they waited for the other three clans to arrive. He himself was eager for the other leaders to get here. This marked an important moment, he believed. Their fifth gathering as clans of the forest.

His thoughts flashed back to the happenings this past moon, trying to collect what he would say and what he would keep secret. But other than the prey becoming more abundant with the season change, Cloudstar could really not think of what to speak about this gathering. His eyes closed in thought as he waited out the arrival of the other three clans.

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[Whiskers]

Though Gingerstar did not wear the feeling on her face or speak the thought outloud, she was secretly very excited for the Gathering and looked forward to the meeting quietly. It was silly of her to feel as if she had to hide her excitement... but she was always concerned about how her clan viewed her. She didn't want them to think she was silly or kittish for being so eager to see other cats from other clans. That simply didn't sound professional. And so she hid it behind her mask of indifference as she padded swifty toward the four trees, her energy heightened with every step. Where the moon touched her, she felt a shiver.

Truly, Gathering nights were always something special. It was a day to show off. And Gingerstar loved to show off, loved to prove the other clans wrong. She drew immense pleasure when she showed Cloudstar, Cedarstar, and Owlstar that Pineclan was a strong clan, one that would not crumble into itself for lack of magical cats that lived and hunted in the sky. And here she had another chance to show them. She paused, for a second, and gazed at Streamclan as it moved toward the trees like a school of furry fish.

How appropriate.

She looked back and gave a quick, jerky nod of her head to tell her group to move on, checking to make sure Kestrelstorm and No-ears was by her side. Her excitement didn't show, and neither did her nervousness. But it comforted her to know the two toms were here.

She glided to one of the four trees, her golden eyes locking with Cloudstar's. She smirked at him, which was as friendly as this she-cat could manage. "Ah, good evening Cloudstar," she greeted him, and her large mass of tail wrapped around her legs and hid her delicate paws from view.

She wondered what would happen tonight. The last five Gatherings had gone off without a hitch. But Gingerstar felt like tonight was a night of surprises, and hopefully, they'd be in her favor. Until the meeting started, she'd just have to make boring smalltalk.

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[» s a b ø r ]]

Cedarstar walked toward the Fourtrees as if he was taking a Sunday stroll. He had not a care in the world if he was late or not. Why should he? These cats wouldn't even be here without him. He knew his clan was buzzing with excitement to get to the Fourtrees, yet he did not quicken his pace to a steady trot. His clan could arrive when he arrived, and Cedarstar had no intentions of being early.

Cedarstar stopped a couple of yards away from their destination and turned to look at his clan. He inspected each one of them carefully, making sure none of them were too out of hand with their excitement. When he was satisfied he cleared his throat quietly then spoke to them. His voice was not loud, more of a soft tone, but it still demanded respect. "MeadowClan, remember who you are." Was all he said to them before he flicked his tail, telling them that they could enter Fourtrees. He felt as they rushed pass him and he smiled to himself.

Turning around he gave his shoulders and chest a few quick licks then bounded down the slope toward the rest of the leaders. He did not smile at them, or show any sign that he was joyed to see the leaders of StreamClan and PineClan-- especially PineClan. He knew that PineClan had no beliefs of their starry ancestors. The thought of it repulsed him and put Gingerstar and her clan at the bottom of his friendly list, but he kept the peace and felt no need to battle them over it. Bloodshed would not bring belief to PineClan.

Cedarstar walked up to the leaders and said to them very coldly, "Cloudstar. Gingerstar." It was not a friendly greeting, but it was a greeting none-the-less; quite a feat from Cedarstar. He sat a little ways away from them with his bushy tail laying over his paws and his head held high, an obvious sign that he thought he was better than the two leaders.

He paid no attention to their feeble attempts at a conversation as he scanned the clearing, taking note of who his clan was talking with. His clan tended to not mingle with PineClan so much, he noticed. He smiled at this in his head while his composure on the outside remained emotionless. The gathering had almost officially started, but where was FogClan? Cedarstar hated it when he had to wait for the other clans. If anyone was going to be late it would be him.


ooc;;

I know your not feeling well Poi and my post isn't a blow to that. Just simply how I thought Cedarstar would look at the situation. Hope you feel better soon mi amor. <3

[Poizuun]

Owlstar couldn't believe that she had overslept. All she wanted was a quick nap before she had to leave, but she ended up sleeping until Smallfoot had woken her up and said they were late. The moment her deputy had spoken, her eyes had flown open and she burst out into the open to meet the stares of her Clan, some questioning and others eager to leave. Automatically she nodded to them as a signal to leave and went running out of the camp and towards the Fourtrees.

The trip had been at a fast pace all the way there. The entire time Owlstar cursed herself for not being prepared and keeping the Gathering at a stand-still while the other leaders waited for her and the rest of FogClan. She had imagined her entrance so many different ways, this definitely not being one of them. As they neared, she slowed the pace in order for her and the rest of the Clan to catch their breath and not show the others that they had been in such a rush to get there. In this moment, Owlstar took the opportunity to clear her mind and not focus on the negatives that had started the evening.

Her mind wandered to her family back in ForestClan and if they knew about her accomplishment in becoming leader. Would they be proud of her? They would have to be if life in ForestClan still was how she left it. Slowly her mind went to Magpiepaw. She hadn't seen or heard from him since they day that he left. Would he be proud of her, or would he still hold a grudge against her? Was he even still alive?

She was ripped from her thoughts as they arrived at the Fourtrees. She turned and looked over her shoulder at her Clan, golden eyes taking in their eager faces. "Represent us well, and share no secrets." Her stare was heavy upon them almost daring them to go against her command. She turned and padded forward, flicking her tail to her Clan to allow them to move forward and mingle with the other Clans.

Owlstar approached the other leaders and bowed her head respectively to them. "I'm sorry . FogClan camp is a lot further from Fourtrees than I remembered." She gave a small purr, trying to alleviate the tension of her tardiness. Owlstar sat next to the other leaders, squaring her shoulder and tried to regain her confidence.

[glowlynose]

Briartail let his gaze wander around Fourtrees. Everything was so much bigger than it was on StreamClan territory. Despite himself, the surroundings made him a little nervous. It would be bad enough if he was a normally sized cat, but his miniscule proportions made everything tower over him. He froze for a moment, then had to shoot ahead to catch up with the rest of his clan.

"It's all so... big," he murmured to himself. His ears pricked up and he found himself watching the other clans as they arrived. It was so strange to see a different group of cats. He'd begun to think that there really were no other clans, that it was just a myth to keep his clan from straying too far away and getting lost. "Well, looks like I was wrong. Again," he muttered.

Briartail desperately wanted to go socialize and meet some of the other clan members, but something held him back. Perhaps it was the fact that all the other clans had bigger cats than StreamClan and he did not want to be ridiculed for his size or mistaken for an apprentice. He stayed with the group of cats from his own clan and for once kept relatively quiet.

[Crowzerplorodon]

At the scent of PineClan arriving, Cloudstar pulled out of his daydream and watched as the she-cat leader approached him. He gave a friendly nod to the ginger cat before returning her greeting. "Good evening, Gingerstar." His tail twitched at the sound of another leader approaching and Cloudstar moved slightly to face Cedarstar as he greeted the bushy cat. The white tom could not help but feel a little distressed at the leader's apparent contempt toward him and Gingerstar.

"It's alright, Owlstar." The white cat could only feel wary at the she-leader's late arrival. Something told him one of the leaders would find fault with it. But he kept his thoughts in the back of his mind. His eyes traveled to the rest of the cats in the clearing and how they mingled respectfully. "As long as we are all here."

--

Otterfur hesitated following his clan, not moving until the he saw his last clan mate disappear into the mesh of cats below. The brown tom swished his tail, feeling more than a little nervous. This was the young warrior's first gathering, and already the amount of felines attending spooked him.

He took a breath, closing his eyes and calming himself down. A shiver ran through him (being alone was kinda chilly, he though) before he made his way down to the ground of cats, almost-hazel eyes flicking back and forth as he tried to find someone he could talk to.

From the corner of his eye, Otterfur caught sight of another cat who looked just as nervous as him. Putting on a cool front, he padded over to the tom, catching a StreamClan scent before taking a seat next to him. The other tom was small, but Otterfur had come to expect that from other cats. He himself was rather large. Plus, from the looks of things, StreamClan seemed to be a small-sized clan in general. "Kinda overwhelming, right?" He asked the small, brown StreamClanner.

--

"Whoooooo," Tigertail said, taken aback slightly from the sheer number of cats who were at the gathering. "Quite a lot o' cats, dontcha tink?" He asked the nearest cat, who appeared to not be listening. The large tabby didn't mind though, he just grinned and padded away from the crowd of MeadowClan cats. His mind was on one thing tonight, actually make that two.

Tigertail wanted to meet some cats, and he wanted to mess with them. His heavily striped tail swung back and forth in amusement as he prowled the open gathering area like it was his own dirt-space. With all the cats looking rather nervous or making awkward conversation, Tigertail couldn't help but feel happy.

Non-MeadowClan cats just made it too easy to be picked on.

--

Silverflower gazed at the other clans excitedly, glad to see that they all were faring well. Small silver paws kneaded the soft ground in front of her, but the thin she-cat refused to break away from her own clan. She knew they had come slightly late which bothered her only slightly. Only because it meant less mingle time, though.

A light purr rose from her as she saw some cats she recognized from the journey to the new lands. She was young during the time and didn't really understand just how devastating the journey was, but the silver-furred she-cat had made some real good friends along the way. Or at least, that's how she saw it. Maybe her definition of "friend" was a bit more... open than most cats'.

But she didn't care. Once she was sure that her own clan looked fine, the she-cat bounded into the grounds, looking for someone to chat with before the leaders made their announcements.

[Emily]

Grayfang was swift to follow his clanmates, head held high and tail waving upright in a prideful disposition. Even the mere thought of Cloudstar, as he stood at the rock announcing the names of those who would be given the oppurtunity to tag along, still offered up Grayfang a sudden chill. As his name was called, it was only the tom's own impulse to take it with great pride and banter off, overjoyed to encounter cats from the other clans.

Fourtrees was quite visible against the star-spangled sky, and with the full moon glowing white, it caused Grayfang to give a amused grin. It was all too perfect for the situation, and this being his first time at a Gathering, it was almost overwhelming to the gray tom. Whiskers twitching, he allowed a purr to rise from his lips. There was no attention drawn from his own clanmates, why miss the oppurtunity to talk things up with the other clan cats? There was little point in doing otherwise, he quickly evaluated.

A thin, silver she-cat with brilliant blue eyes was one of the few who had caught the tom's attention. Warily, he drew his hindquarters off the ground and padded towards her; his gait was slow as to not set the young she-cat into alarm.

"Hello," Grayfang started. "I'm Grayfang, StreamClanner." Inhaling her scent for the briefest of moments, it wasn't hard to recognize the strong, sharp scent of FogClan. "So you must be a FogClanner, huh? Hope things been going well in your clan," he continued respectfully, kneading his paws a bit on the ground below. Hopefully he hadn't come off all to strong with the she-cat; he could tell she was particularly young.

---

"Gingerstar's mad as a wet hen," Spiderpaw mumbled beneath his breath, his voice particularly sour. The black and white tom had never, never, been seperated from his twin brother, Badgerpaw. In fact, the two were nearly inseperable from birth, finding their lives together something pleasurable. "And to think, he even bothered to send me to the Gathering instead of Badgerpaw. I mean, he's even Gingerstar's apprentice, so why not him?"

At least, Spiderpaw could take the oppurtunity to chat up with some of the other clan cats. There was no point in wasting such an honour in sulking away, kneading his paws and allowing his whiskers to droop pathetically. Turning his yellow-green gaze away from the ground, he managed to let a purr spew from his lips. Perhaps this would be a good chance to socialize with the other apprentices, get to know them a little more personally. It certainly wouldn't do any bad for his part, or the clan's.

The apprentice scanned the crowds of cats. The tip of his tail twitched, and his eyes gleamed mischeviously. And though there was no apprentice in sight as of yet, Spiderpaw wistfully hoped there might be a playful tom out there to chat with, or a pretty she-cat.

[thistle.]

"We're first!" announced the small, patched she-cat, as if no one else knew. They drowned in the excited murmurs of her Clan mates, but triumph still coated her words, and she waved her fluffy plume with delight. This gathering was her second, or maybe third. She pranced into the clearing after her leader, weaving around a huge oak tree as she went.

The other Clans were beginning to arrive. PineClan came next, and then MeadowClan. The apprentice looked around for FogClan. Where were they? Must be late, she thought, and shook her head to empty her mind.
Spottedpaw turned around and wriggled out from a crowd of strong and muscular warriors, picking up snippets of conversations with her pricked ears.

"I spotted a rouge near the border and chased it off all by myself."

"You should've seen the rabbit I caught!"

"Is your Clan well?"

Everything she heard wasn't much of particular interest, and so the she-cat did not linger at a certain group. Perhaps she could find an apprentice her own age to chat with; it wasn't that the huge warriors scared her, but it was nice to talk to someone that didn't tower over her and try to make her spill Clan secrets.

But with all those tall cats blocking her view, Spottedpaw didn't have much hope in finding an apprentice immediately.

"Quite a lot o' cats, dontcha tink?" A voice sounded from the left of the calico, and a moment after a brown tabby walked away from a cluster of MeadowClan cats. He appeared to also be of MeadowClan.
Because he was a warrior, and also because he was right in front of her, Spottedpaw dipped her head and meowed a cheery, "Hi! I'm Spottedpaw." She didn't really expect a reply since she figured that this tom would want to speak to his fellow warriors more than a young apprentice, but she stuck around anyway.

[Whiskers]

Gingerstar straightened her posture as Cedarstar entered. Her entire body seemed to clam up when he arrived... she gave Cedarstar a twitch of her whiskers and that was all. She knew that he held her lower. He wanted her to fail. And her pride made it hard for her to even appear civil toward him. What she would like to do is let him taste Pineclan's fury for himself...

Good thing Gingerstar knew how to calm herself well. Fighting would only make Pineclan seem violent and evil, and since a lot of Fogclan cats (and there was Owlstar now, speak of the devil) already thought that, she couldn't live up to such a ridiculous, embarrassing reputation. And hopefully all her warriors would mind themselves as well.

At Owlstar's purr, Gingerstar relaxed a little. Honestly, she had no problem with Owlstar... though they differed greatly on beliefs, so far, Owlstar hadn't been disrespectful. Her warriors... that was another story. "Yes, yes, as long as we're all here it hardly matters what order we arrive in. And it's nice to see you all in good health," Gingerstar meowed.
----

A dash of red streaked along the undergrowth like a demon, whirling through leaves and things. A happy little sound came from him... something more like a bark than a meow."FINCHPAW. Keep UP."The red fluffy cat came to a halt and looked over his shoulder, only to roll his eyes as his careful brother trotted smoothly toward him. "You walk slower than an elder would after a rainy day."

Finchpaw laughed-- an unusual sound for him-- and he simply shrugged at Firepaw. "One day you'll regret not taking your time. Besides, you'll arrive looking like a bush. You're collecting quite a bit of leaves in your fur."

"Y'know what, I don't care. It only makes me look more dangerous. Now, please, can we arrive at the Gathering tonight? Please? C'mon Finchpaw, it's our first Gathering together." Firepaw was bouncing on his toes now, his eyes round like kit eyes. He could be so silly sometimes...

Finchpaw couldn't say no though. "Oh fine."

The two brothers broke into a run, almost overtaking Owlstar as they did so and they burst into the Gathering in a flash of red. Firepaw's eyes sparked as he already began to search for a cat to talk to. His eyes locked on a white-and-black apprentice that he recognized as a Pineclan cat...Spiderpaw.

"Finchpaw... let's go mess with him!" Firepaw exclaimed. "We could never even talk to them if Rowanheart was here...we might as well take advantage of that..."

"What? No. No, Firepaw, this is a Gathering--" Finchpaw was cut off by his brother's tail in his face and he watched, helplessly, as Firepaw went to stir up some trouble.

Firepaw's chest was out, and he pranced toward Spiderpaw easily, hardly worried about a fight or anything. "Why hello there, little Pineclan cat," Firepaw laughed. "Is this your first gathering, hmm?"

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[Emily]

Spiderpaw was quiet, and only the tip of his tail twitched, indicating something of impatience. Though Spiderpaw was generally a close-lipped feline, one could not always expect a clean smile from him. At times, the tom found something in another which triggered immediate disliking; he would quickly follow through with bouts of sarcasm, as the use of any other way of retorting or fighting back would cause the poor cat to assume he'd turned into something other than himself. A cat, whom was not playful, refined, and overall friendly: a poor case of paranoia.

Spiderpaw kneaded his paws, yellow-green eyes blinking slowly. As soon as he'd blinked, his lids closing over his view, the tom quickly regretted it. Spiderpaw's tail curled protectively around his paws. He wrinkled his nose in clear disgust; the stench of FogClanners filled his nostrils all too swiftly.

In a flash of red, two apprentices came towards him confidently. The tom who pressed to come even closer, Firepaw, caused Spiderpaw to reel back, allowing a few hisses to slip from his lips. Of course, it was just like him to criticize upon Spiderpaw's heritage of a PineClanner. Even worse so, he had also once been a kittypet alongside his brother, and than a traveling duo of loners.

At first, Spiderpaw remained silent. His ears lay flat against his head, and the fur on his tail defensively rose. After silent consideration, the shy apprentice decided upon retorting back to the red tabby. "At least I don't believe in cats who live in the stars, mouse-brain. And FogClanners are just as bad as you think we, PineClanners, are." Spiderpaw's voice was soft, but the anger which was rising was clearly hinted. "Yeah, why?" he questioned, narrowing his eyes.