The Gathering (December 5th)

[hayy]

Amongst eager apprentices, cheerful warriors, and dignified leaders a thick-coated brown and grey cat walked silently. He had no wish to be here, the supposed honor of it was meaningless to him. The reports were always the same, and the cats rarely had anything new to say-though Lynxstorm had to admit he would benefit from a conversation with a Medicine Cat or leader with whom he rarely interacted, such an occurrence was unlikely. He was bold, outgoing by all standards, so this wasn't a factor, but it was a gathering and cats were at their least hostile-even clanmates with whom he might normally fight were annoyingly pacifistic today. Lynxstorm would not learn by talking to eager to please, politically correct cats-he would learn by talking to intelligent, angry and defensive cats. And he wouldn't find those here-so the multi-colored fluffy warrior just curled his tail over his back and slipped through crowds without a mew of hello.

[Kelly]

“Apprentices, Cloudstar,” she corrected with a small smile. “Falconpaw and Cinderpaw are now FogClan apprentices, and they are doing quite well for their age.” Honestly, she had not heard much from Mistpelt nor Russetfang. But they were two good mentors, and their apprentices would surely be good apprentices, eventually warriors. After all, good things produced even more good things, especially in the case of teaching young cats.

She nodded politely to the other two leaders, merely out of formality, as she always felt something rather against them. Gingerstar for, well, obvious reasons. And Cedarstar for that nagging feeling he always left in the back of her throat. That feeling got very annoying very, very quickly. But, she had to admit, it was always a joy to hear that other clans were prospering, especially in such poor weather and season like they were having now. She nodded in agreement as Cloudstar brought up the drought she had just been thinking of.

“Yes, not a drop of snow or even rain. Traveling back and forth to the river is going to grow old soon. StarClan best bless us with rain.” And hopefully not much snow. That would mean less of a severe thaw and less of a chance of some poor cat getting sick and joining their ancestors much too soon. The black and white she-cat sighed, hoping that the drought was just a weather thing, and not a dark sign from StarClan.

Cougarpaw stepped slowly down the ridge, approaching the gathered cats with a clear look in his eyes. Tonight would be his first gathering, in the first time in a long while he had met with so many cats at once. The mingled scent of many cats and many clans stung his nose at first, but he soon adapted and decided it would be best tonight if he followed one of his clan mates, that way he wouldn't feel so lost among all these cats. If Firefang had been here, he would have easily gone with his mentor, as that would be the safest choice in cats that would put up with him.

After a moment he chose Ashstorm, hoping the she-warrior would not mind if he stuck with her this gathering. She would understand, right? She would have to understand. With a confident smile, he hurried to keep up with the gray she-cat, wondering who she was going to speak to. Hopefully they wouldn't mind having a PineClan apprentice in the conversation either. “Greetings, Ashstorm,” he said, voice low, as the PineClan warrior stopped by a sleek looking StreamClan apprentice. Or at least, he assumed it was an apprentice. She was awfully small.

“And to you to,” he added, nodding kindly to the small StreamClan she-cat. Despite the cold that was beginning to take its affect and the awkward feelings he felt, Cougarpaw thought his first gathering was going very nicely.

This was not amusing. Not a single one of his friends attended. Well, not friends, exactly. But no cat that he could follow and talk with, which was not a good thing. Sootpaw couldn't even see one of the cats he had met last gathering. What was the point of coming to one of these (especially a cold one of these) if you could not even chat with cats you knew. All there was would be listening to the leaders, who wouldn't even speak for some time. Sootpaw found it odd, really. All the clans had been late, and yet, they weren't going straight to business. Didn't the leaders feel cold every now and then?

He took a seat, ready to spend the gathering away from other cats, when his alone time was interrupted by a she-cat coming to sit right next to him. He turned to snarl at the pale colored cat, but stopped, aware that not only was this cat an apprentice like him, but she was also a MeadowClan cat. Maybe she knew Jaypaw and could tell him if the gray apprentice had been invited to this gathering or not, that way he could go and find the tom he sort of knew.

“Good evening, my name is Sootpaw,” he said bluntly. “Of FogClan. I can tell you're a MeadowClan cat, yes? Do you have a name?” Tonight was no night for sweet talk. It was all about the facts. Get them, process them, and get out.

[neworleans]

Cedarpaw was positively bristling with excitement. It was his first time at a Gathering! He really loved the concept of Gatherings because they would give him the chance to meet with cats from other Clans, find out what's going on outside of FogClan, and hear what the Clan leaders, deputies, and medicine cats had to say.

Having been born on the Journey, Cedarpaw had met with several other cats, not all of them destined for his current Clan. Some of them he found to be quite likeable; yes, he can make friends (if he really tries). Thus, it saddened him greatly when the one large group of journeying cats had to seperate into different Clans and a few dear friends could not come with him.

Now that he was finally attending a Gathering, he might be able to see them again! The small tom's body tingled with anticipation at the thought. If Darkwhisker had taught him anything up until now (and she had, there was no question), though, it was to control his impulses and utilize his patience. True, the words 'patience' and 'Cedarpaw' were not commonly found in the same sentence. Still, he'd been working on his for a good while now (in his opinion), and he was slowly making progress.

The brown tabby tom knew he couldn't act like an over-excited kit if he wanted to be taken seriously in any way. He didn't usually act like that anyway, so it wasn't that big of a problem. When he had to smother this seemingly-boundless energy, however, it tended to result in his sharp tongue being more active than usual (yes, it's possible). If Lynxstorm really didn't think there were any "intelligent, angry and defensive cats" at this Gathering, he was wrong. Cedarpaw began to roam about the clearing, searching for old friends.

ooc: Oh, and anyone can be an "old friend" of his. I'd say a max of 2 cats per Clan.

[Cloud of Diamonds]

Redtail

If Redtail had been a believer in StarClan, he would have said he had blessed to the umpteenth degree this night. He was not, however, and so in his brain were merely a few disjointed phrases such as "lucky" and "grateful to whatever good in the world there was. But he only spared a little brainpower to thoughts like those. Emotion came pouring out of him like a stream. However, he had to disguise that. He made the noise of his former name, saying annoyedly, "Why didn't you tell me you were alive, somehow?" What he would have rather said was not something to be vocalized here and now.

It wasn't like him to be so emotional, so happy. It felt almost...foreign, somehow. A near-forgotten sensation. Always be on your guard, always be watching, wary for whatever would happen. That had for so long been his life code. Even this, he supposed, would have its downside. And as he thought this, a pang struck him. Now knowing of Snarl's existence, living in his own Clan would be harder, always wondering what his brother was doing on the other side of the border. His sibling, his love...how could he ever stand to be separated, again? He wondered, purely on a random tangent, what it would have been like if their positions were reversed. If were not him but Snarl who had been in MeadowClan. He realized, in agony, what Snarl's life might now hold. He might have an apprentice, (this made Redtail think painfully of Gingerpaw), or friends, or...something. Some reason why he couldn't leave his Clan.

As he thought this, he realized he, too, had a reason why he couldn't leave his Clan. He was loyal to it, had an apprentice, a cat he must train. He was almost angry at himself; it felt...disloyal to his brother. Yet he knew that, for all his love, he could not undo what had been done. He could not change that their paths had been separated forever. In fact, it related to his morbid thought from before-a cat switching Clans never having a choice again. Once he had taken the chance to join StreamClan, left the life of being a loner, like he had when he'd lived with Snarl-he'd closed the door on going back. There was no choice, no possibility of him living with his brother again. Even as memories of his old feelings protested, his present self knew that, he must stay as he was, a good StreamClan warrior, not always thinking about the brown tabby tom. If they couldn't spend their lives together...they'd have to spend them apart.

OOC: I should be fined for how cheesy I am in this post. e.e

[[ hardyrex ]]

[ CROW-WHISKER ]

The smells of the Clan cats mingled together in Crow-whisker's nose, leaving in a puff of white air as the tom trudged along side his Clanmates for the Gathering. What was the point of a gathering anyway? Learn some mindless lies about other cats, listen to leaders boasting about how better their clan is, and then leave?

Pointless.

Yet, here the black tom was, going to learn mindless lies about other cats listen to leaders boast about how better their clan is and leave.

His paws padded forward, heading through the crowd meowing small hello's here and there. If Crow-whisker was going to come to this, he was at least going to learn something important, and... stir some trouble? His teeth flashed as a small smile appeared on his muzzle. Maybe this wasn't so bad.

[ RABBITSTEP ]

Rabbitstep padded quietly to the Gathering. If it wasn't for the fact StarClan demanded these he wouldn't think twice about going. Young cats could give away important information that will harm the Clan somehow, and StarClan knows what else will happen. He sighed, watching his breath turn into a puff of white that drifted out from behind him and disappeared. At least Dappledflower's birth will be announced, he mused, carelessly trotting into the crowd of cats. Wonder if any other Clans have had litters...? As the tabby's paws carried through the crowded area, he hadn't seen the small gray cat in his path, and bowled her right over until he realized what was happing. "Oh! he meowed, backing up to give the she-cat room. "I didn't see you. Terribly sorry."

Smooth.

[prowler.]

Minnow. hail.

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Minnowpaw jumped a little in surprise as a cat did come over to her. Fancy that! Someone wanted to talk to her, she perked up in surprise as she turned to see who it was. The scent hit her with only too much familiarity, PineClanner, gazing up she realized she otherwise didn't have the vaguest idea of who this cat was, but stifled the fear-scent she had lightly let off. Well they were intimidating, but this cat couldn't possibly know about her little... trip, should we say, to the border? No, only Cloudstar and Duskpaw knew about that. Warily she flashed a glance over in the direction of her leader, hopefully he was't still mad at her about that...

It was then that Minnowpaw remembered that she'd been spoken to. 'Oh! Heya, yeah, I guess it is. Hopefully it'll snow soon,' she commented, with a smile, Minnowpaw had never seen snow, but oh the stories she'd heard! Then suddenly she realized how that might've been taken - sarcastic? Wishing that it snowed so that prey went down and other less fortunate clans suffered? 'wait, no, I mean just to see, not that I want anyone to have to endure snow. Since it is the season. I mean, oh! Well, just forget I said that.' Minnowpaw's kit-soft fur was fluffed out quite a bit now in thorough embarrassment. 'Um. How're you, anyway?' She said weakly, unsure of where else she could start without making the other cat feel either uncomfortable or pressured and without giving away information about her own clan.

It was then that another cat came over to the pair, it took a fraction of a second for Minnowpaw to notice that he too was a PineClanner. She had to stifle an uncertain meep from escaping herself, why did they all have to be PineClan? Ever since the incident they made her feel so, so nervous! She forced her usual cheery self to shine through though and grinned at the other apprentice, 'Hey there!' It took her a moment but she glanced between the two before trying to make a connection, 'oh! Are you two, y'know, mentor and apprentice or somethings?' She said, smiling brightly at this assumption she'd made.

It was moments after this question that Minnowpaw found herself bowled over by somecat. Stunned by this she panicked a little, what was it Stormflower had said? In the case of a surprise attack, don't let them see your back, recover immediately and be prepared. Scrambling back to her feet Minnowpaw whirled around to see who had ran into her, fur fluffing out in an attempt to be imposing and teeth barred a little. Overall she looked more than a little comical - a frustrated kit with overly large fur. Then she heard his apology and felt just about as silly as she looked. If she had no fur, she'd be going bright red with embarrassment and hid this behind a paw as she slicked down her fur, grinning awkwardly. It had only been a MeadowClanner not minding his step, and now she'd just looked ridiculous to two other-clan warriors and another apprentice. Awesome job, Minnowpaw, she thought to herself.

'That's fine!' She said hurriedly, sitting down once again. At least he hadn't been a PineClanner, she thought, stopping a reluctant smile coming through at that. 'Would you care to join us for a... um, discussion, I guess?' She said, not entirely sure what to call the beginning conversation between herself and the two PineClanners. Gee, well if she'd thought she might end up alone again at this Gathering she'd sure been wrong. Still, as the three other cats loomed taller than her she couldn't help feeling a little meek and licked down her disturbed fur self-consciously.

----

hailstorm was fairly pleasantly surprised by the cat he'd chosen to talk to. a meadowclanner, likeable cats, not particularly argumentative, which he figured would make for nice discussion before things really got on. as she turned and almost crashed into him he stepped back lightly, large form moving with surprising ease. woah, steady there he said, with a slightly lopsided smirk. hey foxflower, hailstorm it is indeed. how've things been treating you lately? he asked, launching into easy conversation to start with. as he awaited a reply, he glanced around the clearing, noting the distinctive mingling of some cats but the absolute avoidance of others.

half to himself and half to his companion, he commented a little wryly on this. well, tonight should be interesting, to say the least... he said, before turning his eyes back to foxflower. out of the corner of his eyes as he turned, however, he spotted the familiar face of another cat - who was that? he turned again, only slightly this time, stormclaw, right? another meadowclanner, he couldn't help but notice the other tom looked a little, well, a little down. it took a second of reluctant thinking before hailstorm made a quick decision, perhaps we could invite stormclaw to join us? can't say he looks like he's having the best night ever.

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[hayy]

Lynxstorm had intended to wander with his head down to avoid eye contact with any overzealous apprentices or too-friendly Queens-but his insatiable curiosity had him looking around furtively anyways. As he stole glances about him, his intense yellow-green eyes suddenly zeroed in on a cat. Average build, with short black hair and a look that was as cold as Lynxstorm's was possessed with brilliant passion, with an arrogant aura that surpassed Lynxstorm's own egotistical flair. Making the calculations in his head in seconds, the heavily-furred tom moved from his path of avoidance to stalk towards the warrior. His fur ruffled back as a breeze past through, then stood back up to continue its characteristic accentuation. Tufted ears and a thick ruff around his narrow face centered focus upon his wide eyes-challenging and passionate as he watched the Fogclan warrior, Crow-Whisker, before him.

[Cloud of Diamonds]

Ashstorm

Goodness. This was becoming quite the little meeting here. It had just been her and the StreamClan apprentice until Cougarpaw and this MeadowClan tom came over. Now three of the four Clans were represented. She hoped a member of the fourth wouldn’t come along. When Cougarpaw had come along, she’d said a friendly hello. It was certainly no pain to have him here. The quiet, respectful apprentice was quite likable and very trustworthy. Even though his size outstripped hers by quite a bit, she’d felt perfectly comfortable.

Of course, things got a little less relaxed when the tabby bowled into the apprentice in front of her. How clumsy of him.

Oh well, the petite StreamClanner seemed no worse for wear, if a bit ruffled and nervous, and the tom offered an apology. Maybe it was her first Gathering. She’d listened to the gray apprentice’s quickly spoken words with a bit of sympathy. She did look young, maybe she’d never even seen cats from another Clan before. She’d shaken her head at one remark.

“No, Cougarpaw isn’t my apprentice, though I do have one.” However, Viperpaw wasn’t here tonight. “I’m good, thanks. Yeah, snow looks pretty. However, prettiness doesn’t catch prey, unfortunately. ” She was glad the little cat didn’t seem disgusted by them or anything. But then, most cats in Clans other than FogClan were pretty good about the whole thing. Just because one group of cats were mouse-brains luckily meant the rest of them weren’t, for the most part.

Palepaw

She was so taken aback that for a crazy moment she wondered if it was a loner or rogue who sat beside her. What kind of mouse-brain was this tom, anyway? Every cat had a name, duh. And it was a Gathering! They were supposed to be polite, for StarClan’s sake! Part of her was tempted to tell him to go stick his head in a hole. But no…she was determined to be polite, even if he wasn’t. Plus, she wasn’t brave enough to shoot a snarky remark at him.

So she just shuffled her paws and kept looking down, saying, “Yeah..Palepaw of MeadowClan, that’s me.” The spotted apprentice fervently wished she’d sat somewhere else.

A conversation that began like this could only go downhill. The light-pelted MeadowClanner was now wistfully imagining just getting up and racing off, delightfully running across her territory without a care in the world, forgetting all about this…yeah.

Dream on, said a sarcastic voice in her head. Reality was here and now and beside this arrogant ball of FogClan idiocy. Who would probably try to get information out of her. Ha, let him try, said the bit of her that wasn’t bemoaning or trying to distract herself. He’d get nowhere fast. Maybe if StarClan decided to favor her, she could get out of this quickly and find someone fun to talk to.

Stormclaw

While he stood there feeling unhappy, a voice broke into his miserable reverie, saying his name. Who was that, now? He sniffed the air, turning in the direction of the meow he’d heard. Surprisingly, he picked up the scent of his own Clan…before realizing there was a tom from a different Clan there too. Foxflower, he realized, and a FogClan warrior…well, it couldn’t hurt to join them.

Take his mind off his worries for a bit.

How kind of the tom to invite him! Indeed, ‘twas a noble action. StarClan must have plans for him tonight, and good ones, he was sure. Turning carefully, though still accidentally stepping on another’s paw and apologizing quickly, he lithely moved over next to his Clanmate and the other unknown cat.

“Stormclaw of MeadowClan, at your service.” He mewed formally. Even though this cat seemed friendly, it was never wise to judge on impressions and they were still from different Clans. Ah well, as long as he kept a certain level of guard but also openness, he was sure to be fine. And Foxflower was here as well, so things could be worse. If by some unfortunate chance they got into argument, he could still chat with the ginger-and-white she-cat harmlessly.

[[ hardyrex ]]

[ RABBITSTEP ]

Rabbitstep claws slid out as the she-cat fluffed out her fur and bared her teeth. Before the confused tom could do anything, the blue apprentice calmed herself down and accepted his apology, quickly licking her paw and grinning.

She-cats. Who understands them?

'That's fine! Would you care to join us for a... um, discussion, I guess?'

"I'd...love to." The tabby meowed, forcing his claws to slid back into his paw. He quickly sat down, wrapping his tail tightly against his front paws and flicked his ear to get a bit of warmth back into them. Rabbitstep nodded his head to the group of cats, a small greeting. Two PineClanners and a StreamClanner. T'was a shame a FogClanner wasn't here; he could ask how Mistpelt was doing. They did after all both come from ForestClan.

There was no way in StarClan he would wake up to her and ask her herself.

"Snow?" Rabbitstep meowed, dragging himself into the conversation. "I hope it doesn't snow at all. I don't know how the kits will react to it, and I'd rather not find out. " The brown tabby sat up a little straighter. His kits were the first kits born in MeadowClan, and StarClan yes he was going to boast a bit about it.

Just not to obviously.

[ CROW-WHISKER ]

Crow-whisker was enjoying himself as much as a cat could while freezing their tail off, at least until some MeadowClanner started to stare at him. Normally, he wouldn't be brothered, and at first he wasn't. It was just this cat would not stop at staring at him. Deciding a course of action, he looked back at the thick-furred tabby, staring right back at him. If the black cat would of had eyebrows, he would have raised them as if to say 'Is there a problem?', but mother nature did not give him eyebrows, therefore he has to meow it himself. "Is there a problem?" He meowed, tip of his tail twitching in annoyance.

[ SHADEPAW ]

Shadepaw padded with his clanmates, trying his best not to dash ahead and bounce right into the clearing. He was surprised to find himself going -- he was pretty young after all. As they neared the Gathering area, his nose could smell the scents of the clans squashing together to form a weird smell, but he soon got used to it.

The black cat was excited about getting to go to his first gathering. He'd get to meet the other apprentices, envy warriors, and finally see the leaders he's heard so much about. He wondered if FogClan were as dark as the stories said they were... And was there really a Clan that didn't believe in StarClan?

Shadepaw all but bounded into the clearing, looking at all the color of pelts mixing together, the rainbow of eye colors, and the -- Cedarpaw! The goofy apprentice bounced to his old friend, almost running into him in his quicken pace to greet his old friend.

"Cedarpaw!" he meowed, stopping in front of the tabby tom, a grin on his muzzle. "Long time no see!"

[Crowzerplorodon]

Tigertail

Knowing that the cat in front of him really was Hiss and not some delusion caused by all the other cats in the gathering (though, how that would work, he didn't know) finally took affect and wiped out every single emotion rushing through him, replacing them with the strong ache of love for the sibling he thought he had lost so long ago. It was like walking on air, he mused, even if he didn't know what walking on air felt like. It had to feel like this though, the light feeling that there was nothing holding you down and you could go anywhere and everywhere with nothing stopping you. A loud purr ripped though his chest, manifested his joy physically.

Of course, that was all dashed when Hiss actually spoke.

“T-Tell ya' I was alive?” He all but shouted, fixing the ginger tom with a blank stare. “I didn't even know where ya' were, let alone if ya' were still alive!” He had just spent his whole time in MeadowClan, not actually looking for his brother, a fact that stung him deeply. “Ya' expect me to go lookin' fer ya' when I have no clue were ya' could be? I'm not magical, Hiss!” Tigertail couldn't help feeling angry now, even if he knew that he'd regret this entire conversation eventually. Probably tonight, after the gathering had ended. Or even sooner.

“'Sides,” he continued, eyes narrowed. “Why'd ya' jus' assume I was dead? Why didn't you go lookin' fer me, huh? Ya' could've followed the river or somethin'.” Which was completely true. If he remembered correctly, he had been pulled out not far from where he had fallen in.

Foxflower

“My sincerest apologies, Hailstorm. I was rather distracted by the conversations of others,” Foxflower admittedly sheepishly, eyes glancing down for a moment out of embarrassment. She really hadn't meant to be caught eavesdropping on the other cats here at the gathering. “Things have been treating me well, thank you,” she said with a giggle. “The lack of rain is presenting a problem, but I think everyone is dealing with that. I just hope poor Dappledflower's kits don't suffer from the lack of water.” That would be horrible, having those kits die.

“Interesting indeed.” She had come to the conclusion earlier herself. The way the cats hung around each other clearly proved the tensions that she had been guessing at. It seemed cats were going out of their way to purposely avoid other cats, just so there wouldn't be any trouble tonight. Then again, some cats were just jollying around, not caring who they spoke to. They were either very cocky, or very friendly. Personally, she hoped for the latter. “Oh hello, Stormclaw,” Foxflower said with a smile, glad that Hailstorm had mentioned bringing the gray tom over. It was never good to be alone at a gathering.