tense times ahead.

[LOST]

chaos begins

the gathering ensues

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the first gathering! this is where everything gets interesting! anyone is welcome to attend the gathering, however please let the leader post first for the arrival of their clan. this is our opportunity to get the plot rolling, make things tense, interesting, aggressive! the clans are suffering - riverclan show your strength! after the gathering, shadowclan will be send out a patrol to intercept riverclan and request to make allies. in which they will scheme for the take down of a clan. have fun role-playing!

[✗ Rabbitstar ✗]

The small tabby stood at the exit of their camp, her tail high and ready to burst from the camp and into the four-trees. Her body was completely tense, every bone screaming to get this situation over with. She knew it was going to be a risky gathering. All the clans were suffering, all were weak. And when ever times got this bad, it was always tense. Easy for invasion. It was just terrifying for the young leader. This wasn't her first run around, she had faced many troubles as deputy, but another cold winter such as this, she had lost her leader, her mentor, and many of her friends. It was just an all around horrible experience and she was ready to get it over with. A loud yowl sounded from her vocals - the signal to set off. Her strong hindquarters pushed off, and she led them on their way, to meet with the rest of the Clans. Not to mention how high up in her throat her heart was.

They did have some good things to announce when they got to the gathering. They had three new apprentices. Rabbitstar's own apprentice Timberpaw, along with his brother, Ospreypaw who was mentored by the deputy, Stormcloud. As well as their new medicine cat apprentice, Brackenpaw. And luckily, due to the toms quick thinking, they even had a new batch of cat mint, enough to get them through a crisis if it were to occur again this leaf-bare. It wasn't long before they were halfway there and the leader let out a loud meow to have Stormcloud keep leading - she wanted to check on the three apprentices. She allowed her pace to drop back until she was beside them and she gave them a light smile, her pace a small lope. "Are you guys excited?" She meowed lightly, her green eyes shining for their new experience, memories of her first gathering replacing her nervousness. "Make sure to meet with new cats, get to know them. However, don't tell any cat about the food shortage or anything. We want to look strong." She commented, giving the three of them a respected gesture of her head before finding a place next to Hareflight.

She gave the tom a light smile, her eyes shining however her nerves were already returning. "Let's hope this goes as well as it possibly can." Her meow was quiet, more to herself than to the lynx colored tom beside her. A heavy sigh and she flicked her tail affectionately against his shoulder before giving a light smile and returning to the front of the Clan. Finally, they broke into the middle of the four, ancient trees. Her tail flicked slightly, reminding the clan of the rules, silently. Pretty much, converse, but, don't give away anything valuable, don't make us look weak. They were the first Clan there, but Rabbitstar knew the rest would be there soon. She gave a weary and nervous glance toward Hareflight, before nuzzling Stormcloud, another silent gesture of appreciation of respect before heading over to the oak tree and perching herself on the branch.

This was the moment of truth, let the gathering begin.

TAGS: @stormcloud , BRACKENPAW , LAKEHEART , |Hareflight| , TIMBERPAW , OSPREYPAW

[TIMBERPAW]

TIMBERPAW.
weep for yourself my man, you'll never be what is in your heart.
weep little lion man, you're not as brave as your were at the start.

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Timberpaw's stomach had been in knots since having learned he'd be attending the gathering - his first gathering. The idea of meeting the other clans was intimidating, no, terrifying. He'd heard many stories of great battles and vicious ends with these very cats and there they would be, right within spitting distance. Timberpaw marvelled at his clan mates' courage. How could they be so calm, so determined and certain when they were literally surrounding themselves with their enemies? The apprentice certainly didn't understand the significance of gatherings.

Rabbitstar's yowl to move out sent shrill adrenaline along the tom's spine. He nearly jumped out of his fur right then and there! Timberpaw shuddered, giving his pelt a firm shake to settle the bristling as he followed in pursuit. Admittedly the tom was mildly curious of the other clans, but he would have much rather watched from a safe distance, not among them. He'd herd of Shadowclan - vicious creatures whose hearts had been frozen over by the arctic winds. And Thunderclan - proud and patriotic. Finally, there was Riverclan - clever creatures with a wit to be leery of.

Rabbitstar's voice tore the apprentice from his thoughts. He blinked back into reality, looking up to see the small tabby had fallen back to join the apprentices. Timberpaw felt a wave of reassurance by her presence, though he wasn't aware of it, stepped closer to feel her fur against his. He nodded numbly, not daring to voice about his frayed nerves. Sometimes he hated that she was leader - Timberpaw would have liked to have been glued to her like her shadow at the gathering. Though the apprentice knew this was simply not possible. She was a leader above being his mentor, she had duties apart from him. Timberpaw made a mental note to stick close to Ospreypaw then - there was comfort in familiarity.

Rabbitstar departed then, her words still ringing in his ears. "We want to look strong." It sent a shiver along the apprentice's spine. Aren't we strong though? He wanted to voice after her, but held his tongue. Were the other clans stronger? The thought alone was horrifying.

By the time they reached four trees, they discovered that they were the first to arrive. Timberpaw didn't realize he'd been holding his breath. Thank Starclan. They wouldn't be facing the other clans, not yet anyway.

╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
your grace is wasted in your face, your boldness stands alone among the wreck.

[|Hareflight|]

|Hareflight|
_____________

---

Oh the gathering! He couldn't believe it was already here! Because of his exuberant personality he had a few friends from other clans but of late he'd noticed that tensions had been running quite high. Probably due to the prey running slowly... or at least it was running slowly in WindClan and from that he could infer in other clans too. From the looks of the other clan cats that he'd seen it was rough for them too. Hopefully though things would go over well and they would all have a fun gathering like normal! Hareflight couldn't wait to greet his friends and hear about the news of the other clans, gossip was a guilty pleasure of his.

When he heard the yowl of his leader and friend he bounded off right after her. Quite easily he paced ahead of his other clanmates and managed to get a spot close to the front of the procession. He didn't mean to run so quickly, it just happened because of his rear legs. He also didn't mean to start watching Rabbitstar as she lead the clan to Fourtrees... but she was so graceful as she loped over the grass. He couldn't help it. Of course, when she dropped back to go speak with the apprentices --two of which made a guilty pang arise in his gut-- he couldn't look behind him and keep going straight so he turned around and tried not to focus on the three of them.

When the tabby she-cat found her way to his side though, he couldn't very well ignore the butterflies in his gut and the happy feeling she gave him. Her words were quiet and he could almost feel that her nerves were riled up. He gave her a reassuring smile. "Oh, sweetheart, it'll go just fine. Just you see!" He said cheerily, hoping to cheer her spirits. The tomcat didn't like to see the kind leader so nervous about the gathering. He watched as she once again took her spot at the head of the clan. With a sigh of his own he glanced back at Ospreypaw and Brackenpaw, wanting to reassure them for their first gathering. He almost went back to talk with them but he couldn't. The trepidation in the pit of his stomach kept him from his sons so he just remained where he was and focused on what he would say to his friends.

Upon arrival at the gathering place he saw that they were the first clan to arrive. Well, this meant that he had time to clean his fur! How wonderful! He would be the best looking cat here, next to Rabbitstar of course. He caught the she-cat's eye and again the nervousness was there. He gave her a smile and a wink of encouragement. He knew she would be fine but she had to know it to. He waited until she was situated in the tree before starting to work on his fur before the other cats would start to arrive.

---

"What's there to talk about?"
What shall I mull over?
I suppose I'll take a walk.

Words: 504
Muse: 4/10
Thoughts: ---
Tags: Gathering

[Deleted]

It was the day all the clans were waiting for. The Gathering had finally come and WindClan was getting prepared. Of course, the Leader of the clans had to go, as well as the Deputy and at least 3 or 4 other cats. Which also meant that StormCloud was required to go as well. As the Deputy of WindClan, she understood what RabbitStar would be worried about. WindClan was suffering, had hardly any prey, and were mostly skinny. They were having a harsh winter, so the other clans would probably see them as weak. But both the Leader and the Deputy didn't want that. They didn't want to seem weak against the other clans, nor did they want to be seen as the weakest clan in the forest. Personally, the grey and white she-cat hoped that maybe ShadowClan or ThunderClan were worse then they were. Then maybe they wouldn't be the first target for any of the other clans.
As all the cats gathered and left the camp, the she-cat got more and more nervous each step she took towards Fourtrees. As they walked, a loud meow made the she-cat slightly jump. Was it a cat from another clan or a cry of pain from one of her own cats? No, it was just RabbitStar letting StormCloud lead. She let out a slight sigh as she made herself seem taller and not as tired or weak, continuing the lead to the gathering. So this is what it is like to lead your clan to a gathering, she thought to herself. She knew that as Deputy, she would someday be the Leader of the clan. Or at least she would be as long as she made it that long. If the harsh winter took her over or an attack from another clan took her, who would be Deputy? Who would replace her as future Leader? Who would help RabbitStar? She hoped it was a cat that would lead the clan to victory.
When RabbitStar took over the leading once again and they made it to FourTrees, they had been the first clan to arrive. It seemed so bare with hardly any cats there. But it also felt good to know that they at least had a few moments or so to make themselves seem stronger then they really were. As the Leader went over to the branch and settled herself down, StormCloud also found a spot in the clearing to set herself down and relax. Or at least that was what she wanted to do. This time, she took a seat, puffed out her chest and sat as tall as she could, trying to seem more like a brave, strong Deputy rather then a nervous, weak she-cat.

[Deleted]

The hoarfrost had recovered the walls of the quarry cliff as well as the ground of the forest. It was also colder, preys were getting scarcer and it gets worse and worse. Flamestar was in the medicine cat's den, watching the sick. All he can do was watching his clanmates getting sick and then, die from disease. Catnip plants had frozen, and there's almost none left. The red tom wondered if all Thunderclan cats are going to be sick, and if the cold had a end. The medicine cat stopped one moment to tell him that all those in his den couldn't go to the Gathering this night. The leader hiccupped. But not many of us are healthy ! How to get to the Gathering so ? However, he nodded his head, he knew that his sick companions weren't unable to travel. Flamestar came out and climbed up the ledge to call his clanmates. His heart squeezed up in his chest when only a few cats dragged off to under the Highledge.

[/font], he meowed, clouds of smoke coming out of his mouth. »
[/ul]
Flamestar led his little group until the island with knots in his stomach. The other clans will think we're weak, hungry and sick. And they will be right. he thinks, totally depressed. Moreover, it was his first Gathering as a leader. He will have to announce Ripplestar's death... Flamestar remained that Pineclaw, his brother, left him die. Will he be there too ? He didn't need an argument between his clan and Frozenstar's now.
They finally arrived in the clearing after Windclan, the red tom joined Rabbitstar. He noticed that the moor cats were thinner than usual. Windclan was suffering from the leaf-bare too.

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[Deleted]

Mouseear had taken the opportunity to sleep before the gathering. Moon-rise found her still asleep in her nest. She awoke to Flamestar calling to the clan to leave, quickly she got up and joined her clanmates. Very few were coming as was apparent. The small group moved quickly and in it seemed no time at all they had reached Fourtrees. Mouseear watched as Flamestar detached himself from the group to go talk with the Windclan leader, Rabbitstar. He spoke to her and Mouseear quickly looked away, "You shouldn't eavesdrop," She scolded herself out loud for that was what she had almost done. Turning away she spotted the Windclan deputy, Stormcloud, and went to visit with her.

The wind buffeted her as she made he way towards Stormcloud. She sat down near her and greeted her with a nod for deputy to deputy. "Is the prey running well?" She asked cordially. Then realized that Stormcloud would not know that she was deputy yet. Oh well, who cares anyway? She wouldn't. 'But,' she thought, 'she might.'

Tags: @stormcloud