Return from Gathering

[hedgie]

Heronpaw decided right then and there it wouldn't do him any good to argue with Nightkit. He gave her one last glance before leading Honeypaw over towards his brother, who was lazily watching cats filter away. The cream tabby tom looked up as they neared.

"Where've you two been?" He mewed comically, watching a flash of annoyance cross his brothers silver face. "I'm just kidding. I know you two aren't stupid like that. I presume you came to see what the all-knowing Reedpaw has to say."

"Oh, shut up with the fooling, Reedpaw. What have you got for us?" Heronpaw mewed, flopping down on the ground in front of his brother, knowing Honeypaw wasn't far behind with the lazing idea.

"Stuff you are not going to believe. I'm gonna start before the gathering cats.So Icepelt and I are out hunting, when Smokeheart comes in, smelling like some strange cat and looking like she just killed her best friend. I mean...they didn't tell me anything, but I've got ideas. Then the gathering cats come back, and I heard all this stuff between Specklestar, Runningfrost, and Foxfur. They want four of Foxfur's kits, the ones in Windclan, to come over here. I think there willing to fight for them, but Specklestar didn't tell the Clan that, at least not tge entire story. She said we probably won't go to war for them, but you know we will. I heard it straight from her. They had no idea that I was just lying there." He grinned impishly. "I think that's a major waste of time and energy over kits. Kits should stay with the mother. It's always ben that way, and Foxfur's just being a big baby.

[Amber]

((No, then it would have been better for Honeypaw. Now it's worse cause Eclipsepaw is pissed. XD))

Honeypaw was about to head after Heronpaw before she saw her sister. Eclipsepaw looked like she was angry, and then it struck her. She had somewhat broken her promise. "Go on ahead, I'll meet you in a moment." she murmered to the tom, swallowing hard as Eclipsepaw coming closer. Maybe she should have walked really quickly and tried to ignore her sister, but that would have only made things worse. She squirmed around a bit, feeling uncomfortable. She hadn't done anything wrong, she was just being her normal self, trying to help others.

The honey apprentice looked down at her paws as she felt like she was being scolded. "I was helping some kits, they needed moss for the elders den, and so I wouldn't be alone Heronpaw came." she murmered not taking her eyes off how fascinating her paws were becoming. "Nothing was going to hurt us, and if it did I had Heronpaw with me." her voice was becoming more and more quiet. Oh, how she wished she could be over with Heronpaw right now, sitting beside him and enjoying herself. He was the one apprentice, other than her sisters, that she actually trusted. Trust didn't come easy with her, and for her to trust someone, it took a lot*.

[Yoko]

Eclipsepaw was doing her best to keep her thumping heart under control. She shouldn't be this angry with her sister. Afterall, she wasn't alone. But the savage rage she felt thinking of Acornsquash transferred to pure fury in her voice when she mewed, "I don't care if a StarClan cat asked! There might have still been foxes out there, Honeypaw!"

She glanced at Heronpaw. This was partly his fault too! But he was a good cat. She doubted he'd hurt her sister. Yet in her mind, Honeypaw had been wandering in the dark depths of ShadowClan territory with threats all around and no one but another apprentice to take care of her. Plus, she had two kits to protect, and knowing Honeypaw she wouldn't leave them for dead. And there would be nothing Eclipsepaw could have done about it!

She took a deep breath, eyes still burning for a moment. "Did you at least tell Runningfrost where you were going?"

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

Emberpaw arched her slender frame in a stretch as she prowled out of the apprentices' den to see what was going on. She had retired to her nest shortly after the gathering patrol had left; no reason to stay up and tire herself out when it was the night of the full moon, after all. Tilting her mottled head, the small she-cat spotted Specklestar up on the tree roots that sheltered her den. Time to hear what happened at the gathering, the apprentice thought, and padded over to sit near her leader's perch.

Her ears were pricked to hear what the spotted cat was saying, for every word of information gained could be an advantage. The news was surprising, but not shocking if you thought about it. Hadn't Foxfur been mooning about his kits recently? And wasn't the Clan restless for ways to expand their territory in order to feed their growing numbers? "Kits grow to become warriors," she murmured to herself, allowing her lips to quirk in a fierce smirk. "Four taken from WindClan and given to us can only be good for the Clan." And there was more good news! ThunderClan had lost yet another member, the deceased cat being none other than their old leader, Shadedstar. ShadowClan's fortunes continued to increase while that of the other Clans sank ever lower.

Emberpaw continued to watch Specklestar for a moment once she leapt down from her perch, thoughts swimming behind her cobalt blue eyes. She hadn't seen her sisters at the meeting, she thought, and rose to her paws. Even as she turned to go and find them, she noted that her mentor and his brothers were to take dawn patrol the following morning. Since it seemed they were to take their apprentices as well, she decided that she could inform her sisters of this as well once she found them.

Scanning the crowd for her sisters' familiar pelts, Emberpaw slipped through the dispersing cats and located her sisters locked in conversation near the elders' den. An amused grin settled upon her face as she approached; it seemed that Eclipsepaw and Honeypaw were going at it again. "What have I missed while I was napping?" she inquired curiously, her midnight gaze roaming over her sisters' faces. "Seems like you've both been having adventures without me."

[hedgie]

Heronpaw turned his head to watch Honeypaw: Oh great. What in the world was Eclipsepaw going on about now? He excused himself from Reedpaw's conversation, a strange looked of clamness mixed with annoyance gracing his face.

"What in the world are you going on about? If you haven't noticed, there isn't a scratch on her. She is fine....I wouldn't let anything hurt her, Eclipsepaw. Really...not to offend you...but chill out." He had sort of formed a barrier between Honeypaw and her angry sister, and he was thankful that he was a pretty big cat for his age, and solid. nothing was going to move him. He twisted his head slightly to look at Honeypaw.

"You okay?"

[Amber]

Honeypaw could feel herself shrinking, and becoming smaller and smaller. She didn't like this scolding, she wasn't used to it, then again she usually didn't do anything unless it was with one of her sisters, but she had enjoyed her time with Heronpaw, even if they did have a couple of tag alongs. He was just so sweet.

"We didn't tell anyone cause we didn't think we were going to be gone too long." she murmered, quickly realizing what she had said was a mistake. She had just admitted to not telling anyone. Wow, she really was out of it today. First going with Heronpaw and two kits, and now not watching what she was saying.

Turning to Emberpaw she smiled softly. Finally, a more sensible sister. "We're not arguing, Eclilpsepaw is just mad because I left camp." she said. "And it was hardly an adventure because I had to drag along two kits who are troublesome and one of them complains way too much."

And then she soon heard a voice that saved her. Thank StarClan. Heronpaw had come to her rescue! Her bright blue eyes watched him as he spoke, and she had no clue what she was feeling at the moment. Did he really just stand up to Eclipsepaw? Did he have a death wish? He sure was a brave cat. And when he spoke to her she just nodded. "I'm fine, thanks." she purred. Was it possible for her to be happy with everything she had been through?

[hedgie]

Heronpaw smiled. She was alright, and he was going to keep it that way. While she was mentally shrinking, he was trying to make himself appear larger. The tip of his twitched, showing a sign to his feelings. He was just a bit miffed at Eclipsepaw. Wasn't he good enough?

He again looked back at Honeypaw, and smiled, but then turned again to Eclipsepaw. 'I'm not scared of you." He mewed, quite proud of himself for standing up to her. He now braced himself against the ground, his claws now digging into the dirt. He was a wall between them, and he would not break.

(( -adores him-))

[Yoko]

Eclipsepaw's eyes widened at Honeypaw saying she hadn't told any cat! Did she lose her mind?! For StarClan's sake, Brindlepelt nearly died today, and her sister wanders out of camp. She turned to Emberpaw.

"Our sister decided to be wreckless and wander our fox infested territory with Fish-for-brains!" she snarled.

Then he had the nerves to step in! He was trying to separate her from Honeypaw! Her pelt bristled. Why did he feel a need to protect her??? Honeypaw was her own sister!

Her fury flooded to her paws and her claws unsheathed. Size or not, Eclipsepaw was trained by the fiercest warrior in the whole Clan! She could shred this Fish-brain apprentice in moments! But then Honeypaw would be all depressed and hate her! Life was so unfair. She let her pelt stop bristling, and sheathed her claws.

She mewed with all the biting hatred she could in her raspy voice, "Unlike you, I love my sister too much to separate her from cats she cares about and especially from her only family. I don't see why she hangs out with a Fish-brain apprentice like you, but I'll have no part in it. If you hurt her, you will pay . Goodnight, dearest SISTER."

She turned on her heel and let her tail flick Heronpaw's muzzle as she padded away.

[. s p o r e l e t t ♪]

Emberpaw studied the situation with quick eyes, summing up the events even before their history unfolded before her. It was so unlike Honeypaw to wander off without telling anyone, in the company of only one other apprentice and a couple of kits. Where had her caution gone, her reticence? The tortoiseshell she-cat felt a little annoyed at her sister for breaking character, and especially so for choosing to wander off with some other apprentice instead of keeping her word to her sister. It occurred to her that there might be a good reason for Honeypaw's anomalous actions, but she wasn't feeling charitable enough at the moment to consider one. Their leader had just made an important announcement; the Clan might be going to war! This was no time for them to be divided and drifting apart in favour of whimsy.

Emberpaw's expression was sour enough when Heronpaw blundered his way into their conversation and started snapping at Eclipsepaw. No mangy tom was going to talk to her sister like that, no-matter if he was trying to be helpful to Honeypaw! "Don't speak to my sister in that way," she warned, her voice ripe with menace. "You haven't any notion of what disaster you're courting." Flashing Honeypaw a look that contained all her disgust and disappointment for her sister's decision to choose this apprentice over her own kin, the diminutive tortoiseshell stalked quickly after Eclipsepaw. Annoyance and resentment roiled under her skin, but she wasn't so much angry as frustrated at her sister for making things difficult. Well, perhaps she was angry at Heronpaw, but he was dismissed easily enough. She had better things to mull over than that excuse for a cat.

"Eclipsepaw, wait," she called, catching up to the ebony-furred she-cat after a few moments to walk at her side. "Did you hear Specklestar's announcement? I suppose you didn't really need to, since you were at the gathering." A small smirk settled over her lips as she said this, despite the conflict that had just exploded between them. "How likely do you think it is that Rivermist will actually decide to give up her kits? I'm willing to bet that she won't; any queen worth her title isn't going to give up her own offspring." She scoffed, showing how much weight she gave to that possibility. "Do you think Specklestar will press it if they refuse?" she wondered, knowing her leader's reluctance to launch an attack without cause. "Four kits would be a substantial advantage for ShadowClan, and it would be a blow to WindClan. Reluctant as Specklestar may be to start a war, it makes sense to press forward."

[Amber]

"Heronpaw please don't make my sister even more angry. I don't want to see either of you get hurt." Honeypaw mewed, at a crossroad for once in her life. Eclipsepaw and Emberpaw were her sisters, and she would do anything for them. But if it came down to a fight between them and Heronpaw she just couldn't choose sides. She had a good feeling about Heronpaw, it was something that she didn't have too often. She wished her sisters could be happy for her, branching out to someone other than them, but it was turning out to be worse than she could imagine. And here she was cowering behind someone else, it was just like being a kit again and seeing her brother die. The thought of bloodshed made the honey color apprentice shudder. No, she didn't want to witness that anymore, not again. Not after so many deaths in her family.

"Eclipsepaw..." Honeypaw's voice faded as she watched her sister depart. She didn't mean for this to happen. If she had only stayed in camp, nothing would have happened. She would be pestering her sister with details about the gathering, and would only be watching Heronpaw from a distance like she usually did. Her loyalty to her sisters was higher than any other loyalty she held. She had always vowed nothing would come in between them, that she would pretect them any way possible. And here she was, the cause of it. And then Emberpaw had gone with Eclipsepaw before she knew it, and Honeypaw knew they had sided together. She felt alone for the first time in her life.

Watching her sisters conversing she really did feel left out and ashamed for what she had done. Honeypaw let out what was probably the longest sigh she had done and stared at Heronpaw. "I'm so sorry to drag you into this. I understand if you want to run far away." she murmered.

[hedgie]

Heronpaw promptly sat down, feeling more confused than anything else. "Sorry, sorry, sorry. I was just trying to help. I mean, i know she's your sister, but she had no right to go chewing you out like that. It was only moss, and we weren't even that far away from camp." He couldn't even look at Honeypaw because of how stupid he felt. "I really am a fish-brain. I should've kept my mouth shut, really. Now you're sisters hate me, and I've got you all confused."

He looked at the ground, the sky, at Reedpaw; anywhere but straught into her face. Could he fix this? "You didn't drag me into this, Honeypaw. I threw myself into the mess. I'm not going to run away, you know. They don't scare me like they used to. Do you realize how long it's taken me to talk to you? I've been afraid those two would rip my fur off."

It probably wasn't the best time for joking, but it was how he dealt with stress. "Listen, if you want to like, hate me for this and never talk to me again...I'll fully understand. i know what it's like to have only your family." He finally looked up at Honeypaw. "Just...we'll fix this. I'll fix this, somehow. No matter how long it takes, I'll prove to them that I'm a good cat. Then they won't hate me and they won't be mad at you."

"Okay...so, you going to tell me about this 'disaster I'm courting?' "

[Yoko]

((Funny thing is, if Heronpaw hadn't said anything, Eclipsepaw would have been okay with him and Honeypaw XD. She would have thought of him and the kits as bystanders, and forgotten them later))

Eclipsepaw was storming for the apprentice den. It was late, she was tired, and furious. Slowly her steps lost momentum as she heard Emberpaw's calling. Relief rushed over her as she realized that Emberpaw wanted to talk about the Gathering. She was glad to not have to talk about Honeypaw and Heronpaw for the moment.I shouldn't have yelled at her like that, but there's no way I'm going to apologize for her own wrecklessness, so she'll have to get over it! As for Fish-brain-paw...Well, he'd better hope we never have battle-training together!

"The Gathering was ten times more exciting then usual. Every cat sounded about ready to riot!" she snickered. "Ravenstar was too afraid to give a decision on the spot, but I bet he'll tell Rivermist not to do it, so there's hopes we'll actually get to fight! My mentor of course will shred tons of WindClan pelts."

[Amber]

"No, it's okay, I know you were just trying to help, and I really admire you for standing up to my sisters. That takes more bravery than you could ever think of. Our bond is something we have never taken lightly. We've always been close, ever since we were kits. And you are wrong, she did have a right to chew me out. I did something I have never done before. I left camp without telling someone else, especially one of my sisters. We always promised to be careful no matter what we did, and it's not like me at all to do anything that is remotely close to leaving camp without either Eclipsepaw or Emberpaw." Honeypaw sat down next to Heronpaw her tail on his back, trying to comfort him. "And you don't have fish for brains. That's just Eclipsepaw, she may come off a little rough, but deep down I think she likes you. If not, then she would have clawed your fur off a few moments ago." she added.

And at that moment, Honeypaw couldn't help but grin. He wasn't scared off by her sisters? Usually no cat would dare to come around them, and now having someone else in her life other than her sisters just felt...right. And he had been trying to talk to her? That was something she didn't expect either. He was worming his way into her life, whether he knew it or not. "They don't hate you, they just don't understand you." she tried to say something, anything at this time. But she knew he was partly right.

"I'm not going to ignore you. Standing up to my sisters is something no cat has done, and you have done it. How could I ignore you after something like that?" she chuckled. "And it will all be okay after a little while, their tempers will calm down and I'll talk to them later, tell them that you are in our lives whether they like it or not. And it won't be long before they have gotten used to you. They are my sisters, they have to understand." Honeypaw hoped that her words were true.

"Sometimes Emberpaw doesn't make any sense. I tend to just nod and go along with it. I may not understand what she is saying, but she does, and I guess that is all that matters. But don't worry about either one of my sisters for now, they will come around eventually."

[hedgie]

He was brave? It was hard to imagine. Him, Heronpaw who only wanted to help, was considered brave? He blinked a few times in schok at this statement, then smiled a bit. He listened for the most part in silence, choosing his words very carefully. "There wasn't anyone to tell. how could we tell Runningfrost if he was at the Gathering. We left before they got back, you know. She likes me? Are you entirely sure on that, Honeypaw? Seems to me like she and Emberpaw think I'm some rouge who's come to take you away from them forever."

"I'm not that hard to understand. I mean, I try to keep things simple." He sighed, shrugging. "I'm not sure what to do. I mean, you have to be happy, and you're not if they're not. I can see that." He mewed. That was plain enough to see, even to him.

"Of course they have to understand. That's pretty simple. Heh, they're stuck with me, wether they like it or not." He purred, feeling much better now, despite the fact he had a nagging feeling those two would never like him.

[Yoko]

((Guys, please wrap this up. It's waaaay past time for Gathering Night to end and the kitties need sleep. Try finishing it in one or two posts each.))