[Deleted]

Enemies surround me but the worst appear as friends.
Liars and pretenders only seek to reach their ends...

---

Assigned to the morning fishing patrol, Rushwhisker left at the head of the patrol, with Bitternwing, Vinestripe, and Swansong following behind. Bitternwing tried a few times to strike up a conversation with him, but he did his best to deflect her. Swansong and Vinestripe parted from them early on to find their own place to fish, and soon enough he had made it clear to Bitternwing that he wanted to fish alone and was padding off by himself, trying to ignore the guilt that nagged at him at the wounded look on her face at his dismissal.

He had already caught a trout, sitting beside the river, when a rustling noise behind him had him turning, expecting to see Bitternwing probably wanting an explanation of some sort. His eyes widened at the familiar face that greeted him instead, a snarl etched upon his uncle's muzzle, “That half-blooded filth is still padding after you, is she? At least it seems you've finally had the sense not to breed with her.” A hungry glint in his eye, something dark, and Surgeclaw was turning, “I'll take care of her for you.”

“NO!” With a feral screech, Rushwhisker leaped onto the larger tom's back, catching him by surprise, digging in his claws, but Surgeclaw was a better fighter than Rushwhisker, even in his ragged state. The older tom threw himself back against a nearby tree, crushing Rushwhisker against it, knocking the wind from his lungs. He dropped from Surgeclaw's back, coughing and gasping, and claws ripped through his cheek, and then his chest, and then his uncle was on top of him, crushing, teeth aiming for his vulnerable throat. He managed to twist his head away, protect himself, and teeth dug into his shoulder instead. He yowled in pain, lashing out with unsheathed claws, and managed to land a blow across Surgeclaw's face that made him let go, hissing. Kicking out as hard as he could, Rushwhisker managed to shove his uncle away enough to get back to his paws, only for the other tom to leap onto his back, claws digging in mercilessly.

A familiar scent and Bitternwing was there, taking Surgeclaw by surprise and knocking him away, pausing to check that he was all right, “I'm f-fine!” Rushwhisker pushed to his paws to stand beside her, blood dripping down his cheek. Vinestripe and Swansong burst in behind them a moment later, hackles raised and claws unsheathed. Surgeclaw took a look at the four of them and hissed, turning tail and running away. Vinestripe and Swansong pursued him before Rushwhisker could tell them not to.

Bitternwing remained at his side, pressing against him to support him, “You're hurt... we need to get you to Swanfeather-”

“No!” he snarled, pulling away from her.

“Rushwhisker you need to be seen by a medicine cat! Swanfeather is what we have! Don't be a fishbrain!” she chided him, angry and worried as she nudged him on, toward camp, “Besides, we need to tell Silverstar about Surgeclaw and send a patrol out to make sure he's gone before he hurts anyone else.”

That last bit he could agree with, at least. His cheek and chest stung, as did his back, but it was the bite wound in his shoulder that burned like fire. He limped slightly, allowing Bitternwing to take some of his weight. “He... he wanted to kill you.”

Her steps faltered for a moment, but then she kept going, “It seems to me he wanted to kill you.” Another pause, “I'm glad he didn't.”

Her voice was soft, but full of relief. The two of them made it to camp eventually and Bitternwing rushed off calling for Swanfeather, leaving Rushwhisker spitting after her in the middle of camp. Ashflight was at his side, rushing from where she had been sharing a fish with Russethawk, “Rushwhisker? What happened!?”

“Surgeclaw.... Keep Swanfeather away from me,” he snarled at his sister, knowing she would understand, and she did, her face set hard and stubborn as she gently lapped at his wounds.

Fury blazed in her pale green eyes, “I'm not going to let him escape this time, Rushwhisker. I'm going to find him. We should have killed him when we had the chance!” She itched to go after him right then, but Rushwhisker had told her to keep Swanfeather away from him, and that was her first priority. Some featherhead would probably try to make him let that traitor treat him and he wasn't in a very good state to defend himself. She continued washing his wounds. She'd treat him herself if she had to. She certainly didn't know anywhere near as much as Swanfeather, but she'd learned a little mountain herb lore in her time and she knew a basic dressing for wounds that would do well enough if it came to it. Goldenrod and cobwebs had always worked for her in a pinch. It was all the herb knowledge she really had but it had been enough in the mountains when she was wounded. She had seen a few patches in RainClan territory too, so she knew they had some.

---

The hope of morning makes me worth the fight,
I will not be giving in tonight.

Hellion williams Justice @kahani (feel free to get a post in for november's high rank check!)
Fawn (for Russethawk, or anyone else you wanna throw in or whatever xD)
Taxx (in case you wanna throw fernpaw in)
People that aren't tagged are free to post, these people just have characters that have more reason to be involved if they so choose~

[Deleted]

Moonshine,

"With every confidence, you have won before you even started." _{-Marcus Garvey}

Deputy  of RainClan, 42 Moons, She-Cat

" Mum, Mum, Rushwhisker is hurt" The words had barely left her son's mouth and Moonshine was out of the warrior's den and searching for the former deputy as well as his patrol, knowing that whatever happened would be explained by those who were there. It was not exactly hard to spot a gathering group of cats in the middle of Rainclan's camp and after telling off a few onlookers the blue tipped she cat was in the middle of the action, her bright blue eyes full of concern and suprise.

"Rushwhisker are you alright, what happened?" she questioned softly , as deputy she had a right to know what had caused this pain to her clanmate but as the maternal being that she was, there was a sense of authority in her tone that held no room for arguement. 

While Moonshine had never directly interacted with the deputy, Ashfoot had been a proud supporter of the older tom and while Ashfoot was with Starclan now ,the former queen honoured his memory by teaching their son his lessons of respect and dignity. The fact he had served before both Silverstar and herself as deputy showed her he was far more than capable of explaining himself. Right now her concern was not on finding out what happened, she could leave that to Silverstar when he arrived, she instead focused on doing what her clanmates needed her to do. 

@zen
Justice 

[williams]

dewpaw,

Voices filled the camp, urgent like a panicked bird flying away from outstretched claws. "Come quickly, come quickly! Rushwhisker's been attacked!" Dewpaw started, panic flooding her system. "Attacked? By who?" She asked but the cat that sought out their medicine cats was already hurrying back to the injured tom. I need cobwebs her mind raced, sniffing their stores for herbs to bring. And marigold 'cause the wounds shouldn't be infected yet. But what if the claws were dirty? Could the wound get infected so quickly? With a front paw swathed in cobwebs and jaws heavy with marigold and dandelion and a spring of lavender, the brown-pointed apprentice raced out of the den into the center of camp. Her waddling steps brought her close to the flailing Rushwhisker. Dewpaw spat the herbs out in a pile next to him, blue eyes keenly searching for his wounds.

Finding Ashflight's eyes, she gave a small determined nod. "Cleaning the wounds is good, thank you Ashflight." Her voice didn't shake as it had with Swankit. The young apprentice was ready this time to tackle the issue, her strength making her appear older. Her posture and sure paws held the same odd wisdom that brought Swanfeather to the decision of choosing Dewpaw as her apprentice. "I brought lavender for him to smell, to help him calm down." She told his sister, pushing the sprig towards her. "Can you make him focus on it please? I can apply marigold to the wounds you've already cleaned when he's calmer." With her final instruction, Dewpaw lapped up some of the bright petals, chewing quickly. She knew now to keep the paste even and worked furiously to get the paste made as fast as she could. How quickly does infection set in? Could it already be infected because I took too long? No! I won't let that happen. Paste made and her own instruction to wait forgotten, Dewpaw leaned in, nosing a wound along Rushwhisker's back leg. He howled- a name, a plead to be left alone- twisting in the dust to lash out. Shock flew down her spine, the fur bristling. He attacked me! Warmth pooled across the bridge of her face, dripping down her muzzle. The world froze as her eyes traced the drops of blood falling onto the ground, mingling with the blood already left by Rushwhisker. What did he say? Who does he think I am? Swanfeather? What did she do? As tears filled her eyes, Dewpaw felt an anger swell up. All this pain just for a bit of history!

"I am not Swanfeather-" She hissed. The apprentice watched the tom's eyes widen, and suddenly felt her breath leave her lungs as if she had fallen through ice. No matter what her mentor did, she had to continue to try and help. Rushwhisker could be seriously injured for life if she didn't. And that was not what she vowed to do. "I just want to help, Rushwhisker. Please."

*~drama~*

497

@zen @kahani Hellion Fawn Justice Taxx

[Deleted]

Enemies surround me by the worst appear as friends.
Liars and pretenders only seek to reach their ends...

---

Moonshine was the first cat besides his sister to approach, asking him what happened. Rushwhisker cast a wary glance her way, the fur along his spine rose as the similarity between her coat color and the only cat in this world he would ever claim to hate clouded his judgment briefly. Her scent was reassuring, however, carrying none of the earthy, herb scent of the forsaken medicine cat. He shook his head, trying to clear it, focusing on the question she'd asked him. “Surgeclaw.... I was fishing, he found me.... He tried to go after Bitternwing....”

It took him a moment to register Dewpaw's presence, only it wasn't Dewpaw. His lip curled and his fur bristled, the scent of herbs strong on the she-cat's creamy pelt. A low, warning growl rumbled in his throat even as Ashflight was trying to turn his attention to the lavender Dewpaw had brought for him, “Stay away....” But if she heard, she didn't listen, leaning in, seeking one of his wounds to treat, and he spat as he lashed out with unsheathed claws, “I said stay away from me, Swanfeather!”

Ashflight's eyes widened in alarm, but she had never anticipated he would attack the apprentice. She was on her paws in a hearbeat, putting herself between Rushwhisker and Dewpaw, “Rushwhisker! It's Dewpaw! It's okay!” Her eyes narrowed in concern as Rushwhisker's widened in shock and confusion.

“Dewpaw...?” He blinked at his sister a few times, before finally seeking out the cat he had attacked, slightly behind her. She was too small, her markings not quite the same. And she was bleeding. Rushwhisker's ears pressed flat to his head as recognition dawned on him, both of the cat before him and what he had done to her. He had struck her and yet... she was still asking to help him. “I... I'm sorry.... I didn't mean to....” His gaze fell to his paws, and he was momentarily startled by how red they were (he hadn't hurt her that badly had he?) until he remembered his fight with Surgeclaw. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. He had to get better control of himself... he'd never hurt a Clanmate like that before, and Dewpaw hadn't deserved it at all. He settled into a crouch so the smaller cat could reach him better, staring at his paws, “I'm sorry, Dewpaw... I'm... it's all right now....” Any worries he had about Swanfeather tainting the young she-cat's mind were overridden by his guilt at hurting her.

Ashflight nosed the lavender toward him, “Here... Dewpaw said this will help you calm down....” She looked down at him worriedly as her brother leaned over to breathe in the lavender's calming scent. She looked over at the medicine cat apprentice, “Are you all right, Dewpaw?”

---

Everything is breaking, right before my eyes.
Looking in the mirror I see someone that I don't recognize....

(lol Vinestripe and Swansong are forgotten for now pff, kinda waiting for Silverstar to come in before the whole story is given and something can be done there xD)
Justice Fawn (feel free to post now!)

[Fawn]

Crowblaze

Crowblaze had intercepted Bitternwing on her way to Swanfeather, smelling blood on her pelt.
"What happened?" He demanded, pressing his nose into his younger sister's fur, checking for injuries. The fluffy tortoiseshell gave a soft shake of her head, stepping away from him.

"I'm fine! Surgeclaw, he—" Bitternwing hesitated, perhaps in fear for the growing fire climbing higher in Crowblaze's eyes. 

"He what?" Crowblaze growled. If that filthy piece of trash had laid so much as one claw on her, he'd rip him into crowfood.

"He attacked Rushwhisker," she finally said. "I need to get Swanfeather."

"I'll deal with Surgeclaw," Crowblaze promised, his tone unusually cool. He started for the entrance to camp before Bitternwing could protest. It was about time someone put that mange-pelt in the ground where he belonged. Crowblaze hissed, reeling back as a ruddy tom blocked his path.

"Get out of my way, Russethawk."

Both toms briefly paused as Moonshine hurried towards Rushwhisker, the scent of blood in the air, but their personal battle continued.

Russethawk

"I know you're angry, Crowblaze, but you can't do anything until Moonshine and Silverstar have decided what happens next." Russethawk's emerald eyes were unflinching, even when faced with the hostile fire of Crowblaze's gaze. The enormous dark tabby tom snarled at him, but Russethawk didn't back down. 

"This is the problem with this Clan! Too soft on traitors! If we'd killed them when we had the chance, this fishdung wouldn't be happening right now."

"We're not murderers, Crowblaze." Said Russethawk. It was not like him to sound so cold, so certain, but how else was he going to get through that thick skull of Crowblaze's? This cat was just going to make a bad situation worse. He stole a quick glance to Ashflight, who was tending to her brother with a look fluctuating between worry and fury. I'll have to stop her next; Silverstar needs to hurry. I can't keep these cats here for long. It would only take a heartbeat for Piketooth to add his own fire to Crowblaze's growing wrath, and then add Ashflight to the mix? They'd burn the whole valley down just to snuff out a few stragglers.

"No, we just spare murderers so they can lash out at us again." Crowblaze growled, the noise low and savage.

Russethawk growled back, baring his teeth. "Just stay put, you stubborn mouse-brain. You can't just do whatever you want." Crowblaze wasn't a loner anymore. If he was going to be a RainClan cat again, then he needed to act like it. "We don't have all the details yet."

Crowblaze's square-shaped muzzle snapped open to argue, but the event with Rushwhisker and Dewpaw put a halt to any oncoming words.

@zen williams , Hellion , @kahani , Justice Taxx

[Hellion]

[smear:ffffff]Swanfeather[/smear:343B4F]

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living

75 Moons || Medicine Cat of RainClan || She-Cat

Swanfeather's scent lead Bitternwing toward the large willow tree in the territory. In preperation for the coming leafbare moons, Swanfeather was on the search for watermint. The herb was useful for bellyache, something that always seemed to happen during leafbare with the younger cat learning the harshness of starvation. Carefully picking her paws around various other budding herbs, Swanfeather's nose was dutifuly trained for the telling signs of watermint. When her paws sunk into softer earth near the willow's roots, she spotted the herb.

Careful to remove only a few leaves from each plant and allow the herb to keep growing, Swanfeather's ears were keen to the goings on around her. It was true that the Civil War had been terrible on RainClan and Swanfeather carried much of the blame on her aging shoulders. Looking back she was naive despite her age. Those who followed her lead twisted her ideas and killed RainClan cats out of anger.

Swanfeather didn't want anyone dead, not that it seemed to matter. She was still like a fox in the nursery, something meant to be chased out. There was a tiny moment when Swanfeather thought Silverstar would send her away. Take back Stormheart's offer of redemption, she wouldn't blame him if he did.

"Swanfeather, Rushwhisker has been hurt please hurry," Turning her head at the sound of Bitternwing's words, Swanfeather nodded. The younger she-cat's words were enough to pull her out of her thoughts.

Picking up her gather leaves, Swanfeather headed back to camp with Bitternwing beside her. She was deeply annoyed with her old bones as they prevented her from running to Rushwhisker's aid.

Arriving in camp, Swanfeather witnessed the strike on Dewpaw and it sent the she-cat into a state of anger. Stalking forward she dropped the watermint on her way and went to Dewpaw's side. Concerned for her apprentice, Swanfeather went right toward her and attempted to nudge herself between Rushwhisker and Dewpaw.

"Let me see," She meowed harshly but with concern interwoven in her words. The wound was superficial, bleeding only because of the location. There was a low chance of scaring and Swanfeather's concern ebbed. "I will take care of that for you," She told Dewpaw before finally turning her attention toward Rushwhisker only to be stopped by Ashflight. It quickly became apparent that Swanfeather wasn't being permitted to tend to Rushwhisker's wounds.

"He'd rather risk possible infection and permanent damage then let me help?" She snapped ignoring all other bickering going on and focusing mostly on Rushwhisker and Ashflight.

"Would you rather see another medicine cat? Do you think you can walk all the way to NightClan, maybe StoneClan? You are being foolish Rushwhisker," She added tail lashing. "Not only are you acting like a spoiled kit but you hurt Dewpaw and I will not tolerate that. Either you let me help you or accept the risk," Swanfeather went on to add, her chesting puffing slightly as her fur bristled with anger and frustration. She had a good feeling why he was unwilling to accept her help but she also thought was smarter than that. Someone able to see when pride needed to be set aside.

"What will it be Rushwhisker?" She asked again, still talking past his sister, each word harder then the one before.

I dreamed that love would never die

WORDS || @zen Justice williams Fawn @kahani || swan has no time for rush's bs, also a little rough sorry.

[Justice]

Silverstar

He'd heard the gathering commotion before anyone had even come to get him. No reason. No time. Someone was hurt, he heard the voices of the others, raised voices and violence in the air. He raced, his paws covering the ground from the edge of camp towards the gaggle of cats all around Rushwhisker.

He stood apart from it for a moment, taking in what had happened and the ones that were talking revenge. "Enough." His voice carried through the area as he came and gave Dewpaw a look over to make sure she hadn't been seriously injured when Rushwhisker attacked her. He, like Swanfeather, put himself between his she-kit and the injured warrior. "I'm sure it wasn't intentional." He'd just rather live. If Echoshade found out Dewpaw had been injured and he didn't put himself between her and that threat, she'd kill him. That was a terrible way to lose his first life, death by queen.

"Crowblaze." His name he bit out, his tone going chill. "Stand down." He looked to Moonshine, shoulders set. "Moonshine, take a patrol and search the borders. Crowblaze isn't to go. Let level heads deal with this." He gave the tom his gaze again. "Fighting when you're angry means you might make a mistake, might get hurt because you're focus is on rage and revenge. I don't want anyone else to get hurt today."

He came to stand where Rushwhisker could see him, trying his best to mediate the situation. "Easy Rushwhisker." His tone dropped a little, trying to help his clanmate calm down. "You don't have to like it, but you need her help. When Dewpaw is finished with her training, you'll have every right to decide she is the only medicine cat that can attend you when you're hurt. But for now, let Swanfeather do her duty."

He looked finally to Dewpaw. "Are you alright?" Then he looked to her mentor, inclining his head to show he'd seen that she put herself between Rushwhisker and Dewpaw as well. He also hoped the she-cat understood that he was trying to make this matter better and not question him for telling Rushwhisker he could pick his medicine cat once Dewpaw was trained. He wanted this to be settled.

"Swanfeather, give him a moment." He hoped she understood not to push on this matter. He couldn't make the clan accept her, but he did want to keep her safe. He couldn't guarantee her safety if she pushed Rushwhisker too hard right now.

"Now, someone tell me exactly what's happened." He got the gist, but the details were important. And maybe talking about it would diffuse some of the tension in the air.

@zen
Hellion
Fawn
Taxx
williams
@kahani

[Deleted]

Enemies surround me by the worst appear as friends.
Liars and pretenders only seek to reach their ends...

---

Bitternwing returned with Swanfeather then, and though Rushwhisker didn't immediately notice, Ashflight did. She kept herself between her brother and the medicine cat, staring the older she-cat down. Rushwhisker didn't notice her at all until she spoke to them. His ears twitching, his head slowly turned toward her, gaze narrowing as his anger slowly but surely returned, beating out his guilt as the dominant emotion took control. She had the gall to chastise him? A low growl steadily rose in his throat and he felt he might vomit if he had to stomach any more of Swanfeather's hypocritical little lecture, but before he could say or do anything, Silverstar's voice rang out among the clamoring voices around them and drew his attention.

The leader's orders to Moonshine made sense. That's right, Vinestripe and Swansong were still out there. Rushwhisker felt the blood in his veins chill. Surgeclaw was ruthless. In everything that had happened so far, he had yet to even mention them to any cat. They needed help. They needed back up, fast, before it was too late for them. It may be two against one but Surgeclaw was known for his prowess in battle, while it was neither Vinestripe's nor Swansong's strong suit. He was about to speak again, but again Silverstar spoke first. Though the tom was calm, trying to tell Rushwhisker to trust Swanfeather was like trying to tell him to trust a fox. It wasn't going to happen.

His anger began to rise again, but he closed his eyes, claws digging into the earth beneath him, and fought for control. Vinestripe and Swansong. They needed help. That was his first priority now. He turned his attention to Moonshine instead, “Please, hurry. Vinestripe and Swansong went after Surgeclaw when he fled. He found me first, but when he tried to go after Bitternwing I attacked him. He... he probably would have killed me if she hadn't showed up when she did. Then Vinestripe and Swansong came, they must have heard us fighting. I was hurt, Bitternwing was helping me. He saw how outnumbered he was and ran, but they went after him. It's just the two of them. I'm afraid they'll get hurt on their own. He only ran because it was four against one when they showed up.” He hoped his voice conveyed just how urgent the situation was. If Surgeclaw killed another cat....

Ashflight hissed beside him, “Why didn't you say that before?” Their uncle had nearly drowned her, and would have if not for Russethawk. He wouldn't hesitate to kill either of those two. Without any further warning and Silverstar's orders be damned, Ashflight turned and fled out of camp as fast as her paws would carry her. She couldn't let him kill again. She'd had a chance to kill him, to stop him, to prevent all this from happening, and she'd let Russethawk convince her to let the mangy piece of crowfood go. She wouldn't make that mistake again.

Rushwhisker watched his sister go for a moment until he realized what she was doing. “No... no! Ashflight!” He tried to push to his paws, but he'd lost more blood than he realized and slid back to his belly with a hiss of frustration, looking around wildly at the gathered cats, “Don't let her go alone! Please!” Swanfeather was momentarily forgotten. All he wanted was to make sure his sister was safe. He couldn't lose her. He couldn't lose another cat. StarClan couldn't have her. A tremor went through him; fear, raw and terrible fear, that StarClan was about to claim the last cat in this world that he loved. But instead of losing himself to the fear and that pit of despair he was so vicariously clinging to the edge of, he let his anger take him again.

His attention whipped around to Swanfeather, his tail lashing behind him, “You! You want me to trust YOU? All of this is your fault! Surgeclaw followed you! You turned families against each other! You lied and used StarClan and your rank as a tool to manipulate your Clanmates for your own twisted ends!” His anger fueling him, he at last managed to regain his paws to face Swanfeather properly, “Because of you I've lost EVERYTHING!” Everything he'd believed in was a lie thanks to her. Everything he'd given up and sacrificed had been for nothing, because of her. The only thing he had left was Ashflight, and now.... He snarled, and all of his hatred for the pointed she-cat was apparent in every syllable, “It was hatred you spread through this Clan, and you did a GREAT job of it, because now you have ALL of mine! I'll rot in the Dark Forest before I ever let you touch me!” He swayed, fell heavily onto his haunches, still glaring burning fury at the medicine cat, but his strength had run out.

---

Everything is breaking, right before my eyes.
Looking in the mirror I see someone that I don't recognize....

What, did you think a few calm words were going to make everything okay? x'D
Okay about everyone is here I'd say, so time to establish
Posting Order
@zen
@kahani
williams
Fawn
Hellion
Justice

Also, I was thinking a second thread could possibly be started for the patrol going out to look for Surgeclaw. @kahani , I'll be PMing you about that shortly~

[Deleted]

Moonshine,

"With every confidence, you have won before you even started." _{-Marcus Garvey}

Deputy of RainClan, 42 Moons, She-Cat

Moonshine tried her best to remain calm when Rushwhisker spoke that hated name, Surgeclaw and while the blue tipped deputy did not know the entire story behind the traitor, Ashfoot had warned her enough times to stay away and the former queen's tail lashed angrily behind her. However a few short seconds later and she was back in the moment, hissing softly as Rushwhisker attacked Dewpaw but there was little the deputy could do before Ashflight and then Swanfeather and Silverstar were stepping in themselves. 

Moonshine kept her eyes on Rushwhisker as he spoke to her,, despite Ashflight's sudden action the deputy remained rooted to her spot, afraid to miss a single moment of the drama unfolding before her. Swanfeather had to make things a little more difficult when she began to lecture Rushwhisker and Moonshine rolled her eyes at the similarly coloured older she-cat and was about to voice her .. perhaps not so glowing opinion on the she-cat herself when Silverstar's orders finally caught her attention and she nodded.

" Yes Silverstar, at once" Moonshine replied with all the grace and respect she had managed to muster in her anger at Swanfeather's outburst "Russethawk come with me please, I need your help" she addressed her clanmate in a polite tone, he was level headed in a crisis like she was and while her fur still burned with irriation she had a job to do now, rescue her clanmates. 

The former queen paused by Rushwhisker and gently nudged the tom with her nose, unspoken words of comfort offered and she fixed Swanfeather with a look of resignation "Good luck" was all she could muster before she took off like a bolt of lightning after Ashflight's scent.

Tags
@zen
williams
Fawn
Hellion
Justice

Notes
Moonshine is basically like " Oh shut up Swanfeather" 

[williams]

dewpaw,

“Are you all right, Dewpaw?” came from Ashflight, a gentle reminder to stay strong. She returned the warrior's look, giving a little hummed 'yeah' and forcing a breath through her nose as she crept forward again. Then came the surge of voices as more cats entered the clearing after hearing her shriek and the older cat's calls of panic, a frightening collection of noise for one so young. Panic fizzed down her spine once more, causing the fur to stand up. She wanted to stay strong for Rushwhisker and Swanfeather. He needed a medicine cat ready to work, and she needed an apprentice willing to work through any trouble.

Then her mentor appeared finally, thankfully, eyes staring into her own, gently turning her head to look at the mark. They both knew it would be something small, a slight mark as a future reminder. There was anger in her eyes, and Dewpaw felt herself leaping to defend the tom. "He didn't know!" She said, words falling out as quickly as she could say them. It was an excuse from a navie mind, not recognizing where the anger came from that starting to burn under Swanfeather's pelt. "He was confused 'cause he was hurt-" The rest of her sentence was lost as her mentor's anger boiled over, a short dismissal given towards the mark and Dewpaw when the older she-cat turned towards Rushwhisker. Words were spit back and forth, charging the air from all the history between the two spilling over the clearing like a flood.

"He'd rather risk possible infection and permanent damage then let me help? Would you rather see another medicine cat? Do you think you can walk all the way to NightClan, maybe StoneClan? You are being foolish Rushwhisker. Not only are you acting like a spoiled kit but you hurt Dewpaw and I will not tolerate that. Either you let me help you or accept the risk."


Time rushed by as the two older cats faced off, becoming two beacons of focus for Dewpaw. An arugment happened to her right, left ignored as the pelts stayed blurred in her perifrial. Her father appeared in the mix, sure voice giving commands to the gathered cats despite the danger in front of the young she-cat. It was a calm point standing in the corner of her eyes, quivering slightly with an unknown energy. Silverstar's attention focused on Dewpaw, but the medicine cat apprentice could not answer his concern as she watched history unfold before her with Rushwhisker's next surge of words.

“You! You want me to trust YOU? All of this is your fault! Surgeclaw followed you! You turned families against each other! You lied and used StarClan and your rank as a tool to manipulate your Clanmates for your own twisted ends!” The tom stood, lurching in his steps. The anger was palpable. “Because of you I've lost EVERYTHING! It was hatred you spread through this Clan, and you did a GREAT job of it, because now you have ALL of mine! I'll rot in the Dark Forest before I ever let you touch me!” Then he fell to a heap, energy spent through his words.

Quiet spread across the camp. The river could be heard briefly over Moonshine's calm command to get a patrol going, all superficial conversations evaporating into the air when Rushwhisker's words stopped. Dewpaw blinked, stunned into silence for once in her short life. A whisper of touch ghosted against her shoulders, a white cat walking towards her mentor from her left, a silver cat walking from her right. Their shapes were as soft as the shadows dappling the dusty floor. The pair stopped between the two feuding cats, but only the tom looked back at her. His mismatched eyes asking for her to do something, a task unreadable yet important.

They were gone when she blinked.

Fur raised as if she was fighting a fox, Dewpaw made a decision. She gathered the herbs scattered around her paws in her jaws and pushed past her mentor to stand in front of Rushwhisker. Dropping the herbs and turning, so both cats could be seen, Dewpaw lashed her tail with nerves. "I will treat him." She said, voice showing her age. She was barely out of the nursery it said with its high tone, but there was a command there reminiscent of her father. "Trust is important for both sides-and, a-and I cannot fix the past, but I can fix the future now. Swanfeather is teaching me how to be a medicine cat, and she's a really good teacher. She knows so much! but she's letting me make my own decisions on what to think of my clanmates and I am doing that." The she-cat looked at Rushwhisker, her fur finally settling back down. "You can hate her, but she is teaching me to care for you all- and I don't want anyone hurt in this clan for as long as I live. So please, let me take care of you with Swanfeather's guidance. Please."

face of the future

841

@zen Hellion Fawn Justice @kahani Taxx

[Fawn]

Russethawk

Silverstar arrived to quickly restore order to the chaos going on all around. But not even the cat in charge of RainClan could stop Ashflight from taking off—the news that Vinestripe and Swansong were in danger too much for her to take sitting down—Russethawk's heart juddered after her. "Ashflight wait!" His former apprentice's plea to not let her go alone was heard by all, but it resonated strongly with Russethawk, and he was already hurrying for the entrance even as Moonshine rallied together a search party.

"Right behind you," he told Moonshine, glancing one last time over his shoulder to see that things in camp were being... handled. Crowblaze looked as if he was ready to murder the next cat that told him no, and Piketooth was right beside him. Good luck, Silverstar. He left with Dewpaw's soft, kitten-high voice saying her piece to Rushwhisker. He wasn't happy about Swanfeather being here either (no one was, except maybe Bravebird?), but that unhappiness was nothing next to the grief he would feel if Rushwhisker succumbed to his wounds.

He wanted tragedy to stay in the past where it belonged. The Clan didn't need this right now. His friends didn't need all this pain and anger in their lives. If he could take it all away, he would. In a heartbeat.

Crowblaze

Crowblaze stomped forward when Silverstar barred him from hunting down the exiled scum, Surgeclaw. He glowered hard at the younger tom, not for the first time hating that he had to take orders from a cat who was closer to the apprentices' den then the elders' den. Again, his mouth was opening to argue, but Bitternwing appeared in front, her small form looking even smaller with his shadow lumbering over her. He met his sister's gaze; she wasn't pleading with him. Instead, Bitternwing gazed at him with a kind of solemn stubbornness that wasn't like her at all.
"Silverstar's right. You're too angry, Crowblaze."

"Of course I'm angry!" He snapped, tail lashing hard enough that it clipped a few Clanmates passing by. He didn't so much as acknowledge them with a glance. "This is all fish dung!" Bitternwing shook her head at him, and when he finally turned to see over his shoulder to the three round-eyed kits hanging by the nursery entrance, he understood. The last thing the Clan needed was Swankit and her siblings getting any ideas. She was feisty and opinionated and a little bit weird.

Would she sneak out of camp to take on Surgeclaw herself? Probably. While Bitternwing put on a smile and walked over to her nieces and nephew, Crowblaze stood still. He breathed like a wounded animal, forcing himself to bottle some of his anger for later. Lotuswhisker wouldn't appreciate him stomping around the nursery and snarling like a wounded badger. And he... didn't want to scare them. With a final hate-filled glare at Swanfeather, Crowblaze stalked off; he would sit by the camp stream until he no longer felt like shredding every cat that looked at him.

@zen williams , Hellion , @kahani , Justice Taxx

[Hellion]

[smear:ffffff]Swanfeather[/smear:343B4F]

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living

75 Moons || Medicine Cat of RainClan || She-Cat

Swanfeather wasn't eager to upset yet another leader of RainClan so as he suggested that Rushwhisker have the chance to decided once Dewpaw was fully trained went ignored. It would be a few more moons before that was done so Rushwhisker might be waiting awhile. Not that Swanfeather was looking forward to it. Considering his words Swanfeather didn't want to be around him any more than she already was.

Dipping her head in agreement with Silverstar's words, her eyes resettled on Rushwhisker. Fully expecting the warrior to listen to his leader but she never got what she expected.

Instead, she was shouted at by the warrior and instantly her ears pinned back her own hiss threatened to escape her maw. If she had been more impulsive Swanfeather would have swiped at the warrior's ears to remind him who was he was talking to but she kept her paws to herself. In fact, she focused on digging them into the ground to ease away the desire to correct him.

His words were painful because they were true, but Swanfeather didn't want such a display in front of the Clan. She could deal with the whisper but not the outright rage in public. Turning her attention to Silverstar she fully expected the leader to step in and do something about it.

However, instead of Silvestar, it was Dewpaw, his daughter, that stepped between them. She spoke about wanting to help and for a brief moment, Swanfeather wanted to reprimand the she-cat for doing exactly the opposite of what she said. Dewpaw was nowhere trained enough to tend to such degree of the wound but at the same time, Swanfeather was quickly realizing she was fighting a never-ending battle. Rushwhisker risked infection and even death if he didn't get help soon. Even if Swanfeather was offended and hurt by his words she had to recognize he was still apart of RainClan. She had sworn an oath to help him even if that meant she didn't help him directly.

She was proud of Dewpaw but she was also frustrated. Young cats who did what their hearts told them got hurt in the end. Hearts broken lives lost. Reckless in their youth often leads to a lack of restraint in age. But Swanfeather said nothing. Instead, she nodded her face as neutral as possible. "I will tell you what to do,"] She told Dewpaw, her voice absent of praise. Swanfeather planned on talking with Dewpaw but in the privacy of their den at a different time.

I dreamed that love would never die

WORDS || @zen Fawn Justice @kahani Taxx || NOTES