[Ghost the Undead Goddess]

It was the day of the Gathering, the first in which the gray molly would attend as the leader of Lightningclan. Though, there was hardly any pressure among the narrow shoulders of the lanky she-cat. Throughout her many moons, the dilute warrior had been invited to several of the Full Moon meetings among the entirety of the clans that lived within the valley. 

Several of them during the role as deputy, and as previously encountered, the aging leader sat with Nightrunner the previous night to come up with a list of cats who would be joining her this time around. She was pleased with the amount of apprentices to chose from, a sure sign that her clan was thriving and healthy. 

As dawn arose across the brilliant peaks of the mountain walls, Owlstar was up and moving around within her den. With a quick groom to ward off the chill that seeped into her thin pelt, the leader made her way from her nest and out into the pale world around her. As always, she ignored the pain within her aching shoulder and pushed through the faint feeling of limping. 

She would not let age and old injuries slow her down. 

Owlstar was pleased that her lanky, black smoke deputy was already doling out tasks for the day. Despite his quiet nature and quirky personality, he had always been one for strong roles due to his training beneath the dilute gray molly. He had been her first apprentice, and to see him filling the rank below her had a wave of pride rise within her breastbone. 

She only interjected her raspy tone when Nightrunner called out to the ever similar shape of Goosechase as the young molly padded from the warmth of the warrior's den. "Actually, Nightrunner, if you don't mind. I'd like Goosechase to accompany me today." The leader's long tail flickered behind her softly as those wide, amber pools shifted from deputy to daughter. Of course, the ever respectful tom dipped his head in answer before fixating his pale gaze upon another unsuspecting soul.

Flickering a large ear atop her narrow head, the elder of the two molly's turned to lead the way through the rising grasses at the entrance of their rather open campsite. The winds of the moor, chilly, but always welcoming as they stepped out into the rolling hills where the scents of rabbit were mingled with the early rising taste of Crowface and her apprentice.

It was pleasing to know that the hostile oriental managed to kick Daringpaw's tail into action.

Nimble paws led the way through the heather before veering off towards the tail end of their territory, the mountains looming ahead in unknown lands of boulders, stones and the horrors of Demon. The deaths of her clanmates to the claws of that monster were still fresh within the aging leader's mind, and the terror of being hunted within the safety of their home presently at the forefront of her worries. To see that beast dead would be a Starclan Wish come true.

For now, Owlstar wanted to focus on the enigma of her daughter. Of the three of them, Goosechase seemed less integrated with her clanmates. Not that that was uncommon, several of the warriors under the gray Oriental's lead had hostile temperaments.

"How are you enjoying the moons of your warriorhood?" Owlstar asked, shifting her unreadable gaze towards her near identical daughter. It wasn't often that she spent time alone with any of them, save when they had been apprentices and she aided with their training tasks. Her duties had always been clan driven, and though she loved Goldenblaze, Goosechase and Greenpaw, Owlstar made a point to not play favorites and treat them as any other cat within her clan.

OWLSTAR

lightningclan leader || 81 moons

634 WORDS

Abyss

[Abyss]

A long and thin tail lashed behind an equally thin body. Sharp claws sheathed and unsheathed into the ground beneath, digging at the nest material she emerged from. Narrowed green eyes looked ahead to the dim light that filtered through the entrance of the Warriors den, black pupils narrowing. Another day of hardly speaking and just waiting for orders. Just as any other day…

As the gray form of Goosechase pushed through the den, she wasn’t originally going to scan the camp, for she didn’t particularly care who was awake. But a certain sight caught her attention at the other side of the clearing. The shapes of Nightrunner and Owlstar came into sight, one of which called out to her as she came into sight. She hadn’t had any negative run-ins with her mother’s previous Apprentice yet, so she supposed she could offer him the default respect of a Deputy.

With her approach, she caught the ends of her mother’s voice, though she was unsure of what exactly was said. From what she heard, she could only assume that Owlstar had said for her to be excluded from the presumed patrol the tom was forming.

As she arrived to them, her eyes watched briefly as Nightrunner turned his attention to others while her mother turned, flicking her tail. By instinct, the gray Warrioress turned to follow at her mother’s side, her face stuck in a rather neutral, or as neutral as she could be, expression on her face.

The walk they went on was rather quiet, though she expected this to be the outcome. She wasn’t one to partake in small conversation, and she believed her mother to be the same way. She was sure that she would get told something along the lines of “enjoy the sights and smells and sounds of the territory, let yourself relax.” Perhaps she wouldn’t hear it from the clan’s Leader, but she was sure anyone else would have said it. It had been done before, and it would be done again.

But this wasn’t how she worked. Goosechase was not the sort to take in the sights or allow herself time to relax. She couldn’t. Half of the dimwits within Lightningclan assumed they could live the life of a calm and relaxing Warrior, not a care in the world except taking part in occasional patrols. Half the time they just wandered as if they had nothing to worry about, or just acted as though their safety was a constant guarantee. But if it weren’t for cats like her, they wouldn’t be able to live this way.

She was constantly on alert, constantly looking out for any potential dangers, whether it be some testy fools from the other clans or a predator. Both were threats to the well-being of the clan, and yet many of these idiots didn’t seem to care. They went about their day without a care in the world. Even more than this, they pushed aside those that helped keep their safety intact, herself a victim of this. These thoughts caused her tail to lash behind her and her eyes to narrow more. It wasn’t until the pawsteps of Owlstar came to a stop that she brought herself from her thoughts.

She stood where she stopped, green pools glancing sideways at her Leader. A wide gray ear rotated to listen to what the she-cat had to say, though it was brief. The question was simple, but, unfortunately for her, the answer was not. Her gaze shifted back forward, eyes following the movement of the valley grasses. She was silent for a moment, considering her answer, something she only did with her mother.

“Less enjoyable than I expected, truthfully.” Her answer hung in the air for a moment, but she continued. “The freedom to wander as I please is nice, as is hunting when I wish. But it isn’t as if anything has truly changed.” Her voice began to grow into more of a growl than normal as she reached the end of her statement. “I am a Warrior, yet at times I am still treated as though I am an Apprentice.”

Her tail lashed hardly behind her and her claws unsheathed, digging into the ground below. “I rarely get chosen to go to the borders because of my ‘foul attitude’ towards others, even though I’m more fit to deal with the fools of the other clans if they show their faces. Other Warriors my age think that they can take credit for everything that happens on a patrol, even if they hardly did anything note-worthy.”

She went silent, eyes lowered to the ground momentarily before they lifted to peer past the territory, out towards the mountains that surrounded the valley. Her eyes momentarily softened, which was odd for the temperamental she-cat. But she only allowed herself a moment of softness like this when with Owlstar. She was one of the few who deserved to see this side of her...

“Mother...what does it mean to be a Warrior of a clan…?”

"Speaking."

Words: 840 | Ghost the Undead Goddess