another way out | escape attempt

[Dandelionwish]

Lessons learned, teachings taught, it was the remark of a given prophecy that has his fur prickling with realization. A mix of relief and horror, if StarClan were willing to reach out to Vulturemask it ensured the clan's future, but it did quite the opposite for him.
A grimace tightens across his face and he pauses to glance at the sleeping dark form of his fellow medicine cat; at least they were for a moment longer. Dandelionwish settles his head on his paws and lowers himself into his own nest as the night begins to spill into camp. Come morning he didn't know what would happen but he had to see it through. So he thought…

He awakens with a start in the middle of the camp, surrounded in his own namesake flowers; a field of dandelions covering everything like powdered snow. The chocolate tom wonders if this is the vision that had been meant for Sootstar, to soften her claws and heart that she took as an attack on her clan; an attack from him. He rises to stand and observe the scene, serene and quiet; a crisp wind on the horizon and warm sun, in the distance he hears birds singing. That she could see this and believe it only a threat was a testament to her foolishness, her brutality. He wants to cry. Why was he being shown this now when the effort had been wasted?
As thought to answer that thought he smells the burn first before the entire field catches, flames whisking over the dandelions and lighting them up where they writhed and shriveled into fine ash; the entire ground was soon layered in thick soot and he coughed as it kicked up near his feet to choke him. A warning? His death? Was that what this meant? What was he meant to do about this? What was he supposed to do?! As he stood there he felt heat folding around him as the flames moved inward and soon he too was lit up like the sun; burning and bright.

The medicine cat woke with a start, panting, wheezing, he could still feel the ashy soot over his paws and filling his throat. The fires engulfed him. The urgency instilled in him told him all he needed to know now. He needed to leave tonight.

After a brief whispered discussion with Vulturemask, prodded awake and bid farewell, he plucked a wheat stem from his nest to sit in his mouth between clenched teeth. The familiarity of it there once more after he had been too anxious and riddled with panic to have one to idly chew on was like waking up from a lucid dream. He wanted to live. He wanted to live and he would die if he stayed here. 'I'm sorry StarClan, I wish I could have been better but…in the end there was nothing I could do.' Dropping to a crouch he inched forward to the den's mouth where his guard was perched in a half doze but still very much awake before springing up suddenly and slamming into @TIGERFROST's back to send them both rolling across the ground.
In a brief moment of adrenaline taking over he almost felt as though his life flashed before his eyes before he righted himself upward, eyes narrowed.

' @Coldsnap please, take care of them where he couldn't. Get @daisypaw ! somewhere safe if you have to.
@SOOTSTAR , may you never see the stars you so covet.'

Dandelionwish was on his paws, pushing away from the other and sprinting for the edge of the camp in seconds.
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[icebreath]

TAGS — Her sleep is often light and restless these days, an unfortunate side effect of her anxiety and the cold. As such, the sound of the collision is more than enough to rouse her. Reluctantly the little molly stirs and shifts, pressing closer against a nearby warm body before another noise finally jolts her awake. With prickling fur and tense muscles, Icepaw raises her head and wildly glances around through round eyes in search of the inevitable SkyClan raid she's privately been fretting about. Though the camp isn't overrun (thank StarClan), her pale blue gaze, still a bit bleary from sleep, is quickly drawn to the mini commotion — or, rather, its aftermath. One figure collapsed, the other bolting off. Away from the medicine den. She squints, heart thrumming ferociously in her chest, and then it skips a beat. "Dandelionwish!" they shout hoarsely, scrambling clumsily to their paws, their tired brain too jumbled to form a coherent thought.

[mobile :')]​

 

[Periwinklebreeze.]

DONT EVER WANT TO SEE THINGS CHANGE
periwinklepaw | 06 months | demi-boy | he/they | physically easy (pacifist) | mentally easy | attack in bold #ccccff

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There has simply been to much going on today for Peri to keep up. He has never dealt well with change, not at all, and he simply doesn't have the energy to deal with yet another. Vult's panicked state earlier has already set him on edge, the past few sleepless nights weighing heavily on his bones, and as unintelligible whispers reach his ears he can barely must a slow blink form his spot curled tightly at the back of the den.

His eyes open not a moment to soon for all he sees is a blur of brown fur as the former medicine cat flees, walloping Tigerfrost on his way out. He can only stare, his mind not processing what is happening He blinks, and blinks again, before clear blue gaze turns icy and burns with unshed tears. Couldn't even say goodbye before you leave me too? he thinks bitterly, spitefully. It's not that he doesn't understand, but that the understanding does little to num the biting searing pain that wracks his heart and chest at yet another loss. He has so few people left these days - and today marks one less.

Ever so slowly, weak with weariness and so close to collapse, he can barely place one foot after another as he shuffles his way towards the entrance to watch. He can't muster enough energy to care - not to pray for his friends safety, not to spitefully hope he gets caught, not to chase after him himself if for no other reason than to ask why. He is simply tired - so so tired of it all as he stumbles into a sitting position and blinks blearily, gaze transfixed on the figure quickly vanishing on the horizon.

He's gone. He feels numb. He just wants to go back to bed.
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[TIGERFROST]

Tags and Information

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WindClan carries on despite it all, and Tigerfrost endures alongside it. He has once more taken his place at the mouth of the healer's shadowed den, and as the frost kisses his nose, a sensation of fatigue weighs upon his eyes. Nontheless, he shakes himself, demands that his boiling eyes remain alert as the cold tickles his whiskers. There's a shuffling in the den behind him, but he doesn't rise fast enough to investigate before something crashes into his back. It's a mass of fur and claws, sending him crashing to the ground in a tangle of limbs. As pupils snap toward the source, Tigerfrost curls his lip with a snarl, quickly recognizing Dandelionwish's bolting form.

A growl tears from his throat, "Dandelionwish is trying to flee!" An alarm call as the muscular tabby flings himself after the former medicine cat, his paws pounding the frigid earth as the two near the edge of WindClan's camp.​

 

[THYMEROOT]

He does not know what shakes him from his light slumber. However, even through his sleep-filled gaze, Thymeroot comprehends what he's seeing.

His brother. His brother is leaving, sprinting away from the prison that confined him. Freeing himself from the moor's holds.

Thymeroot does not move to follow him, at first. No, the fawn-point only watches with bated breath as Dandelionwish steps closer and closer to freedom. Farewell, my brother, he thinks. Keep him safe, he begs to the stars. He can only hope he sees him again, someday, when the stars aren't interpreted as threats to a throne.

The night's silence is broken by a shout, an alert to WindClan's militia.

"Dandelionwish is trying to flee!"

The warrior lifts his head then, as Dandelionwish's guard bolts after his littermate. Cornflower eyes fill with panic as he searches for his sister among the sleeping warriors as he begs to the stars - to the world, to anyone who will listen - for Tigerfrost's call not to be heard by those around them.

Thymeroot does not know what will come of the three of them - of Dandelionwish, of Shrewtuft, of himself - as he prepares for his next move, but he can only beg, pray, over and over again:

Keep him safe. Keep us safe.
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[Firefang]

The day would come sooner or later that'd spell out the fate for Dandelionwish, rather that fate was the executioners blade or a lifetime on the run would be seen she expects for there to still be more time before Sootstar's verdict meet it's completion, naively she doesn't believe Dandeliowish would try to make his own choice in the matter of his fate. She rests with the rest of her clanmates, unaware and serene engulfed by her dream of sunny fields and warm fur. She's rustled from it with a cry for alarm, ears perk and she whips upwards before she can come to eyes still blinking wearily caught between reality and dream, a panic prickles within her as she takes a precious second to come to. She expects a raid to hear the yowling of enemies, to smell the rancor of Skyclan or Riverclan but no such invasion greets her ears. No there was no great force to vanquish just a single cat fleeing from a home of wolves who's tongues thirsted for his blood. Dandelionwish was escaping but would he get out of the belly of the beast before he was swallowed whole by it once more. A war cry caterwauls from her, she joins in the alarm Icepaw and Tigerfrost roar before she sprints into action, ignoring the soreness from training the day before to put her all into it as if chasing just another hare over the winding moors.

She would chase him as she'd chase the kin of his treachery, with intent to snuff him out if she didn't run with her entire might with a clear goal she would never catch up to him. She doesn't have half the mind to pay attention to those who watch instead of act, their silent their lack of action would've been a clear indicator to her where they stood when it came to their loyalty to Windclan and Sootstar herself but they're a blur now. It's easy for her to gain she sprints as fast as she can, a chase always seemed decided to more of a head start prey had it seemed races were won in the beginning not the end. It's easier to think of him as nothing different then feeble brained prey rather then the tom she'd known a majority of her moons who'd cleaned up plenty of her scrapes he had to be nothing to her, he wasn't a clanmate anymore hadn't been for well past a moon now. She makes a gamble as his form grows closer and she leaps for him. Unsheathed claws would pull out in a grabbing motion as she pounces in an attempt to try and tackle Dandelionwish from behind.​

( PLACE ME IN MY CASKET TONIGHT ; BECAUSE IM ALREADY DYING INSIDE )

 

[HOUNDTHISTLE]

"YOU'RE NOT A PART TIME GOD"​

"Dandelionwish is trying to flee!"

Dreams that smelled idly of cinnamon and warm spices, dreams of a time so far and distant, were snapped away as an alarm is sound in the dead of night and jolting the large burly tom awake in seconds. Claws unsheathing like deadly daggers dug into frosted ground as he hauled his half-asleep form to his paws, blinking the blurriness from his eyes as frost fell from his grey coat like an icy blanket, some clinging stubbornly to his whiskers and tips of his thick mane. Chaos seemed to have erupted while he rested but as he finally woke up, amber eyes snapping onto the three shapes of Dandelionwish, Tigerfrost, and Firepaw, his brain piecing together what was said with what he saw and snarling.

Like a storm, he leapt, paws thundering after the trio as they raced across camp, lips drawn back into a deadly snarl as he zeroed in on Dandelionwish's form. No longer a clanmate, no longer a cat in his mind, Houndthistle would be damned if he foresaw anyone being punished for the former medicine cat's foolishness more then they already have been. He didn't care about Starclan or Sootstar's paranoia about the tom's intentions, he cared about this cat causing problems for Windclan, disturbing the peace within. If Firepaw's tackle was successful, Houndthistle would be upon the pair within moments, his paw aiming to hold the prisoner to the ground by his neck, hot breaths huffing down upon the others pelt as he snarled.​

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[WINDSTRIDER]

The cry scattered through camp like spilled ice. Upon impact, their blood ran cold, gasping for air as soon as they awoke. Windstrider's pupils were slits as they rose from their nest, bits of it still clinging to their pelt. It took several heartbeats to realize what was going on, still sleep-confused and dazed, before their paws were moving without thought, trying to piece together the tail end of the shout they'd heard.

Clanmates yipped like hounds as they heavily pursued the healer. Nothing more than a mere toy to them, the silent oath of imprisonment broken. And so many cats, flurry of legs and arms and teeth. Windstrider blinked dumbly as their senses recovered, before they swarmed at Houndthistle's flank like a hornet, ready to assist him when they could, ready to claim they were helpful.

Observers couldn't be winners, after all. Action was drilled into their mind, and what a great way to show skills. Windstrider knew Dandelionwish was not a friend, nor their ally. He was a mere test dummy for claws. They'd never be able to explain why, but it seemed like the right thing to do, especially when so many cats are swimming with anger at the mere idea of his escape.

It didn't have to go down this way. But -- their lips quivered, morbid excitement, a stitched line threatening to spill at the seam.​

 

[SOOTCHASER]

the cry splinters the air like claws upon an icecap. sootchaser's light drowse is shattered, and he is plunged into the cold waters of wakefulness; pupils slits against the olive of his eyes, white-dipped paws hoisting himself from his exposed nest with a quickness. sleep is still being blinked from his vision, and sootchaser examines the dark of the clearing with frantic caution, a question on his pursed lips... what is happening?

there! in the shadows, sootchaser glimpses movement. dandelionwish is pursued by a growing multitude of windclan cats, teeth flashing in the pale light of the moon who observes the sins of the traitorous healer. dandelionwish is trying to flee, screeches tigerfrost, a call for action. sootchaser answers it without hesitation, claws revealing themselves as he flocks to the altercation with lips curled and eyes gleaming. to deliver retribution upon a sinner such as dandelionwish, who starclan deems as a weed overtaking sootchaser's beloved clan... his stomach turns in delight. wouldn't his mother be proud to see that sinner's blood upon her son's claws?

if firepaw's tackle lands, sootchaser would then aim to sink daggers deep into dandelionwish's haunches, in the hope of restraining the rebelling prisoner further. teeth snap at any limb possible, praying that he tastes dissident blood blossom along his tongue.​

 

[coalfoot]

———————————————【 coalfoot | windclan | male 】——————————————

【◈】Everything began happening all at once.

It was funny, how things tended to happen like that.

Coalfoot had woken up what felt to be only a few heartbeats before a crescendo of volume broke out in the confines of the moonlit camp. He had just lifted his head, only for there to be a heavy impact followed by a pale shape bolting across the clearing. Then the shouting started.

"Dandelionwish is trying to flee!"

Any lingering grogginess was gone in an instant, Coalfoot's eyes widening just as his Clanmates began scrambling up around him to pursue the traitor proclaimed by Sootstar herself. Claws flashed, lips curled, snarls tore into the bitter air. His heart began to pound in his chest, but his legs were moving before his mind could compose itself.

They were going to kill him. They were going to kill him. The thought of Dandelionwish laying there, surrounded by his own blood and brought down by the very cats he had tried so hard to protect- he couldn't. They couldn't.

The bicolor tom had scrambled to his paws then, moonish eyes wild with fear and mind devoid of any coherent thought that could drown out the deafening stop them. Help him.

Coalfoot was crossing the clearing in moments, a cracked "Stop! Stop! Just let him go!" tearing itself out before he tried to ram into Firepaw's side, attempting to send her rolling away from the fleeing prisoner. Regardless of his success he would scramble away, head snapping over to Sootchaser and Houndthistle.

His blood was roaring in his ears, but it wasn't long before he went back in, trying to sink his teeth into Sootchaser's tail to yank him backward. "It's not worth it! Just listen to me!" Once again he hopped backward, trying to keep out of their reach. He just had to distract them, he had to try and get them to stop.

"Please! It's- it's not worth getting hurt over! Just hear me out!" It was futile. It was futile, and he knew it. He was branding himself as a traitor right there and then. They would kill him next. He was going to die next. Stars, he was going to die.

[penned by its_oliverr].

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[Jasperglare]

Everything was happening so fast. He was just about to fall asleep when it happened. Dandelionwish bolting for the camp entrance after knocking Tigerfrost over and the rest of the clan rising like a pack of coyotes to tear him apart.

Houndthistle's hulking figure ran past him and it sparked a memory. The memory of the day his kits were slain by those wretched beasts.

"It's happening again-"

Spiderbloom rose to sit beside him. "Jasper." She called to him firmly.

"It's happening again- I can't....."

"Jasper."

"Lily it's happening again-"

"It's not happening again. Look at me."

Jasperglare looked to Spiderbloom as more cats joined the fray. He choked down bile as he tried to control himself, and just as he was coming back to his senses, Coalfoot joined the fray to help Dandelionwish.

FUCK.

"COALFOOT-" He shouted, leaving Spiderblooms side and chasing after him. They would kill him too, he knew they would. He couldn't let them do that. His attachment to Dandelionwish was born of trauma, knowing that his own kits would be his age had they lived. But his attachment to Coalfoot was something real.

They suffered together. Watched their friends die together in that damnable badger set. They both made it through that blizzard.

He wasn't about to let him die, and if Jasperglare died in the process, well..... At least he would be free. Coalfoot thought Dandelionwish was worth fighting for, so he would fight alongside him.

Long legs sprung into action as he joined the fray. He would try to spring onto Houndthistle's back and wrap his forelegs around his neck with extended claws digging in.

At the same time, he would strike out with his hind leg at Sootchaser.

"NO HARD FEELINGS GUYS." he growled. "LET HIM GO. HE DOESN'T NEED TO DIE."

@HOUNDTHISTLE @SOOTCHASER
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[Sedgerunner]

"BUT I STILL HAVEN'T FOUND WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR"​

An abundance of noise drives the warrior from her slumber, the fur bristling along her spine as she leaps from her nest and stumbled into the fray. A flash of sepia mixed with chocolate as Dandelionwish is aiming to run out of the camp. Her heart leaps from her chest, virdian eyes growing wide as howls echoed throughout the clearing. Dandelionwish is trying to escape! Suddenly warriors and apprentices are gunning for the imprisoned medicine cat, aiming to stop him where he stood. She grits her teeth as she looks around, unsure of what to do. Dandelionwish was always nice to her—a kind soul. The morbid image of his beaten body would be so much—too much.
With a clenched jaw, Sedgerunner turns her head. "Sootstar! Badgermoon! Dandelionwish is trying to escape!" Her sing-song voice rings throughout the clearing, aiming to sound the alarm. She feels lower than dirt for this, but she has something to prove. Her loyalty was already riding the line and she had to keep herself safe. It was selfish—she knew. She'd regret this. But it was too late to go back. She had chosen her path. Another voice rings out, screaming for them to stop. She watches Coalfoot try to get the others to disengage, a ram to the side, a yank on the tail. His pleas pulled at her heart, but she had to shove her feelings down into a deep hole.
She had chosen her path. Sedgerunner curls her lip, baring white ivories to the spotted warrior. The feeling was foreign to her, and her heart lurched at the thrill. The warrior felt her limbs come to life, claws sliding from their sheaths. With a flick of her tail, Sedgerunner runs towards Coalfoot and leaps. Her claws aim to anchor themselves into his shoulders and jerk him away from the piling of bodies. If she was successful, she'd have him pinned along the frosted ground while she stared at him. Stars, what was she doing? But at this moment, her anxiety had subsides and was replaced by something else. A morbid thrill that she couldn't shake. A predatory instinct. She couldn't stop ot—didn't want to stop it.
@coalfoot
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e

 

[SOOTSTAR]

//tw for descriptive violence and calls to violence. Also any attacks made against her i ask don't harm her tummy HBFHDB. Willing to do my best to plot with all who want their ocs to escape and live, pls contact me if you have concerns

The queen had been working on her nest until she'd fallen asleep, its all she's done for the past several days… Her appetite lacked, but she forced herself to eat so that she could pluck fur and feather from her prey to add it to the nest. By now it was quite lavish, you'd think she'd intend on birthing her kits here, but she does not.

She awakes when she hears an alarm in the form of a brutish, low, monotone voice. Tigerfrost, Dandelionwish is trying to flee!
Consternation flashes in her eyes, he was what?! The blue smoke knew the day would come where the prisoner would try to do something, but today?! She had been content, she had felt he was being kept secure in the medicine cats den. Was Vulturemask ready? Was he able to heal on his own? The blue smoke had hoped to converse with the medicine cat before it had came to this… but her paw is being forced.

Furious and heavily pregnant, she storms out of the den, every inch of her fur bristling. Sootstar can usually be found stoic, calm and collected- but that version of Sootstar is unrecognizable on the hellbent she-cat that stands before them. Claws rip into the snow, "KILL HIM! I WANT THAT TRAITOR'S PELT! I WANT HIS BLOOD SPILLED! DEATH TO DANDELIONWISH, VIPER OF WINDCLAN!" the terrifying shrill pierces the night, a demand for blood. Dandelionwish was wicked, unholy, backstabbing, a viper in their midst seeking to poison them all. A weed!

StarClan has casted their judgement, none are holier than they to deny the sentence they have decided for Dandelionwish! Sootstar's rage is untamable, she wants the night stained red in the prisoners blood and anyone else's who dare get in the way of justice! It is why she charges at Coalfoot (whether Sedge's attack is successful or otherwise), he does his best to avoid the horde but Sootstar is a whole separate missile from them. With unsheathed claws she aims to smack him viciously over the head, she does not care if she rips flesh from his ear or even his cornea, he does not speak holier than the stars! He must be put into place or be killed! ​

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Spoiler: TAGS ★ 01/07

( primary character / "speech" / ic opinions )​

╰ ★ ჻ 001 GENERAL INFORMATION ,
· SOOTSTAR, female — she / her
╰ ‣ 34 moons . pisces. ages on the first
╰ ‣ windclan leader . marsh-born . believes in starclan
╰ ‣ former soldier of the marsh group

╰ ★ ჻ 002 VISUALS & AESTHETICS ,
· DOMESTIC FELINE, smells like heather and wet dirt , status — 100%
╰ ‣ blue smoke . scarred chest, difficult to see through fur . green eyes

╰ ★ ჻ 003 MENTALITY & MANNERISMS ,
· ESTJ-A ❝ EXECTUTIVE ❞ , Slytherin, Lawful Evil
╰ ‣ Cunning, brash, fierce, confident, self-reliant, envious & selfish
╰ ‣ finds great difficulty in relating to others . can be cruel, usually shows mercy to those she can find sympathy with
╰ ‣ sole key to her heart is loyalty, if you have her trust, she often shows a completely different side of herself. Aggression tends to manifest from her extreme paranoia
╰ ‣ Appreciates titles such as "miss, m'am" etc

╰ ★ ჻ 004 INTERACTIONS & RELATIONSHIPS ,
· SOOT CLAW x PEBBLE BREEZE, sister to Pebblenose
╰ ‣ heterosexual. mate to Weaselclaw
╰ ‣ mother to Windpaw & Sootpaw
╰ ‣ mentor to Smokepaw & Coyotepaw
╰ ‣ average fighter . skilled hunter .
╰ ‣ will start fights . unlikely to flee .
╰ ‣ attack in underline . penned by user @ava.​

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[Coldsnap]

IM SCARED TO GET CLOSE AND I HATE BEING ALONE
I LONG FOR THE FEELING TO NOT FEEL AT ALL
THE HIGHER I GET, THE LOWER I SINK
I CAN'T DROWN MY DEMONS, THEY KNOW HOW TO SWIM

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"Dandelionwish is trying to flee!"

Cold had known he would hear those words sooner or later, but he still didn't feel ready for it. Thge night he'd visited the healer after they were taken prisoner he'd listened to their fears and had promised them he wouldn't let it happen. So many promises to so many cats - Hyacinth, Coalfoot, Dandelionwish- and he didn't know if he could keep them all but stars was he going to try. It was instinctual to want to bolt after the fleeing cat, but he had one last order of business, one more thing to take care of before he threw himself into a fight that could end with his death.

His apprentice.

"Daisypaw." he called, turning to the shecat beside him and crouching down to look at her. "I need you to listen to me right now, okay? You need to run to the border we share with Riverclanner and you wait there for me, do you understand? And if I dont come you wait for a Riverclan patrol and you tell them you need to see Hyacinthbreath, okay? She'll... She'll keep you safe."

His words were a rushed, but they were steady and stern in their demand. If he died, if they all died, he wouldn't leave her here to rot in Sootstars clutches. "I have to go- run!" he hissed, and then he was gone.

He had never been the fastest cat, but he was large and his legs ate up the distance between himself and the squabbling cats. His heart was pounding in his chest but there was a steadiness to it that htrummed through him, repetitive and unflinching. He knew what he had to do, and he would do it.

Coalfoot was already there trying to defend Dandelion, and Jasperglare was there trying to defend him, but there were so many cats clawing and yowling and somewhere among them was Dandelionwish, afraid and tired and just wanting out- an out he'd deserved long, long before any of this. A flash of grey fur as Sootstar herself joined the frey, and Coldsnap saw red as she swung for Coalfoot.

"With a furious yowl the massive tomcat aimed to bowl into Sootstar at full speed in a straight up body slam, hoping to use that momentum to send them both flying into @Firepaw and @TIGERFROST as they try to grab Dandelionwish. Claws and teeth looked to bury themselves into the shecats fur, to make her scream, to make every cat in camp go for him and their precious leader instead of Dandelionwish and Coalfoot. And if they didn't, he'd rip her to fucking pieces in front of all of them, so badly no fucking amount of extra lives could fix her.

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windclan warrior - male - 13 months - a large, dark grey tabby with yellow eyes​

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[THYMEROOT]

Thymeroot springs to his paws at the first sign of a claw strike, at the building group clambering to strike Dandelionwish down.

How is it, that all his hard work - that all his effort trying to help those around him, to help clean dens and hunt for these moorlanders, to support them to the point where tasks were mixed up in his mind, where exhaustion desperately called for him to rest - is so viciously wiped away at the orders of someone who claims they're the stars' prize-possession, immortal through deluded dreams left to only her interpretation, her dictatorship?

Nothing is ever enough, under Sootstar's reign. Thymeroot will never be enough. Dandelionwish and Shrewtuft will never be enough. Daisypaw. No one.

And, whatever happens, he will be free of the moors Sootstar had poisoned, free of her reign.

But, Dandelionwish. Dandelionwish needs to feel that freedom himself, under the shifting of earth under his paws, not the stars above. His brother needs to live.

"Death to Dandelionwish," she calls. Thymeroot only hopes for death to come to the leader, instead. But, his fight isn't there. No. He needs to keep his brother safe.

The fawn-point sprints towards the group, claws extended as he nears them. The tom leaps forward, hoping to dig his claws into the nearest of his brother's attackers, an attempt of pulling them away from Dandelionwish to allow for the former medicine cat's escape.

"Go!" Thymeroot tries to encourage Dandelionwish, whether his attacks are successful or not, "Quick! Run!"
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[coalfoot]

———————————————【 coalfoot | windclan | male 】——————————————

【◈】Tunnel vision had overtaken him, Coalfoot focused hard on the swathe of angry cats before him. He was prepared for retaliation, muscles bunched to prepare himself to avoid swinging claws.

The voice of the Queen herself fills the air with a ghastly shriek, jolting him hard enough that he swings around in time to see Sedgerunner taking a flying leap at him. Coalfoot barely has time to suck in a breath, to lift a paw before she hits home, claws sinking in and bringing him down to the ground hard. It seemed to come just in time as Sootstar swung a vicious blow at his head, claws only just scoring his cranium and face before he was bowled out of the way by the russet warrior.

The burning sting exploded throughout, a ragged breath sucking itself back into his winded lungs as oozing blood forced him to close one of his eyes, the other staring up at Sedgerunner with something bordering fear and determination. He was frozen in place there for a few precious heartbeats, only the furious yowl of Coldsnap able to snap him out of it.

With an abrupt twist of his body, he tried to tear himself free of her claws and roll onto his belly, both hiding it and trying to dislodge her. The warrior began to writhe, kicking out at one of her legs to get out from beneath her and scramble out of reach. This time he quickly checked around, ensuring there was nobody else looking to attack him before fixing back on Sedgerunner.

[penned by its_oliverr].

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[Dandelionwish]

He didn't know a cat could drown on land.
His mad dash for the edge of camp was at the end, he could see the moorland rolling out before him and he was only a tail-length or two away when the cries of furious cats behind him rose up; voices he was surprised to hear mingling with the outrageous yowls that he was daring to escape.

A weight catches him, he feels his back legs falter and panic flares up in his throat in the form of a yelp of surprise; if he goes down he might not get back up, but the displacement of weight topples him. He's put down, his claws scrape the earth in a desperate bid to right himself back up but Firepaw had knocked him down enough that the entire pack descended on him before he could correct himself.
Houndthistle's paw is as his throat, the sudden pressure nearly choking him but he writhes still to break free and turns his head to try and bite the limb there, kicks his back legs out as he feels another cat moving into bite and claw; aims a kick to Sootchaser's face in retaliation to the wounds now weeping red along his sides.

If Dandelionwish had any apprehension Sootstar meant to kill him before, it was all wiped away now; she'd never intended him to walk free from the beginning. Her voice is like the screech of a hawk and he's taken back to that sunny hill where the winged predator's almost carried him off, where they delivered the blow that killed Rosepaw, where he watched Kestreltalon abandon him to die. Maybe it would have been a mercy to go by the hawks then, rather than torn apart by his own clanmates over the false decrees of a woman who thought herself a goddess.

He was going to die. The thought struck him beneath the forms of countless cats, he felt a pulse of pain rippling across him from tail tip to ears from the multitude of claws and teeth taking their pound of flesh and he almost considered going limp and accepting it when the weight upon him seemed to shift. Whether it was removed entirely or not he could not tell, brain hazy with pain and confusion; fear filling the gaps of his other senses. The chocolate tom heard a voice muffled in the madness telling him to run, others calling for it to stop; he was not so alone as he thought.
The distruption, successful or not, sent a surge of adrenaline back into him and he pushed and twisted his way out of the mass of cats; claws catching his fur like burrs, teeth trying to wrestle him back but he lunged forward to burst away from the clowder of chaos and sprint past the border of the camp onto the moorlands themselves. Like petals he left great red splashes in his wake, teeth clenched because he did not have time enough to assess how bad and if he paused the agony and severity of it all would come crashing down on him at once.
No, he had a second wind-he had to use it. He set his eyes on the gorge in the distance.
​

 

[daisypaw ! [inact.]]

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No. No. No. No, no no no no--

Why did they hate him so much? It was impossible to stay asleep when the screeching broke out, Daisypaw startled awake as the cats sleeping around her leapt up to pursue. Who? Dandelionwish. No. Why? Everybody hated Dandy, called him a traitor. They locked him up, took away his job, and gave it to someone else far scarier. They called him a scourge, they spat on him, called him a weed threatening to tear the Clan apart.

Daisypaw found she couldn't move, her view of the battle blurring as her eyes filled with tears and a hiccup shook her shoulders. Why did they hate him so much? What did he do to them? Why couldn't they just leave him alone? All he ever did was help. All he ever tried to do was smile, and she knew it, even when she could tell he didn't want to smile anymore. She missed his genuine smile. At some point, he had stopped smiling altogether.

A small, whining sob escaped Daisypaw's throat then, slowly shaking her head but unable to move, unable to help. They were hurting him.

Coldsnap spoke to her then, urgently, bicolor head snapping up to meet intense yellow eyes. Run, he said. Run to the RiverClan border, and don't look back. He would meet her there, and if he didn't... No. He would meet her there. Then just like that, he was off, the tabby rushing into the fray to furiously attack Sootstar herself.

Even despite the command, she found herself frozen in place, breath catching in her throat and paws trembling as she stared at the fight taking place right at the entrance to the camp. Slowly she shook her head, taking a step backward. She- she couldn't. They were hurting him. They would hurt her. too. Another sob shook her shoulders. She didn't know what to do.

It was then that a head nudged into her side, the fluffy apprentice jolting. It was Dustpaw, who jerked his head in an obvious indication. Get moving. When she didn't immediately move, he gave her another shove. Go! She had to go now!

One step closer, two. Three, four, fivesixseven- she was running now, picking up speed and doing her best to skirt right around the fight just as Dandelionwish broke free and made another run for it. It wasn't long before she was on his heels, following close behind.​

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[TIGERFROST]

Tags and Information

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Chaos. The clearing had erupted into hell-fire. Blood splatters cold ground, taints the air with it's metallic scent. Screeches tear from panicked and angry maws as ripped fur flies into the wind. Flesh splits beneath feline claws, fangs glint, and fury sparks the sky. This was war. And in their own home, no less. How many of his own kin were traitors? How many of those he viewed as friends would now turn their fangs upon him?

Tigerfrost is wrathful, hissing and spitting as the skirmish erupts. Three cats lunge to stop Dandelionwish, and Coalfoot and Jasperglare leap into the fray to defend the former medicine cat. Sootstar's screech splits the wintry atmosphere, demanding execution for WIndClan's cunning traitors. Coldsnap flings himself at the leader, and Thymeroot latches his claws directly into Tigerfrost's haunches as the dusty tabby tried to reach for the former medicine cat.

A hiss explodes from the chimera's maw as he twists in place, teeth snapping as he lunges back toward his attacker like a striking adder. Tigerfrost aims to snap his teeth into Thymeroot's face, crunching into the other feline's muzzle without any thought of mercy. This was not a clan-mate anymore. This was a traitor, an ally of Dandelionwish, a fool whom had chosen the side of treachery. Tigerfrost would see them all beaten and bloodied into nothing but stained dirt, for in his eyes, they were worth nothing more.

He twists, jerking claws from his skin as nails rake through fur and flesh. Whether his bite had found it's mark or not, Tigerfrost is peeling himself away, the adrenaline masking the intensity of his pain as he curls his lip with a spittle filled snarl and finally finds himself free from the tangle once more. His efforts move him out of the path of Sootstar, should Coldsnap's attack against her be successful.

Just in time.

Dandelionwish had surged up from the masses of ripped fur and blood, and was now throwing himself up the side of the clearing and up into the windswept moor beyond. An apprentice surges after him, Daisypaw, he recognizes. Ears flatten as Tigerfrost gives chase, flinging himself out of camp without a second's thought. His paws strike the frigid grass like thunder as he sprints at full speed after Dandelionwish's desperate form.

Ignoring Daisypaw for the moment, Tigerfrost lunges through bitter air as he attempts to hook his claws into the former medicine cat's hind legs to send them both crashing and sprawling across the ground.

"Traitor!" A growl tears from his maw, "Look at the bloodshed you've caused! You did this! You brought chaos to WindClan!" Eyes blaze with fury as he spits, "Face the consequences of your crimes, coward." Fangs glint with malice as vocals drag through the wind with venom.

(( retaliating against @THYMEROOT and trying to chase down @Dandelionwish ))​

 

[SMOKESTEP]

TAGS — He's already having a hard time sleeping, so when Icepaw's hoarse shout splits the night, he finds himself grateful for an excuse to be up.

Dandelionwish is a traitor to WindClan, plain and simple. It was only a matter of time before he was punished for it, and frankly, Smokepaw is thrilled to know that the time is now. Maybe he'd been apprehensive to indulge this feeling before- back when Sootstar had first exiled Dandelionwish, banishing him to imprisonment -but there's been plenty of time to justify it all. Now, while he watches the red-ribboned form of the ex-medicine cat tear desperately away from the moors, there is just a vindicated sort of adrenaline coursing through his limbs. Sootstar's shriek only serves to amp him up further; to sublimate any remnants of fear into bloodied excitement. And there is a jealousy that precipitates in his blood, too, as he watches Firepaw chase after the traitor and knock him to the earth. How can he already be so far behind her?

But there's other trouble. Coldsnap charges towards his sister, and then towards Sootstar, pregnant as she is. "Traitor!" the apprentice yowls, leaping towards the warrior with fury in his amber eyes. Smokepaw unsheathes his claws and aims to hook them into @Coldsnap 's pelt and pull, hoping to pry the young warrior off of Sootstar. He's smaller than the other tom, but he had been smaller than that SkyClanner, too- he hopes the memory of that battle will serve him well in this new endeavor.​

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