border IN THE BLACKEST OF ROOMS // visiting leader

[HOWLINGSTAR]

The walk to this border is the most silent of them all. He paws feel like cinder blocks as the looming pine forest comes into view. She swallows hard as she gazes upon them, her stomach twisting with grief. There is an apprentice that lives in this clan. One she has met, one who lives on because her daughter protected her. She wonders for a moment how old Cherrypaw is now. Has she won her first spar yet? Caught a rabbit? Can she climb a tree and not be afraid to look down? She shuts her eyes to breathe for a few moments until pawsteps alert her to the presence of a patrol.

Steeling herself, she stands at her full height, doing her best to hide the grief in her eyes as she tells them, "I'm here to speak with a few cats, if you don't mind. Their names are Orangeblossom, Bobbie, Duskpool, Greeneyes, Chalk...and Cherrypaw." The last name feels like sandpaper in her throat. White claws sink into the ground so she can steady herself as she waits, her expression pained but determined. She must do this.​

 

[sparrowsong!]

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A normal, routine patrol felt good. It felt good to make rounds, to feel secure knowing, proving that only SkyClan was left in SkyClan's forest. No hostile cats trying to take it from them. With each round through the pines, the scents grew more stale and faint, rogue and Clan alike. Soon it would just be them and the pines once and for all. Comfortable, familiar.

It was the scent of ThunderClan, fresher than that of a simple border marker, that made Sparrowsong's ears perk. Another patrol, maybe? It wasn't uncommon for border patrols to cross paths. Maybe it would do them well to see how things were going there.

Their tail raised high as the patrol drew close enough to spot the (lone?) cat on the border. It was Howlingstar, they realized after a moment, and the warrior's head briefly tilted curiously. Of course, the leader wastes no time in explaining her presence, and they nod until the list of names grows, bringing them to pause. Those were...

Sparrowsong glanced over to the rest of the patrol. "I know where some of them are, I think," they spoke up after a moment. "I can go get them...?" Another cursory glance to their Clanmates. They weren't the leader of this patrol.

// late apprentice tag @HAPPYPAW ​

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[Drizzlepelt]

Drizzlepelt tilts his head at the approaching ThunderClan leader, wondering what she could be here for. The last thing they need is even more missing kits to keep an eye out for, or something worse…but he relaxes as she just wants to speak to those who were on the journey. He can see her struggle just to say Cherrypaw’s name, and his heart lurches at how much pain she must be in. Little Wolf was an inspiration to him, and her sacrifice was not in vain. But losing your child…he still hopes that it’s a hurt that he’ll never understand.

He turns his attention to his fellow spotted tabby on patrol with him since they speak up first, nodding. He’s not the patrol leader either, but he sees no reason to deny Howlingstar her request. “They’ll most likely be back soon if they’re busy,” Drizzlepelt assures the two of them. “But hopefully they’ll all be around. I’m sure they won’t mind talking to you. Let’s go look for them, Sparrowsong.” He smiles, taking the initiative and running back to camp to search for the cats named.

// OOC : Going to fetch all the journey cats​

 

[DUSKPOOL]

anger makes you stupid . stupid gets you killed .
︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

He’d been skeptical at first, following his son with knitted brows until he emerged from the undergrowth, shoulder burning more than usual, but Duskpool hadn’t had the will to see Dawnglare or Fireflypaw. Molten copper blinked, settling on Howlingstar’s form with a singular dip of his helm, rumbling in greeting.

He settled off to the side, watching the ThunderClan leader. “Did the rest of yer group return safely?” He rumbled, splitting off before he saw the ThunderClan patrol leave with Stormpaw in tow, not before commending the clan for her bravery.

It seemed like moons ago, leaving the clans in search of Lungwort, burdened when he left, but he felt no less different when he stepped past the bramble entrance to hear news that made his ears ring with agony. “How is that apprentice of yers doin’?” He finally added after a pregnant pause, shifting his bulky frame, and easing off of his burning shoulder with a quiet grunt of pain.

He’d been worried, of course, seein’ the youngster torn to shreds and the few others trapped between jaws of death while he came out of it with a neck wound that would have ended him if he hadn’t lashed out. Don’t need another kid dyin’. He sighed. Anything but. ​

​

thought speech​

 

[Cherryblossom]

Drizzlepelt and Sparrowsong really wasted no time. When Cherrypaw follows Duskpool out of camp, it's with a stifled grumble about the half-tangled state of her tail. Howlingstar, they'd claimed. Waiting for the journey cats on the border. Those that stayed behind an extra quarter-moon, anyway; Cherrypaw hadn't been deaf to who exactly was called. The girl's mind is torn in two as she trots after the small clowder of warriors, one half on the reason behind the ThunderClan leader's presence, the other on how dreadful it'd be to present herself before her with a tail like this and what she could do about it before they got there.

Upon their arrival, Cherrypaw is struck with not the somber expression on the leader's face nor the way weary emerald eyes fall on her, but how short Howlingstar really was. Her first Gathering had been a few moons—a lifetime—ago, yet it hadn't hit her until now how so very small she had been back then. Enough that she could only touch Howlingstar's chin if she stood on the tips of her toes. Now, she's a muzzle-length taller than her.

Little Wolf had been the same size too, hadn't she? She'd seemed larger than life in the face of the eagle, a black bolt of lightning suspended in a feathery sky. When she screamed for her to run, it had been as if her voice was the blood-stained air itself, squeezing into Cherrypaw's ears with atmospheric weight. And...and...

Cherrypaw follows suit with the others, bowing her head before the leader, the mother, the molly. Flaxen eyes dart towards Duskpool as he ventures a question, and her stomach spools into itself a little. StarClan knows Stormpaw hasn't crossed her mind since Highstones, and she certainly hadn't been the reason the sole SkyClan apprentice stayed behind. Though her ribs feel like they're shriveling up, her gaze remains stiffly upon Howlingstar as she waits for the verdict to fall.​

 

[GREENEYES]

There's an uncertainty in the tom's stride as he follows behind Duskpool.

Sparrowsong and Drizzlepelt returned early from their patrol, something that was a cause for concern in the first place, only to seek out him and the rest of the once-straggling group of journey cats. Howlingstar is looking for them, the two explained — an unexpected meeting with the clan leader whose injured apprentice they'd delayed themselves to ensure the return of.

With Little Wolf's mother, he remembers; remembers dark fur washed in crimson, snow-frozen paws clawing at mountain terrain to bury the fallen, to leave her behind — so far behind — in a final farewell. He doesn't think he could ever forget it.

The young lead's heart sinks at the idea of meeting with Howlingstar, at the thought she'd traveled here to seek them out. Had something happened between the Highstones and ThunderClan's territory? Greeneyes tries to find another reason for her visit, tries to calm his mind and prevent it from jumping to the worst.

"Howlingstar," Greeneyes greets the brown tabby with a polite dip of his head as he nears the border, a verdant gaze carrying a questioning appearance in its shine as he looks to her, "What can we do for you? Is... Is everything alright? Did Stormpaw make it back okay?"

✦ ABOUT

• 
  

  
  
  GREENKIT ‣ GREENPAW ‣ GREENEYES, Lead Warrior of SkyClan
  — Daisyflight x Raven Ramble
  — AMAB; He/Him
  — A red tabby and white tom with bright green eyes.
  — Mentored by Sheepcurl; Currently mentoring Falconpaw
  — "Speech"; Attack
  
  ✦･ﾟ: * — Born into SkyClan's first litter, Greeneyes is a bright tom with an affinity for the world around him. Despite always seeking to be kind to others, the warrior believes he's cursed - a belief brought on by rhetoric that green is a deadly color.
  

​

 

[Orangestar]

𝐵𝑈𝑇 𝑇𝑂 𝐴 𝑊𝑂𝑀𝐴𝑁, 𝐵𝑌 𝑇𝐻𝐸 𝐸𝑁𝐷 ✧ 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐋𝐋 𝐊𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐋 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀

• 
  
  — orangeblossom | tags
  — she/her ; deputy of skyclan, mentoring eveningpaw.
  — scarred white-and-ginger she-cat with brown eyes.
  — "speech" ; thoughts
  — chibi by waluigipinball
  — penned by mercibun. @ me in any official tabbytales discord for plots.
  
  

​

Orangeblossom's pace is slower than usual, the small shocks of pain that lance up her hindleg like brief flashes of lightning enough to set her at the back of the small group. Sparrowsong and Drizzlepelt had found her in camp, urgent, and she'd answered the call with no hesitation. Howlingstar at their border could mean a couple of things, however because of who she's asked for - the SkyClanners who had stayed behind to assist Stormpaw, and not just Cherrypaw and Blazestar - she's inclined to think that this is about Stormpaw. The deputy's steps bring her to a halt next to Cherrypaw, brushing her pelt against that of her daughter's protectively.

"Howlingstar." She greets the sturdy she-cat with a polite dip of her head, gaze hovering somewhere around the ThunderClanner's left ear. She's not afraid to make eye contact, but every time Howlingstar blinks Orangeblossom is reminded of Little Wolf, the shared way that stress pinches the fur close to their eyes. She'd rather spare herself of that grief for now.
​

 

[DOEBLAZE]

The sight of Drizzlepelt and Sparrowsong dashing into camp early brings a momentary jolt to the senses. Bobbie's heart plummets in a moment, wondering if some fresh tragedy is shattering the comfortable leaf-fall day into pieces that will never come back together quite right—but no. Of course not. Tragedy is making her paranoid, and she chides herself for it as she treks to the border with her fellow ex-journeyers, wondering what the ThunderClan leader could possibly want with them all.

Howlingstar is surprisingly stout and short, but there's a regal dignity hovering about the brown tabby that certainly commands respect from her Clanmates. Bobbie regards her watchfully, though for a different reason than Cherrypaw; a mixture of guilt and sorrow wells up in her throat. Guilt at her fresh attachment to Blazestar, illogical as she knows it to be. She remembers Little Wolf, scarlet in the snow; she remembers a horrible selfishness squirming in her belly like an adder. She remembers the black she-cat, teary-eyed, greeting someone only she could see. Gray Wolf... Dad... You came for me.

"Howlingstar," the lead warrior greets in tandem with her Clanmates. Solemnity fills her expression as she inquires, "I hope all is well in ThunderClan? Did Stormpaw return safely?" Sorrow clutches her heart, recalling Stormpaw's numb legs and Flamewhisker's hopeless expression. And Hailstorm? is what she wants to add, though she refrains. It doesn't feel quite right, somehow, to inquire after Howlingstar's deceased daughter's widower. Too personal, perhaps.

i'm a moon ☾ ( constantly chasing you )

• 

• 

  bobbie ; lead warrior of skyclan
  x. she/her ; 42 moons ; tags
  x. small, scarred lilac tabby and white she-cat with green eyes
  x. played by dejavu
  x. mother to lupinepaw, crowpaw, and drowsypaw. mate to blazestar.

​

 

[Fireflyglow]

"Grandma." Fireflypaw whispers softly as he smells the scent of oak and pine mixed together, the scent of Greeneyes and Sparrowsong close in front of him. He pushes his head to his orange-and-white friend first, to comfort him in the anxiety that rattles his skin, before he moves on to stand beside Sparrowsong. His side brushes against the smaller warrior's own, his size dwarfing the other. The others all greet his grandmother with respect, in greeting, and Fireflypaw quiets himself to let them speak amongst each other.

Memories of his mother floods his brain, and he finds his milky gaze wandering to the direction of Cherrypaw and Orangeblossom. To Bobbie, whom greets Howlingstar calmly. Bobbie was Blazestar's mate now; he wondered, subtly.. How did the molly feel about his grandmother standing here now?​

SKYCLAN MEDICINE CAT APPRENTICE ✦ 16 MOONS ✦ CHUNKY, BIG-FOOTED SEAL POINT ✦ TAGS​

 

[HOWLINGSTAR]

Two warriors greet her first and she regards them with a polite nod. They look to each other before agreeing to retrieve the cats she requested, to which she murmurs a quick "Thank you." She waits there, seated tall at the border in silence, before the first of the cats appear from the shadows of the pine forest. It's the tom she recognizes as Duskpool, and with him are Orangeblossom, Bobbie, Greeneyes...and Cherrypaw. Her tired gaze sweeps across them all, lingering on the apprentice for a moment with her face unreadable, before she looks to her grandson. "Fireflypaw," She greets warmly, a smile stretching across her face. She leans forward, as if she wants to greet him with a lick, a nose-touch, something...but ultimately leans back, deciding against the affectionate gesture with so many watching. Instead, she settles for staring at him for a long moment, taking in his features he shares with his late mother.

"Stormpaw is now Stormfeather," She tells them all first, scanning the group with a still-gentle smile on her face. "Her ability to walk is gone, but she is alive and she is home, thanks to you. I truly can't show my gratitude enough for how you all stayed behind to help my deputy's daughter get home to him, home to all of us." She shakes her head, brows tenting and smile growing sadder, but it is sincere. "SkyClan has my thanks. You all have my thanks. I am in your debt."

Finally, her gaze slowly trails back to Cherrypaw, her expression pained yet thoughtful. Some of her clanmates, her kin, hate this girl. But Howlingstar cannot hate her. How could she hate the cat her daughter chose to risk her life to save? Even though this SkyClanner stands here today and Little Wolf does not...the old she-cat cannot bring herself to be angry. She pads forward just a bit so that she is closer to standing in front of the apprentice, expression softening. She remembers when she was first introduced to her at the Gathering - Orangeblossom had shone with pride the way a mother does, something she can understand.

After a long moment, she finally speaks to her, shoving down any pain to instead smile gently at the young she-cat. "Do good in your training. Follow the Warrior Code, and work hard to be a noble warrior that your clan will be proud of." Perhaps if she were a less wise cat, she would have said what so many younger ThunderClanners might be thinking. Do not let Little Wolf's death be in vain. ​