je te pardonne ;; rogue at border.

[VERMILIONSUN]

❝ we're children playing at a game, screaming that the rules aren't fair. ❞

// please feel free to post before the kits do!
@ZAPKIT @mothkit @falconkit

On shaking limbs does the tall tom carry himself through the forest, nose sniffing the ground here and there to look out for the familiar scent borders. When the awful scent finally hits his nose, he knows he's at SkyClan's border. He readjusts himself, paintbrush tail flicking behind him to tell his kids to stay behind him. They needed to be safe in case they chased them all off; it wouldn't surprise him, after all that has happened between himself and Blazestar. Between SkyClan.

"You smell that, you three? The stench? It's the marking they use for their borders. You must never trespass over another Clan's border. It will smell similar to this, with different hints that belong to the different Clans." Vermilion explains patiently, gnawing at the inside of his cheek. His good eye sweeps their surroundings, before his head lifts upwards. A cat was there, in the flesh- right above them, and Vermilion prepares to either be jumped on or greeted properly.

"I mean no harm, my name is Vermilionsun. I request an audience with Blazestar."​

​

 

[Johnnyflame]

HE SAID, "WELL MY NAME'S JOHNNY, AND IT MIGHT BE A SIN
BUT I'LL TAKE YOUR BET, AND YOU'RE GONNA REGRET, CUZ IM THE BEST THERE'S EVER BEEN."​

---

The scent of an unknown tom has Johnnyflame slipping from the trees to approach the boarder, the short, stocky tom regarding the stranger with a curious but stern expression- which only mildly softens when he realizes there are children with them. There's a vague recognition that lingers in him from a previous visit the rogue has made to his clan, but it didn't give him a free pass of trust with the bobtail, who nods before signalling to his own apprentice. "Let Blazestar know he has a visitor- the rogue from a few moons back; Vermillionsun." came the toms lightly accented words and golden eyes landed back on the group.

"It's dangerous to bring kits this far, isn't it?" he asks, gaze shifting between the three youths before returning to Vermillion. Skyclan ckept their kits locked safely within the confines of camp- dragging them out to another clans border seemed a foreign concept to the koi tomcat, though he could only assume the rogue had a good reason for it. To join, perhaps? But why seek an audience with Blazestar himself? Perhaps there wasn't the best of blood between this rogue and his group, which only made the collared tomcat more wary.

@>Scorchedpaw

---

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[falcongaze]

❝ CALLIN' IT QUITS NOW ✧°.☀ ————————————
Speaking of the kits, Falcon stood next to his father. The longhaired, scraggly looking tom tilted his head up when his father did, staring up at the cat. They looked.. different. Well-fed. Unlike the majority of the sewer cats. His head turned, back towards the border as his father murmured about it. His tail swayed behind him. "Got it. No jumping borders." Falcon murmured to his father. He shifted and settled, pressing his pelt against Ver. Hopefully, his sisters weren't straying too far from either of them.

It wasn't fear that bloomed in his chest- no, maybe it was some kind of longing- inspiration for an adventure. The forest looked so different to what he knew, and Falcon wanted a taste of it. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad after all.

"SPEECH"

[penned by dallas - ☀]

———————————— ☀.°✧ BABY, I'M A WRECK ❞ ​

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[BLAZESTAR]

A cat comes to fetch him, armed with the name Vermilionsun on their lips. Blazestar leaves the camp, scenting the air of Johnnyflame’s patrol; every step drives a thorn of dread deeper into his heart. He’d never wanted to see the flame point again after the disastrous way he’d handled Centipedepaw’s death. It’s a folly he must carry with him to the grave, and when he sees the tom’s burning blue eyes again, all of it comes rushing back—including Kuiper’s gruesome execution.

“Vermilionsun.” Blazestar dips his head to the rogue, eyes falling to the scraps of fur at his sides. Kits, young ones, all wearing pointed faces and wide, curious eyes. “Johnnyflame is right. Why have you brought kits to SkyClan’s border?” There is a curious lack of hostility to the Ragdoll’s voice—most prominent, in all reality, is a flat note of guilt.
​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

 

[mothpaw.]

[ mobile! ]

Moth sticks close to her father and siblings as they travel. Her gaze often falls to the wayside, mentally counting trees and curbsides that may lead her home again - though given her shoddy memory, none of it remains in her mind's eye beyond the closest landmark. She promised her father to behave, at least to the best of her ability, so perhaps it's for the better that she can't recall much of the path back to the sewers. When the tom points out the border, she sniffs it with obvious ridicule in her expression. Falcon takes it in stride - that's too much like him, to simply accept what comes. She hates that they're here at all.

A mottled tom arrives first, sending someone off to fetch the Blazestar that Ver wants to speak to. In the interim waiting for the leader, Moth tucks herself beside her father's lengthy tail, glowering towards Johnnyflame. Blazestar arrives and speaks alongside the previous warrior - to which Moth can't help but speak up, "Nothin's too dangerous for us," her tone is not quiet and is most certainly combative, but she doesn't budge from her station behind Ver.​

 

[TWITCHBOLT]

Twitchbolt did his best to steel himself in the face of happenings on the border, but there was little he could do to stifle uncontrollable tremors. Shakes ever-present, he did his best when following alongside his patrol to the source of an unfamiliar scent to keep a cold fire in his eyes, at least. What parts of himself he could control he would dress bravely, even if the prickle of intimidation did squirm beneath his skin. Vermilionsun, the tom announced himself as, and Twitchbolt matched the face to a long-ago memory. He knew, though the knowledge was merely a grain of sand in the hourglass of his life, Vermilionsun had once been a Skyclanner himself. And- and that name had fizzed through whispers about Centipedepaw and his fate when Twitchbolt himself had only recently been apprenticed, whispers that he grown and grown into screams about prisoners and interrogation.

It had not been him, in the end. Memories of Thistleback tearing through Kuiper like he was a dead leaf struck Twitchbolt like claws across his face, blood growing cryogenic for a moment.

When Blazestar arrived, prompt, there was no bramble-bristle of hostility in his fluffy fur, no snarl rumbling through his hulking form. His voice was level, twinged with a hint of... some kind of melancholy, vague though it was. Twitchbolt let his own scruffy pelt lie flat, concerned eyes flickering over to the kittens. "They're not- not hurt, are they?" It was the only reason he could possibly fathom in the flash of the moment. They weren't... bleeding or anything, crying out, but... why else would they be here but for to ask for aid?​

penned by pin ✧​

 

[VERMILIONSUN]

❝ we're children playing at a game, screaming that the rules aren't fair. ❞

A strange tom makes his way over after dropping from the trees; this one walks with authority, something Vermilion puts together as a Lead Warrior quite quickly. He can trust this one, he hopes- enough that he finally moves his tail from around his kits and lets them become more visible to the cats that arrive. Twitch is here next; Twitchbolt, that poor fellow, shaking and trembling like those small dogs in the twolegplace. Blazestar arrives soon after, greeting him with an expression that Ver can't quite understand. "They're healthy and well, thank you."

"Blazestar," He responds in turn, his own greeting met with a dip of his head as well. While Vermilion didn't trust the ragdoll, he could respect his authority in situations like these. He had an objective, and nothing would stop him from accomplishing his goal in this moment. His kits needed to be safe. "These are my kits. Zap, Falcon, Moth." He introduces the children with a nudge to one at a time, turning his hardened gaze to Blazestar once more. Moth's words catch his ears a little late, but Vermilion chuckles nonetheless. His little spitfire.

A cough rattles his body as he looks downwards, breathing in a ragged burst of air. Then, he quiets- doing his best to contain more of the coughing. His ribs, rounded against his sides, are painfully obvious, and Vermilion has to reassure himself that he doesn't look weak in front of these cats. You're doing what's right for them, He tells himself, swallowing back his nervousness. "I've come to ask if you'll take my kits. I have to admit.. The sewers aren't doing so well. Fights with rogues have caused our food supply to dwindle. That, on top of how unsafe it is now.. I don't want my kits to suffer because I can't provide for them." Vermilion is blunt with his intentions, doesn't waste a minute as he explains himself. His singular good eye glances down to his children, and he nuzzles them all individually. "I love them dearly.. All three of them. But it's not safe with me. Will you take them under your wing, Blazestar? Please? If needed, I can provide payment in the form of assistance when needed. Or- I'll owe you a favor." ​

​

 

[BLAZESTAR]

His kits. Blazestar’s eyes skip over each as Vermilionsun names them. The skinny flame point asks if SkyClan would take them in and shelter them. The Ragdoll listens to his explanation—that life in the rogue lands is violent and short on prey, and sickness reigns without medicine cats to heal. He sympathizes with Vermilionsun—no father wants to give their children up, but he is offering them a better life. A life he had once rejected.

Does he regret that now? Is that why he’s here?

Blazestar dips his head. “Of course we’ll take them, Vermilionsun. After all, they have SkyClan blood. This was once your home.” He gazes down at the three of them. Zap, Falcon, Moth. They did look healthy, but they also looked wary. Living as a Clan cat would be vastly different than living as a loner. “We have a queen who just lost his kits. He could care for them until they’re ready to be apprenticed.”

Vermilionsun offers anything in return, but the SkyClan leader shakes his head. He had made a mistake once, pinning Centipedepaw’s death on Vermilionsun and his rogue companions. He knows even this could not entirely make up for that, surely. The guilt is enough to cause him to say, “That’s not necessary. Really. They are half SkyClan, and they will be treated well.” He gazes at the three pointed kits, assuring their father: “When they’re apprenticed, perhaps their mentors can take them to the border to meet with you from time to time.”

There’s the barest layer of warning there—not a threat, but an explanation. Vermilionsun will not be permitted to come to their camp or wander their forest—not as a rogue—and the kits will not traipse about without their mentors to meet with outsiders, father or no father.

“Well. Say goodbye, and we’ll get you home,” he says, feeling awkward now.
​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

 

[falcongaze]

❝ CALLIN' IT QUITS NOW ✧°.☀ ————————————
Falcon fell silent. He realized what was coming, he believed, about the time that Moth spoke defiantly about dangerous things. Nothing's too dangerous for us. His thoughts echoed. His ears lowered, vision slowly turning up towards Vermillionsun. How could it not have settled in before now about what was going to happen? Was it going to hit him like a monster, patrolling the Thunderpaths in the village? Would he be squished in the emotion that followed? An inhale followed, the exhale shaky.

They exchanged words, but Falcon barely heart them. The only thing he really did hear was- well, the final confirmation. Say goodbye. He blinked, then flattened his ears. Falcon's gaze turned away from his father to the ground. Be strong. You can do this. He pushed to his paws, confidence squaring his shoulders and raising his tail, but fear written boldly in his eyes. He turned his head, pressing his forehead to Ver's leg. The last moment of closeness the kit allowed to himself, before padding towards the Skyclanners. Paw placed out, then pulled towards himself. Right, left, right, left. He got this, alright. He'd be okay.

When the kit neared Blazestar, he lifted his head up to peer at him, then turned towards his sisters. "C'mon. Da' will be okay." He encouraged the other two. Even with all of this, his ears flattened and his teeth were biting down on his tongue, willing himself not to cry. It would be fine, right? They'd get to visit him, in a little bit?

"SPEECH"

[penned by dallas - ☀]

———————————— ☀.°✧ BABY, I'M A WRECK ❞ ​

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