sanctuary | return

[Coyotecrest]

I won't apologize for being who I am

He was tired from all the traveling and exhausted from lack of sleep, yet he refused to stop until he reached skyclan. Each step felt more weighted than the last, but his persistence paid off. For once he was glad fourtrees happened to be a melding pot of various scents. It made traversing through territory both easy to follow and conceal the windclan stench that unfortunately still clung to him. Dawn broke over the horizon bathing the sky in vivid pinks and pastel orange. The welcoming smell of fresh pine and tree sap washed over him as he took a seat upon the ground to rest his aching paws. Another flutter of worry ebbed and flowed within the boy as mint green eyes skimmed the territory for anyone nearby. Thistleback said he could come home and Coyotepaw never stopped believing skyclan to be home. But fear of the unknown, of how they would react after everything that has happened eats away at him the longer he sits in wait.
(This thread takes place the morning after the gathering.)​

Tryna throw shade on me say a lot 'bout you​

​

​

​

 

[ThistleBack]

The scent of windclan is infuriating as it washes over his senses, his jagged hackles rise and his lips peel back. " Windclan dogs!" he whips around and snarls out to his patrol, unleashing his claws and ripping through the forest. He can already see it, another patrol of Sootstar hounds to come and play their little tricks again. Only this time, no talking only death. " go for the kill"

Thistleback kicks off the ground and scales up the bark of a pine as the scent is stronger, showers of tree debris dust under the wake of his violent movements. He doesn’t register the color of the pelt, he’s only seen red. He surges from the canopy and slams to the ground, lifts a paw ready to score his claws deep-

Coyotepaw, his limb falters in the air and drops to the ground. His lungs flaring as he catches his breath, lethal thin eyes widen with recognition. " STOP .... we need to check the area, keep your claws out..." he calls, turning his eyes to the expanse of forest behind Coyotepaw. Expecting the moor-runners to bleed from the ferns at any moment.

" Coyote…. are you alone? " it’s all he can ask in the moment. He’s breathing hard and his lungs are filled with fire, it’s hard to settle that sort of adrenaline.

​

OOC INFO REF

• —
  
  
• 
  
  
  ✧ T H I S T L E B A C K
  thirty-three moons
  — Lead warrior of Skyclan
  — taken by
  Deersong 9.29.22
  — mentoring quillpaw
  — very muscular piebald black and white tom with spiky fur and cold silver-grey eyes.
  — voice & accent
  — biography･ﾟ✧​
  OPEN for Dice battles | stine#3004
  
• 
  
  

​

 

[Sharpeye]

☁ WindClan again so soon?! Sharpeye begins to bristle as he heeds Thistleback's call, and he spurs himself into a run as he hurries towards the border. Although he does not wish to kill he knows that he must be ready to fight with all his strength in order to protect his clan. However, it seems as though their haste to fight was misplaced. A lonely apprentice stood at their border; Coyotepaw. It has Sharpeye feeling perplexed but he offered no sign of aggression as he turns his sights to that of checking the wider area for trouble. Thankfully there seems to be no trace of it, so he makes his way back to Thistleback and the unusual guest at their border. "I can't see any other WindClanners."
​

 

[QUILLSTRIKE]

CUZ I DONT REALLY LIKE ANYBODY​

---

For all the time he'd been with Skyclan, Quill had never had any firsthand encounters with the other groups outside of passing border patrols when remarking the edges of the territory, and never had those gotten violent. Windclan, however, had managed to leave a foul taste in his mouth when it came to them. His body was still only half-healed, jagged clawmarks along his sides and punctures on his chest that still ached with every movement. The fact that he'd lost that fight, so completely and utterly- it left a part of him seething in humiliation and rage, begging for the chance to prove it wasn't actually so weak.

At Thistlebacks words, Quill felt the fur along his neck and shoulders spike up in a mixture of excitement and anticipation, the words "Go for the kill" almost a relief to hear because Quill had never been good at holding back in a fight. The chimera split off to the left and quickly hauled himself up into one of the trees before settling on a low hanging branch, body pressing itself against the limb as mismatched eyes watched the forest floor below in search of a target.

What happened next was unexpected, Quillpaw fully expecting to hear the pain yowl of some stupid Windrat as Thistle flung himself from his perch, only for the command to 'stop' to come bellowing a moment after. Annoyed and impatient, Quill quickly lept down from the tree to join his mentor, eyes narrowing on the apprentice that now stood before them.

Call him a pessamist, but Quill didn't trust it.

"Got it." he replied as he turned, shoulders rolling as he stalked off to help set a perimeter.

Claws out.
​

---

skyclan - male - 10 months - bisexual - homoromantic - single - very tall tabby tomcat with broad shoulders

 

[Snowpath]

WindClan scent floods his senses and his eyes widen before constricting back into dark slivers; his fur is bristling as he follows after Thistleback's sudden declaration and bound through the forest to the border, appalled at the idea the moorland cats would try something else so soon after the last incident. Despite his own swiftness and surefooting through the snow, he does not keep pace with his monochromatic mentor's furious dash forward and nearly collides into his backlegs as the tom stops. Coyotepaw.
Snowpaw can not stop the soft gasp of surprise that escapes him as he steps to the side of the bristling warrior to see the pale and familiar gold of the other apprentice's form set against the rolling backdrop of the surrounding hills and trees. This has to be a trap, he's as cautious and on-guard as Quillpaw suddenly is but he does not move from where he stands across from the former SkyClan apprentice, golden eyes almost frozen onto the other in wary disbelief. The blue tabby does not want to even speak yet, afraid his voice would shatter some illusion or reveal something to him blasphemous and forbidden. He knew Coyotepaw had been involved in the raid, even if it had not been said there was noway WindClan just stumbled across their camp accidentally with such expedience. It was a traitorous thing to do, what had pushed him to it he wondered? Fear? It was all the moorland queen had to give her subjects it seemed.
​

 

[sheepcurl]

Go for the kill, and she would have if the little Windclanner in front of her hadn't caused so many conflicting emotions. She had followed the other warriors and apprentices on the patrol, bringing up the rear, before her ears flatten and she has to look away. Coyotepaw. Why was he here? He had left to Windclan, he... Had betrayed Skyclan, something that even broke her own heart. Like Snowpaw, she knows there is no way for the Windclanners to had just coincidentally stumble upon their camp...

"Coyote," she greets him, though a little gruff, she turns to speak to Thistle. She avoids using his nickname she had for little Coyotekit. "Blazestar isn't going to be happy to see a Windclanner on our territory." she warns and she cannot find it in herself to blame Blaze, even if it had once been a Skyclan apprentice. All of their wounds were still healing, everything was raw, and most of all they had attacked their camp, where elders and kits and queens all slept. Anger prickles at her spine. Sheep has to look away, purposefully looking anywhere but Coyote. ​

"speech"​

 

[SLATE]

As a brand-new SkyClanner, Slate is often left in the dark about most things. Politics, relationships, rules, expectations, everything. He was still in the process of wrapping his head around how the clans worked; it was obvious enough that WindClan sought an enemyship with SkyClan. So, when the stench of WindClan and the presence of an actual WindClanner show up on the border, Slate is fully expecting the patrol to spring into action.

However, nothing happens.

Thistleback and Sheepcurl, both lead warriors, seem to know the young cat by name. The other cats don't freak out or question anything either, just follow orders to search the area for more WindClanners. Slate doesn't move, however; he just stares at "Coyotepaw" with a cocked brow and a puzzled frown. "... Are we supposed to know who this kid is?"

Weren't they going to attack him? Send a message back to Sootstar and her cronies?​

— * ✰. ooc information recent events * ✰. —

• 
  
• 
  ✰ SLATE
  —— amab, uses he/him pronouns. twenty-nine moons old. warrior of skyclan; former rogue.
  —— unrefined, rough and tumble rogue who is not accustomed to clan life. only trustful of his littermate, duskmane.
  —— link to tags. @ on discord for plots.
  
  quite the hulk of a cat, slate stands above the average clanmate with an arrogant gait. he has a dark gray ( bordering on black ) colored pelt with a pale-brown-tinged underbelly and whisps of tan at the tips of his chest hairs. amber-colored eyes contrast against his dark palette. notable features include a jagged scar across his right eye and two small scratches across the bridge of his nose.
• —— decided to officially remain in skyclan as a warrior
  —— participated in battle with windclan, currently recovering from belly scratches and a bite mark on hind leg
  

​

 

[Coyotecrest]

I won't apologize for being who I am

Frosty brume leaves his maw as he settles into a loaf like position to conserve what little heat his body does have. If the pines were open and exposed like the moor he held no doubt that he would have frozen solid by now. The soft crackling of falling bark gathers his attention, ears snapping erect while his gaze falls in the general direction of the sound. It could have been a squirrel for all he knew and then his thoughts drift back to prey. He wanted to bring a gift, perhaps a rabbit from the rolling hills of windclan but to carry it all the way here would have been a tiring task. Not counting the possible attraction of predators looking for an easy meal.

As he tucks his legs further beneath himself a menacing figure drops from the trees, landing before him. Curved daggers lift with promise to cut him down and Coyote fumbles. Spilling over onto his side the boy lifts his forearms shakily to block what he could of the incoming blow. But pain never comes and his his mind slows just enough to register the swift moving figure as Thistleback. Adrenaline still flows through his veins as he slowly moves to a stand, mindful to keep his posture submissive in the presence of the patrol flanking him on all sides. They were expecting an attack and his ear pin at the guilt rushing over him. Of course they would, Sootstar used him to lead the last raid here. "N-no it's okay. I'm alone I promise."

Quillpaw and Sharpeye continue their search of hidden windclanners and he did not blame them for being skeptical. A frown pulled at his lips as the rest of the patrol pools in, offering cautious looks and wary glances. Snowpaw stands so close but wears an expression similar to the others as Coyote fights for the right words to say. Another familiar face draws somewhat near, speaking his name with cold distance and he finds himself sinking lower to the ground as Sheepcurl murmurs to Thistleback. "I'm not...I don't want to be a windclanner anymore. I thought joining them would spare skyclan from harm, but I was wrong." Translucent claws pierce frosted earth as shame contorts his features. Looking down at his paws, unwilling to look back up at them. "What's the point in staying if I can't keep everyone safe?"​

Tryna throw shade on me say a lot 'bout you​

​

​

​

 

[Fireflyglow]

Each step he takes is ghostly, dark paws carrying him behind his clanmates until the familiar scent of WindClan reaches his nose. Shut eyelids flutter as cats begin to greet Coyotepaw, one of Leopardcloud's children. Her death was a rough one, spiraled into madness the day Sootstar demanded that Coyotepaw return to his 'natural-born' home. He'd chosen that day, Fireflypaw knows. For what reason, he'll never truly know.

Not until he makes his excuses does Fireflypaw react. He thought ditching us would keep us safe? "And that raid?" Fireflypaw finally quips up, his own assumption. How else were these WindClan cats supposed to know where their camp was, if not because of a cat who used to be SkyClan? "My father won't be too happy to see you, Coyotepaw." His teeth clank together momentarily as he grinds them, his own suspicions beating in with the rationality of this situation. Slate speaks up, confused- of course, he wouldn't know who this one was..

"His mother was a WindClan refugee my father took in moons ago. She brought Coyotepaw and Squirrelpaw here to SkyClan to keep them safe from those cruel foxhearts. Then, Coyotepaw here chose to go with Sootstar when she demanded they return after their mother died." He doesn't know much other than that, but he does know that it doesn't make any sense. Logical or not, Coyotepaw made a mistake that day that will haunt him for the rest of his life if his father allows him to come back to SkyClan.

"I'm sorry, I don't have a single ounce of empathy in my heart for you right now. I'll go fetch my father. Who knows if we can believe him?" May the Mother's wrath show if needed. With that, Fireflypaw turns and leaves to go fetch Blazestar, confliction in the twitch of his eyebrow and sighs leaving his lips.

// ic opinions! @BLAZESTAR ​

 

[DAWNGLARE]

Windclan's presence would never be quite a welcome one.

The one exception there could ever be was just the same in his own world. Blinding anomaly, a brightness unimaginable, trapped behind a gleaming grin and pale abyss of fur. He would never belong. Doomed to be excluded from the start. But this one. He slid amongst their ranks too easily. A snake looked like anyone else, within a den of its own making. His kind did not belong here, between the pines. To take from Sootstar, the feat would be unimaginable. But why bother taking something that could never belong to them? Fur slicked, the muse cries out. WindClan dogs. No, his assessment is not wrong.

And to think, once, Dawnglare imagined him to be worth any amount of effort. This bunch, they had loved him. Few of them could make decisions for themselves, though. He has always known.

His anger is left unconcealed. He had no reason to, no obligation, and he never would amongst an insufferable crowd. The same crowd that shields the child now. Even if they too bristled hostility, they relegated their feelings to pointless words. Go for the kill, a command once spoken, reasonable, for once, washed away with the breeze as quickly as it had come. How pitifully dull.

It's a meeting between little monsters. Their own killer stands nearby, but at the very least, this one would not stoop to the barking of a dog. Lips pulled in a grimace, he hums agreement with the doe's words. Her mind, so largely absent, came with some sense of urgency, at the least. An he snorts a laugh with a rough-uttered question. Rogue he was, he would take any number of them over the thing before them. "No, we're not."

The excuses tumble forward. Falling, falling further than he could catch them. He speaks of wanting, so strangely, when, wasn't this the hardship of mortality? Want all that you like, it would never be up to you. "What's the point?" He casts a glance to his apprentice, eyes sparkling with crooked amusement, "It's lying in the grave you've already dug, dear." Deeper, deeper his voice sinks into an acidic tang. Words cut with a rumble of cruelty. WindClan produced nothing but fools. Black moon-spotted face dips past, thrumming something cool. He hardly knew why his apprentice was doing such a thing he wasn't ordered. Dawnglare sniffs.​

 

[BLAZESTAR]

Some part of Blazestar has been waiting for this day, the day when a young cat barely older than a kit came to regret a choice he'd made in haste. He'd promised a dying mother that he would do what he could to protect Coyotepaw and Squirrelpaw from WindClan, but he had made his choice, and he had made it with gusto. He had led WindClan to their camp, where his own son and Figpaw had rested in the medicine cat's den, where their queens defended kits and their elders fought like warriors and bled for it.

Blazestar pads slowly over to join Thistleback, Sheepcurl, and Dawnglare with his chin lifted and his jaw set. His dark blue eyes regard Coyotepaw with little warmth. "You were not concerned with protecting SkyClan when you led Sootstar's dogs right to our camp, were you?" It's said with little malice, but heavy judgment. "You could have made your choice then to defend the Clan that took you in as a kit, but you have chosen your father's Clan over and over again, Coyotepaw." His father. The cold-eyed blue warrior who'd met them at the border that day. Can Blazestar see a shadow of him in Coyotepaw now? Is it his imagination, his paranoia?

The Ragdoll looks down on the young tom, letting silence sprawl between them all. "Does Sootstar know where you are, or have you brought them to our borders yet again, looking for blood?" This time, his voice lashes out like claws. "You say you want to spare SkyClan from danger, but you've brought danger into our dens with our kits, our elders, our sick and injured. You've brought it with you today, no doubt, running away without telling anyone." He can't help the anger that begins to flicker in his chest, burn in his gaze. Coyotepaw is only six moons, but he has caused SkyClan harm, and it seems he will only continue to do so.

"What do you expect me to do, Coyotepaw?" He shakes his head. "Who's to say you are capable of being loyal? What happens to us if, in a few moons, you've grown bored of us and long for your birth Clan again? You've turned coats twice now. What makes this time any different?"​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

​

 

[REDSTORM !]

When Leopordcloud had shown up on this border not too long ago with her kits in tow, Redstorm had stated his distaste with allowing refugees into the clan. Coyotepaw, then Coyotekit had been an insolent brat back then and it seemed like that hadn’t changed. Leopardcloud and Squirrelpaw had turned out to be alright but Coyotepaw… he had shown his true colors when he so willingly returned to Wind Clan, when he led them to their camp to attack them. It wouldn’t matter if he didn’t life a single claw in attack towards a Sky Clan cat, that didn’t undo the fact that he had shown them where they lay at night.

His eyes narrow as he comes upon the scene, he had been ready to sink his claws into some Wind Clanners disgusting hide and he still is. If Blazestar says the word he would gladly chase the tom away, off their lands and back to the moors he had come from. His tail swishes angrily behind him as he listens to Blazestar’s words, for the first time in a long time he agrees with them. His blue eyes scan the horizon, searching for enemy warriors that he’s almost certain will be here any moment to launch another attack. Perhaps Coyotepaw was another cunning distraction. Perhaps Wind Clan was in their camp once again, they knew the way after all. "Just say the words Blazestar and we’ll see if the rumors about how fast Wind Clanners are are true" he grumbles quietly to the pointed tom, his cold gaze not once leaving the tom in front of them. He doesn’t trust him at all.
​

 

[Snowpath]

Claws were out, they were preparing to chase the golden tom back out across the snow to the moors where he would suredly be punished for his leaving, for his insolence in thinking he had the right to decide his own fate. Snowpaw's mouth opens and then closes, he wants to scream; his chest feels tight. Would he watch again the others back as he wanders lost to WindClan, see Thistleback break out of the corner of his golden eyes. Had it not been enough.

"Are…we condemned to suffer the stupid mistakes we've made as children our entire lives…?" His voice cracked, calm tone usurped by the almost kit-like wavering in his voice. The idea that he would never shake off the shadow that followed him for his entire life made him wonder if it was worth it to even try. If he was to carry the burden forever, what did his future actions even mean. Coyotepaw had made a foolish mistake, perhaps not has horrific as the one Snowpaw himself had made, nothing would come close to the blood soaking his paws, but he didn't deserve to suffer it his entire life. No one did, not even himself as hard as it was to acknowdge that even he deserved reprieve.
"Would they have hurt you if you refused, Coyotepaw? Were you scared to enter their camp because they might make you pay for it? Did every look and glance make you feel as if you didn't belong there....because of a horrible thing you did...trying to defend your clan?"
He did not want sympathy, pity or comfort. He did not want sorrowful looks shot his way. He wanted normalcy, he wanted his young life back to live to the best of his abilities before the world was too small again and he was a warrior duty bound and formidable enough to carry the weight of his sins with more ease. Snowpaw did not know if he wanted to continue standing here to watch them chase the other away, maybe it was cowardice to not want to see it happen but it stung too close to the heart and his nightmares were often filled with the claws of his clanmates casting him out of SkyClan more times than he'd like to admit. For the first time since that day he forced his head up to turn, look up toward Blazestar's face and try to meet the other's gaze without flinching. He felt sick to his stomach having to look the man whose daughter he killed dead in the eye to plead lenience for another when she had not been given the same mercy, but he had to try.
"...he's sorry." The blue tabby's throat tightened but he choked the words out regardless, "...and so am I."
​

 

[ThistleBack]

Are we suppose to know who this kid is? Thistleback doesn’t respond, doesn’t have time to rope together any words or thoughts other than the chance to have his son back glistening over the horizon. He was no fool to reality though, if anything he was cursed with the understanding that this could go further south than the devil’s pit. Blazestar had changed since his family broke apart, had grown calluses as feet that walk on sharp stones for too long often do.

" My son " his tone whips up but half attentive towards Dawnglare as the medic speaks as though Coyotepaw was merely a write-off. Quillpaw’s unsheathed sweep of the area, and Sharpeye’s report back- this had to be it. This was Coyotepaw finally leaving the clan of blackheart thieves. Breaking the chain that binds him to her vengeful warmongering leash.

Blazestar arrives as he did during the beginning of the war between the moor and towering pines. Regal and cold, speaking as such but offering just enough room for the boy to speak.

" It is my belief, that Sootstar threatened him into leading that patrol. It is also my belief, that he did the wrong things for what he believed to be the right reasons. " he speaks between the leader and the windclan refuge now, he had his throat cut in that war he had just as much reason to be furious and unforgiving, but he spared his anger for the sake of a young man in dire need to fixing. The tabby who cut his throat was probably on Coytoe’s trail as they speak, sending him away would put him in rather serious danger. Thistleback needed to think.

" son, It is not my place to explain for you… You’ve got your mother’s heart. Speak with it now " he urges Coyotepaw with a furrowed brow. Thistleback was hard on his apprentices, on his children, on the ones he loves for one reason. So that when their hardest day comes, no matter what, they will persevere. Snowpaw's words draw his eyes to the child, words painted in the hue of his pain. The emotional torment, finally spoken.

​

OOC INFO REF

• —
  
  
• 
  
  
  ✧ T H I S T L E B A C K
  thirty-three moons
  — Lead warrior of Skyclan
  — taken by
  Deersong 9.29.22
  — mentoring quillpaw
  — very muscular piebald black and white tom with spiky fur and cold silver-grey eyes.
  — voice & accent
  — biography･ﾟ✧​
  OPEN for Dice battles | stine#3004
  
• 
  
  

​

 

[Howlfire]

Howlpaw does not really know Coyotepaw. Not personally at least. She's heard stories from gossipy SkyClanners and can vaguely recall having seen the apprentice during the WindClan raid, though in the haze of battle, it could quite easily have been a mistake.

Howlpaw watches silently from behind Redstorm, eyes flickering between the assembled cats as they react to his presence. She has to admit her father's words catch her by surprise. And yet, despite their sharpness, she notes there's an element of truth to what he says. What is to stop Coyotepaw from turning again as he had apparently done so before? He was young though, and with youth comes the chance to make mistakes. Maybe it had taken Coyotepaw having to see the brutality of the moor clan in person to realise he should have stayed. She waits patiently to see who might speak next, and is surprised when Snowpaw pipes up.

For a moment the bitterness she feels towards him threatens to rise up but it softens as he speaks. With a jolt, Howlpaw realises he is speaking of his own experience at the same time as he tries to empathise with Coyotepaw's situation. ​

 

[SILVERSMOKE]

Silversmoke's ears were pinned back, his spine straightened as if he was reaching for the tall pines, and a crooked black line on his muzzle formed the scowl that was aimed at Coyotepaw and Coyotepaw alone. He had nothing to say to the WindClanner, his loyalty had been bound in blood the moment he lead the WindClanners straight to SkyClan's home. It was loyalty to his superiors that stopped him from tearing into the apprentice without a second thought, though he still felt disgusted that another spineless cad was offered mercy (and potential shelter, if Thistle and Snow got their ways) because of family bonds. Family bonds didn't mean much. No one chose who sired them or who their siblings were, what really mattered was the bonds that one formed out of sincerity rather than expectation. Coyotepaw had shattered those bonds long ago, and it was hard to accept age as an excuse when rogues the boy's age had already learned such morality. His throat tightened as he raised his head further - no one would be happy when Blazestar made his final decision, the tabby would honour it, but he couldn't promise he'd be pleased with it.

He'd tried to return once. His twolegs had given him away to some shoddy couple, separating him from his family at an age that made it difficult to even remember what they looked like. Silversmoke had made the choice to try and find them, only to be rejected for things out of his control. There was similarities to Coyotepaw's tale, except, until he learned that the apprentice hadn't been responsible for his own abandonment and betrayal, he would find no empathy. "Guilt isn't enough penance for the lives you've damaged and trust you've broken." He eventually mewed. "What will you do to prove yourself?"



​

 

[Sharpeye]

☁ Sharpeye made his way over slowly until he was able to stand close to Blazestar with his gaze on Coyotepaw. As much as he longed to sympathise with the youth he could not ignore all that had happened in the past moon. Alas, it was a situation that wouldn't have a happy or easy ending. He did not envy Blazestar's role in making the final decision either. "If I may say a word; we must consider this matter with great care. Coyotepaw's arrival here can be a trick, Sootstar's latest act of deceit by toying with our emotions and past connection. He slips in and gets to our herbs and then returns to WindClan. It's a possibility." He warns as he plays with the scenario in his mind for a moment.

"However, this could be a case of a youth learning the error of his ways. But that does not excuse him from suspicion. Regardless, his presence here can spell trouble, no doubt Sootstar will send her marauders to hunt him down if he has truly turned on WindClan. We can either chase him off, or take him in and assign watchers who will monitor his every move. If we decide to take him in then those tasked with guarding him cannot have any emotional connection to him, we will require those who are truly neutral. That is my take on the matter." Sharpeye concluded with a curt nod as he swept his gaze around those who were present. Personally he was on the fence regarding the matter, but he was leaning more so towards casting Coyotepaw away. Though it wasn't his choice to make.
​

 

[Coyotecrest]

Angry at all the things I can't change

More gather around him crowding and imposing with glares and grimaces reminiscent of his younger months spent within them. Hostile words fly at him like daggers cutting and digging deeper than any wound could inflict. They hated him now. But hadn't they always? The mistrust and animosity so vividly placed on display now was a song and dance he'd suffered long ago. He was younger then but far from ignorant of the the cutting stares and miniscule tolerance they held against him purely because he was windclan born. Despite the tender guidance of a small select few, skyclan felt more like a guarded prison than a place he could call home. As the taunts and jeers continued he grew envious of others that lived a normal life without windclan's stigma overriding all the good he did.

He would be lying if he said all of this did not play a part in his leaving, the harsh prejudice against a child that could not control his origin of birth. Fireflypaw mentions not having a shred of empathy for him and that was fine, he'd never received any from the tom before, now would not make a difference. Dawnglare is next and his frown pulls further as he begins to doubt his efforts, prattling on about digging his own grave. Yet did the medic also contribute to his ill treatment? He remembered the day Dawnglare questioned what he was, looming over him ominously until Thistleback intervened. Redstorm quips about seeing how fast he could run and Coyote does not doubt the tom's eagerness to dig claws into his flesh. The warrior kept a target painted upon his back ever since Coyote spoke up to defend his mother.

Finally, Blazestar arrives causing the wayward apprentice to take a careful step back. Fear continues to course through his veins as he dares to look up, meeting eyes he did not recognize. The ragdoll's eyes are hard, gone is the familiar warmth that held subtle notes of caution. Coyote's ears flatten against his skull as the leader's tone eventually shifts, the accusations burning like tongues of flame. Once again the raid is acknowledged and assumptions are made. Ones the he knows in his heart are not true, yet his throat tightens and he cannot find the will to speak. He deserved this, perhaps he always would. Words continue to die on his tongue as his gaze ultimately falls, remaining locked upon his own paws. Paws that have only planted and sown destruction regardless of what is done to prevent it.

Sootstar did not know where he was and Coyotepaw doubted she would have let him go if he mentioned anything. He doubted he would have made it out of such a conversation alive. Yet the very real threat of a patrol coming to look for him shakes him to the core. He was brought danger to skyclan yet again. Was he nothing more than a curse to these cats? A harbinger of chaos and destruction? The boy's limbs quake, collapsing as he falls and barely catches himself in a sloppy seated position. His breathing hitches, hardly containing the sorrowful wail he wishes to release. Instead half restrained sobs rattle his form as the delicate voice of Snowpaw speaks up. The gentle words carried weight and truth, breaking Coyote down more, gritting his teeth as if that would stop the tears from flowing.

Thistleback chimes in again. Prompting him to speak up, to explain himself and for a moment he nearly choked out "For what?" For it seemed like all of their minds were already made up. Paws kneed the ground, seeking comfort that could not be given. Silence sweeps over them all as the floor is handed to him and he wrestles with if he could speak at all. But eventually words do come and they would know the truth. "It's no secret how the majority of you felt about me from the very beginning, I always knew. I thought it was unfair shouldering all of that...what windclan did to you in the past wasn't my fault. Yet I still had to carry it." Though his voice trembled he carried on. "So yes, the way I was treated did influence my leaving. Just as much as my decision to leave to keep the fight from happening that day Sootstar came. I thought if I left you all would be happier without me, and in turn no one would get hurt by fighting. It seemed best to remove myself, since I made you so uncomfortable..."

The boy's tail tucks tighter to his side, holding himself as he spilled secrets he otherwise would've taken to the grave. "But I would never intentionally do anything to hurt any of you. I was threatened to participate in the raid after I spoke out against it. I purposely took detours to whittle down their time but Juniperfrost watched my every move. I wanted to protect you all, I did what I could...but I've seen what happens to those who oppose Sootstar." His paws shuffle, pelt prickling at the memory. "That same night she exiled two warriors and made Dandelionwish a prisoner because he didn't agree with the raid. I...don't know what would've happened to me if he didn't stop me from defending him. That raid haunts me everyday, don't think for a second that I took any amount of pride in it. I've hated every moment spent within that clan...I would give anything Blazestar, anything if it means you would let me come back. I might've been in windclan but my loyalty was always yours...I was just scared." He utters, words slipping off his tongue in a whisper. ​

when you're lost in the universe don't lose faith​

​

​

​

 

[BLAZESTAR]

Blazestar listens to his warriors, expression uncharacteristically stony. Redstorm and Silversmoke are not swayed by Coyotepaw's words; Sharpeye suggests a guard; Thistleback pleads for Coyotepaw to explain himself. He listens intently to each of his Clanmates, but he does not go to speak.

It's Snowpaw who makes him waver, if only for a moment. Snowpaw, who cries, "Are... we condemned to suffer the stupid mistakes we've made as children our entire lives...?" Blazestar looks at the gray and white tom mutely, dark blue gaze holding a tempest. His gaze falls involuntarily to Snowpaw's paws, free from visible blood, but stained all the same.

Is that what my daughter's death is? A stupid mistake? His jaw trembles. Her memory is a rush of grief, a torrential downpour that threatens to sweep him off of his feet and send him tunneling down the familiar, sticky river of mourning that he has only just climbed from.

Is he doomed to drown there?

Blazestar flicks his gaze from Snowpaw to Coyotepaw, whose voice is filled with tears--and with bitterness. He speaks of a time when Blazestar and his Clanmates did not trust him, of a time the Ragdoll remembers well. It's true. Blazestar has always felt uneasy around the WindClan-born kits. Leopardcloud had been a gentle soul, and she had done her best to pass that onto her children, but he'd never been able to throw that weight of doubt from his shoulders.

And part of him still thinks he'd been right to judge Coyotepaw all along. He had chosen to go to WindClan's camp, when SkyClan would have fought for him -- he had participated in the raid, and despite what he says now, Blazestar knows the sick and weak could have been killed. Mercilessly, as Haze had been.

He sighs. It's a ragged, tortured sound. "The safety of my Clan comes before everything." It's true. It has to be true. He'd given up his mate and two of his kits to remain SkyClan's leader. "You've made mistakes others have paid for in blood, Coyotepaw."

But Blazestar is thinking of Snowpaw, too. Of Morningpaw.

"Escort him to camp. Sharpeye, Redstorm, Silversmoke -- keep an eye on him. I don't want him leaving camp again without my go ahead. Howlpaw, Snowpaw, bring him fresh-kill and work on getting him a nest." The flintiness has worn from his voice, replaced by unbearable exhaustion. "Thistleback, Dawnglare, Fireflypaw. When we return, I want you all in my den. I expect Orangeblossom, Daisyflight, and Sheepcurl as well. Find them and notify them."

He swings his gaze around, back to Coyotepaw. "You will not try to leave camp alone, or you will be treated as an intruder instead of a guest." It's not a threat. It's a vow.

With that, the great Ragdoll beckons for his patrol to flank the young tom and follow him back to their camp.​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

​

 

[Fireflyglow]

Many voices merge in with the others as he returns with his father, the flame point listening quietly as everyone voiced their opinions. He instinctively wanders back to his mentor's side while they all babble, Snowpaw's words causing a wash of guilt yet also.. Confusing anger to bubble up inside of him. He shoots a warning glare to Snowpaw then, shocked he'd even try to use his situation- his sister's death to keep a traitor in their midst. Firefly can't understand Coyotepaw. Why would one betray their parents, disavow their promises to them, and leave for an enemy Clan? He's inexperienced in these issues, but he finds comfort in them nonetheless knowing that his father was taking care of it.

Cats speak their disbelief, their doubt. Some support, some are wary. Rightfully so. But only one opinion matters, and as Blazestar gives the order for his council to gather in his den when they return. Me, too? Fireflypaw thinks, swallowing back his nervousness. His first official matter as a medicine cat apprentice is to judge another child, a true traitor. Burnpaw's words sear his skin once more, Mom told us not to talk to strangers. He flinches visibly, turning to Dawnglare for affirmation. Once he began to leave, so would Firefly.

He didn't have anything to say about this situation. Not anymore. He just wanted to return home and hope his friends and family didn't die the next day.​