private the great divide [family]

[SCORCHSTREAK]

Who is she without WindClan, without her position as lead warrior, without the tunnels? What is she, without a purpose? Is this how Badgermoon felt when he was driven out by Sootstar? Is this how Dandelionwish felt? It doesn't feel good, that fight didn't feel like all the battles before. There was no drive for bloodshed, no overwhelming desire to sink her claws and teeth into flesh. There was only Bluefrost's stinging words, Pinkpaw flinging herself at the older cat in Scorchstreak's defense, and then a mad dash to make it out of their once-home alive. Now, they rest in the safety of the horseplace, but who knows for how long. It is only a matter of time before Sootstar seeks to drive them out fully.

Still, if nothing else, she has some of her kits with her. She has her siblings. The calico has settled into a somewhat comfortable position against the wooden floor of the barn, no more a nest than the cold dirt outside. She hadn't wanted to take materials from those more injured than herself; now, as night falls, she wonders whether she had made the right choice. At least she has her family with her, and she takes a moment to address them before she lies down to attempt to sleep. "I'm so glad that you're all..." she trails off for a moment, golden gaze flicking to Rattleheart's injuries. "Alive. Here with me." She thinks of Rumblepaw—Rumblerain—and although she hadn't seen their face during the battle, she can only imagine the brutish snarl twisting their face. Her kit, the beloved child she'd named after her tunneling partner, one of the only cats who she's ever entrusted with her life... and they have chosen Sootstar's side. Once, she would have felt nothing of turning her claws on them, but she could not handle another Dappledsun. She looks to each of her family members in turn, looking them over. Are they hurting just as she is? Do they blame themselves, as she does? Is there anything she can say to fix this, to make their family less splintered than it is now? "Rumblerain chose to remain loyal to Sootstar. I... I'm sorry."

// @SCORCHPAW @LUCKYPAW @RABBITCLAW @RATTLEHEART​

[ BE A FIRE, BURN THIS DOWN ]​

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[RABBITCLAW]

It stings. Even though all of them are alive, not all of them are here. They are missing Rumblerain. By no means is her hurt the same as her sisters, the mother of the aforementioned, but her heart pangs knowing that one of them has left them. There was a time when they weren't close. The lot of them. When she had gone her separate ways from her littermates and reunited with them in Windclan. That is all that she thanks Windclan for. She thanks it for allowing her to be with her family and now it seems like even that is too much for it. She has half the mind to trudge up to Rumblerain and ask why? Did they think the rest of them were fools for not taking Sootstar's side? No leader should steal kits.

Her ears twitch at the somberness of her sister's voice. Rattleheart her brother had given her a scare and she would be lying to say she didn't fear him perishing at the hands of those traitors. Looks like it's your turn to get hurt. While he had been sick she had fought off rogues and winded up with new scars that wouldn't leave her. She couldn't say she would mind her brother sporting some fresh scars only because it meant he was alive. Still walking beside them and not among the stars. Usually she would make a joke and lift her families spirits, but even she was not in the mood. Maybe this was meant to be. They had to have this moment of reflection with what was lost and what remained.

The apology Scorchstreak mutters serves to pierce her heart more than Rumblerain's choice could've. "It's not your fault." Then... Whose fault was it? Rabbitclaw would chose not to say as she had no idea. Blue eyes glance on each of her kin. "I'm glad that we're together. Rumble...Rumblerain isn't I know that, but... As difficult as it is, we have to keep moving forward without them." She's aware that her words aren't the best at comforting and they would never be. Unlike her littermates she always struggled the most with these things, however as clumsy as she was in this regard she loved them all. She would do anything in her power to protect them.

"Let's focus on who is here for now." She turns her attention to her sister's kits. She can't imagine how they feel. One of their own had left them for a different life. It's not too different from what you did. It's true. She had left both Rattleheart and Scorchstreak as soon as she could not because she hated them, but in her youth she couldn't see eye to eye with their parents and in rebellion ran off. Her decision was selfish. To be honest she's not sure why Scorchstreak and Rattleheart don't hate her. Anyway, shoving those thoughts aside her face softens when she looks at Luckypaw and Scorchpaw. "I'm not your mother and we all know that, but you two mean the world to me too. I'll look after you and if you need me don't be afraid to come to me."

* ˚ ✦ take a good look

• 
  
• — rabbitclaw / windclan tunneler / feminine pronouns / 45 moons
  — pansexual / single / looking / open to flirting and crushes
  — scar riddled short-haired lilac tortoiseshell with blue eyes
  — may powerplay minor harm / can powerplay healing
  — biography / @ on discord for plots
  — penned by velou

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[RATTLEHEART]

He's so tired.

Exhausted, really, his side aching and his muscles burning in the aftermath of the fierce battle and subsequent flight to the Horseplace. He'd been flitting around as much as he could since they had arrived, but now he couldn't bring himself to move anymore. Not when he was surrounded by what was left of his family, body settled in the cobbled together nest that he had been able to find within the twoleg barn. The tunneler was nearly asleep when Scorchstreak's voice broke the silence, causing him to perk up and listen along to what she had to say. A soft, dry chuckle left him at her choice of words, taking note of the very deliberate alive that left her muzzle as she glanced down at his side. "I'm glad to be here with all of you, too. I will always be loyal to Sunstride's Windclan, but... I will always be more loyal to all of you, first." Though some part of him did wonder - would he have stayed among Sootstar's loyalists, if his sisters and Scorchstreak's children had remained? He liked to believe his words were true, but... would they have been, if things had really, truly come down to it? He wasn't sure, and he chose not to dwell on it. After all, they were nearly all at the Horseplace now.

Though there was one notable exception, an absence that caused Rattleheart's stomach to twist up into knots. An absence that the former lead warrior was trying to apologize for, prompting him to almost frantically shake his head. "Rabbitclaw is right, Rumblerain's absence isn't your fault. They made their choice, and as much as we may all wish they had made a different one... we can't start blaming ourselves for it. Sootstar's manipulation got to so many. I can only hope that... that maybe they will come to their senses without any more bloodshed." He knew that they were all desperate for Rumblerain to come over to the side of the exiles, but he truly wasn't sure if things would change without more fighting. More of the war-waging that Sootstar seemed so fond of. And really, Rattleheart wasn't sure he would ever be able to raise his claws against Rumblerain - not when he had watched them grow up from just a little kitten.

Letting his chin settle back down onto his paws, the monochrome tom took in a deep breath before sighing wearily. "I'll be here for all of you no matter what though, even if I'm honestly not sure of how useful I'll be at the moment." Another rough giggle left his throat, his tail curling around near his side, as if his family wouldn't know what he was talking about.
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[ PENNED BY EO ]​