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She smells it before she hears it; hears it before she sees it. Dog. Stormcrow had been out hunting for freshkill, but now it seems she must set her sights on bigger targets– a dog cannot be allowed on Skyclan territory. She takes off at a run, tearing through the undergrowth, urgency increasing as another smell hits her nostrils– cat blood. Cats. And then she hears them, desperate yowls, pleas for the dog to stop. She slides to a halt just at the edge of the clearing, taking in the situation for a moment before she acts. One dog, one kit in the tree– a dead kit on the forest floor, half devoured. Shit.

Luckily for her, the dog is so preoccupied with the kits, that it fails to notice her– Stormcrow leaps into the air, powerful hind legs propelling her forward– she lands squarely on the dogs back, digging her claws into its shoulders, teeth closing around the back of its neck. It tastes terrible, sour and metallic, almost like bile. She draws blood, though, both from its neck and its shoulders, but before she can do more, it begins to buck wildly, and she's thrown off, sliding across the forest floor, feeling something sharp dig into her shoulder– she ignores it, quick to get back to her feet. As the dog is nursing its pain for a moment, she looks up at the little kit, whose blue eyes are wide and horrified.

"Stay where you are!" Stormcrow shouts, "and don't speak! Let it forget you're here."

Her eyes flick back to the dog, and she takes up a better battle stance, trying to prepare for its next move. Could she really fight it off herself, though…? Surely someone would hear them? Could a border patrol be nearby, or another cat out hunting?

Everything was going to change from now on. He was lacking in many ways and that much he already knew. It was their run in with Skyclan that made him consider what should be their next steps. Seabriar had told him long ago that he must have a deputy, someone who he could trust in the event anything should happen to him or when he must leave them all to do something. He hadn't picked anyone yet, not wanting to thrust more change upon everyone. Their response to him being leader as well as receiving new names was taken poorly. I've given them long enough to get used to things. I can't wait anymore. Not with what happened with Hawkstar and with our other neighbor Thunderclan. At least nothing too bad happened with Thunderclan, so we have a chance of getting to know them properly.

He waited for until noon, passing the time by watching everyone go about their day. They would all be good candidates, but what's important? If anything he will be part of the council. No doubt about it, but would these cats mesh well? No. What matters is the future of our clan, not whether or not we get along. What skills should matter most? That's what I should be more concerned about. It was difficult nonetheless to narrow out who should help him lead Riverclan. It's time. The longer I think about it, the more I'll be uncertain.
It is almost becoming natural for him to scale the stump. There is less apprehension faced when having to hold the meeting, which is all due to the numerous times he held meetings for name changes alone. What will happen today is not as easy or simple though. What he will say will change the direction of where their clan is headed. One he hopes will be bright. He waits for a sizable amount of cats to gather. Some who were not at all pleased their meals would have to be cut short. At least I didn't wake everyone up at sunrise...

He is not too sure of that to be honest, but Skyclan has not attacked them yet. If they wanted to it then they would've attacked long ago. This means they have time to prepare in the event that they would actually have to go to battle with another group. Not that he wants to. What use did they have in fighting with another clan for their territory? Especially one that lacked any water. Skyclan's taken up too much of our time. I'll deal with them later on. I also have that to announce. He hopes that Juniperstar? As he's heard would be more kind than Hawkstar. He's not asking that they hold paws and spin in a circle or anything like that. All he would like is a nice conversation in getting to know the other leader. He wants it known from the start that there is no interest in violence or asking for favors. If he were to ask anything. I would simply be Juniperstar's time. That is all.



Picking who should be his second in command was not easy. However, he decided with this answer. He is well aware of the cats who are looking at him as if he lost his mind. After all, Frostmoth is young. Younger than him, which meant the tom in question had little experience. It was bad enough that Pikestar himself was lacking, so why pick someone who was just as inexperienced. Why hadn't he chosen someone who had experience at the very least in planning and following through on plans? Someone who was firm? The older cats within our group were more resistant to change. Just like me. Frostmoth is young. He'll adapt to this life more quickly than someone much older. Torrentpaw's already gotten used to this new life and is even excited about it! I can't imagine how much easier it'll be for the younger cats in our group to adjust, especially when kits are born here. They wouldn't know any other life.

Frostmoth as their deputy is a risk that much is certain. He can't say he trusts the younger tom fully considering they really haven't talked much, so maybe the Starclanners who granted him his lives yowled in disagreement with this choice. I have nine lives. It's better to take this chance now rather than wait till its too late. Despite the fact that they hadn't talked much, he feels as though they'll get along. They'll have to get along regardless for the sake of their clan. After all, if anything were to happen to him... Frostmoth would be next in line to become leader. That is, if the younger tom remained his deputy for long enough.

As Pikestar had said earlier, he would be picking their council. Hopefully they would feel more reassured with the cats he selected. He clears his throat before continuing. There were some questionable picks for the first Riverclan council. Foxtail was young. He could have very well been picked for deputy instead of Frostmoth. Pigeonpearl... Well, she was full of herself to put it lightly. Putting her in this position was a risk, considering it may inflate her ego a tad much (more than it already was). However, she was to the point. Words ever cutting. She just needed more refining. Peachtrot maybe a crime of being too kind. However, Adderfang, Pineheart, and Russetfall were all choices most should be happy about. It shouldn't be a surprise to Adderfang though. I kind of mentioned it earlier.

If anyone had any reservations about their new ranks and wanted to refuse, then he would respect their decision. He couldn't force them to do something they didn't want.

One thing is left now. No matter what, we need to start doing this. If Riverclan wanted him to stop speaking, unfortunately they would have to keep on wishing. They should know what is being implied. Already their group knows how a good number (including Pikestar himself) could not hold their own in battle. To give them this piece of information is not to frighten. It is to make them aware of the gap they must close.

// This thread is set to take place canonically on the feb 28th! it was the same day that the deputy and council members were rolled out. weeps i know we're already in march i am behind

indentttMothbite follows behind Bonecrusher, approaching the small group surrounding the pile of twoleg trash. He walks past Fleapaw and Lostpaw, making a beeline to investigate the frail body amongst the trash. Sure enough, the kittens chest still rises and falls with shallow breaths. Gently, he touches his nose to their soft fur, and finds it cool. Quickly, he begins to lathe his tongue across him, trying to warm him up as much as possible.

indenttt"Fleapaw's right, he's still hanging on." It might not last long, though. The chill wind of leafbare whistles though the trees and past the kitten, sapping more warmth from the delicate body. They would have to move fast. "If we get him to Cicada now, there might still be a chance." Mothbite is loathe to interact with the cryptic medicine cat more than absolutely necessary, but the rare show of vulnerability from Fleapaw and Lostpaw spurs him on to push past his distaste for the tomcat. This is 'family', right? I don't want to see something precious like that torn apart.

indentttMothbite reaches down to grab the kitten by the scruff. The stark lack of meat on the kitten's bones means there's quite a bit of loose skin to cling to. "You two run ahead and let Cicadabuzz know we're coming." He addresses the sisters, speaking around the scruff in his mouth. The sooner the cats at camp know what's happening, the sooner they can start getting stuff ready. Every moment counted. He turns to Bonecrusher next. "Bonecrusher, can you stay with me? I'm not the strongest, I might need help carrying him." Mothbite is rarely the sort to ask for help or acknowledge his own weakness, but there are special circumstances. Defending his own kittish pride could get someone killed, here. Bonecrusher's more powerful body might just be the key to keeping the kitten alive, and Mothbite isn't going to pass up the opportunity to save a life.