TW: Sensitive Content Open Camp YOU DONT NEED SAVING || return from battle

[flowercloud]

FLOWERCLOUD

DEPUTY OF SKYCLAN

Everything was hitting her. The blood that spilled across the ground, the bodies lost, the images of cats attacking each other- the prey lost in the fray. Flowercloud felt no real purpose to say they won, was it really won when even still Hawkstar did not wake up? Her body hung limply off of Flowerclouds. Arms wrapped over her shoulders, and the walk back to camp was mostly quiet. Somber. They lost no souls, Hawkstar should wake up- but they lost in other matters that Flowercloud couldn't quite put into words.

When the large group pushed into camp, Flowerclouds gaze was distant, not quite there. She was used still, to approaching and Cinderpaw greeting her, excited- to seeing cats that were lost upon them. Her gaze trailed to Teaselfeather, eyes softening. A sigh escaped her, and she lifted her head. "Where's @SWALLOWBREEZE , please see to those injured- and... Hawkstar," she murmurs softly.

They came onto Skyclans land, demanding justice, tearing into flesh, stealing prey- Flowerclouds mind spun as she opened her mouth, then closed it, head drooping in uncertainty. In an indifference that she did not care to figure out anymore. Even as she lay Hawkstars body down, she could not leave the king alone, she could not pull her body from nestling her cheek into her leaders neck. She could barely breathe, as she hunched over leader, fighting back tears.

When will you wake? Please .. don't leave me.

Love me to my bones...

Flowercloud

— 40 moons — she/her
"SPEECH", 'THOUGHTS', ATTACK
— a gentle giant, flowercloud stands at 14" at the shoulder and weighs 20 ibs. Her voice is honey soft, and green eyes are usually gentle and empathetic. She has amber coloured on her face and legs where points would be, with darker caramel coloured stripes. the rest of her fur is a bright white, and just like her namesake, is said to be as soft and thick as touching a cloud. She has a scar above her left eye, extending through her eyebrow. she has a deep scar on her chest, and her back leg is missing quite a bit of fur from dog injury. She has a slice just behind her shoulders and across her back. She has the power of Empathy, granted by her son Rosebelly.
#9365B8

 

[stormcrow]

Stormcrow feels delirious. Blood is dripping from her claws, her maw, into her eyes where a paw had tried to wipe her face clean to no avail. She can't look directly at Hawkstar's limp body draped over Flowercloud's shoulders, not because of the injuries or the blood, no, she had seen her leader die before. That did not scare her. But the ugly thing that twisted in the pit of her stomach, the anger that it was not her who had pulled Hawkstar out, who was carrying her home… It was enough to make her stumble as she walked. She does not know what it is and does not care to name it. She will kill it before that.

They enter into the camp, victorious but having failed nonetheless. The anger mutates now, remembering the accusations tossed around by the Windclan cats.

"Bloody bastards," she growls, "thieves and liars, the lot of them. What Skyclan cat would dare break the warrior code? What Skyclan cat would dare kill another warrior?"

♡ STORMCROW. 54 moons
mentor of stonepaw,
daughter of snowveil
peaceful powerplay allowed
ooc -

 

[Swirlstrike]

​

SWIRLSTRIKE

The fight, which had initially filled her with a passionate, righteous fury, flung ahead by the stars themselves to defend their territory and clan, had left her completely, and utterly exausted. Her paws dragged as they made their way into camp. Head held low, she had one eye squeezed shut to prevent the now dried blood from getting into it.

She couldn't tear her eye away from Hawkstar. Her leader. Their star blessed king. Struck down by those foul, disgusting, trecherous, starless Windclan mongrels. She should have been there. She should have fought better. Been tougher. Faster. Stronger. She had failed her leader, their clan, and Starclan themselves. There was no battle won, today. Just a bloody, agonizing stalemate.

Silent tears dripped down her face, stinging her fresh wound. She didn't even know how bad it was. All she remembers was the heart racing adrenaline after she had gotten hit, the pain, a shock to her system so strong that she faltered entirely. Even now, it left her head spinning.

Hawkstar was dead. Another life lost. How many did she have left until she was to join Starclan?

Wobbling a bit, she leaned against Chestnutjaw's side. Her paws felt numb. She understands now. The strength it takes to defend your territory with blood. The other warriors, the more experienced, they were so incredibly brave. She would be seasoned like them, someday. This was her first taste of it. It was bitter. She would get used to it. For now, though... she wanted to rest.

OOC - @Chestnutjaw

 

[brightnose!'s icon brightnose! brightnose!]

BRIGHTNOSE | SUN GUARD
"ALWAYS CONFUSING THE THOUGHTS IN MY HEAD"

.

Brightnose had stayed close to Flowercloud the whole trek back to camp, glancing upward at Hawkstar's limp form slung across the deputy's back. Carnage. And for what? So WindClan could steal a few little morsels from the so-called murderers that they can't even prove are actually murderers?

When her paws finally reach camp, she is exhausted. The claw marks across her shoulder have bled down her foreleg, staining her silver-and-white fur a gross reddish brown. Even her anklet, gifted to her by Coyoteclaw… it's now stained with still-drying blood. Brightnose can't bear to look at the way that its beauty has been tainted.

"Does anyone need help getting to the medicine den?" She looks back at the group, battered and beaten. None of them deserve this. They came to this forest to find a better home. A place where they could thrive. But it seems like every Clan is turning against them, one by one… even their king was unable to escape their wrath. Of course, Brightnose will need to be seen by Swallowbreeze herself, the wound on her shoulder aching an unbearable amount, but she wants to make sure everyone with harsher wounds is taken care of first. Brightnose will live, she doesn't need to be seen first. Besides, she knows that her Clanmates will surely have questions… she can stay to answer them while she waits her turn. They need to know what happened. They need to know who did this… they need to know that Dustystar's final act was one of reckless abandon, punished by the stars for her wrongdoing before she could even see it through. Yes, it's by the grace of StarClan that they're all still alive. That Hawkstar hadn't been swept away the same way that WindClan's fallen leader had. Brightnose clings to that… she's not sure what else she has to believe in right now.

𓆩✧𓆪‿̩͙‿ ༺ ♰♰ ༻ ‿̩͙‿𓆩✧𓆪​

"SO I CAN'T TRUST MYSELF ANYMORE"

BRIGHTNOSE
SKYCLAN SUN GUARD
23 MOONS
SHE/HER
"SPEECH" | THOUGHTS | ACTION
#61BD6D #00A885

 

[Maplemouse Maplemouse]

Maplemouse followed the patrol with a hollowed gaze. They were one of the few ungrazed, having tried to pry answers from one of the Windclan brutes. But for all their attempt to find answers amongst the rabble, so much had unfolded. They watched as Hawkstar was carried to Swallowbreeze, Stormcrow snaring profanity. Rightfully so. But the mink merely felt hollow.

Windclan were a gentle not, were they not? There was disbelief that they would bring violence to Skyclan's sacred land, martyring their own to wage a fight on their borders. So many cats were injured, only Starclan knew in that moment how many lives their king had lost.

Their paws felt heavy as they finally found Mulberryburst amongst the few in camp, their eye lidded in some muddled disbelief and utter horror. Maple stood at their kin's side, helpless to watch their clanmates march in camp, injured, furious, both in some cases. They were no fighter, and yet they faced the reality of these territories. Neighbours waging war on them on their own home ground. Its voice was taut, strained from shouting, but even still, they spoke to Mulberry without meeting his gaze. "They attacked our patrol first, Hawkstar followed suit to defend us." They watched as Brightnose called to those who needed help, the mink shaking their head as the sun guard's gaze flitted over them. They were unmarred.

"Many of their warriors are injured. Their leader, Dustystar... She is gone. Plunged into the gorge." Maplemouse's voice was hollow; they knew the herb stocks were meagre, they had lent a paw to Swallowbreeze many a time, and for all the clan's attempts, this would only lose them more and more herbs to save their clanmates. "They sought revenge from us."

---

OOC - Maplemouse is uninjured and recalling events to @Mulberryburst , anyone is free to overhear/intercept!

​

MAPLEMOUSE They/It/Neos, Skyclan warrior, 28 moons old.
A scrappy, chocolate mink with an overbite and green eyes.
mentored by none // mentoring Yolkpaw
littermate to Mulberryburst
NPC x NPC / parent to none / mated to none
"SPEECH" // "THOUGHTS" // ATTEMPTED ACTION
penned by Pheo ↛ phoenixwashere on discord, feel free to dm for plots.

 

[Mulberryburst]

On the occasions that Mulberryburst and Maplemouse were sent off on a patrol without each other, it wasn't uncommon to see whoever got back on their own first waiting for the other ready to share the tales of anything that had happened if it were interesting enough to share. Usually they were not far off from each other, one coming back and dropping off whatever prey they had caught on their way back only to turn around and the other coming in soon after. There were times that were different though and one didn't get back until much later. Sometimes there were joiners that caused stop at the border, there were conversations that needed to be had with the patrols of the other groups of cats that called themself "clan", and like tonight sometimes there were skirmishes at the border, sometimes life was lost and Mulberryburst could only hope that one of them wouldn't be his own sibling.

The scent of battle hit his nose before he saw the faces of those that had been involved in it, their entry into camp announced by the metallic smell of blood, by the angry voices that called out as they moved into the entrance and then into camp, and Mulberryburst sat, eyes wide as he watched each cat enter into the clearing. All of them were accounted for, though as Maplemouse made it's way to their brother it was when he noticed Hawkstar's body blanketed over Flowercloud's and that was when he turned to sibling, ready to ask what had happened, who had done it, and before he could mutter the words the explanation was already coming from the other, hollow and horror-filled as the small snippets reached his ears.

Even with those small amount of words flung his way there was the one thing that he couldn't help but question the most. "Revenge?" It came out smaller than he intend it to, "Revenge for what?" The only interactions that SkyClan and WindClan had really were those of asking for herbs, and the tree-dwelling cats had been nothing but cordial in those meetings. Had something happened at the gathering that he had missed? Something said that caused slight within the cats of WindClan? Why would they need to seek revenge for something instead of simply coming to the border to speak about it, what could have happened that would cause so much carnage - to both ends - and would it be worth losing their own leader for?

​

MULBERRYBURST he/him, skyclan 28 moons old.
chocolate x cinnamon mink chimera with low white
mentored by none // mentoring Jaypaw
littermate to Maplemouse
NPC x NPC / father to none / mated to none
"speech" // "thoughts"
penned by tikki ↛ rabbitcake on discord, feel free to dm for plots.

 

[Victoryscorn Victoryscorn]

Victoryscorn's uneasy steps broke into a proper trot the moment he pushed through the frantic knot of bodies and caught sight of the patrol's wounds—still wet, still raw beneath the winter air. The thick, coarse fur along his spine lifted in a sharp bristle, instincts flaring hot and immediate. Blood in camp never meant anything good, and blood on warriors who should've been hunting and renewing scent markers meant something had gone terribly, unforgivably wrong.

His mind raced as fast as his paws. A wild animal? In leaf-bare? Most beasts were holed up, sleeping through the worst of winter, not reckless enough to push into clearly marked borders. Hunger made fools of predators, sure—but this? This looked planned. Intentional. Victoryscorn's breath steamed heavy as he opened his mouth to demand answers—

And then he saw her.

Hawkstar.

The world seemed to lurch sideways. The name rang in his head like a struck stone, sharp and wrong, and his stride faltered hard enough that his legs nearly buckled beneath his weight. Stars above—how? Hawkstar wasn't careless. Wasn't weak. They'd been meant to hunt, to reinforce borders, to do the most basic duties the warrior code demanded of them—not to fall beneath foreign claws like prey. Victoryscorn's chest tightened painfully as his gaze dragged over torn fur and stiffening limbs, over the unmistakable stillness of a leader who should have been standing tall.

Then his eyes caught on a smaller, moving shape amid the wreckage.

@Swirlstrike. The sight of her—blood-matted, breathing hard, leaning into another warrior for support—hit him harder than Hawkstar's fall. His heavy paws sank into the snow as he closed the distance, leaving deep, uneven prints behind him. Something old and fierce twisted in his chest, hot and sharp, an instinct so sudden and violent it startled him. Overprotective. Too overprotective. The strength of it made his hackles rise further, made his heart pound in a way he didn't like. She wasn't kin. She wasn't a kit. She was a warrior now.

So why did it feel like the forest itself had failed her?

He dipped his head sharply toward her, more reflex than respect, jaw clenched tight enough to ache. "What in StarClan's cursed name happened, kid?" he demanded, voice rough and shaking at the edges despite his effort to keep it steady.

It felt like mere moments ago he'd been walking beside her through the pinewood snow, talking her through worries about bloodlines and family and duty. Now her pelt was spattered red—some of it hers, some of it not—and the scent of fear and iron clung to her like frost. Victoryscorn's stomach churned violently. This wasn't how things were meant to go. Warriors were meant to shield the young, not send them limping back into camp.

His name snapped through the air next, spoken with panic and anger tangled together, and Victoryscorn's head whipped around, lips peeling back into a yellowed snarl. A guttural growl ripped free from his chest, low and mean, more beast than cat for a heartbeat.

"Windclan?!" he spat, disbelief curdling into fury. His tail lashed hard enough to scatter snow. "Those mangy crow-brains crossed our borders? Attacked a patrol under our own scent?" His claws flexed, digging deep into the frozen ground as if he could anchor his rage there. "That ain't huntin'. That's desperation. That's a breach o' the code." He took a step forward, looming despite himself, eyes blazing. "Warriors don't strike like cowards. Leaders don't fall 'less somethin's gone rotten real deep." His gaze flicked back to Swirlstrike, sharp and assessing, making sure she was still on her paws, still breathing. The surge of protectiveness flared again—too strong, too fast—and he forced himself to rein it in, jaw tightening as he swallowed it down.

"I swear by StarClan," he growled, voice dropping low and dangerous, "they're lucky all they lost was a leader. Ain't no honor left in a group that spills blood like this." His ears pinned back as he lifted his head, eyes sweeping the camp as if daring the attackers to show themselves. "If they cross our borders again, I'll remind 'em what the warrior code's for—protectin' what's ours. And I won't be gentle about it." Only then did he step closer to Swirlstrike again, lowering his voice just a fraction. "You held your ground," he said gruffly. "That's what matters. That's what warriors do." His tail flicked once behind him, restless. "Don't you go thinkin' this was your failin'. Some battles ain't fair—but we face 'em anyway. That's the code. That's SkyClan."

And for a brief, unsettling moment, Victoryscorn realized he'd be willing to break half of it himself if it meant keeping her safe—and that thought scared him more than the blood in the snow.

___________________ YOU KNOW THIS MOMENT, ☆ DON'T YOU? ___________________

• "speech."
  "thoughts."
  actions.
  

• 

• VICTORYSCORN he/him, skyclanner, one hundred six moons.
  ☆ an old chocolate lynx mink with blue tabby patches and a permanent scowl, fur usually stained by blueberry plants.
  ☆ mentoring no one.
  ☆ no current relationships or family ties.
  ☆ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ☆ penned by egg ↛ eggmcbaconboy on discord, feel free to dm for plots!

 

[SWALLOWBREEZE]

the forest didn't enjoy skyclan's presence, they spat out their name during the few gatherings they've had and glare from across the scent markers. swallowbreeze busies herself with her work, trying not let the opinions of strangers influence her mind. in time, in time they will realize the importance of their clan, the code, their starry ancestors. she's lucky cats like rowanfeather and jinglemoon treat her with kindness and generosity in this world of violence. in a few minutes she will pray dimmingsun won't turn his back to her.

skyclan is a sword; at the helm their traditions hold it tightly, digging the sharp point into anyone who attempts to engage. some may say their hands were forced, others attest with barred teeth they've always been this way.

swallowbreeze expected today to be boring. flowercloud and hawkstar's patrols left with no fanfare, so she busies herself with nothing because her stock is pitiful this time of season cycle, the longer she looks at it, the more stressed she becomes. at some point she realizes they've been gone awhile, but doesn't think much of it besides the usual it's the middle of leafbare. when the camp's entrance finally shutters, her head lazily lifts, and the breath is pulled from her lungs.

"what— what in the name of starclan happened?!" she sputters, her voice raising as she registers the limp hawkstar atop their deputy's back. swallowbreeze looks between her clanmates frantically, assessing the damage, deciding who gets the last two remaining marigold.

"injured to my den, immediately." swallowbreeze's voice is clipped, her tail lip flicks irritably behind her. any other season she'd speak with a gentle tone, even though they wouldn't deserve it in newleaf. her ears pick up segments of gossip, straining at mentions of windclan, she will interrogate a patient later about the intimidate details. tomorrow, she will make a trip to riverclan to ask jinglemoon for anything he can part with, traveling alone to have a clear head for once.

she finally settles on the freshly appointed warrior, "chestnutjaw, could you help swirlstrike to my den? i need to look at her eye." for the young, she will force a kinder tone because it was their first skirmish. she watches as victoryscorn settles next to her to offer comfort, and that's how she knows the molly will be in good paws as she focuses elsewhere.

swallowbreeze weaves through the crowd, towards the body in the center of camp and their weeping knight. "flowercloud. i have to check on you, and hawkstar needs time to resurrect."

 

[Rain Rain]

R A I N
​ what a shame we all became ​

Rain poked her head from the nursery at the sound of frantic voices in camp. The scent of blood hits her and she cannot stop herself from recoiling. This was not the first time she'd been greeted by the sight of carnage since arriving at Skyclan, but this is to an extent she'd yet to experience. Her gaze travels over the returning cats, fur bloodied and torn, until she spots the broken, limp form of Hawkstar on the ground. Her heart lurches in her chest. Hawkstar had seemed larger than life, like an immovable object. Was she truly dead? Her body was cradled by Flowercloud, despite Swallowbreeze's attempt to draw her away. The word resurrect drifts through the overlapping voices, and Rain's brow furrowed in confusion. Was Hawkstar... immortal?

Other cats spoke of murder, of Dustystar, of vengeance, and Rain lashed her tail, unable to think straight. Beneath it all rested a guilt that she hadn't been able to help, that in her three moons in Skyclan, she'd been nothing but a burden.

Finally, her gaze found Teaselfeather. A lump formed in her throat. Her friend, risking their life, and for what? Glancing over her shoulder to ensure the kits were settled in their nest, safe and unaware, Rain hurried forward to check on her friend.

"Are you okay?"

She pressed her nose to Teaselfeather's shoulder gently.

such fragile

✦

broken things

• OOC: checking on @Teaselfeather!
• KEY:
  

  "speech"

  
  

  thoughts

  
  attempted action
  

  "other character's speech"

  
  
• 
  

  sleek grey she-cat with white paws, tailtip, face, and chin
  she/her
  loner
  16 moons
  
  

 

[Swirlstrike]

​

SWIRLSTRIKE

The the senior warrior's approach, she looked up at @Victoryscorn. Cats were slowly crowding around, asking for answers or speaking of the battle, and even through the dread of loss, the grief of losing Hawkstar... Swirlstrike started to feel just a bit safer. The terrifying, fast, deadly battle had shaken her. She was fighting on her own against someone she didn't know the strength of. She had gotten cocky, sure of herself, which had been her downfall.

One wrong assumption, one wrong move, and there was a claw to her face.

She was so glad to be home. Her face wobbled at Victoryscorn's words, and she sniffled. Lowering her head, she nodded it, and mumbled a small, wobbly, "Okay..."

At the appearence of @SWALLOWBREEZE, her head perked up, and she nodded again at the order to head for her den. What if she loses her eye? Only a moon into being a warrior, and already horribly injured? Would she be able to hunt? Would she have to relearn everything she had just been taught? Religated to an apprentice again, just after earning her name? The thoughts disturbed her as she slowly began walking to the Medicine cat den with @Chestnutjaw's help.

OOC -

 

[Teaselfeather Teaselfeather]

TEASELFEATHER

Over hill, over dale, through the valley and vale do not weep, do not wail, I am coming home to you

Teaselfeather moved to their mother's side, pressing close and casting a careful glance over her. Relief flickered through their mismatched hues, she was shaken, but she was alive. More alive than Hawkstar seemed to be. Their eyes flicked to their leader for a brief moment, hope surging in their chest. Live... Live, please... Please don't appear before me as one of the many dead. You are needed here. You are still our leader. Our Hawkstar. Our King.... Their gaze swept over the rest of the clan. Who was hurt most? Who needed Swallowbreeze first? They were not as badly injured as some, a throbbing head, yes, but far less than many others. Their paws trembled, ears flicking nervously as voices rose and fell around them. Their mismatched eyes drifted from cat to cat until they finally landed on the familiar face of Rain.

A soft noise escaped them as they stepped forward, letting their nose brush gently against her neckfur. They drew in a shaky breath. " WindClan... Hunting on our territory... " they murmured, voice tight with disbelief. " They... They acted like we owed them this... Like we were... " they swallowed the words back, a frown tugged at their muzzle. " I'm... I'm okay. Just a headache. It will pass... "

═════════════⊹⊱ ⟡ ⊰⊹═════════════

 

[Quailstep Quailstep]

QUAILSTEP
SHE/THEY
39 MOONS
SKYCLAN SUN GUARD
SPEECH | THOUGHTS | PHYSICAL

PENNED BY PLOT

Once again, Quailstep had been in camp when their Clan had been attacked. Once again, she'd been unable to protect her Clanmates, even if she'd never known about the danger until after it happened.

Once more, her friends returned to camp weary and wounded.

And this time... Hawkstar... Hawkstar had died. Quailsteps gaze swept over the returning warriors - she wanted to comfort Brightnose as she had that one time, but that could wait. The Sun Guard rushed to Flowercloud's side, joining her deputy and childhood friend in burying her nose in Hawkstar's fur. The blood roared in her ears as she shook, deaf to anything else.

Please, Hawkstar. We need you now more than ever.

​

OOC: