Slateleaf Mentions:
Directly: Pebblesplash
Indirectly: Quietshadow


”Oh no, darling, I didn’t kill him. Far from it, it seemed your brother made it first.” Slateleaf cooed. She still had an itching feeling that something was off with Quietshadow, but she couldn’t pinpoint any other cat that reminded her of her daughter.

She shook herself, ”What matter does it make anyway? You were never there for him. What makes it right for you to mourn him now, when you couldn’t even mourn me?” Slateleaf’s claws pricked the ground, the memory of when she last saw her daughter when she was alive washing over her. It almost made her stumble.

”Maybe things would have been different. Maybe if that cat who stole you when I lost you hadn’t done so, I could have raised you better. That tom cost me my life. I won't let you forget it any time soon, either. Not until I stand over you in the same way you did me after death.”

Slateleaf charged Pebblesplash, still convinced it was Quietshadow who she had been talking to.

Pebblesplash|20 moons|Minor Injury| Warrior|Temp. Camp|Mentions: Slateleaf (D) Glade, Quietshadow (ID)
————
Pebblesplash stiffened as Slateleaf began talking.
My brother killed by my brother? Stolen? Never there for him? Stand over me the way I did? Nothing was adding up. At least she knew who killed Clearsong. Glade. Her— their uncle. She’d known that cat was more trouble then he was worth, but wasn’t brave enough to speak her mind. But back to the pressing matter… What was Slateleaf thinking?!? Either Slateleaf was completely insane or…
Well, she was completely insane. But Slateleaf thought she was Quietshadow.

That was a stinging blow. Despite the progress the two she-cats had made, Pebblesplash did not want to be mistaken for her mother. She did look like her. The she-cat couldn’t deny that. But she never, ever wanted to be like her mother.

”I am nothing like my mother!” Pebblesplash snarled, meeting Slateleaf’s charge with her own. Claws out, she attempted to strike at Slateleaf’s side. She was letting vengeance and anger drive her. Anger at Slateleaf for not letting go. Vengeance for Clearsong.

Stripecloud|17 moons|Sick|Warrior|Camp|Mentions: Raindrop

Stripecloud felt strange. He felt his paw, he felt his whole body. Which was strange. He had just left his body. The tom opened his eyes and rolled so that he was on his stomach. He stood up and looked around. He heard yowls of fighting cats. He was confused. He swore he had just left this place. Stripecloud started breathing heavily feeling his whole body shake.
"What in the name of StarClan is going on. Why am I here?" He looked over and saw Raindrop with another cat. He looked down and saw that all his wounds had healed leaving very ugly scars. He looked back up to Raindrop.
"What's going on!" He was freaking out. He was to overwhelmed with what was happening that he didn't realize the pit of grief in his stomach.

Slateleaf Mentions:
Directly: Pebblesplash
Indirectly: Quietshadow

Slateleaf ducked, trying to claw at Pebblesplash’s stomach, however she felt claws rake down her side before she could make contact, making her suck in air. “Like your mother? Like me?” Slateleaf interrogated with a hiss of disgust from where she crouched, ”Well of course you’re not. You’re much too soft.” She whorled around hissing, as she reared up on her hind legs, aiming a blow to Pebblesplash’s head in hopes of knocking her down.

Raindrop | 14 Moons | Warrior | Healthy |Camp | Mentions:
Directly: Stripecloud, Breezekit
Indirectly:

Raindrop’s eyes went wild with fear as she felt the still pelt beneath her start to move. Her breath hitched in her throat, her eyes flitting from Breezekit to Stripecloud. What was happening? Was this what had happened to her? Can cats not die?

No, Stripecloud had been revived, but the pit of her stomach felt cold. The cuts and wounds had closed and he was sitting up. How did this happen? Something nagged the back of her mind that Stripecloud had been possessed by a dark forest cat. Coming back from the dead? Sure it just happened to her, but experiencing it first-hand was a whole new idea to her.

Raindrop shook her head, tentatively picking her way forward to Stripecloud. She sniffed him at first, then laid her muzzle against his solemnly. Should she be happy, scared, mad? She was more confused than anything. Looking over her shoulder, she asked,

”Breezekit? What’s going on?”

”That flower, it revived him. Its called a reaper’s rose.” He began, ”Starclan cats normally gift them to cats who died before their time.”

Raindrop pelt prickled for some reason, ”You revived him?”

Breezekit shook his head, ”Those flowers are costly, I can’t get any more…”

Raindrop broke into a smile, though her heart still hurt from the grief. ”Thank you.” She murmured, touching her nose to his. Raindrop turned back around and did the same to Stripecloud, ”Welcome back.”

Pebblesplash|20 moons|Suffocating| Warrior|Temp. Camp|Mentions: Slateleaf (D), Clearsong, Quietshadow, Earthquake, Hawkstrike
————
Pebblesplash snarled st Slateleaf as she tried to knock her over. She’d been paying too much attention to her back paws the her head. Slateleaf struck the side of her head. Normally she’d be able to duck, but she got distracted.
’Sorry won’t cut it, Girl.’ Clearsong/Slateleaf struck her head, knocking her to the ground.

While she was reeling on the blow, Slateleaf pounced. Eyes widened, she braced herself.
Pebblesplash gasped as Slateleaf shoved her paws on her throat. The wind was knocked out of her.

She was being suffocated.

Pebblesplash scrambled, clinging on to the shadow cat’s leg. Trying to get air into her lungs.
Images of her loved ones flashed through her mind, like it was warning her that she was on her last moments.

Earthquake.
He had raised her since Amberstone died and Quietshadow left. He had supported her when no one else had. And now she wouldn’t even get to say goodbye. Fitting. He’s never gotten a goodbye, not even from his father. Everyone has left unexpected, and she would be among them.

Her claws and resolve began to waiver.

Quietshadow.
Despite everything that she-cat had done, Pebblesplash still felt connected to her. And Quietshadow had proved that she wanted a relationship with her kit. And Pebblesplash had accepted that ever since Quietshadow had defended them against the Clan a quarter moon ago. But Quietshadow would never get a chance to make up with her daughter.

Pebblesplash’s claws loosened even more, sliding down until they were on Slateleaf’s paws.

Hawkstrike.
Oh, Hawkstrike. If she had any air in her lungs, she would laugh. But alas, she didn’t. Hawkstrike was always there for her, even in her worst days. Young love rarely works. This was evidence. But Pebblesplash loved him and it wouldn’t change, even after she was gone. He would always be her rock, always. At least he wasn’t dead. She’d rather be the one to die then him.

Pebblesplash’s vision was going dark. Her claws were loose, unable to be controlled.

Clearsong.
Her brother. Her best friend. Her world. Clearsong was the one cat that had been with her since kits. Obviously. Even when the fought. Clearsong always forgave her, not matter what she did. At least she would see him soon. He’d be waiting for her.

Memories of all of the cats flashed through her head. The black was pressing in, and the only thing she could see was Slateleaf’s maniacal gaze. Pebblesplash shut her eyes. Slateleaf was not the last cat she wanted to see. She managed one weak cry. Maybe someone would hear.

Everything was burning now. She couldn’t do this longer. Every time she opened her eyes , vainly searching for someone to save her, the black pressed in further and further.

She was about to let go. It wouldn’t hurt anymore.

But suddenly she could breathe again.

Blurry vision focused slowly as Pebblesplash coughed, her chest heaving. She couldn’t move, her legs didn’t work.
In the distance, she could see Slateleaf facing off with a new cat. The she-cat didn’t get a good look at the cat as she started hacking again. She set her head down, still trying to breath. Terror was still inside her, not loosing its grip on her gut. She could still feel pressure on her chest, the pressing on her throat. It was terrifying. She shut her eyes again.

Quietshadow | 46 Moons | Warrior | Injured|Temp. Camp| Mentions: Slateleaf, Pebblesplash
——
Quietshadow’s ear twitched as a cry pierced them. She lifted up her head to see… Slateleaf and Pebblesplash. Her mother was killing her daughter. She was up in a flash, leaping over her son’s body and claws outstretched for Slateleaf.

She slammed into her mother, knocking her off Pebblesplash.

Quietshadow was a ball of pure rage. Her vision was speckled with red. How dare Slateleaf attack her daughter. She circled the other she-cat, arching her back and spitting.
”Stay away from Pebblesplash!”


”You know why you’ve never succeeded, mother? Because you don’t have love. You care for no one with but yourself. It’s quite sad, really. You “grieved” so much for your lost daughter, but never looked for her hard. And when you did show up, you attacked us when I refused to come with you. I was happy. But you wanted to take it all away. I will never understand why you tried,” she paced closer to Slateleaf.

”And you say you wanted to love me? If that was true, we wouldn’t be here, now would we? You were angry with the clan for taking away something else. Another thing, Slateleaf. Again, you just tried murder my daughter. Why? To prove a point? To me? To the Clan? To Clearsong? You just keep painting yourself as a villain. I hope you’re happy in that coat.”
Quietshadow slid her claws in and out. Her tail lashed as she glared at Slateleaf.

”Did you know my mate is dead? My brother is dead? So you’re not the only one with problems. So don’t go blaming your situation on hard times. It never works. I tried it at first, and I lost what little I had left. My son is dead. You will not take my other kit too. I will protect her with my life.To get her, you’ll have to get through me.”

Slateleaf Mentions:
Directly: Quietshadow, Pebblesplash
Indirectly: Glade

Slateleaf focused on placing all of her weight on Pebblesplash's neck. She would pay, she would-

She was caught off guard when she felt a cat slam into her, losing her balance. Her opponent coughed and spluttered, making Slateleaf hiss in annoyance as she pulled herself back to her feet to face her attacker.

Then she paused.

Was she seeing double? She hadn't hit her head, why were there two Quietshadows? Then it hit her, making her eyes widen.

Pebblesplash. She had been attacking Pebblesplash.

Slateleaf turned to look back at her daughter, the features she was familiar with falling into place in her mind. Her eyes narrowed as Quietshadow spoke against her. Slateleaf went rigid, stiffly stalking forward until she was nose to nose with the shecat. "You want to know something, Quietshadow." She snarled, a manipulative light in her eyes. "You want to know how I feel about this? Miss 'I'm so open to my feelings'?"

Slateleaf lifted a clawed paw, inspecting it for a moment, "I think you're just a slight hypocrite." Slateleaf backed up with a chuckle, "Really now?" She tilted her head, sitting down. " 'Did you know my mate is dead? My brother is dead? My son is dead.' How do you think they died?" Her tone was critical, mocking.

"It pains me that you have no idea how much I've interfered with your wellbeing. I've really tried so hard." Her tone was sarcastic, she flicked her ears. "Do you remember your dream from 'Starclan' telling you your brother was alive? I bet Glade thought his dream was from Starclan too." Slateleaf huffed, standing once more. "I've put much more thought into this than you realize."

"So, tell me now, Quietshadow." Slateleaf hissed, her voice becoming icy. "Tell me why you left a caring and protective clan, a loving mate, two beautiful kits, and all of your friends over some dream of a brother who you weren't even sure was within a lifetime of travelling distance. Tell me why you forefeited everything, just to come back to find he was home all along." Slateleaf was once again in her daughter's face, her clawed paw raised again to strike. "Tell me why you decided to follow in the footsteps of the mother you hated so dearly."

Quietshadow | 46 Moons | Warrior |Injured |Temp. Camp| Mentions: Slateleaf (D) Glade (ID)
——
Quietshadow glared at Slateleaf with her mocking tone, listening to every word. But two sentences.. They stuck with her.
”Tell me why you forfeited everything, just to find out he was home all along. Tell me why you decided to follow in the footsteps of the mother you hated so dearly.”
She paused, her resolve wavering.
Why did I follow her? Wait, I did follow her? Why did I leave? Why did I believe dreams from Star- Slateleaf? Was I really that naive? Yes. I was. I was foolish. I was luckier than her and threw it away for nothing.
She shut her eyes, then turned her attention back to Slateleaf, who looked ready to kill her.

”Because emotions make us do crazy things. I’m no exception, and you certainly aren’t. And you want to know something?” Quietshadow met Slateleaf’s cool green gaze with her own.
”There’s a big difference between you and I. I learned from my mistakes. I came home. I didn’t hold on to the past… at least, not enough to kill me. So if you want to pull the “we are exactly alike” cars, think again. Because unlike you, I am willing to die for my kin. And unlike you, I can admit my wrongs. And unlike you, I still have cats that care about me. Because I tried to be better then what the world expects of me. Call me delusional, but it won’t change that I will never stop trying.” Quietshadow braced herself for the impending fight. Her ears were flare as she glared at her mother.
”You’ve always said the Clan stole me? Well, they made me who I am. I owe them everything. And tonight, I will prove it.”

Swallowfall | 17 Moons | Co-Deputy | Injured | Camp/Territory | Mentions: Blossomheart, Lionkit, Maple/Starlingkit, Dark Forest NPC, Honeyspark (Starclan)

(A little late, sorry!) Swallowfall nodded to Blossomheart as the injured she-cat staggered away. Turning around she focused on the kits. "Of course dear." She said, responding in what she hoped was a calming manner to little Maplekit.
Her personality seemed kind of off compared to the timid little kit she had seen before but it was probably the stress of the situation. Swallowfall slipped inside the nursery and picked the limp form of Lionkit up by his scruff. She pushed her way through the tiny hole in the den's wall, twigs and branches catching on her long silvery pelt. Blood still oozed over her right eye so she kept it shut and her body ached from the battle but she had to concentrate on protecting the kits. "Maplekit! Stay behind me!" Swallowfall said through her mouthful of fur.
She moved quietly through the forest, her main concern was keeping the kits safe and a good distance from the battle in camp. Her heart stopped however when dark shadows began to gather before her. They congregated into a group and a dark cat oozed up out of ground to face her.
It sneered and spoke in a gravelly voice. "You'll never save your clan and you won't protect these kits." The dark cat began to circle her and the two kits. "You're nothing but a weakling. Nobody wants you, nobody needs you and in the end you'll only fail them."
WIth that, the cat leapt at Swallowfall. As she was still holding Lionkit all Swallowfall could do was turn and take the hit to her back, keeping the kit as far from harm as possible. She crouched over Lionkit as the dark warrior's claws raked down her back. "Maplekit! Run to the rabbit hole!" She cried. At least one kit would be safe.
Swallowfall attempted to turn and meet the other cat head on but as she turned the inky cat caught her and slammed her to the ground. Swallowfall struggled, wiggling her way away from Lionkit to at least keep the Dark Forest warrior's attention off of the tiny cat.
"And so your life amounts to nothing. Just as you always feared. This clan will fall and there is nothing you can do to stop it." The dark cat sneered, leaning down to deliver a fatal bite to Swallowfall's neck.
Suddenly a starry form struck the dark cat's side, bowling it over. A tussle ensued, the dark warrior only getting one good hit in before the Starclan cat pummeled it to the ground and swiftly snapped its neck. The shining cat turned to Swallowfall and she thought her heart would burst with joy when she recognized the familiar form of her older sister.
"Honeyspark!" Swallowfall cried. She struggled to her feet and limped to the honey-colored she-cat. Honeyspark licked the top of her head comfortingly as Swallowfall pushed her face into her sister's neck, inhaling her sweet scent.
"I've missed you so much..." She trailed off as her sister began to speak.
"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner. I should have protected you better and I should have been here for you." Honeyspark said.
"But I should have been able to save you..." Swallowfall whispered into Honeyspark's fur. "I should have tried harder...maybe helped gather extra herbs or stayed with you more often...I failed you."
"There was nothing more you could do." Honeyspark replied. "No amount of herbs could have made me better and you haven't failed me. I have watched you from Silverpelt and every day I see you put forth your best for the clan. That is all I could have ever asked from you. You give your all to everyone and are kind and patient. You deserve to be loved."
With that Swallow collapsed, shaking with grief, fatigue, and all of her unspoken troubles of the past few moons. She leaned into Honeyspark's warm pelt as the starry cat caressed her with licks.

Maplekit/Starlingkit | 5 Moons | Kit | Lightly Injured | [Outside Camp] | Mentions: Lionkit, Swallowfall, Honeyspark

"My name isn't Maplekit, it's Starlingkit!" She huffed, frustrated that everyone kept calling her Maplekit. Clearly they were nothing alike?
She bounded after Swallowfall with her tiny paws, making sure to keep her eye on the dangling Lionkit. When a dark forest warrior happened upon them, she gasped, jumping out of the way. She peeked out from behind a tree, but it only made her feel like a coward.
Starlingkit jumped out, helping the warriors defeat the shadow cat, and looked up at the shining warrior in front of her. She seemed to know Swallowfall pretty well.
"Thank you for saving my brother and I." She grunted, knowing she could have fought better.
You did the best you could, Starlingkit. Let me take over for a while.
Fine, but if anything bad happens again, I'm coming out to protect you.
Maplekit woke in her body, stretching the limbs that Starlingkit just occupied. She looked up at Swallowfall, in awe of the bravery of the warrior.
"You will be my mommy if Snowball doesn't come back?" She blurted, not thinking before the words even came out of her mouth. She was embarrassed, but leaned up to lick her brother's cheek. She was worried about him, and her fur stood up in fear. She hoped this sad battle would end soon, she hated seeing cats get hurt.

Stripecloud|17 moons|Sick|Warrior|Camp|Mentions: Raindrop

Stripecloud felt Raindrop press her nose to his. He felt himself calm down, his breathing became softer as he took in the information the cat in front of him was giving.
“So, I died, and then came back to life? How is that even possible? I’m not a leader.” Stripecloud looked at Raindrop. He was happy, happy to be rejoined with his mate. But he also felt the pit of grief in his stomach. Now that he had calmed down, he felt it. He hated it, but it wouldn’t go away. He had seen his brother die, again. He hadn’t gotten to tell his brother goodbye, again. But this time, he wasn’t going to be able to see his brother again.

Small Flash Back

“C’mon Stripecloud.” Stripecloud looked at the strange cat.
“Who are you, where’s Tanglepaw? Don’t you usually see cats you know? I heard that from an elder once. Who had heard it from a leader.” Stripecloud explained stopping.
“Stripecloud, when a StarClan cat dies a second time, they don’t come back.” I’m sorry Stropecloud, Tanglepaw’s gone.”

End Flash Back

Stripecloud sat down and curled his tail around his body. His gaze dropped to his paws. He felt like he should hide the pain he was feeling from Raindrop. He didn’t know why. He knew he should probably tell her, maybe should could help. But he didn’t want to drag her down. She probably had enough grief in her life. Probably.

Raindrop | 14 Moons | Warrior | Healthy |Camp | Mentions: 
Directly: Stripecloud, Breezekit (NPC)
Indirectly: Tanglepaw (NPC)

Raindrop watched Stripecloud's shift in demeanor as he sat and looked at his paws. She watched Breezekit in interest as he padded over and leaned against his side, understanding filled his gaze. "Hello, Stripecloud." He introduced, "I know you don't care about the opinion of a kit, but I have many moons of experience under my pelt from being with Starclan, so I want to tell you this." Breezekit looked intently at Stripecloud, Raindrop padded forward to hear what he'd tell the tom.

"All cuts heal, some leave scars but those scars aren't always bad, they're just a reminder that you're still alive and you can still grow from a situation. It may cause you grief to see it and remember it," Breezekit cast a knowing glance to Raindrop, he was talking about the scar on her tail. Raindrop felt her ears grow warm in embarassment.

"But remembering the past helps you grow in the future. You learn and try harder to prevent it from happening again. You become better, stronger, and smarter from the experience." Breezekit finished, looking down at his paws.

Raindrop sat, staring at the sandy-colored kit. Did Starclan really teach a cat so much? What must Breezekit have gone through to learn that? She shook herself.

Stripcloud needn't tell her what caused him his grievance, she had watched Tanglepaw die, firsthand. She decided to add to Breezekit's words. "Don't get lost in the pain of it all. If you need to talk, we're- I'll always be near." She corrected, casting a sympathetic glance to Breezekit.