Icywhisker walked into the camp, the sun just off of being in the middle of the sky above. Branchtrot was placing fresh hunt on the food-pile, seemingly having just gotten back from a hunting trip. Her belly growled, as she then realized she hadn't eaten in several days. She padded over to the food-pile, and picked out a small scrawny vole - not a big take, since all she had done was patrol and hang out with her friend.
She looked around, looking for somewhere to sit to eat, when a Woodclaw walked over, a young she-cat with a flame-coloured pelt. "Hey. Outsider. What do you think you're doing, eating that? Did you earn that?" The Woodclaw meowed hostilely.
"Uhm . . Well, I went on the dawn patrol," she meowed in reply, muffled by the vole in her jaws. "But, I picked such a scrawny vole for that reason . ."
The Woodclaw narrowed her eyes slightly, then walked off to Tuftedpounce, meowing to him. Is that his Woodclaw? . . . What is his problem? she huffed, then padded over to the Warrior's den, sitting next to the opening and setting the scrawny vole down, before gulping it down in a few bites.
She was licking her jaws, when she heard Cloudystar yowl, "May every cat capable of climbing a tree gather beneath the Talltree for a group meeting!"
She looked up to where the yelling was coming from, seeing that Cloudystar was standing on a low-hanging branch, tail curled around her paws, Tuftedpounce already sat among the roots of the tree, a much older longhair brown and white tabby she-cat next to him - Icywhisker recognized her as the Moonpaw, Houndfreckle - a young longhair tom with a brown pelt speckled with white padded over and sat next to her.
Branchtrot padded out of the warrior's den and sat in the center of the clearing, looking up at Cloudystar, followed by Snailback, who sat a distance from him, then a shortfur brown and white tabby she-cat came out of the Herbclaw den, and sat next to Branchtrot.
She sat next to her friend, Snailback, while the flame-coloured Woodclaw and a chocolate-brown tom Woodclaw sat next to her.
With every cat settled, Cloudystar began, "Firstly, as you all likely know, we have a new Stoneclaw among us - Icywhisker. She comes from Those of The Flurry, but was banished after having been here for half of a moon. On news, however, I would like to announce that, despite her not wanting to change her name, I have decided to regardless."
Icywhisker's neck fur bristled in shock, tail flicking in rage. "Wha- . . . How dare she?" she mewed quietly.
Cloudystar stood, chest puffed out, and meowed "Those of The Moon, I call to you. I give you this, Icywhisker, and ask of you, to know her no longer as her name given by Those of The Flurry. I ask of you, to call of her, Yarrowheart."
Yarrowheart's fur bristled, anger bubbling in her chest. "Yarrowheart?" she meowed with disgust. She looked around, feeling eyes burning into her fur. Eyes that singed, judged.
"May this name furthermore allow her to fit in among The Fringe, no longer set out from the rest by her icy cold name." Cloudystar meowed. "Now, this concludes this meeting." Then, she turned and left.
Yarrowheart slowly turned to look at Snailback, met with the same confusion in her eyes. "That . . . That just happened . ." her friend meowed, just as shocked as Yarrowheart.
Branchtrot turned and meowed, chin raised slightly in amusement, tail-tip twitching slightly. "Well, hello, Yarrowheart. Please, please, stay away from me, I just ate." His voice laced with sarcasm and teasing.
She glared at him, tail flicking in anger. "Okay, Branchtrot." she meowed, then turned back to Snailback, deciding she wanted to distract herself from this. "Want to go hunting?" she meowed to her friend.
"Uh . . Sure! Sounds good . . . Y-Yarrowheart . ."
Yarrowheart turned and left the camp, neck fur bristling, Snailback close behind. Yarrowheart? Really? That's the best she could come up with? The vomitting herb? And it's supposed to reduce the teasing? Ugh. She thought, rage bubbling.
"Alright . . . Y-yarrowheart, uh . . . Us forest cats rely more on hiding from our prey, and covering up our scent to hunt. Like so," meowed Snailback, then looked around, climbing up a tree to a low-hanging branch, then sat and waited for prey to come across.
Yarrowheart stepped back and watched, a good distance away so she doesnt scare off the prey.
A few moments later, a plump rabbit nervously peeked its head out of its burrow, looking around cautiously. Seeing nothing, the rabbit slowly climbed out, and began foraging.
Just then, Snailback suddenly leaped out of the tree, crashing down ontop of the rabbit, and quickly dispatched it with a hard bite to the throat. "Just like that . . Or, you can use a bush to hide if you prefer - it doesnt hide your scent as well as hiding in trees does though," Snailback turned and meowed to Yarrowheart.
"Oh, uh, Thanks, Snailback" She meowed to her friend, then looked around for a low-hanging branch to do the same.
She found a low branch, climbed up to it, and waited.
Yarrowheart had nearly fallen asleep when she heard a much closer rustling, and quickly snapped her head to it- spotting a plump mouse rustling in the grass. She watched it as it scuttled around nervously, not too fond of the stale cat scent in the area. The mouse peeked its head out of the tall grass, and she launched herself- crashing down hard on the hard dirt ground, spooking the mouse. She reached out and tried to bat it, narrowly catching its tail in her claws, then bit its neck.
"Good job! . . . I-I mean, you did come up a little . . Short, on your leap, but it's progress!" Snailback meowed as she climbed down a nearby tree.
Yarrowheart turned to her and smiled proudly, chest fluffed out in happiness mixed with pride, "See? I can be a forest cat yet." Maybe I can fit in here . . . she thought.
"Now, just, cover your hunt with some dirt, and we can go catch some more," her friend meowed.
She placed the mouse on a dirt patch and scraped some earth over it, then climbed a tree to continue hunting.
The sun hung low in the sky. Yarrowheart and Snailback walked proudly into the clearing, holding a decent amount of hunt. They walked to the food-pile and dropped their catch onto the pile.
Snailback picked out a plump-looking magpie, and walked over into the warm dark Stoneclaw den.
Yarrowheart grabbed a vole, and padded over to the center of the clearing, laid down, and began eating.
She overheard some cats meowing as she finished up her meal. She looked around, and padded over to the roots of the TallTree, spotting Cloudystar and Tuftedpounce chatting.
"-and with Crow tensions rising, I think we should have a dawn and night patrol." Tuftedpounce meowed,
"Hm . . You raise a good point . . . Very well, you may take two border patrols if you want. I still don't think A Murder of Crows or Those of The Flurry are plotting anything sinister." Cloudystar meowed, "But, I'm going to go rest. If anything you see is important enough to wake me, do not be afraid to." Before turning, and walking over to her den, slipping through the bramble.
Tuftedpounce walked out to the center of the clearing, looking around.
Yarrowheart quickly darted over to the entrance to the Stoneclaw den - it's a bad look to spy on your Starclaw.
Tuftedpounce padded over to Yarrowheart. "Yarrowheart." He meowed with a growl. "You're coming with me. Where is branchtrot?"
She looked up at him, and found, shockingly, a lack of resentment in his eyes. "Uh, I think he's in there with Snailback." She meowed, and gestured to the Stoneclaw den.
He turned and walked into the den without a further word.
Great, A patrol with two of my least fond cats. Fantastic, she thought.
Tuftedpounce and Branchtrot came out of the Stoneclaw den together, and turned to Yarrowheart. "Come on." Tuftedpounce meowed impatiently at her sitting.
She rose to her paws, and followed them out of the camp.
They traced a line straight across the forest, to the Murder of Crows border.
The water reeked- just like before, but this time, the scent of cats was the header. There had clearly been a large volume of cats here.
She looked over at Tuftedpounce, his fur bristling. Branchtrot was sniffing around the grass. "The cat scent isn't from over here. It's from across the water." Branchtrot reported, flicking his tail to gesture across the water.
They continued down the border, the cat scent steady. When they came to the border with Those of Gentle Current, they all paused.
Yarrowheart crouched and smelled the water. Crow cats. What the . . ? Crow cats in Gentle territory? she thought. Turning to Branchtrot, she found his expression laden with the same confusion.
Tuftedpounce kneaded his claws in and out of the grass. "I don't like this. Keep going. Hurry." He meowed roughly at both of them.
As they continued down the Gentle border, the Crow cat scent had continued. As they reached the Flurry border, they paused yet again.
Cat fear scent rolled heavy down the mountain, carried by the cold winds. The fear scent was Flurry's.
Yarrowheart's fur bristled. She turned to the other two cats, and Tuftedpounce, after a slight pause, nodded, and began to climb the cold stone quietly, Yarrowheart and Branchtrot following close. Snow will melt, Ice and Water will join, Murder will befall the forest. She found herself recollecting as she climbed.