Close.Calls

[89darkthorn89]

Jesmain trotted through the camp entrance, taking a deep breath of the friendly smells. They were finally back to camp! Jesmain was shivering now, even with the nice temperatures, her pelt was soaked! She headed towards the Medicine cat den, for once she kept her black mouth closed.

She entered the den, breathing in the hearty smell of herbs. It seemed as if she hadn't been to camp for over a year! She trotted over and lied in one of the soft, mossy beds. "Well, this feels good!" She purred. And it did, lying in a soft place was exactly what she wanted right now. Her shoulder did hurt, but she assumed Colourcloud would give her poppy no matter what she said, seeing the fine state her friend was in. She smiled graciously at the Medicine cat.

Ooc- Heh, horribly short post, sorry=P

[Colourrrr]

C O L O U R C L O U D ;;

Colourcloud followed Jesmain hurriedly into the den and scuffled through the piles of herbs. She'd need more cobwebs...some poppy seeds...dock, definitely. The ebony medicine cat dropped the poppy seeds by Jesmain's mouth. "Eat 'em," she purred. She began to chew the dock and spit the poultice onto the scratch, as the cobwebs had fallen off on the journey home. "It might sting," she warned her friend, although she'd already dropped the juice onto her shoulder. She then put the cobwebs over the scratch.

"Now, don't move, because the cobwebs aren't sticky anymore. If you get up, they'll fall off," she mewed. She pressed the cobwebs down, as if she was trying to get them to stick, but she knew they wouldn't. "I'll go get us some fresh-kill." Colourcloud trotted out of the den and picked up a squirrel and a vole, then trotted back into the medicine den and dropped the vole in front of Jesmain. "Eat this when you're ready; you're going to feel sleepy from the poppy seeds, so I suggest you don't eat it now," she mewed.

Colourcloud, however, began to gobble up her squirrel immediately. She hadn't eaten all day, and she was completely famished. Her tail rattled as she ate the last few bites of squirrel. "Oh my gosh that was good," she breathed. The squirrel had been quite plump, and like I said, she was really hungry.

[89darkthorn89]

Jesmain purred at how anxious Colourcloud seemed. She licked the poppy seeds up obediently, cringing as the dock juice dripped into the scratch. She liked the Medicine cat's den, cozy at it was. She yawned, her pearly teeth gleaming. "I am tired, but I'm also starving." She meowed lightly, chowing down(=P) on her kill. She fell asleep slightly after that, thinking that as soon as the cobwebs came off she should be out of here.

Ooc- Okay, that was WAY worse than my last one, sorry=P I have absolutely NO muse right now.

[xxdarky.]

Pawsteps outside, heavy breathing, and the stench of blood and much worse, death. Auburnstar held the limp body of the cat that had joined the clan not to long ago on her back, his head hanging over her right shoulder. Scarlet blood matted his fur where his gashes were from the badgers large claws. The tortioseshell she-cat stood tall though, not trying to give away a lot of emotion, but careful not to give away none at all. Her long legs brought the cat through the camp, heading towards the medicine cats den with the help of Shadowpool at her side. She didn't glance around and observe her camp and who was looking at her, but she could feel that her kin, Heronfeather, was not present at the moment. The pair of cats were close, and Auburnstar wondered where her nephew had wandered off to so early in the morning, well, not so early anymore.

The leader shook the thought from her head though, there were much more important things to be dealing with. She shouldered her way into Colourcloud's den, making sure Shadowpool could get through as well, without them losing Shadowstrike from their backs. As soon as they were in there, the she-cat halted and let the body of the dead warrior slip off her back and on to the ground before the medicine cat. She then glanced up with her sad auburn eyes to see the two she-cats that stood there reaction.

[ooc;; surprise! Lol. Darky, Shadow and I decided to come and join your post. If you want some back-up information, you can read our Secrets Revealed Post, or else you can just play it by ear ^^]

[89darkthorn89]

Jesmain watched the two tired cats pad into the Medicine cat's den, well, actually not two, three. She gasped in surprise as the... the corpse dropped to the ground. She looked at Shadowpool through worried eyes, then they achieved a dangerous glint even Shadowpool wasn't capable of. "What, on heaven AND Earth, happened?" She asked. Her pelt was stiff, and she gave it a few quick licks, softening it after her plunge into the river.

She rose, her sore limbs stiff. She stretched lazily, yawning. She knew she should've cared much, MUCH more, but she didn't even recognize the cat... Wait, wasn't it... Shadow-something?? Yea, it was Shadow something or another. She shouldered her way through the throng of cats in the small den, stepping up to Shadowpool. She was a bit shorter than him, but no matter. " What happened? She hissed, making sure no one else could hear. The black cat replied in an equally quiet voice, though his seemed heavier and quite a bit more tired, " I didn't kill him, if that's what you're asking." He sighed, plopping down on the dusty floor. A scarlet drop splashed to the dust, and Jesmain started, finally seeing the gash on his face.

Her eyes didn't soften though, she remained where she was, "Oh, I believe that. What I'm wondering is why you were in tis attack, you don't know that black cat, and we both know Auburnstar doesn't particularly love you." she hissed. Jesmain was always worried with Shadowpool trying suicide attempts. She didn't really know why, she jus twas. "Relax..." He half-meowed, half-yawned. Before she could say anymore, he had drifted off. Come to think of it, though, he had been up all night, and she hadn't seen him in the Warriors' Den last night, either.

[Colourrrr]

[mrow. colourcloud has a feeling about shadowstrike's nine lives, but she's not gonna say anything, 'kay?]

Colourcloud turned as Auburnstar entered the den and nodded, turned back to Jesmain, then realized the stench of death. She whipped around, her mismatched eyes wide. "Shadowstrike!" she breathed, scampering over to the limp body. "What happened, Auburnstar?" she mewed urgently, ignoring Shadowpool and Jesmain.

She crouched down, making sure there was absolutely no pulse. As she neared his heart, the sound of stars filled her mind. "StarClan ... " she whispered, amazed. Did Auburnstar know anything of Shadowstrike's history? She didn't say anything, just to be safe.

[muah, is short! >.>]

[-W.h.i.t.e- [S.h.a.d.o.w]]

Shadowstrike's body lay there limp as Colourcloud hovered around him. Though he was in a different place altogether.

Shadowstrike blinked and he knew instantly where he was. His paws kneaded the cloud covered ground as he waited for a StarClan cat to greet him. Soon a cat appeared before him. An old friend, one he hadn't even known was dead. His heart ripped as he blinked and nodded his head in a greeting. His friend sat and started to speak.

"Shadowstrike, you need to tell them. There is no more hiding this secret, you've lost your fourth life. You'll be coming around soon on the ground, they'll know. You must be strong my friend. You have the strength of us as well as the ancestors of this area watching over you. You have much strength to get through this. Stay calm, tell Auburnstar and everyone else quickly. Trust them, you'll know who you can trust. Stay well my friend, I hope we only meet in dreams for a long time still."

And the the tom was gone. Shadowstrike sighed but knew there was no avoiding it. He let himself drift back into his body, back into consciousness...

Shadowstrike blinked his eyes open only to find Colourcloud over him. He gasped back to life and looked over to Auburnstar and Shadowpool. He tried to grin, but suddenly the pain caught up to him and he winced. A huge gash was in his side from the claws. Almost all his blood had been lost, but with his new life his blood had been replenished. Though the gash hadn't been helped. HE mewed in discomfort, but he could handle the pain. He'd died of worse before.

"We need to talk."

He spoke weakly, directing his words clearly to Auburnstar. He added something,

"Alone."

[89darkthorn89]

Jesmain blanched in surprise, sitting up a bit, then pushing herself back down. At first glance she couldn't believe it, she looked around in surprise, looking for any hint that this was a dream. It wasn't. Her mind raced, as she tried to review everything about this cat that she knew; Okay... Shadowstrike, tom, der, just came here, don't know... don't know where he came from! DUH! He was a leader! She looked the cat again, her eyes softening. She may know herbs, but she didn't have the Medicine Cat's uncanny abilities. She searched for any sign that h might have been leader, any mark, any anything! She found nothing, only an untrusting black tom. She sighed, but not angrily. Quietly she pondered why he left, why would a leader leave? His history had to be something like Shadowpool's, atleast a bit.... well, maybe not. She heard Shadowpool's sharp intake of breath right behind her, and turned to look at him with unwavering eyes, leaving her gaze there a moment, then flipping it back to the tom she was now so curious about.

[Colourrrr]

colourcloud

"I knew it," Colourcloud whispered, still hovering over Shadowstrike. Then he spoke, 'We need to talk,' to Auburnstar. "Whoa, whoa whoa," she meowed, placing her paw on his shoulder lightly. "Not till I get some cobwebs on that gash." She rushed back to her store, grabbing a bit of cobwebs, then picked up a few poppy seeds. Colourcloud dropped the seeds and pressed the cobwebs onto Shadowstrike's wound. "Eat those when you're done talking," she mewed, then gestured to everyone else in the den to get out. She stepped out and waited outside.

[ooc//sucky post, yeah, i know, but...rushed >.<]

[Cloverpaw]

Cloverpaw made her way around the camp. She had been raised here but since becoming an apprentice the camp seemed diffrent to her now. She knew who her mentor was but she hadn't really had a chance to meet her. Stopping she looked up at the sky. She wanted to meet her mentor but she was scared that Colourcloud would reject her.

Letting out a sigh and taking a deep breath she decided to head over to Colourcloud's den. She began to pad over to the den padding slower than she usually did to delay the metting. the though of being rejected played in her mind. Since she was not clan born she had been rejected by mostly every cat in the clan, even by the queen and kits she had been raised with. She hardly had any friends within the clan. Sh hoped Colourcloud would become a friend.

[xxdarky.]

Shadowstrike awoke just as Auburnstar was beginning to open her mouth to calmly tell the cats that did not know about what had happened to the trio as they were out in the woods. Of course, this sudden awakance stopped the tortoiseshell she-cat. She gazed down at the tom that was dead just a second ago and now alive with her auburn eyes, confusion and shock clouded within them. She shut her mouth that was open from when she was about the speak, and she just stared down at Shadowstrike, trying to sort this out in her mind.

She couldn't exactly say what her emotions were. There was definitely tons of confusing and bewiderment, but there was also anger. Why would he still be alive? There was either something in his past that he had hidden from them, or else StarClan had granted him an extra special extra life. Auburnstar doubted the second and was mad that the tom that she had let join their clan without any questions asked had kept this big secret hidden from her. She flicked her ragged tail in annoyance a bit, but kept the rest of her emotions to herself.

The she-leader lowered herself into a sitting position as Colourcloud left, motioning for the others to follow. Darn right the two of them had to talk! Auburnstar wanted to know what was behind this, and she wanted to know now. However, she didn't show this in her body, she just looked at the tom with glazed eyes that tried to hide every bit of her feelings. Once all the cats had disappeared through the entrance, she flicked her tail to the tom and waited for him to tell his story.

[-W.h.i.t.e- [S.h.a.d.o.w]]

Shadowstrike saw Auburnstar's tail flick and his eyes closed dissapointed. Not in her, she had all the right to be angry, or annoyed, he hadn't told her. Though in his own defense he had been about to when the badger attacked. He nodded at Colourcloud and looked at the poppy seeds a moment before facing Auburnstar once more. He looked at her with heavy eyes and tried to sit up, though when he found he couldn't tried no more. He knew not to rush things, lying himself back down he looked at Auburnstar, gathering his thoughts and speaking.

"I was a leader in my old Clan, the clans that lie over the mountains. I was only Leader for half a season before 5 cats were murdered in my Clan. My deputy, our Medicine Cat, two warriors, and one apprentice all lost their lives in the course of one night. All the signs pointed to me."

He paused and drew in a heavy breath, recounting these things made his heart tear. His best friend had been killed, his deputy, the mdicine cat, a brave warrior and apprentice. All five, were gone and he had been blamed. It made him angry, but sadness took the wheel most of the time.

"I found strong evidence that a band of rogues had done it, but no one believed me. I was exiled, from all four clans. There were attempted murders, I lost my third life to a cat from my old clan. No one would take me, not even the rogus. I didn't dream of going to them anyway. So I came here. I had six lives, well now I've got five."

He debated about going to his own defense and saying that he was going to tell her about it when the badger attacked, but he decided against it. What was the point? It wouldn't make her trust him anymore. It would make him seem like an idiot, anyone could say that, it didn't mean it was true. He looked back up at his leader, his eyes full of sincerity. Every word he spoke had been the truth.

"I haven't told anyone because cats from the clans have tried to find me, I couldn't trust anyone here easily for fear of another attempt at my murder."

He ended with that, a simple explination of why he hadn't spoken of this and he waited for Auburnstar's reaction.

[xxdarky.]

As the black toms past was laid out before her, Auburnstar sat quietly, mulling it all over in her brain. She watched the tom closely, eyeing him, trying to detect any lies in his words. There was nothing suspicious, he didn't seem like he wasn't telling the truth.

After Shadowstrike was done, Auburnstar turned her head to gaze at the wall that had herbs piled high against it. Holly leaves, juniper berries, cobwebs, ash shoots, lavender, marigold... The she-cat sat tall, her ragged fur laying flat on her body. Her claws were tucked away in her large paw pads and her tail was softly laid on top of them. She blinked her auburn eyes as she stared unseeingly at the wall.

So the tom had once had the same power she possessed now, or at least close to it. He may not have had the same respect, but he was once just as she was. She imagined five cats dying her clan, losing her faithful deputy, Tornadolake and Colourcloud... And what if Heronfeather was one of the unfortunate warriors whose life was taken from them for no reason? And then what if her whole clan blamed it on herself, even though she hadn't done it... It made Auburnstar ache inside just to think about it. She felt the toms pain, and she knew that if she lost her clan, she lost everything. She admired his strength to even go on...

Auburnstar turned her colored head to messy figure of Shadowstrike that lay, looking for support, on the ground. She gazed at him, reading how he lay, looking for emotions. What she could see is that all he wanted was to be accepted, and to not be blamed, he wanted someplace that he could call hom.

The she-cat flicked her ears, and although she already knew the answer, she had to ask the tom. "Did you kill the cats?" Even though she knew that he hadn't, she needed to make sure, for the sake of her clan. She asked with a soft voice, and it said hidden beneath the actual words, that she could tell if the truth was being hidden and so he better let his words be right.

[-W.h.i.t.e- [S.h.a.d.o.w]]

Shadowstrike watched Auburnstar with unchanging eyes. They were just as sincere as they had been before. He heard her question and considered it thouroughly, his ears flick to the side slightly and he looked Auburnstar square in the eye before answering.

"I would rot in SoulClan before I killed a member of my clan."

He said, his voice not evil, or sinister, simply the same as his eyes. Sincere. He said it simply and to the point, well not exactly. He could've just said no. Soo not really to the point, but he knew what he said was true. He understood completely the reassurance Auburnstar needed, one part of him was pained she didn't believe him, but the whole of him understood. His ears flicked towards her as he focused all his energy on her and what her reaction may be.

[xxdarky.]

She watched as he spoke the words, looking for any sign, anything, that might tell her that he was lieing. However, there was no flicker in the eyes, no twitch of the ears or tail, no quick sharp breath, nothing. The female, multi-colored cat gazed with her auburn eyes a little bit longer, a little bit harder before she let her head bob in a nod of understanding, of reassurance. She believed him, and any cat that thought differently would be told wrong.

"The only problem Shadowstrike," she said, her voice low and smooth, gliding through the air like a ghost, "is that the clan might not believe you." She paused, looking at his face, seeing any reaction. "But they will believe me," she said with a flick of her tail and a blaze in her eyes. Her clan would believe what she did. "You will tell them. We will hold a meeting. I won't say anything, but if anybody gives you a hard time afterwards about it, report back to me. I'll correct them." She gazed softly at the tom, and she imagined herself once more in his position. She could imagine herself being swamped with relief at the thought of your leader, the cat you looked up to and respected, believed you.