Ghost stories {Open to all!}

It was just about then that Moonpaw rushed in, eyes frightened. She stopped dead in her tracks a few seconds after spotting Roachtail, who was just finishing her speech. After finishing her talking, Roachtail turned her head to look Moonpaw straight in the eyes. "Umm..Roachtail, what are YOU doing HERE. Wait a sec.. Leopardess!!! YOU WON'T GET HER! I'LL NEVER LET YOU HARM HER IN ANYWAY" she yelled, before bolting through the entrance dramatically.

Roachtail flicked an ear, irritated. "SHE KILLS KITS!! SHE'S A SICK MONSTER WHO DOESNT DESERVE TO LIVE AND IM GONNA SEE TO IT THAT SHE DOESNT SEE ANOTHER SUNRISE, NOT AFTER WHAT SHE DID TO MY POOR BUTTERFLYWHISKER!!!" She screamed after Moonpaw, then turned back to Adderpaw, Poppypaw and Swallowpaw. "Please help me, Leopardess is a murderer. She will stop at nothing to be the most powerful and feared cat alive. If you refuse to aid me, don't blame me when your little kit friend gets killed. Butterflywhisker-my kit- was killed by this.. this.. oh, i cant think of a satisfactory name!! if i called her a dog, a beast, a demon or a monster, it'd be an insult to dogs beasts demons and monsters to be compared to IT." She told them, her voice thick with hatred for leopardess, who had killed her kit."don't trust Moonpaw, she's with leopardess. She doesnt know what she DID, but when i told her, she attacked me, and refused to trust me at all..."

Blinking his confusion Adderpaw stared at the she-cat, her words no more than muddled words. He was so bewildered, all this information screaming at him and raging in his mind like the rapid water in the gorge. It was hard to comprehend just what was happening. Before he could stammer a response Moonpaw rushed in and began yowling at the other cat. The tom watched the two she-cats argue and then gaped as Moonpaw ran out of the den yet again, leaving him with the anti-Clan cat, who claimed to be on their side, which he did not believe for one second. What in the name of StarClan is going on here? He was about to snarl something to her when he noticed that Swallowpaw had awoken and was staggering towards them. Instantly Adderpaw placed himself between her and the intruder, fur bristling and teeth bared.

“I don’t know who you think you are, and I sure don’t know what’s going on here, but you have five seconds to leave our territory before I chase you out.” He ignored what she had said about snarling insults to others, defiantly thinking that this was his territory and not hers, so he could say whatever he wanted to whomever he wanted. He glared at the she-cat, determined to see her off before leaving to search for Moonpaw; as annoying as she was it was his duty as a ShadowClan apprentice—soon to be warrior—to ensure that all Clan cats were safe.

Roachtail collapsed, sobbing, onto the ground. "Please..." She stared up at them, terror glinting in her eyes. "I'm not your problem! and i WILL leave, the second the threat is dealt with. you think.. " She stopped for sobbing too hard "That.. I .. LIKE being here? you think i LIKE being threatened, or having my kit killed, and having to leave the rest unattended, because my mate is laying at the bottom of some river right this minute? you think im HAPPY?!" No sooner had she uttered these words than she blacked out, the panic overwhelming her, the sense of having noone blinding her...

Leopardess skulked in, holding in her mouth what appeared to be a dead kit.
When she saw all the cats, and the unconscious form of Roachtail, she
laughed wickedly.
"Well well well, Look what the wolf dragged in!! What a surprise Roachtail! Missing Me?"
She chuckled as Roachtail tried to stagger to her feet.
suddenly, Roachtail sighted the kit in Leopardesses mouth and screamed, in terror and devastation.
"BUTTERFLYWHISKER!!!!" She howled, throwing herself at Leopardess.
"WHY DID YOU KILL HER?!"
"I dont really know to be completely honest with you.. OH! i remember! She caught and ate a bit of chicken that i wanted!!" Leopardess stated, seeing nothing wrong with killing a kit over a small scrap.
"No... my baby..." Roachtail grabbed at her dead kit, and glanced warilya t adderpaw and poppypaw.
"Well, roachtail, adderpaw, poppypaw, and the rest of your little pathetic company.. Now you know my secret, i cant really let you LIVE can i?" She turned her green eyes to each of them, and took out her claws to show she wasnt playing.
"No.. i wont let you!!" Roachtail yowled, getting between swallowpaw, mintkit, Adderpaw and poppypaw and Leopardess.
Some kits were watching from the door. "Mama..?" The oldest one whispered.

OOC: I'm confused: where did all of these cats come from and why are they all in the apprentices' den?

BIC: Adderpaw stared at Poppypaw, glad that she was showing signs of loyalty to her new Clan. He did not speak to her or agree with her; that might make her arrogant. He merely listened as she hissed at the crazed she-cat before him, and though he thought he agreed with her, he couldn’t help but think that maybe there was some truth in what Roachtail was saying; after all, he had never seen a cat act that well before.

He was about to answer Poppypaw’s question when another cat walked in. His eyes widened; it was Leopardess, and in her mouth was a tiny scrap of fur, smelling of death. The blood in his veins froze as he realized that it was a dead kit, and suddenly he realized that Roachtail had been telling the truth all along. With no time to apologize to the queen Adderpaw flung himself into action. “Murderer!” he spat, eyes blazing as the she-cat dropped the kit. “Killing for food is heartless, but killing a kit? You’re no better than Twolegs, you monster.” He sunk his claws into the ground, ready to spring at her when he heard faint mews coming from the den’s entrance. Looking past the kitty-pet Adderpaw’s eyes widened even more when he saw a small group of kits sitting there, their eyes wide. The tom instantly realized that these kits must be the rest of Roachtail’s litter, and couldn’t imagine what Leopardess was doing with them. She’s probably going to finish what she started, he thought grimly, and knew what he had to do. Racing past Leopardess Adderpaw shooed the kits away, using his body to do so. Over his shoulder he called, “Swallowpaw, help me with the kits! She’ll kill them!” Then he let out a loud warning yowl: “Intruder! Intruder in the apprentice den!” Without another moment’s hesitation the tom picked up one of the kits and ushered them out of the camp. Suddenly his mind referred back to Mintkit, and he placed the kit down that had been in his mouth and raced back to get his kin...

OOC: They just are.. You will have to read whats been missed sorry :)

BIC:
Roachtail looked around worriedly. After this was over, she and her kits would be run out. If Leopardess, a member of her clan, escaped, there would be no hope for anybody. And for some reason, Roachtail liked these cats. That is why she had come HERE. Because she had watched them hunt and train, and had took an immediate liking. Maybe, if she proved herself trustworthy, they would let her stay, as a drifter (OOC: A drifter is a cat who is a member of a clan and her loyalties lie there, but she watches over another group of cats part-time) as she had never really BELONGED anywhere. She was an ex KITTYPET, for crying out loud. Oh Starclan, she thought, let butterflywhisker have a happily ever after, please? She turned to Leopardess, who was grinning wickedly. For a cause undecipherable, Roachtail felt she would die for the group of cats here. Leopardess could see noone was on her side here, and wished MoonPaw would return, then it hit her that moonpaw was also one of Roachtail's friends, so she may decide to trust her. "Shame it had to come to THIS, Roachtail. After all, we ARE sisters. Born in the same Twolegs house and all." She stated, not looking up from the paw she was licking. She liked all this attention.
"Dont bring our past into this, Leopardess. You know we never have got on. Ever since the day you tried to throw me in front of a TwoLeg moving metal thing (OOC: Lorry) you have hated me unprovoked. You know that all I have ever wanted is a Clan and a Family. You have trashed my chance of either." Roachtail spoke, calmed down from her earlier episode of yelling, now she had no reason to fear EVERYONE here, but her voice still showed pangs of sadness, no matter how much she tried to be strong.
"Oh who cares Roachtail, im going to kill the lot of you anyway. And just for your information Kits; I did not kill the kit. MOONPAW did it!" She lied, certain she would fool these cats, Forgetting that she had only just owned up to it!!
"Stay back you guys, I dont want her to hurt you. And Leopardess, i KNOW moonpaw. She's a lovely cat, and you are sick, sick in the head!" Roachtail replied.
"I dont talk to my food." She said then lunged, smashing Roachtail into the wall..
The oldest Tom Kit grabbed Leopardess's tail and bit the end hard, but he was lobbed at the wall and was sent to Starclan with a Sickening crunch..

Most of this time, Moonpaw had been sitting just outside the Apprentices den, ears pricked. She was alongside Icepaw who had joined her with several kits, following her, that she had discovered wondering the borders of Shadowclan and the Alley Cats base. "Wait a sec... They're Roachtails Kits!!!" Moonpaw had explained when Icepaw had wondered up to her with a line of kits straying behind her. After a stange conversation with Icepaw about 'mates and kits', Moonpaw had started to listen to what she was missing back at the den, after she saw Leopardess walk past and was that.. a SQUIRREL?? no.. why would she have a squirrel in her mouth?? shes allergic!

She then heard Leopardess talking..."Oh who cares Roachtail, im going to kill the lot of you anyway. And just for your information Kits; I did not kill the kit. MOONPAW did it!"

After hearing this horrifying comment, she bolted into the den. "They couldn't possibly believe her... Or would they?" she thought, voices screaming at her from her head. She strode in to find Leopardess belting a kit against the wall, blood covering her muzzle, and shock filled her, and guilt, guilt for ever trusting her! An already dead kit lay on the ground, with leopardess's teethmarks on its neck. She could also see how Leopardess had barred the exit. Anger coursed through her form, and rage consumed all of her logical thoughts, and nature controlled her moves. She launched at Leopardess, hissing wildly, aiming to knock her flying. Poor Butterflywhisker was long on her way to starclan, past the point of no return..

Relief flooded through the tom when Swallowpaw appeared. He wanted to mew with joy, run over to her and nuzzle her, but this was not the time; he had to save these kits and wake the Clan. He did pad over to the she-cat, only to halt in alarm as the scent of blood wafted off of her pelt. It was slicked with blood, and he knew that it was her blood that was doing it. Hissing with anger Adderpaw pressed up against her, supporting his wounded Clanmate. “Are you okay?” he asked, his mew rushed and love but shaky with concern. Right now he didn’t care if she was angry with him; he’d rather have her hate him and live than love him and die. If she was lost to him, he didn’t know what he’d do.

I have to get her away from camp, he thought in a rush. “Swallowpaw, you take these kits away. Hide them, stay safe. Try for RiverClan if you can. I’ll fetch Mintkit and meet you soon. I promise.” Hesitating before acting the tom licked her cheek and blinked his eyes at her, demonstrating his feelings for her through them. Hoping she understood he rushed back to the den. Helping Moonpaw and Roachtail was a lost cause, he had decided with a heavy heart. There was too much confusion, too much chaos to be sure what the truth was and what was going to happen. Right now all he cared about was getting Mintkit away. However, the moment he re-entered the den his senses seized him. Blood was everywhere, along with the yowling and hissing of fighting cats. He could see two limp forms on the floor, and with a sickening stomach-churn realized that they were kits. Neither of them were Mintkit, thank StarClan, and he rushed over to his kin and picked her up in his jaws, swinging past the she-cats and out of the den.

((Flood... Recap please.))

The wind blew.

Moonpaw was about to pass away destined for Starclan, she thought. Blood was draining from her body, sickly red covering the floor, and spilling from her wounds. Icepaw had come to help rescue the kits and was helping to try and heal some of the Shadowclan cats wounds. As Moonpaw fainted, her body rested on the cold ground. Icepaw saw a Tom rush in, Almost completely familiar. She ran up to him sulking worriedly "Cobrapaw, hello! HELLO! Cobrapaw, we need you back here, Moonpaws passed out and i know Leopardess. She'll take complete advantage". She was acctually talking to Adderpaw, strangely enough, the complete resemblance tricking her! It seemed like the Tom was ignoring her!

(OOC: Bramblestorm221, you will understand if u dont already! It's to do with Moonpaws dead mate!)

My characters:
Daisytail
Otterpaw
Civetwhiker
Moonpaw
Icepaw
Hawkpaw

Roachtail could see she was losing her help here. The familiar pain of being unwanted swelled up in her chest, and she was having trouble staying alive. She looked at Moonpaw, one of her best friends, almost being beaten to death by Leopardess. Then Roachtail had an idea.. It would be quite risky..
Then she saw Swallowpaw was injured. "she-cat!! are you alright? I am going to do something, so please stay back. You too, Kits, and you- Poppypaw is it?" She looked at them and pulled put water on poppypaw's head from a little drip puddle that was from rain while Leopardess was distracted.
Roachtail leapt up and grabbed a root that was hanging from the roof of the den. If only Leopardstar had came.. She thought, missing the only male friend she had ever had. But it was too late now. Please look after DraughtKit and butterflywhiskerKit... The roof gave way, and a huge bit of debris fell down on Leopardess, sending her instantly to Starclan. Roachtail knew that when she fell, She would be seriously injured, and she only hoped that no bits of roof had hit anyone.
she looked around to check noone would be hurt, and let herself drop.
She felt her leg crunch, and cursed that the Alley Cats were both leaderless and Medicine Cat less.
She limped over to Moonpaw, and nuzzled the she-cat. Then she turned back to Poppypaw and swallowpaw. "Are you two ok? I hope nothing hit either of you.. that's one nasty cut miss black she cat, im sorry i never quite caught your name! Oh and while i remember, i'm sorry i burst in on you like this, but I knew this was where Leopardess comes, we're sisters you see. or WERE. I didnt want anyone hurt. I like Shadowclan, it was a shadowclan cat who saved my life when a wolf attacked me and my mate, Nighthunter. i know Leopardess told you, as one of her sick stories. Killed him at the old oak tree it did. ... but that's in the past now. I bet she made me sound evil didnt she, and i know you didnt trust me. I was actually hoping to join Shadowclan.. But i dont think anyone would want an outsider like me. Tarnished with the same brush, you know?" She smiled kindly at the cats, and produced a pair of Pink Ribbons, she had them wrapped around her paw. " For you."

With horror-filled eyes Adderpaw watched as the apprentice’s den shook and crumbled, burying the cats who lie within. For a moment his only thought was thank StarClan he had gotten Mintkit out in time, but then the reality of what had happened lashed out at him and the tom rushed forward, hoping that he wouldn’t find anymore dead cats; he had seen his share tonight. The tom looked at the destructing, trying to find a way inside. He had to save the she-cats, no matter how he felt about them: Poppypaw, the arrogant annoying former RiverClan apprentice; Moonpaw, the she-cat who appeared to have bees for brains; and Roachtail, whom he had first thought to be a murderous traitor, until Leopardess had shown up and revealed her true nature. Adderpaw even suggested to himself that he should save the murderer if she was still alive; in the heat of the fight he had wanted to kill her, but now that it was all over he just couldn’t muster up his anger to do that anymore. I’ll drag her out and let the Clan decide.

Adderpaw began to dig at the rumble, breathing out with relief when it crumbled away easily under his paws. He didn’t stop until a sizeable hole had been created and the tom shouldered his way through, blinking in the dusty darkness. At once he realized that he wouldn’t get the chance to save Leopardess; the she-cat was lying on the ground, her eyes wide with horror and glazed. She was dead, though whether she was with StarClan was a mystery to him. He padded over to the other three cats and sniffed them over; they were all alive, but they wouldn’t be if they remained in here for much longer. Nosing each cat in turn he said, “Come on, we need to get out before the entire den gives way.” He flicked his tail at them and made his way back to the hole, going slow to make sure that they followed. While he waited he couldn’t help but think back to Swallowpaw, and how she had finally forgiven him for whatever it was he had done to anger her. When these three she-cats were out and safe, he knew that he would be happy, and wanted nothing more than to bound up to the black apprentice and nuzzle her, making sure that she was alright and that her wounds were finally seen to.

Roachtail lay on the floor, her legs broken. She felt terrible for what she had done, as Leopardess was her sister. But she knew that she had just saved many Shadowclan cats. When Adderpaw had removed the her, she worried for the others. Icepaw, and the kits were still in there.. THE KITS!!
Roachtail threw herself into the devastation, trying to find her kits. But she had to give up. She limped over to the other cats, and sat down next to Moonpaw, and looked around for items to wake her up. She found a dewy leaf, and drizzled the liquid over the she cat, who was the cousin of Otterpaw, a Tom from Roachtail's 'Clan' of the Alley Cats.
"Moonpaw, its ok. Leopardstar will be here soon, he will make you better. Please wake up.. Please!"
she spoke to Moonpaw, desperation in her voice. Moonpaw sometimes visited her clan, and was known to Roachtail as a Drifter -A cat who is a non-registered member of the clan, but their loyalties lie elsewhere- and she had helped to shape Moonpaws life.
"Come on, Cobrapaw can wait a little longer." She nuzzled her friend, and turned to the others to examine their wounds.
"I'm sorry.. She would have killed us all if I hadn't have collapsed the den. You must have all met my Clan? We have alliances to Shadowclan. I hope for us to join forces in the near future. Do you want me to find my brother Leopardstar? He could help us, until your medicine cat gets here. I am so sorry.." She tailed off. her voice, now she was calm, was soft and kind, not vicious or sinister in any way, and she was just a worried she-cat, looking out for what she hoped to be her new friends.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LeopardStar ran through the forest, after Icepaw had alerted him to the collapse of the den, and his sisters were in there?! He didnt care for Leopardess, she had killed his kits too, so he would rather her die. and there was Moonpaw, she was related to his love Daisytail wasnt she? The shadowclan apprentices were important to him aswell, and he made sure that he took his strongest herbs , he wrapped them in a big leaf and carried them. He raced through the forest, hoping he wasn't too late..

((Thank you KangarooMouse, that was a lovely recap!!))

Mintkit was pushed up against Sparrowpaw, her green eyes wide with horror. "Why did she do that?" She sqeaked quietly, looking up at Sparrowpaw. She watched as Adderpaw slipped back into the wreak. "Adderpaw!!" She meowed bounding over to the little hole.

Ignoring the grumpy she-cat Adderpaw led the way out of the dusty, cloudy den and into the fresh air of the camp clearing. Breathing in a lungful the tom made sure that all cats had exited the ruined den before padding back over to Swallowpaw. Relief flooded over him when he saw Mintkit bounce over to him, bright and enthusiastic, just like a kit should be.

“Mintkit,” he greeted, stooping to give his kin a lick. He glanced over her, checking her entire body. “You’re not hurt, are you?” Nervously he looked at Swallowpaw. “Are you?” he questioned, his voice quavering slightly. He knew that the black she-cat was already weakened by their journey through the territories and worried that she may have over-done herself with the recent confusion that had occurred in the apprentices’ den.