Posts by The-Noodle-in-the-Corner

"Moondapple," she replied softly. "My name is Moondapple." Moondapple flicked her tail towards her equally fluffy, white-and-brown sister. "That's my sister, Appleheart."

"Are you kidding me?!?!" Almondrain cried. The medicine cat had just told her that the reason for the heavy-footedness and recent bellyaches was Almondrain's worst fear: She was expecting kits.

Only, here's the catch: the father was a ShadowClan tom.

And another thing: WindClan and ShadowClan were at war.

*****

ShadowClan tom needed.

Almondrain: Small WindClan she-cat with a sleek dappled brown coat, amber eyes, and a brown-tipped tail.

Just then, the leaders stepped forward to start the Gathering. "I guess Bramblestar will tell you how ThunderClan's doing," Moondapple murmured as Bramblestar stepped forward to speak for ThunderClan.

"Leaf-fall's beginnings have treated ThunderClan well, and we are well fed..." Bramblestar began.

Moondapple mimicked him, mouthing the words he was saying, and rolled her eyes. "Yah, right," she sighed. "I suppose he's not going to include how the whole Clan's afraid of Lionblaze, and nobody's comfortable talking about anything personal within earshot of Dovewing, which is to say, nobody's comfortable talking about anything personal anywhere, and don't even get me started on how creepy Jayfeather is..." Moondapple's eyes widened as she realized what she'd just said. "Uh, forget I said that," she mewed quickly. "Bramblestar prefers that the other Clans don't realize how uncomfortable we are with the Three."

Moondapple narrowed her eyes. "If ThunderClan wanted to spy on RiverClan, Dovewing wouldn't need to cross the RiverClan border," she spat. "If RiverClan wishes to fight over lies, they have reason to fear ThunderClan," Moondapple rose up, sitting straight and pushing her muzzle close to Longclaw's. "Fishbreath, even if we aren't all as invincible as Lionblaze is, ThunderClan warriors could beat RiverClan anyday," she hissed.

Appleheart nudged Moondapple "Remember the truce," the green-eyed she-cat meowed. "You can let Bramblestar speak for us."

Bramblestar narrowed his eyes at Mistystar's accusation, but did not say anything, as not to provoke the RiverClan leader. Moondapple suspected that he would instead choose to discuss Mistystar's accusations when they got back from the Gathering.

Moondapple flattened her ears to her head. Stupid fish-breathed mousebrain, she thought. I'm going to shred him if I ever catch him on our side of the border, she promised herself.

Appleheart nudged Moondapple. "He's just a stupid RiverClan tom," she muttered. "Besides, nobody can beat ThunderClan. We've got Lionblaze-- he could take on a whole group of cats and come out unscathed."

Moondapple ignored her. She couldn't wait for this Gathering to be over.

When the Gathering came to a close, Moondapple looked the other way as all the RiverClan cats left. Finally, after WindClan and RiverClan left the island, headed toward their terrirtory, ThunderClan crossed the tree-bridge that connected the Clan territories to the island. Most of ThunderClan padded on in silence as they headed toward camp.

When they arrived at the quarry that ThunderClan called home, Bramblestar called out, "Dovewing! Lionblaze! Come here, I need to speak to you." Dovewing and Lionblaze had chosen not to go to the Gathering this full-moon.

Before Bramblestar could explain why he wanted to talk to the two warriors, Dovewing cut him off. "I know, I know," she meowed. "I was listening the whole time, no need to waste your breath explaining what happened." Murmurs rippled through the ThunderClan cats, clearly they were unnerved by how Dovewing could listen to the whole Gathering. Moondapple swallowed, hoping Dovewing hadn't listened to her conversation with the RiverClan tom-- she hadn't exactly said anything wrong, no, but Moondapple didn't like her conversations always being overheard by Dovewing.

"Everybody else, go to your dens. Get some sleep-- we'll be patrolling tomorrow," Bramblestar snapped. He flicked his tail at Lionblaze and Dovewing. "You two, come to my den. We need to talk."

Moondapple turned around, about to walk to the Warrior's den, when Squirrelflight lightly tapped her shoulder. "You're going to be on dawn patrol tomorrow," the ginger she-cat meowed. "Along with Lilypaw, Lionblaze, and Bumblestripe. Get some sleep."

****

Moondapple scented the air, standing near the RiverClan border, "No sign of intruders," she meowed. She looked across the river, wondering if a RiverClan patrol would dare challenge them. She dug her claws in the earth, Longclaw's face flashing behind her eyes.

Moondapple stared stonily at Longtail. "What a remarkable observation," she spat sarcastically, even though Lionblaze was just about to offer a more peaceful answer.

Bumblestripe flicked her with his tail. "Are you trying to provoke them?" he hissed under his breath.

Moondapple looked down at the tom in the water, eyes slitted against his challenge. "You went to the Gathering yesterday, you should know. Or are RiverClan cats too scatter-brained to listen when a leader speaks?" she meowed. She knew very well that they had talked throughout the Gathering, but accusing her of causing distraction for him would be admitting that he wasn't paying attention during the Gathering.

Moondapple flattened her ears against her head, irritated by the tom's taunting. A growl rumbled in her throat.

"That's it!" Lionblaze growled. "Enough!" Moondapple looked at the golden tabby, expecting him to reprimand her for giving the RiverClan toms the satisfaction of reacting, but instead he did just the opposite: He launched into the water, yowling at Longclaw. "You fish-breathed, fox-hearted, scrawny RiverClan cat! ThunderClan has had enough of this!" The whole patrol stood in shock as Lionblaze sprang at Longclaw and pinned the RiverClan tom's neck against the rock Longclaw had been leaning on with his claws..

Moondapple splashed into the water. "Lionblaze! Stop!" she cried.

Gem kit or regular kit?: Regular Kit
Kit name: Appleheart
Kit gender: Female
Kit colour: Small and fluffy with white fur and dark brown paws, tail, ears, and brown dapples lining the bottom of her eyes. Her eyes are bright green

Lionblaze kept his grip tight on the cat's throat and swung out his other paw to bat Snaketooth away, fire blazing in his eyes as he stared straight in Longclaw's eyes.

Moondapple stumbled through the current. "Lionblaze! Stop!" she yowled. "Don't kill him!" She backed up, and ran towards Lionblaze, ramming into his side in an effort to get him to stop choking Longclaw. Though the ram itself did nothing to subdue the golden warrior, it did bring Lionblaze back to his senses. Stiffly, as if he were regretting letting go, he took his paw away from Longclaw's throat, turned around, and walked to dry land.

"Come," he said curtly, not glancing back at the river, "Let's continue patrolling." The rest of the patrol was stunned into silence, and mindlessly followed Lionblaze.

Moondapple remained, belly-deep in the river, staring at Longclaw.

Almondrain stumbled out of camp, numbly wandering out into the moor. What am I going to do? she asked herself. Yesterday she'd found out about how she was expecting kits, and on border patrol she'd managed to whisper to her forbidden mate, "Meet me tomorrow at sunhigh." It was all she had been able to get out without getting caught by the rest of the patrol.

Now she ran across the moor, towards where she knew Hawkstripe would be, her heart yearning for his comfort.

Yay my first kitten~ Her markings and eye color or wrong but eh, whatever haha. Close enough. THANK YOU!

Moondapple nodded numbly at Longclaw's command, but stayed standing still in the water, eyes glazed. What in StarClan's name was wrong with Lionblaze? He seemed to always be on edge these days, and his recent lash out at the RiverClan tom was so... unexpected. Moondapple wondered if it had something to do with the accusation thrown at him and Dovewing about crossing the border in RiverClan territory. Well, if he hadn't before, he certainly had now, and had attempted to-- Moondapple hated admitting it, but Lionblaze had-- attempted to kill a RiverClan warrior.

For a second Moondapple stared blankly at Longclaw, trying to decide whether to answer guardedly or truthfully. Her defenses fell, however, and she answered with the truth, "Not normally, no. At least, not before the great battle. Of course, there was that one time, in the battle with ShadowClan, that he killed the deputy, but I really do believe that that was an accident. The deputy was elderly and frail, anyways. He didn't mean to kill her. But after the battle with the Dark Forest-- I don't know anymore. The Three have become distant, and Lionblaze in particular has been unpredictable. Lashing out for different things, for random reasons. Oddly enough, I think Jayfeather has become closer to the Clan, however snappy he was before the battle," Moondapple sighed. "Things were good in ThunderClan for a moon or two after the battle, but... tensions rise, you know? Nobody likes there personal space being invaded, and as far as most of us are concerned Dovewing and Jayfeather's powers violate our minds and our conversations. And if we ever challenged those two, Lionblaze is an invincible defense for them." Moondapple glanced up at the tom, meeting his eyes.

Moondapple watched in wonderment as Longclaw fished, admiring his grace in the water. When he emerged, she wondered aloud, "If he can even die. Apparently, his power is that he wins every battle. But with the way Lionblaze's mental state is, what if he starts viewing life as a battle? What if the only way to win... is to live?" Her thoughts were probably frog-brained and she knew it, but sometimes she wondered about Lionblaze... and just how invincible he might be.

Moondapple looked into the depths of the river, then shook her head. What in the name of StarClan was she doing here, talking to a RiverClan warrior? Still, she couldn't help but enjoy her talk with him. "Um... and I'm sure you'd look like a blundering badger in the forest," she replied, though her tone was neither cutting nor playful-- it was as if her voice was fighting against itself. It sounded strained. Moondapple turned around, heading towards the dark, thick forest of ThunderClan territory. "Bye, Longclaw," she offered, glancing at him, and preparing to head back to camp. "Don't know when I'll see you again."

Moondapple looked at the fish on the ground before her. It was very kind of the tom to give her the fish, yes, but how in StarClan's name would she be able to explain a fish, if she walked into camp with it in her jaws? There was no way anyone would believe she caught it, and no one in ThunderClan liked fish, anyways.

She turned around, leaving the fish on the banks of the river, thinking that it would only cause more trouble if she presented it as fresh-kill to ThunderClan.

She never realized how RiverClan might think the fish looked like stolen prey, smelling of ThunderClan but most definitely coming from RiverClan territory.

Moondapple bit into her squirrel, relishing the succulent taste. Still, her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Longclaw.

"Moondapple," Appleheart meowed. Moondapple didn't react, so deep in thought she was. "Moondapple!" Appleheart snapped, finally getting the silver she-cat's attention.

Moondapple looked up from her squirrel. "Yah?"

Appleheart sighed in exasperation. "Really, Moondapple, it's like you're not even paying attention. Squirrelflight wants us to go on a hunting patrol together."

Moondapple stood up, not caring that she hadn't finished eating. "OK," she said, heading out of camp. "Let's hunt!" Maybe it would take her mind off of Longclaw. Lionblaze had growled to each and every cat on their patrol that they weren't to tell that he had nearly strangled Longclaw-- he simply reported that their was a 'small skirmish at the border, with a few mouse-brained disrespectful RiverClan toms', as he had put it. Bramblestar had frowned at this, but questioned Lionblaze no further.

Moondapple scented the air for smells of fresh-kill, thinking of the fish she had left on shore. It would probably be stinking by now, having sat in the sun all day. Appleheart tasted the air beside her, and her eyes opened in alarm. "RiverClan!" she meowed, ears pricked. She began winding her way through the forest, towards the stream, following the scent trail.

Moondapple followed, too, eyes wide. She recognized the scent the instant Appleheart pointed it out-- it was Longclaw, mixed with the scent of squirrel. Arrogant flea-pelt! she cursed him. He probably thought he had his free pick of fresh-kill, since he gave me that fish! Appleheart stopped, sniffing along the shore of the river.

"It smells like he crossed the river," she meowed. "And chased after the squirrel."

Just then, Lionblaze came out of the forest, having spotted the she-cats racing through the forest, apparently on a scent trail. "Who crossed the river," he meowed crossly. He sniffed the ground, and he growled. "I'm going to kill that furball," he hissed.

Moondapple rushed over to Lionblaze. "No!" she said. "Lionblaze, you can't kill a cat over a piece of fresh-kill!"

The golden tom's muscles rippled and he whipped around. "YES I CAN!" he roared, rearing up. Blue eyes widened in fear, Moondapple whimpered as he came down on her, pinning her to the ground. "And you're not going to stop me, this time, Moondapple. Or do you want me to tell Bramblestar you were defending RiverClan from me?" Moondapple whimpered in reply. "I am going to kill him," Lionblaze repeated. With that, he moved away from Moondapple, heading aimlessly into the forest.

Moondapple gulped, shaking, still on the ground. Lionblaze was after Longclaw, she was sure. And some part of her wanted to warn him about Lionblaze's thirst for blood.

Appleheart came over and nudged Moondapple, confusion coursing through her. What had just happened? she wondered, not knowing about the earlier confrontation on the border. "C'mon, Moondapple," Appleheart murmured. "We should go back to camp. The sun will be setting any moment now."

"No," Moondapple meowed, sitting up. "I have to warn him." She gazed across the river.

"I have to worn him!" Moondapple repeated, ignoring Appleheart's stupidly questioning face. "Go.... tell Bramblestar what happened. I have to do something, OK?" Appleheart narrowed her eyes, and Moondapple willed her to comply with her wishes. Appleheart finally nodded, and turned around to dash into the forest.

Moondapple ran down the shore, "Longclaw!" she called. "Longclaw!" Silently she prayed to StarClan that the tom would be somewhere in the river, hunting, and not at camp. Moondapple really didn't want to have to cross into RiverClan territory searching for him. "Longclaw!" she called again, gazing across the river.