Posts by Pantherfang.

Pinetail was living a double life. No, it wasn’t an ideal situation, but there was no way to avoid it at this point, was there? He had distanced himself from Cedar’s infamous rogue group in search of a better life, but he hadn’t actually quit yet. Quitting meant death. For now, he would have to play both sides, balance his time carefully before anybody found out. He had recently been accepted as a new warrior of ThunderClan, and here he wished to remain. Unbeknownst to his new clanmates, the tom had recently participated on a raid in SkyClan. Watching Cedar brutally maul young apprentices and kittens not even half his size had made him question everything. Pinetail wasn’t a born killer like his comrades. He didn’t like blood, or pain, or watching cats suffer. Why had he ever joined in the first place? He had been young and naive, simply looking for protection in the big, scary world that was the forest. But he had grown up, faced his fears, realized that there was more out there than the constant fight for power. So there he was, sitting in the early morning sunlight that trickled through ThunderClan’s canopy of trees, enjoying feeling of warmth against his fur and the gentle breeze that drifted across the forest floor. For a cat who was constantly running from something, it felt nice to take a break and enjoy his surroundings.

//heyo its North. Basically Pine is looking to escape the rogues, but he can’t really just leave bc Cedar will kill him so hes sort of living a double life rn. Nobody in ThunderClan knows he belongs to the rogue group yet, but eventually that secret will be spilled in the future ;)

Oh man, he had really missed a lot. Pinetail watched Firepaw leave, noting the fury and hatred glinting in the young tom’s molten gaze. For a moment, he felt like asking if there could just be two medicine cats, but he decided against it. Nah, might as well not cause anymore issues than there already were. He sat back in silence, watching as the dark-furred apprentice left the camp without looking back. While the warrior had never really had the chance to get to know him, it was still kinda sad to watch him go.

Pinetail watched as the cats threw shade at each other, each possessing a similar yet slightly different haughty attitude when speaking. This was awkward. “Uh.....hi. I’m Pinetail.” Even though he was fairly new to the clan, he figured he should still introduce himself. Maybe diffuse the tension. Was he supposed to say anything else? The large tom looked over to Blackstorm, unsure of what to do next. Asphodelpaw mentioned something about a meal, and he pricked his ears up curiously.

Well, that was unexpected. Firepaw had gone to BloodClan? He wasn’t exactly surprised, with all the bullying that poor kid had to suffer through it almost seemed like a logical choice. Almost. Pinetail had never met anyone from BloodClan, but from the information he had gathered, they were similar to Cedar’s rogue group. If that was the case, it probably wasn’t a good thing. Did this cat standing on the border know Cedar? If so......he’d better be careful. “Okay...” he said, unsure of how to react to the news. “Um.....tell him good luck....I guess.”

He gave a small shrug to Blackstorm’s question. “Sort of. I didn’t really know what to expect. I like this way of life a lot better, though.” Better than what he had before by a landslide. Being raised most of his life with the rogue group, he naturally assumed that all cats were just as violent and cruel. It was good to know that he wasn’t an outcast somewhere. But, they could never find out about his secret. He made a mental note to be careful about his wording.

Words like venom spewed from the mouths of the two, presumably former mates. Pinetail didn't usually stick around for this sort of stuff, but he would be lying to himself if he said it wasn't entertaining. Domestic conflict like this never seemed to strike a chord within him. It was normal, wasn't it? Typical for clan cats to show their hatred with words, just as it was typical for rogues to show their hatred with violence. All she did was throw up in a bush, anyways. Rising to his paws, the brown tabby would give a stretch before coming to stand beside Moonwatcher. "Don't yell, darlin'. Why don't you lay down and I'll go get Blackstar or Lambtuft for ya, hm? Don't let these downers stress you out." All he knew was that it couldn't be good for a pregnant queen to be exposed to this sort of pressure. And of course, he didn't mind being a gentleman.

The sleek brown tabby would pad closer, curious eyes snaking over his clanmates before landing upon Ivyleaf. ThunderClan were hungry, and it was simply stupid of them not to take the opportunity to grab any prey they could find. He had no doubt in his mind that some of them would rather starve than steal from their neighbors, all the while preaching about honor until their dying breath. Adderstrike didn’t like stealing, it wasn’t in his nature, but it was what they had to do to survive. He settled down beside Ivyleaf, his gaze brightening with curiosity at the mention of Sunningrocks. “You mean, RiverClan wants to take them?” He suddenly gave his tail a small lash.

Ashes floated down from the treetops like snow, coating his tabby fur in a layer of gray soot as he made his way back into ThunderClan territory. The warrior was clutching two large squirrels in his jaws that he had stolen from just across the river only moments ago. After masking his scent and making sure no border patrols were present, he would quickly dart across the scent markers and sneak his way back towards their temporary camp.

He finally reached the Sunningrocks, and he made a stop at the freshkill pile to deposit his catch before settling down beneath the shade of one of the towering boulders. Flicking his tail over his paws, he would quietly watch the river glistening in the distance. What if Blackstar had caught him? He hadn’t seen the bengal around today, so he assumed that he was safe. At least the clan seemed to be rebuilding, slowly but surely.

“It makes sense,” he rumbled, looking over the others for a few moments before turning back to Ivyleaf. “I’ll join you on tonight’s hunting patrol.”

If RiverClan really did want to take Sunningrocks, then they would have a problem on their paws. They needed all the food they could get to prepare to defend the only home they had left. His fur bristling slightly at the thought of that, he let out a small hiss. “They don’t even deserve all the prey they’ve got.”

Adderstrike sighed as Flameseeker was first to voice her anger, quickly followed by Ashenskies and Dawnbreeze. Well, this had gone downhill fast. “Well, would you all rather starve? That’s an option.” He twitched his tail slightly as the other tom whispered something to Cyclonebluster. “Ivyleaf has done more to feed the clan than any of you. Don’t call her a lowlife. Besides, RiverClan has plenty of prey to spare.” A hint of defiance sparked in his gaze as he faced the three snarling warriors. Would they rather have ashes for dinner?

Do you know what war causes? Was this feather-brain really talking to him as if he had never fought in a battle before? As if he had somehow grown up his entire life in ThunderClan and just so never happened to hear the word “war”? Adderstrike wasn’t a kit, for StarClan’s sake, and now Ashenskies was just pissing him off. “Quit talking like we’re doing something evil. We just want to take prey from RiverClan. Not go to war over something thats already ours,” he grunted, narrowing his gaze at the blue-eyed warrior. “We need prey, Ashenskies, and there’s none here. But if you’d rather eat charred logs for dinner, be my guest.” He flicked his tail in the direction of the destroyed forest, coated in ash and soot. Now Dawnbreeze was coming after him too? Why couldn’t these morons leave him alone? At least he was doing something to solve the problem, rather than pretending it wasn’t there. “Ivyleaf is the one feeding her. That doesn’t make any sense Dawnbreeze. She’s risking it all right now to make sure you have food in your bellies, the least you can do is treat her with some sort of respect, not get hung up over a comment she made. But I guess that’s too difficult for you.” Now, he was just angry. Days and days ago he had been skinny and hungry, searching the forest for anything he could find. Now, his health was improving. “What brilliant suggestions do you two have to offer anyways, hmm?” His scornful gaze raked over them. “None, like I assumed. Don’t stand here and whine to me about war and death and starvation if you can’t think of some way to solve it. We’ve got something going, and we’d prefer not to have you two in our way.” With one like flick of his tail, he turned to follow Ivyleaf and Astralpaw. He wouldn’t put it past these two mousebrains to go tattle on them to Blackstar, shutting the whole operation down. Who would feed them then?

As Adderstrike listened to the leader’s words, he couldn’t help but notice the extra warning he threw in at the end. Was that directed towards him? Straightening up, he decided he would sit in silence no longer. “Blackstar.....where are we supposed to find food? Our territory is completely destroyed, and there aren’t enough scraps to feed everyone. Shouldn’t we start searching other places?”He knew he would get backlash from his clanmates, but he didn’t care. He was sure that they were all just as hungry and tired as he was.

Time had gone by, and still nothing had changed about the prey situation. Adderstrike was beginning to grow frustrated with the entire thing. Leafbare would hit them hard and fast, and the little prey they had leftover from the devastating forest fire would soon vanish, leaving them starving. And what did his genius clanmates have to say about it? Stealing isn’t right! You’re breaking the warrior code! Quit following blindly! He gritted his teeth as his stomach rumbled again. He was at his breaking point.

“Ivyleaf,” he growled, pushing his way into the makeshift den cleared out underneath a massive boulder. This late at night, his face was half hidden by shadows. “We should take our patrol and go now. Most of the clan is asleep, so RiverClan probably will be too.” He kept his voice low as he spoke to the she-cat, ignoring the shooting pains spreading throughout his body. Had he lost weight? After letting out a harsh cough, he straightened up again.

//if anyone wants to join ivy and adder in stealing prey feel free! this is gonna be a kick off to the plot

They didn’t like this cat, did they? Adderstrike faintly remembered Firefly from a long time ago when he had been an apprentice, then he had disappeared shortly after. His fur bristled slightly as cats began assaulting the tom with sharp tongues, barbed like thorns. Those words were sure to hurt. Well, it was over with, wasn’t it? With a sigh, the warrior rose to his paws. “I’ll escort him to the border. No need to keep this going on any longer.” He flicked his tail as Ashenskies began whispering something to Blackstar, but he couldn’t hear. Oh well, he couldn’t stand the other warrior anyways. “C’mon, follow me. Let’s get you out of here and on your way.” He said to the outcast, his long tail snaking behind him as he made his way for the exit.

He followed Redstripe’s gaze to the freshkill pile, and he noticed her narrow her eyes. Had she caught on? His heartbeat quickened slightly, but he forced his momentary panic down as she approached, simply congratulating him on the catch. “Oh....uh.....thanks. I found them near the twolegplace,” he said, offering the red-furred molly a grin. It wasn’t too uncommon to find squirrels there, and hopefully she wouldn’t question it. Maybe a squirrel had tried to escape to the twolegplace for shelter. Who knew? Mintflower stared at his catch, wide-eyed with awe. He almost envied her innocence, and he automatically knew that he wouldn’t ever have to worry about her finding out. “I know, it was a lucky catch. Feel free to take one if you’re hungry.” Despite his outburst towards Ashenskies and Dawnbreeze earlier, he truly did care for his clan. This was what was best for them right? He sighed, resting his head on his paws. In all fairness, those two idiots did deserve it.

//we should make a thread on the rc board for this