LeafClan ::Toxicstar's News From the Gathering::

[4icestar]

As Brindlepaw spoke, his voice was shaky. Iceheart saw Raincyrstal next to him, and decided to get up and help support him. As she walked over, she felt the gaze of her clan mates go to her to Brindlepaw and Raincrystal.

As she supported him, she whispered in his ear,"Be careful of what you say. Some of the warriors won't believe you, but Raincrystal and I are here for you. We've got your back."

As Iceheart supported him, he was shaking and she could feel his heart beat get faster and faster. He's nervous, she thought. Iceheart looked up at her clan mates. they had many different expressions on their faces; some confused, some annoyed, and some surprised. Please believe him, she thought.

[sandriel]

(( Please don't incorporate actions or feelings upon another person's cat unless you have their permission. Thank-you. ))

Toxicstar narrowed her eyes into bright green slits, ears pressed back firmly against her head. She could feel unhappiness and uncertainty directed towards herself radiating off of some of the cats in the clearing below. But why? It wasn't her fault she didn't know everything that had happened while she was gone. No cat even bothered to come tell her about this upon the Gathering cats' returning, so why were they pinning it on her?

She looked down at Brindlepaw, ignoring the warriors supporting him. "Right now, I believe that Brindlepaw is in more than dire need of rest." She flicked her black-and-orange striped tail before continuing. "Even though I understand your uncertainty, I refuse to believe that DarkClan is responsible for attacking this young tom. Even they had reports of signs that rogues were in their territory. They wouldn't be causing problems for us if they have their own."

[Shinko]

Brindlepaw sighed, looking away from his Clan Leader. His eyes were dull with fatigue, but there was also a deep sadness in them. He had been right. All the apprentices who ridiculed and mocked him had been right. He was ugly, stupid, and couldn't do anything the way it was supposed to be done, and now that was showing. Not only had he failed to defend himself against his attacker, but his own Clan leader refused to believe his account of the story. What was left of the tom's self-esteem crumpled, and it was everything he could do not to wail aloud.

I don't belong here, and I never will, he thought, Everyone hates me, not one listens to me when I tell them things. I should have died. I should have let that DarkClan cat kill me. I'm no good to my Clan, and maybe they would have believed the proof of their own noses when they found my body covered with DarkClan scent.

The apprentice staggered to his paws. Ignoring the pain from his wounds, he turned and fled out of the camp, tiny mews of utter despair escaping from his jaws with each breath. He wouldn't be able to go far before his injuries caught up with him, but he had to get out of camp. He had to escape the uncaring eyes of his Clanmates, the mocking sneers of the other apprentices, and the disapproving stare of his leader. Before any other cat had time to react, the thrust himself through the exit, panting with exertion. He darted under a bush several fox-lengths from the camp just as the greyness that had hazed on the edge of his vision turned into blackness, and he allowed it to carry him away to a place where pain did not exist.

His final thoughts as his consciousness slipped away were that this was only a temporary escape. What he truly longed for was a permanent one.

[4icestar]

"Brindlepaw!" Iceheart yowled. She didn't care that cats were staring at her, she just couldn't believe that he had run off. Didn't he know that cats did care for him?

Iceheart couldn't stand still any longer. She darted out of camp after him, in hopes that Raincrystal would follow. As she ran, she wondered what he was thinking in the first place. For all I know, running off like that could have killed him.

She stopped right outside of camp. Iceheart looked around. He couldn't have gone far. That's when she spotted something in a bush a few fox lengths away from the camp. Iceheart nosed her way into the bush to find that Brindlepaw was unconscious, just laying there. For a moment Iceheart thought he was dead, but then saw his body rise and fall. He would be ok.

[sandriel]

Toxicstar pulled her dark-furred ears back again. What was wrong with her Clan? Why were they acting this way? Where was Cedarclaw? She let out an irritated his and climbed down from the large oak tree, landing on firm black paws. She flicked her tail before stating quickly, "Meeting is over," and padding quickly out of camp.

She spotted the Brindlepaw and Iceheart and let out a soft sigh. This was all her fault. But she would deal with it her way, whether they liked it or not. She wouldn't change her attitude just to appear as what, apparantly, most cats saw as what good leader. She gave Iceheart a scalding look. "Back to camp. Now." she hissed. Her voice quavered with stress and tiredness, gaze turning soft as she looked back to the apprentice.

[Shinko]

Brindlepaw whimpered in his sleep. In his dreams he fled from a dark shape that reeked of blood and carrion. The forest was dark and unfamiliar, and all around him he saw eyes; the owners of those eyes emerged from the shadows, solidifying into the cats of LeafClan. They hissed at him, piling scorn and insults upon him and never once lifting a claw to defend him from the terror that hounded his pawsteps.

"Save me!" he muttered, his eyes shuttling around under their lids, "Please, I'm sorry, I know I'm no good, but please, save me! Please..."

[4icestar]

Iceheart looked up at Toxicstar. Toxicstar's eyes were unreadable. Iceheart let out a sigh, and got up. She took one last look at Brindlepaw. He was shaking and muttering in his sleep. She could tell he was having a nightmare. Iceheart didn't think a DarkClan warrior would do this to a young apprentice. She thought it might have been a rouge, maybe that "Malice" they were talking about. But how would she know? She was at the gathering.Poor apprentice, what has he ever done to hurt anyone? She thought.

"Toxicstar, would you like me to help bring him back into camp or should I get Wispdream?" Iceheart asked quietly. She didn't want to make anything worse. She once again looked back at Brindlepaw. he thought the world hated him, but she loved him like a little brother, why can't he see that?

[sandriel]

Toxicstar turned her sharp green gaze to the warrior once more, flicking her black and orange tail in dismissal. "I'll handle it from here. But I could use Wispdream.." she cut off, turning back to the apprentice.

No good? What's this poor little apprentice talking about? she thought, bright green eyes growing soft once more as the young she-cat looked at Brindlepaw nervously. She put a hopefully-reassuring paw on the tom's flank, nuzzling him slightly. "It's alright, sweety. Everything's okay. No one hates you. You're not a burden of any kind," she soothed, flicking her tail for Iceheart to go find Wispdream.

[4icestar]

Iceheart nodded at Toxicstar's approval. She darted off to the medicine's cat den at once. I hope he is going to be okay, she thought. As she ran through the clearing, many cats looked at her, worry stretched across their faces.

Iceheart entered the medicine cat den. "Wispdream, are you there? We need you to help us with Brindlepaw. He fainted outside of camp." Iceheart waited and looked back out at the clearing, many cats were worried and asked about Brindlepaw. She reassured them many times, but she was unsure herself of what was going to happen. Would Brindlepaw be okay?

[4icestar]

((Hey guys. I;m not sure how long it will be until Wispdream comes on, the only posts she has ever done are her character profiles. I'm guessing she hasn't been on for a while. if she doesn't reply, what are our options?))

[Shinko]

((Well there's her apprentice, Jetpaw, his RPer pops in occasionally... but not very often.))

[4icestar]

((hmmmmm.... Should we wait for him?))

[Shinko]

((I'm gonna defer to our Clan Leader and resident admin on this one.))

[4icestar]

((ok. I'll be waiting ))

[sandriel]

(( I'm personally not sure. I havn't even seen Niftey on lately, but we could ask Moonz when she gets online. That's two big LeafClan cat RPers that haven't posted in a while. ))