stand our ground -- [clan meeting]

[Dusk]

LIE AWAKE IN BED AT NIGHT
• AND THINK ABOUT YOUR LIFE •
DO YOU WANT TO BE DIFFERENT?

watch me carefully
my thoughts are still my own
if i speak, it's likely important

It was as good a time as any to speak, if not better than most. Past sunhigh, but not so late in the afternoon that it would be growing dark soon. The sun would still be high in the sky for sometime, and this was the preferred time for cats to sit around sharing tongues and resting before heading out to patrol again before the sun set behind the hills. Likely a few warriors were still out with their apprentices or patrolling solo, but many Zephyrclan cats were simply lounging in the sun. The day was oddly warm, even for a day late in leaf-bare. He hoped it was a sign of good happenings to come; like an early spring and long summer, alongside the return of plentiful prey. Sickness had run his beloved clan ragged, it would have been bad enough without the chaotic changes in hierarchy, but it was a time for everything to change.

The ever-disheveled looking tom stretched from where he reclined in the shade of his den, a sheltered overhang the branched off the High Hill, before standing and padding out of the shade. The soil beneath his pads was cool and wet with snowmelt, but oddly reassuring for once, rather than creating more discomfort. He climbed his way around to the base of the rise, before pausing. He still didn't feel quite ready. For all the experience he might gain from deputyship and age, the leader felt inadequate for the task ahead. Havocstar had to choose his words carefully, for the role which he stepped into was treacherous. 'Cursed.' He grimaced and spat, lips pulling back over fangs and gums in a half-snarl. If it took him the rest of his life, the tabby would make sure that no more cats thought of the posts of leader and deputy as cursed by Starclan. The tom steeled himself, anger helping for once, and loped up the slope. At the highest point on the hill, the old tom surveyed his clan with a quiet pride. This was his extended family, a group of cats whom he'd trained with and seen go from rambunctious young kits to ambitious -if foolish- apprentices and finally loyal warriors. Few were older than himself besides the Elders. It made him feel like a father, even if he lacked true kits of his own.

Havocstar smiled as he saw the trio of sibling apprentices training. It was high time they became warriors, and he wasn't simply taking into consideration Shadedpaw. All three had proven to be good cats, facing the loss of their mother admirably and forging on through chaos. 'And havoc.' But, perhaps not at this meeting, he'd prefer that there were other apprentices first. Spring would bring kits, they cats would only have to wait two or three more moons at most. There was one chief consideration running through his mind, one which he still felt divided on when it came to deciding. Hopefully seeing the two one last time would serve to push his final decision. He sucked in a deep breath. "Let all cat's old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the High Hill for a clan meeting!" His yowl rang out, calm and clear across the camp, shockingly strong all for the shaking he felt in his paws. As the call faded away the clan began to stir, ochre eyes watched with some thrill as warriors began to gather beneath his perch. Still, he could feel his stomach tying itself into knots.

He searched the growing crowd until he spotted the pelts of two specific cats. The first was Infernochaser, the brown she-cat was young but had proven herself many times as loyal and skilled. She might not have been the most ambitious cat around, but sometimes that was a good thing. After all, he himself hadn't been interested in taking on the role of leader, but now here he stood. She'd done well with her apprentice, and Havocstar knew from experience that the young warrior had a tenacity that could make up for any youthful inexperience. Besides, at half his age she would communicate well with the clan. The second was a tom, gray-furred and broad-shouldered; vaguely reminiscent of Ripplesurf's build. he was strong and fueled by ambition, but perhaps a bit too alienated in the clan. 'And too young.' The small tabby gave a slight nod as he came to a decision.

"Cats of Zephyrclan," he began as the last few stragglers settled down on the edge of the crowd. "It's been two days since I received my nine lives and stepped up as your leader, and it's time that we selected a new deputy." The tom frowned slightly. The usual ceremony wouldn't work when his own coming into power had been odd. There was no death, and he had to choose his words carefully, so as not to sound disrespectful towards Paintedwing. He could see the piebald she-cat hadn't joined in the meeting. "I say these words before Starclan, so that our ancestors may hear and approve of my decision," he faltered slightly, one last shred of doubt threading its way into his mind. "Infernochaser will be the new deputy of Zephyrclan." With those final words the old tom leapt down from his place and stood waiting for the she-cat to approach.

TAGGED ! zc cats
WORDS ! 887
LYRICS ! a beautiful lie by 30 seconds to mars
TEMPLATE ! PANIC! ITS LAUZ @ CAUTION
NOTES ! blah blah

[bluefire]

BlueFire poked her head out of the den. Harvocstar was calling a clan meeting. She walked into the clearing and sat down, her tail wrapped neatly around her paws. Her eyes shone with exitement. She patiently waited for the meeting to begin.

[lily ♫]

At Havocstar's cry, she rose from where she had been seated at one of the odd corners of camp, her eyes curious as to what he would be announcing. Obviously, he would be naming the deputy, but more than likely, he had a bit of news to share with the Clan. It wasn't often that leaders summoned the whole Clan together for one little detail - though, as she thought about it, deputy was rather a large detail - and then waved them away with a lash of the tail and an awkward flick of a paw. The calico was in mostly good spirits on this winter day, and not really interested in who might be chosen for deputy. All she knew was that it wouldn't be here, and Orioleflash simply couldn't care less. Spotting Bluefire nearby, she nodded at the pale tabby and let a puff of air out of her lungs, creating a small dusty white cloud of air that rose on up in the midwinter air. "Who do you suppose he's going to pick, Bluefire? I reckon it won't be either of us.

[/color]" The calico creature spoke quietly, keeping her saffron orbs focused upon the tabby placed upon to High Hill. She'd never really had the chance to talk to the tom aside from your typical patrol, but she doubted that there was even a chance they might get on well together, so she resigned to indifference, like always, and her typical frown fell down across her multicolored maw comfortably. As their leader made the announcement, Orioleflash nodded, glancing around her to spot the female that had been selected, keeping her congratulations for later.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[LYNX ♥]

He stretched and yawned, shaking his short pelt rather energetically, despite having just woken from a nap. The light snow that had fallen earlier still clung to his slim frame, and tickled his whiskers, causing a short fit of sneezes to explode from the tom but, having successfully gotten rid of the excess snow and dirt, he stood and trotted out further into the clearing, where he heard Havocfl- Havocstar call a meeting. Rabbitnose knew exactly what it was for-- the deputy ceremony! He knew he himself wouldn't be chosen, as he wasn't particularly ambitious about it, and had different goals in life than to lead, but was excited for the meeting nontheless. It was always great to see the clan moving forward, and this time it was particularly satisfying, as no one really had to die to get there. Well, Ripplesurf might have. But no one was quite sure, and Rabbitnose was happy in his ignorance of the former deputy's status as it meant considerably less sour-feeling. Pricking his ears, he sat in the center of the gathered group and listened to the brown tabby before him speak, finishing his speech by granting young Infernochaser the position. "Wow! Way to go Inferno!" Rabbitnose meowed loudly before joining into the chanting of her name.

[Dawn]

Coyotesmoke sat alone, at the edge of the camp. He listened avidly to the new leader, Havocstar. In his short life, he had already seen two leaders, and at this rate, he wondered if he would see many more before his death. Zephyrclan always seemed to have a certain bad luck about them when it came to leaders and deputies, almost as if they'd been cursed by Starclan to never have a proper hierarchy. It was troubling, especially to a cat like himself, with such a superstitious state of mind. The worst thing that could happen would be to be chosen as deputy of his clan, and know that his fate was likely sealed. But that won't happen, thought the cream colored tom drearily, because Havocstar hates me and likely sees me as a nuisance. From there through the rest of the proceedings, his mood became grayer and grayer. Upon the announcement that Infernochaser, a bright young female, would be chosen as deputy, he frowned deeply. It ought to have been Orioleflash. She's the only good cat in this clan. She's the only one that doesn't torment me for her own enjoyment. The young, oddly colored tom padded closer to the other cats, who now jumbled around, calling out the new deputy's name. "Infernochaser." He announced in a taciturn voice, over sized green eyes devoid of excitement. With that 'greeting' Coyotesmoke waved his thin tail and padded off for the moors, not bothering to stick around and see what else would happen. It wasn't likely to concern him, since he was basically a ghost in the clan, unnoticed by others. He might as well go for a hunt.

[/center]

[bluefire]

BlueFire nodded to Oriole in greeting. "Eh, I know it won't be me. Coyotesmoke maybe? No, most likely Imfernochaser." The pale tabby female soon joined in with the chanting anfter the naming of Infernochaser as deputy. "Infernochaser!" "Infernochaser!" She was happy for the sandy she-cat. She spotted Rabbit in the center of the group. She padded over to him. "Hey." she said. Blue quickly looked to Orioleflash.

[Swift ✱]

INFERNOCHASER
and you can't save me now
i'm in the grip of a hurricane
i'm gonna blow myself away
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

Havocstar's call from the High Hill called them all to attention. Her green eyes had followed his scruffy tabby form from his den to the High Hill where all clan meetings were held from. Infernochaser had already been sitting in a patch of warm sunlight nearby when the tom came from his den to make his announcement. Most of them had simply been hanging around the camp, so some just turned their heads and came closer to hear what their leader had to say. Everyone knew the reason for his gathering them: he was choosing his deputy. There were man fine contenders to the position of deputy, but Infernochaser knew that Havocstar would chose the one he thought would benefit the clan. She stood up and padded closer, ears flicking attentively as Havocstar spoke, telling them the suspected reason of the meeting. The clan had gathered, sitting around, waiting for his verdict.

"Infernochaser will be the new deputy of Zephyrclan." The she-cat lifted her head to look at Havocstar. She blinked, slightly confused for a moment. Did he say 'Infernochaser'? A grin spread across her face slowly, gradually. She unwrapped her tail from around her paws and started picking her way forward to Havocstar, head tipped back proudly and a little smile lighting up her face as she went. The earthy-hued cat had never been noticeably ambitious. In fact, she had never expressed much interest in the position of deputy, but that didn‘t mean she wasn't honoured to be chosen by her leader to be his successor. The she-cat would do her utmost to please her clan at any cost, no doubt. But still, she couldn’t quite understand why Havocstar would have chosen her as his deputy. She was young, and perhaps a little fresh for the liking of some, even she could admit that. "Wow! Way to go Inferno!" Infernochaser glanced sideways to find where the call had come from, and saw Rabbitnose. She smiled widely as the clan chanted her name in unison.

The earthy-hued she-cat dipped her head respectfully to her leader when she stopped in front of him. "Havocstar, I am honoured to be chosen for such a position," she meowed clearly and calmly. "I will serve you and the clan with loyalty and pride and I will try my best to do so well." Infernochaser knew that some of the clan would be sceptical of the choice to make her deputy with her youth, but she would prove that age held no relevance to her capability to serve the clan well in the position she had been given. She also knew that the whole clan had a certain uneasiness with the positions of leader and deputy since Zephryclan hadn't been very lucky in that area in recent times. Paintedwing hadn't taken leadership in her stride even though she was a strong, independent she-cat, and Ripplesurf had disappeared soon after being named deputy, even though many thought of him as a stable, loyal member of the clan. She would probably be expected to be above the usual standards. Havocstar was different, though. She had faith in him to bring Zephyrclan back from the low they had been experiencing. Strong leadership was key to their success, and she was sure that their time without that leadership had passed.

✱

[Dusk]

LIE AWAKE IN BED AT NIGHT
• AND THINK ABOUT YOUR LIFE •
DO YOU WANT TO BE DIFFERENT?

watch me carefully
my thoughts are still my own
if i speak, it's likely important

The leader let his eyes wander across the clan as the warriors raised their voices in greeting the new deputy. There was Orioleflash, muttering quietly to Bluefire and with her typical, grim face on. And not far off was Rabbitnose, the first tome to react when Havocstar made his announcement. He could see Coyotesmoke seated at the edge of the camp in the snow, looking as melancholy as ever it didn't take long for the slim warrior to slip out on his own. The ceremony had gone better than he'd hoped, or perhaps nerves had caused the male to over-think the various scenarios that could have taken place instead. In the deputies he'd seen come and go in his fifty moons, few had met outright dislike from other clan cats. True, there were a few dissidents with every decision a leader made, but never any open challenges. Even so, he'd felt a large attack of anxiety over the decision. And now he was mentally chiding himself for worrying so needlessly. Was this how Paintedwing had felt as a leader, always having some worry gnawing at her? It was easy to see how she'd cracked under pressure. One wrong decision could doom the clan, it was a sobering thought to say the least.

The tuft-furred tabby forced himself back into reality as he saw the masses part to allow the sand-coloured she-cat forward. Her eyes were bright with joy and shock, and he found himself grinning back slightly -although his smile was more worn and faded - as he spotted the smile on her muzzle. Any remaining doubts as to his choice were whipped away like scattered petals in the windy moors. This would be the deputy that survived all odds and persevered to become Infernostar one day, or so he hoped. There was always a chance... 'No, you fool, don't start thinking like that.' He gave a grave nod in respect to the deputy's words. "I trust you'll serve the clan well, and that I'll never be forced to question my decision in choosing you to serve beside me." He mewed. The tom dipped his head in return before turning to climb back up the High Hill once more. He wasn't quite finished, there was yet another issue to address before too many cats went out on their way. "Warriors of Zephyrclan, we have suffered through many trials as of late. Many leaders and deputies have gone by in quick succession, and we were recently ravaged by both plague and leaf-bare." It wasn't exactly an inspiring statement, but there was no point in pretending not to notice the faults within the clan at the moment. "I'm not about to lie to you, Zephyrclan is not at the strength it once was. However, we will be restored. We will persevere and become a great clan once more. There is no curse upon the hierarchy, though we have been unfortunate in recent moons. If you have any grievances, air them now."

TAGGED ! zc cats
WORDS ! 498
LYRICS ! a beautiful lie by 30 seconds to mars
TEMPLATE ! PANIC! ITS LAUZ @ CAUTION
NOTES ! blah blah