night of the hunter [open to spectators]

[MiNTY♥]

one night of the hunter, one day i will get revenge,
one night to remember, one day it'll all just end

NOBODY IS ALLOWED TO JOIN THE FIGHT, ONLY WATCH.

It was all disgusting. Those fowl scented desperate morons were all coming crawling to them. Their pelts soaked to the bone showing off their bony figure making them look like starving scraps. No, this would not do. What on earth was Pyrestar thinking letting them all come here? He supposed she would throw them all out soon enough and if they had to use force then he gladly would. At the moment he was savouring his energy, his eyes had been searching all day long for that one black pelted tom he was sure he would destroy. Nothing could stop him now. It was his time. By the end of the day he would either be sprawled on the forest floor with his blood dying his pelt red, or he would be towering over Shard once and for all.

Getting up from the rock upon which he sat he leaped down and stretched out each of his limbs, white pelt reflecting the moons rays as it started to climb higher in the sky, pointedly he glared at any trespassers that got too close. He had heard news of his old friend returning with the Tempestclan cats, perhaps it was just gossip but he wanted to see for himself whether or not it was true as Crowshroud had not visited him in quite a while, unknown to Pyrestar of course. Weaving through all of the cats that were sitting in his camp he slipped outside knowing that if his friend was around he would not be among the crowds because that was simply the way he was. Or maybe he had just vanished completely after seeing the state that the clans were currently in. He could not have blamed his friend for leaving but he would be forced to admit that he would miss him. His sentiments were interrupted by a voice causing his ears to twitch and his body to spin around to face the direction the noise had come from. A sickly, pretentious, evil, voice. He doubted very much that whomever Shard was addressing was listening to him anyway. Finally his eyes locked on the tom and every muscle in his body tensed, but he had to force himself to remain calm, at least for now. His amber eyes burned into that stupid, sleek, black pelt as he snaked his way towards the tom until he was not able to get any closer without treading on some tails. ”Shard!” He screeched and the clearing fell silent, cats gaping at him as if he had just brought a fox into the camp. Sure enough the black tom looked up from his conversation and met his gaze.

Their eyes remained locked on each other for some time before his creator broke the silence. ”Oh dear, you found me, whatever can I assist you with my dear sun?” This caused Wraithlight’s blood to boil, his pulse raced and he could feel his heart crashing against his chest, wanting to explode. ”You have no right to be here, nobody wants you in the clans and now you can’t hide behind Voidstar and his warriors anymore. You are a coward and you need to face the consequences of what you have done. By the time the sunrises at dawn either you, or I, or both of us will be dead. Watching you live is too sickening for it to go on any longer.” He snarled, pulling his maw back to reveal his fangs. He stood tall and proud, his chest puffed out and his narrowed eyes locked on Shard. Shard had wider shoulders than Wraithlight, but he knew he was just as tall and he believed he was ready. Flamingarrow had taught him all of Shard’s moves, on top of all the clan moves as well as a few dirty tricks. Relentlessly the white tom had practiced them until each flick of his tail was perfect. ”You really think you can beat me Wraithlight? Feel free to try though.” Shard replied with a grin. The black tom started to approach him and the crowds around them started to move to give the two tom cats space for their fight. ”Very well, unless anyone objects to my proposal…?” He asked looking around him, hoping for his leader to agree. Yet he would kill Shard with or without her permission. It would just be easier to do with her not throwing him out afterwards. Before him Shard snorted, and began to flex his claws.

ANCK SU NAMUN OF CAUTION!

[LYNX ♥]

her eyes widened, having found herself in camp to catch a little nap (yeah right, not in the state her nest was in now), to the scene that had begun. when she entered, the crowded parted immediately, and it was easy to slip through to where a large part of camp had been cleared all cats. all but two. her breath caught in her throat, almost making her cough, but she held it down until her eyes watered. what the hell was wraithlight doing out there, facing a very, very large black tom- oh. wraithlight's father, shard. it had to be, for now, looking upon the huge obsidian cat, she saw her clanmate's ruthless amber gaze lodged in his cruel face, and the flowing muscles she admired so highly in the white tom were reflected almost completely in the black one. fear sent a thrill racing through her blood, and she shivered, wishing she could step in and stop them, wishing she could see wraithlight tear this rogue apart, wishing shard wasn't so big, wishing she could be there when her clanmate took the victory upon himself. incredibly tense, nectarpaw watched with an overwhelming mixture of anticipation and anxiety keeping her heart pumping. "come on wraith." she murmured under her breath, fighting the urge to screw her eyes shut when the fighting would begin.
---

pyrestar was awakened by an unusual amount of silence, breaking into her sleep like a ghost, and tearing her away from her nap with the suspicious nature of it all. no, silence was simply not right, and evemn more strange was the undertone of noise that seemed to writhe and sway beneath the dome of silence encasing her camp. and with all these cats swarming about, there was no way that amount of quiet could be good. she sat up and emerged from her den with an air of importance wrapped around her like a cloak, but it was to no avail since all attention was focused on the center of camp.

"out of my way," the leader snapped, shoving her small weight through the crowd to the front, where the clearing was, well, cleared. save for wraithlight and, of course, no other than shard. she knew the big rogue was her clanmate's sworn nemesis or whatever, but she wished he wouldn't make a mess right inside her camp, where cats slept. regardless, she felt obligated to support him at this pinnacle of his existance. unless anyone objects? "HELL NO, WHY DON'T YOU TEAR HIS EARS OFF?" pyrestar cried, ignoring how childish she sounded. she knew wraithlight had been trained well, the best, perhaps, with the combination of fighting techniques that his mentor knew. pyrestar poised, prepared to step in if necessary- there was no way her warrior would be killed tonight. shard, though, she doubted had anyone to stand beside him. disregarding voidstar, of course, who would be stopped immediately should he decide to step in. determination giving her strength to watch, the calico drove her claws into the loam and seated herself, giving wraithlight a nod of final approval.

[/justify]

[aero ❥]

Since I was little ain't a goddamn thing changed

it was as if the night went still


He had never expected to come back. To have to come back. It had only been a moon, maybe only half a moon into his stay at Tempestclan when the lake had began to claw it's way closer. The marshy fen had begun to rise, streams in the forest had over flown. And then the inevitable wall of water slowly creeping from behind had cornered them. Forced them to travel north into Vertigoclan territory. Into a nightmare Crowshroud had thought he'd wakened from a long time ago. It was a walk of shame he'd trekked, back into the mountains which he loved, but symbolized something he didn't care for. Out of sight out of mind, that's where he'd tried to stay. In the back, to the shadows, away from Vertigo's all-seeing glare. Some had seen him - just a few - but he was sure his name was being whispered among his old clanmates. Still calling me Crowpaw, He thought, smirking. Among all the chaos of settling, he was surprised how many Tempestclan cats had asked him for his help. 'Ask Crowshroud, he came from Vertigoclan, right?' They wanted to know where the moss grew and where the streams were. The best places for nests and hunting grounds. Finally he did feel like a spy. It didn't make him happy though - aiding his new clan. It was wrong for them to be here, to be using resources that rightfully didn't belong to them. The lake, the damned lake was to blame. Did it feel like he was betraying some part of him that was still a Vertigoclan cat? Yes, he guessed it was so.

and all the silence was so loud
the darkness was going crazy

Though his loyalty was divided, most of it did belong to Tempestclan. Wordlessly taking him in he had become rather accustomed to their ways, and rather attached to Cherrypaw. She had been the only one he expressed his discomfort of being back here to, the only one who might understand. Who might care. But even if she didn't, old habits die hard. He had made himself his own shelter away (though not far) from camp, somewhere he knew the hoards of milling cats wouldn't find. A secluded spot you only happened upon by chance. A benefit of being a traitor he guessed. To Vertigoclan that was what he was. He not only hated large numbers of cats, but to be in his old home was out of the question. Things had turned into a free for all, and he guessed Voidstar would have so much to do with his own warriors he wouldn't come checking up on the clan prisoner. Speaking of, the large black tom had been rather adopted by the clan in ways of trust. In the flooding he had worked as hard as any Tempestclan warrior to hunt and provide for the lacking clan, to help evacuate. He had risked his life for theirs'.
His pale stone green eyes peered through the night's ghostly beams that filtered down from the thick canopy. His big paws padded in the direction of the Vertigoclan camp. It would be the first time since arriving he had even laid eyes on it. Not once had he stepped a paw inside. But he had been thinking a lot about his friend Wraithlight, how he was and if the flooding had been any trouble for him. Crowshroud knew the muscular white tom was still alive, no mere flood was going to pry the tom from this world. All the same it had been moons since they'd spoken, and that was just moons too long for the black cat. So he had gathered his courage and was on his way to camp. It had crossed his mind that he might not be there, but he remembered Wraith was in Vertigoclan, and they would remain in their own camp.

Mind pricking the edge of thought about where Cherrypaw was, a sudden scent shot the idea dead. Not a scent, but a wall of scents. Emerging from the undergrowth, he almost ran into the backside of a calico. A ring of cats had formed around something. And when he heard the voices his heart dropped cold. ”You really think you can beat me Wraithlight? Feel free to try though.” ”Very well, unless anyone objects to my proposal…?” What the hell is he doing?! He knew Wrathlight wanted to kill his father, but a public display? He admired his friend. Crowshroud had lived among Shard for long enough to know he was mean and nasty, a true scumbag. But the bad ones were always hardest to kill. But since having known the white tom from apprentice days, he couldn't not believe Shard was the one what would fall here tonight. "Move," He growled, using his muscle to move through the cats. Right as he got on the inside of the ring, Pyrethroat - star now he had heard - came through. "HELL NO, WHY DON'T YOU TEAR HIS EARS OFF?" Crowshroud wanted to bury his face in the grass. How could Lynxstar make her leader? But he agreed with her all the same, and yowled in approval. Wraithlight would knew his best friend was with him. One day I'll find my father. One day.

credit

[lily ♫]

She'd known the second he entered her camp. Her blood had ran cold, eyes narrowing to thin slits as her muscles tensed and her hair stood on end. Shard. That damn scoundrel who she'd watched torture, humiliate, and kill time and time again during her moons in MaliceClan or Delirium or whatever the hell they called it after that. He was not a force to be reckoned with, and Flamingarrow had been carefully eyeing him from a distance, not wanting him to slink off and...and do any number of things.

The ginger tabby became acutely aware of Wraithlight's presence, though, as he had much the same reaction. And, when her former apprentice began to approach the black devil of a cat, her heart nearly stopped. 'He knows what he's doing.' She told herself, nearly jumping out of her skin as he began to taunt Shard. Flamingarrow was quick to approach, but Pyrestar beat her to it. "HELL NO, WHY DON'T YOU TEAR HIS EARS OFF?" The calico leader roared, and her deputy smirked, shaking her head. No one could have put it better. Nearing her apprentice, she nodded to him, glancing to him sideways. "We've got your back. Get 'im good for me, alright?" Flamingarrow murmured to her apprentice, encouraging him, gesturing to Pyrestar also, before turning her full attention on to Shard.

"Remember me, asshole? I doubt you could forget. If there's anyone who's seen what you've done and what you're capable of, it's me. But you know what? Knife taught me how to fight like you, and I taught Wraithlight too. And don't you dare call him your son. You are nothing to anyone here except a nasty mistake placed upon this earth by whatever entity you believe did so. I've been looking forward to this for many moons, Shard." She snapped, eyes narrowed and claws unsheathed. "This isn't my fight, though, but I'll see you in hell." Flamingarrow spat before withdrawing into the crowd, keeping near to Pyrestar need she intervene also.

[MiNTY♥]

one night of the hunter, one day i will get revenge,
one night to remember, one day it'll all just end

As the crowds began to gather Wraithlight blocked out the racket they were making. Their excited gossiping was of no interest to him and would only become a distraction should he have decided to pay attention to it. One voice rang out above all others and he turned to face the direction it came from and saw his leader willing him on. It pleased him that she was very much in support of his actions, however she had no idea how much determination was inside of him at that moment. None of them did. It had been building within him since as long as he could remember and it was about to reach it's peak. All of the work he had been putting into training each and every day of his life was all for this. If he had one goal in life it was to kill Shard, or to die trying. Shard had ruined his mother's life, his own and everyone else's. It was time for him to be stopped once and for all. He had to pay for his actions and he would pay with his life, in his head it was not high enough a price but it was all he could get from him.

More and more cats were beginning to come forward and show their support. He could scent Crowshroud but by now it was too late for them to bond, he had made his proposal to fight with Shard. He knew he was ready for this battle, more ready than ever. Shard was talented but he had been hiding away in a clan which meant that he was not exposed to the merciless life he was used to. In a way one could even claim he was a little softer; not at his prime. The wiser tom was growing weaker while Wraithlight, whom you could even call a prodigy, had been growing stronger at every possible opportunity. Wraithlight had been wasting no time, each spare moment had been put to some sort of use to improve his skills. He was not as broad shouldered as his father but he was just as tall. He watched Shard carefully while he was momentarily distracted by arguing with Flamingarrow. There was no fear in his heart at that time, only strength. The black tom was all strength - and cruelty - to the core. Wraithlight was strong but he was also rather swift and was hoping to have his elder struggling to keep up with him.

"Enough." Wraithlight snarled and silence settled around him. Shard's head snapped up from his premature gloating and the two toms locked eyes. In preparation his claws began to knead the ground and the white tom shuffled his weight from side to side, throwing it around a bit until he became very comfortable. Shard began to come closer to Wraithlight and the two tom's began to circle each other. As they danced together Wraithlight began to block out all of his surroundings,one by one they were pushed out of his head until every movement was simply an insignificant blur. Every noise he was able to ignore and in his head there was silence despite the low whispering. Only Shard mattered now as the moonlight filled the small clearing, almost as if Starclan approved of such a battle. Exhaling he let out a long breath to calm himself down. He was adamant that his hatred for the black tom would not impair his judgment.

Wraithlight lunged forward and it felt as though time had stopped, reaching Shard felt like moons and as he drew closer Shard had already reared up on his hind legs ready to bring his claws down on Wraithlight. Quickly Wraithlight also pushed himself onto his hind legs and the two toms locked together, struggling to push the other off balance. Making sure his paws were on Shard's shoulders, Wraithlight kicked off from the ground and put all his weight on his front paws resulting in Shard falling flat beneath him. This small success pleased him but it was far from over, breathing slowly he urged himself to be cautious and take it one step at a time as he knew how easy it was to get ahead of himself. Shard stood up and in doing so he threw Wraithlight off of him before thundering over to the white tom as he recovered. Leaping up just in time Wraithlight ducked and Shard's claws missed his face by a mouse tail. However, Shard's other paw smashed into his face, it felt as though it had gone straight through him.Wraithlight shook the blood from his fur and growled, Shard would pay for that. He prowled towards Shard, slashing at him with his claws gradually backing him into a corner with a wall of yowling cats behind him.

Shard suddenly darted around the side of Wraithlight and so the white tom kicked out but Shard bit down on his hind leg and tossed him over. Yowling Wraithlight kicked out as Shard turned ready for another attack, hitting his chin which resulted in Shard biting his tongue which was rather amusing to see. Shard pounced on top or Wraithlight and the two tom cats rolled together, sometimes Wraithlight would have the advantage and sometimes it would be Shard. Either way when they finally broke away from each other they were both gasping for breath and looking rather torn. "Had enough yet?" Shard spat at Wraithlight but the white tom simply chuckled and winked. "Not even close, old man." He snarled in response after catching his breath and he aimed a blow at Shard's head which caused the black tom to stumble a little.

In one swift movement Shard had pinned Wraithlight to the ground beneath him, his strong paws holding him in place. With his hind legs Wraithlight kicked the air from Shard's lungs and when the grip of the black tom loosened, Wraithlight slashed his eyes and threw him off. The older tom was angrier than ever and Wraithlight could see that one of his eyes was severely damaged. In an outburst Shard charged over to his opponent and proceeded to attack him from every angle. His aim was a little off since he now only had one eye but he managed to give Wraithlight a nasty would on his ear and the white tom flinched away, taking a moment to recover. The two of them stood, glaring at one another for a moment. This was when Wraithlight decided it was over. A rush of adrenaline surged within Wraithlight and he charged into Shard, bowling the black tom over onto his side and as he did he could feel Shard's fangs piercing his shoulder. Tugging them out he swore under his breath and smacked the black tom across the face so hard that he even went limp for a moment or two. Seizing the opportunity Wraithlight attacked again, and again. His claws raking through Shard's black pelt as he heard the black tom cry out. As he pushed himself further Wraithlight suddenly realized that it was obvious who now had the advantage in this battle.

Gasping, Wraithlight took a moment to look down at Shard and gather his thoughts. He did not feel an ounce of regret for what he had just done or what he was about to do. This tom had ruined his life from the start and this night would be celebrated and he would be free. The most infuriating part was that Shard did not even look scared, but as long as he was dead Wraithlight would be satisfied. Without any further thought he placed his paw under the black tom's chin and pinned Shard's head back. Quickly he bit down on the toms throat until he felt the black tom go limp. A look of regret flashed across Shard's features, but it was a waste of time since nobody saw it and nobody would have understood it. The black tom simply accepted his defeat and faded away in an overwhelming flood of pain.

Wraithlight moved away for there was too much blood to hold on any longer, he coughed and spluttered but it was not clear if it was his own blood, or his enemies blood. Stumbling onto his side, Wraithlight groaned in pain and began to gasp for air. It was all over now and he wasn't sure if the water running from his eyes was due to the happiness that flooded through him or the pain that throbbed all over.

ANCK SU NAMUN OF CAUTION!

[Dusk]

Dead. Shard was dead. The black menace, former leader of the dispersed Delirium. Terror of who knew how many. Shard the ruthless. Shard the cruel. A fearsome personality that had evened wormed his way into Tempestclan, it was easy to recall the initial uproar at the first gathering where he'd appeared as "Blackshard". The objections had been great, the angry roar of the crowd at the first sight of the dark-furred tom was as clear in her mind as though she were still there on the glacier. The cat had seemed near infinite, bad enough to merit even a story to threaten naughty kits with. And now he was just... gone. In a flash of fangs and a crush of blood the previously powerful warrior was no longer a danger to any of them. Fawndance had watched the battle from afar, grim faced and silent in the crowd as Pyrestar gave a childish outburst - young thing really ought to learn to better control that temper - and Flamingarrow performed no better, adding her own shouting to the mix. A hush had fallen across the crowd as the kin struggled for to overpower the other, now all things were done.

The old she-cat watched as Wraithlight tore his jaws free of Shard's throat, white pelt muddy and bloodstained. The last time she had witnessed a warrior outright killing another cat... well it had been sometime indeed. It was clear the young male would need treatment for those wounds, and fast. Only, where was Arcticlight? The sorrel feline craned her neck, green gaze flickering across the masses of feline forms for the dainty pale form of the Vertigoclan medicine cat. Nowhere in sight. Her brow furrowed, frown tugging on her maw as she let her eyes flit across the crowd once more to be sure. 'Of course she's not here after such an event.' Fawndance thought wryly. Perhaps out gathering herbs. No doubt they were going through supplies all too quickly with so many warriors in one place. Luckily more than one healer was around; also lucky that she had thought to rescue as much as she could from her old den before Celestialclan had completely flooded. A calico pelt brushed up against hers. The old cat smiled knowingly, dipping to accept the bundle her apprentice had brought along. Panaceaheart would make a good medicine cat very soon.

Mouth full with herbs, Fawndance broke from the crowd and made her way towards the weary tom. One eye glanced quickly at the broken form, but her attention was swift to return to more important matters. "Come now, away from that stinking thing," she meowed around the plants, nudging the tom gingerly. One always needed caution with a battle-ready cat. "We'd best treat your wounds before they fester. Starclan knows what disease those claws carried." Fawndance gave the tom another light shove. "And someone come clean this up! Be useful, don't just gawk like some kits. You've all had you share of these sights." Her voice rose and she sternly looked about at the others. No doubt Pyrestar wouldn't take too kindly to having her authority overruled by an outside healer, but she'd be damned if anarchy were allowed to reign in the group for much longer.

[MiNTY♥]

one night of the hunter, one day i will get revenge,
one night to remember, one day it'll all just end

It was impossible to focus on any one thing, and his thoughts bounced about from one think to another causing his head to hurt. Although it was possible that it was due to being battered around and blood loss that his head hurt, but his confusion surely was not helping his case. Cats cheered around him and the noise stung his ears after everything being so silent for him. It was all just chaotic and he had caused it. For as long as he could remember he had imagined what this moment would feel like when it finally came but Wraithlight had no idea what he was feeling inside. One moment ecstatic, the next giddy, then he would be having hallucinations of the black tom getting up even though he was certainly dead. Amongst that there would be the stinging, nipping, throbbing and screaming of the wounds that Shard had inflicted on him. His body involuntarily shook as if a gust of wind had resulted in him shivering and it wouldn’t go away. Was he ready to celebrate? Was he going to die? Were the surrounding cats actually cheering or did they want him dead too?

He was pulled from his stupor by a gentle touch and he whipped his head around to see who it was, flinching as a stinging pain shot down his spine. He didn’t actually know Fawndance, but she was a medicine cat and that was as good as a free pass for being trusted. Stereotypically they were less biased to their own clan than the typical warrior and would treat a cat regardless of how much they liked, or disliked, them. Wraithlight was still a little unsure with him being one of the more cynical cats you might know, but she was insistent and he decided that he may as well. After all, he would never get to enjoy his freedom if he died from his wounds. He growled gently at her persistent nature but still struggled to his paws. ”At least give me a mouse tail to get up.” He retorted, finding it difficult to get his bearings when his pelt was stinging. He had decided in that moment that medicine cats were also pushy, but you couldn’t disagree with them or Starclan might curse you or something of the sort since they were so close to the warrior ancestors. He amused himself with the childish thought that Fawndance could have magical powers and smirked as he limped along after her.

”Uh, thanks I guess for pulling me out of that. My head was just spinning; I wouldn’t even have known a mouse from a bird.” He croaked his voice straining as he tried to ignore the pain. ”It must be kinda fun being a medicine cat, you get to order all of them about and they just have to do it.” He added making mindless chatter; it was possible he was delirious. He entered Arcticlight’s den where he had never spent much time so he was still a little weary of all the strange smelling things. He decided that he was probably in the best hands since Fawndance had been a medicine cat the longest of the four and this would probably be comparable in complexity to a stroll on a sunny day in the mind of the she-cat, only a lot less pleasant. ”I have a theory.” He replied, grinning as she did whatever a medicine cat did. ”Medicine cats want just as much power as those wanna-be leaders out there, expect cats disagree with you less because they are intimidated by your intelligence and your connection to Starclan so they don’t argue with you. Even the leaders wouldn’t disagree with you. Nice one.” He concluded and flopped over, sighing loudly.

ANCK SU NAMUN OF CAUTION!

[Dusk]

The not-so-young she-cat grimaced slightly as the tom whipped about, stretching and no doubt worrying at already torn flesh. His ivory pelt was stained scarlet with blood, though how much was his and how much was that of the formerly breathing Shard remained to be assessed. It wouldn't do for the young warrior to be cavorting about and tearing the wounds so that they grew worse. That would only mean more herbs would have to be spent treating the tom, and herbs were going to grow to be a precious commodity in the coming weeks. She met his gruff words with a level stare, somewhat baleful, somewhat chiding as he slowly struggled to his paws stumbling no doubt from a mixture of fatigue and blood loss. The cuts and bites weren't about to start making themselves fully known until the adrenaline had fully drained from the Vertigoclan warrior's system. Her insistence was to get the tom moving towards the sanctity of a medicine cat den before his limbs locked up, not after. Such an event would only cause more commotion, and the last thing she needed was to take an effort shooing away nosy felines who'd do more harm than good by offering their "assistance". "I'll give you your mousetail when we're sure you won't just keel over," she retorted sharply, feathery tail sweeping behind her with a life of its own. Young cats, always thinking they had all the time in the world. For a brief moment she considered offering her support to the limping tom, only to withdraw the idea as something his pride simply wouldn't allow. There was a thin line between helping and coddling.

A smile flickered on her face as they padded in the direction of Arcticlight's den, the tom rambling about everything and nothing in an effort to distract himself. The warrior's brain was probably addled from the loss of blood, well, nothing that rest and a good few meals couldn't fix. Well, I couldn't just let you keep stumbling about in the clearing like a kit who's just had a bit too much catnip," she mewed easily, a soft chuckle sounding low in her throat. The sorrel female flicked an ear. "Oh yes, indeed, you don't know how positively fun it is to just tell every cat what to do and they just treat you like a spirit straight from Starclan." She smirked. The warm, earthy and bitter tones of various plants and herbs flooded her nose as they entered the shade of the medicine cat den. Not quite as comforting as her own limestone cave, what with the smell of Vertigoclan in every nook, but things were almost homey.

Deft paws unwrapped her neat bundle of healing items, a dried poppy head the first thing to grab her attention. She glanced up at the warrior a he spoke, shaking out a few round black seeds from the object. "Down the hatch," she said shortly, nudging them in the other's direction. "It's an interesting theory, if not to gracious to us hard-working souls." She met the grin with a caustic smile of her own. "However I'd say it's less fear or intimidation that gives us strength so much as how we sort of... hold the lives of other cats in our paws. I mean, can you imagine how many more cats would die of a simple cold or infection without us here? Starclan, the clawing you got would leave you nest-ridden for weeks!" Her brow furrowed in concentration, she stepped neatly around the sitting warrior, smearing a stinging poultice of the worst of the wounds none too gently. "Well, you did a good job a keeping yourself more or less in one piece, I'll give you that. Impressive, in fact. Vertigoclan isn't all hot air about their training. Now I'm no warrior, but some of those moves didn't look like the standard fare."

[MiNTY♥]

one night of the hunter, one day i will get revenge,
one night to remember, one day it'll all just end

Subconsciously his eyes narrowed at the unfamiliar medicine cat ordering him around like a kit. Inside he wished to give her a bitter reply in response but he suppressed it and obediently limped along after her. Besides, he was used to having to hold his tongue on a daily basis considering the amount of stupidity he had to put up with. Well stupidity was a little harsh as some of his clan mates could be intelligent when they wanted to be, they were just too easily distracted by the small things in life which heavily featured being playful. Now that he had killed Shard, that meant he could spend less time on his training which he used to exhaust himself with. Potentially that meant he would have time to be like his clan mates and even get to understand them better by becoming less tense. Then again he did not exactly see himself as the type to go running around after leaves.

That was when he realised maybe his clan wouldn’t see him in the same way as they had before. It was even possible that they would see him in two different lights. One group would be grateful that he killed Shard as it was one less thing that they had to watch their backs for and well because he had hurt some of them in the past. The other group would look down on him for very publically slaughtering another cat in cold blood, but that was their problem as he never forced anybody to watch and if it had not been ‘appropriate’ enough in their eyes then he really, really did not care. If he had time to make friends then that would be just great, but at the same time he was still the same tom that was not out to impress anybody but himself.

”Hey, since I’m in pain any chance you could find some of that catnip for me, just to make me feel a bit more at ease?” He replied with a silly grin upon his maw. ”But don’t worry, I won’t treat you as if you are some sort of sacred spirit. I will respect you – which is a lot coming from me – but no special treatment.” He replied, looking in her direction to make sure that the two of them were clear on that. Trying to distract himself from the stinging he watched her move about the unfamiliar den. It was hard for all of them but he supposed as long as she knew the herbs she was looking for then she would be alright, especially since Arcticlight spent a lot of her time sorting all of her herbs. Maybe it was just a medicine cat thing to be obsessive about tidiness.

Cautiously he sniffed the black seeds before taking them gently on his tongue and swallowing them. He felt a little uneasy swallowing something that wasn’t food but he forced himself to trust Fawndance and be a fairly easy patient to treat. The last thing that Wraithlight wanted was to be stuck in the medicine cats den when he should be out in the territory getting exercised, although at this rate he could see himself having to swim in the flooding. Stretching out a limb he groaned slightly. ”It’s starting to get stiff, is that normal?” He asked and wrinkled his nose at the lack of mobility. ”And yeah that’s true, and I can’t afford to stay in here for that long. Although I suppose more cats would have to gain a basic knowledge of herbs but I doubt they would be able to treat anything complex.” He replied. His eyes narrowed out of habit as she poked around him as she placed some gunk on his wounds, it nipped a bit yet it was less so than without it so he calmly accepted it. ”That wasn’t Vertigoclan training, that was my training. Before I was able to find my way back to my clan I had to endure some of Shard’s training and then when I came back they paired me with Flamingarrow, so rogue training all around. Then I practiced every day and asked some of the older warriors for their secrets. You see, when I have a goal I need to get there and I won’t let anything stop me.”

ANCK SU NAMUN OF CAUTION!

[Dusk]

The long-furred medicine cat looked up from her work with a faint a faint smirk playing upon her muzzle, meeting his jesting grin with a good-natured roll of green eyes. "I don't believe the solution to stopping any pain would be to give you a catnip high," she chided, lightly flicking the younger tom's nose with her tailtip. At least he could still find the energy to joke; at least he was a kind enough cat to joke around, though maybe 'kind' wasn't the best word to describe a cat who'd committed patricide. Who was she to say, though? Fawndance knew better than to judge a warrior by actions alone. The Vertigoclan cat was bound to face enough mixed judgement from the others. Tempestclan in particular seemed likely to cause some trouble... Sooner or later the events of this day were going to come back and bite the tom. Not right off, more than likely, but still soon. All the better, then, that she try to patch the white-furred feline up so he could be back to a hundred percent as fast as possible.

"No special treatment," she echoed in agreement, meeting his gaze levelly. "And what about you? Are things supposed to change for Wraithlight now that he's ended the infamous Shard?" Her tone was devoid of judgment or blame. He might choose to answer, he might not; the healer knew that it was a simple matter for killing to warp personalities. She'd seen it happen more than once in her many moons. That cat she was treating was a good warrior, but that could change, and she'd hate to see someone with his level of potential go to waste. A new sort of Shard was the last thing any cay wanted. Looking at him, eye to eye, she saw no desire for violence and terror. Just a strong, young, determined tom who had done what Starclan knows how many other warriors likely wished to do.

A satisfied purr rang from the pale female’s throat as the younger ducked his head to lap up the pain-killing seeds. ’Just a teensy bit paranoid,’ she mused. His caution at consuming the dark pods hadn’t escaped her notice. Then again, a healthy dose of cynicism was to be expected. At least he’d had the brains not to argue with her treating him instead of Arcticlight as she’d feared he might. Fawndance leaned down to sniff at his outstretched paw before nodding at his inquiry. ”It’s just a bit of muscle strain. You’ll likely be even more sore in two days – I’m telling you now so you don’t blame me when you wake up hardly able to move,” she mewed with a mock cheerfulness to her words. Stepping back, the medicine cat paused to survey her work. That ear of his was going to require a bit more finesse than she’d used in treating his other wounds. Fawndance listened thoughtfully as she stretched to get a better look at the shredded ear. ”Shrewd of you, to plan for this the way you did. And there’s a sense of poetic justice to it: the old blighter’s trainer came back to bite him. I’m sure that those same skills will come in handy again soon.” Her words continued as she probed into the confines of the herb stores, one paw seeking out the familiar stickiness of cobwebs. ”You’d do well to be careful, though, dear. I hate to sound like a cliché old bat, but great strength draws envy. Envy creates more enemies. You get where I’m goin with this, I’m sure.” A fresh mixture was pressed into the cobwebs before she neatly wound the thing across the clawed ear. A smile edged on her face at the warrior’s appearance. ”You’ve been a very good patient.”

[MiNTY♥]

one night of the hunter, one day i will get revenge,
one night to remember, one day it'll all just end

In a way the two felines in the den weren’t so different, they were both thoughtful and had a habit of studying body language. This he could tell from the careful way she was studying him as she looked into his eyes. Yet he could tell that she was not discriminating against him, if that had been the case then he would have picked up on it long before now. ”I hope so.” He replied quietly, taking a moment to stare into the distance beyond the walls of the medicine cats den. For a moment he appeared dazed and unreachable but slowly he came back, wishing he hadn’t as he felt his wounds stinging as though they had just been inflicted upon him. ”I got tired of others always thinking that I wasn’t loyal because of who my father was, I couldn’t live my own life because of him. They would rarely say anything to be for fear of making the conversation awkward but I could tell they were thinking it. Now they will know just how loyal I am and that I never wanted to follow my father.” He added. In one simple sigh it felt as though all that weight of what he had just described had been lifted. For so long he had been thinking it but until now he had never actually told anyone why he had hated the black tom so much. Well, that and what he had done to his mother to ruin her life but that was even more personal and he felt a little sore on the inside even thinking about it, never mind speaking it.

”I’m sure I can deal with it, plus I won’t have to move since when I ask the apprentices will be hanging on my every word – scared that I bite.” He replied, closing his eyes and smiling a little as he imagined them all as his little minions. ”Not that I would ever treat the apprentices like that.” He added gently but at the same time he couldn’t resist taking advantage of them for a couple of sunrises. Noting that she was looking at his ear he watched it out of the corner of his eye and saw that it was still bleeding quite badly. As he started to get a bit of a headache from looking in a funny direction he screwed his eyes up and looked straight ahead. ”Well I couldn’t let my intelligence go to waste, I can be impressive on the occasion. I highly doubt I will ever go through something like this again though.” He replied. On one hand she was complimenting him but on the other she still appeared a little weary of his actions but he wasn’t bothered. Wraithlight opened his mouth to answer the medicine cat but gasped when something wet and sticky was placed upon his ear. ”Hey, you know my ear is going to be filled with that stuff until I can get out of here to clean it.” He replied with a small frown, it did feel extremely uncomfortable but he stopped himself from complaining further after she praised him. ”I am not scared, some may think of that as foolish but I’m not. I always watch my back and I’m probably more cynical than the average cat. You just have to always expect the unexpected.” He replied with a wiry smile. ”-So what now?” He asked referring to his wounds.

ANCK SU NAMUN OF CAUTION!