the « F i R S T » gathering

[kitsune]

The Gathering

february 2010 | current status: open | current mood: peaceful

---

The evening's softened sunset has faded to a sky of deep azure, interrupted only by the soft twinkling of far-off stars. A perfectly-full moon hangs at the center of the sky like Horus' eye, bright and aware, watching down upon the cats that will soon gather. Greenwing's soft grass has been swept by the winds that carry the warm promise of the approaching Greenleaf, and the trees surrounding the clearing stand like proud guardians, some bedecked in elegant suits of pastel flowers.
The stage is set.
StarClan calls.
Will you answer?

[/center]

---

ooc: Alright, buddies, here's how it works. Any of your cats can attend the Gathering. That's right, any of them! EbonyClan, IvoryClan, street cat, kittypet, even any loners and rogues that might be stalkin' it up.
Well...
It's recommended that recently exiled cats shouldn't attend. You know how it goes; angry Clan cats just can't seem to keep their claws to themselves.
However, only the leaders of Ebony and IvoryClan are allowed to speak.
Gatherings operate in liquid time: meaning, a character can be in one other place and at the Gathering. At the same time! We can bend the laws of time and space like that just because we're that awesome.
An added incentive for having your kitties attend the Gathering: free items! That's right, this Gathering we're giving out High Climber, Colored Nose, Earrings, and Bow. How do you enter? Just post with your cat and we'll determine who gets what with a random draw at the very end. (You can't pick what item you get. If you don't want to take the chance of getting an unwanted item, just make a note on your post saying you don't want to enter your cat in the lottery.)
Well, what are you waiting for? [/size]

[Dreams]

Ravenstar

The wind drifted slowly through the forest, rustling the leaves and creating a hiss, hushing the cats into a humble silence. This was a night of peace and assembly; any foolish cat that dare break this vow in the Code would no doubt suffer the wrath of StarClan. Here, the EbonyClan leader waited in silence, hidden by the bushes. A faint smell of mixed Clan scents, along with the wild scent of loners and rogues, rose up from Greenwing. It was a comforting scent; it was always comforting to meet at Greenwing and not have to constantly watch your back or your borders. And anyways, if IvoryClan used this truce to their advantage, it would give EbonyClan an excuse for war and to have StarClan backing up their cause. However, IvoryClan was known to keep to the Code. Ah well. Ravenstar would have to live with disappointment. Straightening up, the EbonyClan leader raised his head and tail proudly, then yowled, "To the Gathering!"

[/color] Ravenstar thundered forward, his large paws pounding on the earth. Any of his faster Clanmates would easily pass him, but his stride was strong and intimidating.

As the tom ran forward, he bunched his leg muscles and in one easy, practiced bound he made it to the top of a large boulder that stood as the Leader's Rock. Here he would address his Clanmates and IvoryClan. Ravenstar sat down and huffed a bit, then licked a paw. Typical... EbonyClan is first to arrive.[/color] He snorted and rubbed the paw on his head, making his fur shine. A purplish gleam shimmered through his pelt, hinting at the reason why he was cursed with the prefix "Raven".
[/size]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Tickle_Me_Hannah]

Ivypaw

Ivypaw sat ready. It would be her first gathering and she felt extremely excited. She waited for the signal from Fernstar. She tried to best to stay out of the way of the other warriors, but she sometimes failed. She stuck to a small corner of camp where the other aprentices were. She kept twitching in place, earning glares from the other apprentices. She curled her tail around her legs as if to hold her excitement in. She imagined all the sights. She wondered what the other cats would look like. She tried to picture Ravenstar from the stories she had heard as a kit. Even with her great imagination, she could not quite concentrate long enough. She licked her chest fur, trying to appear calmer and failing. The tip of her tail twitched. When she had been told she was goig to the gathering, she had been unable to contain her excitement . Her mentor had to eventually send her to take care of the elders. They were not happy with her chattering. She didn't let them dampen her mood, however. She was glad she could go and nothing was going to ruin her night.

[FyrePhlye]

Pantherfang

Slightly behind Ravenstar, Pantherfang sat and waited. She was probably barely visible to anyone else since she looked like an apprentice compared to the leader. The she-cat opened her mouth so she could scent the other cats in Greenwing better. She could taste the scent of loners and kittypets... but not IvoryClan yet... Well, they would be along soon enough. She hoped they didn't take too long, she couldn't bear the thought of waiting for an incredibly long time to hear the announcements.

At Ravenstar's yowl she prepared to bound down to the clearing. She easily overtook the leader and ran down to take a place to sit on the lush grass. She had had to weave around a few kittypets and a bigger cat almost didn't see her when he walked but here she was. Unscathed and ready to hear the announcements. The moon shown down on her black fur as she waited. Its light highlighted the black spots that were so well hidden on her black fur.

[kitsune]

Catastrophe

Catastrophe padded into the clearing as if she had every right in the world to be in Greenwing on this sacred night of the clancat's.
And, well, she did.
The full moon was the one time they stopped clawing each other's fur out and preached a message of peace, allowing any cat that pleased to attend their Gathering. Cat was a regular attendant - she might not have cared too much for the Clans' overcomplicated hierarchy and some of their ideals, but she did like to keep tabs on her neighbors... even if those neighbors tended to look down on her, as if she were a fleabitten alley rat.
The she-cat felt as if the moonlight had become her fur; the starlight hugged her body like a second skin, and her tail waved lazily in the air as she meandered amongst the crowd. It seemed that IvoryClan wasn't here yet... unusual for them to be late, wasn't it? Finally, though, Catastrophe had made it to the front; she sat amongst the ferns that surrounded the boulder and tilted her head towards the EbonyClan leader in a polite greeting. "'Evening, Ravenstar," she mewed to the tom up , voice calm and cheerful. "how's the prey running for your bunch?" True, the leader of the street cats wasn't known for being formal, but she'd greet the pompous Clannies all the same.

[kitsune]

Oscar

Hm, his old clan probably despised him. He'd abandoned them as casually as if they were yesterday's crowfood, after all, and hadn't lost a single night's sleep over it.
Then again, the Gathering was open to all - even mangy loners. Even pampered kittypets fat from Fancy Feast with fur greasy from grubby twoleg fingers.
Lionfeather - or Oscar, as he was now called - padded softly through the forest, marvelling at how familiar and at the same time how alien his surroundings were. The trees that he had once seen as familiar guardians firmly planted at their outposts were now shadowy, exotic creatures that might trip him up at any moment. The soft hoots, croaks, and chirps of tinier creatures mingling permeated the forest, giving the bizarre situation an outlandish soundtrack to play by.
Truly strange, to be this deep in the forest after all of this time. Truly fascinating.
Oscar's head jerked in the direction of the sound of rustling, chuckling at himself when he realized it was only a little vole scampering about in the loam. The plump tom was terribly out of practice when it came to hunting, and technically the area around Greenwing was no one's territory... a little hunt wouldn't hurt anything. He'd give the freshkill to some apprentice, show those silly furballs that not all kittypets were as soft as they seemed --
The merry tinkling of his silver bell alerted the prey early on, and it disappeared into its hole before he could even blink.

[/size]
"Hmph. Didn't want that thing anyway, looked tough as worms' meat."
Lionfeather sat for a moment and groomed the stray specks of dirt out of his sun-colored fur before he stood and breached the edge of Greenwing's clearing. He stayed at the edge of the crowd, frowning a little to himself; it seemed that only EbonyClan had arrived yet.[/color][/blockquote]

[kitsune]

Falconpaw

Falconpaw followed his leader closely, disguising his palpitable excitement with his typical aura of disdain. It wasn't his first Gathering - he'd attended one in Leafbare - but it would be the first one he could enjoy without chattering teeth.
He wasn't sure how much he'd enjoy it, though - while the whole idea of 'communing with the ancestors, renewing the vows of the Warrior Code, and following the will of StarClan' sounded exciting and all, the snooty apprentice didn't think too much of mingling with filthy IvoryClan flotsam... and worse yet, loners. Apparently they even let kittypets attend.
Falconpaw sat surveyed the small crowd - mostly EbonyClan thus far - like a prince taking account of his kingdom, tail curling in anticipation despite his current hesitance. His immaculately groomed pelt glimmered in the moonlight's embrace; the apprentice was a prime example of EbonyClan's standards, and --
His eyes flit to the overweight kittypet looking uncomfortable at the edge of the crowd, and Falconpaw wrinkled his nose as if some unpleasant scent had just wafted by. Padding over to his mentor, the apprentice mewed loudly, "I know the Gathering's open for everyone, but must they let in the riffraff? I mean, really."

[Dreams]

Ravenstar

Ravenstar sweleved his ears, then turned his head to look at Catastrophe. He had seen her here many times before. She always included herself in the Gatherings, though Ravenstar definitely do not think she should participate, the will of StarClan has shown she--and other non-Clan cats--are always welcome. He snorted and flickered his ear slightly. These other cats had no business to know the life of the Clans, especially Catastrophe. She and her little group of cats have a backwards society compared to the glorious and right path of StarClan. However, he did respect the she-cat as a formidable foe and he returned her greeting. "Good evening to you as well, Catastrophe. The prey is bountiful, as always. How does it fare for you?"

[LuMe]

LuMe[/font]-loner and lurker[/i][/size][/font]

Silver blue eyes peeked warily out of a patch of thorny bushes,
which, although not a very ideal hiding spot, was a suitable
one for Lume's purposes. It wasn't spying, not really. After
a while of feeling guilty Lume had changed the very words
'eavesdropping' and 'spying' with 'observing'. She figured
this was very necessary for her survival and way of life, so
she eventually stopped feeling bad. After all, it was finders
keepers, wasn't it? One sure thing she had learned in her
long life as a loner, cats would say anything if they figured
no one was around to hear. "Slack Jaws." She muttered
to herself. And you're rambling off again. She thought.
You're going to be called mad. Lume smiled at the thought,
and continued to watch the curious ways of the clan cats
in a disinterested sort of way. She easily picked out a leader,
a raven-colored cat standing next to another possible leader,
but she was a bit more scruffy and looked to be a city cat.

[Blaze]

Hawkflight

The Gathering, always such a pleasant meeting of all the clans, if only all the other cats didn't show. He didn't really care about the loners or the kittypets, but the streetcats were a different story. That, however, didn't show. His forever calm facade stayed smoothly on his face as he looked around at all the cats. Upon noticing Ravenstar talking with Catastrophe he decided to go and listen to the conversation. Part of him was going because of how protective he was of Ravenstar, just because he was almost like a Father figure to him, while the other part of him was just generally curious. He padded over to sit next to his leader silently, nodding in the direction of Catastrophe in silent greeting.

[LuMe]

D[/font]-A-I-S-Y-P-A-W[/size] -sailing away someday

Daisypaw made her way slowly into the steadily growing group of cats, some of them milling about uncomfortable, some with pride, and others who looked like they might just die of fright. Daisypaw thought they were all humorous. There really wasn't much of a differance between her chattering leader and the Street Cats', they both seemed to be made of the same stuff leaders are made of. Then again, all leaders sort of had to have this proud pizazz, this prancy sort of 'I am your leader' junk. Not that she didn't respect her clan leader.
She eventually walked daintily into the field, her paws looking as though they were swimming through the ground. Or at least, that was what Jinglepaw would have said. Daisypaw hadn't seen her friend since the last gathering, and was hoping he would be here. She craned her neck, trying not to be too obvious, but desperately wanting to see one of her only buddies. He was the one who'd encouraged her to look at all cats as the same, he had this idealist sort of look on life that Daisypaw desperately wished she possessed.

[/color]

[Skye]

Fernstar[/size]

»Fernstar cast a glance around Greenwing, lingering in the trees. The tiny she-cat sat on a log, watching as the other cats filed in. Eventually she leaped down, motioning with her tail for her cats to follow. She padded out into the clearing, moonlight staining her fur silver. She glanced behind her at her Clan-mates, before moving off to join the other leaders, and a EbonyClan cat.

She paused by them shyly, dipping her head in greeting, not saying anything as to intrupt their conversation. Her green irises shifted to gaze up at the full moon that hung in the sky, her tail curling neatly around her paws. After a minute she glanced up at the other three cats (yes, glanced up--) and decided to make conversation with the EbonyClan-cat. "You're---Hawkflight, aren't you?" she asked, tilting her head.

ooc: Gathering gathering gathering gathering
muse: ehh
muse-ic:

[/blockquote]

[Blaze]

Hawkflight

Hawkflight was busy staring at the clouds when Fernstar had padded up next to him. It wasn't until she spoke that he looked over...and then down at her. He shifted so he was facing her, his tail resting on his front paws as he sat back on his haunches. "Ah, Fernstar, yes I'm Hawkflight. It's a pleasure to meet you in person." He spoke in a calm and friendly tone, but nodded to show his respect for her. It seemed like it had been a long time since he'd last seen the Ivoryclan's leader, but this was the first time they had actually spoken. For a moment his gaze moved to the sky again before sifting through the crowd of cats that had now came together in the clearing. After a moment his attention returned to Fernstar and he listened to what she had to say.

[kitsune]

Catastrophe

The sleek she-cat observed him closely, disguising her bemusement with a respectful flick of her whiskers. She doubted that Ravenstar had a very high opinion of her - the EbonyClan in particular seemed to cling to the old customs and traditions, and a cautious sort of formality seemed to seep into his every word. "Glad to hear it," she replied lightly. "Everyone needs a gentle Newleaf after the snow." Catastrophe had barely stopped herself from saying 'spring' instead of 'newleaf.' "We're doing fine -- Fernstar!" She greeted the female leader enthusiastically, pausing to give the warrior she was conversing with a nod of acknowledgement. When it came to Clan leaders, she preferred the petite IvoryClan leader over her masculine counterpart, no matter what either of them thought of her. "How's your Clan been? I -- probably better let you two get on with it. It's almost midnight."

[/blockquote]

[Dreams]

Ravenstar

Ravenstar nodded lightly at her comment, glancing at Fernstar in welcome. His whiskers twitched slightly as Catastrophe switched from him to the IvoryClan leader but it hardly bothered him. Fernstar was a calming and sweet; a perfect disguise. Oh he knew the troubles of being a leader. Obeying StarClan's orders, organizing the cats, keeping everyone alive, etc. It was difficult work and Ravenstar knew that a sweet, innocent cat couldn't handle the pressure nor the stress. Besides, he had seen Fernstar in battle; though she wasn't very strong, she was fast. It was a feat to catch her. So, as the other cats conversed, Ravenstar stood up and stretched his front legs in front of him, then each back leg in turn. He cleared his throat and gave a look to Fernstar. "Shall we begin...?"

[/color]
[/size]
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]