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forestclan-clangen · 26 days ago

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MOON 15 (FINAL)

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Shiverstep wanted to help Brackenfreckle feel more comfortable around the Clan, and with some pointers from Riftpaw, asks if she wanted to go on patrol to collect some herbs with her. She offers her an herb pouch as a gift.

(Shiverstep, medicine cat, female, 15 moons. Loving.) (Brackenfreckle, medicine cat, female, 13 moons. Grumpy.)

---

Shiverstep wasn't sure what to make of Brackenfreckle.

It was clear that she joined ForestClan only because her brother had. She chose her own suffix, despite being told that she didn't have to. She was also told that due to her age, they would have to test her abilities before determining if she was fully trained. She pointedly ignored those protests. She held a thousand questions for Redstar, trying to push her buttons and get her to reveal what ForestClan was 'really' about. Either Redstar had the patience of an elder tree, or she kept her defensiveness in check. Eventually, Brackenfreckle acquiesced to ForestClan being different from the rumors she heard.

Then she promptly told Redstar that she was a healer, had been since she was young, and she wasn't going to take a no for an answer. Redstar opened her mouth to say something - but Brackenfreckle walked away and inspected Riftpaw's brace.

If it weren't for Windfur pulling Redstar aside and saying something to her calmly, Shiverstep felt like Redstar would have dragged Brackenfreckle out of the den like a kit by the scruff. Keyword being "try", as she wasn't sure if Brackenfreckle would've allowed it.

By all means, she was surprisingly competent. There were some gaps in her knowledge - namely ointments for minor burns and casts for broken bones. She was unafraid of asking questions about herbs she didn't recognize, and only needed to be told once what something did. She was a very helpful presence when it came to helping her and Windfur.

On the other hand, she was closed off from everyone who wasn't a patient. She would eat away from everyone and respond to conversation attempts with one-word answers and grunts, only making polite conversation when being actively glared at by Riftpaw. And despite being warned against going on solo patrols without letting anyone know, she often vanished and reappeared within an hour or two, stressing many clanmates. She would always tense and respond defensively that it wasn't their business, and she was allowed to her privacy.

"She's just worried about me, and scared…don't tell her I said that," Riftpaw told Shiverstep once.

Shiverstep let this information sink. Tree, Riversnow and Olive had incorporated into ForestClan without much trouble - she couldn't imagine what it would be like for someone who was scared of the Clan to participate in it. Maybe there was something she could do to make her feel more at home?

"Is there anything she likes?" Shiverstep asked.

"Sunsets," Riftpaw said without hesitation. "And quiet walks. She likes company - though she won't admit it."

So that's what she did. With permission from Redstar - she asked if she could go on a late afternoon walk with Brackenfreckle. She would be back before the sun completely set. Redstar agreed - although not without some reluctance and worry, as she always was with her Clanmates.

Brackenfreckle was suspicious at first. Shiverstep explained it away as needing an extra set of hands to collect plantain. She offered her a small herb pouch to call her own, as a gift. She grabbed a small basket to carry her own herbs, and said that it shouldn't take too long. Brackenfreckle looked out into the woods, her eyes glazed over with unknown feeling. To her relief, Brackenfreckle accepted.

Shiverstep DID want Brackenfreckle to feel comfortable. Really, she did.

But Brackenfreckle also spent time with Endless. And she wanted to know about it.

Realistically, Shiverstep shouldn't be so fixated on that. And she likely wouldn't be, if it weren't for the pull she felt at the back of her mind when she looked into Endless' eyes, back in leafbare.

The only shared experience between her and Endless, was Rootgrove.

If Endless had the same ability she had - somehow able to hear messages from beyond - then maybe, just maybe, she wasn't alone in this world. Rootgrove said that she's the only one who could speak to him - but what if Endless simply hadn't tried before? Maybe someone else could experience trances like her, or hear kind voices. Someone else could help her save Rootgrove.

And she needed to know where she could find Endless for that.

So here she was, really hoping that she could befriend Brackenfreckle, and maybe discover where Endless was staying.

It could be going better.

Brackenfreckle had no interest in making small talk. Shiverstep tried, she really did, but the dark grey molly seemed distracted and more interested in stuffing other herbs in her new pouch.

Shiverstep tried again. "So…um…did you have a safe place to go to? Before you met us."

Brackenfreckle's tail swayed. "Yep."

"...That's, um, good to know. Was it near the Twoleg nests?"

"Kinda. Not really."

Shiverstep's ear twitched, signaling her to continue, but Brackenfreckle remained stone-faced. Shiverstep winced, avoiding her gaze. "Do you…miss it?"

Brackenfreckle's ears folded. "Why would I?"

"I mean…if there were other cats…"

"There weren't."

"...Didn't you live with Riftpaw somewhere before…?"

"I did. I'm not sharing."

Brackenfreckle's tone was final. Shiverstep looked away and said nothing more.

They trailed off into quiet silence as they made their way towards the plantain patch. They patrolled to the edges of the territory, until they bordered at the start of the steep hill that caved down into the vast lake below. The sun had begun to set behind the mountain across the lake, bathing a pale shadow over its pointed edge. Shiverstep couldn't help but stop, and admire the pink clouds and orange light that bathed the horizon.

Brackenfreckle joined Shiverstep in silent admiration of the view. Shiverstep sat down, remembering what Riftpaw told her, and did her best to resist conversation. She accepted that she would have to ask about Endless some other time.

As the sun was setting lower, Shiverstep shifted on her paws. They couldn't stay out for much longer. "Redstar would want us back before nightfall."

"Yeah…fine," Brackenfreckle mumbled. "I've got something I have to do first though. You go on ahead."

Shiverstep bristled and looked at her in surprise. But…she couldn't stay out in the woods past nightfall! A sense of dread seeped through her as she remembered Rootgrove's empty eyes in the darkness. "It's…it's not safe alone," she mewed.

"It's fine," Brackenfreckle insisted as she started padding down the inclined terrain.

"But - "

"I'm just going to make dirt, calm down."

"O-Okay, then I'll wait nearby. Go behind some oak tree."

Brackenfreckle's tail flicked in annoyance. "I want privacy, thanks. I'll be fine, just make your way back."

There was something in Bracken's voice that edged with anxiety. Shiverstep's own tail twitched. She wasn't going to accuse her, but any cat who knew of the dangers of the woods would understand how dangerous it was to go alone. She stood to her paws and grabbed the small basket she had brought with her. She gave her a pleading look.

"I can't. There's…things in the woods."

"I've been alone out here before. Stop worrying," Brackenfreckle retorted as she continued down the path at a faster pace.

"No, Brackenfreckle," Shiverstep insisted as she padded behind her quickly. "I can't."

Brackenfreckle bristled as her pace quickened down the slope until the landscape leveled out. She jumped into the undergrowth.

"Wait!" Shiverstep protested, following behind her.

"For the love of - " Brackenfreckle turned around and hissed at Shiverstep, causing the latter to startle. Shiverstep's blue eyes widened as Brackenfreckle seemed to have abrupt hostility glazed into her eyes. "I need you to leave me alone, cultist," she hissed.

"Brackenfreckle, I know you're struggling to adapt to Clan life, and I know it's hard to understand, but…the undergrowth is dangerous. Especially with limited light." Shiverstep failed to suppress the memory of the Woodcrawler she encountered as an apprentice; perfectly camouflaged among the bare shrubs. "...They look too much like branches. I want…I want to make sure you're safe. So that Riftpaw - "

"Yeah, I get it, you're scared I'll die. I've been getting by just fine for months, and I don't have to be constantly monitored for everything I do. Please just go away for ten minutes and I swear I'll be back. It's not like I want to abandon my brother," Brackenfreckle hissed.

Despite her aggressive tone, Shiverstep had the feeling that something was wrong. There was something she wasn't telling her. She looked at the molly, then glanced at the herb pouch that was around her neck.

She noticed borage sticking out of the seams.

A possibility occurred to her. Shiverstep felt an uncomfortable pang in her chest.

…How many outsiders were there around the outskirts of ForestClan territory?

She really didn't want to do this. She was already feeling bad about it. But…

"Could you leave your herbs with me, then? I'll start sorting them."

Brackenfreckle froze. Her bronze eyes burned intensely. The silence went on for too long. "...You can sort them when we get back."

"You told me you needed ten minutes. I can sort them now."

"For fuck - " Brackenfreckle growled and paced around in a circle in anger. She gave Shiverstep a hostile look. "Listen, cultist, I'm a shit liar, but I'm not stupid. I saw you looking at the borage. Maybe you don't give a shit about people who live outside of your walls - "

"Bracken, does someone need help?" Shiverstep interrupted. She stood to her feet, her heart racing. She was trying to help someone. That's why she kept vanishing for random solo patrols without telling anyone! "I don't have to know their name, or where they came from, but if someone is hurt or needs help and you haven't been telling us - "

"She doesn't want attention brought to her, she's trying to leave as soon as possible, and you guys don't care about outsiders anyway. Why would I ever tell you?" Brackenfreckle retorted, her eyes narrowing.

Shiverstep stared at her. For a moment, she saw a desperate pleading in her eyes. It vanished as soon as it appeared, and she wondered if she imagined it. Shiverstep swallowed. She looked at the sky, seeing the sunset fading with every moment.

"I…I want to tell you that it's not true, we do care what happens to outsiders," she said, her voice small. "But if someone really needs help, we don't have time to argue, right? I'll stay at a distance. I don't have to see what she looks like, if she doesn't want me to. But I can't in good conscience leave you alone, this close to nightfall."

Brackenfreckle scowled, but as she followed Shiverstep's gaze towards the sky, she shared an understanding.

"...Fine. But you can't tell anyone, alright? Not Redstar, not Windfur, no one. She's not joining your Clan. Alright?"

Shiverstep nodded quickly. She didn't have a choice, if she wanted Brackenfreckle to be safe. The dark gray cat grunted once before stalking through the ferns. She followed closely behind, relieved.

The two shuffled their way through the undergrowth quickly and silently. Shiverstep winced as branches pelted her sides from Brackenfreckle carving her own path in the ferns. She narrowed her eyes to prevent them from poking her in the face. She had never been this close to the lake before. The smell of water invaded her nostrils.

She was so focused on it that she collided with Brackenfreckle.

"Ooof - sorry - "

Brackenfreckle interrupted her tersely. "Get down."

Shiverstep complied. She was about to question the former loner, but the words left when Brackenfreckle crouched. Her eyes wavered, locking on something outside of the undergrowth in front of her.

Shiverstep's fur bristled as she picked up the milky scent of a queen…and someone else. Voices suddenly rushed into her ears, speaking hotly.

That voice...Shiverstep knew that voice.

(Blavignad, loner, female, 51 moons. Shameless.) (Endless, rogue, female, 51 moons. Sneaky.)

---

"Endless?" Shiverstep failed to suppress her gasp. Brackenfreckle whipped her head back, her face screwing up in bewilderment.

"How do you - "

"Shh," Shiverstep hissed before carefully crawling over beside Brackenfreckle. The two cats peered from underneath the layered leaves, seeing the shapes of two cats facing each other in a clearing.

"I appreciate the offer, but I ain't interested," the queen replied. She was long-haired and a reddish brown color. A ripped up, dirty green bow was wrapped around her neck. Her blue eyes were sharp.

The other was Endless. Shiverstep felt her blood turn cold. The side of her face had scarred over poorly. Her ear was shredded like torn leaves, and a long scar traced down her neck and shoulder, black and scabbed. The eye on her injured side was narrowed, half-closed.

Endless' tail waved once before she continued. "No, no, no. I don't think you understand," she hissed. "There are things in the woods. They feed on everything. There's a Clan nearby that feeds other cats to the beasts. I can't let you take that risk."

The queen's ears folded back, and Brackenfreckle tensed. She hissed under her breath, barely audible. "Don't do it Blavignad, please don't."

"Ya know fuckin' what, Endie?"

Brackenfreckle winced.

"You keep mentioning the mangy Clan cats, but you're the only cat who's botherin' me right now. I've heard your pitch, I've seen your crew, and I've seen what you can do. I ain't interested. Bracken wasn't either, by the looks of it," Blavignad retorted. She snorted and turned her back on Endless boldly, approaching a hollow, fallen oak tree.

Endless' pale green eyes flashed with anger as she stepped to approach her. "I have my doubts that she left willingly. I found her scent near that Clan border," Endless hissed. Shiverstep's heart sank at Endless' familiar vitriol. She felt Brackenfreckle's fur bristling beside her. Endless' continued, her voice strained. "You don't understand, Blav. I'm trying to protect you. Your kits. That Clan - they commune with the giant spiders. The woods have a taste for the young and the weak. If you don't find protection, you will lose everything. This is not a threat. This is a reality. I can give you the protection I give to Rex. To Hail. To Stone."

"Endie, just pipe down, alright?" Blavignad hissed. "I'm an outsider to all of y'all - never been part of a colony, or clowder, or whatever ya call them. I come from housefolk, lived by them most of my life. Got lost one day, and my attempts to get home lead me here. I don't wanna join a clowder, I wanna to find my housefolk. So again, I ain't interested."

Shiverstep's ear twitched as she picked up on something faint - a high-pitched mew coming from the oak hollow. Her eyes widened. Oh no. There were kits out here.

"And I am telling you that as long as you are out here, you are in danger," Endless seethed, her fear broiled into anger. "You would throw away your kits out of pride?"

Blavignad bristled. She slowly backed towards the entrance of the hollow. Her claws threatened to unsheath. "Leave my kits outta this."

"You are choosing to ignore the world around you. I will not…I cannot hold it away. I cannot protect you. Protect them. Out here." Endless' voice had progressively trailed off from being grounded. The molly's eyes glazed over. She took a step forward. "The corruption grows. This is its home. Its domain. Gorging on the sacrifices. I cannot bring it to heel. Not here. But there. It stops. It knows. There is…there…"

Blavignad took another step back, more warily this time. "Get back," she meowed.

Endless' eyes were still distant. After a long, uncomfortable silence, she pleaded, "Don't do this. Return with me."

Shiverstep felt the air around them turn cold. From the corner of her eye, Brackenfreckle was unmoving, her gaze frozen on the two cats.

Blavignad's expression was unchanged. She scanned the brown tabby. Then, her blue gaze hardened. "No."

Mewling kits filled the silence. Shiverstep glanced at Brackenfreckle, hoping for a sign. But the dark gray cat met her gaze and shook her head imperceptibly. Shiverstep suppressed the urge to scrape the dirt beneath her paws.

Then, Endless' left eye twitched. Her whole body shivered, as though seized by a cold wind. She began pacing in circles and ranting under her breath, her eyes wide and her teeth bared. Shiverstep recoiled, her ears flattened at the back of her head. She strained, and failed, to understand her words.

Blavignad did not react. She maintained her eye contact with the rogue. Endless' muttering grew louder; more coherent.

"...You cannot, I WILLED it, you will have your fill, it's not this one, not this one," her muttering got quieter and quieter. Blavignad lost her patience, as she finally hissed and gave a warning swipe. Endless caterwauled in response, overreacting to the swipe with an arched back, bristling on end and snarling teeth.

"Get back, Endie," Blavignad snarled. Her tail thrashed with annoyance. "The goodwill ya had is gone. Fuck off."

Endless snapped. She leapt at the queen and pinned her to the floor, her face twisted with wrath. She sunk her teeth into Blavignad's front leg and thrashed her head like a dog. The queen caterwauled in terror as she writhed to retaliate. Endless only bit down harder and raked her claws across her victim's pelt.

Brackenfreckle yowled, finally leaping out of the bushes with outstretched claws.

Endless' gaze whipped towards the undergrowth. Before Brackenfreckle could reach her, Blavignad scratched at Endless' underside with her hind legs. Endless hissed and released her leg, dragging a chunk of fur with her. She barely missed Brackenfreckle's claws. She spat the fur on the floor, her eyes wild with foreign anger. "You. You're here?"

"L-Let her go," Brackenfreckle stammered. Her tail was bristling. "Please, let her go, Endless!"

Kits mewled in distress. Blavignad hissed in pain as she scrambled to her feet, keeping her injured leg off the ground. Shiverstep couldn't take it anymore and stood from her hiding place, shadowing Brackenfreckle's advance. Endless attacked a nursing mother, right when she was trying to convince her to stay safe. This was not normal. She was not sound of mind. Shiverstep wanted to talk to Endless - but…it couldn't be like this.

"Endless. This isn't normal. You're not…we are not your enemy."

Endless' eyes met hers.

Shiverstep continued, forcing her voice to steady. "Please leave."

She didn't expect Endless' snarl to morph from rage into exasperated laughter, then grief.

"Of course, of course they were insistent. Of course." Endless' torn face twisted back towards a struggling Blavignad, causing her to freeze. A look of pity swept over her face as she said, "You have to run. Away from these ones. Your only hope."

Before Blavignad could spit anything else, Endless climbed into the nearest tree…and leapt from branch to branch, away from the clearing.

"God-damned lunatic," Blavignad spat as she started licking her wound. She hissed as she looked more closely at the injury. "She sprained my paw. Damn it."

"Blavi," Brackenfreckle quickly darted to her side and started looking at the wound. Brackenfreckle's distant demeanor vanished, replaced with anxiety. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry about the Clan cat too, she's harmless, I promise you - "

Shiverstep felt a pang in her chest. Confusion, hurt and sadness overwhelmed her all at once. Why did Brackenfreckle talk about her like that? Was the fact that she was a Clan cat really a source of fear to others? Was the leader before Redstar truly so bloodthirsty that its impact was felt even by outsiders? Tree wasn't afraid of her. Olive wasn't afraid of her. Riversnow was wary, but she had warmed up to the Clan significantly.

Why did Endless speak of ForestClan like they were monsters? She helped her. She just…

Her parting words left a lingering dread.

"Of course they were insistent. Of course."

Shiverstep felt…wrong.

She slowly padded away from the two, standing where Endless once stood. She stared into the treeline that Endless disappeared in. She had run in the direction of the Twoleg cabins.

She said she was…protecting cats. She insisted this was what she was doing. And yet…

The medicine cat didn't know what compelled her to do what she did next. There was no sign. No smell. No sound. The conversation between Brackenfreckle and Blavignad had faded into the muffled background of her mind. She felt her heart thundering in her chest. Something in her whispered quietly for her to look to her right. Towards the lake.

So she did.

She stared into the treeline. The sunset bathed the trunks of long birches and oaks with orange light. The lake was barely visible, only given away by the reflections off the water.

And…

They had to leave. They had to leave NOW.

Her mind screamed at her to run. As the outline of the wretched skull and jagged teeth bore through the world, Shiverstep lost all memory of the cat trapped within. All she could remember were the twisting roots, the widened grins, the empty, black eyes, the voice that groaned and echoed so deeply within, that it felt like it tore the cords from something living in its stomach.

She couldn't move.

"Hey, Shiverstep." Brackenfreckle approached her, looking frustrated. "I'm helping to move Blavignad's nest, come help." Upon seeing the look of dread on the cat's face, Brackenfreckle warily stared out into the treeline. When she finally caught it, her fur bristled and her lips curled into a snarl. "What is that?"

Shiverstep's teeth chattered. The dying sunset was warm. She was so cold.

"Shiver?" Brackenfreckle's voice betrayed her. "Shiver, what is that?"

"Hey, is something wrong with her too?" Blavignad said a bit too loudly for Shiverstep's comfort, causing her to hiss involuntarily.

Brackenfreckle was the one to raise her tail towards Blavignad, then said in hushed tones, "There's something out there."

The tone Brackenfreckle used must've frightened the queen. She bristled, then quickly picked up a black kit in her mouth. Brackenfreckle glanced at her, then tilted her head towards the undergrowth - indicating to the basket of herbs Shiverstep had brought with them. Brackenfreckle mouthed quickly, "Put them in there. Quiet."

Shiverstep felt her heart thundering in terror. Rootgrove was still. Too still. How long had he been there?

As her eyes were locked on the shadow of death, her heart thundered. Breathe. Breathe. She had to breathe. She tried to remember the night she protected Riversnow's kits. She tried to speak certainties. Shiverstep. Her name was Shiver…

You will die.

Nothing was louder than the fear.

In the hurricane of memories, one sound gently tapped at her mind. Past the horrific visage of the roots, the reverberating mockery of life, the skull, she remembered the sound of the Silver Box.

…Help. Please.

She's scared. She knows she needs to be brave, but without StarClan, without the Half-Moon Dome, she feels so scared.

Can you hear her?

She feels her mind turning numb.

Please. She's begging you.

She calls

you...

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