TWG | FC Assignment | A Cloudy Sunset

A few white, puff clouds littered the otherwise perfectly blue skies that shone above the unforgiving gorge, the display of such wonderful weather a rarity during the leaf bare, but a welcome change to those who wished for nothing more than to catch a few rays of sunshine.  Stepping out of the nursery, a beautiful pale gray tabby looked up at the sky with equally blue eyes, her gaze shining with wonder at the sight.  It had been far too long since a day as perfect as this had presented itself, and even longer since the last time she had stepped out of the nursery for a prolonged time.  Soon feeling a bump by her left hind leg - one of the very reasons she had not strayed too far from camp even - Cloudydawn turned to look around, quickly spotting her son, Ashenkit, standing beside her with his sister right behind.  A loving smile lit her features as she bent down to lick the two kits tenderly between the ears, earning squeals of delight from both.

Proceeding to take this as a cue from their mother that it was okay to go play outside, the two growing kits tumbled to the camp clearing along the other playing kits.  Following her little ones with her gaze, Cloudydawn soon spotted an oddity in the camp.  Desertrose, the head queen of the nursery, was laying down close to the playing kits, looking slightly nervous at being outside but not quite as jittery as was the norm.  Assuming that even the shy, mute queen had found it impossible to resist the alluring call of the oddly pleasant day, Cloudydawn approached her, making sure to make some noise as she padded towards her as to not startle the delicate queen.  True to form, Desertrose turned a terrified look in Cloudydawn's direction at the sound of approaching paw steps, but visibly calmed down as soon as she realized the one closing in was a fellow nursery queen.

The mute queen gave a shy smile at her denmate as she approached, trying her hardest to not turn her gaze directly to the ground before her in as submissive a way as possible.  Cloudydawn's ear twitched slightly, uncomfortable by the poor queen's awkwardness yet feeling sympathetic, knowing full well how terrifying speaking to others was and not even wanting to imagine how much harder it must be when words could not be spoken back.  Sitting down slightly beside her but with enough distance between the two as to not frighten her more, Cloudydawn turned her attention once more to the kits, soon seeing the queen relax entirely as her own focus changed to her charges and those who played with them.  A small hint of respect pressed at Cloudydawn's chest, wondering how a queen who could not even communicate with others could be so good at raising the young, orphaned kits of FireClan with such love and care.  Turning to face her, intent on saying a small compliment, Cloudydawn's gaze caught the entry to the warrior's den and her mind quickly formed an idea on how to spend the day, s smile lighting her face at the thought.

"E-excuse me... Desertrose?" Cloudydawn started, her usual stammer plaguing her at the thought of asking the queen for a favor.

The sandy colored she cat turned her gaze towards the younger queen, shock at being called by name first showing in her features before they softened once more.  Tilting her head slightly to the side, she let Cloudydawn know that she was listening, her slightly raised hackles clearly showing she was afraid she had done something wrong.  Letting go of a breath she had been holding after calling the queen, Cloudydawn tried to stead her voice before continuing.

"U-um...  I was- I was wondering if... if perhaps it would be alright if I- if I asked for you to take care of Ashenkit and M-Mossykit for the day?  N-not the full day, j-just a little while?  The day's so pretty, I just thought i-it'd be nice to have a walk before the h-heat stroke sun sets.  B-but if you would rather not, I c-completely understand a-" Cloudydawn mewed, beginning to ramble as her resolve wavered but stopping herself short when she saw the queen relax once more, a genuine smile on her lips as she nodded.  "O-oh... does that mean it's okay?"

Desertrose nodded once more, a kind, motherly shine in her eye as she indicated she was fine with two more kits, making Cloudydawn beam at her and give her a very bouncy thanks, forcing a purr out of her companion before she headed out to the warrior's den.  Poking her head inside to look for any sign of her mate, a pout made it's way to her maw, her ears dropping visibly.  Unsurprisingly, the warrior's den was empty for all except Dawncloud - who seemed to be heading out at that moment - and an apprentice checking the lining of moss in the different nests, making sure they were all well kept for the upcoming cold months.  The sight of her old mentor made butterflies course through her stomach, the usual nervousness there whenever she was in the presence of the powerful, aggressive tom.  Ever since she had been named a warrior, however, she had found him much more likeable and much less scary, this having been reinforced upon seeing him with his kit in the nursery.

"Dawncloud?" she called, flinching only slightly as the tom turned his fierce gaze upon her at the mention of his name.

"Whu-  Hrmhp, Cloudydawn, what are ya doin' 'ere?  Lookin' fer yer mate?" he asked in his usual snarl of a voice, although to Cloudydawn's relief there was no malice in it, prompting her to nod.  "Har, yer too late.  Him an' dat buddy of 'is, Blackfire, ran off a while ago ta go huntin'.  Think they wanted ta enjoy the weather an' stuff, so they were going ta head off farther than the huntin' parties normally go.  I wouldn't expect them back 'til the heat stroke sun, an' dat's if they don't find shelter elsewhere ta keep huntin' after the day's cooled off sum'," he finished, a sneer of approval on his face at the thought of them both challenging themselves as well as providing for the clan in one go.

"O-oh," Cloudydawn mewed in disappointment before shaking her head clear and nodding.  "T-thanks Dawncloud.  I g-guess I'll go do some hunting too!" she finished, earning an approving nod from her mentor before she smiled and headed out the camp's entrance as well, eager to be as useful as her mate and maybe even bump into him along the way.

---

"Damn it Blackfire, hurry up!" came Cliffstalker's muffled voice, two lizards and a particularly plump snake dangling from his mouth as he entered the clan's camp in a rush.

"Don't you dare blame this on me!  We wouldn't be so late if it wasn't for you!  Really, am I the only one with any sense here?" Blackfire responded in an equally muffled voice from besides Cliffstalker, shooting a glare at the tom; a glare that was received with a smug smirk that served only to fuel his annoyance more.

Remaining quiet as the two rushed towards the fresh kill pile - an area well guarded by shade to avoid exposing the prey to the elements - and dropped their loot there, a sense of hurry in their pawsteps.  It was almost sun high, and the heat stroke sun was almost licking at their pelts, the day slowly becoming heavier and heavier with unbearable heat.  Taking a look at the nursery, Cliffstalker considered sneaking in to say hello to Cloudydawn before leaving for the warrior's den until the sun lowered, but decided against this and soon followed Blackfire.  He was met by most of the warriors already curled up sleeping in an afternoon nap while the heat resided, and the comforting warmth of the many bodies in there soon made his own eyelids heavy with sleep.  Lazily heading towards his nest with a yawn, Cliffstalker settled down, his consciousness slowly fading away as sleep took over.

---

"-ke up..... ea... iffst- ....  I SAID WAKE UP YA LAZY VERMIN!"

With a blood curling meow and a hiss, the mottled tom leaped into the air before landing on his paws, his fur standing on end, making his already raised ridge line of fur down his back looking even messier than usual.  Sides heaving with the shock of the powerful, booming voice that had just woken him from slumber, Cliffstalker glared with orange eyes at the intruder, glaring daggers once he lay eyes on an annoyed looking Dawncloud.  In a nearby nest Blackfire could be spotted, seemingly surprised by the loud voice that had woken him up as well, yet unable to mask a smug, mocking grin on his face at the state of his friend.  Trying to calm himself down, Cliffstalker took a deep breath, shaking himself slightly before settling on a much prouder pose.  A sneer on his face, Blackfire got up and joined the two toms, the emptyness of the warrior's den hinting that they should have woken up some time ago anyways, meaning going back to sleep was out of the question.

"What do you want, you brute?  Is keeping a decent volume of voice impossible for a gruff idiot like you?" Cliffstaker drawled in an annoyed voice, clearly embarrassed at this turn of events and trying his hardest to regain composure.

"Hrmph... ya better watch yar tone, Cliffstalker.  Wouldn't want ya ta have ta go out ta find yer mate without legs, now would ya?" Dawncloud snarled in a dangerous tone, his eyes glinting at the prospect of a fight.

"What are you talking about?" Cliffstalker asked in a bored voice, tempted to ignore the tabby tom but the mention of his mate keeping him interested.

Blackfire remained quiet, quirking a fuzzy eyebrow in Dawncloud's direction.  The massive tom's eyes narrowed dangerously, yet it would seem that whatever he had to say was important enough that he was heavily restraining from carrying out his threat.  It was not like Dwncloud to hold back on carrying these out - or at least trying to before his own mate or Kindlestar caught him and stopped him - making the dark tom curious.  Could something have happened to Cloudydawn?  Thinking that she had seemed just fine the last time they saw her, Blackfire simply shrugged as Cliffstalker caught his eye, unsure of what to make of it.

If she's in the medicine cat den, Cliffstalker is going to be impossible to live with or a while... Blackfire thought, irritated as he turned his gaze to Dawncloud once more.

"I'm talkin' 'bout your precious mate.  I went out ta da nursery to check up on Windsong and Featherkit... couldn't see Cloudydawn anywhere, and her kits were hanging 'round with Desertrose," the tom said in a gruff voice, the snarl not fully gone from his tone.  "I talked ta her this mornin'.  She came in 'ere lookin' for ya both.  Told her ya had gone off huntin' already and she took off.  I think she was thinkin' o' catching up with the both of ya, but seeing as how the both of ya are here and she ain't, I'm gonna 'sume that wasn' the case."

"Meaning what, exactly?" Cliffstalker responded, striving to maintain his air of indifference but failing as a hint of worry broke through his features.

This reaction made Dawncloud growl deeply, annoyed.  How stupid could this tom be?  What his apprentice had seen in the over-confident moron was beyond him.  Taking a deep breath to try to keep his promise to his mate that he would not tear the tom a new one if he annoyed him, he shook himself lightly, trying to calm down.

"Look, I know Cloudydawn is a big cat an' she can take care of 'erself out there, but fact is I ain't ever seen her away from her kits for this long.  I spoke ta Kindlestar abou' it, and she can't afford to send a search party yet.  Says she's a grown cat an' she hasn' been missin' for all that long.  She did say ya both are relieved from yar evening patrols to search for her.  Ya both know her scent better than anyone anyways, so it'd be quicker.  She might have sprained somethin' and is having trouble gettin' back... I'm sure she would 'preciate her mate comin' to her aid if that's the case," the larger tom spat, his voice growing a bit softer as his explanation continued, though, hinting at the concern he felt for his previous apprentice.

Trying his hardest not to become a nervous wreck, Cliffstalker nodded stiffly, letting Dawncloud know he had heard him.  Turning to Blackfire, a worried look on his face, he didn't wait for confirmation, knowing from his friend's look that he was ready to go look for the she-cat with him.  The black furred tom might not agree with Cliffstalker's sense of urgency on all things involving Cloudydawn, but knowing that the mottled tom would not rest easy until he found his mate and made sure she was alright, he ran forth with him, pausing only when Cliffstalker did at the den's entrance, and looked with confusion as his friend called Dawncloud's name.

"What'd ya want now?" Dawncloud growled, his eyes flashing menacingly at the duo once more.

"Thank you... for letting me know," Cliffstalker mewed sincerely, grateful the warrior had gone as far as informing Kindlestar of his mate's disappearance.

"Hrmph...  I ain't got time fer yer sentimentality.  Scram already before ya got ta limp ta her."

---

The duo ran through the gorge with outstanding speed, each keeping easily up to par with the other.  They had been following the faint scent they had finally found after what had felt like hours, the sun now beginning to set and bringing an orange hue to the sky.  The trail was hard to follow, the open, windy plains easily sweeping away the dust that might have left paw prints to follow while the scent of FireClan overpowered the scent of any one particular cat from the clan, making Cloudydawn's scent mask itself among the others.  There were no sounds hinting at a cat in pain, which helped ease Cliffstalker's mind until a horrifying scent reached their nostrils, making Cliffstalker's eyes grow wide while Blackfire's narrowed dangerously.  The overpowering scent of cat blood.

Friends exchanged glances before they rushed to the source of the smell, their paws now pounding hard on the earth as they recognized a particular cat's scent among the reek of death.  As soon as their paws had begun to run they stopped, screeching to a halt at the sight before them.  A sour, shocked expression crossed Blackfire's face as a wail of anguish escaped Cliffstalker's mouth, resounding into the now cloudy, blood red sky.  Before them lay the mangled, mutilated body of a gray tabby she cat spread over a pool of blood, no doubt her own from the amount of gashes and torn flesh she displayed.  Almost stumbling, his legs no longer seeming to be able to hold him up, Cliffstalker crawled next to the corpse, her name leaving his maw over and over in moans of agony and desperation, hoping that perhaps if he called her names enough times she would surprise them and wake up, letting them know she had been doing nothing more than resting her eyes for a spell.

"Oh... oh Cloudydawn no...  No not my Clouddawn..." Cliffstalker mewled pitifully, his muzzle pressed against his mate's cold flank.  "Who could have done something like this to you?  Oh why, StarClan?  Why my Cloudydawn?"

Despite his gruff, normally aloof behavior - much like his friend's - Blackfire couldn't help but feel torn at Cliffstalker's display of emotion.  While normally he would consider such a petty form of wailing as a sign of weakness, now was not the time to keep pride above all else.  His mate had just been torn to shreds, leaving not only him behind but his two beloved kits as well, a sight no warrior would ever wish upon anyone else.  Allowing his friend a moment to grieve, he took it upon himself to keep a level head, wanting to gather as much information of the area and the scents in it before the elements washed them away, knowing his friend could use this knowledge to his advantage when the time for revenge came to hand.  And yet try as much as he could, while he could, he could not catch a discernible scent, something that troubled him greatly as it led him to just one conclusion, and it was a conclusion he knew Cliffstalker would not like.

"Who could have done something like this indeed..." Blackfire muttered coldly, his hackles raising slightly as he became more and more unnerved by his findings, or rather lack there of.

"What are you muttering?" Cliffstalker snapped irritably, his eyes leaving Cloudydawn for a moment as he turned his attention to his friend.  "What are you even doing?  Am I boring you?  If I am, then maybe you can stop your pacing and help me get Cloudydawn back to FireClan.  She... she's going to need a vigil," he spat, his tone degrading from irritated to sorrowful as he turned his attention back to his dead mate.

"You only bore me when you jump to pointless conclusions, you mouse brained idiot!" Blackfire snapped back, then took a deep breath as he remembered that it was mostly the grief making his - normally similarly behaviored - friend this way.  "I'm just trying to catch a scent... trying to find out who did this to Cloudydawn."

This comment instantly attracted Cliffstalker's attention, and the grief in his eyes quickly mixed with a building rage as he stood up from besides his mate.  Opening his mouth, he took in the scents surrounding him, and was soon left feeling confused.  While there was no doubt in his mind that Cloudydawn had been killed before the heat stroke sun was above them, this was no reason for the killer's scent to have been gone.  True that at this point it would have been impossible to identify who exactly had done it, but a lingering scent hinting at which clan - or if it had been a rogue - had done it, yet the longer he searched, the less he found.  Surrounding him, there was nothing more than the strong scent of Cloudydawn's blood and FireClan cats, a fact that had obviously not escaped Blackfire's notice as he turned to glance at him and saw the raven warrior eyeing him with an expression that looked as confused as he felt.

"This scent..." he finally muttered, trying to gather his thoughts.

"You noticed too, didn't you?" Blackfire muttered, disgust steadily creeping into his voice.  "If it tells us anything at all... then..."

"Whoever killed my mate was from FireClan.  I will DESTROY them," Cliffstalker yowled with rage, his eyes flashing dangerously as he proceeded to march back to camp, stopping only when he heard Blackfire call him back.

"I know you're upset, I am too... but we can't just leave Cloudydawn here," Blackfire stated in a matter-of-fact voice at his friend's questioning look.

"What?  You expect me to take her back?" Cliffstalker asked in a furious voice, his hackles raised with hatred.  "Whoever killed her is back at the camp.  I WILL NOT let them have the satisfaction of having my mate's body brought back to them so they can gloat at the grief they have caused.  No... I will have my vengeance before I let that happen!"

---

Light-hearted, teasing laughter could be heard close to the camp entrance as a pair of cats approached, looking very much absorbed in a world of their own.  The tom whispered something at the she-cat's ear, making her purr with amusement and whisper something back, in turn making the tom look positively flustered, helping amuse the she-cat further.  It was now almost night-time, the setting sun giving only the smallest hints of light as they crossed the massive boulders that formed the walls surrounding FireClan's camp.  Brightsong stretched lightly at the entrance, her good mood making her slightly unwilling for once to face her brother once he saw her back and began accusing her of having abandoned her for the day to spend the day with Redsun instead.  The tom besides her seemed to have picked up on this as well, for he had already turned towards her with an amused look in his face.

"Perhaps I should head to the warrior's den before Russetmask shows up, no?  Wouldn't want to further aggravate him, after all," he mewed innocently, blinking his gray eyes at Brightsong.

"Oh no you don't!" Brightsong reprimanded, a glimmer of mischief in her eyes.  "If I have to hear him ranting at me, I'm taking you down with me."

"Ugh... so unfair.  You must have grabbed that sadistic streak of yours from Viperfang," he responded, sticking his tongue out at her.

"Just for that, I'm goin-"

What exactly she was going to do went unsaid, as at that moment her name could be heard being called in an annoyed voice by none other than Russetmask.  Flinching slightly like a kit caught sneaking into the leader's den during a particularly important meeting, Brightsong rolled her eyes in an amused fashion at Redsun before turning towards her brother, fully intent on teasing him before he could begin his rambles.  Words never left her, however, as her face quickly changed from amusement to horror.  A horrible since of dread was washing over her, similar to the sense of dread she had felt before the MoonClan war.  Her eyes lighting up in the strange fashion they did when she concentrated on seeing the threads of fate attached to each cat, her brother instantly attracted her attention, forcing a gasp out of her lips.

Much to her horror, Russetmask's threads were etched with what she had learned to identify by now as danger in the form of death.  Desperately seeking out Flashflood, her attention no longer on Russetmask as she hoped to ask her less emotional brother if he had had any contact with StarClan, she caught sight of him talking to Emberstripe in front of the medicine cat den and was met with yet another sharp pang in her chest, stress building up quickly, along with an unknown source of rage and sorrow that she could not place yet was too distracted to fully focus on.  Much like Russetmask's thread, Flashflood's was tinged with death as well, making Brightsong's stomach drop considerably.  About to search for her mother, almost dreading what she might discover once she saw her, she ignored Russetmask's and Redsun's looks of confusion, her strange behavior making even Russetmask forget he was currently angry with his sister.  About to ask her what was wrong, he did not manage to do more than open his mouth before an enraged yowling filled the camp, forcing everyone - including a now more wide eyed Brightsong - to turn to the camp entrance, only to find a deranged looking Cliffstalker with a similarly angered Blackfire behind him.

"Who did it?  You know what I'm talking about...  WHO DID IT?  Where are you, you worthless coward?  Come out and face me... or can you only show your claws in front of helpless queens?!" Cliffstalker snarled at the top of his lungs, forcing many a bewildered stare to be exchanged among the FireClan cats in camp, everyone confused as to who or what he was talking about.

"What are you talking about now?" came and equally dangerous sounding snarl as Viperfang made his way through the gathering crowd, a dangerous glint in his eyes as he stared down at Cliffstalker.

"Oy Cliffstalker... where's Cloudydawn?  Ya couldn't find her?" Dawncloud asked in a somewhat concerned growl, stepping to the front as well, confused as to why the tom had come back to camp without his mate.

Brightsong couldn't help but begin to tremble at this point, the shock of emotions coursing through her from Cliffstalker overbearing as she tried desperately to push them out.  Electric blue eyes stayed glued to the tom before her as she realized what was going on, the rage and sorrow mixed together along with Dawncloud's question making her gasp out a 'no' as she saw Cliffstalker's features twist with despair for a second before he composed himself into righteous anger once more.  Blackfire was standing behind him, seemingly studying the reactions of the different cats before them, much to Brightsong's confusion.  If her fear was correct, why wouldn't they be asking for help in catching whoever had killed Cloudydawn?  Taking a step back, she pressed herself to Redsun's side by instinct for support, wondering if the danger signs she was spotting had anything to do with Cloudydawn's death.

"Cl-Cloudydawn's....  Cloudydawn's dead...  We found her body mangled out in the open by-" Cliffstalker began, but was quickly unable to continue by a sob that rattled his body as a collective gasp from FireClan echoed loudly through the camp.

"Cliffstalker... do you have any leads?  Let us help you catch the mouse dunged cretin that did this!  Let's teach them that no one messes with FireClan!" Russetmask quickly pipped up, a chorus of agreements following his words.

Cliffstalker turned to stare at Russetmask, about to explain why this wasn't possible, when his eyes fell on the tom besides him.  Eyes narrowing with suspicion, he desperately tried to recall every cat he had seen in the warrior's den upon his arrival so close to sun high, and yet for the life of him he realized he could not remember having seen Brightsong or Redsun in the mix.  Blaming Brightsong never crossed his mind, his loyalty to Kindlestar disallowing him to think of one of her descendants as being possible of such a heinous crime.  Redsun, however, was a different story.  A quiet, rather useless tom that some of the most loyal cats in FireClan - Viperfang, for instance - couldn't stand... and yet here he was, finally back at camp after he had discovered his mate's mangled corpse.

"YOU!" he snarled, rounding up on Redsun, forcing the other tom to take a few steps back in surprise.  "Finally back, are you?  Took an awfully long time out of camp today, didn't you?!"

"I was busy, didn't pay attention to the time today, if that's what you mean.  I had to stay in shelter out of the camp during heat stroke sun," Redsun responded carefully, trying hard not to further antagonize the tom who seemed to be about to start frothing at the mouth in rage.

"Oh?  And what where you doing that was keeping you so busy?" Cliffstalker asked, his claws now unsheathed and gripping hard at the earth below him.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Redsun replied hotly, a look of discomfort now starting to cross his face.

"That's where you are wrong," Blackfire spat, finally speaking as he closed in besides his friend, earning confused stares from everyone.

"Da both of ya better start makin' some sense, is what's gonna 'appen.  Way you both are goin' bout this, it looks like yer blamin' Redsun for Cloudydawn's death," Dawncloud growled, clearly disgruntled by having a fellow FireClanner being accused of treason in such fashion.

"There was nothing but FireClan scent on Cloudydawn when we found her body.  A VERY strong scent of FireClan, and nothing else.  Either Cloudydawn offed herself, or we have a traitor among us," Blackifre explained coolly as Cliffstalker kept his glare on Redsun, looking as though he was about to strike.

The accusation instantly had the effect one would expect on a clan such as FireClan.  Uproar resounded throughout the camp, making its way to the night sky.  Some cats instantly began to look at others with suspicion, others huddled close to their loved ones, and most began threatening Cliffstalker, enraged at such an accusation.  The enraged outburst of cats almost turned into a mob, suddenly stopped, however, as a power snarl broke through the commotion, ordering everyone to shut up at once.  The familiar voice instantly forcing all cats to stand still or clear a path, a petite, ginger she cat was soon seen making her way through the cats towards Cliffstalker and Blackfire, a two toned cat similar to Brightsong following closely.  Her yellow eyes soon landed on Cliffstalker, and the tom had to hold back a shiver of fright as she spoke to him in a deceptively calm voice that was only betrayed by the dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Now... you will calm down and tell me very carefully just what exactly is going on here..."