Mercy of the Winds (open)

Follow-up of this topic. Takes place before Betu & Swan are born, and before Heronstar loses a life & February's Gathering. Robinfeather (f), Driftclaw (m), Ratpelt (m), Hollythorn (f), and Amberberry (f) are all NPCs.

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Robinfeather had ran ahead to inform Heronstar of Softcloud's run-in with the fox. "Heronstar! Heronstar! It's-- it's Softcloud!!" She blurted, dashing into camp and skittering to a halt. She looked wildly around for Yewpaw and Featherstep. "There was-- there was a fox. It-- it attacked Softcloud. Amberberry couldn't help her, but a RiverClan cat-- Wolfstar's mate, Violetbriar?-- came and she killed the fox and Amberberry ran to get help. That's when she found out patrol-" Robinfeather paused in her retelling of the tale, panting and heaving from running all the way here.

"Ratpelt, Driftclaw, Hollythorn, and I were out hunting when we ran into Amberberry. When we came to help, the RiverClan cat had slaughtered the fox and was beside Softcloud, frantic with worry. Holly-- Hollythorn and the she-cat are carrying Softcloud here. I ran ahead-- to- to warn you so you can prepare." It was common knowledge that Softcloud had a fear of foxes, so the fact that she'd been gravely injured by one due to paralysis of fear made sense. It was also common knowledge that Softcloud had two close friends in RiverClan; she spoke of them quite often, though never by name. It was clear the RiverClanner who'd killed the fox was one of those friends.

Barely five minutes after Robinfeather arrived, Amberberry yowled. "Some cat get Yewpaw! Softcloud needs medical treatment now!"
Hollythorn and Violetbriar were coated in blood-- Hollythorn in Softcloud's, and Violetbriar drenched in fox blood and Softcloud's, with a single wound on her back. Her claws her stained red, and her cream pelt was more crimson. Hollythorn's thick black fur didn't reflect the blood as clearly, and she wasn't covered in it quite as much as the RiverClan she-cat's.

Violetbriar's pale green eyes were swimming with tears, and she looked clearly distressed. "Please-- help her! She can't die!" Ratpelt's scarred face softened. "Yewpaw will take care of her. She'll be fine."
Driftclaw, ever the pessimistic, snorted, his sour attitude worsened at the thought of his Clanmate being hurt. "Softcloud will be lucky to return to her duties at all." He muttered, hoarsely. Barely seconds after that left the brown and cream tom's maw, Hollythorn and Violetbriar snapped in sync, "Don't you dare speak like that!"

Softcloud weakly lifted her head from where she'd been placed delicately on the ground. "Heron...star?" Her sky colored eyes were glassy and it took near all of strength to mutter the single name. A huge gaping wound laced her back, and her forepaws twitched numbly. Her breath was coming in ragged gulps, and Violetbriar wailed as she collapsed by her side.

Willowblossom was curled tightly in his nest, dozing to avoid the cold, when a commotion erupted in camp. His head shot up, instantly on alert as the raised voices were quickly followed up with the scent of blood. Immediately abandoning his nest and the warmth it provided, he leapt from the den, fur bristling. Are we being invaded?! The smell of blood masked any other misplaced scents.

Upon viewing the clearing, it took a heartbeat to piece together the scene, though it appeared they were not under attack. Hollythorn and- Violetbriar? Why is she here?- soaked in blood. And together they were carrying... It took another beat for Willowblossom to recognize the limp, bloody form. Softcloud?! Apparently still alive, thank Starclan. Though... His lip curled. With Yewpaw as our medicine cat, Stars know for how much longer... But even so.... He's the only choice.

Tail lashing, Willowblossom bounded over to the medicine den since apparently Yewpaw wasn't bothered by the commotion going on in camp. Not that he was at all surprised. "Yewpaw! Get out here! Softcloud is badly wounded and needs help now!" He snapped, as he shoved his head into the den. So help him he would drag Yewpaw out if that's what it took.

The day had been unusually quiet, honestly something that bordered on suspicion for the molly-- she hadn't been granted a day of calm or rest in StarClan knows how long, and she was wary to trust it. As such, it came as no surprise when she heard the familiar sound of cat paws crunching through the snow, desperate to reach the destination of her camp. Her heart was immediately in her chest, hammering against the mollies ears as she rushed to meet the cat running into camp, claws extending at the threat of invasion.

Heronstar's claws remained out as the assailing molly began blabbering about Softcloud and a fox, her ears instinctively pinning back as a white hot flash of terror seared through her pelt. She swayed on her paws for a moment, the information hitting her like a fast travelling monster, and the leader took a deep breath as she thought of what to say.

"Thank you Robinfeather, please rest for as long as you need. We... We'll take care of this. Featherstep!" Her voice rang loud across the clearing, unsure of where her deputy was but the call was unable to miss him. "Get a patrol together and make sure there are no foxes remaining in the area. Take one of the cats returning back with Softcloud to lead you to the area," Heronstar's voice was commanding, tight with the stress of what was going on, forced into overdrive as she waited for the party containing Softcloud to return.

Turning to go drag her son out, she was silently pleased to find Willowbreeze already in the process of it, knowing that if anyone could get Yewpaw to leave his den, it would be one of her more prickly warriors.

A cold breeze carried the thick scent of blood towards camp, and horror begun to replace any emotion she was currently feeling. Was the medicine cat even alive? Would she survive the wounds inflicted by a Leafbare sharpened fox? Swallowing hard, she shut her eyes and tried to calm back down once more, knowing it was what the clan needed from their leader.

It felt like moons before the medicine cat was settled gently on the floor in front of her, and the mottled she-cat took in a sharp intake of breath looking at her. Scarlet blood matted the medicine cat's soft fur, and her heart seized painfully as her name was said in a quiet rasp. Violetbriar's wail was barely heard over the ringing in her ears, and she touched her nose to the top of Softcloud's ear, pain brewing in her own chest.

"Keep your eyes open, please. We can't afford to lose you, not like this, not ever. StarClan cannot take you from us right now-- please. Stay with us," Heronstar's voice was barely a whisper, crouching down to the medicine cat's level, her soul bared plain for all to see. Was this all her life had in store? A series of losing those important to her? First her mother, her father, Brindlestar. She knew deep in her heart that her clan would not be able to withstand the loss of Softcloud, let alone herself.

When he wasn’t within the direct eyeline of Heronstar, Featherstep still remained within earshot. Ever since Brindlestar’s disappearance and her rise to leaderhood, Heronstar had remained… Unwell. He had decided early on that he would keep his ears open in case she ever needed her deputy and it seemed that now was one of those times.
The scent of blood mingled with RiverClan and fox got to Featherstep before he got to the scene in the center of camp. His already wide eyes grew ever larger when they landed on the bloodied form of Softcloud. A chill pierced through his impossibly thick fur and he recognized it instantly as fear. This couldn’t bode well for the Clan-- or for the already fragile Heronstar. He rushed forward in time to hear her command.
“Right away, Heronstar!” He answered firmly, tail twitching anxiously as he turned to look around at the cats he’d sent out earlier on the hunting patrol and gathering crowd drawn out into the chill by the commotion. “Driftclaw, Ratpelt, Eagletalon, and Dashfoot,” he listed off, nodding to each of the cats. “Keep your eyes and ears open. I don’t want to lose any of you with…” Featherstep trailed off as he glanced back to Softcloud, wincing as Heronstar crouched beside her medicine cat. He shook his head vigorously and trotted towards the camp entrance with a swish of his tail. “Let’s go!”