Three days passed without contact from the groups, and as sunhigh came and went, Streamstar felt himself growing uneasy. The warriors who had remained behind were recovering well, and more and more warriors were fit to hunt, patrol, and fetch bedding. A cry came up from the far side of camp, and one of the warriors standing guard came running, followed by Hawktail, Blacktooth, Petallfoot, and Oakclaw. Streamstar let out a relieved breath, thankful that one of his warriors had returned, and by the looks of it, perhaps had found a suitable place to live. The excitement of the travelers was palpable, and they all had bright eyes and swishing tails as they cattered to the cats that had gathered around them. As Streamstar padded forward, it became clear to him that they had found suitable territory for PondClan, with a marshy area that could serve as some of MarshClan's territory and a few ponds with small islands. Content with the news, he padded up to Blackfoot and took the tom away from the group.
"Tell me more about the territory." He said, keeping his voice low. Blacktooth's eyes glimmered with excitement as he began to describe the area.
"It's amazing- there's a few small streams connecting to ponds. A marshland borders the edge of the ponds on one side, and a hilly forest in the other. It's a lot like our old territory, and I think that the stream and ponds would make a good border between us and MarshClan. There doesn't seem to be a shortage of fish in the streams and ponds, and there were a few good campsites by the ponds, so we should have our pick of places to settle." He said, black tail tip twitching excitedly.
"And what about our...problem?" Streamstar asked. Blacktooth's excitement immediately dimmed, glancing to the side.
"No female cats living in the area. In fact, the area we scouted seemed free of rogues and loners. I think we might be on our own with this." Blacktooth's voice became grim. Their clan only had two young female warriors left from the journey. The rest had died, leaving them with an extremely limited breeding pool of cats to select for mates, and it was doubtful that a she-cat would allow herself to go into heat and allow herself to have kits from the toms in the clan. While an older practice, if a female allowed herself to go into heat and didn't have a mate, she was free game for all the toms in the clan, though sometimes it was hard to figure out who was the father of the kits, as often in these cases, kits from the litter had different fathers. Streamstar sighed, and began to pace in a small circle around Blacktooth.
"We must do anything and everything we can in order to ensure the survival of our clan. If StarClan does not send us suitable she-cats unrelated to our toms, then we must take matters into our own paws." He said in a low, grim voice. Just as the two toms finished their discussion, the other group of warriors emerged from the bushes, voicing their find of suitable habitats for the warriors of HillClan and ForestClan.
The other leaders trotted over to discuss the findings of the exploration, and after all the warriors had their chance to tell what they had seen and voiced their ideas, the leaders let out a yowl and gathered the large group of cats around a fallen tree.
"Warriors of all clans! Our scouting patrols have found territory suitable for all clans to live in." Streamtail called out, making sure his voice was loud enough to be heard by all. "There is a series of ponds and streams that bring fresh water to all territories. Bordering the ponds is a marshy territory, which is suited to MarshClan's needs. On the other side of the ponds there is hilly forestland, perfect for PondClan's needs. Further up the streams and ponds, on PondClan's side of the streams, the forest thins out, but remains hilly and rocky. We believe this territory is suited for HillClan's needs. On the other side of the stream, the territory flattens out into a forest, with portions of marsh, hills, and rocks. This portion of territory will be well suited to ForestClan's needs. We will spend the evening here, and hunt in the morning before traveling together to settle in our new territories." He said, before looking around at the warriors gathered around the base of the tree, questions bubbling on their tongues.
"The warriors and the leaders from each respective clan will be available to answer any and all questions. Hesitant borders will be decided when we reach the new territories." Streamstar said, before leaping from the tree and padding away towards where the majority of the PondClan warriors were clustered. The PondClan warriors gathered around Streamstar, Falconclaw, and Blacktooth, and peppered them with questions. Streamstar noticed the two she-cats in the clan-Heronpelt and Nightfoot, hanging towards the back of the group. During the trip, they hadn't grown close to any of the toms in PondClan, and Streamstar fought back the urge to curl his lip at them. The two she-cats were responsible for being the mothers of the future of their clan, and Streamstar wanted to see them paired off soon with a tom, though he wouldn't particularly mind if one of them went into heat. He watched as Blacktooth and Falconclaw were able to successfully answer the questions from their clanmates, and admired their courage and strength. The two toms were fine warriors, and would make good fathers some day. He just hoped that they would settle down with one of the she-cats soon. With all the questions answered, PondClan grouped together and settled down for the night, shifting eagerly with the prospect of having a new camp tomorrow.
