Morningdew
"How long are they going to be gone?" I said restlessly to Bluefur who sat next to me, her tail flicking up in down in a last manner. "You cant rush this sort of diplomacy, this is shocking news for any cat." Even though my injuries ached I was itching to run to my family, what if they needed me? "I understand your tension but you should relax, everything will be alright. Graywing wont let any harm come to Nightfang or the kits."
I wish I shared her confidence, but my stomach felt like I had eaten crow food. In light of the meeting that was about to take place Bluestar had recommended that we move to the gathering area, looking around I felt waves of unease coming from every cat. The tree branches were lined with Starclan members Bluestar had pointed out many of them to me and I saw Squirrleflight and Leafpool talking to Firestar and Sandstrom who now looked younger than the two she cats. I still felt both sides of gazes on me from time to time, whispers and hushed voices pricked at my ears like mosquitos but I urged myself to ignore them. Laying my head in my paws I went over what might happen in my head.
We could except the idea of course, removing the borders would mean that cross hunting and cross mating would be ok as long as every cat was respectful. We would train together and help each other during hard times and be together to enjoy the good times. It sounded good, almost too good to be true not having the borders would also mean that leadership was not as forceful and warriors didn't have as much need to hone skills other than the basic ones needed to survive. Progress would almost be at a stand still, the only battles being between the elements of nature and the occasional dog or badger, when put that way clan life seemed almost boring.
If we chose not to except the idea then everything would stay the same. Clan battles would be common and hostility and separation would continue. Cross mating would still be the worst of the worst actions a warrior could do, me and Nightfang would be forced to separate or be banished. What would we do on our own? Could we survive as rogues? If we separated would we be able to move on with our lives as normal? Would the kits go through life never feeling truly excepted? In my opinion neither option sounded good but it wasn't up to me to decide things now.
My thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of pawsteps through water and Riverclan cats quickly began to pour into the clearing, Mistystar leading with Feathertail and Silverstream behind her. I tried to judge the mood of the gray leader but she wore a clean face as she greeted Bramblestar and bowed to the Starclan warriors. Our clans quickly melded into one as the whispered conversations grew to loud chatter as every cat asked the same question, "Whats going to happen now?" Blizzardtoes and Blindstorm saw me but made no effort to come over and greet me, instead they lowered their gazes and turned their backs to me, Blindstorm sending me a sympathetic look. Not wanting to appear hurt I stuck my ears out to listen for the arrival of the other clans.
Shadowclan appeared next, Raggedstar walking next to Rowanstar a confident look in his eye. "Well I knew they weren't going to be on our side anyway, Shadowclan has never liked the idea of peace over anything." Bluestar snorted half heartedly, "Will we be able to convince them to change their minds?" Feathertail whispered, "I am not sure, Shadowclan doesn't have as many connections to half clan cats as the rest of us. Raggedstar himself is one of the few who is half clan and he is adamant about his disdain for mixed blood." Bluestar whispered back, "But if we have enough support from the other clans to out vote them then they wont have much of a choice right?" I asked hopefully, "Technically yes but in order for this to work properly every cat has to agree to it, otherwise the anger we are trying to quell will remain."
Rowanstar stood apart from Mistystar and Bramblestar, his gaze turned only to Raggedstar and Blackstar. Windclan was the only clan left and as the seconds ticked by I grew increasingly nervous. "Yellowfang, do you see Windclan?" Bluestar called up the snippy elder. Yellowfang looked in the trees and scrunched her eyes in focus, "Oh yes, I see them coming now. Its about time" She responded, her raspy voice sounded edged with irritation. Before I could turn my eyes from her a familiar gray shape burst over the clearings edge,
"Mama, they are coming, they are going t listen!" Silverpaw said his blue eyes shinning like the morning sky. "You should have seen papa, he was amazing how he stood for us in front of every cat." Ravenpaw said coming quickly behind Silverpaw. I nuzzled them and after a moment I realized we were missing some cat. "Wheres your sister?"
"Oh, shes back with papa and Graywing, we came ahead. Look at everyone, I have never seen so many cats!" Silverpaw said waving his tail in excitement. One by one the Windclan cats began to appear, Onestar looked determined despite the weak gate he showed as he walked. Nightfang and Wishpaw broke away from Graywing to come sit next to us, without a word Feathertail and Bluestar disappeared and took their place on the branches above.
Nightfangs wrapping appeared to be slipping after the hike from here and back and I looked around for a medicine cat, "Don't worry Morningdew, I feel fine." He chuckled guessing my intentions. He laid his head on top of mine and he stayed their a moment just breathing in each others scent, his clogged with smoke and herbs and im sure I didn't smell much better. "You ready for this?" I whispered, looking into his eyes that despite the fatigue I am sure he felt I could see the fire in them still. "Yes, are you?"
"I am!" Wishpaw said pushing to sit between us. Nightfang looked at his daughter fondly and took his place at her side, Ravenpaw and Silverpaw at mine and we looked to the leaders and waited for our fate and the fate of the clans to be decided.
Nightfang
Clearsky and Graywing had taken separate sides of the clearing, their eyes locked on each others and the tension high all around. The crowd was quiet as we looked to the leaders to begin the meeting, who in turn looked to the Starclan cats. Finally Graywing spoke, "Cats of all clans, we have gathered you all here tonight not because my brother and I have a grudge to settle but because we want to get your opinions on how the clans are to be run from this night forward."
Clearsky spoke next, "We are here to discuss your choice between keeping the warrior code as it is or to change it. Graywing wants the code to be thrown out so cats like those" he gestured to me and Morningdew, "Can have their paws on both sides of the border, well I am here to defend that this cant happen. You cannot be truly loyal to your clan while you are mating with another." He finished sitting back to allow the next cat the speak.
Bluestar appeared in the middle, "As all of you have heard by now it is true that the Thunderclan warrior Morningdew and the Windclan deputy Nightfang are mates and the apprentices you see before you are the proof of this relationship." She began, turning to address the other side of the clearing, "It is true that this is against the warrior code and in the past has been a sign of disgrace for both the parents and the kits. However for some time now we in Starclan feel that this is something that has caused much pain and suffering that could have been avoided." Graywing stepped in after her,
"When our group set off from the mountains to find a new home we had never intended to separate. Our tribe in the mountains was united and we were happy to do the same when we arrived at the forest you used to live in. There was plenty of space and food for not just us but every cat who dwelled in the area to live comfortably and happily without any issue. It wasn't long after we arrived that some of use found talents with climbing trees and swimming while others found comfort on the moors and in the marshes. In a shorter amount of time we were quickly met with hostility if we tried to visit any of our friends and family and because of the rules Clearsky put in place we were forced to fight our own kin." His voice was strong and rang true with the hearts of the cats who listened, I could see the expressions change on some of their faces, even the Starclan cats seemed to be moved.
"I remember brother fighting against sister, Father against son and neighbor against neighbor. Cats who had never met an enemy in their life were chased away from the place they used to call home, he turned simple cats into monsters and this hate only attracted more hate until we were divided and suspicious of one another. It pained me to see how generations after us considered this normal and a universal truth of how things were. I plead with you all today to end this division and become united as we were supposed to be and instead of hate we can breed love, instead of betrayal we can build trust, lets make this a life not one of limited truce but one of lasting peace." He finished with yowls of approval from many Starclan cats and living cats as he moved to let Clearsky speak.
"I will give my brother credit, he always had a way with words. While he did bring up a few good points he failed to mention the reasons behind our continued separation. When we were up in the mountains we had no need to divide ourselves because we lived in a harsh environment and separation meant death, we also had no enemies beside the eagles and the occasional mountain lion. While on our journey we lost several cats because we could not protect ourselves even with our meager numbers. When we arrived to our home we found different ways to bring out a warriors potential, the reason I chose to put up borders is because we had no structure and no discipline. The cats who hunted in the river had no business coming into the trees to hunt. All they would do is cause problems for the cats who thrived there, there was no harm in reminding them of this fact. Often we would encounter those who felt they had a right to hunt and play wherever they pleased and I will admit that this was met with violence but only because we had to protect our food and our home." He looked around at the gathered cats but I could he was speaking mostly to Graywing.
"Even as the borders were just beginning to form we where harassed by other rogues who disagreed with our way of life. They tried to run us out of the home we lost so many to find, I was not going to stand by and let those cats hurt us anymore than we had already been hurt. This is why I defended our border so venomously, why I chose to take the strongest into my ranks and this is why our code limited those who could not cope with clan life. This was for their protection as outside cats couldn't survive the treacherous conditions we endure every day, as you can see it has worked out well. We are still here, we are still alive, and we are still warriors!" he finished, getting loud cries of agreement, some even came from the cats who cheered for Graywing. I could feel Morningdew tense and I had to admit that I wasn't sure what to think myself. Both arguments sounded persuasive and both sides made good points.
Now that the arguments were made it was time for the leaders to voice their opinions. Bramblestar spoke looking at Graywing first, "It was our past leader Firestar who taught me that peace was better than war and everything that can be done to prevent bloodshed must be done. If the borders were removed the only thing we would have to worry about is spilling the blood of those who threaten us. Unity is stronger when there are more numbers, while we wouldn't be one single clan we would not be completely different ones either. However I do understand the need for the borders and why the code was put in place for everyones protection." Turning to Clearsky he went on, "But I know from experience the ignorance of those who underestimate the cats of mixed blood. I have seen the pain being a cat of mixed blood can bring onto the families who bare them and who are related to one another," he looked at Tawnypelt and then to Lionblaze and Jayfeather. "I never liked the fact that cats were pre judged just because of who their parents were. Morningdew is one of the finest warriors we have and though I don't know Nightfang through experience I have heard of his reputation and any kits born by them will have nothing but bright futures. I choose to dissolve the borders."
Thunderclan nodded in agreement with their leader and the Starclan spirits of Thunderclan yowled their approval. Rowanstar come forth next decision, "Shadowclan has always been loyal to the warrior code, we defend our borders from any danger and we are capable of surviving still whether we have greater numbers or not. Raggedstar and Blackstar have both shared with us their stories and times when they almost lost faith, when they made the decision to continue to fight against oppression they were reminded that their decisions were right. I for one am not going to forsake their sacrifices and ignore the facts that make us warriors. I will not let our training go to waste, we are united as one clan and need to stay that way. Shadowclan will never dissolve its borders." His clan yowled loudly as did the Starclan cats.
Mistystar stepped forward, her gaze locked on Bluestar and Oakheart as well as Stonefur as she spoke her decision. "I am the result of a forbidden relationship. My parents chose their clans over each other and for so long I never doubted that they did the right thing. My brother and I were happy in Riverclan and I have never regretted my life or origins." He voice went from being proud to almost sad as she continued, "When Tigerstar tried to take over the forest and made it a point to kill any cats who where half clan, I was truly afraid for my life and those of Graystripe and Silverstream's kits. We had done nothing wrong except be half clan but that didn't matter, we fought long and hard to defend our borders and never did we betray our clan for another, yet that also didn't matter to Tigerstar. In the end we were still hated and it was not fair, if the code didn't stress such hatred for us then maybe my brother wouldn't have died and Bluestar and Oakheart could have been truly happy. I will dissolve my border if it means that half clan cats will finally be excepted for who they are and what they provide to their clan." Bluestars eyes welled up with starry tears as she gazed proudly at her daughter.
After the yowls died down all eyes turned to Onestar. "Onestar, we have two for yes and one for no. Your decision may leave us with a tie or change the way the clans are formed. What will you say." Clearsky asked.
Onestar stepped slowly forward, his face unreadable as he began his speech.