Chapter 71: Quiet Strength

Tigerstar left the Riverclan camp to return to Shadowclan and continue the negotiations with Bloodclan leaving Darkstripe to watch over Riverclan. Darkstripe was giddy at the prospect. He wouldn't have to keep up the slightly unkempt look to appear in love with Tigerstar. Almost immediately after Tigerstar left, he self-assigned himself into a hunting patrol where he 'accidentally' fell in the river. Finally, he was ever so briefly free from Tigerstar's presence. Knowing Tigerstar's pride, Darkstripe didn't imagine he'd return until at two days before the gathering. It meant he had free rein to sow seeds of doubt in the cats of Riverclan.

Darkstripe's main target was Leopardstar. That cat had been broken by Tigerstar and completely misunderstood Crookedstar thinking him an incompetent leader. Breaking that image would be his first step. Darkstripe approached Leopardstar silently near sundown.

"Leopardstar. I think it'll do us both good to have a chat. It involves your leadership and how I fit in that."

Leopardstar's stare was largely blank and empty, but she ultimately nodded and led Darkstripe into the leaders den. Darkstripe the air become uncomfortably silent before speaking.

"You know, I had a great deal of respect for Crookedstar when he was clan leader."

That seemed to snap Leopardstar out of her daze.

"He was weak. His softheartedness made us weak." She hissed.

"Was he softhearted, or was that what you believed you saw? I've known the other side of Crookedstar for a long time, more specifically, his other name, River."

Leopardstar could only utter out a stammer. "W-What?"

"You see Crookedstar was far sneakier than you could imagine. He was known for his crooked deals, a true tactical mastermind at getting every little bit he could out of a deal. He'd bragged to me once about being trained by the mother of all liars and having resisted the temptations of the river siren. His most damning skill was his use of words. They always sounded kind and sweet, but he'd hold you to yours until you held no more use. He was a cat I'd never cross. Those eyes may seem as sweet as an old tom ready to give you stories like a kit, but those same eyes are ruthless and could catch a lie quicker than you could say mouse."

Darkstripe's story seemed to have drawn her attention.

"Was he really like that?"

"Definitely. You didn't see how he wrapped Firestar around his paw during the flooding? Without my intervention, he forcibly secured a deal where two Thunderclan warriors would provide food for Riverclan in a time of crisis for no charge. I bet you must have noticed his eyes when Firestar first agreed, how they flashed with greed and how the commanded presence. He never thanked Firestar or Greystripe since they were just filling their end of the deal, a crooked deal. While Riverclan may have appeared soft in his rule, his time as leader led to the most successful raids of any Riverclan leader. Then that peaceful old tom guise would reappear and any retaliation would suddenly become unjust. You see Leopardstar, Crookedstar was a master at quiet strength."

Leopardstar took a moment to mull over Darkstripe's words before responding. "Can I get that kind of strength?"

Dsrkstripe shook his head softly. "You don't need that kind of strength. Your best qualities are your strict adherence to the code and fierce loyalty. You have loud strength. Your biggest failure was your choice of deputy."

Darkstripe heard Leopardstar softly hiss. "Because he was halfclan?!"

"Because he was the same as you. You chose a cat who holds the same strengths as you, thus making your leadership extremely weak in quiet strength. Your leadership as it currently stands has no means to stand up to negotiations. You are simply too hot headed. You're a master battle tactician, but those same skills don't apply to politics. It's why Tigerstar could talk you into becoming such a pathetic position. If you really want this clan to succeed, I suggest you start looking for a cat who is your opposite. Find a cat like Crookedstar to fill the gaps in your strength. You're a clan, so you shouldn't act like you have to shoulder the burdens alone."

Something seemed to have changed in Leopardstar right then. She didn't look as weak and pitiable. She still did not look like the Leopardfur of old, but she looked hopeful.

"Can you be my opposite, if only for now?"

Darkstripe looked at the once proud leader honestly considering the option. "Only for now, until you find your real opposite. I can't fill this role forever and you need a cat who knows you well."

Darkstripe left her to ponder while he planned out the patrols for the next day. It was ironic that despite rejecting the deputy position in Thunderclan, he still found himself fulfilling those duties in Riverclan, not Tigerclan. He would never see any of the clans as Tigerclan. Leopardstar wasn't doubting Tigerstar's authority yet, but he'd laid the first seeds. If Leopardstar could reestablish herself as a proper leader, Tigerstar's influence would wane. Riverclan also didn't deserve to fall with him.

Many cats in Riverclan were confused to see Leopardstar and Darkstripe speaking like old friends. As they listened closer, the relationship became more apparent. Darkstripe had made himself the acting deputy, and strangely, it wasn't terrible. Darkstripe may not have known every cat by name, but he was skilled at assigning patrols that wouldn't stir up any internal drama. He still referred to Leopardstar for border patrols since she was the one who knew every cat's battle styles, strengths, and weaknesses, but she deferred to him for the purpose of choosing hunting patrols. It wasn't that Darkstripe knew who the best hunteers were, he just had a keen sense of which cats like which. In fact, he was so decent at it, there were some new budding romances in camp from cats who hadn't before considered their new partners. They still didn't like that an outsider was controlling their duties, but they appreciated how he made Leopardstar more active and a better leader.

Dakrstripe took the effort of maintaining a distance from the cats of Riverclan. He did not want them to see him as a permanent fixture of their clan. He wanted them to look internally for their next deputy. He kept his relationship strictly businesslike for Leopardstar despite his personal desire to help her further. If he got too close, she'd use him as a crutch, which wouldn't be a bad thing if he was an actual Riverclan cat. He couldn't let that happen. One day he'd have to leave, and if he was that crutch, Leopardstar's leadership would come crashing down. Leopardstar either needed to find her own support or become strong enough to stand on her own.

One-night Darkstripe was patrolling the camp's edges to spy on Tigerstar's faithful when a scent caught his attention. Leopardstar was out of camp. Darkstripe followed the scent which led towards the Thunderclan border. He wondered what Leopardstar was up to until he saw it. Mistyfoot was there with Leopardstar, talking. Darkstripe dared not creep closer, but he got the gist of the conversation. Despite all that happened, Leopardstar was asking Mistyfoot for leadership advice. Darkstripe smirked to himself. Leopardstar had found her opposite. Darkstripe crept away pretending he'd never seen the scene at all.