Waking straight without making any noise or grimace that might give away his considerable discomfort proves difficult as Talon sets out, tonight's delegation in tow and on the way to the gathering. Keeping his head high pulls at the healing cuts, any movement faster than a casual walk causing sharp little pains. But he can neither delay nor dally. Most importantly above all, he can not falter or show weakness tonight. Wandering the streets and alleys under the rapidly disappearing sun, the frost clouding the breath of the group, the light snow under their paws leaving their prints on their advance. Talon looks over his shoulder, both Kestrel and Silver walking close-by to him. Silver knows here to go now. Talon had been very grateful at the older warrior's calm open-mindedness more than once before, but for this task especially it proves valuable. Few warriors would be able to obey the order to go train with a forest clan cat without some amount or other of disgruntledness. As capable as he may be, Frost would have had a fit if asked such a thing, not that he'd even be a candidate currently with his injured leg. Silver will split off from the group on the way back home and report how things went with Ashfur in the morning. Maybe it's a good thing even, perhaps Ashfur getting used to not only one Bloodclan cat being about will allow for more possibilities down the line.

With the quietest of sighs, Talon looks ahead again, as they cross into the areas around Scourge's old audience alley. A lot of memories slumber among the cracked facades, twoleg light illuminated streets and dark alleys of this place. This is where it all began, the birth of Bloodclan, the rise of Scourge… the clan breaking apart. And now the discussing grounds for clanmates shedding each other's blood. Tonight this will be the focus, neither his pain nor Ashfur can be permitted to pull Talon's attention from it. Talon casts a brief look down Scourge's old alley as they pass it, the dumpster the small leader resided on for audiences, Bone standing before it like an impenetrable bulwark, Scourge's guard, the veteran warriors, standing on both sides to discuss and council and take their unifier's orders. It seems like it was all so long ago by now. Pulling his gaze and thoughts away from the alley and it's memories, Talon marches on, though he notices from the corner of his eye that he is not the only one to cast near mournful looks down to the once beating heart of the clan.

Moments later the they enter the large abandonned twoleg warehouse. Talon looks at the other cats already gathered. It seems that for once, Talon is not last to arrive. Under better circumstances, that could have counted as good omen, sadly less so this day. Ice and Snake are engaged in a discussion with each other, leaving uncertain if they even noticed another leader's arrival yet. Meanwhile Wraith sits in silence, looking up from grooming her tail as Talon and his delegation approach and giving a short nod in greeting. Granite observes Talon a while longer, until the black pelted tom has taken his place in their usual circle before giving any acknowledgement. No Wrath yet… his faction has yet to arrive. Unusual, certainly worrying. A cat whom values honouring the clan as much as Wrath not being one of the first to arrive, especially with him having one of the shortest ways from his alley to the warehouse, only the twins being even closer at hand. As worry clenches down on Talon's stomach, Granite speaks up

„Greetings. Still both alive and united, I see."

The older leader's greenish grey eyes watch Talon with some intensity, although as Talon returns a cold look back, Granite's gaze slightly softens. Kestrel flicks his tail, sitting a good taillength behind Talon. Talon can hear his second-in-command open his maw and draw in a breath to fire back what probably would have been a sly, teasing response, but a small flick from Talon's long fuzzy tail keeps him silent. It'd show poor discipline if the second responds before the leader here. Not a satisfaction Talon is willing to give his rival.

„Greetings, Granite. Of course, I'm in the habit of ensuring my cats survive. Was there doubt about that?"

The older leader lets a small chuckle escape him, a trace of amusement shown in his eyes.

„Oh, it was less Kestrel I worry about. But perhaps waiting till the prey fattens a bit more before snatching it with some backstabbing plot might indeed be the wiser strategy. He must have some confidence in you indeed then."

Talon's neck fur bristles slightly, the discussion having caught the attention of the other present leaders. Questioning his second's loyalty before the other leaders, he has to respond or look either weak or like Kestral's pupped and thus again weak.

„My second-in-command has been exemplar in carrying out his duties, Granite. I welcome your heartfelt worries for me, but perhaps you misjudge your clanmate"

Granite hums at the snarky answer, the amusement slowly fading from his face. He flicks his right ear, swaying one of his paws at Talon dismissively

„Take care you don't misjudge this clanmate of yours yourself. But it is your neck, not mine. I just would have preferred you alive to serve among my veteran warriors when the time comes over Kestral, but neither is necessary."

Talon takes a breath, the anger bubbling in him but not allowing it to show.

„You seem very confident about winning, Granite. I remind you, nothing is decided just yet"

Snake's chuckle and far too loud voice breaks through the discussion, his expression as dripping with overconfidence as his brother's beside him

„Speak for yourself. Look at who's here. The ancient one, the wordless one and the hopelessly naïve one. Not one of you can stand against us when we finally take Bone's legacy and become leaders"

As all the leaders turn to look at the twin-leaders, an amused scoff sounds through the ensuing silence. Talon's left ear flicks into the direction it came from, looking from the corner of his eye. It was no leader and no second-in-command either. Which cat would dare draw attention during a gathering of leaders? A question that Talon seems not alone in asking as Ice snaps his head in direction of Granite's faction.

„What waste of fur scoffs at leaders? Which one wants to die that urgently, huh?"

Talon's pads begin to sweat as he detects what he believes to be the noise's origin. A large, bright ginger pelt among Granite's delegation turns his head, tilted in a bored fashion, not looking at Ice and Snake. Talon curses his own lack of awareness, he should have at least given a brief look at who the other leaders brought with them. Doing his best to hide the mild feeling of dread in his chest, Talon observes the large cat. It's rare to see Flame bothering to attend a gathering. Talon could count on a single paw how often he'd seen the bright pelted son of Granite since the clan shattered.

„A toothless rat would give me a better fight. You're not worth unsheathing my claws."

Boredom and confidence ring loud in Flame's voice. Granite looks back at him, a clear glare in his eyes towards his son

„This is not the place for you to speak, Flame. True as your words are, your place here is to be silent!"

Flame rolls his eyes, looking at Granite with every bit the same boredom

„Bossy elder… fine. Maybe you rather talk to them then."

Flame's tail points at the entrance of the twoleg warehouse. Capturing the collective attention immediately, all heads turn to see Wrath's faction finally arrive. Not repeating his earlier mistake, Talon scans carefully the crowd of cats stepping in to take their place in the circle, his feelings of worry deepening as he quickly notices one vital thing. Wrath is missing from his own delegation. Surely Wrath of all cats could not have fallen? Surprise grows in Ganite's face, as grim satisfaction does in both the twins as Abrarc sits down in the circle of leaders in Wrath's place. The large cat with eyes as red as Talon's looks around the circle, gaze briefly hardening into a fierce glare at the twins.

„Wrath sends his apologies, but important business keeps him at camp currently. I have been given authority to replace him here tonight, my word is to count as his. Our leader assures this is a unique measure and next gathering he will lead our delegation himself again."

There is a moment of silence, beside the victorious sneering of Ice and Snake. A cold shiver runs down Talon's back. Has Wrath been wounded? Badly enough to not power through and appear here anyway? A small feeling of inadequacy sounds in the back of Talon's mind at his own wound. A quiet, thoughtful hum behind him pulls Talon out of these thoughts. Casting a quick glance over his shoulder, he can see Kestrel, his expression focussed, in the middle of intense thinking clearly. Returning his gaze back forward, Talon let's out a quiet breath. Kestrel is already seeking ways to capitalise on this, no doubt. And he is right, Talon's pity or worry won't do anyone any good. He looks over to Abrarc. Wrath would not entertain the thought of aid easily. But Abrarc might be more reasonable. If his word counts as Wrath's… but what can he offer anyway? They have no food yet to spare. What could Talon offer that they wouldn't already have, that they might need… His eyes widen a brief moment as an idea sparks. Clearly, brief as it was, it was noticeable, as the fellow red eyed tom's gaze rests on Talon now. Now Talon has to speak, no choice. It's a risk, but as long as the other leaders don't know exactly how much they have…

„We understand. Since you speak with Wrath's authority, our faction recognises you as his equal for tonight. If your faction requires assistance in order for Wrath and your warriors to bring to an end the business keeping them at camp, we hereby offer it"

Granite whips his head around to look at Talon quickly enough to loudly pop a joint. Abrarc remains silent for a moment.

„I will think upon it. For now though, I am sure the other leaders would like to get the actual purpose of this gathering out of the way and report how they are doing. Speaking of, you appear to have been in a scuffle, Talon. Something happen on your territory?"

Talon blinks before looking down at his wounds, wrapped in cobweb and leaves.

„The first rogues of the season trying to claim a food source. The problem has been dealt with. Additionally, we have a new young one. Very young, one of the rouges kit. We've taken the little one in, if one of our mothers is willing to nurse it it will be raised as one of Bloodclan. If not, I'm some kittypet can find a home for her."

Abrarc nods slowly

„Must have been very recent then, if that decision still stands open"

„Yesterday. Beyond that, we've had. Successful doghunt earlier this moon, two warriors earned their claws. As Wraith may attest."

Talon's eyes shift over to the silent she-cat. Wraith makes no motion to answer, her tail wrapped around her paws. Granite huffs

„Taking on Kestrel, offering aid to rivals, hunting close to the border… You play a great many dangerous games, Talon. I'm pleased to report, things were quieter for us. Some rogues tried entering our territory, but ran off when we came after them. My warriors remain strong and our borders secure."

Talon nods at Granite's report. He did not mention anything about trouble at the dog fight place, yet his cats remain very active around there… Granite too seems to enjoy playing dangerous games.

Ice grins, puffing out his chest as he takes a step forth

„We have been winning victories in the meantime. We've defeated Wrath and his flea-pelts in battle. More cats join to fight each day."

Abrarc shoots the twins a glare sharp enough the cut the very air between them

„You fought one battle and you call the result a victory? The street is littered with your worthless rogues. And I do not recall hearing about either of you showing up on the battlefield the way Wrath did. Big talk from tiny cowards. Your father would spin in his grave."

Snake spits a hiss towards Wrath's delegation

„Our actual Bloodclan cats are fine, you tailless snail-brain. Do say, what business if keeping Wrath? Licking his wounds or everyone else's?"

A dangerous tension builds within the warehouse as the sound of unsheathed claws scraping against the solid stone floor sounds from both the twins and Wrath's faction as their cats face each other with bristling pelts and furious glares.

„Our faction fares well. Prey runs decently. No interferences at our borders"

Heads turn at the sound of Wraith's voice, brisk and to the point, a full report in two breaths. Abrarc, looks at the she-cat a short while before sighing, his own claws sheathing again under the reinforcing dogteeth.

„Right. We've had a skirmish and later a battle at the border to our west. Nothing we can't handle. We remain strong and will continue defending the borders from any threats. The large twoleg monsters are still hard at work on the other side of the border, tearing up and putting down twoleg houses on what used to be the forest clans territories. We don't have much to report beyond that"

Very slowly the pressure eases up, much to Talons relief. The cats behind Abrarc seem mostly fine, no visible recent injuries on them. Perhaps the battle was not as devastating as Kestrel's kittypets reported. What would a kittypet know of big battles after all… or the delegation was very carefully chosen indeed to give that exact impression. If they are weakened after battle, the very last thing they could afford would be to let the other factions see that. But Wrath missing from his own delegation… it's hard not to read this as the sign it is that things are not optimal.

Snake shakes his head and rolls his eyes

„You will be ´handled´ in due time. Expect that by the next gathering that territory is ours, Abrarc. But don't worry, you won't be around to see that. That's a promise."

„Not in this lifetime or the next. The first of your paws that steps onto out territory, will be removed to decorate our leader's den. The rest, the crows can have it."

Abrarc scoffs and shakes his head, some calm having returned to him however. The twins throw their fair amount of further curses, cusses and threats around as they begin to leave. After they are at last no longer heard, Wraith is the next to get up, not saying much beyond giving an acknowledging nod to Talon, Granite an Abrarc. Her own pawsteps unheard, the clutter of reinforcing craws clacking against the ground sounds as her faction leaves. Talon waits patiently, still intending to speak with Abrarc, but it soon becomes apparent that Granite does not intend to leave yet, his eyes wandering from the red eyed leader to the red eyed second-in-command and back again. Kestrel moves up to sit beside Talon as the dark grey leader's frustration rises somewhat.

„Well done, grabbing the opportunity when it presented itself. Now we need to offer something however. How will we play this?"

The brown second's words are quiet whispers in Talon's ear. Looking at Kestrel from the corner of his eye, Talon gives a small nod, answering equally quietly

„We might not get another chance like this to get into he good graces of Wrath. We have to gamble with the one thing we have to offer. Venom will want my pelt after this, but…"

After a brief moment of mild confusion in Kestrel's eyes, things seem to click into place, the former leader nodding with a small, sly grin

„I see. Well, we may be able to get more in time, especially with our new eyes in the forest. Granite ain't going anywhere till he hears what this will be about anyway, so no time like the present."

„Something like that…"

Talon slowly rises up and begins padding towards Wrath's second-in-command, Abrarc's attention being undevidedly on the dark grey tom already. Granite does not move, nor say anything, but his ears remain clearly trained on the the red eyed cats.

„You mentioned offering assistance. I can make no promises yet, Talon, beyond hearing out what, specifically, you are offering"

Abrarc, no longer in the vexing presence of Ice and Snake, sounds calm and collected. The cats behind him look upon Talon as his approach ends and he sits down to discuss the matter. Suspicion sparkles in some eyes, others appear close to hopeful. Talon catches a brief glimpse of Argent, who's eyes are travelling between him, filled with uncertainty and mixed feelings, and his delegation. Silver is with them tonight, probably whom he is trying to see. Talon's eyes settle on Abrarc again, the tail deprived warrior just a few whiskers taller than himself, which is in itself impressive.

„Our offer is simple. It is our understanding that your faction currently has no trained healer. We do, as well as herbs. I offer, if you let them with a few of us approach your camp, to take a look at the… matters occupying our clanmates"

Abrarc briefly closes his eyes and lets out a nasal breath

„Still talking about „our" clanmates, are you? Also, the twins are both gone and very much let the cat out of the bag on the battle. We can speak without beating around the bush. You offer to let your healers patch up our warriors. You seemed to know about it before it was mentioned. I would wonder how, but…"

Abrarc briefly looks past Talon, eyeing Kestrel

„I suppose your new second-in-command still has his uncanny habit of knowing things he shouldn't. The question is why? What do you stand to gain from this, Talon? There is a chance we might meet in battle some day."

Talon nods slowly, tail curled around him, resting on his paws

„Perhaps. If that happens, I would hope Wrath remembers who offered to treat his faction's wounds. Moreover, yes, I do still speak of „our" clanmates. We all remain Bloodclan and this leafbare might be harsh one still. Wounded warriors can't hunt or gather well. Food ungathered means starvation and encroaching rogues. We remember what that looks like, Abrarc. I will not watch our clanmates die like that."

The red eyed second-in-command remains eyes locked with Talon, his thoughts unreadable. Moments pass that feel like entire lifetimes as silence permeates the warehouse. At last, Abrarc gets up to his paws

„As I said, I can make no promises. I will relay your proposal to Wrath and council as I think is right, that is all I can say. You will be let to know to what our answer is. Until then, Scourge guide your claws, Talon"

Abrarc gives a brief bow of his head before turning about and guiding the warriors of his delegation towards the exit.

„And yours, Abrarc."

Talon gets up, after a few steps noticing that his pads must have been sweating, there being a slightly unpleasant sticky sensation to them as he pads back over the cold ground towards his own cats. As he passes by Granite, the older leader huffs quietly, rising to his paws to lead his cats away as well.

„I do not like having to agree with anything that comes out of their impertinent maws, but I fear the twins might be right on one thing. You are being naïve on this one, Talon. You will gain nothing of value."

Talon glimpses over at the older cat, slowing without stopping

„I'm not so sure, Granite. But I don't lose anything I couldn't replace either. We shall see. Scourge guide your claws"

As Talon walks past his delegation, whom collectively get up and follow him, he gives a nod to Silver

„You head on out, Silver. You know where to go. I'll bring them home… and see if I can get Venom to give me some poppy seeds. Preferably before I tell her the news."

The white, grey spotted veteran nods his head

„As you wish, Talon. I'll return not too long after first sunlight."