With a quiet hum, Talon shakes out his pelt upon returning to the camp. The patrol he led along the border with Wraith slowly dissolves as the Bloodclan warriors spread out in all direction. Owl and Rover remain padding at Talon's side as he makes his way deeper into the alley. Hornet pushes past Owl to get ahead faster, earning a growl from the aged warrior, which she utterly ignores. Rover shakes his head at Owl

„Not worth the trouble. I'm wagering my food for today that she's just off to find Bee."

The tabby veteran warrior scoffs loudly

„What gave you that idea? The fact that that's all that matters every single time she returns?"

Rover looks at the tortoiseshell she-cat as she moves with quick, determined motion onward

„I see nothing wrong with wanting to see your mate after returning from a patrol. Especially since Quail and Clover almost got themselves in trouble with that pack of rats two days ago."

Shaking his head, Owl slightly increases his own pace, breaking away from Talon and Rover in direction of his den

„Wanting to see your mate does not force you to drop respect and manners, does it? They all run around like they own the alley…"

Rover sighs and shakes his head as the older cat leaves, remaining at Talon's side. Two two remaining toms remain silent until the aged veteran warrior is well out of earshot, seeming to have found more desirable company as he sits down to talk near Gash and Edge.

„Some really seem to have more trouble with the merger than others… she barely even touched him"

The grey leader flicks his ear, looking at Rover from the edge of his eye

„It seems so. But Owl is old and most changes he's known in his life had been for the worse. He will warm up to it eventually. Maybe. Overall I am very glad most cats work together well. It barely feels like we'd all been apart for so many moons."

Rover nods, amber eyes glistening with contentment and a brightly shining anticipation as a smile forms on him

„It almost seems like the early days of Bloodclan here again. For the first time in many moons, Moon mentioned the possibility of kits. If we make it through this leafbare well enough."

Talon gives a small chuckle, turning his head to look at the positively beaming tom, both the warmth of his affection for his mate, but also the joyous hope to finally found his own family shining like stars in his amber eyes

„Congratulations, Rover. I wish you the best of luck on it. More kits would be a good omen for Bloodclan."

Rover nods contently, before letting his eyes wander though the alley. Before long he finds his mark and dismisses himself from Talon with a respectful bow, immediately after bounding off. Moon sits in the shade of a large green dumpster, sharing tongues with Gravel, before looking up to see her approaching mate, the two greeting each other with a lick along their necks. Talon watches for a small moment before continuing on to the food pile. They do seem to have found great joy in each other. Although, calm as she may usually be when spoken to, Moon enjoys being active in patrols and hunts far too much for Talon to be able to picture her staying put as long as kits would require her to. Not that he'd object though. Kits being born is a good omen indeed, it shows that things are calm and secure enough for Bloodclan cats to try and form families again. Maybe things won't be as rough as Scourge predicted. Looking over the food brought today, Talon sighs quietly. Decent for now, but he'd hoped there'd be more. He thought the clan had managed to get a good bit of meat off the dog before the twolegs took it away, it feels like there should be more on the pile. Have they eaten through that much food already or did they not pick up as much as he'd imagied? Shaking his head, Talon picks up a piece of meat, carrying it off towards the healer's den. At least the increasingly freezing temperatures will keep it from spoiling any time soon. Talon slinks into the den, carrying the food over to Grail's current nest. At his approach, the she-cat's head rises up, a kind, grateful smile appearing on the russet warrior's muzzle. The dark furred leader sets the meat down before her, giving her a small nod in greetings

„I brought you something to eat. How are you feeling today, Grail?"

„I'm good, Talon. Venom wants to keep me here a few more days, make sure my bones have healed well enough before she lets me out. But I'm all there again. Thank you for bringing me food every day."

Talon smiles at her confidence, hearing a faint purr under her voice. He does his best to ignore her right ear as it slowly yet continuously flicks, the slight spasm on her smiling face that draws back her lip just far enough to reveal the tip of her right fang. A bit of guilt hits Talon, but he tries not to show.

„Of course, Grail. We're all glad that you'll soon get out of here and join us again."

She nods with a quiet hum, tearing her eyes away to look over to the entrance of the den

„I want to make myself useful again. To you, to the clan. Being stuck in here…it doesn't feel right if there's work to be done."

„Soon. You'll be out of here soon, Grail. Right, Venom?"

Talon looks over to the healer, whom is already slowly padding over to the two

„One or two more days. Better safe than sorry, Grail. If a bone fully snaps because you went out and put pressure on it before it was sufficiently healed, you'll be here for much longer. Be patient"

Grail huffs quietly, looking at Venom, making no secret of her displeasure, but knowing better than to mouth off against their healer. As the two she-cats hold each others gaze for a moment, Talon feels as if some unspoken conversation is currently occurring. Something the two of them know that he's not in on. After a bit, Grail relents and lowers her head, letting out a sigh

„Well alright. Two more days, I guess nothing's running away till then"

Venom nods curtly before her gaze that had for a moment hardened to match any warrior's, softens and she turns towards Talon

„It's indeed been kind of you to volunteer bringing her food every day. We both know you have a lot to worry about these days."

„It was my doghunt that Grail got hurt on. That and she fought well and with bravery. Meanwhile, you have a new healer to train and still take care of our endless everyday injuries. Your time is precious too, Venom"

The tortoiseshell healer rolls her eyes with a small grin and turns to return to the shelf with her leaves

„If only you knew how true that is. Still, Grail appreciates it greatly, as do I. But you're right, I still got Rain to train and I should return to that. He remembers the herbs well enough already, but he's still far too hesitant to actually lay paw onto an actual injury. It will take time to make him less blood-shy."

Talon nods as the healer leaves him and Grail alone to look after her new trainee, who's been sitting quietly near Quail, looking up as Venom approaches him. Talon watches as the she-cat removes the cobwebs from some of Quail's rat bites, demonstratively showing Rain the right plants to use and how to lick the poultice into the wound, causing Quail to tense up in a bit of pain. Grail's voice returns the dark grey tom's attention to her

„Rain will be a good healer. He's learned a lot from Venom in very little time. It seems Kestrel is very interested in his progress too. He comes by regularly, shares food with him or just talking."

Talon nods slowly

„Well, one cares for one's kin. Rain is Kestrel's kit actually, believe it or not"

Grail looks up at Talon with wide eyes, before looking over at the young healer in training.

„Kestrel has a son? When did… I never knew he had a mate to begin with. No one from the clan, I guess then? A kittypet mother?"

Talon nods once more, humming quietly, following her gaze to the grey, white spotted tom. Grail's right ear begins flicking again as she otherwise calmly watches Kestrel's kit.

„So… even Kestrel can founded a family…"

Her voice is barely a mutter, directed at no one in particular. Talon stretches himself, a few joints popping

„Seems so. Almost makes him more likeable. Although, I cannot complain much so far. Kestrel is either playing a very long game, or we misjudged him after all. He's been exemplary in his function so far and however he does it, he keeps finding out what goes on in other territories."

Grail nods, but it is somewhat apparent that she is only halfway listening, eyes clouded in deep thinking. Talon remains a moment longer before slowly turning and leaving. Grail still needs rest anyway and there remains much to be done today. A certain anticipation to return to the river spot tonight sparkles in the back of the grey leader's mind. Both the exhaustion of more battle training and the calm, peaceful serenity of the spot itself almost call out to him. As he climbs up upon his wall, overlooking the alley, he ponders. Perhaps Ashfur is more likely to give away information if he offers more of the same in return. He is no Bloodclan cat, most that Talon could tell him would have little use to the Thunderclan warrior beyond sating his curiosity, allowing in turn Talon to slate his own. He'll decide when he meets the tom again that night. From above, the white pelt of Frost draws in Talon's attention. The veteran warrior returns from a food run, heading to the food pile along with the rest of his patrol, laying down what little they found. Bits and pieces, mostly cleaned bones and small half-empty packagings of twoleg foods. As he returns from the pile, a bit of worry is plain the upon the white pelted tom. He looks up at the wall, meeting Talon's gaze. No words needed, the two cats understand each other's concern. Snow becomes more frequent, temperatures are further lowering, hunting increasingly pointless. Soon gathering will be their main income of food, and it looks meagre currently. Hunger will return, and if this leafbare is a long one, there might have to be tough decisions ahead. Sighing, Talon pulls his eyes away, leaving Frost to pad away a few heartbeats later. The white tom's flaring temper has cooled with the falling snow, but that is a small victory with the trouble yet ahead in view. Hearing paws upon the dumpster that stands against his wall, Talon looks over to see Kestrel and Silver approaching, stopping and sitting just before the dark pelted leader

„Kestrel, Silver. Anything to report? Don't usually see you two together"

Kestrel nods, his ear flicking away a snowflake that landed on it

„I do, yes. I hope you are not upset, but considering the nature of the news, I thought Silver ought to be the first to know"

Talon raises an eyebrow, but gives no immediate comment, leaping down to them onto the dumpster

„What is it then?"

„There may very soon be war between the twins and Wrath. Apparently one of Wrath's patrols attacked what they thought were rogues. Turns out they were among the cats the twins convinced to join them and they retaliated. Several cats on both sides are apparently in very rough shape, Ice and Snake are cockier than ever and Wrath is…"

„…seething. From what Kestrel heard, he, his veteran warriors and several others are going to storm the twins alley. All bets will be off for how that will end"

Silver cuts in, fatigue and a hint of worry in his voice. Talon shakes his head, teeth gnashing

„The fools are fighting, now? Leafbare is upon us, we need to save our strength and they want to pain the snow red? Has all reason been buried alongside Scourge? Who will feed their cats if they are all dead or too injured to scavenge?"

Looking at the two toms before him, Silver's reaction is immediately understandable to Talon. Worry darkens his usually attentive green eyes, care for his kin that might come to harm in Wrath's attempt to avenge himself. Kestrel however seems more thoughtful than concerned, his usual smile temporarily lost to a very pensive expression. His eyes moving back and forth, focusing on naught, it is clear that something major goes on behind them. Calming himself from his initial anger, Talon looks to his second-in-command

„What are you thinking, Kestrel."

Humming, the brown and cream coloured tom raises his head, returning Talon's gaze

„A gamble. A gamble that would be huge if it paid off… but might anger all the wrong cats at the same time if not. Twenty days are over in three days, the next gathering is almost upon us. If you can reign them in before that, you would not only prevent needles bloodshed, but the leaders would see that you can wield great authority, calling two of them to order like that. But to do that, you'd need to be there… between two very riled up groups of warriors. Between Wrath and the twins, all of them ready to pounce"

Silver's ears perk up in alarm, turning towards Kestrel

„There is a border between bravery and foolishness, Kestrel, and this more than crosses it. Why would either of them listen to Talon anyway? This is madness"

Kestrel calmly looks from the veteran warrior over to Talon

„Well, I'm not the one speaking with Scourge. What would our former leader say?"

Talon looks past them, over the alley where life continues. Food is scarce, the coming weeks will be fierce and all here know it. Cold will come, with it sickness, with it rogues trying to find refuge and food. He will be needed to help his faction weather it all. With a sigh, he remembers Scourge's words when they last met. He is to focus on his faction, keep it strong and safe, then use what opportunities present themselves come newleaf. But the lives of many good warriors are at stake. What is leadership for if not to protect the clan and all it's members? Silver's brother might well die, as will many others. The weight of the decision lies entirely on Talon, an oppressive weight he tangibly feels pushing down on him right now

„…Scourge would advise against it… but I find it difficult to ignore our clanmates being in danger. If the battle won't kill them, starvation might afterwards when they're all in no shape find food."

Kestrel nods, following his leader's eyes

„Well, not every gamble is worth it. Disregard what I said then. Unless…"

The brown second's eyes light up with an idea, a faint smile returning to him

„Perhaps we can't prevent the clash… but we could be the ones to take care of them afterwards. They will have little to no food and certainly no healers. When it gets dire after the battle, we offer refuge, healing and food to all that would join us instead. Come newleaf, we could have as many cats as three factions at almost. At that point, you'd almost be the de facto leader anyway."

Talon slowly shakes his head

„Our supplies are already stretched thin. If this leafbare turns out to be long, we won't be able to feed our own cats. As much as I appreciate the idea, Kestrel, and I genuinely do, I might doom more cats to starvation than if I did nothing."

Kestrel's confident grin grows

„Perhaps… but not necessarily. It might get tight yes, but I might be able to think of a few solutions. I'll need some time to think things through though, I will tell you what I come up with tomorrow."

Talon and Silver share an intrigued, if mildly concerned, look with each other as Kestrel bounds away off of the dumpster and through the light snow.