Life 2:17
Snow was falling on the moors. The cold of winter was making itself known. Usually, winters are especially hard on Windclan given that they live on flatlands. They usually have no shield from winds or snow. The key word is usually. The new tunnels Snakepaw and the new age diggers dug out were proving to be a boon. Naturally, earth is above freezing in temperature and acts as a decent insulator. Given that there were only a few dens underground at this point and how many cats would occupy these dens for the winter nights, Windclan was experiencing what was referred to as a Lucky Leafbare.
A few colds were caught. It is a near inevitability of any winter, but due to their access to warm dens, they were able to keep the illnesses from getting worse. A weak wave of whitecough swept through camp, but it was able to be treated with no casualties. Things were looking up for Windclan.
Tallstar and Snakepaw were on a border patrol this fine snowy morning. There was a little chatter between him and his apprentice, mostly about meaningless things like pleasant Leafbares they had before. Of course, Snakepaw couldn't help delighting in the snow. He'd always thought it was a shame that snow was cold. It was such fun to shape, run through, stomp in, and jump in. No matter where you went, you'd always be able to see your tracks. To break a pristine field of snow was one of Snakepaw's greatest joys. It was proof that he existed, that he could make a difference. Yes, the snow would one day melt and vanish. Maybe his tracks would be buried under many others, but they would remain until the cold left. To Snakepaw, leaving tracks was very similar to the nature of his cycles. He saw it as near identical. It reminded him that while his influence may not be permanent, it can last and make a difference.
Things seemed generally calm until Tallstar caught a whiff of something. It certainly wasn't a scent that belonged in Windclan territory. Snakepaw was pretty quick on the uptake and joined Tallstar in tracking down the scent. Unfortunately, the fresh snow hid whatever made that scent from sight, but Tallstar still had a keen nose. He found the source and began to dig it out. There he found them, bones. Bones were loosely scattered around. They were rabbit bones, something considered Wondclan prey. Upon these bones was another scent, Shadowclan.
"Shadowclan! They're stealing our prey! Why?" Tallstar growled.
"This isn't just theft." Snakepaw commented. "Sniff more closely. These bones were sprayed. They were meant to be found. This wasn't just a theft, but a message. I've done similar in the past in a war between clans. Doing something like this usually was a way to say, we came in and stole, and you can't do anything to stop us. Though, I do have to question the timing. Shadowclan has terrible Leafbares. They're usually hit the hardest by Whitecough. What do you think?"
Tallstar paused after hearing Snakepaw's words. While it would have been easy to say that Shadowclan was stealing prey since they couldn't get enough, this was contradicted by the evidence. As Snakepaw said, these bones were sprayed like a border marker. If Shadowclan really was stealing prey for their hungry, they'd be taking their prey back to their camp, not eating it out here. They also certainly wouldn't be spraying it. They'd be actively concealing their hunting. Something wasn't adding up.
"Can you give me your thoughts again one more time?" Tallstar asked, trying to reason with the oddity these bones were presenting.
"Well, in normal circumstances, I'd say these bones were a declaration of war. In my memory, I've done similar when we wanted to antagonize the enemy clan into charging into a border ambush. Though, we never did it in Leafbare. Leafbare is simply too risky of a time to go to war. We're low on herbs and can't restock. Our warriors are not in their prime state. Since we mostly hunt things that hibernate, our prey supply isn't too good either. There have been times that interclan wars have been paused until Newleaf. Simply put, I can't understand the intensions of this. It's picking a fight at a time where no one can afford to." Snakepaw answered.
"Picking a fight…" Tallstar mewed thoughtfully. How could Shadowclan risk picking a fight in Leafbare? Did they have a Lucky Leafbare as well? Even so, how could they afford to risk their herb supplies? How could they stand to benefit? That's when a thought hit Tallstar. Who would stand to benefit?
"What if it isn't Shadowclan itself?" Tallstar mewed.
"What do you mean by that? Snakepaw queried.
"I mean, what if this is someone trying to instigate a fight between Windclan and Shadowclan? They know this is the time our clans are at their weakest, and they know that Windclan needs to reassert our power. The question is who and how?" Tallstar pondered, now realizing the severity of the situation.
"Then let's go over the possibilities. First, the how. These bones don't necessarily need to be directly sprayed. Wiping them on a Shadowclan border marker would make them smell the exact same. Thus, we cannot rule out that it was someone outside Shadowclan who did this. Humor me while I give some theories. One, some Shadowclan cat has a grudge with us and needs justification to go to war with us. Were there any casualties when Windclan was driven out?" Snakepaw asked.
"There was one kit warrior that died from Shadowclan, but I believe they blamed Brokenstar for that." Tallstar answered.
"Then any other reason there may be someone with a vendetta against us?" Snakepaw tested.
"Not that I can think of." Tallstar replied.
"Then we can likely rule out it being just one Shadowclan cat. Let's instead ponder if Shadowclan itself did this. What could motivate them to pick a fight at this time? Territory is an obvious, but again, it isn't worth the resources. Are they trying to weaken Windclan? No. They're already in dire straits after so many of them were exiled. It just doesn't fit." Snakepaw stated before launching into another theory. "How about another clan? Which clan could possibly prompt this. Thunderclan? No. They were the ones who brought us back to prevent Riverclan and Shadowclan from growing their territories and expanding their power. It wouldn't make sense for them to try and cripple us at this point. Then maybe Riverclan? No. That's impossible too. This border isn't anywhere near Riverclan. For them to be able to do this, they'd have to travel down to Fourtrees and then loop back up along the Shadowclan border this far before catching anything, then travel all the way back to not leave any proof Riverclan was here. Even then, Riverclan has too distinct of a scent to cover."
"Then what could it be?" Tallstar asked, genuinely interested in what kind of conclusion Snakepaw could find.
"An outsider. If one simply followed the border, eventually they'd pass right out of clan territories. An outsider with knowledge of our border system could easily instigate a fight. Rogues generally do not care about the weather when it comes to fighting. They live very much by an either you live or you die system. The main problem with this idea being that we're pretty xenophobic. Getting knowledge about how the clans operate is not something a typical rogue could learn or leverage. I'm honestly stumped." Snakepaw answered with a huff.
"Then we'll just have to play this cautiously. We'll press Shadowclan, but they may be able to answer some of our questions. In the meantime, I'll increase the Shadowclan border patrols. Hopefully this'll deter whoever left these bones from acting." Tallstar mewed.
Tallstar was genuinely glad that Snakepaw calmed him. Without Snakepaw asking those questions, Tallstar knew he likely would have jumped to conclusions. When it comes to territory, it is really easy to let emotions take control. Tallstar knew he'd have to talk his own warriors out of running raids. There were too many questions to just assume an answer.