Rescue Mission~ ♦

[Crane]

Yet another night-wander. Spicestar was getting more and more restless - tensions in the forest just kept increasing. RiverClan and ThunderClan could be on the move at any second. Although he'd never admit it to himself, he was keeping guard. If anyone came within a pawstep of the WindClan territory... Well, it was a leader's duty to keep his Clan safe. And, counciously or not, that was what Spicestar was attempting.
He found a soft patch of grass and plopped down, sending up a scatter of green grass pieces. The moon was eerie tonight - almost a red colour. He shuddered.
StarClan, please, keep my Clan safe in the coming battles, he prayed, the moon reminding him of blood. He glanced down at his paws and back up at the moon, and the red tinge had faded. Spicestar's pelt still prickled at the memory.
He sat silently for a while longer, when a mild breeze picked up. From ShadowClan. Gosh, his imagination was playing tricks on him tonight. He swore he could smell blood on the breeze. And panic...
His thoughts were interrupted by crunching grass. His muscles tensed.
"Found you!" mewled a voice. He turned around.
"Ah, it's just you, Pantherpaw," he purred a greeting. "Uh, say, you don't smell anything funny, do you?" Pantherpaw hesitated, and Spicestar could hear her scenting the air in the silence.
"Nope," she said, popping the 'p'. "Why do you ask?"
He smiled gently. The apprentice's childish antics calmed his mind, and smoothed his metaphorically ruffled fur.
"I'll answer that when you tell me why you're following me," he retorted cheerfully. Pantherpaw pouted.

[it's FiSHY, scaredy-cat.]

Meanwhile a few paces from the leader, a white furball of a warrior was bounding, tripping, getting up and running, throat shrivelled-up dry from bolting across such a long distance nonstop. Being on the dry, open moor didn't help. Vulnerability tugged at her mind as water became more and more necessary. She needed a break.

But not far in the distance were two figures, one that she knew of. The sight gave hope, and hope gave energy. "Spicestar!" Dreamcloud cried, voice cracked, tail drooping. But she was still running, none the less, and didn't care to stop. Besides, what's wrong if she was only trying to get his attention? Her paws flew straight into the leader and she gasped in embaressment. Her mouth opened for a mew. Before she said a word, she collapsed in a heap.

On a second thought, no. That was not a good idea.

She was not looking good, literally. In her hurry, mud had left her looking like a spotted cat, her long white fur stained with dirt and debris and all. As from darting around to avoid attackers, let's say she didn't dodge all. Some torn fur there and there, a scratch on the leg, minimal blood spill. Still, there was no doubt that her heart was sinking from the thought of approaching a leader in this condition, not to mention flailing her paws frantically like she did and then falling a heartbeat after.

Yep, it was not going well.

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[Crane]

Spicestar flailed as he found himself upside-down, staring wide-eyed at the stars. He flipped himself over immediately, shaking his long ginger fur. He then assesed the scene. Pantherpaw was staring, appalled, at a mud-coated white warrior, who opened her mouth before collapsing in a heap. Spicestar's heart skipped a beat. What was going on? First things first, he must identify the cat. ShadowClan scent, mismatched eyes, white pelt... He recognized her. What was her name? He racked his brain before remembering her name was Dreamcloud.
"Pantherpaw," he mewed, "Run to the Hidden Pond, and find some moss. This cat needs water immediately." Pantherpaw stared in surprise, her amber-and-emerald eyes wide, but nodded calmly as her determined streak kicked in. She turned tail and ran as fast as she could, her black pelt blending in with the night as she ran further away.
Spicestar glanced back to Dreamcloud. She was bleeding... What had happened? He began licking her wounds to clean the mud from them. Maybe she would tell the story after she was feeling bit better.

[it's FiSHY, scaredy-cat.]

Dreamcloud looked up graciously. "Thank you..." her voice trailed off. Obviously this did not do anything good to her reputation, but it made it all more clear that her clan needed help. She reached over to lick her matted fur but cringed in pain from the ache. How was ShadowClan faring right now? Are they holding on? Fox-dunged RiverClan and ThunderClan. Can't they leave us along? Dreamcloud found herself unusually angry. Why?

OOC; sorry for the bad post xD I'm in a hurry

[Crane]

Spicestar moved away from Dreamcloud as she began to clean her fur for herself. She cringed in pain and he was about to say something - awkwardly - when Pantherpaw arrived, a dripping wad of moss dangling from her jaws and her sides heaving.
"Thankyou, Pantherpaw," Spicestar said, gently leaning over to retrieve the moss from her, then putting it on the ground in front of Dreamcloud's face. "Here," he mewed, nudging it towards her with his paw.
Pantherpaw piped up, "Spicestar! Should I go and fetch Windblaze?"
Spicestar thought upon this for a moment. "No," he disagreed, "I may need you later, after Dreamcloud shares with us what she has to say. "

[it's FiSHY, scaredy-cat.]

Then white she-cat weakly took the moss into her paws and squeezed some water out, lapping it up promptly as soon as she got the water. It felt like a miracle; blessing from StarClan. She never realized how good it felt to be quenched until just then. The white warrior was lucky she never had to live through a drought before. She looked at he moss. The water was drank all too fast.

It was only a reminder of her task, however. "Thank you for your help," she mewed, her tone rather rushed, "But the rest of my clan needs your aid more. ShadowClan has been attacked--" the she-cat turned her head around to glance at the marshy terrain at the distance, worry crawling up her spine, "ThunderClan and RiverClan teamed up against us. We are outnumbered. Please help," her eyes pleaded, "Please."

She looked up at the WindClan leader, hope just a flicker of an ember inside. If WindClan can only join them, maybe they could fight the others off. If not, whatever Riverstar and Dusksta had in mind would mark the doom of all, and not just ShadowClan. Surely Spicestar had enough compassion and wisdom to realize this?

[Crane]

Spicestar listened to Dreamcloud's story, his eyes widening in shock as she came to her conclusion. I knew it. Those... Those pathetic, self-important, selfish pieces of fox-dung! His tail twitched in agitation. Quick decision was what was needed now, for ShadowClan's sake as well as theirs. Helping was not even a question - even if Spicestar hadn't wished to assist ShadowClan, WindClan was next in line for a battle.
Spicestar said something that shall not be repeated here - very out of character for him - and looked to Pantherpaw.
"Stay here with Dreamcloud," he instructed her. "You're going to have to come with us, as much as I hate dragging an apprentice into this. I'm going to go get warriors, and then we'll run to ShadowClan. If the battle is still waging, we'll attempt to drive out the enemies along with the rest of the ShadowClanners. Otherwise, we'll bring the survivors back to our camp to heal, then take back the territory once everyone is better." Without waiting for a response - not that he expected one - he turned and sprinted as fast as his legs would carry him.
Thank StarClan that we WindClanners are such fast runners, he thought as he raced across the empty moorlands.

Pantherpaw looked to Dreamcloud. "Are you going to be okay to come back to ShadowClan with us? Hold on, should I go and find some cobwebs?"

[it's FiSHY, scaredy-cat.]

Dreamcloud gave the leader a curt nod, bowing her head in respect. Relief flooded in as she smiled hopefully. We have a chance. As Spicestar sprinted off, the ShadowClan she-cat raised her head to watch in admiration of his swiftness and speed. WindClan was definitely well-developed in that area. They'll get to the battle in no time with those speedy legs.

"Are you going to be okay to come back to ShadowClan with us?" Pantherpaw asked. Dreamcloud blinked and turned her head to look at the apprentice. She sighed, feeling regretful of the fact that she lacked good peripheral vision. But Pantherpaw continued. "Hold on, should I go and find some cobwebs?"

Dreamcloud inspected herself quickly and shook her head. "No, I won't need it. Most of the blood on my fur is someone else's. I ran into many cats when coming here," she told Pantherpaw but added, "You know, on a second thought, it'd be great if you could because I'm sure my clanmates will need them..." She trailed off feeling a little scared, for she knew one cat who desperately needed them. Marshflight. She had no idea how many more attacks the deputy can stand. An achy feeling inside told her it won't be long before his injuries will turn fatal. Stop worrying. Sharpstar is there to back him up, she repeatedly told herself. "Yes, Sharpstar is there to back him up," the warrior accidentally said out loud without noticing, "If any cat should help him, it'd be Sharpstar." Dreamcloud continued muttering stuff she witnissed, never wondering if Pantherpaw heard.