Everlasting Love (Stormwind)

Sterlingflight snarled deliberately back at Sun before Cloud gave him a particularly hard knock, the strong tom bringing up the rear and letting the other rogues fold around him and the pair of warriors as they began to drive the pair back towards camp.

Sun waited until the other cats were gone before looking around the rest of the rogues, Honeypelt still pinned beneath him. “What shall we do with her?” He asked, ready to accept any and all suggestions for their new captive.

Streamfire glared at Sun even as she was shoved away, peeling her lips back to bare her fangs in a snarl. “You and I both know that Silverwish being a murderer is a lie,” she hissed venomously. “She may have killed him, but it certainly wasn’t on purpose, and she was protecting me.”

Lightning and Storm joined the circle around the Clan cats, bewildered as to why they had been ordered to join it but eager.

Eagle, Mouse, Whiskers, and Rabbit sneered after the Clan cats, enjoying the sight of them getting shoved around.

“Provocations such as your dear deputy’s have consequences, you traitor.” Sun growled in reply to Streamfire. “Now leave. If you’re lucky we may decide to let her live, just so she can show us all of the best spots in your territory once we take it from you, murderers.”

Honeypelt went limp beneath the tom, her struggles to break free having failed, and Cloud began to push both the other clan cats into the rapidly forming knot of rogues around them.

Streamfire looked alarmed and angry, bristling. “Let her go, Sun!” She hissed, glaring st the tom, causing Eagle to growl at the way Sterlingflight and Streamfire practically ordered his leader, taking a step forward.

Lightning and Storm exchanged surprised glances before leaving the corner, slipping through the crowd to the front, waiting to escort the Clan cats back to their camp.

Sun snickered, glancing around at his clanmates. “I know what you want me to say,” He mewed, almost boastfully, as he surveyed the sheer numbers at his command. “But why kill these three measly cats now, when we could instead rip them and everybody and everything else they care about apart in half a day’s time?” Snarling, Sun spat at the dirt between Sterlingflight and himself. “Cloud, Mouse, Peach, Storm, and... Lightning. Take them back to their border.”

Honeypelt exhaled all at once, having forgotten to breathe in the tense moments that had just elapsed. As she turned around to face the exit with Sterlingflight, she gasped again as she was knocked over suddenly, her breath leaving her with the force of the tackle.

“Except for you.” Sun snarled, holding the she-cat’s head down against the dirt. “You’re not going anywhere.”

“Let go of her!” Yowled Sterlingflight, his eyes widening as he realized there was little he could do almost as soon as he spoke.

Streamfire winced with every word that came out of her father’s mouth. He’s being so reckless. Can’t he see we’re surrounded!? She thought with despair, itching to unsheathe her claws but aware that the slightest sign of hostility on the Clan cats’ part would prompt a bloodbath, with them ending up dead, outnumbered as they were.

Mouse emitted a low snarl from her throat, glaring murderously at the Clan cats. She was itching to launch herself st them and tear them to shreds, but would not without Sun’s command. Whiskers and Rabbit both stood beside her, equally eager.

Lightning and Storm, knowing they would both be no help and be scolded by their fathers if they attempted to join in on the seemingly imminent fight, slunk off to a relatively safe corner they could watch from.

Eagle growled low and deep in his throat, raking his claws across the ground. His tail lashed, the tom barely holding back until his friend ordered them to attack, as he was certain he would.

Sun, who had looked disinterested when he invited Sterlingflight to continue speaking a heartbeat ago, now had his eyes locked on the deputy’s, pure malice in them. The tom padded right up to Sterlingflight, who held his ground even though his claws unsheathed as he was approached. “You have a deal,” the rogue spat, “the same day you banish Silverwish for committing the same crime you are now accusing one of my closest friends of, with evidence that is shaky at best.”

Sterlingflight snarled at the prospect set forth by Sun, both toms knowing it was something that would never happen. Sun and Sterlingflight held one another’s angry gazes, each sizing the other up, waiting for his counterpart to make the next move.

“You know I won’t do that, Sun.” Replied Sterlingflight in a loud growl. “And if you refuse to kick Eagle out yourself before the next sunrise, I will march across your border and drive you all off.”

Honeypelt pinned her ears at Sterlingflight’s words, knowing there was no turning back from this. Around them the rogues had become malicious, tearing at the ground beneath their paws, ready to rip the throat out of every clan cat in sight on Sun’s command.

Streamfire jerked away from Cloud when she realized how close he was to her, stepping closer to her Clanmates and gazing around the camp warily.

All my rogues hissed with disbelief at the audacity of Sterlingflight, Eagle digging his claws into the earth beneath his paws.

Sterlingflight scowled at Eagle, but then turned back to Sun.

“He has a point.” The rogue leader mewed intently. “Anyways, continue.” The tom gave a dismissive wave of his tail, as if he wasn’t even paying attention to what Sterlingflight had to say next.

“Seeing as you’ve adapted the clan ways of patrolling and marking borders, we ask that you do what we would do in similar circumstances. Expel Eagle from your territory, and never allow him to return.”

Another wave of disbelieving yowls and mews erupted at the Tom’s words, with Cloud in particular giving a snort. “You have a lot of nerve, mangepelts.” The massive male growled into Streamfire’s ear from beside her, his claws flexing into the earth beneath dangerously.

Eagle almost twitched as he felt his leader’s scorching glare but managed to hide his reaction. He raised a kittybrow at Sterlingflight. “I don’t see how you can trust what that she-cat says. After all, she murdered one of our own,” he purred silkily. The tom knew he was just making it worse but he could hardly back down without losing face, and he enjoyed provoking them anyway.

Honeypelt had to bite down hard on her own tongue to keep from lashing out at Eagle when he spoke. How Dare He… worried, the female glanced at Sterlingflight, who hadn’t taken the provocation much better.

Sterlingflight turned to face Eagle, standing up and growling softly. “Actually, we are already well aware of who tried to murder our clanmate. Our medicine cat, Silverwish, identified you as it turns out.”

Peach and Amber each pinned their ears at the mention of Silverwish’s name. Standing amongst the other rogues, one hissed to the other, very audibly, “She’s the murderer!”

A wall of yowled protests went up around the camp in response to the Loveclan deputy, and their leader scowled, glaring over at Eagle. I told you not to provoke them, Eagle.

Lightning peered around her friend Storm to look at the Clan cats, frowning when she recognized two of the cats that she had encountered recently, which had ended up getting her in trouble.

“So?” Eagle drawled lazily, looking disinterested. “It’s not like we care, and it doesn’t have anything to do with us. Unless, of course, you came here to foolishly and scurrilously accuse us.”

Honeypelt bristled defensively as she felt the gaze of so many cats on her back at once as her deputy challenged their leader. These rogues outnumber our warriors!

Sun met the gaze of every single rogue who was watching, making it clear that none of them would make a move unless he ordered it. “I assume you didn’t come all this way to exchange pleasantries as sad as that is. So, what brings you three to our home?”

“One of our warriors was nearly killed this afternoon.” Sterlingflight started evenly, his eyes narrowed at Sun. “Our healers still have yet to wash her blood from their paws.” As much as Sterlingflight wanted to tell him more detail, doing so would only inflame him and Sterlingflight himself, and the last thing the deputy wanted was his personal grievances getting Streamfire and Honeypelt killed.

As the Clan cats passed by, Whiskers, Rabbit, Lightning, and Storm all turned to stare curiously. Mouse split off from the group as soon as she was allowed to, going to join her kits. While Eagle padded over to join the mixed group of Clan cats and rogues, eyeing the LoveClan cats with a sneer on his muzzle.

Streamfire bristled at Sun but held back from ynsheathing her claws, barely. Oh how she hated him.

Fortunately for the clan cats, the walk to the camp didn’t last that long.

Unfortunately for them, when Cloud lead the group into the clearing, they were now surrounded by not four rogues, but dozens. The group had ballooned in size since the last time Sterlingflight had been in the camp, for the negotiation over borders two moons ago. The tom pinned his ears back for an instant as the scent of so many rogues washed over him, but he forced himself to carry on into the thick of the stench and the fur. Around them were cats demonstrating battle moves, not to single apprentices but to groups of multiple other felines at once. The fresh-kill pile was more than adequate, and new dens were even being constructed by groups of cats weaving reeds and bramble tendrils together. The deputy steeled himself as, finally, he was lead into the familiar, older part of the camp.

Sun was talking to several of his most senior and trusted allies when Cloud approached. Upon sighting Sterlingflight and Streamfire, the Tom’s eyes lit up. “What a joy it is to have you two back!” The tom purred. “And someone new,” He continued, turning to Honeypelt, “quite pretty at that.”

Honeypelt scowled at the tom in reply.

Mouse scowled darkly at not getting to attack them but obediently padded around to to the back.

Streamfire grew twitchy at being surrounded by the rogues, even if she only knew two of them.

Honeypelt was prepared to step forward and stop Sterlingflight from lunging at the cocky rogue across from them, but the deputy somehow managed to control himself, though his tail gave an irritated, furious twitch. Clearly putting his diplomatic abilities on display and showing why he was deputy, the tom mewed evenly “My business with Sun is not yours to know unless he decides it is.”

Cloud yawned, making sure he showed off his mouth full of sharp teeth as he glanced back over at his patrol. “Very well. Mouse, Peach, Amber, form a circle around them. I’ll lead them to camp.”

The two newer rogues came around, one standing on each side of the clan cats, leaving Mouse to take the rearguard as the stout rogue tom began to pad back towards camp.

Streamfire let Sterlingflight do the talking, keeping a wary eye on the other three rogues, though she bristled at Cloud’s lie.

“What business do you have with him? We already complied to your demands on the borders. No cat has crossed your markings in over a moon.” Cloud replied with a nonchalant swish of his tail.

Wether Cloud knew he was lying or not, Sterlingflight bristled, and his lips pulled back in the beginnings of a snarl.

Streamfire stayed standing, tense in the presence of Cloud. Sterlingflight was not the only cat he’d raped, after all, and she had also once been one of the rogues.

Mouse hung back, glaring venomously at the Clan cats. She held back from attacking them with a difficulty, knowing that Cloud had not yet ordered them to, if he was going to.

“Stop here.” Mewed Sterlingflight quietly, glancing over his shoulder to the rest of his patrol. “We don’t want to resemble an invasion.”

Honeypelt sat down, trying to look nonchalant but feeling her fur begin to stand on end as a rogue emerged from the undergrowth.

“Ah, some uninvited guests. How lovely.” Cloud growled sarcastically, padding up to Sterlingflight and staring down the opposing tom. “What brings you here?”

“We’re coming to meet with Sun.” Replied the deputy, recognizing the tom and trying not to have the history between them replay in his head.

Peach and Amber were both visibly shaking with excitement. Their first clan cats! as a kittypet and a loner, respectively, the she-cats had heard plenty of rumors about the savage wild cats in the forest, rumors which had only been reinforced when Sun convinced them to join the rogues.

Streamfire followed after her two Clanmates, keeping a close and wary watch on their surroundings, scenting the air frequently. She sped up when she scented the rogues and hissed to Sterlingflight and Honeypelt, “I can scent them.”

Mouse was with the other three rogues on patrol, her expression darkening as she scented the LoveClan cats. Ever since Silverwish has killed Bear, and the subsequent lie that it was on purpose, she had despised LoveClsn.

Honeypelt wondered if Rainstar had chosen two cats with few connections to Echowhisper on purpose. Perhaps they’d been picked out to moderate Sterlingflight, whose eyes blazed with fury unlike anything any cat of Loveclan had ever seen before as they made their way over the border and into the rogue’s territory.

It wasn’t until after they crossed the border that Sterlingflight finally spoke to his patrol. “We’re not here for a fight- not yet. I’ll do my best to remember that myself.”

Cloud, leading a patrol of three other rogues, scented something and beckoned with his tail for the cats behind him to stop.

Amber and Peach, a pair of more recent recruits, halted as Cloud signaled, also scenting the unmistakable reek of clan cats in the air.

Willowheart quietly swallowed down the poppy seed and curled up in her nest to nap.

Streamfire joined her father and fellow warrior, eyeing Sterlingflight warily. Even though Echowhisper was her half-sister, she wasn’t all that close to her.

“As was I the first time.” Silverwish replied, giving the other she-cat a friendly lick. “You should try and get some sleep now, Willowheart. Take a poppy seed if you need.” Silverwish passed a seed to the female before turning to check on Echowhisper, leaving no room for argument from the younger medicine cat.

Honeypelt, surprised to be picked out, quickly got back on her paws and prepared for the patrol. Her heart raced as she padded alongside Sterlingflight, who had already walked down to the entrance to camp. The pair waited only for Streamfire now, which gave Honeypelt ample time to be even more unnerved by the anger in the deputy’s eyes.