there's nowhere we can hide [open]

[Dawn]

A long legged brown tabby she-cat sat atop the Large Rock in which PeakClan made their home. Lynxstar surveyed her Clan, milling around in the valley and on various ledges of the large rock, though her pale green eyes, focus flicking from cat to cat.

She didn't see her brother Bramblepelt - no surprise. She let out a little huff. The mere thought of her tabby brother irritated her now a days. The tom was like an annoying burr that she couldn't quite reach to remove from her fur. Her other brother, Owlspots, had always assured her that Bramblepelt would settle as time went by, that he would fall better into the role she thought he should, but so far, nothing. It's as if he existed to make her life difficult, and she hated it.

Her eyes next flicked towards a movement of pale ginger at the edge of her vision. Her eyes fell on Birdpaw, one of the newer apprentices. She was dragging a rabbit back towards the fresh-kill pile, her tail up in the air. Apparently, the little she-cat had managed to catch the thing. Lynxstar was a bit surprised, Birdpaw had always been the one she had thought would be the most unsuccessful - the most like Bramblepelt in her mind.

She recalled Bramblepelt approaching her before Birdpaw was apprenticed, asking if he could mentor the little one. Of course, Lynxstar would never let that happen. Birdpaw was already too free-spirited for Lynxstar's comfort, she couldn't allow Bramblepelt to taint her further. That, and she enjoyed that she was able to hang that over Bramblepelt's head, when nothing else she did seemed to have much effect on him. She enjoyed thinking she had that power, and wasn't about to relinquish it.

"Lets just hope she's on the right path and he won't screw it up."

[/color] She growled to herself, her eyes still trained on Birdpaw, who had finally managed to put the rabbit on the pile, and was padding away, her tail and ears still held up proudly. "I should probably have a word with her mentor, or have Willownose check in on her training."[/color] She continued to herself, finally shifting her eyes away from the little she-cat to look for her deputy.
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[pretzel]

Willownose led her patrol back into PeakClan's camp, having just finished patrolling their border with BrookClan. The deputy was trying to get as much work done as she could in the warmth of the day before the sun set and the cold set in. She knew that they would have to stock up on prey before the deep of leaf-bare hit them.

The silver she-cat gave a small approving nod to Birdpaw as the apprentice dragged a rabbit to the meager fresh-kill pile. Despite Birdpaw's catch, which was impressive for a new apprentice, the clan would need a lot more prey before she could have any peace of mind about leaf-bare.

Vaguely, the she-cat wondered where her half-brother, Cedarstone, was before pushing the thought of the tom out of her mind. He could get carried off by an eagle for all she cared.

Willownose glanced up to the Large Rock, gray eyes settling on Lynxstar as the leader sat proudly above her Clan. The deputy picked her way up the Rock to her leader, sitting next to her and wrapping her tail around her paws. "We're going to need to send out more hunting patrols if we want to make it through leaf-bare," she observed, turning her gray-green gaze from the camp to Lynxstar."Have you heard anything from StarClan recently?" She knew that the Northern Lights were waning as they entered leaf-bare and that their communication with StarClan would be almost completely cut-off soon. But she still hoped that Lynxstar or their medicine cat would receive at least one more sign before the darkness of winter.

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[Dawn]

Lynxstar's eyes found Willownose as she returned from a patrol. Willownose, always so dedicated. It was one of the qualities that Lynxstar had admired in her when she had chosen to name Willownose her new deputy. She watched as Willownose gave Birdpaw a nod, making the little apprentice's tail curl a bit with pride.

She then surveyed Willownose's progress up to the rock upon which she sat, and nodded to her as she sat beside her.

"We're going to need to send out more hunting patrols if we want to make it through leaf-bare."

Lynxstar nodded slightly, feeling the chill that had been pressing in on the camp since the beginning of the harshest season. "Yes, and we will need to make sure BrookClan stays on their side of the border as well. StarClan knows what they are willing to do to get some extra prey."

[/color] She meowed darkly, her eyes flashing. She didn't trust the Clan PeakClan shared the territory any more than she trusted a hungry fox.

"Have you heard anything from StarClan recently?"

Lynxstar shook her head, her eyes flicking towards the sky. She too knew that the time of silence was approaching, and she too had been hoping for some sort of message or sign from them before her ancestors went quiet. "Unfortunately not."[/color] She sighed, looking back towards Willownose. "As silent as stars."[/color]

She looked back down into the clearing, where the same collection of cats still milled around. "Willownose, have you been monitoring the apprentice's training? How are the new apprentices doing?"[/color] She asked, watching as Birdpaw was joined by her littermates, Drongopaw and Blackpaw. Drongopaw was the more quiet of the three, the strong and silent type as Lynxstar classified him. Blackpaw was smart and quite outspoken. She reminded Lynxstar the most of herself, as much as Birdpaw reminded her of Bramblepelt at that age.
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[pretzel]

"Yes, and we will need to make sure BrookClan stays on their side of the border as well. StarClan knows what they are willing to do to get some extra prey."

Willownose nodded her assent to the brown tabby's words, turning her gaze towards the forest where BrookClan lived, their territory visible from the Large Rock.

"I've already increased patrols along their border," she reassured Lynxstar, hackles raising slightly as she thought of the other Clan. "It seems as if they've thought to do the same, though. Their scent has been growing particularly strong over these last few days."

The thought of StarClan's silence worried Willownose. While their warrior ancestors were never particularly chatty, they usually visited Lynxstar or the medicine cat before leaf-bare set in and contact was cut off from the Clans until new-leaf.

"Willownose, have you been monitoring the apprentice's training? How are the new apprentices doing?"

The gray tabby glanced over at her leader, intrigue muddying her gray eyes. "I just checked up on their training the other day. Drongopaw is doing well with his fighting training, although he seems to be struggling a little bit with hunting. Poor tom hasn't grown into his legs yet. Blackpaw has been rather..feisty towards her mentor. She's cheeky, but she'll be fine once she figures out that she doesn't know everything. Birdpaw, well. She's flighty, but we've always known that. I'm afraid she'll do something stupid, though. We're running low on food and I'm willing to bet that Birdpaw would be the first to cross the BrookClan border if she sees a fat mouse on the other side." The deputy knew that Lynxstar worried about Birdpaw's training, but Willownose would be damned if she let an apprentice hunt on BrookClan's territory. The slippery Clan would love a chance to bring up a fight with PeakClan, warranted or not.

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[Dawn]

"I've already increased patrols along their border. It seems as if they've thought to do the same, though. Their scent has been growing particularly strong over these last few days."

Lynxstar nodded slowly to herself. She had thought so. "Unsurprising. Never met a BrookClan warrior I trusted."

[/color] She growled, her eyes too shifting to the horizon where she could see BrookClan territory. "Perhaps some of the border patrols should be dual hunting patrols, just so we can catch some of the prey closer to the border. Just make sure the cats on those patrols know to stay on our side of the border. BrookClan may be willing to cross it, but we are more noble than that."[/color]

She turned her head back to Willownose as her deputy began the report on the apprentices training, though part of her mind still held on the BrookClan border issue. There hadn't been any sign of them crossing yet, but she knew it would come.

"I just checked up on their training the other day. Drongopaw is doing well with his fighting training, although he seems to be struggling a little bit with hunting. Poor tom hasn't grown into his legs yet. Blackpaw has been rather..feisty towards her mentor. She's cheeky, but she'll be fine once she figures out that she doesn't know everything. Birdpaw, well. She's flighty, but we've always known that. I'm afraid she'll do something stupid, though. We're running low on food and I'm willing to bet that Birdpaw would be the first to cross the BrookClan border if she sees a fat mouse on the other side."

Lynxstar nodded slightly, the report was similar to what she had expected. "Well, it's early. They still have a lot to learn, and time to do it. Perhaps you should speak to their mentors about a first assessment soon, so they too can see how they are progressing in the various areas of their training."[/color] She had always found it helpful to have a gauge of her own progress, just so she knew what areas needed more work and which areas she was best at. "Yes, Birdpaw."[/color] Lynxstar's eyes narrowed slightly as she contemplated the little she-cat. "Keep her off of those patrols near the border, make it clear to her not to go too near it either. I trust you to mentor her to be the best warrior she can be, but it may take time."[/color]
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[pretzel]

"Unsurprising. Never met a BrookClan warrior I trusted. Perhaps some of the border patrols should be dual hunting patrols, just so we can catch some of the prey closer to the border. Just make sure the cats on those patrols know to stay on our side of the border. BrookClan may be willing to cross it, but we are more noble than that."

Willownose nodded. "'Course. I'll organize the patrols before the warriors go to sleep tonight. BrookClan won't dare cross our border." She herself would be on every patrol along their border, if she could help it. No, those forest-dwelling cats wouldn't come near the border, simply out of fear of the PeakClan cats.

Well, it's early. They still have a lot to learn, and time to do it. Perhaps you should speak to their mentors about a first assessment soon, so they too can see how they are progressing in the various areas of their training." Willownose knew that Lynxstar had a strange affinity for assessments. She herself wasn't overly fond of them; it took far too much of her precious time and she could tell most mentors what needed to be worked on without any extra time observing their training. "Yes, Birdpaw. Keep her off of those patrols near the border, make it clear to her not to go too near it either. I trust you to mentor her to be the best warrior she can be, but it may take time."

Well, that dashed her plans of being on every border patrol. Unless she were to pawn Birdpaw off on other warriors, and idea she hated. She didn't want any other cats influencing Birdpaw; the young apprentice was already too much of a flight risk. No, she'd have to pull double patrols in order to oversee things as much as she'd like. And she now had to evaluate the apprentices, despite the fact that she oversaw most of their training every day.

"Honestly, Lynxstar, I think Birdpaw could handle the border. She may still be a little flighty, but I'll be with her the entire time and I'll make sure she won't get close enough to the border to cross it." As dedicated and loyal as she was to PeakClan, she really didn't have the time right now to pull double-duty and evaluate the apprentices.

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[Dawn]

"'Course. I'll organize the patrols before the warriors go to sleep tonight. BrookClan won't dare cross our border."

Lynxstar nodded, comforted in the knowledge that Willownose would organize the patrols. If there was one cat she knew she could trust with it, other than herself, it was Willownose. That was, of course, one of the reasons she had chosen the she-cat to be her deputy.

"Honestly, Lynxstar, I think Birdpaw could handle the border. She may still be a little flighty, but I'll be with her the entire time and I'll make sure she won't get close enough to the border to cross it."

Lynxstar hesitated a moment, still worried about Birdpaw's distracted nature. But she trusted that Willownose would control her apprentice, just as she had trusted her to control her when she had given Willownose Birdpaw as an apprentice. She nodded slightly, her eyes moving towards Birdpaw, who was now just making her way towards the apprentices den, her brother Drongopaw behind her, while Blackpaw jeered jokingly at them from the entrance of the den.

"Alright. Maybe just be sure not to put her on any patrol with Bramblepelt, he seems to like to influence her care-free side."

[/color] She meowed, narrowing her eyes slightly at the thought of her brother. She had never outright spoken to Willownose, or any cat other than Owlspots, about her mistrust of Bramblepelt, but she supposed Willownose must have some idea. And she probably understood, considering she wasn't close with her brother either.

Lynxstar shook her head slightly, letting her weariness show for a moment. "Sorry to ask so much of you, Willownose. I'm just worried about the time of silence and leaf-bare. I'll go on any of the patrols you set, just let me know when."[/color] She meowed, looking back at her deputy when she felt she had control of the emotions she let show on her face.
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[pretzel]

The gray deputy tensed up at her leader's silence. She turned to Lynxtar, green-gray eyes seeking out any signs of the she-cat's emotions. Willownose knew that Lynxstar, for some reason, wasn't fond of Birdpaw. Since she had been made the ginger cat's mentor, she had wondered why. Sure, Birdpaw was a little flighty and distracted, but with enough focus and training, she had the potential to make a great warrior.

There was a tense silence for a moment, before Lynxstar spoke again. "Alright. Maybe just be sure not to put her on any patrol with Bramblepelt, he seems to like to influence her care-free side."

Willownose was surprised. As long as she kept Birdpaw away from Bramblepelt? What did he have to do with anything? She knew that Lynxstar wasn't on good terms with her brother, but she never knew why. And she also knew that he was never a very good influence on apprentices, but Willownose always tried to put apprentices on a patrol with every warrior and other apprentice, at least once, so that they knew their Clanmate's strengths and weaknesses and how to work with them in case of battle.

"Sorry to ask so much of you, Willownose. I'm just worried about the time of silence and leaf-bare. I'll go on any of the patrols you set, just let me know when."

Willownose shook her head. "Don't worry about it. It's my job, right?" she joked, trying to lighten the mood before asking her next question. "Lynxstar, if you don't mind me asking, whatever happened between you and Bramblepelt? I mean, every cat knows that I hate Cedarstone and it's no secret that it's because of my mother and that idiot, Owlfrost. And of course, the whole fiasco with Timberstorm. And it's clear that you have a - dislike for Bramblepelt, but why?" She hoped she wasn't overstepping her bounds with Lynxstar here, but the two needed to be honest and open with each other if they were going to cohesively lead PeakClan.

[Dawn]

"Don't worry about it. It's my job, right?"

Lynxstar smiled slightly, recognizing the humor behind Willownose's words. She didn't really think of many cats as friends, especially since her personality tended to drive others away more often than not, but Willownose was one of those rare exceptions who she saw as a friend. And in some ways, it was nice to know she had a friend. She would rather not drive Willownose away too.

"Lynxstar, if you don't mind me asking, whatever happened between you and Bramblepelt? I mean, every cat knows that I hate Cedarstone and it's no secret that it's because of my mother and that idiot, Owlfrost. And of course, the whole fiasco with Timberstorm. And it's clear that you have a - dislike for Bramblepelt, but why?"

Lynxstar hesitated for a moment, a little surprised by the question. She looked directly at Willownose, her pale green eyes meeting Willownose's gray ones, considering her deputy. "Bramblepelt has always been the rebel. My father taught us how to be successful, Bramblepelt always went against whatever he said. While that past stuff is minor, he has never stopped being the rebel he was from when we were young. I'd love to be able to say I trust my brother, but there has always been doubt in my mind about him."

[/color] She paused, thinking about how much to let slip about her reasoning behind her dislike of her brother. "He asked if he could mentor Birdpaw, before she was apprenticed. Saw a bit of himself in her I think, but her pre-existing free-spirited nature paired with his rebellious teachings might, I think, have caused more problems than would have been good."[/color]

She considered whether to go on from there though. Part of the reason she mistrusted Bramblepelt was because she felt he weakened her and the Clan. He was flighty and hard to get a read on, and she hated being outsmarted, or feeling as though she had been. But that seemed petty to include, so she decided not to voice that part. "I just feel that Bramblepelt is a liability to the Clan, and he has refused to change even a little bit to make the Clan more at ease. I worry that he is the weakest link, but he hates to be confronted or corrected. We just have conflicting personalities more than anything I suppose, I just worry about what negative effect he could have on the Clan."[/color]
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[pretzel]

"Bramblepelt has always been the rebel. My father taught us how to be successful, Bramblepelt always went against whatever he said. While that past stuff is minor, he has never stopped being the rebel he was from when we were young. I'd love to be able to say I trust my brother, but there has always been doubt in my mind about him." A pause. Willownose opened her jaws to speak, but before she could, Lynxstar began again.

"He asked if he could mentor Birdpaw, before she was apprenticed. Saw a bit of himself in her I think, but her pre-existing free-spirited nature paired with his rebellious teachings might, I think, have caused more problems than would have been good. I just feel that Bramblepelt is a liability to the Clan, and he has refused to change even a little bit to make the Clan more at ease. I worry that he is the weakest link, but he hates to be confronted or corrected. We just have conflicting personalities more than anything I suppose, I just worry about what negative effect he could have on the Clan."

Willownose kept silent for a moment, thinking hard about Lynxstar's reasoning before she said anything. She valued her friendship with the brown she-cat more than anything and she didn't want to ruin it by angering her.

"Maybe Bramblepelt is just trying to prove that he isn't your father, that he's his own cat," Willownose ventured, keeping her tone neutral. "I do agree with you on not letting him mentor Birdpaw, though," she mewed, watching the cat in question as she played with her siblings, practicing some of their fighting moves in the center of camp. "Have you talked to him about him possibly changing his habits? I mean, I haven't noticed anything that would make me nervous about him and I haven't heard anything from the other warriors. I dunno, Lynxstar, I just feel like your worries about him are a little unfounded."

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[Dawn]

"Maybe Bramblepelt is just trying to prove that he isn't your father, that he's his own cat,"

Lynxstar snorted quietly. Well, he certainly had proved that. Time and time again. He also had proved how unlike her he was. Quite openly. As well as all of the points of her leadership he disagreed with, those had been brought up more than once.

"I do agree with you on not letting him mentor Birdpaw, though,"

Lynxstar was glad that Willownose at least saw eye to eye with her on that. Of all the reasons she disliked Bramblepelt and had not allowed him to mentor Birdpaw, this was probably the least petty argument she had presented. She cringed a bit inwardly at the thought of how caddy she may have sounded came to the forefront of her mind, but pushed it aside. It had already been said, no changing it now.

"Have you talked to him about him possibly changing his habits? I mean, I haven't noticed anything that would make me nervous about him and I haven't heard anything from the other warriors. I dunno, Lynxstar, I just feel like your worries about him are a little unfounded."

Lynxstar let out a singular laugh. "Oh Willownose, it's difficult to count how many times he and I have had that conversation."

[/color] She shook her head slightly. "I'm not saying he's a bad warrior, but if you knew him like I do, you would be more worried too."[/color] She meowed, knowing that a lot of the reason she mistrusted her brother were reasons she couldn't or didn't really want to put into words.
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[pretzel]

"Oh Willownose, it's difficult to count how many times he and I have had that conversation. I'm not saying he's a bad warrior, but if you knew him like I do, you would be more worried too."

Willownose dipped her head, knowing when she'd pushed Lynxstar too far. And she'd rather preserve her friendship, her only real friendship, than voice her opinion. Willownose knew when to let sleeping dogs (cats?) lie.

She leveled her gaze across the forest, to the south, where the warm breezes always blew from at the end of winter, heralding the beginning of new-leaf and the end of the Time of Silence. "Well, just know that, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here. I know all about family issues." She gave a small snort at the end of her words, thinking of Cedarstone and Timberstorm and just everything she'd had to deal with in the past. The image of Silverflower bleeding out in the center of camp with Timberstorm standing over her body, claws unsheathed and bloodied flashed in her mind for a moment. Willownose squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head, reminded of the nightmares she'd been plagues by since that day.

The silver she-cat stood and stretched, unsheathing her sharp claws for a moment to get a full stretch before straightening, digging her claws into the rock as mush as she could. She could feel the cold settling into her bones from sitting for too long.

[Dawn]

"Well, just know that, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here. I know all about family issues."

Lynxstar let Willownose's words sink in, feeling strangely better knowing that her deputy was willing to listen to her odd family problems. She looked sideways at the gray tabby and inclined her head slightly. "Thanks Willownose, I appreciate that."

[/color] And she actually did, she wasn't just saying that to be polite.

She knew that Willownose had her own family issues, what with the whole Cedarstone being sired by a different tom scandal that had rocked the Clan. Lynxstar hadn't really known any of the cats involved at the time, so she had just felt like a spectator and didn't know much about it. Not that she had ever felt the need to ask Willownose - why bother bringing up the past?

"And I'm here for you too, if you ever need to talk about your family issues."[/color] She meowed, gently nudging Willownose's shoulder with her nose. "I suppose having normal family dynamics just wasn't interesting enough for us, huh?"[/color] She laughed lightly, liking the fact that Willownose could relate, even a small bit, to herself in the respect of her family. Everyone else seemed to have perfectly healthy, happy families.
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