Warrior Cat Clans 2 (WCC2 aka Classic) is a roleplay site inspired by the Warrior series by Erin Hunter. Whether you are a fan of the books or new to the Warrior cats world, WCC2 offers a diverse environment with over a decade’s worth of lore for you - and your characters - to explore. Join us today and become a part of our ongoing story!
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11.06.2022 The site has been transformed into an archive. Thank you for all the memories here!
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He was neglecting his duties to his gang in favor of hovering near a border to a clan he did not live in, waiting for a cat that would not come, and snarling at anything that came close. Maybe that was why she didn't come. She'd realized he was not that passionate, selfless cat she spoke of to Ratstar on that last, fateful night filled by love and confessions. She must have seen the storm brewing within him, caught a glimpse of the anger he knew still clouded his heart like a virulent smokescreen, and she must have decided it would be easier to never come back than to look him in the eye and watch his heart break.
And still, still, Crow couldn't bring himself to walk away. He'd given his word, so no matter his torment and fury, he still sat on his side of the border, staring across it longingly. Waiting. Hoping.
Rosethorn had to get away from camp, since it was depressing as hell to sit and watch her sister and her new mate. She had been taking frequent walks, sometimes with her sister for exercise (though Goldenshadow always came), but mostly on her own. Today, she wasn't sure why, her instincts drew her to the border where she'd met Crow for the first time.
There was no way he was still hanging around. It had been a moon- closer to a moon and a half, since Ratstar had caught him and Orchid, and about as long since Orchiddrop had mentioned his name. With a start, though, she realized she saw a black silhouette near the border.
Maybe it was a shadow, but maybe it was him. Wanting to avoid confrontation with her sister's ex-boyfriend, she tried to turn and escape before he noticed- but she was too late.
He saw that brush of white, too far to discern the splotches of gray, and his heart nearly leaped out of his throat and straight into his voice, which was thick with emotion. His anger-- for the moment-- dissipated and all that was left was joy, a pure and unfiltered happiness flooding out of him in the form of tears threatening to bubble over. He might have succeeded in reigning them back in were it not for the moment that she turned and it was not oceanic blue eyes that beheld him but a gaze of fire so similar to his own. "O-oh." To his credit he tried to not look so visibly deflated at the sight of his lover's sister, because he did like Rosethorn from their last encounter, but the weight of his excitement crumbling Into despair felt like it might crush him underneath.
And Crow would let it.
He would let grief smother the last flickers of hope left in him. He would let wrath take hold of him with its promise that he would never again see a cold, lonely night. His oldest and truest friend that had walked him-- quite literally-- through fire, that he had abandoned when he'd felt love whisk him to greater heights only to drop him from the tallest peak, and which now felt like the only thing he ever could have counted on in the first place. He would let it consume him, its touch familiar and longing for him to breathe it in once again. In his bonfire eyes, the brightness that made Crow who he was was clouded by a dark, dangerous smog.
Rosethorn turned back, moving to meet Crow on her side of the border. He didn't look great- not that she expected him to, but it still made her think angrily back to her sister at camp, with her new mate by her side.
"Hey, Crow," she said gently, trying to give him a half-smile. "It's been a while, huh? How... uh, how've you been?"
Normally she would've been more eloquent, but she was weighing her choices. How much to tell him? How much to hold back? What would hurt him the least?
"I've been better." It was a far cry from the joking, joyful cat Rosethorn had met those few moons ago, his voice a dagger that could slice through flesh. She knew that, though; Crow was no fool to see the discomfort in the way she avoided meeting his eyes and cast glances down at her paws, her questions too casual. The Rosethorn he remembered was snarky and confident. The cat in front of him did not seem like either of those things. "Where is she, Rosethorn? Why hasn't Orchiddrop been coming to see me? S-she--" He wavered a little here, his words splintered with grief, "-- she said she loved me."
Rosethorn's nostrils flared, cursing her sister for putting her in this intensely uncomfortable situation. If she didn't love Crow, why couldn't she have just told him that herself? Rose was tempted to tell him that Orchid had moved on, that it was best if he did too. It would be the quickest way to end all of this- Crow could get closure, could move on and stop waiting around for her sister.
But images played in the corners of her mind. She gritted her teeth, knowing her sister wasn't well. Orchiddrop was hurting too. She hid it well from her mate, who didn't really know her, but Rosethorn could see it. Orchiddrop spent all her spare time sleeping or staring off into space, and she moved slowly and listlessly around camp under Goldenshadow's watchful gaze. She brushed it off when Rosethorn questioned it, claiming fatigue because of the kits. She only ate enough because of her pregnancy.
And there had been that night, when Rosethorn had gotten up to relieve herself, when Goldenshadow was asleep in the warrior den. She had heard shaky breathing and followed it, curious, behind the nursery. Orchiddrop had been sitting alone, hunched into herself, and the sapphire eyes that met Rosethorn's were full of tears.
Rosethorn had opened her mouth to say something, to comfort her sister, but as he always did, Goldenshadow appeared beside them. He seemed to have some intuition preventing the sisters from ever really talking. Orchiddrop had looked away quickly, and when she looked back, the tears were gone. She had plastered a smile on her face and said something about getting fresh air before retreating back into the nursery.
"She does love you," Rosethorn said quietly, looking back up. She knew what she had to do, knew that it might hurt Crow even more- but it might give her sister a chance to come clean. "She can't leave camp right now, or she'd be here. Crow... I... Orchiddrop is pregnant, and there are... things... preventing her from leaving to see you."
She was aware that it sounded like Orchiddrop was ill, not abused. Rosethorn knew she was giving Crow false hope, that this would cause him to seek out Orchiddrop as soon as the borders opened, that this would double his pain when he did find her. She hoped Crow would forgive her for this lie, but she had to prioritize her sister. "She's okay- I'm taking care of her. But you should come see her when you can."
That was all it took. Like storm clouds dissipating after they loosed their thundering rains upon the world, the fog that clouded his senses began to ease back and the Crow she knew would become more and more recognizable with the passing seconds. In time he might hate Rosethorn for this stray hope she was feeding him, but in the moons that came after, he would understand and they would have a chance to reconcile. "Pregnant?" He echoed, and suddenly there was a new element causing his heart to shudder and to grow three times its size. She was...pregnant...with his kits?
He took a few shaking steps backwards until his hind legs buckled from holding up the vacant vessel that was Crow. Pregnant. Kits. Mine. Truthfully, before Orchiddrop, he had never considered the possibility of fatherhood. He didn't think he was even remotely father material; after all, Ghostcrown had been exiled around the time he was an apprentice, so as far as father figures went, he was in short supply. He nodded though, accepting Rosethorn's indication that his love was being taken care of. That she had not forgotten him. That she still loved him. "Just...let her know I'm still here, Rose. I'll always be here when she wants to see me. When she can, and that I still plan on coming home when the border restrictions are up. Please tell her I love her and I can't wait to meet our kits." How he wanted so badly to be there now, to wrap himself around her the way he had that last night they spent together, and to speak softly against into her fur to their children all through the days and nights until he could wrap them, too, into his loving, protective embrace. All he longed for was his-- yes, his-- family, and it imbued him with a stronger, more prominent resolve than ever before.
Crow had been on the verge of giving up hope for the final time but, thanks to Rosethorn, there were happy tears grazing the edges of his whole-hearted smile.
Rosethorn had the needling feeling she was torturing an already defenseless animal, knowing what Crow would encounter when he joined. Maybe, maybe, she could convince Orchiddrop to leave Goldenshadow before then, and Crow would be none the wiser. Hopefully she could spare them both the extra pain.
She wasn't lying technically- she was sure the kits were Crow's, but that wouldn't matter if Orchiddrop wouldn't admit it and remained under Goldenshadow's influence. "I'll tell her all of that," Rosethorn said, guilt coursing through her veins. She would try to, but if word got back to Orchid's mate... Orchiddrop could end up in danger. Starclan, this was messy business.
"I have to get back to camp," she said, with another forced smile. "But I'm glad I got to see you and tell you. Orchiddrop misses you terribly-" she was sure that was the truth as well, though she knew she was being a messenger for an unwitting party. "-and we'll both keep an eye out for you whenever Ratstar opens the borders again. Now please, go eat a good meal and get some sleep. You don't have to sit here every day now that you know she's safe and waiting for you."
Crow dipped his head for what was probably the second time in his life, eternally grateful for her willingness to relay his messenger. "Thank you, Rose. I'll see you both soon hopefully." With more enthusiasm lacing his step, and a silent promise to himself to still be at the border every day regardless of what she said, he turned and limped back deeper into the rogue lands and back to his gang, who would all surely be relieved to see him back to his normal self for the time being.
Rosethorn watched him go with a sinking heart- she supposed she had granted him a little reprieve from his grief, but she knew the agony would return unless she found a way to fix this whole jumble. After he was out of sight, the Garden Keeper turned back towards camp, wandering back in that direction with a preoccupied mind.
The camp itself was bustling with the large amount of kits, and the warriors going and coming on extra hunting patrols to make up for the lower amounts of prey. Orchiddrop was curled up outside the nursery, sleeping again- as she had been since early that morning. Her fur looked unkempt, Rosethorn observed with another sigh.
She turned to head towards her sister, but was cut off by Ratstar. Rosethorn jumped slightly, before giving the leader a smile. "Hello, Ratstar," she said quietly. She supposed she smelled of Crow, but she figured she wouldn't be in trouble- she hadn't crossed the border after all, and Ratstar understood the current predicament. "I was going to check on my sister."
Ratstar's normally friendly face was disturbingly unreadable as he stared down at the Garden Keeper. "I need t' talk with ya, Rosethorn. Privately." That was all the explanation he gave as he gestured her away with his tail, leading the young she-cat into the leader's den within the old beech tree. The tom stepped politely aside to allow her to enter first, then cautiously glanced over his shoulder to scan the virtually empty camp before following her inside. Before she could even open her mouth to ask the meaning behind this meeting, Ratstar lifted his tail to silence her.
"I know where ya were, and I know who you were talkin' to. I happened across Orchiddrop an' Crow some time ago, an' I already gave 'em my blessin'." He paused, noticing the look of pure disbelief on Rosethorn's face. "Listen, I'm a sucker fer romance, okay? Ya can ask Poppymask, Imma big ol' softie. That ain't the point. The point is we both know who the real father o' ya sister's kits is, but I sure as Starclan don' know why she decided to flake an' become mates with Goldenshadow instead. An' I don' think ya know the real reason either, but ya must have some insight into this that I don't. Crow's a good kid. If Orchiddrop has a good reason fer wantin' t' break it off, I'd rather let the poor guy learn the truth sooner rather than later."
The more Rosethorn spoke to Ratstar, the more she liked him- even if she currently wanted nothing more than to take a nap and sleep this whole confusing day away. The fact that he knew about her sister and Crow was news to her, but welcome news. It meant she had an ally in this whole ordeal.
"I'm sure Orchiddrop has her reasons..." she said slowly, whiskers twitching. "My sister has always had our parents approval, and ever since we got back from our journey she's wanted to earn the clan's approval as well. If I had to guess, she did it because she was scared of being rejected by others for a cross-clan romance. Not that anyone gave her that impression- Orchiddrop has a bad habit of getting lost in her own doubts and projecting."
Rosethorn sighed. "Still, Ratstar... I know she loves Crow. She misses him. And I don't like Goldenshadow. I don't have proof, but I don't think he's good for Orchid. She's not herself lately. Maybe you could... look into Goldenshadow a little more for me? Before we take any action or tell Crow anything."
Ratstar's nose scrunched up in confusion as Rosethorn provided her best guess at an explanation for her sister's recent actions. "But that don' make sense," he replied. "She has my approval; no cat in Summerclan can object or question 'em once I announce it, which I planned t' if Crow decides t' join." Regarding the she-cat, it occurred to the leader that he hadn't given the outspoken young Garden Keeper enough credit; she had known about Crow for a lot longer than he had, but was willing to not only keep the secret, but also speak up to the leader when she believed something was wrong, all out of love and loyalty to her sister. Neither Rosethorn or Orchiddrop had been born in Summerclan, but they certainly embodied the ideals he hoped to see in this clan, each in their own unique way.
He listened with a strange intenseness as she explained her concerns about Goldenshadow, ones that Ratstar himself had been silently harboring since the pair announced themselves as mates. It was plain as day the two weren't in love - they didn't seem to even like each other. It was all performative, a show for the clan. "Oh, I plan on talkin' to 'im," he remarked cryptically. "Don 'cha worry, Rosethorn."
"Thank you, Ratstar," she said with a deep exhale, gratitude coloring her tone. "I know it doesn't make sense. It probably wasn't anything that you said or did. Orchiddrop just tends to internalize too much."
The amber eyed Garden Keeper looked behind her, like she expected someone to be lurking in the entrance. "If I could ask one more thing... could you make sure that Orchiddrop didn't give you these suspicions, or tell you anything? Again, I'm not sure, but I feel like she's afraid to speak up. I'm not convinced that Goldenshadow won't do anything to her if he thinks she sent you."
