"Most definitely the miscreant is StormClan," a brown tabby she-cat, slightly smaller than the other four cats sitting behind her with hostile expressions, yowled. A group of cats, separated from the rest and all relatively lithe, called to her, their meows echoing around the clearing. "They are the most aggressive and have been known to hold grudges, they cannot be trusted in any alliance!" Her watery blue gaze slid toward the proud black she-cat lined alongside the other cats sitting on the same stone as her in a galling manner, and she held the smallest smirk. "And I am being reprimanded by a kittypet," The black she-cat said calmly, although a hint of hostility tinted her strong voice. "Amusing." She got to her paws, striding next to the brown tabby she-cat but keeping a safe distance between them. Her whiskers twitched in agitation as she sat in silence for several heartbeats, gathering her thoughts and collecting herself. "StormClan would not be as petty as to steal from other Clans, we can handle our own, thank you." She glared at the other leader, Cloudstar, before continuing. "What's to say CloudClan isn't placing blame so swiftly as to hide their own guilt? I-" "Nightstar, I think we should refrain from stooping to their level." Vixenstar, the FireClan leader, hissed quietly. "Let us try and keep the peace between the remaining Clans without basing judgement on grudges." "Grudges?" Cloudstar snorted, speaking louder so all of the Clans of the Gathering could hear. "You think this is about grudges? How typical of a FireClan cat, making excuses for their allies." The FireClan cats, all packed together and distant from the other Clans, yowled in rage, hissing curses at the CloudClan leader and threats to her Clan. "FireClan is not making excuses, cats have lost their lives because of this blame being placed! Bloodshed is endless - when will you all learn to use your minds and not your claws?" Vixenstar snapped at her, and the other leaders turned to her with curled lips. "And now you insult us? IceClan has been defending its territory, if anything. With all these ambushes being placed on us, how are we supposed to use our minds-" Coldstar was cut off. "Oh, Coldstar, you fool! You ambushed us not even a moon ago!" Cloudstar spat toward him, and the IceClan leader flattened his ears. A shadowy gloom spread over the clearing as clouds began to engulf the full moon. "That was in defense after you'd tried and failed to attack us!" He snarled back, unsheathing his claws. "Do not try and say we were aggressive first." "Enough of this constant bickering!" Goldenstar's voice boomed through the Gathering, and all eyes went to her. "Castigation will get us nowhere, and yet here you all are picking out one another and making our ties come even more loose." The DuskClan leader lifted her gaze, looking down on the other leaders since she was larger than them - a rare occasion since StormClan tended to be the more hefty cats. "Is this how we wish to continue our dilemma? Bloodshed, death, and blame?" The leaders all exchanged glances, and Cloudstar leaped closer to the edge of the meteor, yowling at the top of her lungs. "I call upon StarClan to tell us who is to blame for this, and send their blessings as we drive them from our lands!" Silence fell upon all the cats, and they all looked to one another. Just as Cloudstar was about to speak again, she was interrupted by the snarl of Nightstar. "Look to the skies! Do you not see the clouds covering the moon? They are telling us CloudClan is the culprit!" Cloudstar's mouth gaped, and she began looking around fearfully. "Th-that is not true! Impossible! StarClan is wrong, they are not here with us!" She stammered, backing away from the three leaders prowling after her, eyes flashing with a bloodthirsty desire. "Stop, stop! This is insane, are we even sure this is a sign from StarClan? This is a place of peace!" Goldenstar spoke up, being the only one staying behind. The leaders seemed to ignore her, still moving toward Cloudstar with their fur tufted in a crazed manner. "Alright, enough!" She slashed at Nightstar's tail with her claws, and the StormClan leader yowled, whipping around. "How dare you, do you know-" "Hush! You all are acting like rogues! DuskClan will not partake in whatever this is," she moved forward, raising her voice. "Let it be known that DuskClan will leave the Comet Clans before the next full moon! These Clans have been united for many, many moons, and I will not be a witness to the end of that." She turned, stalking away from the others and, just before leaping off of the comet, looking over her shoulder at Cloudstar. "And StarClan is always with us." And with that she leapt off, leading her Clan from the clearing. The other leaders sat in shock for several heartbeats, and a sort of hushed vigil was stood at that moment. "You have driven off DuskClan... you have doubted our warrior ancestors. And yet you still stand here, on some of our most sacred ground." Coldstar's fur bristled, and his sharp eyes met with Cloudstar's. "Get out. Your Clan and especially you are not welcome here." "Be gone before the next moonhigh," Vixenstar added, the sound of her claws digging into the cold rock echoing in each leader's ears. "And never step paw here again." Cloudstar seemed to almost retaliate at first, opening her mouth and turning her expression to an emotionless stone, but quickly shut it. She stalked off the meteor without a glance back, her Clan following after her hesitatingly. "This does not mean we are allies in any way," Nightstar spat to the remaining leaders, who all shared hostile glares. "Precious items have been stolen from my Clan, and-" "Precious items have been stolen from every Clan!" Vixenstar interrupted, "Kits from FireClan and IceClan, prey from StormClan, herbs from both DuskClan and FireClan. It could have been any Clan, and it had to be a cat who knew the Clans from the inside. No random loners would be able to figure out where the herbs are hidden and kits are kept in every Clan in one night." She glared icily at Nightstar and Coldstar before turning, taking her Clan back to camp without waiting for the two leaders' replies. The StormClan and IceClan leaders both shot hostile looks to each other, which filled in what they did not say, and left the clearing with their Clans as well. A pair of icy blue eyes, hidden in the thick brush surrounding the land, narrowed as the last of the Clans disappeared, and the tom they belonged to - a large, dark brown tabby tom with a white undercoat - stalked away, slinking through the underbrush to a place of crowfood. The cryptic darkness held a sense of danger and death, and the stench made the tom's nose wrinkle, even if he'd been to the same place many times before. "Gather!" He snarled, and several cats lifted their heads, most scrawny and unkempt, but a couple very well built and strong. They all padded in front of him, sitting down and licking at their whiskers. "CloudClan and DuskClan are leaving the land-" "We've succeeded!" A scrawny tom with tangled whiskers yowled, dropping a picked frog he'd had in his jaws. "We have won!" "Hush, you worthless piece of foxdung!" The brown tabby tom snapped, collecting himself. "There are still three Clans, which means we still have work to do, so do not get too comfortable. We will be patient, as patient as we need. I want every cat prepared for battle at any moment. If you are the reason we are defeated, I will personally slaughter you." His gaze, as cold as his personality, studied the cats before he continued. "We must move again, we can't risk being tracked." "Hawkfrost, we don't have much time nor the ability to be patient and keep moving," a small gray tom said quietly. "You are sick, correct? And let us not forget you are aging. What will we do when you're gone if we have not finished?" Hawkfrost shook his head in amusement, his icy eyes glinting as he looked to the rest of the cats. "Gone?" He chuckled, his sharp teeth bared. "I'll never be gone."