It was obvious to the entirety of EveningClan that Delugeskip's favorite spot in camp was the wooden ledge in front of Hedgehogstar's den where announcements were made. The leader had never expressed any concern for this, in fact, he seemed to enjoy having such a respected Clanmate in close enough proximity to discuss any troubles or simple duties with.
That wasn't what had started Delugeskip's habit of sitting in such a bold area, though. This ledge was an excellent vantage point. Here, even in the heavy snowfall, the tortie could oversee nearly the entire camp, apart from the medicine den directly underneath it. She found it comfortable to keep her vigil within the tree, counting her Clanmates, watching the patrols come and go.
Four cats are outside of camp right now, she silently observed, eyes darting around. Weedflop had left her den for a small stroll outside of camp and after she had returned, settled near the fire pit, attempting to shake the frost and dust out of her pelt. Naturally, Twigpaw was in the nursery with Icekit. The two toms were more relaxed in posture, so Delugeskip guessed her apprentice was relaying the history he had been taught a few days ago. Cilantrofang stiffly paced in a circle around the clearing, her face constantly turning to her clanmates, then to the camp entrance. The two surveying mollies would occasionally make brief eye contact, give an affirming nod to each other, and resume their scanning.
Beaverheart emerged from the warriors den after waking up from his nap. He stumbled his way to the leader's den and scaled the trunk until he had joined the tortie on her perch. Delugeskip gave a grunt to the tom as he laid down next to her comfortably.
"Who's still out of camp?" Beaverheart mumbled, a yawn grasping his voice halfway through his sentence.
"Badgerpelt, Hedgehogstar, Tempest, and Rimefreckle. All of them are by themselves. Tempest and Hedgehogstar are hunting, Badgerpelt wants to continue to memorize the territory, and Rimefreckle has been searching for herbs." She shifted her gaze in Beaverheart's direction to see him staring inquisitively.
"It's good to have a cat in camp who knows what everyone is doing," Delugeskip muttered, refocusing on the movements of camp. Beaverheart stood and shook himself off, clearing away the snowflakes that had grabbed at his thick pelt.
"Are you wishing that Hedgehogstar had made you deputy instead of Badgerpelt?"
Delugeskip stiffened, slowly turning towards Beaverheart with a disappointed glare. He wasn't wrong, but what loyal warrior would admit to that? To question the choice of deputy would be to question the leader's judgement, and the Clan didn't need that discord so soon after it had begun.
"Badgerpelt is worthy of being deputy, but she's inexperienced. She only needs a bit of guidance. What I want is to strengthen our Clan, and I don't need to be second in command to do that." Delugeskip heard the voice of Hedgehogstar. She spotted him at the camp entrance with Cilantrofang and Weedflop, while Twigpaw and Icekit had made their way to the fire where they snacked on a couple of dried minnows.
"Hedgehogstar may be in his den soon. This is not a conversation I would like to have in his presence." Beaverheart was still, but cautiously nodded and sat back down after a second of thought.
"Well, how is Twigpaw doing in his training?" On instinct, Delugeskip faced her apprentice, who had given up holding his posture now that Icekit had started stalking towards Hedgehogstar as though the tortoiseshell tom hadn't noticed him. While the kit had finished his meal, the apprentice was still anxiously nibbling away.
"For a cat his age, he's very talented. Eager to learn, taking to hunting well, and great at handling Icekit. That's all I could hope for at this point. Oh, and a lot better at establishing his boundaries than Ghostnight was during her apprenticeship." The pale tortie couldn't help but smile at the memory of the cat she had trained previously. The young molly had only graduated a couple of months before EveningClan had settled in their camp. Another thing Delugeskip never would have admitted to her new Clanmates was that on some nights, she missed FlickerClan and her old friends.
"I wonder how Ghostnight is doing," Beaverheart interrupted her thoughts, "we'll have to ask her at the next Gathering. Remember when she would go to the medicine den with grass just so she could talk to Dovepatch? Her crush was not subtle," he chuckled. Delugeskip smirked.
"Kind of like how Tempest is with you, eh?" The gray tabby's eyes widened and he looked to his paws, but his whiskers were twitching and his smile hadn't faded.
"A little, but don't tell him that. He'll get embarrassed."
"Have you thought about asking to be your mate?" Beaverheart looked at Delugeskip again, pausing, then shook his head.
"No. I mean, yes, I've thought about it, but, no. I don't think I would ask him that. I do love Tempest, but having a mate doesn't sound like it would be right for me." Both warriors were now laying down comfortably. The wind seemed louder now and the snow was coming down more swiftly.
"I understand that. I think I feel the same, but then again, I've never found anyone particularly interesting in that way." Beaverheart hummed agreeably. And after that, the two sat in comfortable quiet, watching the cats below them.
Icekit was standing on top of Hedgehogstar, who was dramatically sprawled on the ground as though the kit had defeated him. Weedflop had finally retreated to her den, as Cilantrofang had sat herself beside Twigpaw at the fire to assure it was burning at an appropriate level.
Soon enough, Badgerpelt and Tempest walked into camp together with a rodent too large for either cat to carry by themself. Beaverheart got to his paws, astonished.
"How in StarClan's name have they brought down a marmot?" Beaverheart wasn't the only cat who was surprised: Cilantrofang had looked up from the flames with wide eyes and her mouth hanging open. Icekit walked towards the nursery, seemingly disappointed to be doing so, while Hedgehogstar adressed the siblings. On the contrary, Delugeskip narrowed her eyes, something was wrong here; when Beaverheart stood to greet the duo, Delugeskip followed him down the ladder. Hedgehogstar was fast to see the serious look on the pale tortie's face. He politely dismissed himself from the conversation and traded places with Beaverheart who eagerly complimented the catch.
"What seems to be the problem?" Hedgehogstar meowed. Delugeskip glanced over her shoulder to the medicine den to assure she wasn't mistaken.
"Did you see Rimefreckle while you were out? She hasn't returned yet." Hedgehogstar pricked his ears attentively and he blinked at her.
"That's odd. No, I haven't seen her," he meowed. The wind continued to pick up and the two tortoiseshells shuddered at the newfound sharpness in the snowflakes. Delugeskip forced herself to ignore the sensation as she turned to the camp's entrance.
"How long has she been gone?" The sudden appearance of Cilantrofang at Delugeskip's side caused the warrior to jump. The smaller molly rolled her eyes at the older cat's reaction.
"At sunrise, if I'm remembering correctly. I can't remember what herbs she said she was looking for," Hedgehogstar responded calmly. Cilantrofang's tail lashed.
"And nobody has looked for her? Honestly, the one day I sleep in," she growled, wasting no time in exiting camp. A heavy sigh escaped Hedgehogstar while Delugeskip was baffled by the swiftness of that encounter.
"Someone should keep an eye on her," Delugeskip reasoned. The leader nodded in understanding.
"I don't believe Rimefreckle is in trouble, but you're free to go with Cilantrofang. Try to be back quickly." Delugeskip dipped her head respectfully before she began her trek into the awful cold of EveningClan territory. Cilantrofang was already out of sight, but there was only one trail of pawprints exiting camp after such heavy snowfall, so sprinting after the codekeeper wasn't a difficult task. In addition, her dark pelt stuck out against the white backdrop. Delugeskip easily reached the younger cat's side in a timely manner. The molly barely reacted to her company apart from a sideways glance.
"It might be best if we go towards the town, I know healers prefer to trade with housecats in winter," Delugeskip lowly meowed. Cilantrofang huffed and wouldn't look at the warrior, but still slowed down to observe her surroundings and adjust her direction. Delugeskip irritably huffed at the lack of connection.
"Rimefreckle is probably fine. Hedgehogstar doesn't want us to stay out for too long, if we-" Cilantrofang turned and interrupted with a sharp hiss.
"Our healer is missing in the middle of winter! She's been out for far too long! It's better to have wasted time than to find out she needed help and we didn't look for her. If Hedgehogstar disagrees, that's up to him, but his perspective is naive." Delugeskip's face scrunched up.
"Do not speak of our leader so disrespectfully. You act like you always know so much better than everyone else. You don't, Cilantrofang. Hedgehogstar is in charge, so watch your words." Cilantrofang scoffed and lightly unsheathed her claws.
"You are incapable of thinking for yourself. Having criticisms is not disrespect, Delugeskip! Hedgehogstar is a fine leader, but naivete can be a dangerous quality if unchecked. Do you really think that's such an invalid thought to have? Because if you really disagree with me so strongly, you can go back to camp and kiss up to Hedgehogstar some more. I can look for Rimefreckle by myself. Otherwise, keep quiet and let me concentrate."
Shocked, offended, Delugeskip couldn't think of a response. The wind slowed down and the snow fell less heavily as though the world itself was frightened by the tension. The town became visible in the distance, and Cilantrofang sped her steps. The trees were less dense here in the hilly outskirts of EveningClan territory. Delugeskip had much more trouble with navigating the small slopes than Cilantrofang. One particularly steep hill sent the warrior sliding onto her side and rolling about halfway down. The codekeeper paused to look back. By the time Delugeskip had gotten to her paws, Cilantrofang's head was raised and her ears were pricked, and she took off the moment the missing healer's scent reached Delugeskip.
The run was not far, with the gray codekeeper sliding to a sudden halt at the edge of a much steeper ditch than the rest, containing Rimefreckle. The snow on both sides were covered in smeared pawprints and claw marks as evidence of the healer's struggle to escape. She was laying in a loaf, shaking and wet. She looked up at the two other mollies and a relieved smile reached her eyes.
"Oh, thank StarClan. I need help getting out of here," she purred, unusually calm for her predicament. Delugeskip and Cilantrofang looked at each other, the warrior half expecting the codekeeper to use this as an opportunity to scold her. Instead, Cilantrofang wordlessly leapt into the ditch, alarming Delugeskip.
"What kind of plan is-"
"Are you able to stand?" Cilantrofang spoke gently. Rimefreckle idly nodded and attempted to stand, but even through her exhaustion, winced in pain and shook her front paws. Cilantrofang looked worried for her.
"Okay. Climb onto my shoulders, Delugeskip will pull you up by the scruff. Did you get that, Delugeskip?" Delugeskip opened and closed her mouth for a couple of moments.
"I- yeah, yeah, I did. But what about you?" Cilantrofang crouched and Rimefreckle seemed to suddenly process the situation, with a look of confusion, but she was more concerned with climbing onto the black cat's shoulders than saying what was on her mind.
"Look, CrowClan territory is covered in hills. I'm used to climbs like this, and Rimefreckle needs help much more than I do. She probably has frostbite. Get her back to camp, don't wait for me. If I don't catch up to you on the way back, you know where I am, just bring some rope." Rimefreckle was already out of the ditch by the end of the explanation. Delugeskip hesitated to leave Cilantrofang. But upon feeling how cold Rimefreckle's soggy pelt was against her back as she lifted the healer onto her shoulders, Delugeskip nodded. At least the snowfall was mild for the walk home.
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