( Our first real moon! I write these before skipping to the next moon, so this one is me getting a feel for the characters. )
The moon passes in a blur, as if StarClan is holding their breath. Even the typical spring rains are muted: the sky is grey and gentle drizzles sputter on and off without warning, but no floods or storms and no sunny days break the monochrome monotony.
Shatterfur continues to spoil Hyacinthpaw, allowing the young molly to spend the time she isn't training in the warm healer's den. Hyacinthpaw is not happy that Shatterfur also allows the elder-advisor Hailtail the same luxury, nor that Hailtail's presence takes Shatterfur's attention away from her. Hyacinthpaw is certain the two mollies are flirting.
"Old people flirting, gross." While sulking, feeling kicked out of her spot, she shares her suspicions with Pumpkintrot, who tries her best to commiserate with the dramatic apprentice behind her own smile.
The elder Flameblink starts an argument with Piperstar. Not unusual in the least, really, but it's not the time for fighting within the Clan, not with so much danger at their borders. Rowandapple helps diffuse the situation; Shatterfur is impressed by how well SwarmClan's leader and deputy have learned to work together.
In a small meeting with Piperstar, Rowandapple, and Hailtail working out their strategy for navigating the current political crisis, Hailtail puts forth the idea of challenging the CinderClan tom Reedfang to a duel. It would be an easy way for SwarmClan to take revenge without the risk of escalating into a war, as duels to the death are respected in CinderClan's code of honor.
Rowandapple is appalled by the idea: not only are fights to the death against the nature of the Warrior Code, but who could SwarmClan send?
Piperstar? Leaders can't participate in honor-duels, as they can't risk their life in the same way.
Freezebubble? While she is fast, she isn't a particularly strong fighter, and it isn't really fair to force her to be the only one risking her life for SwarmClan's honor.
Flameblink is the closest thing they had to a fighting warrior, and they can't ask their oldest elder to fight against a tomcat in his prime. Ridiculous. This is a complex puzzle, but a duel to the death is not the answer.
Freezebubble and Hyacinthpaw go to mark the MorelClan border. Neither of them particularly want to be here--their border with MorelClan is perhaps their longest border, and the spring drizzle would turn icy by the time they reached the end--but it needs to be done, and they are the cats that had the opportunity to do it.
At least they aren't alone in their suffering: a small group of MorelClan move the opposite way on the same task. A rare occurrence, spotting the elusive forest cats, but apparently the weather is so miserable they don't want to hide away and wait for the SwarmClan duo to pass by.
"Horrible weather, this moon," a MorelClan molly mumbles, and Freezebubble mutters an annoyed agreement, flicking water from her ears as the two groups shuffle away to continue their dismal duty.
Piperstar takes it upon himself to hunt alone, unwilling to distract Hyacinthpaw's training or risk Rowandapple's wounded tail growing infected. He admits he was a bit careless, unaccustomed to hunting alone, and missed all the signs that he might not be alone here, on the eastern border of their territory.
A vixen takes him by surprise, knocking him down to steal the sparrow from between his claws. Frustrated and annoyed, he hisses and prepares for a fight... but he's alone and the red fox is nearly twice his weight. It isn't worth it for a single sparrow.
Even more frustrated now, the leader flees. At least the vixen had chosen to simply shove him in a rosebush rather than take a chunk of his flesh, though the scrapes still smart something fierce, reminding him of his carelessness.
Shatterfur does better for herself, if only because she doesn't have to go very far to collect the herb she is seeking. Plantain is most common on well-worn trails… and the most well-worn are those just around SwarmClan's camp. She can easily pick a time when the rains pause, scampering out to collect what she can before the drizzle start up again.
Plantain is quick to come back in the spring, already bright green and ready for collection. It will help reduce the swelling of wounds, or at the very least soothe mosquito bites that will plague SwarmClan once the rains fill the marshes in the south.
The elderly healer is glad herbs graw so close to SwarmClan's camp: the constant damp seeps into her bones, and she's starting to feel her age this moon.
[ Shatterfur is now elder loafed ]
