Things Are Changing

OOC: HEre's the new topic.

IC: While the Clan cats were in the hangar, in the distance (outside), there was something in the sky...

"Applejack 973 to Bree tower," Tom Manners, pilot, said into his radio.
The radio crackled. "Shut up, Manners, we don't have a tower."
Tom laughed as he steered the larger-than-most cargo bi-plane towards that long strip of pavement. "Nice to hear from you too, Fields. Derek, I am touching down now."
"Alright Tom. Hey, are you and Shelly still on for dinner with Brenna and me?"
"Yep. We're looking forward to it." Tom's wheels were close to touching pavement.
"Good to hear. I've got to get back to broadcasting, but you should stop by the station, tell everyone how your trip was."
"I'll bring coffee. See you then."
"Yep."
As Tom landed, he flicked on the normal radio to listen to Derek's broadcast. "This is Derek Homs at K-Elk, with a news update. Our very own pilot Tom Manners is touching down in the airfield after being gone for, oh, four months, so if you see him, give him a wave and a gold-old Bree smile."

OOC: SNOW! Have you got any snow by you? We've loads of the stuff over here
IC:
Joy glowered at the new cat that had suddenly arrived and buried its sorry self into the Moonclan leader's fur.
"Calm yourself," She suggested dryly, "he was ill and weak, it just happened."
She didn't like the accusing stare the cat was sending out, "no one is to blame."

OOC: Joy has changed so much What have I done to her!?

OOC: All of our snow melted, but it's VERY COLD.

IC: Leafheart's ears flicked at Joy's lack of sensitivity. "This is Sunclaw, our deputy," he mewed quickly. He looked back at Sunclaw. "And she's right. Stormstar has been rather out of sorts for some time. Now," he looked down at Stormstar sadly, "It's taken its toll. He hunts in Sky-Moon..."

Beampaw was sad. She was so very, very sad...

OOC: All of our characters have changed...

OOC: I'm feeling like a dog that got soaked, kicked and thrown out in the garden at the moment...
IC:
Joy swallowed her words a little... deputy... ah. (OOC:Yes Joy is definitely like me )
However, she sort of nodded awkwardly at that information. What does it matter? Don't these cats get all excited over becoming leader? She thought about it for a second and shrugged to herself.

Blackfire was speechless. Stormstar had just...Died. The black tom had bowed his head, murmuring a simple prayer.
Snowfeather had been surprised as well, but she had guessed the tom would be dead soon anyways. When Sunclaw had rushed in, the white she-cat had hissed in surprise.
"I suppose this makes you leader then, Sunclaw." Snowfeather dipped her head respectfully to the small yellow she-cat. Clan leader - what an honor.
Blackfire dipped his head to Sunclaw as well, then looked at Stormstar. "What will be done?" Blackfire knew all about burial rituals and the like, but this wasn't DarkClan, and this wasn't anyone's home.

Cloudscar let out a low, mournful moan. He crouched with Sunclaw at Stormstar's side.

Leafheart watched Cloudscar and sighed heavily. "We will..." He fell silent, knowing that, now that Sunclaw was here, he didn't have as much say in things.

Beampaw pressed herself into Raypaw's, her sister, fur.

Joy was sort of standing there, she didn't want to be in this situation of mourning, moping cats. It didn't bode well with her own sensitive thoughts.
Though backing out of it to go find her corner would probably just be considered rude.
The she-cat sighed softly, looking as pitiful and sympathetic as she could muster on her silver features.

Talltree lurked around the edges of the ground, occasionally glancing at the still form of Stormstar and moaning whenever he did.
This is all their fault, the grieving tom thought coldly. All of the Other-Clanners faults! Stormstar would still be alive if - if -
The tom sat down hard, grief overtaking him.

Raypaw pressed back against her sister, hiding her face in her sister's warm fur.

Otterpool nodded slowly, her eyes filled with sadness. "Joy and Leafheart are right...this was long in the coming, Sunclaw. Stormstar was far from being a young cat. He outlived two medicine cats before me." Otterpool crouched on the other side of Sunclaw. "He is missed," she whispered sorrowfully.

Joy's ears twitched at the sound of her name. Feeling a lot better in herself, she felt like her contribution time was now over.

Sunclaw gave Otterpool a hard look for a few, long moments, then returned to mourning, ignoring the Other-Clanners...for now.

Goldenlight looked over the sea of cats to see...Him. Raineyes, her mate. "Raineyes," she whispered. She slowly made her way through the crowd, then stood at his side. "My love," she whispered in his gray ear.
Raineyes started, lost in his thoughts. He looked at his side to see his beloved Goldenlight. "Goldenlight - Goldenlight, I'm so, so sorry. I've missed you so, so much."
Goldenlight smiled. "There's nothing to apologize for." She nuzzled the tom. "I missed you too."

Meanwhile...

Tom Manners pressed a button on his dashboard. It was nifty little thing, really. Not unlike a garage door remote, only configured for the hangar.
The plane had touched down and slowed, now running along at a nice, smooth pace. Now the hangar doors were opening. Of course, he had to turn the plane, first. So he was.
He was still listening to the radio. "In other news, everyone's been seeing a lot of cats everywhere. I've seen them, you've seen them. You gotta wonder, has someone been hiding away kittens, then they all grew up and escaped? Why don't you call in and give us your opinion? As you know, the number is..."
Tom turned the plane and drove it towards the opening hangar doors.

Inside...

Leafheart was staring in awe at the opening wall. "Sky-Moon save us..." He gaped at it.
Beampaw shrieked and his behind a warrior.

Talltree and Raypaw were also staring, having no idea what it meant - well, Talltree did. "IT'S FALLING DOWN," he screeched.
Otterpool leaped to her feet, yelling, "BACK AWAY FROM IT!"

Joy's eyes were wide with wonderment. "By those above..."
Was this some sort of omen?
She stood to watch as the great solid walls shifted, this had never happened in her life!

Sinewpaw woke from his dozing and looked up in shock at the... moving-walls?
"By starclan!" He hissed aloud, "What could this mean?"

Snowfeather and Cloudscar slowly backed away from the door, pushing against the gaping crowd of cats. Snowfeather all but panicked when a MoonClan warrior screamed something about it falling. The white she-cat scrambled away.
Cloudscar did the same, fleeing.

As the door opened wider, Blackfire suddenly stopped looking at the door. "SOMETHING'S COMING!" He saw the plane. "IT'S COMING IN!"

Whitelight looked around frantically. "RUN!" She took off, running into Blackfire. The black tom screeched at her, feeling her claws. "NO! NO, THE OTHER WAY!"

OOC: Everyone's freaking out.

Goldenlight stayed by Raineye's side, frozen in terror at the sight of such a terrifyingly large bird coming their way. This was it's nest. They were going to die.

Raineyes saw the commotion around him, but he stayed at his mate's side, refusing to leave her again.
Then, he saw Sunclaw still at Stormstar's side.
"SUNCLAW," he yowled. "SUNCLAW, COME ON!"
Sunclaw shook her head mutely, burying her nose deeper in the dead gray tom's flank.

Raineyes shook his head and growled.
"We can't leave her there," Goldenlight mewed frantically.
"I know, I know," Raineyes mewed. "Stay here!" He was ready to run, but Goldenlight stopped him.
"Me too." The look Raineyes saw in her eyes was one of a she-cat who could not be dissuaded. He nodded, and as one they ran towards Sunclaw.

OOC: Laughed so hard at that XD
IC:
Joy stood frigid, she wasn't sure whether she was frightened or feeling an extreme rush of adrenaline, though she knew somewhere she felt distinctly hungry.

Sinewpaw bolted, He looked for Mosspaw but then remembered that he was in a mood with her. Instead he disappeared as fast as he could.

Whitelight managed to push past Blackfire, grabbed Beampaw, and ran towards the piles of crinkly material others had been sleeping on. Diving head first, she and Beampaw vanished into the pile.

Cloudscar found himself in the middle of a frenzy. Then, spotting Raypaw, he leaped over a cat, grabbed her, and the two hid behind the strange tower-thing Sinewpaw had climbed up.

Snowfeather stopped. "Those Above, get a hold of yourself, Snowfeather," she snarled to herself. She saw the MoonClan deputy huddling with the body of the dead leader, like it was some helpless kit that needed to be protected. Across the hangar, Blackfire caught her eye.
Right. The two ran for Sunclaw. On the way, Snowfeather saw Mosspaw. "MOVE," she snapped as she passed her.

Knowing that his mate loved him and that his kits were safe, Raineyes ran like a cat without fear with Goldenlight at his side.
The two reached the yellow deputy in no time at all, and they grabbed her.
Sunclaw began to cry out. "No! NO! WE CAN'T JUST LEAVE HIM HERE!" She broke free of the two and tried to drag the heavy body.
The plane was very, very, VERY CLOSE OH MY GOD.
"HELP," yowled Raineyes, knowing that he and Goldenlight wouldn't be enough.

OOC:

IC: Blackfire and Snowfeather were with Raineyes and Goldenlight in a flash.
Blackfire didn't say anything as he grabbed Sunclaw by the scruff and bodily dragged her.
Snowfeather looked at the body of Stormstar, then at the fleeing cats - she chose to flee. It was no leader of hers. "COME ON," she yowled to the two living MoonClanners, and she took off.

Mosspaw, having obviously been there the whole time, not like she had been forgotten or anything, snapped to action when Snowfeather screamed in her face. "YEAH!" She took off - then stopped. "JOY! JOY!" The gray she-cat was frozen in place. "JOY, COME ON!" The calico she-cat shook her head and ran up to her. "Come on, come on, come on!"

Otterpool ran into Talltree and spat, "Move lazy-guts, or I'll put mouse-bile in your herbs for a MOON!"
That got Talltree moving, and they dove into the crinkly stuff together.

Sunclaw snarled at the DarkClan tom, raking at his face with her suddenly unsheathed claws. "YOU! YOU DID THIS! YOU AND YOUR OTHER CLANS! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! ALL!" She raked again. "YOUR!" Bit at him. "FAULT!" She let out a long yowl of anger and sorrow, lashing out a pawful of claws, attempting to free herself.

Raineyes and Goldenlight joined Snowfeather, running for the space the opening doors made. They made it, and hid, breathing as quietly as they could.

"FINE! THEN DIE!"
Blackfire let go of Sunclaw with a yowl of pain, and ran, ran out of the hangar and behind a wall.

Joy shifted to look at Mosspaw before mumbling something she didn't understand herself.
Though the panic around her disgruntled the she-cat, she looked aimlessly at the stone body before her...
Joy decided then to make an attempt to drag Stormstar's body, which was heavier than she had previously thought. Even so, she was a decendant of the mighty Bone. He large frame was capable... wasn't it?
She pulled and backed up to where Sinewpaw was taking cover by some canisters of some sort. The tom cried out in disgust and annoyance at her slow progress.
He wasn't going to help, Stormstar was no-one to him and he had no feelings to go out and drag a corpse across the yard.
Even so, he urged her to hurry.
It was so close.

Joy was hoping deeply that this great, predator would not see her as she came closer to the canisters before the creature neared. She was beginning to think of copping out. Nothing wrong with quitting something that won't work... right? At least she'd have tried, rather one dead than two.

OOC: Oh...uh....I'll edit this post if you want, Loki, but read it first...

The plane pulled in, slowing to a stop ironically where Stormstar had sat when he'd first arrived, and where he had breathed his last. Not running him over, no, the wheel coming to a stop right next to it.

Sassypelt followed Sunclaw, wherever she was going, into hiding.

Leafheart ended up following Blackfire out, gasping for breath.

Tom halted the plane and turned the key. The plane engine died and the front and side propellers began to slow with nothing spinning them. He checked all of his settings, grabbed his bag, placed the keys in his coat jacket, and opened the door. (OOC: Not saying which, because I know we do different sides in different countries.) He stepped out of the plane, glad to be back on familiar ground. "Ah," he sighed, looking out at the mountains. "Bree." He took a few steps then stopped. There was a dead cat on the ground. Tom Manners was the sort of man who quite liked cats, so this was sad.
"Poor guy," he said, placing his bag next to the cat as he crouched. "Poor, poor guy. How'd you wind up in here?" He stroked the cat's fur with a gloved hand. "What's your story?" Tom sighed. He scooped up the gray cat, grabbed his bag, and left the hangar.

Leafheart stared in shock as the strange "twolegs" thing left with Stormstar. "But...but..." Then he was gone.
Forever, most like. Only leaving that terrifying bird in Stormstar's place.

OOC: Hint-hint, nudge-nudge.

At Blackfire's words, Sunclaw's worst suspicions had been confirmed. It was true. So very, very true. They wanted MoonClan dead.
As she ran, all she could think was, Not if we get them first. She dove into the crinkly stuff to be with her Clan.
Then she had to watch as the strange creature stole away with Stormstar. A few minutes went by. Sunclaw could hear the heavy breathing of her Clanmates all around her in the crinkly stuff.
Finally, she slowly began to make her way out of the crinkly stuff. "What..." She looked to where Stormstar had been to where he had gone. Then Sunclaw looked up at the strange bird.
"What is it," Raineyes mewed as he and Goldenlight came out of hiding behind the opened door.
Sunclaw shook her head silently as she stared, having no answer.