ShadowClan Camp

The ShadowClan camp is situated in a grove of mangroves where the water has long since dried up, since before the Clans arrived. To make dens, the members have woven leaves and twigs through the top of the exposed roots. The camp gets fairly muddy in leafbare but is pleasantly cool and sheltered from the hot greenleaf sun. The leader's den is directly underneath one of the biggest mangroves, and when addressing the Clan the leader leaps up onto the 'roof' of their den.

Awaking with the sunhigh sun she awoke and got up out of her nest shaking herself out, Nightstar had wanted her to take a patrol along the Thunderclan and Shadowclan border. Although he was rather paranoid it would be easier to keep him happy, padding out of the warriors den she wanted to check the border alone rather hoping that a particular warrior would be there. Spotting Antpaw she trotted over to her and gave her a slight smile "Hey Antpaw, I've got to go out for a patrol, when I get back I'll take you out for some hunting practice" waiting until she'd gotten the apprentices response she spotted Nightstar with Jesterpup. Flicking the end of her tail she considered the rest of the clan before deciding that he'd not really care if she left by herself Bramblerose turned and trotted out of the camp. Slipping past Ivyshade and Tremblepup she flicked the pup a look before continuing on out putting on the speed. Racing through the marshy land she lived in a hopeful gleam filled her bright brown eyes. Would Jaydust be there? She hoped so she hadn't had a chance to talk with him for nearly an entire moon .
~Thunderclan and Shadowclan Border~

Nightstar went to follow Cheshiregrin when Jesterpup came running over and he gently pushed the pup over. His fangs gentally grabbed one of his small paws and shook it with small shakes of his large head. "I hear you have been a naughty pup while I was out Little Jesterpup." He said as he started to groom the blood from the red and black fur covering the tiny body. "I didnt kill other clan wolves Im afraid but I did get some rabbits. Maybe I will find a deer this afternoon. What do you think?"
He asked the pup. He was taking careful note on the wounds on the males body and saw that some would need something to stop infection due to the size and depth of the opening. "We shall see Ivyshade for something to stop these cuts getting infected. You dont want them to make you to sick to become an apprentice now do you?" His voice gave off the tone that said he didnt want to hear any arguing from Jesterpup and his stern look backed that up. "Now I have heard a whisper that you are picking on Tremblepup. Thats not true is it?" He was willing to give the pup a chance to explain his side of that story before taking action though he intended to make him clean out a den no matter what because he would not have his clan picking on each other over nothing for that would break them apart.

The pup snorted rudely at the suggestion of seeing Ivyshade, that was just stupid, there was no need for her to put her stinging herbs on him. It was just a bite, and besides spit was good for making things heal and he'd licked it alot, then when Nightstar started whining about him picking on Tremblepaw Jester sent him a cold look "Of course I am, she's got to learn how to be tough some how the pathetic whining whimpering mess and so very irritating with her crud" he growled now bored with Nightstar if he was going to go around whinging at him about the pathetic tremblepup then Jester really had no time for him. Snorting he spun around and padded off, honestly Shadowclan was going soft if their leader who was supposed to be tough and powerful whimpered about losers like tremblepup. He also didn't care for any of Nightstars rules about pups not leaving camp, he was very personal about his space and didn't like anyone touching him without express permission. He sat in a shadowy spot where he could stare at his mother as she toyed with a mangrove root, complex emotions glittering in his eyes

The faintest flash of approval flickered through his green eyes at Jersterpups words. Nightstar himself had doubts that Tremblepup would make it as a warrior with the way she would constantly freeze around the warriors and other pups. He had a mentor in mind for her in hopes that they would be able to scare her trembling out of her body so she could be a decent warrior. A dark paw flashed under the red and black pups body as he started to walk away and the leader stood over him. "No adults." he mummered into the pups ears, his expression looking like he was telling the pup off before lifting his head, "And I want my den cleaned before sundown as punishment." It was more punishment for getting caught than for trying to toughen his den mate up. He made his way over to Chesiregrin and lightly tapped one of her paws. "Can this wolf speak with a Cheshiregrin?" he asked her.

Picking up her small bundle of moss in her sharp puppy teeth Tremblepup kept very close to Ivyshades back leg almost as if she was stuck to it without getting in the way. The pup was still nervous, she always was but she didn't feel as terrified once they entered the medicine den, it was a safe place where the other pups couldn't get her because they weren't allowed in here. Silently she observed where the medicine wolf laid down the bundle of moss and without question copied her and set hers down right beside it before turning to watch her as the wolf nudged through her stores. Tremblepup slowly practiced her breathing, closing her eyes and focusing on the peaceful way the air entered and exited her body, that along with the strange smells of the herbs and the way the den masked the sound of what was going on in the camp by the time Ivyshade turned back around the little pups anxiety was back under control again. Most of the time if it was just her and one wolf she could keep a lid on it, however when she came across a wolf she truly feared it'd get away on her and she'd shut down into fight and flight mode which was mostly flight mode. Blinking her wide blue eyes when some strange blue berry things were set down infront of her she didn't eat them more curious as to what they were, they didn't smell like prey. A small paw lightly batted at one although her other paw caught it before it left the leaf and guided it back to where the others were. It was important that the berries all stayed together, they had to be with one another it was very important.

At her name she stopped and sat up her gaze meeting the green eyes for a brief few seconds, five to be exact a record for her before her eyes once again flicked down to the berries. Now she began fiddling with them unable to help the movement as Ivyshade paused and then continued speaking, asking her how she felt about becoming a warrior when she grew up and if this would make her happy "It makes me feel sick, really bad, I know Nightstar dosent like me so he'll give me a mentor who I'll fear to try to force me to grow some back bone" perhaps it was catastrophising but it felt like that was what was going to happen to her, she was frightened of that idea. She didn't think having a mentor that scared her would fix her, how could you fix a pup who obviously was so badly wrong, born wrong, was wrong, unfixable, worthless, rubbish. Then when she failed to be the type of apprentice Nighstar wanted he'd throw her out or maybe have Jesterpup kill her as a test for him. Swallowing hard she fought the anxiety that wanted to break out of the nice little box she kept it in, flicking her gaze to ivyshades once again, Tremblepup found that as always she couldn't read the features and thus it became overwhelming for her so she returned to the berries admiring how smooth they were against her paw. The Iberian wolf sighed softly and closed her eyes after guiding the berry back to the other two, it felt like she didn't have a place that she belonged in the clan, unaware that a career in medicine was possibly open to her, Tremblepup was naive to that fact as it'd always been shown to her that the path of the warrior was the only way to go. She didn't want to hurt anyone, she just wanted to be happy, but she wasn't quite sure how to be happy. She'd felt a brief flicker of it when she'd helped Ivyshade with the moss and had been praised in what felt like for the first time in her small life.

Grunting he glanced up at Nightstar rather coldly when he was pinned down, studying him a wide smirk twisted onto his features. Getting up once the leader went to see his mother he glanced back at his siblings well aware what they'd think of him for that. Sucking up pah, he didn't suck up it wasn't in his nature to be a schmoozer, and he didn't need to when it came to Nightstar. The leader liked him to start off with and always had, they thought the same although Jester was perhaps far more twisted than the leader he just hadn't had the chance to show it yet. Watching Tremblepup slip back into camp with Ivyshade a smirk twisted onto his muzzle, he'd get her tonight after sussing out what his siblings were likely plotting. He knew them how they worked and did his best to keep them guessing how he worked, his puppy blue eyes that would one day be a harsh bright yellow like his mothers slipped towards the leader den. The task wasn't even a real punishment for him, if anything he resented the fact that he was ordered to do something, he just wanted to hang about and cause all kinds of chaos. Chaos was why he did things why he picked on Tremble why he acted the way he did to his siblings he just wanted to watch what everyone fought for burn, whether it be prey the territories, their mates, anything. It was how he made his fun, snickering to himself as he planned what he'd do to the little pup who was so much smaller than him and his siblings that night. They wouldn't stop him, they'd never stopped him from hurting Tremblepup, and for him it made it all the more sweeter as it fed into Tremblepups belief that no one in the clan cared about her or what happened to her.

Nightstar blinked his green eyes slowly as his hackles started to rise as Blackwidow pushed in and he slowly rose to his full height as Cheshiregrin paused between him and the black female. "If Cheshiregrin would wait here for this wolf, this wolf would be most happy." he told the three legged warrior as he passed by her. His pelt was full fluffed out with his gleaming ivory fangs flashing as his lip started to rise in a snarl. His green eyes were narrowed as he stalked up to Blackwidow and his paw flashed out cuffing her over the ear. "Do not ever, EVER, tell me not to get involved with something again! It is not your place to speak with others about what they have done wrong nor is it your place to discipline them. You lost that right when you stepped down Blackwidow so I suggest you wait until you are asked before trying to push your muzzle into something. Do I make myself clear?" he snarled at her with his fangs on full display. Not bothering to wait for a reply he turned back to Cheshiregrin and padded back towards her relaxing his body so as to not approach her in a threatening way. "This wolf wishes to know what set Cheshiregrin off with the pupup? Did the pupup attack?" he asked her gently.

In the middle of her way of playing she was befuddled as one wolf then the other started to talk to her, following black widow she stopped half way and looked between Nightstar and Blackwidow her mind starting to spin around dangerously as she heard dimly the black and red females words. The insane side cackled and laughed at her words while the sane side screamed coldly at being talked to like a pup, flickering between sane and insane she bordered dangerously in the middle. Most would agree that her insane side was safer for the clan, she was erratic but most of the time quite harmless apart from those she didn't like and then she only talked in her nonsensical way but with more of a threat. The sane side was what had lashed out at Jesterpup,the sane side was evil, cold, and very very precise with what she said her nonsensical words would suddenly be told properly, correctly with a dark menacing undertone. As she had some connection to blackwidow she was leaning towards insanity, however the sudden display of violence from Nightstar slammed her into the sane side so deeply only her solsie could rescue her. By the time Nightstar turned back to her, his attempt at speaking her lingo only fell on deaf ears, a soft menacing growl so unlike her and was enough to make ones hackles raise sounded from her. It was completely unlike her to have any kind of violence or menacing in her voice or behaviour, such to the extent that it was more unnerving that Nightstars show of power towards blackwidow.

There was a flickering in her yellow eyes that was out of place, out of order, “ Nightstar and  blackwidow believe they control me? They talk down to me like i'm stupid? Newsflash the pair of you, I'm crazy sure but I'm not a mousebrained pup” the use of the word me instead of a maggot or a cheshiregrin further hearaled that what was about to happen would not be pleasant, her commenting on the way they'd spoken to her perhaps a sign that they'd both made a mistake and could be to blame for what was about to happen next. A sickeningly cold chuckle bubbled forward from her throat as she laughed at the pair of them, a definite mocking hint to her tones. Anyone could see that it was a mistake to have pushed her to the point where the normally crazily happy Cheshiregrin made such a noise. Getting herself under control she circled the pair with a hunter's look gleaming in her yellow depths, “You think I care even a little about those pups? After what their fathers did? Thats sick and twisted even for you two, you're both so alike you should get hitched. Wouldn't that be such a slap in the face for Bramblerose hm? You tearing her family apart and causing Reddust to disappear after she rejected him, you surely have noticed how different she is from when she was a pup? Youve got no one but your self to blame Blackwidow, and you, Nightstar. You're pathetic, paranoid, erratic, everyone thinks that, not a single wolf in this clan believes you're sane and sensible enough to lead” the cold sickening laugh sounded again as she continued to circle them her yellow gaze fixed on them as if piercing the depths of their souls and  finding all the flaws they feared to admit themselves. “Some even have a wager, who would have been a worse leader, Blackstar or Nightstar, personally my opinion is Tigerstar would have been far better than you both. Pathetic, childish, entitled, hypocritical, its simply hysterical!” chuckling to herself she shook her head not caring what a scene she was making, not caring that her pups could likely hear every single word of her cold loud voice that rung against the mangroves that made up their camp.

'you wouldn't want to be like your  mother' the words rang and suddenly she was insane again, the switch happening quickly  “Mother, Mother, sweet sweet mother, a nightshade flower would certainly do for your gave would it not?” her voice had changed although the menacing side was still there. Spotting Jesterpup she grinned wickedly “wouldn't want to be like your mother” she mimicked switching back to sane so easily it was getting harder to keep track of her mental state. With ease despite her three legs she pinned the black and red pup down “Don't bother making a move, anyone. After all, a mother couldn't harm her own pup, oh wait...” she let her voice trail off and with her eyes fixed on both Nightstar and Blackwidow she lowered her head and tore her teeth through the pups ears shredding them. “Remember this little jester, the whole world is against you, there is nothing you can do except to help the world burn and feed into the chaos. Strive for the dark forest, one day I'll meet you there and take you to meet the father that is yours alone” she hissed into his shredded ears her muzzle stained with his blood. “Mother mother mother, her kiss is nightshade, fill the void with so many souls for your father, you look exactly like him except with your mothers eyes... don't forget it, its who you are, really underneath the layers you're a maggot too besides your siblings will remind you for me wont they” her gaze flicked up from the three pups that were mostly sane.

Lifting her paw from her sons back she coldly inspected him before moving her paw to the back of his head and pushing it into the dirt. With that she moved away and snarled viciously at anyone who got too close to her, she couldn't breathe here, not with those sick twisted wolves that wanted her to bow and scrape to be a 'noble' creature and submit to their authority. No, not now not ever again, after all Forsakensoul had been so very good very very good and still mother had punished him. Submitting would neve happen, sol, sol could help her, would help her, he never asked her to submit, he would help the race of sane and insane that spun around inside her head was she sane?? Insane?? she didn't know the two borders of what should be one or the other were very rapidly becoming one and the same moulding her into a new Cheshiregrin that was no longer a part of this clan. She was Cheshire, She was Maggot, both, not one at a time, not good not bad, both, what word encompassed both so perfectly? And then she heard it sounding in her head so clearly so sweetly, chessie, chessie, almost as if he was standing beside her guiding her. Both, both, chessie chessie, he was calling for her, calling her away. The final ties of what tied her to these clans of wolves was severed, cut, as if a pair of scissors had clipped away the ties as if they were threads freeing her. If she'd had wings they would have unfolded and flared, any who tried to come near her were dealt with with sharp fangs that tore into flesh.

Yellow eyes darted about camp before finally locating the exit, the two who were in the way were the two that had freed her from this place, or set her off depending on your view. The two sides in her head were arguing about it oh so terribly, even as they were forced into one. One paw moved and then the other, leaving behind jesterpup smushed into the dirt she used her single powerful back leg to push her forwards. Gathering her strength she put it into her paws and legs spurring the muscles forward to find him who could help her, who always helped her. The adrenaline of everything that happened was speeding up her reflexes, just like she'd practiced hundreds and hundreds of times as an apprentice she slipped onto her side and rolled underneath Nightstar leaving a good nip as a reminder as she did so and found her feet easily. She cackled and in that single moment she was both, sane, insane, good, bad, yes, no, right, wrong it all became one in a single being instead of being cracked she was whole in a strange way. Not unlike a mirror thatd been glued back together, without a look over her shoulder or a goodbye she was gone into the thick marshlands to search for the golden sol. She would go with him now, she would go with him always...
~The Fire Swamp~

He'd been being about his business sneakily thinking about how he was going to torment tremblepup that night, probably by hissing things into her ear again. Physical torture was for idiots after all it was the psychological words and scars that hurt and worked better, after all he was living proof was he not? He'd just finished the leaders den and was going to find some fresh kill to eat when the ordeal with his mother unfolded. Privately she was the only thing that he feared in this world, not even Nightstar scared him like Cheshiregrin did, all too soon he was suddenly pinned and trapped beneath a black paw. He didn't understand, he was being 'good' digging his paws into the ground as his fearsome mother tore at his ears he grit his teeth refusing to cry out, that was for weaker wolves like Tremblepup she'd be screaming like a rabbit about to be killed. He managed a soft growl before words were hissed into his aching ears, he could feel blood trickling down the side of his head and into his actual ear and her words werent helping one bit. Shaking his head he tried not to listen but they'd been so carefully chosen to effect him, she wasn't finished until she'd humiliated him by shoving his face into the dirt until he had a wad of it in his mouth. Finally after that she'd gone, seething, he got up and shook out his pelt, spitting out the dirt he could only feel anger at his siblings. She'd never once gone after them like the way she always had him, what made them so special? He didn't even look at them he didn't want to look at anyone, he wanted to turn and take these feelings out on Tremblepup the insect was hiding from him the little coward. Flicking his torn up ears and flicking blood everywhere he turned away from the eyes feeling them on his fur as if he was being burned. No, no running he didn't run, he didn't cry out when things hurt, he was jesterpup, if he had to have such a name then he'd wear it like a badge of honour. He forced a sneer onto his face as if what had happened hadn't shaken or frightened him, he didn't want pity he didn't want attention he wanted progress, he wanted to be made an apprentice and finally start out on his path to becoming more than what he was. The sneer was fake, but that was okay as long as he could make other believe it, he'd be alright, he was a jester, laugh it off, so he needed to laugh to keep it all up, laugh it wasn't that hard to do. He needed to embrace it, inhaling sharply he tried it and found once he'd started he couldn't stop, a high pitched cackling giggle that got worse until he was gasping for breath. That was better, that was so much better, the sneer became genuine and he pulled away into the shadows to sit and tend to his ears without the nosy eyes of the clan staring and leering at him. He was okay, he'd just laugh it all off from now on no matter what happened to him, laugh and he'd feel better, He could do that, yes yes yes yes, he'd be okay absolutely fine, positively!He was Jesterpup, Jesterpup was him, he and he alone, he didn't need anyone a mother, a father siblings, he was himself and nobody could take that from him.

Nightstar watched as Cheshiergrin finally snapped but he made no move to stop her as she spoke more concerned about the pup then he was for her. He snarled snapping his fangs after the female as she left giving him a nip.His head turned towards Jesterpup as he recovered from the attack and moved back into the shadows out if the way. His frozen green eyes scanned the camp as he moved into the center with faintly bared fangs. "So everyone doubts me hmmm?" He asked aloud sitting down slowly,
"If you are brave enough then do come forth tell me why you think I am such a bad leader? I just want to see us thrive to grow into the Shadowclan of old. Strong and powerful like we are portrayed in the stories. Is it so wrong that I want to ensure we survive?" He asked smoothly his voice like ice as he spoke to the wolves within the camp. He slowly stood and shook his dark pelt out and chuckled softly though it was cold. "Come speak to me with your.... concerns ." He told them before moving. He made his way over to where Jesterpup was and sniffed at his ears. "Come with me and I will help you clean them Jesterpup." He mummered softly to the pup nudging him with the softest of touches he could manage. He lead the pup to his den and lay down in the entrance waiting for the black and red male to join him as his gaze skimmed the clearing slowly.