Ask to Join Birds n' Roses

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
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Leopardrose twisted away from the grapple, but not fast enough to fully avoid Kestrelswipe’s strike. His weight clipped her shoulder and sent her staggering back a few paces with a grunt.

She recovered quickly, a smirk flickering across her face before dissolving into something more serious. Her tail lashed once, sharply. "You think I’m making it up?" She challenged, breath hitching slightly from exertion. "I wish I was."

She paced a slow arc around him, her gaze never leaving his. She gave a short, sharp exhale, paw raking at the dirt. "If he ever does decide to fight one of us, I want to make sure we’re not caught mouse-footed. ThunderClan needs to be ready for more than border scuffles and rogue kits." With that, she made her next move known, a downwards slide aimed at his front paws. She hoped using her own weight could dislodge his footing.

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
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Leopardrose ducked her chin at the last moment, Kestrelswipe’s paw glancing off the edge of her ear. She felt his shoulder slam into hers, hard enough to knock the wind from her lungs as they collided. Her back paw dragged a furrow through the dirt struggling for traction, but she didn’t fall.

"I know you know..." She growled, teeth grit. "But knowing isn’t the same as being ready." The memory of the rogue’s golden eyes flashed in her mind. That calm. That confidence. She could still feel it like a ghost brushing her spine. She paused in her retalitory efforst, basking in the moment the two siblings shared. She could never be so candid with Savagefox. "Do you think the other Clans have seen him? I know Moosestar will mention it at the Gathering, but what more could we do?"

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
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Leopardrose let her claws sheath as she listened, her breathing slowing, though tension still rippled under her pelt. Kestrelswipe’s honesty hit her harder than any of his blows had.

"They're too bold to be coincidences..." She murmured, casting a wary glance toward the camp entrance, where pine shadows stretched like claws across the forest floor. "They’re not just passing through - They could be testing us."

She didn’t say it aloud, but a deeper fear stirred beneath her words: what if ThunderClan looked weak from the outside? What if that rogue had already reported back to something bigger? Her tail flicked, uneasy.

"We need to do more than keep an eye on them. We should rotate more patrols near the Twolegplace… " Her jaw clenched as she met his gaze again. She didn’t want to scare any of them. But the truth had claws, and it was better to show the camp how to fight than to let it crumble under a threat it refused to see.

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
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Leopardrose’s ears flicked at the name Palestar, her tail pausing mid sway. Her mind conjured the image of the rogue again. "Well, that’s not the one I saw." She turned her body fully toward Kestrelswipe, her expression set in a determined grimace. "We should talk to Moosestar again. A small scouting patrol could be useful - quiet, fast, cats who know how to blend in." Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "If we could just figure out where they’re coming from - if they’ve made a camp nearby - we’d have the upper paw."

There was a beat of silence. Then, quietly. "You’d lead it, right?" Her gaze met his steadily. "If Moosestar says yes. You’re deputy, and you’ve got the sense for this. And I trust you." Her voice dipped on that last note. Not soft not hesitant, but firm in its truth.

Because if ThunderClan was going to dig out the root of this threat, they needed more than strength. They needed strategy. And Kestrelswipe, for all his stubbornness, had that.

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
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Leopardrose’s ears tipped forward, catching every word, her body leaning in slightly with the intensity of her focus. "I'll come." The molly meowed without hesitation, her voice low but certain. "Better he hears it from both of us."

She flicked her tail once, sharp and decisive, before stepping closer to Kestrelswipe's side. Her expression, though grim, held the faintest glimmer of determination. "And you're right. We can’t take any cat who’s going to lose their cool the second they catch a rogue scent. Smart heads, steady paws."

Her claws flexed against the ground, a restless energy threading through her muscles. She hated waiting. Hated sitting back while the unknown loomed at their borders. But she knew better than to rush headfirst without a plan. "I’ll back you." Leopardrose said, giving his shoulder a light but deliberate nudge. "Whatever you need."

Spawn of flame, Thunder-struck, from the ashes I rise
──●◎●── 

Leopardrose rose fluidly to her paws, the tension in her shoulders melting into a focused readiness as she met Kestrelswipe’s bright gaze. "Always..." She said, a spark of challenge lighting her eyes. "Let’s make sure we’re the ones the rogues regret meeting." She gave her coat a quick shake, then slipped into position across from him with her tail flicking once behind her, steady and sure. And just like that the weight of uncertainty gave way to motion

Precise, practiced, and full of purpose.