Minkstar.
Minkstar could see the superiority complex beginning to form, even through Mornigstar’s expression. The Shoreclan leader had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at it, opting instead to keep her expression rather passive. The tabby had to wonder, however, if Orchidclan was now looking to their own leader, wondering if she too would vanish, as seemed to have formed into a morbid tradition for the clans as of late. Minkstar glanced at Wapatostar, offering something that she hoped would come off as welcoming and sympathetic toward the clearly distraught tom.

Morningstar’s yowl cut through the night air, drawing Minkstar’s attention. She turned herself slightly to face the crowd of cats, three clans’ representatives combined into one throng. At a glance from Morningstar, Minkstar glanced toward Wapatostar, inviting him to share his news first, mostly to go ahead and get it out of the way so that he could just get the unpleasant business of it over with.

Minnowpool.
Minnowpool kept her attention halfway on Applecrisp as she went to fetch Beefur, all but dragging the young tom over against his will as the two conversed and clearly made eyes at each other. Minnowpool, despite the difference in their affiliations, felt a small wave of happiness for the two young cats, glad that they could find an interest in each other. Surely, it wouldn’t lead to anything serious; they would eventually find someone in their own clans to pair off with, but young love was something special. Minnowpool was largely not a cunning creature, but surely it could offer some information on what was going on with Galeclan, considering the two might be a little distracted to truly think about what they were saying to each other or others close enough to hear and converse.

Movement caught her attention, making her pale gaze shift slightly to land on Gullwind. Minnowpool kept her expression passive as she observed; the only indication that she had seen the wink that Gullwind had given was a small, fractional twitch of her whiskers. ‘Well, I suppose this should be interesting,’ Minnowpool thought, feeling a bit bad for the young Galeclanner. After all, it couldn’t be easy to be virtually surrounded by three of another clan, especially with so much riding on the words that were stated. But… then again, perhaps there was enough of a distraction for there to not be much anxiety to begin with, at least not about the situation at present, and more toward a present – obvious – crush.

Her attention focused back on Applecrisp as she began speaking. Minnowpool dipped her head in acknowledgment. “Losing a leader is not easy, but we deal with it. Jellyfishstar is still missed, but Minkstar has really stepped up into the position of leader, and Heronfrost has been a strong deputy for her.” She said before pausing for a moment. “I do mourn for Basilstar and his close relationships. I hope you all can come to terms with whatever has happened.”

Timberwolf.
Timberwolf could see that Galeclan had gone through some things recently, so he was happy to see that certain aspects were still thriving and moving along as expected.

“Pollenpaw – she’s Juniperfur’s youngest. Just became an apprentice and already attending her first Gathering, but she begged me to come with her,” Aesop said. Timberwolf gave a small, warm purr. He could tell that the elder was fond and proud of their young companion. “She’s Wapatostar’s apprentice, but I won’t pretend like I haven’t seen Frozenkingdom keeping a close eye on her. I look forward to seeing where her heart will take her.”

“She certainly has a lot going for her,” Timberwolf said. “At such a young age, too, she should feel proud of that.”

“Patchflower is expecting, too.” Timberwolf couldn’t help but beam a little. It was good that things were going so well for Aesop and their family! “I can’t believe there will be great-grandkits soon enough. I think the last time I spoke to you, Cinnamonpaw and Hyacinthpaw had just become apprentices – but they must be warriors by now, right?” He dipped his head at first, forgetting for a moment that Aesop could not see.

“Yes,” he corrected. “They’re warriors now! It’s strange how time passes; sometimes I forget that Copsetooth isn’t a new warrior, and then I’m hit by the realization that my grandchildren are warriors now, too!” He chuckled a little at this. “My, it has been a long time since we spoke.” He mused.

Lavenderwhisker.
Lavenderwhisker looked over, distracted from her half-attempted mulling, as another cat came to settle beside her. The fluffy ginger she-cat beamed at the prospect of being able to socialize with someone outside of Orchidclan, her ears perking up and eyes lighting up as the other she-cat, who smelled of Galeclan, came to speak with her.

“It’s been a while since I made it to one of these,” the she-cat mewoed. “The kits are finally out of the nursery.” Lavenderwhisker felt her heart soar even more.

“You have kits?” She asked. Lavenderwhisker had always enjoyed kits, although the idea of her having them made some uneasy and made herself feel rather aware of her own inadequacies. Regardless, the idea of kits made her feel a wave of happiness. “I think I came to the last one, too. There seems to be a lot of changes happening in the clans recently.” Lavenderwhisker stated, her gaze flickering toward the leaders, two of which were far newer than Morningstar was.

Shortwave.
Shortwave was careful to keep his expression guarded as the other two clans filed into the clearing. He tried not to stare at Wapatostar, hoping that his lack of apparent interest might pull some of the attention away from the withering leader.

“Where’s Basilstar?”

The voice came from his left, and it was the exact question that Shortwave had been hoping to avoid. He couldn’t help the fact that he jumped a little as he turned his gaze toward the she-cat who smelled of Orchidclan. She seemed familiar, and he felt like he had heard her name before — Pounce… something. Bloom, maybe? Yes, that felt right.

“He’s, uh…” Shortwave started, with a small, awkward chuckle. “Well, I’m, uh, sure that that will be explained once the leaders get this going fully.” He said. If cats could sweat, he would have broken out into one. Thankfully, cats could not, and so there was no real indication beyond his awkward tone and shifting gaze.