โ
๐
จโกโ
Crowwhisper โ 37 mns | โ | Apprentice: fernpaw | Crush: | Tags: freshbreath; morningstar"๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐?
crowwhisper pawed at the earth around his lavender plants. the herb had been stripped earlier - as was custom, despite the appearance of redleaf's body, he'd been given the proper burial, complete with a mixture of lavender, rosemary, and mint rubbed into his pelt. crowwhisper's claws were still caked with earth from burying the deputy; since there was only one elder in the clan, he, freshbreath, morningstar, and fernpaw had helped the elderly leopardshadow bury redleaf. now, crowwhisper turned to his counterpart. "freshbreath - would you see to it that fernpaw is prepared to travel to the star bush? we need to leave immediately after the new deputy is named, if we plan to speak with starclan tonight." the dark tom paused and shook his head. "of all the nights for the clan deputy's body to be found, it had to be the half-moon..." crowwhisper turned back to his work, making sure the plant's roots were tightly packed into the earth after the invasive work that had been done earlier. danger. danger. danger! DANGER! the voices cried in crowwhisper's head, and he lifted his paws to his face, rubbing furiously at his forehead as if he could drive them out. the tom rose to his paws. "i'm going to check in with morningstar," he called towards the den, hoping freshbreath heard.
tail lashing in frustration, crowwhisper padded towards the pile of boulders. in front of it, the clan's warriors were huddled down, heads low and eyes forlorn. not only were they grieving the clan's deputy, despite not having a body to groom and bid farewell to - an air of unease hung around the cats. something was stealing away their clanmates; and now, now that a body had been found, the clan had every reason to believe all of the missing cats had met the same bloody fate. the tom felt his fur rise a bit as he thought back to when he, freshbreath, and morningstar had examined the body. the wounds were unlike anything a cat could inflict upon another, and no fur had been lodged under redleaf's claws to give them a hint. it had been useless, in the end, they knew nothing more than they did, other than knowing that roseclan cats were dying.
crowwhisper came to a halt beside morningstar. he sat down beside the flame-point tom and curled his tail around his paws, realizing that it had become bushy with fear. "we need to leave soon," crowwhisper said bluntly, his gaze still resting on the throng of grieving cats. "if we leave at moon-high, we'll only just make it before the moon leaves the sky. i don't know if that will even be enough time, honestly. but we have to try. we have to get answers. i hate being in the dark like this; starclan had better share something useful, or the entire clan is going to erupt into fearful chaos." he turned his face towards morningstar, meeting the leader's sharp blue gaze. "to get to the point - have you decided yet? shouldn't keep the clan waiting, if you know who's going to replace redleaf."
๐ณ๐๐'๐ ๐๐๐ข ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐, ๐๐'๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐."
โ
๐ฏโกโ
Smolderleaf โ 37 mns | โ | Apprentice: | Mate: daisyheart | Tags: creamflower"๐ฐ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐,
smolderleaf was tired. he'd led the dusk patrol, having scoped out the clan's border with the twolegplace - where they had made a startling discovery. just inside their territory, the dusk patrol had found him: redleaf. the clan's deputy was a horrifying sight to behold, and as smolderleaf thought back to what they had found, a chill ran down his spine. he had stayed with the grieving cats for awhile, honoring the deputy's memory, and had now moved out of the way, back towards the edge of the cave. his eyes were close, praying to starclan that the sound of the rushing waterfall that kept the camp hidden would calm his nerves. ever since he and crowwhisper had arrived in their mother's clan, he had been grateful for the waterfall. it made the camp feel like a safe haven, and for many of his clanmates, it was, serving as an escape from old lives. it certainly was for he and crowwhisper, anyway.
smolderleaf's eyes slid open. his stomach had rumbled - the last hunting parties of the day had returned already, and the fresh-kill pile was still relatively full, as many cats had lost their appetite upon the news of redleaf's death. smolderleaf himself hadn't been able to eat once they returned, having run to check on daisypaw immediately. the danger surrounding the clan worried him, especially when it came to his daughter, and he had to know that she was safe. after all, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the disappearances, it felt as if any cat could vanish like the others. now, the tom couldn't neglect his belly any longer. he padded silently towards the pile, rooting around for his best friend's favorite prey: fish. roseclan was full of strong fishers, so he wasn't surprised when he found a plump trout. he carried it towards the nursery, wriggling down into the dug-out burrow. "creamflower? are you in here?" he mewed, not having seen her among the cats outside. "i've brought some prey, if you want to share it with me."
๐ธ'๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ข ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐."
โ
๐ฆโกโ
Wolfshadow โ 51 mns | โ | Apprentice: acornpaw | Crush: | Tags: bearjaw"๐ต๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐'๐ ๐๐๐๐ข ๐๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ข ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐
the dark tabby sat hunched in the center of the cave, staring blankly forward. she was vaguely aware of bearjaw beside her; every now and again, his body shook, riddled with sobs. it was as if the world around wolfshadow were silent and blurred. her heart ached - though more than anything, her blood boiled. her claws sank in and out of the earth over and over, and her ears were pinned back. her hackles had risen as if she'd caught wind of an enemy. wolfshadow felt almost overwhelmed with the anger she felt, her heart pounding as if it would beat out of her chest. wolfshadow's grief had manifested in pure rage.
the she-cat sat up, her tail lashing violently. "we should go, now," she hissed to her brother beside her, who flinched at the sudden aggressive statement. "we should lead a patrol at once. there has to be a scent. there has to be something. we can find the cat who did this."
bearjaw's round eyes flickered with hurt - clearly he hadn't accounted for his sister's reaction. "what good will it do?" the tom's voice was laced with melancholy. "the patrol already said there was no scent - not cat, not anything else. what in starclan's name can we do if we can't find anything helpful to go off of?"
wolfshadow didn't respond. she rose to her paws and shouldered bearjaw out of the way, slinking off towards the nests that belonged to the warriors. she curled up in her own; though it was obvious it hadn't been for sleep, as her tail still lashed furiously. her eyes were open, trained on morningstar and crowwhisper. with a narrowed gaze she studied the toms. get it over with. make your choice, she thought bitterly. no cat you choose will live up to redleaf's name, anyway. they're all too weak.
๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ณ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐."
โ
โโกโ
Bearjaw โ 51 mns | โ | Apprentice: | Crush: | Tags: wolfshadow"๐ธ ๐๐๐'๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ -
bearjaw felt as if the world around him was caving in. his body shook with grief, his green eyes slitted, as if he could hardly stand to open them. it had been so long since snowmoss' death - he had almost forgotten what this intense grief felt like. redleaf had become his closest companion in this life, finally being the father bearjaw had always dreamed of. their bond had become strong and now it felt as if a piece of him had been torn out. the pain in his chest was immense, and the tabby-and-white tom thought his heart might give out and he'd end up in starclan himself.
wolfshadow drew the tom out of his thoughts, making him flinch with her sudden hissing, "we should go, now! we should lead a patrol at once. there has to be a scent. there has to be something. we can find the cat who did this."
bearjaw's round eyes flickered with hurt - clearly he hadn't accounted for his sister's reaction. "what good will it do?" the tom's voice was laced with melancholy. "the patrol already said there was no scent - not cat, not anything else. what in starclan's name can we do if we can't find anything helpful to go off of?" instead of responding, wolfshadow stood and skulked away, pushing roughly past him.
bearjaw lowered his head to his paws. he had no desire to chase after her - though he did love his sister, his only family left on this plane, he knew nothing he could say would elicit kindness or compassion from her. the warrior's heart couldn't take any more hurt at the moment, and he resigned himself to be left alone to grieve.
๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ , ๐น๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐."
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โโกโ
Daisypaw โ 8 mns | โ | Mentor: brightwing | Crush: | Tags: lostpaw"'๐ฒ๐๐๐๐ ๐ธ ๐ ๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐ข ๐๐ ๐๐ข ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ธ ๐๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐, ๐ธ ๐๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ข๐๐;
a deep frown was set on daisypaw's muzzle. she sat near the apprentices' nest, watching as cats came and went from the center of camp, where they paid their respects to redleaf. he'd been the only deputy that had served in daisypaw's lifetime: her whole life, it had been redleaf and morningstar guiding the clan. it was a strange feeling, realizing that the hierarchy would be changing, and that soon enough a new cat would have the same authority. the gray calico blinked thoughtfully as she processed the situation; this was the first time she had felt such profound maturity. her gaze followed smolderleaf as he watched her father slip into the nursery to visit the queen who had nursed her. she tipped her head, are florabreeze's kits even old enough to remember redleaf? will he just be a distant memory by the time they're my age?
daisypaw gave her fluffy pelt a shake. "all this thinking is giving me a headache!" she announced to no one in particular. the gray calico spotted lostpaw, and padded towards the tom. "guess what?" she mewed, coming to a halt beside him. "i know you haven't been here long, but this means they're gonna have to pick a new deputy now. the leader has to choose before moon-high, 'cause of the warrior code and all...but i'm sure timberwolf has told you that already, huh? well, i'm so curious about who he's gonna choose. i've never seen a cat become deputy before. i wonder if it will be the same as a warrior ceremony. or the apprentice ceremony. or..." daisypaw rambled on, her nervousness evident in her inability to close her jaws.
๐๐๐ ๐ธ ๐ ๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐ข ๐ ๐๐๐โ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐, ๐ธ ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐."
โ
โ ๏ธโกโ
Warbler โ 22 mns | โ | Apprentice: | Crush: | Tags:"๐ณ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ข ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐?
the night air was warm. warbler laced in and out of the trees, keeping herself low to the ground. her muddy-looking pelt provided good camouflage among the thick tree roots. the forest inside the roseclan territory had always been intimidating to the she-cat: it was always dark within, the light hardly able to penetrate the canopy, and the clan-stink muddled her senses. nonetheless, it was necessary to travel through it sometimes; the best source of prey was on their forest floor, and the river flowed with fish. not to mention the water from it was always safe - unlike the nasty, grimey, oil-sheened liquid that littered the twolegplace she grew up in. warbler just avoided the heart of their marked territory, where the waterfall rumbled - that always seemed to be where the roseclan scent was the strongest. instead, she kept to the outskirts.
the scent of mouse caught warbler's attention. dropped into a crouch at once, she spotted the creature several tail-lengths away, skittering among the roots. warbler stalked towards it, creeping silently, her tail level with the ground. finally, the she-cat sprang - and came up a few pawsteps short. she gave chase, but the mouse hadn't strayed far from its burrow, and vanished into its burrow. "mouse-dung!" she she-cat hissed, swiping at at the leaf litter covering the burrow.
๐ธ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐'? ๐ท๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ข๐๐?"