. stepping stones :: rushclan

[moon.]

ℂɪᴠᴇᴛᴘᴀᴡ
There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back
• • • • • • •

~ waiting for de's post ~

ᴛᴀɢs :: minnowpaw

• • • • • • •
Your mind is playing tricks on you, my dear

ℬʀɪᴀʀғᴀʟʟ
We'll do it all, everything, on our own.
• • • • • • •

I had risen with the birds, as I have every morning, long before the sun shines her rays upon the grounds of our home, and much longer before any soul had stirred. I feel it my duty to check in on every cat in the morning - the queens come first, then elders. Just this morning, I changed my daily routine - something you do not see from a monotonous cat as I am. Cats of this clan could name my schedule by heart, just because I walk the same path each and every sunrise. Today, though, today is different. I started off this morning just as any other - waddling out of my lichen coated den, listening to the soft trickle of water into the pool that lies in my den, feeling the cool, damp morning air, breathing in the fresh scents of an undisturbed atmosphere. After poking my head into the queens den and then into Morningflower's, I didn't head back to my den to clean my herbs. Rather, I walked towards the woods without a hesitation in my step or a thought in my mind - as if the towering trees just called to me, pulling my spirit towards theirs.
And then here I am, stepping out of camp in the quiet of the morning. I raise my head and watch the birds, blinking lightly as they swarm and sing, dancing through the trees and bushes, taunting me, yet leading me. A young sparrow wobbles dangerously close to a predator like me - though she seems to be saying something. She isn't foolish enough to wander into my jaws, she is here for a purpose - I can feel it, deep within my being. I blink my ice blue eyes, tilting my head the slightest bit before cautiously following the slight creature. It twittered and leaped, flapping her little wings with all of her might before gaining leverage and swooping into the undergrowth.
With no pause, I chase after the creature, nimble paws stepping over every root, every branch, every plant that I had come to know. The sparrow nods her head, twitching and flicking her wings, beady eyes flaring as a burst of sunlight pours through the canopy. Daybreak, the others will be up soon. But, the thought quickly slips from my mind. I tilt my head, wandering closer and closer to the sparrow, only to have her dance away from me. Eventually, the pace starts picking up. She flies faster, further, deeper into the undergrowth, staring back at me when I was too slow. Our slow dance became a face-paced rhythm, and suddenly, I found myself sprinting into the woods, faster than I had gone in a while, farther than I had ever traveled.
And then, all at once, the world opens around me. I slide to a halt, staring in wide eyed wonder as the trees disappear, and before me, a wide open gap - a beautiful canyon, a break in the rock. I stand at its very edge, breath heavy, rocks tumbling from the wake of my pawsteps. The mountains about me seem to sing, and from my position atop of this rock, I can see everything. The sacred pools, the safely tucked away camp just behind the waterfall, the cave that had churning waters roaring about it - just, pure wonder. A small birdsong comes from behind me, and I turn my head ever so carefully, watching as the sparrow perches herself on a pinetree branch, She watches me calmly, almost letting me take in the world, telling me that this is where I do belong. To these cats, in these mountains, in this world - I was put here for a reason. I catch the sparrows eye, and I don't know if she can even understand me, but when she returns a starry gaze, I can't help but give a slight nod, then dart off - quick as lighting - back towards home. Something deep inside of me says that I won't be forgetting those stars any time soon.
Sliding into camp, I shake out my slightly ruffled pelt, smoothing it down with a few quick licks. On my way back home, I had managed to pick up some goldenrod - something that we do not find too often. I can give this to Morningflower later. I think, mindlessly picking up the flowers and waltzing towards my den. I neatly store them with the rest of my herbs - everything is always very organized. She would appreciate some joint relieve, I assume. Just as I finish putting away my fresh herbs, I wander into camp only to find Rosepad waddling closer. Sooner than later, her stomach will be swollen with kits, and they will be - finally - born. Oh, how I love kits! Sadly, I can never have any. All I get to do is love and care for the ones that I help bring into this world. "Oh dear, Rosepad. You must be miserable. Here, wait just a moment." I dart back into my den, sniffing carefully through my storage before picking up a few chamomile leaves and chervil roots. Gingerly, I chew both of the substances into a single poultice, sighing ever so lightly at the bitter taste. I fold them in a bay leaf and walk back out, dropping the bundle at the queens paws. "Eat this. This should help with the stomach pains, and I threw something in there that would calm your nerves a bit. You look about as wound up as a rabbit fighting a wolf pack." I sit, wrapping my dark tail around my white paws. My masked face illuminates my eyes, and I tilts her head ever so slightly. "I feel your tension. Anything particularly the matter?" One of the very few things that I like about myself is the fact that I can very easily read emotions - some tell me I've worked with sage to long, and the wisdom has seeped to my soul.

ᴛᴀɢs :: rosepad

• • • • • • •
We don't need anything, or anyone.

[saige.]

↲

↱

♘ ｗａｒｂｌｅｒｆｒｏｓｔ

Where do we go from here?
Where do we go from here?
I threw some rocks up at your window
I broke some rocks right through your window

Timber, timber
We're falling down
Let the forest hear our sound
Boom ba boom ba boom
Ah ooo ah ooo
Boom ba boom ba boom
Ah ooo ah ooo
Why can't I see
What's right in front of me?

the dream was almost bittersweet, but he enjoyed it regardless. the crowd of mollies surrounding him, brushing against his body and tails twining with each passing and his name whispered delicately, just a quiet breath that came in many voices yet a single one just as well. when blackness filled his vision instead of beautiful females and the obscured background that mattered little to him, he roused himself from sleep. warblerfrost's eyes fluttered open, bright blue even in the darkness of the den that sheltered sensitive eyes from the harsh light to prevent a rude awakening and a troubled sleep. the dream itself was one of many he wished not to wake from, to indulge in it just a bit longer to seek out a single voice to place it with a face and give a personality to whom he had envisioned. to his begrudging regret, however, that wish had yet to be granted. so rather, he revels in mystery and ponder, seeking the eyes and tuning to the voices of every she-cat that sounds remotely familiar to the one heard in his dreamland.
he was awake, yet he didn't want to be. his black-dipped tail beat against the ground with a rhythmic thump..thump..thump. he continued that way until he heard a noise that sounded less than pleased to feel the dust kicked up by his motion and the light tapping sound he created. rising to face reality, he took a step, stretched, took a step, stretched, and eventually found himself outside of the den and into the world of the living where he spotted at least several cats mocking about either in conversation started prior to his awakening, ones about to begin, and ones that had yet to start. some were singled out and minding their own business, others were in pairs or groups to go about with their daily procedures. after a dream like the one he had last night, an odd part of him drove him to sit near the warrior's den rather than seek out a female to do another voice-comparision. he knelt his head down and smoothed out his chest fur, rasping tongue cleaning any unwelcome strays that intwined themselves into his coat during his slumber and to overall keep a nice appearance. with a mainly white pelt, tidying up was a repeated action performed throughout the day even with the black patches of fur that initially prevented blindness that is coupled with the blue-eyed-white-fur combination.
warblerfrost eventually subdued himself to laying on the ground, tail once again swishing back and forth in a rhythm to keep himself occupied while the beginning of the day carried out and the others started with their duties. he made a mental note to search and pick up amberpaw later to keep up with their training so she wouldn't fall out of line with the others and push back her warrior ceremony that was due to come in the future. though a bit inappropriate, he thought the idea of him having a female apprentice was amusing and brought a smirk to his face. as an apprentice himself he hit on anything with female genitalia, regardless of age. hardly anything has changed, but he was limited at this point to avoid any awkward confrontation with the others about his fritting about with an underage she-cat. as a mentor he had duties, and restrictions, but amberpaw was close to warrior status, and she wouldn't be the only one free of watchful eyes.
speaking of which, the tom looked towards the apprentice's den, deciding that he had lazed about long enough and that it was time to take amberpaw out. warblerfrost picked himself up and moved in that direction, passing by the fresh-kill pile where olivestare sat and giving her a click-of-the-tongue and a wink, which ended in him stopping completely in his original track. "heya, olivestare, waitin' for sumthin'?" he asked, his way-of-speaking somewhat improper but unable to be changed having spoken as such since he was a kit with a cursed ear infection.

tags;; olivestare

✄ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

↲

↱

♔ ｒｏｓｅｐａｄ

Hey there Savior Grace
Please place this rose upon the grave
It's too late
The crowd is gathered here
Doesn't make it easier to let you go
It's too late for goodbyes
It's so hard to watch them cry...tonight
It's too late now this time
It's so hard to say goodbye

I know you finally found your way
I still need you in my life
And I miss you everyday

it was if a silent connection had passed, the roots of the earth channeling her inner thoughts to the one she sought out most. the chains and links of the world made everything that was considered to be living connected, be it the trees, the insects, the prey, the predators, even the twolegs as pitifully obnoxious as they were. sometimes the universe works out in your favour, summoning what you desire from the pools of your inner thoughts, while other times it scrapes the outcasted shadow-lands of the mind that even the person themself dares not to touch under most circumstances, fearing the worse may fall upon them and present a situation most undesirable to poison the mood. whether it be a tainted reach, or a blest one, the macrocosm lived within and upon played an enormous role in peculiar ways.
nevertheless she wouldn't deny that she was pleased to see a familiar face that she would be seeing, and had been for a while now, almost religiously every few passes of the sun and the moon to check on the wellbeing of herself, and for the future children she would soon come to birth. children she feared would assume resemblance to a face she wished to forget, yet also wished to always remember. quite a conundrum she had developed during her nightly frets in solitude where she felt less embarrassed by showing off her weaknesses to the public eye. call it pregnancy fritters, but it delved much further beyond that generally assumption.
rosepad simply smiled and though she opened her mouth to utter an agreement as briarfall passed, she closed it instead as the young molly hurried off to tend to a need she needn't have to explain. she and briarfall shared an age similarity, being hardly a moon apart, yet the intellectual difference was one spaced seasons apart. the hardships and rewards of a medicine cat were one that could never be fully understood by one who had all the benefits of leading a common lifestyle; start as a kit like everyone else, become an apprentice like most others, make it to warrior like those who hadn't perished during training, become a mother or father depending on how the genetic lottery played out, and if well trained and trusted enough, passing on to deputy and should starclan forbid or bless it, achieve leadership. as for the rest of the clan, elderhood was their final destination should they not die while in action either on the field or while plagued during the busiest seasons for medicine cats. maybe she would end up like morningflower, still rocking it as an elder as her younger moons passed by for what to a new set of eyes could only see as too quickly, but how she lived her life and how rosepad lived her own life passed in time increments that fed through opposite ends of the spectrum.
sometimes she pondered on whether or not she should've reached out and found a new path to take, not approach the same one led by countless others that now highlighted the night in their other-wordly glow.
by the time her musings had come to an end, briarfall had returned with a poultice made just for her and her stomach that felt like a despairing abyss. rosepad once again smiled, taking note of the simile used to note her almost sickly appearance which turned her expression half-hearted. there was no escaping her senses, no matter how big of a ploy rosepad could try and put on. "call it stress, call it longing, i feel like vomiting." she admitted, closing her eyes and feeling a flash of relief before she blinked them open to reveal that almost an entire moon had passed in her eyes.

tagged;; briarfall

[fireflies.]

S k y c l o u d

_________________________________________________________

[ skycloud ] - [ she-cat ] - [ warrior ] - [ 25 moons ]

skycloud trotted into camp, two mice and a squirrel hanging from her jaws as the she-cat headed towards the fresh-kill pile. she sighed regretfully as she dropped them onto the heap of prey before she turned around, one ear flicking. but a certain feeling of pleasure flashed through her as the brown tabby realized that she the camp was strangely silent. all the other clan warrior must be sleeping away in their nests while she actually went out and hunted for her clan. ''lazy mouse-brains,'' she muttered under her breath though she took note of her fellow warriors emerging from their dens. her eyes fell upon whitefoot and she sighed, a flicker of worry leaking into her green eyes. orchidnose was younger then skycloud yet she already had a mate and future kits on the way while skycloud didn't even know herself yet. it scared her, time was ticking away, killing her slowly while she was killing time. she couldn't even get her act together and court a male, for starclan's sake! and whitefoot's sister had the deputy rank at such a young age. skycloud was honestly puzzled on why ridgestar chose moonshine to be deputy, she was still very young and there was surely other better choices like oakrise or redfoot. yet skycloud respected her leader's choice, all the same, after all, who was she to question it?
at least she had a apprentice. it would be a lie to say she wasn't thrilled when she was announced ivypaw's mentor. skycloud could easily say that she was very happy with the young she-cat and she considered ivypaw to make a fine warrior. at least she hoped that. her eyes shut as she remembered her own mentor, a tom named badgerstripe who never let her have any fun and thought everything she did was awful. never was anything she did was good it was always; 'i've seen vines climb faster then that' or 'that couldn't be a messier catch.' she knew that he was only trying to help but some comments stung like fire or were as cold as ice. over time, she began to yearn for that slight nod of his head that approved that she had done something right but they were very rare. skycloud thanked her mentor for those hurtful comments now, they had toughened her up for the better. her eyes fell upon morningflower and she bit back a sigh, hoping that she would live long enough to become an elder. she would rather die as a warrior then spend her final days shrinking away, always being left behind on the patrols and young apprentices complaining about doing chores for her. as far as the she-cat was concerned, she would be a burden to her clan and she would never want that.
the queen rank was always an option but skycloud was sure that her path was not destined for her, yet if the right tom came along she wouldn't say no. her fate lay in the paws of starclan, she would have to trust them.
skycloud's eyes brightened and her heart missed a beat as she caught sight the tom known as oakrise and she hurried over to him. she had enjoyed going on patrols with the the tom, and she longed to forge a friendship. but whenever she talked to tom, skycloud became tounge-tied and unsure on what to say. so many times had her jaws opened to speak to a listening tom yet no words came out. her pelt would prickle with embarrassment as the tom lost interest and walked away but she was on a mission to not act like that to oakrise. ''hey,'' she meowed, a slight purr in her voice. oh great, she should have planned what she was going to say. ''nice morning, huh?'' she murmured. that wasn't true for her, it was a bit chilly for her taste but she had thought of nothing else to say. eventually words came to her and skycloud's breathing evened as she opened her jaws to speak again. ''did you have nice dreams? i know i did, my sleep has been peaceful for the first time in moons.'' oh, real smooth on her part. keeping her embarrassment hidden, the thick-furred she-cat cocked her head for oakrise to reply to her mouse-brained stammering.
maybe the reason she was fond of oakrise was because he looked like her deceased brother? her father had been a clan cat, her mother a kittypet though shadowflight [her father] had told her and owlflight that they had one other sibling who her mother had kept. shadowflight had told them that her other brother was younger then them. many times her father, owlheart and her had gone out to find their missing brother and son but there had never been any success. grief had washed over skycloud when she had lost her father to greencough but a spark of her died when owlheart had been killed by a fox-hearted rouge. skycloud had been with her tabby brother at the time, they had been hunting when a dark grey rouge attacked them. skycloud had slain the rouge after he gave the fatal blow that killed owlheart yet she hadn't been the same cat as before. the joyful and reckless she-cat had been replaced by a bitter ghost of the cat she had once been. her clanmates had avoided her over it yet skycloud didn't blame them.

tags; oakrise

M o n t y

_________________________________________________________

[ monty ] - [ tom ] - [ loner ] - [ 21 moons ]

it was hard to believe that once upon a time, monty had been a plump and healthy kittypet. now his pelt was ruffled and you could count his ribs. it was his very own fault; he had been the one that wanted to have a adventure before abandoning his twolegs. why had he done that? his once sleek black and white fur was now ragged with thorns and mud. realizing the faults in his mistake, he had slunk back to his house, expecting his twolegs to welcome him back with open arms as they scooped him up. instead he found that he had been replaced. a beautiful calico she-cat had stood in his place though he had tried anyway. with his best pleading face, he had tried to eat some of the calico's food but that didn't end well. he was attacked by the she-cat and his former twolegs had thrown hard objects at him, injuring his shoulder. even now, it was extremely painful to take a single step and his belly was hollow with hunger. death was around the corner unless someone took pity of him, giving him something, anything, to fill his belly. but by now he had began to accept the end though the tom still clung to a scrap of hope.
a rustle of a body against the leaves made his ears pricked as his amber gaze peered through a bush, brightening as he spotted a plump rabbit. finally, some food? a sly grin spread across his hungry face as the black and white tom dropped to a crouch, stalking forward. oh, no. a twig snapped under his back and the rabbit perked it's head up, instantly alert. panicking, monty sprang forward, his claws unsheathed as he took chase after the rabbit. but his speed didn't match the rabbit, he was far to weak, anyway, as he gave up, upset that he didn't catch it as a wave of disappointment washed over his pelt. he had been so close to getting a decent meal.... a wail of anger ripped from his chest as the tom furiously tore at the grass. everything had to go wrong, didn't it? he had no hunting skills at all, what chance did he have of surviving? and there was no way that he would even consider joining with that group of cats. the stories that monty had heard about them had made the black and white tom shudder but his mother had thought otherwise. whenever he mentioned the stories to her, she would become angry and wouldn't speak to her son for the rest of the day.
yet there was one of those cats that had caught his eye, and had made him thought twice about how awful these cats were thought to be. when he wasn't busy looking for a meal, he would taste the air to see if he could catch her scent. Or eagerly wait [hidden in a bush] at the entrance of the camp to see if she would emerge or not. when she did, monty's eyes would light with excitement and his tail would swish with joy. over time, he had learned her name was moonrise which he thought was a stunning name. maybe she would come a find him? well, if she didn't he was certain that another one of those cats soon. he had been completely stupid, yowling like that and announcing himself to the rest of the world. would they kill him? the thought didn't make monty mind too bad, he was headed for death anyway with the way he was going. the quick slash of claws against his throat was quicker then starving to death, right?
but monty hadn't completely accepted death right. there was still some fight left in him and the next choice he made was stupid and dangerous but he was willing to do it. a wild glint in his eyes, the scruffy tom crept towards the camp, held his breath and raced into the entrance. what was he doing? this could lead to death but also life and monty's mouth watered as he spotted a pile of prey, topped with a thrush. his rumbling belly reminded the tom that he might finally have some food. pelting towards the pile he grabbed the thrush in his jaws as his head snapped up, looking back at the entrance of the camp, ready to run again.

tags; basically everyone in the camp
sorry, i basically lost my muse for monty's post

[gone for good :)]

i know these two posts are basically at different times,but i thought instead of focusing both of my cats on monty it'd make more sense for one to be with another cat instead. :3

☾ＨＡＷＫＦＵＲ
life
tagged ;; moonshine
ｅｍｏｔｉｏｎｓ
ｈａｖｅ ｎｏ ｐａｒｔ ｉｎ ａ
ｗａｒｒｉｏｒ'ｓ ｌｉｆｅ

The burly tom awoke from his light sleep by the shufflings of his clanmates getting up and getting ready for the day. He relished in the blissfulness of his nest and the haziness of sleep,knowing he had to get up and start. Hawkfur let out a soft sigh as he picked himself up from his place and grumbled out of the den,not really caring if he stepped on a cat or disrupted anybody. He didn't have many friends in the clan,why would he care? His eyes were downcasted as he walked into the light of dawn,the light making him grumble even more. Light mumblings spewed from him,mostly small comments about how happy and joyful every cat was,as if they weren't aware of the dangers that could lurk in life beyond their pleasant little clan. Hawkfur was a realist,he wasn't one for false dreams or imagination,since it wasn't practical. How was one to be a great warrior if they were focused on mouse brained ideas of "love" and "adventure"?
The ways of being a warrior -atleast to Hawkfur,that is- is to be focused and willing to lay down one's life for another. Not about trying to find a mate or having kits,no,it was about protecting what was rightfully theirs. Ambition was a big part of his makeup, as he was always trying to perfect battle skills or trying to feed the clan. To be honest he really didn't believe in making friendships or trying to be the nicest cat he could. No,that was for somebody so utterly wrapped up in false notions of safety and happiness,when really there was none in the world. Ever since his brother died,he put away all emotion and basically left his heart with his apprenticeship. Time was not meant for that sort of thing,not when you have mouths to feed and cats to protect.
His pale green eyes surveyed the camp in front of him. Cats lazily ranking up their apprentices,idle chat,and cats going to and fro from the fresh kill pile. Patrols didn't seem to be set up yet,which Moonshine should have been doing by now. Glancing around,he finally spotted the black she-cat grooming herself. Rolling his eyes softly,he padded towards Moonshine,his eyes glazed and expressionless,though determination could be plucked from them. The tom sat down,his gaze turning from her around the clan as he spoke with a tone of courage and slight arrogance,"A border patrol I do believe would be best. I'd bring an extra cat or two since there might be some sightings and we wouldn't want to be caught unprepared." Finally his eyes turned back to her,his head tilting slightly. His eyes seem to hold an unspoken challenge,and even though she was the deputy and a far higher rank than he was,he wasn't about to let some she-cat make the clan come back with unnecessary bloodloss.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ＯＲＣＨＩＤＮＯＳＥ
life
tagged ;; monty
ｔｈｅｋｅｙ
ｔｏ ｌｉｆｅ ｉｓｌｉｖｉｎｇ ｗｉｔｈ
ｈａｐｐｉｎｅｓｓ

Deep sleep was lightly rustled by a soft,fuzzy feeling that spread throughout the little she-cat's body,due to the disruption from her mate. One cyan blue eye opened,blinking sleepily to adjust to the light of a new day. She watched as the black and white tom ducked out of the den,promptly hitting his head on the top of the den like always. A light murrow of laughter quietly erupted from her throat,happiness bursting through her. Orchidnose was so smitten with that tom,since he was so rambunctious and goofy which made him so utterly adorable to her. They were opposites in most aspects,especially personality wise,due to the fact she was soft spoken and motherly,while he was outgoing and oh-so-bubbly. They had been friends since kithood,and because of that soon became mates and everybody could basically tell they were meant to be together. When they found out she was pregnant with his kits,it just added onto the blessing.
Orchidnose looked up from her curled up position and saw that Rosepad's nest was empty. It was quite heartbreaking knowing that she was all alone with kits on the way,so the younger she-cat tried to make her happy as much as she could. The little things,like good morning chats,making sure she had enough to eat,and always trying to boost her spirits. Rosepad still seemed so unresponsive and depressed,which stressed Orchidnose just because she was the type who wanted everyone happy. These thoughts overwhelmed her,so she focused on the task ahead. Glancing around the empty den,the she-cat decided it would be better to start the day instead of going back to sleep,because she knew she'd be gone for a while if she did indeed go back to sleep. She rose on sleep ridden paws and shook out her long,soft calico fur. Her wide blue eyes finally adjusted,and she started out of the den.
The first thing she saw when she stepped out of the den was the rear of her mate,his head in the apprentice's den. Her gaze turned from her busy mate to Rosepad,who was busy discussing herbs with Briarfall,an air of loneliness fogging around her. Before she could continue the thought though,she saw a tom race into the camp and stop at the fresh kill pile, picking around at the prey. "Thief! That's ours,not yours! Put that back!" she called over,even if it was a little cautious,staying at her point in case the cat was dangerous. The tom was most definitly a loner,as he didn't smell familar. He was skinny,skinnier than the clan in winter when the prey stopped running. Her neck fur bristled softly,her tail lashing. She bared her teeth,her ears going against the soft tan fur of her head. Deciding against the danger,she stalked closer,knowing she'd regret it later. This was her clan though,even if she were a queen,she needed to protect it. Orchidnose knew she wasn't the biggest cat or the most dangerous opponent,but nothing could stop her. Looking at that skinny tom made a flash of pity go through her,even though he was an enemy,but it was still so sad to see a cat in such a condition. Really? These kits must be making me lose my head! she thought suddenly.

[ᚻadou]

wip mist's post .3.
my cat's are both depressing cx
that's just my muse right now haha

Ｔｈｅｒｅ’ｓ ｎｏｔ ａ ｓｉｎｇｌｅ ｂｅａｔｉｎｇ ｈｅａｒｔ ｉｎ ｔｈｅ ｗｏｒｌｄ
Ｔｈａｔ ｄｏｅｓｎ’ｔ ｗａｎｔ ｔｏ ｂｅ ｓｃｒｅａｍｉｎｇ ｈａｐｐｙ,
ｓｏ ｌｅｔ ｔｈｅｍ ｓｃｒｅａｍ

Ａ
Ｓ
Ｈ
Ｐ
Ａ
Ｗ

ｌｏｃａｔｉｏｎ;apprentice den
ａｃｔｉｏｎ;just woke up
ｔｈｏｕｇｈｔｓ
{this is gonna be awesome,
I finally get to show the others that
I'm just as good as them}

ashpaw's hind leg twitched in his deep sleep. a small mew was drawn from his half open jaw as his ears jerked, and his twisted and turned in the appretece den. he was alone, and dreaming. it was a familiar dream. a dream that seemed real, too real to be a dream...
he was running, running as fast as he could. following a small rabbit, chasing it down. he was catching up with the rodent, just in time to realize he was the one being chased. a fox hot on his trail. the horrified kit kept racing forward, but there was a cliff, he had no where to run...
the fox was closing in on him.
jump, or fight?

the dreaming cat tensed up, his ocean blue eyes opened wide. his breathe was heavy, and chest was heaving at every gasp.
he had these dreams very often, they were re-livings of the day he lost his tail. he looked back at the small stub that was left of his once long, and fluffy tail. he lost it to a fox as he was chasing a rabbit. he was starving and only 3 moons old. it was a miracle that he even lived, but thankfully a warrior named silvermist had found him before he perished from hunger. he lay still, catching his breathe in the den, staring blankly at the walls. he didn't want to get up, but he didn't want to go back to sleep. he was excited about his first real training day with his mentor though, he had been given the honor of being called ashpaw, not ashkit anymore. the thought hit him hard when the soft call of whitefoot. he picked his small head up off the ground,
"coming !" he called back, slowly getting up and shaking his dusty pelt off before walking out of the den, his ice blue eyes squinting as the bright lights of morning came pouring into the mouth of the den. he gave a small yawn, and happily looked up at his mentor,
"we're training today, right? my first real day as an apprentice!" he mewed joyfully, bounding up and stumbling after the land. his balanced had been compromised by the loss of his precious tail, but he did his best to ignore it and work past it. though, some of the other cats pitied ashpaw, born form a kitty pet mother and cursed with the loss of his tail. he was more of an omen than a miracle in some cats eyes.

ｔａｇｇｅｄ;; WHITEFOOT

Ｉ'ｍ ｐｏｓｉｔｉｖｅ ｔｈａｔ ｉｆ ｙｏｕ ｊｕｓｔ ｂｅｌｉｅｖｅ
Ａｎｙｔｈｉｎｇ ｃａｎ ｂｅ ａｃｈｉｅｖｅｄ
Ｔｈｅ ｗｏｒｌｄ ｉｓ ｗｈａｔ ｙｏｕ ｍａｋｅ ｏｆ ｉｔ
Ｉｔ ｃｏｕｌｄ ｂｅ ｙｏｕｒｓ ｆｏｒ ｔｈｅ ｔａｋｉｎｇ
Ｊｕｓｔ ｈｏｌｄ ｔｒｕｅ ｔｏ ｙｏｕｒｓｅｌｆ

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃ ▃▃▃▃ ▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃ ▃▃▃▃▃

Ｄｉｇ ｄｅｅｐ, ａｎｄ ｓｈｏｗ ｔｈｅｍ ｗｈａｔ ｙｏｕ’ｒｅ ｍａｄｅ ｏｆ
Ｎｅｖｅｒ ｇｉｖｅ ｉｎ, ｎｅｖｅｒ ｇｉｖｅ ｉｎ ｕｎｔｉｌ ｔｈｅ ｅｎｄ
Ｔｈｅ ｃｈｏｉｃｅｓ ｔｈａｔ ｙｏｕ ｍａｋｅ ｆｒｏｍ ｈｅｒｅ ｏｎ ｏｕｔ
Ｗｉｌｌ ｓｅｔ ｔｈｅ ｐａｔｈ ｏｆ ｙｏｕｒ ｆｕｔｕｒｅ’ｓ ｒｏｕｔｅ

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ｌｏｃａｔｉｏｎ;med cats den
ａｃｔｉｏｎ;waking up/walking
ｔｈｏｕｇｈｔｓ
{---}

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ｔａｇｇｅｄ;; n/a OPEN FOR INTERACTION

Ｄｏｎ’ｔ ｌｅｔ ｔｈｅｍ ｇｏ ｔｏ ｙｏｕｒ ｈｅａｄ
‘Ｃａｕｓｅ ｙｏｕ ｋｎｏｗ ｄｅｅｐ ｄｏｗｎ ｉｎ ｙｏｕｒ ｈｅａｒｔ
Ｔｈａｔ ｔｈｉｓ ｉｓ ｗｈｅｒｅ ｙｏｕ ｗｅｒｅ ｍｅａｎｔ ｔｏ ｂｅ,
ｗｈｅｒｅ ｙｏｕ ｗｅｒｅ ｍｅａｎｔ ｔｏ ｂｅ

[ lyrics © "the view from here" by Everyone Dies in Utah ]

[my little bird]

ＯＬＩＶＥＳＴＡＲＥ

{ｓｈｅｃａｔ- {ｆｒｉｅｎｄｌｙ／ｓｕｒｐｒｉｓｅｄ- { ２４ｍｏｏｎｓ- { ｍａｔｅｌｅｓｓ

ｄｒｅａｍｓａｒｅｗｈａｔｓｔａｒｔｒｅａｌｉｔｙ

Taking only a few paws steps away from the fresh kill pile the white molly settled down into a comfortable area to wait on the patrol announcements. Sitting down she curled her smooth tail across her paws and softly to herself she hummed to pass the time. Moonshine was always diligent about assigning patrols; however since Olivestare was forever enthusiastic about getting out of camp to help more and more it never seemed to be announced early enough. Such enthusiasm often resulted in impatience, which was not a favorable attribute to most. Her paws soon began to shuffle from unease and to take her mind off the wait she glanced at the apprentices starting to emerge from their own den and reuniting with their mentors. A faint pang of envy twanged in the she cat for she had yet to receive an apprentice, Moonshine was at least three moons younger than her and she had her own apprentice. She did remind herself that was partly because the black clad she cat was already deputy and she had the skill to handle an apprentice. She herself hoped that at one point she'd too be given the honor of training an apprentice, but for now she would have to settle with waiting. In that time of waiting though she'd become the best warrior she could, and that way her goal could be met. Olivestare certainly understood the responsibility of teaching such a young mind ready to learn and so she knew she was far from her best potential. It would only be then that she would pass on her knowledge, so her only choice was to wait and improve. Her own mentor had been a senior warrior, one that was bursting with information for his pupil, and the once apprenticed she cat had benefited in the grandest of ways from it. So perhaps, even if she wasn't as ready as her fellow clan mates, when she was she might even be wiser than them. That was only one of many dreams of hers though, a dream she could not wait to fulfill.
After a while Olivestare mulled around in her mind, not paying much attention to what was happening now. Daydreaming was an effective method of hers to pass the time when nothing else could, and frankly she enjoyed it quite thoroughly. It was only the voice of a certain black and white tom that brought her out of her musings, causing her ears to flicker in search of the noise. Warblerfrost initially startled her a bit but once she focused clearly she adjusted to the other’s presence rather well. Her fellow clan mate was mostly known for, well, trifling around with any molly he could lay his eyes on, but that didn’t truly make him a bad person. Personally she found it quite amusing to watch him try and woo females to the point of giggling fits. She’d come to expect it from him and it really didn’t bother her to be honest. That was just how he was and it was always an entertaining trait. The dappled cat moved her eyes over to him and gave a soft flick of the tail in greeting, “Oh hello Warblerfrost. I suppose I’m waiting for the patrols to be said, I’m eager to get out of camp again.” She mewed in reply, silently enjoying the tom’s distinct speech pattern. She found it endearing and it was how she identified him more than anything. She was going to ask the tom a question but she suddenly felt what she believed to be fur brush past her swiftly. Out of surprise she jumped up to her paws and looked around puzzled, at first not seeing anything. It was only when her green irises flickered over to the fresh kill pile that she saw the poor thing that bolted past her. It looked like a loner, and one that wasn’t doing well at all. She could easily count the ribs that jutted out of his skinny frame and she honestly felt bad for the starving cat, “Dear Starclan!” she exclaimed under her breath, but was hesitant to attack the intruder. What much could he do? He was practically at deaths door.

ｔａｇｓ；；

warblerfrost, monty.

[crescent + cheep]

ＣＥＤＡＲＰＡＷ
‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾

♒
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♒
♒
♒
♒
♒
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♒

cedarpaw awoke with a start, his thoughts tearing away from his nightmare, making him glad to awake, even before he saw that most of the cats were already awake. there was only one thought in his head; get out of the dark den and breathe in some fresh air. he needed to find sagewhisper, his mentor, to train his fighting skills. he'd never really been a fighter, he was much more of a hunter and swimmer, but he never wanted to feel as helpless in the waking world as in his dreams, and that was what drove him through his training sessions more than anything else. stepping out of the den, he met a small commotion; there was a loner in the camp, or at least he looked like it, and orchidnose obviously didn't. anger surged through him in an instant - who did the tom think he was, sneaking into their camp and stealing their food?! his fur stood up on end as he looked at the thin and frail tom. couldn't he hunt for himself? they had to feed a whole clan for starclans sake! with rosepads and orchidnoses kits coming soon, they would have even more mouths to feed, they couldn't afford anyone stealing prey. why hadn't anyone noticed? only orchidnose seemed to have spotted the intruder thus far, and her shout should have alarmed others. well, he didn't want to yowl in alarm; it would scare the tom away and they would be none the wiser were he came from. for the time being he stayed where he was, a little unsure what to do, but determined not to let the tom escape. as he stood, he wondered where ivypaw, his sister, was. she wasn't in the den, and he knew she usually got up earlier than him, so maybe she had gone on dawn patrol? it pained him that he and his sister were so rarely together; they trained separately and when they trained together, ivypaw was so focused on getting things right she never seemed to have time for him. and she thought skycloud was amazing, better than he thought she was, but ivypaw would not budge from her opinion. she was so stubborn at times. sadness welled up inside him; if they were already growing apart, what would happen when they got older? he wished for them to be connected again, to share tongues and talk about how they would become leader one day. he never doubted his sisters ambition to become deputy and eventually leader one day; he felt she had the skill and the ambition to get there, but then, maybe he was biased. she was his sister after all, and he held her dear to his heart. she loved him too, he was her brother, he knew that, he just wished she would show it more.


ＩＶＹＰＡＷ
‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾‾

✾
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✾

she had awoken before dawn, slinking out of the den, past her brother and the other apprentices within. ivypaw had always been a cat who awoke early, no matter what, and she had grown to love it, and didn't fight it, watching the sun rise on a daily basis. the sky had been illuminated slowly, sparkling not only in blue, but in many different colours; an amazing sight, like every day. soon, the first cats had awoken and began to populate the camp, but ivypaw was waiting for skycloud, her mentor, to emerge from somewhere so she could train. skycloud was likeable in her opinion, in fact, she was one of her favorite cats around, but maybe she was biased because of her standing as her mentor. finally, she spotted her emerging from the forest, prey hanging in her jaws, making ivypaw feel guilty she didn't use the time before dawn to hunt. she just didn't want to miss anything that happened within camp, but perhaps she should think more about the whole clan than herself. definitely. jumping down from her perch, she made her way towards oakrise and skycloud, her eyes sparkling, waiting impatiently beside them, not wanting to interrupt the conversation. orchidnoses exclamation made her look around, startled to see a loner by the fresh-kill pile, thin and muddy. he looked like he needed the prey badly. that was no excuse to steal their though. unsure what to do, she prodded skycloud to make her look at the loner. her mentor would know what to do, she always did.

[[ sorry my muse kind of left me for ivypaws post ]]

[indefinite,]

{{ sorry guys. i'll have to finish my post after school :s }}

[indefinite,]

{{ i decided all the best leaders have mates *cough* ridgestar *cough*, and so it sparked an idea. if anyones interested please pm me c; }}

{{ im not done yet but i have homework to do. you all can post now. im only expecting... ehh about how much i put for morningflower so not alot c; }}

__Ｒｉｄｇｅｓｔａｒ.__

→ { ᴛᴏᴍ } . { 48 ᴍᴏᴏɴs } . { ʟᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ } . { ʜᴜᴍʙʟᴇ }

ｄｅａｒ ｒｉｄｇｅｓｔａｒ,

ｄｏｎ'ｔ ｔｈｉｎｋ ａｎｄ ｊｕｓｔ ｊｕｍｐ．

ｆｒｏｍ,

ａｎｏｎｙｍｏｕｓ.

-----from the highest crevice from the eastern side of the gorge emerged a cat so valiant in appearance, no one would suspect the frightened apprentice underneath. the saying that the eyes were the gateway to the soul? ridgestar is no fool, he's shut off all access long ago. his eyes were like icy glaciers now, except he was living in a land where winter was forever, so those glaciers never melted nor moved. pale stones would have been a better description of them, but ice was less soulful. his eyes now were his hide away, a rather warm place for ice, but this trick of closing off his feelings for the public made it easier for the public. rushclan wasnt worried about the consistant threat right outside their camp exit, the lurking of unshethered claws just beyond the border, the fang and flying fur. to the rest of rushclan, timberclan wasnt the slightest threat. but timberclan had the trees, and around these parts, there were a heck of alot more trees than there was water. they had the advantage of stealth. granted, we had powerful legs and quick, nimble bodies, but they were just as strong from all the jumping, quick to react from darting from trees, and knew how to keep theirselves quiet from the hunt. he didnt want to admit it aloud to his clan but... timberclan had them beat. the only luck rushclan had in beating them would be if they were to attack them down in the gorge; they werent skilled with making the steep, unstable climb. they couldnt swim well, heck at all. and the sand would throw off their speed. but timberclan's leader was smarter than that to ambush in anothers own territory, and that was unfortunate. ridgestar would just have to be smarter though.
-----the white and grey tom assembled himself down the rocky slope. he was so used to it now it was almost as easy as breathing. it was apart of him; it gave him a challenge daily, early in the morning to get his mind churning and his muscles warmed. the slope's stones were backed down now into a path, a few boulders here and there to assist. ridgestar remembered his first climb up here: he's slipped numerous times, but that was because he was a meer apprentice snooping about old blazestar's den, a curious sort he had been. he'd acted like it was nothing though in attempt to impress his close friend, redfoot, but really it was difficult work, for both a cat as small as him and for a full grown cat. but he was of rushclan. climbing rocky slopes was what he was destined to do, and it showed it when blazestar chose him as his successor, even if it was because he was his son.
-----dawn was hardly appearing over the hilltops beyond, but she was peeking, almost like the kits did in hide and seek. it was a beautiful sight, and though it didnt bring solice to the whole idea of war, it brought peace, even if it was just while he ate his breakfast. the leader padded over to the fresh kill pile, sniffing through the lot to find his favorite: water vole. grabbing a neither scrawney nor plump one, he settled down in the camp center and began to eat.

tags ;; nobody.

__Ｍｏｒｎｉｎｇｆｌｏｗｅｒ.__

→ { sʜᴇ-ᴄᴀᴛ } . { 73 ᴍᴏᴏɴs } . { ᴇʟᴅᴇʀ } . { ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀʟʏ }

ｄｅａｒ ｍｏｒｎｉｎｇｆｌｏｗｅｒ,

ｌｉｓｔｅｎ， ｙｏｕ ｄｏ ｉｎｄｅｅｄ ｍａｔｔｅｒ．

ｆｒｏｍ,

ａｎｏｎｙｍｏｕｓ.

-----before i would have wished for the lavish lifestyle of an elder. i mean, who wouldnt have? to not have to do duties so early in the morning, to so late? to have food hunted for you and be fed first for once. i never had to leave the comfort of my den, and if i ever did that was by my choice and my choice alone. i could bathe in the sun all day until it went to rest behind the hills, feeling the warmth seep through my skin and calm ever muscle in my body. i could share tongues with cats and be the one that stayed behind when they went off on a patrol or hunting. but that was just it. i was to stay behind. i'd forgotten everything i loved about my life, everything i had before i retired. i couldn't believe i'd forgotten what it was like to run freely through the forest, feeling the cool breeze on my face. i couldnt believe all those jokes me and the other warriors were making during patrols and all the fun times we had. heck, even border scurmishes were fun, the feeling of triumph afterwards when the opponent fled back to their own camp. and catching my own prey? i didnt like the killing part, but the fact that it put my mind to a challenge everything a little critter was speeding just whiskerlengths from my claws. to feel needed and useful, bringing back food for the queens to feed their kits or dropping a squirrel by for briarfall. i'd forgotten it all but oh it came back to me, sitting here in this isolated den, watching cats arise with the dawn to go out and do what they loved and what they got to do. while i was sitting here in this musty old den, unneeded and illuseful. i was no longer an important necessity for the clan except a cat to gather up dust where she sat. if there was one thing i forgot the most, it was the relief on the past elders faces when they finally did pass.
-----i rose from my paws, arching by back and stretching out my paws as far as they could go, that is until i heard a familiar pop and went back to my normal stance. from the glowing light just outside my den i could tell dawn had made her appearance and it was time for the day to begin. granted, it wasnt like i played any big part in the morning duties but it was nice to feel apart of the buisiness of the morning. i padded outside the den, taking a seat in the shade of my den. it was a bit chilly for an early morning, the frosted dew still on the rocks. down in the gorge, it wasnt bushes and trees that bordered our camps, no greenery was down by the water, but instead large boulders with crevices as dens and exits. i preferred it this way anyway; it felt safer. settling myself, i began to lap and smooth down my nappy pale ginger fur, ruffled from my sleep. after all, with having literally no importance left in the clan, all i had left was to make myself beautiful.

tags ;; nobody.

__Ｍｉｎｎｏｗｐａｗ.__

→ { sʜᴇ-ᴄᴀᴛ } . { 8 ᴍᴏᴏɴs } . { ᴀᴘᴘʀᴇɴᴛɪᴄᴇ } . { ʙᴏᴜɴᴛɪғᴜʟ }

ｄｅａｒ ｍｉｎｎｏｗｐａｗ,

ｓｔｏｐ ｔｒｙｉｎｇ ｔｏ ｇｒｏｗ ｓｏ ｆａｓｔ．

ｆｒｏｍ,

ａｎｏｎｙｍｏｕｓ.

-----all you could tell of her was a small flash of blue faded in with the sorreled waters behind her. she was that quick. but that ran with the rushclan blood lines, petite, nimble bodies that were agile for turning sharply and acting quick for prey and battle. but you could no longer see her now. she was that stealth. hardly anybody would have been able to tell she was there, hiding tail lengths from her fellow apprentice, civitpaw, crouched low to the ground amongst the blue and brown sand. well, anybody except maybe those who knew her and her bountiful tricks well enough. thats what she was titled for: playful, anticual, and cunning. she couldnt get enough of her deciesive ambush attacks on her denmates or the other warriors, and because of it many fawned over her of her relationships with the many warriors she had found herself leaping onto the backs of and becoming friends with, and the others fawned over her for her ability to be jumpy at one moment and literally unmoving the next. it was a gift, yes, but that was all she had going for her. she was fast, yes, and she had fur perfect for her surrounding territory, but she could hardly concentrate hard enough to actually get a kill, hardly keep her mouth from rambling long enough for someone else to get a word in edgewise, and hardly good enough to be taken seriously. she wasnt ditsy, but sarcastic. she was smart but she didnt use it to her advantage. she was adorable in all her little antics but at times, down right annoying. and though she'd formed a relationship with many cats, both much older or much younger, they all took their turns with keeping space between them and little minnowpaw.
-----her fur was caked in mud and pebbles and twigs and water. every pawstep seemed to slosh around when she finally released herself from her perched stance and brown water droplets drizzled from her as if she wer miss sky herself. her fur was parted this way and that, clumps of hair bound together so tightly it would take a forest full of cats to lick her clean. she looked like a drowned rat, and she was about the side of one too. my, she was a pitiful mess, but she still held a smile, even if the amount of mud on her was weighing her down. because to her, this was hilarious. she couldnt wait to see the look on the faces of her clanmates when she returned back to camp, because well, she didnt even look like a cat right about now. "how do i look?" she asked civitpaw, probably her closest and dearest friend. it was amazing he'd put up with her tactics this long. she turned around so he could get a full view of her... master piece, and she was hoping for a response of shock. heck, thats why she did all of these little games of hers. she wanted to attention, and being a normal cat... well that didnt get you very far around these parts. she wanted to make her own mark on rushclan's history and even if it was of the cat who ended up not looking like a cat, she didnt mind. attention was attention.

tags ;; civitpaw.

[moon.]

ℂɪᴠᴇᴛᴘᴀᴡ
There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back
• • • • • • •

The inner destruction of Civetpaw's soul does not show - not at all - on the outside. Outside, every queen swoons over how just plain adorable he is, how his fluffed up fur and bouncing little legs never fail to make them smile. He always has to remind them that he is 11 moons, not some three day old kit. What? So he's a little late to blooming. Sure, he's not the biggest tom there is, but someday he'll be sturdy. Just look at him now! Already broad chested and thick muscled from seasons of training. He knows that someday, he'll be big and strong like every other warrior out there. He might not be the fastest or the stealthiest, but for such a young tom, he sure does have the muscle mass to get him through the day. And for this, he is proud of himself. One of the very few good emotions he has towards his own mindset. Pondering all of these thoughts of someday becoming a big bad warrior, Civetpaw marches through the woods on a crisp, early morning, heading back to camp. Much earlier this morning (in which he has always been an early waker), the young grey apprentice had marched his way all the way out to the cliff. After checking to make sure that no two-legs were around, he had walked those few snake-lengths out of the glade and onto the familiar rocky surface of the cliff. This place had always given him clarity, brought him back to himself, as if this cliff face knew him as a long lost friend. The journey to the edge of the rock had no longer been that much of an adventure, rather turned into an early morning, lonely rut that would never escape him. Then again, no cat had ever followed him, or even woken up when he had, so he could never share his most loved place with any other. Not until they, or even he, actually tried. Hopefully he can find a friend that he can trust that much to take them to the one place that he feels safe.
And yet he has, in a sort. Minnowpaw has always been such a funny, and amazing friend to him. As she comes bounding into camp, Civetpaw can't help but grin at her mud-coated pelt, the water streaming from her muzzle. Her paws were leaving a track of churned up mud and pebbles all over the camp floor, and yet Civetpaw falls over and onto his rump in laughter. "Wait, wait, you're missing something!" He exclaims, bounding over to a small plant blossoming in the corner of camp. He picks it with his teeth and then bounds back over to Minnowpaw, tucking the leafy plant firmly behind her mud-caked ear. "There! Now you're even more beautiful than you were before." Civetpaw giggles, headbutting his good friend right in the shoulder. The mud splatters over his downy grey pelt, but he doesn't care at all. He just laughs joyously, like he should. You see, Civetpaw has always had a strange feeling enter his stomach when he gets near Minnowpaw. He gets all happy and nervous at the same time -the other appretnices tease him, tell him that he is in "lllooo-ooovee". He just waves them off with an indifferent paw, but lately, he's gotten to thinking. Surly love is out of the question, but feelings like love? Perhaps. The poor dear is too young to know yet.

ᴛᴀɢs :: minnowpaw

• • • • • • •
Your mind is playing tricks on you, my dear

ℬʀɪᴀʀғᴀʟʟ
We'll do it all, everything, on our own.
• • • • • • •

wip

ᴛᴀɢs :: rosepad

• • • • • • •
We don't need anything, or anyone.