♚── [ duskclan ] ──♚ [accepting!]

[dreaming.]

☻ Ｆ Ａ Ｌ Ｌ Ｏ Ｗ Ｐ Ａ Ｗ
Tags ;; CherryLight || Mood ;; Bored, mischevious || Location ;; Meeting

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A yowl shot through the air like a bird. FallowPaw’s eyelids lifted slowly. So…he was back. Their old deputy had finally arrived back to camp to announce his awaited leadership. Her tail twitched.
FallowPaw staid coiled in a ball, a heavy feeling laying on her. She wished for more excitement to be injected into her for this moment. She should be happy, shouldn’t she? FallowPaw stayed in her mind for a few moments. Cat after Cat left their positions and brushed past her. They were all so eager to hear JaggedStar’s Announcements.
The ball of fur finally uncurled to rise to her paws. She poked her pale brown head out of the den to eye the meeting. FallowPaw could sense the uneasiness of others. She licked her maw. “Day one and already unsettling the clan, JaggedStar? What a prime leader.” She thought to herself.
She eased her way towards the meeting, sizing up the situation. TidalPaw sat in the front. A pleasantness rose in her at the sight of her friend. She swore the tom was born ready for everything. FallowPaw padded a little quicker, attempting to weave through her clanmates to get to him. Her pleasant feeling dropped.
The crowd was too thick, and it was too late to grab a spot next to him. Her fur fluffed in frustration. Whatever. She’ll talk to him later about the meeting. She plopped herself down next to CherryLight. She gazed on as TroutSplash’s new ranking was slid over.
That must sting. A good warrior who proved himself enough to become deputy being dropped to talk ill on their old leader. A ting a pity rang in her. FallowPaw would congratulate him later. She turned her attention on CherryLight, watching fur rise.
Finally, something she could go on. “You know if you bristle too much your pelt is going to jump off?” She meowed smoothly. “Anyway," Her words leaked out like honey. "What’s the matter? Itching to get our land back?” She curled her tail around her paws. FallowPaw herself, was happy at the idea of more territory. BriarClan was a poor excuse for a clan. What was DuskClan’s, was DuskClan’s. They should do anything to uphold their honor and contain their land.

[bambi,]

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tagged; frogleap |eleven moons | she-cat | apprentice

Falconpaw lay quietly in her nest, her tail wrapped close to her body. She lay with her head rested comfortably on her paws, but her face was expressionless as she stared blankly forward. Falconpaw had been born into a clan where Oakstar had been leader and that had been what she'd known her entire life. To her, Oakstar was the model leader: he had been respected but kind. She found that everyone did what he wanted, not because he told them to, but because they wanted to. Now he was gone. She knew that at some point they would all die, but she never imagined Oakstar would leave them before she became a warrior. Falconpaw had kept a pretty safe distance from Jaggedjaw. It was strange to think that in such a tight clan, Falconpaw could say she barely knew the tom. All she knew was that he tended to give her the chills.

His arrival from the Moon-Stream was not a subtle one. She could hear the shuffling of her clan-mates even before he yowled for their gathering. Falconpaw slowly gathered her paws beneath her and rose, arching her back and stretching her paws out in front of her. She quickly groomed her sleek tabby fur - even if something about Jaggedstar didn't sit quite right with her, she would put her trust in him. Oakstar did too afterall, didn't he? He would never have picked an unsuitable deputy. She decided to push her doubts to the back of her mind. She was sure Jaggedstar would make a great, honourable leader. She trotted out of the apprentice's den into the open, quickening her pace to catch up with the rest of her clanmates. Her eyes briefly scanned the clearing before settling on the familiar figure of her mentor, Frogleap sitting at the front. Falconpaw squeezed through her clanmates until she was side by side with Frogleap. "Morning Frogleap," she beamed, giving her mentor a friendly nudge on the shoulder to announce her presence.

Falconpaw quieted quickly, watching Jaggedstar as he spoke. He hardly addressed Oakstar's death. It was almost like he didn't care, that he had more important things on his mind. When he announced Oakstar's failure to hold onto territory, it was like he had just twisted the knife in the back's of everyone in the clan. Faconpaw had to admit she was surprised at how quickly he had recovered from the grief everyone else had been suffering from. Falconpaw shook her head, enough Falconpaw, he's just doing what any good leader would do: giving us something to focus on, something that will better the clan. She didn't want to admit it to herself, but the idea of setting off to battle tomorrow already sent an excited shiver down her spine.

[Tsukỉ]

▶︎ 𝑪 𝑶 𝑴 𝑬 𝑻 𝑻 𝑨 𝑰 𝑳
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she-cat - medicine cat - 70 moons - 1424 words, 7946 characters

Her paws ached and her back trembled, but Comettail still discreetly followed the two toms back to camp. Jaggedstar, and Shrewberry. "I want you and the other medicine cat and apprentices to go out searching for all of the herbs you can get. Take a warrior or an apprentice and get them all, and bring them back to camp," Jaggedstar had said to Shrewberry. "And do it after I announce Deputy! No Hold ups," He added. His voice was raspy and felt like claws piercing through Comettail's ears. After a long, painful walk, the camp's entrance was right at their feet. Ignoring what Jaggedstar had said before-- about his 'deputy ceremony', Comettail simply ran off to her den, in a search for tranquility.

She lay, on the cold stone floor, sniffing the pleasantries of herbs and wet cobwebs. Comettail had just come back from assisting Shrewberry and Jaggedstar's Leader Ceremony, tired and rough-pawed. She'd only helped slightly, as the younger medicine cat only had been stressed. Absent-mindedly, she convoluted to herself over and over, ruminating in the deepest crevise of her mind, trying to appear as stern as possible. When their noses were dipped into the pool, and the skies had gone starry.. and a few salutations to the loved ones pass, and watching the most formidable ceremony DuskClan had ever seen. All cats, disapproving. Their faces were contorted and almost disfigured with disbelief or denial. Even the cats of StarClan didn't expect it.

So, where do we begin with the story of Comettail? One of tradgey and isolation, or something of a miracle. Even the old cat herself didn't know which to call home. In the comfort of nobody's but herself, she was solemn and grief-struck. Her past wasn't one coated in pansies and kits. As a young cat, yes, she did remember, even if her memory had gone hazy and her mind senile. It was quite embedded in her head, unable to dissolve in the ruins of time. Her earliest memory was being lost, cold and alone. Crying out desperately, eagerly, anyone, anything to come get her. Pure petrification. A small kit wailing for their mother and father, almost tiring out. As death neared, ... oh. Her name was.. Yarrow. Besides the pristine thought of her parent's faces, that was the only thing she could recollect from her rogue-hood. So.. as death neared Yarrow the tyke rogue, a few crisp crunches of grass was heard. Yarrow believed it was of a lithe fox, out to prey on her. She shut her eyes until they hurt and started to scream until her voice screeched, expecting the sly creature to devour her on the spot and swallow her whole with it's razor-sharp teeth and boisterous menace. But after a few, ignited moments, her apparent await to agony was never scheduled in the first place. There was only a welcoming crowd waiting for her, and a new name of 'Cometkit', and living with DuskClan. The past 69 moons was her debt and punishment. Her punishment; being separated forever from the family she would've loved, and the debt of having been saved by the Clan. By judging who she was, it wasn't not all that dubious for her to of lost her way in the middle of the thicket, and not an error committed by her kin. And that is how she owed her life to Oakstar, and every leader after.. but..

But now, this new.. Jaggedstar. She wanted nothing to do with him. Arrogant and ill-mannered, that cat was a fiasco waiting to happen. Although that was true, Comettail definitely didn't want to be on the bad side of the conflict; therefore acted as if she truly admired him, even since he was a deputy. Maybe a little "Thank you, Jaggedstar! You are truly a wonderful leader" or a phrase equally adorned with false glee and excitement. When she took him, along with Shrewberry to the Moon-Stream to get his nine lives, she was sure that this cat was unruly to become the Leader of DuskClan. But an old cat such as herself could never halt the entire reign of a ruthless and powerful cat such as Jaggedstar. No, she hated him, with all her heart. Though, there surely wasn't anything Comettail could do to avert his disruptive force in the Clan. She couldn't wait for her last breath, finally leaving this pitiful horror of life and leaving only her legacy and name. No need for lazily popping out of her den every day to check on whoever's got the sprained paw. Comettail did not fear death. She only wanted it to come, unleash it from it's tantalizing grips. She wanted to rest in StarClan. Cats say that one's at the end of their days when they actually want to die, but Comettail knew she had moons and moons and moons ahead of her. And that was the worst part.

She'd already got the job done, making that little twerp Shrewpaw into a fully-fledged medicine cat. Well, he is now the 'perfect' medicine cat, under her harsh training and heartless punishments. She was completely sure that Leechpaw would be going through a world of hell. But there were times when he wasn't so perfect. At first, the poor thing made so many mistakes, gave budrock to patients who needed catmint, tripped over his own tail-- such and such. There were some times when Comettail was so frustrated- she could just-.. the turmoil in her blazed, kindled by his every mistake. Now he acts like a pretentious apprentice, but when he was a 'pretentious apprentice'.. he acted like a naïve kit. As for when he was a kit...? Comettail would rather fall off the nearest cliff, then into a pool of dirt-place remains. Or carrion, but it really was tóuche. But I think she felt sorrow for him. Shrewpaw had lost his mother as a kit, too. Well-- Comettail had seen her's as a young kit and during her early medicine-cat-hood, but to know that another cat had something she could relate to, was.. nice. But also, she felt responsible. 32 moons ago, when she was 38 moons old. The sky was grey and a grueling musk of death and greencough was lynching over DuskClan. She'd never been so busy in her entire life, hurdling her small pieces of catmint, tansy and borage. Catmint for the cough, tansy and borage for the fever, burnets for the weaker.. poppies for the ones who can't stop tossing and turning. Comettail was probably aggravated enough as is, as the only medicine cat in the Clan. Always fetching the plants, giving them out and applying them, moving onto the next. An epidemic. So, there it is, an expecting she-cat by the name of ______.

And the rest was history. It probably hurt just as much as when Raggedleg's.. legs.. got ragged. When little Cometpaw; she had to feed her and whatnot. When she considered it a burden. But now, looking back, Comettail only feels deep pain. Every time she lost a cat due to her inability, and when her mentor comforted her with all the grimace and love they could offer. A crooning wing over her shoulder, while it was gone, now, it was now her turn to do the same for Shrewberry. Then he'd have to do it for Leechpaw. "May all Clan cats old enough to climb on their own, gather here beneath the high-rock for a clan meeting!" She grunted as she lifted her body, and waddled herself outside. "With the death of Oakstar comes new possibilities. More hope and more dignity to this clan.. Tonight, I have chosen my deputy," Goodness gracious. Comettail thought, already fed up with the new leader. He'd been leader for only a few hours at most, but it was already too much. That cat didn't deserve.. nor could he handle this duty. That was the ultimate disgrace to Oakstar, which, to admit, wasn't a minor sabotage to her own dignity, but a large one. Too annui to notice, he was. He wouldn't care either way. Her ahbor for him was growing stronger. An static alacrity for silent vengeance.. which would never be fulfilled.

"May we take this moment to remember our warrior ancestors- and more specifically, DuskClan's ancestors. May OakStar rest in the sky above us and watch over us all, and have many great moons in StarClan,"

"Now, it is time."

-- wip --

Comettail watched as Shrewberry pranced around. “Ginger, chickweed, coltsfoot, feverfew, and lavender has just died. Goldenrod, hawkweed, hedgehog buds, iris, honey isn’t available, pawpaw has ripened.” Jaggedstar seemed unappeased, a frown plastered on his face. So, there, she was, Comettail, watching over the two of them, observing their weird conversations, and Shrewberry's constant, sporadic, yelps. They were going to go out soon, to get over with Jaggedstar's erroneous request of scavenging for herbs.

✥ 𝗛 𝖠 𝖣 𝖤 𝖯 𝖠𝖶
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tom - apprentice - 12 moons -

Hadepaw sat in the apprentice's den, dark, and warm. His eyes were droopy, and felt heavy as stone, drifting off to a serene slumber. No more work to complete. All that was left was Jagged... star's declaration of the new deputy before Sunrise. Then, at the morning, he could have a deeper nap. Hadepaw never had a personal relationship with Oakstar, but he had the decency to greet him and heed his every word, the normal things, like that. What he thought of Jaggedstar? He was just callous, ruthless and vile, but that was about it in his opinion. It could've been that Hadepaw's judgement of Jaggedjaw was too brusque to prove anything. He was just a weird warrior with anger issues, right? --Excuse him, a weird leader with anger issues. He took one more breath of the dirt around him, motherly and earthy. It was the smell.. of... whatever he smelt every night, but never paid any attention to. He eyed the outside of camp, scenting three cats enter camp. One of them, was the stentch of Jaggedstar. He had that.. villanous smell. But again, Hadepaw ignored it, brushing it off. He would soon announce the deputy, anyways. Hadepaw had never been so tensed. Maybe it was his own ambitions of becoming leader.

Hadepaw never really thought of it that way. He was quite unknowing of whatever that Jaggedjaw did. Just his usual training and fraternising with the medicine cat. He was always hurt, anyway. Hadepaw once remembered the bitter pain of spraining his paw, the tears he shook off and sniffled. He used to be all chided and aggressive with being brought to the medicine cat, refusing treatment with every breathing moment, trying to show off to his crush. Whatever that did not coincide with his 'macho'-ness. Hadepaw wasn't a numbskull, though, so eventually he just gave up trying to bite it through and take it as 'StarClan's harsh love' and took treatment. Hadepaw was brash and puffed, but not absolutely dumb enough to let that wound get infected. He knew better. Besides, Leechpaw was fun to speak to, and whatever she said, though mostly about her mentor or something akin, was quite interesting. And.. she's quite cute, too. But that was then and this is now, and this tom is rather off-putted by the idea. Leechpaw's into Tidalpaw, anyway. Right? They're always hanging out together, linked like the knots in Raggedleg's fur, inseparable. Obviously, putting two and two together, they were in love. Or perhaps it was just an elated thought. Her determination seemed to of rubbed off on Hadepaw, seeing as now, he's less reluctant to do all of those chores, plucking out ticks from his superior's pelts and chewing up herbs into a poultice whenever Shrewberry or Comettail needed an extra paw. In a way, he was getting both parts of the story. You know, chewing more than he could bite through.

All Hadepaw really cared about was the honor and glory of serving his Clan. The best he could do, he would present. Then, he'd wait for the rewards and persk to slosh in, claiming space. No matter how time-consuming it would be, and no matter how many hours he could spend napping. He'd choose the glory over the convenience. He certainly wasn't lousy. Then, he heard it. The ringing bells to the ceremony, Jaggedstar's voice. Struggling to stand up, already enamoured with the tangle of sleep, he struggled to break free. But his eyes had closed shut, embracing the overcoming darkness and the depths of the night.


--------


"With the death of Oakstar comes new possibilities. More hope and more dignity to this clan.. Tonight, I have chosen my deputy," it was then when Hadepaw jerked awake. He stopped for a moment, before grimacing in the though of having missed the entire deputy ceremony. He'd be wielded as a disgrace for dishonoring such a sacred ceremony. But then, it entered his head; New possibilities? What could possibly arise from Oakstar's premature death? That sickly old cat was probably a better leader with one paw than with Jaggedstar. Yeah, he didn't hate him. But he was a bossy cat who constantly sent him out on patrols that didn't need to be held and trying to separate him with his friends or something. Whatever he did to segregate his ambitions.. on, Sloepaw.. however, on topic, it was implausible that Jaggedstar was.. something more than a tyrant. So, he took his mind off it and quietly exited the den, trying to pull as little attention to himself as possible. He didn't want to humiliate his pride and glory by deterring the attention and giving proof to both his absence and enlisting him as a slumbering badger, oblivious to everything that had happened, especially at a time like this.

[deftonesly]

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( eight m ) ( med app ) ( located camp ) ( tagged clan, shrewberry, comettail ) ( words 1579 )


she could not look away from the beastly figure up on the high-rock. jaggedstar was already turning out to be the cat that she had feared he would blossom into at the prospect of leadership: a wild tyrant. power was somehow, and so soon, corrupting the silver tabby maine coon . . twisting his mind and also twisting his muzzle into a devious smirk that not even the dim lighting of dawn could hide. it awed her . . scared her . . how the fluffy male could be so blind to the true properties of a leader, so devilish. leechpaw did not like where duskclan was headed at all; she felt a terrible heaving roil through her gut and make her body tremble with shivers. but still, she kept her pale green stare locked onto jaggedstar and his long, hooked claws, which had suddenly slid out to attention and where gliding along the high-rock rather ominously. she was aware of more and more of her clanmates spilling forth from the slowly receding shadows of dawn . . and also that tidalpaw's bright orbs were burning holes in the back of her neck. he must have noticed her gazing at him; she would approach him, like she had resolved to do, after the meeting was through. leechpaw was also conscious of the leaf-fall day wasting away . . that great gray clouds were continuing to amass across the sky and flounce about every which way, like they were anxious to lay down their loads of rainwater. she was mentally urging her new leader to pick up the pace when jaggedstar pressed on. his green eyes were glinting with something that could easily be associated with madness; as he spoke, the apprentice pondered if anyone else had noticed this? "may we honor oakstar, but may new things come out of my leadership." a deep, resounding chuckle followed the statement . . one that made the mottled cat's fur on the ruff of her neck stand on end. why was he chuckling? why? the maine coon then proceeded to do something that leechpaw herself thought to be a bit inappropriate, given the circumstances. jaggedstar arched his back and released the most obnoxious, explosive yawn that she swore she had ever heard in her life. and she had thought that shrewberry had a problem with loud yawning! so much for that!

indent the little cat's eyes trailed the long-furred masculine as he paced atop the high-rock; it seemed to her that he was deciding whom he would be naming as deputy. she resisted the urge to make like her mentor - the male one - and incredulously scoff at jaggedstar. had he not planned this out at all? decided whom he would pick while traveling to and from mother mouth? leechpaw did not know about him, but if she had been destined to become head of the clan, she would have put a lot more thought into, well, everything. in that moment, her leader seemed to reach a conclusion; jaggedstar returned his attention to the assembled warriors of duskclan, puffing out his chest and repositioning his traditional smirk on his maw before yowling. "i say these words before starclan, so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and approve of my choice. the new deputy of duskclan is troutsplash!" now, this was something the mottled could definitely live with. troutsplash, a mannerly, sweet black-and-white whom she had always found to be an ideal companion when looking for herbs, would make a fine second in command indeed. she thought that this was the first, most sound decision that jaggedstar had made yet; honestly, it would probably be his last. she eyed troutsplash from her seat at the head of the group; the handsome warrior looked incredibly proud . . but this was a respectable, confident proud. not a cocky and assertive one like jaggedstar so often adopted. unfortunately, troutsplash's time as the center of attention did not last for very long . . definitely not as long as it should have. the cat did not even get a calling of his name, which leechpaw found to be highly unjust. jaggedstar quickly turned things around to focus back on him with that devilish smirk of his and a lift of his wide head. with a jerk of his tail and another one of those dark chuckles, he swept on, not skipping a beat. "when oakstar led duskclan," oh, here we go, leechpaw thought, "he failed to fight for our rightful territory, which briarclan has claimed as their own. the stretch of river and forest beyond it are ours, and as duskclanners, it is our right to take back what belongs to us! at dawn tomorrow, we take back our territory!" the last few words were drowned out as her clanmates sprang to their paws, howling consent and support of their new leader. defiantly, leechpaw stayed on her haunches. no way was she standing, offering up her voice in support of something that all medicine cats abhorred: war. leaf-fall was already upon the duskclanners, with leaf-bare nipping at its rump, eager to take over the territory and coat their world in sickness and snow. and jaggedstar was ready to begin a war? ready to tempt fate? ready to start battles that he could not win, that would surely lead to death and the rampant spread of disease throughout the clan? he had only been their leader for half a day, for starclan's sake!

indent all of this flowed throughout the mottled molly's mind as she gazed - stricken, transfixed, and unable to wrench her eyes away - up at jaggedstar. she was shy as could be, even though she was considering valuable points; she could not approach her leader and discuss these things to him, for he would only laugh and scoff in her face. but shrewberry and comettail, her mentors, on the other paw . . leechpaw turned to face the long-haired cats as the cacophony of screeches died down around them. they can tell jaggedstar these things! they are his medicine cats. he will have to listen to their advice. she was preparing herself to speak over the still-dying noises when shrewberry addressed her first, chuffing under his breath. she hoped that he felt the same about all of this, so she pushed her ears forward and listened. "we are leaving soon, leechpaw. i'm putting trust in you to gather what you think is necessary. choose wisely; i will not give you help." ( the tall cat straightened up, which made leechpaw realize that he had been bending over to speak to her. of course! ) her primary mentor droned on in a brusque tone . . but she could have sworn that she heard the slightest traces of pride in his voice when he mewed. "always thinking is what you do. i bet you have already picked a cat to join us?" she was a bit disappointed that he would not be providing help; the words filled her with stress, because now she was being forced to carry this burden alone. but then she reminded herself that shrewberry was not a very . . trusting cat, that she must have had to have earned this trust and recognition from him. if he thought that she was capable, then she was. thus, she did not object to her teacher, just ducked her head low. the apprentice hesitated before responding, trying to figure out a way to intertwine her concerns about jaggedstar into their conversation. when she had a plan, she murmured in her soft, hardly audible voice. "i will do my best, shrewberry. you can count on me. and, yes, i have already chosen someone." she rotated her head about to stare over her shoulder, locking eyes with tidalpaw as the meeting began to disperse. she had noticed that her mentor's eyes had strayed to slugpaw and sloepaw - the mischievous, black-furred twins of the clan - and amusement spurted through her. how her mentor disliked those pesky siblings! leechpaw turned back to shrewberry, finishing her sentence, "you don't have to worry about slugpaw and sloepaw. i have chosen tidalpaw to accompany me today."

indent the meeting was clearly at its end. jaggedstar had dismounted from the high-rock, troutsplash was assigning ready warriors with duties, and every cat was milling about, happy that they would be taking the fight to briarclan. in the craze, her clanmates were consistently whispering about the w-word. war. she gazed around for a heartbeat at her family, locating tidalpaw again. he had not moved far, which was good, because as soon as this interaction was over, they needed to head out. preferably before the rains came. the medicine cat in training refocused on shrewberry again, continuing meekly, "when i return, i was wondering if we could talk some more? i am so worried about the fate of this clan, now that jaggedstar is leading us. i . . i want to try to talk some sense into him, but i am not sure how. i will need your help and guidance as well as comettail's." she frowned, looking down at her paws, which were absentmindedly scuffling along the camp floor. still studying her nimble feet as if they were suddenly the most interesting thing in the world, leechpaw murmured, "surely you have similar thoughts?" she looked up. "we cannot let jaggedstar tear apart this clan. i am not trying to be suspicious here, i really am not . . but i suspect foul play and tyrannical acts are in duskclan's future. is it wrong of me to think that?"

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( nineteen m ) ( outsider ) ( located duskclan forest ) ( tagged ottersky ) ( words 896 )


the feline that rose from its crouching position to face him was . . something else, archibald had to admit. his pelt was as ebony as the night, only it was not spangled with stars: instead, with long whiskers, an oversized pair of ears, and two narrowed orange orbs. oh, and a lashing tail and puffed-out fur. clearly, this cat did not like intruders, and was surprised to see his kind here ( oh, he knew that the forest cats had a name for the house cats: kittypets. ) but this did not make the curly-haired tomcat shy away for one split second. he was incredibly dense when it came to socially interacting; he never seemed able to pick up on emotions or looks that were tossed his way. for instance, the cat before him was looking as tense and as stoic as a rock, and he only saw one thing: an opportunity for answers to his questions about duskclan. he was not scared at all - especially not now that the black feline had revealed itself to him and had not made a move to fight. things had been a lot scarier and surreal when the long-legged cat had been hiding in the shadows of the bushes, growling lowly at him. archibald looked the cat - he had now gathered that he was male - up and down and struggled to free himself some more; he wanted desperately to go to him. his dark berry pink nose was quivering at an amazing speed, drinking in the scents that wafted from the duskclanner. he smelled earthy . . fresh . . wild, overall. but that scent of familiarity, that scent that he had been following for the past few days, was strong on him. plus, the odor of something else: other cats. wherever duskclan was hiding out in the thick vegetation and gigantic trees, there must be a lot of cats there. as he continued to inhale, he kept his steady golden eyes fixated on the other brute's, not looking away for one moment. archibald was entranced by those glittering orbs more than he dared to admit, so for a long while, the cats were locked in a staring contest with one another. the contest dragged on for what felt to be moons; archie had stopped struggling in the bramble. at some point, the hefty oaf became tempted to make some sort of comment in order to break the silence. something like: "who talks first? do i talk first? do you talk first?" but then the duskclanner addressed him.

indent he had a very nice voice, he had to admit. it was very mature and refined, like the words should be coming from a much older cat. even the "uh" that he murmured before properly speaking sounded regal. "we are just called duskclan cats." the black cat had the nerve to inch nearer to him, moving in an almost predatory manner with his body low to the ground, cautious. despite his movements, archibald was not unnerved; he watched the tom with wide, anticipating eyes. the closer he came, the stronger the fragrance of his wildness became. it was a wonderful smell - the smell of a life he had yet to live, but wanted to terribly. the black cat pressed onward, lanky body weaving with ease around foliage that archie would have blundered through. meanwhile, archibald studied the movement of the oriental's shoulders . . . studied, almost curiously, how the muscles beneath his thin fur worked and stretched. he was fascinated with how comfortable the cat looked, and he wondered if he too had such muscle beneath his mass of fluff. probably not. what the shorthaired ebony said next came with a trace of warning, snapping archie's attention back to his angular face. "kittypets shouldn't be trespassing on clan cat territory." his orange eyes raked over the bramble bush and archibald's fur, which was sticking every which way. with his calm, unruffled eyes still looking at the brambles and his awkward position, the duskclan cat mewed, "how'd you manage to do that to yourself?"

indent archibald grinned up at him meekly - up, because the oriental shorthair was so much more taller than him. his golden eyes glowed with mirth and his whiskers were fluttering as frantically as a moth's wings. he made his words as goodnatured and innocent as possible when he chirped with a loud purr. "golly, i'm sorry for calling you by the wrong term! 'duskclan cats' . ." he considered the thought. "that does work better. my apologies, again." the tan cat blinked, his goofy grin growing wider from beneath his mountain of fur. "anyway, i didn't know i was intruding. at least . . intruding too badly. i could have sworn i was still on the outskirts." that was a flat out lie, and even he knew it. how he hated to lie, but it was a necessary evil for this situation. "i was just curious about you and your kind, so i left the comfort of my housefolks' home for good. all because i want to become one of you duskclanners - er, i mean duskclan cats!" once he was finished explaining why he had ended up here, he switched topics, moving onto the ebony's question. "oh, the bush?" he had completely forgotten that he was a bit suspended in its prickles, like the fool he was. "right, that. i have no clue. care to help a fellow out?"

[Tsukỉ]

▶︎ 𝑪 𝑶 𝑴 𝑬 𝑻 𝑻 𝑨 𝑰 𝑳
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she-cat - medicine cat - 70 moons -

It was silent. The borders of the camp were barren, and all of the attention was undivided, solely beloning to the new leader, Jaggedstar. Comettail gazed blankly, anticipating another mouse-brained retort and an equally mouse-brained deputy to be chosen. "May we honor Oakstar, but may new things come out of my leadership," the burly tom had murmured, almost a faint chuckle audible in his raspy voice. Comettail winced, not exceptionally excited about his.. speech. His words were only a nuisance to the elder molly, and his choices were null and void to her. She prayed a dark cloud rise from beyond and cover the moon. Jaggedstar was no good. "I say these words before StarClan, so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and approve of my choice. The new deputy of DuskClan is TroutSplash!" Comettail's fur stood on edge. His loud voice carried through the clans, disrupting her even further. Why, why did it have to be this way? "P-perhaps.." silent. She couldn't say anything. Just be loyal, curt, and nice. It was the only way she'd be tranquil. Troutsplash. He was.. a peculiar cat. Respectable, yes, but still odd. Sometimes he'd stop mid-conversation, and had a painfully obvious case of anxiety. Not an odd choice, no, but as in bickering; she wasn't quite satisfied. Comettail never was. As the latter climbed up to the former... "When OakStar let DuskClan, he failed to fight for our rightful territory which BriarClan had claimed as their own. The stretch of river and forest beyond it are ours." He paced, clearly showing dreadful intent. Comettail flattened her ears, the black fur standing on all edges. Calamity. ", and as DuskClanners it is our right to take back what belongs to us!" She really hoped this wasn't what she expected. To take over.. 'Oh, please, just say something like "but we'll do it later"! I believe in you, please!'. "At dawn tomorrow, we take back our territory!" The black she-cat's face was ashen grey with fear, completely convinced of the possible tyranny and poor judgements Jaggedstar might make. If this were any leader, any of them, she would've scoffed it off as a rookie's mistake. She had to talk about this to anyone... someone.. if they'd believe her. They'd think she was senile... Twisted. She clenched her teeth and almost let out a growl. A foolish cat, an idiotic moron who didn't know what to do. He was not fit to be 'leader'. He did not deserve to taint Oakstar's rule. He barely spoke of the old leader, which she could dismiss, but the utter stupidity was like a tick. He... Oakstar, was a far better leader than.. than.. Jaggedstar would ever strive to become. Even the leader before Oakstar; the one who saved Cometkit from peril, --especially him-- a generous ruler who did everything possible to keep their clan alive. Jaggedstar was a fool for thinking that he could.. just.. Invading BriarClan will only kill us. Our loss was our loss, and they're surely defending their territory frequently. Especially.. there.

"Jaggedstar. As your medicine cat, I advise you not to suddenly storm in their territory for.. that." she objected, simultaniously summoning all her courage against the monsterous tom and gritting her teeth as several cats turned over to stare at her. "Please." she added, pyrrhic with her bravery and dumbfounded with her idiocracy. It was a joust her intellegence could not of won. Neither would her common sense. She didn't wait for a response, hoping only the cats beside her heard the small declaration, and bit her lip as hard as she could, drawing a small ripple of blood. She could patch it up with some cobwebs; even if they tasted absolutely disgusting; and a marigold pulp, and it would probably heal. Not too worried, she watched as Troutjaw was met with cats congradulating him, and a few retorts about the battle. As soon as the meeting met it's close, and Jaggedstar dismounted himself from the ledge.. she was out and off into the crowd, only to find Shrewberry talking to Leechpaw. The older medicine cat's ears perked up, chiming into listen. "surely you have similar thoughts?" The young apprentice's head tilted upwards, looking up at her primary mentor. "we cannot let jaggedstar tear apart this clan. i am not trying to be suspicious here, i really am not . . but i suspect foul play and tyrannical acts are in duskclan's future. is it wrong of me to think that?" One'd think my 'senile' brain would be the only thing that'd ever suspect that. she stumbled towards them, her pauchy limbs aiding her. "That's a rather bold claim, Leechpaw." she paused, taking a look at Shrewberry, eyeing his confused expression. She turned her head to the latter, elan. ".. Before you leave for your little expedition with Tidalpaw, can I have a talk with you? Medicine cat's den."

✥ 𝗛 𝖠 𝖣 𝖤 𝖯 𝖠𝖶
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tom - apprentice - 12 moons -

", and as DuskClanners it is our right to take back what belongs to us! At dawn tomorrow, we take back our territory!" Great. Likewise, Jaggedstar was weird. He was very, very weird. What, yeah, the territory mattered. He was excited to show his moves and prance around, too. He was excited for perhaps one of the first battles of his apprenticehood, but; well, it seemed like it was going to turn into a mundane chore to him. Jaggedstar was ambitious and vindictive, after all. Not evil, but just a very.. strong-minded cat. He was definitely fighting a few, gaining a few battle scars during his apprenticehood. Declaring war on the first day probably was a high-point signer that he wasn't going to be a pasifistic leader. What would he say? Utterly nothing could help this situation, but he had no power to argue. Only sit there as a John Doe, another one of the apprentices, and another face in the crowd. Many of the cats were debating, forming their small groups. The mighty leader soon dismissed his cats, scaling off the cliff-ish thing. Whatever it is. Troutsplash followed, getting attention from one of those aforementioned groups. Things like 'Congrats!' and 'Troutsplash! Troutsplash!".

".. Before you leave for your little expedition with Tidalpaw, can I have a talk with you? Medicine cat's den." Hadepaw overheard Comettail talking to Leechpaw. It was quite a coincidence, as, truthfully, he had no plans to eavesdrop in the first place. But his ears wandered, picking up and scooping up whatever it could find, alike to a starved badger. Quite frankly, it was probably like that all the time. He'd overhear some random stuff, forget about it, and remember it happened when it actually did. His immaturity was partially to blame, it wasn't too bad. Well, Troutsplash was deputy, Jaggedstar was... leader, and he was going to probably kill them all in the battle tomorrow, so really, Hadepaw had no difficulty drifting his mind away. But hey, he needed to put faith into that cat. What if he turns out to be super-awesome? Like, like, perhaps he'd make the apprentices not pick the elder's annoying fleas every quarter-moon and to clean out the annoying splotch in the dirtplace, and somehow he'd award them amazing powers? Do leaders even have that power? Do they? Do they not? "Ow!" A sharp, cracking pain shot down his paw. He'd tripped over a rock and slammed his paw against another. Strangely, he smiled, rebounded upwards and trotted directly to Shrewberry and Leechpaw. He did need a few chatting-partners. Maybe he'd join Tidalpaw and Leechpaw, if he was lucky. Quality time with his friends was, well, much needed, and while he wasn't their best friend, nobody should leave the lovey-dovey couple alone, right? Did some cats gasp? Yeah, but really, it was just a tiny wound. By now, Comettail had disappeared into her den, probably slumbering. The senile thing, Comettail, once fell asleep during a battle! She was old and crazy, but she was his friend. "Hey Shrewberry! Hey Leechpaw!" he ducked his head, looking at his wounded foot. "Errrr, assistance, please?"

[dreaming.]

- (( ☤ Ｓ Ｈ Ｒ Ｅ Ｗ Ｂ Ｅ Ｒ Ｒ Ｙ ☤ )) -
Position ;; Med. cat | Location ;; Meeting then Med. Cat den | Tags ;; LeechPaw - CometTail- HadePaw | Mentioned ;; JaggedStar
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A rush of shock swept over his face at the announcement of war. Panic raked down his spine, leaving bristled fur in its path. The bile of apprehension chocked his throat. Just the thought of it filled his nostrils with the metallic smell of blood. His ears strained, feeling as though he could already hear screaming yowls of anger, terror, pain and sadness. Apprentices never becoming warriors and warriors never getting to see the next moon.
ShrewBerry hadn’t ever lived through a war, but he had seen what few scuffles over the stretch of land they lost entailed. His tail lashed anxiously. He was already mentally preparing for what he might witness. Shortage of herbs would be evident. It was almost leaf-bare. Many herbs were out of season or dying. If the war didn’t kill the clan, infection would. Not having enough or cats waiting too long would be cause for spread of disease. The already weak cats could catch green cough on top of it and give it to healthy cats. ShrewBerry’s distress was paralyzing him. Even as the wind blew cold air down on him, he felt hotter than the surface of the sun. In his foreboding, he almost missed what LeechPaw said. The Smokey furred tortoiseshell tried to regain his composure before having eye contact again.

“when i return, i was wondering if we could talk some more? i am so worried about the fate of this clan, now that jaggedstar is leading us. i . . i want to try to talk some sense into him, but i am not sure how. i will need your help and guidance as well as comettail's.”

ShrewBerry drew in a big breath and exhaled. So, his apprentice was doubting JaggedStar as much as he was. Just before they enter the camp, the Medicine Cat was so ready to give his passion towards JaggedStar’s reign. Even in the disarming eyes of StarClan and disapproving mewls of the clan, he was prepared to stand firm beside JaggedStar. Now however, ShrewBerry realized his mouse-brained conclusions. JaggedStar wasn’t a misguided cat, he was heinous and going to march this clan to their end. ShrewBerry’s whiskers quivered. LeechPaw was right to be concerned. He looked for something to say in order to calm her, but LeechPaw continued on.

"surely you have similar thoughts?" ShrewBerry’s face screwed up in confusion. What was she leading on to? "we cannot let jaggedstar tear apart this clan. i am not trying to be suspicious here, i really am not . . but i suspect foul play and tyrannical acts are in duskclan's future. is it wrong of me to think that?" His body shivered at the thought LeechPaw brought to him.

Wide eyes stared down at the mottled she-cat. ShrewBerry’s tail lashed with his unease. How could LeechPaw utter such a thing without jumping out of her skin? His apprentice had vaguely accused JaggedStar of murder. The tortoiseshell cat sprung to his feet, his soot colored tail’s hair spreading out like smoke spreads from fire. A tornado of emotions bumbled in the young medicine cat. ShrewBerry took a few paces back from his apprentice. Even after all his years of training, he never managed to learn to conceal his feelings. ShrewBerry swallowed his panic. He needed to keep it together. There was no reason to go about having LeechPaw see her mentor so disturbed, let alone make a scene for the clan to watch. He was a full grown cat, not a kit. He forced his speckled pelt to lay. ShrewBerry closed his dilated eyes, inhaling. Thinking. After a hefty exhale his sharp eyes were back on LeechPaw.

He stalked closer towards her. “LeechPaw,” He hissed. “You listen to me and you listen to me good.” His tail lashed side to side. “Don’t dare discuss such a thing with me during a meeting. We are surrounded by ears.” His voice was a rasping whisper, potent with aggravation. ShrewBerry lowered his entire body to be eye to eye with his apprentice. “You will understand your place as a medicine cat apprentice, a highly respected feline of this clan. What will the clan-mates think has become of you? Calling out such dangerous accusations? Whirl the clan into disarray is what you want, yes? You will say nothing to anyone let alone JaggedStar!” ShrewBerry huffed aired through his nose.

“But,” His tense tone slackened and his eyes softened a tad. He hesitated, gaze flickering off LeechPaw before coming back to her, filled with determination. “You worry not. I’ll argue in your place.” He prodded her once with his paw in an affectionate matter. “LeechPaw, I need you to trust in me, CometTail, and no one else. Report everything back to me. A leader leads, a deputy prepares, a warrior fights, and a medicine cat protects. If JaggedStar is leading us to our end, I and CometTail will protect us from that faith. I refuse to fail you, or this clan.” ShrewBerry straightened up as CometTail eased into view. He flicked his ear as his old mentor spoke. She had overheard LeechPaw, meaning she had overheard him too. She must saw how ShrewBerry still hasn’t changed except for possessing more responsibility.

".. Before you leave for your little expedition with Tidalpaw, can I have a talk with you? Medicine cat's den." ShrewBerry faced CometTail full on. His tail rose high, slightly challenging her. Maybe it was a bit of his arrogance, but LeechPaw was his apprentice. If CometTail wished to speak with her, she spoke to him too. An apprentice like mind-set over took ShrewBerry. He also wanted to prove his Medicine cat hood to her. Show CometTail he was a full-fledge Medicine Cat and could stand his ground. “All respect but,” he mumbled these words out. “If you are going to speak with LeechPaw, I would like to be present. She is my primary apprentice.” ShrewBerry felt nervous standing up to CometTail. But his attention was ripped from her when a little HadePaw trotted in.

ShrewBerry’s tail fell. “If you need assistance for a little sprained foot from your clumsy actions then you’re as good as buzzard food, aren’t you now?” He snorted. He wished to finish his conversation with CometTail, not be bothered by something trivial like this. “You don't even need anything for that. Go make friends elsewhere and stop being a bother. If LeechPaw wants to help you, you sad little thing, then she can. She’s use to kits crying from falling down.” He looked at LeechPaw. "If choose to help him, come to the den later." With that, ShrewBerry trotted into the Medicine cat den after CometTail to continue his discussion.

- (( ☁ Ｏ Ｔ Ｔ Ｅ Ｒ Ｓ Ｋ Ｙ ☁ )) -
Position ;; Warrior | Location ;; forest | Tags ;; Archibald | Mentioned ;; JaggedStar
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OtterSky observed the kittypet cautiously. Archibald possessed as much threat to the warrior as a dead mouse would. However, the thick furred cat was still odd. Caution should always be taken with someone so off-beat. The way Archibald carried himself made glossy clan cat want to tilt his head in confusion, but OtterSky kept his poise. In all honesty, he felt he could probably bat the other cat around as if he were prey. Kittypets had no formal warrior training, so how well could they possibly fight? Have cats who lived a life only to be pampered even raised a paw for attack? Best to rid himself of battling Archibald.
Even if he trespassed beyond bounds, OtterSky had a soft spot for a goofy thing. He’d also feel like a bully. Small fluff ball stuck in the brambles being beat on by a trained fighter. How utterly mean. OtterSky was caught by surprise when a purr resonated in the air. Peculiar thing; So happy while defenseless in territory not his own. OtterSky twitched his whiskers in amusement. Archibald must have never known consequences. If another kittypets cross other kittypets’ land, nothing must happen. Everything could be free roaming. What a disorganized life with no honor. Having cats trample on your land with synonymous with them trampling on you.

"i was just curious about you and your kind, so i left the comfort of my housefolks' home for good. all because i want to become one of you duskclanners - er, i mean duskclan cats!"

OtterSky let out a small, airy laugh. “This whole time you’ve been talking I’ve been thinking, kittypet,” OtterSky paced back and forth, inquisitive eyes always trained on Archibald. “I thought, ‘what a strange cat’. And truly, you are.” A soft grin was on his face with no traces of malicious intent. Archibald really was the world’s 6th wonder.
“Do you fight? Have you hunted before? Have you ever gone as much as a day without food?” His tail bobbed up and down before he finally stopped in front of Archibald again. OtterSky dared to put his paw Archibald’s pelt. “I would challenge the thought of you ever spending a night cold, but how could you?”

He unsheathed his claws, staring at Archibald’s, unwavering. He rotated his paw, flexing his claws into Archibald’s fur. He wiggled around, carefully uncoiling bramble from fur enough for his to pull it. “You’re clueless,” He meowed lightly. “but you are brave.” He put his eyes on his work of untangling the thorns and fur. “I’m going to be the one to crush your dreams. You will not become one of us. Not in the life time of our leader,” he used his other paw to assist in the work. He’ll need both paws to do this. “Hes…” OtterSky trailed off. A chill rippled down him thinking about JaggedStar. “unsettling.” He finished the sentence. “I think he’d rather maul you than let you join us.” OtterSky paused to look up at Archibald. “How do you feel about all of this? Upset? Angry? Defeated perhaps?” He questioned. “What do you want to do now that you know this?”OtterSky was finishing the last of the brambles as he said this.

[doriengray]

ＳＩＬＶＥＲＢＲＥＥＺＥ ☁
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( she-cat ) ( tagged; troutsplash ) (feeling; tired, mournful ) (location; camp/meeting)

Silverbreeze turned towards Troutsplash worringly, her eyes starting to widen. She shook her pelt, nodding at his words. Slowly the she-cat sat back down, taking a deep breath in. She could feel the tension of the other cats around her, and her fur has bristled. "If we go to war, so many cats will die." she murmured quietly, her tail lashing before settling over the front of her paws. She didn't doubt the strength of her clan, but she knew some of the cats were not made for the hardship of fights, herself included. She wanted her territory back, that was a no brainer, but was she willing to see the slaughter of her clan to get that? "What will we do.." she asked Troutsplash, turning towards him. She wondered for a moment if Troutsplash agreed with their new leader on this, and she suddenly feared she had made herself look weak. But, she held her head high still, a worry settling within the pit of her stomach. She didn't know why, but her paws prickled whenever her eyes settled upon Jaggedstar, as well as a whole new fear for the safety of her clan. She missed Oakstar dearly already, and her eyes wandered up to the sky. "Oh Oakstar." she thought to herself, sighing quietly.

[deftonesly]

❝ (( ☤ ∙ ＬＥＥＣＨＰＡＷ
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( eight m ) ( med app ) ( located camp ) ( tagged shrew, comet, hade ) ( words 2319 )


she was not sure what she had expected . . but, starclan, leechpaw had not been aiming to get scolded by her primary mentor. her words seemed to leave shrewberry speechless for a few heartbeats; the soot-furred tortoishell could only watch the meeting disperse with orange eyes narrowed in thoughtfulness. he would not even look at her, which made leechpaw more and more certain that she had screwed something up. the mottled apprentice looked away as he took in her words, wanting to give him time to decipher them; she pretended not to notice his puffed-out tail, the hairs that were raised along his spine. but then, out of the blue and once the majority of their clanmates had disappeared, shrewberry did the very thing that leechpaw had feared he would: he laid into her. now, she had been chastised by the older cat many times ━ usually whenever she knocked over a pile of herbs or, on the occasion, sorted wrong ━ but this was completely different, she sensed. the hairy cat bolted to his feet ━ eyes wide and their pupils dilated with panic ━ and then he turned to face her so sharply that she cringed back from him. even though she knew that he would never lay a paw on her, leechpaw still leaned away from him and bent her head as he stalked to her. shrewberry hissed down at her lowered cranium once he had composed himself enough to commune in a low volume. "leechpaw," just the sound of her name as it rolled from his tongue made her tail swish across the camp floor anxiously, "you listen to me and you listen to me good." she chanced a glance upward but quickly flashed her pale eyes back to her feet once she glimpsed her mentor's thrashing tail, his burning, damning orbs. "don't dare discuss such a thing with me during a meeting. we are surrounded by ears." the young, pitiful cat wanted to smack herself across the ears so badly that she almost wished shrewberry would do her the honor. how foolish she had been indeed! now that her mentor was presenting these points, this side of things that she had not explored, she felt an immense amount of guilt. she had made her mentor panicky and aggravated ━ though, to her credit, she had no idea why he was getting so worked up? ━ for no seemingly good reason, and for what? to get his opinion? i should have waited until the commotion died down, until we were back in the privacy of our den . .

indent as she had been dwelling, shrewberry had drawn all the closer to her. the male was so intent on speaking to her, on capturing her attention and ensuring that she did not look away, that he was huddled over on the ground, eye-to-eye with her. this made leechpaw feel so uneasy and nervous that she almost missed his next words, even though they were spoken less than the length of a mouse's whisker from her face. "you will understand your place as a medicine cat apprentice, a highly respected feline of this clan." this shocked her, inwardly, but she did not say anything ━ only lifted her petite head to gaze into the fiery eyes of her mentor, unflinchingly. surely shrewberry had to comprehend how much she did understand? awfully young as she was, leechpaw already knew more than anyone how much hard work and effort her job was going to take. it insulted her a tad that shrewberry was using her own level of competence against her, when she knew ( or thought she did ) exactly what was expected and needed of her. somewhat grumpily, she thought: apparently i don't. shoving the subject aside, she twitched her ears. she knew that she would prove him wrong . . show him that she did understand. after all, she had a magical way of surprising those that underestimated her. it was amazing that she continued to listen to shrewberry's tirade through the haze of frustration that now clouded her mind, but leechpaw did. the gray-and-white mottled swore that she would remember every word. "what will your clanmates think has become of you? calling out such dangerous accusations? whirl the clan into disarray is what you want, yes? you will say nothing to anyone, let alone jaggedstar!"

indent the older cat seemed to become spent in that moment ━ like all of the anger and frustration he had put into his words had exhausted him, like he could not go on. he let out a strange huffing sound that let his apprentice know his rant was over. he still stayed in front of her, hunkered down on the earth so close that their muzzles almost touched. leechpaw truly knew that the medicine cat was done with rebuking her by what he said next, which came out much softer and with a less fear-filled stare, "but, you worry not. i'll argue in your place." he looked away for a split second, something unlike him, then zeroed back in on her again. the mottled was surprised to find that all of the fear that had been in his gaze was dashed away; there was only sheer determination that accentuated his features now. his paw ━ great, fluffy, wide, and perfect for gathering herbs ━ stretched forward and nudged her shoulder lightly, affectionately; she purred softly in reply. "leechpaw, i need you to trust me, comettail, and no one else. report everything back to me. a leader leads, a deputy prepares, a warrior fights, and a medicine cat protects. if jaggedstar is leading us to our end, comettail and i will protect us from him. i refuse to fail you, or this clan." a leader leads, a deputy prepares, a warrior fights, and a medicine cat protects. i love that phrase, the apprentice thought as she mulled over the saying that shrewberry said so often to her. she had never heard it with such passion applied . . but she supposed that the saying mattered now more than ever. before jaggedstar, it had just been something cryptic and cool to say, something that she had yet to understand. now leechpaw felt that she did, and only because duskclan was under the leadership of jaggedstar. situations like this one ━ especially since it included a mad tyrant ━ would definitely call for some morale, and morale shrewberry's saying gave. she turned her attention back to the subject at paw, realizing that she had gotten what she had wanted from shrewberry: reassurance. leechpaw got to her feet and bumped her nose against the brute's, her tail lifting in a display of love. "i'm sorry . . it won't be discussed more until the time is right." she murmured, referring to the bold statements she had made, the questions she had asked. "thanks so much, shrewberry. i will try to do better and remember the reputation i uphold in duskclan."

indent it was a good thing she finished right then and there, because in that instant, comettail ━ her mentor's mentor ━ stepped forward. leechpaw looked up and up and up into the elderly molly's icy blue orbs, which were strange to see in her dark-masked face. had she been listening? shrewberry had taken up so much of her attention, close as he had been, that she had no idea. leechpaw supposed that the old bat had been lingering nearby, eavesdropping; she always seemed to know what was up, anyway, so it was hard to believe that she wouldn't turn her ears toward their conversation. a heartbeat later, the himalayan was standing over her, meowing in her raspy voice, and she got her answer. "that's a rather bold claim, leechpaw." of course the molly had overheard! leechpaw flattened her ears and glanced at shrewberry as comettail pressed on. her voice sounded like the wind whistling between the stars. " . . before you leave for your little expedition with tidalpaw, can i have a talk with you? medicine cats' den." the little she-cat stiffened, drew herself up and straightened her shoulders out of nerves. what did the star-crazed molly want with her? she had never asked to speak with leechpaw one-on-one before; in fact, she could hardly ever recall a time that they had really interacted. the himalayan was always . . just . . there. a constant presence in the medicine cats' den that on the occasion grunted out orders or grumbled curses. now she was making herself known to the youngest of the three? deciding to become properly acquainted? shrewberry seemed to find this as peculiar as leechpaw, because he whipped around to face his old mentor. his tail rose high ━ higher than leechpaw had ever seen it go ━ and he mumbled to comettail, stubbornly holding his ground against the much older, more experienced feline. "all respect, but, if you are going to speak with leechpaw, i would like to be present. she is my primary apprentice." this was true. angst and tension seemed to spike the air for a moment. shrewberry seemed very nervous to be saying this to comettail . . and it was then that leechpaw understood. how the smoky male felt now was how she felt every time she addressed him. funny how some things managed to come full circle, eh?

indent both mentors looked at each other for a long moment, shrewberry's vibrant orange stare boring holes into comettail's. leechpaw looked from one cat to the other, torn; she was tempted to utter something to ease the ruffled pelts of both the cats when comettail turned away, lumbering to the den. it seemed she was content to wait for them to follow her. either that, or she wasn't concerned with wasting her time. leechpaw closed her mouth softly, as she had been about to speak. but she opened it again when she heard a faint pop ━ like the sound of a joint slipping free of its socket, perhaps? ━ off to her left, and then the scuffling of paws across the camp floor. it was hadepaw ━ a goofy, immature cat that seemed much younger than her, when he was really older. the cat was bounding ━ well, hobbling ━ toward leechpaw and her mentor, his brown tabby pelt mussed up, his eyes wide, and his maw twisted not in pain, but in a grin. because of this latter fact, she could not tell if he was in agony . . or if he had tripped, fallen, and was trying to be funny by acting like he was injured. "hey shrewberry! hey leechpaw!" he hollered once he was within earshot. the apprentice came closer, studying his foot ━ which leechpaw could now see there was something wrong with. while he stumbled over, he meowed, "errrr, assistance, please?"

indent shrewberry did not even display the courtesy of striding toward the patient or perhaps helping; his tail just fell back to its normal height, and he snorted. "if you need assistance for a little sprained foot from your clumsy actions, then you're as good as buzzard food, aren't you now?" leechpaw looked at him, shocked that he was treating such a young cat this way, but at the same time . . not quite. this was shrewberry's norm. even if he was significantly kinder to her, that did not mean that he was the friendliest to others. she stood at his side, watching him, as he continued to rain down words of bitterness and spite on hadepaw, whom was flinching at each word like they were blows to his muzzle. "you don't even need anything for that. go make friends elsewhere and stop being a bother. if leechpaw wants to help you, you sad little thing, then she can. she's used to kits crying from falling down. if you choose to help him, come to the den later." leechpaw's pale green eyes widened and she pasted her ears back against her head momentarily before remembering her place. she was subtly being ordered to take care of the issue, so she relented, dipping her head and taking a few strides toward the injured hadepaw. she murmured, "o-okay, shrewberry. i'll be right with you and comettail. but what about the herbs? . . oh, never mind . ." she mumbled the last few words, as her mentor was no longer listening. he had spun on his heels and bounded off to the medicine cats' den without another word. leechpaw sighed, swinging her head around to face hadepaw; she offered him a small, thin smile, then closed the distance between them. as she walked to him, the blood in her ears roared with annoyance ━ both for shrewberry and hadepaw. she had been getting ready to head off on a herb hunt with tidalpaw! and now hadepaw had pulled or sprained something, her mentor was bossing her and hadepaw around with a nastiness she scarcely saw from him, and the clan was wrought with the promise of war, disease, and injury. oh, and the rain was getting ready to fall; it would be difficult to scent out what little herbs had not died.

indent she sidled up to the brown tabby, and though he was much taller, she managed to wrap her marbled tail across his shoulders. she mewed, looking up at him with concerned eyes, "let's head over to the edge of camp, beneath that patch of ferns . . . " she hesitated, indicating a spot near the medicine cats' den. it was good to be close in case hadepaw's injury was more serious than she thought. she headed off in the direction of the furled, browning foliage, guiding the limping tom. as the pair walked at a painfully slow pace, leechpaw questioned him in a suddenly professional voice. she was into her zone now, and was intent on caring for her clanmate, no matter how minor his problem was. "now, hadepaw, what seems to be the issue here? i heard a pop and i can see some swelling around your paw. how much pressure can you put on it? are you in great pain? tell me everything, please."

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( nineteen m ) ( outsider ) ( located duskclan forest ) ( tagged ottersky ) ( words 1445 )


archibald chuckled along with the oriental shorthair when he heaved out an airy laugh. the strange former kittypet could not help the responsive laughter that bubbled from his chest and shattered the peace of the duskclan forest. it was sort of like an instinctual thing . . or maybe a defensive mechanism that he had no idea existed yet? the chubby cat stopped guffawing when the black clan cat came closer, then beginning to pace to and fro in front of him. his orange eyes never left archie's round face no matter which way his elegant, sleek body pivoted. the incredibly tall cat stalked across the forest floor with ease, body whipping one way and then the other in less than a fraction of a heartbeat. his glossy coat and flicking tail mesmerized archibald through and through; the clan cat almost reminded him of the great beasts that he used to see on his housefolks' "magic glow box". the beasts that he remembered glimpsing in between naps on his plush bed looked almost exactly like the bat-eared, bony oriental . . only, archie's newfound companion was less than half the size of those beasts. he stopped thinking about his former lifestyle and the jungle-dwelling cats when the duskclan brute mewed, "this whole time, you've been talking what i've been thinking, kittypet." there was something teasing, borderline rude hidden in the tom's words, but naturally the naïve archibald did not pick up on anything. he just did his best to keep smiling at the brute, in spite of the fact that he had squirmed too much and there were now bramble pickles sticking from his rump. "i thought, 'what a strange cat'. and, truly, you are."

indent the lanky animal grinned down at him. he found himself admiring the ebony cat's soft, delicate grin as it suddenly split across his face; he could not tear his honey-golden orbs away from the glowing pearly whites. that is, until the cat pressed on and archibald lifted his eyes to stare once more into those of the male. "do you fight? have you hunted before? have you ever gone a day without food?" archie's head swam with the rapid influx of inquiries; he had to pause, take a few heartbeats to decide how he should answer all of them. he blinked up at the towering figure ━ whose large head managed to blot out the light of the sun ━ when he had digested the words and knew how to reply. he mewed, a purr throbbing at the edges of his voice and a light sparkling in his eyes, "strange? oh, i know. i used to get that a lot back in twolegplace. hopefully strange isn't a bad thing, though?" he played coy then, batting his eyelashes up at the feline in an effort to be funny. "as for your questions? no, no, and yes. i am not a good fighter or hunter, but i have gone more than a day without food in my belly, believe it or not." he peered through the bramble tendrils at his meaty flanks. despite winter approaching fast and despite his lack of tuna on a silver platter, he had not lost as much weight as one would expect. the curly-haired outsider was still as chunky and slow as ever. "i know it doesn't look like it, but that's the honest truth."

indent he returned his gaze to the black cat in front of him. a thought had occurred to him: what if, by admitting that he was insolent and had no knowledge on forest cat life, he was ruining his chances of joining duskclan? fighting and hunting were huge parts of survival - even he could grasp that concept. so what would the clan do to some cat who couldn't even stalk and kill a leaf? archibald hoped that what he said next justified his answers and kept his chances of becoming a duskclanner unmarred. "i know i probably won't be welcome into duskclan if i can't fight or hunt, but that's what learning is for, right? i'm sure i could catch onto you and your clan's ways quickly!" he was cut off from rambling more when the clan cat abruptly stopped in his pacing and stretched out a paw, resting it on his fur. the oriental's sleek appendage sunk into the mountain of fluff, and for a second, they just stayed like that, regarding one another and considering whether or not getting so close was a good idea. the orange-eyed tomcat broke the silence, studying the curly hairs of archie's pelt as they seemed to wrap across his paw. "i would challenge the thought of you ever spending a night cold, but how could i?" archibald snorted merrily at this. but he was too concerned with studying the shorthair and his nimble paws ━ as they got to work unhooking the brambles from him ━ to properly respond. everything he did, he did deftly, smoothly. how he admired him and his quickness. his beauty, his grace.

indent the shorthair completed an interesting motion ━ a mere rotating and then flick of his paw ━ to drag a bramble from the entrapped outsider. as he spoke, his eyes were always on archibald's, because he was so swift in his dislodging of the helpless male that he could afford to maintain eye contact. "you're clueless, but you are brave." the ebony tore his gaze away, but archie continued to stare at him, face neutral and no longer smiling now. in fact, for once in his life, a frown began to crease archie's features the more the clan cat jabbered to him. because what he said next did not please the former kittypet one bit. "i'm going to be the one to crush your dreams." what? "you will not become one of us. not in the lifetime of our leader." he switched to using both of his paws in order to untangle him faster. "he's . . ." the black cat trailed off, and a very noticeable shudder cascaded across his wiry shoulders, continuing down his body like a ripple effect of raised hair. archibald tilted his head, as per usual not understanding. why was he shivering? it wasn't that chilly! without warning, the sentence was completed. "unsettling. i think he'd rather maul you than let you join us." archibald stiffened in shock; he could at least understand that. this leader of duskclan's was probably not the kindest soul out there, then. when the black cat's radiant, luminous orbs shifted upward from his work to gaze into his, the questions fired back up again. "how do you feel about all of this? upset? angry? defeated, perhaps? what do you want to do now that you know this?" the duskclanner polished off his work then, withdrawing his paws and stepping back from the newly-freed archie. the stout, curly-haired male slid from the now battered and broken bramble bush with one last tug. this tug happened to send him careening forward, so he lost his balance with a loud, squawking mew and ended up flopping across the forest floor at his helper's feet. but he bounced right back to his paws before the trodden tendrils around him could embrace him again.

indent archie grunted as he shook out his debris-infested fur and faced the clan cat. they looked at each other as archie rounded up his thoughts and prepared to reply. when he did after a few moment's hesitation, he smiled impishly, goofily, with so much naivety in his golden eyes that it was almost sad. "how do i feel? i don't feel upset, angry, or defeated. none of that. i feel determined." he leaned forward on the last sentence, then shortened the distance between the two of them with a few careful strides across the underbrush-crowded forest floor. once he was muzzle-to-muzzle with the oriental shorthair, once he could see his well-defined cheekbones and the flecks in his orange eyes, he continued. "i want you to take me to your leader, let me talk with him. i'm sure that i can change his mind not just about me, but about kittypets in general." he backed off after making his request, lowering his tail. "please? it's been my dream ever since i heard stories about duskclan from my fence to join the lot of you. i've come too far to just turn back around now." he blinked, trying to reason. "look, if your . . if your leader turns me down, then i'll walk right out of here, and you will never have to hear, smell, or see me ever again. is that all right?"

[Tsukỉ]

▶︎ 𝑪 𝑶 𝑴 𝑬 𝑻 𝑻 𝑨 𝑰 𝑳
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she-cat - medicine cat - 70 moons -

“If you are going to speak with LeechPaw, I would like to be present. She is my primary apprentice.” Now, Comettail was never interested in arguments, as fiery and passionate as they are, were something she kept distance from. It never crossed her head, not once, to talk back. She owed the world far too much to beseech them to shut their yap, the she-cat was more of a loner, the pristine, malevolent, and silent kit who simply needed to find a way to show gratitude. Obviously, not in the same aspect a greedy cat would, as she'd already learned how to feel grateful, but akin to trying to find a way to repay debt. But without much backtalk, resulted in a silent agreement, a sort of pedigree that proved them right. Which, really, wasn't her poin of view, but Shrewberry's. The tom was much more, and less, from the naïvety that he was sickly with all his life, and as he shed it, it was just as pyrrhic at scraping up a scab for satisfaction, but ending up with a nasty scar. Beneath the amalgam of life, there was a certain likability to theses, rather unsavoury traits, for Comettail, the black, white-tailed himalayan, was always an unsavoury cat. "Perhaps you did not understand me, Shrewberry," she calmly stated, with a content voice that sounded as if meant for a queen to her kit. "But I believe I said I wanted to talk to Leechpaw," Yes, Shrewberry was valid in both thought and motive, but this wasn't a chance Comettail could hand out so easily. Her statement had to be nimble, machiavellian, and tribunal, or else the arrogance of the tom would burn like a fire, charring down whatever was left of DuskClan.

Honestly, she wanted to speak to Leechpaw for several reasons. And one, was Jaggedstar. The latter molly seemed confused, face twisted with contemplation, but by now, the former she-cat lumbered into her den.

[ooc ; what happens between her leaving and talking with Leechpaw.]

✥ 𝗛 𝖠 𝖣 𝖤 𝖯 𝖠𝖶
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tom - apprentice - 12 moons -