Stars V.2 • Catvent

[thelabradorr]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: thelabradorr + 605000
↬ clan archive: soughclan

↬ word count: 197 words
↬ prompt:

Under the dappling light filtering through the emerald canopy, Otternose, found himself at the edge of the Whispering Woods. The air was alive with the whispers of leaves, and a traveling magpie, its ebony feathers adorned with glinting trinkets, appeared randomly.

The magpie, keeper of tales woven into shiny baubles, offered Otternose a gift from its vast collection. Among the sparkling array, the warrior's gaze fixated on an old brass compass, its surface weathered like the scars earned in battles. Each scratch told of untold quests and moonlit escapades, a history etched in the patina of its metal.

Otternose, his gaze reflecting the flickering curiosity within, chose the compass. In its worn elegance, he sensed the echoes of warriors who had roamed before him, their pawprints eternally imprinted on the compass's surface. It resonated with a kind of wisdom born of countless moons and the silent language shared among those who tread the warrior's path.

The magpie, a sagacious observer, nodded approvingly as Otternose cradled the compass in his strong, battle-tested paws. In the heart of the forest, the warrior cat moved forward, his every step guided by the ancient whispers encapsulated within the timeworn brass compass.

[daisy,]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id:daisy,1085494
↬ clan archive: Forum/viewtopic.php?f=103&t=4913291

↬ word count: 20 words
↬ prompt:

Snowflake a blue smoke tabby was looking at the mouse and it was a normal mouse. "Too weird " he said.

[crexmii]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: crexmii + 1056107
↬ clan archive: both clans here

↬ word count: 218 words
↬ prompt: belladonna stared at the magpie curiously. “huh. cheeto, what do you think? should we?” the black tortie asked, turning her head to glance at the phoenix perched on her shoulder. cheeto simply squawked and did something that seemed like a nod.

“okay. um…let’s see what you have, sir.”
her mismatched gaze browsed the magpie’s wares. the black and white avian watched, waiting patiently for belladonna to make a choice.

something caught the tortoiseshell’s eye. a stone. this one fluctuated, immediately changing from one colour to the next. opalescent specks danced around inside.
“no way. it’s so beautiful. i’ll take this, please.”
the magpie nodded and squawked at belladonna once, before taking the rest of the wares and flying away.

after walking away, belladonna and cheeto continued to examine the strange stone. “wait. isn’t this from…

the paracosm.” she meowed grimly.
“i’ve been trying to find mania for a while. and the mysterious kalopsia forest and their own infamous creation, the paracosm.” cheeto tilted his head and squawked in confusion. he seemed like he wanted to know why belladonna had picked the weird item. it seemed useless.

“cheeto. I picked it because i want to find mania. oh, I have to tell my fellow wanderers! this means we’re one step closer to tracing down the elusive god of chaos.”

[canadianhowl]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: canadianhowl + 523964
↬ clan archive: galactic skies

↬ word count: 31
↬ prompt: Immediately Pepperleap saw a huge satchel. This would fit so many herbs in it and he could carry them all wherever he went! It smelled like lavender too. This was perfect!

[Archaeopteryx.]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: Archaeopteryx. 334452
↬ clan archive: Enurian

↬ word count: 713 words
↬ prompt:


"Are you sure?"

The corror before him fixed Mouse-ear with a single mossy eye (only two were open, thank Rushara, because if they were glared at by the rest of those terrifying eyes Mouse-ear was going to have a meltdown, and they had promised the kits—), and though Mouse-ear never spent enough time around these creatures (by choice, actually, no one ever prepared them for how terrifying these beasts were) they could tell their incessant asking was starting to get on its nerves. "Do you believe my kind liars?"

"No—"

"Then choose."

The thing was, there was too much to choose from.

It was as if an entire marketplace had crashed from the sky, partially because that was precisely what had happened. One moment, Mouse-ear had been scavenging for supplies in the Imbroglio, making sure to stay well within the outskirts of the labyrinth in the Shallows. And then in the next there was a dark shadow overhead blocking out the stars and a great feathered beast gleefully unpacking wares before them and imploring them to, "Take one, little thing, the nights are so cold and the world so unsafe for such a small morsel like you, it would be good to have something on your side."

And also despite the size of this thing towering over Mouse-ear and the sharp teeth glinting in its beak, they were pretty sure this thing was barely an adult. The only thing marking it as different from the other birds in the area was its size and its eyes—it still had a normal amount of wings and heads and limbs, something they were pretty sure most adult corror didn't have. So this thing was on the smaller side and it would just keep getting better and—

Rustling feathers and a guttural sound of annoyance broke Mouse-ear out of the beginnings of their spiral.

Okay. They could do this.

Hesitantly, they weaved through the piles of objects and items and trinkets. A chaotic array of things likely taken from all over the island. Some things hummed with a power they stayed well away from. Others would have been useful but didn't feel worth this grandiose gesture. They could find another waterskin or pack. What was something here they wouldn't be able to find again...?

A glinting caught their eye and they ghosted their paws over it, delicately picking it up and turning it over. A perfect, metallic sphere, delicately engraved. When they brought it up to their eye, they could faintly make out the symbols of a story.

"Twist it, a little, with your paws."

They did as the creature instructed, slightly, and watched as the sphere unfolded with the twisting and a faint light began to grow from it. They twisted it again in the opposite direction and the light shut off.

The creature hummed appreciatively and began to pack up its hoard again. "I apologize," it said, in a voice so deep and otherworldly it made Mouse-ear's heart shake. "But I must ask one thing in return for this boon. Why did you choose this and not something other?"

"Oh." That was easy. Much better than asking for something Mouse-ear didn't have. "I. Um. I thought it would make for a good gift for my kids. I thought it'd might occupy them while I'm gone."

The creature hummed, and though they didn't think the beast understood (corrror were solitary beasts afterall), it clearly approved of its choice.

"You be careful out there, little thing," The corror crooned, delicately rearranging things on the square of fabric in a very particular manner before bundling up the entire hoard in its talons. "There's a storm on the horizon. Take care."

Mouse-ear took one step back, then another, as the wind from the creature's wingbeats buffeted their fur and slicked their whiskers down along the side of their face. They watched, as its wings blacked out the sky, as if the void had come down to swallow them all. Shielding their face, they felt more than saw it take off, the great thud as its tail crashed into the earth.

As the wind and the world settled down around them, they watched as it vanished into the night sky, trinket still warm in their paw.

[literal.swag.]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: literal.swag. + 1047454
↬ clan archive: amaryllis group

↬ word count: 38 words
↬ prompt:

who says you need to stop at just one? wren thinks they simply deserve more. so, they knock the merchant out and take off with their wares, grin splitting their muzzle, richer in both material and materialistic greed.

[elliott.]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: elliott. + 720066
↬ clan archive: the hawthorns.

↬ word count: 59 words
↬ prompt: oh boy, oh boy, does whimsycurl love gifts! the tom would rummage through the bag as quick as possible, paws grabbing at everything and investigating it in a way that seemed like he was noticing everything and yet nothing at all. at the end, he'd choose something plant-related, most likely something he could hang in his den for decoration.

[ArithMedic]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: ArithMedic 1064661
↬ clan archive: the Bronze Fleet

↬ word count: 185 words
↬ prompt:
Golden Heart takes her time to look carefully over the generous magpie's wares. Many things catch her and even more incite her curiosity, but she really only has one choice. It calls out to her from amidst all the sparkling items around it like it was fate for her to find it, it's dullness that in any other circumstance would draw it into the background now makes it stand out amongst the glimmers and gleams.
Golden lifts the item curiously, noting the magpie's hawk-like attention when she does so. It appears to be some kind of fabric, she realizes as she fiddles with it in her paws. There's a barely perceptible sheen when it moves, if the light hits it just right. The fabric itself is black but something about it makes Golden think of the night sky instead of a dark abyss.
"I want this." Golden says, turning to the magpie.
"Good choice!" The magpie caws. "Good night!" They signal for her to leave.
Golden does so after securing the fabric in her bag. "Thank you!" She remembers to call back as she leaves.

[mal du pays]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: aftonbuilt 186503
↬ clan archive: https://toyhou.se/aftonbuilt/characters/folder:2315966

↬ word count: 28 words
↬ prompt: Starlight would pick a little cat figurine, a pristine little thing made out of porcelain, painted black. With some adjustments, he could make it look a bit familiar...

[kyeza]

↬ catvent day: seven

↬ username & id: galaxyy. 803669
↬ clan archive: <3

↬ word count: 148 words
↬ prompt:


when the magpie comes, jadeclan is not surprised in the slightest. they receive visitors from afar all the time, it being a sapient avian was of little importance. when asked to pick something from its vast collection, alderhaze knows exactly what he wants. a leather-bound book, cover lightly-dusted and pages crinkled. but that was not all. he was, after all, a wandering trader as well.

"your turn," he insists, nudging his wares at the bird. it eyes the shiny stones for a moment before settling on a piece of smooth, glossy obsidian. rare. hard to come by. it tilts its head at him, as if confirming it was alright to take this little trinket, as it was so very unique. the corners of his mouth lift up in a gentle smile. "of course, it'd hardly be fair if you didn't get your pick after all you offered me."