"Tired? Then sleep Bumble-sis! I almost got eaten once because I didnt sleep enough, I thought a lynx was grandma, that couldve ended bad. Luckily she was nice about it once I explained. But still that was me you gotta clan so more could happen! Plus its not healthy or something? I dunno you should sleep after this."
Mudhound was completely unaware they were probably the reason Bumblestar couldnt sleep. Still they were worried about their sibling and made a mental note to throw a squirrel at her later just in case her sibling wasnt eating. Shouldnt be hard to do and didnt even require bothering Bumblestar for long, because maybe the tired was stressed tired. Logic intelligence dumb emotional intelligence smart as they were Mudhound was well aware how much pressure was on such a young leader. Especially given the transition wasnt smooth and had such big pushback at the beginning. If they were closer the warrior would try and get their sister to open up and talk about it but..... They might not be at that point yet.
Besides Mudhound was here for another reason that was more urgent. A reason that was yet another conversation that hurt to talk about.
A list: why had their grandmother taken some siblings and abandoned the rest, how could one apologize for abandoning a sister because they thought they were dead, how does one fix a relationship like this, and where are Houndspirits kits.
"Bumblestar where are Houndspirits kittens?" A long silence as the tripod struggled to get their words. "I came back because of a dream with Houndy-sis where she told me you guys were here and a bit of other stuff and at the time she said there was a patrol going out to get the kittens that lived." This caused a flinch as Mudhound forced themselves to power through. "Did.... Did they not make it? Rainkit and Skykit that is.... Or did something go wrong with the patrol I just.... I need to know why theyre not here."
Hurt hurt hurt and the maine coon was still and droopy for it.
Still they asked.
Ah, no problems meant joy and sunshine for Alderstep. As long as he wasn't annoying. Easy enough. Although... "So you snore, then." Perhaps not the greatest thing to say, but being offhand was just so fun. But hey! Now his sleeping dilemma was solved. And Bumblestar's logic made sense. StarClan forbid both leadership roles die in the same embarrassing event. Alderstep would never show his starry face again if he died by getting crushed in his sleep. Not the way he wanted to go, for sure.
Anyways, he was feeling claustrophobic in the leader's den. The nasty den with disgusting lichen covering the entrance. How Bumblestar stood that, Alderstep would never know. Casting a glance at the wad of moss the leader had essentially tossed to the side, he rose to his paws. "Well, since that's all, I'm gonna go." The deputy made sure to take semi-tiny steps leaving, just in case Bumblestar had any last thoughts to throw in. But if not, he was going to go find himself something to munch on before doing some sort of activity.
Oh, fantastic. Thank the stars she wouldnt have to argue about this. At his comment, the corners of Bumblestar's mouth quirked up in a lopsided smile, amusement lacing her tone. "Yeah, sure, I snore. We'll go with that."
...Actually. She had no clue if she did or not. Maybe she'd find Gentledoe later and take a nap, then get her answer later.
Alderstep rose to leave, and she let her deputy go. "That's all, yeah. Remember: no problems, or you'll be out faster than you can say your own name."
She was starting to like Alderstep. She really hoped she wouldn't have to go that route.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rani
"Tired? Then sleep Bumble-sis! I almost got eaten once because I didnt sleep enough, I thought a lynx was grandma, that couldve ended bad. Luckily she was nice about it once I explained. But still that was me you gotta clan so more could happen! Plus its not healthy or something? I dunno you should sleep after this."
Mudhound was completely unaware they were probably the reason Bumblestar couldnt sleep. Still they were worried about their sibling and made a mental note to throw a squirrel at her later just in case her sibling wasnt eating. Shouldnt be hard to do and didnt even require bothering Bumblestar for long, because maybe the tired was stressed tired. Logic intelligence dumb emotional intelligence smart as they were Mudhound was well aware how much pressure was on such a young leader. Especially given the transition wasnt smooth and had such big pushback at the beginning. If they were closer the warrior would try and get their sister to open up and talk about it but..... They might not be at that point yet.
Besides Mudhound was here for another reason that was more urgent. A reason that was yet another conversation that hurt to talk about.
A list: why had their grandmother taken some siblings and abandoned the rest, how could one apologize for abandoning a sister because they thought they were dead, how does one fix a relationship like this, and where are Houndspirits kits.
"Bumblestar where are Houndspirits kittens?" A long silence as the tripod struggled to get their words. "I came back because of a dream with Houndy-sis where she told me you guys were here and a bit of other stuff and at the time she said there was a patrol going out to get the kittens that lived." This caused a flinch as Mudhound forced themselves to power through. "Did.... Did they not make it? Rainkit and Skykit that is.... Or did something go wrong with the patrol I just.... I need to know why theyre not here."
Hurt hurt hurt and the maine coon was still and droopy for it.
Still they asked.
Bumblestar had to blink and then squint, wondering if she had heard her sibling right. "You... explained to a lynx, that you thought it was your grandmother," she echoed, disbelief clear in her voice. Mudhound hadn't struck her as a liar, or even a truth-stretcher, despite being so gung-ho. Maybe she'd been wrong. "...I'll sleep later. I've got things to do." Thinking. Patrolling. Picking up after the others. That sort of thing.
Mudhound's next question made her expression falter. Her lips twitched once and then she looked away, claws tapping on the wooden floor of the den. It wasn't that she'd forgotten about Houndspirit, or Houndspirit's kits—she hadn't, truly—but grieving the same damn sister for the third time over had become emotionally draining, and she hadn't had much thought left over for kits she hadn't met and likely never would. Then everything went to hell, and her priorities had shifted drastically.
"I, uh... I don't know." A carefully controlled tone as one claw idly scraped a line into the bark. "I wasn't part of that patrol, and I never heard anything about how it went. I don't know what happened, or if it even was finished at all. I'm sorry. I've had bigger things on my mind lately."
'I've had bigger things on my mind lately.' That made Mudhounds ears dip flat for a moment. 'Bigger things' What do you mean bigger things?! Bigger then the remaining lives of a kit?! Your own niece and nephew?! The clan was important but wasnt this too?! The normally easygoing maine coon wrestled down their flash of anger forcing themselves back into order momentarily thankful for their flopped ears not showing emotions well. They didnt need an argument with Bumble-sis. They didnt even want one in any way. So no more anger just an aching quiet sorrow.
The warrior looked away idly explaining their prior statement far too casually for the actual word content, using the time as a moment to mentally prepare for their next ask. "Mmmm? Yeah lynx's are cats arent they? Just big and strange. So they speak like us just big and strange. It takes a bit to understand and more to speak back its more throat-y(?) then normal speaking but it works. The older ones are more like snooty then the babies, I think they think theyre better because theyre big but eh, but yanno. Cats are cats." They smiled a bit eyes distant tail wrapping around to rub at their stump. "Dogs are hard. Twolegs are impossible. Dont like them."
Mudhound sighed now able to rally themselves and looked back at the leader. It was strange with their silly goofy carefree attitude wiped clean with the addition of cares they were a lot more... Solid. Steadfast. In the present.
"Id like there to be another patrol to at least get answers of their fates even if we cant bring back them or their bodies. I dont have to lead it but I cant do it alone or even know if I can do it without sort of abandoning the clan and I dont want to abandon you just after getting you back. But I also dont want to abandon them, it wouldnt be fair or right.
It would be quick and fast and Ive even thought of who would be good and would be happy to organize this myself. I have their descriptions and where the rogues should be. I know the twolegplace."
The warrior stopped for a moment jaw flexing as they tried to think of more to say but really..... What else was there? The information was there just. "Please Bumblestar."
@dino.
'I've had bigger things on my mind lately.' That made Mudhounds ears dip flat for a moment. 'Bigger things' What do you mean bigger things?! Bigger then the remaining lives of a kit?! Your own niece and nephew?! The clan was important but wasnt this too?! The normally easygoing maine coon wrestled down their flash of anger forcing themselves back into order momentarily thankful for their flopped ears not showing emotions well. They didnt need an argument with Bumble-sis. They didnt even want one in any way. So no more anger just an aching quiet sorrow.
The warrior looked away idly explaining their prior statement far too casually for the actual word content, using the time as a moment to mentally prepare for their next ask. "Mmmm? Yeah lynx's are cats arent they? Just big and strange. So they speak like us just big and strange. It takes a bit to understand and more to speak back its more throat-y(?) then normal speaking but it works. The older ones are more like snooty then the babies, I think they think theyre better because theyre big but eh, but yanno. Cats are cats." They smiled a bit eyes distant tail wrapping around to rub at their stump. "Dogs are hard. Twolegs are impossible. Dont like them."
Mudhound sighed now able to rally themselves and looked back at the leader. It was strange with their silly goofy carefree attitude wiped clean with the addition of cares they were a lot more... Solid. Steadfast. In the present.
"Id like there to be another patrol to at least get answers of their fates even if we cant bring back them or their bodies. I dont have to lead it but I cant do it alone or even know if I can do it without sort of abandoning the clan and I dont want to abandon you just after getting you back. But I also dont want to abandon them, it wouldnt be fair or right.
It would be quick and fast and Ive even thought of who would be good and would be happy to organize this myself. I have their descriptions and where the rogues should be. I know the twolegplace."
The warrior stopped for a moment jaw flexing as they tried to think of more to say but really..... What else was there? The information was there just. "Please Bumblestar."
@dino.
...Yeah, no, she wasn't going to understand the whole lynx thing anytime soon. Maybe Mudhound just had an overactive imagination. It seemed on-brand for them, anyway.
Bumblestar fell still, jaw working silently, as her sibling carried on. This sucked, honestly. She understood the reasoning, she really did—she knew kin meant a lot to a lot of cats. But this...
"I'm sorry," she said again, with a forced edge. "I can't allow that. ThunderClan has too many issues already going on as is; I can't condone sendin' my warriors out to scramble around Twolegplace for kits who may not even be there anymore. I need everyone here so we can focus on restabilzing." Her claws caught in the bark with a harsh srrrratch and she retracted them. "And I don't wanna catch wind of a patrol being organized behind my back, either, 'cause if that happens, I don't care if you find those kits or not—everyone will be in trouble. Am I clear?"
⛆ FrogPaw was scared… She was really scared… The gathering was only last night and something really bad happened at this gathering… Picture this; You make a friend… A friend that couldn’t remember anything but who she and immediate family were… The only reason the toms memory got any better was because of dear FrogPaw… All that time with someone, you’re destined ti feel something towards them, right?
⛆ Well, FrogPaw only truly realized this as she was on her way to the gathering… 15 moons old and she had thought she finally felt something for someone… In ThunderClan, she never got much of that love and care growing up… That sweetness she was given throughout the younger years of apprenticeship had only made her heart larger… She had feelings for ScalePaw back then…
⛆ She had been so excited to see him that night, even fixing up her fur in hopes of making the awaited interaction as magical as she dreamed of it being… But even so, without being there a second, her dreams came crumbling down upon her, everything was ripped away… And now the place she oh-so wished to belong in might just be ripped away too… She wondered if another clan would take her in if she begged hard enough…
⛆ FrogPaw found a part of herself, however… She didn’t like fighting but she would want nothing more than to stand on the bodies of those WindClan cats that had wronged her. Poison… maybe…? Shaking the gruesome thought out of her head, she makes her way into BumbleStars den, ready to face the worst. “BumbleStar…?” Her voice cracked slightly as she padded in… Before the leader even had a chance to speak, she began…
⛆ “I wanted to talk about last night… I know I’m in trouble but let me just explain for a moment… Please…” As much as the apprentice hated eye contact, her green gaze rested in the mollie in charge… Gulping down her fears, she continued. “Back when I was younger, I was so desperate to find a way to unite the clans by becoming friends with as many cats I could… I believed that we were all equally great and wanted to find a way to show that…” Oh yay! A story similar to every kit story!
⛆ FrogPaw somehow, still manages to maintain eye contact, however you could see it made her heavily uncomfortable. “I met scale… scar, then ScalePaw at my first ever gathering… He was an outcast, scared because he couldn’t remember some of his own clanmates… I empathized, simply because some of my clanmates in this clan hadn’t even bothered to introduce themselves to me… So we became friends…” she realized the memory part seemed irrelevant, though it was actually the biggest part of the story. She decided to touch on that…
⛆ “I have great memory, I’m really really good at remembering faces, smells, names… Being alone for so long, you don’t really have much to think about… I taught ScalePaw how to remember things by teaching him strategies and techniques to use in situations when needed to remember… We spent so much time together… And I… I felt appreciated… Something I’ve never truly felt here…” even though she spoke with a bright voice, tears leaked from the corners of her eyes…
⛆ “CinderPaw knew… And she warned me, she warned me that the other clans were selfish and would use me. CinderPaw was right…” At about now, tears that she had been trying to hard to hold back had begun pouring out her green eyes. She cried for a solid minute before continuing again… “This whole situation taught me that there is no peace, there will never be. There will always be wars but ThunderClan must always come out on top.” Wiping her face in her own paws, she sat up more professionally. She didn’t want to speak so much but she let her heart speak instead.
⛆“I mean it this time, I’m all for ThunderClan… And regardless if fighting makes me uncomfortable, I will take down those that disrespect me and my clanmates. I’ve learned there will never be peace or harmony or any of that gross nonsense…! I swear BumbleStar, I’m in it for real this time…” She had some sort of fiery gaze that was fierce and unexpected from a cat like her… She was being serious… “The warrior code, Starclan and ThunderClan are all that matter now.”
˚₊‧꒰ა ☁︎ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ ——————
(At least she got straight to the point-) ——————
⛆ FrogPaw was scared… She was really scared… The gathering was only last night and something really bad happened at this gathering… Picture this; You make a friend… A friend that couldn’t remember anything but who she and immediate family were… The only reason the toms memory got any better was because of dear FrogPaw… All that time with someone, you’re destined ti feel something towards them, right?
⛆ Well, FrogPaw only truly realized this as she was on her way to the gathering… 15 moons old and she had thought she finally felt something for someone… In ThunderClan, she never got much of that love and care growing up… That sweetness she was given throughout the younger years of apprenticeship had only made her heart larger… She had feelings for ScalePaw back then…
⛆ She had been so excited to see him that night, even fixing up her fur in hopes of making the awaited interaction as magical as she dreamed of it being… But even so, without being there a second, her dreams came crumbling down upon her, everything was ripped away… And now the place she oh-so wished to belong in might just be ripped away too… She wondered if another clan would take her in if she begged hard enough…
⛆ FrogPaw found a part of herself, however… She didn’t like fighting but she would want nothing more than to stand on the bodies of those WindClan cats that had wronged her. Poison… maybe…? Shaking the gruesome thought out of her head, she makes her way into BumbleStars den, ready to face the worst. “BumbleStar…?” Her voice cracked slightly as she padded in… Before the leader even had a chance to speak, she began…
⛆ “I wanted to talk about last night… I know I’m in trouble but let me just explain for a moment… Please…” As much as the apprentice hated eye contact, her green gaze rested in the mollie in charge… Gulping down her fears, she continued. “Back when I was younger, I was so desperate to find a way to unite the clans by becoming friends with as many cats I could… I believed that we were all equally great and wanted to find a way to show that…” Oh yay! A story similar to every kit story!
⛆ FrogPaw somehow, still manages to maintain eye contact, however you could see it made her heavily uncomfortable. “I met scale… scar, then ScalePaw at my first ever gathering… He was an outcast, scared because he couldn’t remember some of his own clanmates… I empathized, simply because some of my clanmates in this clan hadn’t even bothered to introduce themselves to me… So we became friends…” she realized the memory part seemed irrelevant, though it was actually the biggest part of the story. She decided to touch on that…
⛆ “I have great memory, I’m really really good at remembering faces, smells, names… Being alone for so long, you don’t really have much to think about… I taught ScalePaw how to remember things by teaching him strategies and techniques to use in situations when needed to remember… We spent so much time together… And I… I felt appreciated… Something I’ve never truly felt here…” even though she spoke with a bright voice, tears leaked from the corners of her eyes…
⛆ “CinderPaw knew… And she warned me, she warned me that the other clans were selfish and would use me. CinderPaw was right…” At about now, tears that she had been trying to hard to hold back had begun pouring out her green eyes. She cried for a solid minute before continuing again… “This whole situation taught me that there is no peace, there will never be. There will always be wars but ThunderClan must always come out on top.” Wiping her face in her own paws, she sat up more professionally. She didn’t want to speak so much but she let her heart speak instead.
⛆“I mean it this time, I’m all for ThunderClan… And regardless if fighting makes me uncomfortable, I will take down those that disrespect me and my clanmates. I’ve learned there will never be peace or harmony or any of that gross nonsense…! I swear BumbleStar, I’m in it for real this time…” She had some sort of fiery gaze that was fierce and unexpected from a cat like her… She was being serious… “The warrior code, Starclan and ThunderClan are all that matter now.”
˚₊‧꒰ა ☁︎ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ ——————
(At least she got straight to the point-) ——————
Bumblestar had just been about to go find Frogpaw herself when, lo and behold, the apprentice stepped in. The cream and brown tabby sat up straight and fixed Frogpaw with a steely stare, not having forgotten the scene that had unfolded at the Gathering. Her explanation did not make her feel any better about this.
"Good to know you can at least recognize when you're in hot water," she said gruffly. "Just stop the damn crying, it's irritating."
The crying made Bumblestar want to swat her upside the head. Utterly ridiculous, how hard was it for someone to keep their composure?
"You're an apprentice. You should be focused on learning and providing for ThunderClan instead of galivantin' off with cats from other Clans. You said it taught you that there isn't any peace? You should've understood that already. What it should have taught you is that you are young, and inexperienced, and in no way equipped to be pursuing something like this, especially with someone of his rank, and especially with someone you should be considering an outsider. Stay there, I'm not done with you yet."
With a lash of her tail, she shouldered past Frogpaw and stuck her head through the curtain of lichen. "Alderstep!" she barked. "My den! Now!"
Oh, well, this was far more interesting than she really thought it would have been originally. Her expression took on a more serious edge. The deaths had been unexpected and rough to navigate. And with rogues apparently running rampant, it wouldn't hurt to have stationed guards.
"That's a great idea. You're free to go ahead and organize that however you want, so long as it actually works out. Good thinking, love."
GENTLEDOE
messy-furred brown she-cat with heterochromia. she/her
With Bumblestar's approval, Gentledoe smiled and dipped her head in thanks. Her ear flicked at the little touch of 'love' at the end, a faintly amused glint shining in her eyes.
"Thank you, darling. I will report to you once more after everything has been set up." With that, she flicked her tail and spun around, exiting the den. Bumblestar had many other things to focus on- Gentledoe didn't want to take up too much of her time.
Alderstep had been enjoying his wonderous day (read: wondering why all his friends kept disappearing) and chewing off one of his claws absentmindedly when he heard this nagging, grating voice that could only be Bumblestar calling his name. His head whipped around to see the leader peeking her head out of her den. Oh boy. That was frightening. Did he do something? Was he finally in trouble?
Only one way to find out. The deputy trotted over to the den, forcing his fur to lie flat. He'd gotten caught off guard, and now his tail had fluffed up in his startle. He only hoped he could pass it off as his natural state.
Alderstep quickly forgot his worry about his appearance when he saw none other than Frogpaw in the leader's den. "You!" he snarled, letting his emotion get the jump on himself. He couldn't even blame himself entirely; the tom had been repressing his general dislike for everything ever since he got the shiny new rank of deputy. Why not let his anger out on some random, idiotic child? Wait, no. That was probably not a good idea. Subtly (because there wasn't much of a difference between his natural annoyed state and his angry state), he reigned in his words. "Care to explain the completely silly scene you started at the gathering?" he hissed, lashing his tail as he glanced over at Bumblestar.
He should probably step back, figuratively and literally. So, Alderstep did just that. This wasn't his territory anyways. Handling children would always be an unobtainable skill to him; he was convinced of it. He only hoped Bumblestar was any better than he. Probably not. But then again...she did have her own kits, right? The tom looked down at his white paws. "Sorry," he muttered. "You needed me?" Alderstep fixed his gaze onto Bumblestar, decidedly ignoring Frogpaw now. The cat in charge had to have called him in for a reason other than him just yelling at a 'paw.
⛆ FrogPaw flinched at her deputies aggressive demeanor, and moved her gaze to the ground shyly… FrogPaw was utterly embarrassed… She never meant to make a scene, and she never meant to make her heart so known to others. Its very hard to hide the truth in one’s gaze… It seems she had pissed off yet another cat, and though she needed to say something, she felt that words would dig her reputation deep into a grave…
⛆ “I’m sorry,” FrogPaws gaze lifted, her ears flattened and her head dipped… “I was irresponsible, immature, and selfish… I got too attached while trying to make myself happy and expected everything to remain the same when I returned…” She didn’t even know what she was saying, and just let the words flood out of her mouth. She was stupid, bad, a disappointment, a burden, why would they even want to keep her after learning her secret…?
⛆ Her once calm tone turned into a worried one as she spoke some more. “I never… I never meant to cause problems… I never meant to hurt anyone, or make a fool out of ThunderClan…” She didn’t want to cry, she really didn’t want to cry. Her claws dug into the ground… “Please don’t get rid of me, I can do better. I am better…” Tears were really threatening to show…
˚₊‧꒰ა ☁︎ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ ——————
(I hope it was my turn.) ——————
Alderstep had been enjoying his wonderous day (read: wondering why all his friends kept disappearing) and chewing off one of his claws absentmindedly when he heard this nagging, grating voice that could only be Bumblestar calling his name. His head whipped around to see the leader peeking her head out of her den. Oh boy. That was frightening. Did he do something? Was he finally in trouble?
Only one way to find out. The deputy trotted over to the den, forcing his fur to lie flat. He'd gotten caught off guard, and now his tail had fluffed up in his startle. He only hoped he could pass it off as his natural state.
Alderstep quickly forgot his worry about his appearance when he saw none other than Frogpaw in the leader's den. "You!" he snarled, letting his emotion get the jump on himself. He couldn't even blame himself entirely; the tom had been repressing his general dislike for everything ever since he got the shiny new rank of deputy. Why not let his anger out on some random, idiotic child? Wait, no. That was probably not a good idea. Subtly (because there wasn't much of a difference between his natural annoyed state and his angry state), he reigned in his words. "Care to explain the completely silly scene you started at the gathering?" he hissed, lashing his tail as he glanced over at Bumblestar.
He should probably step back, figuratively and literally. So, Alderstep did just that. This wasn't his territory anyways. Handling children would always be an unobtainable skill to him; he was convinced of it. He only hoped Bumblestar was any better than he. Probably not. But then again...she did have her own kits, right? The tom looked down at his white paws. "Sorry," he muttered. "You needed me?" Alderstep fixed his gaze onto Bumblestar, decidedly ignoring Frogpaw now. The cat in charge had to have called him in for a reason other than him just yelling at a 'paw.
⛆ FrogPaw flinched at her deputies aggressive demeanor, and moved her gaze to the ground shyly… FrogPaw was utterly embarrassed… She never meant to make a scene, and she never meant to make her heart so known to others. Its very hard to hide the truth in one’s gaze… It seems she had pissed off yet another cat, and though she needed to say something, she felt that words would dig her reputation deep into a grave…
⛆ “I’m sorry,” FrogPaws gaze lifted, her ears flattened and her head dipped… “I was irresponsible, immature, and selfish… I got too attached while trying to make myself happy and expected everything to remain the same when I returned…” She didn’t even know what she was saying, and just let the words flood out of her mouth. She was stupid, bad, a disappointment, a burden, why would they even want to keep her after learning her secret…?
⛆ Her once calm tone turned into a worried one as she spoke some more. “I never… I never meant to cause problems… I never meant to hurt anyone, or make a fool out of ThunderClan…” She didn’t want to cry, she really didn’t want to cry. Her claws dug into the ground… “Please don’t get rid of me, I can do better. I am better…” Tears were really threatening to show…
˚₊‧꒰ა ☁︎ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ ——————
(I hope it was my turn.) ——————
Oh, boy. Alderstep looked just as pissed as she was. With a flick of an ear, Bumblestar scooted back to give her deputy room to sit. Ugh, it was getting crowded in here. She wanted to make this as fast as possible.
"Yes, you were all of those things," she snapped at Frogpaw. "Now, I already have an idea of what I think is a suitable consequence for whatever you've done here, but-" She gave Alderstep a pointed look "-I want to see what Alderstep thinks, first. If I think it's fine, I'll say so."
Re: ThunderClan Leader's Den
