At the mention of Fawnlight, Cowtuft's interest was piqued. Oh silly him, she must be sleeping or occupied. That put an ease to his heart, so she was alright. Aha, he did hope she joined him on this night. He felt awfully lonely without her. He did not quite understand the small one or who was.. speaking. It was an unfamiliar voice, so he stayed quiet - attempting to be as polite as possible while his mind swirled.
His attention was turned to Dawnstar as she had begun to speak. Cowtuft found himself frowning just slightly at the declaration that any.. trespassers would be.. killed on her territory. He wasn't surprised but, truly, what a dire consequence. Starclan would not approve of this wouldn't they? (And yet, they remained silent. ) A shame they were having issues with trespassers but, but still.. some of them really just needed help.. and the loss of Silverbird. His expression softened with sympathy. He hoped that one day, Shadowclan would crawl up the path of redemption. Surely, Cowtuft knew, not all of them were ridden with darkness.
His thoughts wandered absent-mindedly, a sadness deep in his round eyes. Floppy ears perking up when Ivysnake spoke to him, beckoning him a little closer; ah, her suffix was fitting. He could see the venom laced in her teeth. He only gave her a curt nod in response, his tail curling around him tighter as he averted his gaze. ... he didn't want to be here anymore. Cowtuft focused his attention on the leaders.
It was Twilightstar who had gone next. He smiled at the news of Littlepaw - and then the announcement of Badgerfoot and Berryfrost. Oh, how he was proud of those three. What an amazing accomplishment, especially to be warriors. It shifted over two him and Cowtuft sucked in a deep breath. Right. .. right.
The gentle giant still put on a smile, ever more when he caught Twilightstar's eye. He did not need to worry anyone, no, he would overcome this. What.. what else was there to do? His tail lifted up to give a small wave and gosh, .. she looked awfully cold.
With the loss of Squirrelkit being announced (he winced at remembrance), Windclan's announcements came to an end. He found his gaze trailing to the starry sky. The Silverpelt, it held so many mysteries. Cowtuft could hear Pikestar speak, explaining how Fawnlight had been injured gravely and Stonepaw was to take her place. He .. he felt.. he had been pushed into icy cold water.
A sudden shock to his system.
That.. that explained why, but, but why? If, she.. she had been picked by Starclan to be her clan's medicine cat. It didn't make any lick of sense for her to become this injured, surely, Starclan would've stepped in? Did they not care? No, no - that was a sinful thought...
but fawnlight's life would never be the same.
It was the stars that had started to shift that shook Cowtuft's from his growing doubt. His mismatched eyes widened, and his heart sunk to his stomach. His fluffy fur begun to rise with static as they... morphed. Where they had once been, they were no longer. An impossible feat, but the stars had started to align to form a picture. He thought it was a cloud at first, he had always enjoyed picking out pictures in the very clouds, but it started to become clearer.
Jagged in line, the very stars he worshipped transformed to paint the picture of a lightning sky across the sky. Only for his eyes to see.
The medicine cat rose to his paws, in a trance from what he was witnessing, and he started to take a few steps. Eyebrows furrowing, pardon? What... what was he seeing?
Blink.
The picture was cleared almost immediately and Cowtuft jerked back, looking to his fellow medicine cats with a deep concern. They had to see that too, hadn't they? The - ... what was that?
[ @TheNyanCatMinecart @Ravensong @carmen @Estelle + @Moonraven || note : they should not see the stars aligning. this is only in cowtuft's vision. ]
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Moonpaw (she/her)
Shadowclan Black calico with half face ginger and amber eyes
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Moonpaw realized how much surprise she’d felt when she realized how friendly this Thunderclan cat was. She was pretty sure all the other clans hated Shadowclan -and surely they had good reasons for that- but Oriolepaw seemed so good! In her clan, no other apprentice had been so kind to her in all this time. Well, except for his brother, of course.
The Thunderclan apprentice turned his head as a long, interminable list of announcements was made by many cats Moonpaw didn’t recognize. She knew the big cats on the Seastones beside Dawnstar were the other leaders, but she wasn’t sure who was who. I hope this is normal. Maybe I should ask Darkfall when we come back home.
Right, the cats at the base were the medicine cats. There were Elmshadow and Ivysnake, the mean followers of Dawnstar that were supposed to heal her clan. Uh, I hate them so much. The other medicine cats seem a lot nicer than them.
She noticed Oriolepaw’s reaction to the news of a cat called Fawnlight, but honestly, Moonpaw didn’t have any idea about that name. He looked sorry, though, and she understood why. It must be terrible to lose your place in the clan because of some injuries.
Uh? Oriolepaw had addressed her again, asking something about the first Gathering. ”Oh, it’s so big! And this place is really weird. I mean, where does all that water come from? There’s such a weird scent in the air, I can’t even distinguish one clan from the other… It’s confusing, but I really like to see new places!” She commented enthusiastically, happy that she’d found someone to chat with for a while, without any worries or negative comments.
He watched Elmshadow from where he sat scrunched up against the side of Gingerfrost, staring at the dude as he did nothing but stare. He was creepy. He waited for the old tom to take the gift, but he did nothing but continuing looking around. He didn't take the gift. How. Dare. He. Stonepaw had spent hours wandering around with a grumpy dude, and all he had been given in return was a cold stare? That was mean and Stonepaw didn't like meanies. Momentarily forgetting the commotion nearby, his mouth hung open in a clear expression of shock. How dare he. He had put in time. He had put in effort. He had tried to match personalities and this is what he got? Shadowclan truly was evil, he knew that now.
His question was responded to be a few quick words from Gingerfrost, and it did nothing but bring back his earlier pain. Now he remembered that Stone was the mean one, leaving her behind. She had probably been sleeping and they had just left. Nice nice. He wasn't nice. Just a meanie. Thoughts were interrupted as another cat arrived, and the grey tom stared at the cat coming up. "Hello, Mr." This guy looked nicer than the other two, albeit a bit scared. Or was that anger. Or confusion? Maybe that's what it meant to be afloof, or whatever the word Beastboy had said.
"I have a present for you." With the sting of rejection still barely fading, all that he could do was pray this guy wasn't as much a meanie as Elmshadow. Taking the brown feather and pushing it forward, he stared at the black and white cat, waiting for a response. If he was nice enough, he'd be given a different feather next time. This one just didn't suit him as well as Stonepaw had originally hoped. This was supposed to be perfect, and instead, it was all going wrong. Karma was a cruel master.
The scary lady on top of the rock began to talk once more, and his ears twitched slightly, though attention did not move away from the scattered presents before them. If someone took one, he was ready for the words of appreciation that would be paired with any such acceptance. Only, it didn't come. Instead, the venom of correction came from the direction of Ivysheep, and it was then that he realized it. Beastflame had been wrong. "Ivysnake." He repeated her words, cringing slightly with embarrassment. Well, that was another thing down wrong. A giggle came from beside him, and he went to smile at a slightly intimidating she-cat. At least she was having fun with it all. And then the already venomous snake did something worse. She kicked the pebble. That was worse than Elmshadow. She would not get away with this, no, no, no. He would not let her.
Ignoring a slight sent at Cowboy, Stone stared at her. Hrmskldfmakmmdm stupid little ldkakm aiojfoiejwo old lady aiuehiauewhi. He had not a plan of attack, but he would do something later. Revenge was a dish best served when she was least expecting and he had a plan. He would now be ignoring her, so her next question was ignoring as he turned towards the big rock cats. The lilac oriental, presumably Twilightstar, was speaking. A glance at Cowboy as he became Cowtuft, and Stonepaw began to slink away from the side of Gingerfrost, comfort growing as the outsider left and all began to calm down. "Congrats!"
Oh dear, a kit had died. That was quite sad. OldCatPike began to speak and Stonepaw found himself actually listening to the man, the myth, the legend. Nodding along, and flinching as he mentioned Fawnlight's injuries. Once again in pain thinking of the normally happy molly. He hoped she was doing well, genuinely doing well. Not just whatever lies everyone else would put up with 'i'm okay.' He listened slightly to the words of Sparrowstar, but got up to make his way closer to Gingerfrost. Only, the pebble got in the way, and he fell, landing nearly on top of Ivysnake's tail. In the last moment, teeth snapped, and he sacrificed the cleanliness of fur for a hopeful bite of tail.
Jumping up he turned over to see the shape of Sundust appearing. "Mr. Sundust! Here's your flower." He stumbled over to the orange flower and handed it to him. "Also got a stick for you, cause I wasn't sure if you'd like it." The stick was pushed over as well, though eyes once again looked at Cowtuft. He was staring at the stars, though he didn't know what he was looking at. His head craneed upwards, and he fell over backwards, though this time he didn't try to stand up. Everything was the same, yep, yep. What was he looking at? Make friends bro, make friends. "I like the stars too!"
Gingerfrost's answer to his questioning gave little knowledge and only ripened new curiosities, though Elmshadow realized he didn't expect any more from the Riverclan deputy. Priorly occupied, that was well enough being that she was a medicine cat. It didn't answer what he was doing here but Elmshadow figured he could deduce the small tom as being the new Riverclan medicine cat apprentice, the scrap looked the part as a Riverclanner anyway. But then the part about him ensuring the young cat didn't get lost, that was downright pathetic. Elmshadow decided to let it all go, sure he'd get some answers later, more productively anyway than posing any further questions to Gingerfrost. Likewise, Stonepaw escaped his mind and his attention completely.
Until he was awarded some of it back by proxy as Ivysnake's attention was turned on the young cat. Her fur was bristling noticeably and he shot her a cool green warning. If Stonepaw's misnaming had been intentional then it was a juvenile jab that, to Elmshadow, didn't warrant the attention. If it had been an honest mistake then, as much as Elmshadow understood Ivysnake's irritation, it was merely a mistake that needed correction. His warning look simmered into mild exasperation as the she-cat shot her paw out and kicked the Riverclanner's stone, sending it off into the crowd of cats. He was none more impressed by the pathetic display of the other clans but juvenile tantrums were unbefitting.
He was relieved when Dawnstar got into her announcements after exchanging words with the other leaders, no doubt about the previous display. His expression remained neutral as she briefly shared there trouble with trespassing cats and internal conflicts though the headache of it all was still fresh in his mind. And then the overrt warning to the other clans than trespassers would be killed on sight. Elmshadow had always preferred a method of giving one warning, erring on the side of avoiding an unnecessary battle, but if other clans and outsiders were getting the idea that they had the chance to talk their way out of issue after crossing into Shadowclan territory then the logic of attack first, ask questions later was apparent enough. The new apprentices were a potential positive, depending on what the young cats did with their new ranks and then Dawnstar mentioned the mysterious death of Silverbird. Elmshadow didn't enjoy the thought of losing queens, whose role in the clan had always been one he respected for what it was, but at least she'd done her job to the last and delivered them healthy kits for the future of their clan.
Twilightstar was the next leader to begin her announcements and Elmshadow found little use in any of it, as usual. The Gatherings rarely offered much of true value and he never enjoyed them but he'd always known them as a responsibility to attend for those occasions when something of import did slip.
He expected much of the same as Pikestar began speaking but his ears perked as the questions he'd been sitting on earlier were answered as he thought they may, but certainly not how he thought they'd be answered. He took a mental note to watch out for the hot black stones that Pikestar mentioned but hearing of Fawnlight made everything else fit into place. She was burned, to the point of stepping down from being a medicine cat, and this Stonepaw, no older than a kit, was their new medicine cat. The other clans maintained their dependency on Starclan, and Elmshadow had nothing against the more revered ancestors, but to follow either Starclan or the Dark Forest even to the extent of ignoring one's own thoughts, opinions, and instinct, it was daft. And after this he couldn't understand how they maintained such blind faith. Starclan allowed their newly-named medicine cat to be injured beyond healing and then sent them a kit to take her place. After all that, and they still believed Starclan had any favor towards them? The other clans could hate on Shadowclan for its allegiance with the Dark Forest but Shadowclan was thriving in natural areas the other clans were failing, so much good their devotion to Starclan was doing them.
Sparrowstar getting into Thunderclan's announcements saved him from dwelling on the curiosities of religion and devotion though she gave a report similar to Twilightstar's, nothing of significant intrigue.
Then the side of his eye was caught by movement and his gaze shifted. Cowtuft was moving forward, staring at the stars in some bewilderment. Elmshadow watched blandly as the Windclan medicine cat made a silent spectacle before coming out of it as though from a trance and there was something familiar about the sober look of concern on his face. The large tom was generally as jovial and social as the other medicine cats but there had now been two notable times when the younger tom took on a more serious demeanor, something so starkly different from his normal awkwardly naïve attitude. The other had been when he had been confronted by that Dark Forest cat. So what had sobered the Windclanner this time?
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Active Purrks Elmshadow - The Collector Cougarivy - Beefed Up Sunsetpaw - Biligual, Flock Together:Tier 2
- - - - - Character Site
- - - - - Elmshadow
- - - - - Shadowclan Healing
Sootfur listened quietly to the leaders’ announcements, but his ears perked up painfully at the sound of Quietpaw’s name being announced among the dead. The gray tabby let his head rest on Flameheart’s strong body, and he closed his eyes to hide the grief that was tightening his chest in a terrible grip. Would this suffering ever end? He thought of Crowpaw and the hatred in his eyes when he looked at him, and then again at Quietpaw’s little body laid out in the clearing, all covered in dark red blood…
”I can’t wait to go home.” He murmured with tiredness with his muzzle still sunken in her fur. But then, he knew he wouldn’t escape his nightmares anywhere. But at least there wouldn’t be any Shadowclan cat around him, and the warrior’s den would soon become quiet and silent. No more crowds, bickerings, fights.
He cherished Flameheart’s warmth more than everything else in that moment; no other cat had ever appeared as strong as her. Thunderclan would always count on her, and Sootfur would lie if he didn’t admit to himself how much of a shoulder she’d become for him. He’d grown up, but how? What did I became? A weak, pathetic cat… who has to lean on others to survive his own monsters. How will I ever live through this?
As the world around them kept going on as usual, the sounds became blurry for Sootfur as he tried to block everything out except for Flameheart’s reassuring presence. Maybe, just maybe… he secretly fear that he might one day lose her. To his own clan, maybe. And then… what would remain of him?
Amberpaw nearly jumped in fear when she heard a voice. "Hello," She meowed, again trying her best too seem professional. She could show no flaws, or else this apprentice (probably from another clan) would see that Windclan was weak! Not that it actually was.
Deciding to face this so called 'Swanpaw', Amberpaw made sure to keep watch of the crowd around her. Cats were crazy these days, very erratic. They could attack at any moment! Though, even if she kept most of her senses on the crowd, she listen to Swanpaw again. "Salutations ... Nice to meet you Swanpaw, I guess I may tell you my moniker ... that means name" Amberpaw told the cat, quickly licking her paw before continuing "It is Amberpaw, that is my name. My clan is Windclan ... I would not like to guess, but I assume your clan is ... Riverclan, please correct me if I am wrong." She meowed, glancing around since now she was finished talking. She hoped this apprentice wouldn't stay or talk for long. She was trying to retain some important information! This was her first gathering after all.
//Swanpaw can stay as long as she wants near Amberpaw! Only if you want that is. Amberpaw just likes to stay professional, she hates the idea of cats hurting each other so she has realized if a cat can't necessarily see another cats flaws, then they most likely wouldn't fight them. Also, this is her first gathering so she's just a bit nervous //
Swanpaw let the rain drench her coat as it slid off her rather sleek fur, she listened intently to the molly as she spook the nervous pauses being noted to remember. "My clan is Shadowclan. It's mighty swell to meet you!" She half expected this nervous feline to scurry away from her as soon as she said the clan, it wasn't a surprise since Windclan and Shadowclan had long since been enemies.
This molly was interesting although the Swan could tell her heart wasn't in the conversation opting to do the same she listened in and found lots of interesting conversations happening around them. A trespasser blah blah clan tensions were always on the rise huh? The leaders ran through their announcements for their clans and she couldn't help but think about the little kit who died. Would her nieces be next? That didn't matter she would be their shield. "What sad news today..."
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. : + storage + : .
posting only on the weekend feel free to contact me
bump 3 days
Oriolepaw chuckled at Moonpaw’s assertation that the Seastones were weird. “Yeah, I suppose they are! I’ve never really thought about it too much, since there’s so much to think about when you’re at a Gathering.” A sudden realization hit him as his gaze briefly flicked back up to the leaders: Moonpaw probably didn’t know who anyone was! Well, except Dawnstar, and ShadowClan’s two medicine cats. Actually, Oriolepaw wasn’t familiar with their names, now that he thought about it.
Leaning closer to her, he whispered, “WindClan’s leader is the oldest, her name is Twilightstar. Her and Dawnstar really hate each other, or at least from what I’ve heard. Dawnstar did terrible things to WindClan, and even took Twilightstar’s eye! The long-faced one is Pikestar, he’s RiverClan’s leader. And then the last one is Sparrowstar; she’s ThunderClan’s leader! She’s really cool!
“The deputies are Fallownose, Thrushfur, and Gingerfrost. WindClan, ThunderClan, and RiverClan, respectively. I know Cowtuft is WindClan’s medicine cat, and I guess Stonepaw is RiverClan’s now.”
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Fadingstar is currently RiverClan's leader. He has an open den policy; his den can be found here. If you have any questions or concerns about RiverClan, or any plots to propose, feel free to leave me a VM or DM! Please do not take my characters' IC opinions as reflective of my own.
sagepaw
he/him
shadowclan / 113/100
white w/ grey-striped tail, green eyes
Sit still? Never. Sagepaw was looking everywhere, but his eyes were drawn back to Mintpaw as she nearly toppled over. He laughed for a bit before playfully flicking the she-cat with his tail. "It really is, huh? I'd offer you my tail, but, uh, it's not gonna do much. Do you think the leaders will draw this out for long?" He asked curiously. Maybe Mintpaw would know; she knew Pikestar better. That, and Sagepaw had a suspicion the fish was smarter than he was. Well, no. Not smarter, per se, just better at deducing things. Maybe. The cat's green eyes drifted over to the sight of Dawnstar (huh?), another cat, and a cluster of more cats. Uh, okay? Strange, but that was just Dawnstar being her usual Shadow queen self. Best not to question anything. He looked back to Mintpaw, grinning once again. "Personally, I'd just call off the meetings if it were this cold. 'Cept for the fact that StarClan would be upset or something like that," he added, nodding to emphasize his point.
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Mintpaw (she/her)
Riverclan White and gray siamese with blue eyes
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Mintpaw stared at Sagepaw with curious eyes. Had he just offered her his tail to warm her up? How... weird. But then, the happy memory of Slatestripe's body covering her cold, wet pelt reminded her of how much another cat's fur could bring warmth with so little effort. She thought that was one of the most precious memories she had of her mentor.
Sagepaw then asked about the leaders, but Mintpaw couldn't really say anything about them. She knew Pikestar didn't have much to announce, but that was all she knew. She twitched her whiskers at the apprentice's remark about Starclan's mood. Does he even know the Gathering was created by Starclan itself?
Anyway, she stayed silent as each clan's leader spoke at their turn. It looked like their time was already over - she was sure Sagepaw would be glad, as he seemed to be getting really bored tonight. Personally, Mintpaw just felt cold but she was enjoying the evening out there. She liked the Seastones.
When the silence fell again in the clearing, Mintpaw thought best to return to her clanmates so she would be ready to walk back with them as soon as Pikestar decided it was time. "...I think Riverclan is going home soon." She turned her blue eyes on Sagepaw's, wondering if he would remember her next time they would see each other.
Oriolepaw chuckled at Moonpaw’s assertation that the Seastones were weird. “Yeah, I suppose they are! I’ve never really thought about it too much, since there’s so much to think about when you’re at a Gathering.” A sudden realization hit him as his gaze briefly flicked back up to the leaders: Moonpaw probably didn’t know who anyone was! Well, except Dawnstar, and ShadowClan’s two medicine cats. Actually, Oriolepaw wasn’t familiar with their names, now that he thought about it.
Leaning closer to her, he whispered, “WindClan’s leader is the oldest, her name is Twilightstar. Her and Dawnstar really hate each other, or at least from what I’ve heard. Dawnstar did terrible things to WindClan, and even took Twilightstar’s eye! The long-faced one is Pikestar, he’s RiverClan’s leader. And then the last one is Sparrowstar; she’s ThunderClan’s leader! She’s really cool!
“The deputies are Fallownose, Thrushfur, and Gingerfrost. WindClan, ThunderClan, and RiverClan, respectively. I know Cowtuft is WindClan’s medicine cat, and I guess Stonepaw is RiverClan’s now.”
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Moonpaw (she/her)
Shadowclan Black calico with half face ginger and amber eyes
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Moonpaw blinked gratefully at the Thunderclan apprentice as he explained every name, unknown face. She winced visibly as Twilightstar's eye loss was mentioned to be caused by Dawnstar. In her mind, she saw again her leader's terrifying threat to Vixendance, and the same bloody punishment inflicted by the warrior himself.
She held her breath unconsciously but then realized Oriolepaw was still speaking. ..Uh? She had lost partially his words, but was able to hear the names of the last medicine cats.
Turning her gaze toward the Seastones, she glanced at their base and found a small gray cat and a huge, very huge white spotted tom. Uhm... the smallest should be Stonepaw. Then, the other one is Cowtuft? What a weird name. She was wondering who was Thunderclan's medicine cat, but then she noticed the various clan cats gathering again in clean groups, drawing closer to their leaders as they got ready to depart again.
"Aw, time passed so fast tonight! I hoped I would get to meet more cats tonight." She said with a hint of disappointment, but then realized she might've been rude to this friendly cat. "Oh, but you're very nice! I guess we'll see each other again at the next Gatherings, huh?" She added with a cheerful voice, trying to forget Twilightstar's lost eye and Vixendance's shrieks in her head.
She waved her tail and searched for Darkfall, her mentor, among the crowd. She wanted to tell the black tabby everything! And she had to find out what the other important cat's names were, of course.
@Darkclaws (just for view)
Wisppaw watched the ravens fly above the gathered cats, stomach turning as warriors and apprentices bustled around her. She tried to stay near the sidelines, squinting down at her paws. Her kitten fluff and size still hadn't gone away... hopefully no one would think she was just some naughty kit who snuck out.
She was nervous about the other clans and didn't want to look too weak, so Wisppaw held her head up in spite of her trembling.
Re: February Gathering
Re: February Gathering
