Skyfall, Appleberry and Crowglow all shared a slightly annoyed glance, clearly wishing they too could help out.
"Should reinforcements be needed," Crowglow suddenly spoke up."we will help."
Grimpaw quietly dipped his head in respect to Dusklion before darting back to Crowglow, while Appleberry and Skyfall just sat down.
DUSKLION
she/her | riverclan's head lionheart | 28 moons
Casting a side-eye at the cat who approached her wanting to make sure she was okay, Dusklion just stared at them for a second. "...'M fine," she replied, giving Grimpaw a once-over before looking back to the group of cats. Quite a few had joined already, and with a glance up towards her brother, she hoped he wouldn't mind her starting to gather up the volunteers.
"Tinytoad, Cherryswirl, Pigeonpelt, Adderpaw! You four with us. The rest of you," Dusklion glanced around at those who had joined as well, pledging to fight, "stay alert. I can guarantee there'll be injuries to treat after these vermin are dealt with, so if Mists needs herbs collected, listen to her." Her fierce blue eyes dared anyone to challenge their medicine cat while the rest of them were out. She knew there was some tension with the choice that Birdsnow and Fades had given when the medicine cat was announced, but she sincerely hoped that since this was the first enemy attack since Mists had been promoted that the rest of the Clan would respect her position and the training she already had.
With both herself, Fades, and both Lionhearts leaving to deal with this, that just left Mists as the only cat of authority. Though Dusklion knew her friend could more than handle herself, she felt uncomfortable not leaving a warrior in charge. Hopefully her brother wouldn't mind this extra bit of orders. "Stagheart!" Her eyes turned towards the larger tom. "Keep the camp secure with Mists while we're gone." She gave him a nod - she was beginning to like the tom what with his battle skill and keenness to help. She knew he'd be the right cat to help Mists keep hold over the camp.
Looking now to both Lionhearts, Dusk gave them a nod. "We'll wait for Fades before headin' out. Either of you fought rats before?" Dusklion herself didn't have much experience with them, but they were just bigger mice in her mind. Surely they wouldn't put up that much of a fight.
Owltalon listened as cats got ordered around and addressed before her amber eyes settled on Dusklion. She shook her head. "Nope, honestly I've never seen the little critters around here." She shrugged her shoulders slightly. "In other words, I'm totally inexperienced."
Guessing by the fact that Dusklion was even asking the question, perhaps they'd get a quick "how to kill rats lesson 101" so that they didn't end up bleeding out on the forest floor. How kind of her.
(Sorry for the short post! Others will be longer, I promise)
__________________
❝Whatever will be, will be. Don't care what anyone else thinks.❞
-When You Grow Up, Your Heat Dies My Art Shop!
signature picture by @/GreenTheGreat toyhouse / finders
This is simply a reaction post since I felt like writing a bit more about Spring and setting up for his future development, but it's open if any cat who is not participating would like to interact.
Something was going on outside.
Springkit had been inside the nursery, occupied by his close examination of a rock he had found sitting outside the apprentices' den a few days ago, and had decided to take back to his and Mother's nest, but a raised voice from the clearing made the pebble irrelevant in an instant. Peeking his head out of the nursery, Springkit just managed to catch the leaderkitty hop up on the Meetingstone. Ok so it was a meeting. That would have been his first guess, but something didn't feel right, and leaderkitty's demeanor made something in Springkit feel... off.
Rats. He had seen mice, birds flying overhead, fish being stocked on the freshkill pile. Never once had he heard of rats. If they weren't on the freshkill pile they weren't food but something else, but the only animal Springkit had been told about were foxes. Foxes were not prey because they were too dangerous to hunt and too big to safely take on in a battle. If rats were not being hunted by warriors... they must be the ones hunting us. Like foxes. And there were fifteen of them.
Suddenly all curiosity had evaporated from Springkit's little body. His shoulders slumped down, tail drooped, and he started to feel as if all of him were made of stone, too heavy to be held up straight. In fact, he wasn't feeling well at all. Because something was turning inside his stomach as if he had eaten something bad, his heart started to beat as if he had been running, and his breath became shallow, as if there wasn't enough air around him. But he hadn't eaten anything bad, he hadn't been running, the air wasn't running out, so why did he feel so sick now...
Crowglow's howl shot through Springkit like a shard of ice, as he forced back a yelp. 'no rat infestation can take us down' So rats were something that would at least try to harm his clanmates, they were something that could hurt them. And yet, all around Springkit cats were gathering, apprentices too who couldn't be that much older than him, and all of them so eager. Maybe that was what loyalty to your clan was supposed to mean, but Springkit couldn't shake the horrible feeling growing somewhere inside his belly. He was sick. Probably. That had to be the answer. He needed to see Herbcat, that was what one was supposed to do when they were sick. He would have to wait a bit for the patrol to leave first, because right now he couldn't bring himself to move even a single muscle.
She/Her | Purrk(s): Just A Scratch
There was quite a ruckus stirring up in the clearing, or so Wisteriawren presumed that was what it was as she sat in a corner, eyes wide with awe as her gaze flitted from cat to cat. She would probably never be able to stop gawking at the amount of cats that made up RiverClan. It was... surreal, and more than once Wisteriawren felt like she'd wake up in Greta's warm upwalker nest, having been reverted back to her old life, a kittypet by the name of Melody once more.
But she never woke from this happy dream - and Wisteriawren, surprisingly, never wanted to. Everything felt... brighter here. Like seeing colors for the first time after living in a black-and-white world. These cats... they displayed emotions, some that Wisteriawren herself had never experienced. There was something called being angry - and in all fairness, Wisteriawren had only used the nickname 'Angry' for Fadingsun when she hadn't known his name because she was guessing that one time he'd threatened her was what anger looked like.
Threatened... Wisteriawren was still growing familiar with the term. She hadn't realized how much violence there was in the world, and while seeing all these emotions and states of being was fascinating beyond measure, it also made Wisteriawren. . . what? What did it make her?
She didn't know how to pin down her feelings, her emotions, because experiencing them was so new on its own. She knew happiness. She knew comfort. She knew contentedness. She knew not much aside from that. She had been somewhat aware she'd lived a spoiled life with Greta, the sweetest upwalker to ever exist in Wisteriawren's opinion, but now... now Wisteriawren was realizing the extent of how pampered she'd been.
Still, she would not return for anything, even if Greta was still alive. Something inside her begged to stay here, begged to seek out and unlock and understand the intricacies of Clan life. It was a... a natural, bubbling... curiosity. It made her happy, made her feel like she could have a second home somewhere, made her feel content that perhaps this home could be better than the last.
Speaking of this home... Wisteriawren's ears swiveled towards Fadingsun as the black and orange tom let out a yowl that commanded attention. Rats? Huh... Wisteriawren had seen one once, or so she assumed that was what it was had been. It had been a mangy thing, and not particularly friendly, to Wisteriawren's dismay. Greta had let out a very frightening screech upon seeing it, Wisteriawren's eardrums had been scarred for days.
Fadingsun had asked for volunteers... but while Dusklion had called her a warrior, she had no battle training, so she presumed she could not go. Refusing to let this missed opportunity to see RiverClan land bring her down, the ex-kittypet instead turned her eyes towards the volunteering cats.
So many were willing to help, and it brought a smile to Wisteriawren's face. She reckoned Fadingsun and Dusklion could use all the help they could get.
Speaking of helping around... gold-flecked blue eyes settled on a small hunched shape, tail drooping, body curled in on itself. Something uneasy prickled in Wisteriawren's heart at the sight. What was... what..? Oh no! That was the little kitten Wisteriawren had been debating walking up to yesterday to beg for a cuddle (in her defense, Wisteriawren had not seen a kit in... since she'd last seen a tiny version of herself two summers ago in a mirror), but he'd been busy talking to another cat so she hadn't wanted to interrupt.
But now nobody was approaching him - nobody was paying any mind to the little kitten curled in their midst, and Wisteriawren could not help herself as she rose to her paws and scuttled over, shorter-than-average legs carrying her across the clearing to the little one. "Hallo!" She offered cheerily, instantly dropping down into a low-to-the-ground crouch so she could be eye level with the adorable bundle of fluff. "Are you okay? My name is Mel- Wisteriawren, I'm new here! What's your name?" She beamed with pride after announcing her name. She still couldn't believe she'd gotten a new name. It was so cool! And her favorite flower, too!
Birdsnow wearily dragged herself out of the medicine den. She had put on some muscle and weight, not healthy but closer. Soon she'd be able to get back to... normal ish. Hopefully.
(closed to anyone except for those with previous relationships with bird)
Rainpaw
He/They - 14 Moons
Welp. Another meeting. Boo. Rainpaw sluggishly dragged himself from the warrior den, prepared for another boring meeting. His demeanor changed in an instant to happy once he spotted his former mentor. The tiny apprentice trotted over to furbs, attempting to give her a slight nudge on her side to announce his presence. "Hey, furbs. How ya doin? I missed ya," he whispered, crouching down on the former leader's left side. He trusted her on his blind side, so now he could see any approaching cats. "Fadingsun is my mentor now. Thinks he can one-up ya, but he will never be like you. He hasn't done anything to earn my respect," they said to update furbs, forcing themselves to say 'Fadingsun' instead of 'Fadingdumb.' The one-eyed tabby scanned the ragdoll she. Furbs looked much healthier compared to the last time they saw her. "Once you're better, I can tell fading that I can be your apprentice again!" he mewed, piping up. "B-but thats only if you want to. I dont wanna be a burden for ya." they quickly added, half-whispering. After all Birdsnow had bee through, Rainpaw didn't want to be any more of a burden to her.
x ghostie is haunting this signature
Bean's favorite staff member Lillian was here
lio sneezed here (achoo)
you see crude graffiti... it spells "velli wuz here"
Rose caught the sickness (oh dear)
fenrir stares at rose with a spray bottle of water in hand
My Soul is in @/Ian's basement with some ice cream
Hearing her name called, a smile appeared on the molly's muzzle as she now paddled over to the group of gathering cats. Pigeonpelt felt happy that she could help the clan, and this would be another way to show her loyalty and her usage to RiverClan. Dipping her head down slightly, she first greeted her companions on this patrol. There was Fadingsun, the leader, of course, as well as Dusklion. There there was Tinytoad, Cherryswirl, and Adderpaw.
"Slightly, not much," She answered Dusklion's question simply, her tail lashing behind her. Most of the time Pigeonpelt had stuck to water-hunting, and hardly would she hunt rabbits or mice. Knowing that these rats are larger, it'll be tougher to fight them. Pausing, she decided to add to her response. "But I could always learn." Would they feel disdain for someone inexperienced as her to join the patrol? Hopefully not.
She/Her | Chaotic Good | Warrior
Go With The Flow [Active]
There it is... Cherryswirl smiled as well, happy to see Dusklion's own smile brewing up. She couldn't even begin to imagine the weight on the young lionheart's shoulders. Young? Eh... Everyone was young to Swirls at this point! To be honest, Cherryswirl had begun to feel... maybe not responsible for, but something along those lines to Dusk. Vaguely how she felt for Fishfreckle, or for Cinnamonswirl - those had both been her apprentices though. She would have to take some time to start understanding those feelings later - for now there was good company and a good meal to be had! As the other gently touched her paw, Cherryswirl gave a warm nod of appreciation before leaning down to chomp another bite of the fish. Star above... it was delicious.
"Mm- 'ood," A small piece of fish fell from her mouth, earning an amused purr from the warrior. Oops. How rude of her! Quickly chewing the fish, Swirls swallowed heavy before she spoke up again, "Good to go do that whenever you're ready." Though as Dusklion continued, she gave a soft, thoughtful hum,
"Far... Maybe a day or so... It was morning when I left and I was trapped in the cold thorns for... well - about until sun-high. The two-legs showed up then," It was clear she was really wracking her brain to try and remember. Everything had all felt like a stressful blur of events - especially after the strange white cave. She couldn't remember anything that had happened during or briefly after that. "-it was maybe sundown when we left the forest. They put me in some two-leg monster and that shook me around for a long time... but it was dark outside when they took me back out. I... I can't remember much after that." Her head was starting to ping ever so slightly with pain.
"When I traveled back it took me maybe... three days to finally catch some sort of familiar clan scent? A few of the kitty pets and loners in that area pointed me in the right direction. There were a few unfriendly faces out there though... Anyways, it was another two I think to make my way back to the territory from there." Swirls was thankful for the ones who had helped - and rather disdained by the ones who had threatened her. Thankfully, they had been no match for her!
There was quite a ruckus stirring up in the clearing, or so Wisteriawren presumed that was what it was as she sat in a corner, eyes wide with awe as her gaze flitted from cat to cat. She would probably never be able to stop gawking at the amount of cats that made up RiverClan. It was... surreal, and more than once Wisteriawren felt like she'd wake up in Greta's warm upwalker nest, having been reverted back to her old life, a kittypet by the name of Melody once more.
But she never woke from this happy dream - and Wisteriawren, surprisingly, never wanted to. Everything felt... brighter here. Like seeing colors for the first time after living in a black-and-white world. These cats... they displayed emotions, some that Wisteriawren herself had never experienced. There was something called being angry - and in all fairness, Wisteriawren had only used the nickname 'Angry' for Fadingsun when she hadn't known his name because she was guessing that one time he'd threatened her was what anger looked like.
Threatened... Wisteriawren was still growing familiar with the term. She hadn't realized how much violence there was in the world, and while seeing all these emotions and states of being was fascinating beyond measure, it also made Wisteriawren. . . what? What did it make her?
She didn't know how to pin down her feelings, her emotions, because experiencing them was so new on its own. She knew happiness. She knew comfort. She knew contentedness. She knew not much aside from that. She had been somewhat aware she'd lived a spoiled life with Greta, the sweetest upwalker to ever exist in Wisteriawren's opinion, but now... now Wisteriawren was realizing the extent of how pampered she'd been.
Still, she would not return for anything, even if Greta was still alive. Something inside her begged to stay here, begged to seek out and unlock and understand the intricacies of Clan life. It was a... a natural, bubbling... curiosity. It made her happy, made her feel like she could have a second home somewhere, made her feel content that perhaps this home could be better than the last.
Speaking of this home... Wisteriawren's ears swiveled towards Fadingsun as the black and orange tom let out a yowl that commanded attention. Rats? Huh... Wisteriawren had seen one once, or so she assumed that was what it was had been. It had been a mangy thing, and not particularly friendly, to Wisteriawren's dismay. Greta had let out a very frightening screech upon seeing it, Wisteriawren's eardrums had been scarred for days.
Fadingsun had asked for volunteers... but while Dusklion had called her a warrior, she had no battle training, so she presumed she could not go. Refusing to let this missed opportunity to see RiverClan land bring her down, the ex-kittypet instead turned her eyes towards the volunteering cats.
So many were willing to help, and it brought a smile to Wisteriawren's face. She reckoned Fadingsun and Dusklion could use all the help they could get.
Speaking of helping around... gold-flecked blue eyes settled on a small hunched shape, tail drooping, body curled in on itself. Something uneasy prickled in Wisteriawren's heart at the sight. What was... what..? Oh no! That was the little kitten Wisteriawren had been debating walking up to yesterday to beg for a cuddle (in her defense, Wisteriawren had not seen a kit in... since she'd last seen a tiny version of herself two summers ago in a mirror), but he'd been busy talking to another cat so she hadn't wanted to interrupt.
But now nobody was approaching him - nobody was paying any mind to the little kitten curled in their midst, and Wisteriawren could not help herself as she rose to her paws and scuttled over, shorter-than-average legs carrying her across the clearing to the little one. "Hallo!" She offered cheerily, instantly dropping down into a low-to-the-ground crouch so she could be eye level with the adorable bundle of fluff. "Are you okay? My name is Mel- Wisteriawren, I'm new here! What's your name?" She beamed with pride after announcing her name. She still couldn't believe she'd gotten a new name. It was so cool! And her favorite flower, too!
Springkit
asddfghjkg hope the formatting makes sense lol I had a very clear idea of what the post would sound like as audiobook but my braincells are glitching
More cats joined. More bodies gathered around Fadingsun. More eager voices rose up from the mass, volunteering their help. No one of them seemed... scared, at least not the same way Springkit was. Not even hesitant to go fight those things. Loyalty. The word resurfaced somewhere in the storm of his mind - 'Is this was loyalty is? Is it being prepared to get hurt? I mean, wouldn't I do the same to keep my clanmates safe? - only to be washed away again.
Yellow and blue eyes shifted from cat to cat as he tried to keep his vision steady, but the pelts seemed to melt together. 'I ne- I need to breathe.'
One of the pelts broke loose from the crowd. 'Somehow I need to be able to actually get air into my lungs again.'
Or came from another part of the camp, he wasn't sure on details. 'Like I can inhale so-'
Was it coming towards him..? 'so WHY DOESN'T IT FEEL LIKE IT?' "Hallo" Then she was in front of him. Something in Springkit's gaze refocused again, anchoring on her smile as she lowered herself to meet his eyes. 'Foxes are bigger than warriors, so how big exactly are rats?'
She said something more. '... her eyes seem... warm...'
"Oh, ello- Was his voice that weak? He cleared his throat a bit for another attempt. "I think.... I'm just a bit sick. I feel... a bit weird so I must be getting sick. Don't worry im gonna see Misty once the patrol leaves." She had said her name. He knew that she had. A blur of w's and r' with some s-sounds.. it just kinda mixed together. Wait no, hadn't she said "Mel" was her name? He had caught that part at least.
New? He blinked, gaze still occasionally darting to the cats preparing to leave, but also curiously examining Mel. "How are you new here? What do you mean?" He if anything was new. Mother had said that there were warriors who were over 50 moons old, and elders who had been over 100 - Springkit was 2. "Eh, I'm Springkit, I'm new. He tapped a paw to his chest a little ('wait I can breathe... kinda normally... at least more normally?'), as if pointing at himself. "Im 2! And there is no way you're 2 moons old, you look like a fully grown warrior."
Warrior. She looked like a warrior. Grown-up... and of a similar size as the rest of the cats who had gathered around the leader. "Eh, Mel, you're not gonna follow the patrols, are ya?"Please say no. He got that more warriors fighting the rats would mean more warriors per rat and it meant that they would win easier and it meant that hopefully no one would get as hurt, but right now Springkit wanted nothing more than to stand between his clanmates and the entrance and scream at the not to go. ".... Because if you do, they're leaving really soon so you should... prob like go-" vague motioning towards the group- "over... there."
Then it was as if his mind cleared a bit. "NOT that I'm telling you to leave - sorri! - but if you're gonna go with them... you know you should probably be with them so that you're ready."
"Of course." Stagheart nodded firmly, feeling a bit of a glow of appreciation. Dusklion trusted him enough to ask him, alongside Mistyshard, to be the formal guards of camp. He was glad the higher ranks of his Clan seemed to trust him enough to ask things like that... it was nice. Even for the tough-shelled tomcat.
He padded over near the medicine cat and nodded to her, proudly taking his stance as appointed guard.