Mudhound
Thunderclan Hornet | They/them | 35 Moons
Bilingual T2 | Flock Together T3 | Rapid Recovery | Beefed up T3
You'd think gatherings would be the tripods sort of thing but after the first couple of messes the experience had kinda been tarnished for them. It wasnt really the peaceful bonding they'd hope for and, henceforth they'd stayed back and been the hornet to mind the camp while all the high ranks were gone. Last gathering they'd regretted that when Redhawk had come home hurt, this gathering they'd still hung back to spend the night sleeping curled around their friend(? felt like it was more as days went by).
However with Wolfhive bolting into the camp ahead of everyone, immediately summoning the hornets absent from the gathering to Bumblestars den that was maybe a mistake this time too. Uuuuuuuugh!
So, yawning and groggy Mudhound had shuffled the still injured molly onto their back, ignoring any protests from Redhawk because they were sleeping and who cared anyways, and padded their way up to the leaders den. Redhawk was then not put down and got treated to a fluffy muddy pillow to lay on as Mudhound just flopped onto the ground without removing her, uncaring of the weight on their back. Also ignoring the 'dead' Spiderthroat. Mudhound was pretty sure that guy couldnt die (like a cockroach) anyways.
"Soooooooo Im gonna assume something bad happened at the gathering to prompt this meeting then. Like worse then normal. Spill Woofie, whats killed Spider-dude so bad and where is Bumble-sis?"
Fast asleep. For the first time in awhile Redhawk was able to get some much needed sleep. Muddy was next to her and the rest of the cats were at the gathering - surely Bumblestar wouldn't mind. Even if she did there wasn't a force on this planet that could untangle the hornet from her warm, comforting, sleep bubble with her lover friend. Their fur felt nice to snuggle up against and she didn't mind one bit to be wrapped up with them.
But then they were shuffling awake drawing out little angry squeaks as Redhawk's jaws parted in a yawn - about as much protest as she could muster, including a soft and quiet kit-like growl as Mudhound hoisted them up onto their back. Soon enough they were lumbering across the clearing and Redhawk opened her eyes half way. "Noooo..." she whined quietly, "...too c-cold here..." But the Mud-train was already approaching Bumblestar's den, and Redhawk gave a huffed squeak and re-buried her face into the neck-fluff of her fellow hornet.
Feeling Muddy plop down onto the ground, Redhawk stayed like that for a moment before lifting her head and blinking tiredly around. She offered a sleepy smile towards Wolfhive and Spiderthroat - though the latter seemed to be sleeping. From where she lay on top of the larger hornet's back, Red gave a small stretch, a soft squeak coming from her as her inured paw flexed and she coiled it back in, frowning briefly. "Was it another b-big rock?" she joked as another yawn forced its way out.
Spiderthroat
He/Him || ThunderClan Deputy
Beefed Up Tier III || Just a Scratch || Hulk SMASH
@Rani @BEAR. @taillow @dino.
No. He's dead, dead cats hear nothing nor do they speak. That being said a grunt did escape his paw as he was squashed. No. Dead cats do not react to being squished as flat as a lilypad. He will prevail. He refuses to socialize. He refuses to, oh a tap at the muzzle. He'll bite him, he'll do it.
But than he heard his ticket out appear. Yes, the yapper will yap, perfect. He will simply blend into the shadows, only answering when his knowledge is needed. Which, it seemed as though his death was short lived. A shame.
"Bumblestar stayed behind with Dawnstar because Twilightstar wanted to talk with the both of em. Considerin RiverClan's newest soon to go Leader and Deputy left, it's either about them, or something one of our and ShadowClan's idiots have done. Either way, I'm sure we'll find out soon enough." he said, the first portion of his statement muffled into the stone as he allowed his face to be squashed before accepting his newly alive fate and lifting his head. Shifting slightly so his head was resting on his paw. He will ignore the elephant in the room. The leader's brat simply does not exist. Nope.
__________________
"Without worrying about our appearance, let's conclude today."
Spiderthroat is the Deputy of ThunderClan
|| Site || ToyHouse ||
But these fingers and these palms
Full of love despite the scars
They show indisputably I have so much more to grow
Oh, I can change, I can evolve
I can get up when I fall
I'll live contentedly, I don't need a reason why
Standing tall and standing strong
I have found where I belong
In the arms of somebody, there is no more need to cry
His idea wasn't finessed, would need to outline clear expectations for the Clan so cats knew what to expect in full. But the basics remained the same, and the hope of improving mentor/apprentice relationships was the goal. Ideally, if it came to exile they'd only need to do it a couple times before cats caught on. She didn't specify this, so he wanted to make sure his bases were covered. "You don't mind if the exiles are done without you? I'd report to you, of course - but just so their punishments can be handled then 'n there." There was a bonus factor in it cementing the authority of the patrols, too. If the cat issuing them was the same cat as the one who could exile, cats might be more willing to get their heads on straight.
Wolfhive's ears perked. Several moons ago, when he'd been tree climbing with Redhawk he'd mention his intention to become the Head Hornet. A lot had happened since that day, and it'd felt like a distant dream. To have it be brought up unprompted.. "Oh, of course. Yeah, I'd love that!" He already felt like he was doing an alright job on it? Redhawk and Mudhound didn't need much coddling, but if he felt they were lapsing he'd give them a smacken. He didn't want a repeat of the last team. Of the trio, only one might be redeemable.. and that was a discussion for another time.
"Been lookin' for some others who might be good to onboard too, but I wanna test their mettle with some of these changes before I pester you about them in a serious manner. Redhawk 'n Mudhound are lovely," if not a little too kind sometimes, "but I think cats with a stronger gut might help whip cats into shape."
"No, go for it." No one had done anything seriously dangerous to warrant getting kicked or killed in the past moon or two, so Bumblestar figured she could lift the expectation that offenders would be sent to her first instead of the Outskirts. "I've known you long enough to know you won't go overboard with anything. Just keep me updated."
At least he was on board for the Head Hornet role, and she gave him a half-smile. "If anyone sticks out to you, by all means, test 'em out. Mudhound 'n Redhawk've been great so far, but you're right, we could use someone a little more willing to put their foot down with things. Is that all you needed to talk about?" Not dismissing him if he didn't want to go, just asking.
Clearly, it had been a mistake to have Spiderthroat get everybody into her den, because the place was absolutely packed. Bumblestar wrinkled her nose as she pushed through the lichen to discover Mudhound in her nest, her son bothering her deputy, and Redhawk flopped over on the nest-stealer.
"Make yourselves at home, why don't you," she drawled, forced to settle for the open space near the entrance just to sit down. "Redhawk, since you weren't at the Gathering, I'll fill you in on the basics real quick: RiverClan finally showed up with all new ranks. Some pushover named Fadingsun's taken up the leader role 'n his deputy, Dusklion, is apparently the one who killed Fallownose." The medicine cats, she didn't care about. A couple of nobodies that would also likely disappear once the other two did.
"Now, all of you-" she gave Mudhound a very pointed look "-pay attention to what I've got to say. This is important to what's about to happen for the next couple of moons.
"Twilightstar pulled me 'n Dawnstar aside to talk after RiverClan left. The three of us came to an agreement: we're drivin' RiverClan out. Twilightstar's pissed with Fallownose's death, the camp invasion, 'n everything else the fish have done. You lot already know all the crap they've pulled with us, 'n Dawnstar seems to just be along for the ride, but in the next half moon, we're rallying our Clans, meeting at our borders, and runnin' the fish out so they can hopefully get their act together and come back with wiped slates. For two moons, their territory'll be up for grabs, 'n once they get back, I'll be having ThunderClan leave them be unless they try to start stuff again.
"This isn't up for debate. I'm here to get you updated so I can get the rest of the Clan updated 'n prepared, not argue about whether or not this is happening. What is up for debate is whether or not we let RiverClan cats who haven't been involved in anything their Clan's done into our ranks." This was the only part she was genuinely unsure about. "I'll be asking the Clan as a whole, but I wanna get your opinions on this first, see where you stand."
Wolfhive would keep on proding at Spiderthroat, trying to get the old goat to spill. Or snap. Anything. He didn't know a live cat could play dead so well, and if not for the occasional movement of Spiderthroat breathing he would've thought he killed the deputy. Oh well.. he'd have to pester him some other time. Mudhound was here. "He's too scared to talk about his feelings, so he's opted to die instead." A swish of his tail as Spiderthroat explained Bumba's absence and why they were meeting.
Then she arrived, and Wolfhive immediately straightened up and watched his 'ma intently. He knew about the rundown having been there, and was more curious about the events of meeting Twilightstar and Dawnstar. "Oh, good riddance. Can't wait to shred them more." His claws flexed absently against the wooden floor, not enough to damage it beyond maybe the faintest scratch. "Are we taking the pond back, then? Keeping it? It's not like they need it or deserve it." And frankly, Wolfhive liked the landmark - it had a few uses between hunting and training. If they reclaimed it, he could also use it to teach apprentices how to swim... a precautionary skill in case they ever fell in the river.
And then... the bad news came. Wolfhive's expression fell, his body grew taut and rigid. "No, to hell with them! How do we even determine who-did-what at this point? Blood and poison taints all their paws, as long as no one in that Clan is holding others accountable."
Mudhound
Thunderclan Hornet | They/them | 35 Moons
Bilingual T2 | Flock Together T3 | Rapid Recovery | Beefed up T3
Hehe, Redhawk was being all cute and sleepy and wasnt even trying to escape the Muddy snuggles (which was rare among cats).
Spider-dude on the other side of things was pretty dead on the floor and did not sound pleased, prompting a "Poor Spider-dude... Dont worry Im always here if you want help working through your feelings!" though the tripod was well aware that the deputy would rather pitch himself off a cliff before he did that.
Jokes aside Mudhound sighed deeply hearing that riverclan had another set of high ranks, whining out a short "New leaders? Again? Whatever this is it better not be any of our warriors causing it, weve been doing so well lately!" before huffing, letting their head thump down into Bumblestars bedding to wait.
This was gonna be a big meeting wasnt it, if the situation was serious enough to get Twilightstar and Dawnstar speaking in private to their sister.
At least she came back safe eventually, if in full serious grumpiness and with a undeserved pointed look at Mudhound (at least in their opinion) that prompted an 'offended' who me expression in return. Even they werent dumb enough to zone out during a meeting that was important enough to earn all this fuss!
Though the content was enough to get the hornets shoulder to tense, an expression of emotional upset with the situation that only Redhawk could probably feel. It was just.... Sure Riverclan had done a lotta wrong and even more with their actions against windclan now (why them though, windclan was as peaceful as you could get and wasnt currently fighting with riverclan) and needed to be punished but this... It just seemed kinda harsh and once again Mudhound was grappling between their loyalty to Bumblestar and the clan and a wish to treat everyone kindly. A whole clan driven out was so much but after everything it looked kinder then any alternative riverclan would be offered at this moment.
"Well I suppose if its only two moons its more of a time out then anything... Two moons isnt that long."
The words were more of the tripod trying to convince themself more then anything but firm at the end, confident. Their concern was less aimed at riverclan as a whole and more certain demographics, something that was quickly rectified by Bumblestars proposition for some of the repentant cats.
Mudhound visibly perked up, eyes shining in approval even as Wolfhive protested, brows crinkling as they gently added. "Woofie, not all of riverclan is guilty of their crimes. What about the kits? Kits are innocent of everything. Even the young apprentices are too young to be among the guilty, if they were even born then.
I understand not trusting warriors and elders but if we investigate before we let anyone in then we should be fine. Besides, if we hate them so much to damn kittens with the entire clan are we really better then them indiscriminately poisoning everyone? They didnt care if they hurt kits and apprentices but that doesnt mean we shouldnt." Soulful gold eyes flicked to Bumblestar, pleading.
"Let the kittens and apprentices in, maybe even queens after some interrogation. Give them a chance to be good in a way living in riverclan might not allow them. Vivivivi has a home here and she was one of them, there may be others who can fit in like her."
Might be a low blow to mention Bumbles girlfriend in the argument but it was a very valid point, one Mudhound knew Redhawk would back.
"Of course they're guilty, they--" Wolfhive's knee-jerk response faltered as Mudhound continued, talking about the kits, apprentices... the reminder that RiverClan was more than just the snarling fangs dripping venom made Wolfhive go silent. His throat felt swollen in a way he couldn't describe, a twist in his stomach at such an important detail he was too blind to see.
Though RiverClan's older generations might be more toxic than deathberries, it didn't mean they had to damn every cat. And... Mudhound had a point about Violetfreckle, too. She's different! He wanted to say, but did they know that to begin with? Without giving her a chance?
".. Okay," he relented, glancing away at the ground before he met Bumba's gaze once more. "Kits for sure, apprentices 'n queens as long as we don't have a reason to think they were involved." He was iffier with warriors 'n elders, but.. "Elders, if they can still give us something in return. Knowledge.. guidance. They served RiverClan, not us, 'n Tansyjaw is still working her tail off educating kids, so that's the least they could offer in exchange for stability. Warriors.." A sigh.
"We'd need to be careful with them at this point. When Violetfreckle was there, they hadn't had half the dung goin' on they do now. 'N I dunno if I'd want to trust one of the older cats who've just been lettin' the Clan go the way it is without even trying." He'd propose a trial, but would that do any good? They'd just get kicked out either way. ".. Maybe see about just, letting the younger warriors in for now. If their seniors aren't being good models, we can fix that." This issue with RiverClan had been ongoing for as long as Wolfhive could remember, and he was sure the younger RiverClan cats felt similar. If they wanted to join up, sure - Wolfhive would show them how to act like an actual warrior.
Spiderthroat
He/Him || ThunderClan Deputy
Beefed Up Tier III || Just a Scratch || Hulk SMASH
@BEAR. , @dino. , @Rani , @taillow
Oh thank God she arrived. He was running out of excuses to try and play dead again. Ears angled forwards as soon as she finished filling in the actual dead one on what happened at the Gathering. Ah, an all out annihilation. "I'm down for whipin em off the face of the forest. Seein as how much they've decided to stomp all over I'm all for stompin all over them." he tossed in. They killed Asterdance. He doesn't care for how they feel at all.
"As for em joinin. I don't care. I don't really want the rejects from a poor already useless Clan but we can use em as collateral. If they act out in any way I'll deal with em like how I do everyone so I don't see an issue." he said. Taking a look at everyone in the den. "But. A loyal idiot is gonna remain loyal to the end. For better or worse on our end, an of course an idiot's an idiot. I wouldn't be too wary."
__________________
"Without worrying about our appearance, let's conclude today."
Spiderthroat is the Deputy of ThunderClan
|| Site || ToyHouse ||
But these fingers and these palms
Full of love despite the scars
They show indisputably I have so much more to grow
Oh, I can change, I can evolve
I can get up when I fall
I'll live contentedly, I don't need a reason why
Standing tall and standing strong
I have found where I belong
In the arms of somebody, there is no more need to cry
Raggedear cleared his throat as he nosed his way gently into his leader's den. "Bumblestar?" He called, apprehension clear in his tone. "Hawkcatcher and I just returned from our hunting patrol. We caught two birds, a vole, and a rabbit." The large tom shifted awkwardly on his paws. It was unlike him to be so nervous, but who could blame him? His future was all in Bumblestar's paws here. "I'll even go out again, if needed!" He blurted out, shame seering his pelt. Even still, he lifted his head high. "Whatever it takes to earn your, and the Clan's, trust back."
[ @Dino | let me know if there's anything else I need to do c: ]
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pixelgifs by @/snowflake.
Brokenstream is RiverClan’s Head Lionheart - If You Need Him, Mention Me
Re: ThunderClan Leader's Den
