you-are-starclan - Tumblr blog

[you-are-starclan]

update 42- year 11, summer

the clowder enjoys a relatively peaceful season as the situation in the blitz clowder becomes apparent...

more info under the cut!

smoky has been apprenticed to centipede!

it seems that duncan has been suffering a stream of bad luck. he is a loving father to the two children he acknowledges, but often ignores sienna's batch entirely. honey seems unsure of whether or not she wants to continue having a relationship with him.

two new arrivals have come to the clowder! their names are velvet and jeremy. it appears they had at first checked out 'the other clowder across the street' but had been put off by "the whole 'no leaving' rule", as jeremy puts it.

speaking of that other clowder, it appears milk has won the debate between him and casper, and so the clowder has decided to formally step in to assess the situation. (not before, of course, confetti decided to go in on their own to prove their worth.) this time, unlike the last couple of times, it appears the group is cordial and open:

the group is led by the sunteller, a beautiful bright orange tabby. he seems to act as both their leader and their starseer equivalent. the pinewood clowder patrol doesn't seem to understand his words fully, so lightning- blitz's son and the former leader- explain.

blitz died some seasons ago, and initially the clowder was then led by soot, his eldest son and inheritor. but despite his popularity, the death of his sister led soot to step down and become a pet alongside his mate and children. lightning, the youngest son and the next in line, did his best to rule but was often immature and impulsive, leading to a natural distrust in leadership growing.

eventually, there was a massive plague that spread through blitz's clowder. because blitz's clowder has no medics, the plague spread quickly and efficiently, killing off about half of all the cats in the clowder and leaving only very few.

in the midst of this turmoil, however, arrived THE SUNTELLER! the sunteller was able to save them all and united them once more. lightning was so pleased with his words that he and his mate, agnes, stepped down and let the sunteller rule the clowder in order to unite the group once more in the face of such horrible tragedy.

the sunteller says that he knows there are not multiple gods in the sky (ala starclan). in fact, there's only one: ilios, he calls it; who watches the world during the day through his one golden eye. at night, he sleeps and his deceased followers watch for him instead- the largest of them all having been ilios's first follower.

the sunteller claims to be able to speak with ilios, and says that ilios saved his life when he was a child. ivy- who lives with the group now- has tested whether his claims are real, and it appears that at least the sunteller thinks they are very, very real.

ilios is allegedly a kind god who will help the smallest and the weakest, providing light and goodwill to the world. but his love is conditional- you must accept him into your heart and reject all other gods. most of all, once you join a clowder led in his name you must never leave.

the sunteller also makes a vague reference to 'the brightening', some event far off in the future where ilios will come find his followers and take them to a paradise where there is no illness or fear. the sunteller does not elaborate on the nature of this event.

it appears chestnut is lukewarm about the idea of ilios, but it also seems this may be propelled by a budding distrust in starclan. ivy, meanwhile, has stated she doesn't believe but wants to see where this goes next and how she can assist the cats themselves, especially as she feels she no longer has any obligation or belonging in the pinewood clowder.

confetti meanwhile buys into it wholeheartedly, fully rejecting prior pinewood clowder life to act in good service to ilios. another cat, frederick, seems familiar and avoids the pinewood clowder entirely. frederick however has told confetti of his own story. having been raised by his aunt and uncle, he grew tired of their 'disgusting ways' and soon abandoned them. he felt as though all he was ever good for was revenge upon the pinewood clowder- who he really does still dislike- but he has found new meaning and purpose in the sunteller's words. 'ilios gives me something to believe in', he says. 'ilios makes me think there's something more to this all.'

the clowder is unsure of what to do about this. on one hand, ilios's existence as a concept threatens belief in starclan, and the clowder worries that starclan will not like it if they don't challenge other beliefs. on the other hand, it does not seem like this other belief harms anybody. casper says they should disengage entirely, and a variety of opinions and beliefs about the idea are expressed- all of which goshawk, always unsure, doesn't know whether to not to act upon...

CATS:

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 69 moons. leader of the clowder. excitable, eager, kind, capable; but overprotective, solitary, easily-manipulated, insecure. trying to make everyone happy at once.

- lotus/casper, male, 76 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. has taken a step back as if something convinced him.

- milk, male, 58 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. seems proud he 'won' public opinion over casper.

-  drizzle, female, age 97 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. loves being a mentor.

- comet, male, 37 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. has become good friends with cobble.

- dove, male, 125 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. thinks scuttle is a very good friend.

- reynard, male, 170 moons. charming, intelligent, spunky, sly; but has lost much of himself in the throes of memory loss. seems to be less scared of things nobody else can see now that he has a regular sense of routine.

-darl, 151 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. has been enjoying retirement.

-scuttle, 123 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. seems to have fallen in love with dove.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 113 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. has been preparing for retirement.

- reggie, male, physically age 50 moons but mentally age 90 moons. adaptable, crafty, independent, introverted; but boastful, insecure, detached, fickle. doesn't like the idea of a god beyond starclan and finds it stupid.

- oli, female, 90 moons.  introspective, quiet, skilled, patient; but reclusive, inexpressive, passive-aggressive, self-centered. has been adjusting well to clowder life once again.

- pippin, male, 73 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. has been enjoying raising a child.

- gianetta, female, 71 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. continues to worry about her children.

- beetle, male, 68 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. loves his kid very much.

- cheddar, non-binary, 67 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. has really stepped up recently.

- chester, male, 66 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. gets along well with many cats but is nobody's best friend.

- burrow, age 58 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. has been raising her sole child, but still makes time in her day to work.

- hydrangea, female, 58 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. has been enjoying being a mentor.

- robin, female, 42 moons. intelligent, caring, loyal, protective; but biased, calculating, impatient, argumentative. has taken up more and more regular clowder duties.

- velvet, nonbinary, 41 moons. caring, sensitive, leisurely, understanding; but lazy, ineffective, overly-calm, fearless. seems to be taking care of other cats already in a way similar to darl.

- sienna, female, 36 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. doesn't trust very many people.

- ink, female, 36 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. keeps to herself.

- honey, female, 35 moons. bubbly, talkative, romantic, feminine; but naive, frivolous, melodramatic, overly-sensitive. doesn't seem to like how duncan treats his other children.

- duncan, male, 35 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. does not comment on sienna.

- cobble, male, 35 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, studious; but restless, embittered, fickle, impatient. has become good friends with comet.

- centipede, nonbinary, 33 moons. humorous, wry, sensible, earthly; but unimpressed, snarky, egotistical, snobby. has been enjoying mentoring smoky.

- yarrow, male, 26 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning. misses his sister. - jeremy, male, 24 moons. well-intentioned, athletic, humorous, team worker, but stupid, egotistical, pathetic, unnerving. gets along well with yarrow.

- giuseppe, male, 19 moons. artistic, detail-oriented, precise, intelligent; but fussy, persnickety, short-tempered, insufferable. has been taking well to his job.

- tulip, female, 19 moons. kind, open-minded, affectionate, loyal; but naive, anxious, passive, easily-manipulated. wonders about the possibilities of other gods.

- harley, female, 19 moons. loud, goofy, rebellious, sharp-tongued, but reckless, trouble-causing, scheming, impulsive. is skilled in her work.

- touchstone, female, 17 moons. silly, witty, observant, rebellious, but selfish, obnoxious, loud-mouthed, gossipy. makes fun of the idea of ilios.

- triboulet, male, 17 moons. eager, creative, intelligent, quiet; but shy, self-deprecating, unsure, anxious. has seemingly lost sympathy for confetti.

- bracken, male, 11 moons. studious, gentle, intelligent, determined; but stubborn, inexpressive, overly-focused, distant. focused on his studies.

- marigold, nonbinary, 11 moons. flashy, creative, witty, talkative; but egotistical, gluttonous, envious, bragging. wants to be the best apprentice. - smoky, nonbinary, 6 moons. smart, studious, dedicated, passionate; but mysterious, detached, cold, manipulative. is dedicated to their work.

- silt, nonbinary, 5 moons. - sienna's litter, 5 moons. - honey's litter, 5 moons.

ISSUE:

Euthamia

What to do with the Blitz clowder?

What to do with the Sunteller?

Ilios?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

update 41- year 11, spring

the clowder enters their eleventh spring as the deputies quarrel and a mystery thickens...

more under the cut!

burrow has had one kitten, silt!

marigold and bracken have been apprenticed to hydrangea and drizzle respectively. bracken wants more than anything to become a medic, and after the epidemic last season drizzle is more than happy to accept an extra set of paws. casper fervently disagrees, having a massive grudge against the medics for- in his view- letting his children die. this has led to arguments between casper and bracken.

comet seems ambivalent towards bracken.

both honey and sienna have mothered litters- which appear to share... the same father, duncan. it appears he had thought he would find a way to make this work but clearly it did not pan out. in front of everyone, he shuns sienna and her litter in favor of honey. honey is very much in love with duncan but even she seems unsettled by his behavior towards sienna.

centipede does not like duncan very much, which has led to arguments between honey and centipede.

sienna is naturally very hurt about the whole situation. she's plain, and practical, but that doesn't mean she has nothing to offer. cobble, sensing opportunity, tries to take the moment to flirt with her for himself. this makes everything worse and sienna ends up punching him square in the jaw.

both triboulet and touchstone have graduated! confetti keeps trying to get their children to work as jesters with them, even though triboulet and touchstone are very confident with their new jobs. this has led confetti to get angry and demanding over their children. they both seem to want to distance themselves from their parent.

it seems ink is relieved that triboulet's apprenticeship is over.

chestnut is worried about ivy, who still has not returned from blitz's clowder. she decides to explore on her own. she reports back, saying that she's caught no sign of ivy, but that the new leader of the group is very... strange. not good, not bad, just... odd. she goes back to investigate further and has not returned since.

euthamia has been told as a suggestion to explore blitz's territory. hesitantly, she tries, but finds she still cannot wander past the clowder's borders.

it seems confetti is very interested in going over to figure out what's going on themself- after all, they want a purpose more than anything.

cobalt dies later on in the season. it appears they had eaten something that was infested with disease. trying to appease her clowder, who do not seem to entirely like how strict and overprotective casper is, goshawk chooses to elect the easygoing, overly-confident milk as her next patrol deputy.

casper and milk do not get along and always seem to argue about everything. goshawk tries to appease them but to little avail.

milk is certain the clowder should figure out what's happening with blitz's clowder- if the other group won't tell them, they ought to figure it out by force. casper, meanwhile, thinks the clowder should avoid it at any possible cost. the clowder is at a standstill as to what to do....

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 66 moons. leader of the clowder. excitable, eager, kind, capable; but overprotective, solitary, easily-manipulated, insecure. trying to ,make everyone happy at once.

- lotus/casper, male, 73 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. wants more than anything to protect the clowder.

- milk, male, 55 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. has been taking to his new role quickly.

-  drizzle, female, age 94 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. is excited to mentor bracken again.

- comet, male, 34 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. does not seem to like how crowded the medic den is.

- dove, male, 122 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. has been close with scuttle recently.

- reynard, male, 167 moons. charming, intelligent, spunky, sly; but has lost much of himself in the throes of memory loss. seems to be less scared of things nobody else can see now that he has a regular sense of routine.

-darl, 148 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. has been enjoying retirement.

-scuttle, 120 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. has been close with dove recently.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 110 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. has been preparing for retirement.

- reggie, male, physically age 47 moons but mentally age 87 moons. adaptable, crafty, independent, introverted; but boastful, insecure, detached, fickle. still highly critical of goshawk, if less actively mean towards her.

- oli, female, 87 moons.  introspective, quiet, skilled, patient; but reclusive, inexpressive, passive-aggressive, self-centered. has been adjusting well to clowder life once again.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 83 moons. funny, extroverted, ambitious, excitable; but selfish, obnoxious, loud, impatient. wants purpose more than anything.

- pippin, male, 70 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. has been enjoying raising a child.

- gianetta, female, 68 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. worries about how her mate and son argue with one another.

- beetle, male, 65 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. loves his kid very much.

- cheddar, non-binary, 64 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. has been earning their keep in the clowder.

- chester, male, 63 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. seems to want an apprentice.

- burrow, age 55 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. has been raising her sole child, but still makes time in her day to work.

- hydrangea, female, 55 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. has been enjoying being a mentor.

- robin, female, 39 moons. intelligent, caring, loyal, protective; but biased, calculating, impatient, argumentative. seems to really be settling into the clowder.

- sienna, female, 33 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. has been raising her children on her own.

- ink, female, 33 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. is glad triboulet's apprenticeship is over.

- honey, female, 32 moons. bubbly, talkative, romantic, feminine; but naive, frivolous, melodramatic, overly-sensitive. seems convinced she can 'fix' duncan.

- duncan, male, 32 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. does not comment on sienna.

- cobble, male, 32 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, studious; but restless, embittered, fickle, impatient. seems angry nothing ever works out his way.

- centipede, nonbinary, 30 moons. humorous, wry, sensible, earthly; but unimpressed, snarky, egotistical, snobby. doesn't like duncan much.

- yarrow, male, 23 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning. misses his sister.

- giuseppe, male, 16 moons. artistic, detail-oriented, precise, intelligent; but fussy, persnickety, short-tempered, insufferable. has been taking well to his job.

- tulip, female, 16 moons. kind, open-minded, affectionate, loyal; but naive, anxious, passive, easily-manipulated. hopes to hear from starclan soon.

- harley, female, 16 moons. loud, goofy, rebellious, sharp-tongued, but reckless, trouble-causing, scheming, impulsive. is skilled in her work.

- touchstone, female, 14 moons. silly, witty, observant, rebellious, but selfish, obnoxious, loud-mouthed, gossipy. seems to dislike her parent.

- triboulet, male, 14 moons. eager, creative, intelligent, quiet; but shy, self-deprecating, unsure, anxious. is understanding towards confetti but distant from them.

- bracken, male, 8 moons. studious, gentle, intelligent, determined; but stubborn, inexpressive, overly-focused, distant. focused on his studies.

- marigold, nonbinary, 8 moons. flashy, creative, witty, talkative; but egotistical, gluttonous, envious, bragging. wants to be the best apprentice. - silt, nonbinary, 3 moons. - sienna's litter, 2 moons. - honey's litter, 2 moons.

other news:

from now on, YASC will update biweekly instead of weekly- i'm very sorry about this, i will try to be more productive so it can go back to its regular updating schedule.

POLL:

Euthamia

Should Confetti investigate Blitz's group?

How should the clowder deal with whatever is happening over there?

Milk or Casper?

Should Duncan be punished?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

update will go up tomorrow!! extremely sorry for the inconvenience

[you-are-starclan]

update 40- year 10, winter

an epidemic seeps into the clowder as a mystery across the street grows....

more under the cut!

harley, giuseppe, and tulip have graduated to becoming full members of the clowder!

with tulip's graduation, dove has decided to retire. scuttle does too, if extremely reluctantly.

it is decided reggie will not be punished, but to prevent any future events such as what he did, a new clowder Law is added: 17. Defend the clowder's leader at any cost. Cowardice is to be frowned upon. at first goshawk worries it's a bit too strong of a statement, but then she thinks back to all the things she's seen and the scar on the side of her flank and reconsiders.

reynard is permitted to stay, although it becomes an open secret that he was once a member of the court. many of the younger cats are alright with this, having never really known the court outside of clowder history and vague stories, but the older cats actively tend to avoid reynard. robin is thankful that the clowder has decided to allow her grandfather to stay.

comet is warned by the stars to be kinder to his patients. he does so. he also realizes that, if the purpose of a medic is to be as kind to patients as possible, drizzle is failing her role by not enabling her god-given saving powers. comet thinks about this and decides to keep note of it.

touchstone is reassigned to tiramisu as her new mentor, who she seems to get along with better. confetti is furious about this- tiramisu is stealing their one chance at purpose away from them! it isn't fair! they have to have purpose! what is the meaning of living if you have no purpose? on a couple occasions they have tried to attack tiramisu out of anger, with one of these attempts injuring touchstone as well on accident. they only stopped when goshawk said that they could have their role stripped of them- or worse- if they decided to continue.

it's decided that in order to see what is happening with blitz's clowder, a clowder member will sneak in among them and live as one of them. ivy is decided to be the one to go on this task. oli, lint, and cobalt lead her over into the territory and leave her there, and she slips in through the bushes to join them.

the clowder has not heard back from her yet.

soon after their trip over, the three cats end up developing a very severe stomach illness. it does not seem easily treatable, and the sickness spreads to much of the clowder. while most of the clowder survives it, it is a genuine tossup as to who it affects and who it doesn't.

comet always uses his powers to save cats, not relying much on his own medical skills. he's efficient and quick, and all but one of his patients- juliet, who had one of the worst cases- survive. however, drizzle refuses to use her powers, telling comet that they're a bad omen and that bad things happen to cats who rely too much on their powers. (she knows. she's seen.) however, as a result, she's much less efficient, and five of her patients die in her care.

unfortunately, the deaths take quite a toll on the clowder. vincenzo and ivory, two of gianetta and casper's new kittens, are no match for the illness and slip away fast like the first leaves in autumn. lint, one of the original carriers of the illness and the best new hunter in the clowder, puts up a valiant fight but dies also. finally- perhaps most striking of all- both aster, the clowder's camp deputy; and flare, the clowder's longest-serving member, both die as a result of the virus.

without flare and aster especially, the clowder undergoes a small crisis. sure, flare hadn't done much in moons, but he'd always just... been there, and aster had been debatably more of a leader figure than goshawk was herself. goshawk, with the loss of her constant guiding figure, is left alone and indecisive as ever, fretting about what she will now do without aster.

in a hurry goshawk decides to appoint casper- still reeling from the deaths of two of his children- as the next camp deputy. casper is alright with this because he wants to protect the clowder against any further threats. he cannot bear to lose any more of his children.

it also seems casper has grown to dislike drizzle.

the two of them- both overprotective already- decide that the clowder must protect itself at all costs. they have suffered enough after the epidemic. they are calling off the investigation into blitz's clowder entirely and all cats are forbidden from going over to the area at all, as that is where the sickness originated.

however, in this dark season for the clowder, there is at least some hope. a small orphaned kitten is led to the clowder, where they are adopted by pippin and beetle- who are thrilled to be parents at last. perhaps there is some kindness still to be found, and a bright dawn for the next season.

but ivy remains in blitz's clowder. and the clowder has not heard back from her.....

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 63 moons. leader of the clowder. excitable, eager, kind, capable; but overprotective, solitary, easily-manipulated, insecure. 

- lotus/casper, male, 70 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. 

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 80 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. 

-  drizzle, female, age 91 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. 

- comet, male, 31 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic.

- dove, male, 119 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. 

- reynard, male, 164 moons. charming, intelligent, spunky, sly; but has lost much of himself in the throes of memory loss. 

-darl, 145 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. 

-scuttle, 117 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. 

- tiramisu, non-binary, 107 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. 

- reggie, male, physically age 44 moons but mentally age 84 moons. adaptable, crafty, independent, introverted; but boastful, insecure, detached, fickle. 

- oli, female, 87 moons.  introspective, quiet, skilled, patient; but reclusive, inexpressive, passive-aggressive, self-centered. 

- confetti, nonbinary, age 80 moons. bubbly, extroverted, ambitious, excitable; but selfish, obnoxious, loud, impatient. 

- pippin, male, 67 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. 

- gianetta, female, 65 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. 

- beetle, male, 62 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. 

- cheddar, non-binary, 61 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. 

- chester, male, 60 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. 

- milk, male, 52 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish.

- burrow, age 52 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible.

- hydrangea, female, 52 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. 

- robin, female, 36 moons. intelligent, caring, loyal, protective; but biased, calculating, impatient, argumentative. 

- sienna, female, 30 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. 

- ink, female, 30 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. 

- honey, female, 29 moons. bubbly, talkative, romantic, feminine; but naive, frivolous, melodramatic, overly-sensitive. 

- duncan, male, 29 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. 

- cobble, male, 29 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, studious; but restless, embittered, fickle, impatient.

- centipede, nonbinary, 27 moons. humorous, wry, sensible, earthly; but unimpressed, snarky, egotistical, snobby. 

- yarrow, male, 20 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning. 

- giuseppe, male, 13 moons. artistic, detail-oriented, precise, intelligent; but fussy, persnickety, short-tempered, insufferable. 

- tulip, female, 13 moons. kind, open-minded, affectionate, loyal; but naive, anxious, passive, easily-manipulated. 

- harley, female, 13 moons. loud, goofy, rebellious, sharp-tongued, but reckless, trouble-causing, scheming, impulsive. 

- touchstone, female, 11 moons. silly, witty, observant, rebellious, but selfish, obnoxious, loud-mouthed, gossipy.

- triboulet, male, 11 moons. eager, creative, intelligent, quiet; but shy, self-deprecating, unsure, anxious.

- gianetta's kittens, 5 moons.

POLL:

Euthamia

should members of the clowder defy their leader and keep investigating blitz's group?

if so, who?

does ivy need to be saved?

sienna or honey?

should comet bring the knowledge of drizzle not using her powers public?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

update 39- year 10, autumn

arrivals, departures, and uneasy feelings pepper the clowder as it enters its tenth autumn.....

more under the cut!

casper and gianetta have had a second litter of children! their names are bracken, marigold, ivory, and vincenzo

casper is viciously protective of his children. gianetta follows his example. it seems that his older children, tulip excepted, are not so fond of this behavior.

helia has left the clowder, feeling as though it isn't a right fit for her and she would rather be someplace else. she leaves behind her adoptive sibling cobalt, her children, and her former mate confetti. none of those she left behind seem to be wholly positive about it.

both of confetti's children seem to have interests in the arts. confetti demands that they both be apprenticed to artists, and goshawk reluctantly does so. it seems that the situation with helia- and their own constant search for meaning and purpose, a search they never got an answer to (will they ever? will they ever?)- has rendered confetti a different cat.

touchstone is now her parent's apprentice. confetti is very strict with her and gets upset when touchstone (naturally) does not take them seriously. this is a very important job, confetti says. very very important. everything must have purpose. (are they trying to convince their daughter or themself?)

starclan announces the jesters are allowed to say whatever they want because it doesn't matter. confetti's reaction to this is.... well it is not good, and i will leave it at that.

meanwhile, triboulet is ink's apprentice in the art of muralkeeping. he is very enthusiastic about it. ink seems somewhat cold- yet melancholic- towards triboulet, as if he reminds her of someone she knows very well. she does not seem to fully know how to proceed with an apprentice.

the gods tell the starseers reynard's true identity: long ago, before he lost himself, he used to be a member of the court, that scourge of the clowder's early days. he must have left some time later, but when the court was fighting directly with the clowder there were no doubts in his mind. the starseers are instructed to tell this to robin, who is... upset. she never knew any of this about her grandfather.

goshawk is made to choose: should reynard be forced into exile for his prior crimes, or should he be allowed to stay? on one hand, all evidence suggests that reynard has no memory of all of the court, or really most anything, and all he is now is a scared and confused shell of something that used to be there. on the other hand, he was an obedient member of the court. different cats in the clowder are very vocal about it, which seems to stress out all the newcomers from last week.

when robin isn't there, comet has been made to take care of reynard. he seems to have very little patience for the old tom, and grows increasingly exasperated with reynard's repeated questions- often resorting to snapping and yelling at the old cat. he especially grows exasperated that reynard constantly asks for his daughter, who is of course not there. 'your daughter's dead', comet has to remind him, and every time reynard reacts like it is the first time he has ever heard this news (annoying comet further). comet in general is not a man of patience; he will snap at reynard just for 'acting strange' and is not the nicest of cats to the kittens who ask him too many questions.

drizzle tells him off. comet says that medics must have order, and that it must be a serious profession that people know to respect and not to bother with stupid questions.

meanwhile, comet has decided to fully enable his powers. oh, he'll turn them off when he wants to. he just doesn't say when he'll turn them off.

the clowder sends a patrol to investigate what is happening with blitz's clowder. they are quickly found out and chased off, but they observe that the cat who appears to be leading the group is not blitz.

the gods have gifted a cat with a phenomenal power to turn into a beast under the second full moons! the cat who has gotten this power shall not be named for now.....

duncan continues to be popular and successful, and two mollies- honey and sienna- are both interested in him. meanwhile, cobble has faced nothing but mistakes and mild humiliations. this has made cobble all the more envious of his brother.

euthamia has been made (perhaps not literally this time) to search for the waywards of this world, and so she sets off to find the strange little cat living with his siblings that she's heard about. she has been given the gift of a small ringing bell by the gods, although she does not know what to do with it (and seems wary of anything the gods tell her). she finds him- frederick, son of the foxglove flowers- somewhere beyond the clowder near blitz's territory. she tries to reach out to him, and for a moment she is almost successful, but then his older siblings come forth and chase her off, frederick suddenly aiding. she is not successful this time.

nemorino is struck and killed by a truck while he is out hunting. it seems his lives have run out.

reggie still has his grievances with goshawk. one day, he, her, and a few others (sienna, duncan, hydrangea, and milk) are out on a patrol together, and they find themselves accosted by a couple of stray coyotes that had snuck into the territory. one is easily fought off, but the other terrorizes goshawk and nearly kills her. the others rush in to help their leader, but reggie remains still and almost just lets the coyote kill goshawk until he realizes it would make him look terrible alongside his clowdermates. he writes it off as freezing in the midst of battle, but it's a rather open secret what his real intention nearly was. goshawk survives by a whisker, but she gets a rather nasty scar down her side from the encounter.

while the clowder is relatively peaceful compared to the way it was during wheat's decline, there are still lots of tensions- tensions that remain, for now, unspoken....

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 60 moons. leader of the clowder. excitable, eager, ambitious, capable; but boastful, solitary, melodramatic, insecure. still shaken from the coyote attack.

- aster, female, age 97 moons. friendly, social, determined, flexible; but vain, envious, nosy, vapid. tries to help out goshawk, although age is slowly catching up to her.

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 77 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. mostly sticks to their work and isn’t particularly social.

-  drizzle, female, age 88 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. tries not to think about the power starclan gave her.

- comet, male, 28 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. does not seem to like his patients despite being a medic.

- dove, male, 116 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. is glad to have an apprentice but worries deeply about her.

- flare, male, 147 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. does not speak or see much anymore.

- reynard, male, 161 moons. charming, intelligent, spunky, sly; but has lost much of himself in the throes of memory loss. always seems scared of something that isn't there.

-darl, 142 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. tries to befriend the younger cats in the clowder.

-scuttle, 114 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. is considering retiring, although the concept of age depresses them.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 104 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. has kept themself busy with their own tall tales.

- juliet, female, 101 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. has been settling down now that she is past the hundred-moon mark.

- ivy, female, 98 moons.  factual, convincing, righteous, determined; but manipulative, greedy, self-congratulatory, machiavellian. seems very lonely.

- reggie, male, physically age 41 moons but mentally age 81 moons. adaptable, crafty, independent, introverted; but boastful, insecure, detached, fickle. glares at goshawk from across the room.

- oli, female, 84 moons.  introspective, quiet, skilled, patient; but reclusive, inexpressive, passive-aggressive, self-centered. has been adjusting back to clowder life.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 77 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. just wants meaning and justification more than anything.

- lotus/casper, male, 67 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. still very protective and worrisome regarding his children.

- pippin, male, 64 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. very in love with beetle.

- gianetta, female, 62 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. tends to agree with her mate’s overprotectiveness regarding their children.

- beetle, male, 59 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. very in love with pippin.

- cheddar, non-binary, 58 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. has managed to convince some of the apprentices into doing hunting for them so they don't have to.

- chester, male, 57 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. has already forgotten what starclan gifted him entirely.

- milk, male, 49 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. has been getting along well with his sister.

- burrow, age 49 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. is a good mentor to harley.

- hydrangea, female, 49 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. has been looking for someone to gossip about.

- robin, female, 33 moons. intelligent, caring, loyal, protective; but biased, calculating, impatient, argumentative. doesn't know how to feel about her grandfather's past.

- sienna, female, 27 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. gets along well with duncan on patrols.

- ink, female, 27 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. does not know how to approach her apprentice.

- honey, female, 26 moons. bubbly, talkative, romantic, feminine; but naive, frivolous, melodramatic, overly-sensitive. is smitten with duncan.

- duncan, male, 26 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. seems to flirt with both honey and sienna.

- cobble, male, 26 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, studious; but restless, embittered, fickle, impatient. is not really good at anything.

- centipede, nonbinary, 24 moons. humorous, wry, sensible, earthly; but unimpressed, snarky, egotistical, snobby. does not seem to trust duncan.

- lint, female, 17 moons. analytical, soft-spoken, intelligent, logical; but cold, unfriendly, ruthless, selfish. one of the group’s best young hunters.

- yarrow, male, 17 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning. loves to play games and run in the mornings.

- giuseppe, male, 10 moons. artistic, detail-oriented, precise, intelligent; but fussy, persnickety, short-tempered, insufferable. is skilled at what he does but rather snobbish towards the other apprentices.

- tulip, female, 10 moons. kind, open-minded, affectionate, loyal; but naive, anxious, passive, easily-manipulated. loves being the apprentice starseer.

- harley, female, 10 moons. loud, goofy, rebellious, sharp-tongued, but reckless, trouble-causing, scheming, impulsive. puts herself in danger for fun, much to casper's fear.

- touchstone, female, 8 moons. silly, witty, observant, rebellious, but selfish, obnoxious, loud-mouthed, gossipy. doesn't understand confetti.

- triboulet, male, 8 moons. eager, creative, intelligent, quiet; but shy, self-deprecating, unsure, anxious. wants to be the best muralkeeper ever.

- gianetta's kittens, 2 moons. rather rebellious.

POLL:

Euthamia

should reynard be left in the clowder or kicked out?

continue to investigate blitz's clowder?

change any apprentice arrangements?

should reggie be punished for his inaction with the foxes?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

update 38- year 10, summer

new arrivals join the clowder as goshawk tries to bring normalcy back to the clowder....

more under the cut!

- the season is pleasant and warm, with a gentle rainfall on the first day of summer. this is a peaceful season.

- yarrow and lint have finished their training!

- harley, giuseppe, and tulip have been apprenticed to burrow, beetle, and dove respectively. goshawk seems a little let down that her idea for an apprentice system has been largely ignored. casper is rather overprotective of his children, to a degree that is quite unnecessary.

- giuseppe seems to have developed an odd accent that the clowder does not fully understand.

- meanwhile, goshawk tweaks clowder law, removing the additional laws wheat added in the midst of their paranoia. however, rule 16 and rule 1 remain, and goshawk chooses to keep the mention of some cats not being allowed to vote when she feels pressured.

- goshawk seems very scared of the idea that starclan secretly doesn’t want her. ‘it’s fine,’ aster reassures her. ‘if they really exist, why would they care?’

- a new group of cats have joined the clowder looking for shelter! their names are honey, robin, centipede, and reynard.

- reynard is a very old cat. he doesn’t remember much of anything, and his granddaughter, robin, has to remind him who she is sometimes. he gets easily scared and always seems confused, at times seeing things that nobody else does. robin says she has been raised by reynard since the early death of her parents, and that she is so glad the clowder takes in the elderly because she wants to make sure he is well cared for above all else. 

- it seems flare is uncomfortable with reynard’s presence, but he will not say why. he does not say much of anything these days, and his eyes have started to cloud over.

- honey and centipede, meanwhile, are young cats who are just thrilled to be there. honey thinks duncan is attractive, centipede disagrees.

- confetti has been trying to further understand a purpose for themself. helia, meanwhile, disagrees, and has started to think of leaving the clowder entirely. this has generated friction between them. their kittens have been gifted toys from the gods and remain blissfully unaware of their parents’ arguments.

- a small group- cobalt, dove, chestnut, and ivy- go over to blitz’s clowder and tell them that wheat is dead and their situation has resolved. blitz’s clowder seem rather sheepish, and tell them that they may reestablish friendly relations later but ‘we’re very busy right now, don’t ask about it’. the group comes back mildly suspicious.

- burrow, drizzle, and comet are all given powers by starclan to help in their respective talents, but are told they may turn the power off if they’d like. ‘turn it off now,’ instructs drizzle of the younger two, recalling some dark memory she was given some long time ago. ‘no good comes of those powers.’ they turn it off, but comet wonders....

- ivy meanwhile is given the ability to toggle her own power. at first she delights in taking it off, but then realizes without it she has no way to recognize a lie because she never needed to before. she turns it back on and continues on the way she is.

- it seems the clowder is slowly crafting a written language, although at this stage in the game it is very rudimentary.

- cobble is visited by ghosts to console his sorry state, but he only rejects them. he looks at his brother- handsome, productive, intelligent. he is full of nothing but envy.

- all in all, not much happens this season- this is a simple season of slow progress and restoration. but there are always questions- questions only the gods may solve....

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 57 moons. leader of the clowder. excitable, eager, ambitious, capable; but boastful, solitary, melodramatic, insecure. worries about how seriously the clowder should take her.

- aster, female, age 94 moons. friendly, social, determined, flexible; but vain, envious, nosy, vapid. tries to help out goshawk.

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 74 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. mostly sticks to their work and isn’t particularly social.

-  drizzle, female, age 85 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. worries about the power starclan has gifted her.

- comet, male, 25 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. seems to want more attention than he gets. 

- dove, male, 113 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. is glad to have an apprentice but worries deeply about her.

- flare, male, 144 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. does not speak or see much anymore.

- reynard, male, 158 moons. charming, intelligent, spunky, sly; but has lost much of himself in the throes of memory loss. feels like this place is almost familiar.

-darl, 139 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. tries to befriend the younger cats in the clowder.

-scuttle, 111 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. seems pretty bummed that their thing with tiramisu didn’t work out and they will likely die alone.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 101 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. has kept themself busy with their own tall tales.

- juliet, female, 98 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. quite likes hydrangea and wards off cheddar from her.

- ivy, female, 95 moons.  factual, convincing, righteous, determined; but manipulative, greedy, self-congratulatory, machiavellian. seems very lonely.

- nemorino, male, age 94 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated. still acts young despite his age. 

- reggie, male, physically age 38 moons but mentally age 78 moons. adaptable, crafty, independent, introverted; but boastful, insecure, detached, fickle. feels distinctly odd in his new body still.

- oli, female, 78 moons.  introspective, quiet, skilled, patient; but reclusive, inexpressive, passive-aggressive, self-centered. has been adjusting back to clowder life.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 74 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. wants there to be meaning for them and their children.

- helia, female, age 69 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud. is considering leaving the clowder.

- lotus/casper, male, 64 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. overly protective and worrisome regarding his children.

- pippin, male, 61 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. very in love with beetle.

- gianetta, female, 59 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. tends to agree with her mate’s overprotectiveness regarding their children.

- beetle, male, 57 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. very in love with pippin.

- cheddar, non-binary, 55 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. still tries to win hydrangea’s affections.

- chester, male, 54 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. has already forgotten what starclan gifted him entirely.

- milk, male, 46 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. is proud of his apprentice for graduating.

- burrow, age 46 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. is a good mentor to harley.

- hydrangea, female, 46 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. really wishes cheddar would stop bothering her.

- robin, female, 30 moons. intelligent, caring, loyal, protective; but biased, calculating, impatient, argumentative. is close to her grandfather, her only surviving family.

- sienna, female, 24 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. always eager for the task at hand.

- ink, female, 24 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. does not want an apprentice.

- honey, female, 23 moons. bubbly, talkative, romantic, feminine; but naive, frivolous, melodramatic, overly-sensitive. often gossips with centipede.

- duncan, male, 23 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. seems to have everything under control.

- cobble, male, 23 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, upbeat; but restless, unorganized, fickle, impatient. is not really good at anything.

- centipede, nonbinary, 21 moons. humorous, wry, sensible, earthly; but unimpressed, snarky, egotistical, snobby. honey’s confidant; it hears everything she has to say.

- lint, female, 14 moons. analytical, soft-spoken, intelligent, logical; but cold, unfriendly, ruthless, selfish. one of the group’s best young hunters.

- yarrow, male, 14 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning. loves to play games and run in the mornings.

- giuseppe, male, 7 moons. artistic, detail-oriented, precise, intelligent; but fussy, persnickety, short-tempered, insufferable. speaks in an odd accent.

- tulip, female, 7 moons. kind, open-minded, affectionate, loyal; but naive, anxious, passive, easily-manipulated. is eager to know her gods.

- harley, female, 7 moons. loud, goofy, rebellious, sharp-tongued, but reckless, trouble-causing, scheming, impulsive. does not like how overprotective casper is of her and her siblings.

- helia’s kittens, 5 moons. kind and silly, and generally unaware of the world.

POLL:

- who is reynard? 

- if you know who he is, will you tell his granddaughter?

- should goshawk be forced to step down?

- encourage cobble’s envy?

- should the clowder look into what’s happening with blitz’s group?

- should comet enable his powers?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

might not be able to get the update through today due to general business, very sorry about this will try to make it up

[you-are-starclan]

update 37- year 10, spring

an end, a beginning, and the people caught between them meet the clowder in its tenth spring...

more details under the cut!

- confetti and helia have had two kittens! their names are triboulet and touchstone. 

- goshawk has become more comfortable in her leadership. she has decided to revise her previous apprentice idea so apprentices still have ‘main’ mentors but are ultimately taught by many. yarrow’s mentor is now nemorino, and lint’s is milk.

- burrow has become official clowder gardener and is enthusiastic about the idea! ink has become official clowder muralkeeper and is far less enthusiastic about her new role. 

- wheat, meanwhile, has spent the season thinking. they think hard, and long. they look peaceful- more peaceful than they’ve been in some time, even though they are bone thin from stress and their fur has run ragged. being judged... being disliked... it isn’t that bad, really. maybe. or maybe they have grown tired of attention to begin with. 

- rye, meanwhile, watches and waits. she knows what must be, but- she never feels ready to do it. to kill wheat by her hands. she wishes for no great battle, no final blaze of revolution. in the end she just wants to get this all over with. we all do. 

- there will never be a correct time, or a time you are ready for, pebble tells her. only a time.

- rye looks at the other rebels. some- reggie, especially- look as though they seek blood, as though they would tear up the clowder like a nutshell just to get to wheat. peony meanwhile looks uncertain and calculating; and rye gets the sense peony has her own motives somewhere. she can’t do this with them- there has been enough bloodshed in this story so far. so she decides to do it alone, with only pebble there for some semblance of protection.

- one morning, towards the end of spring when the thorns start to sprout, rye heads down to the lot with pebble and brands fire on her feet. it doesn’t hurt her- it’s a sign, she hopes. a sign of an outcast, a sign for wheat to welcome her in. the smoke fills the air and, the way it draws out bees, it draws out wheat. 

- they know why she’s here. she knows they know why she’s here. but they both also know how to pretend, or at least they think they do. so they pretend. this is a visit between long lost siblings. this is a visit between friends. almost. they greet each other warmly; wheat buries their neck in their sister’s fur and rye places her warm paws around their shoulders. and they go home, to the lot, where one of them will not reenter.  

- and they do talk, like siblings do. they joke and laugh, or they try to even though neither of them really believe in it. ‘how tired you look,’ they tell each other. wheat shows rye their belongings, rye tells of her travels. 

- pebble sits outside, anxious and uncomfortable. in spite of everything he wants to yank wheat away. maybe they can escape, a fool and his king bound to nowhere. but he knows that isn’t the case. kings die, and their fools go to bed at noon.

- wheat and rye both know they’re lying. and all the clowder knows something is about to happen, their claws tense and their ears pricked for battle. but for now there’s peace. 

- night creeps up on them, and- and for a brief moment wheat believes in the illusion, or almost thinks they do. and they go to bed asleep and almost happy, for the first time since they were a kitten.

- that night, rye drags wheat out to the skypool. she would have thought about burning them alive, but even now she cannot do that. the moonlight beckons. when wheat’s head hits the waters, they awaken, and stare at her. ‘so you’ve chosen it this way,’ they say.

- rye doesn’t answer back.

- ‘pretty on the nose, isn’t it.’ they smile and look behind them- the mural. they think of their gods, flawed as they are. they know their gods will judge them. but for once- wheat chooses to believe in starclan. they choose to die believing in starclan. they await hell, knowing there is no place else to go. they decide to go out taking responsibility, or at least what their gods think is responsibility, and because they know at this point that just as there’s no point to have faith in their gods there’s no point in not having faith in them. hell will follow all the same. perhaps some use will be gotten out of their suffering, perhaps some sort of good. you must suffer to be good. they’ve never let go of that idea. nobody in this world really has. 

- there is no point in suffering. there is no point in suffering. there is no point in suffering. 

- as rye drowns wheat, wheat follows her every move, sinking into the water as her paws push them in. there is no pushback, no fight for life. the desperate paws that shook as they grabbed the throne are still. this is it, and they both know it. rye is terrified, but wheat is serene, even though drowning is an awful death. it’s fitting, wheat thinks. and the world goes dark. 

- wheat, the provider, dies providing themselves to their gods- just as they once did. 

- this is no story with a happy ending. there are only the dead, and the not-dead. villains are never conquered in a blaze of glory, and if there is one it is only the sign of a greater villain yet. nobody wins. nobody will ever win. the only winner is god.

- what about the survivors of all this? you may ask. but gods historically don’t care for the little things that get caught in the reeds when they want something. wheat is dead. this is what you came to see. you have won. the rest you may skip if you please.

- wasp’s group decides to leave that morning for someplace else beyond the mall and its land. wasp is joined by only two members of his original gang, as well as dirt, the strange cat who might have a place among the misfits. dandelion, who has lost trust in his own clowder, follows them, along with rosewood, who wishes to find herself her own life for once. pebble, convinced he has ruined himself and any hopes of life in the clowder with his former mate and his sons, follows them too. finally, there is rye, bringing along with her wheat’s body, surrounded by the others and yet fully alone.

- (she does not return.)

- peony is found dead that morning, too; off on her own on the fresh dewy lot. she died alone. the gods struck her down for hubris. that problem is solved too. the clowder mourns, goshawk most of all. she would have asked pebble how it feels, of course, but he is nowhere to be found. 

- most everyone else returns to the clowder: oli and reggie, and ivy, and cobble. reggie does not hide his disgust for goshawk’s leadership, and disrespects her at any opportunity he is able to. ivy is alone, without her siblings; none of her nieces and nephews really understand her. she cannot even get pleasant conversations from them; all she will ever get is the truth. cobble is rendered largely unable to speak from what he has seen, and he’s angry at his father for just leaving them. his brother duncan doesn't understand and pulls himself into his work further and further, leaving cobble alone.

- aster is appointed the new camp deputy. one night in fear dove tells his granddaughter starclan wants her to step down and forfeit everything to aster. goshawk asks aster what she thinks of this. ‘i don’t think some ‘gods’ should stop you from being the great leader you can be,’ says aster, unaware of so much. ‘i will help you be a good leader. if something happens to you i can worry about leadership then. but i am getting older. there is great promise in you, goshawk.’

- but goshawk is not sure she agrees. that night, stormfog’s ghost visits her in her sleep. it seems stormfog approves of goshawk. but goshawk also says stormfog gave her a warning. she doesn’t elaborate. 

- goshawk decides to start fixing clowder law, over the next season. maybe that will help fix things. it will in the future. but nothing is fixed now. everything has already been broken. wheat’s death does not fix. it adds. the dead are still dead. the mourners still mourn.

- this i realize is somber and does not solve much of anything. let’s pretend it does. we can pretend together, if you’d like. everyone was happy. the tyrant was dead, and they had their happy ending. all of it, rest assured, would never happen again.

-

- somewhere, far in the woods, two siblings with crooked minds and dark desires raise their nephew, as their sister told them to. he will grow up angry and bullheaded, tormented with memories of his father and yet a dislike for everything the man stood for. he will return to seek revenge only known to himself, and nobody will ever understand him. but that is all for another time. it is sunrise, and the wind is gathering in the east. 

- the boy opens his eyes.

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 41 moons. leader of the clowder. excitable, eager, ambitious, capable; but boastful, solitary, melodramatic, insecure. 

- aster, female, age 91 moons. friendly, social, determined, flexible; but vain, envious, nosy, vapid. 

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 71 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable.

-  drizzle, female, age 82 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. 

- comet, male, 22 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. 

- dove, male, 110 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. 

- flare, male, 141 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. 

-darl, 136 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy.

-scuttle, 108 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. 

- tiramisu, non-binary, 98 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful.

- juliet, female, 95 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. 

- ivy, female, 92 moons.  factual, convincing, righteous, determined; but manipulative, greedy, self-congratulatory, machiavellian. 

- nemorino, male, age 91 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated.

- reggie, male, physically age 34 moons but mentally age 75 moons. adaptable, crafty, independent, introverted; but boastful, insecure, detached, fickle. 

- oli, female, 75 moons.  introspective, quiet, skilled, patient; but reclusive, inexpressive, passive-aggressive, self-centered.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 71 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient.

- helia, female, age 66 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud.

- lotus/casper, male, 61 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn.

- pippin, male, 58 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful.

- gianetta, female, 56 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. 

- beetle, male, 54 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. 

- cheddar, non-binary, 52 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. 

- chester, male, 51 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. 

- milk, male, 43 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish.

- burrow, age 43 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible.

- hydrangea, female, 43 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. 

- sienna, female, 21 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. 

- ink, female, 21 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. 

- duncan, male, 20 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical.

- cobble, male, 20 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, upbeat; but restless, unorganized, fickle, impatient.

- lint, female, 11 moons. analytical, soft-spoken, intelligent, logical; but cold, unfriendly, ruthless, selfish. 

- yarrow, male, 11 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning.

- gianetta’s kittens, 4 moons.

- helia’s kittens, 2 moons.

POLL:

- Euthamia

- Weather?

- Personal Requests

- What will be the clowder’s next challenge?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

might have to postpone tomorrow’s update due to a medical emergency, i am very sorry everyone

[you-are-starclan]

might have to postpone tomorrow’s update due to a medical emergency, i am very sorry everyone

[you-are-starclan]

update 36- year 9, winter

after the tension and chaos of last season, the clowder finds a peaceful, quiet winter....

more info under the cut!

- gianetta and casper have gotten together and had a litter of kittens! they have named them tulip, harley, and giuseppe, and the litter is very healthy and happy.

- beetle and pippin have also announced they are looking for a kitten to adopt and raise as their own. ‘you guys are mates?’ asks hydrangea. ‘yeah, it’s weird, we announced it a couple of seasons ago and nobody noticed,’ replies pippin. ‘i guess everyone has just been busy.’

- ink is hesitant on whether or not she should take maddy’s position as mural keeper. because of ink’s situation, goshawk- with wheat and peony’s approval, of course- announces that she is stopping the original apprenticeship system in favor of every cat getting a more general education by multiple clowder members and then choosing what they want to do, so one bad mentor won’t scar them and so there won’t be a situation where the clowder ‘runs out’ of a job.

- in line with that neither lint or yarrow are getting their own mentors and are instead being mentored by nearly every adult in some way or another. the clowder seems to have mixed opinions about goshawk’s choice.

- after dove finds a replacement for his role, he will retire. he is relatively young to retire but he cannot bear himself much longer.

- goshawk has been taking to leadership surprisingly well! although she is always scared of displeasing wheat and peony.

- cheddar has been attempting to flirt with hydrangea, albeit unsuccessfully.

- nobody in the clowder knows it, but aster can no longer be harmed by anyone who believes in starclan.

- nearly every cat is skeeved out by wheat but nobody is sure on whether or not to kill them, given that might upset the current power balance. goshawk does not exile or punish them that much, although wheat does not have many duties and sits around the dens like a prisoner. for the first time in a long time wheat no longer looks so... manic, and- little by little- it seems wheat cares less and less about how the other clowder cats see them, now that they are no longer in power and starclan’s eye has started to wander.

- they are still very close to goshawk, however- goshawk reminds them of someone, someone who they treated horribly and yet- loved very much, in their own strange way, in some capacity. they speak to goshawk all the time- about the weather, or their youth, or the way there’s been so many more flowers this winter than normal. ‘you know,’ they say one day- goshawk isn’t looking in their direction- ‘you know, i don’t think i really mind being judged anymore.’

- ‘judged? what do you mean?’

- ‘all my life i’ve been terrified of what others think, you know. but now that i know all the world hates me... it doesn’t really matter that much anymore, does it? if nothing matters. i don’t think i’m so scared of dying, anymore.’

- meanwhile, peony’s group is in some sense of disarray, as some are less pleased with her wheat negotiations than others.

- cobble has been found after he escaped when his mentor was killed, and he has joined his father. it seems cobble’s relationship with everyone- especially peony and pebble- is.... tense, but he is understanding of his father to some extent.

- rye has joined the group after she spent the last season and a half- or so- talking to this strange, ethereal being, who she spilled all her fears to and who soothed her throughout it all. the being- she says her name is euthamia, but time has warped the way she has said it so it has started to become murkier- told her it would be best to seek out the rebel group and join them, and that even though starclan has placed a burden on her she will never escape from, it is her choice how she fulfills it. ‘i don’t really believe in the good of gods, anymore,’ rye says, ‘but she was like an angel.’

- rosewood and oli have made up, even though they refer to each other more as peers and less as parent and child. 

- wasp meanwhile has been distraught most of the time. once wheat and peony are dead, he says- which isn’t long, (he says this somewhere between a joke and a snarl), he and what remains of his gang are leaving forever and not coming back. and he wants peony to know her leadership- which led to two of his closest friends’ deaths- is why.

- pebble and rye talk, and share their stories- they come to a mutual understanding, in the end. 

- pebble explains. many seasons ago- it feels like ages, now- he had a dream of being leader, and a dream of it being taken from him. he was a deeply jealous creature at the time, and he told wheat of all of it- back then, they were simply friends, a mentor and his former apprentice and nothing more. but clearly something had already gotten to wheat- something pebble could not name nor begin to understand- and only a season later, pebble found himself greeted with the bodies of the former deputy and his daughter, and the inherited position. wheat told pebble in the night what they had done- they had been the one to kill them both, although they hated themself for doing it; they felt it had to be done because of what prophecy had decreed. (and, perhaps, for their own selfishness.) pebble was initially shocked, but he realized he couldn’t tell a soul because they would all believe he had done it himself and was pinning the blame on his gifted apprentice. the plan elaborated from there: pebble would give wheat an apprentice, letting wheat be eligible for deputy; he would look the other way when wheat killed speck (he abandoned this plan halfway and tried to save her, but he was unsuccessful), he would plant the stalk of wheat as a “sign”. he questioned wheat, but he did what he was told- at first because he genuinely believed this is what starclan would want on behalf of wheat, and then later because he realized he was damned anyway and had nobody but wheat (and wheat could ruin everything for him in an instant). pebble regrets everything and- were it not for his sons- wishes at times he never existed.

- rye, meanwhile, has a different story. she was always haunted by the prophecy she learned about in her youth- of her killing wheat, and ‘one destroying everything’. and over time it seemed everything clicked against her. the way her self-preservation in the face of dogs led to condemnation, and perhaps the death of her brother from some points of view. the way starclan ‘blessed’ her with the gift of fire, and destruction occurred beneath her feet. and then- one day, some time before the flood- wheat approached her and told her of what they had done. the fallen tree, the bodies, the new deputy. they told rye it had to be done, and they wanted her to join them. and yet they were so obviously afraid of her. and it was in that moment that she realized what would happen, and that she would really kill her own sibling, not out of her own weakness but because it had to be done. and it terrified her. she spent years running from what she had to do because she was so afraid of killing what had once been her best friend. but... she knew it had to be done, even if she cursed the gods who made it that way under her breath. and she would rather do it on her own choice than do it against her will.

- they sit in silence.

- both feel a lot better, about everything.

- frederick is personally mentored by peony- the new rule goshawk has applied does not apply to him, as he lives outside of the clowder, technically. he remembers his father, but he shares peony’s interpretation: that his father was a fool. he is scared of her, as she killed his father, but he knows there must be some good to her. something he can learn.

- it is strange, how still things are.

- one day, rye is on a walk when she sees someone familiar across the lot. it’s... wheat. they’re alone, and they’re taking a walk too in the bitter late winter mornings. the sun paints their face orange, and they look so... tired. rye looks so tired also. neither really has the energy for animosity anymore, and even though they aren’t that old in the grand scheme of things they both look so aged. 

- neither says a word, but both understand the other. wheat turns their head back towards the lot. settle this, sometime soon?

- rye nods.

- the next day, it is spring.

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 51 moons. leader of the clowder? excitable, eager, ambitious, capable; but boastful, solitary, melodramatic, insecure. unsure of herself but trying her best.

- wheat, non-binary, 60 moons. competitive, skilled, eager, intelligent; but selfish, impulsive, obsessive, domineering. making their peace with the world.

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 68 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. seems to actually be enjoying deputyhood now.

-  drizzle, female, age 79 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. has continued to be among the best medics the clowder has seen.

- comet, male, 19 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. has been doing very well at his job.

- dove, male, 107 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. wishes speck were here, and herself, so he would have someone to talk about everything that has happened with.

- flare, male, 138 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. has been depressed and lonely, but is at least surrounded by and loved by his clowder.

-darl, 133 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. has been enjoying retirement now that the dust of wheat’s leadership is settling.

-scuttle, 105 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. has been looking into retirement.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 95 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. 

- juliet, female, 92 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. refuses to settle down, even now.

- aster, female, age 88 moons. friendly, social, determined, flexible; but vain, envious, nosy, vapid. is excited about her grandchildren.

- nemorino, male, age 88 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated. is excited about his grandchildren, along with aster.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 68 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. has been getting along well with helia.

- helia, female, age 63 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud. has been getting along well with confetti.

- lotus/casper, male, 58 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. hopes his new family will be a fresh start.

- pippin, male, 55 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. tries to be kind to everyone after all the tragedy of the last few seasons.

- gianetta, female, 53 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. is a very devoted mother.

- beetle, male, 51 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. has been doing well with his cooking.

- cheddar, non-binary, 49 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. does not seem to be much liked by the other clowder cats.

- chester, male, 48 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. misses bullet.

- milk, male, 40 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. has been doing his own thing, mostly.

- burrow, age 40 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. has been considering becoming the full time clowder gardener.

- hydrangea, female, 40 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. has been really blending in well with the clowder.

- sienna, female, 19 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. has been striving to be the very best.

- ink, female, 19 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. wonders about the mural and what she should do with it.

- duncan, male, 17 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. gets along well with lint.

- lint, female, 8 moons. analytical, soft-spoken, intelligent, logical; but cold, unfriendly, ruthless, selfish. takes more after her aunt than her father.

- yarrow, male, 8 moons. athletic, kind, protective, loyal; but jealous, unintelligent, impulsive, unquestioning. if there was a football jock in this clowder, it would be him.

- gianetta’s kittens, 1 moon. quiet and healthy.

POLL:

- Euthamia

- Should Ink be the new muralkeeper?

- Should Burrow be the full-time gardener?

- Agree with Goshawk’s new apprentice system?

- Change clowder Law?

- You know what must happen.

- After it happens, who will be the next deputy?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

Peony in her Brutus arc. @you-are-starclan

Song link

[you-are-starclan]

update 35- year 9, autumn

a battle ends lives and a new leaf...? is turned as the clowder enters its ninth autumn....

more under the cut

- for the most part, the autumn proves unexciting- but tension builds throughout. something is happening, and everyone can feel it.

- peony and goshawk, meanwhile, ready their group to attack wheat. peony may not be one for the moral high ground, but she is a damned good leader; everything she says is understood and followed by her group, and with her presence a sense of unity is created.

- meanwhile, oleander starts feeling under the weather, and neither medic is able to understand why. it comes on very suddenly- one week, he is out and about as normal; the next he is barely able to get out of bed. peony watches her father with fear, and yet- and yet-

- if this is his time, thank god, she thinks; it means he won’t have to see what happens next.

- one morning, only a couple of weeks before her rebels have planned to attack, peony leaves. she informs phlox of her departure and tells phlox to make sure the clowder doesn’t look for her, and then she is off. only a few minutes later does she hear, “wait!”

- it’s oleander, deathly sickly, doing his best to keep up with her. she turns around and meets him.

- “peony, listen. i know what you are planning to do. the stars tell me more than you think. but you have to listen to me. they’ve decided they don’t like the way you’re going about-” -(he wheezes)- “about all this. they’ve cursed you. you will die on the same day wheat dies, not a day more or less. starclan will-” (he wheezes again) “-starclan will smite you themselves. be careful, peony.” his eyes dim. “i wish i could have done more for you.”

- peony presses herself against her father’s flank one last time. then she nods and leaves, the words her father just spoke of ringing in her ears. it’s funny, when you hear of your own death. sometimes there’s an immediate coil of fear. but other times you just don’t really feel anything at all, and peony felt like the latter. the sun felt cold on her cheeks.

- a day later, oleander is found dead in his nest.

- not long later, the rebels start up battle. things start slow- neither side is willing to attack the other- but then there is a clap of thunder, a massive storm; one of wasp’s gang leaps with a snarl and the whole territory seems to envelope into chaos. 

- what doesn’t help is that much of the clowder seems reluctant to kill. wheat, terrified yet feeling some strange thrill at leading their clowder once more, yells at them that starclan will punish them if they don’t fight. some cats follow their lead, but others stand still, uncertain if this is what starclan wants.

- (starclan wants spectacle, correct? or does it want something else? this is a question i ask you, so i will know what to write next time this all happens. for it will happen again.)

- it is wasp’s gang who are immediately targeted- they are outsiders, after all. wasp manages to survive the battle, but both cloud and crow teeth- some of his closest companions- are knocked down.

- callisto meanwhile finds scuttle, who is happy to see him alive and well, and scuttle switches sides to fight with their old friend (who was once not a friend). all goes well until wheat, acting out of desperation, strangles callisto in front of scuttle. “god damn it,” scuttle says as death takes him. “strangled someone once, and now i get strangled. humiliating.”

- not long later, maddy’s body is discovered broken and beaten on the floor. it appears to have been an accident amidst all the chaos. ink stares upon her body, almost feeling as though she is someplace else; she is not sure what to think.

- nor is reggie, for that matter, who is otherwise filled with mad bloodlust. “hang on,” says prance, approaching his adoptive brother (for the first time in a while). they look to see bullet triumphantly chasing away cats from wheat. “i think we can face them off together.”

- “i want to kill them,” snarls reggie. “i need to kill them.”

- prance wants to kill them to, he has to admit. but what he really needs to do is distract bullet one way, so reggie can go up the other way and kill one of wheat’s greatest devotees. it’s a simple plan; hold off the enemy as you call on your allies, and then take them down together.

- prance attacks bullet, and they fight. but prance quickly realizes bullet is more than he could work with. bullet is a stout, muscly thing; quick as their name and far better at fighting than prance ever was. as soon as prance is about to call on reggie, bullet bites hard into his throat; splitting it open the way wolves do.

- prance doesn’t suffer the worst of deaths. he dies fairly quickly after that, and he lives long enough to see reggie call upon hounds he had brought with him from his time with the humans, and together they tear open bullet’s belly- which he hazily smiles at. but in the end, darkness still scares him. just as it did when he was a kit. he reaches out- there’s a black tunnel, under the roads- an elegant mother obsessed with her own appearance who wears a lilac collar around her throat- everything smells different, and yet it smells the same- his fur is pale, yet his eyes are the same color- he turns to his right- he has a sister, who’s face he’s only rarely seen and yet he knows her like the back of his whiskers- it all comes back to him- the young clowder- and then somewhere dark, somewhere unwieldy-

- even after the gift of another life to live and a chance to redeem himself, skip dies afraid. one of the dogs stares upon his last breath for a moment and continues on.

- bullet however isn’t so lucky to die so quick. they are shredded open, but continue to live, long enough to see their own viscera spill out from underneath them. “someone help me!” they try to say, but the blood wells in their throat. they look for wheat, for foxglove, but they can find neither, and they collapse to the floor. they are thought dead for the rest of the battle, but they continue to live on for some time, their last moments full of nothing but agony.

- peony finds herself relieved when wheat fends off another attack- even now that they are weaker than they once were, they’re still full of fight. she sees foxglove fighting off gerber and phlox- she knows what she must do- it has to be done- nobody else must seize leadership- she lifts her claws, closes her eyes-

- the storm dies down. wheat stops their clowder when they find peony standing over foxglove’s dead body. it was all a blur. it appears cobble, foxglove’s apprentice, has ran off in terror.

- wheat is shocked with grief. they try to prop up foxglove’s head. nothing. they cradle their apprentice in their arms, like a child and a broken toy, to see if something gives. nothing. they look up. standing over them is peony, and she wants to make arrangements.

- that evening, the two talk and set aside what they want. peony tells wheat of the curse starclan bestowed upon her, and wheat laughs- they are bastards, they say, but they are entertaining bastards. peony wants the throne, but both parties realize that peony having the throne after all the bloodshed of that day might drive the clowder further apart- and against them both. throughout the conversation peony keeps thinking of killing wheat- they’re right there- but she never does, valuing her own life too much for such work.

- in the end they decide upon this: goshawk will be the next clowder leader, with wheat keeping position as a deputy- and “advisor”- and peony is allowed to “advise” goshawk as well. (they asked goshawk about this. wheat seems to take particular notice of goshawk; she reminds them of someone. goshawk was not sure it was a good idea but at the same time the idea of clowder unity and something resembling normalcy was too appealing to deny.) 

- (you didn't want goshawk. perhaps you may deal with that.)

- peony- who is more torn up about killing foxglove than she thought she would be- will be allowed to take one of foxglove’s kits and raise them as her own; however she will have to be exiled and will not be welcomed back into the clowder. any cats from either side of the battle may stick with either side, and so some cats go. some cats leave. amber leaves both entirely to be back with her humans, who she know miss her dearly.

- “i don’t know what it’s like, to kill your own sibling,” wheat tells peony, “but i know it hurts the more you think about it. i never had to deal with the idea myself, but- someone who was close to me, once, she knows. and i’m really sorry about all of this. your father, the curse, all of the deaths today, your exile. the way both of us have now gotten our footing is a dark path i would not want to wish upon anyone. but i’ll be here, waiting. if you ever want to end the both of us, i’ll still be there, and we’ll settle our scores together then when the dust clears and both of us are wiser. just one thing. peony- make sure you bring my sister with you.”

CATS:

- goshawk, female, 48 moons. leader of the clowder? excitable, eager, ambitious, capable; but boastful, solitary, melodramatic, insecure.

- wheat, non-binary, 57 moons. competitive, skilled, eager, intelligent; but selfish, impulsive, obsessive, domineering. 

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 65 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable.

-  drizzle, female, age 76 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. 

- comet, male, 16 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. 

- dove, male, 104 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling.

- flare, male, 135 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous.

-darl, 130 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy.

-scuttle, 102 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. 

- tiramisu, non-binary, 92 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. 

- juliet, female, 89 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. 

- aster, female, age 85 moons. friendly, social, determined, flexible; but vain, envious, nosy, vapid. 

- nemorino, male, age 85 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated. 

- confetti, nonbinary, age 65 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. 

- helia, female, age 61 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud. 

- lotus/casper, male, 55 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. 

- pippin, male, 52 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. 

- gianetta, female, 50 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. 

- beetle, male, 48 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. is now mates with pippin.

- cheddar, non-binary, 46 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. seems to be being considered for a higher position by wheat.

- chester, male, 45 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. 

- milk, male, 37 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. 

- burrow, age 37 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. 

- hydrangea, female, 37 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. 

- gerber, male, 22 moons. opinionated, confident, social, curious, but aggressive, short-tempered, scheming, selfish.

- phlox, female, 22 moons. quiet, cautious, intelligent, well-spoken, but manipulative, aggressive, calculating, cold. 

- sienna, female, 16 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. 

- ink, female, 16 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. 

- duncan, male, 14 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. 

- foxglove’s kittens, 5 moons. brash but playful.

POLL:

- How will you reinstate Aster (Your Choice) as leader?

- When should Peony attack Wheat?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

update 34- year 9, summer

a rebellion grows as the clowder enters its ninth summer...

more under the cut!

SUMMARY OF EVENTS:

- comet, sienna, and ink have graduated and are now full members of the clowder!

- ink has declined to become a full-time muralkeeper alongside maddy.

- comet is excessively proud of his role as the new medic, and drizzle seems to enjoy that the responsibility no longer sits on only her shoulders.

- foxglove has brought in a set of three kittens, claiming them to be his. their names are lint, yarrow, and frederick!

- after lots of work, darl has finally officially retired.

- two cats that haven’t been seen in ages have returned- oli and amber! they apologize for their past “cowardice” and ask to be let into the clowder once more. wheat obliges but is suspicious.

- and it turns out they have every right to be....

- it is an unusually cold summer. one night it snows. they’re trying to tell us something, oleander says. wheat only listens to oleander the way a coal mine listens to the birds. i know what they’re telling us, oleander. and i don’t care, because nothing in this world matters anyway.

- over the course of the season, peony amps up her strategy against wheat. she looks for the vulnerable, for the cracks in the foundations- after all, starclan has told her that she must fight this upcoming fall, and so she is obliged to. 

- “are you glad starclan is on your side?” asks goshawk one day. peony is quiet. “they ought to be,” she responds curtly.

- peony’s plan, over this season, has gone like this:

1) convince gerber to leave and join the small rebel group that goshawk is keeping watch over, while phlox stays in the group. this way the two are separated, making it easier to convince both of things separated, and so peony has a sibling both inside and outside of the clowder to rely on.

2) rile up dandelion to leave, taking his mother aster with him. aster’s a strong strategist and was once deputy herself so such strong leadership will be appreciated.

- (but aster cannot be leader, peony has decided. she will get to that conundrum later.)

- (this also had the side effect of dandelion yelling at gianetta when she inevitably refused to come along with him, citing her ‘cowardliness’ and ‘idiocy’. aster tried to calm her son down but he had nothing but choice words for his sister, and at the end she was left sobbing and alone. however it seems this has made aster question her decision. it was cathartic, in a way, peony later said.)

3) convince prance to step down as deputy. prance hates his position but also seems terrified of leaving the clowder on his own, for reasons unknown to even himself. once prance is gone, have cobalt swear undying allegiance to wheat so they will become the next deputy, pretending to be loyal to wheat while telling peony and goshawk all their secrets. what they’re afraid of, what they aren’t. that way peony can plan in accordance.

- (wheat does not seem to trust cobalt and does not talk to them often, preferring instead to only be accompanied by foxglove. wheat seems to miss pebble a lot more than they let on, and are frustrated that foxglove isn’t pebble. however, their former apprentice still means much to them, although foxglove doesn’t know how to console wheat when they awaken in the middle of the night screaming bloody murder or when they tell him how useless and purposeless the world and everything in it is.)

4) group up with oli, amber, and the resurrected reggie, who have all returned to stop wheat. have oli and amber act as spies and keep reggie with the main rebel group. also, find rosewood and drag her into the rebel group to add another number. 

- (reggie is overjoyed to see rosewood but she does not want to be here. oli allows rosewood to leave with amber, if she likes, after all this is done. it seems the siblings have apologized to each other.)

- the fifth part of peony’s plan is straightforward: have goshawk convince blitz’s clowder to join in, which will give them a definite strategy advantage. however, on the night goshawk was meant to have done this, peony goes to the little rebel group to see not blitz’s group but wasp’s gang strung about with the rest.

- goshawk tells peony that she felt like it was just... right, and that wasp’s group may be more eager to help. she also says cheerfully she found her uncle pebble among them and that he could help, and that-

- “you idiot,” peony snarls, clawing peony’s face. “now our plan will never work! this is only half the group of rebels i wanted! if we fail next season it will be because of you. you don’t think, goshawk. you’re too sentimental. you have to be harsh because that’s just how the world works. nothing was ever done with kindness.”

- goshawk stands still and ashamed of herself for the rest of the day.

- it should also be noted that rye, for some reason, panicked when goshawk and wasp joined forces, and now she has run off to be by herself- and that some strange, silvery being with odd eyes follows them all, watching from the outside and trying to help.

- meanwhile, the strange scaly beast- the one wheat has proclaimed to be a punishment from starclan, in order to keep the clowder in line- has returned, and ended up killing cedar by pouncing on him and attacking him like prey before dragging off his corpse. at no point did cedar attempt to avoid his own death, nor did he even react much to it. he just... sort of stopped.

- it was because he must have done something. perhaps he was too weak, wheat says. let this be a lesson to you all: stay strong for your clowder.

- it seems some cats are now supporting wheat because wheat’s words and cedar’s death terrified them.

- in his stead, wheat has appointed scuttle as his new guard. scuttle doesn’t seem to like this.

- near the end of the season, wheat takes a walk out on their own, and peony follows them, claws extended. they sit, alone, watching the sunrise. they’re growing thin; their muscles are beginning to atrophy. above all they look.... tired.

- peony watches them from a nearby bush. there’s nobody else around. she could kill them and there, and drag their corpse back. claim it was all an accident. but then-

- but then all that planning would have been for nothing, would it? and either her brother- a cat she despised- would become leader and do nothing but venerate wheat, or cobalt- who she only faintly knew as an earpiece and didn’t care much for otherwise- would be. her rebel band would no longer listen to her; hell, most would sink into normalcy again once they weren’t up against an obviously evil threat. no, she decided- starclan wouldn’t want that, anyway; they love the spectacle of it all. if anything else that is what her father has taught her. and that reminds her- her father- what is she going to do with him?

- besides.... if she did it out here she would get no praise, and therefore nothing would ever change. she needed to make this count. she needed to make it special, she needed-

- she needed to be wheat.

- she leaves. wheat comes home alive. the sunrise lights the mall with a beautiful shade of lavenders and oranges, as fall’s first leaves trickle in. and she stares- at wheat’s spot, up above the clowder- when you look up, from the ground, a crown looks like a halo-

CATS:

- wheat, non-binary, 54 moons. leader of the clowder. competitive, skilled, eager, intelligent; but selfish, impulsive, obsessive, domineering. stares at the various sibling groups in the clowder, eyes open.

- foxglove, male, 41 moons. charming, cheerful, laidback, extroverted; but vain, unreliable, impulsive, non-committed. has been eager to introduce wheat to his children.

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 62 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. is both very professional but very cold as deputy.

-  drizzle, female, age 73 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. is proud of her apprentice.

- comet, male, 13 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. has been really enjoying his work.

- dove, male, 101 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. is still considering retirement.

- oleander, male, 82 moons. interpreter of starclan. soft-spoken, wise, pragmatic, fair; but disinterested, aloof, sardonic, awkward. has tried to reach out to peony but she does not respond.

- peony, female, 41 moons. quiet, studious, dedicated, thoughtful; but detached, vague, sardonic, passive-aggressive. more ambitious than she looks.

- flare, male, 131 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. has been trying to reconnect to oli and amber.

-darl, 127 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. has been enjoying retirement.

-scuttle, 99 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. does not like their position and wishes to leave.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 89 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. worries wheat’s behavior could harm their two children.

- juliet, female, 86 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. has been getting along with hydrangea wonderfully.

- nemorino, male, age 82 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated. doesn’t know what he can do about wheat.

- chestnut, female, age 79 moons. responsible, loyal, quick-witted, level-headed; but overly-confident, intense, stubborn, selfish. is proud of her children but worries she isn’t doing enough.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 62 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. seems to be in slightly brighter spirits but is aware they live in a world that is not wholly meant for comedy.

- helia, female, age 64 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud. is proud of cobalt for being the new deputy, not knowing the reason why.

- lotus/casper, male, 52 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. feels wholly useless at this point.

- maddy, female, 49 moons. intelligent, patient, artistic, philosophical; but introverted, anxious, embittered, subservient. seems to be glad she no longer has an apprentice.

- pippin, male, 49 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. is now mates with beetle.

- gianetta, female, 47 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. still doesn’t want to rebel against wheat because she worries it would disrupt her job and the stability of things.

- bullet, nonbinary, 46 moons. fearless, eager, people-pleasing, energetic; but callous, impulsive, self-focused, slightly mean. has been having the absolute worst of luck recently.

- beetle, male, 45 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. is now mates with pippin.

- cheddar, non-binary, 43 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. seems to be being considered for a higher position by wheat.

- chester, male, 42 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. has been eyed by peony.

- milk, male, 34 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. seems to still be on wheat’s side of things.

- burrow, age 34 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. has been taking up some, if not all, gardening.

- hydrangea, female, 34 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. wonders if she should join the rebels so soon after joining the proper clowder.

- gerber, male, 19 moons. opinionated, confident, social, curious, but aggressive, short-tempered, scheming, selfish. follows peony’s lead.

- phlox, female, 19 moons. quiet, cautious, intelligent, well-spoken, but manipulative, aggressive, calculating, cold. will do what her sister tells her to.

- sienna, female, 13 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. hopes to be the best clowder cat now that she’s an adult.

- ink, female, 13 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. does not paint at the mural much.

- cobble, male, 11 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, upbeat; but restless, unorganized, fickle, impatient. wants to understand wheat because he knows his father worked with him.

- duncan, male, 11 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. wants to prove he can be the best apprentice.

- foxglove’s kittens, 2 moons. brash but playful.

POLL QUESTIONS:

- Euthamia

- Peony’s plan

- Who do you acknowledge as the clowder’s next leader?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

update 33- year 9, spring

a relatively peaceful season greets the clowder as dark designs lurk under the surface.....

read more under the cut!

- after some waffling, wheat has decided on who to select as their new deputy- funnily enough, just as pebble and cobalt’s children are apprenticed. foxglove has been made both the new deputy and cobble’s mentor! meanwhile, duncan has gone to helia, as per her and cobalt’s request.

- it seems cobalt is angry at pebble, but is not willing to divulge why.

- prance has asked if he may leave his position. wheat has refused his request. aster wonders if she could be the next patrol deputy in prance’s place, taking over the role she herself once had; wheat lingers on the idea but calls it off.

- aster suspects something is up. she consults euthamia, her old friend, on the matter; euthamia tells aster to stay- she may have a very important role to play. (euthamia would like to help against wheat, but at the same time... she knows what she is, she knows she’s a liability, and sometimes when she watches wheat on their morning walks from afar, she sees the same anger in their eyes she once saw in her reflection...)

- bullet has been having nothing but bad luck as of late, but isn’t sure why. wheat watches them and grows more paranoid. “would you like someone to help them?” asks foxglove. “no,” responds wheat, “i need to see what happens.” (have you heard of canaries in coal mines? perhaps it’s an overused metaphor.)

- meanwhile, peony hears the approval of starclan for her efforts against wheat. slowly, she reaches out and hears that there’s others who also are growing to dislike wheat, although the recent killings have silenced them publicly- aster, for one; but also oleander, and dove; and her younger siblings...

- she asks foxglove about it. “you’re so suspicious of everything,” he jokes. “wheat is a fine leader and they love me, you know. i don’t see anything wrong with them.”

- fool, peony thinks. (a child of ambition and a child of wandering. this is where it began, once. or forever, maybe.)

- for a long time, in the nights, peony looks at the mural. she peeks under the curtains- she knows she isn’t allowed to- at wheat’s image. in it, they stand over the bodies of those they have killed; peony recognizes a couple of them, but not all. their eyes are dark, lit only by the bright, broken halo that stands behind them, its light shining itself onto the young leader’s crimes. a crown sits atop their head, and a flood follows them in the back. provider of death, a ribbon at their feet proclaims.

- she sits there, looking at it, her expression unreadable. but it is not an expression of heroism. she stares, forever, at the crown- she reaches out, lopsided, gaze skyward, her paws hungry-

- meanwhile, goshawk has been trying to gather together those wheat has exiled. she would like to know where pebble went- peony told her to look out for her uncle- but she has been unlucky in her attempts. she has found callisto, however, and ivy. so that’s something, at least. 

- callisto speculates that wheat has murdered someone in the past. “we’re well past that, i think,” goshawk responds. ivy, meanwhile, thinks back on how wheat acted when she asked them what happened, when she came back all those moons ago. she realizes they never told her of their innocence when she asked them what ever happened to caron and emily.

- for a second, goshawk spots wasp’s gang, who seem to have realized something is up and have avoided any clowder cats for the time being. she notices pebble is among them. she tries to reach out, but as soon as she approaches they are gone. but why would he be there? and how-

- but goshawk is at least excited she has made progress. that. night, she and peony meet at the border to discuss their plans. 

- peony is a short, round thing; a very compact animal with hunched shoulders. her expression is always neutral; her jaw always clenched. something always spins through her mind but she never puts a name to it. goshawk meanwhile is tall, and lanky, and uneven, she always smiles apologetically if you look at her too long. they are opposites, and this is where the trouble begins.

- “call off the plan to get wasp,” peony states briskly, just after goshawk finishes her excited recap of getting just-nearly-close to them. “it’ll be a dumb idea. we need to get in touch with blitz’s clowder instead. more cats, that way. i bring in my group of rebels, you bring in your exiles, and with blitz’s group we have a good fighting chance.”

- “but pebble-” “no buts,” peony states briskly. “pebble is a liability, i’ve decided now. he will try to become leader himself if we kill wheat. there can be nobody wheat worked with, who can also become leader, left. liabilities, the whole lot of them, we’ll loop right back to where we are.”

- “he’s my uncle!” goshawk says. peony sighs. “there is no importance in family, goshawk. thought you would have learned that long ago.”

- “trust me, i’m pretty smart,” goshawk says. “i think we could really get some good information out of pebble, and-”

- “no, no, no. look at yourself. just look at yourself, for a minute.” goshawk stops and apologetically bows her head. “we don’t exactly have the next clowder genius on our paws with you, do we? quiet down and do what i told you to.”

- goshawk stops. “... i do try, you know.”

- “look. i need you. you need me. there is nobody else who will be willing to help you, goshawk, besides me. but i suppose it wouldn't be the first time you backed out on somebody you could have really saved.” peony looks at goshawk, knowingly. they both know who she is referring to.

- goshawk, for a long time, is silent. she turns her head and leaves into the brush.

- “what is it you want from all this, peony?” ivy asks.

- peony looks back. she is silent for a long time, avoiding ivy’s gaze. then- without answering- she slinks towards the mall, her tail flicking and her ears open.

- to try and distract everyone from the recent.... troubles, wheat decides to order the clowder to put on a show. something to distract them, something to distract their leader. it’s useful for peony because she can realize, when everyone is grouped together, who sits closer to wheat and who sits further away. here is what she has noticed:

cats who are closer to wheat: bullet, cedar (he does not seem to like being there but to be fair he does not seem to like doing anything at all), foxglove, cobble, milk, cheddar, gianetta, chester, and nemorino (although it seems nemorino was clueless enough to not notice he was sitting by the leader).

cats who actively went out of their way to avoid wheat: aster, scuttle, tiramisu, gerber, phlox, dandelion, prance, flare, juliet, and cobalt.

everyone else fell in-between. oleander seemed conflicted but ultimately sat with wheat, if at a far distance compared to the others. casper did not want to sit with anyone, and has been spending most of his time the last season completely alone.

- at one point, the cats notice that the strange lizard from a few seasons ago appears to be.... singing?.... in its own language. they drive it off the territory swiftly. it’s starclan’s punishment, says wheat, that beast is starclan’s punishment for you lot. it's a signifier one of you is guilty of something.

- hydrangea and juliet seem to get along well, although juliet finds hydrangea’s relative naïveté funny.

- a few nights later, gerber and phlox seek out their older sister; perhaps she will know what to do. “our thoughts tell us to hate Mother,” they tell her, “they tell us to hate Mother and we don’t know why.”

- peony thinks, for some time. “perhaps starclan is trying to get you to do something. they make things unpleasant for those who get in their way. father told me that’s what’s happening with bullet. he didn’t seem to approve-” she frowned- “but some things need to be done and will be justified in the long run.”

- “what needs to be done?” they ask. and peony tells them. 

- (she does not tell them about justice.)

- meanwhile, someplace else, blanche awakens in a ditch. she looks at the body she is in- evidently some other poor chap’s, judging by the coyote teeth embedded in the side and the long winding injury linking them together. she is deeply unhappy about things- of course the same stars that damned her father would return her to the mortal world, she laughs coldly in the sort of way the injured do. 

- she could fight wheat, she thinks. she could fight them. but more than anything else.... she’s tired. she’s had enough of this. always fighting someone, anyone, at some point. and for why? the cycle would always continue. there would be another wheat, and another- and she knows, in another time she would have been one herself. 

- she wanders through the neighborhood. on a white picket fence she sees three cats- two familiar, a pair of sisters, and one slightly smaller ginger tabby that she would have mistaken as someone else were the stripes on his pelt different. they seem to be planning something- something about wheat. even here she cannot escape from the clowder. eventually, she reaches a hilltop with a long, winding road, and she looks out into the beyond. the sky is a wonderful shade of blue. there’s scattered buildings. there’s trees, and plains, and skyscrapers in the distance. something new is in the air.

- she pauses and thinks of casper. she couldn’t say she wasn’t upset at him, but she understood. it was his own family matters, and he would have to overcome them. and he would, at some point. her family has a knack for that sort of thing. he’d realize the truth, and then- he could choose for himself, what the stars all meant.

- she follows the winding road and is gone.

CATS:

- wheat, non-binary, 51 moons. leader of the clowder. competitive, skilled, eager, intelligent; but selfish, impulsive, obsessive, domineering. will the fire get them, in the end? or will it be their own rivers...

- foxglove, male, 38 moons. charming, cheerful, laidback, extroverted; but vain, unreliable, impulsive, non-committed. refuses to believe his mentor could ever do anything wrong.

-   prance, male, age 62 moons, patrol deputy. witty, friendly, humorous, eager-to-please; but lazy, selfish, needy, spiteful. hates his position and wheat.

-  drizzle, female, age 70 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. worries about wheat but listens to them because of her job.

- dove, male, 98 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. is considering early retirement.

- oleander, male, 79 moons. interpreter of starclan. soft-spoken, wise, pragmatic, fair; but disinterested, aloof, sardonic, awkward. worries about his daughter.

- peony, female, 38 moons. quiet, studious, dedicated, thoughtful; but detached, vague, sardonic, passive-aggressive. more ambitious than she looks.

-darl, 124 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. worries that she’s too busy with others’ problems to retire.

- flare, male, 129 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. has realized that all life is is a set of patterns.

-scuttle, 96 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. still worries about where callisto went.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 86 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. has been telling stories of monsters and miracles.

- cedar, male, 84 moons. strong, courageous, fatherly, gentle; but stubborn, demanding, cold, overprotective. is unresponsive to most things; has not changed his somber expression in seasons.

- juliet, female, 83 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. has been getting along with hydrangea wonderfully.

- nemorino, male, age 79 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated. isn’t sure what to do besides keep going.

- aster, female, age 76 moons. friendly, social, determined, flexible; but vain, envious, nosy, vapid. despises wheat at this point.

- chestnut, female, age 76 moons. responsible, loyal, quick-witted, level-headed; but overly-confident, intense, stubborn, selfish. is proud of her children but worries she isn’t doing enough.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 59 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. thinks they are not important to the clowder.

- helia, female, age 61 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud. gets along well with others in the clowder.

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 59 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. seems no longer worried about pebble and, instead, mad.

- lotus/casper, male, 49 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. has absolutely broken down after blanche’s death; but refuses to let wheat go entirely.

- maddy, female, 46 moons. intelligent, patient, artistic, philosophical; but introverted, anxious, embittered, subservient. still does not connect well with her apprentice and is often overly critical of her.

- pippin, male, 46 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. gets along well with beetle.

- gianetta, female, 44 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. doesn’t want to rebel against wheat because she worries it would disrupt her job and the stability of things.

- bullet, nonbinary, 43 moons. fearless, eager, people-pleasing, energetic; but callous, impulsive, self-focused, slightly mean. would do anything for wheat.

- beetle, male, 41 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. has been just trying to focus on his work.

- cheddar, non-binary, 40 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. gossips about wasp’s gang all the time.

- chester, male, 39 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. seems to have already forgotten his unique power.

- milk, male, 31 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. seems to still be on wheat’s side of things.

- burrow, age 31 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. has been taking up some, if not all, gardening.

- hydrangea, female, 31 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. isn’t sure of what she’s walked in on.

- gerber, male, 16 moons. opinionated, confident, social, curious, but aggressive, short-tempered, scheming, selfish. follows peony’s lead.

- phlox, female, 16 moons. quiet, cautious, intelligent, well-spoken, but manipulative, aggressive, calculating, cold. will do what her sister tells her to.

- comet, male, 10 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. is eager to be the best clowder medic ever.

- sienna, female, 10 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. has been arguing with duncan over who among them is better at things.

- ink, female, 10 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. still does not get along with her mentor.

- cobble, male, 9 moons. gentle, introspective, imaginative, upbeat; but restless, unorganized, fickle, impatient. wants to understand wheat because he knows his father worked with him.

- duncan, male, 9 moons. analytical, intelligent, quiet, organized; but cold, pessimistic, apathetic, egotistical. wants to prove he can be the best apprentice.

POLL:

- Euthamia

- When to attack Wheat?

- What should Goshawk do?

- Change weather?

- Peony’s second-in-commands?

poll here

[you-are-starclan]

quick reminder from last week’s update

because i’m setting up at college the next couple of weeks, YASC will be on hiatus until the fourth of september, at which point it will resume right where we left off. see you all then!

[you-are-starclan]

update 32- year 8, winter

a leader realizes nothing in this life matters, and plunges the clowder into darkness...

read more under the cut!

- peony makes her attempt to kill pebble on the first morning of winter. however, through some kind of strange bad luck- perhaps something divine?- an icicle happens to fall on her leg, causing a broken bone that she spends the next month healing from. she is very upset about this turn of events.

- one night she dreams of a strange argument between pebble and wheat, in which wheat mentions to pebble that killing speck was their idea and that they had roped pebble in. the servant is but a spider in a web. The bountiful harvest pulls the puppet strings, a voice says. she is unsure of what to make of it- but then realizes it means starclan is helping her. 

- she has been Chosen, and is Loved by them. (and to be Loved is to be a very special thing, isn’t it?)

- meanwhile, some time after wheat attempts to push pebble around again only to feel a harsh burning sensation every time they lay a paw on him. their response is to exile him, in the dead of night, kicking him out into the black winter night. wheat calls a clowder meeting later on and announces that they had found pebble guilty of killing speck, and had decided to exile him in response.

- some seem annoyed that wheat didn’t go ahead and kill pebble, if it’s real- but others wonder if wheat just wants to get rid of pebble. “why did you do all that?’ prance asks wheat, whispering into their ear. “he’s outlived his usefulness.”

- some time into the meeting, the clowder experiences a clap of light- as if there were lightning, even though the sky was pale and blue- and they have strange collective vision of the court from many moons ago, and their fight, and the way duke rakehell’s claws look like wheat’s in the sunlight. they know wheat is bad, but none of them seem to have the guts to overpower him.

- except for one. but we will get to her later, reader.

- dove recalls a similar memory from a week ago- a garden, overcome with wheat stalks...

- a new arrival- a former pet gone loose- has joined the clowder! her name is hydrangea and, much like juliet, she’s gossipy and selfish but curious and brave. she isn’t exactly sure of what she’s walked into, however. (juliet does not know what to think of her.)

- meanwhile bullet and cedar are having trouble- their claws disappear every time wheat instructs them to use them on someone, as if through divine punishment. bullet complains of bizarre dreams at night. wheat seems disappointed in this and is looking for new guards, but cedar especially rubs them the wrong way, so they decide to talk to them.

- ‘what’s the point of it all?’ cedar asks wheat. there’s no emotion in his voice; it’s like a dead phone line. it wasn’t even that cedar was sad- there was just nothing there, anymore; as if he had no more power to express emotion. ‘i came here all this way to give my son a good life, and then he dies because i couldn’t save him in time. and i said i saw no point in life, and you said- you said if i was your guard, i could protect the clowder, and then i would have purpose-’

- ‘that’s the thing,’ wheat says- there’s a harshness in their words, like a serpent. ‘there is no point to any of this. there’s no meaning in anything. can you keep a secret?’

- cedar nods- it appears since pebble’s exile, wheat has been desperate to have someone to tell secrets to.

- ‘i don’t really follow what the gods say, and i’ve stopped listening to them. i only act in starclan’s name, now, because i realized the best way to leave them be is to let them judge others. that’s what makes them happy, in the grand scheme of things. everything we ever do, cedar- they tally it up and decide, heaven or hell. and that’s it. your life amounts to a set of votes. you are fundamentally meaningless.’

- cedar is still.

- ‘so, cedar- when you die, they will judge you however you wish. you haven’t done anything meaningful with your life, and you never will. nothing in your life matters- and how could it? a father so pathetic he couldn’t save his own son?’

- cedar is still.

- ‘think on my words, cedar. would you rather serve me, or would you want to have time to remember how much of a meaningless failure your life is, and how after death you will amount to only whatever the gods think of you? you mean nothing. your choice will not matter. you will be hated all the same. had you died with your son, nothing in this world would have changed.’

- cedar is still.

- he is still for a long time.

- meanwhile, while winter is never great this one has been particularly horrible. a respiratory illness spreads throughout the clowder, affecting scuttle, charlotte, and pedro. scuttle survives, but because more plants than usual have died, drizzle is unable to save charlotte and pedro.

- it seems as though gerber and phlox are looking for someone to blame their mother’s death upon.

- chestnut’s children are apprenticed- comet to drizzle, ink to maddy, and sienna to lotus/casper. it appears sienna is some sort of strange ‘gift’ to casper from wheat in order to rekindle their relationship- does wheat miss rye, still, in some strange way?

- maddy seems to struggle connecting with ink, much the same way her own mentor struggled with her.

- rosewood appears to have run away after reggie’s death. it is unclear where she’s run off to.

- meanwhile, wheat uses their power to exile more cats. callisto is exiled for criticizing wheat, which wheat shapes into an “assassination attempt” with their words. ivy is exiled for trying to look into wasp’s gang to see what’s up with their strange new member. (while she is there, she almost thinks she sees someone she knows, but he flees when he sees her.) it appears wheat is increasingly afraid of retribution- but at the same time, if they cannot ever be loved enough perhaps they can at least be feared.

- aster feels very out of touch the entire time, and debates leaving herself- only issue being she can’t walk out on her children. her friend euthamia returns to visit her, in the dearth of night where nobody can see. “i can help,” euthamia says. “i can help with all of this.”

- aster says nothing. they sit there, in silence.

- blitz’s clowder, having heard what happened with reggie, have cut off all contact with them abruptly without any warning. a small patrol led by goshawk is sent over to reconcile and is only ambushed in response.

- something must be done, various clowder members think- something must be done to stop all this. but it is peony who decides it is her job to do something. she and goshawk make plans into the night- one will stay, the other will leave and find those wheat has exiled to round them up against him. ‘i’ll go,’ peony reasons, but then goshawk panics- she remembers her sister’s sacrifice, the sort of sacrifice that costs you, and she is afraid to let peony out of her sight the same way. peony argues- well, i’m special, and you’re not chosen, so it has to be this way! this is my job! this is my destiny! i have to be the special one!- but she eventually relents. goshawk slips off into the night, and peony stays put, trying to figure out how she’ll stay out of wheat’s spotlight as she figures out a way to overthrow them....

- blanche, however, has had enough of this. no stars have chosen her path, now; this is what she chooses to do herself. when wheat is out alone, getting a drink, she follows them, her glare still and her mismatched eyes narrowed. she waits for them to not notice her as they stare into the water- she springs-

- wheat yelps and fights back on impulse. she and they thrash around in and around the ice-cold stream; they are strong and unpredictable but she is well-experienced and carries her father’s determination on her shoulders. it feels as though it goes on forever.

- “why?” wheat asks her mid-fight. “why try to kill me, if nothing in life matters? i know you have less faith in the stars than i do.”

- “because if the gods don’t matter,” blanche spits out, “the people on earth might.”

- wheat doesn’t understand. she leaps for them again- they pivot around, pressing her face into the water- the long scar on her neck sticks out like a thimble- they raise their claws- they slice-

- she dies somewhere between drowning and bleeding out from her scar, and yet there’s a smile on her face. she has seen what happens to the chosen before. she knows it will all happen. 

- when everything’s circular, every curve starts to rhyme.

- wheat returns, with blanche’s body. it was an accident, they say. they were acting in self-defense, they say. she fought first, they say, it was an assassination attempt.

- almost everything they say is right, however, and the clowder worries about the implications of clowder law if they intercede. 

- meanwhile, someplace else where the roads are winding and the fences are white, a young ginger tabby, some backyard stray, struts out into the road. he sizes up his chances. perhaps he can make it, he thinks, bolting across- make it before the car comes. it is young, stupid adolescence- adolescence that costs him his life as the car hits him and sends him careening to the curb.

- but something remarkable happens. after some time, the body sparks with light- something new has taken residence within it, or perhaps someone. starclan has taken pity upon a cat who died last season, and so have decided to resurrect him once more. this is not who this body belonged to, and yet- and yet he looks so familiar-

- but it is still a very broken body. he struggles to make it out of the street; his mind is not all there. there are dogs with odd eyes barking and snarling at him through a white picket fence; but when he makes eye contact with them they grow still. finally, he makes it out of the curb and rests. the grass feels good, but- he has something he needs to do-

- “oh, you poor thing!” says a middle aged-human as she leaves the house in front of him. she scoops up the ginger tabby, with nothing else to do he sinks into her arms. “we ought to get you cleaned up. find your owner and all, yeah?”

- the ginger tabby is too tired to fight her off. she loads him into a carrier, for a veteranarian to examine. it is only here that reggie comes to his senses in this new body- the parking lot- the tree- wheat’s mintgreen glare-

- the last thing he sees, before the human whisks him off in her car, is his sisters from his old life, wearing collars, watching through her window.

CATS:

- wheat, non-binary, 48 moons. leader of the clowder. competitive, skilled, eager, intelligent; but selfish, impulsive, obsessive, domineering. terrified.

-   prance, male, age 59 moons, patrol deputy. witty, friendly, humorous, eager-to-please; but lazy, selfish, needy, spiteful. hates his position and wishes he were just another member of the clowder once more.

-  drizzle, female, age 67 moons. kind, silly, soothing, nurturing; but ineffective, overly-soft, foolish, awkward. feels guilt for pedro and charlotte’s deaths.

- dove, male, 95 moons. interpreter of starclan. gentle, soft-spoken, caring, sensitive; but cowardly, passive, slow-witted, bumbling. isn’t sure what more he can do.

- oleander, male, 76 moons. interpreter of starclan. soft-spoken, wise, pragmatic, fair; but disinterested, aloof, sardonic, awkward. has known what wheat has realized.

- peony, female, 35 moons. quiet, studious, dedicated, thoughtful; but detached, vague, sardonic, passive-aggressive. knows she is Chosen and Correct in all things.

-darl, 121 moons, female. gentle, nurturing, patient, humorous; but insecure, indecisive, material, prone to jealousy. worries for rosewood’s sake but knows that rosewood makes her own decisions now.

- flare, male, 126 moons. confident, charming, capable, spirited; but egotistical, manipulative, short-tempered, callous. has realized that all life is is a set of patterns.

-scuttle, 93 moons. empathetic, kind, people-pleasing, observant; but quiet, paranoid, hesitant, enabling. worries about where callisto went.

- tiramisu, non-binary, 83 moons. skilled, cunning, quick, charismatic; but careless, inattentive, easily-distracted, boastful. has been telling stories of monsters and miracles.

- cedar, male, 81 moons. strong, courageous, fatherly, gentle; but stubborn, demanding, cold, overprotective. sits very still.

- juliet, female, 80 moons. flirtatious, outgoing, charismatic, passionate; but lazy, fickle, impatient, self-absorbed. has been dead silent since the death of her sister.

- nemorino, male, age 76 moons. kind, extroverted, bubbly, genuine; but unintelligent, insecure, naive, easily-manipulated. isn’t sure what to do besides keep going.

- chestnut, female, age 73 moons. responsible, loyal, quick-witted, level-headed; but overly-confident, intense, stubborn, selfish. is proud of her children but worries about wheat.

- confetti, nonbinary, age 56 moons. bubbly, extroverted, loving, excitable; but spacey, obnoxious, loud, impatient. doesn’t know what they should do- after all, besides telling jokes they are useless and worthless.

- helia, female, age 58 moons. witty, gentle, loving, extroverted; but obsessive, passive-aggressive, petty, loud. gets along well with others in the clowder.

- cobalt, nonbinary, age 56 moons. quiet, introverted, detail-oriented, clever; but aloof, cold, passive-aggressive, unreadable. worries about pebble.

- lotus/casper, male, 46 moons. independent, cunning, sardonic, quick; but argumentative, abrasive, spiteful, stubborn. has absolutely broken down after blanche’s death.

- maddy, female, 43 moons. intelligent, patient, artistic, philosophical; but introverted, anxious, embittered, subservient. does not connect well with her apprentice despite their apparent similarities.

- pippin, male, 43 moons. introverted, creative, understanding, empathetic; but overly-sensitive, paranoid, depressive, doubtful. gets along well with beetle.

- gianetta, female, 41 moons. strong, gentle, bubbly, agreeable; but awkward, insecure, passive, doubtful. doesn’t want to rebel against wheat because she worries it would disrupt her job and the stability of things.

- bullet, nonbinary, 40 moons. fearless, eager, people-pleasing, energetic; but callous, impulsive, self-focused, slightly mean. would do anything for wheat.

- beetle, male, 38 moons. wry, kind, sensible, earthly; but hedonistic, gluttonous, easily-flustered, impatient. has been just trying to focus on his work.

- cheddar, non-binary, 37 moons. compliant, chatty, extroverted, a quick learner; but disloyal, inattentive, forgetful, two-faced. gossips about wasp’s gang all the time.

- chester, male, 36 moons. optimistic, friendly, happy-go-lucky, eager-to-please; but insecure, naive, easily-manipulated, somewhat dim. seems to have already forgotten his unique power in the wake of fear.

- foxglove, male, 35 moons. charming, cheerful, laidback, extroverted; but vain, unreliable, impulsive, non-committed. refuses to believe his mentor could ever do anything wrong.

- milk, male, 28 moons. extroverted, charismatic, clever, crafty; but lazy, rebellious, non-committal, selfish. seems to still be on wheat’s side of things.

- burrow, age 28 moons. smart, hard-working, dedicated, organized; but compliant, gullible, bull-headed, inflexible. wonders if she should become the next clowder gardener.

- hydrangea, female, 28 moons. curious, brave, hard-working, witty; but gossipy, dramatic, two-faced, opportunistic. isn’t sure of what she’s walked in on.

- gerber, male, 13 moons. opinionated, confident, social, curious, but aggressive, short-tempered, scheming, selfish. wants to blame someone for his mother’s death.

- phlox, female, 13 moons. quiet, cautious, intelligent, well-spoken, but manipulative, aggressive, calculating, cold. tears insects apart limb by limb because she finds it interesting.

- comet, male, 7 moons. enterprising, aware, clever, talkative; but exploitative, selfish, manipulative, antagonistic. is eager to be the best clowder medic ever.

- sienna, female, 7 moons. kind, people-pleasing, eager, affectionate, but attention-hogging, melodramatic, self-centered, anxious. wants to be the best at everything.

- ink, female, 7 moons. introspective, artistic, quiet, detail-oriented; but self-deprecating, unmotivated, misfit, antisocial. doesn’t know what she did wrong with her mentor.

- cobalt’s kits, 5 moons. gentle but talkative.

POLL:

- Euthamia

- Who can Gerber and Phlox blame?

- Who should seek out Wasp?

- Should Amber and Oli return to the clowder?

poll here

NOTE: The author will be busy for the next couple of weeks moving off to university and getting situated, so YASC will take a short hiatus and resume on September Fourth. May you light your own paths til then.....