Warriors RPG

[C S]

Snowstar's only reaction to Wraith's words was the hairs on his back rising, looking almost like quills. He looked to his fellow leader as he got to his feet, mewing "The warriors have thunder in their spirit..." He stretched out and then growled to Coldeyes. "Would you tell my daughter to come here then?"

The deputy, who was sitting by the den's entrance grooming himself simply nodded and poked his head out the den, seeing Snowstar's daughters sitting expectantly just outside. "Mudswirl...your father would like to see you now..." The tom growled as he himself stepped out of the den, giving the snow pelted leader privacy...

[Hopeflower]

Hawkclaw watched the scene silently, her amber eyes missing nothing. She was crouched beside the warriors' den, wondering what exactly her sisters had gotten into now. Since their mother had died, Hawkclaw had drawn into herself, preferring to keep silent and just watch, patrolling and hunting when she was needed. Sometimes she just took long walks by herself, recalling the precious memories she had of Hawksight. Her gaze slid to Lightstorm, who had climbed a tree and taken a perch on a low branch. His white pelt glowed in the moonlight, dappled with the shade of nearly leafless branches. Hawksight's death had hit him hard, too. But he was coping with it, though he tended to tense a bit if someone mentioned their mother's name. Hawkclaw let out a light sigh. At least they still had their father...and hopefully they would for a long while yet.

[C S]

The she cat walked into the den, solemnly. She sat before her father, at Wraith's side. She bowed her head, obviously regretful. "Im sorry for speaking out of t-!" was all she could say before Snowstar growled "Down, Mudswirl." His daughter mewed "Down?"
"Yes" The white tom mewed. "Down"
"....You...you used to do this when we were kits! After Hawksight-" She cringed. Snowstar paused, expression never changing, but hearing of his former mate stung him. "It was an effective discipline tool" He mewed.
"Not here! Not infront of Shadowsoul!"
"Yes...right here, right now, Shadowsoul or not."
Mudswirl's lips wavered before she laid down, her father walking around her so that he could sit down at her flank. He then proceeded to lick his daughter's pelt, purposely stroking her the wrong way to mess it up. "Now." He mewed inbetween licks. "When an elder-" He mewed, glancing up to see his daughter bristling. "-Is handling a situation" He added before licking Mudswirl some more. "You dont interject in anyway." He moved up so that he could lick the back of her head. "The same for leaders!" He brought his tongue up her body as she let out irritated growls. She was embarrassed and now angry that she had to groom herself AGAIN. "They know more than you, and until your an elder or leader, you let them handle situations, you just worry about defending them in any dire scenario, should one occur, Now go groom yourself while you think about what I told you!" He backed up from the brown she-cat as she sprung back to her feet and ran out of the den, hair standing up. She wanted to be find a nice lonely corner where she can fix her looks before anyone saw her...

"Kits" Snowstar mewed, shaking his head. "No matter how old they think they are...they're still kits..."

[The Kingpin]

"Interesting choice of punishment...But does it work?" growled Wraith, keeping his visible amusement to a minimum...

Nightclaw, having helped with cataloging for a while and having learned a few things doing so, was now out and about in camp enjoying a few hours of peace before he went to sleep however, as he was walking, he was greeted by a very peculiar sight; Mudswirl slinking out of Snowstar's den, her fur pointing upwards, not out of fear or agression...but...backwards grooming? he shuddered at the thought of it. what could've happened to leave her like that? curious, he followed...

[Hopeflower]

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Lightstorm called to Nightclaw, his amber eyes glittering with suppressed laughter. "She'll claw your nose off faster than an angry badger."

A soft wind caressed Snowstar's ears. If he listened hard enough, he'd be able to hear Hawksight's gentle, amused purr.

[C S]

Snowstar faced Wraith, a smile on his face. He simply said "Would you anything to endure that? Especially infront of another cat?" He chuckled. "Its how I diciplined them after we settled down here.... dont tell me you didnt wonder why the kit antics between the three of them suddenly stopped!"

Mudswirl snapped her body about, touching noses with Nightclaw, face expressionless, trying to emulate her father as she tried to hide her embarassment. "Avert your eyes." She growled as Riverstone trotted up beside her. The she-cat began to smooth out her sister's pelt, snickering softly...

[Hopeflower]

Hawkclaw watched her sisters with a faint look of longing in her amber eyes. She wanted to join them, but with Mudswirl angry and embarrassed and acting like a fox had just bitten her tail...it was probably safer to stay where she was.

Lightstorm leaped from his branch and landed with a light thump next to his little sister. He bent to groom the dark tabby's ears, his heart twisting painfully as it did every time he thought of how much Hawkclaw looked like their mother. He did his best to spend time with Hawkclaw, trying to let her know she was a valuable member of the Clan...but sometimes he wondered how much she heard when he told her as much. We need you, mother, he thought, resting his chin on Hawkclaw's head. Now more than ever.

[The Kingpin]

"Kits will be kits. denying them that will only make life that much less pleasurable. with my kits i preffered to speak to their minds. if they can understand why it's bad, they will avoid it out of their own will to be better. no embarassment involved and no waste of time. not to mention playing on their guilt can do wonders for you if you know how to use it. assuming Stormheart didn't just let what i said go in one ear and out the other, i expect he will become a much better Warrior as a result of what i told him and Nightclaw this morning" growled Wraith calmly, licking a paw and rubbing it over his ear...


Nightclaw sighed, averting his gaze but not leaving outright. "Let me guess...Snowstar's annoyed? you're not alone..." he meowed. while he enjoyed his father's lessons, he hated feeling that he had disappointed the elder tom. it was a weapon many parents used. guilt over the wrongness of the youngster's actions. even if barely any punishment was made, some parents had the ability to feel terrible just by letting them know they were disappointed...Wraith was one such parent...

[Hopeflower]

Lightstorm gently nuzzled Hawkclaw. "Come on," he murmured. "Get up, stretch your legs." At first it seemed the dark brown tabby wasn't going to respond. But then, slowly, she stood. She followed Lightstorm further towards the center of the camp, but sat down before she was too far out of the shadows cast under the light of the moon. The long-haired white tom sat beside her and wrapped his tail over his paws. They were quiet for a little while. Lightstorm almost jumped when a quiet voice spoke. "It's getting close to the full moon," Hawkclaw mewed. "Who do you think Snowstar and Shadowsoul will choose to go with them?" Lightstorm blinked at her. "I don't know. I suppose we'll find out in a few days," he meowed. Hawkclaw nodded, as if to herself. "I hope you're chosen," she mewed. "I'd like to hear what happened...from you." Lightstorm licked the top of his sibling's head. She was so young to have to experience their mother's death. Too young. To his eyes, it seemed she would fall apart at any minute. but his heart told him she was stronger than that. "And I'll be sure to tell you," he promised.

[C S]

Snowstar mewed "Playing with guilt? My my Wraith, no matter how much time passes, you are a Shadowclan cat through and through! When I first used that punishment, it worked like a charm, as the kits didnt want to get ther coats messed up while they learned why what they did was bad." Snowstar let himself slip back in his memories. "I guess I did it again...for the sake of reliving the past" The cat fell silent... emotion draining away from his form as he remembered the trend of his life...

Mudswirl mewed "I dont know what that was... but he used to do it to us when we were kits! I hate it!" Riverstone mumbled through her sister's pelt "Didnt we all?"

[The Kingpin]

"Oh how tempting it is to relive a better past in such difficult times" growled Wraith as he walked over to Snowstar. "Still, it won't make our lives any better or easier to dwell on our pasts now. we need to work to turn our current times into things worthy of thinking back to when we're living our final days. We've accomplished things many Leaders before us would envy. we've brought our Clans back from almost nothing, we've united them and strengthened the bonds between them in ways generations of Clan cats before us could never DREAM of accomplishing, let alone see it through. I can tell you this, my friend....if anyone is qualified to bring back the happiness and pleasure and greatness of the old days, it's us. we'll accomplish it if we put our minds to it" growled Wraith. he let the words sink in for a few moments. he could see the sadness in Snowstar's eyes, even though many couldn't. afterall, Wraith himself had suffered similar pains in his life. as the saying goes...it takes one to know one...


Nightclaw shuddered. "Ugh, i know what you mean....just doing that to my headfur feels awful. i could hardly imagine how i'd take it if my parents tried doing that all over my body!" he meowed, shuddering again as the thought re-entered his mind as he tried to think of something else...

[Hopeflower]

"Anyway, let's head to the den, Hawkclaw," Lightstorm meowed. "We both need our rest." He led the smaller dark tabby towards the warriors' den, pausing only to touch his nose to Heatherpelt's ear gently. Her ear twitched slightly as his breath tickled it. His eyes softened affectionately before he turned away to find his nest of moss and bracken. He picked his way around the other sleeping warriors and finally settled with Hawkclaw beside him. She rested her chin on his shoulder before her amber eyes fluttered closed. He shut his own eyes and eventually managed to fall asleep.

[C S]

"We make this forrest something our Starclan departed could look back on and brim with pride" Snowstar mewed after a moment of silence. He stared out the den to his two daughters... he couldnt see Hawkclaw but she was in his head too. "How much pain must I endure before my torment ends..." He thought... hoping that history doesnt repeat itself in a devastating way...

"I dont need to imagine" Growled Mudswirl. "I dont need to be reminded either" She hissed...

[Hopeflower]

"Worry not, my love," Hawksight breathed quietly into Snowstar's ear, twining herself around him even though at the moment he couldn't see her. "Because of your efforts our kits can at long last look forward to a brighter future."

[C S]

Snowstar's ears drooped as he heard Hawksight speaking to him, always speaking... he longed to see her again..and Loneclaw..he hadnt seen Loneclaw in ages! He wondered why his brother hadnt visited him like he used to. She sounded certain that his family- the clan, was safe. He knew such certainties were mere illusions at best. Even in times of peace. They could perish in a hunt... a wayward strike of lightning in a storm... a branch falling on them as they wandered the forrest.. so much ways that his children could die... it terrified him despite his vacant look, though he guessed Wraith picked up on it...

[Hopeflower]

"Are those things really likely to happen?" Hawksight murmured, a faint outline of her form appearing. Her amber eyes shone with warmth and love, and a faint trace of amusement. "What sane cat leaves camp in a bad storm?" she asked gently, trying to ease Snowstar's fears. "And what is a mouse or vole going to be able to do to a cat?" She joked lightly. "You worry too much. Relax once in a while or you'll give yourself a gray muzzle."

[C S]

Snowclaw's pupils enlarged when he saw his mate appear before him, bewildered. Could Wraith see her? As any other cat could have seen Loneclaw? He threw the thought away, just happy to see her again... and what she said... its like she read his mind somehow. He wanted to run up to her and nuzzle her hide, but knew all he'd accomplish is passing through her...

[Hopeflower]

Hawksight smiled sadly. "You should get some rest, love," she meowed. "It will be moonhigh soon."

[C S]

He couldnt sleep. Snowstar had so much on his mind, clans, goals, all just buzzing to and fro. Despite his mate's attempts to rest his concerns with his children, he already knew first hand life can turn for the worse in an instant. He was amazed that Hawksight simply pushed that aside. After all, if life didnt have so much risks, so many ways you could meet your doom, she'd still be with him...

[Hopeflower]

Hawksight sighed, seeing he wasn't going to sleep on his own. She reached up to touch her nose to his ear. "The Clan isn't going to vanish while you're sleeping," she meowed. "And if some cat does go missing, Coldeyes will be sure to let you know. You chose well when you named him deputy," she added.