The future's in your paws. Shape it well.Roleplay in a cat Clan of warriors. Based off the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. Takes place in an AU before the cats in the books existed.
Welcome to WCC! Here are our latest announcements:
Activity checks take place on the 1st of the month. If you miss one activity check, make sure you do the next one!
Leaf-fall is finally here, and with it, the promise of colder, crueler, days ahead.
Gatherings take place on the 1st of the month; keep your eyes out for a staff member's post!
Please feel free to hit up any staff member if you have any questions!
Smokepaw gave a start as another cat came up to her and started talking to Nightpaw. He was…loud… Bumblepaw, hmm? Smokepaw coughed quietly to cover a snort. What sort of a name was that? Did the rest of his family have such crazy names?
“You make your announcements from a branch? One day someone’s going to fall off and break their neck!”
Smokepaw looked Bumblepaw over. Her earlier assumption had been correct- he was loud, at least to her. If these two were brothers, she ought to be able to guess at their siblings and parents, at least once she met more cats.
“A game?” She echoed. “Erm… a game. At a Gathering. Somecat is going to think we’re trying to claw the fur off each other. Unless you mean that one where we guess each others’ warrior names? Or is that a ShadowClan thing?”
She was pretty sure it wasn’t. Every cat she had ever met would, quite literally, die for their warrior names. Hopefully the SkyClan cats would know what she was talking about. Smokepaw sat quietly but with a small smile.
Coming to the Gathering had been a good idea. Smokepaw found she liked talking to other cats around her age- most of the apprentices in ShadowClan were nearly warriors. Nightpaw and Bumblepaw, hmm. It was alright to be friends with them, she supposed, since SkyClan and ShadowClan only met at the furthest reaches of their territories. As long as she didn’t have to fight them sometime in the future, she was quite alright with befriending them in the present.
Tara Former Staff
Characters : Falconmoon, Sagefeather, Asmodeus, Snowhunter Number of posts : 3142 Gender : Female; She/Her Age : 33
Bearspirit was clearly lost in his thoughts when Swiftspirit approached him. Her voice broke the uncomfortable trance he was in and he blinked, refocusing his eyes on her. He wished he could tell her everything was fine, but that would be a lie. "Actually... hum- er... twolegs have sort of... moved in. That wouldn't bother me if it weren't for their dogs." Bearspirit growled the last word and his claws pricked the dirt beneath his toes. The dogs he'd seen so far weren't the ones that had been chasing him and his siblings, but it didn't matter. The only good dog was a dead one.
"I don't know how Ivystar plans to handle this, but if I get the chance to kill any dogs, I am taking it." He wasn't sure that he even cared if he died or not, as long as he took his opponent with him.
"And Windclan? How have you been?"
Bloodstrike watched Beechface with keen interest and followed her gaze to Lilacstar. A growl rumbled quietly in his throat, but he indeed caught Wolfstar's gaze as well. Something had happened... and he had a sinking feeling in his gut that he could guess what this might be about. Skyclan had only been concerned about one thing for moons after all, and now suddenly everyone was tense and tight-lipped around Skyclan cats. He would say nothing for now to any of the leaders, but he walked calmly to Beechface's side and gently leaned a shoulder against her. He knew she was mad at him for bringing Briarthorn and half Shadowclan kits to Skyclan, but he was still her deputy. She could give him whatever hisses and spits she desired, but it wouldn't stop him from doing his job.
"What's going on with you?" He asked her quietly, hoping that she'd let some of her venom out on him and not a clan leader. At least not here.
Moonshine tried very hard (and failed miserably) to contain her joy when Batglow sat next to her. His simple gesture of kindness, a nudge, made her face burn. "Hi Batglow." She said with a smile. Experimentally, she leaned on him lightly to see how he'd react. Their interactions had never been negative, per se... so she didn't have a reason to think it would happen now. "So uh..." That thing she wanted to ask... yeah... She dug deep to try to find the guts to ask. It had been a moon since the last time she tried only to be cut off by Wolfstar. That wasn't happening again... and she would launch herself at the first leader that tried to stop her. And sit on them. Yeah.
"I can't help but notice that you're off by yourself a lot. Is there anyone you like spending time with?" And now she wished she'd just not asked. It sounded much smoother in her head. Oh well... no taking it back now. They had been assigned to patrol in different areas for quite some time now and Moonshine had been tempted several times to ask Murkystrike to please stop doing that.
Dennis, as usual, had nothing to add to this gathering. At this point Clover paw was the only reason he attended, as Softbreeze was absent more often than not and the twins weren't here. Thanking Starclan for blessing him with such a small frame, he made himself invisible once Cloverpaw started a new coversation on her own. He was becoming somewhat of a recluse, but he'd rather be that than a disappointment.
Dennis is open to talk to, please help him socialise lmao
Wasppaw all but floated into Fourtrees, fur impeccably groomed and tail swishing daintily from side to side. It was dustier than he would have liked, but with a little bit of careful stepping he could limit the dust to his already-dark paws. He could hardly stay home for something like this, no matter how dirty it was. Weaving in between cats, he spotted three apprentices on the other end of the clearing.
He didn't want to hang out with his siblings the whole time, he had to make his own friends. Cool, inter-clan friends. Yeah. Putting on his signature grin that didn't quite meet his eyes, he trotted up to the trio. "Hey, my name's Wasppaw. Can I sit here?" He didn't wait for an answer as he sidled up next to a tall spotted tom and sat down, tail curling around his paws. He made a special effort not to let his glorious mane touch Bumblepaw, though of course he stayed close enough to be admired. ThunderClan seemed to be all out of admiration, but surely these cats could appreciate beauty. "What are you guys talking about? Is it Clan stuff? I'm from ThunderClan, by the way." He delivered that last line with just a smidge more pride than usual. ThunderClan was, in his opinion, a Clan to be proud of.
Wasppaw is talking to Bumblepaw, Smokepaw and Nightpaw! Mountainheart is busy at home having an existential crisis.
Muggy
Characters : [B]Briarkit Clan/Rank : [B]WindClan Kit Number of posts : 672 Gender : they/she| racoon in the garage Age : 20
Bumblepaw watched with hardly contained excitement as another cat, clearly from another clan, slid up to him. Game all but forgotten in his eyes, the lanky tom turned to look at Wasppaw, smiling widely and goofily. ”I’m Bumblepaw! It’s nice to meet you- I’m from SkyClan! Is ThunderClan nice? Oh! Wanna play a game with us? We’re waiting for the leaders to start talking!” Bumblepaw had no idea his string of questions was so fast few could make out what he was saying.
Bumblepaw is talking to Wasppaw, Nightpaw and Smokepaw!
Nightpaw watched as another cat made their way over, and sat next to his brother. An interesting-looking apprentice from Thunderclan, that seemed to do as he pleased. With a confused look, Nightpaw couldn't help but say, "Why is your fur...like that?" He waved one of his front paws toward Wasppaw's mane, which he found odd. He had never seen another cat like that before! "Oh! I'm Nightpaw, Bumblepaw is my brother." Readjusting his paws awkwardly beneath himself, Nightpaw looked at the newfound group with a slightly confused gaze. How had this happened? At least he could stick close to someone from his family in all this.
Nightpaw is talking to Smokepaw, Bumblepaw, and Wasppaw! oh boy
Padding into the gathering after his siblings, Pippaw sat down amidst the crowd of mingling cats. It was hard to believe that this many cats all gathering together in peace and while he couldn’t believe his eyes, he kept quiet, trying to make it look as if this wasn’t his first gathering ever.
Ooc: sad mobile post might edit later, pip is available to chat :3
Batglow didn't move away from her attention, not minding her weight against his in the slightest. Moonshine was one of the few cats he had gotten into his personal space, others usually leaving a distance aside from Mistyfalcon and Murkystrike. The tom let out a hum at her question. "Well I like spending time with you. There is also Mistyfalcon, and Murkystrike, as well as Rookfire." He hoped it answered her question. If there was another meaning to her question, it went right over his head. Though his answer was true, he did like spending time with Moonshine. It was the reason he sought her out so much at gatherings instead of wondering off to interact with other clans.
Smokepaw couldn’t help it. She turned away, coughing like crazy to cover a fit of laughter. That cat’s mane was…
“Your mane is very unique.” she choked out. “I’m Smokepaw, from ShadowClan. Now all we need is a WindClan and a RiverClan cat. We could have our own mini Gathering.”
Wasppaw was too ridiculous to be shy around. Nightpaw was also shy, and Bumblepaw, although loud, was something she could handle. This was good- she found herself liking to talk.
“What is the difference between ThunderClan and SkyClan? Your scents and territories seem the same to me.”
Hopefully that wasn’t an insulting question- if it was, she’d apologize. Or run off. Probably run off.
Middy
Characters : Currently Inactive :( Number of posts : 2009 Gender : Any/All Age : 23
He felt... awkward to say the least. He'd been walking around for a while now and he still hadn't had the nerve to jump into any of the many conversations that were forming all throughout the clearing. He was growing restless as the minutes flew by and stood stock-still as he watched SkyClan enter Fourtrees. Well... this Gathering wasn't going to go well at all. He licked his chest as a way to calm himself down. Oh StarClan, please stop any violence that may start here and let all sides see reason.
Silverlight eventually settled on approaching a duo consisting of what seemed like a SkyClan she-cat and a RiverClan tom. Just a few moments earlier he had seen another she-cat stomp away from there. She seemed furious but he hadn't been close enough to really see who it was or what had made her so angry. He lost her among the growing crowd so he wasn't able to see where she was headed but something about her had made him more tense. The newly-made warrior sighed and once again had to relax himself before he got too close to the two cats. He didn't want to make himself seem suspicious in any way.
"Um, hey there. Name's Silverlight. I'm from WindClan. It's my first time here as a warrior. Is... Is it alright if I join you both? I-I understand if not! I can leave if you'd like." He offered them both a small, polite smile. He felt a bit foolish at the moment as he awaited some sort of answer from them both. It probably wasn't a good idea to start a chat with someone from SkyClan -for very obvious reasons- but she and the RiverClanner didn't seem like the types to pick a fight or just be rude in general, at least, he hoped that was true.
---------------------------------------------
Silverlight is now talking to Birdsong and Turtlefur!
"Hmm? Which answer would you'd rather prefer to hear?" he teased as he returned the shoulder bump. He scanned the clearing and noticed that SkyClan was just arriving with a leader that looked more than tense. "Geez. Who put thorns in his nest?" he whispered to Wolfblaze as he signaled to Wolfstar. Now that he really took a closer look at everyone, most of SkyClan and strangely enough WindClan seemed just as tense. How strange... and worrying. Hopefully no battle or brawl would break out tonight. StarClan would certainly be less than pleased.
"So, Wolfblaze? How's training with your apprentice going? We both got one from the same litter and I was wondering if Sparrowpaw was less... problematic than mine." he asked the she-cat as he continued to watch the higher ranks interact with a curious gaze. He sure hoped his father and Thrushnose wouldn't get themselves tangled in whatever mess was about to unfold.
Beechface's gaze was locked on the leaders until someone stepped into her path. Her tail lashed in frustration as Dovefrost's words registered, though the tom wasn't exactly wrong. "It doesn't involve Thunderclan." She growled at him through gritted teeth, though the only thing Dovefrost had done to deserve that was step in front of her. Sure, this was a gathering, but did that really matter when one of the clans sheltered a wanted criminal that had murdered kits, warriors and forced his own mother into retirement? Starclan would be angry if there was fighting at the gathering, but wouldn't be angry with the clan harboring Dawnhawk?
Much as she didn't want to admit it, Dovefrost had a point that this didn't need to involve anyone but Skyclan and Windclan.
Her father's weight pressing against her shoulder just made her angrier, and Beechface shifted away, shooting her father a glare. What was with her? He'd brought his stupid half-breed mongrels into Skyclan, for one, though now was certainly not the time to discuss that, and in the grand scheme of things, some aggravating kits weren't nearly as important as what Windclan had done.
"Windclan-" She bit out, claws digging into the grass. The only thing keeping her voice quiet right now was Dovefrost's infuriatingly sensible reasoning. "-how many times has Wolfstar warned them at gatherings? How many times have I warned the other medicine cats? And. They. Still. Sheltered. Him." How long had they held Dawnhawk in their midst? He'd caused so much damage even after the Asylum had left, had they known any of it? Were they just that sharding clueless? They had never come off as a particularly smart or sensible clan to Beechface but this, this went beyond all reason.
---
Bearspirit focused on her, and she offered the Riverclanner a smile, though it turned into more of a grimace as Bearspirit spoke. "Twolegs and dogs... Fantastic." She remembered fighting off that one dog with Bearspirit several moons ago, and she couldn't imagine he nor the rest of Riverclan were enjoying that on their territory. "I hope they don't wind up causing too much damage, though with twolegs I think that's more wishful thinking."
"Things have been okay mostly... Though I've got a bad feeling things won't stay peaceful for much longer. One of our clanmates is... not who he said he was when he joined." She watched as another cat intercepted the Skyclan medicine cat, and what looked like their deputy padding over to speak with her. Did they know who Windclan had let into their ranks? Had someone spilled about it already? She liked Dawnhawk, but Swiftspirit wasn't a fool. His presence would cause trouble sooner rather than later, and there were even cats in Windclan who weren't happy about what he'd revealed.
---
"I hope so." Birdsong agreed, "Congratulations on getting an apprentice. Mine is around... somewhere. Though now I'm thinking I shouldn't have let him go off on his own with how tense things are..." Her voice drifted off into uncertainty, and she spotted Nightpaw talking with what looked to be another apprentice. She'd keep an eye on him while they were here, at least. Tornshadow leaving worried her too, and Birdsong's gaze drifted off in the direction her friend had fled... Toward Windclan territory, she realized with a jolt.
"Tornshadow... Why in starclan's name did you run off towards Windclan...?" She muttered, feeling alarm spike in her chest at the thought. Before she could do much else however, the scent of Windclan hit her nose, and a voice spoke entirely too close for comfort. Birdsong jumped slightly, wide eyes landing on the silvery tom that had joined her and Turtlefur.
"Oh, um. Of course." She mewed, "Sorry, you startled me. Things have been unreasonably tense tonight." Birdsong gave her chest fur a quick lick, feeling her ears heat in embarrassment. "My name's Birdsong, nice to meet you, Silverlight."
Dewlight limped into the clearing behind the rest of RiverClan, trying to look stronger than she currently felt. The battle against the hawk had left her far weaker than she cared to admit, but she wanted to be here.. Needed to be here. She wasn't sure why, but she couldn't shake the feeling that she may be needed. Settling at the edge of the clearing, she watched as the other clans began to arrive. Shortly after SkyClan arrived, the mood seemed to shift suddenly, and she found the fur along her back rising. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to search for a source of her unease.
Sunnyskip hadn't wanted to be at this gathering. She still hadn't been able to sort out her emotions regarding Night- no, Dawnhawk. Most of her time had been spent curled in the darkness of the tunnels under WindClan's territory, sobbing and trying to make heads or tails of what had been revealed. She knew she needed to speak with him directly... But she wasn't certain her heart was ready for it. Hayglow and Muddyleap sat close together, and her shoulders slumped as she looked away. They hadn't said anything directly one way or the other... How did they feel about it all? She was torn from her thoughts as SkyClan arrived, and fear clenched her heart tightly. Lilacstar had agreed Dawnhawk could stay, and her word was law. Would any cat disobey it, and reveal him? There had been some that had been against his remaining in WindClan, but maybe they would support Lilacstar more than they would betray her. As the air shifted, she suddenly got the overwhelming sense that this was not the case. Bracing herself for whatever may come, the she-cat shuffled uneasily.
At Wolfstar's beckoning, Blossomstep moved to his side. At his words, she nodded slightly, though her stomach clenched uncomfortably. Dawnhawk had done so much, but... He was still... Her mate turned to walk away, and she quickly trotted forward to his side again, nuzzling his shoulder before letting him go. He had her support, even if she was torn regarding his decision. Picking out a spot, she sat down and started to listen to the conversations around her. The bits of conversation she overhead were mostly introductions, and welcomes, nothing of Dawnhawk. However, movement among the medicine cats caught her eyes, and she lifted her head as Beechface moved forward. Had something been revealed after all this time? She wasn't entirely sure if she was relieved or upset at the thought.
Murkystrike padded into Fourtrees behind Flintstar, and was about to make her way to the Great Rock when Mistyfalcon pressed his cheek to her head swiftly. Surprised at the display of affection, Murkystrike turned to him and blinked in astonishment before relaxing and purring, placing her head under his chin for a heartbeat before he pulled away. Feeling lighter on her paws than she had even a moment ago, that lightness swiftly dissipated as she joined the other deputies. A tense silence had seemed to wash over them all, and her smile quickly faded as she wondered what was going on. Bloodstrike moved away towards SkyClan's medicine cat, Beechface she thought she recalled her name being, and she frowned as she turned to the other deputies. "Well... Hello, everyone.... I hope this night finds you well..." She mewed softly as she settled in. The tension in the air could be cut with a claw... She had a feeling this was going to be a very emotional gathering. Glancing up at Flintstar, she worried what the full moon would bring.
Muddyleap gaze nervously scanned the clearing, eyes falling upon a familiar form and he felt his heart drop. "Hey...Momma, I'm going to sit with Sunnyskip. Do you want to...?" he drifted off, sparing a glance at his mom. It was easy to see how torn she was, muscles bunched up as she turned to look at him with wide eyes. She opened her mouth a few times but she could only mutely shake it, causing him to frown a little as he brushed up against her. "...I-I get it," he muttered, having a feeling he knew why his mom rejected - terrified of saying something against this 'Dawnhawk' that would make Sunnyskip resent her. "Maybe...Maybe you can go find, um... Batglow? I'm sure you don't wanna be alone and he isn't part of...This, so."
He shifted on his paws until Hayglow finally gave a small nod. He gave her a small smile, pressing against her once more before he stepped away, slipping through the crowds as he made his way to his sister's side. "Hey, Sunnyskip...Can I sit with you?" he asked softly, tail lashing behind him as he pawed at the ground. "Momma would have joined me but...Um, I think she is still rather upset about the reveal of...Uh, him and doesn't want to say anything...Bad. Bu-But I can't imagine what this is like for you so I didn't think you should be alone and..." he drifted off, ears slicking back. "...Um, yeah. But if you want to be alone, I get it. I can go sit with momma again."
----------
Hayglow watched with a forlorn look as Muddyleap padded away to join his sister, longing to get up and follow him but she couldn't...She couldn't face her daughter yet, not with how much anger she had against Dawnhawk. Lilacstar had allowed him in and lot of the Clan seemed on his side but Hayglow couldn't - he had lied to her baby, claimed to be someth- somebody else. There had to be a good reason why SkyClan hated him, why Wolfstar warned them... But she also couldn't be sure if it was her motherly instincts rising in an effort to protect her baby girl. She didn't want to trust somebody who had lied for moons, to let him be so close to her daughter but... She pushed herself to her paws, sparing a glance around the Gathering for any sight of Batglow...Only to pause as she finally spotted him in conversation with another cat. She...She didn't want to intrude. With a heavy sigh, she sunk back down into a sitting position. Perhaps she would just spend this Gathering alone...
Sunnyskip jumped as a familiar voice tore through the rising tension suddenly, and she turned to see her brother. After a heartbeat she relaxed, letting out a relieved sigh as her fur flattened on her shoulders again as she nodded, welcoming her brother's presence. It had been so long since they had sat together, she had usually been sitting with Nightwind... Well, Dawnhawk really, instead of her mother and brother. Tears threatened her vision as he spoke about their mother, a lump in her throat forming at his explanation. She wanted and needed Hayglow more than ever, wanting nothing more than to sob into her mother's fur as she worked through her thoughts and emotions.... But she felt so far away. "I... I understand." Her voice cracked as she fought the tears. "I appreciate you coming over... I really don't want to be alone, but I don't want her to be alone either...." She mewed softly, eyes finding their mother sitting alone.
Muddyleap spared a glance over at where he had left their mother, a huff escaping him as he saw that she hadn't moved at all. "I told her to maybe look for her friend Batglow but..." he sighed, looking at his paws. This...This wasn't an easy thing to deal with. His sister was on the edge of tears, feeling terrible at how... Well, terrible he had been since the reveal. He hadn't even tried to ask her how she was feeling - she had been so close with Nightwind, he had chosen to stick with his momma's side cause that was at least familiar. He didn't like this uncertain territory they were in, before he took in a deep breath and looked at Sunnyskip."I mean, we can both go back and sit with her. I just think she is terrified of making the first move in approaching you. She...She hasn't thought highly of...Um, him since the reveal and I-I don't think she would want to say anything to make you even more upset with how, uh, chaotic everything is."
He paused, letting his tail thump against the ground before he met his sister's gaze. "I think...I think she means for the best, she is just being protective but after fretting over me so long... I don't think she knows how to start fretting over you. But...M-Maybe you two can talk things out? At least find a place to start on even ground?" His ears slicked back, curling in a little on himself. "I miss how close we all used to be - you got your kits and...Um, whatever is going on with you and Nig-Er, Dawnhawk... And I guess me and momma got each other as always but... There is that tiny gap, I guess, that she doesn't want to make any wider by any...Misplaced words."
Sunnyskip bit her tongue as Muddyleap spoke, wondering why their mother hadn't done what he suggested. A short silence seemed to stretch between them before her took a deep breath and looked up at her, and she slowly turned to meet his gaze hoping that the tears wouldn't betray her by escaping now. "Maybe... Maybe we could.... I... I can understand that..." She trailed off, looking longingly at her mother's back. Perhaps if Hayglow didn't want to make the first move... She could?... She blinked as she turned back to her brother, meeting his gaze as he continued. She nodded slowly as he finished, looking back towards their mother. "I miss it too..." She admitted softly, attempting to steel herself at least a little bit. "It's at least worth a try, isn't it?... Everything's seemed to have fallen apart... I don't want us to as well... Well... More than we already have..." She got to her paws slowly, almost like she hadn't used them for moons. With a quick glance to Muddyleap, she took a shaky, hesitant step towards their mother, followed by another, and another. Before long, she was just behind Hayglow, and found herself at a loss for words suddenly. Everything she had wanted or thought to say had disappeared, a void in her mind now that she was so close. Her tail flicked anxiously behind her before she took another step forward, looking over to her mother cautiously. "H... Hey, momma...." She mewed softly, almost hesitantly. Did her mother even want her this close? Did she want her company? After everything that had happened.... Stars above, she felt so lost. In this moment she was almost certain that drowning under the earth of a collapsed tunnel would be easier than this.
