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.
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Number of posts : 1987 Gender : she/her || they/them || he/him Age : 26
Subject: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Sun 3 Apr - 21:41
Icepaw. Stagshade remembered her from the Gathering. She had... Accepted his 'protection' reluctantly, but she did nevertheless. Perfect groundwork. The apprentice may be more inclined to trust him when he offered her strength in the form of the Dark Forest's favor... Special training to make her stand out. If the Dark Forest were to truly take hold of this forest in a sustainable matter, it was the apprentices and kits they had to turn to their side truly. The warriors, yes, but they had less life to give and would be much more challenging. Turning the youth to their side would be easiest and then they can overthrow the warrior's past culture and belief.
He walked to Icepaw now, cowering at the edge of camp. Sad. Scared. Drool dripped from his mouth with every step but honestly, his appearance was the best off among his colleagues. No blood oozed from any wound, as his death was internal. Sometimes he frothed at the mouth, but it was rare and he hid it to keep his unthreatening appearance. "Icepaw. Why are you still scared?" He sat in front of her and cocked his head to his side. Just a questioning tom, friendly and inviting. He used to talk to his own children when they got scared after a battle or predator attack. To guide them, and now, her.
"When there's nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire."
xaandiir Former Staff
Characters : [P]oppyshine; [Pi]neblossom; [L]arkspring; [Wi]llowwisp; [R]ashoumon; [B]lazekit Clan/Rank : RC T5 Deputy; SC T5; RC T5; RC T5; Rogue T1; WC App Number of posts : 3167 Gender : Any Pronouns Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Mon 4 Apr - 0:56
Icepaw
Icepaw had grown more distant from her friends since the Gathering. She had too much on her mind. She kept thinking about Loudnose’s death, as well as the deaths of so many other cats at the Gathering. It was hard not to think about it, with Morningstar’s army keeping things in check at the camp. She had no idea what they were supposed to do about their unwanted visitors, or how they were going to drive them out of the forest. Icepaw didn’t even know how to avoid speaking with any of the cats, especially as so many of them took such a great interest in the kits and apprentices. A lot of ShadowClan’s cats tried to keep the undead away from the kits, and Icepaw felt terrible that she didn’t do the same. She was older than the kits and had the ability to, but for the past few days, she simply did not have the drive to even think about opposing them. She was running in pure survival mode, and it left her mind feeling hazy. Even now, she sat at the edge of camp, staring empty at the ground. She didn’t notice how her body trembled slightly as the memories played over and over in her mind.
When she heard Stagshade’s voice, her gaze lifted and the quivering immediately stopped. Her brain shut down and she felt distant, like she was in a valley far away. There was suddenly no fear or disgust: only survival ringing in her ears.
“I’m not scared,” she promised in a flat tone. “I just…miss my friend. It’s nothing important.” She glanced away from him, not feeling confident enough to hold his gaze. That icy core inside of her has grown harder. She wasn’t sure if she could escape it. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to, anymore. Not while the Dark Forest cats are here. Not while Stagshade sat before her.
Number of posts : 1987 Gender : she/her || they/them || he/him Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Wed 6 Apr - 16:13
Stagshade nodded, as if he understood truly in the current moment the sense of loss. He... Couldn't right now... But he remembered it well when he was alive. No matter what any cat could truly say in StarClan, that had claims him heartless, they were wrong. In a way, he mourned the loss of every cat that had fallen to his paws. Why couldn't they have seen that he only did what he did for the better of the clan? To rid it of pain and weakness? That was true strength, and he must impose true strength on this cat in front of him. "I'm sure you do. I miss every one of my kits, my mate, my sister, my parents, the elder's I helped join StarClan... But you see Icepaw, that's life. Strength comes in realizing that the hardness you feel inside... That's not universal. The cats that don't feel that? They're weak. Death hurts. It's painful. But it's necessary. Missing your friend isn't weakness. But cowering here and not imposing your strength is." He settled down next to the cat, and rested his tail around his paws. There was some distance between them, but this movement would make him seem more relateable. Less threatening. He'd have one of these talks with his weak kits before.... One last chance.
"I'm not calling you weak, Icepaw. No, I think you're stronger than pretty much any other cat. I see greatness in you. The first time you witness death, it's a shock. I'll give you that. But it hardens you, and that's good. Because you'll be able to use that hardness to make the necessary actions of a true leader. Not a -star leader, but an actual one. You can do anything with that emptiness in you. Anything. But the way you're going now, you'll become one of the weak. And I don't want you to be one of those, and I don't think you want to be either." A pool of drool was forming in front of him, under his maw and he wiped his mouth with his paw while he paused, waiting for his words to sink in.
"Icepaw... This is your moment... Do you want to be strong? Or do you want to be a weak coward?"
"When there's nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire."
xaandiir Former Staff
Characters : [P]oppyshine; [Pi]neblossom; [L]arkspring; [Wi]llowwisp; [R]ashoumon; [B]lazekit Clan/Rank : RC T5 Deputy; SC T5; RC T5; RC T5; Rogue T1; WC App Number of posts : 3167 Gender : Any Pronouns Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Wed 6 Apr - 20:52
Icepaw
Weak. Weak., Icepaw is weak. She isn’t becoming weak; she already is. She couldn’t do anything to help defend her clan at the Gathering. She hadn’t even tried. She’d immediately bowed down to the Dark Forest cats, which she knew was an action that the leaders of the clans had received plenty of criticism for. Worst of all, though, she had witnessed one of the Dark Forest cats maul Ratrunner. And she’d done nothing. She ran away because she was afraid of getting hurt, afraid of seeing her friend die, afraid afraid afraid…
Coward, a voice in her head whispered as Stagshade echoed the same thing.
She raised her gaze to look at Stagshade. There was no strength in her expression, but no weakness either. Her eyes just looked endless with emptiness. It felt like a war was being raged in her throat, holding words back, but she just felt cold and far away. When words finally broke through, she meowed, “I want to be strong. I Don’t want to feel helpless anymore.”
If she could do something, anything, to stop feeling like this, then she would do it. Even if it meant training with a Dark Forest cat alongside her true ShadowClan mentor. Even if it meant some cats getting the wrong idea as she spent more and more time with Stagshade. If she could fend for herself and protect those around her, then surely it would be worth it.
A coward’s excuse, the voice whispered again. And if it could get rid of the guilty voice hissing in her ear, then it would be worth it.
Number of posts : 1987 Gender : she/her || they/them || he/him Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Tue 12 Apr - 17:31
Stagshade stood and hid his confident smugness. Hook, line, and sinker. The large tom looked around and found a quiet spot in the camp. Well, where they were was the best. "Stand. I will show you a move you will never forget. It'll give you an advantage over any opponent you face. Outsmarting your opponent will always make you the more confident one." He motioned with his tail for her to stand, almost impatiently.
"When there's nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire."
xaandiir Former Staff
Characters : [P]oppyshine; [Pi]neblossom; [L]arkspring; [Wi]llowwisp; [R]ashoumon; [B]lazekit Clan/Rank : RC T5 Deputy; SC T5; RC T5; RC T5; Rogue T1; WC App Number of posts : 3167 Gender : Any Pronouns Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Tue 12 Apr - 17:38
Icepaw
Icepaw hadn’t expected him to offer to teach her some thing so suddenly, but she nodded and got to her feet quickly. She didn’t want to leave him waiting for long; she didn’t know how he would react if she irritated him. Admittedly, the move intrigued her. If she could learn something that will help in future battles then maybe…maybe those that she cares about won’t end up like Ratrunner. Maybe she’d be able to actually do something about it.
Number of posts : 1987 Gender : she/her || they/them || he/him Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Fri 22 Apr - 15:04
Stagshade nodded at Icepaw and then took a casual stance with his head held high. A confident, strong look on his face. Modeling what a cat like Icepaw should look like in the face of a fight, a battle. Internal, external. Confidence was all that mattered. "Attack me." He ordered in a tone that hid any secrets, his eyes challenging Icepaw to do as such.
xaandiir Former Staff
Characters : [P]oppyshine; [Pi]neblossom; [L]arkspring; [Wi]llowwisp; [R]ashoumon; [B]lazekit Clan/Rank : RC T5 Deputy; SC T5; RC T5; RC T5; Rogue T1; WC App Number of posts : 3167 Gender : Any Pronouns Age : 26
Subject: Re: There's No Need for Weakness [c] Sat 23 Apr - 14:07
Icepaw
Icepaw hesitated. She didn’t want to attack him. She felt like this was a trap; an excuse for him to give to claw her innards. She wanted to quickly bolt away and retreat to the camp, just as she had when Ratrunner…
Running away again? Continuing to be a coward? a cruel voice hissed from the back of her mind. No. Icepaw couldn’t do that. Even if she did manage to outrun Stagshade, he lived in the camp. She would only get in more trouble, and if she was to die here, he would kill her at a later time. It was better to get it over with and face as little pain as possible.
Icepaw took a deep breath and charged forward. Her mind briefly wondered how serious this was; was she supposed to treat this as a sparring session, with no claws or teeth? The question didn’t linger. These Dark Forest cats were cruel and loved violence. The answer was obvious. She leapt at Stagshade, striking her claws down his flank. Her heartbeat roared in her ears as she landed and watched him with fearful eyes.
Icepaw used Jumping Strike, dealing 9 (6 + 3) damage and costing 7 SP.
