savannahssu

The Rise of WillowClan

Felix's ears swiveled backwards towards the direction of the camp as the sound of irritated growls rung through the trees. I wonder what's going on there? Probably not enough fresh kill making everyone's pelt on edge. As they padded further away from the camp, he tried to block out all other sound to focus on the wilderness around him. What I wouldn't give for a rabbit right now he thought hungrily. He hadn't caught a rabbit for moons, and now that he though about it, he was unsure whether or not there even were rabbits in this forest. He was surprised when the sound of running water met his ears, and his curiosity peaked. He knew the water must be either frozen over or so cold it could numb a cat's whole body, but there may be small prey around the banks. He hissed over his shoulder to Otis, "I'm heading towards the water. You can come if you want, or go your own way." A short distance before the banks of the river were large rocks he would have to cross very carefully. The spray from the river wetted the tops of the rocks and the cold could very well have turned the water to ice by now. I'm so glad I didn't have to deal with this in my territory he thought with annoyance. When he finally reached the final rock overlooking the banks of the river, he stopped in his pawsteps immediately. Crouched in the bracken were two voles, nibbling at small stems, completely unaware of the cat's presence. This was far more prey than he had expected to find. He waved his tail towards Otis in a beckoning fashion and pointed his muzzle towards the voles. Otis' face lit up with excitement and hunger and they understood each other's intentions. They crouched as close to the edge of the rock as they could, and as quietly as he could he whispered to Otis "One, two, three!" With incredible force, they both landed square on top of the voles and delivered the killing bite. As he tore a piece of flesh from his vole he looked at Otis and exclaimed "Nice job! That was perfect!"

After finishing the vole, he began thinking about what other kinds of prey may be around. He began to wish he knew how to scale trees to catch birds, but he didn't want to take that risk. He decided they would just head back to the camp and rest for the rest of the night. He could take Heather out hunting later in the day.

The Rise of WillowClan

Interacting with: @Shadow Dragon @The Elvenqueen

While pondering Sunfur's interesting offer, she was ripped from her thoughts by Blackpelt, holding Frogkit by the scruff and stomping towards her. He plopped the kit down a little rougher than she would have liked, down by her paws and fixed her with a burning gaze, his fur bushed and his tail lashing. She was taken aback by her medicine cat's aggressive tone and demanding request that seemingly came out of nowhere, and she wasn't quite sure how to respond. Should she defuse the situation and thank Blackpelt for his concern? Or should she put her paw down as leader and put her medicine cat back in his place? After a couple heartbeat's thought, she decided on both."Blackpelt, I suggest you keep your fur on before I cuff you around your ears" Fernstar meowed firmly, trying to hold back a hiss. Casting her glance away from Blackpelt momentarily and down towards Frogkit, she meowed softly, "Are you alright Frogkit? You're not hurt are you?" Gently pushing and turning the kit around, carefully inspecting her body she was satisfied when she found nothing wrong, nothing more than fluffed out fur due to Blackpelt's unnecessarily rough handling. "Didn't I tell you to meet Honeypaw in my den and stay there until I came back? Go back to the den now and stay there until I say so. Do you understand?" She shoved the kit in the direction of her den and directed her attention towards Blackpelt once again.

"Blackpelt, I appreciate your concern, and I realize this is a strange occurrence that has every cat in camp a little on edge, including me." She raised her head and lashed her tail in annoyance before continuing. "However, as medicine cat, you must not forget you are an advisor to the leader which means you do not make choices for the Clan. That is the leader's job, and regardless of status, every cat in the Clan must follow the leader's orders whether they think they are correct or not. I make decisions based on the knowledge StarClan has given me as well as personal experience, and I do not take these decisions lightly. StarClan would not have given me nine lives if they didn't think I was fit to lead this Clan, but if YOU don't then you may feel free to leave and discuss your opinions with our ancestors yourself. I would hate to lose my medicine cat, but I will not have cats questioning the validity of my decisions." She forced her fur to lie flat and considered Blackpelt's other action. If for nothing else, he did deserve some credit for taking Frogkit away from the loners. She shouldn't have been speaking with them, and he was right to remove her. "I do thank you for bringing Frogkit to me; I told her to stay in my den with Honeypaw and she shouldn't have been talking to them. That kit's curiosity is going to get her hurt someday I can sense it."

She turned back to Sunfur and tried to reengage in the conversation they were having before they were interrupted. "That is a very bold undertaking Sunfur. I see where your thoughts are coming from, but I feel this is something the entire Clan should have a voice in. We will hold a vote at sunhigh before the dawn patrol. If the Clan agrees on this, I hope you understand what you're getting yourself into." Suddenly realizing how tired she was, she pushed past Sunfur and Blackpelt and made her way towards the fresh kill pile. She barely paused for long enough to grab the bird Sunfur and Spidernose had caught and jumped up into her den. She flopped down and took a bite of the bird before beginning to groom her legs and chest. After a few licks she pushed the bird towards Frogkit, urging her to eat. Hopefully she could get some sleep before sunhigh, she would need to be well rested for what would happen tomorrow.

The Rise of WillowClan

@The Elvenqueen

Oh believe me I understand. I feel like a shit GM because I haven't gotten any posts out in like a month plus. I've been super busy with my online school, trying to find a job and also being disabled lol It's difficult to have the motivation to do things sometimes when you're mentally and physically disabled as I'm sure you know. I am about to make a post as we speak however.

The Rise of WillowClan

@Shadow Dragon Hi! I'm gonna get a post up today if I can! For some reason my laptop isn't letting me access the site and I'm NOT typing up an entire post on my phone LOL

The Rise of WillowClan

Interacting with: @The Elvenqueen

Trying to appear genuine, Felix dipped his head as the WillowClan leader left the den, her deputy and medicine cat in tow. When they had completely exited the den and their pawsteps had faded, he snatched up one bundle of herbs and padded towards the back of the den to lay next to Heather. As the leaf wrap unfolded, the strong smell overwhelmed him for a heartbeat. I haven't smelled medicine cat herbs in so long. They're stronger than I remember. . . He pushed some closer to Heather with his paw. "Eat some. I don't want you getting sick for real." He blinked affectionately at her before turning to Otis. The large brown tom had already begun chewing the herbs, and he could tell the bitter taste had struck him just as potently. "Tugging that loose piece of fur from your chest was great Otis," Felix praised. Rising to his paws, he noticed the hunger gnawing at his stomach. He had to admit, Fernstar telling them they couldn't take from the Clan's fresh kill pile had been a good decision. If he was leader, he would have made the same rule. Rolling his eyes, he thought, I wouldn't have let random cats spend the night in my camp in the first place. Deciding on catching a meal for himself, he padded towards the entrance of the den and waved his tail over his shoulder. "I'm going to hunt, I'm starved. Either of you are welcome to come if you would like." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Otis rise to his paws and scramble over just behind Felix. Heather didn't move, and he assumed she was simply tired.

As they emerged into the center of the camp, Felix suddenly realized the sun was just starting to crest the top of the trees. He didn't think an entire sundown had passed already. He cast a friendly but respectful glance towards the deputy who was sharing prey with a cream colored she-cat. His ears twitched as he heard the small kit he had been forced to meet earlier squealed up to an apprentice in the large tree that held the leader's den. They padded on confidently towards the entrance of the camp, and Felix was genuinely surprised that no cat had tried to stop them, or even ask where they were going. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, we aren't their Clanmates after all. But I would think they would still want to keep an eye on us. . . He wasn't going to question it, not yet. They pushed their way through the brambles and made their way out into the woods scenting for any small animal that would make a good meal.

Heather finished the last few strokes of her paw across her muzzle before rising to her paws and shaking out her fur. She couldn't believe what that mouse-brain Felix had asked her to do. She had to admit to herself that it had been a good plan, no matter how unpleasant it was. She hadn't followed Felix and Otis outside the den to hunt because despite not having eaten for almost an entire sunrise, she wasn't hungry. However, she was curious to explore the rest of WillowClan's camp. She hadn't seen much of it when they had got there, as they were herded so quickly into the nursery. Her ears perked as she made out the excited squealing of the kit she had seen coming from across the clearing. She stopped abruptly, lashing her tail as she tried to remember what the kit's name was. Frogkit! That was it. She sauntered gracefully in the direction of the large tree and the two young cats and let out a small meow of greeting before she flopped down, relaxed as ever, right next to Frogkit. "I saw how happy you were helping with those herb bundles earlier. Would you like to be the Clan's next medicine cat? You seem destined for it!" She cast her glance away from the small kit, surveying the rest of the camp and what every cat was doing as she waited for Frogkit's response.

The Rise of WillowClan

As Sunfur made his way back to the large tree they had caught the bird in, he kept his jaws parted to taste the air, just in case any prey did decide to emerge from their dens. He couldn't wait until newleaf, when hunting wouldn't be so difficult. The clan had been struggling through this harsh leafbare for quite a few moons now and every sunrise got more and more exhausting to handle. During his internal lamenting, he felt a single flake of snow drift down to settle on one of his whiskers. Great. Just what we needed, more snow. As if we didn't have enough already. As he approached the base of the tree, he tried to ignore his frustration as he dug through the snow in search of the bird. He lashed his tail as the falling snow drifted down into the hole and replaced the snow he had removed. Eventually, he removed the bird and began trudging back towards camp.

Pushing his way through the sparse brambles of the entrance, he made his way to the fresh kill pile and deposited the bird, scanning the camp for Fernstar. He needed to tell her what he and Spidernose had accomplished bringing down the bird. Following her scent trail led him to the entrance of the warrior's den and he eased his head into the den reluctantly. Fernstar was discussing a job she had selected Maplestream for and it seemed to important to interrupt. He waited until the leader rose to her paws and diverted her attention in his direction before speaking. "Fernstar, if you have a minute to spare, I need to share something with you that I feel would be of great use to the Clan." He turned and gestured towards the Highstump where no cat was in earshot before he spoke again. "When I first joined the Clan, I remember you sharing stories with me about the original five Clans and the things your Mother had seen before they were severed. You once told me that SkyClan often hunted high in the treetops, something that no other Clan did." He took a deep breath before continuing and tried to make his meow sound confident. "I believe Spidernose and I have figured out a way for us to do the same. During leafbare, prey is so hard to come by on the forest floor because of the deep snow and the cold, yet it seems birds are just as abundant as ever." Gesturing towards the fresh kill pile, he meowed with excitement, "Spidernose and I managed to climb a tree and work together to bring down a bird right from it's nest. The other got away but it's a start. I believe it would greatly benefit the Clan if we were to teach all our warriors and apprentices to hunt this way. And I'm confident I could be the one to teach them."

The Rise of WillowClan

Hi everyone, I'm sorry it took me so long to get a post out. The last 2 weeks have been awful for me and I'm also picking up the pace in school recently. I'm also getting a puppy soon so that will take up my time as well. My posts may go longer between than they have in the past, but rest assured I am very invested in this RP and I won't drop it unless something very drastic happens. I've put too much planning into the storyline to throw it all away haha!

The Rise of WillowClan

Interacting with: @Hazelrah

Fernstar chuckled slightly at Honeypaw's concerned tone as she asked about Frogkit. She suspected the young apprentice was trying to hide a trace of jealousy in her meow, and her ears twitched in surprise, yet her heart warmed for a heartbeat when she realized that her adopted kit was still attached to her, even though she had grown so much. Ducking her head downward towards Honeypaw's ear she whispered, "Just until the loners leave the nursery. They won't be here for more than two sunrises." As Frogkit began to ramble furiously about her short interaction with the loners, she turned away and began heading towards the Warrior's den where Maplestream had been sleeping for some time now. Smiling to herself she wondered how Honeypaw was going to feel about watching Frogkit for a couple sunrises. Maybe she will think twice about having kits of her own someday after she gets Frogkit off her paws.

As she pushed her way into the Warrior's den, she settled down comfortably next to Maplestream and began to nudge her gently with one paw. After a few taps, she began to stir. Blinking her eyes heavily and yawning, she sat up slightly and asked, "Fernstar; what's going on? Do you need me for something?" Fernstar nodded slightly and meowed firmly, "I do." She told Maplestream what she had learned from the loners arriving in camp before revealing what she would ask Maplestream to do. "While the loners are here, I would like you to guard the nursery, night and day. Of course, after sundown you may sleep in the den if it is too cold. I will assign someone to bring you fresh kill when there is any, and when you need to make dirt alert someone to watch while you're gone. I chose you for this job because you are vigilant and I trust you. It should not be for more than two sunrises. You start tonight."

The Rise of WillowClan

Hey everyone I promise I haven't forgotten about this! I've had a terrible weekend and I just started school on top of that so I need to catch up on that. If anyone else wants to post before I do, then please do so!

The Rise of WillowClan

Interacting with: @Hazelrah

As Fernstar has began padding towards the apprentice's den where Maplestream was sleeping, her stomach growled and after the situation with the loners was temporarily handled, she realized how hungry she was. She raised her eyes to the black sky above and muttered, "StarClan please let my Warriors come back with prey." She knew the Warrior Code had remained the same for countless moons, as long as there had been Clans. However, surely it was her right as leader to make rules for her Warriors? Speaking with the loners had given her an idea.

She was so lost in thought she didn't notice Honeypaw stalk past her until she was multiple tail lengths away. She paused for a heartbeat, then turned to see where the young apprentice was going. She tilted her head in confusion when she saw Honeypaw stop in front of the tree the leader's den was in and plop down stiffly and decisively. After watching for a moment, Fernstar noticed Honeypaw seemed. . . tense. She's probably just stressed because of the commotion with the loners. She couldn't help letting a small purr escape her throat as the small she-cat sat as tall as she could and puffed out her chest. Catching Honeypaw's glance for a heartbeat, she padded back towards her delightedly. She was impressed when the apprentice offered to guard her nest to make sure Frogkit remained safe, and she ran her tail across her kit's shoulders in an affectionate gesture."Yes, that would be wonderful. I need to speak to Maplestream about guarding the entrance to the nursery in the evenings for the next few sunrises. I'm sure the hunting patrol will return soon, then we can all relax a little more." As she rose to her paws once again, she flicked one of Honeypaw's ears teasingly. "You'll be a Warrior before you know it."