ACE OF SPADES \ material gathering, phase II

The mornings dawn so cold now; the sun seems pale, weak, and she can hardly feel its warmth as she pads through the undergrowth. The leaves underpaw are unpleasantly damp and miserably chilly; she feels, frustratingly, like she can't get dry, either, no matter what she does. Today's excursion is accompanied by a pitiful drizzling rain, and every droplet feels a bit like ice. She yearns for the comfort of her nest in the apprentice's den — and, when she lets herself, for the soft basket her mother had kitted her in moons ago.

That's a kittypet thought, she thinks immediately. Shame spreads across her flesh, and she ducks her head, grateful no cat can read her thoughts. Imagine if Meadowpaw or Scarletpaw knew she'd been thinking about Twoleg niceties while out on a patrol...

The snow-colored she-cat sighs. Her breath billows in front of her. "I can't even think straight, I'm so hungry," she murmurs. It's true. Her ribs cramp when she moves too drastically, and before long, she thinks what little fat she's managed to retain from greenleaf will be long gone.

She's pulled from her miserable thoughts by the sight of something verdant on her periphery. She scrambles away from the rest of the patrol, her dark eyes shining. "These ferns are huge! They'll keep Doepath, Sunshinespot, and Nightbird super warm, won't they?" Kittypet thoughts or not, at least she's still contributing to her Clan.

  • ooc: rolled a 13, worth 2 points (insulating materials)
    mentor tag @PALEFIRE
  • Adora . Ivorykit . Ivorypaw, she/her w/ feminine terms.
    — "speech", thoughts, attack
    — 8 moons old, ages realistically on the 16th.
    — mentored by Palefire ; mentoring n/a ; previously mentored n/a.
    — thunderclan apprentice. npc x npc, gen 1.
    — penned by Marquette.

    lh white she-cat with curled ears and brown eyes. compassionate, righteous, naive, idealistic, self-doubting, self-destructive.

 
Lovelight pads carefully through the mist-laden undergrowth, the damp, clinging air numbing her paws as she moves. She lets her gaze linger on the cat ahead of her, a stark white shape in the pale, reluctant light of dawn, her breath visible in the cold. The sight of her companion's quiet perseverance fills Lovelight with something like admiration—she sees the weight in the younger she-cat's steps, and it reminds her of her own early days, when the warmth of greenleaf fell away into the cold of leafbare. She notes the way the snow-furred cat's shoulders stiffen and her head dips just a little lower, as if she's shrugging off an invisible weight. Even her whisper, faint but resigned, reaches Lovelight's ears—an admission of hunger. It's an honest moment that tugs at Lovelight's heart; she knows too well the ache of an empty belly, the longing for comfort during the harshest moons.

And then, in a flash of motion and focus, the apprentice shifts her attention, eyes lighting up at the sight of a dense patch of ferns. The girl's enthusiasm, that spark of pride in her find, brings an unexpected warmth to Lovelight. She steps closer, her own gaze landing on the patch of greenery. To most, they're just ferns, yet to this young cat, they represent a lifeline for her clanmates, a chance to bring warmth to those around her. It's the kind of selflessness Lovelight admires. No matter the strain of hunger or the lingering chill, here she stands, ready to put her Clan before herself. With a soft, warm purr, Lovelight gently bumps her shoulder against her young clanmate's. "Those ferns will make fine bedding," she says softly, "and a good eye for finding warmth where you can is always helpful when leafbare comes." There's a touch of pride in her voice.

[ rolled a 4 :( ]​
 
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The sun, pale and weak dappled through the leaves of the frosted canopy. The chill of the early Leafbare creeps its way up his spine, making his spiky pelt fluff up. A grumble spilled forth from his bitten lips, clenching his teeth to stop them from clack clack together. But [aired with the droplets of freezing rain, makes his eye twitch in annoyance at the weather. His neck - ruff manages to mitigate the cold, but it feels like his face is freezing.

His eyes flitted side to side, while he whisked his paws forward through the fluffy snow. He is in a hurry. Deerpaw yearns for the comfort of his bone and feather - lined nest but also the warm comfort of his parents and siblings at this point. A wild thought... The apprentice sighs, his breath billows in white smoke in front of him as he fellows behind the patrol.

He blinks slowly, turning his scraggy, skeletal figure to the thing that caught his eye. He quietly separates from the others to perk up, discovering a few scattered feathers. His head dips to the ground, snagging the feathers with his teeth. The tom turns his form around, carrying his bundle of feathers back to the patrol. Head low to the ground, eyes narrowed as he darted his focus around with an ear twitch.
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  • ooc.rolled a 16 (success) & found feathers
    POINTS: 2
  • temp deerpaw reference
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  • ( I-I CAN'T H-HANDLE IT! ) ˚₊‧ ♰ ‧₊˚ DEERPAW. ╱ thunderclan apprentice
    ⸝⸝ AMAB ; HE / HIM ; CURRENTLY 10 MOONS OLD. AGES EVERY 26TH.
    homosexual, ace / not actively looking — mentoring none.
    a scrawny longhaired black/dark ginger tortoiseshell tom with low white and hazel eyes.
    thoughts ; "Speech, 4d4344" ; attacks only
    may powerplay minor harm ╱ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted
    smells like mud &. damp earth musk
    all opinions are ic! he's morbid and he sucks </3

    biography / @ on discord for plots
    — penned by calzone
 
days are shorter, and colder. leafhusk's thick fur protects her from the early chill, but it is not water-resistant. freezing droplets seep into her fur, makes it's home in her bones. she trudges along, forcing her body to withstand the weather.

ivorypaw's hopeful mew brings a necessary warmth to the patrol. thunderclan was struggling from the early frost, clanmates were held back by hunger pains, prey hid where no cat could find it. but, these ferns will be helpful, ivorypaw is contributing to her clan.

"great find, ivorypaw, the nursery will love those." suddenly feeling encouraged by the young apprentice's enthusiasm, leafhusk pokes around some undergrowth until she finds more ferns. untouched by the frost, she tugs it out carefully.

"there's more over here, too. looks like we won't go home empty pawed." she hums, turning to nod towards deerpaw's cluster of feathers as well.

13 roll, +2 points — ferns

 
⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊ She was struggling and miserable. The plants around her were dying or dead, nothing like the living green forest she knew. And more often than not, she found herself of little help to anyone; she still wasn't sure how to find most materials, with everything covered in odd shades of white, grey, and brown. It didn't matter how pretty everything looked while they were struggling to find enough bedding to keep everyone warm at night. At least some were successful in the their search. "Congrats"

Dwindlingpaw shuffled up the closest tree she could find to see if she could spot anything from the treetops. The branches creak under her weight, and some of its brown leaves fall from being shaken. She looked out while gripping the bark tightly with her claws. Nothing green enough caught her eye. "Dang"

  • ooc: — rolled a 4
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    Dwindlingpaw— She/Her ・ 10 moons ・ Thunderclan apprentice・ PENNED BY @Ghostunes!
    ☀︎ A charismatic colorful array of cream orange and red fur shaped like an apprentice.
    ☀︎ Crimsonsun x Shadedmoon
    ☀︎ Tags
 
⊱⊰ Today's weather is miserable, and it drags Hopepaw's mood down along with the falling of rain. Sullenly she trails after the rest of the cats on patrol, trying to push from her mind all thoughts of attackers and invaders. RiverClan and ShadowClan wouldn't dare tread far enough into ThunderClan's territory to actually reach camp, would they? The fur along her back bristles uncomfortably at the idea of the kits and queens in the nursery being cornered by cruel cats from other clans. She shouldn't be so concerned, she knows—Nightbird can defend herself just fine—but the worries won't leave her. She finds herself patrolling alongside her former mentor, so at least one cat she cares for is at her side.

Copper eyes scan the land around her, but she can see nothing of value. Maybe it's the way everything has turned bland in the changing season, paired with the dreary weather, but nothing is recognizable to Hopepaw. "I can't find anything," she mutters, feeling downtrodden. Deerpaw, Ivorypaw, and Leadhusk have all managed to find things that would help insulate the nursery's residents, but she's found nothing to help. Once again, she is useless to her clan, helpless. But she can't let herself lose hope now—she is hope. Gentlestorm had said it himself that ThunderClan needs hope, and he had been the one to name her. She must live up to that, whether or not she feels like she's making a difference. If not for her usefulness, she will support her clan with her determination.

  • ooc: rolled a 2.
    mentor tag @GENTLESTORM
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    HOPEPAW ❯❯ she/her, thunderclan medicine cat apprentice

    skinny, thick-furred lilac molly with deep copper eyes. soft-spoken and a bit of a grouch.
    daughter of batwing and leopardtongue ; adopted by roeflame
    mentored by gentlestorm
    peaceful and healing powerplay permitted ; does not typically like physical contact from anyone besides her family
    penned by foxlore
 
❝ it's gonna hurt for a bit of time ❞

Lightflower, along with the others, was not having a great time out in the cold. It was biting, nipping at her skin through her fur. The pale warrior padded beside Lovelight, as she usually did. The light drizzle made her irritable, though it's not like the rest of them weren't feeling similarly. How she longed for the comfort of her nest. The warmth of snuggling with her love. She shook the thought from her mind, no use in dwelling on what she can't have at the moment. Her gaze scanned the earth, only to rest upon some feathers. "I found some feathers too!" she chirped, already a bit less cynical. Maybe today wasn't so horrible. At least they were finding a good amount of things.

// rolled a 14, two points!
✿✿✿
 
ooc: rolled an 11 [1 point]

Addersnap felt as though he wasn't contributing much when it came to gathering the necessities for them to survive. A lot of what was happening wasn't his fault, yet the tabby could only feel an overwhelming amount of guilt whenever he thought about the materials he had missed, the prey that had been snatched up from quite literally right underneath him. At least he had found those juniper berries for Gentlestorm and Hopepaw.

Straightening his posture as he picked through the overgrowth, he was surprised to feel soft, dry moss fluttering softly against his nose. Lifting his head from where he had been ducked down, a grin plastered itself onto his face as he gripped the moss in his maw. Practically skipping back to the group, Addersnap was thankful that at least some others managed to get a good amount of materials as well. Maybe he would be able to use some of this to line his thin nest.
 
〕A frown adorns Honeypaw's features as they recall their failure to hunt in SkyClan's territory, their tail twitching irritably. The Clan needed them to provide food so they could survive through Leaf-bare, and they were not helping by being incompetent at their job. Maybe they'd be better at finding den materials than prey. . .

The ground is cold to the touch, and not even the trees protect them from the chilled winds as well as before. Yellowy-green eyes narrow while Honeypaw scans the undergrowth of ThunderClan's territory in search of anything that may be of use. Ivorypaw and Leafhusk mention finding ferns for the nursery, so at least the kits and queens will be a tad warmer. In their distraction, the young apparentice steps on some moss, and their expression finally lights up. Carefully using their claws to pull the moss from the tree's roots, they gather a mouthful and trot back to the group, pleased with themselves. Maybe they weren't so useless after all.
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  • ooc. Rolled an 11, 1 point
  • HONEYPAW —— apprentice of thunderclan , mentored by npc . waspchaser x sorrelmist . littermate to none. ✦ penned by nocthymia
    they/them / 6 moons & ages every 7ᵗʰ
    single / too young
    peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / underline & tag account when attacking
    —— combat details here / battle notes

    "speech", 'thoughts', all opinions are in character
    biography — msg on discord for plots — toyhouse

  • reference image here
    a longhaired red tabby with low white, vitiligo and dichroic eyes.
 

With Doepath and Sunshinespot moving into the nursery, demand for warmer nest-making materials had grown substantially. Some of the patrol that Softsight was with had already found ferns and feathers to help make up the nests, and some had come up empty-pawed, but it was just Softsight's luck that she stumbled across a smattering of feathers on the ground that she was quick to take note of.

"Got more feathers." She announced to the patrol as she piked up the materials, returning to the other cats' side for the hint of warmth that it offered up. At least those in the nursery wouldn't want for soft and warm materials in their nests, even if it was the least that everyone could find.

 
Vixencrwon lifted her head, worry crossing her features. "You.. you need to eat. you can have my share, sister. Im.. not that hungry." she offered, a gentle gaze in blue eyes as she looked upon her sister. hopefully, softsight didnt react poorly to an offer. they were all hungry.. werent they? she could only hope her sister didnt argue. "in fact, i am going to put my paw down on this matter. youre eating and thats final," she said. but there was a light tone in her voice, but it still held a stern ness in it.

she felt so off as she wandered the frost bitten ground. "we could put the ferns... maybe in the entranceway... to block the cold from there more..?" she offered the idea with a small shrug. as if her idea could be passed off easily. even if they layered it, would it really be so harmful? to add more insulation for the young and small bodies whom could not contain their own heat well.

a soft sigh came from her finally as she was fruitless in her efforts. "you guys are doing great though!" she added, trying to sound convincing.

Rolled a 4, no materials//

 
He stands by Softsight while on patrol, memories of their apprentice moons and even the day he first arrived into ThunderClan flooding back into his mind. Roaringsun fluffs out his long fur to keep warm, offering a lopsided grin to his friend and whomever fancied staying close for warmth.

The albino's abscence is easily noticeable, biting winds ruffling his pelt. The warrior now understands why his former twolegs never let him step foot outside when it was cold. The warrior lets her be, and instead heeds to Leafhusk's call of finding more ferns. Trotting towards his former mentor ( even if they hadn't spent that long together ) he hopes to find more nearby.

He sniffs around the undergrowth covered in frost and cold to the touch. He smiles as he too finds more ferns sitting around, healthy and usable for den insulation. "More ferns!" The tom purrs through a mouthful of the plants, padding back to the patrol.

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  • ooc. Rolled a 17 (ferns), 2 points!
  • ROARINGSUN —— warrior of thunderclan , mentor to none . npc x npc . littermate to npcs ✦ penned by nocthymia
    male / he/him / 14 moons & ages every 14ᵗʰ
    single / orientation & poly or mono / open/closed to romance
    peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / underline & tag account when attacking
    —— combat details here / battle notes

    "speech", 'thoughts', all opinions are in character
    tags — msg on discord (hypmic) for plots — toyhouse
  • reference image here
    a longhaired flame sepia with low white and amber-brown eyes.
 
〕The patrol was rather large, but after coming up empty pawed the past few times she went out to look for materials, she had concluded that perhaps with more numbers there would be more success. The leader flicked her tail to touch Merlinpaw's back for a moment of reassurance before splitting off to search for anything that would be useful. The dens were too drafty for leafbare winds, what they really needed was insulation of some sorts. If I could find some ferns...that would be perfect. Sunshinespot and Doepath had mentioned a draft in the nursery the night before, and that wouldn't do. There were way too many young and unborn kits to be cold...the last thing they needed was for any sickness to start from being cold. She stiffened as she imagined Yellowcough running rampant through the camp again...hopefully Gentlestorm kept Lungwort in stock after what had happened last leaf-fall.

After many paw steps, she finally found exactly what she was looking for. Her eyes light up as she approached the clump, and used her teeth to pull them from the ground. "Peffct." she said, her voice muffled from the leaves. She would've liked to of found more, but it was hard to find anything that wasn't ruined by the frost. Once she was satisfied there wasn't any more that could be harvested, she turned and headed back to reunite with the group.

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  • ooc.
    rolled a 18 (ferns)
  • FLAMESTAR —— leader of thunderclan , mentoring merlinpaw . storm x lily . littermate to nala, smokey, and nemo ✦ penned by icey !
    afab / she/her / 38 moons & ages every 20ᵗʰ
    widowed / heterosexual / closed to romance
    peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / underline & tag account when attacking
    —— difficult in battle, will start & finish fights


    "speech", 'thoughts', all opinions are in character
    tags — msg on discord for plots — toyhouse
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    a longhaired red tabby with low white and green eyes. flamewhisker's fur is a vibrant hue of red, riddled with thick classic tabby markings. her fur is medium in length, and she has a large, feathery tail. her chest, belly, tail tip, and her paws are dipped white. flamewhisker's eyes are a dark, deep shade of green. her shoulder has a large scar on it from a fight with a dog. she also has a shredded ear from a disagreement with a loner during her time alone before joining thunderclan. on particularly cold days, or sometimes before a major weather change, she will walk with a slight limp from her shoulder injury.
 
· · ───────────── ·𖥸· ───────────── · ·

It felt like anytime she went hunting she came up empty-pawed... and when she didn't, something was always around to rip her victory from her jaws. Mottledpaw's frustration was evidenced in the tension of her muscles, in the way she practically stomped through the forest, steam rolling from her ears (it was just the fogginess of her breath). Today she sets her sights on being helpful in some other way... in searching for materials that might keep them warm on chilly nights. Might keep their camp more sturdy in the event snow found them soon- she was excited, in some way, to see the snow for the first time. Youthful eagerness for a new experience.

Scrounging through the undergrowth she finds success in the form of sturdy ferns... ones she sinks her teeth into stubbornly and rips at until they're successfully separated from their roots. They're heavier to carry than she thought a bunch of leaves might be... but she takes her luck as a bolstering to her strength, proud as she trots back to her clan-mates with the plant held securely between her jaws. Look, her shining gaze seems to say, I found something useful!

//rolled a 14, 2 points​
 
spiderpaw had since broken away from the large patrol to do his own searching, lithe paws carrying the apprentice through sodden underbrush with a shiver to accompany him every step of the way. it was bad enough they had to deal with an early frost but now rain too, granted it was merely a little drizzle but it's enough to make him want to never leave the warmth of the apprentice den ever again.

after a while of looking he finds himself at the edge of a very small clearing and nothing seems to stand out until golden hues spot something caught among some gnarled roots which upon closer inspection he sees is a good pawful of feathers. spiderpaw works with trembling paws to free as many as he could before plucking them up into his jaws with a slight chatter of teeth before quickly trotting back to reconvene with the rest. "f'und f–feshers. .!"
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  • ooc. rolled a 16, found feathers ! +2 points
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    SPIDERPAWskittish apprentice of thunderclan
    🟐 a scrawny, short-haired black tom with oversized ears and gold eyes.
    🟐 amab, demiboy, he / they | bisexual, no lean.
    🟐 8 moons, ages every 9th | created 08.14.24
    🟐 npc x npc | sibling to myrtlepaw | mentored by wildheart
    🟐 actions, 'thoughts', "speech"
    🟐 penned by cobatic | toyhouse | pinterest |