pafp And it’s too near the bone ⸙ Requesting stories

[Brackenpaw]

Brackenpaw didn’t know much about Scorchstreak but the little information that she did know was enough for her. Firstly, she was WindClan’s deputy which meant that she carried a lot of power and sway inherently. Secondly, she had killed her own son. Sootspot had told them as much. He had also told them that she was the only willing participant in that act. This was enough to cause the tunneler apprentice to be weary of her, to have a little extra edge to her voice when speaking with her. Though, there was that inherent curiosity, clearly second chances and transgressions had been forgiven for the deputy to even be deputy. What made her worthy of that? Has she always been so vicious? Maybe WindClan had shaped her to be that way, they always hear about how terrible things were with Sootstar in charge so it only made sense.

The best person to ask would be the tortoiseshell herself, unfortunately that meant actually speaking with her. She liked to think that they had a rather impressive streak of not speaking with her but… They guess they can rebuild the streak later. With a scrutinising squint they approach her, trying to keep the caution out of her movements. “What was WindClan like when you were growing up?” They ask, tilting their head as they look up at her. Though as they got older they found that distance was becoming smaller, eye level was achievable if they actually sat up straight for once.

“Or I guess you would have been grown when WindClan was around right? Anyways, was it different to now?” Their whiskers twitch as she looks at her expectantly, underneath that the curiosity was genuine. She never asked about WindClan before she was born, they never really saw the need to. These days they understood that it was important to actually listen to history when told, so there was an attempt to rectify that as well as a flimsy attempt of connection. To figure out if perceptions held about the deputy were false after all or if they would be confirmed.

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‎‎ ‎┌── Im just a dog ⸙ with no bite ──┐‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

• 
  ooc. Please wait for @SCORCHSTREAK
  
•  
• Brackenpaw
  ✩ they/she, tunneler apprentice of Windclan, 9 moons (ages on the 22nd)
  ⭃ a lithe and fragile looking calico that looks like they still need to grow into her ears
  ⭃ Speech, thoughts, attacking
  ⭃ NPC x NPC, mentored by Bluefrost
  ⭃ easy to befriend other kits, gradually harder to befriend every rank after that
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ⭃ penned by Juice ↛ @/ouijeejuice on discord, feel free to dm for plots.
  ⭃ All opinions are IC!! Bracken is a little hater
  

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[SCORCHSTAR]

༄༄ The apprentice who approaches her is as much a stranger to Scorchstreak as any within WindClan could possibly be. There is no reason for her to associate with Bluefrost’s apprentice; apart from the fact that they are both tunnelers, there is no connection between herself and Brackenpaw. So when her younger clanmate looks her in the eye. They are nearly as tall as Scorchstreak, now, and it is as reassuring as it is unsettling. The next generation of tunnelers is growing, and it only serves to remind her of her lost peers. There are… none of them left now, are there? The scars across her chest burn.

Brackenpaw asks what WindClan was like in the past, but her question is misguided. Misinformed, perhaps. "When I was growing up?" A scarred brow lifts, questioning, but the younger calico corrects themself just as quickly as she can speak the words. Anyways, was it different to now? Brackenpaw asks, and the deputy nods sharply. "Sootstar was cruel… and she was manipulative." She had made them all believe in whatever false words toppled from her stars-damned mouth. Lies, claimed to have been signs from StarClan. Her death throes, desperate grasping for power even as she fell from her perch on high.

However, WindClan is not Sootstar. She is no longer a hound at the beck and call of a ruthless queen. But what is there to speak of, apart from Sootstar? What is there, apart from the friends Scorchstreak has lost? "WindClan used to be… more hardened. Kits were apprenticed only a month after being weaned, and no medicine cat lasted as long as Wolfsong has. WindClan led invasions into other clans’ camps, much like DuskClan invaded ours." Thinking of the way that her claws had locked with the RiverClan leader’s, Scorchstreak’s maw dips into a tight grimace. The truth of WindClan’s past treachery has been laid partially at Brackenpaw’s feet, and the deputy only wonders whether the apprentice will become too appreciative of the bringer of bloodshed that the moorland clan had once been.

every love that i touch ☽♰☾ falls to ruin

• ooc: —
• 
• SCORCHSTREAK ❯❯ she/they, deputy (tunneler) of windclan
  ༄ small, slim flame-streaked calico with fiery golden eyes. stoic and stern, ferociously protective of her clanmates. rarely seen aboveground.
  ༄ mate to bluepool ; sibling to rattleheart & rabbitclaw
  ༄ mentor to bilberrypaw ; previously mentored pinkshine
  ༄ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted, but may react aggressively
  ༄ penned by foxlore

​

​

 

[SUNNVAR]

✧₊⁺ ️️️ ️️╱ ️️️ ️️ ️️️ Rarely does Sunstar not ponder the meaning of guilt. in the moons that they have suffered since Sootstar's defeat, he cannot say quite what thoughts consumed him. rage that they would suffer for the actions of another; pain that his own choices allowed for it; shades of heartbreak, every bit. Yet even with all of that, his own guilt does not extend to another. He rarely questions if Scorchstreak feels the same. This world was not her doing. (Was it his, instead?) It is– well. When he lifts his head and basks in the vitriol of her words, his chest begins to ache. For even as she left their past behind, he cannot say that he left her. The deputy he chose was a hardened cat. One who had done what was necessary at the time — surely she would continue it. If he fell along her same terrible path, those claws that had taken her son to the stars would not hesitate to damn him as well.

No wonder that StarClan hates them so, when even their leader admits his rot.

All this to say that he had never, for a single moment, expected the anger from the molly's tongue. She splashes him with cold water and forces him to confront the truth of how long they have been on this road, and how much they have changed. No longer were they Sootstar's council, crowded around her den to plan the harm they would cause to another. Now she stood on his, and he knows. . . would he not do the same, if it came to it? If Dawnglare once more held the cure to his clanmates' sickness and refused to save their lives. If there was no other way. DuskClan, Scorchstreak says. They are not so different after all. He does not take her moment. Zoned out with a distant gaze, he only mutters, "She made it seem as if it was our only way forward. She was good at that."

𝐈 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐍 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐈𝐌 𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐎𝐔𝐒 ╱ ️️️ ( 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐀 𝗕𝐀𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐆 ) ️️️ ️️️ ⌞06.17⌝ 🟒ᨒ

• 

  ✧₊⁺ ️️️ ️️╱ ️️️ ️️ ️️️ OOC. —
  

  

  ᯓ✧ ️️️ ️️ ️️️ 𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑. SUNSTRIDE. SUNNVAR.
  ᯓ✧ ️️️ ️️ ️️️ MASC ️️️ & ️️️ AMAB, ️️️ HE – HIM – HIS.
  ᯓ✧ ️️️ ️️ ️️️ SECOND LEADER OF ️️️ WINDCLAN.
  ᯓ✧ ️️️ ️️ ️️️ NINE LIVES: ️️️ ⋆ ️️️ ⋆ ️️️ ⋆ ️️️ ⋆ ️️️ ⋆ ️️️ ⋆ ️️️ ⋆̴͖̻̌͛ ⋆̵̼͈̐̿̓̏͝ ⋆̶̬́̀

• 
  a large chocolate and white rosette tom with seaglass eyes. the first thing many see when looking at sunstar now is not his proud posture or boxy build, but the scarred stump that remains of his front left leg. a wound that would have killed most other cats took one of his lives; not even starclan could repair it.
  
  
  a rogue brought to windclan in a search for greatness, one of sootstar's most loyal warriors turned into her downfall. with a mate and kits to worry about, and now nine lives from starclan with a missing limb, windclan's leader has much to prove.

• "speech"

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[dimmingsun]

It is an age-old question. Those who had been too young to remember anything concrete, or those who had not even been born at all — stars, does that make Dimmingsun feel older than he realistically is — often like to bring up Sunstar's predecessor. Dimmingsun cannot fault them for being curious... it is vital to become intimately familiar with history, but he can't deny the discomfort that tends to come hand-in-hand with the conversation.

An undeniable truth: there would be no WindClan without Sootstar. Perhaps in her absence, someone else would have risen to take the mantle, but there is no reason to ponder on alternative timelines. She has built this Clan up from the ground, and then let it collapse back into the dirt.

Scorchstreak cuts straight to the point. She highlights Sootstar's flaws and nothing else; glaring as those might have been, there is a reason the late queen of the moors had managed to rule for as long as she did. There had been a time when whatever was wrong with her was easily concealed... the blazing sun had caressed the qualities that allowed her to become star-blessed in the first place, casting shadows upon what would eventually rear its ugly head.

Ever the honest type, Sunstar paints a different picture than Scorchstreak... though the foundation remains much the same: manipulation had played a big role in Sootstar's leadership. "She made us believe we were better for how she made us act. That WindClan was destined for all this," Dimmingsun says, building upon his superiors' previous statements. Brackenpaw would learn from this, no doubt.

"We are in better paws now." There is a pointed gaze thrown Sunstar's way. Dimmingsun is no fool — he knows the other Clans would scoff at the notion, as well as some of WindClan's very own... Scorchstreak included. Perhaps it is all wishful thinking, a way to manifest something better for their future, but Dimmingsun likes to think he is just being an unlikely optimist. Is it selfish to use Brackenpaw's innocent question as a way to instill some confidence into Sunstar? Maybe. The Clan would surely be better for it though.
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[Brackenpaw]

Sootstar, it was hard to discuss WindClan’s history without mentioning her. Brackenpaw could understand that, she assumed that there may have been a difference between the clan and the leader but listening to Scorchstreak made her realise that the two are quite entangled when discussions of the past arise. Ears twitch and a spark of interest ignites in her eyes, they’re hungry, eager to hear about times before they were born or even before they understood the world around them. Huh. Weird. It wasn't normal for a medicine cat to live as long as Wolfsong? She doesn't think to press on the matter. “How come kits were apprenticed so quickly?” They could understand the fact that WindClan used to be more hardened, a byproduct of being part of Sootstars reigned, she guessed. Before she could ask another question Sunstar joins the conversation, the calico looks at him wearily, biting her tongue from any scathing remarks on the undercurrent of an inhale.

He had come over to join in on the conversation, not to be a stick in the mud. She had to remind herself to not be so defensive, so instead of a usual scowl that she may give the leader he is given neutrality. A one sided peace treaty- as it really has only ever been Brackenpaw who seethed. Dimmingsun joins next, oh great did I utter some kind of codeword for a surprise council meeting? This felt like some kind of joke, to be stuck conversing with those who upheld WindClan. Each of them had insight though, she had to concede and give them that. “So… When did you all decide that enough was enough?” It must have been scary to take a leap of faith like that and rebel.

The apprentice looks to Sunstar for the answer, it seemed natural to give after all since he’s the leader. She gives a small grunt of approval at Dimmingsun’s words, no one has spoken of Sunstar the way that everyone speaks of Sootstar. That was enough for her, to give him credit he seemed to give a lot of space for everyone to breathe and generally had leniency. Even if she wasn’t Sunstar’s biggest fan just based on what she had heard about his predecessor of course they’re in better paws now.

Whiskers twitch as she considers Scorchstreaks words of a hardened WindClan, they were no better than DuskClan in the past from the sound of it. It was weird to think of this clan leading invasions into others. Her next question may seem foolish but it came from a stubborn youthful innocence “so do you think DuskClan may change? If they had a new leader?” That’s what happened here, right? So surely it would happen there, she thinks of Privetpaw. Even if he was a little snarky she thought he was cool, and nice. Surely things could be better for him if a new leader was appointed there, maybe some kind of peace could be broached. Too naive to really notice that this was wishful thinking.

---

‎‎ ‎┌── Im just a dog ⸙ with no bite ──┐‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

• 
  ooc.
  
•  
• Brackenpaw
  ✩ they/she, tunneler apprentice of Windclan, 10 moons (ages on the 22nd)
  ⭃ a lithe and fragile looking calico that looks like they still need to grow into her ears
  ⭃ Speech, thoughts, attacking
  ⭃ NPC x NPC, mentored by Bluefrost
  ⭃ easy to befriend other kits, gradually harder to befriend every rank after that
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ⭃ penned by Juice ↛ @/ouijeejuice on discord, feel free to dm for plots.
  ⭃ All opinions are IC!! Bracken is a little hater
  

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[SEDGEPOUNCE]

Oof. Harsh conversation. Sedgepounce himself is half-tempted to leave. His eyes stray to the gorse tunnel leading from camp, the open and quiet moor an alluring alternative. But something tugs at his chest and brings him closer, tail wrapping tight around his paws as he settles and listens.

"She, uhm, stole some kits from ShadowClan. It was a whole thing..." Sedge butts in weakly, lifting a paw to wave in emphasis. An uncomfortably frown stretches across his maw; his gaze flits sidelong to the nearest woven heather wall. He, of course, was only a naive young warrior when the whole war for WindClan erupted. Sunstar had fled with his righteous band of refugees to the Horseplace, and Sedgepounce, stupidly, stayed.

His folks died in that war, loyal to WindClan through and through. Nowadays Sedge has to wonder what kind of WindClan they were really fighting for. Beetlenose called him dumb when he voiced the thought aloud.

"And maybe a miracle from the stars," he grumbles to Brackenpaw's last question. His thoughts of DuskClan are as bleak as his memories of the cats that founded it. "DuskClan cats are in DuskClan because that's what they like. Plenty of WindClan cats were loyal to Sootstar even after Sunstar rebelled, too." He pointedly does not bring up Snakehiss, even though he was more delusional than he was strictly loyal. But...still.
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