baa, baa, black sheep / intro

[COALHEART.]

tags! ₊˚✧ ﾟ. A low, drawn out sigh escaped the fluffy black cat. He paced around the river, as if he were nervous. Not scared, but perhaps unsure of how he should hop in. Should he just go for it? That could lead to an injury. His perfect appearance would be marred.

Ugh. Fine. He would just dump down from the stepping stones, like a wimp. He made his way down, slinking though somehow managing to make it look somewhat elegant. From the stepping stones, he then leaped down, creating a mild splash. He quickly got his head above water and began treading it, looking in case any cats have gathered. He called out, "Hey! If anyone wants to join me, the water is amazing!" Oh, it took him a lot to not add on "like me" to the end of that.
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[FALLINGLIGHT]

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆ ⸻ Fallinglight is fond of the river like most RiverClan cats, and it is always a favorite during greenleaf to cool down, but these days he's a little wary of entering it. The drying still persists, slow yet determined, and it is not at the level it once was— which is even more worrisome with so many of their warriors gone on the journey. He wishes he could have gone with them; it's difficult to feel as though he's providing for RiverClan and not just...taking up space.

He sits with a shell nestled between his paws, toying with it idly as he's between patrols. Coalheart's call draws his gaze, the larger cat's head easily visible above the water's surface. "I'm sure it is, but it'll take forever to dry off when you get out. It may not be too chilly yet, but I'd rather not risk getting sick." Granted, he's spent quite a bit of time close to people with yellowcough, but...that's different.
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⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ 𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝙾𝙵 𝙲𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙰𝙲𝚃𝙴𝚁 / / \ \ 𝙿𝙰𝙸𝙽𝚃 𝙰 𝚄𝙽𝙸𝚅𝙴𝚁𝚂𝙴 𝙾𝙽 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙲𝙴𝙸𝙻𝙸𝙽𝙶 / / 09.08.23 \ \ 𝙵𝙰𝙻𝙻𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙸𝙽𝙵𝙸𝙽𝙸𝚃𝙴

• —ooc:
• — FALLINGLIGHT / / 13 moons old / / amab and uses masculine pronouns; will be startled by the use of any others.
  — warrior of riverclan / / earned warrior name early at 10 moons / / skilled but not experienced / / mentoring [n / a].
  — npc parents / / father died in the great battle and mother left when he was apprenticed / / no contact w / siblings.
  — flirtatious & disastrous bisexual / / fairly indiscriminate (even when he should be) / / closed to long-term romance.
  
  a fairly trim, athletic cream tabby and black chimera with high white. fur is thick and a bit sharp, though tends to soften and curl primarily around his face and tail when wet. eyes are a bright, gleaming blue at home with the river on clear, sunny days. he is rarely without a devil-may-care grin, though despite his daring personality, has yet to accumulate noticeable scarring.
  
• blurb goes here

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[SMOKESTAR]

The deputy stalked forward quietly, overhearing Coalheart's boisterous cry and approaches the water's edge to see the warrior's dark form splashing about merrily. The feeling of dread that rose in his throat made him take a step back.
He couldn't tell you why he was so opposed to being in the water right now, he'd loved the river and swimming was once something he did daily prior to being cooped up with the kits but now he felt odd about it. He could get to about shoulder height without being bothered but having his head under it sent a jolt of panic through him now he couldn't really find a reason for feeling. Smokethroat was a skilled swimmer, most the clan were and he had never once feared drowning before but the sensation of being submerged and suffocated kicked in his self-preservation now even when it shouldn't. It was a little pathetic actually, hence why he'd kept the problem to himself for now and hoped it would just go away on its own. Maybe he was still coping with the very tumultous birth of the kittens, maybe he was still thinking about his fight with Cicadastar. Either way, he wasn't going into the water right now and latched onto Fallinglight's excuse as well, "We've enough sick." He said plainly.
The dark tom's tail lashed lightly behind him and he resisted the impulse to bring up the fact that even their medicine cat was sick now and any who got sick at this point were out of luck.
"...but might as well enjoy yourself while it is still somewhat warm I suppose." Come leafbare there would be no swimming unless you wished to see StarClan sooner rather than later. Their leader's icy plunge still haunts him at times.
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[lichenstar]

⋆ ✧　 　 · 　 ✧ ⋆ ✧　 　 · 　 ✧ ⋆ ✧　 　 · 　 ✧ ⋆

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It was a more-or-less well known fact that Lichentail did not particularly enjoy being wet... swimming was, and would always be, a heavily required skill in RiverClan of all clans and while she often partook out of necessity (or in the case of Pikesplash, a bit of happy-go-lucky foolery in the summer months), now didn't feel the best of times to do so.

It seemed she wasn't the only one that felt that way, as both Fallinglight and Smokethroat lingered along the shore despite Coalheart's invitation (demand?). It was a little awkward to just sit and watch him... wasn't it? Swallowing past the lump in their throat, the lead made a ginger step into the shallows, keeping paws among the chill long enough to acclimate before glancing back at her deputy.

"Seems unlike you to turn down a chance to stand in the current," it wasn't a secret the dark furred tom had his rituals... his routines. She meant no harm in pointing it out. "But... we'd be worse off for your loss to yellowcough too." How many more would fall victim to it? Would Cicadastar himself succumb eventually too... just like Ravensong, just like she had?

"You certainly look happy as a fish out there," flicking a pale gaze towards Coalheart with a small smile, one that didn't reach the corners of her eyes despite the attempt at friendliness.​

 

[Moonbeam]

Although Ratpaw was one of the many cats that learned how to swim and enjoyed it, she had yet to actually learn how to properly jump in and get above the water. Though she had practiced it and had done fine so far the white apprentice still worried that she would mess up somehow and although she knew she wouldn't worry about that now - there were four warriors around that could realistically help her if she needed it - Ratpaw did not want to potentially embarrass herself in front of so many older cats. They would all one day be her peers when she was older and she did not want their lasting impression to be that she almost drowned in the river in the middle of her training.

Despite this fear, she did still want to get in the water and found herself simply walking in from the bank until she was comfortably standing with her legs covered much like Lichentail. The others vocalized their want to not get sick and for a moment the apprentice contemplated getting out but instead opted for going no further. Looking out over the water for a moment she found herself turning around to look towards the older cats, responding to Smokethroat's comment about swimming while it was still warm. "What happens when it's not warm anymore?" She'd never seen a leafbare before had only heard of the rivers icing over and of snow falling to the ground and it being cold - but it couldn't be that cold right?

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ I thought that love would stay a mystery

• 
  ⋆ ratkit - ratpaw - rat???
  ⋆ female - she/her - 5 moons
  ⋆ homosexual - too young for relationship
  ⋆ apprentice of riverclan
  ⋆ attack - speech - thought
  ⋆ penned by tikki

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[BEEFANG]

₊· ͟͟͞͞➳˚❥ Beepaw heard the call of Coalheart and was not far in following after her father with both of her large bat-like ears perked forward, her whiskers twitching in the slightest noticing that Fallinglight and Smokethroat were simply watching the tomcat that had invited everyone for a swim. Lichentail voicing the same inquiry that was within her mind but instead of saying anything, she offers her mentor a small smile and gently bumps against his side in greeting. The mention of yellowcough makes the sides of her mouth fall slightly and she tries not to think too much on it despite the fact that a lot of her clanmates had fallen ill, she can only hope that the journey cats find the cure soon and come back home to them safely. That's the only thing that they could do now hope to Starclan and wait for their return. A soft sigh slips from her maw before seeing movement from the corner of her eye and turns to watch Ratpaw enter the shallow parts of the river. The bicolored molly offering a smile to her friend only to tilt her head slightly to the side as she awaits to hear Smokethroat's answer much like the snowy she-cat, she had not been born in the time of cold to see the river frozen.

She decides that she'll take a dip in the waters and enjoy them while they were still safe to step paws in, Beepaw placing both of her mismatched paws in the beginning of the river and feeling that the waters were a little cooler due to the shift in the weather. It isn't long until the shallow water touches her curly furred chest and she stays there for a heartbeat simply enjoying the way that the water felt on her coat. "It's probably dangerous," She says to Ratpaw quietly focusing her gaze on the river and looking at her paws before lifting her gaze to the other apprentice.

𓆟. ° .• . WHEN DOES A RIPPLE BECOME A TIDAL WAVE?

• 
  ❥ 3 moons old
  ❥ riverclan apprentice
  ❥ sexuality unknown; single
  ❥ sister of cicadapaw & starlightpaw
  ❥ "speech", thoughts, attacking
  ❥ easy; still learning how to fight
  ❥ peaceful powerplay allowed
  ❥ penned by bosstaurus

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[otterbite]

Otterpaw didn't have the greatest start introducing himself to the river. Freshly apprenticed, paws hardly steady enough to balance himself on land, he had stupidly rushed to jump into the depths the moment he could. Though greenleaf had been at its hottest the waters were still shockingly cold in comparison and he had pathetically thrashed and shouted for help.

Ripplewave had not been amused and his savior, Lichentail, was even less so.

Swimming lessons after that had been driven more safety-forward than anything else. Ripplewave had taken no chances to let Otterpaw drown himself out of his own poor impulses again and now his former mentor's training had developed sturdy legs and even stronger kicks. A brief glance shot toward Coyotecreek, as if pondering to ask the bi-colored tom for permission, but he opted not to. Instead a blur of his sleek coat darted between Lichentail and Smokethroat and he jumped head-first into the waters.

A messy splash was left in his wake and Otterpaw erupted into a laugh, wading and cheered for the others to join him and Coalheart. "Well if its gonna get even colder, why waste the chance when it's warm?" Confident kicks and paddles treaded beneath him to keep him afloat, a stark difference between the last time he had so willingly leapt in.

-- @coyotecreek ​

RIVERCLAN APPRENTICE ✦ BLUE-BLACK CHIMERA ✦ 6 MOONS ✦ TAGS​