sensitive topics can't forget the ache before the mend // grave keeping, prompt

[Periwinklebreeze.]

OH, WHAT IT MEANS TO BE SOMEONE ━
THAT EVERYBODY HAS TO TALK TO━​

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periwinklebreeze ❀ 19 moons ❀ demi-boy ❀ windclan lead warrior ​

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It's not strange to find periwinklebreeze within windclans graveyard - no, the boy has lost far too many cats for it to ever be odd. There are many graves to keep, to clean - to tidy up, leaving offerings beside carefully selected markers. And so many of them are his loved ones.

Wisteriapaw. Moonshadow. Dazzlepaw. Vulturemask. Snailstride.

And now, Hyacinthbreath,

He hadn't told his clanmates what the sleek white stone marker he'd placed was meant for - only Nightingalecry. Because surely, even if she hadn't known the full extent of Peri's fondness for their second mother, of the secrets shared in the dead of night, she still deserved to know the truth. Another victim of sootstars terrain - even fleeing windclan in exile hadn't saved her from the ashen molly's clutches.

Todays offering is a bit different than his usual, a bundle of blossoms gathered in his scarred jaws as he slinks over, paws so familiar with the path he treads he thinks he could walk it even with his eyes shut. White wildflowers, so many of them that he can't hardly tell them apart or remember what he's picked anymore drop to the ground, paws working carefully to tuck them between clumps of grass and stones pulled from the moonstone.

" I'm... s-sorry, " he murmurs, blinking down at the grave. That there was no body to bury. That he hadn't left with her. That he hadn't even been on the moors when she'd been murdered. No - he'd been in the mountains, wandering aimlessly for a cure he'd had no intention of living long enough to bring home. The guilt is almost crushing. He'd lost his lost parent and nearly lost his sister... and where had he been? Wallowing in his grief, as though drowning himself in starclans vengeance would absolve him of his sins.

But he'd lived, he'd come home. And that'd have to be enough.

━ actions & " speech, " & 'thoughts/quotes' ━

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━H E━H AD━N O━O N E━T H A T━H E━C O U L D━T A L K━T O━

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⊱✿⊰ Even the dead still need some love! Your character decides to gather up some wildflowers to decorate the graves of those who have passed.

 

[RATTLEHEART]

AS HE RAISED HIS FIST BEFORE HE SPOKE — Although a far less frequent visitor of Windclan's graveyard, Rattleheart did find themself visiting on occasion. There was one name that lingered on their mind every time their light paws touched the grave markers, the moniker of one who hadn't even had the chance to be buried properly. Though they knew their sister's attitude regarding Dappledsun had gradually begun to shift as of late, they had gotten used to visiting the graveyard alone whenever they thought of their long-dead nephew. It had been no small amount of time since they had last visited the makeshift marker they had created with their own paws, so preoccupied with their new duties and the clean-up after the war that they simply hadn't been given the chance. Briefly, they wondered if Periwinklebreeze had similarly been rendered terribly busy from the pressure.

They didn't immediately acknowledge the younger's presence as he slipped past various markers and padded towards the back, leaving their own modest pair of speckled flowers near the well-worn marker that they had become familiar with. They gently patted down the dirt with their paws before finally looking over towards Periwinklebreeze, unable to immediately identify who the other was visiting. Had that stone been there before, or had his fellow lead warrior simply suffered so much death that they couldn't keep track anymore? The mere thought made their heart sink, hesitating briefly before making their way over. "Hello, Periwinklebreeze." Rattleheart's greeting was soft and warm, not unlike the plush monochrome fur that covered their body - carefully groomed and free of dirt today out of respect for the dead that surrounded the both of them.

The wildflowers that Peri had scattered around the grave were nearly just as beautiful as when they had first sprouted up from the ground, Rattleheart resisting the strong urge to reach a paw out and organize them even further. "I'm sure that they're appreciated, from wherever they are." They intentionally left out a specific name, not sure which body was buried down beneath their paws - or not buried down beneath them, whatever the case may have been.

THE RIGHTEOUS HAND OF GOD 𓆩♡𓆪 THE DEVIL THAT YOU FORGOT

• 

• 
  ❥ longhaired black and white tom with pale green eyes
  ❥ 49 moons old; ages the 1st every month
  ❥ afab; uses he/she/they pronouns
  ❥ homosexual homoromantic; mated to venomstrike
  ❥ sibling to scorchstreak, lizardbounce, and rabbitclaw
  ❥ currently mentoring downypaw
  ❥ somewhat difficult to befriend; wary but kind
  ❥ "speech", thoughts, attacking
  ❥ peaceful powerplay allowed
  ❥ all opinions are ic

​

 

[SUNSTAR]

When Sunstar had heard of Hyacinthbreath's passing, it had been with a bitten tongue. Even with the world around them changing, he could not shake off the moons of what he had seen and heard of the very same molly. He thought of her and saw Juniperfrost's body pulled across the border. He thought of the maiming, the lies, the cat that had left what mattered behind her in a moment of what he can only consider selfishness, even now. Perhaps especially now, with Periwinklebreeze before his eyes. Never would the warrior be able to mourn her the way that her family did. At most he can offer silence and space for them to do so safely. That is worth something, in the end.

As a leader and storyteller both, he had made a choice to memorize the names of those within this graveyard. Not all of them had died during his time within the clan. Those that had joined StarClan before he even knew their existence were memories he could not be fond of, yet his tail still swept across their markers in patient greeting. One day he would know them again. In death, they would meet as friends. Now that he knows he stands among those accepted into the stars he has found comfort in the inevitable death. Even through the lingering terror. There is so much that he must carry.

This smooth white marker, another name upon his shoulders. "I do not know this one," he murmurs thoughtfully. Shrikethorn? No, he would not think Periwinklebreeze close enough to the daughter of Sootstar. Another body that had been buried, unmarked, with the end of Sootstar's lead? He would not pry, but a concerned curiosity still burns in his eyes as he sits beside Rattleheart.

⋆°•☁︎ 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝗕𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃  ╱╱ 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝗕𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝗕𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃 〚 02.11.2024 〛 𖤓

• OOC. —
• 

  SUNSTAR. LEADER OF WINDCLAN.   ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
  ——– HE – HIM – HIS ╱╱ 48+ MOONS OLD, ADULT.

  NPC x NPC, MOUNTAIN CATS. MATE TO WOLFSONG; FATHER TO BEARPAW, SINGEDPAW, RIVEPAW, SUNLITPAW AND FEATHERPAW. MENTORING RIVEPAW.
  
  TH ╱╱ A LARGE, FRESHLY SCARRED CHOCOLATE AND WHITE ROSETTE TABBY TOM WITH SEAGLASS BLUE EYES

• "speech"

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[Periwinklebreeze.]

OH, WHAT IT MEANS TO BE SOMEONE ━
THAT EVERYBODY HAS TO TALK TO━​

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periwinklebreeze ❀ 20 moons ❀ demi-boy ❀ windclan lead warrior ​

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'Starclan' his mind offers, turning to rattleheart. He'd hardly noticed the other leads presence until they were already upon him, but it's not exactly strange. They've all lost many these past moons. Many would've written off the dreams of those suffering through yellowcough as no more than just that - dreams. Halucinations, wishful thinking, fever dreams - and yet he didn't. Irispath's words had been the icing on the cake, confirmation to what he'd already known and suspected. But he says none of this, only dips head to the side in acknowledgement.

" You w-wouldn't, " he says, turning to sunstar - " j-just... another of s-sootstars victims, th-that's all, " he says. Hyacinthbreath is a name he himself does not utter - a curse to windclan, a painful memory to him. But... so is juniperfrost's. He knows what they think of her - but still, he chose to believe her words. It'd been juniperfrost or him, and the glares he'd seen sent his way from the tom prior to his death had certainly leant credibility to the statement. And still, he'd stood alongside spiderbloom, watched over kittens who's father had been killed his mother.

Still, she hardly deserved to be lost - forgotten. If the stars could forgive her, couldn't he?

━ actions & " speech, " & 'thoughts/quotes' ━

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━H E━H AD━N O━O N E━T H A T━H E━C O U L D━T A L K━T O━

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[SNAKEHISS]

// tw mentions death and gore

Truth be told, Snakehiss had not visited this space in a long while. It had been deeply upsetting to stand upon a grave, one that housed the remains of his mother who had been swiftly taken by Yellowcough. At first he had occupied this space in an attempt to console himself, to help reassure that his mother's presence was still here in WindClan, but it soon became too distracting. As deputy, Snakehiss could not afford any distractions, especially emotional ones that would wave focus from his duties. Therefore, Rosepool's gravesite had long remained untouched ( at least by him ).

While he felt as if he could not properly mourn the loss of his mother, not with a chaperone constantly on his tail, he had decided that he would briefly deliver a bundle of newly sprouted wildflowers to her grave. Snakehiss steps forth toward the unique marker he had picked for Rosepool's resting spot and regards it thoughtfully, a pensive somberness behind that usual sharpened gaze of his, and sets the flora onto the ground.

It isn't long before his attention is grabbed by the group of cats who also just so happen to be visiting the site. Pointed ears prick instinctively, always one to eavesdrop on the conversations of others, though what Periwinklebreeze utters causes a heavy weight to sink in Snakehiss' chest. A victim of Sootstar's, just as Perwinkle's mother had been. The tom had not spoken Hyacinthbreath's name—in fact, he could be referring to anyone else, but Snakehiss could not help but think of the WindClan traitor whenever he looked at the lead warrior. "Curse you.. Curse you.." She'd groaned as she bled to death, having been ripped apart by the Moor Queen herself, glaring weakly up at him with fading purple hues.

Snakehiss could not help but see the image of Hyacinthbreath taking her final breaths whenever he looked at Periwinklebreeze. His ears flick backward slightly, the sight of familiar violet eyes seeming to haunt him. If the lead warrior did not know that Snakehiss had been present on that fateful night, he intended to keep it that way.

₊ ⋆ * ⊹ ₊ ☾ —— 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙟𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙨

• anyone could be his chaperone btw!

• 

• 
  ₊ ⋆ * ⊹ ₊ ☾
  snakehiss
  

  — he/him; moor runner of windclan
  — long-limbed black tom with green eyes, a small white chest patch, and multiple scars
  — father to violetkit, waspkit, cricketkit, and privetkit (duskclan)
  — "speech", thoughts, attack
  — link to full tags; @ on discord or dm @beaaats for plots!​

​

 

[dimmingsun]

-

Dimmingsun is uncharacteristically quiet as he pads behind Snakehiss, staying a few steps behind him. While keeping an eye out on him is essential as per Sunstar's orders, there's a certain sense of... well, it just feels like invading Snakehiss' privacy when it comes to the dead. Grief is to be shared with permission. He is but an obstacle in the moment.

Still, duty is duty. Dimmingsun lets his eyes wander from Snakehiss to a shared point of interest - that twitch in his ear is not lost on Dimmingsun, but he is not about to pretend he's a mentor scolding a kitten. They're all Clanmates now- or would be, when the worst of the damage fades into the past and feelings can warp and change.

Unlike Snakehiss however, Dimmingsun doesn't intend to pry. The graveyard lies before him; silent, but a promise of the future. It's always a grim reminder of those that have been lost, some before Sootstar's gone mad but some directly because of her.

Nevertheless. He stays a few paces back once more, sitting by the outskirts of the scene and peering into the night around them instead of staring at raw vulnerability.

˗ˏˋ ᴀ ꜱɪɴɴᴇʀ, ᴀ ꜱᴀɪɴᴛ / ɴᴏᴛʜɪɴɢ ɪɴʙᴇᴛᴡᴇᴇɴ ´ˎ˗ ᓚᘏᗢ 03.12.24

• 
• ✦ OOC -

• DIMMINGSUN ⸝⸝-- WINDCLAN -- HE/HIM -- 32 MOONS

  ✦ Large golden-brown tom with green eyes.
  ✦ Penned by ˏ 𝙠𝙖𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙣 ´​
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