pafp it's in the wind || question

[SUNFLOWERMASK]

.°☀ AND IF IT EVER STARTS TO FEEL BAD, LITTLE FANG

---

Vulturemask has been acting different lately, anyone can see that. Ever since that night with the dancing, he's been strange. But one change in particular has caught his younger sibling's interest: he keeps talking about StarClan. He never seemed to before; it was part of his duties as medicine cat to speak with them, Sunflowerpaw knows, but he never seemed to spare much interest for them.

Neither did Sunflowerpaw, the apprentice not sharing in the devoutness of their Clanmates. StarClan was Vulturemask's burden to bear, but so too were they something abstract, something inapproachable. A vague, whispered force that never quite touched Sunflowerpaw directly. They never cared much for it all. Sure, they believed, but true faith was something they left to their Clanmates, never sparing their ancestors a second thought. But now -- but now, they were hearing about StarClan constantly, as they eavesdropped on their brother's conversations. Perhaps he too, had been swept up in the Clan's dogmatism, finally a part of the group he was always so hateful towards -- or perhaps it was something else entirely.

It has them curious. They hobble over to their older brother, gently nudge him with their head to draw his attention. "Tell about..." they begin softly. That's not how it's supposed to be said, they know, but their brother has never chided them on their lacking words. "StarClan?" Sunflowerpaw looks up at Vulturemask with wide eyes.

---

IT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN 'CAUSE THIS WORLD'S NOT TAME .°☀

⟪ OOC ⟫ ⟪ INFO ⟫ ⟪ REF ⟫

• // WindClan is a very faithful clan and are proud to live out their lives right underneath StarClan’s watchful eye. How does your characters faith bring them closer to their clan-mates?
  
  @VULTUREMASK​
• SUNFLOWERPAW named by their half-brother vulturemask after his friend and mentor.
  — they/them, 4 moons. semiverbal.
  — windclan apprentice, mentored by wolfsong.
  — reserved yet loyal, distrusts most.
  
  primary character, high activity. penned by saturnid.​
• 

​

 

[VULTUREMASK]

He find himself suprised that day when Sunflowerpaw come up to their side to nudge them after their attention, and as he turned to face them asked a such unexpected thing. Starclan. Finally their interest in the stars and their ancestors had sparked their siblings curiosity. It was true not long ago he wouldn't have showed much interest only mentioning their name when it was expected of him as the clans medicine cat. Beside that he spoke very few words about them but that had all changed recently. Now the very topic of them would spark the usual toms gloom eyes up. Suddenly he found talking about their ancestors being one of the most interesting topics of them all. So of course by the fact that Sunflowerpaw had come to them for answers and their curiosity meant alot for the ebony tom.

" Of course, of course, i will answer any questions you might have." There was a slight delighted tone in his voice, eyes glowing with devotion for their god. Vulturemask would seat himself beside them, tail wrapped around their siblings as his focus was all down on them looking ready to tell them anything. " Is there anything in particular you want to know about them?. Or shall i start from the beginning?" He would give them time to think knowing Sunflowerpaw always took them when it come to think out what to say and Vult was always patient with them to give them all the time they needed.


​

 

[SUNFLOWERMASK]

.°☀ AND IF IT EVER STARTS TO FEEL BAD, LITTLE FANG

---

Sunflowerpaw's question brings a smile to Vulturemask's face, a tinge of gleeful delight creeping into his tone. It was good to ask, then. He's eager, very eager to tell them about it. Is there anything in particular you want to know about them? Or shall i start from the beginning? They take a moment to consider. They've heard the story of StarClan from their Clanmates, but... It's different, with Vulturemask. "...Beginning," they settle on.

But there's something that still nags at them. That night, with the dancing, he''d said something else. A name. Before they can think better of it, Sunflowerpaw says, in a much softer tone. "And Rosepaw." They say it with a bit of hesitation, speaking the name as though it is something forbidden. Their namesake, the one of the two flower-name cats who never betrayed their half-brother, the one who brought this fascination on. They peer up at their brother, ears perked as they wait for his answer.

---

IT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN 'CAUSE THIS WORLD'S NOT TAME .°☀

⟪ OOC ⟫ ⟪ INFO ⟫ ⟪ REF ⟫

• //​
• SUNFLOWERPAW named by their half-brother vulturemask after his friend and mentor.
  — they/them, 5 moons.
  — windclan apprentice, mentored by wolfsong.
  — reserved yet loyal, distrusts most.
  — mild limp.
  
  primary character, high activity. penned by saturnid.​
• 

​

 

[VULTUREMASK]

Vulturemask gave an understanding nod as it got confirmed Sunflowerpaw wanted him to go the whole way back from where all of this had begun. The rise of the clans, the fall of two groups that would separate themselves into five clans. He took a moment to think back on this day, that moment because he had not been much older then what Sunflowerpaw was right now. Just when he was ready to begin with his speech Sunflowerpaw caught him off guard. The medicine cat's eyes went wide. Rosepaw. Yes, the name no one should speak in his presence. The forbidden name. It was true back then out there on the field he had been singing his friends name out as he had been dancing of joy when he finally had realised there was an end to his suffering. That death would set him free one day and he would finally get to be with them again.

There was a long silence, one that lasted perhaps a little bit too long. Eventually it seemed like the medicine cat had find his voice again. " It all started before the clans even existed. Back then we were two groups living separetely. The first one was the pine group. They lived where skyclan is living today. The second one was the marsh group who lived in the swamps where shadowclan now reigns. I lived in the swamps. There was conflict between the two groups, we could never see eye to eye on things. There was constant tension in the air and after some certain incidents the two groups decided to settle this to decide who rightfully belonged in the forest by calling out for a war. It was the most brutal and bloody battle in our history. There was blood everywhere..many on both sides lost their lives. Everything seemed grim and there was no sign of anyone on any side to back down...it might have ended into a bloodbath if not them had come down from the sky. It was our ancestors, many of those who just had lost their lives in the battle. They were shinning like the stars, and they told us this battle has to end. Nothing good would come of it just us killing each other and for what?. Nothing would be left only our ashes. They were the ones who told us that if we wanted harmony in the forest we had to split up into five groups, and that is how all the clans was made. Since that day starclan has been watching over us and to avoid such a tragedy to ever happen again starclan is here to guide us and lead us on the right path. " He paused letting this sink in for his sibling after all there was alot to take in and think about. Clues he left unsaid.

After a moment of break he would continue. " I alongside with Damaskrose decided to leave the swamps behind to follow Soot to the moors to begin our new life here. I was...a lost soul back then who didn't even know where i belonged. I was difficult to deal with." some would say he still was but he would just ignore such statements. " Damaskrose was the only one who wouldn't let me push them away. He was always there for me...and he become a prectious friend to me. Together we become apprentices and he become Rosepaw. " Another pause as he was thinking back on their times together, his most cherished memories. " He was...very kind and considerate. He loved to make this stupid flower crowns...and he thought the stars were the most beautiful sight on this earth. He would have become a great warrior...one of the best in this clan..." It become more difficult for him to speak any further on this, his chest was hurting. Vulturemask let his gaze drift away as he looked of into the distant with an sorrowful expression. " A hawk took his life. They took him from me." [he said with a dreadful tone, his eyes darkening. He shouldn't have died. Vulturemask should have been there protecting them. He was the one who should have died back then now them.

Realising he was getting off track, that he let himself get into a dark place Vulturemask took back control over his emotions and shifted his attention back down on his kin. " I was angry for a long time for losing him blaming starclan even...but that was before. Rosepaw showed me the light. I know now that starclan is the answer to everything. When we die we are going to come to a wonderful place Sunflowerpaw!, there we get to meet all our loved ones again. In starclan we will meet the true paradise!." he ended his speech with glee, his eyes wide-open as the same thrill he had felt back then resurfaced. " All you need to do is listen and let them guide you. Life down here is just a test to prove to them that we are worthy to join our ancestors up there. " That was why he had gone through everything he had, why he had been suffering so much because it was all a test to prove himself worthy!, and once his time come starclan would be there to embrace him and take him to paraside there he would finally get to be happy, to be rewarded for all of the pain and suffering he had endured down here!. Yes!, that would be his salvation!.



​

 

[SUNSTAR]

He had not meant to intrude upon this memory. It had become a feature of his interactions with their medicine cat– his wary avoidance of the dark tom, matched by his thoughtless meandering into this part of their world. It is one that Sunstride did not share a part in, though he is as reverent as any other. To know all of their herbs, to hold a life between his paws without ever needing to draw his claws upon another. That is power. Yet it is his connection to StarClan that makes Vulturemask the figment that he is. Never could another match to the wisdom of a leader, but he draws closer than most. As his voice waxes, gloom abandoned for the fervent warmth of history, the rise of his heart draws forth something similar from the lead warrior. Against all that he knew of Vulturemask, he felt....understanding.

The connection of clanmates, even from this distance.

From behind them, Sunstride murmurs: "It is well that you have one so important to meet you, the day that your future finally comes." There is nothing but sincerity in his tone. Though a frown weighs upon his mouth as surely as his shoulders, posture slightly slumped behind the pair, it is a distant and unapproachable worry. One that he does not like to share. It is in repayment alone that he does so regardless. "My life is not as yours. Where I came from, so far from these stars, we told stories of our own deaths and what may come after. I wonder who shall meet me, when my time comes. I cannot say if StarClan would welcome me as the warrior I am or shun me as the warrior I once was."

﹥ˏˋ〘  OOC NOTES INFORMATION 〙ˊˎ﹤

• ooc: —
• SUNSTRIDE. named for his coloration and his bold chasing of fate.
  —— cis male, he - him. thirty-eight moons old. lead warrior of windclan + former rogue.
  —— gay, but somewhat closeted. will not be open about his interests.  single, will be so.
  —— seems comparatively stranger than who he was some moons ago, serious and cool.
  
  sunstride is broad and bold– a creature standing above most of windclan, though not a beast beyond its borders, with fur that flames red at its base and deepens to a burnt amber with every whorl and stripe. his eyes, in comparison, are a pale summer's blue, still as bold as the rest of him.
• "speech"

​

 

[WEASELCLAW]

Like Sunstride, Weaselclaw had not been involved in the battle between the marsh cats and the pine cats, before Clans, before StarClan themselves. He'd been restless, wandering the outskirts of the Horseplace, hoping against all odds to see the tiny pregnant spitfire who'd captured his interest. His mother is alive, a mouser who rests upon straw and remains fat with mice; his littermate, too, shares the same dull and listless fate.

His faith, inexplicably, has always been tied to his relationship with Sootstar. It was she who had built WindClan upon these empty, rolling moorland hills, she who spoke of nine lives and the dead giving their blessing. He had held Sootstar, bleeding and cold, in the chicken coop. He had watched her return the next day, caked with blood and dirt. He knows what power the star cats hold in their paws, and he reveres them for bringing Sootstar back to him, for ensuring he will never truly be without her.

Weaselclaw's eyes are soft at Vulturemask's mention of Rosepaw. It's a loss he still feels, just as he feels Branchfall's and Sunsetbreeze's and Juniperfrost's. It's a comfort to him to know any WindClan cats he must see fall will await him when he himself fights his final battle.

The tabby's eyes focus on Sunflowerpaw, so young, still impressionable. Someday they would see the power of StarClan for themselves, and they would know why Vulturemask and Sootstar speak of them with such reverence.

He answers Sunstride quietly. "StarClan has seen you fight for WindClan. Whatever came before, you are a WindClan warrior now, and your deeds in the name of this Clan are good ones." He says this with absolute rigid conviction.​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

​

 

[VULTUREMASK]

He couldn't say he was all to happy over that someone had eavesdropped on his conversation he just had shared with their curious sibling. That was personal. Rosepaw was not a name he mentioned openly to with just anyone. Still he would remain composed revealing nothing about how displeased he was with Sunstride's intrusion. Vulturemask would instead face the lead warrior with indifference. The sincerity that carried itself in Sunstrides voice though did not come unoticed. He was not willing to share any of his thoughts to reply to such comforting words to his own conscience. Whatever he might have thought out to say it would not have been appropriated with Sunflowerpaw being present among them.

This for sure was a first time for someone to open up to him about their own thoughts of starclan, or in this case their worry over if they even belonged among the stars. Vulturemask had his own opinions about whether his clanmates belonged with the stars or not but even him knew that was not his place to decide. He was not a judge of starclan. Weaselclaw joins them suddenly to take a side beside Sunstride to whisper words he barely could hear.

" And what sort of afterlife did your group believe in?" he asked after taking his time to be silent, a rare curiosity born out of his own new find devotion to the stars which also made him wonder what more beliefs existed out there. If there was a paradise for the clans, surely there most be more paradises out there for other none clan cats too. " You will never know for certain until you're at your deathbed. None of us should take it for granted that we are worthy of starclans embrace. Every single day we should strive to become a better version of ourselves to show ourselves worthy of their light. Fighting for your clan and leader is just one of many ways to do it."



​

 

[SUNSTAR]

Weaselclaw is a comfort in the unfamiliar. He knows the lead warrior far better than the medicine cat, who cannot wholly hide his displeasure at being known. Though there is no tongue lashing to follow, the lack of affirmation does not escape him. Still, he cannot afford to apologize or repent. Better to share his moment with the tabby tom than retreat. He sinks to the assurance, his shoulders softening. Whether it is in appreciation, he cannot say. To remain among these stars was to leave all those he had loved before. To live a life away from them, and to follow this path to eternity. Never would he forge a new bond with his father, or see the kittens that he had grown up with. But to join them is to leave WindClan, and the promises he has made. Sunstride does not do such things easily.

"It is not so different than your own," he concedes, and with the memory comes a growing smile. "When death has taken a soul, they are ferried to a camp far greater than any we had known in life. The dens are warm, and prey is plentiful. One will always have stories to tell and to hear, and the company of good souls to share it with." His smile fades slightly with the realization, this distance from comfort. Instead, Sunstride's brow lowers to somber consideration. He looks to Sunflowerpaw, his dearest friend's apprentice, and wonders if they might have been raised to similar ideals in another world. "One may only earn their place there through glory and a good death. Though this StarClan may have a new way to allow us in, I will live and die by what I had promised them."

﹥ˏˋ〘  OOC NOTES INFORMATION 〙ˊˎ﹤

• ooc: —
• SUNSTRIDE. named for his coloration and his bold chasing of fate.
  —— cis male, he - him. thirty-eight moons old. lead warrior of windclan + former rogue.
  —— gay, but somewhat closeted. will not be open about his interests.  single, will be so.
  —— seems comparatively stranger than who he was some moons ago, serious and cool.
  
  sunstride is broad and bold– a creature standing above most of windclan, though not a beast beyond its borders, with fur that flames red at its base and deepens to a burnt amber with every whorl and stripe. his eyes, in comparison, are a pale summer's blue, still as bold as the rest of him.
• "speech"

​

 

[SEDGEPOUNCE]

It's a little drab, all the conversations about death and afterlife. Sedgepaw's not so sure that he's totally religious. Sure, StarClan watches over them all, but are they really all so bored all the time as to tug the strings of everyone else's fate?

Did they really have the power to?

He knows better than to put his somewhat sacrilegious thoughts into words, however, especially in the presence of Vulturemask. Sunflowerpaw's idle curiosity has brought about the whole monologuing session and Sedgepaw listens quietly for a while, somewhat of a contemplative mirror parallel to them, before something in particular catches his interest. "What kinda death is good?" he wonders. It's an earnest thought, even though he raises a paw to scratch at his ear while he asks it. "I mean...either you get sick, or get old, or fall or somethin'. Or you die in battle and it means that someone was stronger than you."

It's a bit more of a bleak topic than Sedgepaw usually indulges, but it's like Sunstride's handed him a puzzle that he can't quite figure out. He looks to the senior warrior curiously, sparing Sunflowerpaw another glance to gauge their distaste at the derailing of the conversation. "None of those really sound good to me," he says, whiskers twitching.​