LETTING GO | FRESH-KILL PILE

[WOLFPAW]

Being a kitten in ThunderClan. Wolfkit had never known hunger, part of that could be attributed to the fresh-kill pile. The options for food were limitless, if they wanted a bird, they could have a bird. If they wanted a rodent, they need only ask and a warrior would provide. It was easy being spoiled, but their demands had scarcely been as frequent since learning (or, rather, erroneously deducing) that prey went to StarClan. As tasty as fresh kill was, Wolfkit did not know how they would explain to the countless animals up there that they had preferred them dead instead of alive because if someone had said the same to them, they'd have been very sad. They might have also been sad that someone was using their corpse in a game, but boredom was the enemy of morality in the kitten's mind, and when everyone in the camp was too busy to play with them, they decided to make their own fun.

Despite the prosperity of greenleaf, the fresh-kill pile was larger than usual, bumpier even, as if whoever had stocked it had little concept of how to balance things. A dove slid down a pile of mice and voles like a tumbling stone upon a mountain, landing on the floor below temptingly. With any luck, it would bring a clanmate closer to the fresh-kill pile - when such a thing occurred, the whole hill of food began to shift. Wolfkit half-jumped out of the pile, lower half weighed down by whatever prey they had buried themselves in, upper half dynamic and quick as they grinned menacingly. "Boo!" They'd shout at whoever they thought they could scare. Wolfkit aimed to wrap their paws around whoever was closest and bite their leg without breaking skin. "Caught you!"


​

 

[freckleflame]

if she had been avoiding kits in moons prior, it hadn’t been personal.

it couldn’t be, not when her flesh still burns with guilt when the nursery turns her stomach too much to visit roeflame. not when frustration simmers in her belly at the sight of a sun - coated child with a stolen name, the way she struggles not to blame him for the way the last remnants of her family had slowly slipped from her claws. pigeonpaw had been angry ; too angry for his bumbling, air - headed self and sparkwing had never held enough of an attention span to keep watch. she couldn’t blame him either, of course. he’d retreated just as much as she had, if not more — bloodstained ghost, rivulets of russet striping more curse than legacy in the wake of thunderclan’s most recent tragedy.

wolves, shed thought countless times and thinks again now, when in my lifetime will i see another one of those? maybe it was just her luck. maybe it was a divine intervention, a nudge of starlit shoulder, voice like chitin and chattering mandibles that whisper watch this.. maybe it didn’t even matter. what mattered, in her mind, was the dove her eye had finally caught — a perfect, fluffy thing. stringy, dry, more feather than blood.. bird had been a rarity before. she prefers it now, prefers to avoid the pop of flesh, the rush of blood and heat from rabbit - veined mammal, the splayed ribs and tangle of insides. she still sees him in everything.

she does not see it when it happens, and it is likely her own fault moreso than the kits.. but when she finds herself stumbling over a sudden wrap of soft paws and teeth, freckleflame releases a genuine sound of surprise, a heavy mrrurp in the few seconds in which she stumbles. she stumbles, and stumbles, and collapses — always clumsy, even more so with a sudden snakelike wrap around her ankle. wolfkit, she thinks wildly, recognizing the glow of alabaster fur in the few seconds it took to concoct her obnoxious plan. just in time, she aims to position her paw before hitting the ground to where she lands atop the kit, keeping her belly slightly arched as not to truly hurt them. a theatric collapse, a wink thrown in the way of a passing warrior that glances wildly at the scene as they pass.

she squirms in a way that is not at all real, a grin fighting at the edges of a maw she struggles to ( fails ) keep straight and serious — it’s been a long time since she’d played like this. not since her siblings, not since long, long ago when things were right, when she didn’t think about it even now when she heaves a massive, playful sigh to — ” ohh my paw, my paw! “ she caws, throwing her head back with a restrained howl of obviously dramatized pain.” oh, i can never get up again, ohhh… i guess i’ll just have to lay here forever.. on this really uncomfy rock.. “

ᥫ᭡ ╱╱ 𝐈 𝐀𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐄 - ` ☀︎ ´ - 𝘼𝙉𝘿 𝙄 𝘼𝙈 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙁𝙊𝙍𝙀𝙎𝙏

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• AND I AM A WITNESS WATCHING IT​
  FRECKLEFLAME 𖦹 . LESBIAN, SINGLE. SMELLS LIKE SUN - WARMED OAK AND RICH, EARTHY MUSK. TWENTY MOONS OLD. FRIEND & SISTER TO MANY! NAMED A WARRIOR OF THUNDERCLAN ON 8 / 3 / 2023. MENTORING BRAVEPAW! PENNED BY ANTLERS -----------------------------------------
  
  she / her, eldest daughter of rabbitnose and the late sunfreckle. big, fluffy cream - ribboned tortoiseshell with seaglass eyes. she is fire - forged, smoldering ; something bright and voracious, radiant as the blazes that once raged through her homeland. shades of vibrant russet, dousing swathes of shadow and interwoven with ribbons pale cream come to drape like licks of flame over her hulking form. a heft of roundness settles comfortably upon her form in adulthood, padding muscle hardened by her life in the forest and yet still partially concealed beneath a tangled thicket of undergrowth - laden pelt. warriorhood had brought her to full height ; kittypet lineage showing itself in glimpses of rotund paws and tufted, long - furred toes set upon thick, tabby - splotched limbs. she is broad shouldered and square - jawed, wild cheek fur like the blazing edges of a red sun — a mirrors image of her late father, sunfreckle, and just as warm.
  

  A LARGE, ATHLETIC MAINE COON MOGGY. somewhat brutish in the wake of her family's staggering loss, bull - headed and hardy with something to prove, freckleflame will often find herself in border disputes as an unsurprisingly formidable opponent. a slow but hard & heavy hitter.

  
  

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[RACCOONSTRIPE]

Grief still hangs like cobwebs on Freckleflame's limber tortoiseshell body. It inhibits her movements, dims the glow of her amber eyes. Her light had diminished considerably since Sunfreckle's death, and it had only worsened in the wake of Wolfwind's. To hear her laughter again sparks a semblance of hope inside Raccoonstripe; he watches from a few foxlengths away, nibbling the wing of a magpie he'd caught as one of Campionsong's kits darts out and bites Freckleflame on her leg.

Soon, that will be me, he thinks, dismal. He tries his best to resign himself to fatherhood, but no amount of desensitizing seems to do the trick. He watches Wolfkit and tries to see what his father must see—a clear-eyed, strong-bodied little tomkit, born from Campionsong's flesh and blood, a legacy on tiny limbs. Raccoonstripe's vision blurs; he stares too long. After a few heartbeats, he calls, "You took down one of our best warriors with one bite!" His tail swishes behind him as he plucks a feather from his meal. "What a fierce fighter you're turning out to be."

Against his better judgment, a smile forms across his muzzle. Yes, he could see the appeal, he thinks, of watching tiny tabby bodies morph into fighters, into warriors worth being proud of... Raccoonstripe's gaze unfocuses, lost in thought.

『 out of character. 』 ✧･ﾟ:* 『 about. 』

• ooc: —
• 
• Raccoon . Raccoonstripe, he/him w/ masculine terms.
  — "speech”, thoughts, attack
  — 37 moons old, ages realistically on the 5th.
  — mentored by n/a ; mentoring Thistlepaw ; previously mentored Wildheart, Moonwhisper
  — thunderclan lead warrior. gray wolf x howlingstar, gen 2.
  — currently mated to Nightbird.
  — penned by Marquette.
  
  
  lh black tabby with white and dark brown eyes. charismatic, charming, calculating, ambitious, shallow, manipulative.
  
  

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[LITTLEPAW]

༻ ♥༺ The pile of dead critters that made up the entire clans food inventory was of little interest to Littlekit, the most time she spent around it was when mama sent her to bring back something for the family- though the chimera kitten had begun to suspect that the errand was simply a poor attempt to get her to socialize with her clanmates more.
It made the task less fun, but Littlekit was still happy to fulfill it, with sunshine hues carefully trying to pick out something her family would like, completely missing the bait Wolfkit had just thrown out. Luckily for her, it manages to lure another over. Boo! Her denmate hollers, springing from the food. Fresh-kill goes flying as Littlekit’s heart begins to pound in pure terror, barely able to register that it is only Wolfkit that latches onto Freckleflames for limb. An ever-shaking forepaw pushes prey out of her path, jaw slacked as Freckleflame falls to the ground, her mind is spinning, frantic.
Finally, finally it all clicks into place, a harmless prank… “the p-pile…” mournfully, the girl whispers, whiskers trembling as she staggers from the mess. Raccoonstripes presence does little to lighten Littlekits mood as she is still recovering from the scare, but she supposes that her waning panic could be kept under wraps. “How’d you… hide li-like that?” Littlekit feels properly tricked.

‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎┌── THE HASSLE, THE FIGHTING ⋅ ࿏ ⋅ THEY ALL WANT A BITE OF ME ──┐‎

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  LITTLEKIT ✩ she/her, kit of thunderclan, 4 moons.
  ⭃ Amber-eyed, dense-furred chocolate smoked she-kit with black ribboning stretching across her face, foreleg, and tail.
  ⭃ daughter of Roeflame && Burnstorm ࿏ sister to Beetlekit && Dovekit
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ⭃ penned by Noor ↛ @toyangel on discord, feel free to dm for plots.
  

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[Meadowpaw]

One day, Meadowkit would be an apprentice. She would be expected to fight and train and clean and most importantly she would be expected to hunt. To provide in the way the older cats currently provided for her now. For the time being though, she does not think about it much - where the prey on the pile comes from. For a long time, it just simply appeared. Meadowkit would go to bed and when she woke up there it was! Food for her to fill her grumbling belly. Because of the warriors efforts, she had never known hunger. Not real hunger anyways. Her stomach growling is what drives her to the fresh kill pile to seek out something to eat today, only when she got there it seemed food was gunna have to wait.

She watches as Wolfkit jumps out at a warrior and sinks teeth into flesh, as the warrior falls over complaining about her paw. But most importantly, she takes note of how Raccoonstripe praises them. "Me too!" she cries out "Me too! I'm going to be a good fighter too!" As her cousin cowers and asks how Wolfkit managed to hide themselves, Meadowkit launches herself in Racconstripes direction. To what end? She had no clue! She just wanted to get him and prove to him how strong she was!

( ❀༉ ) make me feel like I'm set on fire

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  MEADOWKIT THUNDERCLAN KITTEN ; SHE / HER
  LIGHTSTRIKE X MOONWHISPER SISTER TO SCARLETKIT & MOTTLEDKIT
  

  A large fluffy red tabby kitten with a white chest, stomach, tail, muzzle and stripe running along her back. Her eyes are a deep, forest, green and in her pelt one can usually find flowers woven

  ✦ easy in battle + no formal training
  

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[LAUGHBLOSSOM]

𓇢𓇢 Laughblossom watches the pile of prey shift and move, a bird toppling off the top and flopping to the dirt with a noise that bites at his ears. Unpleasant, he thinks, in spite of the fact that it’s food. It’s still dead creatures, and the day is hot enough to make him wrinkle his nose at the idea of leaving prey sitting out for so long. The scent that fills his nostrils must be in his own head, he considers, because his clanmates have not spoken out about it. A clanmate does seem to take note of the fallen prey, however; Freckleflame, sun-dashed and shadow-splashed, approaches with apparent interest in the bird. Her steps are halted, however, by the guardian of the fresh-kill pile—a pale figure, a banshee!

Laughblossom flinches, struck dumb with surprise. No use to the tortoiseshell who has found herself under attack. Luckily for Freckleflame, though, the prey’s protector is merely a pale kit with spindly limbs wrapped spiderlike around flame-striped legs. The realization brings Laughblossom back into functioning order, and the tom glances to Raccoonstripe as the lead warrior praises the kit’s attack. Littlekit’s confusion is set aside for the moment, the question being posed to the other kit rather than any of the adults. So with a heavy sigh and a voice filled with faux concern, Laughblossom cries out, "Oh, my! Freckleflame, are you alright? It seems you’ve been caught in an ambush!" What skill, what enthusiasm the kit has demonstrated with their takedown of the warrior. Perhaps Wolfkit is prepared to be an apprentice already—but so soon, it would be against the warrior code to have Wolfpaw roaming the camp.

It seems Wolfkit isn’t the only aspiring warrior, the tom notes as a ginger and white form darts at Raccoonstripe. Meadowkit springs for the dark-striped tom, and a chocolate paw rises to cover a giggling muzzle as Laughblossom settles back onto his haunches. "Oh, get him! Show him your prowess, small flame!" He cheers on both the kits, of course—the warriors can defend themselves quite easily against the attacks of mere kits. Fostering this potential is only to be expected!

❀༄ willow dancing on air

• ooc: —
• 
  LAUGHBLOSSOM ❯❯ he/him, warrior of thunderclan
  𓇢 silky-furred chocolate tabby with white spotting and hazel eyes. joyous and loud, but deeply protective of his clan.
  𓇢 brother to lovelight, joywing, wrathpaw
  𓇢 peaceful and healing powerplay permitted
  𓇢 penned by foxlore

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[nightbird]

⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆ nightbird is out catching sun when commotion erupts around the freshkill pile. it appears bountiful today, fuller than they've seen it in the recent moons. a welcome sight, she didn't feel as guilty taking from it without adding. her ears twitch as hopekit darts out to attack freckleflame, as meadowkit hurls herself towards raccoonstripe. a small grin lifts her features, it fails to stick around.

by the time she could add to the pile once more, they would be well into leafbare. as her kits neared apprenticeship and she had nothing left to give to them, she would sit wasting away in that nursery whilst her clan went hungry. it was a tough reality to swallow.

nightbird rises slowly, moving to stand near laughblossom, his jovial encouragement to the kits seems to bellow around camp. she couldn't match it if she tried, so she settles a humored gaze upon her mate instead.

‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ┌── BLAME IT ON THE BLACK STAR ⋅⋆⋅ BLAME IT ON THE FALLING SKY ──┐‎

• ooc ↛
  

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• 
  NIGHTBIRD ✩ she/her, lead warrior of thunderclan, 33 ☾'s
  ⭃ a small black smoke molly with a white paw and pale silver eyes. currently a queen residing in the nursery.
  ⭃ mate to raccoonstripe / / mentor to none
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking ↛ see battle info here
  ⭃ penned by vayle ↛ @vayl3 on discord, feel free to dm for plots.
  

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[ORANGEPAW.]

WE WERE PLAYING IN THE SAND​

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//retro to injury by a few hours !!

it seems like everyone was having such fun! to be quite honest, the concept of a fresh kill pile was nice. when it was just him and his mama, they never had enough prey to have a pile of it! even if it varied from in size, just a few pieces was more tha what he was used to seeing. he settled with a wide smile, watching as wolfkit tackled freckleflame. he isn't so airheaded that he doesn't realize that she's playing it up for his sense but who knows, maybe that would be a good thing. maybe wolfkit would become a good hunter from it. he thinks wolfkit would be just fine either way!

"woo-hoo! go wolfkit! I'm so proud of you! hehe!"

wolfkit would br a great warrior one day!! that much he knows! he wonders himself if he will be a great one. he wants to be a warrior who brings the prey on the pile. he wants others to know it and be proud of him. when his mama gets here, he knows she will be one of the best, too! he can't wait!

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[TOADHOP]

✧ . It’s an odd sort of feeling, watching the kits play around the fresh-kill pile, one full and bountiful — a juxtaposition to the one his own kithood had faced. Though he doesn’t remember much of his earliest days, he knows the cold of the lonerlands will never be washed from his pelt. The looming hunger only urged his mother to make a decision, to beckon an older sister forth to guide him here, to guide him home.

One still hungry, still trying to feed itself, he’s certain now, though a young, scared Toadkit might not have understood it back then. Perhaps he’s lucky that ThunderClan took him, that they spared what little food the cold seasons brought to feed a few extra mouths. He’s lucky to have been given a chance, to be able to call himself a ThunderClan warrior, despite his upbringing, despite his lineage.

He watches quietly now, as the kits play around a full pile, as his niece jumps back in fright over Wolfkit’s prank, and kin of kin join in on the play-fight it brings forth. And he can’t help to smile, to be glad they’ve been given a better beginning than him. They’ll make a fine set of warriors, the lot of them.​

✦ ABOUT

• 
  TOADHOP ✦ AMAB. He / Him. Warrior of ThunderClan.
  ✧ . A brown tabby and white tom with blue eyes.
  ✧ . Cinderfrost x Grime
  ✧ . Mentored by Stonepool
  ✧ . Peaceful and healing powerplay permitted!
  ✧ . Penned by Abri ‣ @_abri_ on discord, feel free to dm for plots!
  ✧ . " Speech " ; Attack
  

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