camp SILVER BELLS & . DECEMBER MEETING

[CICADASTAR]

GUTTA CAVAT LAPIDEM : the man was up early, as he so often was. the days were somehow getting colder, seeping into the thick coils of his pelt and freezing the delicate skin underneath. he thinks of attempting to slip back into the medicine den and curl up with a certain lead warrior, but the cacophony of wet sniffling and hacking seemed to spread quicker with the dropping temperatures, and he knew beesong would need the room to tend to those falling ill. early riser, if he’d gone to bed at all, he lifts his chin to fill his brittle lungs with crisp, freezing air — another day. repetition. he would feel fragile, should he be allowed that privilege anymore. but the king lifts anyway, stretches his long limbs above a bed of rumpled moss before giving his curled coat a prompt shake to dislodge anything that had wrapped itself in his bicolored coils. the river is crusted with ice, a sight he’s grown used to seeing upon exiting the gaping maw of his ancient willow — but as he steps forth into the early morning light, the waters seem . . higher. just slightly, lapping lazily at the pebbled shore. the man blinks slowly, clearing the remnants of sleep from clear blue eyes.

it was licking at the gnarled roots of his willow, the heavy morning mist eclipsing the waters behind in a white - blue haze. the waves were wild. untamed, has taken the lives of his clanmates already in payment for what it provides them. protection, prey, a home — he takes a moment to peer out into that vortex of cloud and ice, ever familiar swirl of respect - fear churning beneath his chest. he does not stop by beesong’s den this morning. he does not pick at the measly freshkill pile. instead, cicadastar turns, heading for his towering throne. jutting stone of ice - cold, it will bite at his paws when he ascends it, but heads already begin to turn. eyes follow, watch as he bunches slim muscles, bounds heavenward to his perch above them all. symbolic.

“ all those old enough to swim gather around the river rock for a clan meeting. “ his call is hollow amidst the roaring winds, the brittle sway of willows overhead where they cross and scrape, “ as soon as we conclude, i will be preparing a patrol upriver. as i’m sure you’ve all seen behind me — “ his back is to it, but it mocks him still, ice cold and ever creeping onto the soil, “ the water seems to be rising, and we will follow it upstream to investigate. if you would like to attend, make it known. “

“ continuing on, this month we welcome two cats to warriorhood — lagoonpaw. tide. you’ve both proven yourself to be true riverclanners, strong and worthy. it is my honor to bestow upon you your names. “ his head tips upward, “ i, cicadastar, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. they have trained hard to understand the ways of riverclan, and i commend them to you as a warrior in their turn. lagoonpaw, do you promise to protect and defend this clan, even at the cost of your life? ” i do. “ then i hereby dub you lagoonpaddle, for your strength and confidence in our waters. “ and now — “ tide, do you promise to protect and defend riverclan, even at the cost of your own life? “ yes, surely. he can barely hear above the towering stone, but he gives a beat before continuing, “ then by the powers invested, you are now tidefrost, for your striking white patch. may the stars lead you both to greatness, “ he meant it. they needed strong warriors now more than ever.

now . . “ we have several apprentices in need of mentors this month. finchpaw, you are to be trained by stonebreath ( npc ). may he teach you everything there is to know. “ the apprentice was large, and with hope, a similarly - built warrior would train him well. an ear flicks, “ shellpaw, you are to be trained by apricotflower. may she pass all she knows onto you. “ the kind - hearted molly would do well, he knew. she’d not a mean bone in her body, “ peachpaw, as your mentor has retired, you are reassigned to otterpop. i encourage you both to work hard, exceed bluefish’s expectations — the old man will be watching, im sure. “ it’s said with a chuckle, but he can see the silver - pointed tufts of the ornery tom’s ears poking from the medicine den. he would be proud of her no matter the outcome, but a little incentive couldn’t hurt, “ cricketpaw, you will be training beneath fishface. “ boisterous child, he hoped fish had the patience for it, “ ravenpaw, for now you will train beneath pebblesong ( npc ). may she pass all she knows to you. “ pebblesong was a stern, but fair molly, as far as he knew. the calico would not go easy on him, as kittypet born as he was. neither would stonebreath to finchpaw, but it was a small price to pay — the wild waits for no one, and that lingering softness would only cost them, “ and frostpaw, you are assigned to bubbleskip ( drypaw npc ). may he train you well. “

“ as you all know, we’ve had a number of joiners. they will all undergo a sort of training with a trusted warrior of riverclan. @LIGHTNINGSTONE, “ he finds the blue smoke amongst the crowd, flicks an ear despite the ire he knows he will find amidst the crowd. he’d made his decision — as questionable a decision as it was, arguments would be met with words as vitriolic as his gaze, icy amidst the wintery morning, “ until she’s earned the title of a true riverclan warrior, @hyacinthbreath is under your supervision. i expect you to report back to me as you have before. “ watch her, make sure she pulls her weight — he’d little doubt she would, smokethroat had vouched for her just as she’d said and and while he can still imagine he smells that moorland scent, he gives her a chance. extends a paw, for better or for worse, “ @spiritpaw will train alongside leechpaw, under me, until i deem her ready. “ he would then pass her onto a fellow warrior, but not until after he ensured her loyalty himself. children were adaptable — easily malleable, and he would make solid riverclanners of them yet, “ wolverinefang will train under rockbelly, and fogpaw will begin his training when he is ready to leave beesong’s den. “

the beginnings of a migraine. he sniffs, feels the rattling in his throat for a moment. it had to be from how high he was settled, the air up here was harsh. too thin, too cold. he shakes his head, turns his gaze to find someone amidst the crowd — a familiar face, though he’d not known it until only recently, “ @RATTLING WASP. , i will show you the ropes myself. to signify your place amongst us, i grant you the name wasprattle — for your protectiveness. may it serve you well here. “ and then finally . . icy eyes find her amidst the crowd, tipping his chin upward, “ @BONEJAW. you’ve asked for your name to be changed, to become a true riverclanner — and so by the powers of starclan, i grant you the name boneripple, for the waves of change you have made. once you are ready to leave the nursery, you will train just as the others. “

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shoutouts to @CLAYFUR @Redpath @Snakeblink and @apricotflower you guys are doing great !! thank you all for helping make riverclan a fun place to be.

− ♱ information visual reference out of character translations ♱ −

• ˖ ⁺ ｡ ˚ ⠀ CICADASTAR⠀⠀−−−−−−−⠀⠀king of the rivers.
  m. he / him. black smoke & tortoiseshell chimera with intense salt - blue eyes. a handsome, looming tom bearing patchwork black - silver curls that fall over his slim figure in loose, shining rivulets, broken with white and glossy from his fish diet. descending from a heritage of overtyped oriental shorthairs, cicadastar is unusually tall amongst his peers, and holds himself with a tragic grace, poised and prim and ever - aware of how he is being perceived.
  
  ᨒ gay, courting smokethroat. smells like wet stone & moss.
  ᨒ speaks with a german accent. 40 moons, ages on the eighth.
  
  penned by antlers​
  
  
• 
• none.

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[koispots]

Theres a meeting called and her eyes instinctively search out her mentor, the one she had been spending most her time with, knowing damn well what was going to be in the meeting. The anger strikes a match within and ignites, a small flame as she moves to sit besides him like a statue, staring straight up to Cicada. Emotionless, robot, she stares as he talks about the river rising and she hesitates, stews in her fury. It's not a good sign, no, not at all... Warriors are next. Tidefrost and Lagoonpaddle, the former a sibling of one of their lead warriors. Apprentices were named-

She resists the urge to scream but isn't quick enough to stop the pull of her lips, a snarl growing across her face, teeth bared in an ugly frown. Jealousy, jealousy, it burns like nothing else, her own mentor being torn away. She thought it hurt when Buck was assigned Stormpaw and not her but this is ten times worse. "Refuse it." it comes out of her mouth before she can stop it, but she is a child, she is childish and she hurts and its brewing and her veins feel like fire. She feels like shes having a heart attack, first her mother, next she lost Buck to the passage of mentorship, after that Crappiepaw to the medicine den, now Lightningstone. How much more does she have to give? To a molly not even from here, which burns further.

Her world is crumbling in to ashes between her paws and she is powerless to stop it. Koi wants to scream and tear everything apart, scream it wasn't fair but instead she rises to her paws, nubbed tail wagging in an attempt to distract herself. She needs to get out, she needs to leave, its beginning to grow loud and now its too loud and its roaring in her ears and shes back to being a kitten watching her family fall apart. She exits to the edge of the gathered cats, vitriol fueling each step, they didn't deserve their place in Riverclan. Koi is bitter and she just stands there incase Cicada has more terrible, no good news to give out. She wishes this was just a terrible nightmare.

// ic opinions </3
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"speech"​

 

[BUCKGAIT.]

MY NAME IS BRUTUS AND MY NAME MEANS HEAVY ✧​

she sits amongst koi and lightning, as usual. she never cares much for what cicada had to say, but this time, he had done something horrid. and it's clear what buck thinks, with the way her hackles raise and face scrunches. she has disagreed with cicada on even letting the moor runner in, further wasting what little they already had. he was so blind to this false sense of duty that he had forsaken his own rules, and the trust of some of his warriors. buck prided herself on never trusting him in the first place. having experienced what his care means. but this was too far. logically, it made sense. lightningstone was one of the best warriors, the most noble and loyal. the only warrior anyone could ask for. he watched over her when he proved to be volatile and dangerous. he should watch over anyone else that follows her pawsteps. but emotionally, she feared it might cause a further rift between them. it means his eyes won't be upon her, and that alone drives her claws into the chilling snow. lightning won't refuse it, it's an order. and her eyes cast to her poor koi, and she feels like tearing that damned tom off that rock. make him look at her.

she'll let him know privately that she will join him on the patrol, said through gritted teeth. for now, she casts her judgment. eyes boring into hyacinth and wishing the molly nothing but misfortune with lightning watching her. she glares upon her once-ward, and trails after the suffering apprentice. and who will mentor her while his paws are full with a windclanner? is she to be neglected?

"koi..." is all that is uttered from buck, keeping the poor girl company and trying to make it more tolerable. soon the meeting will finish, and they can discuss it further together.
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[BONERIPPLE]

Her ears twitched as she lifts her head up. A new saying and a new home. Her tired gaze shifts as she pushes herself up to stand. The heavy weight of her pregnancy is strong and she can feel it on her paws, she has never been this heavy before and she is worried about what is to come. Still she makes her way over to the meeting, eyes like smoldering embers locking on the leader. Sitting down near the back of the crowd the molly curls her tail around herself before she takes in a short breath. There is a lot to this meetint. New warriors, new apprentices, and surprise pulls at her. Hyacinthbreath is here? She supposes she has been so busy that she hasn't even noticed. What happened? She can only imagine that Sootstar happened and a feeling of ill spreads through her. Still she hopes that the other finds peace here as she herself has.

Her tail tip flicks and she tilts her head as she hears that her mate and child will be receiving training. Good, good, they will both need it. She hopes they prosper because of it. Make a name for themselves here and do what they need to to survive. She just wants them to have happy lives and same for these kits that are growing inside if her. With a tilt of her head she listens to the rest and then Cica's eyes lock on her. The moment she knew to come. A request she asked of him and one she hopes will change her for the better. She perks her ears as he speaks of her and then he changes her. A new name. No longer one bound and given to her by Starclan. But one willing to change, and to make the ripples that are necessary. Boneripple. Her eyes glimmer with the threat of tears and she dips her head. "Thank you."​

 

[ICESPARKLE]

A meeting — a call, and Icesparkle found her way to the clearing, sitting down amongst her clanmates, eyes searching for a moment before lighten up when she spotted Mudpelt and their children. Cicadastar was of many words and she listened quietly to them all, although what worried her the most was the rising river. That did not sound... good. No, not at all.

// feel free to interact with her :)
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[iciclefang]

( *+:｡.｡ ) Iciclepaw sits beside Icesparkle, looking like her darker shadow. She trains critical light blue eyes on their leader, who begins his announcements with a hollow-sounding call. The leader is as hungry as the rest of them -- hungrier, perhaps, the way the black and white pelt hangs off of his bony frame, the way his almost colorless eyes are haunted by his pain -- but he holds his meeting as though nothing has changed.

Perhaps nothing has. Iciclepaw listens, ears pricking with interest, as he tells the Clan about the river rising. She stands up, raising her chin. "I'd like to go on this patrol, Cicadastar." Her voice is controlled; she does not plead, nor does her expression betray youthful exuberance. She is seven moons old, has been training intensely for four of those moons, and has missed out on enough. "I will obey any rules set forth. I realize Smokethroat will not be there, but I can go with another warrior, surely."

She flashes her eyes at him, hoping he allows her to go, before she settles back at her mother's side. Iciclepaw moves her interest -- though diminished -- to the ceremonies at paw. Hyacinthbreath and Spiritpaw being assigned body guards, as Buckgait had once been. Bonejaw, too. The tortoiseshell looks on with stony judgment. She does not cheer for the outsiders who have joined their Clan, even for Wasprattle and Boneripple, who receive new names, but she does cheer for Lagoonpaddle and Tidefrost. In her eyes, they deserve it.​

( I HAVE THE ANSWER, SPREADING THE CANCER ; YOU ARE THE FAITH INSIDE ME )

 

[CLAYFUR]

Trailing behind his sister, the long-legged tom is, for once, excited to hear the leader’s call. This time around it doesn’t feel as biting—those old enough to swim. Nobody’s swimming at this time of year, not if they can avoid it. And the water’s been rising recently, so the river is more dangerous than ever.

Cicadastar begins the meeting by mentioning the river—he’s concerned enough that he’s heading a patrol to check it out. Hazel eyes flick to Icesparkle and Iciclepaw; his family. The last concerned patrol he’d followed the night-patched tom on had ended in blood and death, and he shouldn’t put himself in danger like that. But his niece has declared her intention to go, and if anything goes wrong he needs to be there to help, and to defend her. So he tilts his head to the leader and voices his own intention. "I’ll come with you." It isn’t loud, but it’s firm. Unless Cicadastar specifically forbids it, Clayfur is going to join that patrol.

Next the leader drones through several announcements, naming new warriors and assigning new mentors. Still he hasn’t given Clay an apprentice, but it isn’t the tabby’s greatest concern. He calls out the names of the new warriors—Lagoonpuddle and Tidefrost—in congratulations, cheery and proud. New warriors, exactly what the clan needs. More warriors means more hunting patrols, more capable adults to feed the clan through the harsh winter months.

The outside additions to RiverClan’s rankings still come across as questionable to Clayfur, but understandable in a way. His brother is an easily justifiable exception to the no-outsiders policy, and heavily pregnant Bonejaw—Boneripple—makes clear enough sense. But… Hyacinthbreath, not only an outsider, but one from behind enemy lines. It’s as clear a showing of affected superiority as any. Clay can’t shove aside his displeasure—a look he’s sure is reflected on the face of their cinnamon-coated deputy as well, but looking around she seems to be focused on other things—but surely the star-blessed tom knows what he’s doing. Cicadastar must have an idea of what’s best for the clan, even if his choices seem wildly hypocritical.

He, like Iciclepaw, offers no cheering for the cats from outside of the clan. He likes Boneripple well enough, and if he manages to catch the monochrome she-cat’s eye, he’ll offer a smile and a nod, but he can’t bring himself to say anything in her support.
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[ WHAT'S MY AGE AGAIN? ]​

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[LAGOONPADDLE]

Convinced she'll forever be sleeping in the apprentice den, Lagoonpaw isn't sure why she even showed up to this meeting. She's certain it will just be another session of hearing apprentices younger than her graduate to warriorhood, gaining their full names and their right to move their nest from the ever-cramped confines of the paws' den.

But, the tortoiseshell settles into the crowd anyway, preparing herself for further disappointment.

It's not ceremonies Cicadastar starts the meeting off with, though. It's word of the river rising, a patrol to be formed. She blinks, glances towards the river. "I'll go," she offers. Maybe it'll convince Cicadastar that she should be a warrior after all, if she goes on the patrol, if she helps figure out just what is going on.

He moves on to the ceremonies, and Lagoonpaw braces herself for others' names to ring through her ears, instead of hers. However, it's her name she hears. It's hers. The tortoiseshell blinks once more in surprise, stepping forward as her disappointment is replaced with nerves.

She's becoming a warrior today.

"I-I do," she answers Cicadastar's call. And then, and then she is named. No longer is she Lagoonpaw, no longer does she bear her forever apprentice name. She is now Lagoonpaddle - a true reflection of her skill in the water, of her home by the river. The new warrior loves it.
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[TIDEFROST]

Tide sits among the crowd, listening carefully to Cicadastar's words. Talk of a patrol is first, and, if it weren't so cold, perhaps he'd go too to see the water rise. He contemplates an offer, but finds himself taking too long, as the leader above moves on to the next topic of discussion: ceremonies. Shifting names he usually half listens to - because, why must they be so ceremonious about it? Such a long-winded way to change names!

After Lagoonpaw becomes Lagoonpaddle, it's time for Tide to earn his name as well.

To be honest, the black smoke wasn't expecting to get his own silly name - he'd been Tide all his life, and he'd been Tide his whole time in RiverClan, too, so why change it now? But, he steps forward anyway, awaiting his new name.

"I do," he follows suit, dark tail twitching behind him. Cicadastar gifts him the name of Tidefrost, and, oh! How funny is it, that he's named something cold in the midst of leaf-bare? Something cold, something Tidefrost's fur is too short to protect him from? He nods in acknowledgment, an amused smile on his face as he steps back to let the ceremonies move on - as apprentices are named and joiners are given mentors.
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[hyacinthbreath]

♚ Once graced with the eyes of her clanmates as a Lead Warrior of WindClan, it was like the world had been her calling; beckoning her to lead those below her. Things she couldn't explain drew her towards her clanmates, made her realize that power wouldn't have made her happy. She'd been through it all, the betrayal, the loneliness, the heartbreak, the loss. Scorned by Sootstar, by the very tom she called brother. Hyacinthbreath clenches her jaw as her name is called, and she's assigned a bodyguard- or a babysitter, in her eyes. Spiritpaw is called next, and Hyacinthbreath leans down to touch her nose to her adopted daughter's forehead. "You'll do great. I'll be watching you, ja?" She mumbles softly, nuzzling the molly.

Hyacinthbreath doesn't feel the burning stares of her new clanmates- but she does hear the talking; Refuse it. A child calls, and Hyacinthbreath feels her eyes flutter in understanding. She's not wanted here, and she knows that- but she wouldn't just die in the wild, not when she had Spiritpaw to take care of.

"On my belief in the Stars, you will have a faithful Warrior in me, Cicadastar. And all of you here, I promise not to disappoint you. You gave me a home when I had lost my original one. And for that, I am forever indebted to all of you." She speaks loud enough for everyone to hear, before her head dips to Lightningstone; not making eye contact with him. She missed Pollenfur in moments like these, when surrounded by strangers. Someday.​

❝ there are wounds inside me, gaping holes of disconnect.
can you drown inside your own body? can you suffocate within this mind? ❞

 

[LIGHTNINGSTONE]

Lightningstone watches the meeting from where he sits between Buckgait and Koipaw, his dearest friend and his apprentice. Half-lidded eyes narrow slightly upon listening to the news about the river. Trouble. Perhaps he would have offered to attend the patrol, but he is too caught off-guard by the next announcement. He is assigned the WindClanner. The tom straightens, chin lifting. Just as he had been tasked with watching over Buckgait, he will now have to escort some rabbit-breathed tunnel-digger. He forces his expression to remain neutral, for he will not show distaste so publicly. Yet Cicadastar knows what he is doing - of course he assigns the woman to him, a warrior who despises anyone outside of his clan. She doesn't belong here.

His apprentice tells him to reject it, and he slides his gaze towards her. A subtle blink lets her know he has no choice; besides, if anyone will keep that she-cat in line, he knows he can. She won't make a move without his say-so. The silvery feline looks towards Hyacinthbreath with slitted eyes before looking back towards Cicadastar with a silent nod. He doesn't dare to turn his head towards Buckgait and see her reaction.​

 

[spiritpaw]

Spirit doesn't exactly like this place and she certainly doesn't enjoy the fact that she has to swim. For Hya's sake she had not once voiced it or wrinkled her nose in displeasure, she would not risk her mamas place in this clan. She sits besides her as a meeting is called, a tightness like no other heavy in her chest. Shes scared, terrified, looks at the way the cats of this clan voice their displeasure in their eyes, laying them upon her mentor and Spirit has to physically stop herself from shaking by burying her claws in the dirt below.

And her name is called. Dread floods through her like a pool, she was to train under Cicadastar, the leader of Riverclan. More ice in her veins, panicked eyes turned up to Hyacinth but she held nothing but love in her gaze. I'll be watching you, ja? It won't be the same! It would never be the same! "I don't want you to just watch me." she croaks softly, rapidly blinking back tears. Hyacinth had looked over her, mentored her since she had first arrived in Windclan, a little kit fed up with her actual mother. It's not fair, it's not fair, she pushes her head in to Hyacinths side as she vows to be loyal to Riverclan.

This was all scary, too scary, she doesn't like this. She wishes they could go back, shes scared. She doesn't like the displeasure in other cats.​

"speech"​

 

[HAILFROST]

Hailfrost gazed into the sea of people, looking for her son. Not seeing Dovepaw's face in the crowd, she sat near Clayfur, Icesparkle and their family. She felt out of place sitting next to them when she could barely look into her own son's eyes. At the rising apprentices, she felt a strange stirring of pride in her chest, but there seemed to be an outcry from Koipaw. Completely out of the loop, Hailfrost narrowed her eyes, longing for what she missed stuck nursing and raising a kit.

The water rising was... concerning, but Cicidastar didn't seem to be that worried. Wanting to thrust herself back into the regular duties, her ears perked, interested in the following patrol but definitely not as earnestly as Clayfur.
]/SIZE]

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