pafp who're you calling useless? / daylight warrior opinions

[TIGGERBOUNCE]

Late afternoon. The sun had climbed as high as it would go and gnats had begun to appear in droves, attracted to the returning warriors' faces - all coated in drool and blood from the hunting excursion they had departed on hours earlier. Tiggerbounce, in all his jolly glory, had secured himself a fat vole and a mouse - a rare sight, Tiggerbounce was not much of a hunter these days. Still, he held them by the tail, his head held high as he marched over to the fresh-kill pile.

It had been a good day, until the gnats of course, but it seemed that all three of his daylight warrior companions had found a little morsel to contribute as well. Perhaps they were slimmer pickings than what the typical warriors brought in on a regular basis, but in Tiggerbounce's humble opinion, something was better than nothing.

A great yawn parts his jaws, his flat muzzle nearly disappearing into the folds of his face as they exhaustion begins to set in. "Alright everyone, I think I'm done for the day. 'Bout time for that afternoon nap and a good lick of wet food, if I do say so myself. Anybody else going home?" His tail curls over his back as he trills out his offer. It was a little earlier than his normal walk back was, however, it was dreadfully hot and the summer heat was not doing wonders for his fat-cat form. He already wanted to pant like a dog from the brief chase he had with the slippery vole from earlier, best not to strain himself too much.

@SILVERSMOKE silver and tigger are gonna have some words about him being lazy, but feel free to post after silver does! ​

 

[SILVERSMOKE]

Silversmoke clung to the shadows that afternoon, the greenleaf heat wrapping around him like a python. Had more clanmates not began to show symptoms of sickness, then he may have taken the time to rest his body and prepare for hunting when the sun wasn't his enemy, alas, the Lead Warrior found himself stuck picking up the slack of others. Thinly veiled irritation remained in his pupils as he scanned the camp, memories of all too recent conversations and events still plaguing him. Moving towards the camp's entrance, he averted his attention as four Daylight Warriors came trotting in, each carrying less than what the maine coon had found that morning. Little wrens and mice would feed a warrior, he was certain his pheasant would feed a dozen of them. Beating a Daylight Warrior at something wasn't exactly difficult but at that moment, the spotted tabby would take any victory he could get. Quietly scoffing, he pointed his nose towards the sky, ready once more to prove how unnecessary half of his home was... when Tigger mentioned something to his group that caused the large cat to pause.

Claws sunk into the earth as Silversmoke whipped around to face the flat-faced feline. "I am home." He cast the Daylight Warrior a pointed stare, the lion's mane of silver fur around his neck ruffled by the other's insinuations. SkyClan was not just some fun adventure for the kittypets, it was something worth protecting, something which gave cats a sense of belonging that they may not have felt anywhere else. Times of the Daylight Warriors and ex-kittypets alike disrespecting such a thing rushed to the front of his head and suddenly, Tiggerbounce's own comments seemed twice as egregious. He disregarded any evidence to the contrary as it was made very clear in his mind that the cat before him would never pass a competency assessment, not if he was dismissing himself in such an entitled way. "You've barely even done a full day's worth of work and you're already off to go spoil yourself by going to your home. Too good to mingle with us forest cats? Or are you just being lazy? Wouldn't be the first time, would it?" A brow was cocked as his teeth came out, he didn't think he needed to remind Tigger of the time where he held up a patrol and then requested to be back before lunchtime for 'a bath'.

Silversmoke stepped out of the way of the camp's entrance, limbs as stiff as tree trunks as he shook his head in disgust. Bitterly, he muttered under his breath, "A clan with sick cats and can't even make the effort to stay until nightfall to help out."


​

 

[FIGFEATHER]

FIGFEATHER ♀​ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥​

Daylight warriors had always been apart of SkyClan, Figfeather recalls only questioning their place in the clan once before. The thought alone had made her feel immense guilt, for her once mentor had been a daylight warrior herself. Since they rescued her kin from the twolegs, however, she’s not since dared question their place among SkyClan again. Silversmoke’s distaste for them had always been declared loud and proud, the Tom-cat had a strong distaste for outsiders in general. Once, Figfeather would have understood Silversmoke’s dislike, but now the heroic gestures of other daylight warriors blinded her. Even when it came to lazy daylight warriors such as the flat-faced Tiggerbounce. Figfeather for a split second wants to step forward and tell the lead warrior to leave him alone, but she is quick to correct herself. The ashen Tom was a lead warrior, it was not in her station to tell him what to do. Instead, she averts her gaze and acts a bystander.

 

[APPLEFROST]

Apple Stem's strides match Tiggerbounce's as she padded in with their findings. Just as her ginger counterpart, she was not well versed in hunting. More frequently did the wide-eyed
she-cat find her skills in fighting other cats than prey, but today was a success nonetheless. Including the cheery mood of her Clanmates, she enjoyed their company. Tiggerbounce was formerly of the marsh colony, and though her family all resided in the Pines in those times, his loyalty to SkyClan was admirable.

The flat-faced tom announced his departure, and Apple Stem would open her jaws to answer only to snap them shut when Silversmoke came forward. Her ears pinned back and like Figfeather, she wanted to speak. More directly, though, he was insulting more than just Tiggerbounce with his words. Her tail lashed just as quickly as the Leads words, irritation prickling under her skin.

"Do you speak who you- do you understand who you're speaking to?" The words she wanted to say minced when she tried to speak, but she stood tall, ready to defend the older cat and herself.​

 

[TIGGERBOUNCE]

Tiggerbounce lifts his tail to quickly silence his companion. "No, it's alright, Apple Stem." He meows evenly, his round brown eyes focusing solely on Silversmoke's leonine form. While the ginger tom-cat didn't always like the words that were used at his expense - lazy, cowardly, stupid (in one particularly rude whispered conversation, didn't they know he still had ears?) - he had always preferred that true grievances be told directly to his face. Even if they may be hurtful or a bit cruel, it was far more productive to say something plainly. He could respect Silversmoke for his bluntness, even if he had to keep himself from responding with a cheeky 'well, clearly I was addressing those with secondary accommodations.'

It wasn't nice to use big words to win an argument. Stumpyspots would've lightly batted his ears for such disrespect. Instead, he offers a more measure approach: "I did a little battle training and kit-watching this morning, a little sharing tongues around noon, and then I rounded out the day with a little hunting patrol. Even barely a day's work is still a day's work."

One of his rounded ears flick in quiet acknowledgement of the lead warrior's utterances. "My housefolk expect me back at a certain time, else they start to worry. Nightfall is the extent of many of our curfews." He gestures to each of the daylight warriors around him in turn. "I know I'm not as diligent of a soldier as I was once, but I'm still here. Everyday. From a little after sunrise to right before sun-down, excusing the times where my Twoleg wants to spend some extra time with me. I play with my clan-mates, I laugh with my clan-mates, I share stories of cats who never got to see the clans, or stories of cats I never see now that I'm here. I hunt when I'm asked, I patrol when I'm asked. I'm not always on time or the most effective, but I never eat from the fresh-kill pile so I bring in more than I take. What am I doing wrong, Silversmoke? Why is it assumed that I dismiss the cats of this forest when I was born here, way before Rain or Blazestar even laid claim to the pinelands?" ​

 

[SILVERSMOKE]

"Nightfall, not afternoon, not when the sun is halfway across the sky, nightfall. Yet you are constantly wanting to go back earlier, putting in the bare minimum effort and expecting to be thanked with time away for simply doing your job. It seems your Twolegs want to spend extra time with you every day, if you're more loyal to them then go live with them forever, go back to your home since this place clearly isn't one to you." The disapproval of his clanmates, vocal and not vocal, became more apparent as he ripped his attention away from the flat-faced cat. His chest rose and fell without rhythm, praying to StarClan that someone would see sense through the outburst. Cats were getting ill, outsiders dressing up as SkyClanners were making more and more problems for the group and now, there were those whom he was expected to call warriors implying that SkyClan wasn't even a home. Laughing, sharing stories, even hunting and fighting, when one had ulterior motives behind such charitable gestures, how could they ever be trusted?

His gaze shot back to Tigger, its glint dangerous, before he opened his mouth in a sneer. "Let me make one thing perfectly clear: I don't give a rat's tail about where you are from, I care more about your attitude to work and yours is a detriment. You've been given an easy schedule and you're still late to patrols. And.... and... " His meow, confrontational as it was, was edged with exasperation. Did he want Tigger in the clan still? Words cut like claws through a belly, but as he reflected on his own words, nothing felt personal, only a build-up of incompetent Daylight Warrior after incompetent Daylight Warrior weighing on his thinning patience. A vitriol perhaps earned in its own way, but for a different reason than one he'd kept for Slate or the WindClanner he'd thought - Tigger was no threat to himself. Snakelike pupils found Apple Stem once more, then Figfeather, who was noticeably quieter than the Deputy's blood. A crowd was a calming presence, despite the jeers, he found the stares were enough to paralyse him into a muted state. "You either lack compassion or common sense. You need to go beyond what you are being asked to do, at least until our sick have recovered. If you're a SkyClanner, you're not exempt from putting in hard graft when hard times ask for it."

​

 

[APPLEFROST]

The older toms gentle request is respectfully obliged. If he wished to have the moment to defend himself, she would not take that from him. She listened as he spoke his ledger of completed tasks, describing him hours in the sun with his Clanmates and she quietly nodded in support. Agreement. These were all the characteristics of a Clan cat, and Tigger dutifully returned each morning to do it all again. They all traveled the Twolegplace just to return here and contribute.

Silversmoke tore through Tiggerbounce's defense, and Apple Stem decided it was enough. She had heard enough. She would not face cats of her rank being ridiculed, not when so many did it thanklessly. The pressure placed from cats like Silversmoke would not create an outcome they wanted, surely.

"Cats are growing sick, and we're doing our best to contribute." She tried to empathize first, not wanting the argument to explode into something greater. Beyond either of their tempers control. "On such a topic, what will your opinion be when one of us gets sick next? Will we be freeloaders for using your medicine stock, or will we be freeloaders because our housefolk will keep us home if we're unwell? Then again, if it's the second you wouldn't even know... You will gladly turn to the belief that we are lesser, weaker warriors that couldn't handle the forest." It made her uncomfortable to think about. If she got sick... what would be the appropriate response? What would help avoid these scathing remarks from her Clanmates?

"What does this argument grant you, Silversmoke? Cats like Tiggerbounce and I have done our duties for moons without question. We aren't the ones meandering over borders to other Clans or disrespecting the code, or lingering in camp doing nothing. We brought meals for your bellies and wait until we are home to eat. And if that has been a problem, why did you wait until now to say something?"​

 

[✧ Sootspritespark.]

✸​✸ I KNOW THAT I'VE GOT A BIG EGO ✸✸​

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sootspritespark & 37 moons & demi-girl & she/they & skyclan queen​

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Cats like silversmoke are the reason sootsprite had taken so long to warm up to her clanmates - to trust in them. To the forest cat's, once a kittypet, always a kittypet - and worse of it if you were half a kittypet. For once, the woman is not smiling when she strides forwards, yellow gaze cold. "So when it is a daylight warrior who fights alongside you in battle against dogs, or windclan, or whatever else this forest throws against you, when it is one of us who saves your life, or a friends, what will it be then? Will you still claim us lacking compassion, lacking common sense? That we are not putting in enough effort?" she has put her life on the line for this group, and this is the thanks they get? How many of them could be safe at home in their dens, free of danger, but choose not to - "What of when we die, pullin' our weight same as you? We risk our lives everyday, the same as you, for you, when we do not have to - we could go curl up in our 'folks nests, safe, like you claim - and yet we are here, because we want to help, because skyclan is our home as much as it is yours," She'd even brought her kits here, new lifeblood for the clan, and hadn't turned tail and ran with them the moment she'd heard of the misfortune, of this strange sickness. And this cat thinks himself better than them, simply because he did not have a collar wrapped 'round his neck. Tch.

— really don't know why its such a big deal though ✸

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