[occultation]

 

Originally Posted by Estelle

It was a fairly nice day, if a bit cold for the thinly-furred, and for some time now Poppykit had been simply stuck staring at the almost white-looking sky. Only, she'd been watching for so long, the wobbly kitten was getting bored. You see, she had recently learned that her littermate Plumy had become an apprentice, just like FleckFleck! But that meant that she was all alone in the nursery again, at least until she found Pap and Mumzie and Acorn and Eel.

Why hadn't she become an apprentice yet? She didn't know, nor think about it, but chances were that it had to do with the long time she spent being sick in the meddie's den. Much had changed during that time, too! For instance, it was suddenly far more grey and gloomy and cold outside, and everyone seemed to be in some sort of foul mood. On top of that, two of her siblings had seemingly disappeared, alongside Pap and Mumzie! She still didn't understand where they could be. She looked everywhere already with no avail, and now all she could do was wait for their return - but she got so bored.

FleckFleck and Plumy were busy doing grown-cat stuff, while she was still figuring out all the changes and disappearances and how to keep herself busy on her lonesome. So! What better way to keep busy than to pester the nearest grown cat? She remembered Mr.Crunchy Goat's story about the squirrels and the frogs (were they frogs? She couldn't remember), and was positively dying for another fun story.

So she did what any sensible kit would do in that situation, and that was wobbling across the clearing to the nearest interesting-looking cat. Her movements were still rather clumsy as she went, paws much too spread out when she walked, and stumbling - if not falling - every few steps as she approached her victim. But as always, Poppykit was entirely unaware of this difference in movement (she had hardly seen any other kits, or cats in general, over the past three moons after all), tripping to a halt in front of what must be a warrior - just like her Pap!

"Mister, mister!"
She called, head craning to look upwards, eyes momentarily squinting to get a good look at this cat's face.
"Can mister tell Poppy a story?"
Though it was a question, the patched tabby already let herself fall back onto her hind. She sat at the ready, expectantly looking up at Drizzlenight with wide hazel eyes, as though he had already agreed to her request. After all, why would he refuse?


[ @Cherry~ ]

Drizzlenight was loafing off to the side of the clearing, his paws tucked neatly under him. Blue eyes turned as movement heading in direction was caught in his peripheral vision. It was a kit, wobbling towards him on rather unstable legs.

It was a little odd, he thought, for a kit that big to still be walking like that. He figured Drizzlecloud, and by extension Bumblestar, was aware of the problem. Drizzlenight wasn't sure how a kit on such unsteady legs could manage to be a warrior, but perhaps if that wasn't a good path Bumblestar could find another use for her. He vaguely remembered some "Caretaker" role that Sparrowstar had made; it seemed that rank had disappeared, but perhaps it could make a comeback.

His ears perked as the kit spoke to him, addressing him more politely than possibly any other kit ever had. She requested a story, and then promptly fell back on her hindlegs as if he'd already said yes. The whole thing made his grinchy heart melt just a little bit. Only a little, however.

Clearing his throat, he rose into a sitting position. "Sure, why not. Not like I currently have anything better to do. Let's see... Hm, a long time ago, and I mean a long, long time ago, there were these cats. They all lived together in one group, and everything was happy and peaceful. Sure, they had their diseases and their runs with predators, but they enjoyed a good life with one another."

He leaned forward a bit. "But nothing ever lasts forever, as they say. One night, a terrible storm came. During that storm, a rival rogue group decided to launch an attack. The outcome was terrible! Cats dying left and right, their screeches ripping through the air like claws slicing through flesh. By the time the storm receded, almost everyone was dead.

"It was a sad, sad day for this group. They spent three days burying all of the dead, mourning and lost in grief. But soon, that grief turned into anger. Cats began turning on one another, breaking seasons-long promises to always be loyal to each other. Blame was cast around like a hot stone, with everyone having their own opinion on why this terrible tragedy occurred."

He leaned back, tail sweeping low along the ground. "Four of these cats were named Thunder, River, Shadow, and Wind. They were the loudest of the group, with their own ideas booming out above the others like claps of thunder. Over the next moon, this group- a group that was once as tightly-knit as family- split into four. They became groups known by the names of their leaders."

Drizzlenight swept a paw across the air to emphasize his next point. "Many seasons passed, and eventually these groups got so big that they could no longer just call themselves rogue groups. They needed a better name. One night, the night of a full moon, the leaders gathered under a temporary truce and decided to call themselves Clans. And so, they became ThunderClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan. This was also the night when the tradition of the Gathering was established." A stupid tradition we all could do without.

"The Clans have lived on ever since, fighting amongst one another for territory, prey, herbs, and sometimes just plain and simple ego. Throughout their history, one lesson from their origin has remained: nothing can last forever, whether good or bad."

( @Alchemist Kitsune Feel free to have Spruce drop by and listen! )