ShadowClan Leader's Den - Page 36

**c1nder** · #**351** June 2nd, 2023, 10:09 PM

＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚　 Deadfeather of Shadowclan - Schzoid Personality Disorder - Non-binary (afab) - Gray with black markings and near red, amber eyes.　˚*• ̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙

Precariously balancing both a skull and a large rabbit in their mouth was a rough task, especially seeing. But having the skull block their already-pretty-much-blind right eye was easier, so letting the rabbit place down softly and the skull down with an all-too-loud for their liking (it's actually very quiet they just Don't like sound pfft), rolling and rattling.

"Dawnstar, m'lady I have a couple gifts for you!"

Maybe Dawnstar would like to know where they got the Fox skull, but they would tell the Shadow Queen. Better to have one ear than none, and of course if they were to do wrong by the Shadow Queen, nothing could be done to heal that wound.

[ @Undertaker - Dawnstar ]

**perseus.** · #**352** June 2nd, 2023, 11:34 PM

Sorrelflare bowed his head, “Yes that is a mistake I’ll do better next time and Mousepaw didn’t go on his own he had the other warrior on the patrol but it was more so to mention an apprentice is stepping up to do a warriors job. Though I’ll talk to him about that as well.”

@Undertaker

**Rose** · #**353** June 3rd, 2023, 08:04 PM

[ Beforehand note; if the text in-between the speech makes no sense, just ignore those and read the speech instead lol. ]

Larkfire
She/Her

How did one react appropriately to a response like the one Dawnstar had just given her? Maybe there was no appropriate way for it. Maybe one just... acted the way they could. Then again, Dawnstar was probably the only cat Larkfire knew who could get away with snarling one moment and actually looking interested the next. The bizarre mood swings made Lark want to snort with amusement. Of course, at least she still retained some sensibility and refrained from laughing outright at her leader, even if it was in good humor.

Still, a small smile curving the corners of her lips upward against her will, Larkfire ducked her head to lower the contraption of leaves in her mouth to the ground. It was a bundle, to be precise, a bundle of something. And after shouldering a fluffy siamese ragdoll pelt off her back, the lithe grey molly set the two objects in front of her, sitting back on her hindlegs to eye Dawnstar. "Gifts." She provided the word unnecessarily - if only for the sake of saying it.

And then, because Larkfire wished to waste as little time as possible, she continued on into the explanation for her little visit. "Loyalty is supposed to mean something. You know that. I know that." It was common sense. You swore to protect a Clan -- and you starsdamned followed through with that promise. "ShadowClan doesn't seem to realize it. Not all of them - but most warriors don't seem to realize the gravity of swearing an oath."

It was odd, the way they treated a life-long promise so lightly. But she wasn't here to complain. She was here for something else entirely. Something else, that she'd promised herself as a little kit she'd work towards. "I hadn't given you a gift until now because bringing you just one more pelt isn't distinct. Copying all others and blindly following wouldn't make sense for me, either. I heard your last mate used to bring you pelts to gain your rapture. That's what I was told, at least. I've seen firsthand that my Clanmates bring gifts to you as offerings -- Maybe to fill the gap where they should be showing you loyalty and working for ShadowClan instead. But I know not their intentions. I only know for certain my own."

Tail wrapping over her paws, the amber-eyed molly went on. "I did not bring you any gifts before today because I wanted to portray through actions - not mere trinkets or treasures - the extent of my commitment. But since today is to be the first of firsts, I've brought you something."

Keen eyes drifted downward a moment, to the limp, lifeless items at her paws. Larkfire still didn't see anything of interest in the pelt she'd brought. Sure, it was among one of the prettiest pelts she'd ever seen (What a waste, that loner had forfeited their life the moment they'd stepped into ShadowClan territory). It was clean, it was fluffy, it was probably comfortable, and yet... Eh, maybe Larkfire just didn't have the eye to appreciate it.

"So here are my gifts; a more traditional one, a pelt, and one more unique; a set of claws." Leaning forward past the pelt to open the bundle of leaves, Larkfire stooped to nudge the four-piece. To an outside eye, the claws probably looked particularly useless. And Larkfire didn't mind that one bit. It was like her, in that sense. Looked useless. "Claws are small. Maybe even considered insignificant." Her gaze flickered upward. "But they are one of the most vital tools a feline possesses."

Leaning back on her haunches once more, the youngest Enforcer went on with her tirade of words. All she could hope for was to be listened to. At least in this, one thing she knew for certain she'd never back away from.

"You asked. You asked for someone to step up to the mantle of deputy. For someone to step forward and face that responsibility. I will do that, then. I will ask you to grant that role." Yet still, Larkfire was not done. She ought to feel guilty, taking up so much of her leaders' time, but she didn't. The worse that could happen? A no. And frankly, whatever the outcome, Larkfire was not going anywhere. For all she knew, a demotion awaited her, and yet she'd stay here, in ShadowClan.

"And if not, I offer myself to you as a daughter. You've experienced loss to last all your remaining lifetimes. I don't know that pain, not even remotely." There it was. The pinpoint of her reasons to be here; that last request. Despite how much Larkfire had yearned and hoped for it, she'd found in the end that Dappledleaf could not be her mother. A friend, maybe, but no longer a mother. Dappledleaf could not mother a monster. Could not give birth - give life - to a dying star. It took broken to see broken.

A monster to see a monster.

"Your trust, or even a snippet of it, is a lot to ask for, and I may be damning myself by doing so, but I'm here asking anyway." It was funny, how she'd gone from having so much to lose to... having nothing. She should have been too young to feel this much pain, too old to regret everything. Larkfire wasn't even sure if she fit with anyone her age anymore. It was ironic, really.

[ @Undertaker - Dawnstar ]

***Undertaker*** · #**354** June 6th, 2023, 11:18 PM

The leader's amber eyes slightly widen when Shadefrost jumped into... nickname her? What? Dawnstar slowly blinked her eyes a few times as if trying to figure out if this was real or not. Nope, she was awake. Okay, so what the hell is he going on about? Dawnstar peered at Shadefrost like he had grown a second head. "What is with you furballs and giving me nicknames I've never asked for nor wanted?" The leader huffed grumpily, but didn't seem all that put off at the warrior's seeming attempt to lighten the mood.

At this point in her life, she was so used to cats coming up with the oddest nicknames for her, usually the kits but she'd get a few bolder cats who could actually get away with such a thing. She was still debating on whether Shadefrost was one of those cats. A slight smirk formed at the corner of her lips as watched him back up after he spoke. It seemed he had a healthy dose of fear in him, but if he paid any real attention to the leader he'd know she's not the type to dole punishment if there wasn't a real reason for him. Him annoying her wasn't enough to slapped with a punishment or an ear shredding. This is why Dawnstar preferred the company of her enforces, and she supposed to a point, Dappledleaf.

As he dipped into a more serious topic, her attention was caught at mention of WindClan's unmarked borders and the burnt up corpose. A hint of confusion lit up her golden pools when the bit about Pepperleaf was given. Shadefrost said the body was charred so she assumed that meant the cat was unrecognizable, guess not. What was more important was why was one of their dead so close to her border? She assumed the body belong to WindClan. Dawnstar's ears visibly flatten when investing was brought up yet again. This was the second cat... well third if this "Hawk" whichever warrior Shadefrost was speaking, counted. Dawnstar didn't enjoy second guessing herself, but when her cats bring her the same proposal over and over again, she started to wonder if the rest of the clan thought the same.

"Did you get rid of the body by the border, or figure out why a charred body laid so close to our border in the first place?" Dawnstar began questioning after thinking stuff over. The latter wasn't overly important, Dawnstar was merely curious. It was weird that WindClan left their dead by ShadowClan's borders, but if they haven't been patrolling it made sense.

"Give me a good enough reason as for why you believe it's' so vital for me to send a group of our warriors into ThunderClan's territory, and if it's good enough I'll think about it."

Oh, boy, just what she wanted. Dawnstar groaned softly as she heard the cheery call from outside her den! She wasn't in the mood for optimistic furballs who had to understand how cruel the world was. The ShadowClan leader was rolled on her back, paws up, and resting on the cool flooring of her den instead of inside her nest. It was getting warm and warmer, and the head was unbearable for a molly with a coat like her own.

Dawnstar didn't bother replying immediately, instead she shut her eyes and remained quite wondering if he'd go away if she didn't say anything. But after a heartbeat of doing that, that sense of duty came back. She should probably see what the mouse wanted. With an enormous amount of reluctance, the leader flips over and gathering her huge paws underneath her tremendous body, heaving herself up into a standing position.

Moving like a lazy lionness who baked in the sun for too long, she eventually makes it too the opening in her den and thrust her head out to regard Mousepaw with her usual unsmiling expression. "Mousepaw," she drawls, "to what do I own the pleasure?" The leader wasn't going to entertain the apprentice if whatever he wanted was something dull. She hoped whatever he wanted was actually worth the attention of a Queen.

Her sensitive ears heard it, the strange noises coming from outside of her den. She sits upright, on the alert, while waiting trying to figure out what she was hearing but it was silent by then. Deadfeather's voice rings out instead of what she was listening for. They've been visiting rather often over the past moon or so. She wasn't sure why, but she was slowly getting use to the warrior. Probably because they didn't come off as aggravating, overly ambitious, and most of the stuff that came out of their maw wasn't none sense or annoying.

She still sensed fear from them, not as intense or as open as other clan cats, but it was still there. Which was expecting from her clanmates, she ensure they all had a healthy dose of fear when it came to her, but tended to dislike it when that fear overwhelmed their sense of loyalty and respect to her. "Come in, Deadfeather." Dawnstar replies, flexing the building muscles underneath her dark, scarred, pelt as she sat upright and scratch at her ar with a hind leg.' She wondered what they had brought her.

At Sorrelflare's response, Dawnstar nodded her head and left the scolding at that. So long as he understood that he needed to put in a bit more work to remain an Enforcer, and actually put in more effort all would be forgiven. She liked it when cats simple owned their mistakes or faults and worked to correct them or at least right them to some extend.

At the mention of Mousepaw stepping up, she scowled softly at that. He wasn't wrong but still there were rules in place or a reason. He shouldn't need to be stepping up when he was still in training, but she'd do her best to keep that in mind. "Very well, unless there is anything else you may go."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rose

[ Beforehand note; if the text in-between the speech makes no sense, just ignore those and read the speech instead lol. ]

Larkfire
She/Her

How did one react appropriately to a response like the one Dawnstar had just given her? Maybe there was no appropriate way for it. Maybe one just... acted the way they could. Then again, Dawnstar was probably the only cat Larkfire knew who could get away with snarling one moment and actually looking interested the next. The bizarre mood swings made Lark want to snort with amusement. Of course, at least she still retained some sensibility and refrained from laughing outright at her leader, even if it was in good humor.

Still, a small smile curving the corners of her lips upward against her will, Larkfire ducked her head to lower the contraption of leaves in her mouth to the ground. It was a bundle, to be precise, a bundle of something. And after shouldering a fluffy siamese ragdoll pelt off her back, the lithe grey molly set the two objects in front of her, sitting back on her hindlegs to eye Dawnstar. "Gifts." She provided the word unnecessarily - if only for the sake of saying it.

And then, because Larkfire wished to waste as little time as possible, she continued on into the explanation for her little visit. "Loyalty is supposed to mean something. You know that. I know that." It was common sense. You swore to protect a Clan -- and you starsdamned followed through with that promise. "ShadowClan doesn't seem to realize it. Not all of them - but most warriors don't seem to realize the gravity of swearing an oath."

It was odd, the way they treated a life-long promise so lightly. But she wasn't here to complain. She was here for something else entirely. Something else, that she'd promised herself as a little kit she'd work towards. "I hadn't given you a gift until now because bringing you just one more pelt isn't distinct. Copying all others and blindly following wouldn't make sense for me, either. I heard your last mate used to bring you pelts to gain your rapture. That's what I was told, at least. I've seen firsthand that my Clanmates bring gifts to you as offerings -- Maybe to fill the gap where they should be showing you loyalty and working for ShadowClan instead. But I know not their intentions. I only know for certain my own."

Tail wrapping over her paws, the amber-eyed molly went on. "I did not bring you any gifts before today because I wanted to portray through actions - not mere trinkets or treasures - the extent of my commitment. But since today is to be the first of firsts, I've brought you something."

Keen eyes drifted downward a moment, to the limp, lifeless items at her paws. Larkfire still didn't see anything of interest in the pelt she'd brought. Sure, it was among one of the prettiest pelts she'd ever seen (What a waste, that loner had forfeited their life the moment they'd stepped into ShadowClan territory). It was clean, it was fluffy, it was probably comfortable, and yet... Eh, maybe Larkfire just didn't have the eye to appreciate it.

"So here are my gifts; a more traditional one, a pelt, and one more unique; a set of claws." Leaning forward past the pelt to open the bundle of leaves, Larkfire stooped to nudge the four-piece. To an outside eye, the claws probably looked particularly useless. And Larkfire didn't mind that one bit. It was like her, in that sense. Looked useless. "Claws are small. Maybe even considered insignificant." Her gaze flickered upward. "But they are one of the most vital tools a feline possesses."

Leaning back on her haunches once more, the youngest Enforcer went on with her tirade of words. All she could hope for was to be listened to. At least in this, one thing she knew for certain she'd never back away from.

"You asked. You asked for someone to step up to the mantle of deputy. For someone to step forward and face that responsibility. I will do that, then. I will ask you to grant that role." Yet still, Larkfire was not done. She ought to feel guilty, taking up so much of her leaders' time, but she didn't. The worse that could happen? A no. And frankly, whatever the outcome, Larkfire was not going anywhere. For all she knew, a demotion awaited her, and yet she'd stay here, in ShadowClan.

"And if not, I offer myself to you as a daughter. You've experienced loss to last all your remaining lifetimes. I don't know that pain, not even remotely." There it was. The pinpoint of her reasons to be here; that last request. Despite how much Larkfire had yearned and hoped for it, she'd found in the end that Dappledleaf could not be her mother. A friend, maybe, but no longer a mother. Dappledleaf could not mother a monster. Could not give birth - give life - to a dying star. It took broken to see broken.

A monster to see a monster.

"Your trust, or even a snippet of it, is a lot to ask for, and I may be damning myself by doing so, but I'm here asking anyway." It was funny, how she'd gone from having so much to lose to... having nothing. She should have been too young to feel this much pain, too old to regret everything. Larkfire wasn't even sure if she fit with anyone her age anymore. It was ironic, really.

[ @Undertaker - Dawnstar ]

She noticed the small smile the Enforcer had. It didn't seem malicious or mocking, it just seemed that Dawnstar had done something amusing to the younger cat. So she didn't address it. Dawnstar's gaze drifted to the pelt that was slung over the she-cat back before looking at the other gift. It looked quite lovely from where she was standing. It seemed that these 'gifts' had a wordy explanation for them.

So the leader simply listened without interrupting since Larkfire had proven herself a cat worth listening to. For a cat who has no blood ties here, it was nice to know how deeply she cared for loyalty and the oath she swore. Dawnstar silently agreed with Larkfire, the warriors, not just of this clan, but of all clans seemed to break their oath without a second thought when it was convenient for them. Not just warriors, but leaders and deputies as well, stepping down, vanishing, or just up and using all of their lives like they were nothing. So many clan cats treated their oath like it was nothing. The warriors of today were so sad.

Dawnstar's head tipped itself at a slight angle as Larkfire brought up why she had taken so long to acquire said gifts for her. The scarred feline wouldn't lie, some of what Larkfire was saying was a bit harder to wrap her head around, or rather it wasn't complex but easy to misperceive. But she felt like she got the point of it. Dawnstar had never thought of the gifts given to her as a way to make up for loyalty or work, she the gifts as more of a way to cull favor with the Queen, but this new point of view was something to think about.

Those that did not shy away from Dawnstar's rather morbid collection she normally assumed were filled with more grit than other ShadowClan cats, but aside from that the gifts were merely something to both amuse her and to fill up a very empty den with something. Grimhound had made this gifting into a full-on tradition at this point, not one that all members of ShadowClan followed but enough that she had to remove old pelts to replace them with new ones every pawful of moons. The gifts did not speak of loyalty to her, but she'd let the Enforcer think as she pleased.

So the reason Larkfire waited so long to give her anything was that these gits meant something to show her commitment. That was intriguing and food for the mind. The pelt that was laid out was lovely, one of the pretties she's seen, but it was the claws that garnered all the leader's attention. Those were new. The last time Dawnstar had seen claws unattached from a cat was when she had pulled out Twilightstar's back ones. If she had the skill, she'd wear them like a collar, but alas not even she was that crafty. As Larkfire explained why she had chosen claws of all things to present to her, Dawnstar found increasing inquisitiveness in the Enforcer's views. She wondered what else went on in the molly's head.

At the mention of deputy and daughter, Dawnstar head's swung upwards to meet Larkfire's eyes in an intense and forceful stare, as if trying to read and rip out every little secret Larkfire might be hiding before she spoke. "You have a unique view on many things, it's refreshing." She came up with many things Dawnstar hadn't bothered delving into before. Larkfire would probably be a fun conversation partner or adviser. Dawnstar didn't get the sense of manipulation she felt in the past with other cats, nor deceit or deception. Still, that didn't mean it wasn't there.

"I can grant you the role of daughter if you so covet it so." Dawnstar started off sternly but lightened her tone as she brought up a certain queen. "Although, I can't help but wonder what brought this decision on... You seemed to get along well with Dappledleaf and her kin." Although she was curious, she wasn't going to make the she-cat talk if she'd rather not. Dawnstar didn't need to think long or hard about accepting Larkfire as a daughter, the leader would have taken the molly in as her own after she showed such potential as an apprentice. Dappledleaf had already taken her, and Dawnstar wasn't possessive enough to steal or force a cat to belong to her kin.

One would think that after losing kin after kin, she'd learn her lesson and stop taking more in. But Dawnstar had learned long ago that despite her constant struggles and loss, she'd never turn away a cat with such potential to serve a member of her family even if she had to go through loss repeatedly. Inwardly, Dawnstar had the same desire as every other living being and that was to avoid being alone; and to have cats around her that understood her to some point even if it wasn't complete. Her desire for family outweighs the sense of disappointment, frustration, and sadness that came with losing them. Grimeyes, Redshrike, Ravenblaze, Brackenfire, Badgerscar, Ebonyfang, were just some of the kin she thought would never turn their back on her and now look at where she was. They were all gone, dead or missing.

"You're right, I've experienced more loss than most cats, but I use that pain to shape me into the cat that I am today. Something you've yet to learn. You have maturity beyond your moons, and you've proven yourself competent and driven where others fall short. You're dependable and to a point admirable. However, you're still young and yet to learn just how cruel life can be." Dawnstar finally understood all those seasons ago why Icestar had chosen Beastspark as her deputy instead her, cause now it was staring her right in the face.

"You aspire to be deputy, perhaps one day you'll settle at my side, but that day is not today." Dawnstar had given Larkfire quite a bit of power as an Enforcer, but in that rank, she constantly reminded Dawnstar of how young she was whenever she showed uncertainty about how to hold herself or questing how far she was allowed to use the power given to her or if she was even allowed to. Dawnstar had plans to be around for a long time and go through many many deputies, whether Larkfire be the one who succeeded her or become another face within the rank, only time would tell.

The last three deputies she had started out strong, but slowly became worse and worse as time progressed. They last mere moons before dying off or going missing. Failures have held that rank and Dawnstar was worried that if an Enforcer was in that rank they'd follow in those pawprints, she'd be setting them up for failure. Hence why she was more comfortable keeping her Enforcers as Enforcers, she had enough warriors to disappoint her in that rank as it was.

"As for trust, we'll have to see how that goes." Dawnstar had very little of that to give any cats. She would never trust a cat one hundred percent, she could give pieces, and small chunks out, but nothing that could influence her to the point where her decisions are no longer her own. Larkfire was fascinating though, Dawnstar was curious as to what had brought such desire for the rank of deputy and the change of mothers and family. This couldn't have been some spur-of-moment thing right?

**Levi 99** · #**355** June 7th, 2023, 04:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undertaker

The leader's amber eyes slightly widen when Shadefrost jumped into... nickname her? What? Dawnstar slowly blinked her eyes a few times as if trying to figure out if this was real or not. Nope, she was awake. Okay, so what the hell is he going on about? Dawnstar peered at Shadefrost like he had grown a second head. "What is with you furballs and giving me nicknames I've never asked for nor wanted?" The leader huffed grumpily, but didn't seem all that put off at the warrior's seeming attempt to lighten the mood.

At this point in her life, she was so used to cats coming up with the oddest nicknames for her, usually the kits but she'd get a few bolder cats who could actually get away with such a thing. She was still debating on whether Shadefrost was one of those cats. A slight smirk formed at the corner of her lips as watched him back up after he spoke. It seemed he had a healthy dose of fear in him, but if he paid any real attention to the leader he'd know she's not the type to dole punishment if there wasn't a real reason for him. Him annoying her wasn't enough to slapped with a punishment or an ear shredding. This is why Dawnstar preferred the company of her enforces, and she supposed to a point, Dappledleaf.

As he dipped into a more serious topic, her attention was caught at mention of WindClan's unmarked borders and the burnt up corpose. A hint of confusion lit up her golden pools when the bit about Pepperleaf was given. Shadefrost said the body was charred so she assumed that meant the cat was unrecognizable, guess not. What was more important was why was one of their dead so close to her border? She assumed the body belong to WindClan. Dawnstar's ears visibly flatten when investing was brought up yet again. This was the second cat... well third if this "Hawk" whichever warrior Shadefrost was speaking, counted. Dawnstar didn't enjoy second guessing herself, but when her cats bring her the same proposal over and over again, she started to wonder if the rest of the clan thought the same.

"Did you get rid of the body by the border, or figure out why a charred body laid so close to our border in the first place?" Dawnstar began questioning after thinking stuff over. The latter wasn't overly important, Dawnstar was merely curious. It was weird that WindClan left their dead by ShadowClan's borders, but if they haven't been patrolling it made sense.

"Give me a good enough reason as for why you believe it's' so vital for me to send a group of our warriors into ThunderClan's territory, and if it's good enough I'll think about it."

Oh, boy, just what she wanted. Dawnstar groaned softly as she heard the cheery call from outside her den! She wasn't in the mood for optimistic furballs who had to understand how cruel the world was. The ShadowClan leader was rolled on her back, paws up, and resting on the cool flooring of her den instead of inside her nest. It was getting warm and warmer, and the head was unbearable for a molly with a coat like her own.

Dawnstar didn't bother replying immediately, instead she shut her eyes and remained quite wondering if he'd go away if she didn't say anything. But after a heartbeat of doing that, that sense of duty came back. She should probably see what the mouse wanted. With an enormous amount of reluctance, the leader flips over and gathering her huge paws underneath her tremendous body, heaving herself up into a standing position.

Moving like a lazy lionness who baked in the sun for too long, she eventually makes it too the opening in her den and thrust her head out to regard Mousepaw with her usual unsmiling expression. "Mousepaw," she drawls, "to what do I own the pleasure?" The leader wasn't going to entertain the apprentice if whatever he wanted was something dull. She hoped whatever he wanted was actually worth the attention of a Queen.

Her sensitive ears heard it, the strange noises coming from outside of her den. She sits upright, on the alert, while waiting trying to figure out what she was hearing but it was silent by then. Deadfeather's voice rings out instead of what she was listening for. They've been visiting rather often over the past moon or so. She wasn't sure why, but she was slowly getting use to the warrior. Probably because they didn't come off as aggravating, overly ambitious, and most of the stuff that came out of their maw wasn't none sense or annoying.

She still sensed fear from them, not as intense or as open as other clan cats, but it was still there. Which was expecting from her clanmates, she ensure they all had a healthy dose of fear when it came to her, but tended to dislike it when that fear overwhelmed their sense of loyalty and respect to her. "Come in, Deadfeather." Dawnstar replies, flexing the building muscles underneath her dark, scarred, pelt as she sat upright and scratch at her ar with a hind leg.' She wondered what they had brought her.

At Sorrelflare's response, Dawnstar nodded her head and left the scolding at that. So long as he understood that he needed to put in a bit more work to remain an Enforcer, and actually put in more effort all would be forgiven. She liked it when cats simple owned their mistakes or faults and worked to correct them or at least right them to some extend.

At the mention of Mousepaw stepping up, she scowled softly at that. He wasn't wrong but still there were rules in place or a reason. He shouldn't need to be stepping up when he was still in training, but she'd do her best to keep that in mind. "Very well, unless there is anything else you may go."

She noticed the small smile the Enforcer had. It didn't seem malicious or mocking, it just seemed that Dawnstar had done something amusing to the younger cat. So she didn't address it. Dawnstar's gaze drifted to the pelt that was slung over the she-cat back before looking at the other gift. It looked quite lovely from where she was standing. It seemed that these 'gifts' had a wordy explanation for them.

So the leader simply listened without interrupting since Larkfire had proven herself a cat worth listening to. For a cat who has no blood ties here, it was nice to know how deeply she cared for loyalty and the oath she swore. Dawnstar silently agreed with Larkfire, the warriors, not just of this clan, but of all clans seemed to break their oath without a second thought when it was convenient for them. Not just warriors, but leaders and deputies as well, stepping down, vanishing, or just up and using all of their lives like they were nothing. So many clan cats treated their oath like it was nothing. The warriors of today were so sad.

Dawnstar's head tipped itself at a slight angle as Larkfire brought up why she had taken so long to acquire said gifts for her. The scarred feline wouldn't lie, some of what Larkfire was saying was a bit harder to wrap her head around, or rather it wasn't complex but easy to misperceive. But she felt like she got the point of it. Dawnstar had never thought of the gifts given to her as a way to make up for loyalty or work, she the gifts as more of a way to cull favor with the Queen, but this new point of view was something to think about.

Those that did not shy away from Dawnstar's rather morbid collection she normally assumed were filled with more grit than other ShadowClan cats, but aside from that the gifts were merely something to both amuse her and to fill up a very empty den with something. Grimhound had made this gifting into a full-on tradition at this point, not one that all members of ShadowClan followed but enough that she had to remove old pelts to replace them with new ones every pawful of moons. The gifts did not speak of loyalty to her, but she'd let the Enforcer think as she pleased.

So the reason Larkfire waited so long to give her anything was that these gits meant something to show her commitment. That was intriguing and food for the mind. The pelt that was laid out was lovely, one of the pretties she's seen, but it was the claws that garnered all the leader's attention. Those were new. The last time Dawnstar had seen claws unattached from a cat was when she had pulled out Twilightstar's back ones. If she had the skill, she'd wear them like a collar, but alas not even she was that crafty. As Larkfire explained why she had chosen claws of all things to present to her, Dawnstar found increasing inquisitiveness in the Enforcer's views. She wondered what else went on in the molly's head.

At the mention of deputy and daughter, Dawnstar head's swung upwards to meet Larkfire's eyes in an intense and forceful stare, as if trying to read and rip out every little secret Larkfire might be hiding before she spoke. "You have a unique view on many things, it's refreshing." She came up with many things Dawnstar hadn't bothered delving into before. Larkfire would probably be a fun conversation partner or adviser. Dawnstar didn't get the sense of manipulation she felt in the past with other cats, nor deceit or deception. Still, that didn't mean it wasn't there.

"I can grant you the role of daughter if you so covet it so." Dawnstar started off sternly but lightened her tone as she brought up a certain queen. "Although, I can't help but wonder what brought this decision on... You seemed to get along well with Dappledleaf and her kin." Although she was curious, she wasn't going to make the she-cat talk if she'd rather not. Dawnstar didn't need to think long or hard about accepting Larkfire as a daughter, the leader would have taken the molly in as her own after she showed such potential as an apprentice. Dappledleaf had already taken her, and Dawnstar wasn't possessive enough to steal or force a cat to belong to her kin.

One would think that after losing kin after kin, she'd learn her lesson and stop taking more in. But Dawnstar had learned long ago that despite her constant struggles and loss, she'd never turn away a cat with such potential to serve a member of her family even if she had to go through loss repeatedly. Inwardly, Dawnstar had the same desire as every other living being and that was to avoid being alone; and to have cats around her that understood her to some point even if it wasn't complete. Her desire for family outweighs the sense of disappointment, frustration, and sadness that came with losing them. Grimeyes, Redshrike, Ravenblaze, Brackenfire, Badgerscar, Ebonyfang, were just some of the kin she thought would never turn their back on her and now look at where she was. They were all gone, dead or missing.

"You're right, I've experienced more loss than most cats, but I use that pain to shape me into the cat that I am today. Something you've yet to learn. You have maturity beyond your moons, and you've proven yourself competent and driven where others fall short. You're dependable and to a point admirable. However, you're still young and yet to learn just how cruel life can be." Dawnstar finally understood all those seasons ago why Icestar had chosen Beastspark as her deputy instead her, cause now it was staring her right in the face.

"You aspire to be deputy, perhaps one day you'll settle at my side, but that day is not today." Dawnstar had given Larkfire quite a bit of power as an Enforcer, but in that rank, she constantly reminded Dawnstar of how young she was whenever she showed uncertainty about how to hold herself or questing how far she was allowed to use the power given to her or if she was even allowed to. Dawnstar had plans to be around for a long time and go through many many deputies, whether Larkfire be the one who succeeded her or become another face within the rank, only time would tell.

The last three deputies she had started out strong, but slowly became worse and worse as time progressed. They last mere moons before dying off or going missing. Failures have held that rank and Dawnstar was worried that if an Enforcer was in that rank they'd follow in those pawprints, she'd be setting them up for failure. Hence why she was more comfortable keeping her Enforcers as Enforcers, she had enough warriors to disappoint her in that rank as it was.

"As for trust, we'll have to see how that goes." Dawnstar had very little of that to give any cats. She would never trust a cat one hundred percent, she could give pieces, and small chunks out, but nothing that could influence her to the point where her decisions are no longer her own. Larkfire was fascinating though, Dawnstar was curious as to what had brought such desire for the rank of deputy and the change of mothers and family. This couldn't have been some spur-of-moment thing right?

When the Shadowclan leader didn’t get too angry with Shadefrost’s attempt to cheer her, he gave a silent sigh of sweet relief, while gaining some well-needed confidence in the process. ”Well I don’t know about anyone else, but I for one like seeing you happy and I have a good feeling that a majority of the cats in the clan feel the same way. Besides, your our leader, which means your practically the mother of Shadowclan. Why wouldn’t we want you to be happy? He asked with a smile. Briefly, the thought of him doing more things like this came to mind, before being shooed away by Dawnstar’s next question. He closed his eyes and gave a quick shake of his head, “Sorry Ma’am.” Said the warrior, before continuing in a blunt manner, “I didn’t feel that I had the authority to go onto another clan’s territory without your permission nor did I want to either.” And that was probably the best call in Shadefrost’s opinion, the chances of him finding much out about the corps were slim to none, and he’d most likely have to get most of the Information from Pepperleaf who was the only one in his knowledge that knew the deceased queen. The blue-eyed tom’s train of thought was broken, yet again by his leader's next words. ”A good enough reason.” The warrior let the words echo in his head for a few seconds to register the command, then his eyes lit up and he answered with an, ”Actually, not just Thunderclan. Windclan too. If we send a small, but capable group into both territories we might just be able to push our borders on two separate fronts. That means access to more prey, healing herbs, and resources in general. Plus an opportunity to identify any possible weaknesses to exploit later on. And I know that you might be thinking about the downside to all of this. But on the somewhat off chance that an enemy patrol catches us, we can always scrap the take-over idea and lie, saying that we were worried about them and that we came to see if everything was alright. I mean like they probably wouldn’t believe us, so maybe don’t do that, but you get it.”

**lio** · #**356** June 8th, 2023, 05:30 PM

NIGHTHOUND
huge, dark grey tabby tom with orange eyes and many scars.
he/him

It hadn't been long since he had last approached this den. However, with the guards being put into place and the patrol to Icy Heartlands, Nighthound had made up his mind. There was no use beating around the bush- time was not something to be wasted, and he would not waste it today.

He brought no gifts. No skulls, no pelts, nothing. Instead, the massive tom brought himself. His words, his experience, his loyalty. One must not use flattery and bribery to weasel their way into what they want. Slipping into camp from another solo patrol, he had immediately approached the looming den, an unintelligible glint shining in orange eyes. Nighthound stopped outside and silently thought over what to say.

He would do this. For his Clan, for his kits, for his leader.

"Dawnstar, may I enter?"

[ @Undertaker ]

**elaif** · #**357** June 8th, 2023, 06:27 PM

:*: Vulture'fang :*:

Oh boy,
He was sure sticking his neck out for this interaction. Inhaling a bit, he gave his ragged chest fur a couple of self reassuring licks before moving towards her den with a gift in tow. He had seen a multitude of other cats trying to butter up dear old Dawn, and all of them managed to make it out alive. So what was the difference with him? Ouch... Now that he thought about, he was almost ninety-nine percent sure that he pissed the leader off just a lil' bit. Was there evidence for this? Why yes of course. You could see the sanity drain from her eyes whenever he brought up her nickname. And honestly, he was sure it was more than the nickname... It was probably himself as a whole. This was quite flattering in his eyes, nothing got his twisted heart thumping more than someone suffering from his pestering.

Feeling the thoughts slip from mind, Vulture'fang made it to the entrance of the den. Any other cat would give a proper greeting, buuuuut.... He wasn't any other cat. Mulling over a little greeting wasn't him, so the first thing that popped into his head was uttered almost instantly. "Knock, knock Snips! Guess who just showed up?" chuckling to himself, the burly tom cleared his throat before continuing. "I was wondering if you'd want to have a quick little chit-chat between the two of us? That is if you don't mind..." Yup, that was hella smooth. He'd give that introduction a ten of ten. Who needed formal greetings when you had his flattering charm?

// @Undertaker \\
( ack... Ik I asked u like month ago if vulture could stop by... But life got chaotic, so I hope this isn't a problem posting w/ him now )

**c1nder** · #**358** June 8th, 2023, 10:13 PM

＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚　 Deadfeather of Shadowclan - Schzoid Personality Disorder - Non-binary (afab) - Gray with black markings and near red, amber eyes.　˚*• ̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙

[Aww dawn warming up to Deadfeather? How sweet]

Tail curled as they sat awaiting the invite, ready to grab the skull and large rabbit. There it was, the invite to enter. It wasn't harsh as harsh as it normally was, but it wasn't inviting either. Recollecting the prey and the skull, they padded into the den, placing the gifts down.

"I brought a large Rabbit for the Queen and a Skull, which I can only imagine is a fox by the shape of it."

The skull was mainly intact, yellowed from age and a few teeth missing, but it was otherwise in pristine condition. The rabbit was large and was caught a little ways away from the Windclan Border, they were lucky they caught it for the Queen of the Shadows.

[ @Undertaker - Dawnstar]

**Pitou** · #**359** June 12th, 2023, 01:30 AM

**Elmshadow**

@Undertaker [So both of these have to do with Longclaw, as it happens, so I'm not sure how much you care to go into Elmshadow's report, but here it is, obviously taking place decently before Cougarivy's. Elmshadow's report takes place before Dawnstar lifted her buddy system rule]

As soon as the warrior had left this den with orders to stay in camp until otherwise told, the dark tom made his way up to the leader's den. He padded to the entrance and called out, "Dawnstar, may I enter?"

After awaiting a response, he took a step forward and got quickly into his report, "Longclaw ended up in my den after he decided to attack a fox out by the Thunderclan border. It took some questioning to get out of him the exact story but it seems he considered the fox sick so he decided to attack by himself. He had no answer for why he was out in the territory by himself. I have told him to remain in camp until he hears otherwise from one of us."

**Cougarivy**

Moving through the camp entrance, the enforcer commander pranced easily up to the mouth of Dawnstar's den and sat down, her black tail twitching thoughtlessly behind her as her chin lifted, "Oh Dawnstar! I found another weird warrior." She waited for the massive shadow queen's response and admittance before she got into the rest of it. Moving joltingly, Cougarivy thought back through the entire strange encounter, happening upon Longclaw after he'd eaten prey he'd caught in their territory and then his aggressive proclamation of leaving but that had still been followed by some nonsense about thinking he wouldn't be accepted and then running off. "I found Longclaw in the territory smelling of Riverclan. He'd just eaten some freshkill and then told me to tell you that he's out of here," she shrugged. "He ended up running off. Marshhowl and Silentstorm were there and I think making sure he makes it to the border."

***Undertaker*** · #**360** June 12th, 2023, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Levi 99

When the Shadowclan leader didn’t get too angry with Shadefrost’s attempt to cheer her, he gave a silent sigh of sweet relief, while gaining some well-needed confidence in the process. ”Well I don’t know about anyone else, but I for one like seeing you happy and I have a good feeling that a majority of the cats in the clan feel the same way. Besides, your our leader, which means your practically the mother of Shadowclan. Why wouldn’t we want you to be happy? He asked with a smile. Briefly, the thought of him doing more things like this came to mind, before being shooed away by Dawnstar’s next question. He closed his eyes and gave a quick shake of his head, “Sorry Ma’am.” Said the warrior, before continuing in a blunt manner, “I didn’t feel that I had the authority to go onto another clan’s territory without your permission nor did I want to either.” And that was probably the best call in Shadefrost’s opinion, the chances of him finding much out about the corps were slim to none, and he’d most likely have to get most of the Information from Pepperleaf who was the only one in his knowledge that knew the deceased queen. The blue-eyed tom’s train of thought was broken, yet again by his leader's next words. ”A good enough reason.” The warrior let the words echo in his head for a few seconds to register the command, then his eyes lit up and he answered with an, ”Actually, not just Thunderclan. Windclan too. If we send a small, but capable group into both territories we might just be able to push our borders on two separate fronts. That means access to more prey, healing herbs, and resources in general. Plus an opportunity to identify any possible weaknesses to exploit later on. And I know that you might be thinking about the downside to all of this. But on the somewhat off chance that an enemy patrol catches us, we can always scrap the take-over idea and lie, saying that we were worried about them and that we came to see if everything was alright. I mean like they probably wouldn’t believe us, so maybe don’t do that, but you get it.”

Dawnstar's eyes roll at the mention of being happy. Dawnstar was pretty certain she's never been truly happy in her entire existence. Sure, she's managed to make herself think she was happy, but she was dead certain she's never felt true bliss. It was an emotion that eluded her much like love. She knew she was able to care, show affection, and even worry, but in the long run, she felt like she was incapable of really loving anything. At this point in her life, she wasn't even sure if what she felt was right or real besides her anger. Had she just fooled herself into mimicking emotions to seem 'normal'?

Shadefrost's next words further sent the leader into a downward spiral of doubt and self-reflection. A mother of ShadowClan? Ha! That was hilarious, she liked the ring it had, yet that was about it. She was no mother, not really, not even to her adopted kin. Dawnstar had seen how regular mothers acted around their kits and had watched real families interact, Dawnstar wasn't like them, couldn't be like them. She was too selfish and too shattered to be a 'real' mother. Shadefrost clearly didn't understand what he was talking about with the clan wanting her happy. He seemed to have some strange views, the innocence he portrayed was amusing.

She remained silent, pleased when he changed the topic better something she could focus on. Dawnstar frowned deeply after learning that the body hadn't been moved, or at least that is what it sounded like to her. Though she appreciated him being careful about the borders, the idea that a dead body was laying there attracting predators was upsetting. She'd swing by the border later to see if it was moved or not. Dawnstar's had enough trouble with the predators in her territory without bodies attracting more.

After Shadefrost explain his reasonings to her, the Queen shut her eyes in thought for a moment. In all honesty, it wasn't a bad plan of action and she could see he was making some valid points, but he seemed to be forgetting about some more important details.

"Besides the risks, you're overreaching. You seem to have forgotten that we are one clan, no matter how strong everyone might believe we are, testing two clans at the same time will have devasting repercussions. They will fight at some point in time, and no matter how ready we may be, taking on both WindClan and ThunderClan will end in disaster, hence why I've no interest in pushing WindClan's border. Not to mention, I don't see any reason to antagonize the bunnies." Dawnstar wasn't fond of the 'let's beat them while they're down' mentality unless she had a valid reason behind it. Even then she didn't like it, real strength was proven when you were on equal grounds. What point was there to kick a kitten when it was already down?

She had already settled her grudge against WindClan, and aside from smaller mishaps, nothing they've done has warranted her complete ire yet. Why should she waste resources and catpower just to steal from them? "I'm not going to beat on WindClan just because they've been dealing with a fire. The other clans are already running around calling us bullies, not that that matters, but the thought of proving them right disgusts me." Dawnstar growled in disdain. "Taking from WindClan for greed's sake is not something I'll allow. ThunderClan had a debt that they must pay, leave WindClan out of your schemes."

So many visitors! She supposed if she didn't want to receive them she should have been out of camp. Dawnstar paused in her blank staring at a wall, lost in thought, and turned her attention to the mouth of her den while slowly working out who was calling for her. "Enter." The Queen replied after surmising it was just Nighthound.

She was hoping this had to do with the guards she had told him to take control of. The leader wanted to see how he worked with the rest of her Enforcers, Larkfire in particular, since unlike the other warriors, Larkfire had been promoted to a higher rank immediately and so most likely wasn't used to taking orders from other warriors. Dawnstar was still trying to figure out replacement ranks and a deputy, those that step up and prove they could be of aid to her would get their dues.

"What is it?" The humongous feline arched her back while yawning her question. She took to grooming the scars etched into her face while waiting to hear a reply.

[Nope, you're good]
NOOOOO! WHYYYY! The Clan leader finished cleaning out some gunk in between her claws and was moving onto one of her hind paws when she heard the paw steps. She hadn't stopped her grooming until her nose twitched, picking up the scent and her tattered ears swerved in the direction of the voice. Her head snaps in the same direction and her eyes follow, presenting one of the last cats she wanted to interact with today. Vulturefang.

There was nothing in particular about the tom that annoyed her, it was everything, his very being. His existence! He aggravated her, but not in the sense that she wanted to straight up murder him. More like she wanted to box his ears in and stuff his tail in his mouth to shut him up, so basically he remained her of Grimhound in all the worst way. At the same time, he was somewhat refreshing to be around and seemed to be well aware that he tottered between being a pest and being dead. It was a line that not many cats could walk between.

"Go jump in a river." The leader spat back in reply to his oh-so-charming question. Sadly, Vulturefang had proven himself after finishing his training and had already begun training one of their apprentices, so it wasn't like he hadn't shown he could be useful. The fact that he was literally one of the very very select few former outsiders to remain and use what he had been offered to make something of himself was impressive in its own way.

"Why are you bugging me?" She asked a second later. Dawnstar was still super annoyed that he was in her presence, but duty demanded she tends to her clanmates, even the ones whose tongues she'd liked to tear out. Hated that nickname almost as much as she hated Slytiger's nickname for her.

[Sure, if you want call it warming up.]
It wasn't a pelt this time? Dawnstar observed Deadfeather carrying a skull and a bunny. They really liked giving her gifts, didn't they? Dawnstar was wondering if they were just trying to get into her good graces, or if they just genuinely going out and finding stuff to give her. She's heard that there are some weird generous cats out there. Whatever the reason, she'd take them, although she'd remember they were given, when push came to shove, it didn't matter how many gifts one gave her she'd still kill'em or hurt'em if she felt like she had a reason to.

Cats seemed to simply forget that. She was superficial but not that superficial. Rising, the she-cat dips her head to wrap her fangs around the bone, digging into the empty socket holes and picking it up with some awkwardness. She pulls the skull back so it sits next to the fox tail she was gifted from Mirehound, and the vulture skull her late kit had given her so long ago. Her pelt collection was getting big again, it might be a good idea to take some of them to the outskirts.

"What's the rabbit for? Am I supposed to skin it?" The feline asked, returning to stand in front of Deadfeather with a curious glint of her golden pools. No one brought her prey unless they wanted her to skin it, but she was pretty sure that Deadfeather knew how to skin to some extent considering that they had given her a pelt before.

[Replying to these is optional, if they don't have anything else to add.]

Yea, a new report about an idiot is just what she wanted to hear. Dawnstar glowered at Elmshadow after hearing about Longclaw. He had clearly broken her rule, but at the same time, it sounded like he got his ass kicked by a fox. She was not pleased to hear that Elmshadow was wasting herbs on an idiot, though. "I figure out what to do with him after he's patched up, don't give him any poppy seeds, and use as the minimum amount of herbs on him as possible. If he wants to be stupid and disobey orders, then he can suffer for it." Dawnstar replied snappily. Exile and execution seemed too extreme maybe a demotion would do.
________

Greeeeeat. The scarred feline looked over to Cougarivy as she came prancing in like the looney that she was. "Weird? What do you mean weird?" Dawnstar questioned and then regretted it a second later. If Cougarivy, who was a weirdo herself, was saying someone was weird then that had to be some serious craziness.

"Never mind, don't answer that." She sighs as soon as she heard the name Longclaw. The explanation that followed was indeed odd, but also kind of relieving, since that cat would no longer be her problem. "Okay, so he was with RiverClan and trespassing or..." She trails off trying to figure out what the hell that cat was doing but then decided it really wasn't worth her brain cells. "You know what, I don't care so long as he's gone. I'll inform the clan about the traitor and make sure that everyone knows that he's to be killed if he's seen around here."