Google dot com says the traditional gift for a four year anniversary is fruit & flowers?? How festive! In honor of our fourth year on the world wide web, we are requesting bouquets and fruit baskets or cash donations to the whip-a-rain-fund 😌 Oooooorrr we guess...alternatively...we can put on a big, month-long celebration featuring a warm-and-fuzzy event, scavenger hunt, a raffle drawing, and a freakin' prize wheel??! See the September Announcements for more information, and don't forget to check out the September Patrols too!
The Apostles is a warrior cats roleplay based in northern Wisconsin. On Lake Superior, the wild cats have made the Apostle Islands their home. It is on these islands - Rocky Island and South Twin Island - that the clan and tribe cats have lived in a peace and harmony that ebbs and flows with the tide.
But as the tides turn, so does the truce that binds them to one another; and as the water raises, a darkness follows, an evil that will end in bloodshed and violence.
The air was cold and dry, chilling Chicorypelt past his thin fur and into his core. It was far colder than he would ever imagine acceptable for young kits to be wandering out of camp, and yet, he knew that they could not delay much longer if he were to become a figure in his children's lives. He wanted to be their father in more than simply title. He wanted to be connected to them, and it was challenging to slink into a young cat's life when they had known many moons with only a mother for a parent.
He was determined to make this meeting a successful one. He would do all he could to forge something from nothing. If his kits wanted nothing to do with them, so it would be. But if he could be of any use to them, if any of his love might warm them in the leafbare cold, he would be there with all of his heart.
He waited hidden from LichenClan's camp behind a sturdy fallen stump, green eyes eager to spot pale ginger pelt amidst the darkness of the late evening forest. And, like a flickering ray of sunlight passing through the depths of the night, he spotted her, weaving through the cool ferns slowly yet surely. Usually, when their eyes locked, she would rush to meet him. They would envelop each other in a wealth of purs and greeting mews, but today was different. She was not alone - she shepherded her kits before her carefully.
Five moons old, they were already robust in size. What they lacked in experience they clearly made up for in width, taking after their father's wider build moreso than their tiny mother. They looked healthy, strong, and just like their mother. It left Chicorypelt's chest puffing with pride.
"Hello, my name's Chicorypelt! It is wonderful to meet you all," He let his purr rumble forth as they began to draw near. He looked to Daffodilshimmer, hardly able to keep from running to brush his cheek against hers. I should wait, I don't want to scare them. So he moved slowly and waited as patiently as he could. "What do they know? Do they know who I am?" He asked in a hushed tone, though not quiet enough not to be heard. He could hardly stand the fluttering of nerves and excitement in his stomach. Now to see how they react... oh StarClan, I hope they don't hate me.
[attr="class","sbox"]The air was brittle and cutting, but it did not do anything more than feed and further the spark inside Daffodilshimmer’s chest as she hustled and hurried her children along in the dark depths of the night. Berrykit hanging from her jaws, Bumblekit and Sunnykit scuttling along her right side and Daisykit to her left. She had roused them from their slumbering, had shuffled them all from the warmth of the Nursery and whispered pleadingly for them to be the most silent they could muster with all of their tiny hearts. The entire way her face had been plastered into an overjoyed, wide grin and she wanted to run all the way to her love, her heart skipping rapidly. She was a flurry of mania, wanting to urge her kits to move faster, lest they catch a cold, lest they be caught, lest Chicorypelt grow to think they were not coming. “Quickly dears,” She murmured around a mouthful of Berrykit’s furs. Her heart brimmed with pride. To see the four of them in their varying coats of caramel and tawny and gold and snow-white. Under the dappling of moonlight they shone silver and gold and she was joyous to think that Chicorypelt was to lay his emerald eyes upon them at last and see how they were such a blend of the two.
When they grew close enough, she placed Berrykit to the ground and gave them all a passing glance and when she felt assured that their furs looked well-kempt, she carefully nudged them forwards. Watching will tear-swelling eyes as they pushed past ferns and foliage to step into sight and into the full, rich light of the skies above. They basked in it. She lifted her head to meet the waiting tom’s gaze and she found it, the sight catching her and sending a fluttering her chest. She weaved gracefully around the cluster of tiny bodies and moved to place her head to Chicorypelt’s neck warmly. Her eyes were warm and flowing with love and light when she did lift her head. To his hushed words, her own came swiftly.
“They do not,” Daffodilshimmer bit her lip softly, pausing in midspeech to best think of how to put such a thing lightly. “Let me talk to them. When they are old enough to understand not to tell anyone, they will realize the truth.” And it was hard to say these words, hoping he would understand the need for such. She did not want to dampen the mood, but she was too worried her children would spoil her greatest and sole luxury by completely innocent accident.
And then she broke their embrace to stand before them and wave her tail in a most magnificent manner. “My lovelies, Chicorypelt is Mama’s very special friend,” she bent to nose Berrykit closer to the LichenClan tom’s paws. “He came all the way down from the stars to meet you all. So you should feel very special and be polite to him.” Sweeping pale paws drew the other three in closer and bent her head to whisper in pretend-hushed tones. “I suspect he is made from the moon’s very light, my dears, that’s why the moon looks less bright tonight. It’s lending him their glow.” Daffodilshimmer watched with shimmering delightful eyes as their tiny crowns tipped back to peer at the moon and determine if she were truthful in that it appeared less lustrous from where it lay above, cocooned in its blanket of stars. In the wake of their searching eyes, she shot Chicorypelt a hopeful glance and an even more adoring smile.
It was cold and his nose was starting to turn red. His mother had woken them in the middle of the night, needing a bit of extra force to wake up Bumblekit. He groggily got up, stirred by her promises and hushed words. The four kits moved in a line, heading out of camp. The sleepiness quickly faded as Bumblekit realized they were leaving camp! He had never seen the world beyond their little home. His eyes were big and wide as he tried to take in every last bit of the forest. He scanned the trees, looking up at the stars beyond. The scents, the sights! And who was that? He turned to look at the white tom his mother greeted lovingly. Mama has never looked happier. This must be a very special cat. Bumblekit stepped forward, the first out of his siblings to move. They all were transfixed by the pretty magical tom. Before their mother spoke, he piped up with his own words. "Hello!" Bumblekit said, his voice still squeaky. He puffed up his shoulders, trying to look fierce. "I'm Bumblekit. Who are you?"
Before he could say more, Daffodilshimmer swept him in with his other siblings. His disappointment was fleeting, as she told them about who this stranger was. Hanging onto her every word, Bumblekit looked at Chicorypelt and then up at the moon and back again. It was true! He did look like the moon who watched over them every night. Was it cold up there in the sky? Did other cats live up there?
"From the stars," Bumblekit said, completely awed. Turning to his mother, he tapped her side with his paws. "I wanna glow like he does! Can I visit the stars too?" soot,lightning, Storm@catalysta
The world outside of camp was cold and still, unwelcoming. With his nape tucked between his mother’s teeth, Berrykit observed it with wonderment and unwavering curiosity. If only it wasn’t night, and if only Daffodilshimmer had not bade them to stay silent and close. He did so wish to go tumbling through the trees and discover the new scents and sights that the forest teased him with in passing. Later. He promised himself. Mama will let me later.
The sight of another cat waiting for them through the underbrush sent a thrill coursing through him. Once his mother finally set him upon the ground he scrambled to his paws and bounded forward nose first, trying to glean what he could of the newcomer. “Who are you?” He demanded before Daffodilshimmer swept them all together. “Mama he smells funny.” And he did, nothing at all like any cat Berrykit had smelt before. Instead of wood and leaves and belonging, this tomcat smelt of cold stone and water and something foreign that Berrykit wasn’t sure he liked.
At his mother’s explanation, Berrykit turned back to regard the cat with an evaluating eye, his little tail held high behind him as he stepped forward. He glanced up to the moon quickly, and then back to meet Chicorypelt’s gleaming eyes. “I’m Berrykit,” he announced proudly “I’m the oldest.” He huffed and examined the pure white fur and green eyes before him. “You don’t look like you’re from the moon. You’re just a cat. Why don’t we ever see you in camp?” And he turned back to Daffodilshimmer with a meow. “Mama, why haven’t we met him before?” He puffed himself up and shouldered his siblings aside so that he stood in front of them, a rush of protectiveness causing him to stand tall and meet the stranger’s gaze.
Daffodilshimmer's touch was as light and as lovely as a thousand birdsongs. Chicorypelt drank in her scent and let it linger around his head like a cloud as she turned to address their quadruplets. Dreamily, he looked after her, and then to his newfound kin, taking each of them in with anticipation.
He understood her desires, of course. Them knowing him would cost her dearly should they ever whisper the truth to the wrong soul. Kittens were hardly known for their disgression. So he nodded and let her speak, gently accentuating her words with warm blinks and "Mhms."
The voice of his largest son was enough to melt his heart. "Hello," He purred back, holding back the thrill in his tone just enough. "I'm your mother's... very special friend." He glanced to Daffodilshimmer, starry-eyed. "One day, you might be able to visit me in the stars. But first, you have a lot of growing to do!" And LichenClan must change. A lot.
The next kitten to speak was another tom, soon to be declared the oldest. He shrugged a playful shrug. "Well, have you met anyone else from the moon? How do you know they don't look just like cats?" He asked, tail tip flitting back and forth before it found Daffodilshimmer's flank. It was magnetic - he could not keep himself away from her for long.
"I don't live in RedwoodClan camp," He responded, voice growing slower and more cautious. He turned to Daffodilshimmer, a question in his gaze - one he dare not utter. "There are many, many places one might find their den that are far from RedwoodClan. I," He smiled, whiskers twitching in a little laugh, "Just so happen to make my nest among the stars."
The kittens were eagerly lapping up her tale, woven in fantasy, and Chicorypelt and all of his charms. Nothing could ever go wrong here, nothing could ruin or wreck this wonderful moment and this brought a shining glow to Daffodilshimmer’s face. And as she stood there, drinking up the moment and savoring it and letting it become a memory she could look back on, it was as though he really were a moonlight-made cat. She felt dazzled, like she were meeting him for the first time all over again. Daffodilshimmer broke out into a loud, giddy purr as Berrykit proved himself to be ever the protector of his kin, peppering his father with questions. I wonder where he got that from, she thought amusedly, remembering oh so fondly the way Chicorypelt had done the same to her on the day they first met. A tail-tip grazed her flank and she moved to melt into the side of the LichenClan tom. She was amazed at how they fit together like two halves of the same whole.
“That’s right,” She added. “A nest in the stars, don’t you think that sounds wonderful, dear ? His nest is made of the softest, most cozy clouds.” It was important that they did not even leave any trace of realism to their tale. If any of the kits repeated this account, Daffodilshimmer knew it was imperative that it sounded like a dream, a mere kitten-made-up tale.
Never would Bumblekit forget this moment; the moment he spoke with a star cat. Though it felt like a dream, Bumblekit knew this had to be real. Not that the other kits would believe him though. But mom, she would remember this too. He looked up at the stars, shining bright in the night sky and then back to the stranger whose white pelt shone just the same. His eyes rounded, going wide.
"A nest in the stars," He echoed his mother's words. Spinning to his brother, Bumblekit pawed him, unable to contain his excitement. "He lives in the stars Berrykit! Can you believe that? The stars."
His words were full of excitement. The little kit trembled, unable to contain all the thoughts and feelings he had. Can we see him again? What does he feel like? What do they eat in the stars?
He turned back to his mother. She was leaning into the plush cloud-like fur of the tom. He decided she fit. Bumblekit didn't have the words for it, but he just knew they were meant to stand together, just like that. They were perfect. Could he be perfect too someday?
"I want a nest of clouds!" Bumblekit declared. "Can I live in the sky too? Can I come to stay in the stars with you?"
"Let's all go there! Let's all live in the stars together. Please Mom, can we please?"
