#skipneedle

[elementclangen]

Moon 297-Leaf-bare

Creekstar (151) is feeling her age.  She’s starting to get more confused about things that used to come easily to her, and Dawnfreckle (81) is having to step up more.  However, Creekstar is still feeling up to giving some apprentices their warrior names.  Copperpaw (13) has always had a penchant for getting into (and starting) trouble, which has almost made Creekstar hold back from making her a warrior.  However, Creekstar can tell that Copperpaw’s been trying really hard lately to make up for it.  She feels it would be cruel to make her wait any longer and gives her the warrior name of Copperheart in honor of her enthusiasm.  Boulderpaw (13) also gets her warrior name of Boulderflood in honor of her observance and the way she saved Crouchpaw (8) from the flood.  Basaltpaw’s siblings are not fans of the constant reminder of how their brother died.  Brightmouse (72) is also feeling frustrated with Creekstar.  She feels like she should have made Bluestripe (72) deputy instead of Dawnfreckle, to better honor Skipneedle.  Boulderflood decides to help out the medicine cats for the day and grows some herbs for them.  Lakepelt (105) is grateful.  It reminds her a bit of working with Archdapple, though, which is a little bittersweet.  Kestrelcreek (86) has announced that she is, once again, expecting kits.  Brightmouse is excited to have kits of her own, this time.  Although Kestrelcreek is feeling a little lonely and wonders if anyone would notice if she disappeared.  Almondback (68) and Brightmouse reassure her that they would. Skypaw (9) is still feeling like an outsider in the Clan.  She overhears Copperheart spreading a rumor about her and her littermates and jumps in surprise when Rimepaw (8) sneaks up on her bad side.  She’s sure she did that on purpose.  Additionally, Echoarch (15) was finally able to make contact with Echomoor, so that Echomoor could tell him what really happened to Auburnpaw when they were apprentices.  Echoarch is horrified to hear about the traumatic event and does his best to comfort Echomoor.  He also, with Echomoor’s permission, tells Creekstar and Downgaze (78) the truth about what had happened.  Downgaze is shocked to learn these things he didn’t know about two of his littermates.  He wonders what else he doesn’t know about his family members.  He doesn’t blame Echomoor; he just wishes that he had told them sooner.  Creekstar takes the news a little bit harder.  She wishes that Echomoor had felt comfortable enough to tell her what had happened and feels bad that there was anything she did that made him, Primcrest, and Smokefoot feel like they couldn’t trust her with the truth.  She wants to see him and tell her son how sorry she is.  Crouchpaw (8) confides in Alderflight (53) that her dreams have recently been filled with shadows and. . .images.  And a gray and white cat.  Alderflight doesn’t know the Clan lore about Yuccawillow, but does his best to comfort the young cat.  In the dark forest, Yuccawillow is watching for her next victim.

Healer’s den:  Sweet Marmalade (claw wound), Embershell (whitecough), Kestrelcreek (pregnant), Skypaw (shivering)

New personalities: Boulderflood (nervous and a great mediator), Copperheart (troublesome, learner of lore, and a great mediator), Rimepaw (charismatic and interested in Clan history)

[elementclangen]

Moon 293-Greenleaf

The Clan had just settled into having a new deputy.  Skipneedle (68) was doing great and may even have become leader one day.  But then she was bitten by a snake while protecting Boulderpaw (9) and succumbed to the venom.  For the second time in 16 moons, Creekstar (147) must choose a new deputy.  It’s weird.  She had one deputy for most of her leadership.  But this cat will mark the fourth deputy she’s had total.  Because the star-blessed apprentices are too young, that leaves her to choose between Bluestripe (68) and Dawnfreckle (77).  In the end, she chooses. . .Dawnfreckle.  Bluestripe has not fully mentored an apprentice yet, and Creekstar hopes that she’ll get along better with her new deputy than she got along with Primcrest and Skipneedle.  She doesn’t even really mourn Skipneedle.  They didn’t get along as well as she had hoped they would.  Skipneedle’s death also means that the original fearsome fivesome is down to just the terrible two: Bluestripe and Brightmouse (68).  The sisters lean on each other, mourning the loss of another littermate.  Brightmouse may not have been on the best of terms with her sister, but she still misses the warmth she brought to her life.  Tanglechirp (40), being a part of Brightmouse’s family now, decides to try and cheer up his sister-in-law by going for an unauthorized walk out of camp.  Echopaw (11) has decided to gossip about Alderflight’s (49) past as a loner.  He wonders what he got up to.  Alderflight is ignoring said gossip. Following her mentor’s death, Boulderpaw has been re-apprenticed to Almondback (64).  Creekstar has noticed how much trouble Burdockpaw (9) has been getting into lately and how she hasn’t been working well with her mentor, Dawnfreckle.  She makes sure to check in on the apprentice and remind her that, as a star-blessed cat, the eyes of the Clan, both living and dead, are on her.   Longpaw (7), being the leader’s apprentice, feels like she should be the best at everything.  She tries to show off a complex fire slash for Cherviljumble (98), but messes it up so badly that Cherviljumble cringes. Greenrapid (49) is still struggling with maturity and tells jokes about a child (Troutkit-4).  Rimekit (4) has decided that she is tired of being stuck in camp and boldly, right in the middle of the day, walks out.  Almondback catches her and gently shoves her right back in with a gust of wind.

Healer’s den: Pebbletuft (heat exhaustion), Petalkit (claw wound), Greenrapid (grief stricken), Tanglechirp (fleas)

[elementclangen]

Moon 292-Greenleaf

Longpaw (6) has been made an apprentice!  And with Creekstar (146) as a mentor.  The leader hasn’t taken on an apprentice since Bluestripe (67) was an apprentice, but, with every other fire-blessed or dark-cursed cat in the Clan already having an apprentice, Creekstar felt she had no other choice.  She hopes she does a good job with him.  In a bit of a twist, Bluestripe and Tanglechirp (39)  have become mates!  It seems that Bluestripe actually found someone she liked.  The rejection club will not be getting a third member.  Perhaps part of why Bluestripe chose Tanglechirp is that he’s proving to be quite good with kits.  Crouchkit (3) always wants to be him in her and her sisters’ games and Troutkit (3) is trying very hard to get his attention.  By walking along an unstable log.  Great idea.  Meanwhile, Cavecatcher (50) really hopes that he’ll have an apprentice soon.  He’s hoping that Creekstar will let him train Rimekit (3).  He’s grown quite fond of the little cat.  Boulderpaw (8) is proving that she’s going to make a great warrior one day.  When Petalkit (4) was grabbed by a hawk, Boulderpaw cleverly used a combination of wind and bursts of fire shot at the bird to get it to drop Petalkit.  Her low power-level didn’t hold her back!  Creekstar is impressed with her.  Even though he’s crushing on Alderflight (48), Downgaze (73) still makes time for his mate and goes on a nice moonlit stroll with Sweet Marmalade (77).  However, trouble continues to brew among the terrible triad.  Skipneedle (67) is frustrated with how much time Brightmouse (67) is spending laying around camp (she’s actually keeping an eye on Kestrelcreek’s-81-kits for her).  Bluestripe is staying out of their drama.  Since Skipneedle is training her sister, Copperpaw (8)  has been spending some time with the deputy.  She really admires her.    Echomoor may also be trying to reach out to Emberpaw (10), because the apprentice had a very strange dream.  

Healer’s Den: Pebbletuft (heat exhaustion), Brightmouse (heat exhaustion), Petalkit (claw wound), Kestrelcreek (recovering from birth), Almondback (stomach ache)

New personalities: Echopaw (oblivious and constantly climbing), Copperpaw (troublesome, quick to make peace, and interested in Clan history), Troutkit (daring, never sits still, and oddly observant)

[elementclangen]

Moon 290-Newleaf

Whorlstorm’s kits have been made apprentices!  Burdockpaw (6) is apprenticed to Dawnfreckle (73), as he will do a good job of keeping an eye on the little trouble-maker.  Now that she can leave camp, the whole mountain is fair game!  The quieter Boulderpaw (6) has been apprenticed to Skipneedle (65).  Creekstar (144) feels like Skipneedle will help bring her out of her shell. And Copperpaw (6) has been apprenticed to Brightmouse (65), just like Brightmouse had hoped would not happen.  Copperpaw still makes sure to watch out for the remaining kits and brings some feathers back from patrol for them to play with.  On top of that good news, Creekstar has been having another good moon!  She really appreciates how often Lakepelt (98) has been checking in on her.  It’s been helpful.  Kestrelcreek (79) loves being a mom and is proud of how outgoing Rimekit (1) is.  When she and Troutkit (1) team up, though, chaos ensues.  Troutkit will create a small fire and the two of them will take turns jumping in and out of it.  Kestrelcreek does her best to catch them, but they’re good at doing it in secret.  Almondback (61) is also spending some time with his kits, and the other kits, in the nursery.  He takes some fresh-kill and eats it near Petalkit (2) to make sure he feels included. Despite a few rough patches over the past moons, the terrible triad still care deeply about each other.  They have inside jokes that only each other can understand.   Lakepelt, despite once being a newcomer to the Clan herself, is annoyed by some of the more recent cats to join the Clan.  She doesn’t feel like Cherviljumble (95) and Aries (56) understand how to be Clan cats and how to stay safe in the wild.  They’re just making more work for her!  Burdockpaw and Dawnfreckle are already clashing and get in a fight over the best way to do a hunter’s crouch.  On the other paw, Echopaw (8) and Bluestripe (65)  are getting along really well.  Creekstar sees how well Bluestripe is doing as a mentor and regrets not giving her an apprentice earlier.  Primcrest was right about her.  Meanwhile, Echopaw had a strange dream where there was a cat who looked like him telling him that ‘the truth must come out’.  What truth?  And who was that cat?

Healer’s den: Cherviljumble (dislocated joint), Kestrelcreek (recovering from birth), Downgaze (sprain), Aries (running nose)

[elementclangen]

Moon 287-Leaf-bare

After many moons of not having any kits, the nursery is full!  In addition to Whorlstorm’s (32) three kits, a ChaffinchClan queen leaves her litter with the Clan and Downgaze (68) and Sweet Marmalade (72) adopt them.  One of them, the sweet Hopkit (5), is water-blessed while the other two, who are both polite, are fire-blessed.  The she-kit is fittinginly named Emberkit (5) and the other is named Echokit (5), after Echomoor, Downgaze’s dead brother.  Additionally, Kestrelcreek (76) has announced that she is expecting kits!  Almondback (58) is excited.  And nervous.  He tries to set a good example for the younger cats in the Clan.   As a break from the business of Clan life, Kestrelcreek and Almondback have a nice little training session before Kestrelcreek moves to the nursery.  Almondback feels wild and free as he playfully pounces on Kestrelcreek.  He doesn’t know the last time he’s felt this light. However, all this good news is tempered by Whorlstorm’s death.  She couldn’t recover from giving birth and passed away, leaving her kits without their mother and Hatchswipe (32) the only survivor of Downgaze and Rootwing’s litter (look at that, more trauma in the Brightfalcon family).  Copperkit (3) misses cuddling with her mom and wants to learn more about what her mom was like as a kit.  Downgaze, who’s also in the nursery caring for his new kits, is glad to share what he remembers.  Hatchswipe has decided not to deal with her sister’s death and is instead sparring with Kestrelcreek.  She does make time to help care for her sister’s kits, though, and helps Boulderkit (3) pick burrs out of her fur.  Downgaze, having decided to help care for his orphaned grand-kits,  is feeling a little overwhelmed with six kits under his care and asks Sofanthiel (76) for some help.  She’s surprised, as she thought he had everything figured out, but helps out with the kits willingly.  It seems there may be a bit of a polycule brewing.  Downgaze is crushing on Alderflight (43) while his mate and Lakepelt (95) are crushing on each other.  Maybe he’ll have better luck than his great-grandparents? While Cavecatcher (45) is trying to be more mature, Greenrapid (43) is still acting like the young warrior she is.  She steps on Aries’ (53) foot and pretends not to notice.  Creekstar (141) just can’t seem to get along with her deputies.  First, she and Primcrest fell out, and now she’s fighting with Skipneedle (62).  Skipneedle feels like Creekstar needs to step down and/or take a break.  She’s been sick/grieving for moons and Skipneedle thinks a break would really help with her mental health.  But Creekstar is determined to serve her Clan until StarClan takes her.  

Healer’s den: Creekstar (whitecough), Pebbletuft (claw wound), Sweet Marmalade (whitecough), Brightmouse (mangled tail), Tanglechirp (yellowcough), Kestrelcreek (pregnant), Downgaze (stomachache), Cavecatcher (stomachache)

New personalities: Copperkit (lonesome, quick to make peace, and interested in Clan history)

Meta: Echokit’s original name was Fawnkit, but he looks like Echomoor and was adopted by Downgaze (Echomoor’s brother).  Also, the parent listed for the litter is a male loner but the game says that a Chaffinchclan queen left her litter with ElementClan, so the loner is their bio dad. Additionally, I'm going to start noting when a cat gets a new personality or trait, so that's why Copperkit is mentioned.

[elementclangen]

Moon 286-Leaf-bare

Nettlestripe (55) is feeling a little left out.  It feels like a lot of the cats in the Clan are finding love, and he’s still alone.  He decides to confess his feelings to Bluestripe (61), but she rejects him.  He likes her more than she likes him.  In other Clan news, another powerless former kittypet has joined the Clan, who takes the name of Cherviljumble (91).  With the Clan growing again, even in leaf-bare, Creekstar (140) is feeling like things are looking up.  She playfully teases Dawnfreckle (69) for missing a catch and lets Lakepelt (94) know that, despite their recent troubles, she appreciates how hard she works as a medicine cat.  Downgaze (67) is spending some time with his grandkits.  He grew up in a family of dark-cursed cats, so it’s weird for him to realize that he has star-blessed relatives now.  He spends some time playing with Boulderkit (2).  Meanwhile, Skipneedle (61) feels like Burdockkit (2), who’s always been a little troublemaker, needs to learn how to listen to adults rather than just doing her own thing.  So she’s bossing the kit around.  Her sister, Brightmouse (61), also is not a fan of Whorlstorm’s (31) litter.  She can’t stand Copperkit (2) and hopes that she won’t have to mentor her.  Almondback (57) and Kestrelcreek (75) enjoy a moment of downtime together.  They talk about what they want from the rest of their lives and find that their goals align: they both want to keep the cats they care about safe.  Sweet Marmalade (71) had a run of luck with not being in the Healer’s den, but that has ended now that he has whitecough.  He also can’t seem to get along with both of his kits at once.  He’s made up with Whorlstorm but now Hatchswipe (31) is annoyed with him .  Cavecatcher (44) is trying to take on more of a mentoring role this moon.  He’s used to being one of the babies in the Clan, but that’s not really true anymore.  He talks with Creekstar about getting an apprentice one day and gives some advice to Copperkit.  Tanglechirp (33) doesn’t seem to realize that some of the things he does are offensive.  He takes a piece of prey that Greenrapid was eyeing and the two of them get in a fight.  He also told Lakepelt someone else’s secret. Oops. With Whorlstorm feeling a little sick after having kits, Skipneedle makes sure to check in on her and gives her the last piece of fresh-kill on the pile.  She’s sure that she can find some more.  Aries (52) is doing her best to be a good mediator and cheers up Alderflight after he has a small disagreement with Downgaze.  She also makes sure to get to know the younger members of the Clan and shares fresh-kill with Copperkit.  Kestrelcreek is getting closer to Brightmouse and asks her more about Frostblotch.  Brightmouse is glad to talk about her sister, as she feels like cats forget about her and instead focus on Archdapple.

Healer’s den: Sweet Marmalade (whitecough), Downgaze (yellowcough), Brightmouse (mangled tail), Whorlstorm (recovering from birth, infected), Pebbletuft (claw wound), Greenrapid (shivering)

Sofanthiel got a scar

Meta: I think that the conflict between Sweet Marmalade and his adoptive kits is technically Brightfalcon family drama. Downgaze’s kits are Graysong’s great-great grandchildren and Brightfalcon and Bushmask’s great-great-great grandchildren. Also, take two on the adoptive father family drama.

[elementclangen]

Moon 285-Leaf-bare

Alderflight (41) has recovered from his head damage, although not without a scar on his face.  He’s excited to finally have a chance to help out the Clan and go on patrols.  Meanwhile, Skipneedle (60) is starting to understand why Primcrest was not a fan of Creekstar (139).  She’s a bit paranoid, especially with the new star-blessed cats in the Clan.  Skipneedle finds it hard to get her work done.  Brightmouse (60) has decided that the best way for Hatchswipe (30) to move on from Treepelt is for her to get in a fight to distract her.  She starts an argument between Aries (51) and Hatchswipe and then watches the chaos unfold.   Additionally, Aries, who doesn’t feel like she’ll be much use as a warrior, has decided to become a mediator instead. Whorlstorm (30) is busy with her three kits in the nursery, between grooming them and making sure that Copperkit (1) doesn’t burn down the nursery.  Burdockkit (1) is enjoying causing trouble in the healer’s den by messing up the herbs Lakepelt (93) is storing.  Lakepelt doesn’t understand why she’s being so rude. Sofanthiel (74), being from outside the Clan and not used to relying on powered cats to survive, teaches Downgaze (66) a useful hunting technique while they’re in the healer’s den together.  While on a patrol, Kestrelcreek (74) and Brightmouse find a loner named Pebbletuft (18) that they bring back to camp.  She’s Earth-blessed, and, if she recovers from her claw-wound, will be able to help out Lakepelt in the Healer’s den

Healer’s den: Sofanthiel (mangled tail), Downgaze (yellowcough), Whorlstorm (recovering from birth), Pebbletuft (claw-wound)

[elementclangen]

Moon 284-Leaf-fall

Whorlstorm (29) has had her kits!  No one knows who their other parent is, but they suspect they were a powered cat because all of the kits have magic.  The first kit, Copperkit (0), is a lonesome little girl with a medium high strength fire-blessing.  Thank StarClan her mom’s water-blessing keeps her from burning down the nursery.  Her other two kits are both. . .Star-blessed.  Boulderkit (0) would also like to spend time alone and has relatively low strength magic.  Relative compared to her sister, that is, the troublemaking Burdockkit (0) who’s magic is even stronger than Archdapple’s was.  Between the two of them, it’s hard for anyone to get sleep with the nursery (and camp) always being so bright.  Whorlstorm is also tired of not being able to get to sleep and wishes that Burdockkit would figure out how to turn off her glow.  Even Lakepelt (92) is getting cranky and gives Boulderkit some bitter herbs on purpose.  On the other paw, Sofanthiel (73) likes the new kits and keeps a bit of Burdockkit’s fluff.  Hatchswipe (29) makes sure to spend some time with her nieces, although it does make her a little sad that she and Treepelt never had a chance to have kits of their own. Downgaze (65) and Alderflight (40) continue to get along well.  Alderflight is curious about why Creekstar (138) has been avoiding the nursery lately and not going to see her great grandkits.  Downgaze tells him the story of Yuccawillow and Creekstar’s grandparents.   Despite some tensions amidst the terrible triad lately, Bluestripe (59) is proud of how well her sister is doing as deputy.  It’s not a job she would have wanted and thinks that Skipneedle (59) is handling everything very well.   While on a patrol together, the terrible triad find a former kittypet named Aries (50) who joins the Clan.  She is water-blessed, but very weakly.

Healer’s den: Sofanthiel (mangled tail), Alderflight (head damage), Whorlstorm (recovering from birth), Sweet Marmalade (cracked pads), Hatchswipe (joint pain)

Meta: Copperkit's original game was Echokit, but I didn’t like naming her after Echomoor.  He was Whorlstorm’s uncle, but he died before Whorlstorm was born.  If Copperkit had been dark-cursed, I would have kept the name, though.

[elementclangen]

Moon 283-Leaf-fall

It turned out that Cragstem (34) could not beat redcough and died.  Well, at least the healers tried.  Sofanthiel (72) recovered from her whitecough only to immediately get her tail mangled by a dog.  Oof.  With Whorlstorm (28) pregnant, Creekstar (137) is keeping an eye out for her granddaughter.  She offers to groom a hard to reach place for her.  It feels weird for Creekstar to think that she'll be a great-grandmother soon.  And that means that her grandparents will be great great great grandparents.  Weird.  With Creekstar getting older, it’s looking more and more likely that Skipneedle (58) could be the next leader of ElementClan.  She wonders who would give her nine lives and hopes that she’d get to see her dead sisters again.  Downgaze (64) and Sweet Marmalade (68) spend some time in the Healer’s den with Alderflight (39).  Downgaze appreciates it when Alderflight tells him about a feather that had gotten stuck to his face. And purrs for a long time at one of Sweet Marmalade’s jokes.  While Cavecatcher (41) also enjoys spending time with Alderflight, Greenrapid (39) just thinks the former kittypet is annoying.  

Healer’s Den: Sofanthiel (mangled tail), Hatchswipe (joint pain, whitecough), Alderflight (head damage), Whorlstorm (pregnant)

[elementclangen]

Moon 282-Leaf-fall

The Healer’s den was almost empty! Creekstar (136) had finally begun to move on from Primcrest’s death, leaving Lakepelt (90) just caring for the injured Alderflight (38) and Greenrapid (38).  But then Hatchswipe (27) and Sofanthiel (71) got whitecough and the population in the Healer’s den doubled.  But in a spot of desperately needed news, Whorlstorm (27) has announced that she is expecting kits!  These will be the first kits born in the Clan since she herself was born.  Whorlstorm and Sweet Marmalade (67) have had a bit of a rough relationship lately, but they had a conversation that went well.  Maybe the birth of his grandkits will help even more.  Dawnfreckle (65) continues to not be a big fan of Alderflight and is jealous of his warm, long fur.  Even with weak fire magic, it’s hard to stay warm while out on patrols.  Although Brightmouse (57) does her best to regulate the camp’s temperature while she’s there.  Downgaze (63) still really enjoys spending time with Alderflight and hopes that, once he’s up to going on patrols, they are assigned to go out together.  Also, apparently, Alderflight is a very skilled fighter, because both Cavecatcher and Almondback want to compliment his technique. The terrible triad is still having a bit of trouble.  Skipneedle (57) is developing a bit of a crush on Almondback (53), which does not thrill Brightmouse, as Brightmouse has a crush on Almondback’s mate, Kestrelcreek (71).  Yeah.  Drama.  The loss of Archdapple and Skipneedle’s promotion to deputy seem to be hitting the sisters hard.  In the short time she’s been in the Clan, Sofanthiel has made herself well liked.  Almondback sees how considerate she is and Sweet Marmalade (67) notices that she’s really making an effort to help out around camp, despite being sick.  Despite being close in age, Greenrapid and Cavecatcher (40) have never been very close.  But now Greenrapid is starting to notice just how pretty Cavecatcher’s eyes are.   .  The Clan also welcomes another couple of kittypets!  Skipneedle, Sweet Marmalade, Cavecatcher, and Bluestripe (57) find a powerless former kittypet named Cragstem (33) who has redcough.  There’s a pretty good chance he won’t survive, but they take him back to Lakepelt anyways.  Dawnfreckle and Nettlestripe (51) also find a kittypet, named Tanglechirp (29), who joins the Clan.  In a bit of a surprise, he has magic!  A medium strength wind-blessing, which is much needed as Almondback is currently the only wind-blessed cat in the Clan.

Healer’s Den: Alderflight (head damage), Greenrapid (beak bite), Sofanthiel (whitecough), Hatchswipe (whitecough), Cragstem (redcough), Whorlstorm (pregnant)

[elementclangen]

Moon 281-Greenleaf

While Dawnfreckle (64) is feeling better after Primcrest’s death, Creekstar (135) is still struggling with it.  Maybe due to the fact that she wishes she’d had a chance to reconcile with her friend.  She wishes that she could visit her in StarClan. Downgaze (62) tries to comfort his mother and the two of them spend a long time talking with each other.  Meanwhile, Dawnfreckle decides to get to know the newest member of the Clan, Alderflight (37).  They talk about their goals and aspirations and find that they have. . .very little in common.  Dawnfreckle wants to act as a guide for the Clan, sort of like his mother was, but Alderflight feels like the Clan mostly needs to work on being a safer place for cats before it can have a young guide.  Downgaze, on the other paw, really likes Alderflight.  He admires the other cat from afar.  Sweet Marmalade (66) teases him about it.  Hatchswipe (26) continues to gain popularity in the Clan.  This moon, she’s been hanging out with Skipneedle (56) and Creekstar wants to get to know her better.  Hatchswipe has noticed that Whorlstorm (26) is feeling a little left out lately and takes some time to surprise her sister with a sparring session.  She ends up drenched but it’s worth it.  Sofanthiel  (70) likes no longer being the newest cat in the Clan and tries to show off a bit for Alderflight.  He doesn’t notice.  He’s mostly been sleeping a lot so Lakepelt (89) can heal his head injury.  Later, Sofanthiel proves that she has all the courage of a clanborn cat by confidently striding up to an intruding rogue and chasing him off with only her words.

Healer’s den: Alderflight (head damage), Creekstar (grief stricken), Greenrapid (beak bite)

Note: I updated the pinned post on this blog to include a link to the moons in chronological order to make it easier for any of you who would like to read the earlier moons. Thank you so much for reading and liking these posts!

[elementclangen]

Moon 278-Newleaf

The curse of the lesbians strikes again.  Treepelt (18) had dim memories of where she was born.  She knew she was from the twolegplace, and she remembered interacting with twolegs as a kit. So she decided to seek them out and left camp without telling anyone.  Not even her mate, Hatchswipe (23).  When Hatchswipe finds Treepelt’s empty nest the next morning, she and Skipneedle (53) set up a patrol to go find her.  Instead, they find Treepelt’s cooling body.  Hatchswipe mourns the loss of her mate and the many moons they should have had together.  Instead, they had each other as mates for only five moons.  Creekstar (132) comforts Hatchswipe in her grief.  Whorlstorm (23) watches and decides that Creekstar isn’t so bad after all.  Kestrelcreek (67) continues to be a good friend to Hatchswipe and checks in with her to make sure she’s doing all right.  Sweet Marmalade (63) has also started playing favorites with his kits.  He snuggles up against Hatchswipe, comforting her.  But he cannot stand being around Whorlstorm. Meanwhile, being proven hasn’t made Bluestripe (53) any less angsty.  Creekstar notices her sulking around camp again, spitefully declaring that she doesn’t need anyone else.  Lakepelt (86) checks in with Creekstar, still determined to help her leader find a treatment that works for her.  They have a nice long talk and feel like they understand each other better.  Skipneedle is still feeling a little unsure as deputy and wonders what the Clan thinks of her.  She knows her sisters support her, but what about everyone else?  Almondback (49) is a little paranoid after Treepelt went missing.  He counts every cat in the Clan, multiple times, to make sure that everyone is accounted for.

Healer’s den: Greenrapid (cat bite), Creekstar (grief stricken), Dawnfreckle (grief stricken), Whorlstorm (running nose)

Fun fact: In StarClan, Primcrest is having some well-deserved rest. A less fun fact: Treepelt x Hatchswipe is the fifth sapphic couple that had less time together than they should have. The others were Shadestar x Nightingaletree, Brightshard x Skydawn, Brightfalcon x Stormrush, and Shinebreak x Brightmouse. The curse of the lesbians indeed.

[elementclangen]

Moon 276-Newleaf

Newleaf has arrived, and maybe it will be a new start for the Clan.  Skipneedle (51) is still adjusting to her new role as deputy and is muttering to herself, running through the patrols she’s planning on sending out.  Gusts of wind stir up the flowers around her as she walks.  Skipneedle, with the loss of Archdapple (who was her favorite sister) is also lashing out at Bluestripe (51).  Brightmouse (51) challenges her to spar (far from camp so she doesn’t burn anything down) to work out some of her feelings. Kestrelcreek (65) reaches out to Hatchswipe (21), as they’ve both lost siblings recently.  They enjoy each other’s company. Despite her losses, Hatchswipe is very happy with her mate and purrs for a long time at one of Treepelt’s (16) lame jokes. Dawnfreckle (59) is dealing with his adoptive older brother’s death by. . .not dealing with it.  Instead, he’s flirting with cats who aren’t interested in him, giving Whorlstorm a pretty feather and complementing Brightmouse’s eyes.    Creekstar (130) is proud of how well her Clan is handling the loss.  They’re managing a big change very well and she promises to take care of the Clan with the rest of her lives.  Primcrest (118) is still not thrilled with how Creekstar’s been doing things.  Even though she’s no longer deputy, she comes up with a list of complaints for Creekstar.

Healer’s den: Lakepelt (greencough), Whorlstorm (broken bone), Hatchswipe (mangled leg)

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Moon 275-Leaf-bare

After serving the Clan as deputy since she was only 23 moons old, Primcrest (117) has decided to retire from the position and move to the elder’s den.  She and Creekstar (129) have been through a lot together, but Primcrest doesn’t like how her leader and former friend has changed.  She doesn’t feel like she is the best fit for deputy anymore.  Creekstar respects her decision and the Clan is excited to dote on their hard working former deputy.  But that means that Creekstar must choose a new deputy, for the first time in almost 100 moons.  None of the cats alive (other than her) have ever had a deputy that was not Primcrest.  It will be a hard adjustment.  Stonetuft (14) is too young to take on the role, so she’s left to choose between Dawnfreckle (58), Archdapple (50), and Skipneedle (50). Bluestripe (50), isn’t an option as she’s not proven yet. Creekstar lands on Skipneedle.  Despite her reservations about having a lot of dark-cursed cats in the Clan, it feels right to have two dark-cursed cats at ElementClan’s head.  And Skipneedle, despite being younger, is a bit more mature than Dawnfreckle.  It’s a proud and celebratory moment for the Clan.  However, the mood is dampened when, a quarter moon later, a gang of rogues attacks the camp.  Rubbleheart (71) and Tumbleswoop (64) are on guard duty together.  They’re the first casualties.  The rogues seemed to know what they were doing and headed straight for the Healer’s den.  Hopedawn (64) and Archdapple, who were both too ill to fight, were killed before Hollypaw (14) formed a wall of thorns around the other cats in the den.  But the rogues killed him too.  Stonetuft saw his brother fall and lunged into battle, but even the might of a star-blessed cat wasn’t enough to save him and he, too, died.  Rootwing (42), despite being a mediator, did his best to fight off the rogues.  But he couldn’t do enough and he was killed, alongside Lilacdrizzle (42).  The rogues went for Brightmouse (50) next, seeing that she was the most powerful cat in the Clan, but a grieving Bluestripe leaped in front of her sister and drained the life from her attackers, earning her the proven status.  By the end of the battle, ElementClan won, but not without also losing Hyacinthstripe (20) and Blizzardback (38).  Creekstar wonders what she is doing wrong.  The Clan has known so much loss under her.  How can she fix it?  Should she just give up, and retire like Primcrest did?  Why must her Clan suffer?  Skipneedle, Brightmouse, and Bluestripe are back down to being the terrible triad instead of the fearsome foursome.  They managed without Archdapple when she was captured by twolegs, but there was the hope that she would return.  Now, she’s gone for good.  Skipneedle helps Primcrest bury Archdapple, carrying her sister’s body even as her weak leg threatens to give out.  Kestrelcreek (64) mourns the loss of the rest of her siblings and hopes that Tumbleswoop and Hopedawn are safe and happy in StarClan, reunited with their mother and sisters.  Hatchswipe (20) and Whorlstorm (20) mourn their father and brother, staying up all night at their vigils.  Primcrest curls around Dawnfreckle, glad that at least one of her sons is still alive.  She tells a story about how she and Rubbleheart bonded at his vigil, laughing through her tears.  She’ll miss him, but is glad that he gets to be with Cypressbadger.

Healer’s den: Lakepelt (greencough), Cavecatcher (whitecough), Whorlstorm (broken bone), Hatchswipe (mangled leg), Dawnfreckle (shock)

[elementclangen]

Moon 268-Greenleaf

Hyacinthpaw (13) and Hatchpaw (13) have both been made warriors!  Hyacinthpaw is now Hyacinthstripe, in honor of his drive.  During the ceremony, his eyes gleam as he stares up at Creekstar (122).  He’s determined to be up there one day and serve the Clan as best he can until then.  Hatchpaw is now Hatchswipe, in honor of her loyalty.  Despite not being very involved in their lives, Rootwing is proud of his children.  Speaking of children, with Vaxxstreak (154) injured in the medicine den and Creekstar herself getting older, she decides to make some time to spend with Spotfoot (49)  Her son has become so cranky-she just wants to tell him to lighten up!  He refrains from mentioning that she was the one who needed to lighten up when he was young.  Rubbleheart (64) loves spending time with Tumbleswoop (57) and feels most like himself arond him.  However, Tumbleswoop is ready to have kits and Rubbleheart wants to wait a bit.  They should settle into their relationship first, right?  Meanwhile, Hopedawn (57) decides that it can’t hurt for her and Lakepelt (76) to freshen up on some battle moves.  And she compliments Lakepelt the whole time they’re training.  Dawnfreckle (51) and Spotfoot are also doing some training.  Dawnfreckle’s supposed to be showing Spotfoot a cool battle move but messes it up so badly that Spotfoot cringes.  Nettlestripe (37) spends some time with Almondback (39) and Brightmouse (43) and complains about how Skipneedle rolled her eyes after he asked for help.  Brightmouse laughs, mostly at him.  Nettlestripe and Brightmouse decide to go out on a patrol together and are ambushed by rogues.  They easily drive the group off using their knowledge of the rocky terrain and Brightmouse and Nettlestripe’s fire-blessings to scare them off.  Treepaw (8) really looks up to her mentor, Greenrapid (24), so she is surprised when Greenrapid asks for help.  Treepaw doesn’t give her any useful answers or advice, though.  She just keeps asking ‘why?’  Archdapple (43) has seen a lot of cats complaining about how ‘soft’ and ‘stupid’ kittypets are, but she doesn’t agree.  She met quite a few kittypets during her wander and was impressed with their bravery.  Kittypets aren’t really that bad.  However, It turns out that Creekstar was right to want to get to know Spotfoot.  While on a patrol with Dawnfreckle, he is captured by twolegs. 

Healer’s Den: Rubbleheart (mangled tail), Sweet Marmalade (claw wound), Vaxxstreak (infected mangled tail), Greenrapid (sprain)

Hyacinthstripe gave Streamhiss nettles (accessory).

[elementclangen]

Moon 266-Newleaf

Creekstar (120) has known Vaxxstreak (152) for many moons.  They even have kits together.  For a while now, Creekstar has felt romantic interest growing between them, and now, she’s finally decided to act on it.  She confesses and the two become mates.  Creekstar is also glad to see that her mate is still good with kits.  Vaxxstreak checks in to make sure Hollykit (5) is alright and helps Stonekit (5) pick burrs out of his fur.  Downgaze (47) and Spotfoot (47) have no problems with it.  They’ve always known Vaxxstreak is their dad so it makes no difference for them that he and their mom are now officially together.  In other news, Treepaw (6) is now an apprentice with Greenrapid (22) as her mentor.  Hopefully Greenrapid’s childish nature will help Treepaw find her place in the Clan.  She’s a little lonesome.  She’s also trying to bat at her non-existent tail, which Hatchpaw (11) thinks is cute. Creekstar also worries that Greenrapid has been oddly quiet lately and hopes that having an apprentice will restore her good cheer.  Having a new mate himself and knowing the Clan’s history with mated cats, Downgaze asks Brightmouse (41) how she dealt with losing Shinebreak.  They have a nice long conversation and come out of it feeling like they understand each other better. On the other paw, Spotfoot is not a fan of Brightmouse and feels like she should do more useful things, like monitoring the camp’s temperature better.  The cavern is cold in the mornings.  Can’t she heat it up?  Bluestripe (41) takes a moment of downtime and basks in the sun with Skipneedle (41).  It’s nice that the fearsome foursome are still tight.  Meanwhile, Archdapple (41) isn’t getting along as well with Hatchpaw as she is with Hyacinthpaw (11). She tries to have a conversation with Hatchpaw, but it quickly peters out after neither of them speak up.  At least Whorlpaw (11) also likes her and promises to always look out for her.  Lakepelt (74) is impressed with the dedication Whorlpaw has shown with relearning how to hunt and fight with only one good ear.  She’s a hard-worker.  Hatchpaw and Treepaw are really enjoying being apprentices together.  Treepaw even gives her a twoleg trinket she finds.  Rootwing (33) seems to have realized that he’s not a great mediator and is doubting his decision to become one.  Rubbleheart (62) and Brightmouse go on a patrol together and get in a cold standoff with TulipClan.  Their alliance may be weakening.

Medicine den: Downgaze (broken bone), Greenrapid (broken bone), Primcrest (cracked pads)