A Custom Clangen Challenge

🩷(Clanwide)- Do you have any intersex cats in your Clan? Tell me about them!

❤️(Clanwide)- Do you have any trans cats in your Clan? Tell me about them!

🧡(Clanwide)- Who in the Clan has the most interesting (relationship with) gender? Whether that be xenogenders or something else.

💛(Clanwide)- Are there any queer relationships in your Clan? Describe them!

💚(Clanwide)- Are there any polyamorous cats in your Clan? Infodump about them!

🩵(Clanwide)- Has any cat in the Clan faced cruelty for being queer, trans, or intersex? How did they deal with it?

💙(Character specific)- What is this character's identity labels, if they use any at all?

💜(Character specific)- Is this character open and proud about their true self, or are they closeted? Or somewhere in between?

🖤(Character specific)- When did this character realize their identity? How did they initially feel about that realization?

🩶(Character specific)- Did this character use any other labels or terms before finding the right one(s) that truly fit? How many?

🤍(Blog owner)- How do you feel about people headcanoning your Clangen cats to be queer / trans / intersex etc?

Part 3- Nighthawkflicker 

A week after the reveal, Cowbirdsoar pulls her aside.  

He’s more fidgety than usual as he sits in front of her. “Hey, Nighthawkflicker.” He tries to keep his tone light, but she can feel the nervousness radiating from him.  

His nerves were infectious. She tries to shake them off, and keep her tone level. But the words come out sharp. “What do you need?”  

He dips his ears back.  

She quickly mutters an apology. “How can I help?” She tried, softening her voice.  

His ears raise a little, but the tension still lingers. “I need a favor.” He pauses to collect himself. “I have to go gather some more moss and... I was wondering if you could watch the kits?”  

Nighthawkflicker blinks, then smiles.  The kits had been sort of an open secret for the clan. Not really a secret, but they rarely got to leave the heale’rs den. When he left, normally Brambleclash would watch them. But now... the grey molly purrs a little. He trusts me to watch his kits! Thank you, Starclan.  

“Of course, you can count on me.” She dips her head formally.   Cowbirdsoar responds with a similar gesture. He curls his tail around his leg. “I... guess I will be off then.” He turns and heads for the cave entrance.   She could see Brambleclash put her tail on him. She leaned against his ear, probably to soothe him. Then, they left.

Nighthawkflicker takes a deep breath to compose herself. I’m a trusted cat for the healer, for Cowbirdsoar! Focus Nighthawk, you need to calm down, not get more riled up.  

She exhales and pushes away her thoughts. She could celebrate later. For now, the kits needed her.  

The healer’s den was lively. Rhubarbkit was running around like a startled squirrel. 

“What’s going on?” Nighthawkflicker asks in her most authoritative voice.  

Rhubarbkit ignores her. She sighs and places her paw in front of the brown kit, stopping her in her path.  

“What gives?” The younger molly pouts at her.  

“I’m trying to figure out what’s going on.” 

“I’m hunting for a beetle!” She looks up and gasps with excitement. “Hold me up, so I can get it!”  

I could easily lift her, but what would Cowbirdsoar think? She shook her head. Instead, she sat on her haunches and rose up. She carefully knocks down the beetle, right onto Rhubarbkit.  

The kit squeals and carefully grabs it in her mouth. She runs over to her sister, who had buried herself under their nest. “Plumekit!”   The white molly just pushes her face further into the moss. Rhubarbkit, apparently not one to take no, lifts the moss up. Nighthawkflicker opens her mouth to reprimand her.  

But Plumekit beats her to it. She swats at her sister, dropping the beetle to the ground. Rhubarbkit lets out a gasp, the beetle’s leg still in her mouth. She gawks at her sleeping sister. Plumekit doesn’t even notice as Rhubarbkit gingerly lifts the beetle and walks out of the den.  

Nighthawkflicker glances back at Plumekit, before following Rhubarbkit out. She watches the kit carry the injured beetle right to the cave entrance, pushing it gently out. “Be safe.” She blows on it and it skitters out. 

Such a sweet kit. Nighthawkflicker sits down beside her, she places her tail on her back. “I’m sure the beetle will be alright.”  

Rhubarbkit paws at the floor. “Just... wish we kept it.”  

Ah. The grey molly smiles. “Well, we may not be able to keep that beetle, but I can make a pretty good moss beetle.”  

The younger molly looks up at her. “Really?” 

“Really.”  

Part 2- Nighthawkflicker 

Telling us about Ivyclan before we went to sleep was the worst possible decision Cowbirdsoar could have made. Nighthawkflicker tiredly turns over. No matter the position she took, Ivyclan would not leave her brain.  

What is life like for them now? How many did they lose? Did they even lose anyone? The questions swarm her like wasps. She tries to swat them away, but she only hits herself. She bats her tail against the stone.  

Lying here is getting me nowhere. Might as well take a walk or something. She rose to her paws. In the old days, she would wander to the training stones and practice whatever Eggstar had last taught her. Now... Now she just settles for stepping outside of the cave.  

The late-night air hits her like a badger. She shivers and tries to fluff up her pelt. The cave was cold, but this was unnatural.  

Madtomtuft’s voice cut through the air. “If you think this is bad, you should try going for a swim.”  

Nighthawkflicker glances around for her clanmate. I didn’t see anyone when I came out. And she’s not behind me. She double-checks just in case.  

Madtomtuft let out a purr of amusement, hopping down next to her.  

“For a cat named Nighthawk, you are not very good at looking at the skies.” She teases, her whiskers twitching with amusement.  

The gray tabby rolls her eyes. “And for a cat named Madtom...” She screws up her face, “you swim bad.”  

The brown molly lifts an eyebrow. “Did you forget what a madtom was?”  

Nighthawkflicker’s ears burn. Hoping to avoid further embarrassment, she shifts the conversation. “So, what are you doing out this late?”  

Madtomtuft deflates. “I... just needed to think,” She admits.  

“Well,” The tabby puts her paw on her friend's, “you aren’t alone there.” She offers a smile. 

Her denmate buries into her side. “I just... I don’t know how to feel,” she whispers. “I feel jealous and excited and... so confused.”  

Nighthawkflicker nods along. “I get it... as much as it sickens me, I’m jealous too.” She looks away. “Their leader survived, other cats survived... and I just think...” 

“Why not our clanmates?” Madtomtuft finishes for her.  

The tabby sighs. “Yeah.” She sits down, wrapping her tail around herself. “But I’m also... happy.” 

“Happy?” 

“Sounds weird, I know.” Nighthawkflicker grins awkwardly. “But another clan, that means we aren’t alone. It means that... we have a real chance.” 

Madtomtuft did not say anything after that. But the words seem to have done their job, as relief overtook her expression. She sits next to Nighthawkflicker and buries her head in.  

The mollies spent the next few nights sharing their fears and making plans to try to meet the other Ivyclan cats. There were still some mixed emotions, but they at least had another cat to share them with.  

So

It was New Leaf when it came. Every cat could feel it, a deep, dark hum beneath our skins.

We just didn't know what it meant back then.

Everything seemed fine for the first days, then the sickness started to show itself. Indigospike came into my den. They said that their stomach was hurting, that they were so hungry. I tried to help them, I gave them prey and travelers herbs to suppress their appetite. But they seemed to stay hungry.

The rest followed. They weren't hungry, each cat seemed to have their own issue. But they all deteriorated the same. They became angry, they lashed out.

They weren't our clanmates anymore.

There were only two other cats who seemed unaffected, Nighthawkpaw and Madtompaw. I took both of them and in the early dawn, we ran.

Nighthawkpaw found us a hidden crevase protected from the sea, predators, and...

What matters is we're safe.

I'm looking to represent more underrepresented conditions within my comic and I would love some input on what you guys would like included. The characters in Rooted are fleshed out already, so they will not fall under the negative trope of only existing as the condition and not an individual.

Currently, I am doing research on having a character with pica; if you have a condition you'd want 'seen' please comment or dm, perhaps with a link to resources(s) if willing!

Some I think could be interesting are Albinism

Cat guide

Clinical human guide

Lived experience

Albinism rights/awareness site

Deafness/ hearing loss

Pet specific

cat specific/ communication concerns

Cultural

Social/ lived experience

National deaf center

Better Bones disability guide

And this one is more an illness that can be chronic, Feline herpes (my cat has it, she got it from her mom)

Clinical cat guide

Cowbirdsoar 

Part 1 

Cowbirdsoar lays in the healer's den, basking in the cool morning air. His- the kits lay against his side. He curls his tail over them.  

Last moon, he tried to get them to sleep on their own. He and Madtomtuft cleaned and added moss to the apprentice’s den. But after spending the night in it, they refused to return. No bribery or insistence would change their minds.  

Cowbirdsoar knew he could force the issue, but that would do them no good. So, instead he chose to accommodate them. He brought the moss from the apprentice den and added it to his own nest.  

That made the comfortable nest the three of them lay in now. He yawns into the empty air and stretches. Rhubarbkit squeaks against him, while Plumekit just curls further in on herself.  

He looks down at them, his golden eyes shining. They are mine... Stars it is wrong, but they are my family. He looks at the cave roof and imagines Starclan looking down at him. He imagines the face of his mentor, the one he had made his oath to. He can see her scowling at him. I promise I am still loyal, He says to the visage. I will never take a mate, never have kits. But let me have this selfishness.  

The visage stares through him, it says nothing, but a lightness creeps into his heart. He rests his head against his kits.  

“Are you up yet?” Madtomtuft calls from the entrance. He narrows his eyes at his niece, making a shushing motion with his tail. She covers her mouth and backs away.