#dapplemuzzle

Kestrelcreek (132) has announced that she is expecting kits!  She’s excited to have new children, but Croucheye (54) is a little apprehensive about having new siblings, especially with her mother so old.  And after having lost all her other siblings.  She doesn’t know if she, or Kestrelcreek, can handle that loss again.  Meanwhile, Embershell (61) and Aries (109) are thinking about cats that died too soon.  Aries wishes that she could have spent more time with Copperheart, and Embershell hopes that Mistytooth is doing well in StarClan.  Mistytooth also feels like he was gone too soon, and wishes he were still alive.  Flailvalley (35) could use some support.  On a lighter note, Blizzardpaw (13) has been made a full healer!  He is now named Blizzardfur, in honor of his composure.  He’s a little bit proud of beating his sister to his full name.  Tansypaw (13) isn’t focused on that.  She’s checking up on her patients and making sure that Embershell is doing alright with the water in her lungs.  Hopcurl (61) has noticed that Ryeeagle (13) is always one of the first to volunteer for difficult tasks.  Xey wonder if he is trying to stumble onto an opportunity to prove himself.  He isn’t, really.  He just likes doing things.  There seems to be a bit of tension growing between Dapplemuzzle (40) and Bumble (120).  The healer overhears Dapplemuzzle telling jokes about her and the two get in a small argument about it.  Dawnstar (127) doesn’t notice.  He’s too busy imparting his wisdom on Sofanthiel (132).  He loves that she listens to him.  On patrol, Dapplemuzzle and Aspenthud (13) find a sick kittypet named Kimberlystrike (32) who they bring back to camp.  She has a medium high strength water-blessing. 

It seems that Dawnstar’s (121) positive manifestation worked because things are looking up for ElementClan.  Prey is running well for the first time in moons and Bumble (114) is finally healed, although he does have a scar from his broken jaw.  Blizzardpaw’s (7) strong earth-blessing came in handy for healing that.  Bumble is back to feeling like his old, troublesome self and starts an argument between Ryepaw (7) and Flailvalley (29).  Because having a dark-cursed and a very powerful water-blessed cat fighting is totally a good idea.  The two of them both have pretty good control over their magic, though, so nothing bad happens.  They both just get a little damp.  Ryepaw is pretty close to his mother and saves a piece of fresh-kill that he knows is Sofanthiel’s (126) favorite.  Blizzardpaw has known he was destined to be a healer ever since he was very young, but he can’t help but daydream about what being a warrior would have been like.  Especially a warrior in LionClan.  That would have been so cool.   It’s a little weird for Aspenpaw (7) being the only warrior apprentice out of his siblings, so he asks Hatchswipe (82) for advice.  He talks about how it doesn’t help that Flailvalley always looks so stressed.  It’s hard to trust anything he says.  Hatchswipe carefully doesn’t mention the fact that she was startled by an owl the previous night.  Dapplemuzzle (34) came into deputy-ship at a challenging time, but Hatchswipe is actually impressed with how well she’s doing.  Hatchswipe has served under five different deputies now, and Dapplemuzzle (34) is one of the best she’s had.  With Pebbletuft and Bluestripe gone, Aphidwhisker isn’t used to cats actually taking care of her, so she’s surprised when Hopcurl (55) is thoughtful.  She doesn’t really know how to respond to xem.

Healer’s den: Tansypaw (running nose), Aphidwhisker (running nose)

It’s now leaf-bare.  The only herbs in the store are two rosemary.  Bumble (98) is injured, leaving Pebbletuft (54) as the only working healer.  Things are not looking great.  Mitemask (22) feels like this will be a bad leaf-bare.  Something in his bones is telling him the worst is yet to come.  Dawnstar (105) does his best not to worry though, and just focuses on fixing the things he can.  He stops by the healer’s den to make sure Bumble is eating.  And because he has whitecough. Dawnstar also thinks that Bluestripe (96) is the most beautiful cat in the Clan.  With Dawnstar sick, Bluestripe is taking on the job of caring for the Clan.  It’s exhausting.  She appreciates the effort that Primcrest put in now.  And Pebbletuft is gathering deathberries.  Because that’s the herb they need so desperately.  Nettlestripe sees her picking them and is a little unnerved. Sofanthiel (110), at least, is feeling better, and is spending some time with Flailvalley (13).  She’s impressed with the young warrior’s insight.  Embershell (39) is frustrated that she got frostbitten on a patrol.  She was so busy keeping her patrol-mate warm that she forgot to warm herself!  She vents to Aries (87) and feels better afterwards.  Nettlestripe (90) gave Kestrelcreek (110) a gift of kestrel feathers, but she doesn’t like them.  She doesn’t want anything in her pelt and tells him as much.  He feels like he understands her better now.  Petalfrost (33) had enjoyed working with Dapplemuzzle (18) to reinforce the camp for winter, but then he overheard her talking badly about him, and how much she hated working with him.  Hurtful.  Hollowminnow (22) also worked with Dapplemuzzle on adding water-proofing to the healer’s den.  They argued about how best to do it, with Dapplemuzzle thinking growing plants over it would be better than Hollowminnow’s idea of putting a shield of ice over it.  Mitemask ends up fixing it just by weaving in some new brambles.

FurledClan hasn’t struck back against ElementClan.  Directly.  But. . .an abnormally strong windstorm hit the caverns and blew away all of the herbs.  FurledClan is known for having powerful wind-blessed cats.  Bumble (95) and Pebbletuft (51) are. . .a little worried, to say the least, especially after Cinderblockpuddle (237) dies from head damage.  The Clan is a little shaken by his loss, but they knew he wouldn’t be around for long.  The healers are more worried about Cavecatcher (76), who’s infected tail is not looking great.  And they don’t have the herbs to treat it.  Bluestripe (93) knows that Flailpaw (10) is under a lot of pressure right now and comforts him while picking burrs out of his pelt.  She makes sure he understands that it’s important for him to keep up in his training, though.  Later, as they’re curled up in Bluestripe’s nest, Tanglechirp (65) tells her that he doesn’t think that Flailpaw is being completely honest about how hard he’s working.  While Croucheye (29) may not be a fan of Mistypaw (10), her apprentice, she’s glad that at least Minnowpaw (10) isn’t her apprentice.  The young cat’s constant fretting is annoying.  Dapplemuzzle (15) is impatient to get to fight in a battle and prove herself.  She’s jealous that Mitemask got to fight in a border skirmish when she didn’t.  Mitemask (19) notices that she’s upset and wants to talk with her.  Dapplemuzzle ignores her.

Ryepaw (12) has been made a warrior!  He is named Ryeeagle in honor of his integrity.  He’s much more confident now than he was when he was first apprenticed, and Dapplemuzzle (39) is proud of how far he’s come.  Longpelt (56) is a little out of it this moon and bumps into Aries (108).  He doesn’t even apologize!  Kestrelcreek (131) scolds him, reminding him to respect the senior warriors and keep his wits about him, even in a time of peace.  Meanwhile, Aphidwhisker (39) just thinks that Longpelt is being thoughtful of others.  Aspenthud (12) realizes that Tansypaw (12) seems a little lonely and shares tongues with his sister.  They spend time chatting and exchanging stories, with Tansypaw mentioning how much she admires Kestrelcreek’s dedication to the Clan.  Blizzardpaw (12) is feeling a little left out of the sibling bonding session and is dealing with it by  telling jokes about Dapplemuzzle.  But Aspenthud is glad for the responsibility that being a warrior offers him and volunteers to lead patrols, which makes Dapplemuzzle’s job easier.  Sofanthiel (131) enjoys mated life and teasingly pranks Dawnstar (126).  He is perfectly fine with that and confident that his Clan adores him.  However, Aphidwhisker does not adore Dawnstar.  She’s frustrated that she’s not proven, even though she’s had an apprentice! In StarClan, Skipneedle is disappointed in her niece.  She’s started down a potentially dark path. In the Dark Forest, Yuccawillow wishes that she could destroy the Clan that wronged her.  How comforting.  

Well, Dawnstar (125) got over Bluestripe pretty quick.  And speed-ran falling in love with Sofanthiel (130).  The two have become mates and, with their heads pressed together speaking their commitment in front of the Clan, there’s nothing in Sofanthiel and Dawnstar’s worlds but love.  Dawnstar also decides to adopt Ryepaw (11), something he never did for Bluestripe’s kits.  Dapplemuzzle (38) can’t help but feel like Sofanthiel is replacing her mom.  She steps on Sofanthiel’s foot and pretends not to notice.  Dapplemuzzle goes to Aries (107) for advice on how to process her feelings, but regrets it immediately when Aries misses the point and starts talking about all the trouble she could get Sofanthiel in instead.  Aphidwhisker (38) still has a grudge against Hatchswipe (86) for some reason.  Hatchswipe does not reciprocate said grudge.  She’s doing her usual ‘looking-out-for-other-cats’ thing and reminds Aphidwhisker to grab some fresh-kill.  Aspenpaw (11) has also been made a warrior!  He is named Aspenthud, in honor of his logic.  Flailvalley (33) is proud of his first apprentice, although seeing Aspenthud’s siblings congratulate him makes him miss his own littermates. Tansypaw (11), despite having her brother in the healer’s den with her, is starting to realize that being a healer can be lonely.  It’ll be a while before she gets her full name, like Aspenthud just did.  She feels disconnected from him.

Healer’s den: Embershell (water in lungs), Flailvalley (phantom pain)

Despite their differing opinions of Dapplemuzzle (36), Hatchswipe *84) and Embershell (57) are still sisters.  They spend some time together and Hatchswipe appreciates how nice Embershell is to her.  Blizzardpaw (9) is proving to be a bit angsty.  He’s always sitting in a corner of camp, glaring at the world.  Longpelt (53) finds the way he acts increasingly uncomfortable.  Blizzardpaw is just feeling a little left behind in the healer’s den and worries that he hasn’t been performing up to Bumble’s (116) standards lately.  Despite the early promise he showed, it seems like Bumble is ignoring him in favor of Tansypaw (9).  No matter how many herbs he grows, Blizzardpaw just can’t seem to do enough. It looks like Bumble and Aries (105) might have a little romance going on.  Aries admires Bumble from afar and Bumble realizes that he and Aries have more in common than he used to think.  Bumble seems to be making new relationships and reforging others this moon, because he and Aphidwhisker (36) are actually getting along better!  He still hasn’t forgotten his suspicions over her role in Boulderflood’s death, but he finds that she is tolerable to be around.  Being a healer apprentice doesn’t mean that Tansypaw escapes the unpleasant apprentice tasks and she ends up picking burrs out of Kestrelcreek’s (128) fur.  She supposes it is nice to hear the elder’s stories, though.  Sometimes, Dapplemuzzle feels a little lost as deputy.  But when she’s feeling that way she makes sure to focus on doing her best to honor her Clan and leader.   She also continuously proves how skilled of a warrior she really is.  While on a hunting patrol, Dapplemuzzle and Ryepaw (9) use a cloak of shadows to hunt nocturnal prey, bringing home a huge amount for the Clan.

Hatchswipe (83) continues to support Dapplemuzzle (35).  When the deputy needs a break to go rest her aching joint, Hatchswipe covers for her.  She also comforts her, reminding her that Skipneedle (Dapplemuzzle’s aunt) also had a weak leg and was a fantastic deputy.  Embershell (56) does not share Hatchswipe’s opinion of Dapplemuzzle.  She thinks that Dapplemuzzle is doing a terrible job as deputy.  Meanwhile, Aries (104) is annoyed with Sofanthiel’s (127) kit and bickers about something trivial with Ryepaw (8).  In the healers’ den, Tansypaw (8) is still figuring out how to do ‘bedside manners’.  She complains about how annoying Longpelt (52) is to have as a patient.  Where Longpelt can hear.  Bumble (115) scolds her gently (although he secretly agrees that Longpelt can be annoyingly stubborn).  Bumble also wonders how Aspenpaw is doing, as he has two of his siblings as apprentices.  Aspenpaw (8) is enjoying a bit of downtime and is batting at a beam of sunlight with Ryepaw.  Sofanthiel is also interested in how Aspenpaw is doing and wants to go on patrol with him.  Flailvalley (30) doesn’t notice.  He’s too busy thinking that Ryepaw will be chosen to go to the gathering instead of Aspenpaw, because he’s been struggling as a mentor.  Seemingly forgetting that Ryepaw can’t go to the gathering anyways, because he’s an unproven dark-cursed cat.  Despite putting on a happy front, Ryepaw has been dealing with a lot lately.  He’s missing Gravelkit and he’s worried about what the other Clans will think of him.  He’s been having nightmares because of it.  Dapplemuzzle reassures him, saying that it doesn’t matter what other Clans think of him; ElementClan likes him.