Some Prickly Ceremonies [1/3/15]

[Legit]

I laugh like an idiot at my attempt at thread title puns.

Yes, I know it's a lot of words, but please at least read all the dialogue, unless it is within the ceremonies and does not apply to one of your characters, and the paragraphs that are marked with three asterisks (***).

Rather abrupt ending, but it's almost 4 a.m. and I want to sleep. x3

---

Any cat who bothered to cast their gaze to their leader's den would not see anything other than the faint outline of his large frame concealed in the shadows cast by the rock of the den. Bramblestar looked out to the Clan, but they would not know unless they saw the faint glint of his bright yellow eyes. He hadn't done ceremonies in a while. He hadn't really done anything in a while, if constantly worrying, thinking, and being stressed didn't count. The burdens of leadership were not expected to be this terrible. Dead kin, prophecies, and missing deputies, which would have been devastating enough without all the other responsibilities of the role added to the mix. Bramblestar sometimes wondered if StarClan was punishing him--was he not meant to be MidnightClan's leader? He wasn't Clan-born, after all. but maybe, just maybe, they were instead testing him to see if he had the strength and determination to persevere through the trials they threw at him and still lead MidnightClan well. He wasn't sure if he was leading as well as everyone had hoped he would, but at least there were no rebellions being sparked against him, which was unlike the case with Silverstar and LeafClan many moons ago.

The moon lifted higher into the sky. Following it, the shadows within the camp moved as well, retreating back into his den and revealing the tom's large paws. Bramblestar jumped up--although, it was more of a casual and slow movement--as if the light burned his paws. He stepped fully out of the shadows, now that his cover had been blown, and leaped easily up to the rock from which he and leaders of past gave announcements. "All cats loyal to MidnightClan and MidnightClan only gather beneath the Skystone for a Clan meeting," he called out and waited for the Clan to assemble. Once a majority of cats were present, he continued, "I have not done ceremonies in a great while, and I apologize for that. While I have been lacking, MidnightClan has been thriving, despite the absence of its steadfast deputy. There will be a time to announce a new deputy to continue walking the path Mothcloud began, but this is not it. Many kits and apprentices are ready and eager to ascend the ranks. They have been denied long enough."

"We will begin the ceremonies with Nightkit (Midnight). Please step forward. You have reached the age of six moons and are ready to begin your training to become a loyal MidnightClan warrior. The path will be difficult, but you are not to walk it alone. Greystorm (Frost) will help you along your journey as your new mentor."

"Dawnkit (Isilme), you have reached the age of six moons are are ready to begin your training to become a loyal MidnightClan warrior. The path will be difficult, but you are not to walk it alone. Blizzardstorm (☼Шїℓℓ◎ω) will help you along your journey as your new mentor."

"Oakkit (Isilme), you have also reached the age of six moons are are ready to begin your training to become a loyal MidnightClan warrior. The path will be difficult, but you are not to walk it alone. Silvershine (Lightningtrail) will help you along your journey as your new mentor."

"Spiderkit (@wildpelt), you have reached the age of six moons are are ready to begin your training to become a loyal MidnightClan warrior as well. The path will be difficult, but you are not to walk it alone. Sorrelwhisker (Deku) will help you along your journey as your new mentor."

"And the final kit, Ryekit (Frost), you have reached the age of six moons are are ready to begin your training to become a loyal MidnightClan warrior. The path will be difficult, but you are not to walk it alone. Mudpatch (Isilme) will help you along your journey as your new mentor."

"Moving on to the warrior ceremonies, Wolfpaw (Sand), please step forward. You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Wolfrain. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

"Hawkpaw (Avery), please step forward," he called, his gaze resting on the cat being named. "You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Hawkblaze. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

"And may the other Hawkpaw (Deku) please step forward, he said with an amused twitch of his whiskers. The queens must not have coordinated their namings very well when these two young cats were born, but the time of coming when the other was called would be over now. "You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Hawkspring. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

"Thrushpaw (Frost), please step forward. You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Thrushfire. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

"And to conclude these ceremonies, Cherrypaw (Roselocke), please step forward. You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Cherrywhisker. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

Bramblestar paused to allow the cheers and congratulations to begin. Before too many cats began to wander off, though, his strong voice rang out again, "There is one more announcement I have to make. StarClan has delivered a...prophecy. His voice faltered on the last word. He was still not sure whether it was the best idea to share the details of the prophecy with the Clan. It could worry them, but they deserved to know. He had mentioned the prophecy already, so he would have to follow through with what had been started. And it was not as if he was going to reveal who the prophecy was delivered to, as that would cause unnecessary controversy. "I was told 'The soul brought into the Clan will be a poison to every land.'" As expected, the ominous words caused anxiety in some and the nervous chatter started. Bramblestar rose his voice, almost to a yell, as he vied for just a few more moments of attention before chaos ensued, "Indeed, the message is foreboding, but StarClan has provided us with a warning. From this moment onward, outsiders will no longer be accepted into our Clan. Anyone caught trespassing within our borders will be chased off immediately--with force if need be." Bramblestar's voice grew quicker, stronger, and livelier as he spoke. Whoever this outsider, this soul, this poison, is, they will not endanger his Clan. Even if it cost him all of his lives, he will use every ounce of his strength to protect these cats that look to the him for guidance. A fire burned behind his eyes, in his heart. He snarled, "Do not cave in to pleas, as our ancestors have predicted that they have no intent of truth or loyalty. They are all filthy snakes wishing to bring harm to our kits, to our elders, and to us!"

*** There were a few cheers, but even more pairs of eyes found themselves looking to the members of MidnightClan who used to be of another Clan or a rogue. Bramblestar stared at each of those cats for a few heartbeats before moving to the next, his eyes narrowed and cold. "Let us hope that StarClan sent the omen at this time for a reason."

The leader's eyes then settled on Wolfrain (Sand) and softened for a brief moment. His gaze had pride written all over it, but he just hoped that his son could see that. Bramblestar regretted not spending much time with his kits, and any time he did spend with them was mostly with Falconpaw. He had known right from birth that Falconpaw was going to be a trouble-maker, the worst out of all the kits. With the extra attention, Bramblestar had hoped the young tom would change, but not even the most harsh discipline had prevented the tragedy that was Falconpaw's death. The leader had cut himself away even further from his family after the death. but Bramblestar wanted to rekindle his relationship--or even begin--with his family, in particular Wolfrain.

*** "The meeting is dismissed," Bramblestar yowled in finality. He prepared to leave the rock to congratulate his son on becoming a warrior, but a sudden light-headedness interrupted him. His head became dizzy and fuzzy. It grew harder to stay balanced upon the rock, and the tom feared that he would topple off and right into the crowd. He dug his claws into the stone, but they found no purchase. In one rather ungraceful leap, Bramblestar flew from the rock and landed near the mouth of his den. Instead of what was originally planned, he made a detour and vanished back into the shadows of the den. (@lilykit, Lemonade, since they might notice his strange behavior and want to see what's wrong.)

[Sand]

Wolfpaw had come out of the apprentice den when he had heard his father call the familiar summons for a clan meeting. He listened as his father named some of the kits apprentices. Before his father moved on to the warrior ceremonies he quietly cheered. The young tom stopped cheering when his father moved on to the warrior ceremonies. He swallowed nervously as his name was called up and he listened as his father named him Wolfrain.

Wolfrain stood straight but he was still nervous. His shyness hadn't seemed to get much better but it wouldn't hold him back from racing into battle. The tom was nervous because he didn't like to be the center of attention. He listened to the rest of the warrior ceremonies and quietly cheered for the other new warriors once his father was done with those ceremonies but since his father was still standing on the Skystone he figured that the meeting wasn't over yet.

When his father began to speak of a prophecy he had been given he began to look around nervously as if he expected a cat to appear out of nowhere and attack him. When his father said something about the prophecy being about and outsider his gaze flickered over to Sootblaze then away again. 'I doubt it was about a cat already in our clan,' he thought his gaze going back to his father when he proclaimed that he would no longer be accepting outsiders into the clan.

He was still looking at his father when he saw the look Bramblestar gave him. He usually wasn't that good at reading emotions but how his father felt was written all over his face. 'He's proud of me, I hope I don't let him down,' he thought watching his father. He watched confused as his father made and ungraceful leap before vanishing into his den. 'I wonder what that was about,' he thought getting to his paws but before he could do anything he heard pawsteps heading towards him.

---

"Hey, Wolfrain, congrats on getting you warrior name, you deserve it," Jade meowed cheerfully her jade green gaze fixed on the tom. Of course she hadn't been named for her eye color, her mother had named her Jade before she had joined Midnightclan and she had decided to keep the name instead of changing it.

---

Wolfrain gave the older warrior a polite dip of his head and he listened to what she had to say. "Th...Thanks," he meowed the compliment making him nervous. He also didn't like to be the focus of Jades attention. "S-Sorry, g-got t-t-to go," he stammered before heading towards the warriors den his head down to avoid eye contact.

[Clemintine]

Jayflower heard the announcement and made her way over to the ceremonies, her eyes stayed locked onto her leader as he began to speak and apologize about the ceremonies being late. Her ear twitched uneasily, he seemed off and Jayflower glanced around to see if other cats noticed, the cats she glanced at didn't seem to even notice, a lot of them were happy about the ceremony being done. Jayflower allowed her pale yellow eyes to wander back to her leader, perhaps she was just being paranoid? She shifted her weight uncomfortably as Bramblestar did the ceremony, she was a bit disappointed she didn't get an apprentice but at the same time her worry for the leader was much greater.

Jayflower ears swiveled forward whens he heard Bramblestar say prophecy, she felt her heart sink back in fear and her eyes widened slightly as he went on to talk about what StarClan had told him. They were snakes? Jayflower's ears now laid back and she looked worried, she figured other cats would be worried as well but she couldn't help but feel there was something else. Despite the sudden alarm Bramblestar looked rather... like he was on Catnip as he sort of swayed. Jayflower stood up and toke a few steps forward afraid the leader might fall, but instead he retreated into his den, her eyes were slightly wide and she stood there staring after her leader and then glanced around.

Was no one going to go after him and check on him? She glanced back at the leader's den, should she go and check on him? Jayflowers worry increased but she was unsure, he had his son and other cats to check on him, but when she glanced back at Bramblestars sun he was chatting with other cat. Jayflowers ears laid back and she took another step forward heading towards the leaders den. The she-cat simply stood outside her ears pinned back, she cleared her throat once as if to get his attention "B... Bramblestar?" Her tail was relaxed between her legs slightly as she bowed her head, she was sure he could see her but she couldn't see him as she stood outside his den, rather a good cat length from the entrance.

Legit :3 She was curious. lol u.u

[Deleted]

The honey colored eyes of the average sized she-cat had almost been completely been closed, herself being nestled next to (Deku's) Hawkpaw, when she heard the loud yowl of their leader, Bramblestar. Her eyes flashed open with pure excitement held in the bright honey. She prepared to completely leap to the moon excitement, but she had to stay cool and charming.

Pushing herself up, in a flash of dark ginger fur, she was out of the apprentice's den, exposed to the fresh moonlight. With a nervous twitch of her tail, the dark ginger-and-white furred apprentice settled close to the apprentice den, glancing back to see if Hawkpaw was coming. Then she heard Bramblestar's announcements.

Cherrypaw stared up at her leader with shock,'Outsiders are no longer allowed in MidnightClan?! What Starclan cat would prophizise such a thing?' She thought with quite curiousity, her eyes wide, until Bramblestar started the ceremonies. In seconds she had forgotten Bramblestar's words, and she felt her chest grow hot. She was going to be a warrior.

"And may the other Hawkpaw please step forward. You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Hawkspring. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

She cheered for her close friend, nudging him her nose playfully, though her ears were perked and she was listening closely, to anything, a single word, if she had to. She was waiting for her name to be called. And when it was, she could feel happiness swelling inside her.

"And to conclude these ceremonies, Cherrypaw, please step forward. You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Cherrywhisker. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."

Cherrywhisker smiled happily, her honey eyes brightening with happiness. She was a warrior.'Cherrywhisker...I love it!' She thought happily, glancing over at Hawkspring with bright eyes and a big smile.

Deku

[Deku]

(Wow, monstrous post Roselocke)

Hawkpaw/spring:

Hawkpaw looked up drowsily as Cherrypaw moved away. He blinked a couple of times before he realized that everyone else was leaving too. He sighed and stood to follow the crowd.

Hawkpaw padded up next to the ginger she-cat just as Bramblestar was finishing the new apprentices. He wanted to stay calm like Cherrypaw seemed to be doing, but he soon found himself bouncing on his paws as the MidnightClan leader gave warrior ceremonies.

He grinned as he received his new name. Hawkspring, he liked it. It sounded bouncy, just like he was almost every moment of the day. After him was Cherrypaw. As Bramblestar spoke her new name she looked over at him. "I can't believe it! We're finally warriors!" He couldn't hold in his excitement any longer.

Sorrelwhisker:

Sorrelwhisker padded out of the warriors den towards the Skystone as Bramblestar called. His eyes widened as he received another apprentice. He looked around for Spiderpaw as soon as the ceremonies were over.

(@wildpelt)

[Avery]

Tags: @roselock, Sand, Frost, Deku
Music: Cover up - Imagine Dragons
Muse: High
Words: 563
Ooc: No one really knows he's a bit of an ass Everyone just knows his sweet side
--

Moonlight bathed the large tom cat as he entered the camp after a last minute hunt. His jaws were clamped around the tiny body of a mouse, it's tail dangling in ribbons beneath it. It had been a rather fun chase of the cat, and he thoroughly enjoyed killing it. His long claws glistened in the moon as he padded towards the fresh-kill pile. His light brown mixed with dark black swirled coat turned into the soft color of bronze. He was quite the magnificent looking specimen. He was broad, strong and handsome. His aura commanded attention, and with soft husky voice it was pretty hard to look away. Hawkpaw had grown from the tall, lanky cat into a large, powerful young adult. He knew he was good looking, and he relished in it. Stretching slightly he realized with interest that his Clan mates were gathering beneath their leader for a ceremony.

Interesting.

  Taking his place besides some of the other apprentice's he nodded a greeting to the other's. Cherrypaw (Roselocke) and the other... less significant Hawkpaw (Great Deku Tree) stood nearby. The two had been inseparable since they moved into the apprentice with him several moons back. His eyes ran over Cherrypaw appreciatively enjoy the view of the pretty she-cat, before returning his gaze back to his old geezer of a leader. Yawning he curled his black streak plumed tail around his massive paws. Another boring ceremony probably, where he would listen to his leader ramble on and on. Starclan, did anything exciting ever happen here anymore?

"Hawkpaw, please step forward. You have trained hard to learn the skills and ways of a warrior, and in return, your warrior name shall be Hawkblaze. May you continue to honor MidnightClan, and may StarClan light your path for many moons to come."
 
 Oh, well now.

 Hearing his name the tom cat strode forward, his chest puffed in pride. It was certainly news to him and his fur crackled in excitement. He was finally receiving his name. No longer was he burdened by his apprenticeship duties. He was now Hawkblaze. Lifting his amber eyes in pride he nodded his head towards Bramblestar and moved to the side of the gathering. He watched as the other Hawkpaw accepted his new name, and he scowled towards the tom. He didn't deserve to share the same name as himself. He was inferior. Returning his gaze towards Bramblestar he wiggled his claws in delight. This was also exciting news. The right to chase of intruder's by force? How lovely. His mind flickered back towards Eagleheart from Talonclan and he could've crowed. 

Yes, life as a warrior would so much more fun.

 Padding towards his new den mates he meowed a greeting. "Congratulations you two." He said to Cherrywhisker and Hawkspring. Looking towards Wolfrain (Sand) and Thrushfire (Frosty) he also told them congratulations. "Are you guys just as excited as I am to move into the warrior den? I hear it's bigger then the apprentice den." He laughed, "I hope so! It was starting to get cramped" He rolled his shoulder emphasizing his size. "I don't think I could spend another squishy night in there!" His mask returned. The charismatic, alluring tom was back. No one knew his true side, and he loved his dark little secrets.

[Frost]

Thrushfire nodded his head as Hawkblaze greeted him. "Congratulations to you too, Hawkblaze. And yes, I excited. Though I don't know where I'm going to sleep, all my friends are still apprentices...You wouldn't mind me having a nest next to yours, or would you rather not?" The tabby tom meowed, looking over Hawkblaze with sharp and watchful eyes. 'Strange...Should I keep a eye out for him? For a second his eyes showed something...different. No, I shouldn't be creeping around.' He wondered, his eyes slightly narrowing before he turned to face Cherrywhisker and Hawkspring.  'I wonder how long it will take them to come mates...wait...Oh crap. I'm totally going to die alone.' Thrushfire thought, his eyes going wide in realization that he hadn't grown close to anyone besides his family, but they where all missing or dead. "Well...You two made me realize I'm going to never get a mate, so when are you two going to become mates? I mean seriously,  you both like each other just say it already before it gets annoying." The tabby meowed, a devilish smirk on his face, as he looked the couple other. Giving a small laugh he turned to Wolfrain and congratulated him on becoming a warrior, a goofy grin on his face.

[Deku]

(No. Stop. I'm laughing so hard at your posts right now!)

"Congratulations to you too Hawkblaze. Your name is amazing!" He nodded in agreement with Hawkblaze's next statement. "It was a bit cramped in there. Hopefully we won't have to worry about that for a while though now that we're warriors."

"What?! Where did you get that idea Thrushfire?" His face burned bright red. Why was he embarrassed about that? He shouldn't be. Maybe it was just the fact that others had noticed how close he and Cherrywhisker were.

[Frost]

Thrushfire burst out laughing as he turned to look Hawkspring in the eyes. "Dude, shut up and ask her already. I mean really, she is always with you and other stuff, and I'm sure you trained together. Plus, couples remind me of how I'm a hopeless tom who is pretty much going to die along because I'm super charmless and awesome and girls a repelled by my super awesomeness. Yeah, I'm so awesome I died alone."  Thrushfire laughed, nudging the fellow warrior towards Cherrywhisker. "Go on, her let me give you some encouragement."   He whispered, a smirk crossing his face.

Taking a deep breath in, the grey tabby yelled as loud as he possibly could. "Hey look! Hawkspring is asking Cherrywhisker to be his mate!" He yowled, resulting in a bunch of cheers and most liking two nervous and embarrassed warriors.  

[Deleted]

((Oh my gosh I have missed so much xD))

Cherrywhisker stared happily at all the other fresh warriors, a smile on her lips,"Thanks Hawkblaze! I really hope that the warrior's den is bigger too! It was getting quite cramped in the apprentice's den." She meowed, her voice hinted with excitement, her honey eyes glowing brightly as she glanced around at all the other cats, her gaze stopping for a split second when her eyes settled upon Hawkspring."Congrats, Hawkspring! Your name is perfect for such a jumpy tom." She meowed playfully, nudging the tom with her shoulder.

Cherrywhisker's eyebrows elevated at when Thrushfire spoke to Hawkspring, though she was too excited (and *cough* blind *cough*) to really pay attention. Though she noticed Hawkspring become instantly embarrassed, which snapped her out of thoughts quite quickly.

She felt her face melt into a burning red when she heard Thrushfire's yowl, and her eyes just widened quite a bit. The only words she managed were a stuttered,"W-wh-what?!" Which came out of her mouth pretty quick, though she did love Hawkspring, she didn't think anyone noticed how close they were, or how she was always glancing over at him.

Deku Frost

[Sand]

Wolfrain froze when he heard the voice of one of his clan mates froze behind him. He whipped around stopping just before the entrance of the warriors den and stared at Hawkblaze with wide eyes. He opened his mouth but then close it having to clear his throat before he could speak. "Th-Thanks, y-y-you t-to," he stammered his ears twitching nervously. Most cats probably wouldn't expect such a shy tom to be the son of Bramblestar, but he was indeed the son of Bramblestar and he was as shy as he had been when he had first started his training. The small tom shuffled his paws when he heard his clan mates question but he didn't say anything just nodded his eyes fixed on his paws. He didn't like meeting the gazes of his clan mates and he also didn't like to be the center of attention. Seeing his clan mates attention focused on someone else he let out a relieved sigh before slinking into the warriors den. He would go and check on his father when there were less cats in the clearing.