Open Camp get me out of here ! ▸ complaining

[GECKOFLAME]

⋆｡°⋆ CAVIAR AND CIGARETTES ▬ڪ

"all of that planning and fighting only for us to end up in this disgusting bog."

gecko was not shy to voice her disdain for their new home and often wears an expression of revulsion while plodding through the sodden terrain that leaves her beautiful fur caked in grime making grooming an absolute nightmare to deal with.

"ancient spirits be damned, i mean, you're telling me they saw this dump of a territory and willingly decided 'yeah, this is the perfect place to settle down.'"

a scoff spills from her jaws, chocolate ears tilting backwards towards a narrowed crown in a show of irritation.

maybe she should've stayed in the forest, there's no disgusting mud to trudge through and no weird prey to poke at. too late for that though, she's dug her grave and now she's forced to lie in it just like the rest.

gecko lets out a sharp breath, taking a second to recollect herself before shifting her gaze to the clanmate besides her.

"what do you think about it?"

surely they'd agree, no one in their right mind would find any sort of joy living here. right?

・ ✦ ʚ♡ɞ ✦ ・

 

[WOLFPACK]

AND I AM SORRY MY CONSCIENCE CALLED IN SICK AGAIN​

---

"Maybe the rest of the world was messed up and this marsh was the only thing worth taking. Maybe they just weren't strong enough to take something better. " Assuming you bought into Sable words on the whole 'anient ancestors' matter, that is. Wolf still hadn't seen the proof, but he entertained it because the majority of the clan had been so quick to accept it as gospel. And he wouldn't spoil Sables fun just yet when the tom was managing to make things work all by spinning a few tall tales.

"Or maybe they knew something about this place that we don't." mused the mottled feline, eyes of ocean and dusk sliding toward Gecko with an amused look that gave nothing away as to whether he was being serious or not.

As far as what he thought of the place– "It could be worse." he said, broad shoulders shrugging dismissively. "There's food, even if some of it tastes and smells like shit. And it's a lot warmer than the last camp– doesn't even snow here." Which was good considering they were wet half the time because the territory was perpetually damp or experiencing rainfall. Throwing freezing temperatures in with that would have ended them faster than Hawthornes cats ever could. "If your so against getting your paws dirty though you can always try getting someone to do it for you. Not sure you're that popular though, Gecko." he added with a smirk.

There was nothing wrong with having standards, with wanting to enjoy lifes finer things-- but life was seldom a clean thing and if you wanted an easy ride you'd best have a cat on your side who was willing to do lifes dirtier work-- like trudging through mud to hunt, or licking dirt out of your fur. Though, he stood by his words-- the shecat would have to leave quite the impression on someone to earn those kinds of privileges.

​

---

loner/future shadowclan - male - a large, monochrome chimera with mismatched eyes and several scars​

​

 

[Manzanita]

Manzanitapaw, -- moons / SHADOWCLAN APPRENTICE
♛ dfab, A petite blue charcoal mink lynx point with long, silky fur and bright green eyes, [she/her]
♛ Daughter of GECKO / Mentored by:
Bossy and conceited, a rule follower more for the clout, has a good heart beneath all the snitching. Relatively easy to interact with if you can handle her.
♛ EASY in combat, injuries: none
Tagging person here
"

SPEECH

"

---

How quickly everything had changed.

It felt as though, in the blink of an eye, Manzanita was thrust into a war she barely understood, watched cats she barely knew die, and then rushed into a whole new territory she didn't know...Her head spun with it all! For the most part, the girl kept her head down, too rattled to upkeep her typically boisterous personality as instead, she clung to her mother like a burr. New lands...new prey...new names, a whole new leader...Green eyes wide, she'd look up to watch her mother closely, silently begging Gecko for something, anything, to ground her.

She listened absently to her mother's woes and "Wolfpack"'s response, emphasizing her agreement with Gecko by shaking muck off her pretty paws. Prey tasting like shit, the ground too slippery for her paws...this whole new type of new - IT SUCKED! Sniffling back frustrated tears, the girl would snap her attention back on Wolfpack when his final statement reached her ears.

"

Whatever Wolfpack, more like Wolfshit

" the word felt vulgar on her tongue, all the better to spit back out, she supposes, "

I see you're having a great time in this new territory - with fur as patchy as yours, you can't even tell what's mud and what's just your usual mange!

" It was childish, she knew, to try and insult not only an adult but a man twice her size. Still, Manzanitapaw was lost in her feelings, puffing out her chest and baring her teeth at the mutt that dared insult her mother. Jokes or not, no one talks to Gecko that way!

And perhaps...Manzanita just needed someone to take her frustrations out on.

 

[nightkit]

She had not experienced the war or strife that the apprentices or older kits or warriors had- no, she had been cooped up in Ember's womb, unaware of the battle around her. Even though they had fled the ambush, even though they were now in a place that many deemed 'worse' then the other groups, this is all she had known. This is all she had known. Constant tension, bleak and dull looking territory, and mud between her toes on the constant. Yet, she doesn't think that it's bad. No, since this is all she's known, it's home. Nose wrinkled as Gecko speaks, from where she is idly forming a mossball with uncoordinated kitten paws, and tries to ignore when Wolfpack tacks onto it.

It is Manzanita's final outburst that brings forth a sigh of... of what, frustration? Irritation? Sharp eyes turned towards the group of three, a frown pressed to the kit's mouth. She stands, abandoning the half-formed mossball to stare up at Manzanita. "What's wrong with... you?" She asks, and it is not out of anger she states this. No, she clearly doesn't understand why Manzanita says such sharp things, words that her mother has told her never to speak, words that Nightkit finds fickle and undue. "All of you." She says, turning to direct this to all three present, unblinking. The stare was a little unnerving, all things considered, this little tot coming up to say harsh words with such unwavering conviction.

____________________ REMOVE YOUR NAME ☆ MAKE YOUR PROMISES ____________________

• "speech"
  

• 

• NIGHTKIT she/her, kit of shadowclan, one moon.
  ☆ a sh black torbie with no white, golden eyes, and an unkempt 'mane' lining her head and back of neck. looks at you with intense eyes, and is normally reserved but not quiet.
  ☆ mentored by who / mentoring no one
  ☆ ember xx frond | sister to lightkit
  ☆ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ☆ penned by dallas ↛ dallasofnines on discord, feel free to dm for plots.

 

[Pepperpaw]

Pepperpaw sat rigidly in the damp marsh, her expression twisted into a scowl as she continued to work her tongue through her rust-tinged fur. Every stroke of her tongue seemed like a silent protest to the suffocating wetness clinging to her pelt. She could already feel the grime starting to sink in again, undoing her grooming. The frustration bubbled beneath her skin, but she said nothing for the moment, merely flicking her ears at Gecko's grumbling.

Every so often, she gave a grunt or a hum, signaling her agreement without looking up. They weren't wrong honestly, the marsh was disgusting. The air reeked of mud and decay, and the prey was strange and untrustworthy. Her nose wrinkled at the memory of Vampire's stomachache from the odd prey that had scuttled through the muck. Her green eyes momentarily darted to a shadow of movement, but she didn't bother investigating. Let it be someone else's problem.

When Wolf spoke up, Pepperpaw's ears swiveled to catch his words, and she shot him a sharp, half-lidded glare, her tail thumping irritably against the damp ground. " They couldn't fight for anything better than this? " she echoed dryly, her tone dripping with disdain. " Figures. " She stretched out one paw, flexing her claws as if testing them, then gnawed lightly at one of her toes, as if the action would soothe her growing irritation.

Gecko's daughter's bold interjection pulled Pepperpaw's attention, and she blinked in surprise before a low chuckle escaped her. Amusement flickered in her green eyes, but she tempered it with a quick look to Manzanita. " No need to start hurling insults, though. " she purred out, tilting her head a bit.

She shifted her gaze lazily back to Wolf, her tail flicking dismissively. " Let's be honest, this one can't make anything better for us either. " She gestured vaguely at their surroundings with a flick of her paw. " We're stuck here. Might as well accept it now before you waste your breath whining. " Her words were sharp, but her tone held the slightest note of resignation, betraying her own frustration with the situation.

Pepperpaw's ear flicked sharply at the sound of a tiny voice breaking through the air. She turned her gaze down to see the kit padding up to them, her small frame brimming with an innocent curiosity that felt out of place in this dreary marsh. The question caught Pepperpaw completely off guard, and for a moment, she stared blankly, blinking as though she hadn't quite processed the kit's words.

Leaning forward slightly, her voice came out carefully measured, the sharp edge she usually carried tempered just enough. " We're adjusting. " she replied, her tone strained but level. Her tail flicked once behind her, betraying her irritation, though she kept her words from cutting too deep. After all, this was just a kit who couldn't possibly know the weight of everything they had lost.

___________________ I'VE GOT THICK SKIN ☆ AND AN ELASTIC HEART ___________________

• "speech"
  

• 

• PEPPERPAW she/her, ShadowClan, eight moons.
  ☆ a sh black rusting cat with lightgreen eyes
  ☆ mentored by who / mentoring no one
  ☆ whichever relations / want listed
  ☆ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
  ☆ penned by lion ↛ lionheartedphoenix on discord, feel free to dm for plots.

 

[GROTTOWATCHER.]

No less than five clan cats stood about one another, forming a disgruntled congregation within the camp's confines. They each carried an air of agitation that could easily infect the entire mood of those beyond the little circle's reach. The tension is thick and the energy unproductive. Karst's muzzle scrunches into a state of placid disinterest. His brief study of the group informs him that none are content, or able to keep it to themselves, to the point where adolescent cats feel compelled to take part. It's a mess, in his eyes, albeit a mundane one. Cool heads scarcely prevail in this new world of theirs.

Karst sighs, and he hums, and he shifts his head a fraction to the left so he may view them in full. Gecko seems to have initiated the bout of griping, and Wolfpack's mere presence has exacerbated it. It's not an unusual state of things, especially not when Sablestar allows excessive mouth-running and brawls among his clan. There's no saving those two, their condition is terminal. Even so, acknowledging that their impudence and discontent may rub off on younger clanmates—Manzanita is already stricken and Pepperpaw doesn't appear far behind—compels the umbral tomcat into a rare bout of intervention.

He pads closer, stopping short of a tail's-length away. A paw lifts to rake over his brow and crown, and then falls. "Enough," he calls, a composed utterance with the force of an order. "If you wish to spend time on this, find an appropriate venue. The elders would appreciate the company." He pauses, allowing the words to sink in. Gecko's inaugural complaint posed no harm, and the others could've let it slide. But they hadn't, and in the same span of time that a frog takes to catch a fly, name-calling and cuss-spitting were quickly the default method of communication.

"We are building a new home." Karst states, gently. His own mood has been aloof for some time. He's adjusting, much as Pepperpaw would argue. "We fought hard to have it. Live with it, or live among the twolegs." His yellow eyes gravitate towards Nightkit, and their intensity lessens. He blinks at her. To her, the fringes of their camp marked the edges of her little world. No lived knowledge of the old colony, and nothing to reflect on or lament. A part of him envies her. "They're tired and upset, Nightkit. It will pass."

 

[WOLFPACK]

AND I AM SORRY MY CONSCIENCE CALLED IN SICK AGAIN​

---

Where Geckos complaints were tolerable for their restraint, Manzanitas were far less so. Sniffling and holding back tears of frustration that Wolf could neither understand nor sympathise with. If anything, they irked him. Emotions themselves weren't necessarily a sign of weakness to the mottled feline, but the clearly fraying edges of this teary-eyed girl bothered him in the way that nails on a chalkboard would.

In the pack, she would be the wolf lagging behind, whimpering and whining about the mud on her fur and the fact that her nest hadn't been perfect the night prior. Slowing them down. Making the whole of them weaker for her own inability to adapt. It made his claws itch at the thought of a potential weak link. A cat would have all the bark and bite in the world, and it meant nothing if they weren't flexible enough to withstand the pressure life would throw at them.

And he could already see the obvious cracks in Manzanita.

"You sound bitter." he mused. "Did you really think the world was all warm beds and delicious food? Tch. " he asked, tone not sparing her just for her age. "Welcome to the real world, kid. Sometimes things don't go your way."

Sheltered, all of them. While Pepperpaws attitude was more in line with his own, she still failed to highlight any of the positives of the new territory. That's what stationary living got you, he supposed. They'd all grown familiar and content with what they had, and now none of them could handle having to rough it for a bit. Instead they acted like it was the end of the world– like there was nothing more out there than this marsh. Nothing worse to endure than some gross fur and weird food.

Karst was the level head of reason, as always, but Wolf hardly took heed of his words– Wolf was not the one harboring a grudge against their new territory or their future. Like anyone else, he could acknowledge that there were unappealing aspects to it compared to something like the forest they'd come from, but he had no real complaints. There was food. It was warm enough. And he still had more than enough cats around for things to hold his interest.

"Relax. The kid's the only one losing their cool over it. Everyone else is just sharing opinions." Wolf countered coolly. He certainly wouldn't be entertaining any 'elders' just because some cats couldn't stomach the topic at hand. "They're allowed to be disappointed. They lost something good- something that was run into the ground by an idiot who didn't know what he had. But you're right about that last thing, Karst– if they can't get used to it there's other places to go."

​

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loner/future shadowclan - male - a large, monochrome chimera with mismatched eyes and several scars​

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