𓆝 . ° ✦
Clan life was strange and unusual. It was almost nothing like her home - similar only in that they were communities. Plague envies her kits, sometimes; their brains are unadjusted to everything, absorbing all that they see with ease. Unlike their mother, they did not have to struggle relearning a lifetime worth of laws and duties."You know, where I come from, to have only one leader is a weakness,"
Plague comments to the Clanmates nearby that share tongues, while she keeps to her own fur between words. "My colony, for generations, was always lead by a pair. The eldest of their last litter was to be the heir, and their mate was carefully plucked by the leaders, to both take the throne when it's their time."
It was the safest way, she had come to realize throughout her life. There was no risk of a corrupt higher power, no risk of the colony being left leaderless after an untimely death. "Perhaps it is strange to you Clans, but to us, it was a sacred balance between compassion and rule. One to guide, and one to nurture. Unity."
It could have been me, Plague thinks, plainly with only a hint of melancholy. Herself and Hemlock would have made great leaders, and their kits would have followed in their footsteps. What kind of mundane life awaits them now?That was not the only difference, of course. In the Clans, all but a select few became warriors, sharing duties amongst themselves. It seems almost impractical to her - what if one cat did not excel in their assigned patrol? Who would heal the injured from far away if something terrible happened?
"We all carried the roles that we were designed for. Kittens with good noses and quick reflexes trained to become hunters. Kittens with muscular builds and attentive eyes become guards."
A small pause, as Plague lets her gaze flick to the Medicine Cat's den. "Everyone knew of basic herbs and wound care. But kittens born with superb memory and curiosity became our healers with higher knowledge. There were many, so that no one or two cats become burdened, and so that no cat risks death in their absence."
Would she like it here better, if WindClan followed the customs of her home? Would she like it better if she took the time to learn? Plague lets out a small sigh, drawing a licked paw over her forehead.
"Perhaps we are not too different, at our foundations. I can see that the Clans are structured and communal. But, tell me, what keeps you all in check? What keeps a throne-hungry warrior from usurping? What keeps our neighbors from marching into our camp right now and stealing our young?"
The biggest difference - her home was the only of its kind for miles, only picking off solitary rogues and fending away small groups. To have more was not always to be safer.✧ ° . ✶ . ° ✧
- ooc: — open to multiple cats! meant to take place during sharing tongues so anyone can jump in!
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a complex molly; timid and meek on the surface, but what dwells beneath?
