Warrior Cat Clans 2 (WCC2 aka Classic) is a roleplay site inspired by the Warrior series by Erin Hunter. Whether you are a fan of the books or new to the Warrior cats world, WCC2 offers a diverse environment with over a decade’s worth of lore for you - and your characters - to explore. Join us today and become a part of our ongoing story!
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11.06.2022 The site has been transformed into an archive. Thank you for all the memories here!
Here on Classic we understand that sometimes life can get difficult and we struggle. We may need to receive advice, vent, know that we are not alone in our difficult times, or even just have someone listen to what's going on in our lives. In light of these times, we have created the support threads below that are open to all of our members at any time.
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Post by achromatic on Apr 9, 2022 15:27:00 GMT -5
There weren't a lot of times when Bermondsey found himself needing some sort of counsel, but with everything happening recently, and with Elizabeth being away on her mission, he found there were few cats he could confide with. Eshek was still angry with him and Uta wasn't the type of cat he'd go to for advice–the tom certainly had a strange way of seeing the world–and frankly, the stress and tension of leading the league was slowly creeping up on him, and there was no way he'd address this with his sister, knowing exactly how she'd react to any perceived weakness of his own.
Things would be fine and dandy, if it wasn't for the fact that Elizabeth wasn't the only one missing. Kate had disappeared a few weeks ago without a trace, and while he wouldn't mind it much considering how the cat she was supposed to guard was away, it was unlike the assassin to disappear. He wasn't worried–Bermondsey didn't worry about his subjects, ever–but he hated not being in the know.
So instead, he met with one of the assassin successors instead. "Hawise," he greeted with a raise of his brow, sitting at the stairs of the mansion. Despite her reputation, he had yet to fully have a conversation with this cat, "thanks for joining me."
The siamese she-cat padded to a stop at the bottom of the steps and looked up towards him, quirking a brow and allowing a sultry smile. "I suppose I should reply with thank you for the invitation."
There was laughter there in those words, daring and fierce in their own way. She had never spoken much with the Nemesis and in truth she barely knew Bermondsey; his goals, his ambitions, hell she barley knew anything of his personal life. Hawise knew he had kits but she had no clue on the mother, for all she knew they could be adopted. Normally she might snoop to try and discover more, but well, it seemed bad practice to snoop on ones superior officer.
Besides that she had her own problems to deal with. This pregnancy would grow harder to hide as time went on and she still didn't know what she would do with the little parasites once they were born. As the time passed she grew more assured in her decision to at-least have them and not ingest something to kill them in the womb; as soft-hearted and weak as she thought that made her. But she was not a mother, she had never had one of her own and she didn't want her kits to be forced to grow under her lackluster care.
In truth the thought of them growing in the league turned her stomach and made her vaguely queasy; the more she thought on it the more she considered the option of giving them away. Raised away from her, never knowing her name, never knowing their legacy. But that to brought a sense of hurt. More and more the choices and options grew tangled and the stress made it ever increasingly hard to relax.
Standing here, in front of Bermondsey it took all of her to smile, to keep some semblance of normalcy when she just wanted to find a dark place to curl up and think.
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Post by achromatic on Apr 9, 2022 16:06:23 GMT -5
For all of Bermondsey's blind spots and his own preconceptions that she-cats were of the gentler kind and that he was born to carry his family's name, he truly did surround himself with powerful she-cats, and Hawise was another fitted stone in the tower that was built around the league. Perhaps had he been younger, he'd say it was because she-cats were easier to predict, that they'd all have a soft, nurturing side that wanted kits, that they were easier to read because they have something to protect, but he knew it wasn't true. As much as all of them certainly did have that protective side when it came to whatever they wanted to defend, there was a certain way they could fit right in, play every part without a preconception of what they must be.
He had learned it too, that to truly win, one must have the element of surprise, and to do so, it was easier to seem smaller, more unassuming. His mother had never seen him the same way she had seen his older brothers; he was born slim and scrawny, not much of a challenge when it came to fighting with brute force. There was one thing he could admit now, more than he could before, and that was that asassins were best when they didn't seem dangerous at all.
"Come take a walk with me," he spoke, a demand more than a request as his brisque pace led them towards the forest, the sun barely reaching the ground through the canopy on this cloudy day. "You've made yourself at home, correct? Everything going well, I presume, trainees doing their work? ...bedding soft enough, living quarters to your liking? ...any complaints around the borders?" It seemed like an awkward attempt at small-talk, but it was all necessary pleasantries. It was rude to start off with business after all, but it was clear that there was a reason he was inviting her out for a walk and a chat. "Notice anything amiss around the area? Here or around the clans?"
Hawise followed him out of the manor and towards the forest without a complaint to be found though her eyes cast about furtively as she contemplated the quiet. His questions brought her back to the present and she turned to look at him as he spoke, mouth twisting in good humor at the questions. A guise to hide how her heart skipped a bit and she thought of Wendel in Moonclan all alone, she had thought more of her brother in the past moon than she had in moons. She might go as far to say he occupied her thoughts even more than he had when they were two kits abandoned by their mother left to fend for themselves against the world.
Now though she wasn't thinking of him as a burden, as something to be cut away for he would never be able to be as ruthless as she herself was. Because he had always judged how she handled the hard decisions of their youth and she had felt stifled by that quiet criticism of how she chose to handle things. Now she was thinking of him as a possibility, a solid pillar in his clan, one that was soft on the inside; the only one of the pair that seemed to have overcome their mothers scorn and fathers murder. Now she saw him as he was and didn't feel scorn for him but instead saw that he could be the perfect surrogate for her kits she did not want but didn't want to abandon as her mother had done to them. It was this possibility that kept her mouth firmly shut on the topic of Moonclan.
"Nightclan seems to be a bonfire with Kier running the roost," she settled for saying with a twist of her lips, disgusted by the very thought of the young tom. She had always found him rather pathetic and lacking when he was in the League, his misogyny making her want to rip his eyes from his skull and make him eat them. She did not envy those that now had to take their lead from him. "But out borders are secure, the Regime seems to be suffering their own issues what with having their own mouths to feed on top of Sunclans as well now."
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Post by achromatic on Apr 9, 2022 18:11:40 GMT -5
She certainly was more perceptive than others. Either that or they were coincidentally both thinking of the same thing. He had heard about Kier, mostly from his sister's mouth. Kate had warned him before, that whatever was going on with her brother, he was dangerous. He found his way into Aspenstar's grasp, a sycophant for the former tyrant, and now...now...
Oh. His pupils dilated at the realization, as he put two and two together. He had killed Aspenstar out of his own anger, his own need for revenge after what she had done to Eshek, after knowing how she had put his kits at risk in a moment of fury. Kier was on the throne. He had put that cat where he was, and after speaking to Kate, and the seething anger that was in her voice as she spoke of the other tom and how he had killed their father... it didn't take a genius to realize that she must've gone after him.
Yet, Hawise didn't mention anything about Kier being injured or losing a life; strange, he knew Kate was capable of doing so even against all odds. He'd have put a stop to it if he could, but he had dismissed her as someone grieving, someone who needed some space and time rather than a superior looking down her shoulder. It was his mistake.
The tom cursed quietly under his breath, before looking to Hawise. "Why didn't I see this earlier," he muttered under his breath, as his pace picked up, "tell me all you know about NightClan...also, have you seen Kate recently?" He knew the assassins often kept to themselves, but surely, they'd know enough.
"Kate?" She repeated slightly confused by the turn of the conversation and wondering on his muttered words but she did as he asked regardless. Even if her words would only serve to disappoint him most likely. "I haven't seen her in awhile, though we never spoke much. But even around the manor or the territory I can't recall seeing her in... awhile."
"As for Nightclan I imagine I don't know much more than most. Rumors say Kier is his typical manic self, ruling from a lofty roost like a tyrant. Sounds like he has others doing his dirty work and is languishing like a spoiled jester playing at being a king. Though.. I have heard hints that his relationship with his second in command is fraught with disagreement." Her thoughts came to the surface as easy words, no planning to how she delivered them. Eager to share what she knew in simple hopes that perhaps they could both share their scorn for the clan.
"Truthfully it sounds like a civil war could be on the horizon if Kier doesn't straighten his act out. I know if I was in his clan and he lessened his strangle hold for even a moment I'd take the opportunity to rise up against him."
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Post by achromatic on Apr 9, 2022 18:55:01 GMT -5
His lips tightened at that. Bermondsey wasn't naturally a trusting kind of cat; in fact, he was rather known for how close he kept his cards, for the way he only ever divulged necessary information and only that, and yet...he had changed a little the last few months. Perhaps it was due to his fondness for his kits, or the cats he surrounded himself with, or even Regulus and his influence, but despite barely knowing Hawise, he knew he had to trust the successor with the facts if she was to be useful to him.
–and she was useful. She had plenty of information, that was for sure. Eyes and ears. His assassins were his eyes and ears. "Kate, she's our assassin and Kier's sister, and I'm afraid I might've overlooked a couple of facts and that we might be an assassin down at the moment because of it," his voice was solemn, his green eyes narrowed, "I didn't think NightClan could get any worse but I guess everything has its consequence, doesn't it?"
The thought of a civil war made him ponder. "How would you do it?" he asked Hawise, turning to the she-cat, "if you could cause as much discord and chaos within NightClan, and take control of the place, how would you do it?"
There was something about the league he had spent forever trying to prove; for the longest time, they were but the outcasts, the city rats who took whatever came crawling in, a far cry from an empire he had once remembered, an empire he wanted to rebuild. Perhaps, if he wasn't being arrogant, they could step forward into the arena once again, and kill two birds with one stone. He'd get rid of a potential threat, the leak that was a former league cat in a position of power, and take over another clan all at once. It was certainly a tempting idea.
"Civil wars, they breed on chaos, on certainty rather than uncertainty. So many will say revolution comes in the face of uncertainty but I would argue it's the exact opposite." She started as she turned the words over in her head, as she thought of the sudden stark implications of Kate being Kier's sister. A lot to unpack in very little time after he leveled his next question towards her, but she never turned away from a challenge.
"Revolution starts with a figure to rally behind, so I would find someone who they could be rally behind. A figure that they could lay their trust in, someone who has openly opposed Kier which could be a simple warrior, or even his deputy from the sounds of it. They you just need to set off a spark, find something to whip them into a frenzy. Something comprehensible that the vultures can't forgive; either the truth or a lie it matters little. Once the spark is lit off that fire will be impossible to put out, seeing as the whole reign is laid built on straw and flimsly wooden beams." The more she spoke the more impassioned she felt, the more she felt she could do it given half a chance.
"The trickiest part would be finding something to set off the spark, seeing as Nightclan is already a cesspit." Pausing she considered Bermondsey, "I don't even think they would care if the executed some kits hmm. Perhaps a lie that Kier is colluding with outside forces. It needs more research."
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Post by achromatic on Apr 11, 2022 9:33:53 GMT -5
Hawise was clever. There was a reason she made her way into this position, he knew, and her plan was almost the exact replica of what he had thought. He had heard about NightClan's former colonization, and understood it's mistakes. A clan couldn't be subjugated by an outside force. Cats hated change, they hated it even more when it was out of their control.
Control. With chaos comes control. The trick of it was to make whoever they put in charge think they were in control, wasn't it? The easiest way to do so was to find a figurehead, and luckily for him, it seemed Hawise already did. "Revolution," he marveled, "and an open dissenter seems to already exist. From what I hear, not many are fond of Kier's reign." He had put Elizabeth onto a mission, and she had given him snippets but nothing substantial yet. Of course, her mission hadn't been to bring updates on their boy ruler, but on another cat he knew.
"Perhaps we should give them a little push," he mused, "a couple of issues to push things around...perhaps make Kier seem rather incompetent, perhaps plant a little betrayal too." He wanted the assassin back, and if taking over NightClan was just a perk along the way, he didn't mind at all. "You have a good point, Hawise," the tom gave a faint dip of his head before continuing, "have you spent much time out amongst the clans before?"
"Not often no," she replied with a scoff and a shake of her head. "Things seem to be so complicated in their little life's. They turn simple issues into whole productions and the whole thing seems a tedious waste of time." She thought of her mother, she thought of her father and the circumstances of her birth and how it would have gone down in a clan. She thought of her brother and the torments he seemed to face but couldn't properly deal with because he was confined by silly things like 'honor'.
"So many of their issues could be solved if they were just... less, but also more." She shook her head not sure how to properly explain her thinking. "Ignore me, the clans always get me maudlin."
"But back to the topic of Nightclan, you sound like you have an inside source?" She cast him a sly look, "perhaps they can help arrange something. I good plague might do the trick? A sickness? A poisoning?"
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Post by achromatic on Apr 14, 2022 11:00:55 GMT -5
The tom smirked. Oh, a poisoning would be fun certainly, yet there was a risk that their medicine cat would find them out. The clans were strange places; he had assumed there to be peace amongst them. That was how his father had described it after all, a peaceful, idyllic bunch of cats who couldn't be bothered to fight for their survival, who had everything handed to them, never fighting for what they truly could have. It wasn't the cut-throat place the league was, the tom would say. They didn't know what it took to really survive.
Things had changed since. The groups with their multitude of gods, with their internal strife and wars waged against one another...there was excitement now as a spectator. There was plenty to see.
"We do have a few of our cats there," he confirmed, "but they're on another mission, a personal one for me. You have yet to prove yourself, Hawise." His green eyes fixed onto her and the smirk she had on her face. "I trust your judgement. I need you to go in and see if our other assassin found herself in some trouble, and I want you to get close to the deputy, to fan the flames, so to speak. We can never be overprepared, and if their little king thinks he can waltz into this forest and claim a piece of the territory, he should be reminded where his loyalties should've been first."
He didn't care that Kier was once a trainee of theirs, but he did care about a cat knowing their place, and he'd be damned if NightClan became yet another threat, just under new management.
Hawise paused before a smile overcame her, an excitement thrumming through her that was not necessarily related to the espionage but more towards the opportunity. There was also a warning bell going off though, as she would have to complete this mission with enough time to integrate herself, get what she needs and still make it back to the league to report it to the Nemesis and then have time to slip off once again and give birth.
"I won't fail you." She replied with a dip of her head and fierce light in her eyes. She let them walk in silence together for a few more moments before she spoke in an almost wistful tone. "On the topic of the clan cats, I must admit I do enjoy their names. They seem fun to come up with; and there are certainty some wonderfully fierce ones."
"I will have to come up with one to help fade into the background of Nigthclan, any ideas?"
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Post by achromatic on Apr 20, 2022 7:57:17 GMT -5
He liked this cat. She had the attitude and the cleverness to make things work for him, that was for sure. Despite his wariness for cats who were clever–a clever cat was a dangerous cat after all–his cultivation of cats around him who could serve a greater purpose was a bigger temptation.
"I trust you won't," he replied with a smirk. He hated those clan names really, he always found them rather silly. He knew Eshek wanted his kits to have them, had probably given them some herself, but he had always kept out of it. Still, he had used them once, for his sister's kits whom he tried to hide away. "Do something that doesn't stand out too much, something that fits you."
He gave it a thought. "Rowan is said to protect a cat from enchantments," he offered, "Rowancharm, perhaps? Or Yew would work well; you'll be the poison in their veins, the one they won't even notice."
She hummed and nodded, "see while we might never use such long form almost pretentious names they add a certain... mystique." She affirmed as she heard his suggestions. "As you stated with Yew, many might just assume they were named for the wood but I like the double meaninds they could hold. Though I suppose just naming them Rowan or Yew would amount to the same."
Hawise knew she had derailed the conversation and almost felt bad because now she wasn't quite sure how to get it away from names. And she feared that the longer they talked on names the more suspicious it might lead to later down the road. Something that fits you.
She wondered how easy it would be to convince a kittypet to cause trouble, or a rouge, as something that fit her would to make sure she is as far away from any potential blow back as possible. "Well I suppose poking fragile egos should be easy enough."
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Post by achromatic on Apr 22, 2022 10:30:44 GMT -5
He chuckled. "I suppose they do, though I doubt most of them know the meanings of the plants they're named for," he offered, "perhaps their medicine cats do, but I doubt any of the others pay much attention to it." He gave her a faint smirk. Oh, he knew she'd be able to provoke a couple of them easily enough; he eagerly awaited the results.
They continued upon their walk. "I never did ask where you were from," he spoke casually.
"All sorts of places really," her casual almost flippant tone did the opposite of what she night have intended and instead lead towards a believe there were more to her words than one might assume. Luckily she wasn't in the buisness of withholding information that would likely not be helpful to anyone now. Well unless they ran into Beldam but Hawise was rather sure her mother was in the wind.
"I started off near a twoleg development. Not far from where my rouge mother met my kittypet father. Then she murdered him and abandoned my brother and I and we wandered after that." For such a brutal tale she told it rather blandly, factual even.
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Post by achromatic on Apr 29, 2022 16:20:19 GMT -5
Hawise's story reminded him of what Eshek had once said to him when they had first met, something about 'boo hoo everyone's parents get killed by their siblings, you're nothing special,' to which he had immediately gave her the most disapproving look he could manage before marching away. Look where that had ended, he thought dryly. "Guess the League really does have a habit of taking in the strays," he spoke more to himself than anyone else. He didn't mean it in a cruel way, no; after all, he was just as much a stray after his mother had been murdered and his father gone mad. He had never intended to return here, but there was no better place to dwell.
"Your brother," he continued, "is he still alive?"