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!
News & Updates
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.
Goosekits eyes shot open, woken from his sleep by a light ringing in his ears that he of course mistook for buzzing. "HELP! HELP! THE BEES ARE COMING FOR ME!" He shot to his paws yelling loud enough to wake half of Swiftclan and took off out of the makeshift nursery as fast as he possibly could. His eyes were screwed shut as he ran in circles, not stopping until he collided into someone, with a thud he rolled to the ground and curled up into a ball whimpering. "Dont let them get me!"
Cradlegrave had been enjoying a peaceful morning of doing absolutely nothing when the sound of a shrieking child drew his attention; he looked up just in time to feel something bowl into him, almost knocking him off his paws. "HOLY HELL—goddamn kids," he hissed, glaring at Goosekit. "Don't let what get you, buddy? Noise control?" He wondered if SwiftClanners had any concept of what noise control actually was. Probably not.
He looked a little closer at Goosekit's whimpering form, frowning. "What the hell's wrong with you, kid? You still half-asleep or something?"
Brownie's head shot up in alarm and she gathered Nib closer to her protectively as the sound permeated her eardrums. When the sleep left her brain, the queen recognized Goosekit gone from his nest. With two of his siblings missing and one already an apprentice, Brownie already felt bad for him. Now a pang went through her heart as she listened to his cries. Her motherly instinct kicked in and she tried to move carefully so as not to rouse her own kit.
"Cradlegrave," she chided, eyes trained on the curled up Goosekit. "That's not how you deal with nightmares." And nightmares she certainly knew about after her and Nib had lost Powder.
Brownie nudged Goosekit with her nose, letting out a comforting purr. "Wake up child," she murmured. "I'll chase the bees away."
Cradlegrave narrowed his eyes as Brownie took over the situation, though he stepped aside to let her do her thing. What experience did Cradlegrave have with nightmares, anyway? He slept two or three hours a night at most, and had trained himself to wake up from dreams, lest they turn sour. Still, he didn't really want Brownie to think he was some kind of deadweight, so he cleared his throat and tried to soften his voice. "Give him a little kick in the side," he suggested lightly. "Something that'll wake him up. Not too rough though, or he'll think it's a bee. A giant bee."
[ tagging Phantom just in case this thread was lost to time in their watchlist xD ]
The queen rolled her eyes. Tom-cats. Absolutely useless. Patience was with her though, so she merely looked over at him as she began to lie down, curling around Goosekit. "I'll show you a giant bee," she threatened, but her voice was light and joking. "We're going to try to wake him gently first. If it doesn't work, then we can nudge him."
Goosekit kept his eyes screwed shut even as Cradleggrave spoke, he was far to scared to move but knowing someone else was there meant that the bees might leave him alone. He was shaking violently his paws over his ears to try and block the ringing, but it wasnt working. "The bees are gonna get me, I can still hear them!" He wailed, louder than normal as he couldn't hear his own voice through the ringing and his paws covering his ears, but when Brownie nudged him with her nose he flinched and pulled a paw away, swatting it towards her. "I dont wanna die!" It was a pitiful and squeaky cry, but it was nothing compared to how he felt now that he could hear clearly again and the words Giant Bee. reached him. His eyes shot open and tears streamed down his face as he tried and failed to stand and run, managing only to half drag himself over the ground in front of the two cats.
Goosekit clawed himself out of the circle of fur she'd made around him, and Brownie watched with flattened ears as he cried. "Goosekit," she murmered, fur on edge. "Little one, the bees might hurt but they won't kill you." Her wary gaze switched to Cradlegrave, the presence of another adult settling her nerves. Instinctively, she whipped her head then to the nursery, suddenly needing to be near Nib.
"They might kill you if you're allergic," Cradlegrave murmured absently, not really thinking about what he was saying, or how Goosekit might react. "...But don't worry, kid. You're probably not allergic to bees. Wasps, maybe. Now those things are nasty." His gaze followed Brownie's, all the way to the nursery, and his brow furrowed. Did Brownie have kits of her own, or did she just like to appreciate fine architecture at inopportune times?
...He really needed to get to know Brownie better. Or get outside more. Or both at the same time, somehow.
Toms were so dense. Brownie wanted to bonk Cradlegrave right on the head for his comment but refrained.
Meanwhile, Goosekit didn't seem to be listening to her. That was okay - it wasn't her kit. Still, she felt a maternal pang.
Slipping away from him, Brownie locked her eyes once again on Cradlegrave and stepped over to the tom. When she reached him, she spoke low. "What in the world are you thinking, saying such scary things to a kit?"
"I don't know," Cradlegrave murmured, and found himself unable to look Brownie in the eye. He blushed, and focused his gaze on the ground instead. "I was just tellin' him it's not practical to be afraid of bees when there's a bigger problem out there. I thought--I thought it would help somehow, alright?" He shifted uncomfortably. "I ain't never been good with kids."
Though Cradlegrave avoided her gaze, Brownie found herself keeping her eyes trained on his amber ones. They were warm, and she twitched one brown ear as she realized she hadn't paid much attention to his excuse until the end.
"I'm not good with them either," said Brownie, her heart hurting suddenly. "I probably shouldn't be the one offering advice. I apologize if I jumped down your throat, Cradlegrave."
Cradlegrave shook his head. "'s fine," he muttered, and lifted his eyes to meet her gaze properly. The sudden eye contact made him flinch, a sensation not dissimilar to an electric shock running through his body.
"For the record, um. Thought you did a real good job with Goosekit," he added, words stilted. "You might be sellin' yourself short, sayin' you're not good with kits."
She ducked her head momentarily, her wide smile catching her off guard. "I appreciate you saying so." Who was around to compliment her, especially since the move to the new territory? No one, that's who. Hearing someone say something nice to her was really... pleasant.
Brownie picked her head back up. "I believe my queen duties should be done soon though. Then I guess it will be you who know what to do and must show me, hmm? I've never been a warrior before."
Cradlegrave nodded and gave her a small smile back--which was probably the first time that'd happened in a while, he noted to himself. How many times had he smiled properly since he'd come to SwiftClan? Was this the first time? Either way, someone that could make him smile like that was worth spending time with.
"I'd be glad to," he said, and coughed politely. "And y'know, um. My advice'll be a little better this time around. Know a lot more about fightin' and stuff than family stuff." Wait, did that make him sound like some kind of psycho? Maybe he should clarify that. "Not in a weird way, I mean."
A silly grin was on her face now. What an awkward dork. She pressed her nose against his cheek quickly then leaned away again, looking to the side. "Looking forward to it, Cradlegrave. I'm thinking about getting a warrior name. Then I'll be like you."
Cradlegrave's face flushed an unholy red when Brownie pressed her nose to his cheek. "Y'know, funny story really," he said, mind racing as his mouth rambled. "I was born somewhere out west where no one had a name like mine, then I came here and found out there were whole Clans of cats with two-part names like mine. Thought it must've been fate or somethin'." Well, it probably would've been a funny story had someone else told it. From his mouth, it felt kind of dull.
"I think you'd suit a warrior name real good," he said, changing topics. "What're you thinkin' you'd like it to be?"
"You're not from here either then!" she cried. "That means we can figure it all out together. It's official, we're clan buddies now."
Brownie wound her tail with Cradlegrave's, giddy like she was young again. She didn't mind the blush that came when he said she'd do well with a warrior name. "I'm thinking a couple different things. A name that means something to me as a new warrior in a new clan, and then the name of my daughter so I always remember where I came from."
“Yeah, I probably should’ve led with that,” Cradlegrave murmured, but Brownie was onto another topic anyway. “That sounds real good,” he said, before the words my and daughter suddenly sunk in. Sirens began to wail in his head. If, merely hypothetically, him and Brownie were to get...involved somehow, that meant that at some point he would inevitably have to interact with her daughter. Brownie had already seen how bad he was with kids, what if he only got worse?
“You got a daughter?” he asked, as casually as possibly. “Might’ve seen her ‘round. What’s she like?”
"Oh." Their delightful conversation had taken a rather sad swerve--and Cradlegrave did not use the word delightful lightly. Even more than he was bad with children, he was bad with expressing his condolences. "...Sorry about your daughter," he said, shifting uncomfortably. "Didn't mean to bring somethin' up. For what it's worth, I lost some family too, a while back. Havin' her in your name would be sweet."
