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Karma: 0 |  | Clan Positions And Terms
« Thread Started on Jun 12, 2007, 9:28pm » | |
Clan Positions
Leader - the cat who leads the Clan; their names always end with -star; new leaders take a trip to the Moonstone or Moonpool. There, they receive their nine lives and name, always ending with -star from StarClan. Tigerstar, Firestar, Tallstar, Leopardstar, Bluestar, and Onestar are a few examples.
Deputy - the cat who is second-in-command to the Clan leader; the deputy is in charge of organizing patrols and hunting parties, and succeeds the leader after he/she loses all nine lives from battle, age, or sickness; in the case that the deputy dies, the leader must appoint a new deputy before moonhigh, or midnight. Graystripe, Brambleclaw, Russetfur, Ashfoot and Mistyfoot are examples of deputies.
Medicine cat - a cat who is trained specifically in the ways of healing (but that does not mean they can't fight); receives messages from StarClan and interprets them; medicine cats stand outside of the rivalries between the Clans. A medicine cat will heal an injured cat and can order even the leader what to do. Each Clan has either one or two medicine cats; they are not allowed to take a mate or have kits; sometimes, fully trained warriors can become an apprentice to a medicine cat. Barkface, Littlecloud, Mothwing, Leafpool, Runningnose, Cinderpelt, Yellowfang, and Spottedleaf are examples of medicine cats.
Warrior - a cat (tom or she-cat without kits) trained in the ways of combat; warriors defend, hunt, and fight for their Clan; they also are in charge of training apprentices to become warriors; a warrior may only have one apprentice at a time, although they may supervise the training of apprentices lacking mentors. Crowfeather, Webfoot, Blackclaw, Rowanclaw, and Squirrelflight are examples of warriors.
Queen - a she-cat expecting or nursing kits; they stay in the nursery until their kits become apprentices, then return to their warrior duties. In the first books in the Original Series, however, it was used to describe all she-cats.Tallpoppy, Brindleface, Goldenflower, Sorreltail, and Frostfur are examples of queens.
Apprentice - a cat who, at six moons old, begins training to become a warrior or medicine cat; they train daily to practice battle and hunting skills, and also care for the elders; one task they usually do is fetch bedding; their names end with -paw; they become warriors when their mentor and leader feel that they are ready. Berrypaw,Willowpaw,Hazelpaw,and Jaypaw are examples of apprentices.
Kit - a kitten, not yet old enough to be an apprentice (six moons old); they are not allowed to hunt or leave the camp alone; very young kits do not normally leave the nursery, however, older kits are allowed to do so; their names always end with -kit. Icekit and Foxkit are examples of kits.
Elder - a retired warrior, queen, medicine cat, or deputy; elders are usually cared for by apprentices. Patchpelt, Smallear, Dappletail, Halftail, Heavystep, and One-eye are examples of elders.
Other Ranks (outside of the immediate Clan ranks)
Loner - a cat that lives neither with a Clan or with humans, normally used to describe a friendly rogue. Some examples of loners are Barley, Purdy, and Ravenpaw.
Rogue - another term for loner, but more offensive; a cat, usually more hostile than a loner, who is part of no Clan, or a cat who was exiled from his original Clan; rogues will sometimes live with other rogues, but they generally travel alone or with their mate. An example of a rogue is Sasha and a few of the current ShadowClan warriors.
Kittypet - a cat that lives with humans, usually do not go into the forest. Firestar was a kittypet named Rusty before he wandered out into the forest one day. Other examples of kittypets are Princess, Smudge, Cody , Daisy, Smoky, and Floss.
Clan Terms
Stupid furball - usually a friendly teasing term between Clanmates and Clans; can also be an insult.
Bossy furball - an insult used to offend a cat who orders everyone about; can also be a teasing insult.
Bossy paws - (not a real 'term'...Squirrelflight calls Brambleclaw this as a teasing name)
Slow slug - usually a friendly teasing term between Clanmates and Clans; can also be an insult.
Mousebrain - an insult; can also be used as a teasing insult between Clanmates.
Mousedung - an insult; more offensive than mousebrain, but less offensive than foxdung.
Foxdung - an insult; more offensive than mousedung, more offensive than crowfood.
When hedgehogs fly - a saying that means something is impossible, "when pigs fly".
When rabbits fly- a saying that means something is impossible.
Mouse-brained - term used to describe something foolish.
Sharing tongues - term used to describe cats grooming each other and sharing news.
Leaf-bare - the season of winter.
Kitscent - the smell of a kit.
Newleaf - the season of spring.
Greenleaf - the season of summer.
Leaf-fall - the season of autumn.
Moon - a month (from one full moon to another)
Moonhigh - the point in time when the moon is highest in the sky; midnight.
Sunhigh - the point in time when the sun is highest in the sky; noon.
Fresh-kill - freshly caught prey.
Crowfood - rotting, dead prey or garbage; also used as an insult, less offensive than foxdung.
Gathering - a meeting that the Clans hold in peace in a certain place (Fourtrees, the island) when the moon is at its fullest.
StarClan - the warrior ancestors of the Clans.
(The) Moonstone, Moonpool - a place where medicine cats and leaders meet and share dreams with StarClan, and where StarClan have a stronger connection. It is revealed in Kate Cary's webpage that the Moonstone is made of a semi-precious gem called moonstone or orthoclase.
Silverpelt - the large swath of stars in the sky (the Milky Way); StarClan is represented by Silverpelt.
Kittenstep -about an inch.
Mouse-length - about two inches.
Pawstep - about six inches
Tail-length - about the length of a cat's tail (a foot) (as in: a tail-length away).
Fox-length - about the length of a fox (around a foot and half)
Thunderpath - a road used by Twolegs.
Monster - a human vehicle (cars, trucks, and other wheeled transportation tools. Larger monsters are construction vehicles)
Halfbridge - a dock.
Twoleg - a human.
Twoleg kit - a human child.
Twoleg nest - a human house.
Twolegplace - a human town.
Twoleg Rubbish- human litter (trash).
Carrionplace - a human trash dump.
Greenleaf Twolegplace - a place where humans visit only in the summer, like a campsite or recreational place.
Horseplace - a horse ranch or stable.
Cutter - a veterinarian, usually one specialized in spaying and neutering.
"Green-pelt things" - a camping tent that humans sleep in; may also describe what humans wear.
"Water-monster" - a motor-boat.
Kittypet - Clan term for housecat.
Kittypet Terms
Housefolk - a human that owns a cat; used by the cats in the town near the old territory
Workfolk - a human that works on the roads, houses, etc; used by the cats in the town near the old territory
Vet - a veterinarian
Upwalker - another name for a human; used by a cat named Purdy in a town near the sea
Nofur - another name for a human; used by the cats that live near horseplace
Wildcats - forest (Clan) cats
Squeakers - prey; used by Purdy in a town near the sea
Clan Hierarchy
Clans have a very clear system of command and respect.
Kits
At the lowest level are kits. Their name always ends in "-kit". These are cats younger than six moons old. They are restricted due to their age and are not permitted to leave the camp without parental supervision. It is against the warrior code for kits to hunt. They have no duties in the Clan, and spend most of their time playing with each other in mock fights or they play alone with moss balls, leaves, or puddles. After their sixth moon, a kit is made an apprentice, and given to a warrior to mentor them. After Raggedstar's death (during Brokenstar's leadership from before and during most of Into the Wild), Brokenstar had ShadowClan's kits begin their training at three moons of age, and he named them full warriors at five moons.
Apprentices
When a kit reaches six moons old, they are apprenticed. Their name, which formerly ended in "-kit", now ends with "-paw". They are assigned a mentor, who can be a warrior, deputy, medicine cat (if the apprentice plans to become the next medicine cat), or even the leader (Firestar was Brambleclaw's mentor, for instance, however, the leader's apprentice doesn't neccesarily be deputy or leader), usually reserved for the deputys' kit. Apprentices also care for the elders in their Clan. They are allowed to travel within Clan territory, either alone or with their mentor, and are also allowed to go to the Gathering at full-moons, if they are permitted by their leader and mentor.
After several moons of training, and a journey to the Moonstone/Moonpool, the apprentice of a warrior is given a new name and proclaimed a full warrior of their Clan. Traditionally, the new warrior's first task is to hold vigil and stand guard over the camp all night until dawn. The average apprenticeship, no matter which type, lasts from about four to eight moons.
When it comes to a medicine cat apprentice, they have much different training than warrior apprentices, as they must learn how to heal their Clanmates and understand signs from StarClan. Also unlike a warrior apprentice, a medicine cat apprentice is given their full name at the Moonstone/Moonpool by their mentor, in the presence of the other Clans' medicine cats. Although a medicine cat apprentice can be given their full name, they will still considered the apprentice of the current medicine cat until they succeed their mentor.
Warriors
Warriors are cats that do most of the work for the Clan, such as hunting, patrolling borders, training apprentices, and discussing most gathering matters. They are toms and she-cats who are not caring for kits. Previously, their names ended with "-paw", but now change to different things such as body parts (tail, ear, claw, fur, pelt, foot, tooth, fang, eye, nose, stripe, throat, whisker, wing, feather, belly, heart, coat, spots, soul, face, leg), surroundings (pool, stream, leaf, flower, brook, poppy, wild), movement (flight, step, fall), or weather (storm, frost, wind, cloud, breeze, light).
Warriors are some of the most important cats in the Clan. They hunt daily, patrol borders, train apprentices, defend their Clan, and fight for their Clan even at the cost of their own lives. Warriors follow the warrior code. A warrior is only given one apprentice at a time, although they are permitted to train other apprentices. For example, Brambleclaw took over Birchpaw's training while his mentor, Ashfur, was recovering from an injury. Warriors may also have kits.
Being a warrior is usually the longest period of time in a Clan cat's life, unless they are the medicine cat, leader, or promoted to deputy. A she-cat can also choose to stay as a queen and look after kits in the nursery until they retire, like Goldenflower.
Queens
Queens are she-cats expecting or nursing kits. They stay in the nursery until their kits are apprenticed, then return to being warriors. Queens are not entirely restricted to the nursery or the camp. They are allowed to go hunting and a queen may also take her kits out of camp for a short while. A queen has the right to keep the identity of her kits' father a secret, even from the leader or the kits themselves, as Bluestar did with her kits, Stonefur and Mistyfoot. Goldenflower also hid the identity of Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt's father for a while when they were still small, though she hid from the two kits, not the Clan. Silverstream had planned to hide the identity of Stormfur's and Feathertail's father, who was Graystripe, before she died bearing them.
Elders
Elders are retired warriors, deputies, and medicine cats. Instances of Clan leaders dying of old age (such as Crookedstar and Tallstar) show that leaders do not retire their positions. They are very respected and are cared for usually by apprentices. The elders' only known duty is to perform the burial of a deceased Clanmate. However, they usually defend their Clan in fierce battle when their camp is attacked. They often give advice to the Clan leader and share stories of passed events with the younger cats.
A warrior becomes an elder when they have reached an age where they cannot keep up with warrior duties, or for other reasons that force them to retire early. Examples of this are failing sight (as was Longtail's case), hearing loss or deafness (Snowkit was an example of this), and serious injury (such as Brightheart and Cinderpelt's former situations).
Medicine Cat
One of the most respected cats in the Clan is the medicine cat, who not only heals the cats of the Clan, but interprets signs from StarClan to receive advice and prophecies. Medicine cats seem to have their own code, much like the warrior code. They walk closer with StarClan than even leaders, and very few cats will argue with a medicine cat. Medicine cats are forbidden to take mates or have kits, possibly because it could be a distraction from their duties. It is possible that a tom who is a medicine cat could father kits and keep it a secret, though it seems that neither gender of medicine cat is an exception to the rule. A warrior who later becomes a medicine cat is also forbidden from having any additional kits.
Every half-moon, medicine cats travel to share dreams with StarClan. They also have to go to the Moonstone or Moonpool area. If for some reason there is no Clan deputy to take over leadership after the current leader is not with the Clan (i.e. Brokentail's exile with Blackfoot), the medicine cat asks StarClan who the new leader should be.
Deputy
Directly below the leader is the deputy, who organizes everyday activities in the Clan, such as patrols. The only requirement to become a deputy is to have mentored at least one apprentice. StarClan can also send visions that in some way suggest who the next deputy should be, even if that cat has never mentored an apprentice. The leader decides who the deputy would be if the former deputy is killed or injured badly. As deputies, she-cats cannot be expecting or caring for kits, which would make them queens, as raising kits would interfere with the deputy duties. However, they can retire, in the case of Tawnyspots (ThunderClan deputy before Bluestar)
A new deputy is chosen if the current one is captured, driven into exile, blinded, killed, or some other thing that renders them unable to do their tasks. The decision must be made before the moonhigh (midnight) of the night of the current deputy's resignation. Sometimes the medicine cat of a Clan will receive a sign from StarClan saying who the new deputy should be. The deputy is usually a senior warrior and therefore is an experienced cat. The deputy is next in line to become leader, should the current leader lose all nine of their lives.
Leader
At the top of the Clan is the leader, whose name always ends with "-star". This cat is usually the former deputy, who took over after the previous leader died. In special cases, like those of Nightstar and Tigerstar, non-deputies of the Clan can inherit the position of leader.
Leaders must commune with StarClan personally to receive their leader name and the special gift to leaders from StarClan: nine lives. Every time a leader is killed, StarClan heals the wound that killed them and returns them to life. Sometimes, however, the wound is too grievous to heal, in the case of Tigerstar, who lost all of his nine lives at once, or in the case of what would have happened when Firestar was in the fox trap, had Brambleclaw tightened the loop. On the night of a new moon, leaders travel to share dreams with StarClan. Also, in some cases, as with Nightstar, cats who may not have been chosen by StarClan may not receive their nine lives. Instead, they remain with only one life. Like a she-cat deputy, a she-cat leader may not have kits, because being a queen would interfere with her duties. Tom leaders, however, are free to have kits.
By Dreamcloud of wcv4. Used with permission
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