Firthclan Info

[Dreamer]

IMG_1027125 by Mike, on Flickr

Firthclan

The second of the clans, it was formed by former ship cats, cats who had wandered the docks or had been born on ships and then abandoned. They were already accustomed to water and to using it and so when threatened by forces in the village decided to make their home in a safer place along the Firth, away from the human town. Eventually Pineclan began encroaching on their borders so they moved across the Firth, using their skill with swimming and fishing to carve out their own territory. They are neither the largest nor the smallest clan, but make up for it in physical size, what with the majority of their earliest blood being Norwegian Forest (viking blood cats) and Manx cats (brought from the isle of Man). Firthclan is as flexible and changing as the water from which they draw power and identity, but also can be quite terrible when provoked over matters which they consider to be vital to their beliefs.

Culture

The clan of the pure mountain waters, and the mysterious bogs and fens. Firthclan focuses greatly on an understanding of purity, and greatly values honesty and truth, and perceives kindness and caring of others in the clan to be high value.The -heart suffix is rare in this clan, due to most of the clan having such high regards for their own personal morality, but they make up for it in variances in their skills, where few would earn the -scale or -stream suffix. They tend towards a more peaceful attitude, and are forgiving, stating that with each new tide come new clean waters, so that old hurts are usually washed away. Their clan family and structure is fairly loose, as are their punishments. It takes a lot to get exiled or severely punished in this clan, especially because there is rarely a need to act out. Many of the cats are free spirits who dont always function well with huge amounts of structure, so there are a lot less formalities involved in the clan, unless they involve faerie interaction. Faerie are a whole other matter, and they are always treated with kindness and respect, even if just for self preservation.

While Firthclan's camp is not on an island out on the water, it is close to water, and water safety is highly stressed in the clan from a very young age. Kits are taught to swim as soon as it is safe, and shown the dangers of treating it lightly. Yet water is also a safe space for them, and where other clans might complain about their paws being wet, Firthclanners enjoy it. Occasionally they will flick water on other cats at gatherings to see their reactions, as it amuses them greatly. They can tell from the tides and the temperature of the water if something has changed at sea, and often use this as an indication of the temperature and weather of the coming days. The other clans often think them vain, as they spend a good amount grooming themselves. However this is a more practical matter, involving drying their fur as well as getting rid of sand or anything which might have gotten close enough to irritate their skin. They try to avoid sandy or earthy nests in favor of as many layers of moss or bog cotton as possible.

The subject of outsiders is an interesting one to Firthclan. They arent as easily accessible as the other clans, and so dont as commonly get new blood. At the same time they are always on the lookout for more ship cats who have been abandoned, and Pineclan often sends them their way. It is not difficult for an outsider to join the clan, but they must solve a set of riddles/ tell an outright lie in order to join. This is a precaution to safeguard against faerie attempting to join the clan and cause mischief within. Once they have been cleared to join they must pass a few assessments to prove they are adults and can be called warriors, if not they must take a few moons a an apprentice to learn the skills necessary to survive in the clan. Cats can and do leave Firthclan, though it is certainly not as common as with Pineclan, since Firthclan has a more united atmosphere and friendly lax requirements.

This is by far the most spiritual of the clans, and the one most open to faerie influence. Firthclan cats are very respectful of faeries, and very tolerant of them, even of the smallest variety, and interact almost daily with them. This means that there are more benevolent faeries to grant them even small gifts, but many of the most heinous villains, under the promise and pact of a malevolent faerie, originated from this clan. They are somewhat removed from the other clans, and there has been debate if they should just give up the territory on the other side of the firth to the other two, but there is significant benefit to what they do have, and so they still maintain their borders, although not as aggressively or strictly as the others. Their relationship with faeries has made them bitter enemies to Moorclan, and some of the more precocious Firthclanners have been known to sneak into Moorclan territory and save black kits left out to die.

[Dreamer]

Ranks
No ranks are gender/sex specific.

-Leader-
The Firthclan leader is considered to be the most wise and experienced in the clan. They function as a guide and caretaker in the clan, a role model in which the clan as a whole can confide in and trust. In Firthclan, the leader is the one who has a subtle understanding of law and justice, and although decisions are usually made as a committee with their council, they have the tie breaking vote. Firthclan leaders are not as confined to camp as the other leaders are, due to the help of their council in leading. The leader often wanders the territory, creating better relationships with local faerie, and tagging along on patrols or training to offer words of wisdom. They are often very eccentric by the standards of the other two clans. Often leaders have strong relationships with the oracle's, since they are both guides and caretakers for the clan, though the oracle's are primarily the spiritual side. Leaders are elected, usually the council will put forward a candidate, and then the clan votes on whether they would like them as leader. The council is usually good with it's choices, so it's uncommon that their choice is outvoted.

-Council-
A council of cats consisting of an elder (or older senior warrior if no elders are in the clan), a senior warrior, and a queen. The oracle's is also part of the council, although usually only for major votes and policy decisions. The council is the respresentative body of the clan, normally the most senior/experienced for each position or rank is automatically on the council, though certain terms apply. They debate the small notpicky details of everyday life, with the senior warrior discussing things in the territory and patrols, the queen offering insight on kits and mentorship, and the oracle's offering an idea of the state of faerie relations. The leader is there to preside and offer wisdom, and the elder is there to remember the past and bring it up when relevant.


-Oracle-
Usually an oracle is a cat born with high sensitivity to the faerie realm, and drawn to it. They are the ones most easily able to communicate with and befriend faeries. Often an oracle will be able to choose with some certainty their successor. However they must find favor with the major water faeries, including the one which inhabits the pool. At most there can only be two active oracle's in the clan, and that in itself is rare. Usually Firthclan has one active oracle, and a few prospective replacements.Their method if healing is that of cleansing. They specialize in ridding the body, particulaly wounds of infection, and the warmth in their pool is know to ease pains and help cats recover.

-Elder-
In Firthclan elders are treated with great respect and indulgence. Since they have given so much of their life in dedicated service, they are allowed to do as they please, either in camp or outside or it. They often wander the territory with friends, guides or escorts,and it is considered very Rude and disrespectful to dentist an elder, so long as the request is reasonable. Some cats take advantage of the system, but it is uncommon, and usually it is quite enjoyable to accompany an elder on their little journeys of self Discovery and self indulgence.

-Warrior-
Firthclan warriors are more laid back than those of other clans, and in general are less likely to be aggressive and fight. They have less need of it, due to more abundant food and having more territory to claim that isnt up against. In any case, Firthclan warriors are more free spirited, and the clan in general has a lot less structure. Warriors often volunteer for duties, and switch with others when needed. Its a familiar atmosphere, with bonds formed by loyalty and friendship. Their final assessment before warrior hood involves a journey of self Discovery, anywhere from half to a full moon. For many it is a physical journey, as they leave the clan to see part of the world, but for some it is an internal journey, a time of meditation of learning the territory and the path which is theirs to take. When they return, or their journey comes to an end, they receive their new name and a feast is held in their honor, where they are the first to eat for the first time and for the last time for a long time.

-Nurse-
Like most other duties, Nurses are transitory in their care of kits. Usually -flower cats will be expected more than others to help nurse kits, but often others will pitch in. There is usually only one completely full time queen, although there could be more depending on a cats predisposition. But they only require one full time nurse at a time, allowing others to pitch in without burning themselves out. This full time nurse is also an older, more experienced nurse who sits on the council. Its equally common in Firthclan for the kits to be raised by the one who birthed them, as a collective.

-Apprentices-
Firthclan apprentices are different than those of other clans. Instead of having a general one size fits all program with which the clan trains their young, each mentor/apprentice pair is geared to help the young cat succeed, with the focus being on ensuring the young cat does not become overwhelmed or anxious by their training. Many apprentices pursue their work at their own pace, with the only stipulation being that they must be doing something which helps the clan. Considering how many options there are, its unlikely they run out of things to do or learn. Instead of feeling frustration and pressure, they take joy and excitement to learning. The other clans would call them behind their peers, but while in some areas this may be the case, in other areas they far exceed them. However, due to the casual pace, it is not uncommon for an apprentice to become a warrior around 14 moons.

-Kit-
Firthclan is usually blessed with happy, healthy kits, with more surviving past kithood per litter than in either of the other clans. However, they have more dangers to teach their kits about. From a very young age, kits are taught to guard their secret name, and not to tell anyone who doesnt already know it. Firthclan cultivates kindness, caring, and honesty in their kits, and many of their games are cooperative games which require cats to communicate and not seek their own glory and attention. Many are encouraged to attract a smaller faerie or two, to take care of it and indulge it for good luck. Kits who have a high propensity for aggression, unkindness, and mischief are brought to the oracle so that they can be cleansed if they are tainted by dark faerie energy. Kits only become apprentices if they are considered trustworthy not to take advantage of a good system, and sometimes there will be older stubborn kits who are cooling their heads and learning to meditate and be patient in order to be deemed worthy of apprenticeship.

[Dreamer]

Naming

Kits are given their secret name at birth, a name which the mother gives to her child as part of her intimate exchange at birth. This secret name is revealed to those whom the kits eventually grow to trust, but not openly revealed. Usually these names are from either Scottish Gaelic origins. Occasionally the mother will tell the secret names to her mate, but usually that is left up to the kittens to decide if their sire is worthy of it.

They are publicly named when they are brought out of the nursery for the first time, usually around a moon old when they have begun to was and their ears and eyes have opened enough to understand something of what is going on. Their name is chosen by the leader, who in their wisdom chooses the best name to fit the color of their pelt, calling back to a long tradition of history of names. When they have been named, each elder in the clan at the time (or each member of the council if no elders are alive), will speak over each kit a blessing, or an attribute which they hope the kit will have. Generally they are similar or the same, good wishes of health, of sharp claws, quick reflexes, and thick fur, but sometimes they get creative, particularly when the oracle speaks.

Due to the presence of Amber in Firthclan, they can usually tell when a cat will turn out Amber.They have two groups of prefixes for those cats, the in between prefixes, and the mostly golden prefixes. They are marked as such in the prefix list.

As for warrior names, Firthclan warriors live for aesthetic. They like names that sound nice, and flow well. While for the most part they still follow a traditional understanding of naming, sometimes they fudge that a little if they don't like the flow, and apprentices often choose the better sounding suffix if offered multiple options. Warrior names, while a good way to distinguish them from one another and identify the other, are not their true names. The names that define their true being, are their secret names. So they play around a little with their warrior names. It drives the other clans nuts.

Appearance

Firthclan is most likely to have the biggest buffest cats around. The stock that went into them was mostly ship cats, big and muscular with long thick fur to keep out the salty sea wind. Their big paws, often with tufts of fur between them, help cats to swim and fish with greater proficiency than those of the other clans. With some of them having come from the nearby isle of Man, they inherited the unique short tailed trait which can leave a cat with anything from half a tail to no tail at all. Many were also descended from cats who came with the vikings, and thus Firthclan has the largest amount if red cats compared to the other clans, so that red females are not too uncommon. But at the same time they also have the lovely pelt color of Amber, which turns a black based kitten to beautiful Amber golden color. It's exclusive to Firthclan, or those of Firthclan blood. They also have a large proportion of classic and spotted tabbies, compared to the other two clans.

Traditions

Unlike Pineclan, with its rigid structure and traditions of high historical import, Firthclan has much more simple, colloquial traditions, and plenty of them. They are also highly superstitious.

Besides their kit and warrior ceremonies, their burial ritual is another main ceremony. When a cat does, their body is taken to the sea at low tide, and the area decorated with shells and bobbles by family members, with each little thing placed by them spoken over with a fond memory or good word. Then when the high tide comes and washed them away, they take their journey into the depths of the faerie realm and become a part of Starclan. It is rare that a body washes back up, but if it does, the process is repeated. However the superstition is that the cat had unfinished business, which is why they did not leave.

Firthclan is known for their rather ridiculous courting rituals. For cats wishing to express their interest or seek a relationship, they must go through several hoops. Often their love interest will devise games and riddles for them, and so will their little mates, parents, or closest friends. It's a bit of a fun game actually, and sometimes the two participate to crack the riddles together. They eventually become true mates when they reach the trust of each other enough to tell each other their secret name. While many realize that not all relationships last forever, some do, and Firthclan has the highest amount of cats who have only one (or a few if they are poli) mates for life. Because true mates, not just friends, are those who share their deepest secret, their true name.

Besides that they celebrate several holidays.

Law
Firthclan is known as a merciful clan. They do not have a death penalty law, and instead their worst punishment is exile. In most cases, there is rarely a direct verdict. Instead trial is convened, where a jury of four is chosen from the warriors of the clan. With the leader acting as tie breaker. This allows the clans voices to be heard, and a semblence of fair judgement.