Inconceivable

[Gosh]

Spiderpaw meowed, albeit a little nervously, "I like socializing. And think about it this way: if there was only one cat in this entire enclosure, that cat would grow weak. He or she wouldn't be able to hunt rats, as you must have more than one cat to successfully catch a rat. So that cat would grow weak and die, and then there would be no cats anywhere. But with more cats, each cat has a better rate of survival. Us cats need each other." She paused. "And a cat wouldn't deem themselves leader. Every cat would help decide who was to be the leader." When she had finished her speech, she felt proud. 'I remind myself of Woodstripe,' she thought in amusement.

[Ten]

Frozenheart watched Spiderpaw and nodded as she spoke, blue eyes bright with concord. He liked to socialize as well and agreed that there was strength in numbers. When she began talking about leaders, however, he stopped nodding and only frowned. Though he didn't mind the idea of doing as another cat said, Spiderpaw was advocating Clanhood. That he did mind.

ooc| Seems Woodstripe is gaining a reputation, isn't she?

[duckyaisha]

Rainstripe narrowed her eyes. "But what if I don't /want/ a leader? I want to do what I want, when I want. I like making my own decisions, and I don't want someone making those decisions for me, someone deciding what I should be doing every single day, taking control of my life. Besides, no matter who we chose, the power would eventually get to their heads. It always does. And I'm still alive, aren't I? Despite being alone most of the time. I can still hunt lizards and crickets, and as you can see, I am not dead. If there was only one cat in the entire enclosure, they would get all the food and space to themselves. They would only die when they got old or sick. They wouldn't have to compete with any other cat for anything." Then she stood up, fur bristling. "Anyone that can be trusted can betray us. Or don't you remember the legend? That's what happens when cats rely too much on each other. They're taken advantage of." Rainstripe, then thought of something. "And what if half the cats wanted one leader and half wanted another? It's impossible to please everyone when you all live together. But when you're alone, you only have to please yourself and your siblings or parents. Everyone is happier."

[holly60zz]

Sandwhisker nodded vehemently in agreement with Rainstripe "Yeah," she meowed "I don't want any cat telling me what to do. Competition is what makes us strong; we'd grow soft in a clan." Narrowing her eyes, she added "Anyway, what if we chose the wrong cat for leader? We could end up even worse off that we are now, I say it's not worth the risk." Sandwhisker rarely trusted any cat, she reasoned that she had no need to and she could end up being stabbed in the back. So far, no cat she had met since the death of her family had earned her loyalty.

[duckyaisha]

Rainstripe was beginning to like this she-cat. Apparently they thought the same way about Clans. "Even if I wanted to live in a smothering group of cats, there are too many risks involved with the leader. We've survived this far without a clan, haven't we? We can continue surviving alone, and everything will stay the same. A Clan system would change everything, and I don't want change." At this point, Rainstripe glanced down at herself, ribs showing through her dull and ragged fur. "Though we are hungry now, who knows how prey will react to an organized group of predators in the area? They may all decide to leave the enclosure, and we'd starve to death. If we had a clan, things would be worse than they are now. I'd rather everything stay the same."

[Ten]

Frozenheart gave a nod to Rainstripe and Sandwhisker each. He feared that a Clan would bring too many changes and ruin the life he cherished, like he assumed they did. Still, he wondered if Spiderpaw would notice the hole in Rainstripe's rant: a cat who lived alone might have all the food to themselves, yes, but when it came to rats, they wouldn't get to eat any.

[moddy]

Smudgeheart ignored the other tom; he didn't need an answer from him. Infact, he hadn't even asked him. He had asked the she-cats. He glanced over at Rainstripe and frowned.

"Oh, okay," he said, not liking her answer. He paused so he could take in what they were talking about now.... A Clan? Most of the cats here seem against it, he noted. He was fine with the idea of a Clan, though. Why wouldn't he be?

"I'm all for a Clan," he mewed simply, not really caring about their reactions. He had more important things to be doing, but it wouldn't hurt him to stick around for a bit....

[Ten]

While this gray tom declared himself "all for" a Clan, the white tom of the group was all against it. Frozenheart's tail began to swish. With luck, Smudgeheart would shut up and return to his search. He didn't want to see him say any more than he already had.

[Gosh]

Spiderpaw beamed at the gray tom; at least someone was on her side. "You'd rather stay hungry than at least hope for a better life?" she meowed to Rainstripe in disbelief. "You point out the bad things of a Clan. Plus, we are smart cats. Why would the leader we chose be wrong?"

[holly60zz]

Sandwhisker glanced sharply from Smudgeheart to Frozenheart. There was obviously going to be a conflict if one didn't back off or move away; she was familiar with all the danger signs. She diverted her attention from what Spiderpaw was saying and instead tensed up, ready to spring up and run at a moment's notice. Sandwhisker wasn't sure whether Rainstripe had noticed the hostility but she was sure Spiderpaw had not.