#saffronique

[fallenclan]

Hi, I was wondering what dimensions you use for your comics? I really like the sizing and tumblr sure loves to eat the quality of any comics that are too big...

1,700 x 2,300 is the size i usually use, though i often crop vertically :)

[clangenrising]

Oof once again you've created an extremely compelling situation where nobody is really right or wrong. RisingClan is really feeling that lack of a mediator right now, though Goldenstar did an excellent job managing the situation. I feel awful for Luna. She should've communicated her thoughts to Floodstrike, yes, but she thought she didn't have to, and her society seems like it will look very harshly on an unmarried woman with kids, especially kids that are part wild cat.

I do think that Luna is well within her rights to demand involvement from Floodstrike in raising these kits that he helped create, even if he's not feeling ready. Like it sucks to have to be a parent before you're ready, but actions have consequences and this is unfortunately a lifelong one. He doesn't have to be her mate, but the kits deserve to have a father-- thankfully I think that he's going to get there mentally, since he was thinking that he didn't want them to see him as a deadbeat like Ghost, and simply because they way Clangen works I imagine this storyline was prompted by Floodstrike showing up with kits.

Anyways, the degree to which he is involved needs to be agreed on with mediation from a third party-- I imagine another Clan's mediator could help with this, though they will still have Clan cultural bias. I think this will be difficult regardless of who mediates though, since the two cultures having very different ideas of what appropriate involvement looks like. I think its going to be difficult to convince the city cats that Floodstrike can still take responsibility without becoming Luna's mate. Can't wait to read more!

hehe I love this but can't say much without giving things away so I will just share your wonderful commentary

[rippleclan]

Couldn’t properly reply to this post by @saffronique but wanted to share it! I love the mixed opinions I’m getting, and everyone’s readings are valid! It’s a great analysis of the scene, and I love the discussion.

[clangenrising]

GRANDMA SWEEP!!! Nice going Songdust!!! Love that she got such a cool moment to shine. But dang Scorch, gambling with the kits? That's a big, big misstep. Like I understand why it happened, and she clearly knows it was a mistake, but if that had gone south...

Yeah, I gotta give Songdust her moments now that she's retired and doesn't get in game events anymore. That scene honestly just sort of happened, like I lost control right along with Scorch and the characters just sorted it out on their own lol

But yeah, Scorch took a HUGE risk there. She wouldn't have cared though if it weren't for the consequences with Goldenstar and the other leaders. In her mind Russetfrond can go fuck himself, losing Yellowkit and Bluekit wouldn't have been a loss to her at all.

[clangenrising]

Aw Fogstalker wants to follow her mom's path! That is SO perfect for the cat she has grown into. I started to suspect this might be in her future after her talk with Scorch, when Scorch was heading towards the desert. She did an incredible job of helping Scorch through some really difficult feelings, identifying some of the factors contributing to those feelings, and not reacting to Scorch's attempts to avoid the conversation by lashing out. It fits Fogstalker really well, and I think its such an excellent evolution for a character who lashed out so much following her mother's death.

I can't quite put my finger on why specifically Scorch doesn't seem pleased with this change, but I wasn't surprised by that reaction either. Curious to see what her perspective is and excited to see what the future holds for the gals!

YES YES Exactly!! She knows how much it hurts, she knows how grief and fear can make you cruel, and so she wants to extend the kindness she was given to others. And she's really good and pushing back on negative or harmful thoughts without shaming them.

Like how Scorch was like "What if I tried to hurt you" and she just went "Well you dont have a reason to do that so im not worried." Perfectly cut through that intrusive thought with logic while being firm but still compassionate.

Its just so good aaa i love them

[clangenrising]

I hope Ospreymask gets the kittens she's hoping for! I was literally just thinking last night "Bluekit and Yellowkit can't be too far out from apprenticeship, I wonder if the game will give us a new litter or if we'll have an empty nursery for the first time since the Oddletts!"

I think it will be interesting to see Ospreymask as a mom. I really like how you've developed her as a character before her POV and how it's continuing now-- especially because she feels like a divergence from the kit-loving stereotype in the canon series. It's been well established that she loves kids, but that doesn't always translate to being prepared to parent- and right now it sounds like she's got sort of an idealized mindset around pregnancy and raising kids. That combined with the fact that she seems to have some unhealthy responses to loss (don't linger on it and try to find new things to bring you joy as quickly as possible (not that moving on is bad, just that doing it without taking the time to let yourself mourn isn't great)) makes me think she'll experience a bit of a learning curve if she succeeds in having kits! Especially because they won't be kittens forever, they'll grow up into teens and then adults, and will need a different kind of guidance and support from her, something I'm not sure she's fully considered. I can't draw any serious conclusions though, this is the first time we've been in her head so it's too soon to really know for sure. Very excited to see more of her!

Amazing analysis, as always! 50 Risingbucks!

I think that yeah, Ospreymask is probably not ready to be a mother or rather she's not ready for the more difficult aspects of parenting. Being a kitsitter and a parent are two very different things and I don't know if she's prepared for that haha

It'll be nice to have new kittens in the Clan though and at the very least it's guaranteed that her kittens will know they're very, very loved.

[rippleclan]

Oof the Puddlewhisper Icekit Pearkit Nimblestep situation is SO tricky. It really seems like there's not a right answer. Just a lot of sadness and complexity. On the one hand, Puddlewhisper is the only parent they've ever really known, and they're happy and safe. They were abandoned with no real way to get them back to Nimblestep at the time. On the other hand though, I really do see Lettucestar's point and part of me agrees with him. It's sad and it's going to hurt Puddlewhisper a lot, but the kits are probably still young enough to adjust to a new home fairly easily and RippleClan IS responsible for the murder of their father. The murderer has been punished, yes, but it still happened. Nimblestep is back now, getting help, and very very reasonably wants her own children back. Like I don't blame her for wanting to have custody of her kids back, for wanting to be responsible for how they are brought up, and for not wanting them to not be raised by the group that killed their father. No, she shouldn't have left them in the first place, but she thought she was fleeing for her life, and the life of the kit she could carry. She was panicked and not thinking rationally. I don't think it's really any evidence that she didn't care about them or that she's not capable of being a good mother to them now that she has support. As much as I like and sympathize with Puddlewhisper, and as much as losing Icekit and Pearkit would be devastating, I just don't see her keeping the kits in RippleClan being the right thing to do, in large part because of the murder of Achilles. I feel like the best, if not at all likely solution would be for Puddlewhisper to agree to join SlugClan and coparent the kits with Nimblestep.

Love your thoughts on this!

[clangenrising]

I think it's really cool how you've managed to give Oddstripe a physical transition in your art without relying on the "eyelashes for female cats, no lashes for male cats" art trope (which I myself am guilty of at times lol). I'm sure a developing artstyle and changes in design over time have contributed to it, but that's certainly not the whole story. Your cats have never looked like, vastly different based on sex alone (save for the stud jowels on intact toms) which I've always really appreciated, so I think it's cool that Oddstripe has still gotten a visual transition from where he started. I can even see a bit of a difference from his last official art! It's not all in the jowels, either, though that's certainly the most noticeable change.

I (and most other comments I've seen) focus largely on your writing when it comes to discussion posts, and to be clear it IS your fantastic writing that has made RisingClan what it is, but the visual storytelling in Oddstripe's physical transition is a really nice touch that just adds to the overall experience of reading RisingClan!

Aww, thank you! That's such a compliment, I'm flattered. I think probably the reason people mostly talk about my writing is because I haven't drawn a lot lately so it's mostly been writing that people have to look at.

But yeah, I am really happy with how drawing Oddstripe has changed (and not just the redesign being a lot better in my opinion). I really do think I've gotten better at drawing cats over this last year after taking a long break from drawing them after highschool.