Dark Sun's Domain

I would have to look this up again to be sure, but I'm pretty sure human genes are incredibly weak when it comes to incest. Most animals can breed between relatives for countless generations and they'd turn out just fine. Again, if this is true, *the more you know*.

Not to be rude, but...

"Last minute change: I am forbidding any further discussion from the books post-PoT, as I have not yet caught up beyond that point. Thank you."

This has been a wonderful discussion (like, really!), but I'm going to have to cut things off here, sorry. You did no bad!

So now I am debating: Do I continue reading PoT until the very end, or do I begin on Graystripe Adventure in order to hopefully get back into the habit of reading?

My quote above has stemmed another quote for an OC haha.

"There is a cost to everything in life - nothing is ever free. The consequence to being kind is to be blind. Any selfless act, be it generosity, empathy, compassion, mercy, these are all choices that leave you vulnerable, even if only for a brief moment. I choose to keep my senses about me at all times. I admit that I am a fox-heart. There is not one shred of kindness within me, or at least any that appears so easily on the surface. That does not make me any less loyal or lacking of a heart. The heart of a warrior still burns within me."

I bent over to grab something out of my nightstand and my hair dangled over and inserted itself into my fan. That hurt.

Yep. It started with a thread about the Lion King "live action" remake and the constructive criticism behind it, then it quickly went into "animals have no emotional expression through facial or body language", and it finally and rather unexpectedly concluded with debates around the common housecat.

Their argument always circles back to, "Well they don't express emotions like a human can." No, they can't, often for literal physical reasons. Not to put us on a high pedestal against the rest of the animal kingdom, but I'm pretty sure only humans can relate to human emotion and how we express it visually. If you can't understand how other creatures display their thoughts or emotions, then you should have no ability to comment on this subject.

Vent over, moving on lol.

I'm surprised that ThunderClan was never insulted by being given the name of "KittyClan".

I dug up an old AU fanfic piece of mine where Firestar has Scourge in the middle of a field and he questions his actions and the way he runs BloodClan, calling them "evil". Scourge responds,

"Evil?" he scowled as he calmly approached the flaming ginger tom, who towered at almost twice his size, but he felt not intimidation from. "Let me ask you a question, Firestar. What would you be willing to do to protect your own?" he asked, followed be a pause. "What would you be willing to sacrifice to protect those who you love?"

Firestar responds honestly, answering with, "I would be willing to sacrifice anything for them."

Scourge meows, "So would I," again with a pause. "Not all cats in my Clan were born in Twolegplace, Firestar. Many came from well beyond our sights, and with each case I grow more intrigued by how vast this world truly is, and they always have such interesting stories to tell. One common theme arises from their tales, a conclusion that I have long since made clear to myself. It is impossible for two or more groups to co-exist in harmony. Peace... may be achieved temporarily, but that is only a break in-between two different wars. Discrimination and prejudice will always develop, hatred will always rise and fester like spoiled flesh, bloodshed becomes as reliable predictable as rainfall during the height of leaf-fall. I would never allow my Clan to experience such hardship, such utter cruelty.

When I came to what would become my territory, I saw different sides bickering and arguing, scrapping and bullying one another, and one side, the cats who took me in, were hit hardest of all. I taught them to fight, to defend their borders..."

"To kill." Firestar interrupted him.

Scourge hissed in the middle of a heavy sigh. "Yes. I molded them to be willing to do whatever it takes to ensure their own survival, and you know what Firestar, we won. We secured our place as the most dominant faction in Twolegplace, no other lesser band of cats would compare to the might of BloodClan... But even when we achieved our victory, my Clan remained starving."

"You hoped that one day--" Firestar began.

"Hope is a coward's excuse of doing nothing," Scourge spat. "And here we are. We're not going to back down from this opportunity, Firestar. I protect my Clan like you do yours, that I can admire you for. Many cats would turn tail and flee, but you choose to stand and defend your keep, even if that may yet be your downfall," he meowed, pausing before continuing once more. "You call us evil. I could not disagree more. I am willing to put my life, my Clan's lives, on the line to secure our future. That is not evil - that is good."

"Despite that fact, you enjoy killing, as do many of your Clanmates."

"Some may enjoy it a little too much," Scourge meowed with a hint of a mrrow of laughter. "But once you become good at something, and I mean really good at it, you take pride in your work."

Another quote.

"I have no respect for your Mediator because it goes against the very foundation of the Clans. The warriors' purpose is to subjugate and exterminate, not to negotiate."