Post by willowstar on Aug 25, 2015 21:39:58 GMT -5
| willowstar | | windclan |
| she-cat | | 102 moons | | leader |
When looking at Willowstar, cats don't quite see her anymore so much as they see the life that she has led. Her body shows the ravages of time and hardship better than any story from an elder’s mouth. She is bent and stooped, with bony protruding hips and peaked shoulder blades. A once fluffy and thick coat has dwindled to wispy, easily tangled puffs of grey and off-white. Small, dark eyes still hold a rapt attentiveness for the world around her, but the ancient she-cat remains a prisoner inside of her own body. With too-long claws that her arthritic paws can’t fully retract or extend any longer stained yellow and brown with age, and a mouth full of rotted teeth that pain her sometimes if her prey isn’t soft enough, Willowstar is a walking reminder of one thing. Everyone gets old, and everyone dies. Although… she seems to be taking her sweet time with the last part.
Despite her frail state and the questionable wheeze that accompanies every breath, Willowstar’s wits have remained sharp as ever, though she grows more tired with each passing moon. She carries herself about her camp with a slow moving grace that is often regarded as achingly familiar by her clan mates—but due to the frailty that age has brought her, Windclan’s camp is about the only place Willowstar can be reliably found. The lengthy border patrols are now out of the question for her, and the fast rabbits of Windclan’s territories long ago out-paced her in the fields. She leads through delegating duties through her deputy as well as several senior warriors, and can often be found lying outside of her den speaking with them to gather news and plan for her clan’s future.
Despite her frail state and the questionable wheeze that accompanies every breath, Willowstar’s wits have remained sharp as ever, though she grows more tired with each passing moon. She carries herself about her camp with a slow moving grace that is often regarded as achingly familiar by her clan mates—but due to the frailty that age has brought her, Windclan’s camp is about the only place Willowstar can be reliably found. The lengthy border patrols are now out of the question for her, and the fast rabbits of Windclan’s territories long ago out-paced her in the fields. She leads through delegating duties through her deputy as well as several senior warriors, and can often be found lying outside of her den speaking with them to gather news and plan for her clan’s future.
Astute. Willowstar has seen and been through it all, and she knows better than anyone else that history repeats itself. She always seems to be one step ahead of those around her. Some of the kits in the nursery spread rumors that her tail has an extra eye at the end of it because she always seems to know exactly what is going on within camp… and outside of it. She’s well respected for her strategic abilities. Thankfully, she has kept Windclan peaceful during her leadership, and only utilizes her capabilities when another clan oversteps their boundaries.
Wise. As the oldest known cat, Willowstar has had plenty of time to learn lessons that have been the death of other cats. With each harsh reminder of reality, Willowstar adapted and learned, developing methods to cope with the harsh world around her. Such a mentality allows Willowstar to accurately assess reality and gladly shares her learnings with others.
Maternal. The eldest Queen surely feels an almost motherly attachment to all cats as they are, for the most part, all young enough to be her offspring. She understands the barriers and boundaries of the clans, but she is known to make exceptions to nurse injured cats back to health regardless of allegiance. Some may think that she cares too much, but the lives of her children are the most precious to her.
Burdened. She knows that she doesn’t have much time left. She often finds herself preoccupied with troubling thoughts, and she worries about Windclan’s future, as well as the fate of the forest as a whole. She still feels that there is more that she needs to accomplish, more that she needs to teach others, but each day there is less and less time to do so. It has begun to weigh on her—sometimes more than the aches in her joints.
Nostalgic. The closer she feels to Starclan, the more Willowstar finds herself thinking of moons that were quite long ago. She revels in watching the youths of her clan, and takes special delight in visits from queens and their kits. Though she longs to reminisce and speak of a history few would remember, she’s often too shy to do so and instead sits and purrs, lost in memories.
Forgiving. The older she grew, the less time it seemed Willowstar had to hold grudges. Stress caused her old bones to ache, she had enough on her plate already and didn’t want to deal with a tummy ache. There is something serene in the way that she seemingly forgives readily. In Willowstar’s mind, if all cats emulated her learned capacity for forgiveness then all clans would know a certain harmony.
Wise. As the oldest known cat, Willowstar has had plenty of time to learn lessons that have been the death of other cats. With each harsh reminder of reality, Willowstar adapted and learned, developing methods to cope with the harsh world around her. Such a mentality allows Willowstar to accurately assess reality and gladly shares her learnings with others.
Maternal. The eldest Queen surely feels an almost motherly attachment to all cats as they are, for the most part, all young enough to be her offspring. She understands the barriers and boundaries of the clans, but she is known to make exceptions to nurse injured cats back to health regardless of allegiance. Some may think that she cares too much, but the lives of her children are the most precious to her.
Burdened. She knows that she doesn’t have much time left. She often finds herself preoccupied with troubling thoughts, and she worries about Windclan’s future, as well as the fate of the forest as a whole. She still feels that there is more that she needs to accomplish, more that she needs to teach others, but each day there is less and less time to do so. It has begun to weigh on her—sometimes more than the aches in her joints.
Nostalgic. The closer she feels to Starclan, the more Willowstar finds herself thinking of moons that were quite long ago. She revels in watching the youths of her clan, and takes special delight in visits from queens and their kits. Though she longs to reminisce and speak of a history few would remember, she’s often too shy to do so and instead sits and purrs, lost in memories.
Forgiving. The older she grew, the less time it seemed Willowstar had to hold grudges. Stress caused her old bones to ache, she had enough on her plate already and didn’t want to deal with a tummy ache. There is something serene in the way that she seemingly forgives readily. In Willowstar’s mind, if all cats emulated her learned capacity for forgiveness then all clans would know a certain harmony.
’What was Windclan like when you were very young?’
”A different time and place… There was a lot of tension back then, and not a lot of food to go around in the earliest moons of my life. I had four littermates when I was born, but only two of us made it to our apprenticeship. They were hard days, not just for Windclan, but for the other clans as well.”
The prey ran dry during one of the harshest winters the elders of Willowkit’s time could recall, and in the spring—which came late—they still didn’t come back. Clans that had thrived in the summer months found themselves unable to feed all of their clan mates, and Windclan wasn’t spared. Willowkit was born to a permanent queen among Windclan along with four other kits, but when the winter months came, two of her siblings perished, followed by a third in the barren springs. In the end, only Willowkit and her sister, Smokekit, became apprentices. The prey began to return to the lands, and little by little, the clans recovered from the dark days and the hunger pains.
’When do you become a warrior?’
”I trained under an older she-cat until I was around fourteen moons old… Back in those days I had quite a bit more spring in my hips, heh. They called me Willowflight, and my sister became Smokeflower and joined our mother in the nursery not very many moons later. They were happy times. I have many good memories from those moons of my life.”
After the prey returned to the forests, the clans began to thrive once more. They had enough food to sustain their cats, and so tensions around the borders lessened for a while. Willowpaw became known for her abilities to dart after fast moving rabbits in the fields. When she had learned enough and was ready to become a warrior, she was given the name Willowflight to commend her hunting abilities and agility. She started to show quite the fondness for a tom named Mouseclaw, and eventually the pair became mates. It was still another twelve moons before they had a litter of kits together. By then, Willowflight’s mother had joined Starclan, but her sister Smokeflower remained in the nursery. She had a litter of three kits, two toms and a she-cat. She enjoyed her time in the nursery, but was glad to return to her warrior duties once the kits were weaned. After that, Smokeflower watched over them during the hours Willowflight was away.
’You’ve been the leader for so long that not many remember you as a deputy, was it a surprise when you were chosen?’
”Not really, no. I’d been a dedicated warrior and I was known for my loyalty. I showed restraint when needed and knew when to be firm. Sheepstar had faith in me, many in the clan did as well.”
She was named as deputy after the former deputy, Cricketleap, retired to the elder’s den. Though Sheepstar held an aggressive-defensive attitude towards the other clans, Willowflight proved to be far more diplomatic. She helped keep peace between their neighbors by working with other like-minded individuals. She tempered Sheepstar, and he hardened her in return and prepared her for some of the harsher realities that leadership would throw at her. No one expected him to go through the last three remaining lives he had so quickly, but it left Willowstar leading the clan once she turned thirty three moons old. Though a new leader, she quickly proved to be formidable to the other clan leaders of those times, and when a raid was attempted on Windclan, it was the first of Willowstar’s lives that was lost. Over the many, many moons that followed (Willowstar has been leading for over seventy moons now), she has lost all but two of her lives. The first in the raid, the next to a snake, and after that, it was a blur of accidents, illnesses, falling, and most recently—exhaustion. With only two lives left and her age weighing in on her, Willowstar has her doubts that she’ll live long enough to see the next spring time blossoms. She worries for the future of her clan and the forests, and it troubles her deeply.
”A different time and place… There was a lot of tension back then, and not a lot of food to go around in the earliest moons of my life. I had four littermates when I was born, but only two of us made it to our apprenticeship. They were hard days, not just for Windclan, but for the other clans as well.”
The prey ran dry during one of the harshest winters the elders of Willowkit’s time could recall, and in the spring—which came late—they still didn’t come back. Clans that had thrived in the summer months found themselves unable to feed all of their clan mates, and Windclan wasn’t spared. Willowkit was born to a permanent queen among Windclan along with four other kits, but when the winter months came, two of her siblings perished, followed by a third in the barren springs. In the end, only Willowkit and her sister, Smokekit, became apprentices. The prey began to return to the lands, and little by little, the clans recovered from the dark days and the hunger pains.
’When do you become a warrior?’
”I trained under an older she-cat until I was around fourteen moons old… Back in those days I had quite a bit more spring in my hips, heh. They called me Willowflight, and my sister became Smokeflower and joined our mother in the nursery not very many moons later. They were happy times. I have many good memories from those moons of my life.”
After the prey returned to the forests, the clans began to thrive once more. They had enough food to sustain their cats, and so tensions around the borders lessened for a while. Willowpaw became known for her abilities to dart after fast moving rabbits in the fields. When she had learned enough and was ready to become a warrior, she was given the name Willowflight to commend her hunting abilities and agility. She started to show quite the fondness for a tom named Mouseclaw, and eventually the pair became mates. It was still another twelve moons before they had a litter of kits together. By then, Willowflight’s mother had joined Starclan, but her sister Smokeflower remained in the nursery. She had a litter of three kits, two toms and a she-cat. She enjoyed her time in the nursery, but was glad to return to her warrior duties once the kits were weaned. After that, Smokeflower watched over them during the hours Willowflight was away.
’You’ve been the leader for so long that not many remember you as a deputy, was it a surprise when you were chosen?’
”Not really, no. I’d been a dedicated warrior and I was known for my loyalty. I showed restraint when needed and knew when to be firm. Sheepstar had faith in me, many in the clan did as well.”
She was named as deputy after the former deputy, Cricketleap, retired to the elder’s den. Though Sheepstar held an aggressive-defensive attitude towards the other clans, Willowflight proved to be far more diplomatic. She helped keep peace between their neighbors by working with other like-minded individuals. She tempered Sheepstar, and he hardened her in return and prepared her for some of the harsher realities that leadership would throw at her. No one expected him to go through the last three remaining lives he had so quickly, but it left Willowstar leading the clan once she turned thirty three moons old. Though a new leader, she quickly proved to be formidable to the other clan leaders of those times, and when a raid was attempted on Windclan, it was the first of Willowstar’s lives that was lost. Over the many, many moons that followed (Willowstar has been leading for over seventy moons now), she has lost all but two of her lives. The first in the raid, the next to a snake, and after that, it was a blur of accidents, illnesses, falling, and most recently—exhaustion. With only two lives left and her age weighing in on her, Willowstar has her doubts that she’ll live long enough to see the next spring time blossoms. She worries for the future of her clan and the forests, and it troubles her deeply.
Poots ☆ Snowpaw, Mudheart☆ Image
