minkfur

redwoodclan

a tall and thin pure brown she-cat with brilliant green eyes

piercing green eyes the color of newly shined emeralds stare at you through thick foliage, her pelt indistinguishable from the matting nettles and bent trees. your fur prickles, unsure of your new enemy but the rumors around her piercing green eyes the color of newly shined emeralds stare at you through thick foliage, her pelt indistinguishable from the matting nettles and bent trees. your fur prickles, unsure of your new enemy but the rumors around her coronation flood your mind. left and right you shift, trying to make out her stream-line form against the thick vines and tree roots. suddenly you realize you do not know your enemy from territory or shadow, and fear pierces your heart. a dark shape shifts and you jump to your right, hoping to get a single glance of the slippery warrior, but alas - you remain fixated on the trees, on their magnificent trunks, on the maple leaves piled amongst redwoodclan's ground. she remains elusive, unseen, apart from a brilliantly bright glare that even still, you struggle to peel from the undergrowth.

minkfur found blending into her surroundings an easy task. with a pelt the color of dirt and fur sleek enough to slip through even the smallest of openings without a struggle, she found her place on the battlefield, fighting for her clan's right of survival and existence amongst the three who shared the forest. unlike other redwoodclan members who sport large limbs and wide barrels, minkfur lacks this luster and brawn while retaining the shape of a domesticated cat lacking the wild form of a true clan member. her heart remains a forest cat, however, and no redwoodclanner nor any other cat of the forest questions where she belongs.

despite her shortcomings, minkfur's long legs give her hare-like speed, and she is known for her quickness and agility. small paws create little noise as she climbs through the undergrowth, hunting and practicing battle moves on unsuspecting prey. however, despite her love of war she holds her warrior code dear to her heart, never murdering nor maiming her victims (even small creatures fleeing her prowess on the hunt). born a kittypet, minkfur did not start life out with the diet of a wild one, and while her stamina is acceptable she does not have the physical strength of a bloodborn redwoodclan member. she has learned to use logic, trickery, and manipulation to topple even the largest of foes.

defensive, quick-tempered and irritable, minkfur isn't the kindest cat in redwoodclan and fights hard for even the shrewdest morsel of respect. even though she's proven herself time and time again, a part of minkfur feels she's never good enough for her peers. suspicious, she assumes other cats look down on her, constantly questioning her right as a warrior and member of the forest. because of her bravery and battle skills most of redwoodclan simply write it off as her personality, minding little her jeers and personal attacks in the face of questions. as an apprentice she often found herself sent to chore work for behavior intolerable of a subordinate. her saving grace? hunting and battle skills no cat questions. she lives, breathes, and worships the warrior code, finding it the most sacred of all ways of life, and secretly condemns those who do not see it with her passion. minkfur holds pounds of shame for her birthright, and constantly feels the need to shed the skin of one raised by twolegs.

she believes in starclan but the heavens are not a central focus in her life. when she cannot lash out, she sits quietly biding her time, trying to be good and impress cats who she knows she's extended a short string towards. minkfur recently sported a curiosity towards medicine making and wanders over to the medicine cat den from time to time. as a young apprentice, she found herself banished to help the elders and while not respecting them at the time found herself greatly interested in the clan history through stories and legends. a storyteller herself minkfur enjoys creeping into the nests of queens to watch the young kits play, often retelling the legends she heard as a young one as well as fables she created herself. youth enchants minkfur, maybe because she wishes for kits of her own someday.

minkfur feels incredible pride for redwoodclan, believing her family the superior race of the forest. her bias and prejudice towards the other two clans remains a private hate, for she's found herself in hot water over negativity before. deep down all minkfur wants is acceptance and love, but because she does not love herself she cannot believe redwoodclan can, either. this creates a severe divide between minkfur and the rest of her clan mates - however, the only one who feels this way is minkfur. if she was on the outside looking in, she would find redwoodclan more than accepts her, respecting her as a brave warrior while caring little for her non-blood birthright.

raised in the twolegplace as "brownie," the young she-cat lived a pampered life before the age of six moons. her twoleg, a fancy cat breeder, often brought brownie, her mother and siblings to large venues called "cat shows," where she was presented and judged based on beauty and grace. brownie's breed was called a havana brown, an older breed with an unusually pure mud-brown pelt. for the first five months of her life, brownie existed only as a showpiece for her mistress.

over time her twoleg became less and less interested in her. brownie started losing to much more beautiful cats, and red, yellow, brown and black ribbons replaced the beautiful blues hung on the outside of her cage. eventually, brownie stopped going to the cat shows at all, left behind while her mother and siblings continued on the circuit. when her twoleg did return, she paid absolutely no attention to brownie. a hot summer day found the cats all in kennels, then inside the belly of a plane, eventually finding themselves on a ride brownie would never forget. their mistress brought them to a secluded island, a break from the chaotic show world for she and her furry family. however, while the twoleg female bathed her pampered kitties with affection, she lacked and for brownie and simply ignored the kit. the she-cat felt unloved, unwanted, and in a desperate attempt to escape the pain in her heart, fled one afternoon when her mistress opened the door to their rental vacation home. brownie bolted, climbed over the fence and disappeared into the forest. however, little did brownie know but her twoleg mistress brought her here to be left, abandoned, and thrown away - just another failed kit in a crop of purebred extraordinary creatures.

eventually, her small paws gave out and she fell with exhaustion against an old tree stump in a shady clearing, passing out. a little while later she felt a nudge against her rib cage, and when she opened her eyes two huge, hairy toms stood over her, their eyes narrowed with suspicion and anger. brownie came to know them as mudtooth and quailclaw, two redwoodclan warriors who stumbled upon the young she-cat during an afternoon patrol of the borders. confiscated and without escape, she was harshly escorted into redwoodclan, and when questioned why she breeched clan borders, the fragile she-kit broke down. she admitted she no longer had a home, that her mother, siblings and owner no longer wanted her, and to spare her life. confused but quite enchanted with the youth redwoodclan's leader offered her sanctuary and eventual acceptance into redwoodclan if she proved herself trustworthy and useful. a few weeks upon entering, learning the warrior code and doing her best to be forthright and obedient, on her sixth moon their leader dubbed her 'minkpaw,' for her beautiful coat the color of a mink rat often found in the fresh-kill pile.

mudtooth became her mentor, but the warrior constantly questioned minkpaw's status and belonging into redwoodclan. the older warrior did not agree with redwoodclan's relaxed opinions on out-of-clan blood, making it a point to compare everything minkpaw did to the abilities of a kittypet. minkpaw never did gain mudtooth's approval. over her moons of training the two often were caught sparring, not in practice but with sheer hatred for one another. mudtooth lied often, finding reasons to send minkpaw to the elder's den to complete humiliating chores, treating her like his servant and abusing her however he could. redwoodclan's leader was not ignorant towards their sour relationship but chose not to intervene, interested in how the severe adversity might shape their warrior-to-be.

minkpaw scored the highest out of her apprentice class during assessments. she caught the most prey, won her sparring matches against other apprentices, but was criticized for being too rough and lacking enough restraint. despite their leader's comments he dubbed her 'minkfur' upon graduation, a name which she came to loathe as it simply described her physical characteristics and not the blood, sweat and tears she gave to be accepted into redwoodclan. still, she said nothing, sitting there rigid with anger while the other apprentices were granted with beautiful names of '-heart,' '-talon,' and '-flight,' as examples of bravery, strength, and agility.

it took many moons for minkfur's self-proclaimed rejection to dull to an ache in her heart. mudtooth found death at the claws of a badger, flinging himself over a cliff with the brute and perishing painlessly. minkfur stood vigil for him while secret and cruel joy filled her heart that her demon finally found the karma baiting him all these moons.