Asterheart

redwoodclan

A small dilute torbie she-cat with green eyes

Asterheart lacks the size and muscularity of many of her clanmates. Having been born a weak and frail kit, she suffered the disadvantage of sickness throughout her early days. Remaining smaller than average, it has taken a great deal of time and effort to build up a layer of lean muscle beneath her thick pelt. Though many in her clan would still like to call her weak or scrawny, Asterheart takes great pride in managing to grow taller than her littermate Daffodilshimmer and will hold her head high or fluff out her pelt to make herself appear larger than she is.

In contrast to her sister's short dense pelt, Asterheart couldn't be more opposite. Her thick fur is long and soft to the touch, and the swirls of cream and grey are rather unassuming in comparison to the bold red that it might've been. Faint mackerel tabby markings can be seen on her face but are almost lost in the swirling colours of her flank. Her pelt is often ruffled, giving it a 'messy' appearance that might not suit everyone's preference, but for Asterheart it serves its purpose. Giving her a larger appearance and enabling her to hide her lack of muscularity behind a thick mess of fur. 

Asterheart has large pale green eyes that are darker around the pupil, they have a rather striking appearance when paired with the subtly of her pelt. Her ears are rather large for her petite frame, and she would probably look quite sweet if it wasn't for the intensity of the glare she'd fix you with if you dared to call her that.

+: brave, loyal, ambitious
-: stubborn, reckless, over-protective


Asterheart has the courage of a true warrior, coupled with the determination to back it up. Living in the shadow of her older siblings success, she felt an unquenchable desire to prove herself. Her small stature put her at a disadvantage- that's what she was told, so she learned to be brave enough to tackle those larger opponents anyway. Unfortunately this blind courage has led the young warrior into trouble on more than one occasion, tackling obstacles with a recklessness that some might expect of a cat half her age.

Loyalty is one of the qualities that Asterheart values above all, she shows this in her bonds with her loved ones. Willing to fight and die for them as well as for her clan. She is quick to jump to the defence of those she loves, often leading to disagreements if she misinterpreted a conversation she only caught the end of. She is over-protective, but doesn't view this as a negative when she sees it as her duty to protect the ones she loves.

Asterheart is aiming to prove herself within her clan, determined to show everyone that she isn't the weak kit that was once stumbling around the nursery, unable to keep up with the larger kits her age. She has the drive and ambition to become a formidable redwoodclan warrior- she just has to survive long enough to get there.

She has a rather stubborn disposition, leading to an unwillingness to admit when she is wrong. Asterheart is not the type to enjoy being told she is wrong, and so will often opt to walk away from a conversation before this can be made obvious. Her small size causes cats to underestimate her, but her sharp-tongue could rival the lethality of her claws and is a clear indicator that she shouldn't be overlooked.

Mother - Acornfur
Father - Fishleg
Siblings - Gorseflame, Daisyblaze, Marigoldsong
Littermate - Daffodilshimmer

Asterkit was born to Acornfur and Fishleg, one of two surviving kits in a weak and sickly second litter. There were many high expectations for this litter considering the success of their first trio of kits who had grown into strong warriors. However, Asterkit and Daffodilkit were weak and frail. Their mother died following their birth and though no one dared speak it, many thought that the kittens might soon join her in starclan.

Against the odds, both she-kits survived and though Asterkit struggled to keep up with the larger stronger kits in the nursery, she didn't lack the determination to try. It was during these early days that Asterkit developed an idolisation towards her older brother Gorseflame, who filled an almost parental role that she lacked, with an absent father and a dead mother. 

Asterpaw was named an apprentice and her confidence only grew, no longer was she the weak, timid kitten that struggled around the nursery. Now she stood independently, a capable young she-cat on a quest to prove herself as a fully fledged redwoodclan warrior. If Daffodilpaw was gentle and sweet, then Asterpaw was her sister's opposite. Reckless and brash, she was the hurricane to her littermates summer breeze... A storm on a cloudless day.

Asterpaw felt like she had a lot to prove, to distance herself from the weak kit that she had once been. It led her to straying down a path of reckless bravery. She excelled during her battle training, but found hunting to be boring in comparison- she didn't have the patience to wait around for mice to wander her way when she could be helping to defend their borders.

It was during her time as an apprentice that she really learned to appreciate the threat that Lichenclan posed against them. She lapped up every ill-spoken word her clanmates had to say about their rivals, and formed her own opinions of the neighbouring clan from that alone. Asterpaw knew that her sister would never understand her desire to sink her claws into a Lichenclanner's pelt- an act that would truly mark her as a brave and loyal warrior. Daffodilpaw was too sweet, a pacifist at heart... She would try to keep her thoughts to herself.

Now a young warrior, Asterheart has finally proven herself worthy of being a fully fledged member of Redwoodclan. Enough so that she was granted the suffix -heart. It filled her with a great sense of pride, to be awarded a name indicative of her brave and loyal nature. But it isn't enough, not yet... 

She feels like her clanmates still view her as a weak link. She is smaller than most of the bulky cats that make up Redwoodclan's ranks, and though she no longer has the weak build and shaky stamina of her youth, she knows a cats memory is long. She will not be free of this burden until she has done something that will banish any old judgements they might still harbour against her.