LARKWHISKER

THISTLECLAN

LARGE BROWN TABBY TOM WITH GREEN EYES

This master hunter is a visage of muscle. Worked up across his few seasons in Thistleclan. Although slightly taller than the average clanmate, he has relatively short legs. Most of his mass clumps around his shoulders and back legs. The fur that covers him is a rich, deep brown. This fur is long, but is most present during winter and the cooler months. He has tabby stripes along his body. His face, legs, and tail are a slightly darker brown than the rest of his body. There is very little white to speak of on the male’s body, appearing only on his chin and the inner corners where his eyes and muzzle meet.

His face is handsome in a sort of roguish way. His face is mostly round, but his jaw is slightly more square and set. The tom has large green-yellow eyes, but it is almost impossible to see them fully as he squints almost constantly, especially around his clanmates. He has somewhat pointed, forward set ears. Larkwhisker has a short muzzle, with a small, orange-tinted nose bridge. When it comes to physical mannerisms, he often chews the inside of his cheek, and is one to slit his claws out and in when anxious. He’s generally a little twitchy, not so much due to nervousness but Larkwhisker normally has some unused energy. This presents itself in the form of a nose, eye, or tail twitch, most often.

Brilliant, Bold
Decisive
Stubborn, Arrogant
A master in strategy. Both in hunting and, (though not the best at physically fighting) strategizing the best moves in battle. He was naturally a very bright child but his brilliance has come with age in turn. He’s one to offer free advice to younger members as well. Although sometimes unwanted or perhaps inappropriately. He means well, he likes that he’s smart and he wants to share it with his clan the best he can. Being smarter than the average can have its downfalls, though. At times he can’t quite communicate in an obviously intellectual manner, thoughts darting around this way or that. This means that on particularly bad days, he comes off as quite dumber than he actually is. His outward appearance makes some think he is all strength and no intelligence.

With his brilliance, slowly Larkwhisker has become bold. He’s confident in his abilities and trusts his intuition. Although this leads to mistakes here and there, the male picks himself back up and tries again. There’s a certain amount of optimism that radiates from him. Confidence in every fiber of his body. He comes off as cocky (which he is) but if it bothers others, he doesn’t pay it any mind. He’s just doing what he thinks is best at the time, with the information he has. Larkwhisker knows himself, he trusts himself, he’s good at strategy and he believes he’s smart. So, decision making has never been a problem for him. Though this sometimes leads to half-baked or not well thought out plans. Which could spell disaster for him. So far he’s been lucky, and continues to trust himself due to this luck. Which, to be fair, is quite foolish of him. One of the only things that leads to his downfall personality-wise. Because of his luck thus far, he hasn’t necessarily made a fundamentally bad decision, as it’s worked out in his favor. But luck only goes well for so long.

Unfalteringly decisive, and yet incredibly stubborn. If he doesn’t want to hear a certain perspective before making a decision, he simply won’t. Larkwhisker has an arrogance in his intelligence, which he rarely questions. He’s always been stubborn and probably will remain so for some time. After all, he is lucky, no? What good is listening to others when so far your own fate has gotten you far enough and not in a half bad position? This makes him a bit of a loner. However, if he truly respects someone and thinks they are of equal wit, he will listen and consider their words. Even those who are arrogant will listen once in a while.

Parents: Cedarleg & Fogstrike (both deceased)
Siblings: Thymetail, Sootfang, Mouseheart (littermates), Quaileye, Steamclaw

Cedarleg and Fogstrike were a bit older when they had their first litter. They’d wanted to wait until they were truly established in the clan. They weren’t rushed, as they had a long, slow burning romance, not a rushed whirlwind they’d seen ruin many families. So, once they finally settled down, they were blessed with four kits within their first litter. Although not so much of a blessing on Cedarleg, who took the pregnancy quite hard. Larkwhisker was born alongside two brothers, Thymetail and Sootfang, along with a small sister, Mouseheart. The kits themselves were nursed for a while by another queen until their mother regained her strength. Regain it she did, and she had no health problems for many moons to come. Their father was dedicated to the clan but made plenty of time to see his beloved mate and their children.

Although he inherited the shorter legs of his father, Larkwhisker slowly widened out and became the biggest of his littermates. The eligible warriors muttered about how good he’d probably be at fighting, and a few of them wanted to mentor him. One such warrior got the chance, an older, wiser warrior which later passed on. But not without passing down knowledge to the young boy. He was patient despite Larkwhisker’s know-it-all attitude, and carefully encouraged him to pursue hunting, which was where the boy’s real aptitude led. Larkwhisker and his littermates do get into some trouble as apprentices, but the eldest brother always seems to be able to wiggle them out of it. His brother’s call him the ‘lucky’ sibling.

By the time he became a warrior, his parents had had a second litter. Two brothers, disruptive Quaileye and timid Steamclaw. There’s a new leader, as well, Theivingstar. Larkwhisker takes a while to adjust but is soon back on his feet. Just as he gets used to things, there is a fatal fox attack that takes the deputy. During the mass warrior ceremony, his brothers are promoted. Larchwhisker’s life becomes routine again.

There’s a time when Larkwhisker thinks, between all this, that he’s found the cat he’d like to settle down with. Smokestorm. But it seems his burning infatuation isn't quite as evident as he thinks. Missing an opportunity by not saying anything. But the small, almost schoolboy-esque crush continues, but more dull than before.

Sadly, during the last leafbare, both Cedarleg and Fogstrike die of starvation and sickness. Shocking the family. They band together to help their clan recover, all the while avoiding their own personal issues. Larkwhisker becomes strained from his family, the pressure of being the eldest quite a bit for him to handle. He becomes more convinced of his own importance and his arrogance worsens. At this point in life he’s grown a particular distaste for the rogues his clan constantly runs into.