Post by Egotistic on Feb 13, 2023 17:33:19 GMT -6
Gullheart
RedwoodClan
a tall black tabby w/ hazel eyes.
warrior
male | tom
63 moons.
Appearance
While his sister walks hunched and bowed, Gullheart carries himself tall and poised.
In him is a fearsome sort of beauty, that which one might see in a panther, set upon the very balls of its feet, moving with that hunter's grace in the slow and deliberate swaying of hips and the lazy trailing of a tail. It is rare to ever catch him slouched, for he is a proud creature and no stranger to his appearance and how impressive it is. However, in color he is unextraordinary. He does not boast the traditional red-tabby furs or the glaring white markings; instead, he shoulders a much humbler garb of classic black tabby furs.
In him is a fearsome sort of beauty, that which one might see in a panther, set upon the very balls of its feet, moving with that hunter's grace in the slow and deliberate swaying of hips and the lazy trailing of a tail. It is rare to ever catch him slouched, for he is a proud creature and no stranger to his appearance and how impressive it is. However, in color he is unextraordinary. He does not boast the traditional red-tabby furs or the glaring white markings; instead, he shoulders a much humbler garb of classic black tabby furs.
Personality
Positive Traits: gregarious, humorous, free-spirited, honorable.
Neutral Traits: truthful, familial, impartial, obstinate.
Negative Traits: avoidant, indulgent, reckless, blusterer.
A bawdy soul with a big heart, Gullheart is well-liked among peers and foes alike and has amassed a grand number of close friends through his good humor and outgoing nature. He enjoys being the center of attention and revels in the adoration of his peers, never shying from spinning a yarn of old war days or recounting heroic deeds of the past. And while some might label him a braggart, few can fault him or frown upon him for it, for so jovial and familial is he that by the time of the following tale, one would sooner find themselves leaning in and grasping at his words than condemning him his many embellishments. In that way, Gullheart is a friend to many and exercises a healthy respect and comradery for even those who walk on the opposite ends of RedwoodClan borders.
Yet for all that is good in him, he, like many, is not without his flaws. Indulgent to a fault and boasting an insatiable appetite, there are few things that Gullheart desires that he will not get, be they lovers or honors—should he so desire them, then he shall pursue them accordingly. As for the things which he must do but does not desire to, those he will pursue with an opposite vigor, always setting such matters aside or avoiding them entirely should they be considered too drab or unexciting, be it an old flame or some task or other, he does not discriminate between the two. And other matters, as well. Darker, more unpleasant thoughts. These he sets aside eternally with no intent to uncover them again, for there is grief in them and fear and shame, and none of those things does he wish to uncover again.
Basic Fear(s): Before Briarfall and the birth of his daughter, Gullheart had very few fears; now he worries over the safety of his mate and his daughter’s ability to adapt to her new life—to make friends as he did and lead a normal childhood despite the curiosities she was brought up into.
Basic Desire(s): For his daughter to cut a place for herself among RedwoodClan and maintain his and his daughter’s relationship with Briarfall moving forward.
Key Motivation(s): Formerly motivated only by the glory of combat, his motives have changed considerably after Briarfall’s pregnancy and conception of their daughter. His heart no longer yearns for war-torn fields and epic conquests but for peace and stability for his family. Though his love for battle will hardly fade, when he fights, it is for his daughter and mate, not himself.
History
✦✦ Season 2018, Leaf Fall || Amidst the growing tensions between RedwoodClan and LichenClan, two new kits were welcomed into the nursery: Robinkit and Gullkit. To Gullkit, the stars granted a wit and draw that made him fast friends with most anyone he met; to the sister, it seemed they granted little of his attraction. Quieter and more withdrawn than he, beside him, she seemed always to pale.
✦✦ Season 2019, Leaf Bare || Gullkit’s kithood was punctuated by reminders of the war. Scarred warriors and bawdy recounts of battle replaced the traditional kitten tales those before him had grown up with, and it did not take long for Gullkit to envision himself as a warrior old enough and strong enough to fight alongside them. At the approach of his sixth moon, Gullkit, newly titled Gullpaw, made a silent vow to claim all the valor one could from the war efforts of his time. He would carve a place for himself in the stories, and when he died, they would whisper of him for many moons to follow—or so he hoped.
✦✦ Season 2019, New Leaf || Where his sister is entrusted with a skilled and seasoned huntress of RedwoodClan, Gullpaw’s own training is passed into the paws of an ambitious yet inexperienced warrior named Owl-leaf. While enthusiastic, the Gullpaw’s mentor’s lack of experience becomes more glaring as Robinpaw quickly forges ahead under the tutelage of her new mentor, driving Gullpaw to seek guidance beyond his mentor. He forges pacts with cats moons his senior, negotiating duels in exchange for small favors—taking up their camp chores or passing on complimentary words to a she-cat in passing. He would pay whatever price and did so gladly until, with time, he became a cat whose prowess in sparring began to draw the attention of more than just his peers.
✦✦ Season 2019, Green Leaf || As Gullpaw’s reputation grew, his success in the training hollow drew the attention of another warrior. Offering to pair their own apprentice with Owl-leaf’s own, Gullpaw was introduced to Roanpaw, a young upstart nearly his equal in moons. The tom was smaller, quieter, and less boisterous than he, yet his mind was sharp and cunning, and with time, the two learned to rely on one another. They were a bonded pair, and when the time for their first skirmish came, they claimed for themselves their first victory. It was a moment that would make them both for many moons that would follow and with time and age, their accomplishments on the battlefield only grew. All the while Gullpaw claimed glory for himself, his relationship with his sister seemed only to sour and grow more estranged. The two loathed one another—Robinpaw always with her quicker and more cunning tongue, and he too proud to endure her. At first, he refuted her in small and petty ways: a worm or centipede buried in her bedding, a smear of mouse bile on her prey. But when he learned of her affections for a close friend, he devised a different sort of plan—one that would refute her feelings and shame her. Only a little bit, he had reasoned, though it had not gone over so smoothly. In the end, she had left in tears and would not speak for days. She hated him for his part in it, and he hated himself for having hurt her so terribly.
✦✦ Season 2019, Leaf Fall || Called to address a skirmish at the border, Gullpaw and Roanpaw were summoned to beat their enemies back from a raid on their territory. In the fighting, their aptitude was once again put on display, and when the battle was settled, and they returned bloodied and scarred, they were each entrusted their warrior names. On that day, in the waning of Green Leaf and the onset of Leaf Fall, Gullpaw became Gullheart and Roanpaw became Roanstripe. Gullheart remembered it as one of his fondest memories, though it was quickly followed by a more ominous one. On the night of the gathering proceeding their ceremony, a murder of crows burst from the clearing to reveal a cat from a distant island. His people were wracked with sickness, and the number of dead was growing; turning to the leaders of each Clan, he requested aid. It was Finchstar who rose first to heed him, and it was this choice that unsettled their LichenClan neighbors. There, war was threatened again, and as the Clans grew wary with the thought of more fighting, Gullheart only sharpened his claws and bided his time.
✦✦ Season 2019 and 2020, Leaf Bare + New Leaf || RedwoodClan continues its alliance with the Tribe cats, seeking an herb to treat the sickness that plagued their hunting grounds while LichenClan silently bides their time. In the hush of night, an ambush is launched on RedwoodClan camp, the precursor to two season cycles’ worth of bloodshed. In the moons that followed, more ill-tidings reached them. The Moon Cave had been barred from their medicine cats, herbs were being stolen, and patrols meant to bring the precious lungwort—the cure for the sickness that plagued the Tribe—were circumvented by distant foes.
✦✦ Season 2020, Leaf Bare || With time, Gullheart and Roanstripe continue establishing themselves as warriors of merit within the Clan. Gullheart finds pleasure and achievement in the notoriety earned from each conquest, the attention of his peers, the adoration of cats he would willingly draw into his nest, and the fawning of those younger than him. He had begun to carve out some of the life he had wanted for himself and indulged in it willingly; the same, however, could not be said for his companion. As more attention was turned to them, Roanstripe found their achievements a burden, not a blessing. He yearned for simpler things: settling down, taking up a mate, and raising children. Things which were distant and far away in Gullheart’s own mind. When Roanstripe brought his concerns to Gullheart, his friend only denounced him, an act which would fray at the bond they’d build for countless moons. They grew more separate than ever, and when LichenClan launched another assault on their camp, they were met with their first defeat. Yet where the loss weighed heavily on Gullheart, it seemed hardly to affect Roanstripe at all, which did little to mend the tension between them.
✦✦ Season 2022 Leaf Bare || With the appointment of RedwoodClan’s new deputy, Icesong, war efforts grow in RedwoodClan. Working alongside her to add his battle experience to the training of young ‘paws, Gullheart found fulfillment, for the first time, not in the beating of bodies but in strategy and planning. Roanstripe came more reluctantly. He lent his wisdom sparingly, and when news was brought to RedwoodClan on the lips of LichenClan rebels, the two were brought together once more to stand against another ambush. In the fighting, Gullheart felled an apprentice—an accident he claimed, though it did little to spare him from Roanstripe’s judgment. He was shunned in his companion’s eyes, though he was too proud and angry to defend himself. It had happened, he had told him. And there would be no taking it back now. Even now, he cannot forget how Roanstripe had looked at him then.
✦✦ Season 2022, Green Leaf || A fell omen lights the sky in the form of a scarlet moon, and Icesong’s efforts have finally prepared the Clan to launch an assault of their own. Bearing down to the cliffside under the cover of night, an ambush is launched on LichenClan’s shore. At first, the fighting leans heavily in their favor; with time, as LichenClan regains their senses, RedwoodClan is fought off. Amid the frenzy, Gullheart fights valiantly to cut a path where his comrades can flee despite Roanstripe’s demands for retreat. It would be the last he heard of his friend’s counsel. As they pushed the assault, a wave of warriors fell upon them; the fighting grew more desperate, the odds of their escaping diminished, and when it was over, Roanstripe lay dead, murdered at the paws of the enemy. With a heavy heart, Gullheart returned and met for the first time with Roanstripe’s mate. A cat whose name he did not even know and who his friend, whom he had thought to know so much of, had not told him about. Stricken with grief and anger, she threw her accusations at his feet. She struck him, and he did not refute her; to this day, no wound stung worse than that which he had received at her paws.
✦✦ Season 2022 Leaf Bare || RedwoodClan allies themselves to ThistleClan and the rebels underground. Amassing their strength, they launch a final assault on LichenClan, slaying Minnowstar and hoisting Yarrowstar atop his newfound throne. Yet Gullheart, still weary from the grief of Roanstripe, does not attend to the fighting. When news returns to him of their victory, Gullheart is cool to it. For the first time, battle does not seem as tempting as it once did in Roanstripe’s absence. Withdrawing within himself, it is only as a blizzard rages over their territory that he regains some of his old vigor, chasing prey into the storm. His efforts are thwarted by the wind and snow, and he is forced into hiding, finding LichenClan’s medicine cat, Briarfall, equally lost, equally hopeless. The two share comforts in an old fox den and recount the past amid the storme. It is there that Gullheart feels a fondness for the she-cat grow, and as they depart, his heart tugs with a yearning to see her once more.
✦✦ Season 2023, New Leaf || As the island recovers from the blizzard, they are set upon again by a flood that forces LichenClan and ThistleClan from their hunting grounds. RedwoodClan accepts the displaced Clans, forming a temporary alliance with LichenClan. When news reaches Gullheart of Briarfall’s vanishing in the confusion, he offers to find the missing medicine cat. In saving her, the pair share a few fond touches before the scrutiny of Lilacpaw forces them apart.
✦✦ Season 2023, Green Leaf || With the temporary alliance forged between their Clans, Gullheart becomes a constant in Briarfall’s life. He brings her herbs, joins her for strolls through the territory, and, during a gathering, even invites her for other, more private endeavors. With time, they share more private moments under the veil of night and, by morning, stir again as acquaintances, ignorant of the fond touches and gentle words whispered between them beneath the stars. It is a time which Gullheart indulges in as readily as any other, and when the time comes for LichenClan to return and rebuild their camp before Leaf Bare, he spends one last moment alongside LichenClan’s medicine cat. Voicing a desire to continue their nightly meetings, the two part ways closer than before.
✦✦ Season 2023, Leaf Bare || After days marked by Briarfall’s absence, Gullheart finds her again along the boundary line shared between their Clans. She is alone and afraid, and as he consoles her, she tells him of the danger that is chasing her. She is with child—his child—and their lives are threatened if she stays among the caves. The news is a surprise to Gullheart, yet he does not dissuade her back to her own borders. Together, they find her shelter along the boundary line where no cat might find her, and as they part, Gullheart vows to visit her, to bring prey, and nurse any hurts she might endure. In time, she conceives a single daughter named Nymphkit. Though the child cannot be raised forever in secrecy, Gullheart sets the matter aside, rejoicing in the bringing on of new life, never troubling himself over the danger that Briarfall warned him of or even where the child might go when Briarfall has regained her strength.
✦✦ Season 2019, Leaf Bare || Gullkit’s kithood was punctuated by reminders of the war. Scarred warriors and bawdy recounts of battle replaced the traditional kitten tales those before him had grown up with, and it did not take long for Gullkit to envision himself as a warrior old enough and strong enough to fight alongside them. At the approach of his sixth moon, Gullkit, newly titled Gullpaw, made a silent vow to claim all the valor one could from the war efforts of his time. He would carve a place for himself in the stories, and when he died, they would whisper of him for many moons to follow—or so he hoped.
✦✦ Season 2019, New Leaf || Where his sister is entrusted with a skilled and seasoned huntress of RedwoodClan, Gullpaw’s own training is passed into the paws of an ambitious yet inexperienced warrior named Owl-leaf. While enthusiastic, the Gullpaw’s mentor’s lack of experience becomes more glaring as Robinpaw quickly forges ahead under the tutelage of her new mentor, driving Gullpaw to seek guidance beyond his mentor. He forges pacts with cats moons his senior, negotiating duels in exchange for small favors—taking up their camp chores or passing on complimentary words to a she-cat in passing. He would pay whatever price and did so gladly until, with time, he became a cat whose prowess in sparring began to draw the attention of more than just his peers.
✦✦ Season 2019, Green Leaf || As Gullpaw’s reputation grew, his success in the training hollow drew the attention of another warrior. Offering to pair their own apprentice with Owl-leaf’s own, Gullpaw was introduced to Roanpaw, a young upstart nearly his equal in moons. The tom was smaller, quieter, and less boisterous than he, yet his mind was sharp and cunning, and with time, the two learned to rely on one another. They were a bonded pair, and when the time for their first skirmish came, they claimed for themselves their first victory. It was a moment that would make them both for many moons that would follow and with time and age, their accomplishments on the battlefield only grew. All the while Gullpaw claimed glory for himself, his relationship with his sister seemed only to sour and grow more estranged. The two loathed one another—Robinpaw always with her quicker and more cunning tongue, and he too proud to endure her. At first, he refuted her in small and petty ways: a worm or centipede buried in her bedding, a smear of mouse bile on her prey. But when he learned of her affections for a close friend, he devised a different sort of plan—one that would refute her feelings and shame her. Only a little bit, he had reasoned, though it had not gone over so smoothly. In the end, she had left in tears and would not speak for days. She hated him for his part in it, and he hated himself for having hurt her so terribly.
✦✦ Season 2019, Leaf Fall || Called to address a skirmish at the border, Gullpaw and Roanpaw were summoned to beat their enemies back from a raid on their territory. In the fighting, their aptitude was once again put on display, and when the battle was settled, and they returned bloodied and scarred, they were each entrusted their warrior names. On that day, in the waning of Green Leaf and the onset of Leaf Fall, Gullpaw became Gullheart and Roanpaw became Roanstripe. Gullheart remembered it as one of his fondest memories, though it was quickly followed by a more ominous one. On the night of the gathering proceeding their ceremony, a murder of crows burst from the clearing to reveal a cat from a distant island. His people were wracked with sickness, and the number of dead was growing; turning to the leaders of each Clan, he requested aid. It was Finchstar who rose first to heed him, and it was this choice that unsettled their LichenClan neighbors. There, war was threatened again, and as the Clans grew wary with the thought of more fighting, Gullheart only sharpened his claws and bided his time.
✦✦ Season 2019 and 2020, Leaf Bare + New Leaf || RedwoodClan continues its alliance with the Tribe cats, seeking an herb to treat the sickness that plagued their hunting grounds while LichenClan silently bides their time. In the hush of night, an ambush is launched on RedwoodClan camp, the precursor to two season cycles’ worth of bloodshed. In the moons that followed, more ill-tidings reached them. The Moon Cave had been barred from their medicine cats, herbs were being stolen, and patrols meant to bring the precious lungwort—the cure for the sickness that plagued the Tribe—were circumvented by distant foes.
✦✦ Season 2020, Leaf Bare || With time, Gullheart and Roanstripe continue establishing themselves as warriors of merit within the Clan. Gullheart finds pleasure and achievement in the notoriety earned from each conquest, the attention of his peers, the adoration of cats he would willingly draw into his nest, and the fawning of those younger than him. He had begun to carve out some of the life he had wanted for himself and indulged in it willingly; the same, however, could not be said for his companion. As more attention was turned to them, Roanstripe found their achievements a burden, not a blessing. He yearned for simpler things: settling down, taking up a mate, and raising children. Things which were distant and far away in Gullheart’s own mind. When Roanstripe brought his concerns to Gullheart, his friend only denounced him, an act which would fray at the bond they’d build for countless moons. They grew more separate than ever, and when LichenClan launched another assault on their camp, they were met with their first defeat. Yet where the loss weighed heavily on Gullheart, it seemed hardly to affect Roanstripe at all, which did little to mend the tension between them.
✦✦ Season 2022 Leaf Bare || With the appointment of RedwoodClan’s new deputy, Icesong, war efforts grow in RedwoodClan. Working alongside her to add his battle experience to the training of young ‘paws, Gullheart found fulfillment, for the first time, not in the beating of bodies but in strategy and planning. Roanstripe came more reluctantly. He lent his wisdom sparingly, and when news was brought to RedwoodClan on the lips of LichenClan rebels, the two were brought together once more to stand against another ambush. In the fighting, Gullheart felled an apprentice—an accident he claimed, though it did little to spare him from Roanstripe’s judgment. He was shunned in his companion’s eyes, though he was too proud and angry to defend himself. It had happened, he had told him. And there would be no taking it back now. Even now, he cannot forget how Roanstripe had looked at him then.
✦✦ Season 2022, Green Leaf || A fell omen lights the sky in the form of a scarlet moon, and Icesong’s efforts have finally prepared the Clan to launch an assault of their own. Bearing down to the cliffside under the cover of night, an ambush is launched on LichenClan’s shore. At first, the fighting leans heavily in their favor; with time, as LichenClan regains their senses, RedwoodClan is fought off. Amid the frenzy, Gullheart fights valiantly to cut a path where his comrades can flee despite Roanstripe’s demands for retreat. It would be the last he heard of his friend’s counsel. As they pushed the assault, a wave of warriors fell upon them; the fighting grew more desperate, the odds of their escaping diminished, and when it was over, Roanstripe lay dead, murdered at the paws of the enemy. With a heavy heart, Gullheart returned and met for the first time with Roanstripe’s mate. A cat whose name he did not even know and who his friend, whom he had thought to know so much of, had not told him about. Stricken with grief and anger, she threw her accusations at his feet. She struck him, and he did not refute her; to this day, no wound stung worse than that which he had received at her paws.
✦✦ Season 2022 Leaf Bare || RedwoodClan allies themselves to ThistleClan and the rebels underground. Amassing their strength, they launch a final assault on LichenClan, slaying Minnowstar and hoisting Yarrowstar atop his newfound throne. Yet Gullheart, still weary from the grief of Roanstripe, does not attend to the fighting. When news returns to him of their victory, Gullheart is cool to it. For the first time, battle does not seem as tempting as it once did in Roanstripe’s absence. Withdrawing within himself, it is only as a blizzard rages over their territory that he regains some of his old vigor, chasing prey into the storm. His efforts are thwarted by the wind and snow, and he is forced into hiding, finding LichenClan’s medicine cat, Briarfall, equally lost, equally hopeless. The two share comforts in an old fox den and recount the past amid the storme. It is there that Gullheart feels a fondness for the she-cat grow, and as they depart, his heart tugs with a yearning to see her once more.
✦✦ Season 2023, New Leaf || As the island recovers from the blizzard, they are set upon again by a flood that forces LichenClan and ThistleClan from their hunting grounds. RedwoodClan accepts the displaced Clans, forming a temporary alliance with LichenClan. When news reaches Gullheart of Briarfall’s vanishing in the confusion, he offers to find the missing medicine cat. In saving her, the pair share a few fond touches before the scrutiny of Lilacpaw forces them apart.
✦✦ Season 2023, Green Leaf || With the temporary alliance forged between their Clans, Gullheart becomes a constant in Briarfall’s life. He brings her herbs, joins her for strolls through the territory, and, during a gathering, even invites her for other, more private endeavors. With time, they share more private moments under the veil of night and, by morning, stir again as acquaintances, ignorant of the fond touches and gentle words whispered between them beneath the stars. It is a time which Gullheart indulges in as readily as any other, and when the time comes for LichenClan to return and rebuild their camp before Leaf Bare, he spends one last moment alongside LichenClan’s medicine cat. Voicing a desire to continue their nightly meetings, the two part ways closer than before.
✦✦ Season 2023, Leaf Bare || After days marked by Briarfall’s absence, Gullheart finds her again along the boundary line shared between their Clans. She is alone and afraid, and as he consoles her, she tells him of the danger that is chasing her. She is with child—his child—and their lives are threatened if she stays among the caves. The news is a surprise to Gullheart, yet he does not dissuade her back to her own borders. Together, they find her shelter along the boundary line where no cat might find her, and as they part, Gullheart vows to visit her, to bring prey, and nurse any hurts she might endure. In time, she conceives a single daughter named Nymphkit. Though the child cannot be raised forever in secrecy, Gullheart sets the matter aside, rejoicing in the bringing on of new life, never troubling himself over the danger that Briarfall warned him of or even where the child might go when Briarfall has regained her strength.