Tigertail of ThunderClan

[Roxie !]

I know, I know, another character. This one's for a plot, though.

Name: Tigertail

Age: 96 Moons.

Gender: Tom.

Clan: ThunderClan

Position: Elder.

Description: Tigertail isn't a particularly large tom, but in his day he was strong and lithe. Nowadays, he's a bit more brittle, but he maintains the strong sort of presence he always had--the kind that commands respect. He moves with a dignified air, his head always high and his jaw set strongly. But he isn't as fast as he used to be--though he would never admit it, his joints are becoming stiff and his movements more forced.

He is long-limbed, including his tail. Tigertail's body is covered in scars obtained in various battles throughout the course of his life. His shoulders are marred with three claw marks that never went away, and his left ear is half-shredded. The elder bears these battlescars with pride, however, and often indulges in exagerrated tales of how he obtained them.

His pelt is very short, but thick. It is coarse and a bit grizzled, but he still manages to keep it well-groomed. It's mostly colored a shade of off-white. When he was younger, Tigertail's fur gleamed white as snow, but of late it has faded out a bit. It has even recently become flecked with gray, an inevitable sign of his aging. The tom is not a solid white cat, however. As his name would suggest, his wirey tail is colored a firey orange hue, with striped markings resembling a tiger's. His ears and his muzzle are also splotched ginger, although these markings are much paler than his prominent tail coloring.

Despite his age, Tigertail's eyes shine brightly. Colored bright blue, they seem to swim with his memories, and the wisdom he has obtained throughout his life. Much is revealed in his eyes, if one were to look: his thoughts, dreams, and desires. But then, who would take the time to pay that much attention to the features of an old ThunderClan elder?

Picture.


Personality: In his youth, Tigertail was a well-known warrior of ThunderClan. He had a strong, intelligent personality, and a clever tongue to match it. He was always making others laugh with his wit and occasional sarcasm. Tigertail was quite the charmer, and his likeable traits earned him many friends and admirers. He was always very polite, but very bold and stubborn in nature. If he set his mind to do something, there was no one who could talk him out of it.

As the years have aged him, he has become a bit more observant and reserved. He doesn't say much, unless he feels it is important. He feels that some of the younger cats in his Clan do enough talking for the whole forest anyway. Tigertail has an edge of your typical elder sharpness; he has grown more irritable of late, and is prone to snapping--and is well known for it, too.

Two traits he definately has mantained, however, are his stubbornness and his pride. Although he is growing old and stiff, Tigertail refuses the help of any cat. He still firmly believes that he can take care of himself, and intends to do so. He doesn't much like being cooped up in the elders den, either. Often, Tigertail can be found strolling through the milder parts of ThunderClan's territory. He does like to be alone with his thoughts.

He has gained much wisdom over his life, and he never hesitates to bestow it upon younger cats. Because of all he has lived through, he can often see farther than even some of the most intelligent warriors of his Clan. Often, it's his opinion that some of the decisions they make are disasterous--but he doesn't say much about that. Tigertail is more clever than most would guess an old tom like him to be. He's watched the world change for many years now. And though through all this time, his heart has remained pure, there are some secrets he guards with his life. Mistakes he wishes he could forget.

Crush: Throughout his life, he has only ever loved two cats: Shadowflight, and Lilypool.

History: Tigertail is a Clan-born cat, his parents being Blossomheart and Firestorm. Firestorm was a ginger tabby tom, while Blossomheart was a pure white she-cat with unusually pink eyes. He was born into a litter of three, being the first born of his siblings. His brother and sister were called Littlekit and Fogkit, both of whom had the identical white pelts of their mother. Littlekit and Fogkit were always quite close--inseperatable, really. Tigerkit, however, was a bit more distanced from his family. His best friends were Lilykit and Nightkit, who were kits from other litters of the ThunderClan nursery.

Tigerkit, Lilykit, and Nightkit were quite the trio. They were always causing mischief somewhere within the camp, much to their leader's exasperation. Tigerkit was often the leader of their pranks and schemes. Though those who know him today would no doubt find this funny, as a kit he really was nothing but trouble. Even Blossomheart found it hard to control him.

When Tigerkit was made an apprentice, his mentor put him in his place. Sandstripe was the tom's name, a pale tabby with a stern outlook on life. He didn't much appreciate Tigerpaw's mischeviousness...needless to say, Tigerpaw ended up spending many and afternoon ridding the elders' pelts of ticks. As he trained, however, he matured. Though he and his siblings constantly bickered, his friendship with Nightpaw and Lilypaw remained firm. A most memorable incident was when Lilypaw developed a crush on Nightpaw, who, in turn, was padding after another apprentice. Tigerpaw spent many days playing matchmaker between the two of them...all failed attempts turned treasured memories.

When it came time for him to become a warrior, things really got interesting. His siblings were given the names Littlewhisker and Fogfrost. while Lilypaw became Lilypool and Nightpaw became Nightshade. It seemed, in the course of their life as warriors, love was destined to tear the three friends apart. Nightshade became mates with the she-cat he'd been crushing on, Flamefur. He would later become Clan deputy, and have to leave all childhood friendships behind him. Lilypool, meanwhile, began to fall for Tigertail. But Tigertail was distracted. Over the past few gatherings, he'd begun to notice a beautiful black she-cat from RiverClan. Her name was Shadowflight.

It was a stupid thing to do, really. They were both young and senseless, and neither knew much about the other. All they knew were the stolen glances exchanged across Four Trees, or the occasional flirtatious greeting. It truly was puppy love. But before they knew it, Tigertail and Shadowflight were whirled into a love affair that came and went with the season of New-Leaf. To this day, Tigertail really does believe he loved her, but they plainly weren't meant to be. Loyalty to their own Clans broke them apart, and they both agreed to end things. Tigertail opened his eyes and realized who was right in front of him: Lilypool. Knowing it was for the best, he moved on with her. And for awhile, he really was happy.

But then, Shadowflight confronted him one day by the riverside, and told him what she'd been hiding: she was carrying his kits. To put it briefly...Tigertail didn't take it well. He told her, perhaps a bit too frankly, that this couldn't happen. His loyalty now was to ThunderClan, and to Lilypool. He vowed that he could never associate with these kits--he could never even meet them. He left Shadowflight by the river that day, and never saw her again. She drowned a few months later, in a flood that swept RiverClan with the wrath of StarClan.

It was the greatest regret of Tigertail's life. He has since been plagued with guilt over his last cruel words to her. And for a time, he was striken with grief. It was then that he realized a part of him had always loved Shadowflight...and always would. But when Tigertail realized that she had kitted shortly before her death, his shame prevented him from ever attempting to meet them. He was certain they'd hate him for what he had done to their mother.

Tigertail was never quite the same after that. He had kits with Lilypool--only one, and Lilypool died giving birth to him. This, it seemed, was the last blow that the tom could take. He always held a certain numbness in him after that, and when years later he joined the elders, it was with great weariness.

[le Dawnz]

Omigod I LOVE how you brought Nightshade and Flamefur into this! Quite randomly too.

[Roxie !]

Haha, thanks!! Yeah, I just had to connect it with the past somehow xDDD. I was thinking about writing a story to go along with his history, too..

[le Dawnz]

Cool! I'd read it. Which reminds me, I never really continued with Dawnfur's History thing. And it also reminds me that I was thinking of making a sort of "flashback story" for the site. It would explain a bunch of old plots that happened a while ago so new members can see what the site was like before and old members can reminisce. Not necessarily a story, just summarys, no dialogs.