juniperblaze

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]Juniperblaze has always been the sensible sort of cat. Her voice consistently strikes that clear, level tone, the kind that invites disagreement but at a cost. It's what most warriors note of her upon their first meeting: she's a powerful force, a confident personality, the type that seeks to have her opinions be heard no matter how it may harm her. Some would call this a detriment; to Juniperblaze, it's her greatest strength, and she wears her steady personality in her gait, in her voice, atop her head, like a badge of honor.

This doesn't make Juniperblaze the most approachable of cats, however. She's noticeable in a crowd, a bright mottled hue of red and white, and her intimidating aura of try me, disagree with me, I dare, makes her a force to be reckoned with, and sometimes earns her more foes than friends. She's in possession of a compassionate heart, though, a heart that folds in the very presence of kits, young warriors, or elders. She would give her last breath if it ensured that those in need of protection most lived on.

She's often touted as a motherly-type. This is true. Juniperblaze has always longed for a family of her own. She garnered a slight reputation as an apprentice for her many short-lived relationships with fellow apprentice-aged toms and she-cats alike, scaring them off not a day after their confessions with embellished talks about their future and the many kids they'd have. Juniperblaze could never quite fathom their anxieties over this, and would chalk it up to faults on their part, her standards high and tall.

She has a black-and-white pattern of thinking. Juniperblaze struggles to comprehend the shades of grey blurred in between. Despite this, her strong morals are in service to those all around her. No matter their Clan or lineage, she is an empathetic sort, and she cringes at the thought of needless bloodshed.

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]Her birth was a simple, uneventful one. Two lovers found themselves with a litter of healthy kittens. Juniperkit was always regarded as the sensible option between her two brothers. Whilst they threw themselves into trouble with reckless abandon, she'd preferred to sit on the sidelines, an ever critical and ever persistent voice to anchor her siblings' wild ideas. Needless to say, they tired quickly of her practical nature, and Juniperkit found her kinship in the Elders' den, wrapped in their fermented stories of old.

When she became an apprentice, she proved herself a popular she-cat, amicable and brimming with life, if a bit of a spoilsport. She stuck to her ways as claws stuck to the roots of a feline's paw, and she threw herself into training with zeal, becoming a more than adept hunter. During this time she had many short relationships with cats, ruined by her overt enthusiasm to commit the rest of their lives together, and it was after another disappointing break-up that Juniperpaw's eyes came to lie upon Viperpaw, an older tom close to his warriorhood.

He was a sullen figure, though she remembered when this wasn't always the case. She found him an attractive tom, though was put off by how he stuck to his half-brother Emberpaw's side like a stubborn burr. Eventually, he moved beyond the apprentice's den and she forgot about him, fixated on yet another brief romantic interest.

Juniperpaw soon became Juniperblaze, named for the fire that was her personality and the speed she possessed when on the hunt. She would blaze across the moors with the roar of a hungry flame, and it became commonplace to see her at the center of Camp with a large pile of fresh rabbits at her feet, head tilted proudly. In this time, she grew and thrived, making friends with other young warriors who enjoyed her lively conversation and warm-hearted demeanor. After some time, her attention was naturally drawn back to Vipereye. She caught his occasional looks on patrols and in the warriors den, and they spurned her interest. Soon, she was talking to him, drawing him out of his shell, introducing him to her many friends. Emberspark saw this, and his bitterness grew.

Juniperblaze made her dislike for Emberspark no secret. Eventually, she and Vipereye were mates, and she relished in the frustration this development brought him. Vipereye was a brave, caring cat, the loving kind who'd had his autonomy beaten down by an obsessive, blood-sucking flea. Juniperblaze made it her mission to give him back his confidence. Though her sensibility had a healthy effect on him, he ultimately pledged himself to Emberspark's cause, a decision that Juniperblaze could not approve of. But she trusted Vipereye and stuck by him, knowing he needed her now more than ever.

Emberspark became Emberstar, naming Vipereye as his deputy. This devastated Juniperblaze. Soon, the Clan fell into chaos. She was part of Vipereye's loyal band of rebels, set on reclaiming WindClan from his poisonous fangs. Amidst this horror, Juniperblaze's greatest dream saw fruition: her belly grew swollen with kits. The news both delighted and broke her heart. She had wanted a family so desperately, so wholesomely, for all of her short life, but she'd never dreamed the world she was bringing them into would be one ruled by blood.

When she had her kits, Juniperblaze had loved them with all the force of StarClan. Unfortunately, their time together was brief. As a demonstration to the Clan, Emberstar slaughtered two of them, leaving one to remain. The image of their corpses, small, innocent forms battered and bruised from barely beyond the womb, is branded painfully before her mind's eye, a constant reminder of her failure as a mother. She named the sole survivor Adderkit. That night, she wept, soul split in two.

The conflict culminated in a brutal battle, one aided by RiverClan. Emberstar was struck down in a whirlwind of tooth and claw by his half-brother, no less, and vengeance had never tasted so sweet to the normally pacifistic she-cat. Her mate became leader of the Clan, so young and inexperienced, but she swore her support and allegiance to him, challenging any others who muttered doubt in his capabilities.

Now, Juniperblaze is still very much the spitfire of a WindClan warrior she's always been known for, though her days remain tinted gray by the recent loss of her kits. She hopes for another litter someday, perhaps to fill the hole they left. For now, she dedicates herself to Adderkit and Vipereye. They're a tattered patchwork of a family, but a family nonetheless, and she loves them with all her heart.