Crowstrike

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]Crowstrike's personality is that of dichotomy. On one hand, you have a cat that is arrogant and egotistical and has a high opinion of himself, but then on the other is a cat who is sensitive and has terrible self-esteem. His clanmates think highly of him in the terms that they know he is a devoted cat, follows orders, and can be relied on to get stuff done. But yet, he rarely finds himself in the company of friends as there is a preconceived notion that he is unapproachable due to his introverted and temperamental disposition.

Crowstrike doesn't give off the friendliest vibes ever, and this often leads him to minimal and basic relationships among his peers, without many putting the effort in to truly get to know him. The young tom yearns for love and acceptance but doesn't know how to show it. With so little interest being shown toward him it has consequently caused self-esteem issues within him, as he struggles with a lack of fulfillment in his life. The 'rough, tough' indifferent exterior he likes to boast is really a cover for a sensitive cat on the inside who craves love and acceptance. There exists a vicious cycle of Crowstrike wanting companionship from his clan, yet always pushing others away by who he is.

While his interpersonal relationships are currently lacking, he spends his time and energy focusing on himself as a warrior and where he stands in the clan. He is devoted to the well-being of himself and his clan-mates. He would by any means do what it takes to protect and provide for ShadowClan, even if it meant breaking the warrior code. There is no measure on how far he would go for himself and those that he loves and swears allegiance to.

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]Crowstrike was born as Crowkit to a queen of ShadowClan named Nightpool. There was one other kit in the litter born with him, his sister, Starlingkit. Both kits were named for their black pelts, inherited most likely from their dark pelted mother. Little to nothing is known about the tom who sired them, and any questions Crowkit ever brought up to his mother were met with either deflection or callousness.

Early on Crowkit learned to let go of any curiosity he had about his father, and often assumed Nightpool's contempt for her own kits was a reflection of bad feelings she harbored for the tom that had impregnated her. From a young age, he felt spite toward his unknown father because he didn't understand why he would never learn his identity, or why their mother was so cold and uncaring toward them.

During the 6 moons he and his sister spent in the nursery with Nightpool, they were often discouraged and punished for normal kit-like behavior. Their inquisitive minds and thoughtful questions often were met by her annoyance, and the queen would lash out anytime their playing disturbed her peace. Nightpool was disinterested in her kits and was only there solely to provide her duties to feed and look after them until they could be passed onto the clan as apprentices.

Crowkit anxiously awaited his freedom from his confines to the nursery and his mother, 6 moons couldn't pass quick enough. Eventually though the time had come for him and his sister to move up in the ranks of their clan. They each took on their apprentice names of Crowpaw and Starlingpaw, and proudly accepted their new roles to train and learn how to serve ShadowClan.

Crowpaw was eager to please, and quickly learned everything his mentor had to teach. He had no familial love and wanted to earn the love and acceptance of his clanmates by serving them. He did exceptionally well at most of the things he tried and took everything seriously.

However, his rough start in life still had a damaging outward effect on him. In his youth, he had outbursts of anger at times and was intolerant to the perceived stupidity of his peers he sometimes had. Crowpaw felt superior in certain ways and arrogantly viewed himself in high regard as one of the clan's best apprentices because of how well he did compared to some other apprentices. This left him to have very few friends in his age group other than his sister. Nonetheless, his lack of friends and popularity made him into an even more jaded and bitter cat as he grew into an adult.

After 6 moons of training and serving his clan to the best of his abilities, he was named Crowstrike, a warrior of ShadowClan at 12 moons of age. He was given his name earlier than a few apprentices he trained with; his sister having to wait for 3 more moons before being given the name Starlingshade.

Shortly after his warrior ceremony Nightpool was killed in a border dispute with ThunderClan, from bleeding out from a wound she had received in battle. The ThunderClan warrior was not intending to kill her but ended up biting down on her neck instead of her shoulder during their struggle. Many ShadowClan warriors felt grief in her passing, sitting vigil with her lifeless body in camp the night she died.

While the clan took their time to say farewell to her, including Starlingshade, Crowstrike could care less. He spent the night sleeping in the warrior’s den like he did every other night. His mother was never a prominent figure in his life, and he wasn't the one to grieve for a relationship that he never had. Other cats viewed him as cold for this, without really knowing the full extent of Nightpool's relationship with her kits.

Today he is a tom who is held to high standards among his clanmates. Crowstrike is a skilled hunter; his lithe, muscular body perfect for the task of bringing back food to his clan. Unfortunately, although the general opinion on Crowstrike is great in his clan, he is a cat with very little in terms of friendships and has seldom meaningful relationships with his clanmates. He is a natural introvert, with a slightly aggressive demeanor that puts others off from getting to know him or approaching him. The tom keeps to himself most days while doing the best to serve his clan.