Stormwing

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]it can be difficult to stay positive in a harsh world. stormwing prides himself on looking on the bright side of life, believing that everything happens for a reason. this, however, can come across as him being passive. he enjoys the simple things in life, but he doesn't try to make them happen, most of the time. he argues that good things come to those who wait. and wait he does.

one of the few things that he does take an active interest in is other people's lives. he finds clanmates fascinating, in how their own personal relationships work. making friends is something that he excels in; a quiet soul who listens to anything anyone says as though it's the most interesting thing in the world, no matter what the topic is about. politics bore him to no end, he's more of a "unless you're a jerk, then we're good" kinda guy; he likes meeting cats outside of his clan and he finds the strict code to be suffocating. though it's more because he's a social butterfly, than him wanting to go against the grain.

despite the fact that he is so sociable, he is nervous that they're going to abandon him. because of this, he ensures that he is always accessible to anyone who needs him, wanting to be the most reliable warrior he can be. making himself dependable to others is a goal that's sat with him for as long as he's been alive.

when he feels overwhelmed with everything, especially when it comes to dealing with his mate skywind, he sets off to discover new hidden locations around the territory. these spots are where he feels truly at ease, when his worries and fears all seem to disappear. and even though he himself isn't spiritual, even he cannot deny the sense of peace that encircles him when he settles down.

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]kithood: born to salmonstrike and thrushsong, with speckledthroat as his surrogate mother, stormkit is a healthy little kit. he is the only kit born, which leaves him to be doted over by his two fathers. speckledthroat becomes his aunty, someone who he absolutely adores [apart from his fathers, obviously] and looks up to. salmonstrike tells him stories of all the clans, trying to instill wonder of the world in him; he frequently mentions friends he made in thunderclan, repeating that their warriors are always to be trusted, no matter what the higher ups do. thrushsong plays with stormkit, wanting his son to understand the joy of being alive; the two spend hours upon hours chasing each other or playing mossball.

stormkit, surrounded by so many who love him, grows up looking at the whole world through utter joy. he does not know of sadness or heartbreak; although horrible, awful events happen around him, his fathers and aunt shield him from all of them. he, more than happy to ignore the sadness, does not pay any mind whenever the clan hushes to a whisper.

apprenticehood: his mentor is thistletail, a molly that stormpaw immediately got along with. the two are a calm pair, rarely, if ever, did they end up arguing. he progresses through his apprenticeship with flying colors. he finds himself becoming more and more interested in the other clans as thistletail brings him to the borders.

warriorhood: when he gets his warrior name, his parents and aunt celebrate as though this is the first time anyone has ever become a warrior. after sitting his vigil, he spends most of his moons rocketing around the territory with salmonstrike, eager to go back to the gathering now that he's a warrior. during this time, he becomes closer to skywind, someone who he hasn't paid attention to until this point. he falls head over paws for her, finding her the most alluring molly he's ever met.

the two quickly fall in love, almost in the blink of an eye. which should have been a warning, if either had taken a step back and thought about it. she is the fire to his water, spirited and eager to his calm and passive. salmonstrike is wary of this development, warning his son that this might not end well. thrushsong, however, is ecstatic to find out that stormwing decided to settle down. when stormwing finds out that skywind is pregnant, he almost starts to sob from happiness. he's always wanted a family; after growing up in such a loving environment he wants to raise a kit of his own who knows what the meaning of love is.

however, things quickly turn sour, once aloekit is born. he's too quiet, too solitary, according to skywind. taking this as a challenge, stormwing attempts to encourage the young kit to make new friends, but he's only met with a stare. after a while, he gives up trying to push his son to do something he doesn't want to do. instead, he offers to tell his son stories that his own father told him. although he doesn't get a lot of responses from his son whenever he tells the stories, he can just feel that aloekit enjoys them.

skywind, on the other hand, develops a rocky relationship with their son. she repeatedly demands why aloekit is like this, irritated and feeling alone. stormwing doesn't have an answer for her, but he quietly replies that she should try to bond with their son. she refuses and quickly disowns him. although lichenleaf quickly adopts aloekit, stormwing feels adrift and untethered. it feels like a blow not only to himself, but to their relationship. he stops talking to skywind as soon as she turns back to a warrior.

his fathers and aunt swoop in and spend as much time with the grieving father and his son. salmonstrike keeps his mouth closed and presses against stormwing during the bad nights. he struggles to keep his head up high during this entire time for aloekit, smiling back the tears and heartbreak.

his happiness becomes real when aloepaw is named as the next medicine cat apprentice. purring so hard that he shakes, stormwing focuses solely on this one moment. though there is a small part of him that wonders what skywind thinks about this whole situation.

when he hears that emberstar has threatened riverclan at the past gathering, stormwing's stomach drops. war has always seemed so far off, it happens in other clans, not in riverclan. his father thrushsong offers to tag along on the raid of windclan, though unbeknownst to salmonstrike, speckledthroat, and stormwing. he doesn't return. according to clanmates who had been in that raid, he had fought bravely until his final breath.

stormwing spirals from there. his own father and aunt grieve in their own ways; salmonstrike almost never is in camp, instead, becoming quite serious and loyal to his own clan. speckledthroat turns inwards and tries to become as close as she can to both stormwing and aloepaw, the only two family members she has left in her life. stormwing becomes quieter and more passive, pushing his irritation and sadness towards the clans themselves. if they weren't divided as they are now, this would not have happened.