Lionfire

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]Lionfire is a cat of complex personality. Nothing in this world is in black and white, and neither is she. In her lifetime she has been both sides of the coin of good at bad, selfish and selfless. She is both loving, and callous. Many traits coexist within her and make up who this medicine cat is as a whole.

Loyal: For this she-cat, loyalty is a term used loosely. She has not been entirely loyal to the code she has sworn herself to, and nor is she loyal to StarClan whom she has a complicated relationship. However, to ShadowClan, and those she loves dearly, she would be more than willing to lay down her life for those cats. When it comes to those in her circle, betrayal is never a thing that crosses her mind.

Attentive: Perhaps a skill refined by moons of being a medicine cat, Lionfire is very attentive. Quiet and observant, this she-cat has a talent for reading in between the lines. She will be the first to notice when something is off, as she is capable more so than others of sensing such things. As for her patients, she is typically aware of their needs and is good at listening to their concerns.

Hard-Working: During her life, Lionfire has become well known for being a hard-working she-cat. She takes her duties very seriously and has lost sleep some nights to ensure her clan’s well-being. During outbreaks of illness, she tends to get little rest, working relentlessly despite her own wellness deteriorating.

Sincere: This is perhaps either good or bad, depending on a cat’s standing with the medicine cat. She is truly genuine in how she expresses emotions to others. Lionfire is sincere in showing her love to those she cares about, yet equally sincere in letting someone know when she doesn’t particularly care for them.

Motivated: The daughter of a leader and a high-ranking member of the clan herself, it goes without saying that Lionfire is a very motivated cat. In her mind, where there’s a will, there’s a way – if you want something enough, there’s always a means to an end. In the past, she had been motivated to become a medicine cat. Later, her motivation was forbidden love, her motivation spiraling her into a web of lies that she’s still covering the tracks up even to this day.

Cynical: Positive outlooks are not in this she-cat’s nature. Very early on she had experienced hardship that never seemed to let up. From her parent's relationship dissolving, discovering her brother's disloyalties, to falling in a forbidden love herself, the death of her kit, and watching her other two kits grow up unaware of their kinship, all the way to losing the love of her life, Lionfire has not had it easy, to say the least. Her views on life sway more toward the negative side, as she expects tragedy at every corner.

Insecure: Perhaps correlated to her cynicism, Lionfire is an insecure cat deep down. Though she never outwardly voices these inner demons, she feels them nonetheless. The multitude of losses she’s experienced in her life battered her self-esteem, forcing her to believe she wasn’t worthy of anything good. In silence, she carries this burden with her wherever she goes.

Aloof: While she hadn’t always been aloof, it has become a trait of hers as of recently. Stricken with grief, she has all but shut the world out. Her cold and distant nature is just a cover for the pain she carries within her that no one is fully aware of the extent of. When you live a life of secrets, there becomes no one you can open yourself up to.

Insistent: A trait that’s never really left her from the earliest days of her life is her insistent nature. Perhaps, one of the many reasons she and Hawkflight never got along when she was an apprentice, either. Lionfire is a fixed, bold personality. She believes that she is usually right and knows the best way of doing things almost all the time. This is easily one of the most friction-causing traits the she-cat has and is a quality many dislike about her if their views don’t align.

Egotistical: For a cat with low self-esteem, Lionfire is egotistical, contradicting her deep-seated insecurities. The medicine cat views ShadowClan to be one of the most esteemed clans of the forest and thinks of herself as privileged for being born to the clan. Though she isn’t outspoken about it, she takes great pride in the position she has made for herself within the clan and the fact that her father Ashstar is their leader. She feels as if her bloodline in ShadowClan is among that of the greatest, and is immensely proud of her two living kits, though they are still yet unaware of their own lineage.

[attr="class","arrgenMAINTEXT"]Peace never seemed to exist in the forest for long. Any calm just lead way to another storm. For the longest time, the only enemy of the clans were opposing clans. Until bands of rogues started forming and terrorizing the forest. These cats were lawless, and unlike the clan cats, they followed no structure. Territory markings meant nothing to them, as they free roamed and hunted wherever they pleased.

Soon enough, cats could not leave their camps unless they were part of a patrol. Lone warriors who were out in the territory ended up slaughtered when they confronted these rogues, sending rippling waves of fear throughout the forest. ShadowClan was the clan who was hit the worst by these rogues, given how close they were to the Carrion Place, where the rogues seemed to occupy the most time.

The disdain within ShadowClan for these creatures was great, as they found their peace and livelihood constantly threatened. Though as quickly as these groups formed, they disbanded as well. Hierarchy and structure were hard to possess when it went against the very lifestyle they maintained. Disagreements and squabbles quickly broke groups of rogues up, making the threat of their presence less lethal.

And for moons it was quiet. Life in ShadowClan went on as usual. The memory of the vicious rogues faded away to another ghost of their past. Everything appeared to be completely normal, except for Owleyes.

Owleyes had been a small, fidgety, anxious brown tom with eyes that were always wide, and alert — earning him his name as a medicine cat. Because of his hyper-alert nature, he could not deny the signs that continued to pop up all around him. StarClan was trying to speak to him, but even for a seasoned medicine cat, he could not interpret the meaning behind his findings.

It had started simply one day. A hawk feather appeared at the entrance of his den, and at first, he thought nothing of it. Suddenly, within days, the small tom was finding them everywhere he went. Hawk feathers would pop up in the places he would gather herbs. The tom would come back and find them scattered around his den.

Finally, it had gotten to the point he was plucking them out of his nest, and as he would continue to dig them out, more would appear. Owleyes stood back and stared at the pile of feathers that had amassed and pleaded with StarClan to be more direct as he didn’t understand.

The next day, StarClan had answered. While he was out gathering herbs, the screeching and yowls of fighting cats had rung throughout the air. Quickly abandoning his task, he rushed to the aid of his clanmates. He had approached in time to see three cats flee, presumably rogues. One of them had not been so lucky.

A brown tabby tom no older than an apprentice lay pinned beneath the claws of Poppytail, one of ShadowClan’s warriors. The tom had been bleeding out from his wounds, and the she-cat had aimed a bite for his throat before Owleyes demanded her to withdraw.

”But he’s just a filthy, rotten, disgusting rogue!” She hissed in anger, frustrated that Owleyes would ask such a thing of her. ”He doesn’t deserve life. No one would miss him.” Poppytail snarled, causing the tom below her to tremble.

”WE are warriors, and WE follow a code. You will spare him, and that’s an order.” Owleyes commanded, feeling out of place at his sudden, and unusual indignation. He walked over to the tom, causing Poppytail to retreat reluctantly. ”Speak. What is your name, rogue?”

Yellow eyes flickered back toward Owleyes, and the tom curled his lips back in a half snarl before thinking better of it. ”My name is Hawk.” He mewed matter-of-factly. Owleyes stood paralyzed for a moment as his mouth gaped open. The medicine cat quickly shook his head. ”Take him back to camp, I will treat him for the wounds he’s obtained.”

”We’re not bringing a rogue into our camp!” Poppytail interjected. Owleyes glanced back toward the she-cat. ”It is StarClan’s will. I need you to trust me.” He mewed simply, dismissively flicking his tail.



For over a moon the tom recovered in Owleyes’ den, much to the dislike of the clan. Although he had no warm acceptance from ShadowClan, the tom had been curious and intrigued by clan-life, and Owleyes spoke proudly about their ways. Soon, the medicine cat found himself teaching, and educating the young tom. As his health increased, Hawk had proven to be a good companion.

The former rogue had found a sense of purpose listening to the old tom talk away while they sorted through herbs. Eventually Hawk had found himself roaming the territory with Owleyes once he was finally able to walk again and helped him collect herbs. The talks about life as a warrior quickly shifted into talking about the life of a medicine cat, and what they did, and what their role in the clan was.

When Owleyes proposed that Hawk give up his old life and join ShadowClan as his apprentice, Hawk willingly obliged. This life, for it seemed, was far better than his old one, even if the clan seemed to hate him and his presence. Owleyes promised though, that in time they would get over it and forget about his origins. He just had to prove himself.

The moons were passing. Hawk had become Hawkpaw and was gearing up to becoming a skilled medicine cat of ShadowClan. Though the clan’s outspoken hostility had dwindled down, the tension remained. Their trust in him was proving to be a slow build.



After many moons of rigorous training, Hawkpaw was given the name Hawkflight. Owleyes had proudly bestowed the name upon him, choosing the suffix flight for how the tom had quickly left his old life for a far more honorable and moral path. Hawkflight beamed with pride and looked upon his mentor with a warmth that he had never experienced before. Owleyes had been the only one in the clan who believed in him and treated him with compassion. The old tom was a father figure that he had not previously had.

Not long after receiving his medicine cat name, tragedy would strike. A sickness crippled the clan, and sadly, among the lives taken was that of Owleyes. While Hawkflight would have preferred time to grieve and process the death he knew he would not have such luxery. There still existed great animosity in the clan for him, and the only way to remedy this and bridge the gap would to be to take on an apprentice of his own from within the clan.

At six moons of age, the young tom selected Lionkit to be his successor. Lionkit was a she-kit from a litter of kits born to Mapleleap, and the newly named deputy Ashfoot. Lionkit, it seemed, was an obvious choice. Not only did the little ginger she-kit show an admiration for the medicinal arts, but she was also of pure ShadowClan lineage. With having a father who was a clan deputy, Hawkflight felt secure in taking her on. If some in the clan did not trust him as a medicine cat, then they would surely trust her, restoring the peace.

When Hawkflight approached her about becoming a medicine cat apprentice, the little kit was ecstatic. The next day, she was named Lionpaw. Though, like most of her clan, she was not pleased about her mentor’s former life. Very early on into her apprenticeship friction existed between them.

It was a relationship that only got worse over time. The dysfunctional mentor apprentice pairing was obvious to everyone around them, even toward other clans at half moon meetings. The two could barely stand to be in each other’s presence for long periods of time without bickering at best and having a yelling match at worst.

Often, she would pay little attention to what he had to say, or his way of doing things, feeling as if she knew better than him because she was clan-born although she lacked the experience of a healer. Deep loathing would ensue between them as they struggled to coexist. This would lead to Lionpaw’s coming of age, as she too, received her full medicine cat name of Lionfire.



For moons, the tension and divide between Lionfire and Hawkflight would continue to grow. Although the rest of ShadowClan was now becoming accustomed to the tom’s presence, all but forgetting his dark past, Lionfire proved to be less forgiving.

Not long after being made medicine cat, Ashfoot soon became Ashstar, ShadowClan's newest leader. Due to their statuses in the clan, Lionfire formed a close bond with her father. Often, she debated pleading with her father to exile Hawkflight from the clan so she could have the position and medicine den to herself. Not wanting to overstep boundaries with her father, however, Lionfire begrudgingly decided against it.

Leaf-bare came on quickly that year, and seemingly overnight. Immediately they were hit with one of the harshest leaf-bares that the forest had witnessed in many seasons. With it came a sickness unlike any other. A pneumonia-like virus tightly gripped ShadowClan, hitting the clan in waves.

It was a sickness that did not discriminate. It killed the young, and healthy, as well as the old. Many kits, apprentices, warriors, and elders would lose their lives this leaf-bare. It was a time of turmoil that tested the strength of both Hawkflight and Lionfire. For the very first time, the two medicine cats had to set aside their differences for the well-being of ShadowClan, or else they’d surely fail.

Many sleepless nights followed as the two fought against the sickness, dispersing herbs among their clanmates until their stocks were completely depleted early into the season. The kits were the first to die. With no strong, capable elders, the two medicine cats buried countless kits in silence.

Hawkflight remained stoic and unreadable, but it was very apparent Lionfire was breaking on the surface. The young ginger she-cat would spend countless nights awake in her nest, crying and feeling hopeless. It was during this time that Hawkflight started having a change of heart, his opinion of her merging in a completely different direction.

One of these nights he had awaken to her sobbing. Without saying a word, he walked over to her nest and lay beside her. Depression was slowly diminishing her spirit, and Hawkflight could see it written all over her appearance. The tom began rasping his tongue over her, grooming the she-cat who had not found the will to groom herself in days until she finally fell asleep.



As deeply as they once hated each other became as deeply as they now found themselves in love with each other. In secrecy, the two continued on as mates. Lionfire soon found herself head-over-heels for Hawkflight, even well into ShadowClan’s recovery, and as new-leaf started to bud around them, the pair fell deeper into their forbidden love.

Afraid of StarClan’s wrath, the pair quit going to half-moon meetings, avoiding any contact with their ancestors. No cats in ShadowClan were aware of this, as the two would leave camp every half-moon spending romantic nights roaming the territory together. Their absence did not raise suspicion with the other medicine cats, as they had simply assumed ShadowClan had turned their backs toward their starry ancestors after everything they had gone through.

Their secret was safe, or so they had thought. Pregnancy came crashing down on them like a hard reality. Lionfire panicked, but Hawkflight remained calm and assured that they’d be capable of hiding it. For the next two moons, Lionfire kept her encounters with clanmates brief. When suspicions arose, Hawkflight merely said she wasn’t feeling well and should be back to her usual soon enough.

In the middle of the night, when the rest of the clan was asleep, Lionfire went into labor. After waking Hawkflight, the two traveled to a secluded part of their territory where she gave birth. Her labor had been excruciating and painful, much more than what was usual. There had been a lot of blood loss, and for a moment, Hawkflight wondered how he was going to explain her death to the clan. It had definitely been an omen from StarClan, and the two were certain that the litter was cursed.

Lionfire pulled through and eventually the kits were born. The ginger she-cat mournfully watched as her kits suckled, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to enjoy it for long. Together, the pair named the three kits. The first one was named Tigerkit, a she-cat with a striking resemblance to Hawkflight. The second, a ginger she-cat named Foxkit. And the last one, a tom who was the runt of the litter, that they had named Eaglekit.

The two medicine cats adored over their kits until sunrise, learning that one cannot linger in anything in life, not even the most precious of moments. Unfortunately, Eaglekit did not make it until dawn. In grief, Hawkflight buried his tiny son while Lionfire cleaned herself of any signs of the pain-staking labor she had just endured.

The kits mewled in protest as the parents picked them up by their scruffs, taking them back to camp. They arrived with a story of how they had found the kits out in the territory while gathering herbs, presumably abandoned by their mother. Daisyfur, a queen of the clan who had lost two of her kits offered to nurse them and became their adoptive mother.

Lionfire and Hawkflight would watch their two daughters grow up from a distance. Their lineage would be just as much of a secret as the relationship that existed between the two medicine cats. Lionfire craved to reach out. To make their kinship known, and to have a relationship with her daughters. However, she knew this was the price she would have to pay for the love she had with Hawkflight. It was a secret that she would have to take to the grave.

Foxkit would grow up to be a warrior named Foxtail, and Tigerkit would be named Tigerlily. The memory of Eaglekit never left Lionfire, the grief creeping in from the darkest corners of her mind every time a milestone like this took place that he would never see. As the moons grew on, Lionfire found herself growing farther and farther away from StarClan.

Bitterness and resentment filled her heart. It was because of StarClan that she could not openly profess her love for Hawkflight. It was because of StarClan that she could never have a relationship with her daughters like a mother should. It was because of StarClan that Eaglekit was dead. A storm was building inside of her that no one in the clan was aware of.

It was also unbeknownst to the clan that the medicine cats had severed ties with StarClan for a few seasons now. Despite her fondness, and affection she held for her father Ashstar, even he was kept in the dark about this secret. Anytime curiosity would arise in the leader and he would ask the dreaded question if StarClan had sent them any signs, Lionfire would simply lie and make something up. Although she hated lying to her father, the she-cat saw it as a necessary evil. She was spiraling into a web of lies, and she was in much too deep now to ever climb out.

StarClan, however, had a way of seeing to that every sin is punished eventually – or at least that was the way Lionfire viewed it. During a storm lightning had struck a tree, causing a branch to fall on Hawkflight, killing him instantly. Lionfire rushed out of the medicine den when a patrol brought his body back. Stricken with grief, she mourned through the entire vigil that night. At dawn, by request, she buried him by herself.

Moons passed, and the she-cat found herself drifting through life numb. She was aware now how gravely she had betrayed the code she swore herself to, and how much she had failed her clan as a medicine cat. All the pain she was enduring for the choices she made in life, she was beginning to accept that she deserved nothing less than the torment her soul felt. From the death of her mate and the relationship she would never have with her kits, she deserved it. She deserved all of it.

In an attempt to reconnect her clan with StarClan, Lionfire once again started to attend half-moon meetings. Though, the she-cat would be lying if she had said the chance of seeing Hawkflight again wasn’t her main motivation. Much to her surprise, that is where she would find him again, along with Eaglekit. This revelation would slowly begin to mend her grudge toward StarClan, as she swore herself once more to a relationship with them for the well-being of ShadowClan as her only intention of doing so.