Shiningstar

*"I've spent so many nights wishing you'd show up. I sat alone, stuck in the darkness hoping you'd show... Thinking you were just so lost without someone there; you'd never find your way back. I laid where you once were just thinking of what became of you, wishing you'd show your stupid face once more but you never did... you never came..... You left just so I could watch in silence as your scent faded day by day along with your memory to the point it was so faded yet alive enough to be a true ghost circling the camp. There wasn't a single day that went by where I didn't wish you'd come back."*

## Clan Information

### Rank

Rogue, Apprentice, Warrior, Deputy, Leader

### Names

Shine, Shiningpaw, Shiningbrook, Shiningstar

## Description

Shiningstar is a large, long furred silver and white patched tabby Mainecoon she-cat with watery blue eyes and very pink ears, nose and paw prints. She has a very long, silky pelt with a little face She has scars on her right cheek, a large scar on her left thigh and a gash from her right shoulder to her neck

## Personality

Shiningstar has been seen as a very solid and steady cat. She holds true to what she believes and is very willing to do what she must to survive. Her clan is the most important aspect to her and she is willing to destroy her own image in order to preserve Riverclans honor and image. Outside of being a leader, Shiningstar is known to be very reserved and expressionless. She keeps her personal feelings out of her daily life and tends to think out solutions and actions. While she's also known for being very hard-headed and not easily spoken to, she had a loyal and dedicated heart. She is a truly kind cat who is open-minded to the worries of her clanmates and even willing to sacrifice herself more than her 9 lives allow her to. She is not the greatest with kits, but once she can connect with someone she becomes more laid back and relaxed compared to the leader many either love or hate.

## Relationships

### *Family*

* **Rippledawn-** "You're an idiot for allowing an outsider to woo you! You're so lucky those kits are of Riverclan blood. I'm just glad you grew from such a mistake as that- youre a fine warrior and I don't want you to be sucked away from how noble you truly are"

### *Friends*

* **Quietstep-** "What words can I use when I was never able to use the right ones? I spent a lot of time pulling at your tail to get a reaction out of you because I loved the ones you'd give me. You always got inside my heart... but never my head. I meant what I said about waiting moons and moons for you... I just couldn't accept you as dead. There are words I want to use but I don't think I'm ready to let them slip. I miss you Quietstep... please come home to me again I need you."

* **Gullrunner**- "She was my best friend, the left paw to my right paw. Every time I needed her to open up my senses she was right there forcing my nose open. I miss her so much... and she helped me truly realize my feelings for Quietstep... what I would give to have her with me in this time now. I'm scared and confused and unsure. I need my best friend."
* **Feathersong**- "One of the only cats I ever felt I could rely on 100% and never be disappointed. You were the only kit who never got under my skin if I'm honest. I enjoy your presence and I trust you wholeheartedly with my life.
* **Rainstar**- "There is strength in tragedy, and of all the cats I know you will be the one to learn this. I do not see much in all cats, but I saw much in you. Good and bad alike... but a light I could not ignore. I cannot tell you what I see for you now that I have joined the stars, but I can tell you everything I have ever told you I said with truth. You are a raindrop in the desert of life.... to not fear when life grows from your touch."

### *Neutral*

* **Rabbitstar**- "Your typical story of a cat too young to lead learning how to lead through typical challenges. I cannot think of a more cliche way to grow as a leader. Despite that, even I have to admit at least he's growing upward rather than to the side like most cats. So far he has earned my respect for making a deal with me against Nigthpaws wishes, I hope he can keep to it."
* **Pikewish**- "One of the only cats from my days as an apprentice. Kind tom and a very very loyal warrior... Im sorry for my slight break down- I didn't mean for that to happen"

### *Dislikes*

* **Flamestar-** "I am completely justified to not trust a random group of cats! Starclan has since stated you are one of us, so why you must believe I still reject Skyclan is beyond me. If starclan wills it, so be it."
* **Kits-** "Ew"

## Trivia

### *Facts*

* Shiningstar has little feeling in the scar on her thigh
* Shiningstar received the star on her cheek as a symbol of turning towards her clan and away from herself and her life
* Shiningstar dislikes kits because she doesn't understand how to act around them
* Shiningstar has rogue blood through her parents
* Shiningstar is ENTJ-A
* "Live With Abandon" - Newboys
* Genetic Code: ll Bb XoXo dd dmdm Aa Mcmc Spsp tata bmbm II wbwb EE CC WsWs
* After re-calculation... she should have been 158 moons at death not 89 lol sorry guys

### *Likes*

* All of Riverclan
* Winning
* Seniority

### *Dislikes*

* Diving
* The other clans

### *Fears*

* Losing Quietstep forever
* Shaming her clan

### *Lives*

* Wiltingwhisker- Honesty: Greencough
* Hornetpaw- Cooperation: Greencough
* Dewskip- Sympathy: Unknown illness
* Echoingsky- Courage: Fell over Gorse
* Greenkit- Relaxation: Injuries from Moonlight
* Flowerpaw- Compassion: Injuries from Moonlight
* Willowbranch- Ability to Cope: Seizure from Uknown cause
* Vixenclaw- Self-control: Seizure
* Mothstar- Forgiveness: Brain Cancer

## History

Shiningstar was born just under the bridge that linked Riverclan to the four trees on a very hot green leaf day. Her father had been the first cat she saw when she opened her eyes. Her mother's whereabouts had been unknown to the tom, who would tell her her mother would one day return from her unexpected hunting trip. Shiningstar was born as a single kit, so she was the lone attention hog of her father. He spent countless nights telling her stories about the cats who walked in the skies, but he refused to talk to her about the cats who lived in the territory just above their own. As she began to grow older and learn how to care for herself, her father warned her about the dangers of leaving the underside of the bridge. He would tell her other rouges were above them that would kill on the spot before asking questions. This scared the young molly so she stayed right at her father's side without question.

Though one day during a practice hunting session, a sudden storm broke out and completely drowned the land. The gorse upstream over flooded and send a massive wave of water their way. It hit both cats on the shore, dragging Shine mercilessly downstream. She was afraid she would die from the rushing water, but instead, she discovered an incredible talent for holding her breath. She kept herself below the raging wave until she hit the sunning rock area. Just when she thought everything was over, another wave hit her, causing her to bash her head against one of the rocks she had been using to keep herself out of the water. A Riverclan patrol found her, noticing the lack of clan scent on her fur and began to question her. Shine was unable to answer anything, unable to remember due to her hitting her head. All she could remember was that her name was Shine- but was unsure if it was Shine, Shined or Shining.

The patrol took pity on her and brought her back to the Riverclan camp and the medicine cat was asked to treat her. Unable to restore memories, the medicine cat insisted she stay within the clan so he could watch her and see if her memory ever returned. Without shock, her memory of the first 7 moons of her life never came to her, so the clan adopted her into their ranks. Because of her bright and confident nature, she was named Shiningpaw. While she never had a true mentor, she began to train with a new warrior named Quietstep, who had also come in as a rogue. She trained with his adopted sister, Gullpaw, and the three became an iconic duo. They fought together to rid the clan of invading Thunderclan cats who tried to take over sunning rocks. They secured the territory easily. Mothstar, who was the leader at the time, announced Quietstep as her deputy following the death of the previous one due to green cough.

Shinningpaw was unable to detach herself from the cats who made her feel at home, so she was often seen hanging out with either cat. But most of her time was spent with Quietstep, who gave her something to believe in when it wasn't herself; he gave her faith in Riverclan. She took it to heart and sought him out whenever she needed a shoulder. Eventually, Mothstar named her Shiningbrook as a nod to where she had been found, in the brook cradled by sunning rocks. Of course, Shiningbrook never took the mystery of her past seriously, beliving her life didn't start until her earliest memory, which was when she was founded by Riverclan. she wholeheartedly believed she was pure-blooded clan, and it was thoughts like that that lead her to be an outstanding warrior.

Through her early warrior days, she hung around Quietstep more, often sharing tongues with him and patrolling with him. Gullpaw would often tease them, but Shiningbrook brushed the playful taunts off as nothing more than jokes. During one rainy season in new leaf, another flood broke out that invaded the camp. Shiningbrook received a leg injury after her leg was caught between shifted rocks that once made up the dens. She had been badly injured, leaving a scar that was to never heal right. She luckily never lost mobility. Not long after the flood, Mothstars body was found in the ruins of the camp. It was rumored she had lost all her previous 8 lives, but others speculated she had lost all of her remaining lives drowning. At this moment, Quietstep was now the leader.

He immediately appointed Shiningbrook to be his deputy, ignoring complaints she was yet to have an apprentice. He received his nine lives that very night and went on to lead for almost a year. Gullpaw received her name as Gullrunner, and both she-cats spent most nights with Quietstar in his den. As time went on, Shiningstar was unable to deny the childhood jokes Gullrunner would direct at her. She was unsure of how she felt about the tom who had not only taught her but guided her. Every little word he said began to repeat in her mind and she was never sure why. But her time with him would be cut short.. leaving her to wonder what really was.

One night in leaf-bare, all clans woke up to the frightening discovery of missing cats. Many cats had vanished from their dens without a trace or sound, including Quietstar. Shiningbrook waited for a full moon for the tom to return, but the medicine cat urged her to finally get her lives. She was reluctant to do so, terrified she would see his face in the stars. But she never did, so she clung onto the hope that he was still alive. Starclan refused to tell anyone what became of the missing cats, informing Shiningstar that in time everyone would know and that it was not a story for them to tell. When she got back, she appointed Blackpelt her deputy.

Over an agonizing two years, Shiningstar would sit at the border and wait for Quietstar to return. She was unable to let go of the tom she grew up with and she refused to let herself know why. During this time, Blackpelt had been killed so Gullrunner was named deputy in his place after her apprentice was made a warrior. Shiningstar began to grow somewhat bitter towards the other clans, becoming aggressive in order to rebuild Riverclans reputation. She refused to be stepped all over because Riverclan had lost the most amount of cats in the great loss. She helped her clan overcome this by accepting more cats into their ranks and welcoming more litters. While she was an icon of hope and prosperity within her clan, she was pugnacious.

The molly took Smallnight as her first apprentice and lost her very first life not long after to green cough. The same sickness would take out her second life as well when it rebounded a few moons later. At this time, during one of her daily border checks with Gullrunner, Quietstar approached them. Shiningstar was grief-stricken when she saw him, anger and sadness diluting her reaction to seeing him. She was broken by his sight, but happy to see him. She felt complete when he came home, even becoming a kinder leader like she had been before Quietstar vanished. He requested to be renamed to Quietstep, telling her many of the missing cats had actually been captured by two legs during the night.

He told of many cats escaping back to their clans... and many were slaughtered for food. Shiningstar was appalled by the story and ordered her whole clan to sit vigil for one night to remember all the clan cats lost to the event. With Quetstep home, Gullrunner once more began to tease Shiningstar of her relationship with her brother. Shiningstar still denied it, but her heart was unable to lie as it quickened whenever she was with the tom. He told her of his fears and doubts about being a leader and that Shiningstar was completely made for the role. He had been proud to have her as his deputy and was even prouder to be a warrior under her. Shiningstar felt a pride boost from the conversation, investing more time in searching for the lost cats once more. She also found the courage to confess her attraction for him, unable to cope with the joy that filled her as he too shared similar feelings. Despite this, the two never officially became mates.

A few cats had been found... but a few cats were lost once more. But this time, Gullrunner and Quietstep vanished. Shiningstar was beyond devastated, having just gotten the love of her life back.. only to lose him and her best friend. She grieved for a solid week, refusing to leave the vigil spot unless it was to make dirt, drink or eat. Many feared her sanity... and they were right to do so. With Gullrunner absent, Shiningstar appointed Acornfoot as her new deputy. She took on Darkpaw as her apprentice and began to grow more protective over her clan. She was getting sick of losing so many cats and it began to show. she became more aggressive and harder to negotiate with. Other clans were wary of bothering Riverclan and that was how she liked it.

She lost her third life to yellow cough when it broke out in the camp, wiping out half of the cats once more. Shiningstar began to crumble, having watched her clan get cut in half 3 times in her entire life. She was desperate to keep them together even in these events. She opened the borders back up and allowed cats to join their ranks- but it also enabled many to remove themselves from the ranks. As leaf bare rolled around, Shiningstar was forced to turn to the other clans for help in gaining herbs. None offered any help so she was left to fend for her clan alone. She ordered her medicine cats Stormberry and Featherpaw to raid the two-leg place in search of catnip. She sent several patrols, swiping every yard of catmint. During this time she had gone on a small border patrol with Blacksalt, who had saved her after she slipped and fell over into the gorse, losing her 4th life.

By the following year, her clan had finally recovered. She had looked to strike a deal with Perilstar of Windclan in order to gain more herbs. She had requested Perilstar trade her some land for prey and Nightpaw, the Windclan Medicine Cat, refused it. This created tensions within the clan. Acornfoot during this time was also killed, so Stormclaw followed to be the next deputy. As Riverclan overcame the sickness, they began to thrive on a large number of fish and a huge supply of herbs from raising two-leg gardens. Shiningstar lost Stormclaw not long after, and her hope began to suffer once more. She became more hostile and distant, keeping Quietsteps old nest in her den just so she had his scent. She is yet to appoint a new deputy, afraid she'd just lose them like she lost her previous four.

During the very first Clan Competition, she volunteered for the tracking challenge and came in second despite her doubts about being a bad tracker. At the end of the day, Riverclan had won the rights to hunt and own four trees until the next gathering. After the meeting, she and Rabbitstar were able to strike a deal where Riverclan shared four trees with Windclan in exchange for debt. A debt that Riverclan is able to call upon at any time they desire. While on a walk, trying to cope with feelings for Quietstep, she stumbled upon Swirlingmist. The two talked about the recent news of rogues, to which Swirlingmist stated she had information. Shiningstar urged her to speak but was cut off and Swirlingmist was quickly killed by Moonlight. Shiningstar was absolutely shocked and immediately fought with the crazy rogue. She killed him quickly, but not before suffering life-threatening neck wounds.

After the fight, Shiningstar brought Swirlingmists body home and immediately died. Unbeknownst to her clan, her injuries cost her two lives. When she came to, she announced what happened and appointed Rainblossom as her 6th deputy. She then commanded Feathersong to travel to WC with her to speak with Rabbitstar, beliving he had even more information to spare.

With no leads and Rabbitstar being slaughtered not long after her endeavors, Shinngstar was left to defend her clan alone. As leaf-fall drew in the cat began to suffer joint problems, staying very close to camp and hardly ever leaving her den. By late leaf-fall, Shiningstar was sitting with Rippledawn when the leader suffered from a massive seizure. It easily took one of her lives and left the elderly cat in fear. She knows for a fact she cannot simply give up her duties as a leader now- but as age takes over with leaf-bare on the way, moving around is getting harder.

At one of the gatherings, Shiningstar took note of how Flamestar disapproved of her being skeptical and she snapped. She not only arrived 3rd to the gathering, but she also left very early and pulled her whole clan out with her. She spoke with Pikewish and confessed that she had been feeling horrible since the seizure and what feelings it brought out. She broke down over Quietstep, now unable to deny to herself his absence left a tremendous mark on her entire character. She noticed at this time she was growing extremely ill, coughing and getting severe headaches when she awoke.

Within a moon she began to deteriorate rapidly, waking up every morning with a headache and becoming more short-tempered and easily irritated. Shiningstar began to find trouble in moving as well. Despite this... she felt the urge to provide and work for the clan she loved so dearly. So on her final patrol, she walked out with Lightpaw, who spoke to her for the first time. Shiningstar quickly began to lose her balance, unable to stand on her own and coughing aggressively. She was brought back to camp, where she lost her 8th life to another seizure. Her 9th followed very soon after, laying within the paws of Feathersong, her longest-standing friend.

Shiningstar currently resides in Starclan as the young and youthful cat she had started out as. She gives leaders the life of respect.

## Other Quotes

*"The true path of leadership is a lesson taught with scars, some deeper than others"*

*"You're so foolish.... because the difference between you and me......? I have the lives to spare"*

*"How is it possible the ghost of a cat so lost to time and lore can cause me to feel this way? Think this way? When I look at this clan it isn't mine... it's his. When I give my life it's in his name- not mine... Why is it that I can stare at the night sky, know nothing is to change yet still expect it to?"*

*"This is your clan now, Rainblossom. Please love them.. and care for them... and guide them in the image of you..., not me. Your era starts the moment you walk back into that camp. So never allow them to make you stray from the path you decide to take. Because if you follow mine, or anyone else's, you will never be the leader I saw in you"*

*"With this life, I give you respect. You will fight till your last breath to gain such a thing- do not expect it upfront. You must understand respect is not only earned, but honored. May your clan grow to respect you- but also follow. May the other clans come to respect you- but treat you with dignity and power. May you respect yourself- but never forget that deep under that star... you are still Rainblossom and will forever be. There are going to be moons where you have no respect. You need to understand its importance, it's impact and its legacy. So treat it kindly, carefully, but most of all seriously. I have no doubts you will gain it with time. Do not let your greed or frustration blind you... otherwise, the legacy you desire will never be respected."*

*"Choices made in the eye of pure approval are often the choices that drag us further down than we ever imagined reachable"*

*"There is not a single day that goes by where I regret my choices. All you ever hear is to live your life without any regrets. So why make regrettable choices? I gave up a selfish life long before your parents were even born- So don't you dare tell me I do not understand how it feels to not know the purpose of your life. If you're so caught up in needing one do what I did- Make one."*