Runningflame

**Runningflame** is a handsome, rugged, massive, muscular fiery ginger and white tom with green eyes. He is also known as the **Tiger of RiverClan.**

## History

Runningkit is born alongside his sister, Squirrelkit, to Amberstep and Rowanstripe. The two kits get into mischief, often orchestrated by Runningkit. He becomes close friends with Ripplekit, an only child in the nursery, and invites him on his shenanigans. Ripplekit kindly refuses, and Runningkit embarks on them regardless.
Runningkit suffers from an illness as a kit, leaving his parents to worry about him greatly. They are unsure if he will make it each night, but eventually, with Pale-eye's hard work, Runningkit makes it from the brink of death. Ripplekit sits with him each night until he is brought back by his mother to sleep with him at night. Rowanstripe visits him often, telling his son that he must grow to be stronger than him.
He is made an apprentice, Runningpaw, alongside Squirrelpaw, Dapplepaw, Shimmerpaw, Rowanpaw, and Ripplepaw. His mentor is Mintfeather, who secretly admires his wild side. He encourages him to embrace it, but to not cause trouble. Runningpaw agrees to this, and Mintfeather trains him to be the best warrior he can possibly be.
Runningpaw is made a warrior alongside Rippleheart and Squirreltail. Shortly after, he gains an apprentice, Copperpaw. Copperpaw then becomes Copperheart. He sticks around with Dapplewing, having trained with her and knowing she is treated unfairly by her family and her Clanmates. He does his best to defend her and reminds her to always stick to her principles, no matter what. Dapplewing respects Runningflame's courageous and innovative side, and his unwavering resolve.
When Runningflame's mother is killed by dogs, Runningflame leads a patrol to attack the same dogs. His patrol beats the dogs and scares them away. Mintfeather is killed by one of the dogs, and Runningflame is wrapped into a cocoon of sadness and grief, upset that even though he avenged his parents, he had to avenge his mentor as well. Rippleheart talks him out of this, saying that he did the best he could, and he cannot avenge every cat. Runningflame thanks Rippleheart and is able to move on, but does not forget them.
Runningflame's father is taken hostage by a group of rogues when on patrol. Runningflame leads the patrol to track them down, and Rowanstripe is being held at point by the rogues. Runningflame stares at his father, knowing that if they attack the rogues, they will die. Rowanstripe tells him to attack, saying it is all right, and that this is something he needs to do. Runningflame finally nods, and when they leap, Rowanstripe is killed.
Runningflame is wracked by guilt. Squirreltail blames him for the death of their father, and Otterstar is outraged. Runningflame is held in camp until the incident is looked over, and finally, Otterstar and Rainbreeze decide that Runningflame did what he had to do. Runningflame is let free, but the incident haunts him for the rest of his life. Even Rippleheart's reassurance is unable to help him.
He gets another apprentice, Lightningpaw, and is immensely proud when she is made a warrior, Lightningflower. He takes Meadowkit as an apprentice shortly after, and she is named Meadowdawn. Later, he takes on Redkit, and is proud when she becomes Redfern.
Runningflame is struck with grief when Otterstar dies. Dapplewing takes his place, becoming Dapplestar, and he vows to support her no matter what. His support for the Clan deputy, Shimmerwing, strengthens as well. He, Rippleheart, and Shimmerwing are trusted by Dapplestar immensely. He is immediately accepting of Shellpaw when he is brought into the Clan, and treats him as he would a younger brother. When Shellpaw is made a warrior, Shellfall, he accepts him into Dapplestar's circle immediately.
He fights for his Clan bravely, seeming to show no fear. When Redfern is killed by a fox that seemed to have been driven on ShadowClan land purposely, Runningflame kills the fox himself and vows to avenge Redfern. He grieves for her, but knows that she is watching over him.
Over time, his relationship with his sister gradually falls apart, due to Squirreltail's jealousy of his spot in the Clan.
He and Russetstripe have a mutual respect, ever since meeting her at a Gathering and battling her. Eventually, Runningflame is struck with feelings he cannot name for the dark ginger she-cat, and they begin to meet when possible. He worries for her when she is injured after coming with her patrol to help RiverClan when they are attacked by rogues, and stays to nurse her to health.
Runningflame accompanies Russetstripe and Cinderfall on a patrol when they search for Hotaru and Iceheart after they run away from their Clan, as he knows the outlands well. They are trapped by rogues, and Runningflame battles the leader before Hotaru comes to their rescue. After the journey, Runningflame bids farewell to Russetstripe and comes back to camp.
Runningflame fights bravely against ShadowClan in the RiverClan-ShadowClan war. On one of the battle patrols he orders the head of the ShadowClan patrol to face him personally, and the winner claims the territory. Runningflame fights Hawkflight, and Runningflame wins. Hawkflight spits at him that ShadowClan will never surrender to the likes of him, while Runningflame watches him coldly.
When Dapplestar decides to set fire to WindClan territory, Runningflame pleads for her to rethink it. Dapplestar turns on him and asks him if he has become weak. Before Runningflame has a chance to reply, Dapplestar claws his face and sends him staggering, telling him that he was now the lowest of her warriors. Runningflame is shocked as Dapplestar orders him to be taken prisoner, and leads her patrol to set ablaze WindClan territory.
When RiverClan falls into a civil war, Runningflame breaks from Rippleheart and Shellfall, much to their dismay, to support Shimmerwing. She welcomes him in her makeshift camp, and she and Runningflame construct a battle plan. The night before the battle, Runningflame asks StarClan for forgiveness, as he had broken the warrior code by turning on his Clan and his best friends, the cats he served with under Dapplestar. The day of the battle comes, and Runningflame throws in his full strength, trying to put aside the guilt he feels by cutting down the cats he used to fight alongside with. He meets Rippleheart in battle, and both of them stop, knowing they are unable to hurt each other, even though they fought for different causes, they were still following their hearts. Cats from both side urge Runningflame and Rippleheart on, and they have no choice but to battle. During the middle of their fight, Rippleheart looks up to see a second wind of cats. He lets go of Runningflame and races up to report to Shellfall. Runningflame is only able to watch them helplessly before returning to Shimmerwing. Much to his shock, he finds Swiftcloud, who announces that she had brought ThunderClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan. Runningflame sees Russetstripe, and expects her to hate him for what happened to WindClan. Instead, Russetstripe guides Runningflame to another part of the camp and asks him if he will fight with her. Runningflame promises he always will, and does not think about what will happen to their relationship after the war comes to an end. He apologizes to her for what happened over WindClan, and Russetstripe tells him that she knew he tried to stop it. Runningflame asks how, and Russetstripe replies that it was the sort of thing he would do, but Dapplestar was too strong for anyone to listen. Before the second wave of cats hits, Runningflame tells Russetstripe that he loves her, and joins the battle again with her at his side.
The battle ends in Shimmerwing's favor, and she becomes the new leader of RiverClan. Shellfall is missing, and Shimmerstar orders multiple cats to look for him. Runningflame is able to track his scent, but unable to find the tom himself, or his corpse. He finds himself being grateful for it - fighting Rippleheart had been hard enough. He did not know if he had the courage to cut down Shellfall. He returns to camp and reports that there is no sign of Shellfall - adding that he probably died off territory. Shimmerstar says nothing. Later, she consults with him whether they should allow back the cats who had fought for Shellfall. Runningflame agrees they should. He tells her that they were not fighting against Shimmerstar - they were fighting for the warrior code. Shimmerstar allows them back, and Runningflame and Rippleheart walk alongside the river, after Runningflame was assigned to guard him to make sure he was trustworthy again. Rippleheart speaks, saying that he risked his life for the warrior code and now needed a guard. Runningflame apologizes to him for everything, saying he never meant to betray him or meet him in battle.
Rippleheart tells him that there is nothing to apologize for - he fought for his principles, just as Rippleheart had fought for his ideals. Runningflame looks down at the ground as they continue to walk. He asks Rippleheart if they were friends again, and Rippleheart simply replies they never stopped being friends. Runningflame asks him what happened to Shellfall. Rippleheart pauses for a second, and tells him that Shellfall never meant to betray Shimmerstar or support Dapplestar's tyranny. Runningflame tells him he knows, and he will never forget Shellfall, or think of him as an enemy. Rippleheart tells Runningflame that Shellfall told them to surrender, and it was the end of his vengeance. Runningflame inquires if he is dead, and Rippleheart replies with probably. Runningflame looks down, unsure about how to take this news.
## Personality

Wild and innovative, Runningflame is a born and bred warrior, living life the way he sees fit. His resolve is unwavering, and he always sticks to his principles. He is adventurous and free-spirited, who believes in living life to the fullest, but also is a dangerous and skilled fighter on the battlefield. He loves a good thrill as much as he loves a good battle, but he strongly believes it is his duty to live a life worthy of the title as a military commander. He is not afraid to take risks, and has a gallant side as well - a storm of willfulness and a devil-may-care attitude. He is dangerous, wild, and hungry for a good fight.
## Trivia

* He will always miss the Dapplestar he served.
* His best friend is Rippleheart.

## Theme song

* **Good Girls Go Bad** by Cobra Starship

*I know your type, you're daddy's little girl. Just one bite, let me shake up your world. 'Cause one night couldn't be so wrong, I'm gonna make you lose control.*
* **Run Wild** by Big Time Rush

*People say play it safe, but I don't want to live that way. Take a chance, change the game. Run wild and never look back, the night is waiting, the world is for the taking.*

## Quotes

**Rippleheart**: "*You've figured it out, haven't you? Runningflame doesn't stop. For anything, or anyone. That's what makes him scary. You can't stop him from enjoying life the way he wants, or doing his job.*"

**Dapplewing**: "*But why? What motivates him?*"

**Rippleheart**: "*He lives by an unshakeable set of principles. And he'll stick to them, even if that means other cats are swept up in his actions. Sometimes that attracts cats. Others stay with him because they just got caught up. Even so, being a member of his entourage won't spare you. He doesn't hesitate to sacrifice anything for a mission. The lives of others, or his own. Runningflame lives by this code of the ideal leader. He puts that above all else. It's not that he doesn't care about other cats' lives. It's just that his ideals take precedence. So it doesn't do any good to tell him that killing is wrong, or not to get killed. He won't budge. He made up his mind a long time ago about what he wants and what it will take to get it.*"

**Dapplewing**: "*You're saying he found something worth killing for? What could have happened to him to make him think that way?*"
**Rippleheart**: "*I don't know. I don't understand what makes a cat capable of killing his own father.*"

—Dapplewing and Rippleheart

**Russetstripe**: "*...What are we?*"

**Runningflame**: "*I don't know.*"

**Russetstripe**: "*Me neither.*"

**Runningflame**: "*But whatever it is, it's already happening and I can't make it stop.*"

—Runningflame and Russetstripe

"*Before, I was always content just to enjoy myself at all times. However, that's changed now that I met you. I would give everything I am in order to love you. For at least as long as I have left in this world.*"
—Runningflame to Russetstripe

"*This is what I call a fight!*"
—Runningflame

**Russetstripe**: "*I have no idea why I'm allowing myself to be with you, but I have no clue how to stop.*"

**Runningflame**: "*Do you want it to stop?*"

**Russetstripe**: "*No, I don't.*"

—Runningflame and Russetstripe

"*When need be, we have each other’s backs. The rest of the time, we keep each other humble through bickering and banter.*"
—Runningflame's thoughts about Rippleheart

"*I love you. I thought there was nothing I wouldn't let go of if I needed to, but then I found you. You know you've changed my entire perspective on life?*"
—Runningflame

"*Those who don't want to die, stay out of my way.*"
—Runningflame

"*Ha! There is no warrior I fear!*"
—Runningflame

"*Let me show you how a real warrior fights!*"
—Runningflame

"*I won't say goodbye. Even if it takes a battle against all of the gods, I will prove to you beyond a shadow of a doubt that I loved you.*"
—Runningflame

## References

1. ↑ Good Girls Go Bad by Cobra Starship YouTube