Living Large by wee3beasties, on Flickr

The Essentials
i know exactly how the rule goes, put my mask on first

Name: Myrtleleaf.
    Prefix Meaning: Myrtle- for her white coat, like myrtle flowers.
    Suffix Meaning: -leaf for her rank as GlenClan leader.
Sex: Female.
Age: 54 moons; three lives out of five remaining. (lost one having kits, lost the other from a falling tree)
Sexuality: Homosexual. 
Rank: Leader.
Role: Leader; used to be in the Oak and Birch Families.
Adopt Thread: None.

The Body
no i don't wanna talk about myself, tell me where it hurts

Base Coat Color: Tortoiseshell (red and black).
Markings: Over 50% white spotting, (mackerel) tabby makings.
Eye Color: Dull olive green.
Body Size and Build: Average sized, muscular, and fairly plump.
Fur Length and Texture: Short and thick.
Additional Physical Traits: Short whiskers, walnut-shaped eyes, round face, short legs, thick tail, small ears.
Health and Scars: Myrtleleaf is a little bit hard of hearing, but other than that perfectly healthy. She dons a few scars, but they are all fairly small and hidden by her thick coat. The top of her left ear is shorn off, making that ear a little shorter and odder looking than the right one. 
Faceclaim: linky.
Full Appearance Description: Myrtleleaf isn't the first image that comes to mind when you think of beauty, but there is no denying her charming features. Most cats would say that they are few and far between, but her poise and air of confidence makes it hard not to notice her. Her short and dense coat is mostly white, and often spotted with darker patches of soil or dust. On the top of her head and all along her tail she has patchy torbie markings, orange mixed with brown. Her right hind leg has a bit of tabby on it, but other than that she is all white. There is a little black spot above her nose and on her chin, and her nose is two different shades of pink and red. Her body is rather soft looking and rounded, her head especially so. Don't be fooled by her curves, she is burly with muscle under her coat. She has shorter legs than the average cat and though she is average in body size she stands shorter than most in her clan. Her whiskers are short and white, and she has a rather thick tail though it does not appear fluffy. Her ears are small and rounded, and the left one has a few nicks that make it misshapen. Myrtleleaf has muted green eyes, with touches of yellow and grey that make them more of an olive tone. They are walnut-shaped but turned down a bit, and this coupled with the lines of her mouth make her appear grouchy.
Genetics: Ll, RR, ReRe, lplp, whwh, BB, XOXo, Dd, dmdm, Aa, McMc, spsp, tata, bmbm, ii, wbwb, EE, Ccs, WsWs, acac, sfsf, JbJb, mm, mkmk, pdpd

The Identity
i just wanna build you up, build you up 'til you're good as new

Positive Traits: Motherly, compassionate, generous
Neutral Traits: Agreeable, moralistic, self-assured
Negative Traits: Perfectionist, blunt, extreme

Loves: Being with family, her family, her clan, her goddess, sharing tongues, and flowers.
Likes: Being agreed with, squirrels, climbing trees to the very top, the sound of water (rain, waterfall, stream, etc).
Dislikes: Wet paws, persistent birdsong, sleeping in.
Hates: Punishing cats.
Fears: Having kittens again and losing them again. Losing the trust of her clan. Losing anything, really.
Secrets: She does but also doesn't want kittens again.
Dreams: See her deceased family members. Lose the remainder of her lives serving her clan.

Strengths: Climbing, jumping, smelling, swimming
Normals: Hunting, attack, stealth, eyesight
Weaknesses: Hearing, defense, flexibility, speed

The Past
and maybe one day i will get around to fixing myself too

    Myrtlekit was born in a two-kit litter, to a trio of rather unusual parents. They were all childhood friends, and the two toms had asked their female friend if she would be the surrogate for their kits. She agreed, of course, and soon she was showing signs of pregnancy. But they had a bit of a hiccup. All three of them were different families. The mother was Birch Family, one of the fathers was Willow, and the other was Pine. None of them particularly wanted to leave their families, and it was only the mother's family that really mattered for the kits. She didn't want to leave. After a bit of thinking they all agreed that Birch would be fine for the kittens, they would grow up to value honesty and integrity. And if they wanted to, they could change their family to join one of their fathers when they were old enough. It didn't matter to them what family they were in. They would all be family nonetheless.

    The kits were born, the molly was named Myrtlekit and the tom was named Mintkit. Myrtlekit and her brother were close, and their parents loved them both very much. She became friends with another kitten in the nursery named Burnetkit, and they liked to make up scenarios and play them out together. They would often sneak into the apprentice's den and tell stories about what they would do when they became 'paws. Then leafbare took a turn for the worse and sickness plagued the clan. Mintkit and their mother both got sick, as well as the clan's medicine cat and a few of the leaders. GlenClan's leader lost one of their lives, Mintkit and her mother lost their only one. 

    The coming of newleaf was bittersweet for Myrtlekit, she had both her fathers to comfort and be comforted by. They had lost their son, but also their best friend. Myrtlekit had lost two of the cats she loved most in her life, but at least she still had her fathers. And Burnetkit. They did their best to make up for the loss, and were always so proud of her strength. With the coming of greener grasses and warmer temperatures, Myrtlekit became Myrtlepaw and was assigned a mentor. They were in the Oak Family, the only family Myrtlepaw didn't already have ties to. The pair got along very well, they pushed her to do well and nurtured the confidence and bravery in her that other apprentices struggled to match.

    Myrtlepaw's apprenticehood sped by, the whole time she trained and hunted and tried her hardest to show her clan her best. She became closer with her childhood friend Burnetpaw, and the two stuck together like burrs and were often seen sparring with one another. Myrtlekit became a warrior in the blink of an eye, earning the name Myrtleheart for her courage, confidence, and the way she strived for fairness. The name seemed to be a perfect fit. Myrtleheart, though she was a young warrior, became someone cats would come to for advice and help. She was trusted to always lend a paw, it seemed she would never say no to someone who asked. Not many moons after receiving her name she made the choice to transfer to Oak Family, deciding that though she valued honesty she valued bravery just as equally and many of her friends were in the other family. Her fathers supported her decision, happy to see their strong daughter settling in to the warrior life so well.

    After joining the Oak Family she only became more and more well known and respected. And as the leader grew older she only grew in standing. Her fame reached it's peak when she fought off a ferret almost singlehandedly to keep it from attacking kittens in the nursery. They were small, but boy were they slippery and their teeth and minds sharp. She managed to outwit it and kill it, though other cats had offered to help she had stubbornly refused and sustained a multitude of bites and scratches. After that, she knew it was her job to protect her clan. It was her calling. And on the night when GlenClan's leader took their last breath, she stayed with them for the rest of the night in vigil. Never slipping into sleep for her lost clanmate.

    It surprised nobody when the Oak Family placed her forwards as a candidate. She spoke before the clan, convincing even some of those that opposed her that the clan's good was in her best interests and she would make GlenClan a safer and stronger place. Despite how young she was she would never hesitate to lay her life down again and again for the clan until she was spent. After the voting, Myrtleheart was called forward and told that she was voted the leader of the clan. She was shocked. Even though she had seen everyone's hearts when she spoke, she had no idea that they would vote for her. Actually vote for her. Her clan had more faith in her than she realized. The medicine cat led her to the Sacred Hollow, and she was gifted her lives and her new name. Myrtleleaf doesn't speak about what happened that night, or who gave her her lives, but one can guess.

    The clan lapsed into a time of peace and happiness. Myrtleleaf had recently gotten married to Burnet-, her friend through everything. She had always given Myrtleleaf support and their personalities had always matched one another well. They seemed perfect for one another. Myrtleleaf had always wanted a family. Kittens had always been on her mind. And what better time to have kittens than now? She was happy and in love, and it was a calm time for the clan. She had enough time to raise a litter. Burnet- agreed that there was no better time than now, and the pair told the clan they were planning to start a family. The clan was overjoyed for the mollies, and said that everyone deserved to have a family. The leader of their clan especially.

    Myrtleleaf's pregnancy didn't go as smoothly as she had planned. Her friendship with the medicine cat strengthened, as on most days headaches and nausea made her unable to leave her nest. Burnet- was very worried for her mate, and often joked that she should have been the one to carry the kits. Myrtleleaf insisted that she was fine, everything would turn out okay. Until she went into labor early, and there was so much blood. Too much blood. For what felt like moons she was delivering those kits, until her body finally relented. She went still, and opened her eyes only moments later to the concerned faces of her mate and medicine cat. She had lost a life, but that renewed strength allowed her to deliver three small yet beautiful kittens. Two daughters and a son, whom she and Burnet- named Minnowkit, Creekkit, and Mallowkit.

    The molly cursed herself for being so confident. She had lost a life giving birth to her children, a life that could have been spent protecting her clan. She felt selfish. In the hours after that time with her newborns at her belly, she silently agonized until she finally confided in the medicine cat. They solemnly shook their head upon hearing this and told Myrtleleaf that even the strongest of she-cats died at the paws of birth, and it was not selfish to want to have a family. Kittens were the livelihood of the clan. It was she who had made the sacrifice, and her clan would not blame her for it. The wise words made her rethink, and she realized they were right.

    But fate wasn't done with Myrtleleaf, and her kittens became weaker and weaker as the hours of the night went on. Until one by one, each of them breathed their last little breath and went still. She woke up the next morning with three cold little bodies tucked by her stomach. No words could express the devastation she felt. Her world came crashing down. She was a kitten again, being told that her mother and brother didn't make it. Burnet- had spent the night with her and upon seeing that she was awake immediately started to cry. Her mate had stayed awake the whole night and watched their children die, not wanting to wake Myrtleleaf because she had needed to sleep to regain her strength. They grieved in the aftermath together. The kittens were buried later that day, and Myrtleleaf decided she wouldn't try to children again for a long, long time. Maybe she would never try again.

    Moons have passed but the pain caused by the loss of Myrtleleaf's daughters and son never faded. Every time she passed the nursery and smelled that smell of kittens and milk and saw them playing she was reminded of her own kittens. The life they never got to live, all the love of the clan and family that had been torn away from them before they were even alive a whole cycle of the day. She thought about them often, wondering what they would all be doing if they were alive. Though they were gone, and had been for moons, they affected her life in every way. She became more selfless, made sure to let everyone she loved know that she loved them. There wasn't enough time in life for unspoken feelings. She made sure her clan knew that she loved them too. Myrtleleaf lost her second life after a particularly horrible storm, she saved her apprentice from a tree that was falling due to the wet loosening soil. Instead her life was taken, and her broken body had to be pulled out from under the fallen tree before her eyes opened again and breath returned to her body. The tree is still there. She occasionally goes there to think.

    Myrtleleaf hasn't lost any more of her lives. Her fathers are old now, grey yet refusing to retire. She still joins them out on patrols sometimes. Her mentor retired moons ago, but they still talk and sometimes go out for walks in the territory. Many of the family leaders that she had looked up to growing up were now elders or deceased. Most of the warriors in the clan are younger than her, too young to or not even born yet when the clan voted for her. She just hopes that everyone still believes that she is still worthy of her position. Everyone insists that she isn't old, but boy does she feel like it. She feels ancient.


Dear Heidi by wee3beasties, on Flickr