Dogtail [Hundeschweif]

Dogtail is a skinny but thickly furred she-cat who appears to be smaller than the average cats who live in the forest. That said her legs still seem to be a bit long proportional to the rest of her body. Some might underestimate her but even though one might not see it at first glance her experience and training make the warrior an exceptional opponent in battle. Her legs end in small round paws with pointed claws and fawn-colored pads. Only at her right forepaw one of her pale claws is broken off. Another important anatomical feature of Dogtail is her short tail. It's not just a stump but still noticeably shorter than the average cat's tail.

The dense fur tends to give her a bit of a scruffy appearance with its bristly texture and some patches missing at several parts of her body. It has a fawn brown color and despite its thickness, one might be able to see her bones underneath. Being a ticked tabby Dogtail's body doesn't show any distinct darker markings. Only at the nasal bridge, her fur is a bit darker and her forehead shows the typical facial pattern of a mackerel tabby cat. Her legs and her tail show pale tabby markings as well. The old she-cat's fur fades into white at her muzzle, throat, and chest as well as around her eyes. There's also a streak of white fur surrounding a scar that parts her pelt on her right shoulder, reminding her of her last fight with Ryewhisker. There are more scars all over her body a sign of Dogtail's hard life as a stray and a member of BloodClan as well as a warrior. At her muzzle and her flank, the scars are more visible. Her most notable scar starts over her left eye and runs down across her face and muzzle towards her chin. This scar was given to her by Windstar when she tried to defend herself against Ryewhiskers accusations and was chased out of WindClan shortly after.

The warrior's head is round in shape with a pointed muzzle that ends in a pale fawn-colored nose with a darker rim. She has long white whiskers and big triangular ears with pointed tips. Her left ear is torn near the tip and her almond-shaped eyes have a pale yellow color. Most of the time she wears a serious expression that could even be interpreted as sad at times but she's able to relax a bit or even purr or laugh at times when she's with the right cats.

Returning to WindClan has noticeable improved Dogtails mental health and restored her faith in StarClan. Still being exiled by her friend and role model as well as her time as a stray cat and in BloodClan has taken a toll on her and an attentive observer might realize the traces her experiences left in the behavior and words of the WindClan warrior. One might easily notice that Dogtail is a strong-willed and stubborn she-cat with a lot of perseverance. There is no doubt that she knows what she wants and she'll patiently follow along with the steps which lead her to reach her goal. She doesn't let setbacks stop her and is unwilling to give up what she started. To the warrior reaching her goal is only a matter of time and time and stumbling a reason to get up again. Her time in BloodClan and as a stray cat as well as her fight to return to WindClan has made this clear and also added to the combative streak in the former deputy. This drives her to reach most of her goals but might also lead to her getting invested in battles she can't win. Backing down isn't much of an option for her even though she knows the worth of pulling back to try again or get another opportunity. Dogtail's also loyal to the core and would give everything to protect a cat important to her. If she had to she would lay her life down for WindClan and those who are willing to trust her. Once she has given you her word she will keep it and as long as she can avoid it she won't ever let you down. This might also be seen as one of the reasons the warrior returned to WindClan with her kits even though her clan and Windstar chased her out moons ago even though the accusations against her were wrong. Dogtail could have easily chosen to raise her kits as strays or to join another one of the forest clans after all. But instead, she chose to return to WindClan unable to imagine opposing her clan or raising her kits away from the high moors. Even though she sometimes wondered if her ancestors were punishing her for her mistakes her strong faith in StarClan wasn't broken by what happened to her. Maybe that's also due to the fact she needed to hold onto something.

Dogtail is also a rather intelligent she-cat who easily recognizes patterns and shows a strategic way of thinking. She can go through the facts and options and easily determines the best course of action for reaching her desired outcome. Even though she enjoys talking to the right cats she also sometimes might come off as annoyed if she has to repeat herself too often or when the cat she's talking with just won't get what she's trying to say. If that happens she might withdraw from others to enjoy her own company without others interfering in her thoughts. Having experienced the hurt and damaged that can be caused by wrong accusations Dogtail became rather thoughtful. This is especially the case when it comes to judging other cats and situations at paw. She'd rather think through all the facts a second time than judge someone innocent. But most of the time this doesn't take her too long since she's rather attentive and pays attention to details. She hardly misses any movements, smells, or sounds around her. As soon as all the facts are on the table the she-cat easily reaches a sound judgment even though she's not willing to jump to conclusions. Due to her inspiring nature, Dogtail might have made a good leader one day but now that she's old she mostly uses that trait of her's to advise other cats, train her apprentice or lead a patrol now and then. Her willingness to fight and loyalty make her trustworthy and win her the sympathy of other cats. Also, she's a very honest cat who only ever lies if she has to and prefers to stay truthful before herself, other cats, and her warrior ancestors.

Even though Dogtail is trustworthy and wouldn't betray those who trust her if her life depended on it, she has a hard time trusting other cats. This distrustful nature was already part of her from the beginning since she was always a bit wary to be betrayed by others who won't be as loyal but became stronger after experiencing exile. Since the one cat, she looked up to didn't trust her but listened to false accusations the she-cat learned that every cat makes mistakes and became even more selective with those she trusts. That doesn't mean she won't trust anyone but it's she's careful with opening up to others and getting through to her is harder than ever before. Another bad trait in Dogtail is that she's easily irritated. She won't explode straight to your face most of the time but if presented with accusations or unfriendly words she might become unfriendly herself since she won't waste her kindness and empathy on those who aren't willing to be kind themselves. Over time she has learned to accept criticism and to incorporate it into her life helping her grow but if it's not constructive or even presented in an unfriendly or harsh way she might bite back and become hard to talk to since she might become defensive or even hostile.

Dogtail and her brother Stone were born to a pair of stray cats before the clans were formed. She was given the name Dog due to her brown fur and was taught everything she needed to survive by her parents while they moved through the lands. Growing up they tried to stay away from twolegs and bigger groups as good as they could and preferred to settle between the hills or the edge of the forest. But when her father Brown, as well as her brother, died from sickness during leaf-bare Dog and her mother decided to join a group of strays led by a tom called Rodan to keep themselves safe. Dog learned fast how to share life and hunt with other cats and soon found a role model in a loyal and goodhearted she-cat named Wind. The young cat started to spend more time around her managed to become part of the older she-cats circle of friends.

As the group was split up into five clans through the fight between Shadow and Thunder that followed Rodan's death Dog took the name Dogtail and choose to follow Windstar. The warrior joined the newly formed WindClan without hesitation and since her mother went to their new territory with her there wasn't much outside of the hill moors she could have missed. At least that's what she thought until she realized that one of her friends - a tom now known as Blackwind - had chosen to join Shadowstar. Even though had chosen to stay loyal to WindClan her paws kept carrying her towards the thunderpath that formed the border between ShadowClan and WindClan territory to meet him. During the time the two warriors had spent together before choosing to live in different clans their friendship and affection for each other had become too strong for them to just say goodbye for good. Without being able to leave their friendship behind they kept meeting to talk, share prey or just spend some time together. Slowly their friendship developed into a romantic relationship. Even though they both knew that Shadowstar wouldn't ever approve of their relationship and Windstar wouldn't be happy either if their clans found out they also decided that there wasn't be anything wrong with their relationship as long as they stayed loyal to their respective clans and still fulfilled their duties as warriors. Things changed abruptly when Windstar decided to appoint Dogtail as the first deputy of WindClan. The warrior felt honored and accepted the position offered to her by her role model and leader. This and the fact that she was still meeting up with Blackwind in secret left her conflicted but after some time she concluded that she couldn't continue as before now that she held more responsibilities and was supposed to help Windstar leading her clan. For this reason, she finally decided to break up with Blackwind even though it wasn't easy for her. He struggled to understand her decision but accepted it and they only ever met each other again at a regular full moon gathering where they didn't talk much. For Dogtail to serve and being loyal to WindClan was everything she had left and therefore she did her best to support Windstar in her leadership. The warrior knew that her leader had put her trust in her and was willing to give everything in order not to disappoint the older she-cat.

Dogtail fled from WindClan territory chased by some other cats who wanted to make sure that she left for good. Most of them turned back at the border but Ryewisker followed her a bit farther. Arrogance and pride got the better of him and he caught up to Dogtail. Knowing that he had already won he declared to the outcast that he had spread those rumors about her and set up that trap for her. The she-cat who had just lost everything that had mattered to her and didn't have any chance to get it back since her leader hadn't been willing to even listen to her promptly attacked the warrior. Already weakened from hunting, her emotions, and running she lost the fight with Ryewisker wounding her at the shoulder before he let go of her. His blow too left a scar that's visible on Dogtails body until this day. Angry and hurt by her clanmates' distrust and mostly Windstar's wrong judgment the former deputy of WindClan fleed to twolegplace. It was a harsh place to make a home for a former forest cat and Dogtail soon realized that she was pregnant. She knew they had to be Blackwind's kits and it wouldn't be easy for her to raise them alone but the thought of having them made her pull through during that dark time. She couldn't imagine how to raise kits outside of her clan but she was determined to give them at least a chance of survival in this harsh environment. Leaf-bare came and life at twolegplace became even more challenging leaving the outcast with little to eat and hardly hope for raising her kits once they were born.

When she had nearly lost the last glimmer of hope she had been clinging to she was found by BloodClan cats. Dogtail who had started to wonder if her fate was StarClan punishing her for her secret relationship with Blackwind let them bring her to their camp. Maybe her warrior ancestors had decided that they didn't want a traitor as deputy of WindClan and had therefore decided to get rid of her. Djinn recognized her as a forest cat and since he concluded that he could use her knowledge about the forest clans against them and that her kittens would be a fine addition to BloodClan he didn't kill her but allowed her to stay. Dogtail who now inclined to believe that her warrior ancestors had turned their backs on her choose to stay since Djinn would probably have tried to kill her otherwise and even if she survived at least part of her litter would probably die if she tried to raise them alone as a stray mother at twolegplace during leaf-bare. At BloodClan camp she was far away from StarClan and most cats still despised her for being a forest cat but at least she was at a warm place protected from the wind with a chance to get enough food for raising her kittens.

In this dark environment shaped by brutality and hate, Dogtail gave birth to her three daughters. After giving it some thought she chose not to give them clan names naming them Dust, Stix, and Storm since she couldn't give them a life in the hill moors. Dogtail as well as her kits suffered from attacks of other BloodClan cats even before they were old enough for Djinn to appoint them as trainees. And even though the former warrior tried to protect her kittens as good as she could and closed off from other cats she still kept a part of her warm and loyal side. This showed when she took in a small tom called Dark who became her adoptive son. Maybe she did that because he reminded her of Blackwind whom non of her daughters seemed to resemble. She also met a tom called Yggdrasil who choose to help her with her kits. It took a while but she opened up to him a bit and he might have become her new mate if he hadn't died fighting ShadowClan a few moons later. When her kits were three moons old Djinn decided that they were old enough to be nade trainees and choose older BloodClan cats to train them. As Dogtail watched them suffer under the harsh training with their trainers something inside her was awakened. Somehow she couldn't believe that her kits were supposed to be punished with her and she started to quarrel with StarClan. She started to wrestle with her fate again to protect her kits and slowly began to reconcile with her warrior ancestors who had allowed everything to happen. Her fighter instincts being awakened again she started to make plans for leaving BloodClan with her kits. At first, she didn't know where to go but then she decided to face her past and return to the forest. She was afraid that Ryestar - she assumed that Ryewisker had become the leader of WindClan by now - but chose that she'd rather live under him and stay quiet or plead with the other clan leaders to take her in than stay in BloodClan any longer. Shortly after the battle between BloodClan and ShadowClan which costed Yggdrasils life Dogtail choose to take her chance and leave with her kits and a young she-cat called Ginger who had chosen to come with Storm. But when they reached the border Storm and Ginger betrayed the escapees and the young she-cat attacked her mother and siblings accusing them of betrayal. Dogtail had to fight her daughter but ultimately flee together with her remaining daughters and her adoptive son Dark.

As hard as it was for her to leave Storm behind she had to keep going for the sake of her remaining kits as they made their way out of twolegplace back towards the clan territories. As they reached the hill moors the warrior was confronted with her painful past. She was found by a patrol and brought to WindClan camp alongside her kits. There she soon discovered that her gravest concerns hadn't become reality. It wasn't Ryestar she had to beg to take her in since Darkstar had become Windstar's successor instead of the treacherous tom. Relieved Dogtail shared parts of her story with the she-cat and Crowfrost who was still the clan's medicine cat at the time not fully revealing the facts about her time in BloodClan and also keeping to herself that Dark wasn't her biological son. With the blessing of StarClan - a sign probably sent by Windstar - the two cats decided to allow the former outcast and her kits to stay in WindClan. Dogtail was finally accepted as a warrior again and proudly watched as her kits started their training as apprentices of WindClan. Still, the loss of her daughter as well as the past that stood between her and the now-deceased Windstar weighed on the old warrior's shoulders. Even though she wasn't accepted by all WindClan cats Darkstar soon chose her as the mentor of Thistlepaw. Dogtail started to concentrate on training her new apprentice a young she-cat who had been raised by an overprotective mother who hadn't been willing to accept the outcast back into the clan. Thistlepaw being very nervous and anxious around her mentor made the training harder but the old she-cat found help in an experienced warrior named Gepardfur who was also the mentor to Thistlepaw's brother Badgerpaw and supported her in his calm and friendly way. It took some time for Thistlepaw to learn that she could trust in her mentor but Dogtail was patient with her even though she sometimes worried about the young she-cat. During the same time, she grew closer to Gepardfur as they trained their apprentices together and soon she told him about her experiences as an outcast and about her time in BloodClan. He didn't judge her nor did he tell everyone else about it and the old she-cat could finally feel at ease with trusting someone herself again. He had her back even in conflicts with Iceeye who tried to interfere with her training as Thistlepaw decided to go her way and soon the two older warriors became mates. He supported Dogtail with her duties and stood by her side and as their apprentices were given their warrior names they moved to the elder's den together for spending their last moons there.

Not much happened during those last moons. Even though Dogtail's thoughts still traveled over the hill moor remembering her lost daughter and Windstar's harsh words the old she-cat found some rest next to her mate. Together they supported her former apprentice, her kits who had now become warriors, and passed on their wisdom to the other young cats of WindClan. And as the time came and she was called to join her warrior ancestors she left more or less in peace with them having given WindClan everything she had left even after being misjudged and exiled by the one cat she looked up to and had chosen to follow. No one knows which cats awaited Dogtail when she reached the stars that night but I hope that one of them was Windstar who came forward to reconcile with her former deputy. Maybe now Dogtail the friend of Windstar, her deputy who had been wrongfully exiled, a stray and BloodClan cat, mother, and warrior who would have laid down her life for WindClan once again after defying her fate can finally find her peace as she walks the night sky watching over her family and clanmates with her gaze sometimes straying to twolegplace in hope to catch a glimpse of her lost daughter.