+ Altruistic + Courageous + Well-Learned +
/ Gentle / Outgoing / Fastidious /
- Manipulative - Cynical - Arrogant -

A philosopher, a politician, a traveler - these are the words Gawain has for himself. His main talents are in teaching and uplifting others. He's very knowledgeable, and wants to spread that knowledge, as well as spreading kindness in the world around him. He believes that each person is filled with abundant good and abundant evil, and seeks to nurture the former where he can. Sharing food, offering advice, babysitting kittens, teaching others what he knows or even just listening to a cat vent - it's what a good neighbor does! While he knows little of fighting, he is a passionate cat, and will stand up for his beliefs even when met with fierce opposition.

Beneath his kindness, however, lie thorns of bitterness. Loss and cruelty boil his blood, and he struggles to forgive even little wrongs. He believes that the tragedy of the world awakens the cruelty within even the best of cats, and that this can only be improved by stamping out evil with all necessary force. And while he would never admit this to himself, he sees himself as above those around him - more enlightened, and therefore justified in his less-savory behaviors. He will not hesitate to use underhanded tactics to get what he wants. Spreading rumors, stealing food, lying to cut others down or raise himself up - he is far from above such methods.

In day-to-day life, Gawain is an amicable fellow. He tends to hang out around large groups of cats, preferring to stay a bit aloof rather than making close friends. That’s not to say he goes out of his way to push others aside - he’s outgoing, but tends to avoid showing vulnerability, doing his best to remain composed, calm, and polite in every situation. His favorite conversation topics are legends and philosophy. The stories that cats tell each other, to entertain and explain, fascinate him, and he could lose himself in dreams for hours. Engaging in debate is another favorite pastime of his, though getting him to change his mind tends to be an exercise in frustration.

The draw of the Holocene is twofold for Gawain. Of course he wants to understand the magic overturning the world, as best any cat can comprehend it. But at the same time he wonders, if he had that kind of power, what could he do with it? And if someone dangerous got their paws on that power, well, so much the better for the Holocene to have someone like him around - someone who can take charge and who knows what must be done.

• Gawain is born to a colony in a place called the Crossing, a riverside colony that is a popular travel destination due to its central location and reputation of helping travelers. His mother is Isolde, his father is Guillemot, and his brother is Merlin.
• As Gawain and Merlin grow older, their parents teach their sons the idea that the earth, the sky, and the waters are alive. Isolde and Guillemot are stewards of the river, and the colony is blessed because of their leadership. Gawain helps his parents with this leadership, learning both good and bad political habits.
• An old Crossing member named Aspen begins stoking the colony against Isolde and Guillemot and wins several cats over to his side. Gawain helps his parents reign in the other malcontents with a combination of kindness and manipulation.
• Merlin attempts to deal with the problem head-on by confronting Aspen, and their argument escalates into a brawl. Gawain, along with a few other colony cats, break up the fight. Aspen loses his temper with Isolde and Guillemot, who finally decide he cannot live peacefully with the rest of the colony, and banish him.
• Days later, a vengeful Aspen finds Guillemot alone on the Crossing’s outskirts and attacks him. Guillemot survives, but his wounds become infected.
• When Guillemot dies, Merlin blames Isolde for not dealing with Aspen sooner, and lashes out when she tries to comfort him. Her wounds are small - only a few shallow scratches on her cheek - but her grief is visible and immense.
• Hours later, Gawain finds Merlin on the edge of the territory. He lies to his brother, telling Merlin that their mother never wants to see him again. Merlin leaves, and Gawain returns to the Crossing. He does not tell Isolde about any of this.
• Gawain steps up to fill Guillemot’s role as co-leader with Isolde. He helps reassure neighboring colonies that the Crossing will stay strong, and keeps the peace for a long time.
• A gang of unruly cats arrives at the Crossing. They want to run the territory their own way and refuse to take “no” for an answer. Isolde and Gawain stand up for the Crossing, but many of the Crossing’s cats fear the gang, and refuse to take a side.
• The World Event stuns all of its witnesses save Isolde, who views it as an omen from the living river and uses it to consolidate her clout. Many of the gang cats even agree to stay on under her leadership.
• The Holocene visit the Crossing. Gawain is thunderstruck, but taken in by their story. He is a little uncertain, but after what he witnessed, he would be a fool to dismiss them out of hand.
• After a few weeks, a cat named Edith arrives, who is also en route to the Holocene’s meeting place. Gawain decides that he should travel with her.
• Gawain bids goodbye to Isolde, and makes for the Holocene.

[ son. ]
One starry summer night, in the roots of a riverside willow, the molly Isolde gave birth to two healthy kittens. They were twin toms, Merlin and Gawain. She and her mate, the tom Guillemot, gave their sons lofty names to match the hopes they had for their children.

The family lived amid a colony at what they called the Crossing, a stand of woods bordered by a riverbend. The river was thin enough to cross there, and with food to go around and populated areas on all sides, the Crossing had become a popular destination for traveling cats. Some stayed a while, hanging on for weeks or months before moving on; while others made permanent residents of themselves. Guillemot and Isolde had assigned themselves as the watchguards of the Crossing, and alongside the other residents offered food, shelter, and directions to any passers-by who wanted it.

[ student. ]
Firmness in one’s beliefs was instilled in Gawain from a young age. His parents believed that the whole world was alive - that the sky, the earth, and the river had lives of their own. Through storms, fire, the motion of currents, and all manner of other signs, the elements themselves spoke aloud, and could be understood by those who listened. His parents had chosen to be custodians of the river and the land beside it, and in turn, they were blessed. Gawain was skeptical, as he himself didn’t see the same connections as his parents. But they guided the Crossing well, so he had no reason to complain.

The Crossing, perhaps because of its welcoming of outsiders rather than despite it, was not uncontested territory. While most respected Isolde and Guillemot and took their directions, some rumbled with discontent. Gawain watched these cats with suspicious eyes. He didn’t understand why they didn’t listen to his parents, who clearly knew best.

[ politician. ] The loudest of the grumblers was a tom called Aspen. Aspen had been an old friend of Guillemot and Isolde, coming to the Crossing when he was but a kitten. As he grew older, however, his blood burned. He grew disillusioned with the adulation placed on this river-fearing family and, wanting that power and glory for himself, began stoking resentment among the Crossing for the cats that led them. Isolde and Guillemot had their blind spots, and their old friend’s flaws were one of them. They saw many of the cats around them becoming snappish and hostile, but didn’t fully understand the reason. And when their sons tried to explain that Aspen was bad news, they believed, surely their boys must be exaggerating. Aspen was a good cat, after all. He wouldn’t turn on the Crossing like that!

So Gawain took matters into his own paws. As tensions grew, Gawain tried to talk cats into line. And Gawain found that those who could not be persuaded could be quieted. Spreading rumors and lies to chip away at goodwill and social standing was a potent approach. At first, it was disconcerting to act so shady. But Aspen was a problem; surely Gawain was permitted to bend the rules a bit when cats refused to see sense?

Despite being littermates, Merlin and Gawain had never been terribly close. Merlin was quiet, brash, in-the-moment, and practical… many things Gawain was not. The two of them often quarreled, and while Gawain loved his brother, he never fully understood him.

But if there was one matter they agreed on, it was dislike for Aspen. While Gawain undermined Aspen’s sway on the rest of the colony, Merlin kept busy arguing with Aspen himself. It was hard to ruffle the bitter young tom, but Merlin got under his fur like a flea that wouldn’t stop biting. One day, Aspen lost his temper entirely, lunging at Merlin and sinking in his claws. Gawain tried to pull Aspen off his brother, but only got scratched and shoved aside for his trouble.

Thankfully, the brawl didn’t last long. Merlin and Aspen were pulled apart by stronger cats, and the issue was raised before the colony to be settled in sight of everyone. But while both toms had been part of the argument, Aspen had been the one to draw first blood, so the blame was laid at his paws. It was here that Aspen snapped, telling Guillemot and Isolde to their faces that they were soft-headed and sentimental fools. Realizing that this was a matter of colony safety as well as Aspen’s own happiness, Isolde and Guillemot banished Aspen from the Crossing, hoping that their old friend could find peace elsewhere.

And while Gawain thought Merlin a fool, he couldn’t help but be impressed by the effectiveness of the direct approach.

[ altruist. ]
Merlin blamed Isolde. Isolde blamed herself. Guillemot cursed the infection that burned in his wounds. And Gawain blamed Aspen, he blamed the pointless cruelty that had animated him, and - though he would never admit this last one aloud - he blamed Merlin.

Aspen had ambushed Guillemot in a fury a few days after his banishment in a fit of petty revenge. While Guillemot had escaped with wounds that weren’t immediately fatal, the deep gashes left in Guillemot’s body never healed. Infection brought Guillemot a slow death. But eventually, the fever left behind a cold body for the family to mourn. Merlin picked his next fight with Isolde, but his anguished mother tried to comfort him. Merlin, in a blind rage, lashed out with harsh words and a swipe of his claws before fleeing in shame when he realized what he’d done.

Hours later, Gawain found Merlin stalking the outskirts of the Crossing. He begged for forgiveness from his family. But when Gawain thought of his mother, her cheek bleeding and her eyes dark with grief, his blood burned with an icy rage. He found it breathtakingly easy to tell the lie - to tell Merlin that their mother never wanted to see him again. Crushed, Merlin left the Crossing.

Gawain never breathed a word of the incident to Isolde. It would only bring her more pain to know, after all. And with hard work and reminders that Merlin had brought this on himself, the howling guilt in Gawain’s mind grew quieter by turns.

The world needed fixing, Gawain decided, if cats could bring themselves to kill those they’d known for years over so little. If sons could attack their mothers for the simple crime of kindness. And if someone needed to fix it, maybe that someone could be Gawain.

[ philosopher. ]
With his father dead and his brother absent, Gawain stepped up to become his mother’s right paw. The experience he had won as a young cat was serving him - and the colony - well. Relationships with nearby colonies stayed stable, and every cat had plenty to eat. During this period of peace, Gawain became enamored with the stories traveling cats told. He loved hearing about their experiences, their myths, their knowledge of other animals and the stars and the world around them… it was a halcyon time, and he learned much.

However, discontent rose again after the peaceful days. A large gang of cats had come to the Crossing, unruly ruffians living by their own code, and they wanted to run the territory their way. Isolde and Gawain stood up for the colony, but not all of the cats of the Crossing wanted to be embroiled if this should come to blows. Some swore out of the conflict; others left the Crossing altogether. When Gawain and Isolde met with the leaders of the gang on the riverside plain, they were backed only by a tiny sampling of the Crossing cats. Gawain was heavy-hearted. It was clear that if the gang exerted force, the Crossing he knew would be swept aside.

[ emissary. ]
It was the World Event that saved them. The clout it gave Isolde and Gawain was enough to get the remaining Crossing cats to consolidate and the gang cats to capitulate. Many of them even decided to stay at this mysterious river, vowing to keep the peace alongside the rest of the colony. Isolde was convinced she’d seen an omen from the living water, and she was overjoyed. But Gawain remained skeptical until the Holocene, like so many other traveling cats had, came to the Crossing.

Magic and deity and the fate of the earth itself… it whirled behind Gawain’s eyes like a fairy tale. He knew with all of his conviction that this was what he was meant to do. To save the world. To build a better one in its place. To protect it from anyone who would threaten it. While Gawain stayed for a few weeks after the Holocene’s arrival to sort out some colony matters, there was never any doubt whether he’d be leaving, only when. As luck would have it, the time came when a new cat came to the Crossing - a young molly named Edith, who was also bound for the Holocene. Seeing her on her own, Gawain decided that it would be better for both of them not to travel alone. He declared himself her traveling partner, reasoning that she was better off annoyed than unattended.

He bit back the seasons-old guilt when his mother - sad to see her son leave her, but proud of his courage and certain he would return to her - licked him between the eyes and wished him a safe journey.

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A summary of events for your character during Round 1 and its interim.

Can you feel the repeating change?

It comes to pass again.

Do not be long now...

. . .

. . .