Tumbledown

Tumbledown (formerly Highnoon) is from a defunct Warriors RP group so their lore needs to be edited around the names of clans and clanmates, but here is the lore as it exists now because I like it and you should catch their vibe.

History

No cat could ignore such a tiny, abandoned kit in need, of course, but stars, Highkit was a strange one. Their odd eyes stared dreamily into space - eerily, some would say - and they rarely spoke. Usually, their only contribution to conversations were strange non sequiturs. Their slightly off ways made some cats wonder if they could be the next Cleric, but that was a firm no from Tinspit. Still, the nurses did their best to love the tiny kit, even when they made it difficult. Although she couldn’t remember a time before she was brought to the clan, she was told her history. Highkit liked living in the nursery with the nurses, but she seemed to take it to heart that there was something different about her from the rest of her clanmates.

Even as her apprenticeship began, Highpaw’s head remained in the clouds. She didn’t quite “get” clan life - they had been taken care of perfectly well as a kit, so why did they need to learn to hunt and fight now? But they didn’t like the idea of being left alone, either, so they reluctantly put a minimal effort into their training and went on patrols when they were asked. You’d never see her volunteer, though. Her time was better spent pondering, mostly trying to figure out the clan lifestyle, like it was a puzzle for them to solve. 

Highpaw’s attitude took a quick turn when they saw Stirrupshine’s battered body laid out in the middle of camp. So there was a reason to fight, after all. They didn’t want that to happen to them, so they threw themself into their battle training. Aging into warriorhood during the war, they quickly became known as a reliable cat to have by your side in battle. But just because they were good at it didn’t mean they liked it. They spent a lot of their time off the battlefield with the Cleric, venting their many woes and worries to Tinspit. 

The war ended, and after Dognose’s death, Highnoon was hopeful they would never see such misery and violence again. This hope was quickly quashed, however, by Lonestar and Merlinstar’s acceptance of RustClan as a new peer. Even as Highnoon slowly began to go back to the carefree cat they had been as a young apprentice, she was paranoid about the proximity of the cats that had once been their enemies, certain that Star Bronco was only biding his time before he led his cats in another attack. She spent less time on fighting practice than she had during the war, often lazing about thinking as she had in her early apprentice days, but Highnoon made sure to remain in shape for whenever this next attack came to pass.

Still regarded as strange by many of her clanmates, Highnoon retained few close friendships after the war. However, they continued visiting with Tinspit, having come to enjoy their company during the war. They also began growing closer to Tinspit’s young apprentice. They knew Cranepaw’s sister had died in the last throes of the war, and they felt bad for the young cat. For 9 or so moons, the two of them got along well. Even when she didn’t mean to, Highnoon found it easy to make Cranepaw laugh with their observations about the world, and something about Cranepaw being around helped assuage Highnoon’s worries somewhat. She cheered louder than most, louder than she ever had, when Cranestep received his name as a full Cleric.  

When Tinspit left, Highnoon took it hard. The old cat was one of her closest clanmates, and she and Cranestep sought comfort in each other. Here, in their grief, Highnoon came to understand their feelings for Cranestep as love. Having never taken to most of the rules of clan life, Highnoon didn’t see any good reason why the two of them couldn’t be mates, and confessed to Cranestep right away. To hear that he returned their feelings, they were the happiest they had ever been.

Highnoon knew better than to make their relationship public, but they weren’t exactly good at hiding their closeness to the Cleric either. The two of them were often seen together around camp, but they brushed off any suspicious eyes, insisting they were just close friends. During this time, Cranestep introduced them to his younger siblings, and they became quite close to Lambkit and Lionkit, too, finding playing with kits more fun than they ever would have expected. Late into the night, Highnoon and Cranestep would whisper about their future together. Cranestep would take an apprentice, and once they were fully trained, he could step down, and the two of them would let their love be known. They would settle in, raise a family. Everything would be perfect, and they would be together forever.

There were places Highnoon couldn’t follow Cranestep, though. The Star Spire was one of them. The first five half moons they were together, Highnoon waited up for their mate, welcoming him back to camp with an affectionate lick before he went off to his nest. The sixth half moon, he never returned. 

There is no doubt in Highnoon’s mind that RustClan was responsible for this. All the evidence points there, and she is more sure than ever that they are wicked, violent cats. In her grief, Highnoon no longer sees any reason to fear what might happen to her. Cranestep is gone - what does death matter anymore? No, her fear has changed, morphed for the first time into anger. 

Highnoon is determined to find out who did this to their mate. And when she does, they will suffer just as much as she has. 

Personality

Highnoon rarely deals in half measures. Either she does not care about something at all, or she takes it very seriously. Her favourite thing to do is watch the clouds and think about the way the world works. She insists she’s not lazy - her mind just happens to work harder than her body. Until recently, her deep thoughts often gave way into pleasant daydreams about her future, but since Cranestep’s death, she’s had difficulty seeing anything good coming. 

Highnoon enjoys sharing their thoughts with other cats, but they aren’t upset when other cats think they’re weird and don’t want to talk to them. That’s their loss, as far as Highnoon’s concerned. Their worldview is what works for them, and while they take interest in how other cats see things, they’re not particularly interested in adapting to what other cats think they should be. They understand their own mind perfectly well, and can become frustrated when other cats can’t catch on to things that seem perfectly straightforward to them.

Because they were born before DustyClan and PrairieClan began interacting regularly, they especially like getting new ideas from PrairieClan cats, finding the idea of a separate way of life they were previously unaware of fascinating. She’s a bit fickle, though - once she’s convinced she understands something completely, she tends to lose interest pretty quickly. They usually can’t understand other cats’ feelings, and their low empathy can make it hard for Highnoon to make friends. Once they’re close to another cat, though, they love them deeply and fiercely. 

Their curiosity does not expand to RustClan, however. Highnoon is prone to black-and-white thinking, and while they aren’t an easy cat to upset, once they feel they’ve been wronged, they may never forgive the perpetrator. As far as she’s concerned, the only thing that’s changed about RustClan since the war is that they don’t fight as much. She’s stubbornly certain they’re still plotting the demise of the other clans.

Despite their closeness to both of DustyClan’s Clerics, Highnoon isn’t a particularly strong believer in the clans’ religion. They’d never begrudge others their faith, though, and they’re sure there is something waiting beyond this life. They’re just not confident that the clans got it all right on their first try. Well, she’ll keep thinking on it.