Burningcrown

Burningkit was born to Emberflight with no father in sight. As Ember always said, he was a “good for nothing lousy dirtbag who ran off when shit hit the fan.” Being his daughter and all, Emberflight wasn’t exactly *thrilled* when Burningkit came into the picture. She kept the kid alive, at least, but any extra affection or care was not provided. With no other siblings or family, Burningkit ended up a pretty lonely kit. But that was ok! There was a whole big castle for her to explore, and she could do that just fine on her own! (That’s what her mom said, anyways.) It was no surprise when she ended up wandering into the leader’s den, one morning, and officially met Fluttercrown. Tall, long furred and always seeming to have an air of confidence to him, Burningkit didn’t think he was *real.* But he was, as he walked her back to the nursery and lightly scolded her mom for not keeping a better eye on her. Ember, of course, did not, and a ritual began, with Burningkit marching into the leader’s den as the sun rose and following him around until he eventually took her back. Fluttercrown eventually caught on to just how deep Ember’s negligence ran, and while there was no solid evidence that he could punish her with, there was nothing stopping him from simply taking care of Burningkit himself. It was a bit of a shock when Fluttercrown announced himself to be Burningkit, now Burningfoot’s, mentor, but with how much the kit seemed to look up to him, it wasn’t really all too strange.

Moons passed, Burningfoot working hard to make her mentor (and dad, though she never had the courage to tell him she saw him in that way) proud. She passed her test with flying colors, and was given the name Burningheart, for her intense loyalty to her clan. While most would be content with that, Burningheart wanted to go bigger and farther. And so she began to go through all the necessary steps to become a deputy candidate. She trained and worked as a swimmer for three moons right after graduation, and eight moons after graduation she was awarded with her first apprentice: Juniperfoot. A shy young cat, Burningheart dedicated many moons to helping the apprentice step out of their shell. The two grew close, and between Juniper and Flutter, Burningheart felt that she had an actual family for the first time. Juniperfoot eventually graduated, and was named Juniperfire after her mentor.

The time for a new deputy arrived with the passing of Batwhisker. There was an incredibly large pool of candidates to choose from, and Burningheart wasn’t as confident that she’d make the cut. But when Fluttercrown took to his perch to make the announcement, it was Burningheart that he called up. There were a few cheers, but also a few claims of nepotism, and of unfairness. Fluttercrown told her to just ignore them, and so she did. It was fine! She’d worked for this, and she’d be good at this. Perhaps she was young, but who’d care in the long run? It turns out that she would be the one to care. Only 5 moons later, Fluttercrown lost his last life. The circumstances of his death were hard to pinpoint…he’d gone out into the territory alone, and by the time anyone had found him he was dead. There was no blood, no wounds, nothing to indicate what had killed him. Burningheart grieved, and had to be forced to go receive her lives, had to have Fluttercrown’s crown of purple irises removed from her head, and had to painstakingly make a new one. She chose daffodils, hoping that they would create a new beginning for her, where she could be happy with her family once again. It’s been many moons since his death, and all that’s been left to show for it is tragedy. A cave-in in the catacombs stole her apprentice’s life, alongside many other clanmates. Countless other cats passed as well for other various reasons, and Burningcrown has to wonder if her reign is the cause of it all. Is she the leader of tragedy? Will rebellion and blood stain her legacy? Only time will tell, it seems.