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[ 0 MOONS - 5 MOONS ] Rowankit was born to Tawnystripe and Appleheart alongside his brother, Russetkit, and sisters, Rosekit and Redkit. Though he adored Appleheart, Rosekit, and Russetkit, he was especially close to Redkit and Tawnystripe. Rowankit had a habit of running to his mother, crying, whenever he lost at games, which was often, and Tawnystripe would always comfort him before encouraging him to continue playing. She had her paws full with four rambunctious kits, but she never became exasperated with them, even with how frequently Rowankit would retreat into her embrace, eyes shining with tears. She was a doting mother, though perhaps a tad too clingy. Appleheart was a bit more hands-off when it came to parenting and also blind to the faults of his children, making him the more “fun” parent compared to Tawnystripe, but he was also confident and hardworking, and was a great example of what a strong, loyal warrior should be.

While Rowankit and Russetkit were clumsy and sweet, Rosekit and Redkit were clever and confident. The four of them all got along well, though Rosekit and Redkit would occasionally argue, but they never held grudges. They loved each other, they truly did, but they unintentionally broke into pairs, Rowankit and Redkit connecting like Rosekit and Russetkit did. They would all play together sometimes, but they mostly spent time with the sibling they considered their best friend. Trouble seemed to find Russetkit, or maybe it was the other way around, but luckily for him, Rosekit was always looking after him. Rowankit wasn’t interested in trouble, preferring to play games like moss ball or hide and seek, and Redkit was happy to play with him. Other kits would play with them too, but Rowankit’s favorite playmate was his sister.

[ 6 MOONS - 14 MOONS ] Rowanpaw was apprenticed to Grayfeather, who had been Tawnystripe’s mentor when she was younger. He knew he wanted to be guardian long before he became an apprentice and he was thrilled to have been given one as a mentor. He’d been a scrawny kit who constantly tripped over his comically large paws and Grayfeather worried Rowanpaw’s dream wouldn’t come true if he couldn’t become graceful in his movements. Luckily, Rowanpaw rapidly grew into his paws, allowing him to move more elegantly, and it wasn’t long before he was nearly as big as Grayfeather. He proved to be a skilled fighter, but far from a decent hunter. Something always went wrong when he tried hunting, like he’d stumble over a root or fail to leap the right distance, and he blamed his poor hunting skills on bad luck. When he finally started guardian training, he was bigger than Grayfeather and heavy enough to weigh down every bird of prey he hooked his claws into.

Rowanpaw would have to train longer than others due to his desire to become a guardian, but he was thrilled when Redpaw was named Redstrike. Rosepaw and Russetpaw extended their apprenticeships to explore their potential for becoming guardians. Redstrike still made time for him, but he missed when all of them slept in the same den and had the same chores. Less than a moon later, Rowanpaw would find himself sleeping alone in the apprentices’ den. Rosepaw and Russetpaw decided not to become guardians and so they started their assessments. They headed off into the forest for their final hunting test, but only Rosepaw returned. Search parties scoured the territory, but came up with nothing. Rowanpaw and his kin searched relentlessly for days until Rosepaw discovered Russetpaw’s lifeless form downriver.

When he wasn’t distracting himself from his grief by training unceasingly, Rowanpaw was always with some other cat. He couldn’t stand being left alone with his thoughts. He watched Rosepaw, now Rosewhisker, isolate herself, but he made an effort to spend as much time with her as he could. Redstrike, who had always been carefree and happy, became distraught at the loss of Russetpaw and also realized the danger that came with being a warrior, but Rowanpaw was there to comfort her. Tawnystripe was inconsolable and clung to her children even more, which Rowanpaw encouraged simply by allowing it. Appleheart, too, became more attentive, but not nearly to the extent Tawnystripe did. Rowanpaw was always the one comforting his kin, but he didn’t mind. Taking care of his family gave him a purpose during those dark moons, so he embraced the caretaker role that was thrust upon him.

As Rowanpaw neared his own graduation, he met Juniperpaw of MistClan at a Gathering. He was instantly drawn to her and spent the entire Gathering padding after her like a lovestruck fool. She was kind and free-spirited, the type of cat to go with the flow, but as he watched her defend a clanmate from a bully, he learned she was also fierce when she needed to be. He did a horrible job of hiding his crush on her and on the walk back to RidgeClan camp, Redstrike warned him to be careful. He simply told her he knew what he was doing, even though he didn’t. All Rowanpaw knew was that he couldn’t wait to see Juniperpaw again at the next Gathering. He’d be a full guardian then, capable of protecting hunting patrols from birds of prey without his mentor supervising him, and if he could do that, then he should be able to court Juniperpaw, right? But Juniperpaw made Rowanpaw nervous in a way that shielding hunting patrols from threats didn’t.

[ 15 MOONS - 19 MOONS ] Rowanpaw was named Rowanheart in honor of his loyalty and courage. He joined his littermates in the warriors’ den, building his nest beside Redstrike’s, who he’d whisper everything and anything to all night long while she tried to ignore him and sleep. For the next few Gatherings, Rowanheart did everything he could to impress Juniperpaw, usually by showing off - or attempting to. Embarrassing himself in front of Juniperpaw became a common occurrence, but he’d fall flat on his face every day if it meant he got to listen to her beautiful laugh. He discovered she was an excellent tracker and hunter, but Rowanheart never caught anything worthy of bragging about. He was a skilled fighter, though, so he’d spar with the other young warriors for fun, but when he glanced over at Juniperpaw to gauge her reaction to his victory, he never could tell if she was more impressed with him than the others. Most of the time, he simply talked to Juniperpaw, eager to learn everything he could about her.

[ 20 MOONS - 24 MOONS ] Rowanheart noticed when RidgeClan began to think of itself as superior compared to the other clans, favored by StarClan themselves, but he didn’t think much of it. He was too busy padding after Junipernose, who’d just become a warrior. He continued to try and earn her affection, and while she’d never bluntly rejected him, she’d also never given the impression of liking him back. A few moons after her graduation, though, she started to smile bashfully whenever he called her beautiful and he’d beam at the sight. He’d return to camp and for the rest of the moon, Junipernose and her shy smile would be on his mind. For a long time, he’d been very obvious about his feelings for her, but until recently, he hadn’t been able to tell if she liked him back. His feelings were more than that now, though. Rowanheart knew Junipernose was his soulmate and so he began planning a way to tell her that.

As the zealotry in RidgeClan strengthened, Rowanheart began to feel uneasy among his own clanmates. He and his kin had never really given StarClan much thought. Even after Russetpaw died, despite looking up at the stars most nights, StarClan had rarely crossed his mind. Of course, he respected his ancestors, but he didn’t always remember to thank them those few times he successfully caught prey. Rowanheart didn’t agree with Wolfstar whenever the leader called MistClan heretics or claimed MistClan didn’t deserve to have the Mooncave in their territory. It just felt so wrong. And yet, he never spoke out against his leader. He knew he wouldn’t approve of everything Wolfstar said and did, but Wolfstar was his leader and so Rowanheart would simply listen silently and think worriedly about Junipernose. He hated the tensions that increased every moon between RidgeClan and MistClan, and he feared war was on the horizon.

[ 25 MOONS ] Like he’d predicted, war was on the horizon and it approached quickly. As one of RidgeClan’s most skilled fighters, Rowanheart was chosen to participate in the battle. He fought to defend himself, afraid of hurting the cats Junipernose cared about. When he found himself facing Junipernose, who he would never hurt, he whirled around and fled the battle. He slowed as he made his way through MistClan’s territory, only stopping when he heard paw steps thundering behind him. Junipernose erupted from the undergrowth and Rowanheart tried to apologize for the war, like it was his fault, but he quieted as she rushed over and nuzzled him. There was silence when she pulled away as he stared at her in shock, but he recovered just enough to awkwardly ask her to be his mate. He stammered frequently during his speech, but Junipernose just grinned. It was a while before Rowanheart begged her to interrupt him and she did, saving him from his embarrassment by agreeing to be his mate. They parted ways after deciding when and where to meet next, and for the next few days, he struggled to fight off the giddy smile that seemed glued to his face, earning him some strange looks from his clanmates, but he was too happy to care what they thought.

[ 26 MOONS - 35 MOONS ] RidgeClan’s council changed completely after the war. Wolfstar died, Spiderstorm and Sootwhisker stepped down, and the oracle position was abolished. Many wondered who killed Wolfstar, but Rowanheart was desperate to move on. He didn’t hate RidgeClan’s former leader, but he did regret following him into a battle over something he didn’t even believe in. As the moons came and went, the tensions in the valley only increased and Rowanheart worried about another war. Thankfully, nobody seemed eager for a second conflict. However, he was a bit worried about the future of RidgeClan. His clanmates were so divided and he feared they’d never unite again. Some started whispering about how RidgeClan was doomed and Rowanheart nearly started believing it, too, until he realized he couldn’t let that happen to his home. Whenever he heard his clanmates speak poorly of their clan, he’d interrupt and tell them that a negative attitude wouldn’t help RidgeClan recover, and when he found himself doubting RidgeClan’s ability to heal, he reminded himself that while it was a slow process, they were making progress.

[ 36 MOONS ] Rowanheart and Junipernose had spent moons talking about what their lives would be like with kits, but they knew the chances of that becoming reality were slim. Neither one of them wanted to start a family while they resided in different clans, but neither one of them were eager to leave their kin and clanmates behind. At one of their border meetings, Junipernose complained about feeling fatigued and gaining weight despite not eating any differently. Naturally, he encouraged her to visit the medicine cat. At their next meeting, she approached him with tears in her eyes. His heart skipped a beat at the sight of her watery eyes and he assumed the worst, but when she smiled and revealed she was expecting his kits, Rowanheart froze in shock for a moment before showering her in affection. There were many concerns, like the upcoming leaf-bare and being part of two different clans, but Rowanheart and Junipernose couldn’t have been any happier. They were sure they’d figure everything out.

[ 37 MOONS - PRESENT ] Rowanheart heard it at a Gathering. He knew he wouldn’t see Junipernose for some time since she’d decided to move into the nursery, so he eavesdropped at the Gathering to get his news. He overheard two MistClan cats talking about Junipernose and how sorry they felt for her. As he heard one of them say they couldn’t imagine losing their kits like Junipernose had, Rowanheart’s world fell apart. He bolted out of the clearing and though he wanted nothing more than to hold Junipernose, he made his way home instead. Realistically, he couldn’t just burst into MistClan’s camp and demand to see Junipernose, but he did consider it. Rowanheart busied himself with his duties and only rarely visited the spot he’d typically meet Junipernose at, afraid she’d be there and blame him for not being there for her, but she was never there when he was. He didn’t even care when some of his clanmates left to join The Kingdom. He just couldn’t find it within him to care.

Pre-Plotting: Rowanheart aligns with both Mars and Saturn in [RidgeClan’s Plot Ad], or somewhere in the middle. Like Mars, he’d readily defend his clan with tooth and claw, but he’d prefer to explore every other option before shedding blood. Like Saturn, Rowanheart believes there’s no shame in working with the other groups in the valley to restore peace. He’s also part of [Gingerfang]’s massive family.

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