"The vole that ventures out the farthest gets eaten first." Downyfur is first and foremost a
people-pleaser: they believe that if they ask for nothing and make themself as little of a burden as possible, they will be rewarded for it. They are a child who learned that they'll only feel safe or loved if they make everyone else happy. As an adult, they don't know who they are and don't trust themself to make their own decisions. She parrots sentiments she thinks others want to hear, trying her hardest not to make it seem like she's for one side or the other.
They are so
insecure that their convictions collapse with the slightest nudge, but they're
intelligent enough to convince themself and those around them that whatever has been said to them are truly good points worth reconsidering their stances over. Downyfur's abundantly
empathetic nature doesn't help: they have the ability to sympathize with monsters and tyrants, and win themself over on whether what they're made to do is worth it. She believes she is inherently useless, and whatever meaning her life holds has been assigned to her by others.
WindClan adores her mother, Brightshine, and her sister, Pinkshine, for their infectious bubbliness. Try as they might, Downyfur is too
pessimistic to replicate it, and forcing it would be embarassing. They are almost defined by the multiple ways WindClan has been torn apart in their kithood: three moons old when the rogues drove them out of camp, and five when DuskClan tore a bloody chunk from their home. It manifests in her as acute shame. Something is always wrong: with her, with her family, with her clan, with her world. They can't hope to control the world, but they can control themself, and they've seen that others can be controlled as well. Downyfur doesn't just
thrive on stability, they breathe it.
They settle for being
pleasant,
polite, and endlessly
giving most of the time. They're among the first to offer their shoulder to cats stumbling into camp with injuries, to fawn over them and ask questions like
"are you okay?" that accomplish nothing but showing that they're a concerned, caring citizen of WindClan. She's fairly
sociable and a good conversationalist despite preferring her own company to others' most of the time, where she can drop all pretenses and stew in worrying about herself rather than others.
Analytical
From birth, they have had a head for logistics. She finds comfort in reviewing plans and contingency plans and contingency plans for the contingency plans. Their memory, perceptiveness, and slight obsession makes them a gifted tunneler: by now, they have a fairly good guess of where they are in the underground of WindClan's territory at all times from the number of turns they've taken and the approximate length of the tunnels.
Unambitious
Downyfur is not made for leadership at all: her main concern to keep herself safe and whole, and she can't do that if she has many, many charges. They care about the wellbeing of their clanmates when convenient, but the burden of other lives is very heavy for tiny shoulders. They avoid confrontation on principle, and ordering cats around seems like an extension of that. From their experiences with Sootstar's madness and Sunstar's abandonment, they believe power corrupts; and if it doesn't corrupt, it ruins.
While she does have a need for control, it only extends as far as matters concerning herself; she has no desire to try and manipulate others or events for her own amusement.
Gregarious
They need to feel like they belong somewhere. Under no circumstance do they ever want to be ostracized as they were on their way to becoming under Sootstar on account of their "traitorous" family; as said family was ostracized, exiled, or otherwise driven out. They do their best to be a friendly face towards everyone, but not so friendly they would ever be noticed for such. They try to straddle the line of being a friend and an acquaintance with everybody, but even so, they long for genuine connection and to feel protected.
Many of her kinder actions, and how she's perceived in WindClan as one of the "nicer" cats, stem not from a truly altruistic place, but one that fears the scrutiny of others. They do the "right" thing because it will earn them goodwill; and if something is of real consequence for them, they might prioritize themself above even their loved ones. Still, it's easy to know what the "right" thing to do or say is.
Distrusting
She tries to never take fault for anything because she's so afraid of being persecuted (
"I'm sorry you feel that way," "I was only trying to help you," and other such statements). They often have good intentions and genuinely believe in doing the best by others, but only when they can do so without sacrificing their own interests.
They don't quite believe anyone else does anything out of pure altruism. They view all other cats as mostly self-interested despite their good intentions, and they hate trusting others with vital information because they're afraid of what they might do with it when desperate. They think that, given the chance, everyone will become the worst versions of themselves.
Faith
Talk about it. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Vestibulum eu finibus est. Pellentesque feugiat egestas nibh, ornare convallis sem eleifend in. Phasellus nec nulla massa. Nunc sollicitudin et libero eu mollis. Nam ultricies dui a aliquet auctor. Aenean iaculis feugiat risus, nec convallis sapien feugiat et. Integer pharetra turpis sit amet nisl efficitur eleifend.
Quirks
- She's well-spoken and eloquent, almost never putting her foot in her mouth. They think before they speak, which is at an even, controlled tempo. Subconsciously, she approaches every conversation like a chance to gather information.
- Sort of just wants a purpose in life beyond just living for themself. They recognize that all of their major decisions have been made in fear or by others, and that isn't what life should be.
