Ivykit of ShadowClan

Ivy is dedicated to three things above all other; ShadowClan, the Warrior Code, and her family.  Her life revolves around this trio of pillars, and she would willingly lay down her life to defend any one of them.  Ivy is the ideal warrior in every sense; unbendingly loyal, honest, hardworking, brave, and skilled.  She prides herself in her duties and being another link in the long chain that is ShadowClan's legacy, and she doesn't hide this fact.  Part of her stalwart diligence and strong wills definitely comes from her mother Thornstar, whom Ivy looks up to both lovingly and proudly.  Her greatest dream is to become even half the cat her mother is and to do that she pours her all into her efforts to self-improve and broaden her skills.  Ivy is very intelligent and very emotionally stable; she approaches all situations with a fiery determination as well as patience.  She's not one to give up or be discouraged by a single failure, because that just shows her something needs to improve and be worked on.  All of this makes her a very reliable cat, and if a clanmate asks her to do something she'll make sure it gets done, no matter what.  While she strives to always keep improving, she isn't a perfectionist; it's more likely she'll go for the most efficient solution rather than the flashy one, and the destination matters more to her than the journey.  Ivy isn't one to mince words; she's honest, and brutally so.  If something or someone isn't up to spec there's no doubt she'll tell them, and not doing so in her eyes is a blight upon the clan.  She both values and reveres order; every cat has their role to play, place to be, and job to do, and she'll do her best to enforce that within her level of power.  This makes her both an excellent leader and follower in some's eyes, but to others, she could easily be seen as a too-serious dictator with a stick up her you-know-where.  Despite this, she genuinely cares for the well-being of her clanmates and is surprisingly easy to talk to if you catch her at a free moment.  She truly has a kind heart for every cat in ShadowClan, from the smallest to the oldest, but prefers to show her love for them by making sure they live a safe and stable life.

Most of Ivy's flaws lay outside the world of Clan law and rank; matters of emotion and abstract thought often elude her.  Ivy loves her family and friends dearly, but she would much rather show that through acts of service rather than displays of affection.  Quality time in her eyes is spent on patrols or sparring with those she loves rather than quiet time sharing tongues in camp.  The thought of acting like a sappy pair of lovebirds if someday she found the right tom is enough to make her stomach churn, and though these views may not be an issue for some, for others she could be seen as very emotionally distant, as well as a bit uninteresting.  Work means everything to her, and is what she finds fun; at times though she needs to be reminded to just relax, maybe sleep in for once, and perhaps loosen up.  Most often though, she sees these concepts as downright offensive, and will often ignore the advice.  This is probably her biggest bane; the stubbornness and rigidness that comes from good intentions.  Not only towards work, but also ideology; anything outside the Warrior Code in her eyes is an imperfect creation founded on lies, and not worthy of being accepted.  She is notoriously judgemental, so dedicated to tradition and rules she often can't see (or refuses to see) what lies beyond her knowledge.  Even small things, such as a new way to catch frogs or the various special skills of the other Clans fall under this shadow; why try something risky when there's already a perfectly good solution, and how could something those fish-pelts or rabbit-brains do possibly be better than ShadowClan's ways?  However, being proven wrong in this aspect is one of the few times you can see Ivy's confidence crack.  Being pushed into the unknown and out of her comfort zone leaves her very stressed, uncomfortable, and often embarrassingly dependant on others, all of which she hates.  She hates being seen as 'weak' or off her game, and thus will always choose the path she knows by heart to avoid possible damage to her reputation.  The thought of whispers behind her back of ineptitude is her worst nightmare, and her reaction to cases of public failure is to just work even harder than ever.  The only other crack you'll see in her normally calm and respectable demeanor is when she fights.  Ivy has and always will love a good fight, and in her opinion, anyone who doesn't enjoy that rush of adrenaline and energy has something wrong with them.  She often asks clanmates to spar with her, to improve her skills, improve their skills, to just have fun, or all three.  However, in a real battle is where she really thrives, and, thanks to her brutal honesty and very prickly and irritable mood towards any outsider, those seem to happen a lot.  Ivy is a fierce fighter, not pulling any punches and refusing to cease until her opponent is begging to run; but as always, the Warrior Code is her top priority, and she would never stoop so low as to maim or kill a mere intruder (unless they tried to kill her that is).  A fight with Ivy will always be a fair fight with a fair outcome, at least in her eyes; her opponent either runs or she takes them back to camp for questioning, nothing else.  If there was ever a case where she accidentally went too far and caused irreplaceable damage, she would feel immensely guilty, and make strides to atone for her sins.  Her empathy for intruders though is very narrow; if you're passing through, you shouldn't be there.  If you're hunting or looking for herbs, you shouldn't be there.  If you're looking for a fight she'll give you one, and if you're looking for a new start, she'll take you to her leader, through her trust will be hard-earned.  Because if you pose a risk to her Clan, the Warrior Code, or her family, she'll personally make sure you know your place...which is judgment by the rules she trusts and loves.