Name
Tidepaw
Gender/Pronouns
She-cat, she/her
Description
Tidepaw is a petite, ebony black she-cat with blue-grey eyes. She has a white marking over the left side of her face, a white patch on the middle of her tail, and white ear tips, and a single white sock on her left paw. Her fur length is relatively long and tends to stay messy. She is a very young apprentice standing at 7 moons and has almost no formal training, which means she would be starting as a medicine cat from scratch. She’s very short and slender, though you wouldn’t know from her floof. Some cats might consider her frail as she doesn’t have very much brute strength, but she is very agile. She tends to have various feathers and leaves stuck into her fur (sometimes on purpose, sometimes not).
Personality
Tidepaw is a bit of an odd cat. She is very quiet, and enjoys observing any and all things, though she sometimes fails to pick up on social cues. She is very sociable, but in large groups of cats she prefers to listen. She greatly enjoys her hobby of collecting any and all things that grab her attention. She currently collects feathers, rocks, flowers, and herbs. One of her favorite things to do when she is alone is to cloud watch or stargaze, and she will ask most any cat’s opinion on the shape of a cloud. She wants a deep connection to Starclan and greatly respects her ancestors. She loves open skies, one of the reasons she loves Windclan. She has a disorder that causes her to have intense daydreams, usually more so when she’s stressed or burnt out. She may be a tad judgmental of other cats, and she will be very blunt about it. Sometimes she comes across as rude or harsh, but she’s just being honest. As she gets older she’ll learn to hold her tongue, but that won’t stop her from shooting glares and other odd looks at cats. She has other underlying conditions, mild anxiety included, which is the reason she has her daydreams. They’re her main form of escapism, though sometimes she has dissociative episodes.
Her anxiety disorder mostly causes dissociation symptoms, though occasionally she'll have a panic attack. If she does have a panic attack it's usually due to claustrophobia. She’s a very patient cat, and doesn’t get easily frustrated. When something does set off her temper she will go off however.
She works great with kits, enjoying entertaining them and caring for them. Her second choice behind medicine cat is actually to be a full time queen. Though she doesn’t plan on having kits of her own, she enjoys helping out the mothers and playing with kits. She prefers the more tedious apprentice tasks such as fetching moss for the dens, building dens, and (her favorite) collecting herbs, brambles, and other things for the camp. She doesn’t care much for hunting or fighting, though out of the two she prefers to hunt. Some of the other apprentices mistake her for being lazy due to her preferring tasks around the camp, when in reality she just understands and values the importance of the little jobs. She also has a tendency to sneak out at night from time to time, she loves to lay in the moors and stare at the stars. Due to her claustrophobia she prefers to sleep in the open, and she usually has trouble falling asleep because of her daydreams. Usually she'll lay in the clearing just outside of the apprentice's den, but on particularly bad nights she'll go out into the open fields until late at night.
Simplified Personality
I'm aware I may have gone just a tad overboard in decribing her personality, I love her so much and wanted to include all I could. So, here's a more easily digestible synopsis of her personality.
~Positive~
Optimistic
Creative
empathetic
~Neutral~
Eccentric
Imaginative
Curious
~Negative~
Judgemental
Blunt
Awkward
Tidepaw’s Maladaptive Daydreaming
Tidepaw has a condition referred to as maladaptive daydreaming which is a (unhealthy) coping mechanism for her anxiety. This means physical experiences and stimuli can trigger vivid daydreams. There are a few things she tends to do when daydreaming, she will tap her tail tip on the ground repeatedly, she may mouth or even whisper words during daydreams, she’ll pace if she’s by herself or in an open space, and sometimes she will nod her head in an almost rocking motion. With grounding techniques she is able to manage her daydreams somewhat. Some of her techniques (some of which she will develop as she gets older) are running her paw over the ground and focusing on the texture, listing things she sees, counting, or focusing on a strong scent in the area. Some of these daydreams can be anxiety inducing but typically she will just appear to be zoning out or even dissociating. These daydreams also make it difficult to sleep so at particularly stressful times she may be sleep deprived. She is usually at least semi-aware that she’s daydreaming but I could see her becoming a bit confused if she receives a vision from Starclan, unsure if it was merely a daydream or not, at least for her first vision. This won't inhibit her abilities as a medicine cat too much as most of the tasks will be good ways to keep her grounded. The smell of the herbs, the repetitive action of sorting leaves, and metally going over different herbs and what they do are all variations of her grounding techniques that help keep her in reality.
Her Suitability As A Medicine Cat
I could see Tidepaw, even as a young kit, being fascinated by the medicine cat den. Watching how herbs were collected and sorted probably inspired her to begin collecting interesting things. She is very observant, so I believe she would be able to pick up on injuries, symptoms, etc. pretty quickly. She also loves stargazing and cloudwatching, which could be ways for her to perceive prophecies. She would love to be connected with Starclan and would be very active in searching for their guidance. She’s also a relatively quick learner, though perhaps a bit distant due to her maladaptive daydreaming. I think having the duty of medicine cat apprentice would help ground her a bit, as she’d have something she’d find more interesting to keep her out of her daydreams. Having anxiety also better prepares her for more intense and high-stake moments. Being someone who tends to worry about things means that when those worries happen she's prepared and able to stay calm and level-headed in those moments. This means she will handle emergencies well, and, once she gets older and learns healthier coping techniques, will have the means of dealing with any stresses from the job in a healthy way. She will also be able to better relate with patients with mental illnesses, sensory processing disorders, and other more difficult cases. Her empathy and patience will ensure she is able to kindly deal with patients, though maybe shooting them judgemental looks for the silly ways they injure themselves.
Her Relationship with Peachfrost
I think the two cats’ personalities would mesh well. She may be a bit frustrated in the beginning with Tidepaw’s tendency to get distracted by daydreams, but eventually would learn how to keep Tidepaw grounded and what teaching styles and activities keeps Tidepaw invested. I think this would create an interesting dynamic between them as they learn to work with each other's quirks, and give Peachfrost a bit of a challenge while she learns Tidepaw's unique ways of learning. Tidepaw is a kinetic learner, which means she learns best by physically doing things, so she will likely want to be very active in participating in the treatments of patients. As Tidepaw grows and matures she will also learn to cope with her daydreams more and eventually use her vivid imagination to come up with new and inventive treatment plans. After getting over their initial learning curve I think the two would grow very close. There may be a bit of disagreement between them over their views of the other clans, this would create some mild tension but not enough to ruin their friendship or inhibit their ability to work together. Tidepaw will definitely look up to Peachfrost as a role model, even before becoming medicine cat apprentice.
Plot Ideas
-Tidepaw goes through a period where she has frequent dissociative episodes, Peachfrost is trying to help her and they accidentally discover that strong smells help ground Tidepaw. This would develop their relationship more, improve Tidepaw's ability to stay in reality, and help Tidepaw realize that Peachfrost does care for her and it's more than a basic apprentice/mentor relationship. I think this would be their first step to actually becoming close friends.
-Her first medicine cat meeting Tidepaw is being extremely friendly towards all the medicine cats, asking about the other clans, wishing their clans good luck, etc. This could be away to introduce Tidepaw and Peachfrost's conflicting views about the other clans and get a little bit of mild tension going.
-Tidepaw develops a small crush, her first crush, on another apprentice. It goes on for a few weeks before she confides in Peachfrost. Peachfrost will then explain why it's important medicine cats not take on mates or have kits. Tidepaw would be slightly disappointed at first, but accept it. This would affirm her commitment to being a medicine cat and help Tidepaw realized the job won't be as easy as she may have imagined.
Roleplay Example
Tidepaw quietly crept through the moors, her eyes fixed on the sky as the soft grass brushed her paws. It was late, but she had special permission to leave camp for once. She smiled to herself, usually she had to sneak out. She found a particularly soft patch within the heather, a place she would lay often, and she settled down. She looked back up at the sky at the stars, some large and bright, some mere pinpricks in the dark navy sky. She curled her tail over her flank as a chill breeze rustled through the open field. She closed her eyes for a moment, parting her jaws to let the sweet scent of the moors fill her senses. Tidepaw couldn’t understand how the other clans stood to be crowded by the trees, when the wide expanse of the heather fields were so much more desirable.
She stretched out, shifting to a more comfortable position in the grass. She opened her silvery-blue eyes to stared in the direction of the camp and sighed. She had been told that she could only be out until moonhigh, and it was almost at that point. She wanted to stay out longer. She knew the only reason she had been allowed out was because she had promised to sleep in the Apprentice's Den tonight if she was. It was so crowded and stuffy in there, she felt like she couldn't breathe. Her mind began wandering, attempting to distract herself from the approaching deadline, and Tidepaw could feel herself slipping into a daydream. Her daydreams were always light, fluffy, and vague. It was a bright open camp full of squealing kits, wispy feathers, and puffy clouds. Usually the cats didn't have names, but occasionally someone from reality would make an appearance. It was a strange experience to daydream, Tidepaw could feel her tail tip twitching as it rustled the grass in the moors, but she could also faintly hear the soft chattering of queens as they gossiped in the clearing while their kits played. She focused on one kit, a white one with soft, down like fur who was batting a moss ball back and forth.
The soft hoot of an owl echoing across the heather field tugged her towards reality. She blinked, trying to clear the daydream from her head. 1... 2... 3... she began counting silently. She stood up and shook her fur, she really should get back to camp, otherwise she may not be allowed out at night again. She cast one last wistful look at the sky before padding back toward Windclan camp, dreading the undoubtedly restless night she would have.
My Roleplay Style
I tend to start off with a fairly long starter as shown above to give the person a lot to work with so if they also have a preference for longer posts they have quite a bit to respond to. After the initial starter I usually match the other person’s length, whether that means lengthening or shortening my responses. I’ve found that matching the other person’s length helps the roleplay flow better and keeps everyone comfortable. I am consistently working on improving my length, vocabulary, and phrasing as a means to improve my roleplay style as a whole. Ideally I would like to write at least two paragraphs for at least the starter, then adjusting from there to suit the other person's roleplay style.
~The Prophecy~
As the Tide rises on the beach
In the Wind blows the sweet scent of Peach
As herbs curl through gentle Frost
The thoughts of the Sea will no longer be lost
This prophecy would be spoken in a dream. Peachfrost would be walking along a beach at night, the waves crashing. Then the prophecy would be spoken in a big, booming voice and the tide will go almost eerily still. Other visuals might accompany the prophecy, such as a peach scent on the breeze or herbs sprouting through the sand.
Why I May Be Suitable For This Role
I understand that while the character in the role is important, the person behind the character is just as important to culturing not only positive interactions in roleplay, but also using their influence as a benefit to the community. My top priority first and foremost is being a positive influence, a good role model, and creating a good experience for everyone who is a part of our little niche in WCO. I am very organized as a person and usually respond promptly to roleplaying, VMs, and PMs. I try to remain polite and diplomatic in all interactions. Due to my personal school schedule, I have the ability to be very active and be on most every day, at almost any time. I have been roleplaying personally for over 3 years and am very comfortable in my roleplaying style, as well as roleplaying with people with a wide variety of styles. I have admittedly little experience with high ranks on this site, but I value how important these roles are and wish that the best candidate for these roles be chosen. I love this OC dearly, Tidepaw was one of the first I created long before becoming active on WCO. Her best interests are alway in my mind, and I would never submit her if I didn’t think she may be suitable. That said, regardless of if I receive the role or not, I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to apply. Thank you for your consideration.
I wish good luck to all that apply! May the best cat win, and may the odds be ever in your favor!
(Hunger Games Reference)