Disclaimer: I, KatieK101, do not own Warriors.
Five Truths About Rainflower
i.
In RiverClan, beauty gives you an advantage.
Rainkit is beautiful from the moment she is born, and only has to bat her eyelids for the Clan to fall at her paws.
ii.
Shellpaw has padded after her ever since they were apprentices; has caved to her every desire, every request.
She thinks he's handsome and noble and strong, and the only tom who deserves her.
iii.
She's always dreamed of being a mother and raising kits that RiverClan will be proud of.
Oakkit and Stormkit are exactly what she's always wanted.
iv.
… until the accident.
Crookedkit is everything she's always hated, always frowned upon, and to claim him as her son would be to turn her back on everything she's ever known.
She can't break her own rules for her son… or her mate.
v.
At the time it seems like her only option, but as she grows old and finds herself without a mate and without kits, she realizes that she was wrong.
Beauty isn't everything.
Beauty is a curse.
Unfortunately, so is pride.
(Bonus)
Some apologies require no words.
When Shellheart joins her in StarClan, they simply gaze into each others' eyes until he steps forward and licks her cheek.
When she begins to apologize to Crookedstar, he stops her and simply touches his nose to her shoulder.
And for the first time in all her life, she is truly happy.
I've never done a villain before, and while Rainflower doesn't technically count, she's one of the most hated characters in the fandom. So, here we go! Shellheart, Crookedstar and Oakheart all deserved better, but I tried to give it a happy ending. I think Rainflower was pretty spoiled rotten as a kit/apprentice and came to expect perfection, so while she is the worst mother in the series, perhaps some of that blame could be placed on her kin/Clanmates?
Sidenote: it's come to my attention that some of you have never read Snatched: The Story of Snowkit. If you haven't, then please do yourself a favor and go read that masterpiece immediately; it's easily one of the best (if not the best) book in this archive.
Special thanks to Moonstar, who went and reviewed nearly every chapter of 5T!
Rainflower was requested by Azureflower.