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bonefall · 10 months

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do you have a quick link to information about Brokenstar, Runningnose, and Skypelt? I'm curious about the story behind Runny's acorn necklace and I want to read about Brokenstar becoming SkyClan's guardian, and how he was able to follow Firestar/help him restore SkyClan. i've been having a hard time finding it

I need to finish (or at least *reasonably complete*) the SE where Fire and Broken go to resurrect SkyClan. That is called Firestar's Quietus. Brokenstar's origin, which completely replaces Yellowfang's Secret, is called Brokenstar's Cataclysm and that's another one I need to complete.

The exact story has undergone a lot of revision SO I'm gonna take a quick break to try and compile some Best Hits of BB!Runningnose's and BB!Brokenstar's dynamic to get you up to speed, and make a definitive list of what's currently canon to Better Bones

And, because this is DEFINITELY the change that raises the most eyebrows and it's a good opportunity to make an intro,

"Elder Bones, what's all this I hear about your Not-Totally-Evil Brokenstar?"

He's still evil lmao, but he's not BORN evil in BB. NO ONE is.

BB is a story about culture. It's about a lot of things, family, anti-authoritarianism, xenophobia... but at its core, Better Bones is about how people impact culture, and how it acts on people.

Something I realized early in this process is that Canon Brokenstar, who is a born-evil punishment for SkyClan's exile (this is CANON, go re-read Yellowfang's Secret if you don't remember!), only made worse by abuse and enabling, does not effectively tell a story about culture.

Depending on your reading, Canon!Brokenstar is either a cosmic horror story or one about abuse. Could Yellowfang have saved him (and ShadowClan) with love? The book implies no, it was his destiny, just the medcat den was hers.

But looking at Canon!Lizardfang who let him get bullied*, and Canon!Raggedpelt who enabled him every step of the way as Sagewhisker held Yellowfang back, you could also read it as someone who was treated so horribly that he did horrible things to others. That he wanted respect and this is how he got it

So, okay, you could read that it's the fault of this bad woman, bullying, and this overly permissive dad that he became a baby killer. Problem solved?

HOWEVER... the Erins also refuse to actually write about people who unironically love his philosophy, because they don't want Brokenstar to be systemic. Blackfoot, the posterboy for a Broken-supporter, gets to reckon with how sad his childhood was and how he was only ever a mislead kitty who Truly Loved His Clan, as opposed to Brokenstar, who was Born Evil And Did Not Truly Love His Clan.

Blackstar's greatest flaw wasn't xenophobia, or hatred. He wasn't groomed by a society that glorifies violence and pushes a might-makes-right mentality. He just followed The Bad Person. With the death of The Bad People, society is fine :)

This is a recurring dichotomy. Leopardstar was good all along, Tigerstar was bad all along, Needletail was good all along, Darktail was bad all along. The Erins are not telling a story about how Clan Culture produces villains, or how it makes good people do terrible things, they tell stories about treacherous Evil People who always had a seed of badness inside of them.

-Onestar's Confession, Page 704

This is their guiding philosophy, and it's what Better Bones sets out to reject.

So, Brokenstar.

I realized while drawing him this one time that I was making him look too much like Tigerstar. Charismatic and puffed up, ready to twist the code to fit his own ends. Then it hit me-- why am I telling the same story twice?

BB!Tigerstar is the inheritor of Thistle Law, apprentice of Thistleclaw, with a backstory where he was a lonely, abused child and seeks respect to fill that hole. He's getting all sorts of reduxes to explore him, and the way that violent ideologies recruit (and prey on) angry and lonely people. Why should I just... have two Tigerstars, but one of them is explored less?

AND, I would waste the fascinating idea that Brokenstar is a manifested curse. Why remove something so cool, when instead, I could lean into that...? Then I started to realize...

Why didn't they ever connect Brokenstar to the resurrection of SkyClan, if he is this manifested curse?

So, enough preamble. Come below the cut and I'll tell you about the story in Better Bones so far...

BB!Brokenstar is not born evil. He is born angry.

He was ALWAYS going to happen. His birth, his ambition, and his fury were inevitable.

This is a curse that was laid generations ago, at the end of Ripplestar's Rot.

The last-ditch attempt to save SkyClan was literally crushed by StarClan itself, blasting the base of the blighted 5th Tree of Fivetrees and sending it toppling down to smite Ripplestar.

That tree was the symbol of SkyClan and their place in the forest. All the love, comfort, and memories that they had ever put into that oak had a power of their own-- and they took form on that night.

Brokenstar is not the only "entity" of this type. Star Flower, eons ago, was another. BB contains many new types of entities beyond, and even adjacent to StarClan. Gods, curses, guardians, other religions of equal standing...

But he needed to be born to someone. In return for Dawnstar's kindness, taking in Cloudstar's young children (Re: Ripplestar's Rot), ShadowClan would be the eye of the storm.

And it would be a Cleric who bore him, just like Larkstripe, who had been cruelly separated from her only kitten.

Yellowfang, Shroompelt at the time, this was before her Dishonor Title, saw when he was born that he was furious. She'd never seen a newborn look so angry.

In Brokenstar's Cataclysm, she only gets the opening chapter. It's enough to establish how Sagewhisker pressured her into the role, the lengths she went to in order to keep this secret, the reason for his name despite it not matching his tail.

NOTE: Brokentail's name, Kanochswash, means Broken-in-half-tail. He has two breaks in his tail, making three segments. It matches the way the oak was broken, once at the base, again against the rock, but it is actually obvious in Clanmew that his name does not refer to his tail.

Or, it's obvious to Lizardstripe at least... who is VERY different in BB. Old followers will know, she is a very loyal friend of Bluestar herself, and a member of her inter-Clan friendgroup, the Forget-Me-Nots.

She really doesn't want to be in this situation, doesn't LIKE being a mother, and Mudfoot is unhelpful... but she's the most perceptive of the Forget-Me-Nots. She hears that name, sees Shroompelt's distant eyes, and it clicks. She sometimes looks for things to complain about so Shroompelt has an excuse to stay in the den for a while.

But Lizardstripe is not raising Brokenkit. Raggedstar is. Raggedstar is Brokenkit's Mi, and Raggedstar alone. He's pointedly adamant about that, and as soon as Brokenkit doesn't need round-the-clock suckling, he started sleeping in the Leader's Den with dad.

Unfortunately, being the golden child of the leader did not pair nicely with Brokenkit's short fuse.

And he made a little friend.

What first drew Runningkit to Brokenkit was that he was very large. Runningkit LOVED pissing off one of his siblings, and then hiding behind his bestie who was younger than them but already as big as a stump.

When Lizardstripe tried to do anything about this, Raggedstar would get pissed off at her, insisting that his son needed to be with his friends.

Together, the two of them learned they could do whatever they wanted, as long as they stuck together. With Runny's brain and Broken's brawn, they weren't even a year old and already unstoppable.

And their idea of "unstoppable" was... mostly getting seconds when they'd already eaten and pushing against the horrors of bedtime. Sneaking out and collecting acorns. Being allowed to practice with the warriors.

Even better, since being the leader's kitten meant everyone tended to be extra nice to Broken to butter up to Ragged.

If they got what they wanted, they were sweet to adults. But from watching her son, and from being friends with Lizardstripe, Shroompelt knew that they could be vicious when they wanted to be.

And from a young age, Brokenkit knew that he needed to become Brokenstar... and Runningkit promised he'd get him there.

You might be noticing something.

Brokenstar was always loved, very, very much.

Spoiled? Absolutely. A little bully? You bet.

Not yet more than the sort of things angry, spoiled kids get up to.

The point I'm meticulously building here is that BB!Brokenstar WAS LOVED, and he loved in turn.

It won't stop what is about to happen.

Brokenkit was only a few months old when his father became leader, after Cedarstar was killed in the war with WindClan. Heatherstar wanted the Mothermouth Moorland; a floodplain just beyond the Carrionplace, which grows flax and many other medicinal flowers.

It was something the two clans had fought over before, that IS the code's Right of Challenge, but Heatherstar wanted all of it. She'd even killed the practice of tunneling to dedicate all of her forces to take it.

If you are not strong enough to keep something, you do not deserve to have it. This is what the Code says.

And strength is what Brokenkit quickly learned.

Taking extra bowls of food means nothing in the fall when the prey grows fat, but ShadowClan's marsh freezes fast.

You can't whine up a second bowl when not everyone even got a first.

Do you defend your territory? Or focus on survival? When the challenges are frequent, you have to go without eating to defend them.

And yes, you're hungry, but it's for a reason.

Brokenkit wasn't out of kithood when he saw his first death, because people were already dying before he was born.

In skirmishes, in hunting accidents, to infection because they didn't have enough herbs. Starvation in winter.

From a very young age, he was taught this is the way of Clans, and this is because of WindClan.

And his ambition to become deputy only became stronger. Runningpaw hatched a plan to get into the Cleric den, against Shroompelt's will.

Brokenpaw got into fights at Gatherings over ShadowClan's honor, enthusiastically bowled into battle against WindClan raids, became Raggedstar's best little rat hunter.

And he saw clanmates he loved dying.

Over many years, through his warriorhood, into his deputyship.

Cloudpelt, Foxheart, Toadskip, Nutwhisker. Lizardstripe was killed during an event called Heatherstar's Last Stand, her neck snapped by the WindClan warrior Flytail.

Heatherstar died, and her much more reasonable and peaceful deputy, Tallstar... continued to keep the Moorland she won.

ShadowClan went through that last winter, again trying to win their land back, but beaten so hard they couldn't mount a resistance. More cats collapsed in the snow, Mudfoot was one of them.

WindClan won. The land was theirs now. Out of his magnanimity, Tallstar reached out to Raggedstar and made him an unprecedented offer. He would give him a tax of rabbits, for peace. ShadowClan would stop attacking, and formally acknowledge that WindClan was the victor of the war.

A peace deal, a surrender.

Tallstar didn't have to do that. If his Clan won, it was his land in the eyes of StarClan. He had no obligation to reach out in this way, and Raggedstar acknowledged that.

But it made Brokentail SICK.

He couldn't believe that Raggedstar was going to buy this, let WindClan keep THEIR LAND and just send them back some of their own rabbits. What happens next?? What if WindClan decides to come further south, what then? What will Tallstar ask for next? What price will his warriors pay for the blood they spilled?

And this is the moment that Brokentail kills his father. On his last life, frail and weak after an entire life of fighting, he decided that the last kindness he could give him was a quick death, preventing him from taking that deal.

Runningnose sprang into action as soon as he'd been told about it; helping him to cover up the murder.

And together, they turned to TOTAL war.

Once, as an apprentice, Brokenstar recalled the words of a warrior at a Gathering. A parable of thistles-- how they don't care what attacks them. They don't hold back. How they will choke out the whole field who they can thrive.

Is that not the conclusion of Might Makes Right? If you can, you must, before they do it to you.

An apprentice becomes a warrior-- stop that from happening.

Don't let your enemies escape to fight again-- kill them when you have the chance.

Their herb stores are just as limited as yours-- dwindle them with infection and poison.

WindClan Must Pay, every single one of them. All the Clans are tomorrow's rivals, they have to go too.

Everything is for ShadowClan, and he was LOVED for it.

well.... by many.

This is about Brokenstar and Runningnose, but I must mention that there's also a lot of people who oppose him. Who realize this as evil. Nightpelt, Cinderfur, Deerfoot, Dawncloud and Stumptail are some of them.

And, importantly, Shroompelt was one of them. Whenever she learned of some code-breaking thing they'd done, she would make waves about it.

The word of a Cleric has an immense amount of weight, and it prevented Brokenstar from ending this war once and for all.

So Runningnose, as always, constructed a plan. Brokenstar decided it was a sacrifice that must be made.

Marigoldkit and Mintkit (kits of Rowanberry and Clawface) were in the Cleric's den for an infection.

Marigoldkit was a blind girl, and very fussy about taking her medicine.

Shroompelt would serve it to her in a berry capsule, either knout or rasp, a naturally red berry one.

Runningnose simply swapped her medicine with yew, and made sure that Mintkit was able to witness his sister being fed red berries over many days.

When Marigoldkit died, Mintkit was a distraught child who could only communicate that Shroompelt fed her "Red Berries," like the ones he'd been taught to stay away from.

Shroompelt IMMEDIATELY turned on Runningnose, accusing him of killing a blind kitten.

And he turned it on her. She'd fallen right into his trap. "You did this! You've been wanting us to stop fighting WindClan, and now you've stooped so low that you're trying to get rid of StarClan's only other messenger! You've killed your own nespring!"

Many cats of ShadowClan had completely lost patience with her before this, and were now shocked to see that she'd do such a thing. While some suspected the truth, in the end, Brokenstar's word is law.

And his law was that he would show mercy on an ex-Clanmate. But from here on, her name was Yellowfang, so that the world may be forewarned that StarClan rotted her teeth from so many lies as she walked in exile.

Brokenstar's Cataclysm ends on the WindClan Massacre. A bloody event where well over a dozen cats are slaughtered, and Brokenstar resurrects an ancient practice at the bellowing request of his warriors-- Kitten Stealing.

(The only time BB!Brokenstar uses a child soldier is during this battle, apprenticing Badgerpaw early so that he can participate in the all-out assault.)

With WindClan gone, he turned his sight on the other two. The Clans were cursed to die as they lived-- overpowered by a stronger, more bloodthirsty tyrant, violently driven out just as SkyClan had once been.

From there, the rest is very close to canon. Brokenstar is deposed by a coup, one that NEVER would have succeeded if it wasn't for Bluestar and her apprentice, Firepaw. The Curse is thwarted by change. Cats of different Clans working together in the name of righteousness.

Bluestar could have gone, grabbed the kits, and come back, but she knew that WindClan would never be able to return if Brokenstar was still in power.

This time around, ShadowClan's plague was intentional. Runningnose infected Nightstar on purpose.

He wanted to eliminate a weak leader... and a treacherous rogue who had defied his own.

Collateral damage was acceptable, if it eliminated as many of Nightstar's supporters as possible.

And yet, his brother Deerfoot survived. Sentimentality? Just luck? Who knows.

If Runningnose has any regrets for anything he's done, it's only this. That he cleared out ShadowClan for Tigerstar's rule.

He approved of him at first, interpreted signs to benefit him, even killed for this old ally of Brokenstar...

but Tigerstar's goal was to abolish ShadowClan, and make a TigerClan of his own. Brokenstar never wanted this, and neither did Runningnose.

What Runny really wants, more than anything, is what Brokenstar wants. Destroying WindClan is a bonus, eliminating all of their enemies is anger that they were able to obstruct him. Runningnose thinks he loves power, but what he REALLY loves is his ability to get Brokenstar what he wants.

Everything he's ever done has been in pursuit of that goal. He doesn't care that he'll be going to the Dark Forest in the end, that's where Brokenstar is going to be. Hell is wherever he isn't.

In life, neither one of them knew anything about the curse, or destiny. Brokenstar reconnects with memories in his death.

And he started having dreams of SkyClan, which he communicated to Runningnose through channeling.

I'm working on the full outline of Firestar's Quietus right now so I'm going to be a bit more brief;

Runningnose got Firestar involved on this quest because he's a little goody two shoes. Of COURSE he would agree to help... that's who Firestar is.

He brings him to the moonstone, where a scene similar to canon plays out where StarClan tries to encourage him to go back to his Clan and ignore what he now knows.

And, of course, he tells them to shove it.

Firestar's Quietus is a book about righting wrongs. Brokenstar as a curse means that what he needs, in the end, is peace.

The peace he needs is the knowledge that SkyClan will be saved, and that it will survive.

Runningnose is willing to let him go, in order to get what he needs. He passes off an acorn necklace to Firestar, so that he can channel him with ease on his journey

In this gesture, it becomes real that he will go to an afterlife without him. After all he'd ever done and been through.

So, he hesitates before handing it off, but makes Firestar promise to take good care of it.

On this journey, Brokenstar and Firestar do a lot of bickering about how SkyClan should come back. The sort of values they should have, who should lead it...

But in the end, Brokenstar realizes, they will be something new. They'll choose their own path in life, because that's what it means to be alive.

And his final action is to face The Rats, now supernatural creatures of their own, finally dispelling the threat that faced SkyClan.

Having done his job as a Guardian, he can finally rest. His necklace is buried overlooking the Gorge, returning SkyClan's guardian to them.

Eventually he falls during AVoS, in Darktail's attack, killing several of the kin and their rebels and allowing Leafstar and co a chance to escape.

For more on Skypelt, see this little guide I made on the afterlife locations. Hopefully one day I can clean this up into its own entry.

More stuff to check out (that I found while searching for other posts but are cool and I'm re-sharing);

Jaggedtooth isn't a villain anymore

"What's your favorite ShadowClan-adjacent change?"

First post I made on Tigerstar's Paws

Brokenstar's two honor-kits, Littlecloud and Rowanclaw

On curses and anger

"What does Runningnose think of the other TPB Clerics?" Hates em!

A rundown on all ShadowClan leaders post-Ripplestar

Cedarstar sketch

First post on StarClan Technicality Brokenstar lmao

IN-DEPTH QUESTIONS ABOUT SKYPELT

Some specifics on the religion/entity/magic mechanics in BB

#better bones au #Brokenstar's Cataclysm #BB!Brokenstar #BB!Runningnose #Firestar's Quietus

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bonefall · 1 year

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would runningnose count as a dishonor title or did yellowfang just hate him

It's literally just Yellowfang (Shroompelt at the time) hating him fgfdsgfd

She did not want to train him, Brokenstar just convinced his dad to shove his friend into the role and Raggedstar gave him what he wanted

(Paraphrased conversation)

Runningpaw: "tell your father that yellowfang is being unfair to me because she has something against you"

Brokenpaw: "Fantastic idea! I expect no less from my loyal cleric!"

Raggedstar: "Yellowfang you have to take Runningpaw. Listen-- I know you hate our son--"

Shroompelt: "NO you moron, I don't want to do it because that Runningpaw is a devious little bastard and I don't trust him with poisons. Or StarClan's messages but mostly the poisons"

Raggedstar: "You disgust me, Yellowfang. He's only an apprentice, and just as smart and loyal as his parents, how dare you speak like this to your leader! You will take him!"

Shroompelt: "You tell that little punk that if he's foisted into MY den, I'll try to pluck him out like a tick and name him Runningnose."

(If you're curious about his name in Clanmew, it's actually Sslopchoop, which means 'snot-nose.' Sslop' describes wet and sticky mud and in any other context would describe something sleek and malleable, but if you have sslop coming out of a body part it's a way to phrase phlegm, a nosebleed clod, or really thick mucus. Lizardstripe DID also pick this prefix with his distinct nose marking in mind though)

#Runningnose 100% does not care about his embarrassing name though #How stupid of her to think it would stop him #Truly. She never should have trusted him with poisons #Not that she had much of a choice.#WHEN A BOY IS BAD. THAT CAN BE A VERY SPECIAL THING #I lvoe him sir #BB!Runningnose #Better bones au #BB!TPB #Brokenstar's Cataclysm

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bonefall · 2 months

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Bit of a random one but rereading the parable of the squirrels got me curious: how would clan cats (or just thunderclan in particular) view black/melanistic squirrels? Have any of them ever seen one? Im not sure how common they are in the uk, but i know they can be relatively prevalent in areas that have them sometimes

Black squirrels are nothing more than a simple morph! They get common in areas that have melanistic genes present as a result of simple genetic drift, though I've seen it proposed that black fur is an advantage in cold areas.

The gene is rare in the populations the Warriors come across, so they almost never see it. In spite of ShadowClan's unwillingness to control the gray squirrel population, ThunderClan is so aggressive about it that the pool stays shallow. Red Squirrels (pishkaf) do not have this gene. Only Gray Squirrels (chakchak) do.

So every time a black squirrel manages to occur, it's treated like a dire omen. Even ShadowClan takes it seriously.

Black as a color is associated with day and night cycles, because of Moon Shadow, Sun Shadow, and Shadowstar. Gray Squirrels are associated with war and benefit at the suffering of others. These things together herald great upheaval-- so cataclysmic that it would likely not be an "honorable conflict."

If you came to your Cleric with this omen, they would be struck with a look of terrible alarm. They'd be interested in its context, what it was doing, if it was eating anything, what its surroundings looked like. Someone like BB!Runningnose, interested in supporting Brokenstar's ambitions, might spin it as a positive sign.

Most Clerics would announce that the squirrel needs to be killed IMMEDIATELY, and launch a massive hunt to destroy it. What would come next would likely depend on the culture of the time, but for the most part I can imagine some sort of mass "purification" ritual. The whole Clan trying to identify how they can avoid the cataclysm, one of the few times where they see a glorious war as a bad thing.

The cat who kills the squirrel would likely earn an Honor Title. It's also very likely that the body of the animal is treated as a very powerful material-- burned to ash to prevent its use in forbidden magic or carefully preserved and made into something special, no in-between.

(Thinking about it... thanks for the idea I'll totally do this for Brokenstar's Cataclysm lmao. The sinew of the black squirrel is probably used to re-string Runny's acorn necklace.)

#Note that this is why Clanmew doesn't use a generic term for squirrel #Reds and Grays have maaaaassively different cultural meanings!#You can make Pishchak or Chakaf on the spot but it would hit weird to a Clan cat.#Closest English example; it's like calling a fox a 'reynard' or a wolf a 'lupine beast'#Clan culture #Pishkaf om chakchak #Squirrels #Gray squirrel #Red squirrel #Better Bones Au

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bonefall · 5 months

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Is there anything you wish that you could add into BB but can’t? Whether it’s just that it doesn’t work the BB’s themes or plot or that it deviates too far from canon?

Lots, honestly. If I ever did "sand off the serial numbers" I would do a ton of things.

Hollyleaf's Century would have waaaay bigger and more devastating consequences for the entire island. Not just the lake society. All of Albion would have been badly affected.

I've always been really fond of the idea that you first come into this world, assume it's pretty straightforward "oh! Cats in the woods! Simple enough!" And then slowly the lore reveals itself to be like "ARCHIMEDES' CAT SUCCESSFULLY INVENTED LAZER BEAMS ERGO THE ROMANS NEVER STARTED A CONQUEST OF NORTHERN EUROPE"

Im just incredibly fond of lore that looks basic when you're first introduced to it, slowly drops wilder and wilder shit, and refuses to ever engage with it lmaooo

Lots more name changes, more honor titles, etc

I would start tossing in OCs. I like the limitation I work with right now, it's a fun challenge, but I would be padding out allegiances significantly

Populations would get bigger, with more emphasis on Family rather than Individual. I would begin to give major bloodlines their own insignias.

Identifying with these insignias would be something cats grapple with. Everyone in Tigerstar's family, for example, would consider if they want to jump into their mate's families and modify their insignias or wear them with pride

A lot more would go into "aesthetic" production. Flax, leather, the fashion styles between the different Clans.

I'd mess around with more altars and hidden places where various cats go to worship.

For example I would LOVE to have a "dark library" which contains a lot of Ripplestar's strategies and battle plans, buried in the bog, that Runningnose uncovers through his channeling and Brokenstar goes to learn from

More magic stuff in general, a lot of it going back to Hollyleaf's Century. More types of curses and monsters, some of them just kinda showing up at times.

The ecology of Albion would be a bit wilder. Feral cattle, wild dogs, and horses, nothing too drastic.

Researchers would remain I love those guys. Might make some special "field guides" which are humorous journal entries and such. Occasionally they drop hints at the iceberg lore like, "this reminds me of the Great Egg Scramble of '24."

They'd mention some of the magic stuff and explain that humans have had a hard time researching it scientifically. Like Quantum Physics it doesn't like to work the same way when you observe it directly.

One of their specialists has a PHD in Alchemy or something like that

SkyClan would do a LOT more in the suburbs. Like, I would explicitly start working suburban foraging into their culture instead of just the occasional stealing they do.

Been thinking a lot about the boundaries between natural and urban spaces and how maybe it works best to challenge that "boundary" completely. SkyClan seeing itself in the dandelions that sprout between cracks in the pavement. Do you understand

I'd start adding in more spaces for people to break off from "canon." Like saying that sometimes the researchers capture "breakaway" groups to introduce them to other areas, sometimes they hop on trains and spread around Albion. Fanwork Gaps.

#Bone babble #Maybe someday BUT I'm happy with my project as it is tbh #I have fun here #Just. Yknow. If I ever did need to jump ship for some reason and make it Legally Distinct

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bonefall · 5 months

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in the nightcloud summary post- "They'd barely settled in before Nightstar and Crookedstar turned on them, attacking to try and drive them out AGAIN." is this a typo, or is nightpelt in charge of shadowclan during this attack?

Not a typo and also COMPLETELY canon! That is not a BB addition, that happens in the book!

Fire and Ice, chapter 30:

"Fireheart skidded to a halt, reeling at the sight that greeted him in the camp clearing. Last time he’d been here, in search of the scent trail that would lead them to the missing Clan, the place had been deserted and silent. Now the clearing swarmed with writhing, screeching, fighting cats. Onewhisker had been right—the WindClan cats were hopelessly outnumbered. A fresh party of ShadowClan and RiverClan warriors waited at the edge of the clearing, but WindClan could spare no backup group. The whole Clan was fighting, apprentices and elders, warriors and queens."

ShadowClan and RiverClan team up after Fireheart fetches them home, to try and drive WindClan out a second time. It's explicit how horrifying this is, how the battered clan is hopelessly outnumbered, and how the invaders have a backup reserve of reinforcements while WindClan is fighting tooth and nail.

He even sees a ShadowClan tom BATTERING Morningflower, a nursing queen who's trying to defend Gorsekit.

"Fireheart heard Runningwind yowl for help. The tabby warrior was grappling desperately with Nightstar, ShadowClan’s treacherous leader. Fireheart darted through the throng to Runningwind’s side. Without pausing to think, Fireheart leaped, grabbing Nightstar from behind. The black warrior howled in rage as Fireheart pulled him backward and sank his claws deep into Nightstar’s fur. He had fought side by side with this warrior only a few moons ago to help him drive out Brokenstar. Now he sank his teeth into Nightstar’s shoulder with the same ferocity he had used against the former ShadowClan leader."

I could talk about how interesting this battle is, and all of the little interactions between various warriors (my girlie Leopardfur gets another mini bossfight <3), but the bottom line is that this moment means a lot to me. I want to FRAME it in BB.

BB!Nightstar, at the end of the day, isn't principled. He is no radical. BB!Brokenstar is infamously overhauled, and the biggest part of that is that he's a reflection of Clan Culture. He's a manifested curse, which was only broken because BLUESTAR and her new philosophy are different.

If it wasn't for her and Fire Alone, the Clans were doomed to end the way that Ripplestar had seen born on the night of his death. Self-concerned and violent, blinded by their pride, ripping each other apart and letting the others fall one by one

But Nightstar just thinks Brokenstar went too far. He has no objection to honor, or the Warrior Code, you see. Stealing kits and driving Clans out of their territories is what's unacceptable. Not keeping what you already own; and certainly not the concept of violently winning land in furious battles.

He became leader because he appeals to the two "divided halves" of the Clan. Deerfoot the Rebel is too controversial for those who enjoyed Brokenstar's methods, but old, wise Nightpelt who only retired because of asthma, he's a good compromise. At first.

Power has a mind of its own. You know what Brokenstar did? He promised these cats glory. He let them fight how they please. ShadowClan HATES WindClan, they've been fighting for generations. Appealing to those cats means letting them do whatever they want, and what they want is MURDER.

So Nightstar keeps appealing to them, alienating Deerfoot and his group, causing him to appeal even harder to ShadowClan's other half. Thus, he ends up in the same position Brokenstar was in, with Downwind's blood on his hands, only this time... Runningnose holds a grudge against the little weasel who caused the death of his beloved leader, biding his time to clear the Clan of all the traitors who stood against Brokenstar.

He tried to make allies out of cats who were ALWAYS going to hate him. Power drove him towards becoming what he had previously opposed. In the end, he paid for it.

#BB!Nightstar #Better Bones AU #BB!TPB

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bonefall · 1 year

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Clanmew Masterpost

Clanmew is a constructed language made for Warrior Cats that I, @bonefall, run with my buddy @troutfur! I make the vocab and he does the grammar. I hope that this post will become a good, central place to keep links to everything we've done so far.

CURRENT VERSION: 1.0 LAST UPDATE: 6/3/2023

Clanmew is an OSV-order language, made with the sounds cats make in mind. "Base Clanmew" is built around the Clan Culture updates of the Better Bones AU, which means it is made with the ecology of southwestern Northern England in mind and only contains words for plants and animals found there. It also has phrases for cooking and crafting.

(specific regions modeled: Lancashire, Chester, Manchester, Merseyside, Clwydd is modeled for river biomes specifically)

You are free to use it for your own projects! We encourage you to consider how this language would evolve in your Clan's history, and add or remove words to make a dialect that reflects the culture's feelings and needs.

THE BASICS:

Everything you need to know for basic structure is in CLANMEW 101. Start here.

We have a constantly updating LEXICON of all the words we have made so far.

Have you made a dialect? Let me know and I can link you here so others can see what you're doing with it!

Below the cut:

In-universe information; How Clanmew evolved linguistically

"Expansion Pack" posts where I discuss etymology

Pronunciation stuff (until I make that IPA chart I keep promising)

Working translations; Names, parables, OC submissions

Dialect submissions (These are manned by other people!)

Historical Trivia

The linguistic evolution of Clanmew from Old Tribemew and Parkmew

Animals are named for the sounds they make.

How pronouns for objects change based on how the speaker feels about it.

More, using human examples

there is a secret post about cursing but you have to find that on your own ;)

Through Time Travel Shenanigans, Hollyleaf's name evolves into the word "Scourge"

The Clanmew Play-by-Play of that

The word for Everything

How hard is it for speakers of the other in-universe languages to pick up Clanmew?

On nicknames!

Squirrelpaw and Crowfoot discover corn

The names of the three ideologies... also thistles.

The Invalid Five

Expansion Packs

Colors

Directions, way-finding

Spirituality terms

Rocks

Beetles

Follow up: some plant parts

Patch (pattern) vs Patch (plants)

Den, camp, territory, construction

The two violets

Shapes of flowers

Volume

Generic terms

Rollypollies and centipedes

Insults

Rain... because this is England

The Clan Clock; time terms

The four seasons

Clerics and Common Herbs

Roses

Water movement

BIRDS AND BATS

Finches

Texture

Dogs

Mint

Parts of fur

Forest terms

Foxes, parts of a forest

Cuckoo bird

DEER

Shade and understorey

Cedar

Waterside words

Pronunciation Stuff

Closest thing to an IPA chart I currently have

My process for coming up with words based on vibes

I was asked for more behind-the-scenes stuff so here you go?

How I hold my mouth when I speak

Trout Tips

How would Clan cats pronounce the Slavic TS, or the word pizza?

On the Double yy

Working translations

BB!Scourge's new warrior name, Iceheart, in Clanmew... and Nightheart!

Light, moon, wind, BB!Raggedstar's pre-honor title name

OC SUBMISSION: Flameshell, Fogwhisper, Willowsong

OC SUBMISSION: Lichennose, Mudthistle, Longpounce

OC SUBMISSION: Fallensky

PACK PACK KILL KILL

"I love you"

Baby talk

"What have I done?"

"Fool Tale"

How to Clanmew-ify a strange word

Dishonor Title for "Mudpuddle"

OC SUBMISSION: Riverrunner, multiple-word names, walking words

OC SUBMISSION: Firefang, Rabbitdash, Peachfeather, plus a bunch of words for weasel-like animals

Ivypool

The use of tense in names

PROPHECY SUBMISSION: "Dust and flame will combine to destroy home"

Skywatcher

OC SUBMISSION: The Caldwell Family

Foxheart

Runningnose

PROPHECY SUBMISSION: Six will come of every rank

OC SUBMISSION: Witherstrike

"I like this" and also parasitic worms

Prism, rainbow-color

OC SUBMISSION: Piebald Creature

Gayheart

Sneeze and Knockout

OC SUBMISSION: Penny-fitzgerald

OC SUBMISSION: Voidwhisper, Chalkwhistle

OC SUBMISSION: Poppyflare, Spikemane, Blizzardfang

OC SUBMISSION: Burning Hawk-fur

Mistyfoot

BRAMBLESTAR BUTCHERS THE BLOSSOMKIT NAMES

Dialect Submissions

Pfurr Clanmew (@troutfur)

#Clanmew #Clan culture #clanmew masterpost

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bonefall · 8 months

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Now this had me thinking... Would Willowpelt die in the same way as canon (although to another creature im assuming since bb!badgers aren't as dangerous as they are in canon)? If she's getting kept around longer, maybe Cricketclaw is the one who sacrifices herself instead? That sounds like a fitting way for her to go, considering she couldn't protect her own siblings?

I feel like I should add a TM to anything that I'm working on in my drafts that has significant progress and is blog-plot-relevant, that will explain something exactly like this LMAO

Forgive me I am, at heart, a bear that eats half a salmon and then forgets I had a fish at all

Willowpelt's brush with death is staying, and is actually a bit plot relevant in Firestar's Quietus! I have a very specific scene which is actually totally written out-- actually fuck it, I'll just post it here

Context and narrative purpose of this scene:

Firestar is informed of a boar on the territory, and gathers a little scouting patrol to try and figure out what sort of hog it is.

VERY IMPORTANT SEGWAY. Because of how Willowpelt gets bitten here and Firestar loses a life saving Sorrelpaw, they all end up in the Cleric's den where Ferncloud is telling a story both to practice her new job as upcoming Educator and to comfort everyone.

The fact Willowpelt is not dead is how I get Littlecloud away from Runningnose and Firestar

Runningnose has a hunch, in this moment, that goody two-shoes little Firestar might be the perfect person to help Brokenstar, and teases the visions and revelations he's about to have

Establishes that boars are the new Big Bad Beastie of BB

Presents Sorrelpaw's epilepsy and demonstrates how it is a danger to her safety

(this is a lot of buildup but this is actually pretty short lmao)

So anyway before I let you go on to the readmore and a preview of Firestar's Quietus, no one takes Willowpelt's death here, and Willow is going to hang on for longer. I wanted to make sure I have a good amount of cats to kill off in the carnage of the White Hart's destruction.

Wherever Cricketclaw dies, it will be for a purpose. Either to show how bloody the TNP conflicts are, or in a greencough epidemic because I'm trying to make sure those aren't just "Kill a bunch of randos offscreen" disease anymore.

WILLOWPELT'S BOAR

The patrol is Sandstorm and Sorrelpaw, Willowpelt, Longtail and Sootpaw, and himself. It's just supposed to be for scouting, hence why the apprentices are coming along.

Unfortunately the hog has other plans, lunging out of a bush and going for Sootpaw

Willowpelt jumps in the way and gets bitten instead

Sorrelpaw acts quick, slashing its sensitive nose, drawing its attention and bolting as fast as she can

RIGHT as she crosses the Thunderpath, her body goes limp and she falls to the ground

She is having an absence seizure, and fallen flat on the road

The hog is hot on her heels, bowling after her, when a monster screeches to a halt out of nowhere

The hog is frozen in the headlights, Firestar bursts into action to pull Sorrelpaw out of the road

(i hear your heart beat to the beat of the drums) BUMP BUMP

The boar and Firestar have been hit by, have been struck by, an automobile

When he sees StarClan, they're about to greet him with love. But their faces turn to shock and fear, the scenery becoming sinister and trees falling down.

A fifth oak tree is crashing down towards them. Firestar stares at it, dumbstruck.

Just before it strikes him, his eyes snap open

Firestar resurrects with a burst of energy, dragging Sorrelpaw off the road and into the safety of a fern on the ShadowClan side

The humans are coming out of the car to examine the boar they struck, but Firestar doesn't have time to consider that or his vision.

Littlecloud's head pokes out of the foliage and he springs into action, checking them both for injury. Breathless, Firestar points behind him and rasps, "Willowpelt!"

Littlecloud nods and bolts across the road.

Runningnose saunters out from a different angle-- one where he would have been able to see the road. Everything that happened.

His gaze is unsettling as ever, pausing, eyeing the leader up and down.

He starts tending to Sorrelpaw, then mumbles,

"Brave of you."

"It's what any leader would have done."

"No. It's what you always do."

Firestar doesn't know how to respond to that, but he's glad Runningnose isn't staring at him anymore.

But continues, "You will learn terrible things in the days to come, Firestar, and StarClan will not answer the questions that find you. If you seek the truth, meet me by the mothermouth on the night after the next gathering."

Sorrelpaw is leaning up now, her eyes dazed and confused, as if she's trying to figure out what happened.

#So Crick could still get killed in the Boar Attack of BB!TNP #But I'm unsure yet. It's not a pressing matter either though #Because I also wouldn't mind just keeping her around until a Po3 epidemic #But there's THREE deadly events in TNP so it makes the most sense for her to meet her maker there.#Firestar's Quietus #better bones au

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bonefall · 8 months

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Does BB!Silverstream have a design? Also, what cats would be at her trial? I can’t get the idea of an animation of her trial set to We Both Reached For The Gun out of my head

Before I hop off I quickly went and made a quick BB!Silverstream

Consider these chibis I've been doing as like, "beta" designs. I plan to come back to them later for full summary art, really play up the shapes and make them more unique and cartoonish

Since we're all kinda likening Silverstream to Roxy Hart, I went ahead and made her look a bit "foxy."

THE EYESHADOW IS IMPORTANT. It's the Applekin Family trait. It looks like a fish, but it's actually a very abstract depiction of an apple leaf.

Silverstream is about as "sleek" as a RiverClan cat gets; they're always thick and usually longer than they are tall, like otters. Silvs only gets THIS thin because she's 25% WindClan.

Her lawyer is technically her uncle Oakheart; but in reality, Lizardstripe is the one actually planning everything out.

Aaand here's another headshot of Lizi because I still need to make her full art, along with the other Forget-Me-Nots

Very round tufts. The roundness shows up in Runningnose and Tangleburr.

Her ears are cut in the same place on both sides. There is a sad story behind it that she won't tell, she says she "liked how it looked."

She has one stripe. It starts above one eye, runs down her back, curls over her hip, and runs back up the other side symmetrically.

CLEFT LIP. It is split just below her nose and naturally exposes her top teeth.

Lizi and Oakheart usually wear Forget-Me-Nots in their fur. Specifically, Lizi is represented by Changing Forget-Me-Nots and Oakheart is represented by Water Forget-Me-Nots (also called scorpion grass).

Other cats who could be at Silvs' trial;

Mother, Willowbreeze

Ancestor, Reedshine

Sunfish, suckler and friend of Crookedstar (died to Thistleclaw)

I'm not sure if she's keeping those siblings who die, or at the very least there might be one less, because I may want to use them at some point.

Anyway go nuts lmao

#sketches #better bones au #BB!Silverstream

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bonefall · 10 months

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I need you to know i will kill and die for your version of Brokenstar and Runningnose. First of: i love evil gay people. Second: IDK why but Brokenstar being a living curse- but his actually evil actions being entirely shaped by his culture is so... interesting to me. Like. man. The curse plays into when he becomes Cool Ass Tree Skyclan Protector Thing, and in some way it's almost... positive???? LIke. he's not evil because of the curse, and the curse is more a means to a healing of skyclan.... IDK this may sound batshit and i read ur posts wrong. also like. runningnoses dedication to like. a symbol of a great horror. idk. love and caring for something suppose to be Bad. I like this weird lil kitty cat.

YEAH MAN THATS IT

I feel strongly that nothing is inherently evil, and rage can be a good thing. There ARE things that you should be mad about. If you look closely you can see it's a theme I'm fond of-- Firestar, Thunderstar, and Brokenstar are furious at injustice and their anger is a fundamental part of them.

BB!Brokenstar isn't any one person's fault or responsibility. In life, he was an inevitability. The same selfishness that created him cradled the culture that would come to shape him.

Yellowfang couldn't change that. Lizardfang didn't abuse him evil. Raggedstar didn't spoil him rotten. Brokenstar was loved very much, and loved others in turn. BUT HE DIDN'T SEE CATS OF OTHER CLANS AS PEOPLE.

The way SKYCLAN was treated

The Curse is retribution; the Culture is what's evil, and must be changed.

Putting Brokenstar to rest is about healing. I didn't just pick the word Quietus out of nowhere-- it's something that brings an end to conflict. It's peace.

And Runningnose loves him. Shares his passions, drinks in the respect and power Brokenstar naturally commands. He'll go to any extreme for him, provide him with anything, kill for him, help him cover up murder...

Loves him so much it stretches beyond words, loves him so much he would let him go. There is no Land Mar waiting for him in Hell, because his worst nightmare was the simple idea of living without him.

I can't be normal about them either lmao. Sir it is my emotional support evil couple for which there is simply no heterosexual explaination.

#Alexa play arcadian vampire #Alexa play snuff out the light #Alexa actually just play my evil gayboy playlist #Better bones au

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bonefall · 1 year

Text

BB!Firestar

[ID: Firestar from Warrior Cats with his tail on fire. The text reads, "Ssoen kafyar-ul ulnyams ssarshefpa," which is "Fire Alone will save the Clans" in Clanmew]

The man, the myth, the legend. Bringer of change, righter of ancient wrongs, ancestral patron of fire and of breaking bad habits.

Clanmew Name: Kafyarbabi, Kafyarshai [Wildfire + Heartbeating = Behaves like a wildfire.]

Alignment: ThunderClan

Relationships: Mates (platonic) - Sandstorm, Onestar (ex) Family - Squirrelflight, Leafpool, Cloudtail (nephew), Princess, Jayfeather, Lionblaze, Hollyleaf Mentors - Bluestar, Spottedleaf, Yellowfang Friends - EVERYONE. Graystripe, Deerfoot, Iceheart (Scourge), Brokenstar (post-death), Longtail, Cinderpelt

Chelford cats do not track paternity. It's not known who Firestar's father is, and it's probably not Jake anyway.

Firestar is aromantic. He is platonic co-parents with Sandstorm. He did not realize he was aromatic when he was seeing Onewhisker.

Other Clans consider him nosy. He's always trying to help out others, even when their sense of pride makes them hesitate to accept it.

Incorrigible. If he thinks he's right, you can't stop him. He also thinks it's important to make sure his Clan is well cared-for and doesn't give in to fear.

His personality is very passionate and outgoing.

Bonefall TPB:

To begin with, Rusty had to learn a new language to join the Clans. Clanmew and Townmew are sister languages but there was still a learning curve.

Spottedleaf was a big sister figure to him, she taught him how to connect with StarClan, what the rules are, and how to break them.

Bluestar left a deep impact on him as his mentor, she was the inventor of the mercy and grace which comes to define Fire Alone.

Like canon, he opposes Tigerclaw at every step once he realizes the cruelty within him.

Unlike canon, Better Bones is about having a strong anti-authoritarian stance, and to do that there's even MORE allies that Firestar connects with.

Oakfur, Stumptail, and Deerfoot in ShadowClan, and Mosspelt and Dawnflower in RiverClan are all cats who work directly with Fireheart, and were at times his Aftergathering buddies.

The end of Bonefall TPB is the battle with BloodClan, where he spares Scourge by defeating him honorably, ripping his collar off and forcing him to call a retreat.

The thesis of the arc is that Fire Alone can save the Clans because it's a radical change to the xenophobic, authoritarian culture of the Forest Four.

He lost a life in the process, from a huge slash across his chest and shoulder. It's meant to look like a mayoral sash, of sorts. His first deputy was Whitestorm, and after his death, his second was Longtail.

After the battle, he went a step further by bringing the collar back to Scourge as a gift of goodwill. He offered to uphold whatever he could of Tigerstar's Impossible Deal, and was shocked at the simple solution. BloodClan simply wanted things they couldn't get in Chelford; timber, glue, flowers, new types of foods they'd never tasted before.

Together, they forged a trade route that promised a bright future. During the destruction of the forest, Scourge eventually decided to lend his strength to the Clans for their Journey, eventually deciding to retire with them.

Scourge was eventually given the name Iceheart, so that he may live out his days with them in quiet peace.

Firestar's Quietus:

Brokenstar is the guardian spirit of the 5th tree of Fourtrees, which blighted and died after SkyClan's exile

His spirit cannot rest until SkyClan is safe. Firestar gets freakish dreams, Runningnose contacts him, and brings him to the Moonstone to figure this out.

It's there that he learns about Brokenstar trying to break into StarClan to make them do something. On learning that they just let an entire Clan get exiled, Firestar tells them to shove it and agrees to help.

Runningnose gives him a very emotional and significant acorn necklace which channels Brokenstar-- this item becomes important many arcs later.

Broken and Fire go back and forth a lot on what SkyClan should look like, what it needs, and how they should rebuild. The lesson learned is that SkyClan needed help, but can handle its own destiny.

Leafstar and the Warriors of SkyClan are not a Clan like the Forest Four. They will do things their own way, and that is a beautiful thing.

Brokenstar's final action is possessing Firestar's body (establishing the rules of possession for TBC later) to eradicate the rats; which were the earthbound, tormented souls of SkyClan's ancestors.

That's how Brokenstar and Firestar become the saviors of SkyClan

Bonefall Po3, Cruel Season, and Bonefall OotS:

In the episodic revamp of Po3, Firestar is aiding the other Clans through their struggles with the new environment, and helping to raise his grandchildren to be honorable cats.

So, his role is essentially as both the Clan's leader, and as Grandpaw Firestar.

His deputy is Brackenfur, who was promoted after Firestar and Brambleclaw agree that he isn't ready for deputyship yet after his lapse of judgement with Hawkfrost.

Brackenfur is killed towards the end of Po3 in the Battle of the False Eclipse, a trick from Sol, God of Chaos, a preview of the night that is to come where the dead can walk the earth.

Brambleclaw succeeds him.

The Fire Scene is in the in-between book between Po3 and OotS; Cruel Season.

It was started by Whiskernose of WindClan, aided and abetted by Thornclaw and Breezepelt, as an intentional distraction so they could get Firestar alone to kill him on the Dark Forest's orders.

He has one last big scene after his death; coming down from Silverpelt when Jayfeather summons StarClan warriors to fight the Dark Forest.

After winning a rematch with Scourge, Tigerstar finally gets the battle he's always wanted, and Firestar deals with him once and for all.

His Legacy:

He becomes known as the Patron of Fire and Breaking Bad Habits. He's invoked frequently during wet days when it's hard to start a cooking fire.

Firekin are renowned as a family of heroes, something that can cause a lot of pressure for its youngest members.

Fire Alone and Traditionalism are the competing ideologies by the modern era, with support of Thistle Law being kept very quiet.

#BB!Firestar #Better Bones AU #wc au #Bonefall Po3 #Bonefall TPB #Bonefall OotS #Bonefall Cruel Season #art #sketch requests #Clanmew #character summary

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