#Him believing he’s the fire only for the little kittypet to come in a be it <33333 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

m1smatched-starsigns · 5 years

Note

ooo how about ☀️ and Redtail? :0

Pulling this one out of the idea doc!

Working title is Written in Red

AU where Redtail survives the battle at Sunningrocks, but discovers Tigerstar’s plot to kill him. Now it’s a game of strategy, deception, and somehow that ginger kittypet is involved.

It begins during the battle for Sunningrocks.

The rockfall that kills Oakheart never occurs, and after Tigerclaw’s patrol shows up, the RiverClan deputy orders a retreat. The ThunderClan party celebrates and Redtail leads the victorious patrol back to camp, and with too many cats present, Tigerclaw must bide his time.

Once they return to camp, Tigerclaw pulls Darkstripe aside and tells him that he will have to wait for another opportunity to murder Redtail. Ravenpaw, who went looking for his mentor, stops and overhears the entire conversation. He panics and immediately tells Redtail what he overheard.

While initially shocked, Redtail does not have a problem believing the young apprentice. While timid, Ravenpaw is very observant and above all, not a liar. Tigerclaw’s ambition is known throughout the Clans, and he has never been fond of Redtail. As a matter of fact, this revelation puts a lot of odd behavior into perspective...

Tigerclaw gluing himself to Redtail’s side during patrol. Constantly feeling watched. Tigerclaw’s insistence to stay on the battlefield as long as Redtail was there — and only retreating when Redtail led it.

So now ThunderClan’s most formidable warrior is out to spill his blood across the forest. Great.

Redtail wants to tell Bluestar, but he realizes that he doesn’t have the evidence for anyone to believe him. All he can has is the word of a paranoid apprentice, and strange behavior that many cats would not find strange. If anything, Bluestar might think that the pressure of the deputyship is getting to his head and now he’s growing paranoid.

If Redtail thought stepping down would be enough for Tigerclaw, he would consider it. But if Tigerclaw wants to be deputy so badly, then it’s because he wants to be Clan leader. That means warriors like Lionheart and Whitestorm, who could lead this Clan, are possible targets. That means Bluestar herself is a target.

Who’s to say that every single cat in ThunderClan isn’t a threat somehow?

Redtail isn’t the strongest fighter or the most skilled hunter, but he is more clever than most of his Clanmates. Creating a plan will not be an issue, but finding the right cats to help him execute it will be difficult.

He has friends, but none of them have ever had any issue with Tigerclaw. As a matter of fact, they all admire his skill and consider him an advantage for ThunderClan.

He needs someone with an outside perspective; someone who doesn’t stare at Tigerclaw in awe.

The next day, Bluestar tells Redtail about a kittypet who wears flames as a pelt.

“A kittypet?” Redtail echos, surprised. There must be more to him than his striking pelt.

“A prophecy,” Bluestar admits. She tells him about Spottedleaf’s vision, and how she thinks this kittypet is important. She wants to invite him to train as a warrior.

Under different circumstances, Redtail would be skeptical. But knowing what he does about Tigerstar, he considers this an answer to prayer. If “fire alone will save the Clans” then what is he saving the Clans from?

It is a stretch to name that threat Tigerclaw, but it is not unreasonable.

He goes with Bluestar to meet Rusty, and he analyzes his every movement, his every sentence. Rusty is naive and does not understand their ways, but this is unsurprising. The good things is he is interested and willing to learn — he wants to learn their ways, and he wants to understand them.

Redtail believes he will be the cat to help him expose Tigerclaw.

However. Redtail must remind himself that it would be unfair to corner to Rusty and tell him about Tigerclaw, about the prophecy hanging over his head. He agreed to join ThunderClan because he wants to be a warrior, not because he wants to save the Clans from a tyrant.

So until Rusty — now Firepaw — has reason to help him, he will have to wait and watch his back.

Firepaw is ready much sooner than Redtail dared hope.

Ravenpaw is dead. Tigerclaw says an adder bit him and the pain from the poison was too great — he killed Ravenpaw upon his request and in an act of mercy.

Ravenpaw was a Clanmates and friend, but it was clearly he wasn’t suited to the harsh reality of a warrior. His Clanmates believe he is in a better place now.

His body, which Tigerclaw brings back to camp, confirms the story.

Firepaw believes otherwise.

He pulls Redtail aside and tells him that right before Tigerclaw and Ravenpaw left for training, Ravenpaw told him to never turn his back on Tigerclaw. He told him that if anything ever happened to him, he needed to find Redtail.

The deputy understands what happened. Tigerclaw must have found out what Ravenpaw knew, and killed him before he could tell anyone his ploy to take over the Clan. Poor Ravenpaw must have known his death was rapidly approaching if he gave Firepaw those instructions that morning.

So Redtail tells Firepaw what he knows about Tigerclaw, and what he thinks he’s plotting. He leaves out the bit about the prophecy— he doesn’t want to overwhelm the young apprentice.

“So,” Firepaw begins slowly, as this new information sinks in. “Tigerclaw must have suspected that Ravenpaw knew about his plan to murder you. Do you think he knows that Ravenpaw already told you everything?”

Redtail pauses. That is a good question.

He tells Firepaw that if he notices anything suspicious, come to him immediately. “Do not share this information with anyone else,” he adds. “Not Bluestar, and not your friends.”

Firepaw scraps the earth with a claw. “No problem,” he meows. “I don’t have many friends.” He explains that Ravenpaw was his only friend; Graypaw has been avoiding him ever since Ravenpaw died, and Dustpaw and Sandpaw practically hate him.

“Dustpaw?” Redtail echos. “Let me take care of him.”

On his side mission, Redtail pulls Dustpaw aside and gives him a long lecture about treating your Clanmates the way you want to be treated, and the consequences he will face if he continues bullying Firepaw.

“You want to be deputy someday, don’t you?” Redtail asks. “You’re going to need support from your Clanmates. Firepaw can help you reach your goal if you let him.”

Dustpaw has never known his father. He just lost Ravenpaw who, sure he was annoying, was his only littermate. His mother died a few moons ago.

Redtail has always been there for him. Redtail is the reason he wants to be deputy someday. He can’t stand it when he lets his mentor down, so he takes this warning to heart and starts clamping down on the insults he wants to spit so badly.

Sandpaw is discouraged when her partner in crime refuses to mock the kittypet with her, but she’ll get over it.

Moving on. Firepaw has noticed that Tigerclaw has taken special interest in him. He asks him questions and goes out of his way to deliver him news.

Whenever he turns around, Tigerclaw is always right there.

Redtail huffs. “He must have realized that you and Ravenpaw were close. He’s suspicious of you now, too.”

At first Redtail thought it was best to let Tigerclaw see as little interaction with Firepaw as possible. But with the young apprentice now in his sights, the game has changed. Tigerclaw can not be allowed to get Firepaw alone.

The good news is that Redtail has an opportunity to get some quality time with Firepaw, and keep Tigerclaw away from him.

“Are you sure you’re up to it?” Bluestar asks after he voices his idea. “You already have a lot of responsibilities with the deputyship and young Dustpaw.”

Redtail smiles confidently. “I’ll only take him out whenever you’re too busy. Besides, I think he could use some help making friends and this will ensure some time between him and Dustpaw. I can handle it, Bluestar.”

Bluestar agrees. So now whenever Firepaw needs training that she can’t oversee, he will come with Redtail and Dustpaw.

Dustpaw doesn’t like it but he doesn’t say a word.

For a time, their plan works. It gives Redtail and Firepaw an excuse to talk so much, keeps Tigerclaw from getting too close to the apprentice, and even Dustpaw seems to be warning up to him.

The ShadowClan drama makes it harder to stay together, but they make it work. Lionheart and Whitestorm are both killed in battle.

Through it all Firepaw impresses in his training, and it isn’t long until he and Dustpaw are made warriors: Fireheart and Dustpelt. The young toms are quite close now, thanks to Redtail.

Tigerclaw has been strangely silent lately, and it sets Redtail’s fur on edge. He is planning something, but the deputy doesn’t know what.

“What if we lure him into acting?” Fireheart suggests one day.

Redtail pauses. That is an idea.

It’s incredibly risky but this is where Redtail excels. If he can craft the perfect plan then he can expose Tigerclaw once and for all, and they can stop looking over their shoulders.

The plan: finally let Tigerclaw get Fireheart alone, and then reveal everything they know. Tigerclaw will try to kill Fireheart, but unknown to him, Redtail and Bluestar will be waiting in the bushes, waiting for a confession from Tigerclaw.

To convince Bluestar to come along, Redtail lies and tells her he scented ShadowClan in their side of the Thunderpath.

At first, everything goes according to plan. Fireheart and Tigerclaw are hunting near the Thunderpath when Fireheart reveals everything he knows. He even lies and claims to have seen Tigerclaw murder Ravenpaw, and tells him that he’s been training with Redtail so that he may avenge his friend.

Tigerclaw throws himself at the young warrior with a snarl, but not the confession they need. Redtail asks Bluestar to wait before intervening. They watch with baited breath as Fireheart manages to barely hold his own against ThunderClan’s best warrior.

The confession comes when Tigerclaw pins Fireheart down on the lonely Thunderpath.

“You mouse-brain,” Tigerclaw snarls. “You and Redtail thought you were so clever? You thought Ravenpaw was the only cat I killed? A kit could have killed that brat! I orchestrated Lionheart and Whitestorm’s deaths too, and you will be my next victim!”

Whitestorm was Bluestar’s nephew.

Lionheart was Bluestar’s close friend.

With a furious snarl, Bluestar leaps out of the bushes and charges across the Thunderpath in a blaze of blue. She knocks Tigerclaw off of her former apprentice, and Fireheart scrambled to join Redtail.

Their plan succeeds.

A monster suddenly roars onto the Thunderpath. Bluestar and Tigerclaw are locked in battle.

“No,” Fireheart breathes. “Bluestar!”

For a heartbeat, Bluestar looks at them over her shoulder. Redtail meets her gaze.

She knows what she is doing.

Redtail clenches his eyes shut just before the deafening thump echoes throughout the earth.

When he opens his eyes, two bodies lay limply on the Thunderpath. Their insides are torn out; their blood is spread across the unforgiving surface.

“Bluestar had three lives left,” Fireheart whispered.

Redtail shakes his head sadly. Bluestar does not have a body to return to.

The sight makes his stomach churn dangerously, but Redtail and Fireheart drag Bluestar’s body back onto the ground. They leave Tigerclaw.

Rather than traumatize the young cats, Redtail elects to bury Bluestar there. The Clan will understand.

When they return back to camp, Redtail has the uneasy task of explaining everything that has happened to his Clanmates. He begins with Ravenpaw’s murder and goes from there.

The Clan is shocked, but Fireheart can confirm everything Redtail says. They grieve for their leader... and then Redtail goes to Highstones with Spottedleaf, his sister, to receive his nine lives. Upon return, he appoints Runningwind as his deputy.

The pair rule ThunderClan together for moons until Runningwind is killed in a battle for Sunningrocks.

Redstar pulls Dustpelt aside. “I know how you feel about the deputyship-“

“I’m not ready for it,” Dustpelt interrupts his old mentor. “Don’t worry about me, Redstar. We both know who the better choice is right now.”

Young Dustpelt has come a long way. Redstar is grateful for his friendship and his loyalty.

But he is right. Fireheart is the only cat for the job.

(Until Redstar looses his last life, and Firestar must choose a new deputy. Then, Dustpelt is ready.)

#another long one for you!#redtail is so cool. he would have been a good leader #very Sunstar-esq?#Redstar AU #Redtail #Firestar #Dustpelt #Bluestar #Tigerstar #Ravenpaw #warrior cats #warrior cats au #au game #☀️#send em in!

377 notes · View notes

fatedheavylion · 4 years

Text

Twitchstar, Leader of Shadowclan

A large tuxedo tom with mellow green eyes, he has sections of his fur missing and a prominent bowtie marking on his chest.

Dapper -> 002 -> Twitchpaw -> Twitchfoot -> Twitchstar

"I-I'm a l-little too o-old to be jumped o-on!"

Affiliations:

Current: Shadowclan

Past: Kittypet

Age:

144 moons

Kin:

Mate: Cricketmask

Kit: Toadtongue

Grandkit: Silentbite

Great grandkits: Nightkit, Moonkit, Garlickit

Leadership position:

Preceded by: Fogstar

Personality:

Twitchstar is gentle giant, a kind and quiet soul that only wants what's best for others and always puts the needs of others above his own. Twitchstar at one point was known to be passive and sheepish but in his old age Twitchstar has grown to be more assertive especially at gatherings, Twitchstar is often looked to as an example given that he's the oldest leader in the clans. Twitchstar is known to be patient and understanding, always willing to listen to anyone who needs him and believes he's never too busy for his clanmates. Twitchstar is rational but not always slow to anger as his emotions can get the best of him, though Twitchstar always tries to rectify his mistakes.

Backstory:

Dapper was born in a twoleg nest, lovingly cared for by his owners for the majority of his kithood. Living a comfortable and leisurely life until he was adopted out and taken to be placed in a new home under the care of different twolegs, Dapper found his new home to be far too cold and quiet for his liking, and his twolegs hardly ever came to see him aside from the few times throughout the day when they’d come to give him strange tasting mush. During his time in his new home Dapper found himself being referred to by a different name give to him by his strange twolegs, now known as 002. 002 was put through different experiments and tests that he could never seem to understand and could never tell if he was upsetting his twolegs, but they never seemed pleased with him no matter what he did. Some days they’d strap him down and prick his body with something sharp, sometimes they’d send lighting surging through him and eventually would leave him with a twitch that’d never go away. 002 began to lose sections of his fur as the treatment went on, but 002 always remained hopeful that some day it would all stop and he could see the sky again. When the lab 002 was housed in suffered from a devastating fire, he was one of the few cats that managed to escape in time. Disorientated and exhausted, 002 found himself stumbling into Shadowclan territory and right into a patrol who took the young cat in so that he could recover from what was surely something traumatic. When Fogstar offered him a place in the clan 002 was all too eager to accept, taking on his new name Twitchpaw.

#warrior cats #warrior cats oc #twitchstar #shadowclan #allegiances #leader

44 notes · View notes

doritopaw101 · 4 years

Text

Arc1, book 2: Chapter 16

Icefire and Leopardstorm sprang forward and burst through the curtain of lichen. Tiger-roar and Bluestar were writhing on the floor of the den while Nightshade was off to the side.

Bluestar always seemed like a talented fighter, always at the top of her game, but Tiger-roar seemed to prove that all wrong as he slashed and shook her around like prey. Bluestar's claws managed to score again and again across Tiger-roar's shoulder, but the deputy's greater weight kept her pinned down in the soft sand. Tiger-roar's fangs were buried in her throat, and his powerful claws raked her back.

"Traitor!" Icefire yowled. He flung himself at Tiger-roar, slashing at his eyes. The deputy reared back, forced to release his grip on Bluestar's throat. Icefire felt his claws rip through the deputy's ear, spraying blood into the air.

Bluestar scrambled to the side of the den, looking half-stunned and her flower necklace was torn and destroyed. Icefire couldn't tell how badly she was hurt. Pain lanced through him as Tiger-roar gashed his side with a blow from his powerful hindpaws. Icefire's paws skidded in the sand and he lost balance, hitting the ground with Tiger-roar on top of him.

He spotted Leopardstorm and Nightshade in a similar situation. Nightshade had Leopardstorm pinned on his back, raking at his belly.

"What in the name of Thunderstar's cry are you doing?" Tiger-roar hissed "Do you have bees in your brain? Help me kill Leopardstorm and Bluestar and I'll forgive this little misunderstanding"

Icefire stopped struggling for a second, staring at Tiger-roar. Leopardstorm had flung Nightshade off and sliced at her back while the black molly fastened her teeth in Leopardstorm's front right foreleg.

A small, evil part of his mind had almost agreed with Tiger-roar's offer, but remembering Goosefeather's words he knew the answer was clear. This wasn't meant to happen, in any shape of fashion.

"No!" Icefire summoned every scrap of skill he possessed. He knew Tiger-roar could kill him, but in spite of that he felt strangely free. No more secrets and no more deceit. There was only the clean danger of battle.

He aimed a blow at Tiger-roar's throat, but the deputy swung his head to one side and Icebelly's claws scraped harmlessly through thick tabby fur. But the blow had loosened Tiger-roar's grip on him. Icefire rolled away, narrowly avoiding a killing bite to the neck.

"Kittypet!" Tiger-roar taunted, flexing his haunches to pounce again. "Come and find out how a real warrior fights" He threw himself at Icefire, but at the last moment Icefire darted aside. As Tiger-roar tried to turn in the narrow den, his paws slipped on a splash of blood and he crashed awkwardly onto one side.

At once Icefire saw his chance. His claws sliced down to open a gash in Tiger-roar's belly. Blood welled up, soaking into the deputy's fur. He let out a high-pitched caterwaul. Icefire pounced on him, raking claws across his belly again, and fastening his teeth into Tiger-roar's neck. The deputy struggled vainly to free himself, his thrashing growing weaker as the blood flowed.

Icefire let go from his neck, planting one paw on Tiger-roar's outstretched foreleg, and the other on his chest. "This isn't your destiny"

"Wha?"

For a moment, Icefire felt like his body wasn't his own "Find the stars in the Shadows" he heard himself say

"What are you?" Icefire struck Tiger-roar over the eye making the tabby hiss in pain "Bluestar!" he called "Help me hold him down!"

Bluestar was crouching behind him in her moss-lined nest. Blood trickled down her forehead, but that did not alarm Icefire as much as the look in her eyes. They were a vague, cloudy blue, and she stared horror-struck in front of her as if she was witnessing the destruction of everything she had ever worked for.

When Icefire spoke, she jumped like a cat woken suddenly from sleep. Moving with dreamlike slowness, she crossed the den and pinned herself across Tiger-roar's hindquarters, trapping him. Even with wounds that would have stunned a lesser cat, Tiger-roar still fought to free himself. His amber eyes burned with hatred as he spat curses at Icefire and Bluestar.

Leopardstorm had Nightshade pinned down, blood dripped from a cut on Nightshade's head and her shoulder looked dislocated.

A shadow fell across the entrance to the den and Icefire heard hoarse, ragged breathing. He turned his head, expecting to see one of the invaders, but it was Raveneye and Graystripe. Dismay flooded over Icefire at the sight of his mates. Graystripe was bleeding heavily from his flank and one foreleg while Raveneye had blood bubbling from his mouth and his chest looked sliced.

Graystripe stammered, "Bluestar, we-" he broke off, staring. "Icefire, what's happening?"

"Tiger-roar and Nightshade attacked Bluestar," Icefire told him quickly. "Raveneye, we were right all along; they are traitors. Tiger-roar brought the rogues to attack us."

Graystripe went on staring, then shook himself as if he had just climbed out of deep water. "We're losing the fight," he mewed. "There are too many of them! Bluestar, we need your help!"

The leader looked at him but did not reply. Icefire could see that her eyes were still dull and unseeing, as if the discovery of the truth about Tiger-roar and Nightshade had bruised her spirit beyond repair.

"I'll come," Icefire offered. "Graystripe, can you help Bluestar hold on to Tiger-roar? Leopardstorm seems to have Nightshade handled. We'll deal with them when the battle's over."

"You can try, kittypet," Tiger-roar sneered through a mouthful of sand.

"This isn't over," Nightshade growled but had her face pushed into the ground by a rage-filled Leopardstorm.

Graystripe limped across the den and took Icebelly's place, planting his claws on Tiger-roar's chest. For a heartbeat Icefire hesitated, uncertain that a wounded Graystripe and Bluestar in a state of shock and betrayal would be a match for Tiger-roar. But the deputy was still losing blood, and his struggles were definitely getting weaker. Swiftly Icefire turned and raced outside again with Raveneye close behind.

At first glance the clearing seemed to be filled with rogues, as all the Thunderclan warriors had been driven out. Then Icefire caught a glimpse of familiar shapes here and there- Fogtail squirming underneath a huge tabby tom; Patchpelt scrabbling just out of reach of a skinny gray rogue, whirling around to rake his nose with outstretched claws before he hurled himself at the rogue's belly. He saw Raveneye dash forward, pouncing on a ginger-and-black molly.

Icebelly tried to collect his strength. The fight with Tiger-roar had exhausted him, and the wounds where the deputy had clawed him burned like fire. He did not know how long he could keep on. He rolled over instinctively as a ginger molly tried to drive her claws into his back. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a lithe, blue-gray body racing across the clearing, yowling a challenge.

Bluestar! he thought in astonishment, and wondered what happened with Tiger-roar. Then he quickly realized that the warrior he had seen was not Bluestar. It was Mistyfoot!

With a massive effort Icefire tore free of the ginger cat and scrambled to his paws. Riverclan warriors were pouring out of the tunnel. Leopardclaw, Stonefur, Lakepaw, Reedtail, Swanlight, Shadepelt, Willowheart… After them came Sandstorm and the rest of her patrol. They were strong and full of energy, and they fell on the invaders with claws outstretched and tails lashing in fury.

Terrified by the sudden appearance of reinforcements, the rogue cats scattered. The ginger molly fled with a shocked howl. Others followed her. Icefire staggered a few paces in pursuit, hissing and spitting to speed them on their way, but there was no need. Surprised when they thought their victory was certain, and leaderless now that Tiger-roar had been caught, the rogues had no fight left in them.

Within a few heartbeats, they were gone.

The Riverclan cats were gathering together again with murmurs of concern as Icefire limped across to them. "Thank you," he mewed. "I've never been so glad to see any cat in my life."

"I recognized some of the old Shadowclan warriors," Leopardclaw told him gravely. "The ones that managed to escape."

"Yes." Icefire didn't want to say anything yet about Tiger-roar's involvement. "How'd you know we needed help?" he asked, puzzled.

"We didn't," Mistyfoot replied. "Silverstream wandered into Thunderclan territory and Graystripe found him. He's too weak from giving birth to go back to Riverclan at the moment."

He saw Silverstream leaning on Willowheart for support, kits in his mouth. He padded over to Silverstream, rubbed against the silver tabby and took a gray tabby kitten in his mouth. He didn't fail to notice that Silverstream's eyes looked glossy. Was he blind?

"We'll take care of him."

"I sure hope so," Leopardfur mewed, eyes narrowing at Icebelly and Silverstream. "We need to go. We'll be back."

Icebelly watched the Riverclan cats leave, then looked around, feeling his shoulders sag with tiredness as Silverstream leaned on him. The clearing was littered with blood and fur. Thymeroot and Yellowfang were beginning to examine the injured cats. Though Icefire hadn't noticed them in the fighting, they both bore the marks of enemy claws.

He saw Goldenflower rush over, checking Silverstream over. "I'll take care of him," Goldenflower assured, a knowing look in her gaze.

He took a deep breath. It was time deal with Tiger-roar, but he did not know if he could summon the strength. His wounds throbbed with pain, and every muscle in body shrieked a protest with each step. As he limped toward Bluestar's den, a voice sounded behind him. "Icefire! What happened?"

He turned to see Sandstorm, newly returned at the head of her hunting patrol, with Cloudpaw panting just behind her. She was staring around clearing as if she couldn't believe what she saw.

Icefire shook his head. "Brokenstar's followers," he grunted.

"Seriously?" Sandstorm spat in disgust. "I hope Bluestar has a plan"

"It's complicated at the moment." Icefire felt unable to explain right then. "Sandstorm, will you do something for me and not ask questions?"

Sandstorm gave him a suspicious look. "Depends on what it is."

"Go to Bluestar's den and deal with what you find there. Better take another warrior too- Seedspots, will you go? Bluestar will tell you what to do."

At least I hope so, Icefire added to himself as Sandstorm, still frowning, jerked her head at Seedspots and headed for the Highrock. Out of everything that had happened, what disturbed Icefire most was how Bluestar seemed to have lost her will to lead her clan.

Turning away, Icefire saw Sandstorm emerging from the den beneath the highrock. She was followed by Tiger-roar, who struggled forward with an odd, lurching gait. His long fur was matted with dust and blood, and one eye was half closed. He stumbled to a halt and collapsed in front of the rock.

Seedspots trailed him closely, alert for any sign that the deputy intended to attack or flee. Behind her came Nightshade, her long black fur covered in dust. She collapsed not too far from her brother while Leopardstorm kept a close eye on her. Bluestar came not long after her nephew, her head drooping and her tail dragging in the dust. Icefire's worst fears flooded back. The strong leader Icefire respected seemed to have vanished, leaving instead this frail, wounded cat.

Last of all, Graystripe limped out of the den and sank down on his side and began to inspect his wounds with an anxious frown.

Bluestar raised her head and looked around. "Come here, all of you," she rasped, beckoning with one flick of her tail. While the rest of the clan was gathering, Icefire padded over to Thymeroot. "Can you give Tiger-roar anything for his wounds?" he asked. "Something to ease the pain?" He didn't want the once-great deputy bleeding to death in the dust, he isn't supposed to die, but Nightshade seemed to be fine for the most part.

Thymeroot looked from her examination of Graystripe. To Icefire's relief, she didn't challenge his request for her to treat the treacherous deputy. "Sure," she mewed. "I'll fetch something for Graystripe as well." She limped away in the direction of the medicine den.

The clan cats had taken their places by the time she returned. Icefire could see some of them looking at one another. Mousefur was looking at the ground. They must all be wondering what all this might mean.

Thymeroot padded over with a wad of herbs in her mouth. She dropped some of them beside Tiger-roar, and gave the rest to Graystripe. The deputy sniffed the leaves suspiciously and then began to chew them, while Nightshade remained silent beside him as Tiger-roar pushed some leaves for her to chew.

Bluestar watched them for a moment, her eyes showing the sadness of a mother, but it seemed to vanish in an instant remembering what they tried to do. She then began to speak "I present you with Tiger-roar and Nightshade, now as prisoners. They-"

A chorus of worried murmurs interrupted her. The clan cats were looking at each other in shock and dismay. Icebelly could see they did not understand what was happening.

"Prisoners?" Darkstripe echoed. "Tiger-roar's your deputy. What have they done?"

"I'll tell you." Bluestar's voice sounded more even now, but Icefire could see the effort it was costing her. "Just now, in my den, Tiger-roar attacked me while Nightshade watched. He would've killed me if Icefire and Leopardstorm hadn't arrived in time."

The sounds of protest and disbelief swelled even louder. From the back of the crowd, Patchpelt let out an eerie wail. Miststrike looked frozen in place, her eyes expressionless. Nettlemist matched his mother's expression. Leopardfoot looked...furious. Darkstripe got to his paws. He was one of Tiger-roar's strongest supporters, Icefire knew that well, but even he was looking uncertain. Icefire also saw that Darkstripe's belly slightly bulged. "There must be some mistake," he blustered.

Bluestar raised her chin. "Do you think I can't tell when a cat tries to murder me?" she inquired dryly.

"But Tiger-roar-"

Icefire sprang up "Tiger-roar and Nightshade are traitors to the clan!" he spat. "They brought the rogue cats here today."

Darkstripe rounded on him. "They'd never done that. Prove it, kittypet!"

Icefire glanced from Raveneye to Bluestar. She nodded and beckoned them forward. "Icefire, Raveneye, tell the clan what you know. Everything."

Raveneye rushed over while Icefire slowly padded to her side. Now that the moment for revealing everything had come, he felt strangely reluctant. It was as though he were pulling down the Highrock, and nothing would ever be the same again. "Cats of Thunderclan," he began. His voice squeaked like a kit's, and he paused to control it. "Cats of Thunderclan, do you remember when Thrushpelt was killed, it was no accident. Nightshade killed him and used sunningrocks as an excuse and let him bleed out"

"Should've killed him on sight" Tiger-roar growled to Nightshade. Thymeroot's herbs were doing their job, the huge two-colored tabby had begun to recover some of his strength.

"Good riddance, in my opinion," Nightshade sneered, licking her paw. "Thrushpelt was weak."

"Excuse me?" Miststrike snarled. "He raised us! Our brother!" Leopardfoot was still silent.

Bluestar yowled for silence. Icefire tried breathing, the crowd of cats became fuzzy and the world began to ring. "Tiger-roar also conspired with Brokenstar with the attack that killed Rosetail," Raveneye added.

Icefire kept his eyes closed as he spoke again. "Tiger-roar and Nightshade were responsible for Redtail's death. I and Raveneye were witnesses. Raveneye, Maplepaw, Cloudpaw and I found out that Nightshade killed Fuzzypelt and did who knows what to Sunnypaw; I'm guessing they found out and knew too much." he glanced at Tiger-roar, the older tom bared his teeth

"Icefire and Raveneye told me about their concerns but I didn't believe them." Bluestar bowed her head and murmured, "I trusted them, but…I was wrong."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Fogtail retorted. "Why didn't either of you say anything?"

"Would some of you believe a once-scared apprentice?" Raveneye asked.

"Or the 'kitty warrior,'" Icefire sneered. "Besides, who would believe Tiger-roar or Nightshade, the loyal noble warriors, to lay a claw on their leader, their mother?" He fell silent. His whole body was quivering and he felt as weak as a newborn kit. He leaned on Raveneye.

"Bluestar," Leopardstorm spoke up, his yellow eyes unreadable as he stared down Tiger-roar. "What will happen to Tiger-roar and Nightshade now?"

His question set off a crescendo of furious yowling from the clan.

"Kill them!"

"Blind them!"

"Drive them from the forest!"

"Bluestar!" Dustpelt called, his amber eyes cold. "Nutwhisker has returned and tried to kill Lightpaw and Amberpaw and Voletail tried to kill Embereyes"

Just as soon as Dustpelt finished, Sandstorm dashed forward with a blood curdling screech. Dustpelt leaned to the side to avoid being shredded as Sandstorm's claws latched onto Nutwhisker's back. To his credit, Nutwhisker fought back well, trying and failing to throw Sandstorm off of him. But the discovery of Nutwhisker's presence and the fact that he had tried killed her sisters in cold blood gave Sandstorm a new drive, allowing her to win the feud this time.

Sandstorm flipped Nutwhisker on his back, ripping at his throat. Nutwhisker gagged on the fountain of blood that gushed from the fresh wound. Icefire thought that would be the end of the fight, but it wasn't enough for Sandstorm. She tore into Nutwhisker's belly, allowing his organs to fall into the large scarlet pool that surrounded them. Nutwhisker gasped and feebly strained to rise to his paws and escape, but the effort was useless. It took only a few moments before he finally fell still. Sandstorm panted heavily, a smirk on her face.

Bluestar sat motionless, her eyes closed. Icefire could feel the pain coming off her in waves, the bitter shock of betrayal as she discovered that the deputy and son she trusted for so long was black at heart. "Tiger-roar? Nightshade?" she mewed at last. "Do you have anything to say in your defense?"

Nightshade laughed wickedly. Tiger-roar swung his head around and fixed Bluestar with an amber and blue glare. "Defend us to you, you gutless excuse for a warrior? What sort of leader are you? Trying to keep peace with the other clans. Helping them! You hardly punished Icefire and Graystripe for feeding Riverclan or when they went to find Windclan with no words. I would have never shown such kittypet softness. I would have brought back the days of Tigerclan. I would have made Thunderclan great!"

"And how many cats would've died for it?" Bluestar murmured almost to herself. Icefire felt memories of a gray and white tom with bloody thirsty amber eyes flood into his mind, and the name Thistleclaw appeared. Icefire figured this cat was just like Tiger-roar was at this moment. "He was," Goosefeather whispered in his ear.

"If you have nothing else to say, then I sentence you both to exile," the leader announced, her voice cracking. Every word seemed to be dragged out of her. Icefire couldn't blame her, she raised them and they tried to slaughter her like prey. "You will leave Thunderclan territory now, if any cat sees you here after sunrise tomorrow, they will have my permission to kill you both."

"Kill us?" Nightshade spoke, a chuckle rising in her defiance.

"I'd like to see any of them try," Tiger-roar sneered.

"Icefire and Leopardstorm beat you!" Graystripe called out.

Tiger-roar snarled in Icefire's direction, his amber eyes burning with rage. Icebelly met his amber eyes, unblinking.

Slowly, Tiger-roar and Nightshade got up. Tiger-roar's massive head swiveled back and forth as he scanned the crowd of cats. "Any cat who comes with me will be well cared for. Darkstripe? You should take this offer in your current state."

Icefire craned his neck to see Tiger-roar's chief follower. He waited for Darkstripe to get up and go to Tiger-roar, but the sleek black and gray tabby remained in his place, his shoulders hunched wretchedly and his tail curled around his belly.

"I trusted you, Tiger-roar- and you too, Nightshade," he protested. "I thought you two were the finest warriors in the forest. But then you decided to plot with Brokentail." His voice slightly cracked as he added, "and you said nothing to me about it. And now you expect me to come with you?" He looked away deliberately. Willowpelt rubbed against him.

"Fogtail?"

Icefire saw Fogtail's blue eyes burn with rage. "Join you two?" He hissed. "After what you two have done?" After bringing rouges that nearly killed Swiftpaw? Your own son? Never." He saw Swiftpaw being treated by Thymeroot, his leg being put in a bind.

For the first time, a look of uncertainty flickered across Tiger-roar's face as the few cats he had trusted turned him down. "Dustpelt? Ebonyshade?"

Ebonyshade scoffed. "Not a chance, father." She said the last part like it was bile.

The ginger marked dark brown tabby got up deliberately, picking through the crowd until he stood in front of Tiger-roar. "I looked up to you," he mewed in a clear, level voice. "I wanted to be like you. But Redtail was my mentor, I owe him more than any cat. And you two killed him." Grief and fury seemed to make his limbs shake, but he kept going. "You killed him and betrayed the clan. I'd rather die than follow you." He turned and stalked away.

"Leopardstorm? Miststrike? Goldenflower? Mother?"

"You dare ask me to join you?" Leopardstorm and Goldenflower had spat in unison while Miststrike had just turned her back on her littermates.

The pointed white tom rose to his paws, advancing slowly on Tiger-roar as though he were nothing but a cornered piece of prey. "Join you? After you tried to kill my aunt?" he padded closer, his yellow eyes glinting dangerously. "You killed my loving mate. You worked with the cat that Pouncepaw- then have the gall to ask me to join you?"

His voice was full of so much fervent anger that Icefire was sure Leopardstorm would finish Tiger-roar off in the camp, here and now. But to his surprise, Leopardstorm only turned and padded away, his head low. Before he vanished into the warriors' den, he cast one rueful look over his shoulder and added, his voice cracking, "My only regret was loving you."

Icefire saw a flicker of sadness in Tiger-roar's eyes, and it only seemed to increase when Goldenflower hissed and padded into the nursery, refusing to look at Tiger-roar. It seemed Tiger-roar really loved Leopardstorm and Goldenflower.

"Mother!" Nightshade called

"Don't you dare utter that word to me after everything you two have done" Leopardfoot hissed with the same fury that Leopardstorm had, she was bleeding from her chest, leg and ear but she didn't seem to care "You've lied and killed to get your way and you dare ask me to join you two?" she looked away "Your father would've been ashamed of you"

"Tiger-roar, Nightshade," Bluestar broke in. "No more of this. You two, go now."

Tiger-roar drew himself up to his full height, his eyes blazing in cold fury. Nightshade bared her own teeth as she stood up next to him, her green eyes filled with equal rage. Tiger-roar spat, "We're going, but this isn't over; you can be sure of that. I will have my revenge on you all!"

They padded unevenly away from the highrock, glaring defiantly at the crowd of cats as they walked towards their exile. Tiger-roar paused as drew close to Icefire, curling his lips back in a snarl. "And as for you… Keep your eyes open, Icefire. Keep your ears pricked. Keep looking behind you, because I vow that you will be the first cat to suffer my wrath."

Icefire and Tiger-roar shared a single testing glare for a long while. Icefire tried not to shrink beneath the massive tom's glare, but he was determined not to break Tiger-roar's challenge. Finally, Tiger-roar was the first to pull away as he trailed Nightshade to the camp exit. His threat almost seemed empty as the two great warriors tread to their exile on unsteady paws. Their wounds would keep them at bay for a long while, Icefire knew. But he also knew that Tiger-roar was too stubborn to be deterred by a few scrapes and scratches. I know you'll be back when your wounds heal, but we'll be ready for you then, Tiger-roar!

Sandstorm felt the blood on her fur start to clot but she didn't care. She looked at Nutwhisker's corpse, the blood had stopped gushing out a while ago. She spat on him.

"You should have your wounds treated," Lightpaw mewed softly, her white fur brushing against her pale ginger one.

"It's not my blood," Sandstorm replied. with a dry laugh "He barely laid a scratch on me."

"Then wash it off before your fur starts to stain," Fernpaw mewed. They tried to sound light-hearted as they added, "You don't want to be like Elderpaw. He lets it sit there all day, rarely washing the blood out. I'm pretty sure that's how he'll get his warrior name, and it wasn't just Brokentail being wicked."

Sandstorm sighed. "Okay."

She slowly rose to her paws, nearly falling completely over from her sudden dizziness. Lightpaw and Fernpaw quickly came to her aid and held her up. "Alright, we're taking you to Yellowfang," Lightpaw mewed.

All around her, talk was beginning to break again as cats mewed urgently to one another about the startling events. "Who'll be deputy now?" Her father Birchstep asked. Sandstorm didn't think too much as she felt her head spin and blacked out.

Icefire glanced at Bluestar to see if meant to make an announcement, but she was slipping around the side of the Highrock toward her den. Her head was down and her paws dragged as if she were ill. There would be no announcement yet.

He could start to feel the ache in his wounds more now urging him to rest, but he wanted to find Sunnypaw "I'll go," Raveneye offered, seeming to read his thoughts. "Chesnutclaw, come with me" Chestnutclaw nodded gruffly and followed his brother just as Thymeroot came over and started treating Icefire's wounds.

"I think Icefire should be deputy!" Maplepaw declared, bouncing with excitement. "He'd do a great job!"

"Icefire?" Darkstripe's eyes narrowed. "A kittypet?"

"What wrong with that?" Cloudpaw bristled in front of the much bigger warrior. Leopardstorm pushed between Darkstripe and the young apprentice. "That's enough!" he growled. "Bluestar will tell us who she chooses before moonhigh. That's the tradition."

Icefire let his shoulders relax as Cloudpaw and Maplepaw scampered off to join the other apprentices. He could see that the apprentices didn't realize the seriousness of what had happened. The older warriors, the ones who had known Tiger-roar and Nightshade well, were looking at one another as if their world had just come to an end.

And maybe it has, Icefire thought dejectedly. As long as Tiger-roar and Nightshade prowl these forests, we may never be safe again.

Icefire jerked awake a short while later. His wounds still stung, and as he rose to his paws his limbs protested stiffly, but he could feel his strength returning. He had eaten a small vole before he passed out. He looked up and saw the tortie molly sitting in front of him. She had a wound on the back of her neck that was dripping blood, and she had a scar on her left eye.

"I'd suggest you check outside, dear," she mewed, her voice as sweet as honey, yet it didn't soothe Icefire at the same time "It's time"

"Who are you?" he asked. "I've seen you around Bluestar a lot, and I saw you and another tortie during the flood."

"You'll know in time," she replied simply. Before he could say more she faded away.

Icefire realized that the chill he felt was not just because of fear. The den, usually warm from sleeping bodies, was cold and empty. Outside he could hear the murmuring of many cats. When he pushed his way out to join them, he saw that nearly all the clan was already assembled in the clearing, with the pale light of dawn just rising above the trees.

Sandstorm pushed her way through a group of cats. "Icefire!" she mewed urgently. "Moonhigh has come and gone, and Bluestar hasn't named a deputy!"

"What?" Icefire stared at her in false alarm. The warrior code had been broken! "Starclan will be furious," he murmured 'if they're so pissing about their shit'

"Bluestar hasn't named a deputy or an heir. WE don't know if she'll do Royal line either I doubt Mossthorn can do it in their state, and her other kits are way too young," Sandstorm went on, lashing her tail in agitation. "Bluestar won't even come out of her den. Leopardstorm, Goldenflower, and Miststrike tried to talk to her, but she sent them all away."

"She's probably still shocked over Tiger-roar and Nightshade," Icefire pointed out. "She raised them and they betrayed her." Then a concern crossed his mind. "Wait, what about Embereyes?"

Sandstorm lowered her head. "Embereyes is unconscious, and no one is sure that she's going to wake up." She raised her head up, green eyes blazing. "But Bluestar is the leader of the clan, she can't just curl up in her den and forget about the rest of us!"

Icefire pulled Sandstorm close, licking her ears softly. "She won't forget-" he began, and broke off as he spotted Bluestar stumbling around the highrock from her den. It seemed she didn't get a replacement flower necklace after Tiger-roar's attack, which seemed to alarm some cats. She looked old and weary as she sat down in front of the highrock, making no attempt to climb it.

"Cats of ThunderClan," she rasped, barely loud enough to be heard over the crowd's anxious muttering. "I will name my deputy. Listen, and you will all hear."

The clan only looked and listened.

Bluestar opened her mouth for a few moments to continue, but remained silent as something seemed to catch her attention. Icefire followed her gaze and spotted Redtail's spirit gliding across the camp towards her, his bushy red tail streaming out behind him. Icefire wanted to call out to him, but he remained silent as he watched Redtail climb up the highrock and whisper something in Bluestar's ear.

Bluestar murmured something quietly in response, but Icefire was too far away to catch what she was saying. To a normal cat, it would seem she was muttering to herself, but Icefire knew that they were exchanging words that no normal cat should know except Icefire himself. Redtail nodded at whatever she said, and the two stared at each other for a few short moments before Redtail faded away.

Bluestar shook her fur, rose to her full height and announced very hesitantly, "My new deputy, and my heir, will be Icefire."

~End of Book 2~

6 notes · View notes

o1ivenose-aus · 4 years

Text

Au Masterpost

All of my aus in one place. Feel free to send asks about any of them

Au ideas

au where firestar, sandstorm, redtail, and spottedleaf all switch places. Sandstorm is the deputy, Fireheart is the medicine cat, spottedleaf is the kittypet, and redtail is the apprentice. also sandstorm and fireheart don’t die either

Au where Turtle Tail and Bumble lived

au where Sasha goes to thunderclan instead of riverclan and mothwing and hawkfrost get raised with their brother :)))

Au where Petal became leader of SkyClan

au where Smudge joins the clans with Rusty

Au where Spiresight lived

Au where Fluttering Bird survived

Warriors but Mothwing is Brambleclaw, Hawkfrost is Tawnypelt, Brambleclaw is Mothwing, and Tawnypelt is Hawkfrost

how about an au where sedgekit and her siblings meet Fallen Leaves and Rock in the tunnels in Dark River. She comes back to the tunnels frequently as an apprentice and after that a warrior, forming a close bond with Fallen Leaves.

The night of the gathering, she realizes it’s getting late, and she should get back to camp before the clan comes back.

Suddenly she hears rocks falling, and the screams of two tomcats. “Hollyleaf!”

She picks her way through the rubble with Fallen Leaves and finds a black she-cat under the rocks.

Au where Ivypool kills Tigerheart in the dark forest, and while being stuck there (with Antpelt hmm) he desperately tries to contact Dovewing to show her what’s going on and ends up being the spy for the three instead of Ivy

au where instead of Lionpaw and Heatherpaw playing in the tunnels, it’s Jaypaw and Kestrelpaw

Au where Smudge has a kit who joins the clans

Human au where it's just a big summer camp (would take place around po3)

Au where Jaques and Susan join ShadowClan

Au where Thriftear replaces Spotfur, essentially making Bristlefrost and Thriftear a parallel to Ivypool and Dovewing

au where Spiderpaw is hit on the thunderpath instead, trying to save his brother

Au where Kestrelflight is Breezepelt's brother

Or Crowfeather as Darktail’s brother (breeze and dark parallels anyone?)

au where Fallen Leaves, desperate to get out of the tunnels, forces himself to be reincarnated into little Hollykit’s body.

as Hollyleaf ran towards the tunnels, Fallen Leaves couldn’t believe he was back

hvkjsnhesrfgdmvjn what about an au where Cloudtail is Princess’s brother, and Firestar is Princess’s kit

Au where Tadpole is Bramble and Tawny's littermate instead

Fire scene au where Leafpool is there instead of Squirrelflight

Au where BRAMBLECLAW is in the fire instead of Squirrelflight

Au where Princess gives Fireheart ALL her kits and he ends up raising seven fluffy babies with his boyfriend Graystripe

Au where Blossompaw gets hit by the tree instead of Briarpaw

Au where Squirrelflight is leader and Brambleclaw is deputy

Au where the three don't find out about their heritage until AVoS

Au where the whole reincarnation thing with the three is actually relevant and they have lots of flashes of their part life, and the ancients had to move for some unknown reason, and the three have to solve it like Frozen two but the reason is not what it seems like Frozen two

Au where the the fox cubs from The Sight become friends with the three

Au where Lionpaw and Hollypaw switch mentors and Ashfur is Holly's mentor instead

Au where Breezekit is Leafpool's kit and the three are Crowfeather and Nightcloud's. The three are Breezekit and his dead siblings so that causes problems. Breeze is the only cat of the prophecy and Jay, Lion, and Holly are his best buddies who help defeat the dark forest

Au where TigerClan defeated LionClan in the darkest hour, and currently have control of a weak and frightened ThunderClan and WindClan. Tigerstar recieves the prophecy about the three, who are destined to destroy him, so he goes to search for them.

Au where Dovewing and Tigerheart stay in the city (Tawnypelt becomes leader) and during Tbc, Shadowpaw and his sisters make their way to the lake on behalf of some suspicious visions

Au where Holly, Lion, and Ivy are three, and Jay and Dove are spies in the dark forest

Au where Tigerstar II is possessed instead of Bramblestar

Aus I’ve completed/expanded on

Au where the tbc protagonist are switched. Bristlefrost is in SkyClan, Rootspring is in ShadowClan, and Shadowsight is in ThunderClan. Expanded on here

Au where all important Kittypet characters are switched with their clan counterparts - tag is #kittypet au

Au where Nightkit, Mistkit, and Tigerclaw are partners in crime. Expanded upon here

au where Dovewing has a miscarriage and Shadowkit, lightkit, and pouncekit are three abandoned kittens that she found. Expanded upon here

au where Bramblestar dies before tbc. Expanded on here

Au where Holly, lion, and Jay are the three and Breezepelt is the fourth cat. Expanded upon here

Animal au - an au where all the characters are different animals - tag is #animal au

Au where Needleclaw/Pouncestep/Lightleap are important. Expanded on here

Au where Hollyleaf keeps Leafpool's secret and doesn't confess to killing Ashfur and doesn't run away. The next arc continues as usual, but something doesn't seem right.

Leafpool is found dead in the medicine den, supposedly having eaten deathberries, and Hollyleaf is unusually quiet. Expanded upon here

Au where the three are born in SkyClan. Expanded on here and here

Au where Half Moon is reincarnated as one of the three instead of Jay’s Wing. The expanded post is here

Nightpaw is there when Tigerclaw attacks Tiny, and she tries to stop him, but he ends up permanently nicking her ear. The full post is here

Instead of her brother, Goldenflower is made deputy after Redtail. Here’s the full post

Au where Firestar gets taken by twolegs instead of Graystripe, and he’s thrown into the leader position, unsure of what to do. here’s the full post

au where Jaypaw, Kestrelpaw, and Willowpaw are the three and the have their own little gang. The expanded posts are here and here

Au where Leafpool doesn't tell Squirrelflight about her illegal children, goes out to give birth, and promptly dies. Purdy finds the three in the snow and takes care of them. The expanded post is here

Au with the same thing but Sol finds them instead?

au where, upon being attacked, Ashfur manages to kill Hollyleaf instead. The expanded post is here

Lionblaze au

Aldersong and Needletuft au - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Reincarnation au - tag is #reincarnation au

3 musketeers au - tag is #ttmwc au

StormClan/Lake au (parts 1 and 2)

Tigerfoot au

WindClan au

#wc au #masterpost

11 notes · View notes

staircasttext · 3 years

Text

Ep 04 Transcript: Purr-fidy

Episode 4

[intro music]

PAZ: Hello everyone, welcome back to Stairway to Starclan, a Warriors Cat reread pawdcast. I'm Paz.

JULIAN: I'm Julian.

LIZ: I'm Liz.

PAZ: And we're back today to tackle some very action-filled chapters. And because the reading this week, we finally get to go to Moonstone and tangentially get some of that StarClan action, I thought we could all go to the official site where they let you ask the Moonpool a question. "Seek the wisdom of StarClan. Enter a question with a yes or no answer and let them guide your path." And I think we should give StarClan some questions.

JULIAN: Hell yeah.

PAZ: I wonder if they'll let you curse in this. Will warriorcats.com let you say fuck?

LIZ: Wait, wait.

JULIAN: There's a nice little shimmer when you click the Start.

LIZ: "This page is currently not supported on your platform."

JULIAN: Oh no.

LIZ: And I'm getting a little crying cat emoji.

JULIAN: What browser?

PAZ: I'm on Firefox too. It's working fine for me.

LIZ: You'll have to ask Moonpool questions for me.

PAZ: I'll ask you a question for you. Okay. I think the first pressing question is, are these cats gay? [typing] "StarClan lights your path with a yes."

LIZ: [gasps] Get a screencap. Oh my god.

JULIAN: Word of God.

PAZ: Word of God. You heard it here from StarClan. These cats are gay.

LIZ: You know it.

JULIAN: I have a question.

PAZ: Yes.

JULIAN: Will these cats be held accountable for their many crimes? "We have heard your call and answer in turn. StarClan sees a yes in your destiny."

PAZ: Oh.

JULIAN: All right, StarClan, get the tribunal together.

PAZ: Okay. These cats are going on trial for their war crimes. They're gay and they're going on trial. Liz, what's your question?

LIZ: Will warrior cats and kittypets ever reach an accord and maybe be friends?

PAZ: Okay, I'm asking. "The stars shine brightly in favor of yes."

JULIAN: Does this thing ever give you a no?

PAZ: I feel like StarClan might be a bit of a yes man.

JULIAN: I want to ask another question and see if we can get a no. Will it snow tomorrow? "The strength of Starclan is with you." It didn't tell me yes or no.

LIZ: Maybe it's like prophecy. You have to interpret it.

JULIAN: Oh, I see.

LIZ: Like do you need the strength because it'll snow.

JULIAN: Yeah, I think this may just never tell me no.

PAZ: Well, you know what? That means everything we say is right.

JULIAN: There you go.

LIZ: Can you ask it like, does my cat know that I love it? Yes. No. Not me personally because I don't have one.

PAZ: Okay, does my cat know that I love them? If it tells me yes-- "StarClan guides your question with a yes." I was about to say, if it tells me no, that'd be real sad. Well, I'm happy that everything I said now has the support of StarClan. So that was a fruitful visit to the Moonpool. And I think we can go into the summaries now.

LIZ: All right.

PAZ: Okay. So this week we read chapter 15 through 18. Chapter 15 follows Bluestar, Tigerclaw, and Firepaw into the cave as they travel to the Moonstone. It was pitch black and they all have to follow Bluestar by scent who knows the way. Firepaw notices that Tigerclaw seems very scared as they travel inside. When they actually reach the Moonstone, Tigerclaw gets so scared he runs out of the cave. Bluestar then sleeps by the Moonstone while Firepaw watches. When Bluestar wakes up she seems very worried and insists that they return to the ThunderClan camp immediately.

In chapter 16, the cats begin the journey back to camp. The three apprentices have a brief conversation and Graypaw notes that Ravenpaw seems very on edge whenever Tigerclaw is around. On the way back, the group meets a loner named Barley, who lives near a Twoleg farm. Barley warns them to go back a different way because the dogs from earlier are now loose in the field.

And Bluestar takes his advice and the different way leads them to be attacked by a bunch of rats. Everyone gets really battered, but Barley comes in to help them. Tigerclaw says Barley sent them into a trap, and Barley was like, No I did not. Then everyone realizes Bluestar is gravely injured, possibly dead, but she soon revives. Bluestar says she lost a life. When they finally began to move again, Tigerclaw very nonchalantly asks how many lives Bluestar has lost and she says this is her fifth.

In chapter 17, which is a hefty chapter, the cats finally arrive back to the ThunderClan camp, only to see it under attack by ShadowClan warriors as Bluestar saw in her vision. There is a huge cat battle happening in the camp, and everyone joins in. There are some action scenes, and then Firepaw is the shadow plan deputy kill an elder who is guarding the kits. Firepaw is unable to get there to rescue them because he's fighting another cat. And by the time he rushes to the nursery, the ShadowClan deputy is gone.

Yellowfang, who is inside, reveals that she fought him off to protect the kits. The battle soon dies down, and one of the queens publicly declares that Yellowfang saved the kits. Then Bluestar delivers the news that Lionheart, the ThunderClan deputy is dead. Graypaw is devastated. Firepaw realizes that the whole situation is exactly like a dream he had before. There are some scenes of various cuts morning and being looked at after the battle.

Bluestar then announces she has to declare a new deputy before moonhigh, and uh-oh, it's Tigerclaw. Next to Firepaw, Ravenpaw reacts in dismay and lets it slip that Tigerclaw took care of Redtail because he wanted to be deputy.

JULIAN: Duh-duh-duh.

PAZ: Chapter 18 opens with Tigerclaw overhearing the conversation and menacing Ravenpaw. Firepaw quickly salvages the situation by saying Ravenpaw was wishing Tigerclaw was there to take care of Lionheart as well. Ravenpaw refuses to speak to anyone after this interaction. Firepaw then goes to sleep and is woken up when Bluestar calls another meeting.

Tigerclaw speaks at the meeting, declaring that he has decided Bluestar must be guarded at all times by his lackeys, Darkstripe and Longtail. He says that no cat is allowed to approach Bluestar otherwise. Bluestar then asks Yellowfang to officially join ThunderClan, which Yellowfang accepts. Tigerclaw then insinuates that there is a traitor in the camp who must have fed ShadowClan information, and looks at Ravenpaw. Both Firepaw and Graypaw are worried for their friend.

Firepaw goes check on Yellowfang first, and they have a brief conversation about how Yellowfang misses the old ShadowClan, before Brokenstar became leader. She then tells him to roll around in garlic to help heal his rat bites. Firepaw tries to leave camp to get to the garlic patch, but Darkstripe refuses to let him out. So he sneaks out instead.

And on the way to the garlic, he overhears a conversation between Tigerclaw, Darkstripe, and Longtail. Tigerclaw lies to the two cats and says Ravenpaw left the group and must have gone to ShadowClan during the journey. He implies they need to kill Ravenpaw. The chapter ends with Firepaw racing back to camp in the hopes of convincing Bluestar of Tigerclaw's danger and Ravenpaw's innocence. And that ends that set of chapters.

JULIAN: Lot of intrigue.

PAZ: Yeah. We're getting to that murder plot mystery. Who could have seen this coming?

LIZ: Yeah, you know that Tigerclaw is so subtle. I never would have expected it.

PAZ: I'm shocked. I put down the book. I was so shocked. I also put down the book because that was the end of our reading.

JULIAN: I was trying to remember like, what my reaction was to this when I first read it as, you know, a fourth grader or whatever, but I could not remember. I think that I saw it coming. But I was still like upset.

PAZ: Yeah, because I read A New Prophecy first, I knew that Tigerclaw was evil like, because I mean, it's all in the past at that point. So I certainly was not surprised when I read the first book and the first book only.

LIZ: Well, I have never read these before. And you can definitely see it coming. And I think that's like good. Because it's like, yeah, this is your first big series as a kid. Author is laying down clues to lead to like a conclusion that makes sense, which is that Fire-- sorry, not Firepaw. Tigerclaw is a shady little bitch.

PAZ: Yeah, and I mean, I think there's nothing wrong with a mystery being obvious or predictable, especially not in kids media. Like, that whole shit with like Game of Thrones, where they changed the ending or whatever because someone predicted what would happen, and they were like... and it's like, that's just good storytelling if people can predict what's happening based on clues you've put in the text.

JULIAN: Congratulations, you've successfully deployed foreshadowing.

PAZ: Yeah, exactly.

JULIAN: I was into like Tigerclaw being like afraid of StarClan in the Moonstone. I thought that was neat. Some sort of like, yeah, he's shady. Also. The ancestors fucking hate him.

PAZ: Yeah. That was very funny and very like, evil cats go to hell. Good cats go to heaven. You can't enter our good vibes cave, you little piece of shit.

LIZ: Yeah, um, I would like to draw some comparisons between two great pieces of literature: the first Warrior Cats book and Hamlet.

PAZ: They're on the same level, I think.

LIZ: I mean, listen, there's the dude who commits a terrible secret murder and is shown to be super shady, and then he shows fear at the first mention of any sort of, like, mystic or religious kind of influence. Like, oh, I've sinned against StarClan. The parallels between Tigerclaw going into the cave and what's his name's, Hamlet's dad.

PAZ: Hamlet's dad?

JULIAN: Claudius?

LIZ: Hamlet's stepdad.

JULIAN: His uncle?

LIZ: Hamlet's uncle. I read Hamlet many times.

PAZ: C-something.

LIZ: Yeah. Claudius being like, praying because he did a bad murder and knows he's going to hell. It's the same thing. It's the same.

PAZ: It's the same.

LIZ: Can't believe Shakespeare totally just like cribbed the style from Warrior Cats.

PAZ: And Graypaw is Horatio. It's all there.

LIZ: He is Horatio, right down to the people shipping him with Firepaw.

PAZ: Yeah, exactly. Um, I mean, I guess I can kind of go in chronological order now that we've gone back to Moonstone cave.

JULIAN: I have an important question about Barley. But if we're still-- if we have more on the Moonstone.

PAZ: I guess the one other thing was like Alix's question from last week about Bluestar like planning this was on my mind, when she like, decides to take Firepaw into the cave. I wonder if she was like, hey, Starclan is this who you mean? If she was hoping to get some answers there?

JULIAN: Yeah, he did have like a prophetic dream. So that was cool.

PAZ: Yeah. But yeah, that's the only other thing I had to say about the cave chapter.

JULIAN: My Barley question was just um, does he got balls? What's his soul doing?

PAZ: That's a great question. I wonder if my Cats of the Clan book will give me insight. I don't have it on hand. Um.

JULIAN: Let me pull up the trusty wiki.

PAZ: I feel like barn cats in real life aren't often like neutered or spayed.

LIZ: I guess only if like people do a lot of catch and release, right? Like they do that.

PAZ: Yeah, which obviously they're not doing in the Warriors universe, or all these cats would be fucking snip snip.

JULIAN: [muffled shriek]

LIZ: That would be so terrifying as a warrior cat.

PAZ: I think warrior cats--

JULIAN: I found some very tasty information about Barley on the the wiki.

PAZ: I like Barley.

LIZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: So I couldn't find a way to see if maybe he had had any kits to see if that would tell us his ball status. No kits, um, is gay.

PAZ: What?

LIZ: Wait, what?

JULIAN: He's gay.

PAZ: Wow. Barley, gay king.

JULIAN: His partner is kind of a spoiler, I guess.

PAZ: Oh, I think I remember. I think I remember that.

JULIAN: Yeah.

LIZ: Wow, good for him.

PAZ: I didn't know they were officially partners.

JULIAN: Yeah, no, officially listed as a partner.

PAZ: Oh, fuck yes.

JULIAN: Barley's a gay.

PAZ: StarClan was right.

JULIAN: Gay ally and a gay.

LIZ: And Tigerclaw is homophobic. Of course.

JULIAN: You know what?

PAZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: This whole story is about homophobia.

PAZ: Tigerclaw's like, that little fruit told us to come this way. He's betrayed us.

LIZ: Barley is a type of wheat, or grain.

JULIAN: And that's why Tigerclaw hates--

PAZ: Ravenpaw.

JULIAN: Right.

PAZ: My god, it's all coming together.

LIZ: I knew it.

PAZ: I do remember liking Barley because I think he shows back up in A New Prophecy because they, you know, go places. And he's like, chilling. And I was like, that's a cool cat. And now I know it's because I sensed a fellow in him.

LIZ: I just like his name a lot. That's a good name to have for a cat.

PAZ: It's a great barn cat name.

JULIAN: Oh, great news. Vicki believes that Barley will not go to StarClan when he dies as he lacks the necessary faith. No word about his balls, though. So he might still have them.

LIZ: He's an atheist.

PAZ: Does he go to that--

JULIAN: Kate however, believe that he'll live just on the outskirts of StarClan.

LIZ: Oh, there's some contention.

PAZ: What was that-- I was on the wiki looking at where like cats who don't go to StarClan and don't go to the Place of No Stars go. It was called like the something residence. Let me see if I pasted it.

LIZ: Just another neighborhood? Because that's what it sounds like. Yeah, it's like StarClan is like Los Angeles and the whatever residence is just the outer LA County.

PAZ: It's the ghost residence.

LIZ: Yeah, that's where I live.

JULIAN: Incredible.

PAZ: "The unnamed residence serves as a place for ghost cats, acting as a purgatory of sorts."

LIZ: That's still where I live.

PAZ: The ghost-- no, okay there's another residence. Unnamed residence. "This is a list of cats that currently reside or have resided in an unnamed residence. Cats in this category our cats that have died and been seen as spirits but do not reside in StarClan, The Place of No Stars, the Tribe of Endless Hunting, or as ghost cats."

JULIAN: I love that there are ghost cats.

PAZ: Me too. What?

LIZ: What?

PAZ: There's another gay cat in this place.

LIZ: Oh my god.

PAZ: The gay cat that Liz doesn't know about yet. Unnamed residence is the gay commune of Warriors.

LIZ: You know what, good for them.

JULIAN: Stray cats go to heaven. Gay cats go to unnamed ghost residence.

PAZ: The homophobic cats do go to hell.

LIZ: Confirmed.

JULIAN: Yes.

PAZ: Yeah. Um, well, yeah, I love Barley. Um, it does lead to an extremely funny scene of rats attacking these cats and like, absolutely wrecking them. Like, they killed Bluestar. I was like, what the hell are these rats?

JULIAN: Maybe the rat situation is like, you know, these are like concerted rats. These are like, a lot of rats working in concert for a shared goal, which is to beat the fuck out of the cats.

PAZ: Oh my god, okay.

JULIAN: Like rats will like kill a baby.

PAZ: Will they? What?

LIZ: Probably.

JULIAN: I'm actually basing this off of the plot of the dog movie? Lady and the Tramp, which may not be accurate, now that I think about it.

PAZ: I think maybe that might be inaccurate. Um.

LIZ: Well, I've got a very reliable source and it is Dishonored. And rats will totally eat a cat and a baby. Like all the way to the bones right in front of you. Definitely.

PAZ: "Cats or rats? Rats win in New York hands down." I'm clicking. I want to learn.

JULIAN: This is an educational podcast.

PAZ: This is like Goku vs. Darth Vader. Who will win?

LIZ: Why do we have to pit two queens against each other?

JULIAN: Yeah, this study says that cats are not good predators of rats. The rats actively avoid the cats and the cats only recorded two rat kills in 79 days. That's not a good record.

PAZ: Damn. These cats really need to step it up. Well I guess-- this doesn't say anything about the rats killing the cats. But it does say that cats suck at fighting rats, I guess.

JULIAN: Yeah, I guess that's why we have like terriers for rats.

PAZ: Yeah. This article says that people see fewer rats and assume it's behavior-- it's because the cats have killed them, whereas it's actually due to the rats changing their behavior so the rats will just like leave.

JULIAN: I mean, that's not-- that's like, fine.

PAZ: Yeah, it achieves the same result.

JULIAN: I don't mind if the rats live in the sewers. They're allowed. I don't go down there.

LIZ: This is their city.

PAZ: It is their city. Well, I still think it's very funny that all these rats fuck them up.

JULIAN: It is. it's very good. Bluestar loses a life.

PAZ: She loses a life to these rats.

LIZ: Yeah, just like in Dishonored.

PAZ: Should have just gone on with dogs.

JULIAN: God. I also like, if I were Bluestar, I would not have told Tigerclaw my life count.

PAZ: No. Once again, she's--

JULIAN: I realize that she's very trusting but like, you can't tell him you only have four left. He's counting.

PAZ: That was so suspicious.

LIZ: He's just gonna bring some more rats.

PAZ: Like who is like, hey, like, how like-- what are your weaknesses? Can you tell me them? Can you make a list of them? Not for suspicious reasons. Thanks.

JULIAN: Yeah, deeply sus.

PAZ: Yes. I do also gotta shout out Barley for saving them and being the only one who knows how to kill rats apparently. He jumps in and fucking owns these rats.

LIZ: Yeah, he has--

JULIAN: He does a great job.

LIZ: --the rat eating term?

PAZ: In Dishonored? Yeah.

LIZ: He gets HP from it. Crunch.

PAZ: Oh, I looked down at my notes. I did indeed write "died to rats, dot dot dot... just like Dishonored."

LIZ: It's like in the same brain here. Okay, hold on, speaking of Barley, I googled him and there's on his Facebook page or something, there's just a picture of a regular black and white cat.

PAZ: Oh my gosh. That's his face cast.

LIZ: I love it.

JULIAN: That's him.

LIZ: Perfect part nose.

JULIAN: Are Barley and Chloe related?

PAZ: We have no choice but to stan Barley.

JULIAN: And they have this like horrible, brutal rat fight. And then they go straight to like, fucking horrible, brutal ShadowClan fight.

PAZ: I know.

JULIAN: It's just, it's out of the frying pan that's full of rats into the fire full of cats.

PAZ: That's what they always say.

JULIAN: That's how the saying goes.

PAZ: Yeah, shout out to the action sequences. They are fun. But--

JULIAN: They are fun. They're good to read.

LIZ: Yeah.

PAZ: Yeah, so the next next bit is the fight at ThunderClan cat camp. And it's kind of a bloodbath, huh.

JULIAN: Is it time to talk about war crimes?

PAZ: War crimes and murder. Uh-huh.

JULIAN: Yeah. Like, they go after the kits.

PAZ: Yeah. Julian, I did think about you saying, like, are they stealing the kits, which I still don't remember, cause it was described as Blackfoot, the ShadowClan deputy was like picking them up. I was like, oh, is he gonna whisk them away? But I don't know. We never find out.

We never find out.

LIZ: Also, that's an unfortunate name for a cat to have.

PAZ: Yeah.

LIZ: Yeah, that is-- that already belongs to something. And you should not be using it.

JULIAN: Yeah...

PAZ: British authors not doing their research, I guess. Or...

LIZ: Yeah. Hey, there's eight of you. I know you're all very old, but come on.

JULIAN: Also, I feel like you know, Harper Collins is... I'm sure they have a UK imprint. But like there are also editors in the US. Surely someone should have, uh.

LIZ: Someone out there must know what Google is.

PAZ: Yeah. Hopefully that character dies soon. We don't have to see the name anymore.

LIZ: They use that name so much in this chapter.

PAZ: Yeah.

LIZ: But yeah, back to the kittens, right?

PAZ: Yes.

JULIAN: Yep.

PAZ: A cat does just die also. He kills one of the old cats, cold blood.

JULIAN: Yeah, I'm looking at the Wikipedia page for war crimes.

LIZ: Like in general?

PAZ: Yeah? Do you have a list? Do you have a list of what constitutes a war crime?

JULIAN: Well, so there's a lot of them. But intentionally killing civilians or prisoners is definitely one of them. So I think killing an elder kind of counts.

PAZ: Check that off.

JULIAN: Yep. Destroying civilian property. They did destroy the camp. So that's one. They did not take any hostages. So that doesn't count. I don't know what performing a perfidy is.

PAZ: Me neither.

JULIAN: Oh, it's when you like, lie about... Basically, you're like, oh, I'll make a peace treaty and then you don't.

LIZ: So is that spelled--

PAZ: Mm, I don't think they did that.

JULIAN: P-e-r-f-i-d-y. Perfidy.

LIZ: Not p-u-r-r-f-i-d-y?

JULIAN: [cackles] Damn. We don't see any child soldiers onscreen. At least I don't think so.

PAZ: Are the apprentices child soldiers, though?

JULIAN: Are the apprentices here?

PAZ: They're not...

JULIAN: How old are they?

PAZ: The book says apprentices are more than six moons old.

JULIAN: I mean, you're basically an adult cat.

PAZ: So most of them are probably under a year. Yeah, I guess they're like adolescent, I don't know. Yeah.

LIZ: Teen?

JULIAN: Like, it's not great, but.

PAZ: Yeah, they get away. They get away with that. Not a war crime.

JULIAN: Pillaging? Oh, looting. Um, I mean, they don't take anything. So I don't think they pillage.

LIZ: No. There's not really anything to take this except like food and maybe medicine. There's not a lot of like, property.

PAZ: Yeah, unless they take those kits.

LIZ: Well, that's a person.

JULIAN: Well, that would be-- that would be taking a hostage.

PAZ: Okay, yeah.

JULIAN: Declaring that no quarter will be given, which they did at the gathering. So that was sort of a pre-war war crime.

PAZ: Really talented.

JULIAN: And then it just says "seriously violating the principles of distinction, proportionality, and military necessity." And I don't know what the fuck that means, but I think we can check it off.

PAZ: Yeah, I think they do that.

LIZ: It's quite a count already.

JULIAN: Yeah, they're not doing great.

LIZ: No.

PAZ: Yeah, this book also absolutely does not shy away from like death.

LIZ: Nuh-uh.

PAZ: Like on screen death too.

JULIAN: Onscreen death. Like very brutal onscreen death of like the elderly.

PAZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Right off the jump.

PAZ: Yeah, it's like, very soon after the chapter starts.

LIZ: Yeah, and the part where that one cat is trying to get at the the kits. That's very distressing. Like there is--

PAZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Yeah.

LIZ: Like, whether it's for a hostage or just, you know, straight up child murder. There is definitely like the threat implied in a very effective way.

PAZ: Yeah, I mean, like, good job to the book for making like, a distressing battle scene. Like, because it did. It did. It was like, intense.

JULIAN: Yeah, yeah, I was watching a lot of Warrior Cats AMVs this afternoon. And a lot of the many great animators in the Warriors AMV community have really picked up on the style of the books, which is very bloody.

PAZ: Great, because that's important, essential aspect of the book. It's in the name.

JULIAN: Yep.

LIZ: Yeah, these are not peacetime cats.

JULIAN: No. These are... I am really glad that Yellowfang got to save the kits and redeem herself.

LIZ: Yay.

JULIAN: Good for her.

PAZ: She's so cool.

LIZ: She's the best.

JULIAN: She's so cool.

PAZ: Old, like badass lady. And then Bluestar is like, you're so cool, Yellowfang, haha, will you join my clan?

LIZ: What if we were both old lady cats and I asked you to join my clan? Haha, just kidding, unless.

PAZ: You should make an edit for that. Post to Twitter. I'm sad we don't get to see her fight on screen.

LIZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Yeah, I would have liked that.

LIZ: It's a good moment to have it. We're almost at the end of-- we're like at the last quarter of the book?

PAZ: We're very-- more than a quarter.

LIZ: I don't know, I switch between like--

PAZ: I think we're about like 70% done, 75% done.

JULIAN: Let me see. We're 69.3% done.

PAZ: Oh nice, nice.

LIZ: Nice, nice.

PAZ: I did write down, "all these cats are dying. Just go live inside, idiots." Which, I'm like reading these horrible battle scenes. And I'm like, if you were just kittypets, you wouldn't have to deal with any of this shit. No rats. No cat murder.

JULIAN: It's true. No one is gonna tear your throat out if you just live here.

LIZ: Just Temptations and cushions.

JULIAN: If you live in my house on the heated bed I bought.

PAZ: I was absolutely right about the Lionheart death flag.

LIZ: Uh-huh.

PAZ: Fucking typed it. I was like, wow, I called it.

LIZ: What was it that Graypaw said before they left, like I will always remember what you taught me.

PAZ: Yeah, it's like, exactly. I was like, this is a little...

JULIAN: Like, oh, good job, Graypaw. You doomed him.

LIZ: Just start--

PAZ: I wonder-- Oh, go ahead.

LIZ: No, just start saying shit like that every time you say bye to anyone. Like I will always [dissolving into laughter] remember you.

PAZ: Oh no.

JULIAN: You just never thank your mentor. That way he'll never die.

PAZ: Yeah, I do wonder if Tigerclaw-- I assume Tigerclaw murdered him as well. Or rather than it being a happy accident, but I don't know.

JULIAN: I also assume that. I don't think there's any way that, given Tigerclaw's significant looks at Ravenpaw, that Lionhart died of ShadowClan-related causes.

PAZ: Well, I assume that significant looks are just still like Redtail-related like, don't give out my secret, but it would really suck for Tavenpaw if he had to watch this, like, shitty guy kill another person.

JULIAN: He has so many traumas.

PAZ: Poor Ravenpaw.

LIZ: Ravenpaw's just Hamlet but like without any... He's not angry. He's just sad.

JULIAN: Well, he's like, he's Hamlet. But he also like he doesn't have any of the doubt.

LIZ: No.

PAZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: He just saw it happen.

PAZ: You know that video of the guy yelling at the cat in the store, like I'm gonna get you out of there? That's me with Ravenpaw.

LIZ: Ravenpaw, come into my house. [everyone laughing]

JULIAN: Yeah.

LIZ: Get a Temptations every other day. I think that's-- I don't know what's healthy to give cats. Like what's the rate of Temptations?

PAZ: Probably not too many.

JULIAN: I feel like you can get them like a treat a day.

LIZ: Yeah.

PAZ: One treat.

LIZ: You'll get a Temptations every day.

JULIAN: I don't know, though, cause last time we went to the vet, the vet said we had to feed Chickpea less, so my calibration may be off.

PAZ: Tigerclaw's really setting Ravenpaw up to take the fall.

LIZ: Mm-hmm.

PAZ: And I don't know why anyone would believe him because that's like a young adult. That's like a-- that's like if you were pointing at like a high school senior and being like, they committed these war crimes, not me.

LIZ: They killed the vice president and the other vice president.

PAZ: And now that I'm vice president, that means nothing. It was this teenager.

JULIAN: Well, it's also a teen that he's responsible for. Like if your apprentice grows up and becomes like a conniving little shit, isn't that partly your fault? Like, if you're so mean to your apprentice that he runs into the welcoming arms of ShadowClan, which he didn't, but like if he had.

PAZ: Yeah, I wouldn't blame him.

JULIAN: You know, I think I think it's a little bit on you.

PAZ: Yeah. Where is the accountability in like this mentorship program?

LIZ: He's not even--

JULIAN: The unpaid internship.

LIZ: Ravenpaw's not even that conn-- he's just like, terrified so he doesn't talk to anybody.

JULIAN: Yeah. But like, Tigerclaw is making him out to be this like, big sneaky, you know,basically being like, all these things that I did, this person that I am, that's Ravenpaw.

PAZ: The fact that he already has like lackeys, is like so much. Tigerclaw does. But it seems like he's like lying to them versus them knowing he's trying to do a weird takeover.

JULIAN: Yeah, I mean, I think Longtail at least, it was like, easily persuaded to to believe in like, this secret outside conspiracy because he was the one who attacked Firepaw at the beginning.

PAZ: Yeah. Didn't we read the other day that Longtail is Ravenpaw's like, sibling?

JULIAN: Oh, you're right.

LIZ: That sucks.

JULIAN: I think he's his half-sibling. That sucks.

LIZ: Aww, Ravenpaw.

PAZ: Man.

LIZ: He's getting like a really raw deal.

PAZ: He really is. If the book was from his perspective, it would be so sad.

LIZ: My sibling hates me enough to conspire against me. Or at least believe that I'm a terrible murderer.

JULIAN: Poor little guy.

LIZ: My mentor hates my guts and also is trying to frame me for murder.

PAZ: Yeah, and it takes Firepaw so long to figure out what's happening.

LIZ: Oh my god.

JULIAN: It has to be explicitly spelled out for him.

PAZ: Yeah, literally.

JULIAN: Like, he doesn't figure shit out.

PAZ: Yeah, Ravenpaw just says something and then he overhears it.

LIZ: Firepaw is so very dumb.

PAZ: It's so funny too, because Yellowfang has like a section where she's praising him for being clever. And I'm like, Yellowfang, he's so stupid. There's nothing going on upstairs.

LIZ: It's air. It's just fluff.

JULIAN: Is Firepaw a himbo? The greatest thread.

LIZ: Since we're talking about Ravenpaw too, the part where later on Bluestar asks him to go train with her alone, where no one's gonna bother them. And he's like, I should tell her about Ravenpaw and Tigerclaw. And he's like I should tell her. I should tell her, and he just forgets.

JULIAN: He was too overwhelmed by her girl boss, uh. Her girlboss nature.

LIZ: It's very overwhelming, true.

JULIAN: I do think like Tigerclaw appointing bodyguards to-- "bodyguards," quote unquote, to like, prevent anyone from ratting on him, was a very savvy move, even though it's like patently evil. It was smart.

PAZ: He's a decent conniving villain for a kids' book in which the protagonist is very stupid and doesn't realize what's going on.

LIZ: And just forgets key points.

PAZ: He has a little cat brain. How's he supposed to remember all that?

LIZ: His friend's gonna die! Okay, but yeah, the guard thing is like very smart. Feels really ominous too because like there's an extra layer of removal of Bluestar from like everyone else.

PAZ: Yeah, he's like already like, taking over like public power by, like putting her behind a wall, essentially.

LIZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Security theater baby.

PAZ: Yeah, there's also like another like thread of-- I mean, like the continuing thread of intrigue with like what happened with Yellowfang and ShadowClan because she kind of drops more like, oh, everything was fine till Brokenstar was leader. So that's also a mystery we have going on.

LIZ: Um, yeah, there's a cute section when she's talking about like what ShadowClan used to be like. And I think she and Firepaw are like joking about like, who replaced her as the medicine cat, and she's like, oh, not Runningnose.

PAZ: Yeah, like, he can't even cure his own cold. It's cute.

LIZ: Hey, maybe it's allergies. Don't be mean. Cats get allergies.

PAZ: Cats also get chronic infections.

LIZ: That's what Oliver has, right?

JULIAN: Especially if they live in the outdoors and won't visit the vet.

PAZ: Yeah.

LIZ: Like, wow, a whole bunch of nonvaccinated, fighting cats on the brink of starvation all the time feel sick. No shit.

JULIAN: It's okay though. They have berries.

PAZ: Why are they doing that? Go inside.

JULIAN: I do have a-- when Darkstripe tells Firepaw that he can't go roll in the garlic, which is just really funny as a premise. But also, Firepaw like mutters under his breath, "Dirtstripe," which is such a teen thing to do.

PAZ: Got them.

LIZ: Owned, wow.

JULIAN: It's such like a shitty little teen move. It's really fun.

PAZ: It's very funny.

LIZ: You're not my real dad, Darkstripe. I will roll in the garlic if I want to. God.

PAZ: Do we think rolling in garlic has any medical backing, or?

LIZ: Smelly.

PAZ: Cause it's very funny.

LIZ: Smelly cat.

JULIAN: So garlic is-- like I don't know about the greens of it, but like garlic bulbs are antibacterial, like slightly.

PAZ: Oh, okay.

JULIAN: Which is why, like if you have a throat infection, sometimes like doing like a garlic rinse can be sort of helpful.

PAZ: Good to know.

JULIAN: Not a doctor, not a doctor. But yeah, I think that's where they're getting that.

LIZ: Just like the picture of like this. Like Firepaw at this point is like, not an adult but like the kind of teen cat that's all like gangly, I bet.

PAZ: Yeah.

LIZ: And just picturing that like having a fun time in some garlic is so good to me.

PAZ: I do love it. [inaudible] a good picture of these little cats doing stuff.

LIZ: He's a garlic boy.

JULIAN: And then he overhears a conspiracy.

PAZ: Yeah, very very classic of the villains to just openly talk about their evil moves.

JULIAN: Well, they said no one could leave so I'm sure it'll be fine.

PAZ: Yeah. I mean, I don't-- I think, I mean that covers everything.

JULIAN: I have just, uh, "that'll go well" about him going to talk to Bluestar.

PAZ: Yeah, Firepaw, I think you might also get blamed.

LIZ: God.

JULIAN: Yeah, all is not well in the kingdom of ThunderClan.

PAZ: No.

LIZ: I'm still just a little like, aghast that he does, he just forgets. I know she's the most amazing girl boss you've ever seen. But oh my god.

PAZ: It's fine. He's--

JULIAN: He's just a stupid little boy.

LIZ: I know. He's orange too. He's a little orange cat, you know.

PAZ: Yeah, he's gonna go work on it now. It'll be fine.

LIZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Bless him.

PAZ: Should we move on?

LIZ: Yes.

PAZ: Maybe get some levity after the war crimes chapter.

LIZ: So we've returned to wikiHow, a wonderful font of knowledge and activity. And this article is called "How to host a Warrior Cats themed birthday party." Who's birthday is coming up in June so, a little...

PAZ: Mine's in August.

JULIAN: Mine's in July. Lotta summer babies here.

LIZ: Well, we got time to prep then.

JULIAN: Yeah.

PAZ: Yeah. I want to note that this was last updated June 20, 2020. There are 26 co-authors.

LIZ: Oh my god.

PAZ: And 42,000 views. So you know this is a good, good peer-reviewed article.

LIZ: Yeah, let me give you the blurb that will entice everyone in. "Do you sleep, dream, smell, and eat Warriors? Do you want to have a party sleepover for your birthday based on the books? Well, this guide to a snappy party is a great idea." It's also available to download as a PDF just so you know, in case you need it.

JULIAN: Oh good, so you can print it out.

PAZ: Yeah, and check it off.

LIZ: And you know, in the wikiHow to set up their beautiful, beautiful illustrations that-- I don't know, is it legal for us to post wikiHow images?

PAZ: I don't know.

JULIAN: Yeah, they're public domain.

PAZ: I mean, they're all traced, so really, how can they get on our case?

JULIAN: I'm really pretty sure they're Creative Commons. I think we're good.

LIZ: Yeah. Okay, so let's plan. "One, make sure your parents agree." So, let's go check.

[laughter]

PAZ: Uh....

JULIAN: Wait, I need to call my dad. Why does-- I just want to describe to our listeners, um, the parent in this image has the largest nose I have ever seen.

PAZ: You could land the plane on that.

JULIAN: It's like, you know the phrase, a ski jump nose. This is a ski jump.

LIZ: Because we're seeing the back of his head so it's the perspective, that's all. This is a front nose on--

JULIAN: It looks like a Hershey's Kiss is stuck on his face.

LIZ: This young man asking his parent for permission looks very smug, too, so I think he got a yes on that. "Step two, start planning early."

JULIAN: Oh, we're doing step two.

PAZ: Well, we are, because we're all summer birthdays.

LIZ: There's a picture of a person looking very determined, with a little three mouth. And that's because this is about cats. "Invite a couple of people to the party. See if they like the idea of having a Warrior Cats theme." Okay, well, I don't know whose birthday we're actually celebrating, so we're all invited in a circle.

JULIAN: There we go.

PAZ: Yeah.

LIZ: You guys okay with the theme?

PAZ: I love it.

JULIAN: Yes.

LIZ: Wonderful, wonderful. Okay, we're getting to the meaty part of things. "Part two: decorations." Now to just give you a word picture of what's going on, there's a sort of cushion bench chair thing, covered in sticks and leaves. The floor is also covered in leaves. The wallpaper has grass on it. There are paw prints on the wallpaper and the floor. There is a separate panel of just a spider web, with a spider in it. And there's another panel of some-- seaweed?

PAZ: It's vines.

LIZ: Vines.

JULIAN: The green silk or fabric.

LIZ: Does anyone else want to have a have a stab at reading this? It's very good.

JULIAN: Sure. "First, decorate. Before your guests arrive, decorate your houses with posters, paw prints, and anything else that will complement the theme. If you have any party games, make sure you have anything you need for those games. Instead of decorating the whole room, make a fort and say it's the den, and fill the blanket draped chairs with the items suggested. To make it even more forest like, you could use camouflage blankets and cover them with sticks and leaves, if strong enough."

I'm not sure if that's the sticks, or the blanket. "Take out spider webs from Halloween and decorate a few corners with the spider webs. Cover doorways with green silk or fabric, and cut some of the fabric into slivers, making a vine-themed door entranceway."

LIZ: Finally a use for my green silk.

JULIAN: I'm just, if I were an adult and my kid is like, I want to have a Warriors-themed birthday party, I'd be like, Oh, sweet. That sounds fun. And then they brought a bunch of sticks and leaves into my house, I would not be thrilled.

PAZ: Yeah, it doesn't specify like fake sticks and leaves. I think it just means you're, like, go out into your garden.

LIZ: That's authentic to the books. You have to.

JULIAN: It is.

LIZ: This also sounds like something a kid would absolutely do.

PAZ: Absolutely.

JULIAN: Oh, step two. "Make each room a den." They have suggestions for each of the rooms. How many rooms do they think your house has, cause this is a lot. They have a kit's room with pillows and stuffed animals, and spiderwebs scrunched into soft play balls, which apparently is a thing that kits play with.

LIZ: Aw.

JULIAN: A warriors den, a leaders den for the largest, least occupied room. An apprentice den, "which can be made just like the warriors den, but larger, and less comfortable." [laughter]

"Make the medicine cat's den. Outside, in the kitchen, or by a window would be the best place, because there are plants you can use to heal. For the comfort of the person who volunteers to be the medicine cat, place down multiple blankets on top of one another, to get that carpet effect, just like inside. Use a brown or blue tarp to make a ceiling, and add cozy green spiderweb beds, and the best pillows you got. Offer spoons, forks, sticks, and ground-like bowls to be able to make the treatments. To ensure your medicine cat is comfy and not lonely, ask a friend to be the apprentice of the medicine cat." Yeah, it would suck to be the medicine cat.

PAZ: So is everyone separating into their room and not interacting? Is this how the birthday party goes?

JULIAN: They have instructions for making the High Rock, and a fresh kill pile. Um.

LIZ: We should--

JULIAN: And then we get to games.

LIZ: We should describe the fresh kill pile.

PAZ: It's very good.

JULIAN: Oh yeah, you're right, I'm sorry.

LIZ: It is a cardboard tree stump drawn pretty well and also shaded, and some green pillows surrounding it, and a bunch of stuffed animals. There is a panda, a teddy bear, a lion, some sort of pink horse thing, and a monkey. You know, regular parts of a cat diet.

PAZ: And the final step in the decoration part is, "decorate the forest, or, quote, 'forest'. Your outside or quote, 'forest' can be a room decorated with cardboard cutouts of trees, spiderwebs, and badger holes. Under furniture you can place a skunk, or borrowed stuffed animal, green moss, or a fake river." I think you should just use the actual forest.

JULIAN: Yeah.

LIZ: What if we don't have a forest? What if you live in, say, just shot in the dark here, LA County, where--

PAZ: Don't.

LIZ: Okay.

PAZ: Problem solved.

LIZ: Everyone's telling me that lately.

JULIAN: Just move.

LIZ: [claps] All right, part three.

JULIAN: Part three is games, which is really important.

LIZ: One for the gamers here.

PAZ: Okay, "step one, welcome each guest, maybe with a dip of your head or a whisper of 'Welcome to the home of the clans.'"

JULIAN: The next picture. [dissolving into shriek-laughter]

PAZ: The art for this is extremely good as well. So we have-- it's featuring that beautiful green silk vine curtain from before. And in front of it is a girl, in like-- doing that like butler pose, where it's like, come in, sir. Except she's wearing a black t-shirt, and nothing else except a black bow tie and a cat ears headband with cat face paint.

LIZ: She also has these um, these side bangs that are very like 2010-specific. Maybe earlier.

JULIAN: I was specifically losing my shit over the next picture, for "start with some roleplay."

LIZ: This is our new header image.

JULIAN: Which features some incredibly drawn visitors who have attended this party, all wearing all black, all wearing those same drawn on whiskers. There's some really interesting things happening with their faces. And the girl in the back is on all fours.

LIZ: She's doing it right.

JULIAN: She is, she's--

PAZ: Dedicated to her role.

JULIAN: "Once everyone has arrived, why not pretend to be warrior cats?"

Why not?

"Everyone could be one RP character-- roleplay-- and one real warrior. If you have the time, you could make name badges." So you have the time to spray paint spider webs green to make moss, but you couldn't make name badges? So everyone can remember who Pinestar is?

PAZ: You hit the deadline.

LIZ: Is that a soap? It sounds like soap.

PAZ: It really does. Moving on to step three of games, "have a hunting party. People can hide stuffed animals while others try to find a stuffed animal with a number they were assigned to written on a card around their neck."

JULIAN: I like the next one a lot.

PAZ: Yeah, we can just move on to four.

LIZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Sorry, the art for number three for having a hunting party is very good. It's a child with a cat hat, just really smirking.

LIZ: At a little giraffe stuffed animal.

JULIAN: But game number four, "have a twisted version of egg toss."

PAZ: Welcome to my twisted mind.

JULIAN: "Have everyone pair up and give each pair a spoon. Fill water balloons up with dyed water." Nothing to do with cats.

PAZ: That's so twisted.

LIZ: What's the catness?

PAZ: Uh, you know. Self-explanatory.

JULIAN: You know, cats.

PAZ: Number five, "come up with a collect a resource game. In this game, each den will be removed of its items and hidden among the forest. Teams assigned to each den must collect the items and amount wanted. Give them a checklist to cross off items safely brought back to the den. The first to bring back and arrange the interior like before everything was pooled will get prized with an extra piece of fresh kill and a new piece of bedding from leftover pieces not collected."

LIZ: The image for this is--

JULIAN: My favorite part of a birthday party, resource management.

PAZ: Yeah.

LIZ: Can we--

JULIAN: Sorry Liz, please describe the image.

LIZ: Yeah, it is a picture of four people. There is a just a camping tent and two of the black jumpsuited cat headband ear wearing people are sneaking into it, while two other people in just shorts and shirts, holding a giant caterpillar and different colored hats of of cat like description are walking away totally unaware. I think this is a war crime. This is looting, I think.

JULIAN: Oh, you're right, this is looting. This is pillaging.

LIZ: War crime. Number five, commit some war crimes.

PAZ: Yeah. Gotta be accurate. Number six, "play pin the tail on the warrior. Select a cat from one of the books and make a large cardboard cutout of this cat, and make its tail separately. Put a pin or tack on it to make it stick to the back of the cat." Now which cat do we want to do this to?

LIZ: Longtail. Obviously.

PAZ: Haha, No-tail. [laughter] Got 'em.

JULIAN: How long until Firestar-- sorry, Firepaw does that?

LIZ: In the heat of battle, haha, No-tail.

PAZ: Number seven, "do some more evening activities. Once you've eaten, maybe you could play some Warrior Cat games with your friends on the Internet. In the evening, have a mini battle– doesn't have to last long– and then a gathering, if your party is on a full moon. Lucky you. Otherwise, make an exception just for the party." Well, there are many Warrior Cats games to play with your friends on the internet. So great suggestion.

LIZ: Start a podcast. That's a game, basically.

JULIAN: There you go. That's a game. That's a game that keeps on giving.

PAZ: Number eight, "sleep over, if that's part of the plan. Not all birthday parties need to be sleepovers, but they can be lots of fun. In the morning, depending on the time you wake up, you could play some party games or read books and have breakfast." This does picture people sleeping outside in a tent. Should we move on to part four?

LIZ: Yeah.

JULIAN: Yes.

PAZ: Food.

LIZ: Okay, so step one of food is "make dinner Warrior Cats themed too. When it's time for dinner, call it fresh kill instead, and ask everyone what they would like. Obviously don't really serve mice at the table. Think of something everyone would enjoy, maybe something fresh, like a pizza you can have delivered to your house." So, this is the--

PAZ: Same thing.

LIZ: The image is the previous fresh kill image from before, with all the stuffed animals, but, um, the children are sitting and having a great time with pizza, just chomping down. Makes me, you know, makes me think we should do this.

PAZ: They have more suggestions for food in step two.

LIZ: Okay, "provide lots of meaty foods. Food is fresh kill warriors, so you must get something close to meats, Think, think, think. Have meat skewers, steak, meatballs, pepperoni, salami, and hamburgers. Anything with tasty meat will do. If you have a vegetarian, then offer veggie patties, cheese, and anything that sticks to the theme."

PAZ: Wait, why does cheese stick to the theme?

JULIAN: How does cheese...

LIZ: Wait.

JULIAN: You know. Fresh killed cheese.

PAZ: I mean my cat right now is extremely into eating cheese, so I guess...

LIZ: Yeah, see, it's accurate. The image for this is just some food. There are kebabs. You know, like cats enjoy. Just like a whole steak, you know, like children should have. A very smooth sliced hot dog, and just a burger. Just a burger with the cheese on entirely different levels of the burger, which is new to me. Like there's multiple cheese. Okay.

JULIAN: My favorite image is--

LIZ: In three.

JULIAN: Step 3, the birthday cake.

LIZ: Yes. "Get a birthday cake. The best birthday cake can have something printed on it, such as the cover of your favorite book from the Warriors series, or a map of the territory. Some local businesses in your city may offer custom cakes. Even better as some may even be able to design a 3D landscape." That is not what's on this cake that they've shown us and--

PAZ: It's a beautiful cake. It's so good.

LIZ: It's so much better. Yeah, it's a round yellow cake with just a little-- like just a huge cat face on top of it, and a candle. It's very happy looking. And then there's like little black and white cat silhouettes like around it.

PAZ: I want this to be my cake.

LIZ: It could be.

PAZ: It's so good.

JULIAN: It's so good.

PAZ: The face on top is so good.

LIZ: Beautiful. What flavor do you think it is?

PAZ: Um, red velvet because it's red inside like fresh kill.

LIZ: Got it.

JULIAN: Oh, we don't have to go through the whole Q&A but the first one is I think very important. Um, "what do I have for food if I have a vegan friend?" And the answer is, "provide berries and greens for them to eat. Warrior cats use them for medicinal purposes, but you can pretend they are an elder or a sick cat."

PAZ: Oh my god.

JULIAN: If you're vegan, you're old or sick. "You can also just ask your vegan friend what they like to eat and provide that." Yeah, I would go with that one, animebread.

LIZ: That's exactly the answer you'd--

JULIAN: wikiHow user anime bread.

PAZ: Here's another question, "how do I not be embarrassed about my Warrior Cat party?"

LIZ: Aw.

JULIAN: Aw.

PAZ: "It's a decision you make just not to care what others think. Of course, if you're selective about who you invite, you'll be less embarrassed. Invite friends who will enjoy this kind of party." If your friends have a problem with your Warrior Cat party, then they're fake. They're fake friends.

LIZ: Okay, these questions are really good. I have one more. "What if my friends make up unreal Warrior Cat names such as Fluffyhead?" This is a community answer. "Just tell them that it makes no sense, or provide everyone with a name badge at the start of the party using names you've chosen. Of course it's important that everyone have a good time, so it's fine to loosen the rules a little bit for your friends."

JULIAN: God.

PAZ: Isn't there a canonical cat Fuzzy-- like Fuzzypelt?

LIZ: Yeah, that's--

JULIAN: There is, yeah.

PAZ: I would say Fluffyhead is accurate.

LIZ: Yeah, he's like Ravenpaw's dad. That's like an immediate connection.

PAZ: I think Fluffyhead is a perfect name, and if you come to my Warrior Cat party, you can have that name.

LIZ: Oh, there's some tips and warnings.

JULIAN: Oh good.

LIZ: The best one from tips to me is "ask older siblings to be rouges." Not rogues, rouges, "who hate the Clans. Maybe they could get their friends to help making a rouge group."

JULIAN: You know what I love about a birthday party, built in bullying.

LIZ: For your older siblings specifically.

JULIAN: The warning about, "make sure everyone is comfortable with the battles, or anything else you may be doing," and then "make sure nobody gets hurt."

LIZ: Very important.

PAZ: That's good advice all around.

LIZ: Yeah, So we've got three months till any birthdays happen. Better get planning. I wanna see those cardboard cutouts.

JULIAN: We got time to plan.

LIZ: Just ready.

PAZ: I'm going to give this five stars.

JULIAN: Do we each have to provide our own?

LIZ: Communal effort, you know. They have the fresh kill pile, we have the freshly made and painted cardboard scenery pile. This made me want pizza. That one person in the corner on the right, eating that pizza at the Warrior Cats party is just having the best time I think.

PAZ: Yeah, I could go for some pizza too.

JULIAN: Well, is that it for us?

PAZ: Yeah, I mean, we covered the war crimes and we covered the party, and I think that's all. So, thanks everyone for joining us again this week. May StarClan light your path. [outro music begins] Bye.

LIZ: Bye.

JULIAN: Bye.

[outro music ends]

PAZ: I'm gonna post some little Barley art. Very handsome.

LIZ: Love to see some Barley. Oh, he's a little cow.

PAZ: Black and white cat.

JULIAN: Aw, he's just a little guy.

PAZ: He is a little cow.

LIZ: I love that. Is this official?

PAZ: Uh, no, this is Warrior-- he has official art but it's the weird manga art style that I--

LIZ: He deserves better than that.

PAZ: His pants.

LIZ: Oh my god, pants.

PAZ: Anyway, back to the rats.

JULIAN: Um, yeah, the rats, I guess it's like a sort of...

LIZ: Wait, I'm listening and I can't. It's gone. Sorry, Julian, Julian.

#into the wild ep #transcript #ep 04 #purr-fidy

1 note · View note

sparky-is-spiders · 4 years

Text

Evil Rusty AU! (OR: That One Time When Firestar Tried to Conquer the Whole Dang Forest)

So remember the giant text wall I made that accidentally lavished Hollyleaf with love and praise? Well it’s time for another one!

So I was trying to come up with AU ideas and then I thought about that time Bluestar got really pissy with Rusty ‘cause he was like “well why don’t you guys all share???” and I realized that Bluestar didn’t really make any good points about the four clans being seperate and also constantly fighting and so I realized: huh, what if Rusty wasn’t convinced by angry shouting about territory?

This AU will be called the Evil Firestar AU, or the EFAU for short. It works with the idea that Firestar is more manipulative than his canon counterpart. They share the same desire to protect and help all cats, sure, but while canon!Firestar fit his ideals to match those of the Warrior Clans, EFAU!Firestar has different ideals, partially from his time as a kittypet where everybody could pretty much visit everybody else and eat everyone else’s food (provided that they didn’t go in the city) and partially because Bluestar doesn’t manage to convince him about that whole “sharing is bad” thing. EFAU!Firestar likes to think of himself as lawful good, and he does have good intentions, but he’s manipulative and has the kind of ambition that can fog up a moral compass.

So, there’ll be two different outcomes, depending on how shady Firestar is willing to get: Firestar wins and Firestar loses. But both have the same basic starting point and they only diverge at around Forest of Secrets. Whether he fails or succeeds is up to whether or not he realizes and confronts his manipulative behavior or willingly sinks further into it.

I’ll be covering the first three books here. The next post will (probably) be about books 4-6 and cover the Firestar loses timeline.

So, without further ado, let’s begin!

Into the WIld: Things go pretty much the same way the first three books go. For the most part, anyway. The first book does start off a little bit different. It is told from Spottedleaf’s perspective. She has a dream of a fire surrounding fourtrees. Shadowy monsters lurk outside the fire, but Spottedleaf sees that they dare not cross it, and that the clan cats don’t seem to be scared of the fire itself. She interprets this as “Fire will save the clans” or something and goes to talk to Bluestar, who’s like “yeah, seems legit”.

Later, Bluestar sees Rusty and is like “He looks like fire if you squint” and so she has Graypaw attack him. That chapter goes about the same, only when Rusty says “Why don’t you guys share?” Bluestar doesn’t convince him. He just... doesn’t see what the problem of merging clans would be. Surely they wouldn’t have to fight for survival every day if they were all one entity that wasn’t getting into constant border fights? But he knows better than to argue with her. Maybe she has a point that he just, didn’t see???

When he hears about how Redtail died in a battle with RiverClan he doubts Bluestar a little bit more. This respected, high-rnaking warrior was killed over a pile of rocks??? Seriously???? It’s a little ridiculous.

He’s also surprised by how small ThunderClan’s population is. The camp is easily big enough for several dozen cats, and there are only around ten? He asks Lionheart about it later, and Lionheart tells him about how ThunderClan has fallen on hard times, and how they lost cats in battles with the other clans and whatnot. Fireheart thinks “Well maybe if you guys unified instead of constantly FIGHTING. This wouldn’t be a problem!” But he holds his tongue. These clan cats are too set in their ways. They need to be convinced, and a measly little apprentice can’t do that. But maybe a deputy, like Lionheart, could...

When he’s introduced to the idea of StarClan, it gets even worse. These cats have the same ancestors who they worship in the same way. Why are they seperate? What is the difference between the four clans?

He spends some time with the elders. He brings them food and cleans their bedding and listens to their stories. He wants to learn about the clans. Their similarities, their differences. He wants them to tell him that Bluestar was right and give good reasons as to why. But they don’t tell him anything that manages to change his mind. In fact, their stories of the four clans inadvertently convince him of his own opinion even more: the clans are the same, and this seperation only harms them.

He trains and befriends Graystripe and Ravenpaw and everything is going well. And then he meets Yellowfang.

He attacks her at first, only to realize that she’s a starving old lady and not a threat at all. He brings her food and barrages her with questions. She doesn’t tell him much, except that she’s from ShadowClan. This makes Firepaw ask even more questions. It’s his first encounter with a cat from another clan and he is so curious.

Although taking care of Yellowfang is his punishment for feeding an enemy warrior and eating before bringing food back to his clanmates, he enjoys her company. She reminds him a little of the elders in ThunderClan, although he’s careful not to tell her that. Firepaw also sees that cats from ShadowClan can be just like cats from ThunderClan, and it feeds his clan unification idea.

After that, things go the way they do in the books. ShadowClan attacks, Ravenpaw tells Firepaw and Graypaw the truth about Tigerclaw, Operation: Recue Ravenpaw goes off without a hitch, the kits are stolen, and Brokenstar is defeated.

Seeing the differences between Brokenstar and Bluestar gives Firepaw a newfound respect for Bluestar, but it doesn’t stop him from holding onto his idea for clan unification, especially when he sees the ShadowClan cats working so well with the ThunderClan cats to drive off Brokenstar.

Firepaw and Graypaw become Fireheart and Graystripe. On the night of the vigil, a plan forms in Fireheart’s mind. It isn’t terribly detailed, and for now he views it as a wishful fantasy rather than as an actual possibility, but the seeds have been planted.

A young ex-kittypet turned warrior can’t convince four whole clans to change their entire way of life, but with the right moves, maybe a leader could.

Fireheart vows to himself, then and there, that he willbecome Fireheart, and he will unite the clans as one under his rule.

Fire and Ice: This book stays mostly the same. Fireheart and Graystripe go and collect WindClan. Fireheart befriends Onewhisker, sure, but he also chats with as many WindClan cats as possible. His reasoning for this is threefold (although he’s only really aware of the first two reasons):

1. He needs allies for his plan.

2. He is DEATHLY curious about WindClan. He wants to know as much as possible about all the clans and this is the perfect opportunity to learn about WindClan’s traditions and cultures and beliefs. He’s dissappointed to learn how similar WindClan is to ThunderClan. He tells himself that it’s just because he wanted to learn something cool and new instead of just realizing that WindClan was just another ThunderClan but, like, fast, but...

3. A small part of Fireheart really, really wants to believe that the clans have such different cultures that they could never combine. He knows that his plan will be difficult. That he might lose. That he might have to make sacrifices, or even sacrifice other cats (he finds that particular idea disgusting, but if he has no other choice, if he has no other way to save the four clans... he hopes it doesn’t come to that). Fireheart also respects Bluestar, likes Bluestar. She’s a good leader, noble and brave. He’s not sure that he could ever be that good at leading a single clan, let alone ThunderClan. If WindClan isn’t like ThunderClan, if the two are so dissimilar that they could never be combined, then he doesn’t have to go through with the plan. He could just let things be. Become a regular ThunderClan warrior, maybe take a mate, maybe have kits, when he’s older.

When RiverClan attacks them on the way back, Fireheart is confused and angry. They weren’t invading or hunting on RiverClan land, they were just taking WindClan home. Whiteclaw’s death just makes it worse. Cats were injured, a cat died, and because what? Because of stupid borders? Because of rules that weren’t being violated and wouldn’t even be neccessary if the clans teamed up???? It’s ridiculous!

But he does get a new apprentice. This is excellent news. He can perhaps teach her that the clans would be better as one than as four. Plus, becoming a mentor is a sign that Bluestar likes and respects him. It’s also a requirement for a deputy. He needs this if he ever wants to put his plan into motion. It’s vital.

He tries to train her as best he can, showing her around the territory and teaching her how to hunt and fight. Cinderpaw is eager to learn and picks up skills quickly. He talks to her about the other clans sometimes, telling her as much as he can get away with. He talks about how they’re “just like us, really” and how “we worship the same ancestors and go to the same place when we die” and Cinderpaw starts to feel and show more empathy for the other clans. He’s winning her over.

And then Graystripe meets Silverstream.

Fireheart doesn’t approve of their relationship, sure. But Graystripe is his friend, and Silverstream seems nice enough. He knows what would happen if they were discovered and that is what angers him. These two cats just want to be together, but because the clans HaVE tO Be SEpErATe they could both be punished for it. It’s another arguement in favor of clan unification. No such thing as divided loyalties if there aren’t any divides.

Fireheart doesn’t want his friend to get in trouble, but he doesn’t want to stop him, either. He sees this for what it could be: an opportunity. Their relationship forges a connection between RiverClan and ThunderClan. Silverstream is the daughter of Crookedstar, so of course she has influence in RiverClan. If they have any kits, those kits could be the bridge to unite ThunderClan with RiverClan.

And so he covers for Graystripe. He trains Brakenpaw for him, makes excuses for Graystripe’s absence, even helps him sneak out of camp. He briefly speaks with Silverstream, telling her that he doesn’t want them to get in trouble, so even though he doesn’t 100% support their relationship, he’ll do his best to help them. He then proceeds to ask her 50 billion questions about RiverClan culture. Silverstream and Graystripe are both a little confused. Silverstream is also annoyed and a little worried. She isn’t sure whether or not Fireheart is aware of his manipulative tendancies, but either way she doesn’t like them, even though she has no clue what (if anything) his larger goal is here. Graystripe has no idea what the problem is. Fireheart is his best friend! He’s just being a supportive wingman. Surely.

Cinderheart gets into her accident. It upsets Fireheart greatly. He did genuinly care about her and seeing her so hurt makes him feel awful. He should’ve done more to stop her from going...

Fireheart is meeting with Princess. He likes talking to her about his issues, and a little bit about his plan. He knows that she’s the only cat who will really listen to him and agree with them. It’s his only respite from the stress of covering for Graystripe, dealing with one apprentice who isn’t even his and coping with the injury of his own, and worrying about how to tell Bluestar about Tigerclaw’s guilt.

Sandpaw is kinda into him and Fireheart has no freakin’ clue.

When Princess tells Fireheart that Cinderheart’s accident might have been a trap laid by Tigerclaw and intended for Bluestar, Fireheart is furious. She has to talk him down from immediately running after Tigerclaw to kill him. Fireheart asks what he should do about this once he’s calmed down, and Princess tells him to keep an eye on Tigerclaw. He can’t bring this up to Bluestar without proof, and most of what he has is circumstantial and not enough to prove that Tigerclaw is a criminal (Ravenpaw saw him murder Redtail, sure, but everybody believes that Ravenpaw is dead and telling somebody that ‘my friend who is totally dead now btw said that the highly respected deputy that everybody who isn’t me and my friend trusts killed that guy who was deputy way back when. He was the only witness.’ It’s not as solid to the clan as it needs to be, y’know?). Fireheart needs to make sure that a trap like this isn’t laid again, for starters. To get the evidence that he needs and to protect his clanmates, he should spy. Listen in on their conversations Tigerclaw and his friend’s conversations, spend more time with them (volunteering to go on patrols that just happen to have Darkstripe or Longtail on them, etc.).

Minus the spying, the rest of books two and three go pretty much the same. Firestar can never collect enough evidence (because nobody just says ‘so about that guy, Redtail, who I very much murdered’ casually or out of the blue, even to their friends). Cloudkit is also taken in.

Book three opens with Firestar being frustrated by his lack of progress with the spying.

He tries to investigate other avenues talks to both Ravenpaw and Mistyfoot about the battle where Oakheart was killed.

When he and Graystripe save Mistyfoot’s kits, they’re accused of trying to steal them and are taken back to RiverClan’s camp. Fireheart makes a coment under his breath about how “if all the clans were united, this wouldn’t be happening.” Graystripe shoots him a funny look but decides not to comment.

Firestar is pissed about being accused of trying to steal kits, but he sees the situation that RiverClan is in and decides that he wants to help him.

He’s shocked and worried when he hears that Silverstream is expecting Graystripe’s kits, but part of him is also happy. Not just for his friend, but also for himself. This will make it easier for him to sway Graystripe, Silverstream, and the future kits, to his side. He wonders briefly if he’s being shitty and manipulative but decides that it doesn’t matter.

Things progress pretty much the same from here on out.

Silverstream dies when she has Featherkit and Stormkit. Graystripe is distraught. Fireheart is also very upset, but also wonders if he can use this to his advantage. Here is where a slight divergence happens. On the Fireheart/star succeeds track, he tells that voice to shut up and ignores it. His friend’s lover just died, that’s an awful thing to think. It makes him wonder if his actions are as good as his intentions and plants a seed in his mind. That seed will eventually force him to confront his shitty behavior and try to be better. On the way back to camp, Fireheart does his best to comfort Graystripe and make sure that Tigerclaw doesn’t get a chance to so much as speak to him. On the Fireheart/star fails path, he listens to it. He comforts Graystripe, sure, but he also makes sure to mention how maybe things would be better if the clans were all one. He’s sneaky about it, so Graystripe doesn’t think too much about it until that night in the nursery (he is gonna stay with his kits and that is final), where he wonders about how different thing would have been if Bluestar was in charge of all the clans...

Things go mostly the same way that the books did. Longtail saves Fireheart from drowning, Cinderpaw becomes a medicine cat apprentice, the ShadowClan and WindClan attack ThunderClan because they learn that ThunderClan is harboring Brokenstar (yes I know that this happened before Silverstream died shush.)

When the rogues attack ThunderClan camp, Fireheart defends Bluestar from Tigerheart. When the battle is over, Fireheart tells the clan that Tigerclaw tried to kill Bluestar and reveals what really happened to Redtail. Tigerclaw is exiled and none of his friends go with him.

Fireheart is named deputy and Graystripe goes to RiverClan with his kits.

Here we have another divergence. When Cinderpaw takes the Magpie to Bluestar that turns out to be crowfood, Fireheart sees it. He believes it to be an omen from StarClan that Bluestar’s leadership will rot. On the Fireheart succeeds track, this makes him feel really crap, and he decides that he’ll do his absolute best as deputy to help and support her when she needs it. On the Fireheart fails track he sees it and goes "Well, guess that that technically makes me the leader then, huh? Bad news for Bluestar, I guess, but it’s good news for the mission. It’s good news for me.“

Next time!: I wanna expand on that atheist Firestar AU I mentioned awhile back, so you can expect that eventually.

Next time on EFAU: It’s the Firestar fails arc! If you thought that this AU stuck too closely to the events of the books for this to be much of an AU, don’t worry. Things are about to get a lot more interesting (hopefully). Ever wondered what would happen if Firestar was more willing to ignore Bluestar? If he discovered the dogs at Snakerocks? If he teamed up with BloodClan instead of TigerClaw? You’ll find out! Eventually. Hopefully. These take a really long time to make so if I were you I wouldn’t hold your breath.

#warriors #warrior cats #warrior cats au #EFAU #evil Firestar AU #Fireheart #Firestar #the prophecies begin #the prophecies begin AU

44 notes · View notes

puppypaw-wc · 4 years

Text

Mothpool AU Rambles - Po3

I made some Mothpool hypokits.

Quailwing (named after Mothwing and equivalent to Jay) is a dilute chocolate mackerel tabby tom with blind blue eyes (blue is inherited from Mothwing).

Russetleaf (named after Leafpool and equivalent to Holly) is a chocolate and red mackerel torbie she-cat with green eyes (green is inherited from Leafpool who carried the gene from her parents... she’s also a demigirl cuz I said so).

Lynxcloud (equivalent to Lionblaze) is a fluffy reddish-orange mackerel tabby tom with amber eyes (inherited from Leafpool).

I got the genetics from a genetic generator (I changed them a bit though...) so they should be accurate.

Excuse me as I rant about an AU idea I had-

So basically.

Leafpool (at the time Leafpaw) ends up getting really close to Mothwing while Squilf is out and about.

Mothwing feels comfortable telling her that she’s trans and just didn’t want to tell anyone outside of RiverClan, because she already knew she was by the time she was apprenticed so why would anyone care? Plus she didn’t want to get discriminated against even though at this rate the Clans are used to same sex couples (Firestar and Graystripe are a thing, Sandstorm’s also there) and trans cats (Firestar, Sandstorm, probably a lot of others)...

Anyways, most of TNP goes the same, but then Leafpool ends up having kits with Mothwing instead... Mothwing is surprised to hear this, but the two of them, Squirrelflight and Ferncloud (who Leafpool decides should nurse the kits... Mothwing has other thoughts though) go to have the kits away from the Clans.

The first born is a chocolate she-kit (you’ll see...). Before even seeing his eyes or anything Leafpool knows that she should be named Quailkit, so she is.

Next is a chocolate and red mackerel torbie she-kit. Mothwing names this one Russetkit, having heard of ShadowClan’s deputy and her friendship with her mother Sasha.

Lastly is a fluffy red she-kit (they trans boiiiiiiiiiiii). While Leafpool wants to name her Mothkit, Mothwing advises against it and Squirrelflight decides to name her Lynxkit.

When it comes time to go home though, Lynxkit has established a bond with Mothwing, who already wanted at least one of the kits to come to RiverClan. Leafpool bids her daughter and Mothwing farewell and brings Quailkit and Russetkit to ThunderClan.

Quailkit soon decides that he/him pronouns fit him better after getting to know his grandfather Firestar, and in RiverClan Lynxkit does the same upon getting to know Mothwing, who he has a close bond with, better.

The only cats who know the truth in RiverClan are Leopardstar, Willowpaw and Mothwing, while in ThunderClan many more know the truth - Squirrelflight, Brambleclaw (vaguely;he knows the Three aren’t his and Squilf’s kits but doesn’t know who they are), Firestar, Sandstorm and the nursery permaqueens.

The Three get apprenticed. Russetpaw is excited to be a medicine cat apprentice, while her brother Quailpaw is determined to become a warrior and overcome his disability. Meanwhile in RiverClan, Lynxpaw is excited to become a warrior, despite his crush on Willowpaw slowing his progress down a bit.

Now here, Quailpaw and Russetpaw don’t switch roles. While Russetpaw does still struggle with herb meanings and such, Leafpool gives her ways to remember them, through little rhymes or short songs. Quailpaw gets training in his dreams from Yellowfang, Spottedleaf and Cinderpelt (though Cinder’s presence is weaker due to her also being by Cinderpaw’s side as a guardian angel/imaginary friend to her, more on that later), learning how to hunt through both sight and smell.

Eventually Russetpaw goes to RiverClan to make sure everything’s okay, before getting stuck due to Twoleg doing... I don’t know what they were doing during Dark River. During her time in RiverClan she bonds with both Lynxpaw and Willowpaw, the latter of whom she was already close to due to medicine cat meetings.

Now, in the canon books, Lionpaw meets with Heatherpaw in the tunnels. Here, however, instead we have Quailpaw meeting with Minnowpaw... I’m not sure where. Perhaps they were exploring ThunderClan territory and accidentally overstepped the borders, Quailpaw falling into the tunnels and them LARPing there? Anyways, both want to be warriors despite both having short fuses. Unlike in the canon books where after saving the WindClan kits Lionpaw and Heatherpaw’s friendship fades away, Quailpaw and Minnowpaw keep being friends, talking at Gatherings and occasionally asking Russetpaw, Willowpaw, Leafpool or Mothwing to tell them something or give them something when they come over to help. The kits they save here are Sneezekit and Mallowkit.

And as in the canon books, Lynxpaw trains in the Dark Forest. Tigerstar mentoring him honestly makes sense to me - there’s probably been several leaders named Tigerstar who have been colored like him given Tigerheart. Anyways, Tigerstar tells him he just wants to help him hone in on his powers. Of course, he wants to, so he trains in the Dark Forest.

Oh, also Russetpaw does have a power! At first Quailpaw tells her about his power and she pretends to be the one with it. However, after a bit, Leafpool figures out the facade and confronts Quailpaw about it. Russetpaw’s power takes longer to manifest, but she does have it, and it’s getting cats to tell the truth, basically hypnotizing them. She uses it a bit before she runs away into the tunnels to get cats to confess to breaking the warrior code, but after the reveal she decides that maybe she shouldn’t do that and instead uses it to figure out who’s training in the Dark Forest.

Anyways, onto Outcast!

Due to Brook and Stormfur formerly taking refuge in RiverClan, Leopardstar decides that one of their cats should go to the mountains as well alongside Crowfeather, Breezepaw, Squirrelflight, Tawnypelt, Quailpaw, Russetpaw and Brambleclaw. Lynxpaw volunteers, and his mentor (Dawnflower, Minnowpaw’s mom) therefore goes as well. Mothwing considers going, but ultimately doesn’t, instead deciding to teach Lynxpaw some herbs due to not fully trusting Russetpaw’s herb skills. He becomes a bit interested in them, but not enough to become a meddie.

After watching Lynxpaw during the battle with the rogues, Quailpaw tells him and Russetpaw a prophecy.

There will be three, kin of a great leader’s kin, who hold the power of the stars in their paws. Look for the sharp-eyed quail. Listen out for the lynx’s roar. After both of these events have come and gone, peace will come on a gentle russet leaf.

Russetpaw is certain that she and Quailpaw are two of the cats in the prophecy, simply believing that Lynxpaw’s prefix being mentioned is just a coincidence due to the commonality of the prefix.

Lynxpaw doesn’t know what to think about it.

The prospect of being important excites Quailpaw. The cats who doubt him won’t any longer when they find out he’s a prophecy cat! Or at least, that’s what he hopes...

Eclipse goes about the same... aside from Lynxpaw not wanting to fight Quailpaw! He just became friends with him, and might be in the prophecy with him!

Sol tells Lynxpaw that he can explain the prophecy. Lynxpaw decides that he should tell Mothwing and Willowpaw about it, and firstly tells the latter of the two.

Willowpaw and him both agree that the great leader is likely Firestar, but could also be one of the original leaders, leaving Heatherpaw and Breezepaw as possible candidates. Lynxpaw tells her that Quailpaw told him the prophecy, and she says that they’re possible candidates too. He starts to have low self esteem after this, but Willowpaw comforts him and the two basically get together but they don’t realize cuz they’re dumbasses.

The two of them then go to tell Mothwing. At first she’s hesitant to believe them - she’s never really seen StarClan as much of a higher force then the living cats, they’re just dead cats, they’re as reckless and at times mouse-brained as they were when they were alive.

But she sees the glow in Lynxpaw’s eyes. It reminds her of what she loved about Leafpool. She sees Leafpool in the son she could never treat as her own. Believing Willowpaw to have received the prophecy (mouse-dung, we forgot to tell her that Quailpaw told me the prophecy), at the next Moonpool meeting she gives her her medicine cat name - Willowshine.

Due to how valiantly he fought in the battle, Lynxpaw is given his warrior name of Lynxcloud. Minnowpaw is given her warrior name at this time as well, as is Pebblepaw, with those two being named Minnowtail and Pebblefoot like in canon.

Quailpaw is also given his warrior name by Firestar, that being Quailwing after Mothwing.

Long Shadows is mostly the same except for one minor change, that being that Jay’s Wing is now named Quail’s Feather. Flamepaw, Dawnpaw and Tigerpaw help the Three fake an omen to get Blackstar to believe in StarClan again like in the canon books. The fire scene is also slightly different... but anyways, Russetpaw gets her full name of Russetleaf.

Now the fire scene... the whole reveal happens but afterwards Squilf reassures Russetleaf and Quailwing that she loves them as if they were her own kits, and that Brambleclaw does as well.

Quailwing takes a while to accept it, still being confused about his power... StarClan has given cats powers before, but for all he knows he’s just a kittypet or rogue or loner who was brought to the Clan at a young age. And how does Lynxcloud fit into this? Eventually though, he accepts it, deciding to try to help whoever the Three are with whatever the prophecy requires them to do.

Russetleaf, however, can’t accept it. She’s a disgrace to her Clan and has no right to be a medicine cat. She should’ve known she wasn’t in the prophecy, she doesn’t have a power at all... Cinderheart notices something’s wrong and talks to her about it, and they get together and she starts to feel better, even if she realizes that she’s breaking the code... she’s stopped caring anymore.

Eventually though, Russetleaf’s power appears and she’s confused. She accidentally uses it without realizing after Quailwing finds out that Leafpool’s their mother, in an attempt to figure out who their father/sire is. Also yes, I did shuffle events... partially cuz I forgot the order they happen in.

Russetleaf carried the blood red berries in her jaws as she entered camp. No one questioned her, though she saw a few cats giving her weird looks. I have to do this, she thought.

As she entered the medicine cat den, Leafpool looked up at her, fear in her eyes.

“Russetleaf, what are you-” Russetleaf cut her off.

“I know now,” she hissed, “Mother. I may not know who our father is, but-”

The medicine cat cut her off. The tortioseshell tabby noticed that her eyes looked... focused on something else, as if in a trance.

“While she’s not your father, per-say, Mothwing sired you, Quailwing and Lynxcloud,” her mother mewed, “now, may I please leave the den?”

Her eyes looked normal again halfway through her second sentence. Still confused, Russetleaf nodded, allowing Leafpool to exit the den.

What did I just do?

She experiments with her power, seeing who may’ve broken the warrior code. Mousewhisker (relationship with Minnowtail), Squirrelflight (hiding the truth), Brambleclaw (same as Squilf), heck, even Firestar (giving prey to RiverClan, giving Yellowfang prey and eating some of it before bringing it to the Clan, hiding Graystripe’s relationship with Silverstream, probably more)! ... all of them admit it.

She begins to feel... power-hungry. While the Dark Forest has been unable to recruit her due to her loyalty to ThunderClan, they are able to do one thing: will her to kill Ashfur. Leafpool had taught her some fighting techniques she’d learned from Cinderpelt and Mothwing, she knows a decent amount, and uses them to kill Ashfur. To keep her Clan safe.

This starts to weigh her down. She feels terrible. She broke the code... but she did it to keep her Clan safe! ... didn’t she?

She can’t keep it inside any longer. She tells everyone the truth at a Gathering. Mothwing and Leafpool are exposed. Firestar doesn’t want to make her give up her position, but Leafpool insists on it, scared of what Russetleaf could do. Leopardstar, who’s always been a code junkie even if she made two half-Clan cats deputy, made one of Tigerstar’s kits temporarily deputy even though she (I think) knew he was Firestar’s son, allowed one of Tigerstar’s kits who was formerly a rogue to be a medicine cat, relinquishes Mothwing’s position.

Lynxcloud says he wants to talk to his siblings, and they all go to the tunnels. Russetleaf needs to tell someone what she did... so she tells her brothers. And she runs in. And it seems as if she’s gone... dead...

But two young kits have potential.

#mothpool au #lionblaze #hollyleaf #jayfeather #lynxcloud #russetleaf #quailwing #mothwing #leafpool #mothpool #lots of cats #po3 au

15 notes · View notes

leopard-mask · 4 years

Text

we still have each other

Lionblaze and Alderheart are worried about Jayfeather. Set during River of Fire, AVOS.

Jayfeather stomps out of the medicine den with a scowl, calling some excuse about gathering more watermint over his shoulder as he leaves. Nobody says anything, but he can practically feel Alderheart’s exasperated gaze on his back. That’s fine. Let him feel a fraction of what Jayfeather’s been feeling these past few moons.

He hears Lionblaze’s telltale heavy footsteps approaching and lets out a hiss before his brother even has the chance to say anything. “Can I not have a moment to myself?”

Lionblaze, never one to take antagonization well, stops short. “Well, hello to you too,” he spits. “Pardon me for wanting to spend some time with my brother.”

Jayfeather lashes his tail and steps past him. “Go spend time with your mate and kits.”

To his irritation, Lionblaze follows. “Believe it or not, I have the capacity to care about more than one cat at a time.” His tone is still sharp; he’s clearly already not taking Jayfeather’s company well. That’s fine. Maybe he’ll get so fed up that he’ll finally leave him alone. “Where are you even going?” Lionblaze continues when Jayfeather doesn’t say anything.

Jayfeather puts extra force behind his growl. “Use your brain Lionblaze. Where do you think I’m going?” he doesn’t wait for Lionblaze to answer. “In case you haven’t noticed, there’s this sickness going around the camp. I’m getting more herbs for it so no one else has to die.” His own words make him cringe internally. He’d just unwittingly admitted, aloud, unprompted, that Briarlight had died from this sickness. The one he’d given her. Which, yes, it was irrefutable—of course she’d died, there was no avoiding that at this point. But he’s been pointedly avoiding the thought since her vigil…

Thankfully, Lionblaze must not have caught the significance of the slip. Instead, he (predictably) bristles at the jab at his intelligence. “What’s wrong with you? You’re ruder than normal lately.”

“Why are you following me?” Jayfeather snaps by way of answer. They’re in the forest now. He’d expected Lionblaze to leave when they reached the camp entrance, but much to his annoyance, he’s still here. “I’m busy.”

“I’m worried about you,” Lionblaze snaps. The growl in his voice is an ironic contrast to his words that Jayfeather might have pointed out if he was in a better mood. Lionblaze has never been great with heart to hearts, but then, neither has Jayfeather. That skill was best left with Hollyleaf.

The thought of his sister just worsens Jayfeather’s mood. “Well, don’t be. I can take care of myself. That’s kind of my job.”

Lionblaze sighs, but this time it sounds more weary and less angry. “Jayfeather, this is about Briarlight, isn’t it?”

Jayfeather stops so suddenly he nearly stumbles. Why would you bring that up? He can’t even think of something to say—he just stands there rigidly.

Lionblaze shifts slightly closer. “You forget I know you. That’s why you’re upset, isn’t it?”

Jayfeather shakes himself forcefully and pushes on. He’s already had this spiel with Alderheart—while his apprentice’s soft words of comfort had been nice at the time, he can’t help but hate himself for breaking down in such a way. Having such a conversation twice in as many days was simply not going to happen. “Stop distracting me. Like I said, I have work to do, and you’re not helping.”

Lionblaze’s long-suffering eye roll is evident in his tone. “Come on, Jay—”

“Shut up!” Jayfeather seethes. He certainly doesn’t beg.

Lionblaze quickly steps in front of Jayfeather, preventing him from continuing. Jayfeather flattens his ears and jerks back, but Lionblaze is quick to speak. “I’ll be honest,” he says, temper surprisingly controlled. “Alderheart asked me to talk to you. He’s worried, too.” His tone sharpens. “And I can see why.”

Of course Alderheart had. Jayfeather turns his head away mutely.

“Now you’re the one wasting time,” Lionblaze points out. “Just talk to me, will you?” when Jayfeather still refuses to speak, Lionblaze deflates slightly and sits down. After a few too many heartbeats have gone by, he exhales and admits quietly, “I wish Dovewing was here.”

Well, great. This isn’t something he particularly wants to talk about either, but he supposes any topic change is a good topic change right now. Besides, he can’t just ignore Lionblaze’s confession. Neither of them had spoken of it since she’d gone…

With a sigh, Jayfeather reluctantly turns back to Lionblaze and stiffly sits beside him. “She’s with Tigerheart.” They don’t know that, really, but it had to be true. Why would both of them have gone missing at the same time if not to run away together?

Lionblaze shifts. “That doesn’t make it hurt less.”

Jayfeather doesn’t say anything, but he does lean a bit closer so his fur presses against his brother’s.

Lionblaze shakes his head sadly. “It’s like… I know it’s different, but she chose him over us. And she didn’t even say anything! I can only imagine how Ivypool’s doing…”

“There’s no use wallowing about it,” Jayfeather chides softly.

“Grieving and wallowing are not the same thing,” Lionblaze counters.

“It’s all the same to me.” Jayfeather shrugs. “There’s nothing we can do about it. We just have to move on.”

“That’s your problem.” Lionblaze tips his head; Jayfeather feels his brother’s whiskers brush his shoulder. “Sometimes you have to address it to move on.”

“Are you trying to give me a lecture?”

“Are you admitting that I’m right enough to lecture you?” Lionblaze asks cheekily.

Jayfeather rolls his eyes. “What do you want me to say?” he asks, perhaps a bit harshly. “I wish Dovewing hadn’t left? I wish I hadn’t gotten Briarlight sick? I wish Alderheart—” he breaks off, mouth twisting into a disgusted frown. He hadn’t meant to say so much. He abruptly gets to his paws. “There’s no point in wishing for things that can’t happen.”

Lionblaze gets up too. “What about Alderheart?” he asks slowly. “I didn’t know there was something up between you two.”

Jayfeather scowls. “Haven’t you seen the way he acts around Velvet?” his tail flicks. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes off with her before the moon is up.”

Lionblaze’s surprise is almost palpable. “Alderheart and Velvet?” he echoes, as if he honest to StarClan hadn’t seen it himself.

“Yeah.” Jayfeather sniffs. “Why don’t you watch them a bit when we get back? I’m not overreacting.” His shoulders hunch forward miserably. “I’ve been trying to keep them apart, but if Dovewing’s anything to go by, that’s not going to do anything.”

“Well,” Lionblaze says awkwardly. A few moments drag by before he evidently figures out what to say. “Alderheart isn’t Dovewing, you know that. You can’t assume you know what he’s going to do.” He nudges Jayfeather’s shoulder lightly. “Have you talked to him about it? I’m sure he’d listen.”

“No,” Jayfeather admits. He hadn’t wanted to explicitly say anything. He’s sure Alderheart must’ve gotten the hint by now, but neither of them has spoken of it out loud.

“Maybe give that a try before you keep assuming the worst,” Lionblaze suggests gently.

“I know.” Jayfeather shifts uncomfortably. Maybe he can get Leafpool to talk to him about it? After all, she’s the one with the firsthand experience; he’s sure she could dissuade him from pursuing anything with the kittypet. But that would involve Jayfeather actually talking to Leafpool about that, and, well, they’d just finally gotten past it. He doesn’t see himself approaching Leafpool about something like that anytime soon. Or ever.

“That’s not it though, is it?” Lionblaze guesses. “Don’t deny it,” he interrupts when Jayfeather makes to speak. “There’s something behind all of this, isn’t there?”

Jayfeather lets out a defeated sigh. Fine, Lionblaze wins. “I just… First there was Hollyleaf, and now Dovewing, Briarlight, and Alderheart next?” he shakes his head. “After all we’ve done for StarClan, it doesn’t seem very fair.” Not to mention, Fuzzball will be leaving soon, but Jayfeather will die before he admits to getting attached to the annoyingly chipper kittypet.

He hates going to sleep every night wondering, who’s next?

“You’re right.” To Jayfeather’s surprise, Lionblaze agrees. “It’s not fair.”

Jayfeather snorts humorlessly. “You’re not going to lecture me about being pessimistic?”

“No. We’re grieving, not wallowing,” Lionblaze corrects. His lighthearted inflection grows more solemn. “It helps to know that they must be happy, wherever they are, but… I know what you mean. It isn’t fair.” He nudges Jayfeather again. “But we still have each other. And I have Cinderheart and my kits, and you have Alderheart and Leafpool. As long as we all still have each other, we’ll be okay.”

Jayfeather rolls his eyes, unwillingly fond. “Quit trying so hard to be profound.”

Lionblaze snickers. “Oh right, I forgot, you’re supposed to be the profound one.” He flicks Jayfeather’s ear with his tail, then laughs louder when Jayfeather ducks away from him indignantly.

“Come on,” Jayfeather grouses, “I really do have to get that watermint.”

“Alright, alright.” The two walk together in companionable silence for a while before Lionblaze says anything else. “I hoped it helped a little, just to get it off your chest. You know you don’t have to shoulder things alone. It’s not like I can fix anything but… Talking helps.”

Jayfeather doesn’t want to admit it, but he does feel a little better. Less angry and spiteful, anyway. It still hurts terribly, thinking about all he’d lost, but… it does feel better.

He won’t admit that Lionblaze was right, though.

#hi im back with another one shot #nobody asked for this but here #if you cant tell im a sucker for character interactions and relationships #avos #a vision of shadows #warriors #warrior cats #jayfeather #lionblaze #fanfiction

6 notes · View notes

leporellian · 4 years

Text

warrior cats rewrite part 2: fire and ice

more of This apparently! this is a continuation of this post so go over there to get the gist of this.

with the last book i was focused on establishing characters and dynamics within thunderclan, so this one is more focused on establishing the other groups outside of thunderclan (windclan, riverclan, the rogues in shadowclan, kittypets) and the exact mechanics of the world. also assume that anything i mention little of stays the same- bluestar, yellowfang, etc

-so like in the original we open on a prologue of windclan. the prologue is from the perspective of a young apprentice, gorsepaw. he and his brother mudpaw are trying to comprehend What Is Going On while morningflower soothes them and tallstar attempts to lead. they are helped by members of the blood brothers (the city cats who try to keep things safe in the city and suburbs). little is mentioned about the blood brothers but it is mentioned they’re not as good as they once were and could use a fresh young leader to give them real direction again

- anyway back in thunderclan we hear about darkstripe’s pov of redtail’s death

- redtail was a risk taker and very fiery and passionate- much like fireheart himself. bluestar chose him because his eagerness balanced out her pragmatism. however, redtail’s impulsivity and tendency to be a bleeding-heart became more and more loathed by others- especially the elders and tigerclaw.

- tigerclaw values conservatism, duty, and tradition. he’s a man of stability. and he realized that redtail’s ways could get thunderclan in trouble- he had a point, of course, but he took it too far.

- the entire sunningrocks battle was suggested by thistleclaw, tigerclaw’s father, and quickly approved by the elders (elders are often the ones who start battles), although none of the other elders knew of the plan. thistleclaw also suggested the time- in the dark of night, where no cat could see who was fighting who too well. thistleclaw was helping tigerclaw the entire time.

- redtail was killed by not oakheart, although it was often claimed they had killed each other (and who had no voice to speak up- oakheart was dead and was an impulsive type like redtail who would have totally killed him in defense if they had fought), but tigerclaw, who figured it was the only way to become deputy and lead thunderclan with the stability he had desired it to be led with.

- fireheart shares his findings with the others, in secret. raven, gray, and cinderpaw all believe him, although it takes them a while to come to terms with the idea of tigerclaw being a murderer, but sand and long are unconvinced- neither wants to even entertain the idea their father was murdered.

- anyway thunderclan sends a few cats to retrieve windclan now that Brokenstar Is Gone(TM), gray and fire being two of them. windclan doesn’t like how little thunderclan seems to care about them because none of the high ranking warriors were sent- especially the angry mudpaw, who is still rather traumatized from being chased down with the rest of windclan by shadowclan. meanwhile, fireheart meets onewhisker and they become fast friends. onewhisker is kind of a Cool Older Brother type but he’s also sycophantic and a little bit of a coward.

- meanwhile there’s barkface, the quiet medicine cat of windclan. on the way back starclan sends him an omen: the moon will bring unnecessary death on its back.

- on their way back they find riverclan dicking around on windclan territory and so there’s a Fight- right by the gorge. it plays out like in canon and whiteclaw dies, fire figures ‘oh that’s the death’ and moves on

- once they get back a few days pass and then The Gang Become Mentors to lionheart and frostfur’s litter: brackenkit, thornkit, brightkit, and swiftkit. (cinder meanwhile was goldenflower’s kid.) fire gets bracken, gray gets thorn, sand gets bright, and long gets swift

- while this goes down, gray falls in love with silverstream like he does in canon- further propelled by his own half-clan heritage and desire to know outsiders beyond thunderclan. fire spies on him as he does in canon, etc etc. also it’s here that fire sees princess, and he recognizes her immediately.

- also thorn doesn’t like that graystripe isn’t really paying attention to him, which makes him kind of a try-hard prick that Just Wants To Be Noticed. Patrol Guy: Origins

- meanwhile tigerclaw keeps asking bluestar to see some unusual activity at the thunderpath. he looks worried about it.

- this comes to a head when tigerclaw rushes into camp with a few other thunderclan warriors. “there was a rogue attack at the thunderpath!” everyone follows him and finds two cats being carried out, both unconscious- darkstripe and cinderpaw. cinder’s leg has been shredded by a car (the rogues pushed her out in front of one) and darkstripe’s face is clawed up to hell and back.

- fireheart immediately Suspects Shit because this is tigerclaw. nobody else does except for ravenpaw, who notes that while cinderpaw’s injury is plausible, whoever clawed darkstripe did it in a very deliberate manner and not in defense as usually is done in the midst of dispute. fire figures out that tiger probably did the same trick he did with redtail, but targeting darkstripe instead.

- (”why are you relying so hard on mystery here?” mystery is really good for setting up worldbuilding, which is the main intent of the first three books.)

- meanwhile, cinderpaw is told that even though she can be a warrior, with the loss of her leg working properly she will likely need extra time and dedication to become one, and that it won’t be an easy road. cinder however refuses to give up, even though she’s initially left shaken and hopeless

- fireheart goes to see princess, who’s much more of a homebody than he is and comfortable in her life. however, she’s so relaxed because she doesn’t leave her home into the outside kittypet world, and is concerned about smudge and her mate- who both leave and get in fights with other cats pretty often. did you ever find smudge? she asks. what do you mean? replies fireheart. oh, this moon he decided to come with you, into the forest. i haven’t seen him since...

- anyway since princess doesn’t want her first child to enter the chaotic disputes of Kittypet Borders (and the other calamities of having little established government) she hands fireheart cloudkit

- like in canon nobody initially likes cloudkit but brindleface takes him in. their main worry is that he’s a white cat with blue eyes, which could mean that he’s deaf- not that this would hurt thunderclan, but that this could leave cloudkit to have a harder time being a warrior. cinderpaw however makes the connection and tells everyone that she wants to mentor cloudkit as soon as he becomes an apprentice.

- fireheart asks darkstripe to tell him more about tigerclaw killing redtail, hoping to get the details he needs to properly accuse him. but darkstripe is... different, this time. what do you mean!?! he screeches. tigerclaw is a loyal thunderclan warrior! you would never accuse lionheart or spottedleaf of this. how dare you even think-

- fireheart realizes that barkface’s ‘the moon will bring unnecessary death on its back’ omen was not referring to only whiteclaw, but also, perhaps, darkstripe in a way. whatever tigerclaw did to darkstripe, whatever he told him, it changed the tabby tom forever. as fireheart continues to think about the omen, his mind flickers to smudge for a moment, and then it returns to thunderclan.

- the gathering goes down like it does in canon. thunderclan slowly realizes that the rogues nightstar mentions are the same ones that tigerclaw had to fight at the border. ohhh shittt, they collectively go

- they get back to see rogues everywhere in thunderclan camp. the usually-bellicose thistleclaw isn’t fighting them, and darkstripe is half-hearting it. those who are There however are doing an okay job of fending them off, and their asses are collectively kicked when the ThunderClan Gang gets to them. they also manage to capture brokenstar after yellowfang blinds him (and fire hears that she was his mother- honestly i’m not changing a lot abt yellowfang)

- in the midst of this, fireheart accidentally kills clawface. he’s wracked with horror at it, and wonders if this is how graystripe felt when he killed whiteclaw.

- anyway there’s like 2 days of peace and then mudpaw rushes into gathering like ‘HOLY SHIT GUYS WE ARE BEING FUCKING ATTACKED BY THOSE SHADOWCLAN RIVERCLAN MFS’ and everyone is like ‘god DAMMIT we JUST PUT you guys back there’ and they all go in, ally with windclan, and have a Big Ass Fight like in canon. we get a good idea of everyone’s loyalties to who- graystripe is only fighting shadowclan, darkstripe only attacks whoever is around tigerclaw, sandstorm and longtail tagteam fight against river and shadow, onewhisker is just running around doing nothing but Look Cool,

- barkface dies in the battle, leaving windclan to wonder if he had predicted his own death in the omen from about a moon before. fireheart doesn’t have the heart to tell them that it meant much more than they could know. spottedleaf joins windclan in barkface’s stead as he left behind no apprentice. ‘wait you can just Leave Clans like that?’ says graystripe. he is Thinkin

- the book’s end is uncertain as fireheart is still reeling from clawface’s death and the big battle between all the clans. he wonders if this is how the rest of his life will be- and then, as he falls asleep, he gets a nightmarish vision of hell and heaven, life and death, and an odd peace afterwards, all narrated by a voice he swears he knows but not from where. it almost becomes... oddly soothing, like a long-forgotten childhood memory.

- lion and tiger will meet in battle, and fire alone will herald it. there will be three, kin of his kin, and they will hold the power of starlight in their paws; yet peace will only arrive on the gentle wings of the fourth. out of the darkness of blood-spilling-blood will come a new dawn, and the four oaks will live beyond the memories of its memories. nothing is as it was, yet this is how it always has been, and this is how it always will be...

#warrior cats #warrior cats rewrite #rambles

86 notes · View notes

stargleam-star · 4 years

Text

Warriors Rewrite Pt 9: Power of the Stars

Quick notes: this part is a mashup of The Power of Three and Omen of the Stars since both on their own get boring with 6 books each. The Four main cats represent the wise monkeys: Hear No Evil (Dove), Speak No Evil (Holly), See No Evil (Jay), and Do No Evil (Lion). Also, this part is the last true installment to my series of rewrite posts. Maybe I will make another if I read A Vison of Shadows, buut I intend for the end of this arc to be the end of the series (as I'd thought it'd be when the canon books originally came out). I might also post about ideas for Super Editions in my rewrite, but that's about it for this series. I hope you've all enjoyed my ideas, and will like these ones as well!

The first half of the arc follows The Three. They are the children of Tawnypelt and Squirrelflight. Or so they think

In reality, The Three are not siblings, but cousins. Squirrelflight is the biological mother of Hollykit, who's sired by her mate Crowfeather. Crowfeather is also Tawnypelt's mate; the three are in a secret poly relationship. Hollykit is mostly black, but has small ginger spots on her face that look like berries, and a fluffy red tail which is oddly similar to Redtail's despite not having any biological relation to him, also her eyes are green.

Jaykit is actually the love child of Emberpath and Primrosetail. He is a blue-gray tabby with fur a very similar shade to Bluestar's. He has blue eyes like in canon with dilated pupils since he is blind.

Lionkit is the son of Leafpool and Rowanclaw, conceived while they were away from the clans. Lionkit is a large broad golden tom with amber eyes; his resemblance is very close to his namesake Lionheart

Squirrelflight, Primrosetail, and Leafpool's kittings all pretty much happened around the same time. Squirrelflight and Leafpool had hid in the forest together to give birth, while Primrosetail ended up having her kit on the Gathering Island-where she and Emberpath would meet in secret. Sensing that his sisters have given birth, Emberpath brings his little family to them so they could all be together. While staying in the hollow tree, during a nap, Leafpool receives the "kin of your kin" prophecy. When she wakes, she tells her siblings. She insists the kits be raised together so that the prophecy can be better fulfilled, and so their secret relationships wouldn't be revealed. They all agree to allow Squirrelflight to raise Lionkit and Jaykit, since no cat will question their origins due to the clan believing she was impregnated by an unconnected, unknown donor.

When The Three are apprenticed, things go a bit different than they do in canon. Lionpaw becomes the medicine cat apprentice, and Jaypaw trains as a warrior under Brightheart. Although, Starclan still tries to convince Jaypaw to be a medicine cat instead.

The toms' powers stay the same, and Hollypaw gets a power too. These powers, however, come with down sides. Jaypaw can walk in other's dreams, memories, and converse with Starclan/the Dark forest, but can never have his own normal dreams. Lionpaw is unable to be harmed in battle, but gets tired easily when attacked. And Hollypaw has the power of truth; cats can't lie to her and are more likely to divulge secrets to her. However a cat can tell her something that's actually a lie if they believe its the truth

In this rewrite, Hollypaw is the one who discovers the tunnels. Here she starts meeting up with Breezepaw, who also discovered the tunnels through Windclan territory. No, they don't have any romantic feelings for each other like their counterparts Lion/Heather do in canon, because that would be extremely gross

Breezepaw is still Crowfeather and Nightcloud's son, but things go a bit differently between them. Nightcloud is a lesbian and mates with Sorreltail. The couple really wanted to have kits, so Crowfeather volunteers to sire a litter for them, with Squirrelflight and Tawnypelt's blessing. Nightcloud lets it slip that Crowfeather is his biological father, and Breezepaw, despite having two loving mothers, feels like he should have a bond with Crowfeather too. But Crowfeather doesn't feel a connection to Breezepaw. Breezepaw's sense of entitlement is what fuels his rage and hatred for the older tom, and causes him to become a secondary villain in this series

As warriors, The Three are named Jaystrike, Lionflower (after Goldenflower and because he's a sweetheart in this rewrite), and Hollysong

Despite the strength of his powers, Lionflower uses his abilities for good. He charges into battles head on to heal the injured, even if enemy warriors try to attack him. Since he can't get hurt, he can be right on the frontlines

Jaystrike trains in the Dark Forest with Tigerstar and Mothwing as an apprentice. He wants to make up for his blindness, and so he trusts the dead leader to teach to him be stronger. He also trains there to spite Starclan, since they tried to tell him he couldn't be a warrior, he had to be a medicine cat. But one day, Jaypaw somehow manages to pull his mamma Tawnypelt into his dream with him. She sees what her son is up to and warns him of her kin's evil. She scares him pretty good; this ends up being the last time Jaypaw visits the Place Of No Stars. But because of Tigerstar's teachings, the blind warrior receives the name Jaystrike for being fierce in battle

Hawkfrost in this arc, like in the last one, is Ashfur's equivalent. He traps The Three in a fire in an attempt to kill them to hurt Squirrelflight. This is where Squirrelflight's forced to admit The Three are not her kits. When they all escape, however, she gathers them, Emberpath, and Leafpool together so the triplets can fully explain what their situation was.

Within the next day or so Hawkfrost approaches The Three, threatening to reveal the secrets of their parentage at the upcoming gathering. Jaystrike jumps into the tom's memories to see that he'd been spying on the Fire Triplets' meeting.

The next day Hawkfrost is found dead. After some investigation by Hollysong, it turns out Lionflower is the murderer. Upon his siblings' discovery of this heinous crime, he runs away into the tunnels. His adopted littermates assume he is dead, and wonder who the third cat in the prophecy will be now

The last three books of the arc follow Dovepaw and Ivypaw. They are Cloudtail and Brightheart's kits, birthed by Cloudtail this time, and sired by a random kittypet. Dovepaw is a fluffy, mostly white dilute calico with folded ears and hazel eyes. Ivypaw is a mostly white and gray dilute tabby calico with a gray tail and blue eyes; surprisingly she shares a bit of resemblance to Whitestorm.

Dovepaw is chosen to be the new medicine cat apprentice. It's obvious early on that she is the new third cat in the prophecy as well, made clear by Starclan, and discovered by Jaystrike after walking in her dreams. Dovepaw's powers are the same as in canon; she can hear and see things that are far away. The downside is she has trouble with memory. As a full medicine cat her name becomes Dovelight

Dovepaw is nervous about being a prophesied cat and tries to confide in her sister about this, telling her all the secrets shared by Hollysong and Jaystrike.

Ivypaw is jealous of her sister being part of The Three though, and turns to the Dark Forest to grow strong and to feel important. She divulges the secrets entrusted to her by Dovepaw to Mothwing. Soon though, Jaystrike finds out about this-via walking in the molly's dreams-and holds an intervention with the help of Tawnypelt. Ivypaw, now a warrior called Ivyshade, works as a double agent

In the second half of the second to last book, Lionflower returns from the tunnels just as The Three receive news of there being a fourth cat destined to hold the power of the stars in their paws. Reunited, the four cats along with Ivyshade devise a plan on how to fight against the Dark Forest

Also, the Dark Forest has a powerful living ally. Sol is conspiring with the Place Of No Stars, and figures out a way to summon the evil spirits to fight the living world. It can only happen on the night of the lunar eclipse, when Starclan has no power. After trying to convince the clans to stop believing in their ancestors, Sol sees this as the only way to get them to give up their faith

Before the battle, at the beginning of the last book, Jaystrike, Hollysong, Lionflower, and Dovelight go missing. Squirrelflight, Leafpool, Emberpath, Cloudtail, and Brightheart are incredibly worried about them as the time for the Great Battle draws nearer. But Ivyshade knows the truth and assures her kin that this is all a part of The Four's plan.

When the battle takes place, Skyclan arrives to help aid in the fight, rather than Starclan jumping in. They are led to the lake territories by The Four. The group found the distant clan by using their combined powers, and by recalling the stories told to them by Firestar. Emberstar leads the charge, joining her brother to fight Tigerstar and Sol. With the fifth clan joining them, the living clans are able to face off against the Dark Forest and win.

Emberstar and Firestar lose their last lives together at the end of the Great Battle. Skyclan decides to stay by the lake when all is said and done. The Four keep their powers, and decide to put them to better use by taking over for their parents as mediators in the other clans. Dovelight is the exception; she joins Skyclan to be both their medicine cat and mediator, and Ivyshade takes over for Squirrelflight as Thunderclan's mediator

#warrior cats #wcs #warriors rewrite #warriors: the power of three #warriors: omen of the stars #warriors: power of the stars #viti's rewrite

4 notes · View notes

sunnymoon-sunshine · 6 years

Text

One thing that I wanted most of all was for Greystripe to face consequences for his actions. After everything he did in Fire and Ice, even childhood me thought, “Surely he’ll apologize to Fireheart.”

Yet no. They hand waved it aside, making Fireheart roll over and take Greystripe’s attitude and awful behavior with a longing for friendship. This, I may not have minded so much if it were treated as it should be - Fireheart desperate to keep an old friend, and Greystripe being an awful one to him at best.

So, to amend this, I feel as if a solution to follow that would allow them to remain friends would be that Greystripe finally has to admit that Fireheart was in the right, and that he endangered his friend, his clan, his mate and his kits.

It’s all something of a game to Greystripe. He’s never cared much for the rules much like his best friend, but unlike Fireheart, his reasoning for breaking the code over his knee isn’t through ignorance or guided by a moral right. He does what he does because he can. He adores Silverstream, they haven’t been caught yet, and from his perspective, Fireheart is a do-gooder nuisance. He’s careful to mask his perseption of things as okay, harmless, rather than a selfish escapade. Fireheart trying to warn off Silverstream infuriates him - how dare Fireheart stick his nose into something that doesn’t even involve him? “Might as well go off and tell Bluestar what I’m doing, while you’re at it!”

“I won’t do that. But you need to stop, Greystripe. This can only end badly-“

But Greystripe won’t hear it. He’s already walked away.

Fireheart is tired, alone, and facing new realities of the clan while also bearing their scorn. His nephew is seen as a blight. To many, it seems as if his presence in the clan is unwelcome, and yet to Greystripe, this is all background noise. Everything that goes on in ThunderClan, he knows last. Fireheart, who always had his best friend and supporter, now finds that the clan suddenly feels lonely. His love for the forest keeps him there, beneath the trees and endless skies. But without Greystripe, he finds that he’s reaching out more to the rest of the clan. The medicine cats delight in his company, the older queens think he’s charming, and Sandstorm has taken to patrolling with him. At first he isn’t sure what to make of it, but he comes to relax around her. Sometimes he suspects her newfound interest in him was born out of pity.

“For StarClan’s sake, you look like a pitiful scrap, Fireheart.” She comments one day, flicking snow off her paws in distaste. “All alone and taking whatever stupid nonsense Greystripe is spitting at you.”

Fireheart privately agrees. He takes comfort in the fact Sandstorm, of all cats, is no longer spitting kittypet insults at him. Darkstripe is doing plenty of that on his own.

Things come to a head when Fireheart cuts off Greystripe from sneaking out of camp one evening, accusing him of betraying the clan. Greystripe argues, feeling as if he’s fine to see Silverstream - missing the bigger picture. He could never fight RiverClan, and yet no matter how many times Fireheart tries to tell him that it’s a problem, in these times of peace, Greystripe stubbornly refuses to acknowledge that what he’s doing might be wrong.

There are claws out, teeth bared, yowling and screeching after Greystripe attacks him. But it only lasts moments before Bluestar yowls, “Enough!”

They’re both punished for infighting. Bluestar wants them to get along like they used to, or at the very least try. They agree. But by the time Fireheart curls up in his nest that night, Greystripe had vanished from camp. To RiverClan, no doubt.

Yet he finds he isn’t alone. On one side, Sandstorm laid with her legs sprawled, and he thinks she’s taking up half of Greystripe’s nest out of spite. Frostfur on his other, her legs tucked neatly under her. Mousefur had called the fight hilarious, and he heard grumpy old Smallear say, “Should’ve taken a bigger chunk out of his ear.”

He may not have Greystripe any more, but Fireheart realizes that he has more than that. He has ThunderClan. For the first time, it feels like he really, truly is a part of the clan. Not just by Bluestar’s choice, but by the approval of the clan. Sure, there will always be those who disapprove of him. But those that support him, even after he does something ridiculous, is more precious than anything. It means that, even if he screws up, he has a place in the clan. They’ll vehemently defend his place as a warrior - even if they think some of his ideas are those of a bleeding heart. The thought warms him from his nose to the tip of his tail, and keeps him warm through the rest of the night.

What finally gets through to Greystripe is the battle with RiverClan by the gorge. He realizes with horror that these are Silverstream’s clanmates, yet he has to fight them. They won’t hold back for him, and he can’t hold back - he’s less afraid of them than he is of Tigerclaw flaying him. Fireheart’s warnings echo in his ears. Fireheart himself gets wounded in the fight, mostly because he let Silverstream flee.

When they get the chance, Greystripe insists on patrolling with him. He lets his apologies spill out, as Fireheart listens. He didn’t realize how serious this was, how much danger he was putting himself and the clan in. How he couldn’t lift a claw against Silverstream, and how fighting her friends and family was nigh impossible. How sorry he is that he disregarded Fireheart. Yelled, snapped, ignored him. He couldn’t believe all the things he missed. Cloudkit, Cinderpaw’s injury, and Brackenpaw wouldn’t even bother going to him for training. Everything that he ignored in favor of Silverstream. “I’m sorry for attacking you. I’m sorry for everything, Fireheart.”

And Fireheart forgives him, of course. They’re best friends, and he believes Greystripe will do a bit better this time. His friend won’t stop seeing Silverstream, but he swears to listen to Fireheart’s warnings and take them to heart. And he does, to some extent. He at least is around more, pays attention more, and works with Brackenpaw a little more.

But Greystripe notices, upon resurfacing from the pool of love and adoration to the real world, that he and Fireheart are no longer inseparable as they once were. He expected things to go right back to how they were before, where he could go off to see Silverstream and then hang out with Fireheart. But it seemed as if Fireheart was busier than ever, patrolling with Sandstorm, sharing meals with Brindleface. Even conversing (very tersely) with Dustpelt about hunting spots. Playing with the kits. Helping fix dens. And more, the clan went to Fireheart more often for help than him. He almost felt as if he were a ghost - he was gone so often, the clan was used to not needing his help. Fireheart was used to not needing his friendship.

Fireheart has found himself a true part of ThunderClan. Greystripe finds he has a lot of work to do to earn his place back.

#sunnymoon's rambles #warrior cats #firestar #greystripe #graystripe #ive always been more fond of grey over gray #fireheart #silverstream #sort of #sandstorm #also sort of #cat contemplations #greystripe was biggest bastard in fire and ice #im actually working on a thing for feathertail but i wrote this out instead #i hope the formatting is fine #i typed this out on mobile #hope you have a good weekend!

833 notes · View notes

thistleclaws-hatred · 4 years

Text

Darkstripe’s Loyalty - Novella - Chapter Seven

Previous Chapter Next Chapter

“Tigerclaw is a traitor to the Clan! He brought the rogue cats here today.”

Darkstripe looked up in shock, not too surprised to see Fireheart on the side of Bluestar, but more surprised that Bluestar had announced Tigerclaw as a prisoner of ThunderClan. Tigerclaw was bleeding heavily from his stomach, a pool of warm blood forming underneath his paws. Darkstripe felt sick.

“Cats of ThunderClan, do you remember when Redtail died? Tigerclaw told you that Oakheart killed him, but he was lying. It was Tigerclaw who killed Redtail!”

“How do you know?” That was Longtail, with the usual sneer on his face. “You weren’t at the battle.” For once, Darkstripe wished that the tabby would stop talking. From the day Tigerclaw had asked him if he would fight side-by-side with him through everything, Darkstripe had grown somewhat afraid of the tabby. When Tigerclaw brought back Redtail’s body, Darkstripe knew the truth almost instantly. Oakheart wasn’t a killer, every cat in the forest knew that. But, still, Darkstripe didn’t want to believe that Tigerclaw had killed the past deputy.

News of Ravenpaw’s fake death swept over the clan and Darkstripe saw a hint of surprise flash across Tigerclaw’s death. He’s wishing he had killed the apprentice when he had the chance. Darkstripe realized with a shudder.

“Ravenpaw told me that Oakheart died when rocks fell on him. Redtail fled from the rockfall, and ran straight into Tigerclaw. Tigerclaw pounced on him and killed him. And I’ve spoken to cats from RiverClan,” Fireheart added. “They tell the same story, that Oakheart died in a rockfall.”

Darkstripe looked down at his paws. He had idolized Tigerclaw, had wanted to follow in his paw prints as best as he could. But now he knew for a fact that his mentor, his friend, his...That he was a murderer. But how could someone so traitorous father kits? Darkstripe glanced at the nursery, where Goldenflower would be protecting Bramblekit and Tawnykit. A flash of envy moved across his mind, but he shoved it away quickly.

“Tigerclaw expected to be made deputy then,” Fireheart went on. “But Bluestar chose Lionheart instead. Then Lionheart died fighting ShadowClan, and at last Tigerclaw achieved his ambition. But being deputy wasn’t enough for him. I . . . I think that he even laid a trap for Bluestar beside the Thunderpath, but Cinderpaw was caught in it instead.” He glanced at Cinderpaw as he spoke, to see her eyes widen and her jaws open in a gasp of surprise.

Darkstripe felt like he was going to throw up at that point. Cinderpaw had been shaping up to be a wonderful warrior, and now she had to be a medicine cat. Not that there was anything wrong with that life, but Darkstripe knew, deep down, that Cinderpaw would make a much better warrior. And now she’ll never get that chance thanks to Tigerclaw.

“What will happen to him now?” Darkstripe found himself asking, his eyes pleading with Fireheart and Bluestar.

“Kill him!”

“Blind him!”

“Drive him out of the forest!”

Darkstripe looked around. His clanmates wanted to hurt him, wanted to kill him and make him suffer. And, part of him wanted that too. Tigerclaw had plotted with that disgusting excuse for a warrior, Brokenstar, and betrayed his trust. So why do I still want to defend him? Oh Tigerclaw what have you done?

“Do you have anything to say in your defense?” Bluestar asked the tabby warrior.

“Defend myself to you, you gutless excuse for a warrior? What sort of a leader are you? Keeping the peace with other Clans. Helping them! You barely punished Fireheart and Graystripe for feeding RiverClan, and you sent them to fetch WindClan home! I would have never shown such kittypet softness. I would have brought back the days of TigerClan. I would have made ThunderClan great!” Tigerclaw roared. Darkstripe saw the same fire in his eyes that he saw in Thistleclaw’s the day Thistleclaw died.

Darkstripe swung his head around, seeing Cloudpaw looking dejected. Kittypet, serves you right for this. Darkstripe knew that this wasn’t entirely Fireheart and Cloudpaw’s fault, but they were kittypets, they didn’t belong in ThunderClan. If it wasn’t for Fireheart, none of this would be happening. When Ashkit and Fernkit, both almost ready to be apprentices, poked their heads out of the nursery, Darkstripe felt a familiar pang hit his heart. Those are my kits, raised next to a kittypet. They will train next to him and fight beside him. Traitors!

“I sentence you to exile,” Bluestar’s voice sounded faint. “You will leave ThunderClan territory now, and if any cat sees you here after sunrise tomorrow, they have my permission to kill you.”

“I’d like to see them try,” Tigerclaw taunted.

“Fireheart beat you!” Graystripe called out.

Darkstripe folded his ears back in anger, so this really was all Fireheart’s fault. Or was it? Darkstripe felt his heart being torn in two ways.

“Don’t think I’m finished,” Tigerclaw hissed. “I’ll be a leader yet. And any cat who comes with me will be well looked after. Darkstripe?”

Darkstripe looked up, gazing into Tigerclaw’s amber eyes. Memories of late night hunts and running through the woods filled his mind. His promise that he had made to stick by Tigerclaw’s side struck him like a badger’s paw, just as he was sure it was in Tigerclaw’s mind as well. But...Tigerclaw had betrayed his clan. If he had just waited he would’ve been leader. There was no point in plotting with Brokenstar, no use in using his rogues. You were beat by a kittypet, tried to kill our leader, killed Redtail, and crippled Cinderpaw. If I didn’t care for you so much this would be an easy answer. Darkstripe was painfully aware of everyone looking at him, and Fireheart’s green gaze locked firmly on his pelt.

Darkstripe got to his paws, “I trusted you, Tigerclaw,” he protested. “I thought you were the finest warrior in the forest. But you plotted with that . . . that tyrant, and you said nothing to me. And now you expect me to come with you?” He looked away deliberately. “I cannot follow you.”

“I needed his Brokenstar’s help with the rogues, if you take that personally then that’s your problem,” Tigerclaw spat, looking around to find Longtail.

Darkstripe blocked out the rest of Tigerclaw’s speech, not even bothering to turn around as he heard the gorse tunnel shift the moment the tabby finally left. The camp felt weird, stiff almost. Every cat was avoiding him and Longtail, only Dustpelt seemed to have some friends left over after Tigerclaw’s banishment. I need to be alone. Darkstripe thought, making his way into the warriors’ den and curling up to sleep off the weird feelings he still felt about Tigerclaw.

It was the following morning that Darkstripe realized that Bluestar had not announced a new deputy. He made his way out into the clearing just in time to see her slink out of her den. Her fur was matted and dusty, dried blood still clung to certain parts. It hurt Darkstripe to know that Bluestar looked like that due to Tigerclaw’s attack.

Bluestar was stumbling around the Highrock from her den. She looked old and weary as she sat down in front of the rock, making no attempt to climb it. “Cats of ThunderClan,” she rasped, barely loud enough to be heard over the anxious muttering. “Listen and I will appoint the new deputy.”

Darkstripe looked around, no one seemed particularly fit to be deputy. Whitestorm maybe?

“I say these words before StarClan, that the spirits of our ancestors may hear and approve my choice.” Bluestar paused again, staring down at her paws. She didn’t speak for a long time. Darkstripe felt a chill crawl up his spine. One or two cats had begun to whisper uneasily, but as Bluestar raised her head again they stopped. “The new deputy will be Fireheart,” she announced clearly.

Darkstripe snarled loudly. Fireheart? That kittypet? He’s the only reason that Tigerclaw got exiled! Darkstripe knew that wasn’t true. Tigerclaw had been exiled for his betrayal, but it felt better to blame the former kittypet than to accept the truth. “Well I’m not taking orders from a kittypet!”

Cats began to swarm around the handsome ginger tom and Whitestorm even made a point to ask Fireheart what he wanted the clan to do. When Fireheart asked him to take out a hunting patrol Darkstripe made it a point to sit for a long time. Fine then. He got to his paws and called over to Longtail and Dustpelt, and the three toms exited the clan.

“This clan is becoming weaker by the day,” Darkstripe spat.

“What do you mean?” Dustpelt asked. The warrior was strong in battle and a fine hunter, but seemed not too keen when it came to clan politics.

“Have you not noticed?” Darkstripe spun his head around to face his two followers, “Fireheart, a kittypet, is our deputy. It’s only a matter of time before Sandstorm and him are mates and that means more kittypet blood, not to mention Cloudpaw! That arrogant little furball is lucky Bluestar ever accepted him into the clan. If it wasn’t for Bluestar taking in a kittypet all those seasons ago, none of this would be happening! Tigerclaw would still be in ThunderClan!”

“And he likely would’ve gotten away with killing Bluestar,” Longtail pointed out, narrowing his eyes at Darkstripe, “Or are you saying that Tigerclaw was just in that action?”

Was Longtail really siding with Fireheart? Darkstripe stepped forward, claws unsheathed. Blood roared in his ears and he felt his legs begin to shake, “I..I don’t know.”

“Tigerclaw is a traitor to ThunderClan. I hope he lives out the rest of his days in peace if his wound does not take him first, but I will never forgive him for what he did and what he tried to do,” Dustpelt meowed, his voice distant. Darkstripe was reminded of the fact that Redtail had been Dustpelt’s mentor first.

Darkstripe could not find the words to argue with either of them, “I’m going to hunt alone,” he whispered softly, running off into the woods. His mind was a clashing battle of happy memories with Tigerclaw and the other side of him. The side that had clawed his ears when he had been unfocused as an apprentice, the side that killed Redtail, the side that never thanked him for any of Darkstripe’s help. But still, Darkstripe’s heart yearned to be with him. I hope you’re safe out there, wherever you are.

#darkstripe’s loyalty #darkstripe #tigerclaw #tigerstar #bluestar #warriors #warrior cats #firestar #fireheart #longtail #dustpelt #whitestorm #cloudtail #sandstorm #novella

3 notes · View notes