#RiverClan Bluefur au

[heathfall]

Misty and Stone are recognized and returned home AU

(I wish it had a snappier name but unfortunately ThunderClan!Misty and Stone is pretty vague)

Anyway, the concept of the AU is that Mistykit and Stonekit remember ThunderClan and remember their mother and so do their best to sneak out of RiverClan and home to Bluefur.

They fall into the river in doing so, and guess who saves them? Ding ding ding: Mapleshade, resident haunter of the Appledusk line. Mapleshade then leads Thistleclaw over to where the kits are ("you want to be deputy. I want these kits out of RiverClan. You know what to do.")

Thistleclaw then comes crashing back into ThunderClan as a downright savior, talking about "oh, I rescued Bluefur's kits! RiverClan stole them!" cue RiverClan/ThunderClan war.

It's not super well thought out after that but it does have some interesting points

[theanoninyourinbox]

NEW LONGSTAR AU - THE NOT-SO-LONG BALLAD OF FIRE AND FLAME

Before Fire Prophecy

Talltail seeks to kill the Loner that he believes killed his father.  With the help of a kittypet named Jake, he finds the strength to forgive, and instead saves Sparrow from the Monster, and returns to Windclan with new determination in his heart and a dear…friend…that he leaves behind.  It is with this new spirit that he protests the renaming of Hopkit, and he stays Hoppaw.  The two remain close friends throughout their lives.

In Riverclan, Stormkit is renamed Crookedkit, but Rainflower is also renamed – Rottenflower.  Crookedkit’s name is given as a sign of survival, and Rottenflower’s as a sign of her true heart.  Crookedkit still leaves for a time, still is haunted by the Geist Mapleshade, but with his head a little higher and heart a little clearer.

Tiny is playing on an old stump when the Thunderclan Patrol finds him, and Thistleclaw orders Tigerpaw to attack.  Bluefur intercedes, and the heavily injured kitten is brought back to camp to be treated.  Sunstar decides to keep the poor little thing, and Frostkit is semi-adopted by Bluefur. 

Yellowfang is about to bury Hopekit and Wishkit when the sounds and smells of Twolegs alert her.  She knows they will try to take her and her remaining kit, so she grabs Brokenkit and runs.  The twoleg, stretching their legs after a long car ride, finds the two kittens and sees signs of life in the little tortie.  They rush the cold kitten to a vet, and with time and effort, little Nutmeg thrives. 

As Frostkit heals, a moons-long process, he makes friends with Spottedpaw and Whitepaw.  Eventually he notices that Thistleclaw keeps trying to get Spottedpaw alone, and with the help of Thrushpelt, discovers the horrible truth.  Thistleclaw is dragged before the clan, and with Spottedpaw’s testimony, the Traitor is banished from the clans permanently.  Spottedpaw becomes a Healer apprentice, and Thrushpelt begins to mentor Frostpaw.

Nutmeg eventually is introduced to a handsome orange tabby named Jake, and falls in love.  He breaks her heart by leaving when she’s due to give birth, and swears to take care of her beloved bundles of joy by herself.

Raggedstar lies dying, with his daughter Brokentail laughing as she cleans the blood from her paws, and realizes the enormous mistake he made with the way he raised her.  He dies, and watches as Brokentail receives her lives from the Dark Forest. Watches her kill kits.  Watches her banish her own mother.  What has he done?

Longpaw is mentored by Frostfoot, making an unusual pair.  Longpaw is eventually named Longtail, and wonders what his future holds for him.  He does not see the starry crown behind his head, ethereal and light as a dream.

Bluestar and Spottedleaf sit together on a hillside, Leader and Oracle Healer, and a pair of stars fall burning from the sky.  Fire Will Save The Clans.

The Long Ballad of Fire and Flames

Rusty the kittypet has yet another strange dream, of a red-tailed bird falling from a rainy sky.  He and his friend Smudge discuss the happenings around the neighborhood.  Princess, Rusty’s sister, forbids Rusty from going to the forest by himself.  Later that night, Rusty tries to catch a mouse on the border and gets tackled by a gray tabby, who is impressed when Rusty flings him off.  After meeting his mentor Lionheart, Rusty agrees to meet them the next morning, to see the Clan.  Rusty tells Princess about this.

The next morning, Rusty sneaks past a still sleeping Princess and a worried Smudge, and meets Bluestar, Graypaw, and Lionheart. The Thunderclanners refuse to wait for his sister. They head off to camp, with Rusty leaving a subtle scent trail so Princess can find him.  Princess wakes up, and follows the trail with stealth and careful steps.

At camp, Bluestar introduces Rusty as a potential clanmate, and some cats take offense to that.  Darkstripe demands he be tested, but Frostfoot tells him to calm down, what, are you threatened by him? Really?  Lionheart gets inbetween them to break it up, but cocky Longtail challenges the kittypet before anyone can stop him.  Frostfoot is mortified.  Rusty accepts, and the two square off.  Longtail gets the upper paw almost immediately, and gets a hold of Rusty’s collar.  As he pulls, he hears a yowl of outrage.  And suddenly he is FLUNG bodily, his ear burning, the collar still in his mouth.

He gets up, and there is an ENORMOUS molly standing over the fallen kittypet, the warriors and camp guards at the ready to fight.  As Spottedleaf helps him to his feet, Longtail hears the Tortie scolding Rusty for leaving without her, I TOLD you there would be trouble but noooOOOooo you don’t listen to your sister!  You just listen to your silly dreams!! Bluestar interrupts, impressed with the boldness of the kittypet and interested with the dreams comment.  Princess introduces herself, and after Rusty says he agreed to the fight, apologizes to a still stunned Longtail.  Rusty explains he has dreams that come true sometimes, and tells Bluestar and Spottedleaf about the red-tailed hawk dream.  Spottedleaf asks to mentor Rusty in the arts of healing and Starseeing, and Bluestar agrees, asking is Princess would like to join as well. Frostfoot mildly scolds Longtail for leaping without looking, and Princess and Rusty become Flamepaw and Firepaw, with Bluestar herself mentoring Flamepaw.

And then Ravenpaw rushes into camp.  Redtail is dead, he screams, and collapses.  And pandemonium rises.

After Tigerclaw brings Redtail’s lifeless body back to camp, and the apprentices and kits are shielded from the sight by Whitestorm and Lionheart, the pair of siblings settle in.  Firepaw makes fast friends with Ravenpaw and Graypaw, and Flamepaw befriends Dustpaw and Sandpaw.  The pair drag Longtail into being their friend as well, which brings Frostfoot and eventually Swiftpaw into the equation as well.

Longtail begins to mentor Swiftpaw, and finds that he loves teaching.  With the help of Frostfoot and the other Mentor cats, he begins to become more humble and less cocky.  Longtail begins to appreciate his friendship with Firepaw and Flamepaw, and takes more time to live, not just be a Hunter and Mentor.

One day, while gathering herbs for the Healer’s Den, Firepaw is knocked off his feet by an old gray and yellow molly.  He springs to his feet, ready to fight, but the attacker is just…staring at him.  Like she’s seen a Geist.  He cautiously asks if she’s alright, do you need help ma’am?  And she moans something unintelligible, falling to the ground in a dead faint.  Firepaw panics, and drags her back to camp.  There, she is identified as Yellowfang by Spottedleaf, who tells Firepaw of her alleged crimes, and how she believes that Yellowfang was framed.  Said Healer wakes up, takes one look at Flamepaw coming in to drop off a mouse, and promptly wails in grief and pain.  The three of the get her to calm down, and she quietly apologizes, the siblings look like…patients she lost long ago.  Bluestar listens to her tale of Brokenstar being a False Star, and while still weighing the information, relegates Yellowfang to being a War-Bound for the time being.

Bluestar does not hear the story Yellowfang tells to the Healers and the Apprentice Brawler.  She does not see the siblings take the old molly to meet their mother.  She does not know a family has been made as whole as it will ever be.

At the Gathering, Brokenstar tells everyone how she ran out Windclan, and Bluestar realizes that Yellowfang was probably telling the truth.  As she had just revealed Thunderclan had Yellowfang as a War Bound, she begins to prepare for an attack, and she is correct – Shadowclan tries to kill Yellowfang, and succeeds at killing Lionheart and her dear friend Rosetail. Her heart grows a crack. She names the brave Tigerclaw, names Yellowfang part of Thunderclan, and tries to go on.

Then Ravenpaw leaves, begging shelter at The Barn with Bluestar’s old friend Barley, for reasons the apprentice refuses to communicate.  All his friends Graypaw, Firepaw, and Flamepaw will say is that he needed to be something that the Clans couldn’t let him be.  And the crack grows.

And then Shadowclan steals Frostfur’s kits, Lionheart’s kits. They kill Spottedleaf, Firepaw wailing over her body. She goes with her Warriors, Brawlers, and their apprentices to rescue the innocent.  They are met by Senior Warriors and other banished cats from Shadowclan, aided by Yellowfang in secret. Brokenstar is run out of the clans. Yellowfang takes over Firepaw’s training, and Flamepaw and Graypaw are named Flamewish (per her request) and Graystripe. Why is the crack still growing?

Flamewish, Graystripe, Longtail, and Swiftpaw are sent to retrieve Windclan.  It goes well, until a Riverclan patrol tries to fight them, and Whiteclaw falls off a cliff while fighting Graystripe.

When the group returns, Flamewish and Graystripe receive their first apprentices – Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw.  Flamewish finds Mentoring difficult, and asks Longtail for advice.  The pair become close friends.  Firepaw and Sandstorm make bets as to when they’ll become mates.  Unfortunately, Cinderpaw is lured away from camp and gets hit by a Monster. (It’s a car, just – just call it a car!! -Firepaw) Firepaw saves her life, and Yellowfang bestows the name Fireheart upon him at the next half-moon.

Also unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), at seeing her apprentice so badly injured, Flamewish has an unusual reaction.  She goes into labor.  Seeing as Flamewish had no idea she was even a little pregnant (as she put it), things get a little crazy.  Longtail is flabbergasted, Bluestar is confused, Yellowfang is baffled, and Fireheart is delighted but also flabbergasted.  Flamewish does some calculating, then privately asks Fireheart to go bite Smudge in the face for her.

(This means Flamewish misses Graystripe meeting the gorgeously muscled Riverclan molly)

But it DOES mean she spends time in the Nursery with Brindleface, her kits Fernkit and Ashkit and Frostfoot and his kits Flykit and Coldkit.  Frostfoot who had just gone out one day and brought back the pair, claiming them as his.  Bluestar was frustrated and elated at the same time. 

The three become even closer when Brokenstar attacks, as they defend the Nursery together.  Longtail and Swiftpaw help drive off the Rogues together, and after Yellowfang blinds Brokenstar and leaves her Brokentail the War Bound, Swiftpaw is rewarded with his Adult Name – Swiftspirit. (Later, Longtail will see this as an omen, unknowingly given by Starclan through Bluestar…) Graystripe is later caught giving prey to Riverclan, and punished by having his apprentice taken away – Longtail is suddenly a Mentor again!  And Brackenpaw has so many things to learn!

Cinderpaw makes a nearly full recovery, but her time in the Healer’s Den had made her rethink her life – she wants to heal others.  Flamewish cracks a joke about her brother poaching her apprentice, but wishes her well.

And then Brokentail’s War Bound status becomes known.  And Thunderclan is attacked.  And Tigerclaw is at her throat, keen claws at her throat.  But as her heart shatters, a yowl of outrage rings through the air, and Longtail and Flamewish HAUL the Traitor off of her.  Bluestar banishes Him, and she holds the pieces of her heart and weeps – there are no stars in her tonight.  She waits too long, then names the astonished Longtail as Deputy.

Then Graystripe begs for the Healers to help him – they find the laboring Silverstream and do what they can, but Featherkit and Stormkit outlive their mother.  Graystripe leaves for Riverclan, refusing to abandon his kits.  Fireheart and Flamewish can’t blame him, but it still hurts.  And Brokentail is dead.  Yellowfang tells her leader that he dies of natural causes, but Bluestar does not see the look on Fireheart’s face.  (She will eventually learn that he just watched his grandmother kill his uncle) Then the fire. Oh the fire.  Patchpelt and Halftail, coughing and then forever breathless.  Fireheart and Flamewish race to find Yellowfang – to find their family.  She lies in a hollow tree, and blesses the Stars that she has enough time to say goodbye.  To say how proud she is of them – both her life paths.  I’ll always watch over you. (and Yellowfang keeps this promise)

Bluestar feels her mind failing, rain through the treetops instead of thoughts. So when she sees the Traitor leading Shadowclan as a False Star, she just…lets go. She watches Leopardstar rise and her clan move around her like a fever dream.  She watches the hawk impassively as it goes for Snowkit, and barely reacts when it takes Speckletail instead.  She doesn’t react when Longtail promotes Snowpaw to train under Brackenfur, or when Flamewish brings the elderly deaf kittypet Brahm to teach Snowpaw and Mistlepaw and others Pawspeak. She doesn’t react to the death of Swiftspirit or the maiming of Brightpaw, save to curse the Stars that left her broken by naming the poor thing Lostface.

(Longtail MOURNS.  He refuses to eat, has to be pried from his nest, and it takes a teary Flamewish admitting she misses the tom she loves for him to snap out of it.  The pair find solace in each other.  Fireheart and Sandstorm are too busy and too worried to exchange the mouse that they bet.  Neither ever says who won that bet)

Rabbits lead a bloody trail to poor Brindleface, and Longtail makes a plan to lead the dogs away from their den and over the river-cliffs.  Bluestar nods absently, but there’s a shining spark in her eyes that hasn’t been there in ages.  The runners lead the killer hounds up to the cliffs and away, but one grabs Longtail, pinning him and scratching his face.  But a blur of blue streaks onto the dog’s back, and overbalances them both into the river.  A pair of Riverclan warriors leap into action, and Bluestar says goodbye to her family, Frostfoot and Whitestorm having raced to the scene.

Longtail is escorted to the Moonstone by Fireheart, and finds himself in Starclan.  He receives his lives from Nightstar, Runningwind, Speckletail, Lionheart, Redtail, Silverstream, Yellowfang, Bluestar, and finally Swiftspirit.  Longstar vows to stop Tigerstar and his cronies.  He names Whitestorm as Deputy, and begins planning.

Tigerstar goes after Windclan, pinning and seemingly killing Gorsepaw, but as soon as the Shadowclan Battle Patrol leaves, he brings his head up and smiles weakly at his frantic mother. He will be scarred for life, but he will have his chance to live.

At Riverclan, Stonefur defends the apprentices to his last breath, and Graystripe rescues his kits from Tigerstar and Leopardstar.  Some Riverclan cats escape in the chaos, unwilling to follow their leader on this path.

Finally, with Windclan and Thunderclan united against the forces of Riverclan and Shadowclan, Tigerstar plays his deadliest card yet, as hordes of strange city Rogues appear.  Led by a figure some Thunderclanners recognize.  Thistleclaw.  But the rogues, no, the Bloodclanners, call him Tyrant.  Tigerstar boasts to the assembled clans how he killed Bluestar using the dogs and

Tyrant kills Tigerstar with a slash to the underbelly

Nine lives gone, in a single blow

The battle comes the next day, all four clans together – Longstar and Tallstar, Leopardstar and Blackstar.

Bone holds down Whitestorm, and is ripped of by a squad of apprentices, including his own, Brightheart.

Darkstripe goes after the Healers, and Graystripe strikes him down. His body is never found, and a gray tabby wanders desolate, his mistakes weighing on his soul.

Longstar strikes the final blow against Tyrant

And life goes on

[brackenfur]

i think my top two favorite bluestar vs thistleclaw rewrite concepts are

a. where her big secret isn’t that she had kits with a riverclan tom, but that she killed thistleclaw. it’s something that she has never spoken about and that no cat knows, but it’s a massive part of her decline in health in books 4 and 5 of the first arc - even if she feels as though she had to do it, she feels so guilty that she became leader based off of a murder and it’s part of why she’s so protective of tigerclaw in the first three books.,,, not only is her deputy, but fireheart is accusing tigerclaw of doing what she did so many years ago, and although the situations are different (thistleclaw being dangerous while redtail was not, perhaps even have it in this au where thistleclaw threatened her or her kits), she can’t help but feel that way. and when tigerclaw does try to kill her, she realizes that perhaps starclan was trying to punish her by having her own deputy kill her

b. where, instead of bluefur saying that a badger was the one who took her kits, she says she doesn’t know what animal could’ve taken them - the den doesn’t smell like any animal, and the clan thinks they may have wandered off - but so many of her clanmates are extremely suspicious of thistleclaw and worry that maybe he was the one who killed them. everyone knows that they don’t get along, and rumor has it that he had tigerpaw attack a young housecat - could he have done that to her? the rumor begins to grow and grow to the point where even sunstar hears it, and of course thistleclaw denies it, but bluestar also never comments on it publicly as well.

i personally really enjoy concepts of bluestar where she made impulsive decisions based on her emotions even when she was younger - as readers none of us rly have sympathy for thistleclaw at all anymore, but i think it’s fascinating to have her do something against thistleclaw years ago and justify it to herself, only for years later post tigerclaw to wonder if she really did make the right call

[bonefall]

is hawkheart allowed to be a nuanced or at least fun character in better bones? on my knees begging after so many aus of “hawkheart goes straight to hell because he loves murder and nothing else” and “hawkheart killing an enemy during a battle where the invaded his home to destroy his medicine supply and immediately and long term endanger his clanmates actually means he put his clan in the wrong”. he has so much fun personality across his appearances and i love how hes one of the few characters who we’re allowd to see is multi faceted based on whos perceiving him (yellowfang sees him as curteous, bluestar sees him as cruel, tallstar sees him as gruff but kind, etc)

WHO IS BEING MEAN TO MY SON?? I LOVE HIM. What is it about WindClan that just sucks the ability to have nuance out of a person??

BB is about that. It's about pointing out how the extreme emphasis on war pits good people against each other, and people die over pointless bullshit. I spoke about it in passing once before but the Killing of Moonflower is something that I plan to expand on with Bluestar's Flowers.

When Bluepaw was young, she hated Hawkheart. Blamed him for killing her mother, NEEDED to believe it was StarClan's will that they went into glorious battle that day. She was insulted when Pinestar and Heatherstar entered talks after the vigil-- was her mother's life really only worth a couple squares of linen??

But Bluefur eventually makes friends. From ShadowClan, RiverClan, and even from BloodClan-- and there's two members of the little group from WindClan. Hoprunner and Ashfoot.

Meeting them starts to put things into perspective. She hears the story from the other side. Ashfoot was still a kit at the time, sick and being treated in the Cleric's Den. She remembers a ThunderClan warrior who burst in, and how terrified she was before Hawkheart shot out from the shadows... but she didn't know that was Bluefur's mother.

She just knew that if Hawkheart hadn't stopped the nameless warrior that night, she would be dead. Even if Moonflower hadn't even touched her, without those herbs, Ashkit would have died. Ashfoot wouldn't be standing here before Bluefur.

I haven't planned out her reaction yet, but it's something that should absolutely shake Bluefur. She probably ends up leaving the get-together early because she needs to be alone with that. Everything she's ever had to believe about Moonflower's death, that it was noble, that it was StarClan's will, that she was the strongest warrior and thus worthy of the front line...

How can she reconcile that with the trembling image of one of her best friends, someone she loves more than almost anything, sick and terrified in Moonflower's shadow?

It's hard to hate Hawkheart after that. She still wants to. But how can she? Who's even left to blame, if she can't be mad at her own Clanmates, and she can't be angry at WindClan?

But, anyway that aside? Hawkheart's a neat background character. I like him a lot. He's never going to have a starring role, but I think what he does do is very important.

[mousetoe-wc]

What if snowfur and blustar swap roles?

I actually had an au I made on my main blog before I started this one! Swap au here.

To summarise it, everyone’s role in the story is swapped with someone else: Snowstar <- -> Bluefur, Rusty <- -> Emberheart (Princess), whitekit(storm) <- -> Moss-storm. Rosetail takes on the role of Sweetpaw, who is now Sweetclaw that takes on the role of Thistleclaw who is now Thistletail.

Snowfur is now with Sweetclaw but for what ever reason Whitekit dies, Bluefur still has an affair and gives away her kits but has to take Mosskit back with her due to them almost freezing to death.

Bluefur and Snowfur have an argument about this and like in canon Snowfur sees shadowclan warriors on Thunderclan territory and chases them across the road with Bluefur fallowing behind, but this time Bluefur is the one to be killed by a car. Mosskit is raised by Snowfur, (Snowfur was as aggressive towards other clans as in canon until this point.)

Her relationship with Sweetclaw has been deteriorating since Whitekit’s death and now Snowfur has a new kit to raise, which is straining because Bluefur and Sweetclaw didn’t get along in life and Sweetclaw’s suspicions of Bluefur’s Riverclan affair had made it worse.

Eventually Snowfur breaks of their relationship when Mosspaw becomes an apprentice and begins working towards becoming deputy for the sake of her clan and her niece.

[the-owl-tree]

can you imagine snowfur dying on the thunderpath because she attacked bluefur

chasing her sister and snarling with her (unknowing) last breath before being struck dead mid-stride.

or chasing oakheart who’d snuck over to see bluefur, freezing in shock on the thunderpath when bluefur shows up/or she sees her with him and the monster gets her.

bluestar has a lot of tragedy in her life but the idea that this one is on her? god that would be a punch in the gut. would also be cool if tiger in this au who is thistle and snow’s kit resented blue for his mother’s death if he ever learned and vowed to kill her in revenge.

idk “power hungry” is a cool motive and all but he was also massively xenophobic and a purist. clan culture is already bad enough but to have personal reason to hate cross clan relationships would have been interesting. not saying they need a reason to be worse I just like giving characters more depth. and it’s not like any of these cats ever learn hating outsiders are bad anyway. you’d think with how the halfclan cats were sentenced to death and how tigerstar did riverclan more cats would say “no, we’ve seen this before, this thinking. this is wrong.” and learn the consequences of unchecked hatred. it gets people killed.

sorry this ask is all over the place ajhfdfhd just!! thinking about what could have been if I existed in the writers room when warrior cats was being written

OOOOHH YOU'RE ONTO SOMETHING!! the last time snowfur was on that road, she was chasing trespassers out of their territory....but this time, she's chasing her own sister. bluefur won't fight back, at that point she'd given up her children- she wasn't going to hurt her only sister. it's an accident, of course, but the guilt destroys her inside and out.

and thistleclaw is there to stoke the flames of tigerkit's anger. tigerclaw grows into a warrior and he learns two things very quickly: two honorable warriors died in the glory of battle, and it was the coward who became leader. that was a wrong that he had to right.

and man. the half-clan executions were so fucked you'd think it would have more of an impact on the series, but asc is....ough.......it was all tigerstar's fault eh. the only bad thing that happened was joining the two clans together eh writing team.

[skyscratch-wc]

WC Skyfall AU Timeline: From The Skyfall to The Light in the Mist

This is a draft timeline for the Skyfall AU outline. All dates are approximate and subject to change.

Winter 1920 - Skyclan is exiled from the forest after human settlement drives them from their home territory. The remaining clans refuse to aid the homeless clan and Skyclan leaves the forest. Only Birdflight, the mate of Cloudstar of Skyclan, and their kittens remain behind. Skyclan vows to never turn to Starclan again, causing the formation of the Skypaws, which becomes Skyclan's ancestral skies.

Spring 1921 - Skyclan arrives at the gorge. Cloudstar dies soon after, the stress of the events in the forest and the subsequent journey catching up to him. Buzzardstar is named leader.

1938-1940 - The Thunderclan Civil War fought between the Cloudstar and Redstar's descendants within Thunderclan. The result is the death of many warriors and the Thunderclan leader (and Cloudstar descendant), Yarrowstar, and the formation of the Skybloods as a group within Thunderclan.

Summer 1950 - Amberstar of Thunderclan becomes the first true Skyblood leader of Thunderclan. Her descendants (Birdstar, Oakstar, Pinestar, Tigerstar of Shadowclan, and Bramblestar) would lead Thunderclan for the majority of the next several decades.

1958 - Birdstar of Thunderclan and Frondstar of Shadowclan begin leading raids into the town, kidnapping kits in the process. These raids would continue through the reigns of the leaders' successors Oakstar and Houndstar.

1975 - Mapleshade's Vengeance takes place. Darkstar of Riverclan, upset at Oakstar for damning the kittens along with the mother, adds a law to the warrior code: Kittens are to be protected, regardless of their origins or the actions of their kin.

"Mapleshade may have been the one to bring those kittens to the river, but they would not have been there had it not been for your rashness, Oakstar. Kittens are not to be blamed for the actions of their kin."

1984 - Pinestar's Choice begins

1985 - Doestar of Thunderclan ends the raids on the town and establishes friendly, although fragile, relations with the cats of the town.

1986 - Goosefeather's Curse begins [this may be scrapped-- I am not a big fan of this novella or it's implications for future events]

1989 - Yellowfang's Secret and Tallstar's Revenge begin

1991 - Pinestar becomes leader of Thunderclan

1994 - Bluestar's Prophecy and Crookedstar's Promise begin

1996 - Pinestar leaves Thunderclan to become a house-cat, abandoning his family in the process. Leopardfoot, his ex-mate, suggests a new law for the code in her anger: A noble warrior rejects the life of a house-cat and will lay down their life in service of their clan

1997 - Tallstar becomes leader of Windclan and Leopardstar's Honor begins.

Winter 1998 - Blueflame [Bluefur/Bluestar] gives birth to Mistykit, Stonekit, and Mosskit in Thunderclan. Mistykit and Stonekit are given to their father, Oakheart of Riverclan, while Mosskit passes away on the trip to the river. Blueflame is named deputy of Thunderclan.

2000 - Redtail's Debt and Spottedleaf's Heart begin. Crookedstar becomes leader of Riverclan.

2001 - Bluestar becomes leader of Thunderclan.

Spring 2003 - Rusty the Kittypet joins Thunderclan as Firepaw. Windclan is driven from the forest by Brokenstar.

Summer 2003 - Brokenstar is driven out of Shadowclan.

Early Fall 2003 - Fireheart and Graystripe help bring Windclan home after they are driven out by Brokenstar.

2005 - Tigerclaw is exiled from Thunderclan. Fireheart is named deputy of Thunderclan.

2006 - Firestar becomes leader of Thunderclan. The Darkest Hour takes place.

2007 - Firestar's Quest takes place. Skyclan is re-established in the gorge, albeit with very different structure from the Forest Four due to a prolonged time apart. Leafstar is made leader of the newly refounded clan, with Sharpclaw as her deputy and Echosong as her cleric.

2008 - The New Prophecy begins

2009 - the clans arrive at The Lake. Leafpool discovers the Moonpool

2009 - Windclan Civil War takes place after Tallstar's death. Peatstar [Onestar] is named leader of Windclan.

2010 - Leopardstar passes away and Mistystar becomes leader of Riverclan.

2011 - The Three are born to Leafpool of Thunderclan. Her sister, Squirrelflight, adopts the kittens and presents them to the clan as her own. In reality, Lionkit is the son of Leafpool and Mothwing of Riverclan while Jaykit and Hollykit are the kits of Leafpool and Crowfeather of Windclan.

2013 - The Battle of the Eclipse takes place.

Spring 2014 - Hollyleaf reveals the truth of the Three's parentage at a gathering and murders Ashfur before fleeing into the tunnels.

Summer 2014 - The Fourth Apprentice takes place.

Summer 2016 - The Battle of the Dark Forest takes place. Blackstar of Shadowclan dies in the battle and Tawnystar becomes leader of Shadowclan. Firestar of Thunderclan also dies in the battle and Bramblestar becomes leader of Thunderclan.

2018 - The Apprentice's Quest takes place

2019 - Darktail and The Kin arrive at the Lake

Fall 2019 - Tawnystar is killed attempting to drive Darktail away from the lake. Shadowclan is temporarily leaderless.

2020 - Darktail is killed by his estranged father, Peatstar. Harestar becomes leader of Windclan and Goldenstar becomes leader of Shadowclan.

2021 - Lost Stars takes place.

2022 - Ashfur is defeated. A shaken Bramblestar steps down from leadership and Squirrelstar becomes leader of Thunderclan.

-----------

A few notes to make:

Bluefur is now Blueflame

Tigerheart is now Goldenheart (I hated that he was named Tiger to begin with)

Squirrelstar becomes leader several books earlier

The prequels have been shuffled around a little bit in order to better match the cats ages in TPB

Leader deaths have been moved around a lot on the timeline. Some leaders live wayyyyyy too long

I added a large time period between Cloudstar's Journey and Mapleshade's Vengeance. The clans need time to forget that Skyclan existed.

Please let me know if I have made any glaring mistakes in terms of seasons -- I haven't re-read any books recently other than The Prophecies Begin, which I read a few weeks ago. I am mostly relying on my memory of the books, knowledge gained from tumblr, and the wiki.

I likely won't do a ton of work on anything past OotS, since that is the last arc I fully read when I was reading the books as a teenager.

A timeline for DotC through to The Skyfall will be posted eventually

[stellaclaw]

obsessed with an au where ive compressed the timeline so mv is closer to modern day. frecklewish survives her injury and is very elderly by the time bluefur has had her kits. shes had to go through so much introspection through starclan and dark forest and near death dreams and mourning and therapy-tizing herself. and she dies in the snow helping bluefur get all three of her kits to riverclan safely.

[tearwolfe]

i want to talk about my warriors AUs!!!!!! they happen to all... be lesbian AUs.

my fav: maplereed AU 🍁

- mapleshade's vengeance goes as normal until she gets across the river and the riverclan patrol spots her.

- appledusk is throwing her under the bus, and instead of reedshine agreeing w him, she takes pity on mapleshade and gets made that APPLE war cheating on HER.

- darkstar (RC leader) agrees to take mapleshade in, as sort of a psuedo apprentice, and punishes appledusk for being disloyal and makes him do apprentice duties.

- maple and reed start getting closer.. reed at first is just helping maple get over the loss of her kits, since as a future mother she knows she would be devastated.

- reed is no longer talking to appledusk since he is a cheating asshole.

- maple and reed become MATES! reed has her kits, and they are named willowkit, shykit, and petalkit.

this is as far as i've written the story.. BUT i do wanna continue it. i want to have maple kill/almost kill at least one of the cats she killed in MV.

sasharusset AU ❤️

- follows the sasha & tigerstar manga up until she is about to have her kits. she goes to shadowclan to have them.

- tigerstar is alive for a brief moment until he gets yote into the stratusphere by scourge. sasha is very distressed.

- over this trauma, she bonds with russetfur. they both were outsiders who entered the clans as loners, so they have common ground and don't feel judged by one another.

- sasha has her kits. TADPOLE LIVES AU

- sasha x russetfur real.

(tawnypaw stays in TC in this AU and hawk, moth, and tadpole are in SC. haven't thought of tadpole's warrior name yet! he might be a medicine cat instead of mothwing.)

blueyellow AU 🌊

i actually used to have this one written down BUT i can't find it.. essentially it's an AU where yellowfang gets kicked from SC earlier than she does in canon, and she becomes a part of TC before bluefur becomes leader. i don't quite remember the rest, but i remember it was GOOD!!

[tignya]

I'm gonna drop this here bc I made it forever ago, and I want to either be held accountable to actually finish some part of it, or at least share my chaotic thoughts about it from forever ago

Tigerpaw is Bluefur's apprentice

Scourge joins the clan when Bluefur invites him after their encounter in the forest

Bluefur has her kits, but they leave. She understands Mosskit’s too weak, and so she leaves him in the den and takes the others to Riverclan. Mosskit grows up to be Mossleaf. They become an amazing warrior, but do turn evil and soon plan to take over the clan, believing their mother is too kind. So they act nice and all, but secretly plant ideas and bad thoughts into Bluestar’s mind, to try and make them her deputy. They kill Redtail the day Firepaw joins the clan, and after being told of the prophecy since they’re close to Spottedleaf, they push thoughts that maybe the prophecy meant something bad about the fire. As more disasters arise, Bluestar does begin to believe that maybe Mossleaf was right, but it was her decision to bring Firepaw into the clan, she doesn’t wanna go back on her words this late into it. What really pushes her over the edge, however, was when the apprentice tried to bring the ideas that Mossleaf was evil onto her. She denies everything, and sends him out, making sure he doesn’t try to say something like that again. At this point, she does make Mossleaf her apprentice, but rumors do spread that she only chose Mossleaf because she’s their mother. However, this only drives her to become more and more upset.

Led by Mossleaf, a battle takes place at sunningrocks, both Mossleaf and now-Fireheart are at the fight. Mossleaf sadly dies, but the issue is no one saw it happen, and Fireheart was the one dragging the body away. Bluestar believes that because of this that Fireheart killed Mossleaf and subsequently with past events and what Mossleaf made her believe, that Fireheart was really the evil cat. As the ultimate punishment for the harm Starclan brought for letting in a kittypet and in a fit of rage, she killed Fireheart and began to rule over Thunderclan with an iron fist, acting brash and harsh against all the other clans. No-nonsense, no deals, nothing. Since Brokenstar died at birth, it is Hopestar that is now leading the clan after the death of his father. He speaks of how resources are running low at the gathering, and tries to make amends with Bluestar who only faces him coldly, saying, to the disbelief of many, that if she so much as catches a whiff of Shadowclan on her territory, it will mean war. Same goes for Riverclan, as she will make sure Thunderclan owns the Sunningrocks.

Scourge(now known as Smallstrike) tries to stand up against her, but doesn’t succeed well, as she was his mentor and the cats do need to follow their leader. She sets Sandstorm as her deputy, and Sandstorm is brash against what Bluestar believes, but follows suit while secretly plotting against her.

New main group in this au: Sandstorm, Smallstrike, and Ravenpaw(given the name of Ravenwing)

[greekstar]

I love how everyone who makes a ‘MossKit survives Au’ makes her a kittypet, or a medicine cat in either Thunderclan or Riverclan. Or she makes it to Riverclan or is taken by a loner or two-leg and raised as Smuge, and or another character; but then there’s me. Making her a fucking Shadowclan warrior who was found by a loner when Bluefur thought she was dead. The loner takes her two Shadowclan territory where she is found by a single warrior and their bloodthirsty so kills her (probably like a young Brokentail and no one knew about it) and he brings Moss to Shadowclan to be raised. (He named her moss cause the loner had wrapped her in moss to keep her warm as they carried her)

She grew up into Mossclaw! Being named after she became a strong fighter. (She was probably Brokentail’s first or second apprentice)

She was one of Brokentail/star’s loyal warriors until she found out what he had done with all the kits. (She was good friends with Yellowfang and her family, and love Marigoldkit and Mintkit, so finding out they were killed by Brokenstar made her angry and found herself becoming a real follower of the code)

She does become leader instead of Blackfoot. As he is blinded by Stonefur before he dies. Also, Mossclaw always knew Bluefur was her mother as she remembers her thinking she was dead and leaving her and how she mourned her before she took her other siblings to Riverclan. So she has no hatred for Bluestar. Mossclaw does go into rage mode due to the fact that Tigerstar practically killed her brother.

When Twanyclaw comes to Shadowclan, Mossclaw becomes her mentor, begging Tigerstar to let her as she was taught by Brokenstar, which made it official.

Twanyclaw is named after Mossclaw and becomes her deputy after Russetfur dies.

Mossclaw was mates with Darkstripe for the bit he was there in Shadow; making her expect his kits. When he tries and kills Stonefur, she attacks him and kills him. Though is attacked by the the other cats and runs to where she saw the other half-clan cats. Meeting Fireheart and Graystripe who came to rescue them.

They run to Thunderclan and everything with Bloodclan and Tigerclan happen.

Mossclaw goes back to Shadowclan, demands the role of leader and she gets it. Getting her nine-lives from

Bluestar - The life of Risks

Thrushpelt - The life of a parents love

Stonefur - the life of Forgiviness

Raggedstar - the life of Honor

Yellowfang - the life of a clear mind

Mintkit - the life of determination

Marigoldkit - the life of grief

Crookedstar - the life of Trust

and

Oakheart - the life of strength

—

Those are the lives she gets.

She dies around the same time Blackstar does, though a little Later, and Rowanheart (claw) doesn’t become leader, Twanyclaw does as she is appoint deputy after Russetfur dies.

If your wondering what happened with Blackfoot, he retired as a elder after being Blinded. He does have kits with Tallpoppy (none of Tallpoppy’s kits have a father with the father is now Blackfoot)

[theanoninyourinbox]

maybe a concept for a Mistystar x Firestar au?

A Lore Ask? Ohohohoho yes please!

So to start, Thistleclaw figures out who the real father of Misty Stone and Moss is, and tries to start an interclan war over it, basically going hey you wet furbrains we have Riverclan kits nyeeehhhh. However Hailstar and Sunstar see through this and come to an agreement that pleases their warriors - after being weaned, the kittens go to Riverclan to be raised there, but Bluefur may visit them on occasion. The two clans become very close this way. When Rusty shows up, it’s to an elderly Sunstar and his deputy Bluefur, with her loyal ex apprentice Tigerfur. Thistleclaw disapproves but Sunstar welcomes the new apprentice, naming him Dawnpaw for his pale orange coat, and apprenticing him off to Bluefur. Redtail and Ravenpaw come back to camp, reporting that someone with Thunderclan scent has been mucking about Riverclan’s side of the border AGAIN, this time stealing and desecrating prey.

The next time Bluefur goes to visit her kits, now all warriors, she brings Dawnpaw, who is as respectful as possible - which Mistyfoot approves of. Crookedstar and Oakheart chit chat with Bluefur while Mistyfoot, Stonefur, and Mossback steal her apprentice for a swimming lesson. Dawnpaw comes back with a fat fish he offers to Crookedstar as a token of friendship. Leopardfur does not approve of the interclan friendships.

Some time later Sunstar passes in his sleep, and Bluestar rises. Crookedstar passes from illness and Leopardstar starts cracking down on the visits. Silverstream survives her kitting in Riverclan camp and refuses to name the father, but little Stormkit looks just like Graystripe. Dawnpaw, becoming Dawnheart, sneaks across to figure out what’s going on - Mistyfoot tells him that Leopardstar has been meeting a gray cat, but has little other details. Yellowfang is found, and Dawnheart is suspicious, a gray cat? In this camp? Brokenstar attacks camp and deputy Redtail is killed saving the kits and his sister, leaving his daughter Sandstorm and her maybe mate Raventail to mourn and Lionheart as deputy. Windclan returns triumphant. Yellowfang saves Spottedleaf, and when Brokenstar returns she blinds him. Thistleclaw tries to kill Bluestar and is stopped by Tigerfur and Dawnheart. Revealed as the traitor, he leaves in a furious huff. Later, after Brokenstar is poisoned I MEAN dies naturally, Thistlestar leads Shadowclan, and then joins up with Leopardstar to destroy the clans.

Stonefur is nearly killed fighting Darkstripe, who is a kit-poisoning terror, and Blackfoot, but Blackfoot sees the cats coming to save the half-clan cats, and throws the match, allowing Mistyfoot, Stonefur, Mossback, Silverstream, Featherkit, and Stormkit to escape, with Oakheart covering them, leading to his death. Lionheart steps down as deputy, and recommends Dawnheart, who recently finished training Cinderleg. Brightpaw and Swiftpaw live through the dogs, just barely. Mistyfoot and Dawnheart have a “secret” romance. The dogs throw themselves and Bluestar off the cliff, and she passes away. Dawnstar names loyal Whitestorm as deputy. Leopardstar refuses to back down, and is overthrown by the returning warriors, leading to her fleeing to Shadowclan. Scourge, attacked as a kit by Thistleclaw, kills Thistlestar and declares war. Leopardstar dies redeeming herself, saving Whitestorm. Dawnstar does not slay Scourge, but his rising drives off Bloodclan. Mistyfoot is chosen by Riverstar himself to lead Riverclan. Mistystar gives birth to five kits - Reedkit, Bluekit, Primrosekit, Pikekit, and Emberkit, and returns the rule of visiting cross-clan kits. Blackstar and Tallstar adopt this, and more kits grace the clans. When the Journey happens, Squirrelpaw, daughter of Sandstorm and Raventail, makes friends with Pikeface, leading to another romance.

I hope you like this AU!

[splashspeck]

It's been an age since I really sat down and tried to work on the Clan Kingdoms au and all of a sudden it's just in my brain so some historical political marriages to set up plot points:

- Tigerclaw is the son of Pinestar, and Pinestat was the last of their line on the Highrock before the leadership was transferred to Bluestar's line. But, he is also the product of a political marriage to a Shadowclan royal, Leopardfoot. She's one of Raggedstar's cousins and resented being sent to live in Thunderclan.

- Willowbreeze and Graypool in this AU were royal babies of a long time WindRiver alliance, Graypool was raised in Riverclan from a young age, but Willowbreeze was raised in Windclan as their mother had been a sole surviving kit. The match with Crookedjaw was considered strong as his family were respected warriors and he had the favor of their medicine cat.

- Tallstar was initially betrothed before he ran off on his adventure. Heatherstar had no kin so Talltail was the next in line, through his father, who would be of age. When he returned, however, his betrothal was ended, and he managed to dodge them the rest of his life... not that Heatherstar really tried after realizing that he wasn't interested in the ladies she suggested. I'm lowkey debating having him initially betrothed to Bluefur but I can't remember timelines well enough.

More to come later when I'm able to focus again but I've got a persistent toothache which is why I haven't been able to make myself write much of anything lately, sorry folks. I'm hoping to get some work done on either this au or the wind!Jay au soon but this isn't going away for close to a month so we'll see!

[bonefall]

BB!Goosefeather

[ID: Goosefeather from Warrior Cats in the Better Bones AU. He is a round, wolflike cat with tiny, unreadable, deep blue eyes. In the second image he's caught in a vision, signified by swirling eyes and a nosebleed]

I've always had a very different take on Goosefeather than the wider fandom. In particular, his final scene with Bluefur at the end of Bluestar's Prophecy has always FASCINATED me. She's mourning the loss of her kits, and Goose comes up, almost as if he's going to comfort her like anyone else...

But his tune is very different from the rest of the Clan. He reminds her that the kits were not part of fate, and ergo, her own choice. This screed has this intriguing taste of bitterness, and it immediately made Goose one of my favorite WC characters.

Was that resentment? Smug satisfaction? What was behind those words, Goosefeather?

Did you know that the raid you sent your sister on was going to kill her? Did the herbs even need to be destroyed? What if the only vision he'd received was that Moonflower had to die?

It's one thing if he's just, you know, plagued by visions that will come no matter what, and he's Sad About It. I do love the Cassandra type characters in fiction, but... the idea that he's DEDICATED to the prophecies that haunt him, that it's both a curse and a commitment, a damnation and a destiny... it gives me... gOOSEBUMPS HEYOO

AND SO! Better Bones Goosefeather is a situational antagonist in nearly every story he's in. He believes firmly that to defy fate only creates worse outcomes, that you have to kill a mouse to have a meal. More than just following the 'will of StarClan,' he believes that a prophecy is more than just a warning. To him, they are instructions.

(More info below the cut!)

In Bluestar's Flowers, he receives a vision of Moonflower dying in a WindClan raid. He knew she had to die, and so, he got her killed. This is not revealed until near the end of the book.

At the same time, he will occasionally (and uncharacteristically, Featherwhisker will note) help Bluemoon escape being caught when she sneaks out to meet up with the Forget-me-Not friend group.

Bluemoon's kits are children of prophecy... or, one of them is.

Mosslight is fated to become a grand hero, and overthrow the horrible tyrant, Thistlestar.

Goosefeather will ensure the propagation of both sides of this prophecy. Thistleclaw must become leader. Mosskit must be born.

But, in the end, Bluemoon's love is stronger than destiny. She will NEVER let Thistleclaw become leader, she will NEVER let him command innocent people like Rosetail and Thrushpelt into early graves, and she will NEVER let him brutalize the Clans of her friends.

Goosefeather thought it was a checkmate when she was in the nursery with the three kittens, clearly ineligible for deputyship after accusation of having halfclan kittens (Thistleclaw's questioning violating the Queen's Rights) and his personal endorsement of him for deputy.

he was WRONG

Bluemoon brought them to RiverClan, the hero of destiny dying in the process, cinching the deputyship by a hair's length.

With great tragedy, with great cost, with great sacrifice, Bluestar WON.

The thread of prophecy was severed so hard that Goosefeather never received another vision ever again. Nothing would be the same again, he was living in a new world and a new time.

He lived the last of these days quietly, reflecting on his life, his actions, considering... if all those times where he'd Done What Had To Be Done, if it was for nothing.

Goosefeather is allowed a peaceful death, unburdened by the buzzing curse of prophecy, slipping into his sleep in a doomed timeline that yet persists.

DESIGN STUFF

I need these visions to look painful. I want to drive it home that these are hurting him. So I gave him nosebleeds.

He's committed to the thing that hurts most, because he can't imagine another way

symbolism

His family carries a wolf motif, this is very important because I said so. Awoo, even.

You can see how Goosefeather's big fat tummy is present in his relatives, Sorreltail and Dovewing.

He reminds me of Winnie the Pooh but as an evil wizard. He's got a haunted plushie kind of vibe.

like a teddy ruxpin, even

And lastly this is unrelated to everything, but when I was designing Skywatcher I kept thinking about the two of them having a wizard battle. I just think that is very funny and it is a thought I am now sharing with all of you. <3

[ID: Wizard battle meme]

Skywatcher and Goosefeather at Bingo Night after the Skypelt/Silverpelt reunification in BB!AVoS

[cicadaclan]

more bg to the au: bluestars been a leader for longer than her se implies,

she doesn't become a deputy very young in the first place, and the timeline is sort of messy and muddled anyways. it's also more unique for the age that fireheart became deputy and leader himself: he was just a little over 2 years old, whereas bluestar became deputy around 4 and a half.

sunstar had a short-lived time as leader because pinestar's final life still belonged to him, even if he forfeited clan life. this is still true to canon.

sunstar didn't tell bluefur until his sixth life that he was one life short of nine lives. they have an odd relationship, bluefur wanted to keep stonepelt as a mentor, and never grew close to sunfall when he replaced stonepelt. most mentors and apprentices have a close bond, but they both kept each other at arms length. bluefur scrutinized him more than others as a deputy, especially after hearing of her own prophecy, most subconsciously.

sunstar still picked bluefur as a deputy bc he trusted in his own training of her, and saw her ultimately maintain her empathy even after her losses. he never suspected that she gave up her kits to riverclan, nor did he believe that she would fraternize with a riverclan cat. thistleclaw wasn't even an option to him, bc sunstar followed after pinestar's methodology even after his betrayal of thunderclan: seek peace first before resorting to battle.

unfortunately sunstar was also fallen to pressure and manipulation from his warriors, like tigerclaw framing windclan for trespassing. circumstances like this also contributed to his short time as leader, but more than that, he risked himself more often for his clan. bluefur questions this when sunstar tells her about his missing life, but absorbs his reasoning as a leader's life is to their clan first. that's why they're given in the first place.

ironically, bluestar hides her early losses out of paranoia that cats like thistleclaw would keep track of them. paranoia and guilt is a key facet of her character throughout all her life, especially near the end of it. this would be proven a correct fear, as tigerclaw learns that bluestar is on her last life, and attempts to assassinate her, but causes her to go further and trust no one aside from her family.

sunstar and bluestar are unique: blue had more of a begrudging respect for him, knowing that he was a good cat at heart but quietly criticizing him often. sun believed in her ability, pushing her in the right direction for good reason, but knowing that they were never quite true friends, and tried to respect that,

ironically, they ended up leading thunderclan in similar ways,

[the-owl-tree]

Any other thoughts for the dotc au?

i have some big ones that i'll be keeping my pocket for now buuuut have a very mixed bag of things i've thought of:

Jay was one of Midnight's attempts at a protege to succeed her in being a keeper of knowledge. However, their relationship became like that of parent and child and she was devastated when he eventually went to live with other cats. It would be years before she'd take on another protege and the next one, Sol, would be just as unsuccessful (and 10x as antagonistic).

Her apprentices vary in animals but none have yet to succeed her.

The "-paw" suffix comes from a shortening of "under cat's paws" which as often how apprentice-aged cats would be described.

I think it would be interesting if the two part names came from the park cats who had divided the park into different turfs and had surnames at the reflected that.

...Of course, the park cats aren't remembered that well as many of the Clans often lead patrols there to try and convince them to join their respective Clans, resulting in the community being fractured.

Dove and Lion remained fiercely loyal to Thunder and while they regretted having to take the measures they did against Gray and his group, they, like many, believed it was for the greater good.

Jay didn't and fell into a deep depression, reliving the battle over and over in his dreams. He went to Midnight for council and, at her advice, ended up going elsewhere to seek refuge from the nightmares...and eventually ended up abandoning the Clans altogether.

he ended up near a lake all by himself...and eventually discovered some tunnels....how interesting.....

starclan's relationship with the present three reflect the past one: jay's is tumultuous and hostile; dove's is all-knowing but vague; and lion's alliance with one-eye is what allowed the df to creep into lionpaw's mind.

the part i've been sort of gnawing away at is what happens after the big battle: the clans are now separated and now must begin to divide themselves completely. It feels kind of cheap to have Skystar be the one to pitch this but him being the one to insist that "they look out for their own" is too good of irony for the future of his little kitty group. So some general notes:

the code does not exist and will not exist for a while. it is a frightening and bloody era

for all the posturing the clans have of being better than others, they are the ones to almost destroy each other.

buuuutt this is also where cultures begin to form:

ThunderClan's noble battle culture comes from their leader Thunderstar being a stellar fighter! Thunderstar also cements kin-based leadership because he keeps choosing his kin for important roles. Cats challenged him over it and failed, meaning the tradition continued on. I imagine it mellowed out over the years, especially with the advent of the deputy needing an apprentice part + to make sure i can keep juicy drama like thistleclaw and bluefur vying for the position.

RiverClan being cut off from the others more because of the rivers and water that surround their territory makes them less engaged in the rising jingoistic culture surrounding the other Clans. Riverstar's more hands off approach to leadership is also what makes their "casting stones" tradition solidified for years to come.

ShadowClan, being neighbor's to the bulky fight-loving ThunderClanners adopted a new strategy: stealth. They are the pioneers of kitty assassination techniques, the masters of taking someone down before their victim can even realize they're being followed. You never pick a fight in ShadowClan territory, Thunderstar lost a life to Shadowstar learning that lesson.

WindClan, having been the closest to a certain cat who is now forbidden to name, spent a long time throwing themselves into trying to please their ancestors. This sort of self-flagellation turned into a sense of superiority when they were the first Clan to have not only a Medic but said Medic taught them where to get their nine lives. I plan on redoing a ton of Moth Flight's story but she and Wind Runner have a very different relationship once she's named and even makes some leadership calls herself.

SkyClan is jingoistic, brutal, and is insistent on their bloodline leadership system. Skystar is the creator of the Clan ideology: borders run thicker than blood, each Clan to their own, and the warrior is always superior to the outsider. This ideology sank into the other Clans but SkyClan would always be the loudest supporter of it and eventually, it was what would cost them too many allies in their greatest time of need. I like modern SkyClan being what the Clans should be and also a great transformation of what was once the most warrior clan to ever did clan: modern SkyClan is a community first and foremost, outsiders are not enemies, and borders should never mean senseless violence. im so sad at what modern skyclan has become, bring back the cool version of it.

aaaahhh ty for the ask! i have been thinking about my dotc au especially since i keep it in mind when brainstorming any sort of rewrite/au >:3c