#Honeysnake Shuffle

[bonefall]

BB!Honeyfern -> Honeysnake

A girl who's gonna be stealing a little more time in BB.

[ID: The Better Bones version of Honeyfern. She is a spiky, golden, blue-eyed cat with a brown mask and stripes. Her torso, paws, and 'boots' are creamy. She is being bitten by an adder, and prepares to bite back]

Clanmew Name: Mlashiff, Mlasis (Mla = Honey + Shiff = Frond, the leaf of a fern) (Mla = Honey + Sis = Serpent, generic term for snakes)

Alignment: ThunderClan

Relations: Parents - Sorreltail, Brackenfur Siblings - Molepaw, Cinderheart, Poppyfrost Ex-Mate - Berrynose Apprentice - Briarlight

Honeyfern stands tall as the strongest, most ambitious kitten in the Brackenfour litter. Through BB!Po3, she is a rising star in ThunderClan, and Hollypaw's rival. Honeyfern's ferocity was only matched by her compassion; in early BB!OotS, she doesn't hesitate to lay her life on the line to attack an adder in defense of Briarkit.

After fighting for several days against one of the worst injuries Clan cats know of, Honeyfern survives, and is bestowed the Honor Title of Honeysnake before even getting her first apprentice.

(One of the first completely uncontroversial choices that Bramblestar makes!)

But, the painful ordeal causes Honeysnake to realize things about her boyfriend, Berrynose. Traits that had once been endearing were suddenly not so cute. Boldness comes across as selfishness. Protectiveness becomes controlling behavior. His 'sense of humor' means he doesn't take things seriously.

If only it could have been so simple to just leave him. No, she never would have guessed that the week she left Berrynose, he would immediately become interested in her sister. Poppyfrost!! What are you doing?! GIRL

With her uncle Thornclaw as deputy and far too busy for an apprentice anyway, it's obvious who Briarkit's mentor must be. The brave cat who saved her life became her guide and best friend, staying by her side through every hardship until her fateful death during the Battle of the True Eclipse (BOTTE).

LOTS more under the cut!

Honeysnake's personality is firm, responsible, and occasionally overly proud of herself. At the same time, she is driven by kindness more than anything else, and would break her own back to lessen the burden on her clanmates. She takes after her dad, Brackenfur, more than any of her siblings!

Because she massively values her own strength and her helpfulness, she can be goaded into overexerting herself and bossing around other cats. She doesn't mean to be pushy, but her heart is so large that she sometimes fails to realize that she's only made things worse. Big sister energy!

She must learn to balance this; a flaw is often a value in excess.

When she was an apprentice, her personality could really clash with Cinderpaw's.

Cinderpaw is very emotional, to the point of instability. Honeypaw couldn't understand that Cinder had to learn to work it out on her own, and sometimes inserted herself into her problems

This would make them both upset, as it wouldn't work and then Honeypaw would scold Cinderpaw for not taking her unsolicited advice.

In spite of all this, they love each other and got closer when they got older. It's ironic that Honey and Poppy would eventually be the ones fighting-- they NEVER fought as kids!

She fell in love with Berrynose after he developed a crush on her. Honey hadn't really thought much about romance before then, but she fell hard.

Berrynose was bold and exciting. She was always the one chasing after other people, finding ways to help everyone except herself. To BE pursued instead felt flattering, even freeing. He could be REALLY mean, yeah... but that was endearing, for a time. It felt like honesty, and it was refreshing that he would just say the things she would hold back to be polite, or diplomatic.

They were getting serious before the snake, which is now shuffled to happen in the first book of BB!OotS

The energy in ThunderClan had been... off, for a while. Since Hollyleaf had revealed the secret of her parentage and vanished, uncle Thornclaw had replaced Squirrelflight as deputy, and Leafpool was demoted as Cleric.

The couple had been discussing kittens and such, something uplifting so things could start to heal and move on.

In hindsight, they were normal adult discussions. In Honeysnake's reflections, something is ironic about how mature Berrynose had been just before the incident. Like he really was growing up, for a while.

Was he truly getting better? Or was that just a side of him she stopped being able to see in the new light? She'll never know.

The fight with the adder is burned into her mind, in extreme detail.

She remembers being cuddled next to Berrynose from the second level of the camp. She remembers the way her stomach dropped when she realized, from her vantage point, that a branch-shaped object under the wall was slithering. How she screamed for Briarkit to get back and bound across the quarry faster than she'd ever moved before.

The snake bit her first, and then she bit it back.

Venom from an adder burns. It quickly spread up her paw and through her arm, searing her veins like fire. She crumpled into a screaming heap next to her dead foe, sending the entire camp into a panic.

Jayfeather, already overwhelmed through being a new Cleric working alone after Leafpool's demotion, having recently been publicly disowned, and still mourning his sister, had to spring into action

And the very first crack that Honey noticed on her mate was how Berrynose threatened Jayfeather. "You'd better save her, if you don't I'LL kill you!"

Jayf didn't even dignify it with a response. She was glad he didn't. She didn't want Jay doing anything but helping her not have burning blood.

An adder bite is one of the deadliest, most painful, difficult injuries to treat across all four Clans. She required round-the-clock care and was in constant pain, for days, without guarantee she would survive.

And Berrynose was unhelpful, to say the least. Even going so far as to wrinkle his nose when Jay chewed up a mouthful of nettle for Honeyfern's treatments.

What she once found funny and endearing wasn't so cute when he couldn't be serious when she wanted him to be.

Leafpool, ex-Cleric, started stepping in to help Jayfeather in the den... against Bramblestar's demotion. Jay had never treated such a serious injury before, the rest of the Clan didn't stop needing treatment

The Clan was already a bit split on the idea of Leafpool not being a Cleric anymore. She's Leafpool Moonpool. She made mistakes-- but what else are the Queen's Rights even for?

Has she not already been punished? And what about Honeyfern, their clanmate, who needed her help right now?

And Bramblestar would NEVER prevent Leafpool from giving an injured cat from getting the proper treatment they need..........

But, of course, Berrynose was more loyal to his mentor than almost anything else. He had concerns about an unholy, codebreaking ex-Cleric attempting to heal his mate, and what it would mean for Bramble to rescind an earlier command.

Honeyfern, obviously, didn't care if StarClan themselves had come down to say Leafpool Bad. She wanted to not suffer and die.

And after monumental effort on the part of two trained cats, the entire Clan doing their part to support her, and Honeyfern's indomitable will to survive, the burning cooled to embers and the pain subsided.

She survived the bite of an adder, killing the beast in the process. An achievement that was so impressive that ThunderClan concluded she MUST be truly blessed.

Bramblestar is stingy when it comes to Honor Titles, but for this? He could not ignore it. The Clan needed a morale boost. She had survived the insurmountable. Everyone had come together over this situation, in a way that they hadn't in many moons.

So, as soon as she could stand for a ceremony, he decreed before their ancestors that the venom had been an anointment (thornclaw came up with that line). From now on, she would be known as Honeysnake, in honor of her survival.

It's rare that cats who are so young receive such Honor Titles, and it immediately boosted her up in status.

Berrynose was jealous of this. Not in a way where he'd say so openly, but in the way he would downplay her Title, not celebrate her achievements, or use it to deflect in conversations.

The breaking point was when the newest crop of apprentices was assigned, and Bramblestar decided that Honeysnake was absolutely ready for her first apprentice.

(Millie's three kits, despite being a little older than Dove and Ivy, were slightly delayed in their apprenticeship so they could all be apprenticed at once)

Hazeltail and Mousewhisker had proven themselves strong and competent, ready for their first apprentices. Mousewhisker was given Bumblepaw, Hazeltail receives Blossompaw.

To make sure there weren't too many young mentors, Birchfall was given Dovepaw, and Brightheart received Ivypaw.

And, lastly, to commemorate her strength and honor how she'd saved this child, Honeysnake was given Briarpaw.

...leaving Berrynose as the only cat of his litter without an apprentice! While Bramblestar, HIS mentor, was leader!!

But instead of being upset with Bramblestar, he felt Honeysnake had taken what he'd been owed.

Maybe some other time, Honey would have tried to comfort him, and make him feel better about it all

But she was DONE. That was ENOUGH coddling! SHE was the one who had gone through all of that, killed an adder and saved Briarpaw, and now he feels so entitled to an apprentice that he's upset with HIS MATE?

Poppyfrost, meanwhile, had been watching the ceremony of the apprentices with a forlorn gaze... and was about to get sucked in.

Without getting into Poppyfrost too much here, her key traits are Curiosity and Avoidance. Setting boundaries has always been difficult for her, or saying no to people. So when Berrynose turned his sights on her following his breakup with her sister...

Poppyfrost felt good. She felt desirable, for the first time since she'd given birth to Jayfeather's secret children. She hadn't shared with anyone how low she'd felt for the past 6 months, and it suddenly felt like there was a light in her life.

From Honeysnake's perspective, though, Berrynose found a whole new way to get into her life through Poppyfrost. Poppy started taking his side, or at the very least, not supporting her sister. Honey couldn't get away from Berry without avoiding Poppy, too. So the fights continued.

But, the most important thing in Honey's life quickly became her apprentice.

Briarpaw was attentive and enthusiastic, a bright little ball of light and hope. Honeysnake had a lot to teach her and she listened eagerly

But Honeysnake couldn't save her when the tree came crashing down.

Briarpaw lost control of her back legs, and it was immediately, widely accepted she would not be able to become a warrior.

As Jayfeather spoke with Littlecloud about how to treat her and give her a good quality of life, picking up the "notes" for Wildfur's old mobility device, Millie started becoming very controlling of her daughter.

At first, Honeysnake tried to give the family space... she didn't know what to do, if it was right to get involved or not.

After all, Millie is Briarpaw's mother. She just wants what's best for her, and Honeysnake wasn't sure how much Briarpaw could do now either. She loves her apprentice, so she didn't want to hurt her, or ruin her family by accident.

But then she started to realize how miserable Briarpaw was becoming. She was always such a joyful kid, so excited to get out there and try everything. A radiant little fireball, eager to fight for her Clan.

Now, she was silent, just letting her mother speak for her, only ever piping up to comfort her own parent.

Her quietness wasn't coming from her injury-- it was coming from how Millie was making her feel like her life was over. Like it would have been better if she died, since it was hurting her mom so much to "see her like this."

One day something hit Honeysnake, like a revelation. "I never stopped being her mentor. It's STILL my job to be there for her!!"

She couldn't completely stop Millie from making Briarlight feel awful. She couldn't prevent Blossompaw from misplacing her anger on her sister. She couldn't make Graystripe do his job as a dad to help his kids.

But Honey could be there for Briarpaw. She could be a safe place to talk, a friend and a mentor, and just get her away from Millie for a few hours a day.

And she was even wise enough now to realize that arguing with Millie directly would only make things worse for the young cat. Everything was for Briarpaw, what SHE needed. How to help her.

Together with Jayfeather, they'd even planned out how to schedule things so that Briarpaw could speak for herself without Millie interjecting.

For Briarpaw, it meant everything. There were people in her corner.

Though she couldn't pass an assessment in the usual way, Bramblestar still allowed Briarlight to get her full name. After all, she, like her mentor, had survived the unthinkable.

Honeysnake had never been so proud of anything in her whole life.

And at the end, just before the Battle of the True Eclipse when the Dark Forest was going to attack, they had a final conversation. Watching the moon inch closer to the sun, and knowing it may be the last time they ever spoke.

Briarlight said something she'd been holding back for a long time. "I'm sorry I couldn't be the apprentice you deserved..."

It made Honeysnake's belly lurch. After all they'd been through, to hear she was still holding onto a piece of what Millie made her believe was painful. "What...? I didn't save you to make a warrior. I did it because you have a life to live. Brili, I'm your mentor. I'm supposed to deserve you."

It turned out to be exactly what they suspected, the last words they'd ever speak to each other. Honeysnake fought ferociously for the Clans in the BOTTE, reunited with her old rival Hollyleaf and putting her quarrels aside. She meets her fate halfway through the night, in the bloody Second Wave.

Her death fills ThunderClan with sorrow. She's deeply mourned by everyone; her mother, sisters, friends, nespring, Clanmates. But most of all, Briarlight holds her memory close to fill her with strength in the coming years.

Honeysnake's spirit is invoked for fulfilling one's full potential, and making hard, painful choices to reach it. As the generations go on, she's associated with the shed skin of snakes and beetles, and the 'necessity' of putting oneself in danger to help others.

OTHER TRIVIA

SPIKY. I decided to give her Brackenfur's colors with Sorreltail's texture. She's the most intensely-colored of her siblings, BRIGHT golden, hence the name.

She's also got Sorreltail's torso marking going on, and her fuzzy 'dividers.' She got the boots from Brackenfur though.

In BB, she has Sweetness Tolerance! Ironically enough, she is able to taste and enjoy honey... and boy does she like her sauces.

Her favorite food is honey-glazed bacon, meat strips cut from the belly of a boar. A rare treat but a delicious one. She likes to eat the whole thing like a noodle, chewing it upwards and not using her paws at all.

As a kit, Brackenfur used to tell her to mind her manners. She had a bad habit of eating things without using her paws, because she likes sauce but not getting it on her beans.

She had her eyes on deputyship from a young age. She wanted to be just like her dad.

Losing him was rough. It was even harder when Bramblestar took power just a few months later, she felt like she should have been seeing her dad making the announcements...

But, she stayed strong, especially for her siblings who seemed to be taking it even worse.

Canon doesn't mention what sort of snake bit her, but BB takes place in northern England and the only venomous snakes there are ADDERS babey!!

I drew a girl adder on purpose because something felt very funny about this. here I go pitting two bad bitches against each other. diversity win! The wild animal that tries to eat a baby is a girl!

ADDERFACT: A female Vipera Berus is brown, a male is black and white, but their color can vary immensely.

Bramblestar is a terrible namer. Honeysnake, Mlasis, is a fine name, but he chose the generic term for all serpents (sis) instead of an adder specifically (sipya). In his head it sounded more honorable.

But! It's not the worst!

"Honeyfern" was given by Firestar, and intended to be a nod to her rivalry with Hollyleaf! Hollyleaf's suffix referred to the leaves of most trees, and Honeyfern's to the leaves of ferns.

Both them were named after Brackenfur, who they both looked up to. Brackens are a type of fern, and Firestar wanted to invoke a plant for the names of both cats.

Because Honeyfern was named first and also Brackenfur's child, she got the word for fern leaves.

Of course *Holly*leaf was already named after a plant... but no one ever said Firestar was a FANTASTIC namer either, after all, he's the genius behind "Brambleclaw."

Honeysnake's relationship with Poppyfrost was stable at the time of her death, with her two young nespring having been born... but if it was ever going to "improve," who knows.

but they were cordial. At the very least. She would have been involved in the lives of Mole and Cherry.

Unfortunately there's always a lot left unsaid when someone dies so young. She had a whole life in front of her, cut short because of Tigerclaw's ambition.

[bonefall]

Why did Honeyfern and Berrynose breakup? Because that's really got me intrigued!

Berrynose IS A JERK that's really it!!

For one he was probably SUPER flaky when she got bit. Like, girl was in burning agony for several days fighting for her life and he's like, "im gonna get myself extra moss, its not comfy in here. Ew, you have to chew her medicine for her?"

But like, okay, that's kinda funny, she fell in love with him because he's Funny like that. But the same reasons why you fall in love with someone can be a reason why you fall out.

Sense of humor suddenly becomes "not taking things seriously." Being "honest" becomes "insensitive." "Always wanting more for himself and loved ones" becomes "inability to appreciate what he has"

It becomes grating, once those traits you loved become flaws in your mind.

She threw herself in front of an adder and feels like she's dying painfully and he's... a big child. More interested in teasing Jayfeather than helping chew her nettle.

Later when she tries to talk to him, he's defensive because, "I was by your side the whole time and what, you want me to go back and do it all over again because i wasn't perfect? Let you get bit by another snake?"

"That's not what I meant-- and it was an ADDER, I survived an adder! It wasn't JUST a snake!"

"You've got an honor title for it and it's just 'snake.'"

"It's not my fault Bramble-- hold on, what is this? This is NOT what I was trying to talk about!"

[bonefall]

I'm pretty attached to Honeyfern's snake death just because it's so memorable, but at the same time I'd love more Poppy/Berry/Honey drama, especially if Berry's being a little shit and Poppy's taking his side and is kind of in the wrong. I love Poppy and I love what you're doing with her already, but Berry/Poppy has always seemed like Thistle/Snow-lite to me. Like, I don't think Poppy would get so hopped up on her mate's ideology and get so absorbed in chasing outsiders that she'd get herself killed, but I do think her affection for and relationship with Berry would be a negative influence on her. I get really bored when BerryPoppy is just depicted as Little Slimeball Asshole and His Perfect Mate Who is Too Good for Him, Too Pure-- I think it'd be really fun if Poppy got to be a bit messier and her whole relationships with Berry and Honey were more Complicated!

YOU. YOU GET IT

Poppyfrost as someone who is so profoundly bad at ever confronting conflict that she has no idea what to do when her sister's shitty ex is now interested in her

Feeling REALLY GOOD about being desirable again, after Jayfeather chose his Clerichood over the kittens she got pregnant with

Sister Cinderheart raising the kittens expecting you to help out, since she did this for you in the first place, and then you flake out because looking at them reminds you of what you can't have. Especially, especially when they become apprentices.

But Honeyfern trying to warn you about her shitty ex, with a FAIR amount of resentment that you would even think about it, but now you either have to say no to her, or no to Berrynose, and Berrynose wins out because he is more assertive, but also you can't muster the heart to tell Honeyfern what to do

BUT OH NOOO now, through you, they're spending time together and having a serious "vitriolic exes" fallout and you're caught in the middle, because you couldn't SET BOUNDARIES

And you're PREGNANT (again)

Spending as much time as possible in the garden, with the catmint, because catmint doesn't have SOAP OPERA levels of drama of your own making. Catmint is too good. Too pure for this world.

And JAYFEATHER is over here trying to SALVAGE YOUR CHILDHOOD FRIENDSHIP (she cuts the catmint too short because her mind was distracted. Shit.)

Basically, if I end up letting Honeyfern live to the BOTTE then the amount of drama that's going to happen is incredible. Give Poppyfrost her own novella we'll call it, "Poppyfrost's Problems."

[bonefall]

Okay but if Honeysnake lives imagine her relationship with Briarlight? I think it'd be really sweet if they became close friends up until Honey's death!

SLAMS MY FUCKING HANDS ON THE TABLE

HONEYSNAKE CAN BE HER MENTOR

Honey was perfectly eligible for an apprentice at this point, sporting an Honor Title before having one

Considered an easy GOOD move on Bramble's part, so his choices aren't all terrible

They would be close after Honey saves her from the snake, and Thornclaw is acting deputy at the time of her apprenticeship ceremony. This makes the most sense.

They can remain close even after Briar's injury, and have a final scene together just before the BOTTE about the meaning of life, Briarlight finally venting out something about her internalized ableism like,

"I'm sorry I couldn't be the apprentice you deserved"

"Bri, I didn't save you to make a warrior. I did it because you have a life to live. I'm your mentor, I'm supposed to deserve you."

This way I can set up Briar's arc in ThunderClan's Tempest right after, how she finds the strength to cut Millie off, plus make the fallout of the BOTTE bite REALLY hard as Briarlight is mourning Honeysnake.

Cackling evilly as all the pieces fall into place!!

[bonefall]

I voted keep Honeyfern's death with the snake, bc I was in elementary school reading that scene for the first time when the book came out and now I'm 25 and I still think about "My blood is on fire!" Also a good scene for med cat characterization depending on how you use it bc I also distinctly remember starting to hate Leafpool for doing nothing during it. I'm also just one anon who also doesn't give a fuck about Berrynose so if it's better to have her alive for the Drama you do you, love it x)

I think it's actually going to end up being the case that Leafpool is DEMOTED during this, because it now comes AFTER the reveal, which is even juicier on the face of it

Like, Bramblestar immediately stripped her of her Cleric rank after the reveal came out, and now Honeyfern needs round-the-clock care for one of the most painful injuries a cat can possibly have. Jayfeather can't do this on his own-- what are you gonna do?

Stop Leafpool from helping? No... Bramblestar would never do such a thing... (FORESHADOWING)

And boy does that inspire some... feelings. The Clan is very divided on Leafpool. She did everything she was "supposed" to after "making a mistake," giving her kits to Squilf to claim the Queen's Rights over. But she still made that mistake, the kittens are HalfClan, it's not a hard argument that she needs SOME kind of punishment...

But it's also the Fire Alone Clan, who define themselves on Firestar's ideals. They sheltered TigerClan refugees, there are cats still alive to remember that.

Without reawakening the argument the way this situation ABSOLUTELY would, there's a Lot Of Opinions here.

And now Honeyfern's in AGONY for several days, might not survive, needs all the help she can get. Leafpool Moonpool didn't stop being a Cleric, even with her rank stripped. It makes you think... what was even the point of the punishment?

Plus, not only can I do more with Berrynose and the drama around him, this makes a good situation to force Jayfeather and Leafpool to interact.

[bonefall]

Ooh what’s Honeyfern/snake’s personality like in your rewrite?

Y'know Blossom, from Powerpuff Girls? Quickest way to describe it

Responsible, commanding, can be a little bit of a know-it-all. Honeysnake would have made a fantastic deputy someday! Her biggest flaw is her ego, if you imply she can't do something, she will feel like she needs to prove you wrong to her own detriment.

But she's not intentionally condescending. She has a really big heart and always wants to help out, and that can make her a bit intimidating. She's the "oldest sibling" of her litter and it shows, huuuge biggest sister energy.

When they were little, she got in a TON of fights with Cinderheart in particular. Their sisterhood is going to be one of the focuses of the BPD arc Cinder is getting in BB!Po3.

But anyway, Honey takes the most from her dad than any of her siblings. She's a lot like Brackenfur! And to clarify, her name before surviving the bite is Honeyfern, her name after is Honeysnake. It's an Honor Title.

[bonefall]

If Honeyfern ends up living to the Great Battle, why not make Mole and Cherry her kits with Berrynose? Or even just one of them, causing even more drama for Honey/Berry/Poppy

That does sound VERY funny, have the two of them be half-sibs close in age because Berrynose is just THAT much of a scuzz

Or even have Mole and Cherry be born closer to the BOTTE, so suddenly Honey isn't there anymore and Poppyfrost finds herself raising her nespring/stepkids

But also Poppy dropping the bomb in the middle of a ferocious "toxic ex" argument between Honey and Berry, "btw uh im pregnant" is ALSO very funny

There's a lot of options here and all of them are looking a lot more fun than canon's "my nice dead sister has given me the okay to move on with her mate," maybe it's better to have Honey be alive for this drama so she can have an actual opinion on it

[bonefall]

i think it’d be cool if mole and cherry were honeyferns, but she dies in the battle when they are really young, so poppyfrost has to raise them. parallels with cinder and dove/ivy anyone?

I'll have a more committed answer to this when I better establish the timeline of OotS... it's going to depend heavily on when, exactly, the adder bite falls.

BB!OotS is a story about the Dark Forest trainees, exploring why each one finds themself drawn there, how Hawkfrost threads this alliance together, how the plan is driving the politics of the living Clans, and how prophetic pressure from their father Lionblaze is driving a wedge between Dovepaw and Ivypaw.

And in canon, Honeyfern dies in Sunrise... the events of which are getting shuffled in BB, over to Cruel Season (an in-between book.)

But that's too early for BB I think. Cruel Season is about the fire, Ashfur's attempted murder, Firestar's assassination, the secret reveal, the conception of Ivy and Dove, and how they lose Hollyleaf. If saving Briarkit from the adder got squeezed in there, it would get buried.

Sooo maybe I'll kill two birds with one stone, push up Honey's snake to the first book of BB!OotS, and make the Graykin litter closer in age to Ivy and Dove... but if that's the case, that means she's going to break up with Berry around book 2 or 3, which would mean the Honey kit would be at least teenage/apprenticed by BOTTE. That would still be a fine age to have that plot, though.

And would it be both Cherry and Mole? Or would I split the litter, one for Honey and one for Poppy... If I did that I would want Cherry to be the older one, since she is going to meet Stormcloud a couple months after the Great Battle.

Still considering...

[bonefall]

If Honeyfern survives, what's an alternate reason that Poppyfrost would go up to the moonpool and be attacked by Breezepelt?

I have plenty of options here for that, honestly, the Moonpool thing is the least of my concerns

BB!Poppyfrost's defining trait is curiosity. She wants to know everything. She's always thinking of new questions, running little experiments ("if seed watered 1 time per day vs never watered, which grows faster?"), and looking for answers. This is paired with her other trait-- that she avoids conflict.

So going to the Moonpool is perfectly within character, even if the situation is changed. She could just want to check her karma, even, she did give birth to Jayfeather's kits a few months ago but gave them to Cinderheart and Lionblaze.

And, heck, why are only Clerics allowed to go to the Moonpool regularly? BB!Poppyfrost is just Like That. She wants to know what happens.

And she doesn't have to be visiting Honeyfern. Dad Brackenfur died at the end of Po3. @halogenwarrior suggested that Grandma Frostfur could have died in the Jayfeather-Fights-God Greencough Outbreak just before Cruel Season. Molepaw/flight has been Jayfeather's hostile angel for this arc. That's three family members she could be trying to contact.

But really the thing that's up in the air is Cherryfall and Molewhisker, her kittens with Berrynose. But I mean... there's an age inconsistency with them anyway. Maybe it's better I make them be born later?

Or maybe even split the litter, one born now and the other born later.

Unsure.

[bonefall]

Okay so a convo made me remember that Icecloud and Foxleap become apprentices 4-5 moons after the three, which means Ferncloud either had four litters so the three could nurse while also having kits so much younger than them, or she just so happens to have milk despite not having kits OR her last litter was really held back. Mostly bringing this up because obviously Squilf and Leaf still can't nurse the three in BB and I was curious if Ferc was still going to nurse them since I know you gave away her last litter or if someone else will do that or if there's a definite answer for this detail yet.

Daisy did it! Her kits were recently weaned, but Sorreltail at the time was nursing FOUR kittens. That's a lot for one suckler to handle, so Daisy would help out which kept her milk coming.

So Daisy has it handled. Ferncloud is still reeling from horrifically losing THREE children in a short period of time. At this moment in time, she didn't feel ready for more.

But, anyway! Foxleap and Icecloud are NOT DustFern kittens in BB. They were shuffled. This is because Ferncloud has waaaay too few surviving kittens while Brightheart and Sorreltail exploded the gene pool. Their kits in BB are;

Dustpelt x Ferncloud:

Spiderleg (ALIVE)

Shrewpaw (Car accident while chasing a pheasant; Squilf's guardian angel)

Lurchkit (Destruction of the White Hart)

Hollykit (Ditto)

Birchfall (ALIVE)

Seedpaw (Drowned)

Lilyheart (ALIVE)

Ferncloud is the Educator of ThunderClan until her death in TBC. She lives long enough to confront her little brother, Ashfur, who is now from a younger litter. Dustpelt died in the Battle of the True Eclipse, while defending his last litter from Dark Forest warriors.

Additionally, Spotfur and Duststripe (prev. Sorrelstripe) are now Birchfall's kittens, in trade for Dovewing and Ivypool to go into the Firekin family. Toadstep is also still alive; the husband of Lionblaze.

Lilyheart hasn't had any kittens yet, though. I'm still holding on to Leafshade and Honey...something i forgot her name. ThunderClan is already pretty full of cats and she really didn't need to have them so young. Plus, she got seriously traumatized from how Seedpaw died, and she's the sort of mature person to realize she doesn't want to be responsible for young lives when that's still affecting her.

Brightheart x Cloudtail

Whitewing (alive)

Foxleap (Battle of the True Eclipse)

Icecloud (Born after the BOTTE, named after Iceheart, alive)

Snowbush, Ambermoon, and Dewnose all still exist, but were adopted to other couples! They're going to show up in other Clans. Cloud and Bright kept a single kitten from each litter.

Foxleap is probably going to be younger than he is in-canon, because I feel like he often gets lost in the massive Po3 Apprentice Generation. So, he'll be somewhere between Po3 and OotS, interacting with Dovewing and Ivypool as they grow up.

Icecloud, also shuffled in age, is also going to end up with a bigger role in AVOS-era stuff, he's transmasc and a fast friend of Alderheart when he joins ThunderClan after being raised by his mother Jessy as a kittypet. Him and Lilyheart make up Alderheart's misfit friend group.

(In general I think ThunderClan feels less bloated if the births are spaced out better.)

Sorreltail x Brackenfur

Cinderheart (Alive; travelling with Fallenleaf)

Honeysnake (survived the adder; killed in the BOTTE)

Poppyfrost (Alive; inventor of gardening)

Molepaw (Greencough... angel name is Moleflight and he is constantly fighting Jayfeather)

JUST having the infamous Brackenfour. No more; BB!Brackenfur was killed in the Battle of the FALSE Eclipse at the end of Po3. Sorreltail is living for a MUCH longer time; she's still around in the current arc, preparing to retire as Head of Kitchen Patrol.

[bonefall]

How does Fallenleaf feel about how Ivypool and Dovewing were treated? And what do the latter think about her (Dovewing especially, since i imagine she was compared to her a lot when it came to the prophecy. I can definetely see an exasperated Jayfeather going 'Well Hollyleaf took the prophecy seriously before- when we thought she was part of it). Come to think of it, I can see Dovewing resenting Fallenleaf not only for the comparisons made about her, but also the fact that Jayfeather and Lionblaze let their sister know but she can't tell Ivypool even as they grow more distant. (Granted, Hollyleaf was told BEFORE they realized she wasn't part of the prophecy, but who knows if Dovewing is privy to that. >:3c)

Their relationship is, uh...

Skip back 100 years ago, Holly Leaves the Tyrant ruining ancient society.

She killed Jay Wing with her own two paws, drove Lion Roar out through grief, and then tried to stop Dove Wing from taking the survivors to the mountain

Dove Wing beat her ass. Handed it to her on a silver platter. Folly Leaves could break her brothers, but NOT Dove Wing.

Fallen Leaves for 1,000 seasons in a tunnel: "thank god i never have to see that random person who mcfuckin wrecked me ever again i think i would die of embarassment and/or fear"

Lionblaze, modern day: "we missed you so much... we were terrified when you acted like that, I thought I killed you when we... well... it's time to put that behind us. Are you prepared to meet your nieces? ...i raised them. If you hurt them I'll never forgive you."

Dovewing: (IS THAT RANDOM GUY WHO KICKED HER ASS)

And then Fallen learns Cinderheart went through with the plan to raise them with Lionblaze so Poppyfrost could have access

But that Poppyfrost did not TAKE that access.

So basically Cinderheart went through all this for nothing

AND on top of all the other new information (and she can't entirely remember where she "left off." Was that one's name ALWAYS Honeysnake??)

One of those things is the prophecy. That was only revealed shortly before the Fire Scene in BB, and then the Fire Reveal, Firestar dying, the Gathering Reveal, uhh... what was the gray guy she killed's name again? Asterfall??

Her freakout before getting time travelled is the fuzziest part of her life, she can barely remember half of it and the order of events is totally scrambles egged. Did the fire happen before or after her grandpaw died??

But meanwhile Dovewing's been raised her whole life with Fallenleaf as like, this big missing piece in everyone's lives, she wanted to know the truth about her for her entire existence. Hollyleaf was an impossible standard to live up to, her mother's true love and her Firekin's prodigal child before her.

And now she can't. Because this is obviously not Hollyleaf. This is a big, confused shadow. That's FRUSTRATING. Dovewing is trying really hard at this point to not show how upset she is about this. You mean to say the sad ghost she could hear shuffling around in the tunnels her whole life was her long lost aunt all along?!

THIS is what she was being held up to, all her life? This is why she could never take a break? This is the fuss? Some Fucking Guy?!

Meanwhile Ivypool is trying to mimic the feelings her parents feel. She takes a lot from Lionblaze, desperate to signal to them that she's in the family and cares about the same things they do. I don't think she really feels much of anything towards Fallenleaf at first-- but if they all care together then it feels like they've "come together"

And Dovewing's lack of enthusiasm, or even desperately veiled frustration, is like betrayal. CARE with me, we're supposed to FEEL GOOD about this AS A FAMILY. And if you can't then WELL WELL WELL look who's WINNING AT CARING ABOUT THIS, something very NORMAL and POSSIBLE to do! Surely, I am the better daughter, actually.

And while all that's playing out, Fallenleaf is still like, absolutely haunted by Dovewing being that random person who kicked her ass. She deserved it but like... she killed her brother in an ancient epoch and it turns out his sister in another lifetime is now his daughter in this one. What the fuck. And she looks at her negatively EXTRA what the fuck

I want them all to have a few good scenes together, but I don't think their relationship to Fallenleaf is... strong.

She ends up marrying their mom, Cinderheart. I think for Dovewing, she DOES actually think that's nice for them.

But Ivypool feels threatened. She feels she's going to get replaced.

This is while Lionblaze also ends up moving on with Toadstep, mind you. Both parents are finding new mates and having new kits

Ivypool takes it especially poorly, Dovewing has complicated feelings.

Isn't it just peachy that Cinderheart and Lionblaze COULD have been good parents all along? They just weren't, for you?

Hollylark is their half-sib through CinderxHolly, and Snaptooth and Flywhisker are adopted half-sibs through ToadxLion

When Fallenleaf learns the full story, she feels sorry for how the two were treated. She would controversially support Dovewing's leave; but she isn't the type to do huge confrontations anymore. Since her time as a Tyrant, she has a sort of godly, detatched air about her.

So there wouldn't be any chewings-out of her brothers. She doesn't have that sort of confidence in her own judgement anymore. Trying to control others and tell them how they should sort out their problems caused the Kitty Bronze Age Collapse lmao

[bonefall]

what are your favorite relationships in BB? doesn’t have to be romantic, could be friends, family, mentor-apprentice, etc.

I have a big soft spot for the mentorships. They're so neglected in canon that I really get to decide whatever I want it to be, and when I shuffle apprentices I'm always trying to do matchups that are particularly interesting.

But there's also romantic and familial bonds that do it for me. Scattershot;

Honeysnake and Briarlight They've grown on me super quickly. Honeyfern's Honor Title for surviving the adder bite, the drama she gets in when her sister starts dating her ex, becoming the mentor of the kitten she saved, their final interaction before the Great Battle. I think it's a powerful thing.

Brokenstar and Runningnose sir this is my emotional support evil ambiguously gay couple. "Soooo Brokenstar what's your situation with Runningnose?" "planning the demise of windclan" "yes but are you an item" "perhaps, long ago, but now i have come to learn i am a force of great revenge" "do you kiss" "i bite"

Fallenleaf and Cinderheart Something about Cinderheart trying to have a life without her, and finding the color drained from it. Fallenleaf spending another lifetime enacting horrible tyranny, but unable to communicate the horror of her reign. Someone who is loyal and devoted to you, when you feel like you don't deserve it. A fresh god and her first priestess.

HareHeatherBreeze Ex-villain going through a housewife arc and his ambitious husband and wife

Pinestar and Speckletail, Mudfur and Leopardstar, Tallstar and Flytail, Cloudtail/Ferncloud and Ashfur This dynamic is cool ranch doritoes to me, I can't stop. "Little person I was trusted with raising, kitten I loved, where have you gone? How could I have helped you? I did my best and it was still the wrong thing!" It's versatile, too. Pine perfectly mentored Speckle, but his mind is changing on that being a good thing. Mudfur realizes he should have left Leopard and Carp with their mother in that kittypet home. Tallstar created his greatest rival for deputyship. Cloud and Fern wonder if there was a sign they ignored. Love it love it love it

Dustpelt and his kids Dad who makes you hold the flashlight as he looks under the car energy.

Hawkfrost and Ivypool "I was recruited by a demon who was meant to be my mentor, but slowly I'm realizing that I'm growing older and he looks younger and younger. He's practically a child and he's being used by his father just as much as me by mine. Oh god, we're fools being lead around by fools"

Frostfur and Everyone Be it her and her mentor Bluestar, or how she can connect with Dustpelt when he makes mistakes, or how she comforts her daughter when she's attacked by dogs, I just really appreciate her.

Cinderpelt and Littlecloud BESTIES in two different Clans, their friendship is just so much fun. "Why is Littlecloud here" "He's checking my leech setup" "Why is Cinderpelt here" "She's checking my leech setup :)"

Swansong and Mistystar They didn't take all of her siblings from her, because they refused to acknowledge he's her brother. That was a mistake; she's got the most loyal sibling a person could ever ask for, he'll fight and die by her side if she gives the word. A good brother helps you hide the body <3