#whereas star flower spent enough time there that she did get a placement

[yuridovewing]

actually…. now that im having thoughts on clear sky in my au as an overarching antagonist… i wanted to put a dotc character in the dark forest that is there solely for unfair reasons that clear sky can harp on throughout the series as this manipulative disgusting person who is satan incarnate, and everyone buys it bc of the propaganda throughout the decades, only for oots to reveal this character to be like… not a good person, sure, but someone whos just been broken and forced into that position for years. someone who just wants to stop existing entirely now but cant because their memory lives on for all the wrong reasons. and its like… a revelation for ivyleaf that the dark forest is full of despicable evil people, yes, but its also a symptom of a corrupt system that enables a cycle of suffering.

and i was torn on who exactly this cat would be. like, i think gray wing is an obvious and tragic candidate, but i kinda want to keep his status as this “wise sage” who is respected throughout the years but in reality was just a cruel enabler and stickler for the tragedy his brother created. while its cool to rewrite him into the tragic figure people want him to be, i dont think thats where i want to go with him. i was thinking bumble too, but honestly… her story is just SO awful that i really want to give her a happy ending where after shes left for dead, shes found by a nice twoleg who lets her be a bookstore cat. shes used as a fearmongering story for the clans, but she had a peaceful death and was happily put through the reincarnation cycle. one eye is also a good candidate as someone who was basically created to make clear sky look less bad, so i was leaning more towards him…

but the more i think about it, the more i actually think star flower fits the role the best. like, she is treated like dogshit in canon and her “crime” of letting her dad know hes gonna get assassinated is treated as equal to or worse than clear skys war crimes. even in the fandom, while i know its not at all meant as an insult, shes seen as a manipulative villain who has horrible intentions and wants to cause chaos. when in reality, shes also a victim of clear sky.

i dont think she has his kits in this au, nor is there gonna be a father/son love triangle plot, but she is still romantically involved with clear sky in a fucked up cycle of abuse way. and i think what happens is that she takes away some of his lives, maybe even his last, when she finally reaches her limit and assassinates him, to avenge herself and her father. shes placed in the dark forest and this story is rewritten as a cautionary tale against letting outsiders into the clan- theyll manipulate their way to the top, and try to rot the clan from within.

her name may be something different in the dark forest, something correlating to “rot”. like “rotting flower” or something.

i realize i did a little tangent about not wanting bumbles suffering to be dragged out while… kinda doing that to star flower instead. but like ok at least star flower will get some W’s i think. i’ll let her double kill thistleclaw as a treat or something.