#yellowfang's horror

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

Yellowfang's Secret, under the new name, Yellowfang's Horror.

Aka: Y'all accepted fascism a little too quickly

I'm not putting this one under a cut because I put a lot of thought into it and I want it to be seen.

Ginger Starclan tom - Mallowfur's mate, Baycloud. (Mallowfur is using her old info, elder of Thunderclan who befriended Featherwhisker as a kit, dying just before he was made an apprentice, along with her description: white molly with very faint pale gray stripes and blue eyes.

Black molly in Jay's group at Twolegplace - Sooty.

Small tabby and white molly with green eyes - Poppy, she is Boulder's sister.

Russetfur's mother - Nicki.

Boulder's mother - Angel. Ironic, for a cat with Bloodclan ties.

'Rangy' (mangy?) Gray tabby tom - Ash.

Two more rogues - Sooty and Angel working together.

"Several Twolegplace Rogues" - Thanks for that. They try and attack the nursery, let's go with... Hal, Tulip, Gem, and Hare. 3 of these cats die in this battle. Gem is the only survivor, talking about her sister Tulip and Tulip's mate Hare. She leaves the Rogue to join Nicki, giving Red an update on her mom before she leaves.

Rogue Cedarstar beats the crap out - Kai, missing his brother Cobra :(

Windclan tom - Gonna go with Shrewclaw being a shit.

Thunderclan apprentices - Gonna put 2 here... Sweetpaw and Thistlepaw. Rosepaw was busy making Riverclan friends.

Windclan cat backing up Shrewclaw - Redclaw, pumping up his son.

4 Twolegplace Rogues - Ash, Sooty, Angel, and another newer Rogue named Flax.

Shadowclan Medicine cat now in Starclan appearing in Yellowfang's dream - Yellowfang's ancestor, her great great uncle named Stormpelt. He appears in a cameo during Frecklewish's Choice, training Redthistle, Sagewhisker's mentor, alongside Sloefur.

Tiny tabby Starclan kit - The Dream Yellowfang is having is a memory, one of Redthistle's memories, treating her first paitent, Sagewhisker's father Berryleg, as a kitten.

Line of Starclan Medicine cats - okay... Pebble Heart, Dappled Pelt, Swiftfoot Pearnose, Ravenwing, Molepelt, Chiveclaw, Echosnout, Stormpelt.

Brown Starclan kit - Sagewhisker's first paitent, Lizardfang's brother Whiskerkit. He's the reason Sagewhisker is so anti- medicine queen. She lost him.

Windclan tom that had to retire early due to asthma - Fuck off I'm not writing that.

2 Windclan apprentices - Flypaw/Flyleap and Bristlepaw/Bristlethorn. Tallstar's little half siblings.

Skinny gray Starclan tom that gives Brokenstar a life for truth - Graytuft, a former deputy of Shadowclan.

Small brown tabby Starclan molly who gives Brokenstar a life for clear sight - Woodpaw, Cedarstar's apprentice.

Plump black and white Starclan tom who gives Brokenstar a life for strength - Darkwing, a former Skyclan cat who immigrated to Shadowclan as Skyclan left to forest. He gives Raggedstar a life for Judgement THAT HE DIDN'T USE.

Naming Minor Characters Post under the cut

Super Edition... Edition! Some Super Editions are getting new names in WCR to better fit with their rewritten state and new themes.

Starting with Firestar's Quest

Plump, long-furred snowy-white tom with brilliant blue eyes that looks like Cloudtail - Oliver! Cloudtail's dad!

Tortoiseshell molly who tries to beat up Firestar - Sweetpea! She was absolutely named by a 4 year old!

Lowbranch's mom/Skywatcher's grandmother - WE WERE GIVEN A NAME FOR HER! Her name is Honeyleaf. Her husband was Swallowflight. Honeyleaf was the last deputy of Skyclan.

Skywatcher's father - Pebble, I like to imagine he was a brown tabby.

Pricklenose's kits - I'm gonna give her 2, to match Lowbranch. Flykit who grew into Flyfoot, who would later father Patch/Patchfoot, and Sheepkit, who grew into Sheepclaw, and would mother Hutch/Shortwhisker.

Clovertail's Ex, Rockshade, Bouncefire and Tinycloud's father - Hail, a Rogue. He has bright yellow eyes like Bouncefire, and is pure white like Tinycloud (who is now hard of hearing from birth)

Hutch's mother - Sheepclaw, Pricklenose's superstitious daughter.

Foxy and his brother - Foxy actually has a description. Red tabby tom with cream-colored paws and tail tip. His eyes are blue. His brother is now named Wolf, pure gray with blue eyes.

Clovertail's mother, implied Riverclan ancestry - Canonically, Clovertail is hinted to be related to Birchstar of Riverclan and relative of Heavystep (the other hint that she is of Riverclan heritage besides her swimming) so... Her mother is Shine. Shine is the missing sister of Lilystem, went missing just days after her warrior ceremony and was never found. She had fallen in love with a loner and left Riverclan, settling down near the gorge and eventually having Clover, but never giving up her love of water. (Her warrior name was Shinestep) the Heavystep line is directly descended from Birchstar, the same one who rejected Skyclan.

[need1etail]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Warriors - Erin Hunter Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Cinderpelt (Warriors), Brackenfur (Warriors), Swiftpaw (Warriors), Thornclaw (Warriors), One-eye (Warriors - ThunderClan), Dappletail (Warriors), Yellowfang (Warriors), Firestar (Warriors), Graystripe (Warriors), Brightheart (Warriors) Additional Tags: been wanting to post this one for a while lol, I had fun with it, Original Character(s), cinderpaw is an idiot, we love her tho, Thriller, Horror, idk about those tags, but i tried my best lol, this takes place in the prophecies begin, specifically fire and ice Summary:

The elders tell Cinderpaw a scary story and she wants to find out if it's true.

Happy Halloween I wrote a one-shot <3

[pinata-candy]

Into the Wild <- Forest Of Secrets ->

Fire and Ice ThunderClan! I know cloud is put in the ‘outside the clans’ part of the allegiances and Lynx isn’t listed at all but. They’re here anyway <33 I'm going to do ‘forgotten’ kittens when their siblings are listed- I plan to do Brindle’s two other kittens when Ash and Fern are listed in the allegiances for the first time

Design notes for the new cats under the cut!

Yellowfang- classic cranky lady! Yellowfang is one of those designs I couldn’t really imagine breaking canon for even though I wanted to. Anything I tried that wasn’t classic Yellowfang looking felt so wrong so she’s just Her !

Longtail- he has his nicked ear now! I intentionally made it kind of look like a TNR ear because I thought it was funny. Symbolic in a way one could argue

Fire and Gray- Warrior designs for them ! Big boys now!

Swiftpaw- I tried to make him look a bit like Tiger bc in my head, Tiger is also the father of Swift and Lynx. The poetic horror of Tiger killing his own son with the dogs he brought into the territory.

Cinderpaw- oh Cinder my lovely girl- I gave her bangs like her mom and little orange flecks like little flames bc of her name

Brackenpaw- Brackens are a kind of fern so he looks like a fern! I had so much fun with him and he’s got his mom’s face shape!

Cloudkit- beautiful fluffy cloud baby. Not much more to say <3

Lynxkit- why do all the random kits they name years later have cool names that are never used again? Lynx looked a lot like her father, Tiger, and if she had survived I think he would have heavily favored her. I think her death really disturbed Tiger and it caused him to distance himself from Swift. But yeah, Lynx!

And that’s all the new kitties! 4 cats were lost (rip Red, Spotted, Rose, and Lion) but 5 were gained!

[bonefall]

What did Sagewhisker do? All I remember was that she was Yellowfang's mentor, and I used to love YS. (I was a lot younger at the time, though.)

oH Lord, a lot of people who read YS when they were younger kinda don't pick up on how shitty Sagewhisker is. It goes over their heads that she is the one who's actually responsible for Yellowfang being forced to be distant from Brokenkit

From a young age, Sagewhisker is pressuring Yellowpaw to be a medcat, when she doesn't want to

Yellow LIKES the satisfaction of healing itself, but LOVES being a warrior more.

She's a fantastic hunter, has always wanted a family, and is just genuinely filled with a lot of self-satisfaction when she gets to do her warrior duties.

(They also had to retcon the stupidest magic power, super-empathy, into Yellowfang so that she nonsensically wouldn't like fighting. Yellowfang. The cat whose first appearance in TPB is attacking Firepaw and didn't hesitate to blind Brokenstar. THAT Yellowfang.)

In contrast, when she starts healing, she's constantly filled with shame or horror. She also gets bullied viciously by several cats, while others do that Thing that an older family member does when they don't like what you're doing. You know;

"Ohhh that's so good, for you. If it makes you happy it's good!! I mean, but, wouldn't you rather do Other Thing? I mean no, I understand, you like This thing, but Other thing would... no no it's okay, nevermind. I'm happy for you."

This while she's already courting Raggedpelt, and planning a future with him.

So to begin with, she has a lot of negative feelings when Sagewhisker tries to pressure her into this role, especially as Sage insists she "Wants HER" and "It's your destiny." But that's not all;

When Cloudpaw (later Cloudpelt) gets viciously mauled and might not survive, Sagewhisker takes one look and says, "It might be kinder to let StarClan take him now."

Yellowfang is FURIOUS at how quickly Sagewhisker gave up, and Sage just waves this away with "oh I won't stop you but be prepared for heartbreak lol"

Sage continues to tell her shit like "You can't save every cat" after Cloudpaw's mother sees her son all cheese-grated up.

So... either Sagewhisker was going to just leave Cloudpaw there to bleed out or die of infection, OR she was implying euthanasia.

And it's probably euthanasia, because when Yellowfang is pregnant later, she says,

Sooooo... considering how WEIRD WC generally is about abortion, acting like it's not even an option and giving Clear Sky some Angel Fetus Children in DOTC...

Sagewhisker was probably implying that Yellowfang would smother infants. Or do whatever Sagewhisker was planning to do with Cloudpaw.

I don't even know if pressuring Yellowfang into an abortion would have been better... honestly this exchange is uncomfortable no matter how you slice it.

It gets worse ofc. Yellowfang gets this warning from StarClan about how “Only one thing can stop the tide of hatred this birth cursed cat will bring: the courage of a mother to know her destiny.” Silverflame also suggests just being his friend, if she can't be his mother.

Forget that though, because Sagewhisker continues to snap at Yellowfang and remind her that she can't look at him for too long, else people will get suspicious or something.

"It's a woman's responsibility to have children for our glorious war society, Yellowfang, unless they have A RARE GIFT THAT MUST NOT BE WASTED."

In the same conversation she's then like, "Also don't go into the nursery, the child I forced you to give up needs a chance to bond with the abusive foster who hates his little guts."

In general Sagewhisker also prevents Yellowfang from standing up for herself or her position in a way that is absolutely infuriating. Foxheart comes in and starts bellowing about "HOW DARE YOU HAVE APPRENTICES RUN ERRANDS FOR YOU?" and Sage is just like, "Turn the other cheek uwu"

Yellowfang is punished constantly for the sin of being Yellowfang. She is not allowed to be snarky at all. It fucking sucks. This book is MISERABLE

SO basically, Sagewhisker forces her into a role she isn't very happy in, stops her from standing up for herself ever, guilts Yellowfang over "wasting her special gift," gives up on cases that are too hard for her, suggests killing kits, says some wildly misogynistic stuff, prevents Yellowfang from doing anything about Brokenkit, and then dies.

She's the worst and no one ever talks about how fucked up this character is. and I really mean AS A CHARACTER

Because her PURPOSE in the story is to do all of these things and be hailed as a good mentor in the end. But the fandom is REALLY bad at analyzing characters as narrative tools.

She's right to pressure Yellowfang into her role, with the ending comic even trying to have Sagewhisker apologize for pressuring her and Yellow going "d'aww dwai you didn't force me into anything 8) ignore the entire fucking book before this point"

Giving up on a battered teenager is supposed to show Yellowfang's talent and resolve, not reflect poorly on Sagewhisker.

WC fully believes that "wisdom" she espouses about Lizardfang. Lizardfang is a bad woman because she doesn't accept her place as a queen. This kind of guilt and blame is reserved exclusively for mothers in WC, not fathers, note how Mudclaw doesn't help at all but no one gives a shit.

Killing the baby would have been the best option because, again, Brokenkit is BORN. EVIL.

I'm pretty convinced that "Courage of a mother to KNOW HER DESTINY" refers to the fact she is supposed to be a medcat, who kills her child. What FINALLY ends Brokenstar's reign of terror is being poisoned-- not the kindness she was finally able to show him in TPB while he was prisoner.

So Sagewhisker guilt-tripping Yellowfang into a position she doesn't like, keeping her away from her child, suggesting murdering the baby... that's all good, actually. That's something that is framed as correct.

And I think people really sleep on it. Sagewhisker is like this perfect little encapsulation of how shitty clan culture is in WC, an enforcer of the series' misogyny while being a woman herself, someone who makes Yellowfang's wife HELL.

But because she didn't do it violently, no one notices it.

[the-owl-tree]

some more detailed thoughts on the graphic novels-

prefacing this with i like the artist's styles a lot, i love the expressions and silly bits they add to the background. big fan of how the script takes away the formal edge of the books and makes the dialogue sound more natural. that said.....it doesn't really fit with the vibes of tpb at times and i honestly kind of wish this duo got to work on po3 instead, which could have benefited from more goofs and humor with its more character focused story, especially those early books where the bond of the three and the friendships they make are central.

i love the final three pages of the graphic novel, the dog imagery is very good. i like it a lot. what i'm hoping it's signifying is a change in tone, both a dangerous path and the darkest hour are gloomy books, with dangerous path leaning into horror elements at times. i hope the books can reflect this.

the pacing is....ooof. i had similar problems with the first graphic novel, where you can tell they had to whiz through so so much in order to fit into the wild and fire and ice. i can't blame the adaptation team for this, this was clear a harpercollins decision and i think they did the best they could.

but it does mean that we lose a lot of details like fireheart getting to watch yellowfang kill her son. i'd mentioned on another post i believed this was to make the reveal at her death scene more hard hitting but i honestly think they should've kept it, it makes her death scene and her wishing fireheart was her son so much more emotional.

....kind of makes me wish they dedicated the time they took from the rising storm cloudpaw plot line (good choice fyi) and just. included the scene.

i'm still very soft for this adaptation, embarrassing enough it did make me feel the same way i did when i first read this arc where i wanted to know more about the world and its characters and what was going to happen next.

artwork, for all my grievances, is lovely. i love the nature imagery, gorgeous work all around!

[redux-iterum]

Charred Legacy: Chapter Fifty

(AO3 counterpart here.)

Fireheart had run to and from camp many times. He had sprinted around the forest and come home barely needing a moment to rest. He’d raced through snow and ice and rain, stumbled through sticking mud, and stars knew how hungry or sleep-deprived he’d been—and even then, maybe once or twice he had to stop and catch his breath, only to trot through camp and talk with friends like nothing had happened.

So, dimly aware of it as he was, it was curious how this short run back to home was one of the most exhausting trips he had ever made.

Cinderpaw was heaving for air by the time they caught sight of the bramble wall that hid the entrance. Fireheart wasn’t much better—he had been pushing her, both physically and verbally, and offering sharp encouragement whenever she looked back the way they’d come with bulging eyes, the dark green of them somehow even darker. More than once, she had stopped, trembling, and pleaded that they go back and save Yellowfang. Fireheart didn’t have it in him right now to gently refuse her; he had just pushed her again and told her they needed to go. Cinderpaw’s head hung half the run, her nose nearly to the ground.

When they burst into camp, gasping and grieving, the Clan was all back, Dustpelt’s patrol just having returned and choosing prey from the prey-pile. Every eye turned to them in alarm, which turned to fear as they unanimously realized the young cats were alone.

Dustpelt jumped up and hurried over to Fireheart, tail bushy. “What happened? Where are Whitecloud and Yellowfang?”

“Dog,” Fireheart wheezed. He fought the desire to sink to his belly and faint. “Dog.”

A wave of shocked cries and hisses rippled out, Fireheart as the epicenter. He focused on breathing, his mind so foggy with fright and sorrow that he could barely think. Dustpelt was asking him something. He viciously shook his head, which only made him dizzy, and looked back up.

“Where was the dog?” Dustpelt asked again. Fireheart was grateful that he didn’t sound angry.

“At the neutral grounds,” Fireheart managed. “Found us right as we hit the border.”

Cinderpaw was shaking beside him, whispering something. Fireheart thought it was a prayer.

“Cinderpaw—” Willowpelt pushed her way through the crowd and up alongside Dustpelt. “Did you get hurt?”

Cinderpaw shook her head.

“Are…” Willowpelt shivered. “Are Whitecloud and Yellowfang dead?”

“They attacked the dog to save us,” Fireheart said mournfully, barely staying on his feet. “We escaped. I’m sure I heard it kill them.”

Murmurs of grief and horror now, and cats looking at each other with a shared worry that Fireheart saw in Dustpelt’s eyes, and felt in his own.

We don’t have a leader or a seer now.

“And you ran away, like a coward,” Darkstripe growled to his right. “Right after you promised us we’d be safe. How heroic—”

Dustpelt sharply rounded on Darkstripe. “If you don’t keep your mouth shut, you’re going out to collect the bodies on your own.”

Darkstripe sneered at him, but he grit his teeth and scowled at the ground silently.

Fireheart straightened up, even as his stomach rolled and he wanted to sink to his side and sleep forever. “Where’s Bluestar?”

“She’s in her den.” Dustpelt raised a paw. “Listen, you need to recover. I can tell her—”

“No,” Fireheart said, desperately wanting to agree. “She’s most comfortable with me, and I was out there. I should talk to her.”

Ravenwing carefully wove around Willowpelt and approached Fireheart, Greystripe behind him. “Well, you’re not doing it alone.”

“Especially with a dog around,” Greystripe added.

Fireheart’s entire body eased, his swimming mind finally pulling itself out of its muddy, circular river. He nodded gratefully, turning to lead them out as Brightpaw, Mousefur and Willowpelt came to Cinderpaw’s side and started murmuring to her, helping her crouch without collapsing and purring soothingly.

The trio exited camp, leaving the sounds of a quietly panicking Clan behind, and made an immediate turn left. Bluestar’s den had not stopped smelling, even from this distance. Fireheart took in a breath, but still hesitated at the lichen curtains in its entryway.

“You guys should stay out here,” he warned his friends. “This won’t go well.”

They shook their heads together. Ravenwing said firmly, “We’re doing this with you, whether you like it or not.”

Fireheart didn’t have the energy to combat him, and truthfully, he didn’t want to. He blinked gratefully and led the way in, Greystripe ducking as he came in last.

Bluestar, surprisingly, was awake, and she lifted her scraggly-furred head, squinting warily at the young warriors.

“Hello,” Fireheart said quietly. “Do you know me?”

Bluestar tilted her head, peering at her old apprentice with confusion. “No. Who are you?”

“My name is Fireheart,” he said, aware of his friends watching him in concern. “I’m afraid I have some very bad news. It’s about Whitecloud, your nephew.”

Slowly, with great effort, Bluestar sat up. Her fur was matted in places, and all of it shone with grease. She rasped, “Right, ah… White…cloud. Yes. What is it?”

Fireheart braced himself, not sure whether he was hoping that she wouldn’t react or that she would. “He just died. A dog attacked him and killed him.”

Bluestar blinked, eyes wide.

“He saved two lives in the process, including me,” Fireheart said, as gentle as he could manage. “But he’s gone. I wanted to tell you right away.”

Bluestar stared at him, not speaking for a long time. Greystripe and Ravenwing shuffled their back legs nervously, and Fireheart kept his gaze on his leader. He waited for anger, or shock, but…

“Right,” Bluestar said again. “Whitecloud.”

Ravenwing spoke hesitantly. “Do… do you remember him?”

Bluestar blinked again, then looked down. “I swear I do… but we have Whitekit already, don’t we?” She tilted her head questioningly at Fireheart. “Why is there a Whitecloud?”

A familiar knot settled in his throat, his stomach twisting. “It’s… it’s not important.” With his friends’ eyes on him, he forced a patient, cheerful tone that could not have more betrayed its fakeness. “The important thing is that he was your deputy, and we need a new one as soon as possible to replace him.”

Bluestar wobbled where she sat, scrunching up her face in thought. “I see. Then… then the new deputy…” Her eyes widened, inspired. “Ah! The new deputy will be Tigerclaw.”

She might as well have thrown Fireheart against the wall of the den with that punch to his gut. His friends weren’t much better; Greystripe flinched back and Ravenwing bowed his head, eyes shut tight.

“I’m afraid he won’t work,” Fireheart managed to say calmly. “We have to think of someone else.”

“Fireheart, I don’t think she can think of anyone else,” Greystripe whispered.

“I know,” Fireheart whispered back. “We have to help her.”

“That’s not what I…”

“The cats who can be deputy right now,” Fireheart said louder, “are Dustpelt, Mousefur, Willowpelt, Lizardtail, Ravenwing…” He hesitated. “And me.”

“I wouldn’t choose Ravenwing,” his skinny friend said quickly. “That’s… that’s me. I’m a bad idea.”

Bluestar didn’t acknowledge him. She peered at Fireheart, not really seeing him, visibly struggling to think.

“Whitecloud would suggest Dustpelt or Fireheart,” Greystripe said, careful and awkward. “He was going to have one of them be his deputy in the future.”

A long, long pause. Then Bluestar huffed and slowly laid back down, her chin on the edge of her dried nest.

“I want to think about it,” she croaked. “I want to think about all these cats.”

“Er—” Ravenwing cleared his throat. “We kind of need to choose as quickly as we can.”

“I’ll choose.” Bluestar weakly flicked a paw in his general direction. “I want to think. Leave me be. Go back to…”

She trailed off, eyes vacant.

Fireheart sighed, bowed his head and gestured with his tail. “Let’s go.”

“But…” Greystripe started.

“I’ll come back to see her,” Fireheart said. “Let’s give her space and talk to the Clan.”

His friends looked at each other, then closed their mouths and followed Fireheart out of the den. Bluestar didn’t make a sound as they left. Fireheart couldn’t bring himself to look back at her.

They reentered camp, everyone watching the tunnel and perking up when they emerged. Dustpelt was closest, flanked by One-eye and Halftail.

“What’d she say?” Dustpelt asked.

Fireheart shook his head dully. “She sent us away to think about it.”

“We don’t have time for her to think about it!” Frostfur stood up from where she sat with her sons, bristling. “The Gathering is about to happen; we need someone to go in her stead, and we need someone to lead us!”

“Can we even go to the Gathering?” Teaselfoot asked, tail tapping nervously. “What if that dog is going to make its home in the neutral grounds?”

“Regardless of if we do,” Lizardtail said, “we need a leader to make that decision.”

The Clan turned to each other, seeking a solution, their volume steadily rising with anxiety. Halftail turned his head back and gave a loud, deep, rumbling growl that swiftly silenced everyone as he and One-eye turned fully to the crowd.

“We’re not completely bereft of options,” One-eye said. “Even if Bluestar doesn’t choose in time.”

“When day comes, if she hasn’t chosen a replacement deputy, we will select someone,” Halftail continued.

One-eye nodded. “Whitecloud spoke to us several times about who he wanted to lead after him.” Her long, skeletal tail waved twice, pointing separately to Dustpelt and Fireheart. “And we agreed with him that these two are our best choices.”

Fireheart braced for objections. He immediately got one.

“You can’t be serious,” Darkstripe said, staring. He gestured angrily with a paw to Fireheart. “Him? He hasn’t even fully raised an apprentice!”

“Neither has Dustpelt,” Lizardtail said dryly. “And yet I’d rather follow both of them than you.”

“I agree.” Mousefur nodded to the elders. “They’ve proven themselves. I think either one will be good.”

Fireheart chanced a glance at Dustpelt. Despite his puffed-out chest and serious face, his tail was low to the ground and slightly trembling.

Voices rose again, but this time they sounded more confident. Cats nodded in approval or offered a vote on who to choose as deputy if Bluestar was too slow.

Halftail raised his voice. “Then we’re in agreement. By the morning, if a deputy has not been named, Dustpelt or Fireheart will take Bluestar’s place.”

“And now we wait for her to choose,” One-eye said. She let out a rickety sigh, speaking now to Halftail. “I almost think we ought to vote ourselves and have the winner retire her.”

Halftail flicked an ear in acknowledgement. “Worst comes to worst, that’s what we’ll do. We can give her this last choice.”

Something brushed against Fireheart’s pelt; when he looked, Ravenwing had come to stand beside him, and Greystripe was arriving on his other side.

“You ready for this?” Greystripe asked in a low voice.

Fireheart breathed in, only now registering the knots of fear in his chest. “I’ll have to be.”

“Well…” Ravenwing bumped his forehead against Fireheart’s shoulder. “Whoever gets picked, we’re here for you.”

Fireheart returned the gesture, purring despite himself.

The night went on slowly after that: Fireheart and Cinderpaw had to repeat exactly what happened to Whitecloud and Yellowfang multiple times to different cats, the pain worsening with each telling. Conversation turned to how they would retrieve Whitecloud and Yellowfang—if there was anything left to collect—how Cinderpaw was going to get her name, and how the other Clans would react to such a shrunken, weakened ThunderClan. Consensus was that they would have to act strong and confident at the Gathering. Fireheart made a mental note to speak honestly if he was to lead them there.

When the stars began fading, and the sky paled in the distance, Dustpelt and Fireheart went to the elders.

“Bluestar ought to have a choice now,” Halftail said. “One way or another. She’s had time to think about it.”

“And if she chooses someone that isn’t either of you…” One-eye winked. “We’ll just veto her selection.”

Fireheart sighed an incredibly weak excuse for a chuff, nodded and said, “I’ll talk to her. Dustpelt, do you want to come?”

“I do.” Dustpelt turned away from the elders as Fireheart did. “Mostly because I don’t want you foisting leadership on me if she says your name.”

This chuff was a little more genuine. The toms padded across the clearing together, every eye on them, and Fireheart took the lead to pass through the entrance tunnel. They turned and continued on to Bluestar’s den, stopping just in front of it and peering through the lichen to see a sleeping form, half-hidden by shadows.

Dustpelt wrinkled his nose and sighed through it. “She needs to become an elder as soon as possible. This isn’t sustainable.”

“It isn’t,” Fireheart agreed morosely. “I was hoping she’d get to die as a leader, but… I guess that’s just not realistic anymore.”

Dustpelt gave him a sympathetic expression. “I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with this. I should’ve been helping you.”

Fireheart nodded faintly. “I appreciate that, but it’s best that I’ve been doing it. Me and… and Whitecloud, I mean. Even after she forgot us, she’s been reacting positively to our visits.” Before Dustpelt could say anything else, he shook out his pelt and straightened up. “Let’s see who she chose, then.”

Dustpelt looked like he wanted to say more, but he just jerked his chin down and followed Fireheart through the lichen.

Bluestar, surprisingly, was awake. She hadn’t even changed positions from when Fireheart had left earlier: her chin was on the edge of the nest, eyes dull and empty. She gave no indication that she’d heard either of them.

Or saw them.

…Or that she was breathing.

“Bluestar, we’re here to…” Dustpelt started, then trailed off. He sniffed, then froze.

Fireheart, already knowing and desperately hoping it wasn’t so, crouched in front of her still nose. “Bluestar?”

No response. He pawed at her ear. It didn’t twitch.

“…Bluestar?”

[transhetanybodys]

Realizing with slowly dawning horror that Yellowfang's Secret is by far the Warriors book I'm the most invested in emotionally. It's one of the books I owned as a kid, so many of my favorite characters come from it, Jay's group of Twolegplace cats first appeared in it, and it's not great. There's some cool stuff like the parallelism between Raggedstar's attack on the rats of the Carrionplace and Brokenstar's, Raggedstar is actually a decently nuanced abuser even if a lot of the steps of his evolving relationship with Yellowfang feel really rushed and they could've done a better job of making it clear to the small impressionable children reading at home that Raggedstar is in fact an abuser, and obviously I love Jay's group even if the way they're presented in the narrative is pretty bad and xenophobic. But also oh my god the relationships feel so shallow, like Rowanberry apparently being Yellowfang's best friend when they've barely interacted and her friendship with Cloudpelt only being developed through a few conversations and her relationship with Raggedstar having what feels like below the bare minimum of interactions to convincingly pull off anything without just stating it directly in the narrative. Also all that stuff a lot of people have brought up like Yellowfang's personality being off and her power being a stupid retcon and her being punished more in comparison to cats like Raggedstar and Crowfeather being misogynistic, and Brokenstar's rise to power is rushed and has some weird unclear parts. It feels really convenient that his plan to attack the Carrionplace ended in Foxheart's death and that attack on Windclan he caused ended in Cloudpelt's death but I don't know how how he would've specifically caused the current deputy to die on both occasions. I liked the part where his grief and regret over killing Raggedstar seemed to be genuine though, it added a bit of nuance to the guy who's just supposed to be a born evil curse upon the clans. But also Yellowfang girlie come on how are you not even a little bit suspicious that Brokenstar might be lying about how his father and your siblings died. You're smart in Into the Wild and you seem too attuned to the tragedy around you to selectively go into denial about some of it, c'mon.

In conclusion Yellowfang's Secret gets a 15/10 because it's the book that introduced Jaybae, Tallstar's Revenge also gets a 15/10 and all other Warriors books get a 7.8/10 not enough Jaybae

[sapphanimates]

SapphAnimates Art Recap 2024!

Calling it a little bit early, but here's a quick recap of my art progress for the year ^^

JANUARY

My Alacrity AU designs for Team Chaotix! Espio was one of the new designs I was most proud of at the time (despite the fact I ended up slightly modifying it later on). Hence why I chose him to represent January!

FEBUARY

THIS IS IT. THE ORIGINS OF SASHA. A Sonadow fankid I originally made just for shits and giggles, as many other creators were making them at the time, has slowly evolved over the year to become a pseudo-face for the blog! I wouldn't be where I am right now if you guys hadn't loved her as much as I do, and I'm super grateful for all of your support! Stay tuned for more Doom's Child AU news!

MARCH

Warrior Cats designs! These are some Medicine Cat/Healer designs for fun, though it did push me into a short era of drawing a lot of warriors stuff. I think most of my March was dedicated to Warriors content, actually...

APRIL

I like garten of banban. I needed to share my concept for a darker, psychological horror type of banban story, with a hint of infection au in there as well. please forgive me.

MAY

The end of the Sasha's run in the Sonic Fankid Showdown hosted by @head---ache . She didn't last very long, but the support behind our campaign was insane. Same goes for Zayne's run in the second Showdown. Thank you all so much!

JUNE

I did a "Six Fanarts" Challenge, featuring a mix of Warriors and Sonic characters, this one in particular featuring Sonic, Tails, Shadow, Tangle, Yellowfang, and Breezepelt. Shadow was my favorite from the group, with the bright yellow moon in the background and new Doom Wings (the Doom Powers were recently announced at the time).

JULY

Drew some of the horror adjacent Tails designs from some of the zones in my Project Alacrity AU. Ojo, Maggie, and Tailtrap playing Operation together and failing miserably at it :]

AUGUST

Some scrapped art from an animated shorts compilation video I posted on my YouTube Channel! It features some of the main characters, namely Fallen Leaves from Warriors, a Floragato from Pokémon, and a Mimic and Blarret from My Singing Monsters. Please go check out the video if you haven't yet!

SEPTEMBER

September means school, and school means teachers. And I've never met a more wackjob teacher than my current Chemistry teacher. This picture was one I did as a "Get to Know You" project on the first day of school. Labcoat Sapph.

OCTOBER

My first self assigned school art project, and a photography one! A multimedia picnic, a clay frog, a paper doll coati, and a portrait of a ghostly cat-woman, all sharing a lovely shoo-fly pie. Each character was created in a different medium, and the final photo was taken in my grandmother's backyard.

NOVEMBER

Part of a community challenge spurred by @yourpalsalamander . Asha in Wonderland needed a high af caterpillar, and who better to fill the role than Sasha. Just uh... don't touch her shrooms.

DECEMBER

Mlp horror AUs have had a small comeback lately, mostly on TikTok, but I wanted to throw my hat in the ring and create new evil versions of the entire Mane 6. I haven't come up with a design and concept for Rarity yet, but I've had a great time developing the rest of them! I'd love to turn it into a video series if you guys are interested in hearing my thoughts.

See you all next year! Template is by @zontarzon

[wildfire-rewrite]

Sun Bluefeather (Bluefur/star)

Leader of the Fall Thunderbringer Sect

Kitten -> Apprentice -> Soldier -> Deputy -> Leader

she/her/hers new-catte (trans), bisexual

Image IDs below the cut and information.

Grandparents: Daisyspot, Rookfeather, Squirreltail, Stagleap Parents: Lilybloom, Stormtail Siblings: Swanflight

Mate(s): Oakheart (former) Kit(s): Stoneshell, Mistywaters, Mossypaw, Willowleaf Grandkit(s): Darkstripe, Graystripe

Mentor: Tawnyspots Former Apprentice(s): Mousefang, Sun Firesong (unofficial)

Sun Bluefeather was always a quiet kitten. As Bluepaw, she was quiet and kind, eager to help and eager to be useful. That changed when she was made an apprentice under Tawnyspots. The catte was ruthless, but taught humility and preached peace whenever he got the chance to. Blueclaw found this useful when she was first given the chance to prove herself. Lilybloom, Rookfeather, Heronwing, and Rabbitleap all died in the failed ambush on the Sky Breezemoor Sect. Worse, their clan got charged with attempted kitten murder and was trialed. Stormtail was found guilty and sent to atonement. Exile for a season. No contact at all. Blueclaw was alone in her grief, she thought. She wasn't actually alone in her grief, but she isolated herself from everyone. Others tried to help, but how could they? How dare they tell her how to feel? Eventually, Stormtail came back. Of course he would, but it was different. He wasn't actually grieving at all. That made Blueclaw realize several things. One, Stormtail didn't actually care about Lilybloom. Two, he didn't care about his kittens, he hadn't spoken or comforted to either her or Swanclaw at all. Three, she had very little kin still alive, and needed to hold them close. She rebuilt her relationship with Swanclaw near the end of her apprenticeship and began to build a more stable relationship with Goosefeather. Naturally, she began to also talk to his apprentice, Featherclaw. She realized a lot when she spoke to him. She and Swanclaw became Bluefeather and Swanflight upon completing their assessments. Bluefeather also told the clan that she felt more like a catte and would be undergoing the proper herbal treatments for transitioning. After a long while of being a full soldier, she met someone. A kind red-brown kater with eyes of solid amber, so deep you could swim in them. Smile perfect, claws sharp, fur silky and thick, but he was of the Cold Creekbay Sect, but he understood her. He was a new-kater, but the experience was similar. Oakheart. Oakheart was the deputy of his sect, no less. They still mated, and when Oakheart told her that he was expecting kittens, she disowned them and declared that they were not to be mates and that she could, legally, take a single kitten once they were born. Once the kittens were born, the Creekbay Messenger summoned Bluefeather to their camp for the kitten. The Thunderbringer Sect was outraged, but allowed her to claim her kitten. The winter winds and snow made it hard to see, and Bluefeather asked that she rest a moment. Once they'd rested and the winds had died down, Bluefeather arrived in the camp. She and Oakheart barely spoke, and she took the blue and cream tortoiseshell catte, naming her Mossypaw. Bluefeather then left for the Thunderbringer Sect. Mossypaw grew up for a while without knowledge of her siblings and father. During the harsh winters that'd lead to the Starved Period, Mossypaw succumbed to starvation and hypothermia. Sun Bluefeather was destroyed. Then, she met Yellowfang and Russetfur.

[ Find out more when I post the "Bluefeather's Horror" redux. ]

Personal Comments:

Sun Bluefeather is such a complicated character and I love her for it. Her mentor definitely influenced her personality heavily, and you'll definitely see that clearly when I actually begin to write her as a character in a more narrative setting.

The family area, I actually ended up redoing a lot of the family tree for Thunderbringer. This'll be updated once I finalize a lot of the plot and such.

---

[ Image ID - An image of Bluefur in the Wildfire Rewrite, known as Sun Bluefeather. She is a large, dark gray ticked tabby cat with white accents along her chest, belly, and tail. Her paws are white. She has yellow-green eyes with strange pupils. End ID ]

[ Image ID - The same image as the previous one, but accessorized. Bluefeather wears a large, thick brown leather belt with an attached bag. It's lid's latch seems to be a cat's tooth. Under the belt is a large section of a fox's pelt. Two brown pouches hang off the belt. Bluefeather also adorns small pieces of jewelry, being a large necklace with a simplified sun pendant, and two bracelets. The lowest hanging one has a toadstool pendant attached, while the tightest one has two small beads. The left one is painted a pale yellow, while the left is panted a pale green. End ID ]

[mistblaze]

Brightkin

The Brightlkin are a ShadowClan family descending from Brightflower and Brackenfoot. I´m about to start with the parens´ canon designs and have a lot of fun as I go down the line.

I´m also experimenting with this picrew created by @felidform

Brightflower

B/ O/O D/d a/a Mc/ ta/ta C/cb W/S l/l

Ginger mackerel pseudo-tabby longhair with tuxedo. But wait, I hear you cry, what about Yellowfang?!

*Giggles manically*

Brackenfoot

b/ o/- D/d A/a Mc/ ta/ta cs/cb W/W L/l

Mink chocolate mackerel tabby shorthair!

Yellowfang

B/ O/o d/d a/a Mc/ ta/ta C/cs W/W l/l

Blue-cream tortie longhair! This actually doesn´t affect Brokenstar at all, because he can only inherit one ginger gene and gets the little o.

She will leave ShadowClan as in canon, but instead of joining ThunderClan, she will enter the twolegplace in search of a place as a healer. Someone points her to Mist´s group, and she will train Ravenpaw.

Rowanberry

b/ o/o D/ a/a Mc/ ta/ta cb/cb W/S L/l

Sepia chocolate solid shorthair with low white!

Nutwhisker

b/ o/- D/ a/a Mc/ ta/ta C/cb W/S L/

Solid chocolate shorthair with low white.

He will not live to see his grandchildren flee the horror his nephew created.

[redscorpiocat]

[PARTIALLY FOUND MEDIA] [MUSIC] [ANIMATION] Two Creepyass Téléchat PMVs by "Yellowfang-P" that confirm the user's existence.

(Pt. 14 Télépastas)

"Greetings from the Bottom of the Well" fan Téléchat PMV... [FOUND]

"In a Rainy Town, Balloons Dance with Devils" Téléchat PMV [PARTIALLY FOUND]

TW: Horror, Graphic scenes, Death.

I was watching a few Tèlèchat episodes and wondered: "Do people make animated content of these things?". So I looked up "Tèlèchat animations and found two videos made by a user named "Yellowfang-P". Both of which were lost media. One was found and the other was partially found. I watched one of the videos named ""Greetings from the bottom of the well" fan Tèlèchat PMV". It was damn disturbing. Instead of the woman's face emerging from the water, it was Durallo's horrifically realistic face emerging from the blood red version of the water that was surrounded by a few corpses. It was really really terrifying. And then I watched the partially found called "In a rainy town, balloons dance with devils". It showed scenes like Lola's bloodied beak, Groucha's bloodied claws, and corpses surrounding Durallo and Mic-mac. I was left speechless of how gruesome it was... But how did they manage to become lost?... Was Yellowfang-P that crazy?... I looked upon the user's profile and found a few discoveries. But the two videos were supposedly re-uploaded, I believe.

But the mystery still stands, and my answer remains the same to this day... I may never know.

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

For the sake of my SANITY I'm going to have to make a timeline for the Tales From The Forest (Yellowfang's Horror, Tallstar's Rage, Crookedstar's Promise and Bluestar's Prophecy)

Moonflower and Goosefeather are born

Sunstar and Featherwhisker are born

One-eye is born. Speckletail is no longer her biological sister, but is adopted when Whitekit is 5 moons old. No one knows who her parents are.

Doestar dies during the Great Hunger. She BURNED through her lives, one of the shortest 9-lived leaderships there is.

Pinestar meets Shanty. Not Jake.

Halftail is born.

Shrewclaw and Barkface are born.

Tallstar and Finchkit are born.

Raggedstar and Scorchwind are born.

Rowanberry, Yellowfang and Nutwhisker are born.

Brackenwing and Sandgorse die.

Heatherstar finds her excuse and closes the tunnels to focus on warfare. She has a personal vendetta against Cedarstar and she'll drag Windclan with her if she must.

Leopardfoot and Patchpelt are born.

Talltail finds Sparrow but doesn't kill him. Meanwhile, Yellowfang and her siblings are made into apprentices, Shadowclan steals prey and Windclan loses the battle when they fight with the death of Shrewclaw.

Raggedpaw is made into Raggedpelt from this act. Cedarstar rewarding him for killing Shrewclaw, Heatherstar's apprentice.

Later in the same winter, Riverclan's camp floods and kills Duskwater, but Stormkit and Oakkit are born.

Hopkit is renamed Deadpaw, and though he is cheerful, cats of Windclan are horrified and angry with Heatherstar. They want a leader who isn't so arrogant.

Seeing... Something.... Near Stormkit, Goosefeather snaps, snarling at him and scaring him. He breaks his jaw but in a twist of fate, a murky spirit brings him out of the water... Subverting a "Canon Event".

Later that day, Bluestar and Snowflower are born.

Stormkit runs off in shame only to meet the Barn Gang and learn how to use his jaw better.

Thistleclaw, Sweetberry, and Rosetail are born.

Stormkit returns half a moon later, and Rainflower demands that he be punished with the name she picked. Hailstar names him CrookedPAW, an early apprentice (he is ready) but turns and names his mother Rotflower, saying she can have her name back when she gets rid of the rot in her heart.

Yellowfang is made a Warrior and becomes mates with Raggedpelt when she saves his life, but she discovers that she has Forced Physical Empathy. Russetfur and Boulder join Shadowclan.

Oakkit is made an apprentice a week early after he and Crookedpaw find and save Willowkit and Graykit.

Lionheart and Goldenflower are given to Speckletail, who had a stillborn litter. (Mintkit and Pigeonkit).

Goosefeather gets his vision of Moonflower's death. He fakes the Windclan sign, sending them into battle. He tells Moonflower that he trusts her the most with the hardest job, sending her into Hawkheart's den...

Reedfeather takes Willowkit and Graykit.

Sagewhisker puts pressure on Yellowfang to be a medicine cat. Shadowclan is attacked by Proto-Bloodclan/Ex - Blood Seekers to 'rescue' Russetfur and Boulder. After the battle, Stonetooth retires and Raggedpelt is made deputy despite protests that he hasn't had an apprentice yet - but Leader's Word Is Law. Meanwhile...

Yellowfang concedes the night after to become a medicine cat, but she and Raggedpelt fight before she suggests being secret mates. No one has to know. Sagewhisker is EXTREMELY anti- med cats having mates, but Sagewhisker also tricked her by only teaching her how to suppress her power AFTER Yellowfang agreed to be a medicine cat. Meanwhile...

Pinestar meets with Shanty again, eating kibble and loving the twoleg den she shows him. MEANWHILE.

Reedfeather is murdered by Hailstar, and the kits are brought home. Riverclan would die for kits with even a drop of Riverclan blood in their veins.

Pinestar gets a sign from Doestar that a child of his will have great power, and potential to destroy the Clans.

Bluepaw and Snowpaw receive their warrior names. Snowflower and Bluemoon. Crookedpaw becomes Crookedjaw.

Tigerstar, Nightkit and Mistfang are born.

Brightsky dies giving birth to Leopardstar, Carpkit, Waterfern, and Oatkit.

Yellowfang realizes she is pregnant.

Frostfur is born, Brindleface is found in the forest days later and the 2 are raised in the nursery together.

Pinestar leaves Thunderclan to be a kittypet, preventing Sunfall from getting any lives.

Socks, Smoke, and Scourge are born.

Stormtail and Dappletail have kits. Cricketfang and Featherkit. Featherkit is deaf, but passes from Fading Kitten syndrome.

Willowpelt is born.

Yellowfang takes care of Cloudpaw and earns her full name.

Spottedleaf and Redtail are born.

Snowflower is struck on the thunderpath and killed after chasing a Shadowclan patrol.

Tigerpaw sets his own future in motion, beating Tiny within an inch of his life.

Lizardstripe gives birth to Tangleburr, Deerfoot, Runningnose, and Bristlepaw.

Yellowfang gives birth to Brokenstar, Wishkit, and Hopekit. Wishkit is the stillborn, Hopekit is the one who passes after 20 minutes. Brokenkit has a horrible relationship with his foster family. Mudclaw hits him behind everyone's back, Bristlekit, Tanglekit and Deerkit bully him relentlessly, and while Lizardstripe is no longer a physically abusive Bad Mom, she isn't very attentive, and Raggedpelt is no help, allowing it to happen so long as Yellowfang stays away.

Blackpaw makes friends with Brokenkit, and when Brokenkit becomes an apprentice with his siblings, Brokenpaw kills Bristlepaw, pushing him over the gorge. Blackpaw inadvertently covers for him without understanding what happened.

Sagewhisker has a heart attack.

Cedarstar passes from kidney failure and old age.

Raggedstar is leader and names Foxheart his deputy, taking her as a mate to hurt Yellowfang.

Greencough sweeps, killing Lizardfang, Mudclaw, and taking Raggedstar's first life.

Rotflower dies.

Mudfur and Adderfang duel, and Mudfur kicks his ass before becoming a medicine cat. Thistleclaw, growing more hateful towards Riverclan but also towards the weak, kills Adderfang. Sparrowpelt is made temporary Deputy but it's clear he doesn't like it.

Shellheart has a painful lump in his chest, he retires. Crookedjaw is made deputy.

Spottedpaw and Tigerpaw are best of friends with mutual crushes, but neither can act on them.

Brokentail is given his name early, and he tries to kill Tanglepaw only to be stopped at the last second by Yellowfang.

Tigerclaw saves Redpaw from a hawk.

Bluemoon gets pregnant at Fourtrees.

Foxheart dies. Frogtail is made deputy, he mentored Flintfang.

Crookedstar ascends to leadership, rejecting Rotflower's life, leaving him with 8 instead of 9 and leaving her in the Dark Forest.

Mistystar, Stonefur, and Mosskit are born. Bluemoon genuinely becomes mates with Thrushpelt. She is poly.

Morningkit, Swancall, and Splashkit are born. Morningkit and Splashkit do not survive their first night however.

Mosskit dies on the way to Riverclan.

Heatherstar dies from Greencough, she is the only victim that season.

Bluemoon becomes Deputy. Sunstar was under a huge amount of pressure to make Thistleclaw deputy. Everyone in the clan liked him.

Thunderclan and Windclan tensions begin, and a battle nearly breaks out, but Tallstar does not want to have unnecessary fights. Redtail no longer follows Tigerclaw, seeing his toxic influence.

Ashfoot is born.

Onestar is born.

Morningflower is born. The 3 are best friends.

Longtail and Heatherwish are born to Patchpelt and Bluebellfur. Sadly, Bluebellfur dies during their birth.

Bloodclan has kicked into full swing. Scourge throws Ruby and Socks out. Socks starves, Ruby is found and becomes Smoke.

Sunstar sacrifices his single life to save Thunderclan from a huge dog.

Whitetail is born.

Goosefeather dies from a brain infection and dementia. His last words? "Fire... Fire..."

Brushpaw becomes Brushclaw, but Tansypaw hates being wild and leaves with Bailey.

Onewhisker gets more and more enamored with kittypet life, but pushes it down. For now...

Willowkit, Silverstream, and Minnowkit are born, but Willowkit and Minnowkit pass the day after their mother dies. Crookedstar has PPD and doesn't want to be around Silverkit for the first half-moon.

Frogtail dies. Brokentail is made deputy. When protests rise, Raggedstar gets almost violent. Leader's Word Is LAW. Who cares what you think? When Yellowfang tries to raise personal concerns, he hits her. When he comes crying to her, she says "what do you want me to do?"

Leopardfoot is killed, by what? I can't say. She just... Didn't wake up one day.

Dustpelt, Ravenpaw, and Cherryshine are born.

Sandstorm is found in the woods by Redtail and Runningwind. She is nursed by all Queens, but collides calling Redtail and Runningwind her dads.

Brokentail kills Raggedstar.

Thunderclan is struck by a Greencough plague, killing Robinwing, Fuzzypelt, Thrushpelt, Featherwhisker, Stonepelt, Windflight, and Poppydawn.

Riverclan beats Thunderclan in a Sunningrocks battle, Spottedleaf gets the Fire Alone Prophecy.

Windclan are raided and driven out, some Windclan cats flee too far.

Brokenstar exiles Yellowfang.

Cherrypaw fights off a fox by herself while returning from her visit to the Moonstone and is named Cherryshine due to this.

Tigerclaw murders Redtail. Meanwhile...

Rusty becomes Firepaw.

[smalltownhero]

Introduction Post / Meet Me

Main Information

Hello! I am Lilith. I go by several nicknames, like Lilith/Lils/Lily, Star, or Executioner. These are all names I eventually earned over time. I go by She/Her and I'm 17 years old.

I am currently a full-time student, almost entering my senior year. After my final year in high school, I will (hopefully) be entering within the Air Force. If my health doesn't allow me to enter into this branch, I will be going into a trade school instead.

Online Information / Projects I am apart of

You can find me under the handle @smalltownhero most of the time on ALL sites. I also have a discord, all of my links can be found at the bottom of this post!

I am currently a storyboard artist, SFX, and voice actor of an upcoming series called Extinction! I definitely suggest it if you like Horror that's focused on non-animal protagonists. You can find me as Executioner in their Discord server! (Listed below)

I also own my own discord server, focused on hangout, gaming, and art. (Listed below)

I am planning to enter myself into more projects over the next year.

I have been practicing mastering a Star and Stripe Voice impression, although right now it's really rough lmaoo

My muses/kins and OCs

MHA:

Star and Stripe (Canon)

Small Town Hero (OC)

Warrior Cats:

Yellowfang (Canon)

Fallenglory (OC)

Extinction:

Executioner

I can't remember any other fandoms

My links and usernames

Discord: momthestripper

I don't mind being friended! I do try to make an effort to talk to you, but I cannot always talk as I've been recently busy.

Carrd:

(CONTAINS ALL OF MY OTHER LINKS.)

Toyhouse:

Art Fight:

My discord server:

[bonefall]

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

-Onestar's Confession, Page 704

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

So, Brokenstar.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

And he made a little friend.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

You might be noticing something.

Brokenstar was always loved, very, very much.

Spoiled? Absolutely. A little bully? You bet.

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

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

It won't stop what is about to happen.

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

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

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

And strength is what Brokenkit quickly learned.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

And he saw clanmates he loved dying.

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

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

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

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

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

A peace deal, a surrender.

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

But it made Brokentail SICK.

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

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

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

And together, they turned to TOTAL war.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

well.... by many.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Jaggedtooth isn't a villain anymore

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

First post I made on Tigerstar's Paws

Brokenstar's two honor-kits, Littlecloud and Rowanclaw

On curses and anger

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

A rundown on all ShadowClan leaders post-Ripplestar

Cedarstar sketch

First post on StarClan Technicality Brokenstar lmao

IN-DEPTH QUESTIONS ABOUT SKYPELT

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

[andyztoyz]

the only remotely interesting things about tigerstars and brokenstars arcs is starclans differing ways they dealt with their parents. starclan berates brokenstars mother, yellowfang, because she is a medicine cat breaking their rules and they believe she deserves to be punished. brokenstars father, raggedstar, isn’t told anything by starclan.

starclan berates tigerstars father, pinestar, because of his decision to leave the clan, which is ALSO breaking their rules. tigerstars mother, leopardfoot, isn’t told anything by starclan.

starclan is the most interesting to me in this way where they UNDERSTAND that by not telling raggedstar and leopardfoot they are dooming them to ultimately see the horrors caused by their children, they just genuinely believe ANYTHING is better than breaking the code. starclan is so focused on punishing those who have betrayed them in their eyes (leafpool, yellowfang, pinestar, etc) that they have completely disregarded the effects their punishments are causing for the entirety of their people.

[redux-iterum]

Burning Hearts: Chapter Eighteen

(AO3 counterpart here.)

The Clan was awake and the camp’s fog fading when Tigerclaw and Fireheart returned. It barely took a heartbeat after Tigerclaw gently lowered Cinderpaw to the ground for a wail to ring through camp. Fireheart jumped out of the way of Willowpelt, Swiftpaw at her heels. Yellowfang joined them, her enormous orange eyes owllike and wet with devastation.

“Cinderpaw!” Willowpelt cried, and repeated the name several times as she tried to shake her daughter awake. Swiftpaw’s gaze was fixed on the crunched-up leg, the blood on it drying and turning black. He looked frozen in place, stiff all the way to the tips of his tail-hairs. 

“Halt,” Yellowfang said, her voice as unstable as her steps. She ducked down to Cinderpaw’s face, sticking a dark paw in front of her mouth. After a pause, she sighed, relieved. “She lives.”

The Clan collectively echoed that sigh, cats crowding around to see the unconscious apprentice. Questions and murmurs of shock buzzed through the air, but one voice cut through the noise and silenced everyone.

“What happened here?” Bluestar strode forward and stood by Willowpelt, who almost sank into her with her trembling legs failing to keep her up.

Fireheart looked up at the leader and swallowed. “She… she thought you were in danger, so she ran out onto the road. I followed her as best I could, but then I lost her, and– and it was so foggy and rainy there, I-I guess she didn’t see in time, or she froze—”

“Fireheart,” Bluestar said gently, in a half-purr.

Fireheart sighed out his anxiety and said more clearly, “A car hit her.”

Reactions rippled out in grief and horror. More than one cat whispered a question about whether Cinderpaw would survive or not. Willowpelt shuddered and crumbled to her belly, burying her nose in Cinderpaw’s neck-fur. Swiftpaw shrank, the picture of a frightened kitten in a thunderstorm.

Bluestar looked at Tigerclaw and asked him, “Did you see it happen?”

Tigerclaw shook his head. “I was in the forest. I just heard her running from a distance and found Fireheart with her.”

“She—” Fireheart piped up, clearing his throat. “She was awake for a moment before I got to her. I think… I think she passed out from the pain.”

“That would be about right.” Yellowfang lifted her head, ears back. “A tom in ShadowClan once lost his tail in the Aulmir. He, too, came home upon a Clanmate’s back.”

Swiftpaw broke out of his frozen state and asked, weak but hopeful, “Then she’ll wake up?”

Yellowfang’s eyes went back down to her apprentice. “If it doesn’t kill her.”

An idea hit Fireheart and he turned back to Bluestar. “Oh! The humans in the Houses, they have a vet. We can bring her there and they can save her, if she’s dying!”

The air turned deeply uncomfortable. Fireheart’s eagerness faltered as he looked to each face he could see and they either turned away or narrowed their eyes.

“What?” he asked, uncertain now. “I mean… I know it’s humans, but they heal cats all the time. Couldn’t we, just this once…?”

Bluestar shook her head. “If we have no other option, we may. But a human putting their paws on her could take her away forever, if they decide to do so. We cannot risk losing her if she can heal here.”

“Oh,” Fireheart said, looking down, crestfallen. “Well, if you change your mind…”

By their faces, no one seemed as if they would change their mind soon.

“It’ll be okay,” Goldenflower said, maneuvering to sit by Swiftpaw, who mimicked his mother and leaned against the large support. “She’ll wake up. I’m sure of it.”

Tigerclaw’s eyes had been down this whole time, but he lifted them to look at Willowpelt and murmur, “I’m sorry.”

Willowpelt didn’t respond. No one did.

--

A couple days passed, with Cinderpaw sometimes drifting into consciousness and then falling back into her uneasy slumber. Any time she was awake, she would whine out a purr, as if she was trying to soothe herself, and then slip away again.

“We really should take her to a vet,” Fireheart muttered, watching Swiftpaw nose his sister’s ear. “She could be dying.”

Ravenwing, sitting next to him, sighed. “It looks bad, yeah. But if she was going to die, I think she would have by now. StarClan’s healing her the best they can while she rests.”

Fireheart’s tail twitched. “They need to wake her up soon, then, or I’ll drag her to the Houses myself.”

StarClan must have heard him, because later that night, a groggy, incoherent murmur jolted everyone in camp from their resting and eating. Fireheart jumped up as Cinderpaw lifted her head and looked around, blinking sleepily.

“Huh,” she rasped.

Yellowfang, half-asleep as she sat by the apprentice, started and stared down at her, mouth open.

“Cinderpaw!” Swiftpaw dropped the mouse he had just picked up out of the prey-pile and scrambled over the sand to get to his sister’s side. “You’re awake!”

“Yyyeah…” Cinderpaw squeezed her eyes shut, like everything around her was too bright. “So I din’ die?”

“Fool girl, you nearly could have!” Yellowfang cuffed her ear—though, Fireheart noted, much more gently than she had him all those months ago. “What in blazing told you to run onto the road?”

Cinderpaw’s answer was delayed, and she showed no reaction to the cuff. “Um… Bluestar wasss there? I think? I’m hungry.”

Yellowfang grumbled a sigh, but there was no bite in it. She looked at Teaselfoot. “Fetch Willowpelt. She’s close by.”

Teaselfoot wasted no time, racing out of camp and shouting Willowpelt’s name. Cats came up one by one to greet Cinderpaw and ensure she was truly awake and feeling alright. Cinderpaw, slowly growing more present with each question, answered casually and with sleepy cheerfulness. It took someone asking about her leg for her to finally look its way and blink in surprise.

“Welp.” She twitched it and grimaced in pain. “I was wondering how I survived. Guess it was just my leg.”

“And part of your tail,” Fireheart said, nodding to her crooked tail-tip. “You got really lucky, all things considered. I thought it had hit you full-on.”

Cinderpaw lifted up her tail and scrutinized it. “No kidding. Good thing I’m a seer, too, or hunting would be really hard.”

Willowpelt rushed into camp and hovered over her daughter, fussing and grooming the top of her head, purring like thunder. Cinderpaw was inappropriately amused, assuring her mother over and over that she was fine and just wanted food. In the end, Fireheart had to bring her something himself, as her family and mentor didn’t want to leave her side for a heartbeat.

That pattern followed for several days. Fireheart ended up helping Swiftpaw with his chores again here and there so he could visit with Cinderpaw more, and Willowpelt had to be pressed to get back to patrolling and hunting as she hovered around her kit and watched her leg like a hawk. Yellowfang, to Fireheart’s surprise and joy, stuck close by Cinderpaw, even sleeping at her side when daylight rolled around and her family were guided to their dens.

One night, Whitecloud came up to Fireheart, who was half-asleep, his nose hovering over his mole without a bite taken. He politely cleared his throat to get the younger warrior’s attention, which woke Fireheart up quickly.

“I hate to interrupt your meal,” Whitecloud said, his voice soft as ever. “I was going to ask something of you once you’ve eaten.”

“Oh– sure, sir.” Fireheart shook himself to alertness and sat up straight. “What can I help with?”

Whitecloud tilted his head towards Cinderpaw, her mother and Yellowfang sitting by her and conversing quietly. “I’m worried about our seer. She’s been sticking so close to Cinderpaw that StarClan may have spoken to her and she hasn’t noticed. I understand, of course, but I’m a bit worried that our eye to our ancestors is shut.”

Fireheart squinted a bit, trying to figure out where he was going with this, before he perked up. “Oh, I see. Do you want me to talk to her, then?”

Whitecloud nodded. “You’re the one other cat she actually likes.” His whiskers twitched. “As far as I know. If you could…”

“Not a problem at all!” Fireheart glanced down at his mole. “I can, um, eat first, though, right?”

“Of course, of course. Do as you like. Thank you, Fireheart.” Whitecloud waved his tail and turned away, walking to Ravenwing and Patchpelt, who were sitting together, and saying something quiet to them.

Fireheart worked on his breakfast, hardly even taking time to enjoy the chewy feet before standing up, licking his chops, and making his way over to the mollies sitting by the stump.

“How are things?” he asked cheerfully when he was close enough to get their attention without sneaking up on them.

Willowpelt looked up in surprise anyway, but Cinderpaw had seen him coming and bobbed her head, replying with the same cheer.

“I’m ready to be outside again,” she said, giving her mentor a joking squint of one eye. “But Yellowfang here says I need to wait until my leg heals. I tried telling her it won’t—”

“Enough of that, love,” Willowpelt said, the slightest edge in her voice. “You’ll heal.”

“Mira*, look at my dumb leg.” Cinderpaw reached back with a front paw to pat at the crushed limb and winced. “There’s no way. So much as twitching it feels like murder; I’m not walking on it anymore.” She beamed at Fireheart. “I’ll be like Yellowfang, get a new name. Hobblefoot sounds fun—what do you think?”

“Well…” Fireheart shuffled his feet a little at the warning glare Willowpelt was giving him. “I mean, it’s more than your foot, isn’t it?”

“Ah, true.” Cinderpaw hummed thoughtfully.

“You’re not getting a rename,” Willowpelt said sharply. “You’ll be fine.”

“It’s not up to you,” Cinderpaw said in a sing-song voice. Her mother turned her glare on her and she blinked. “What? I’m an apprentice, I can decide if I want a rename. Yellowfang, if I wanted a rename, you’d give me one, right?”

Yellowfang huffed a sigh, more affectionate than annoyed. “Lest you go to the Mother and change it yourself, yes.”

“See?” Cinderpaw gave her mother a “so there” nod.

“She won’t need a rename.” Willowpelt’s annoyance faltered as she looked almost desperately at Yellowfang. “She’ll be able to walk on it again, won’t she?”

Surprisingly, there was no answer. Yellowfang’s eyes were far away in thought.

“You haven’t been talking to StarClan about this, have you?” Fireheart asked softly. “Or at all.”

Yellowfang jerked back to reality and gave him a snort. “I speak well and fine with them.”

“Well, look—” Fireheart lowered his head a little in a show of respect. “You haven’t left Cinderpaw’s side since she came home. Why don’t you and I take a walk, and we can look for anything StarClan’s been wanting to tell you together?”

Yellowfang’s lower jaw stuck out to one side as she squinted at him. “Someone told you to get me out of camp, didn’t they?”

Fireheart nodded sheepishly.

The seer gave an exaggerated sigh. “Fine, fine. I might as well stretch my legs.” She bopped Cinderpaw’s head with her tail. “Dare not to die while I’m gone.”

“No promises!” Cinderpaw trilled at the dark look her mentor gave her.

Fireheart led the way to the camp entrance, careful to walk slow enough to not force Yellowfang to trot on her limping leg. They departed quickly and, at Fireheart’s suggestion, took a path towards the Houses. Foggy spots here and there made it hard to gauge the distance they were going, making Fireheart a little itchy as he tried to feel out how close they were to his sister’s home.

“You’re thinking,” Yellowfang said eventually. “Stop that.”

Fireheart blinked stupidly and looked over at her. “Sorry?”

“Something troubles your simple mind.” She stuck out her jaw. “I know that face. Don’t lie.”

Fireheart hesitated. Should he admit to her about Rosy? Or was she thinking of—

“Your friends, I assume,” she said. “The fat one and the coward.”

Fireheart shot her a stern look.

“Ha.” She smirked. “I joke, boy, ease yourself. Even with my fool busying me, I see how they avoid each other.”

Without any words to counter her, Fireheart bowed his head with a heavy breath. “They’re still not talking. I don’t know what to do.”

“Easy,” Yellowfang said. “You do nothing. That’s their trouble. You stay out of it. Spend time with others.”

“Like you spend time with them?” Fireheart asked innocently, and received a swat to his shoulder in response. “I’m not wrong, am I? You only really talk to Bluestar and Cinderpaw. And me, sometimes.”

“Hrmph.” Yellowfang hobbled past him. “You and Cinderpaw are the only ones with anything interesting to say. And our leader is all business. Never a jovial chat with her.” Her bottom teeth glimmered as moonlight hit them. “Always jovial with the girl, though.”

Fireheart hummed in amusement, following her at a stroll. His ear turned sideways as concern plucked at his chest. “Do you think she’ll be alright? StarClan won’t take her?”

Yellowfang’s shredded ears flattened against her skull and her voice became as gravely as it was when he’d first met her, starving and wounded. “They’ll have to tear out my claws and teeth to try.”

Fireheart stopped walking, staring at Yellowfang with surprise—and, of course, fondness. She must have heard him pause, because she looked back at him and stopped too. Her face was not surprised or fond; it was sagging with troubles as her eye sank to a dead blade of grass by her foot.

“I’ve dreamed of it,” she said quietly. “A sense of loss, of danger, as I rest beside her. I cannot see what it is. StarClan gifts me these feelings and tells me to piss off when I seek details.”

Fireheart’s gaze softened. “I’m sorry. That can’t be easy.”

“Ach.” Yellowfang’s face hardened for a moment. “She spoke true; something is happening, and I know not what. Cinderpaw has not lost her leg, only broken it. Nor has she lost her life. The danger was not that car, this I know.” Her face turned downward, her tail switching back and forth. “I cloud my mind, perhaps, thinking solely of my fool. Mayhaps I should walk more.”

Fireheart took a few steps to stand beside her, offering a supportive expression and a muted purr. “I think you should. It’s not good for anyone to sit and stew on one problem for so long.” He put a great amount of kindness in his voice. “We’re all looking after her, Yellowfang. You and Willowpelt and Swiftpaw aren’t alone. You can take breaks, and we’ll be there to watch her. If not one cat, then someone else. Like you said—StarClan’s not taking her without a fight. We’ll all make sure of that.”

He watched with great relief as some of the tension left her body. Her tail lowered and loosened and her fur smoothed out with one slow breath. She raised her flat face to him, her eyes now creased instead of squinted.

“You’re a good one,” she croaked. “Always knowing what to say.”

Fireheart rolled a shoulder, a bit shy now. “Just trying to help, that’s all.”

Yellowfang snorted. Then her ears pricked as well as they could and she turned her head forward again. Fireheart followed her line of sight to see a squirrel scratching at the ground.

“Try to catch that,” Yellowfang whispered. “Hurry, now.”

Fireheart obeyed immediately; ducking into a crouch, he prowled forward, careful to keep his belly from scraping at a root cropping out of the ground. The squirrel was so preoccupied that it didn’t notice when Fireheart’s paw brushed a fallen leaf.

However, it did notice when he jumped, and it dashed away with surprising speed as he landed on its little dug-up mound. Something like a large pebble rolled against his paw and made him stumble sideways, nearly toppling over in the front end. The squirrel was gone by the time he stood up. He huffed in irritation.

“It was a fat one, too,” he said, looking back at Yellowfang. “Sorry.”

“Apologize not.” Yellowfang came up to join him. “That was part of it. What did it dig for?”

Fireheart glanced down at where his paw had rolled. Brushing away a bit of dirt, he found a round, silver bell.

“Weird,” he said. “I didn’t think squirrels liked these.”

“A bell, is it?” Yellowfang frowned at it. “Move, boy, let me see it better.”

Fireheart obeyed, watching from further off as Yellowfang turned it over and examined it. The bell wasn’t perfect: it was dented on one side, and even from here the scratches on it were visible.

“Curious, curious…” Yellowfang murmured, rotating it again.

“Do you know what it means?” Fireheart asked.

Yellowfang gave it another once-over before huffing. “It tells me something that I do not know. This sign is not for me.”

Fireheart blinked. “Then… who is it for?”

“Come sniff it for me. You might be able to tell.”

Again, obediently, Fireheart joined her. He put his nose close to the bell and sniffed it. It certainly was familiar, but not a familiar he was too happy about.

“Hm?” Yellowfang scrutinized his face.

“I…” Fireheart straightened up. “I smelled wet food, like from the Houses. Kind of. It’s faint, but…”

“Hm.”

“That’s all, sorry.”

Yellowfang grumbled something under her breath before saying aloud, “Well, I’ll think on it as I rest this morning. Come. We return home.”

Fireheart made no protest, walking after her as her head turned this way and that, like she was searching for more signs. He didn’t tell her what that smell was closer to, in his memory.

He needed to have a conversation with Greystripe.

   *”Mira”: mother.