#BB!Leopardstar

[bonefall]

mmm would it be possible for Mistystar and Leopardstar to fight/met during the BOTTE? or was Leopard already fed up with Tigerstar, his batshit insane plans and her status reduced to 'Tiger's another lackey' (like Darkstripe and many others) to really care about revenge? if she ever thought about it, that is.. im assuming she would be pretty pissed about being killed (there was a post about Mistyfoot first trying to poison her and Leopard realized it and instead decided to take her on a solo patrol to.. deal with a rogue i think? and then Misty gave her a rock appointment) and might had thought about making Mistystar pay, but it's been soooo long before BOTTE that she might had.. moved on? or just decided she had better things to do, not sure.

I have a BIG rule for the BOTTE, an unmoveable object, which I will abide by like a solemn vow;

NO spirit will be killed by the same cat twice.

I already changed it so Yellowfang doesn't get Brokenstar (he's not even present) and Brambleclaw doesn't get Hawkfrost, so I certainly wouldn't have Mistystar do it to Leopardstar!

I have some ideas but first; context.

The Killing of Leopardstar

Mistyfoot was sloppy.

Leopardstar recognized the way that Mistyfoot had poisoned her food, because she'd done the same thing to Crookedstar before her. Not enough to make it quick, just enough to weaken.

The emotion that licks at her is frustration.

Is this what her life has come to? Dramatic irony? Is this some kind of cosmic joke? To die just like her predecessor, wasting away for a few seasons in the darkness of this musty den, before solemn mourning and empty platitudes from her underhanded murderer.

What should she even do about this? Reveal Mistyfoot in front of everyone, exile her, she plots against her from the safety of another Clan, some kind of rebellion, rah rah rah we just dealt with this.

It's boring. It's so boring it's offensive. This will be the state of RiverClan forever, deputies poisoning leaders and taking power quietly until the end of days. No honor, no nobility, just treachery until the sky dries up and its rich blue becomes a crackled pale-brown.

If she is to die, she will not go out in the slow and painful way she killed crookedstar without a fight.

So she smacks the limp fish aside and brushes past Mistyfoot with a snarl, not even caring enough to drink in the way her traitorous deputy's ears flushed pale, knowing she'd been caught.

Leopardstar calls for a rushed meeting, telling them all that there's actually 40 - 50 feral rogues on the border right now and she saw them all last night or something, so she's taking Mistyfoot to go confront them right now. Don't follow us.

(Something that the more astute members of the Clan immediately recognize as Leopardstar setting up cover for a death match, including Misty's brother Swansong. She snaps at him when he runs to stop her, Don't Follow.)

Once they're a fair distance away, at the southern delta that divides WindClan and RiverClan, where the cliffs will hide them and the wet stones will not catch the scent (and where Reedwhisker will die, someday), Leopardstar lays it out.

No more tricks. No more schemes. If one of them is to die, it will be with honor.

"You want my lives?"

(Boss music fades in. Misty sees the health bar appear lmao)

"Come and take them."

After she came and took them

Leopardstar is kind of obsessed with the final battle of her life. That fight was everything she hoped for, except that she didn't win.

She wants it again, and she will triumph this time.

Hawkfrost is easily able to twist it into, "You lost only because StarClan shone upon her with that stone. It wasn't real skill. Join our cause and we can get you that rematch, we will defeat Mistystar, win back RiverClan, and dethrone the Stars!" But at the end of the day, it's an excuse.

Same sort of excuse Leopardstar came up with when she believed she wanted an honorable battle, rejecting the guilt and fear that clawed at her to think about dying the way Crookedstar did.

She does this a lot. Dodging feelings of remorse or regret by substituting power fantasies, avoiding any hard lessons. She says she wants revenge, but what she's actually doing is avoiding taking an L. Shame is a vagrant in Leopardstar's heart; she will never let it stay for long.

But...

That's really hard to do when Tigerstar is actively using her and speaking over her in every interaction. Being here, in the Dark Forest, taking the SAME advice she once groomed into Hawkfrost to only look at the positives of Tigerstar's legacy and ignore atrocities, is embarassing.

It's HUMILIATING.

She had her starshine BASHED out of her with a rock and went to the hell she'd been downplaying since she "regrettably" tore down the Bonehill. Being Tigerstar's stooge. Reducing the proud, ferocious leader of RiverClan into a goon.

Towards the end, she will have a scene with Hawkfrost, proud warriors that they are as mentor and apprentice, and vaguely address this. As far as Leopardstar's ego will allow, of course... the shame of it.

It's an important moment, because it's as much about Leopardstar and Hawkfrost as it is about Hawkfrost and Ivypool.

Leopard is too set in her ways to change, even if she is capable of brief glimpses of self-reflection, of which this is one. Hawkfrost, however, is seeing his mentor and himself in a different light. How she'll let herself be humiliated over and over as long as she can cling to her ego... and how by doing Tigerstar's diplomacy work, Hawkfrost is doing the same.

And he's dragged his OWN apprentice into it, too. She accidentally double-killed her friend, Antpelt, but he killed him more by bringing all of these trainees here to begin with. How Ivypool gets pitted against Tigerheart because TigerSTAR is playing mind games, how it's destroying her bond with her sister, how much fun and joy in the Dark Forest he's missing out on by not giving the afterLIFE a chance...

How much he's thrown away for this, before and after his death.

I'm not sure yet if it's the LAST stop before the BOTTE, but it's close to the end of Hawkfrost's redemption arc. Recognition of self through the other. He is part of a cycle he has a choice to break.

But anyway... back to Leopardstar.

She wants to fight Mistystar, but I don't think I'll let her have that satisfaction. She has already gotten nearly everything she ever asked for and can't even acknowledge that she did.

I think it's most fitting for SWANSONG to finally get what he craves; a chance to take a burden off his sister.

Leopardstar allowed TigerClan to STRIP his brotherhood from her because they don't share blood. Forced him to pretend like Rippleclaw meant anything to him, as if Oakheart hadn't been his proud baba as long as he could remember. Stonefur, Mistyfoot, and Swansong are the kits of Graypool; and he's not gonna let this golden FART ignore that ever again.

So my idea is that when Leopardstar meets Mistyfoot in the Second Wave of the BOTTE, she pounces onto her for her rematch, but Swansong BURSTS out of the crowd in response and rips her off, allowing Mistystar to go back to defending their Clanmates

"I don't want YOU," Leopardstar spits, "My battle is with Mistystar!"

"Tough titfeathers! It's MY turn to get a hit in for Stonefur!" He bristles with equal parts fury and excitement, lunging towards a fight he's dreamed of for years.

Still subject to change, though! And I'm not sure if Swansong dies here, or in the 3rd Wave, or if maybe he succumbs to injuries after the BOTTE is over.

It would also be fitting if he got a whack on Mapleshade though... since Maple doesn't even consider him Applekin and won't curse him. It would be neat for him to get angry about that lmao. "What do you MEAN my siblings are haunted by a demon? But NOT ME?? What ELSE am I getting left out of???"

EDIT: I'm currently planning to kill him in the 2nd Wave

#better bones au #BOTTE #BB!Leopardstar #BB!Mistystar #BB!Swansong #BB!Hawkfrost #BB!OOTS #I say this about a lot of BB characters (because I love this project) but man I really like Swansong #Context btw because he hasn't come up in a while: Swan is the adopted brother of Stone and Misty. His biosibs were faders. #Beloved golden retriever coming up for his fake ear medicine to suffer as Part Of The Family #Oak was only going to ask Gray to suckle Misty and Stone for him but then they were like #''Hey wait. Ripple was only an honor sire anyway. This is super convenient wanna parent together?'' #And BB!Oak is such a DUDE he was like ''Yooooo ABSOLUTELY I'd LOVE another baby with a friend!!'' #Oak cannot walk 5 foxlengths without making a friend. He's just like that. #Sqweezy type grindset #They never really told the kits about Ripple because he wasn't relevant + Queen’s Rights anyway #But everyone else knew Ripple was Swan's biodad because he's the river's reflection of him. and the other two are literally blue. #The three of them were the last to know. #But Swansong is great because he's such a happy kind of angry when it comes to defending his family #He's like ''We have to hide a body? Girlie SAY NO MORE I have already compiled a list of top 10 places they'll never look'' #''No we dont need to hide the body..'' ''Ah. Well. Ok that's fine too. Anyway. What is our cover story let's get the details straight'' #She couldn't make him deputy because he's too aggressive and supportive lmao #He's actually a lot like a meaner and smarter Oak. He was super close to their dad. #Also he's the mate of Moss instead of Frog because I put it to a vote and we collectively said so #Fixing a minor inconsistency where Moss has more kits after Frog is supposed to be dead #Also Frog was a sleaze where Swankit from the Missing Kits was a blank slate. #Slaps the roof of the RiverClan this bad boy can fit so many blorbos in it #Between Hawk and Leopard and the entire Applekin family I really adore it

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

Clan Politics

Bonefall comes up with such good names for things, you guys should also follow them if you aren't already. Seriously! Their Better Bones redo is so good! BB!Heartstar and BB!Brokenstar are my blorbos (actually I'm pretty sure they all are). This was a tad intimidating because a lot of my ideas either overlap or were inspired by Better Bones. Also, I haven't attended a political class in like 9 years.

What @bonefall calls Thistle Law would meet its WCR Equivalent, Tiger Law/Tiger's Law (because Tigerstar is an uncreative dickhead) OR more Eloquently Put by Leopardstar, The Law of Tigers. Started by Clear Sky, revived by Thistleclaw and expanded by Tigerclaw, this is the ideology that gets cats hurt. The unsustainable, ego driven law that drips with blood. This is fascism.

Not as far as Tiger Law, but not very free itself, is Codeism, or, Law of The Wild. The Warrior Code should be thought about in every situation no matter what, and cats outside the Clans* do not fall under that protection. This can be used for good and bad. Not every Codeist is a xenophobic bigot, as Rowanstar was one, and tried his best to both follow the Code, and be as helpful to others as possible. Ashfur used it to hurt others, and prined Hollyleaf to be almost the same way until she realized where that path could lead. It's complicated and messy, but hey, that's politics for you.

* aside from kits. Kittens are the future, not just for the Clans, but for Cats themselves. Many cats in Clan history have been found in the woods or given up by parents to the Clans. Some lost kits have been returned to parents as well.

The Third is Fire Law, the ideology that Firestar created, he wanted to call it The Law of Cleansing Fire but Sandstorm told him it was a mouthful, maybe keep that to an unofficial title. It is about freedom of choice, extending kindness towards others, challenging the Warrior Code if it does not help in a situation, and doing what is good for as many cats as possible. Forward thinking and long term thinking, doing things, not for yourself, but for those who will only know you from memories long after you are gone.

The other 2 are Skyclan exclusive, though as of River, some notions of Sky Law are starting to leak.

The Fourth is, of course, Sky Law! Made for Skyclan and expanded by Leafstar. It is welcoming of outsiders, allowing for Daylight Warriors, Medicine Cats to have mates, development of new roles and systems with an emphasis on creativity, justice, and coexistence. This does not mean rolling over and allowing others to take advantage of you, of course, but the goal is finding peace through making treaties and alliances.

The Fifth is... Sharp Law. Created by Sharpclaw in retaliation against Leafstar. Exclusionary, though NOT meant to be deadly. While this Law also allows for more "radical" things, like allowing Medicine Cats to have mates (because Firestar never bothered telling Skyclan that it was banned at all) it DOES NOT allow for Daylight Warriors. It demands full loyalty to Skyclan full time. It also pushes all cats (within reason) to have battle training, to expand through pure strength and muscle. It isn't full blown fascism, but... S'not great, captain.

#warrior cats #warrior cats rewrite #wcr #warriors #i want to kiss heartstar and brokenstar on their silly kitty foreheads #wc worldbuilding #important #clan culture #clan politics #fire law #tiger law

[healerelowen]

Leopardstar is a great character actually.

It shows how being promised to be leader out of pity fucks up a lot of shit.

I can already hear the 'But she allowed Stonefur to be killed by Blackfoot and Tigerstar!' That's exactly my point. Plus the fact that she made Mistyfoot deputy as an apology for allowing her brother to be killed.

That and disregarding a lot of Feathertail's trauma from that. Leopardstar still cared about her clan greatly, I just don't think she was entirely fit to be leader whatsoever.

She was promised the leader role because she lost her mother and her siblings when she was born and people thought that she deserved to be leader for having to go through that.

But that's the thing, she's a good character for exhibiting that. She was expected to do good because she was basically promised the role, and had a lot of expectations put onto her. Does this excuse the Stonefur incident? No. But it doesn't make her an evil person, just cowardly and unsure.

Leopardstar was an okay leader overall. She had quite detrimental downsides (i.e the Stonefur incident and the lake patrols during the drought.) but for what she was worth, she did a fairly decent job keeping the clan in order both in the forest and at the lake.

Though I do prefer Leopardstar over Mistystar. I think Misty went down a similar route and she just made the broken code more tedious than it needed to be.

I mean, I really like her honestly. But I also have a soft spot for a lot of river bbs. Eeltail is always my favorite you can't make me give her up for anything.

#leopardstar #warrior cat #rant #not here to start up controversy. I just wanted to talk about how I personally see Leopardstar as a character. #healer elowen

[mallowstep]

Leopardstar and stonefur hypokits? (That one leopard au anon got me thinking).

that leopard au anon...it's really got me thinking bc like. stonefur does love leopardstar. deeply. she's probably one of the most important cats in his life. or she was. so it was Interesting to me because like. they introduced it as "stonefur loves leopardstar au" and i'm like -- well yeah ofc he does. and then nothing i read was like. pinged me as romantic. which i understand might be because i'm very pro-platonically raising children, but it's really got me thinking on cat romance.

anyway. you didn't ask any of that, lmao.

okay! who first.

stonefur's official art makes him very light, so let's make him blue + silver. i'll accept that he carries every kind of tabby based on poking around his family tree, so.

Bb1/dd/Ii/Wbwb/aa/Tata/Spsp/tmtb/Ll/wsws/o/CC

as for leopardstar...she's a tricky one. she should be a tortie, but that doesn't work, so we're going to say brightsky was cinnamon tabby, and i think that works. that makes leopardstar...

bb1/Dd/ii/Wbwb/Aa/tata/Spsp/tmtb/Ll/wsws/oo/CC

alright! y'all know the drill

Bb, Bb1 (black); bb1 (chocolate); b1b1 (cinnamon)

Dd (not dilute); dd (dilute)

Ii (silver); ii (not silver)

WbWb (chinchilla); Wbwb (shaded); wbwb (no wide bands)

Aa (tabby); aa (solid)

Tata (ticked); tata (not ticked)

SpSp, Spsp (spotted); spsp (not spotted)

tmtm, tmtb (mackerel); tbtb (classic)

LL, Ll (short hair); ll (long hair)

wsws (no white)

o (tom); oo (she-cat)

CC (no albino)

and y'all know the drill

k1: lilac chinchilla tabby tom (bb1/dd/Ii/WbWb/Aa/tata/Spsp/tmtm/Ll/wsws/o/CC)

k2: fawn golden ticked tabby tom (b1b1/dd/ii/Wbwb/Aa/Tata/spsp/tbtb/Ll/wsws/o/CC)

k3: blue silver classic tabby tom (Bb/dd/Ii/wbwb/Aa/tata/spsp/tbtb/Ll/wsws/o/CC)

k4: brown smoke she-cat with long fur (bb1/Dd/Ii/wbwb/aa/Tata/Spsp/tmtm/ll/wsws/oo/CC)

now, don't expect great photo refs for these, but i'll do my best.

k1: lilac silver spotted tabby

k2: fawn silver ticked tabby

k3: blue silver spotted tabby

k4: chocolate smoke

#ask #anon #genetics #warriors genetics #hypokits #stonefur #leopardstar #mine

[warriors-official-art]

Title: Sunrise

Arc: Power of Three

Type: illustration

Country: Russia

Artist: Leonid Nasyrov

Characters: Hollyleaf, Firestar, Blackstar, Onestar, Leopardstar

Source: https://warriors-cats.fandom.com/ru/wiki/%D0%A1%D0%BB%D1%83%D0%B6%D0%B5%D0%B1%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%8F:%D0%98%D0%B7%D0%BE%D0%B1%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B6%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%B8%D1%8F

#russian #gathering

[sunnywarriorcatsdesigns]

Leopardstar

Headcannon:

bb-XOXO-CC-Dd-dmdm-wdwd-wsws-Apba-tata-Spsp-wbwb-ii-EE-Ll

Genetically accurate:

Bb-XOXo-CC-Dd-dmdm-wdwd-wsws-Apba-tata-Spsp-wbwb-ii-EE-Ll

#wc #warrior cats designs #leopardstar #warrior cats genetics

[bonefall]

so if Mudfur kind of regretted taking Leopardstar to the clan, instead of leaving her safely with Brightsky (well, regretted might be strong word? he did felt like Shite given how she turned out).. then how did Leopardstar felt about him becoming a cleric after winning a fight with Adderfang? i know that timeline-vise she was probably a baby and probably didnt had strong opinion Yet, but like.. if she looked back at his decision, was she be disappointed? angry even?

i have seen posts with how Mudfur felt about her later, but i dont think i seen anything about how Leopardstar felt about her dad.. and maybe even her mom (if she even has memory of her or anything)

Ohh nonnie you're right. Let's talk about BB!Leopardstar.

She is absolutely ashamed of what Mudfur is. She was born after all these glorious stories of her father took place, but to say she was "raised in his shadow" would be a misstatement. She was raised with his legacy as a SETTING SUN.

It was something in the distance, just below the horizon, painting the sky in royal pink, gold, and purple. Though she had never seen the sun itself, the impacts it had on the world were breathtaking, awe-inspiringly beautiful.

And yet, the sun had hidden itself away. Its magnificence is fleeting. He had locked himself away in the Cleric's den, and acted as a Mi to herself and her sister, setting nightfall upon RiverClan

How DARE he? When you are radiant, worth SO much to your Clan as an undefeatable warrior, LEGENDARY in your strength, you should feel RESPONSIBILITY to share that warmth. But he, with only the paltry connection to StarClan of a regular warrior, had chosen "his own happiness" and forsaken RiverClan in the process.

And to be breaking your Vow as a Cleric, to be RAISING CHILDREN when you should be serving your Clan?? Had he not taken to heart the story of Larkstripe? Or respected the pain and sacrifice of Moth Flight as her children were (given/stolen/claimed/bestowed)* to the Clans?

How selfish! And Hailstar enabled him!

Leopardfur is the great-granddaughter of Volestar, who was appointed by Darkstar herself to continue her legacy in spite of any opposition from Oakstar. Volestar kept RiverClan out of the Crusades and was the ONLY outspoken opponent of the madness, adamantly defending the Queen’s Rights and asserting that her Clan was different from the other three.

Leopardstar wants to set this legacy "straight."

Darkstar, Volestar, Hailstar, and eventually Crookedstar are a line of cats who have allowed RiverClan to become weak. Clerics raising kits! Accepting help from Fireheart! Obvious violations of the Law of Loyalty! StarClan took Silverstream to TEACH CROOKEDSTAR A LESSON and yet he just allowed Graystripe to waltz right in bearing the HalfClan kits like a gift, asking him for details of his treachery.

When she took power, she was glad to finally be able to explore options for ousting Mudfur. If he wouldn't take an apprentice, then she would simply exile him and have Tigerstar's cleric train a new one.

So. She did.

Did it pain her? Yes of course, he was her Mi, after all. She does love her family, yes, yes. But she knows the meaning of the word "sacrifice," and HE does not.

#BB!Leopardstar #Better bones au #BB!TPB #The Tiger in RiverClan

[bonefall]

What was Leopardstar and Carpwhisker’s relationship like?

You know how in Fire Emblem Awakening how there's that side character whose entire existence is dedicated to a running joke that he's the biggest person in the room... but no one sees him, ever? To the point where they even end up thinking an extra goblet at dinner must belong to a ghost?

Face obscured by Chrom's knee on the box art, Mike Wazowski magazine style?

Carpwhisker.

I'm GUTTING Leopardstar's Haggis. It is in the bottom 5 WC entries for me. Leopardstar's childhood bullying was cheap and brainless. How fucking dare they, actually?

How dare they take their ONE confident, intimidating female character, DEFINED by how she was beloved in RiverClan and by her apprentice generation, had no romance, and wasn't a mother figure, and fuck up ALL THREE THINGS???

So. Anyway.

If anyone gets bullied it's Carpwhisker, still by Skyheart.

Brightsky didn't die; she became a kittypet. There were four kits.

Carp, Oat, Leopard, Water.

Mudfur took Carp and Leopard home, due to their resemblance to their famous ancestor, Volestar.

If Mudfur knew what Leopardstar would become... he would have left her there, with her mother. He regrets bringing her back to RiverClan

He feels he should have known better. He became a Cleric shortly after returning because he came to believe that the constant fighting was wrong, and yet...

What did he expect?

Carpwhisker is a nervous wreck who can't stand up for herself despite being as big as a badger, and Leopardstar eventually booked herself a rock appointment

I feel like at some point, Carpwhisker learned the secret about Brightsky... but keeps it to herself.

She can't imagine Leopardstar taking it well, "and um, she's..." (Carpwhisker grasps for words not wanting to outright say she's terrified of her) "...she's a wee bit intense about bad news."

You know that one post about the kid who got severely bullied in school, the teacher put on Dumbo, and they watched every single one of their bullies cheer for the underdog? All the bullies think they're Dumbo.

That's poor Carp. I feel like she used to really like Aftergatherings until Leopardstar told her about the reputation of those events, and that attending them was making Carp look disloyal.

People often take credit for her achievements. She was the one who made the Bonehill practical-- it's not solid bone, it's a mud facade with a layer of bone around it. Tigerstar said it was TigerClan's achievement, and his by proxy.

When Carpwhisker was struggling for breath to correct him, Leopardstar gave her a sideways glance and killed the thought.

So, Carp's relationship with Leopardstar is not great. But Carp defends her, and loves her, and insist she knows best.

Leopardstar is a better friend of Skyheart than she is a sister of Carp. Leopard's beloved by that whole group, and a natural leader from a young age.

I think when Leopardstar dies, Carp is distraught by it. Inconsolable, and it's really hard to tell her in that moment that it sounds like she's a lot better off without her.

She'd probably end up hanging out with Mothwing a lot, seeking spiritual advice. Moth just gives her normal, mortal, nonspiritual advice, but Carpwhisker thinks it's divine.

After all... they both did just lose very toxic siblings that they still loved very much, and are kinda working through that.

In terms of politics, Carpwhisker is a weak-traditionalist. Really, she just goes along with what's popular at the moment, and doesn't make waves. She's conflict-avoidant, and just tries to make others happy with her hard work.

Most of all she just wants peace, really. What if there were no problems forever and everyone was just nice and well-fed and we all took a big nap in this warm den I made. What then.

SO all that to say... She loved Leopardstar. Leopardstar was awful to her. "We're sisters! It's just like that!" (It Is Not Like That.) She was hidden in her shadow. She thought the shadow was normal. She's destroyed when her sister dies. She can only begin to recover once she's gone.

#BB!Carpwhisker #BB!Leopardstar #Better bones au #BB!Mudfur #If BB had book covers I would even have it like Carp keeps getting hidden behind things lmaoo #Like Mudfur leaving the home and the angle causes leopardkit to obscure Carpkit #But then if she had a big role later talking to Mothwing #FINALLY she'd be visible on the boxart and smiling #She's also got like 3 major deaths to go through in TNP #Her dad her sister and a child #Something about RiverClan cats just makes me want to put them through The Horrors i swear #tw abuse

[bonefall]

Two questions! What's Leopardstar doing after her death? She got dammed so hard that there was a comet in the sky iirc, and Starclan happily gave Mistystar her lives, so I imagine that Lep is PISSED that her murderer is being welcomed as a hero, while she's rotting in the DF. I would like to know how she feels about Tigerstar's plans, since BB Lep was an active supporter of his idealology

I thiiiink the fallen star thing was a joke, but it is a very funny image to think that any damned spirit becomes one tbh

But actually! Leopardstar and Mudclaw are both kind of ashamed of what they did. Leopardstar is more resigned to her fate, while Mudclaw eventually decides he wants to atone and gets involved with the StarClan bridge.

Being around Tigerstar and a bunch of the worst offenders of TigerClan has brought a lot of it back. Distance had made her begin to feel that there was no need to "throw the kitten out with the tonguewash." Tigerstar himself was bad, yes... but is it *really* so wrong to want a pure, strong Clan? What's wrong with putting RiverClan first?

But now she's back under his claw. Being spoken over, used as a pawn, just like old times. She hasn't confronted the CORE of how her ideology is bad, but she does remember know how humiliating this situation was, and how terrible Tigerstar really is.

But at the same time, she is proud. She cannot let Mistystar go unpunished. She wants "revenge," though, to her "revenge" is a rematch.

On the day she died, Mistystar attempted to poison Leopardstar's food, in a way unintentionally similar to how Leopardstar poisoned Crookedstar before them. So she recognized it right away. It struck her in that moment that she was sick of these dirty, dishonorable tactics.

So she pushed it aside, leapt to the top of the stump, and announced that she had learned of a pack of vicious rogues on the border. "Mistyfoot and myself will confront them. Alone. Don't follow."

Mistystar only won the fight through luck. There was a stone in the river where they fought, and she smashed Leopardstar's head on it until she stopped moving.

So, Leopardstar uses this in her death to hold a grudge. I think on some level she knows it's an excuse, or perhaps a quirk of her pride, that she feels her death was unfair. She believes she gave leadership to Mistystar by covering for her own murder-- and she WANTS that perfect fight.

But before the BOTTE, I plan for her to have a conversation with her apprentice. Hawkfrost's arc is to break free of his father and his legacy... and he needs to speak to his proud, strong leader, who he comes to realize is being used like a tool.

It's another step in his revelation about cycles. How he was used, how he's done the same thing to Ivypool, how people have been doing this to his loved ones long before he was born.

#Now and then I see a passing sentiment of frustration towards writers who write fic where black gets redeemed but leopard doesnt #But understand this; I LOVE Leopardstar. #And I thought a lot about the story I was gonna tell in my redux of TNP #And this story works better with her. Largely because of her supporting cast #Between Misty Sedge Hawk Moth and Storm #They all come together to tell this story much better than Black Russet and Tawny can #And on a less important note... I hate how much they tried to soften Leopard. With all of her supporting material #But ive gone off about her before and im sure I will again lmao #But shes MY spotted mean girlboss and you will pry her from my cold dead hands #LET GIRLS BE PROUD. LET GIRLS BE CONSUMED BY IT #Better bones au #BB!Leopardstar

[bonefall]

Maybe I'll make a post on this at some point but like, something deeply fucked up about TNP and Po3 that people have totally forgotten about is how badly they try to whine that "Tigerstar Had Good Traits :("

Firestar does it, Brambleclaw does it, and they keep doing this after it becomes this GRAND irony that Firestar almost gets Tiger'd to death in a fox trap because he was too trusting. Bramble gets his pity award of keeping deputyship and then cries to his son about how No One Saw The Good In Tigerstar :(

And it's wiiiiild that no one else in this fandom has done anything with the fact that Leopardstar broke the Warrior Code to appoint Hawkfrost, who had no apprentice, an extremely aggressive and warmongering Tigerclone who says things like "Tigerstar wasn't the worst cat to look up to." ONLY qualifying trait was being kinda like Tigerstar.

And she practically did that the SECOND Mistyfoot went missing. And then Leopardstar continued to be one of the most violent and xenophobic leaders through Po3, joining with WindClan to attack ThunderClan.

What I'm getting at is that like, a few years ago, with books like "Blackfoot's Reckoning" and "Shadow in RiverClan" it's like they suddenly decided to retcon in a bunch of "redemption arcs" in hindsight. They just pretended like there was this grand high reckoning with TigerClan, when there literally wasn't, and if anything that caused SERIOUS problems for the cast that the authors didn't fully acknowledge as such.

And now ppl haven't actually read the main series and are just working with their recent memory of all these retcon books.

But TNP and PO3 are still there, and you can go and see the ACTUAL timeline where Leopardstar is really not apologetic at all, and Blackstar is a useful stooge for the very next wannabe dictator that strolls in, in spite of the new side content that COMPLETELY mischaracterized them for their plots to work.

#I just wish people could be more critical of this #And im not entirely anti-retcon. Mind you #But I am here because i think these retcons make them WORSE characters. It's BAD for a character to GET a book with a redemption arc and-- #Then they don't change at all and act like totally different people later in the timeline #And Leopardstar is the worse one between her and Blackstar BECAUSE she has sooo many active choices here #Im confident in my choice for BB the more I think about it. Leopardstar's dismantling of the bonehill was good #But it works better as a tragedy imo with the rest of the series in mind #That for a brief moment. A fleeting whim. She could have changed. #But she never did. #And Blackstar who was FAR less repentant at the time DID eventually turn around. #At the end of the day one of them appointed Hawkfrost as codebreaking deputy. #And the other did not. #And I think it's fucking bullshit the way that Leopardstar's retcondemption implies that Hawkfrost was just so tricky he mislead her #The old and experienced leader who had been fooled by a tiger before and was soso sorry for it. Just got tricked. #Like fuck off. She never had a redemption. Stop trying to tell me she did 15 years later #She's a girlboss who empires too close to the sun in pursuit of power and drags everyone down with her #Not a sad weepy smolbean #Bone babble #Warrior cats analysis

[bonefall]

BB!Mistystar really does have the best arc in Better Bones, ngl

context below the cut:

BB!TNP is an arc that confronts a lot of the leftover ideas from TPB, one of which is an overhaul of Hawkfrost. Instead of being "The Tiger in RiverClan," he was groomed by the remaining TigerClan supporters to inherit his father's legacy

Mistyfoot realizes that he wasn't the root of the evil; he was a symptom. And RiverClan doesn't "go back to normal." After another clan discussion blows up into a huge argument, she looks up for help to her leader on the stump... only to see her gazing down with amusement.

The setting sun turns Leopardstar into a black shape on a dark, spiky hill, splinters and branches jagged like rotting bones. Her eyes flash, Tigerstar amber, Dark Forest red, and Mistyfoot understands that these ideas won't die unless they are killed.

She finishes Leopardstar by bashing her head on a rock in the southern delta, an inlet river, which is what causes the lake to run red with blood. Hawkfrost's death is now impaling himself on the stake by accident, charging at Mothwing when she pulls it out of the ground.

Mistyfoot then chooses Sedgecreek as her first deputy.

#better bones au #fennelposting #BB!Mistyfoot #BB!mistystar #BB!TNP #Thistle Law

[bonefall]

Ooh, so Curlfeather's gonna be a dark forest demon? Have you put any thoughts down on what her Land Mar might be?

She will be! I can't imagine any way for the arc to wrap up where she isn't in the Dark Forest. If they pull something insane like vacuuming her up into heaven because having nuance in Hell would be too interesting, I will personally, viciously undo that.

They would have to do something WILD in order for me to abide canon. So, say it with me lads, While I Do Not Rewrite Arcs Until They Are Done... the forecast's saying that we're going to get an expansion to the Dark Forest.

(And if they dont want me having demon!curlfeather drown splashtail they better have a craaazy iconic death in mind for him.)

I haven't thought of her Land Mar quite yet but I actually have two ideas;

Idea 1: The obvious choice, the Path of Dogs.

...but I'm actually unsure if I'm going to go with it. It makes sense this is her life's "worst moment" as she loses her chance at leadership, her life, and dies a horrible death. But. She died SAVING her daughter.

In a way, that was her proudest moment. What burns the most about her death was that she was out-done. I'm still unsure yet if Splashtail sent those dogs, or if they were supernatural, or both, but in any case, she's PROUD of her final choice.

So I'm unsure. She was still killed by dogs.

Idea 2: The Kin Camp

So... I'm probably going to be making Curlfeather a bit older. She will probably be an apprentice during the Battle of the True Eclipse, because I want her to be a young warrior during AVoS.

BB!Curlfeather is the daughter of Reedwhisker. Her mother, Duskfur, had always had a bit of a crush on Reedwhisker and acted on it after he became deputy following Sedgewhisker's retirement. Reedwhisker said yes, and took care of Duskfur as a mate, but...

He never really got over Hawkfrost, and he was an extremely distant father. Curlpaw grew up in the shadow of her grandmother and the troubled legacy she has, all of the pressure of her ambitious family with none of the warmth.

Mistystar bludgeoned Leopardstar to death, and this was revealed when the dead leader came back from her grave in Hell itself for revenge. Swansong died killing this demon a second time. Stonefur stood up for justice at the Bonehill. Bluestar gave RiverClan its strongest warriors to become the leader of her own Clan.

The only positive thought Curlfeather has of her father is that he is a loyal RiverClan warrior. So loyal that he was never really there for her. Then, The Kin happened.

Captured, starved, and beaten, just like his uncle Stonefur, Darktail forced Reedwhisker to take an oath of loyalty to his cult. His mockery of a Clan. In Curlfeather's eyes, Reedwhisker was such a weak, worthless welp that he obeyed.

So it would be a fascinating Land Mar for her. One of the more "tame," non-magical ones in the Dark Forest. Nothing more than an abandoned camp, the empty bramble cage where the prisoners were once kept, and the fading scent of fear.

#better bones au #BB!ASC #BB!Curlfeather #ASC Spoilers

[bonefall]

but what makes characters like fallenleaf and bb!brokenstar redeemable?

Choice. They were stripped of their power, put through extreme circumstances, and then made the choice to leave their violent histories behind them.

And you will note that it's VERY rare that I show these types of characters being redeemed. There's two 'redemptions' in a very long history of tyrants. Tigerstar, Dalestar, Skystar, Ashfur, Darktail, One Eye, Leopardstar, Mudclaw, Thistlestar technically if he had become leader. 2 out of 10 is a very small ratio.

(and fallenleaf isn't really 'redeemed' in my mind, so much as she simply stopped being a tyrant. There is no way for her to ever make up for what she did and that is a part of her character.)

And of them, Skystar is the worst individual. By far. He has no reason to want to change, nor would he ever. He loves power too much. He would look for it anywhere he went, because he hates listening to anyone tell him what to do. Having this is important to him than anything.

BB!Brokenstar is so different he's not a great comparison to Skystar, imo. He's a protector spirit, the embodiment of SkyClan's fallen 5th oak tree, and basically the logical conclusion of the "might makes right" mindset that defines Clan Culture in his era. So his redemption in finding his place as SkyClan's guardian is basically about "righting a cosmic wrong," and putting the magic to rest in its rightful place.

Brokey's a mortal when he takes the shape of one, but the story I'm trying to tell with him is that fury, righteous love, and protectiveness have their place. He comes to understand that as he watches SkyClan form, and realize that no matter how different they are from the toxic culture he was born into and molded by, he loves them, and he needs them to become what they want to be.

THIS is what that fury is for. To kill the rats and defend the besieged Clan, so they can live freely while he slumbers.

Fallenleaf's a better comparison. Both she and Skystar wanted to forcefully remake society in their own images, and would brutalize anyone who didn't live up to their strict standards.

(contrast to BB!Brokenstar who strategically took out only two cats. Raggedstar and Marigoldkit. He actually limited violence against his own Clan.)

But Fallenleaf and Skystar are very different people. Fallenleaf did what she did out of strict, obsessive dedication to the Code. She was fueled by what she'd been taught by Bramblestar, allowing Ashfur to physically abuse Lionpaw "for his own good." That you have to hurt what you love to protect it.

Still; I very much made it intentional that her punishment is SO harsh. The Lake cats HATED her. She ruined everything and she knows it. Sol gets bored of her, steals her body, and leaves her stranded 100 years in the past. She's forced to stay in those tunnels and cling to the mortal plane, just thinking about her family to keep her tethered, as civilizations rise and fall outside.

Now back in her home, she's almost unrecognizable. She's traveled so far and lost so much, and been forced to sit with her shame for a very long time. Not even StarClan is old enough to remember her crimes; and it's she alone who carries that burden. It's a weight she chooses to carry, to remind her of the worst version of herself. Something she could become again, if she isn't careful.

BB!Skystar's a venerated founder.

Nearly everything he did in life was to serve his own ends, his own ego, and he's lauded for that. His followers ate up his excuses like slop. He built the battle culture the Clans would come to know, by making a move to crush anything that mildly offended him

Of course he's not going to regret shit. Power gets him everything he wants. He's got a circling entourage of sycophants to tell him how smart and strong he is all the time, droves of warriors who pray to him for strength in battle, all of his enemies in life are now forced to treat him like a god-among-gods in heaven. And this is exactly the way he likes it.

Man got away with it, over and over. He collects his reward every starry night.

Any time where he WOULD be threatened with having his power taken away, he would simply gaslight/gatekeep/girlboss his way back to the top. What? You gonna stop him? He will kill you and then frame your murder like a grand triumph over the Great Unfairness of the world. He has the most prey in the forest. He has the strongest cats in the land. What are you, to him, besides an angry squirrel chattering atop the branch?

Why would he ever choose to be different? He wouldn't. Power gets him what he wants, and he loves getting what he wants.

#bone babble #better bones au

[bonefall]

is there any death in the rewrite that you consider to be really graphic? where do you draw the line in the violence of a character's death?

Hmmm... Probably Tigerstar honestly! The cats wrote a song about his organs falling out.

I think when it comes to the "line" of a character's death, it's very subjective. Me and every other kid who read WC pogged out when Tigerstar had a really drawn out, horrific death on-screen, but I'm still haunted by Sootfur with his broken leg, falling down towards a badger while Squilf couldn't save him and seeing the aftermath of his "sightless eyes" when the animal moved off him.

One of those was objectively less graphic, but imo a LOT more harrowing. I think emotions are a lot more important in how deaths are received by an audience than the actual blood and guts, which I think gives you a decent idea of what you're gonna get here.

I think Leopardstar's rock concert is the "ceiling" of how intensely I describe deaths. I think that one's pretty graphic, but it's for a reason. The point is that it's a brutal killing that haunts Mistystar, you get me? And I try to write "around" the gore, describing sounds, the rest of the body, etc.

There is also cosmic/body horror with the Ancestor Rats, and more importantly, BB!Cats do food processing. They skin dead animals and separate the organs and such. When I get around to doing an entry on animal fat, I would also like to show WHERE in the body the fat is stored on certain animals. It's a lot more important to nutrition than you think it is.

BUT whenever I feel like I'm "around" Leopardstar's Boulder Appointment or an Ancestor Rat, I always always tag that. Less "violent" things like the song about the organs (Tiger's In A Heap) and more gentle food processing (like an offhanded mention of removing entrails or skinning) isn't tagged.

If I ever end up including a "diagram" of where fat is stored in the body or "how to properly skin a small rodent" It will be tagged as gore and I'd try to stay tasteful to begin with, I would ABSOLUTELY never drop something like that on anyone untagged and unwarned.

#I have what I consider a high benchmark for gore (medical + mortuary science education + did some butchery for hunters) #So when it starts to feel iffy to ME that is my threshold for tagging things as gore #But I am very bad at understanding when people are sensitive towards like... carnivores eating meat or carcass processing #Because legit in my head that's just Making Food #I go to the store and it is not hard to connect the cuts to where it was on the animal #AND I was raised to heavily value ''appreciating'' meat because an animal died to feed me #cw talk #bone babble #ugh now im thinking about deer stew #mmmmmmm #I miss the taste of game

[bonefall]

Better Bones Profile: Sedgecreek

RiverClan's first Lake deputy, and world famous cutie pie!

[ID: The BB version of Sedgecreek from Warrior Cats. She is a wood-brown tabby with short, comma-shaped stripes of a darker brown. She is short and her body is long, with a chunky tail.]

Clanmew Name: Kyyrakoshu, nickname Kyyko. (Kyyra = Sedge, a type of lido grass + Koshu = Creek, a small, shady river)

Alignment: RiverClan

Relations: Ex-Mate - Greenflower Children - Swallowtail, Beechfur Nyams - Loudbelly (littermate), Duckfur (Sib-in-law) Education - Crookedstar (mentor), Grasswhisker (apprentice)

See Also: The Dragonkin Family, and the RiverClan Family Tree

Mistyfoot realized at the end of BB!TNP that Hawkfrost was not the tiger that lurked within RiverClan. He didn't choose himself as deputy while she was captured, breaking the code in the process. It wasn't his call to defy StarClan's will to delay the Great Journey. It was up to Leopardstar to punish the surviving RiverClan mercenaries who served Mudclaw's insurrection, and overrule the false sign that exiled three cats from her Clan... and she didn't.

Seated atop the stump with the sun setting behind her, Leopardstar's black silhouette invoked Mistyfoot's memory of a powerful cat lording over a pile of bones. Her eyes flashed-- Tigerstar amber, dark forest red. His ideas were an infectious sort of immortal; they will not die unless they are killed.

So with Leopardstar's sudden, 'mysterious' death to a "rogue", Mistystar realized she would need to make a strong, tactical choice of a new deputy. Someone who would be able to help her navigate the tense situation she was in, to balance out the harsh choices she was about to make, to be the honey to her sting.

The choice was obvious. Now, she would have to prepare for the hard work ahead...

[ID: BB!Mistystar and BB!Sedgecreek leaning back to back. Mistystar grimly explains, "someone will die." Sedgecreek interjects, "of fun!!!"]

(Lots more below the cut!)

Personality and Trivia:

She is CHEERFUL! It takes a lot to make Sedgecreek upset!

Always smiling, never loses hope, always tries to see the bright side of every situation.

"A mistake is just a chance to learn what NOT to do!!"

People like her. She's just a super likeable person, the sort of cat who gets along with people you'd never expect.

She has learned that you should listen twice as much as you talk. She's always there to comfort her friends, family, and clanmates. Very approachable personality.

I imagine a lot of RiverClan warriors are "stocky," longer than they are tall, Sedgecreek especially.

She's also got a very thick tail, making her an excellent and sturdy swimmer.

Her favorite food is pike meat, which Greenflower once wooed her with. Not very many RiverClan warriors are bold enough to tangle with pikes.

Imo, Sedge is a super underrated background character. Her apprenticeship under Crookedjaw is super cute and no one ever talks about it!

and BOY OH BOY has her role been expanded in BB!!

Long before the Great Journey was even a consideration, back during TPB…

Sedgecreek was mates with Greenflower. They welcomed their kits, Swallowkit and Beechkit, to the world just before RiverClan and ShadowClan moved to form TigerClan.

Greenflower's sibling, Duckfur, was the honor sire for the couple. Under the Queen's Rights, you don't have to explain where your kittens came from. Sedgecreek gave birth and that's that.

But supporters of Thistle Law do not respect the Queen's Rights.

When Greenflower announced openly that their kittens had been sired by Duckfur, Sedgecreek was uncomfortable, but believed she was keeping their family safe.

But... it turned out to be worse than that.

Greenflower was a true believer. She had been holding a lot of her 'worst' ideas back, but felt emboldened to speak openly with the alliance between Tigerstar and Leopardstar.

Sedgecreek knew Greenflower went to the execution of Stonefur... but she couldn't. She couldn't bring herself to.

She couldn't watch an old friend die like that, or stomach the thought of Greenflower reacting to it.

They stayed together for the children, as Sedgecreek staved off the dawning realization that her mate wasn't the cat she thought she was.

It was easy to put it off a little longer, when their next common enemy was BloodClan and RiverClan "returned to normal."

Though they nearly had a blow-out argument over RiverClan refusing to join in with the trading that WindClan and ThunderClan were doing with BloodClan... Sedgecreek apologized, and held her tongue. Suddenly, their roles had been reversed, with Sedgecreek staying quiet to "keep the peace".

Normally very cheerful and outspoken, with friends in other Clans and open-mindedness to cooperation, Sedgecreek spent almost two years of her life just trying to save her mateship. She thought that maybe Greenflower would return to the bold, loyal cat she used to adore, if she just loved her enough and made her feel heard...

But then, during the Great Journey...

Their baby Swallowtail fell in love with a ThunderClan warrior, Rainwhisker.

Greenflower "warned her" about loving cats from other Clans, "Don't make me do something I don't want to, Swallowtail."

Sedgecreek knew how powerful love can be. Rainwhisker was big, handsome, and sweet. She saw a lot of herself in him, and would have approved of him as her son-in-law in a heartbeat

Even though Swallowtail was trying to hide it after that confrontation, Sedgecreek KNEW that Rainwhisker was perfect for her. She knows her daughter better than anyone-- Swallow would never be able to fight it.

But all journey long, Greenflower was growing more and more critical of Swallowtail. Comparing her to her brother Beechfur, constantly questioning her whereabouts, making up stupid tasks to keep her busy.

Sedge and Green were fighting over it, again, but this time Sedge was starting to care less about making up afterwards.

Then, the worst possible thing happened... during the WindClan Civil War, Rainwhisker was killed in battle.

Swallowtail was inconsolable. That brought them all together, for just a little while longer.

But then, Swallowtail discovered she was pregnant. She didn't say anything about the father, and yet Greenflower LOST it. She flew into a frenzy, shouting their daughter down and threatening to disown her. The line that finally broke their mateship was simply,

"Just when it seemed like the problem was solved--"

Sedgecreek didn't even let her finish. How DARE she?? To treat their baby's painful loss, their coming grandchildren, and Swallowtail's right as a Queen, like the continuation of a problem???

So she told her to get out. Quietly at first. Greenflower refused, so she said it louder. Then she shouted it. And then she SCREAMED it, and when THAT didn't work, she THREW her out of the Cleric's den. For SEASONS she had sacrificed for the sake of her children, only for it to end in a choice between her wife and daughter.

But even then, Sedgecreek felt hot with shame that she'd caused such a scene! The whole camp saw her toss Greenflower like a rotten fish!! Sweet, cheerful Sedgecreek!!! It was mortifying, she'd never lost her temper like that, the entire Clan was surprised!

Mistyfoot saw this just like everyone else in RiverClan... and it stood out in her mind, as she shuffled home considering who her deputy would be.

It had to be someone as uncontroversial as possible... Mistyfoot's reputation had been dragged through the mud by Hawkfrost's constant challenges. A sizable portion of RiverClan did not respect her anymore.

So Swansong, her brother and greatest ally, was out of the question. He didn't have a diplomatic bone in his body.

Mosspelt was her sister-in-law, and she needed a deputy who could ward off accusations of nepotism.

Reedwhisker had Skyheart as his mentor, who kept him in an apprenticeship nightmare for over a year. He was too young on top of being ineligible.

But, she needed someone who would understand the threat they faced, and take it seriously. It, hopefully obviously, couldn't be one of her enemies.

And THAT was when she remembered Sedgecreek standing up to Greenflower. How she's everyone's friend, patient and enthusiastic, and yet how she still snapped at her long-time mate.

While no one knows EXACTLY why she snapped except the little family itself, Mistyfoot had a good hunch it was related to Swallowtail claiming Queen's Rights for her litter.

And that is exactly the sort of principled cat she needs by her side.

So... Sedgecreek was perfect. She was diplomatic, friendly, and yet, able to stand up for herself, ready to fight for the Clan they deserved. Her upbeat personality would be a perfect compliment to Mistystar's dour, serious one. This was the best possible choice.

During BB!OotS, Sedgecreek was targeted for replacement by the Dark Forest demons. While they managed to kill several of their targets and even cause ShadowClan to fall, Sedgecreek managed to escape an attempt on her life. But, before anyone could breathe a sigh of relief, she took it as a sign to step down so that someone younger could take over. By this point, she had become a great-grandmother and was beginning to feel her age.

Reedwhisker takes her place as deputy, and she's able to live out the last of her days in the Elder's Den. She peacefully passes away at some point in AVoS, surrounded by the family she chose to stand beside.

#better bones au #BB!Sedgecreek #character summary #BB!TNP

[bonefall]

Super interested in how you plan to write Leopardfoot! I feel like both fanon and canon tend to make her into a sweet mom(tm) who’s super sad that Tigerstar is evil, very similar to how Goldenflower is usually treated. What’s her thoughts on Pinestar and him leaving? How did she influence Tigerstar? What are her political beliefs?

Society has progressed past the need for sad moms who stare tearily at their evil sons and boohoo about all the murder. It's MOTHER AGENCY TIME

BB!Leopardfoot was FEROCIOUS. Her father was the indominable Adderfang, and he taught her about the importance of honor and glory. When Tigerpaw was given to Thistleclaw as an apprentice, she was proud of it. It felt perfect to her-- that her father's apprentice was now her son's mentor.

For his brief rule, she supported Sunstar completely. It helped that he came after the disastrous and embarassing exit of Pinestar, which ruined the legacy that she wanted him to give her son. Pinestar was a damn coward and a codebreaker... and she assured Tigerkit that he was more HER son than his.

She even gives him a life, for Legacy, in defiance of StarClan

She was friends with Bluemoon for a time, but after ascending to StarClan, she learned about the Forget-me-nots.

This changed her opinion of her. Leopardfoot supports Thistle Law, STRONGLY so.

She supported THISTLECLAW when he tried to forcefully void the Queen’s Rights. If Bluemoon hadn't broken the code, then what did she have to hide?

She backed off when Thrushpelt leapt to her defense though, "She didn't reveal it because she doesn't love me are you happy now??"

Leopardfoot: *awkwardly turns away feeling like an asshole now, tea SPILLED, her friend's dirty laundry EXPOSED, thought she was crusading for the law but she just dug up drama*

Towards the end of Pinestar’s reign, he was getting exhausted. He wanted peace. Leopardfoot wanted kittens around that time, and figured that there was no better cat than the son of Oakstar, architect of the infamous Crusade Era.

If Pinestar had no children, a glorious bloodline would have died out. She wanted it for her kits. Pinestar agreed on the condition that he would be their Mi, which she happily accepted.

So when Pinestar left, she jumped into the nursery to take over and had to explain to her kits where their Mi went.

She drove it home to them that he abandoned everything, because his weakness took over. They would never be like him, she promised.

Mistkit died very young. Nightpaw made it to apprenticeship before she also succumbed. Tigerclaw remembers very well how hard it was to lose his sisters.

Leopardfoot herself was taken shortly before TPB, in Spottedleaf's Plague. Her death causes Tigerclaw to have a bit of a moment.

After the trial in Bluestar's Flowers, Leopardfoot leaves StarClan along with a bunch of other Thistle Law supporters, including Thistleclaw himself. She joins the BOTTE at the end of OotS, fighting to the end with her son.

She misses him a lot, and remains in the Dark Forest to the current arc. She chose her path; and has the dignity to walk it.

She does miss StarClan sometimes though, and will tell you stories about it if you ask.

In terms of demon friends, she's somewhere in the clique between the harsher and softer spirits.

She dislikes Morningstar, Cloudberry, and Ryewhisker on the softer end, and has come to resent Thistleclaw and Finchflight on the other, but likes Darkstripe, Leopardstar, and Silverhawk.

Gets along with a range of "mid" level demons.

In particular I imagine she hangs out with Darkstripe a lot. Taste test buddy, he asks her to try his experimental recipes because she's honest but not mean. One of the few Thistle Law supporting cats he hangs out with after the double-death of Tigerstar.

He calls her Lefty. Her official nickname is "Left" but he calls her Lefty.

(Clanmew: her name is Saorpwyyar. Others call her Saopr. He calls her Sapyy.)

Her mom and dad Swiftbreeze and Adderfang are here too, following Thistleclaw like she did, but she's been minimizing her contact with her dad. She feels like she is owed an apology somehow but also doesn't have the emotional intelligence to know that it's what she wants.

She just knows that she feels really bitter talking to him, and that's unpleasant.

She used to be VITRIOLIC with Pinestar, who is also here, even going after him physically when he chose to join in with the Dark Forest trainees. But now... honestly so much shit has happened, she just doesn't like seeing him. She wishes he wasn't here.

I write her being very dignified. She doesn't like to admit publically she was ever wrong and speaks with confidence, quietly backing off and not wanting to speak about her mistakes. She loves her children and her family, but explores the world in a very "self-centric" way, trusting her feelings and personal judgement over anything logical.

A reactionary sort of person, if that makes sense.

Her Land Mar has to develop over time because she is an ex-StarClan migrant (damned souls get theirs instantly after judgement), but it's called the Fence Cliff. It's a picket fence that blocks off a sheer drop, making a sharp turn down the cliff face and acting as a walkway. Follow the fence down the slope, and you can access the Dark Forest's town biome.

#BB!Leopardfoot #Better bones au #Pinestar’s Crusade #Spottedleaf's Plague #I think I made her a land mar once before but I like this idea more #I may repurpose the old idea when I remember it for someone else #Because I like the idea of Leopard and Dark walking down her land mar to get to the town to collect odd ingredients #And have Leopard talk about how ironic it is that her life's worst moment still goes back to the choices of other people #And Dark kinda puffs and says 'im sick of people blaming everyone else for their own mistakes' #And Lef doesn't really have a response to that #And Dark backpedals not wanting to offend her #And the Cliff Fence would be a super neat setting to write such a convo in #BB!Dark Forest #Dark forest demons my beloved btw. #I was actually at one point planning a cutesy like... not-rework BB-original novella story #Of Ryewhisker gathering ingredients for an anniversary dinner #And meeting with various DF demons #But now that Darkstripe is getting a whole ass postmortem arc about healing through cooking #I might make it about him #Especially so I can put that convo in it