Could you tell us anything more about our girl Cricketclaw? I have vague memories of you mentioning she just took Graykit and dipped to make sure they would both survive the plague. Queen, honestly. Did she have strong political leanings? Bffs? Hobbies? Opinions on Darkstripe becoming a huge dick? Depending on who mentored her that could be a lot of tension between the two.
Hopefully I will have her summary out soon, but sure! Casual jumble about Miss Cricketclaw, daughter of Dappletail, sister of Darkstripe and Graystripe.
NOTE: you're completely correct, I initially planned for Cricketclaw to nab Graykit and bolt for a while as the worst of the plague washed over ThunderClan before TPB. On further consideration though, I NEED to change it to Darkstripe for dramatic purposes.
The sibling who saved Graykit's life dies to his brother's claws in the end, in defense of Firestar. Do you understand my vision?
So with that in mind!
Cricketclaw and Darkstripe are Dappletail's first litter.
They were suuuuuper super close as kits. Always getting into trouble, thick as thieves with the mischief to match.
They once wandered off during a bad storm and came across a lone badger. Bluestar arrived just in time to kill it all on her own, but lost a life in the process.
For Cricketkit, that was formative. Her loyalty to Bluestar is absolutely unshakable.
(Darkkit was more just traumatized by it, it affects his ability to fight even though he doesn't want to admit it)
Their paths really started to diverge when they were apprenticed. Darkpaw was given to Tigerclaw, Cricketpaw went to Redtail.
Both siblings really idolized their mentors, remaining close into their adulthoods.
Dappletail and Cricketclaw were some of the few cats who where always a bit... iffy, on Tigerclaw. They kept quiet about it though, because it was VERY vibes-based.
Dappletail (the educator) kinda felt... dismissed? By him. And Cricketclaw was seeing how her brother was changing.
Like, since when was Darkpaw interested in advanced battle moves? The only finesse this guy ever displayed was the finesse to not get jabbed by a blackberry bramble. What happened to her nerd of a brother who could tell a red knoutberry from a raspberry at a thousand foxlengths?
But... Tigerclaw was strong and respected. He wasn't like his mentor, who always gave Dappletail and her friend Rosetail issues.
And it was good that Darkstripe was finally a strong, capable warrior.
He was a lot grumpier and gruffer than he used to be but, that's growing up.
Cricketclaw was named for being the more standoffish of the two. She's the fighter, the one who was more disciplined and battle-ready. It was odd and ironic to her that Darkstripe was becoming the more aggressive one, the more time passed.
But anyway, enough of her relationship to him! She has a ton of ambitions in her own right and has a pretty strong personality.
She LOVES practical jokes. When Graykit and Featherkit were born, she was ecstatic because it meant she was going to have little siblings to confuse
She's outgoing and funny. She inherited her mother's resting bitchface. Don't let it fool you.
Like other warriors though, she will defend the territory ferociously. Bluestar is a big inspiration to her, she is brave.
I imagine she is friends with Goldenflower, though I'm not sure why. I feel like they just get along, somehow.
(In canon, she greets her in the nursery. Cricketclaw is the BB version of the "Distinctive Tabby Queen")
Depending on some timeline stuff she might have a rivalry going on with Willowpelt. They both want to be Head of Hunting eventually.
When Darkstripe skedaddles with Graykit, she wishes she thought of it first. But won't abandon her mother after they just lost Featherkit.
When Darkstripe comes back she LOUDLY defends him. For a moment, she has hope that they might reconnect, but it doesn't happen.
She is an ally of Firepaw from a young age, but can be harder on Graypaw. Mostly because Gray is her little brother, she feels more responsible for him when he acts like a brat.
Cricketclaw is the sort of person who would tell a mean xenophobic joke, but regret it if Firepaw winces.
Or, worse, she comes up with one, says it in the wrong company, and then suddenly Darkstripe is saying it unironically.
I'm not entirely sure when she dies, but it's probably at some point in TNP. She is the sort of person who would die throwing herself at something very large, like a boar, or running back towards collapsing trees to save other people.
Anyway, her favorite food is blackberries.
