#bt references

Fire alone will- wait a minute, uhh.... I mean, Thistles Will Burn! Our prophecy boi!

precious lil man <3 he gives me very sheltered mommy’s boy vibes. lives in his mom’s basement when he’s 32. but like not a gamer also. he’s just there for his mom n aunt and goes to his grandma’s house to bake cookies with her :) Poppydawn is the grandma specifically. Swiftbreeze would give him twenty bucks and let em run loose at the arcade unsupervised

really his faults lie in being too willing to believe others (like. he thought Tigerclaw was awesome but the minute Raven was like “He murdered :(” Fire 100% was like “oh Tiger bad”. and w/ Thistle he so willingly believed Thistle was good bcus Thistle told him so, but then the moment his other Trustworthy Loved Adult Figure [Spotted] said otherwise, he believed her immediately...these feel like anti-examples bcus obviously Tiger and Thistle ARE bad, but you get my point right?)

Princess aka Creekflower! :)

her personality for me was really based off of “if Princess was born a clancat.” I wanted her to keep the same base personality traits as Princess but obviously her clan upbringing changed things for her. while, obviously, she still had that contentment for a kittypet life, she still loved her clan at heart. Princess was very prideful of her kits, and overprotective. but while Princess didn’t understand clanlife, Creekflower very much does, and she’s much stricter/scared because of it. she doesn’t want to be judged, yet judges herself harshly. she’s a hypocrite at heart, too, in replacement of Princess’s air-headedness and ignorance.

she really loves her family and close friends. but outside of that? she’s not really close to her clanmates and feels a disconnect from them, especially because of the treatment she receives for, A) being exiled warrior turned enemy clan leader Thistlestar’s daughter, B) being “cursed” as the kit of medicine cat Spottedleaf, and C) dating a kittypet, baring his kits, and adopting a kittypet kit. unlike Fireheart, she doesn’t care to “right” her reputation, instead willing to wallow in the misery off it and keep to herself and try and tell herself she doesn’t care what others think (it doesnt work).

is she! sedgecreekflower!

a minor character with semi-importance thats still irrelevant in the scheme of things. sadge

Alder and I never actually looked at her canon history before we made her the character she is in BT now bcus we thought she was just a Background Character (which she is!) but it turns out she has Some Importance in canon side books

to start off, she’s in the same generation as Leopardfur! Older by a few moons or so, I believe. I read Leopardstar’s Honor so I should know but c’mon who remembers that stuff lmao. apparently Leopardfur thought she was bossy. tbf i think all the kits except Sunfish? and maybe Frogleap? were mean to Leopardfur in some way. but i still classified them as friends! kithood friends. they all stood together when Skypaw was held back and waited to become warriors with her. how nice :)

she’s also Crookedjaw’s first apprentice! she appears to be a little rambunctious and over-energetic. y’know, one of your typical apprentice personalities. she also apparently thinks Rippleclaw is really cool! this ties in nicely with the “admirance” part of her personality - i think she can get a little ‘obsessed’ over certain people and idolize them as a ‘can do no wrong’ kind of thing.

onto her personality! our Sedgecreek is kind of a well-meaning but self-serving kind of cat. she wants good for her friends and clanmates, but she’s also a bit oblivious, or, well “bossy.” despite Lightningfur constantly clearly pushing her away or calling her annoying/disgusting, Sedgecreek is just “aw! so cute :) she’s playing hard to get teehee.” she is very straight-forward herself though! she doesn’t hide her crush on Lightningfur and is unphased by any teasing.

as for why Sedgecreek has a crush on Lightningfur? it was completely randomly selected, in the moment sort of author decision. but, upon reflection, the reason would be simply that Sedgecreek was impressed by Lightningfur after the flood. previously she just kind of thought Lightningfur was There and ThunderClan and Out of Place and ignored her. but after the flood, where Lightningfur saved the kits and helped keep the clan calm/safe, Sedgecreek thought Lightningfur was noble and selfless. she began to believe that underneath that rough, prickly exterior, there was a kind and shy soul wanting to be loved, and Sedgecreek continues to blindly believe it to this day

but why does Lightningfur hate Sedgecreek?

at first, when Sedge first started being pushy and invading her personal space, Lightning truly and utterly hated her - she was the bane of her existence! she was annoying, pushy, didn’t leave Lightning alone like she wanted, had this disgusting “crush” on her (Lightning hates romance! the idea sickened her to her core!), and she wasn’t even a strong or smart warrior (in Lightning’s opinion)! Sedge doesn’t have the best understanding of boundaries, so its honestly understandable why Lightning is annoyed by her.

but after Silverstream’s death, there was a slight change over time. Sedge thought Lightning needed even more support and love after such a tragic event (Sedge was not so blind that she didn’t see that Lightning had a crush on Silver). at first Lightning hated this, desperately wanting space. but being alone while filled with hatred is a bitter existence and Sedge’s persistent attempts broke Lightning a little. though Lightning still hates her, now it’s because Sedge isn’t Silverstream. no one will ever be as perfect a best friend as Silverstream, so she is outright refusing to truly stop hating Sedge, and keeps herself in the cycle of despising Sedge. but all the while, Sedge has sort of become her new best friend, because at the very least Lightning acknowledges that she’s very very loyal and she begrudgingly/unconsciously keeps Sedge in her ‘inner circle.’

besides, Lightning would rather be "besties” with Sedge than creepy cultish old man Rippleclaw

(also things of note are: Thistlestar killed her dad, Timberfur. he poisoned the prey that killed Timberfur the deputy, which lead to Oakheart becoming deputy and so forth. Thistlestar also killed her mentor Crookedstar, obviously.

the crickets are quiet

moments that foreshadowed Cricketheart’s death:

Ch. 42 POV Mashup! Into The Future!: “And where had Cricketkit and Featherkit run off to so fast?........The two kits were mewing and screeching with fear as a battered-looking fox was clawing at the brambles that were barely keeping the two kits safe.” [This would have been their original/canon death scene.]

Ch. 53 The Local Gang Drops In: “Cricketpaw and Mousefur had an easier time than Spottedleaf and Graystripe, only having to wait for a single monster to speed by before crossing safely to join their clanmates....“Featherpaw told me he felt the monster’s vibration,” Cricketpaw meowed, whiskers twitching as she, too, shook. “So he pushed Cherryfur away before the monster came!”” [First interaction with Thunderpaths]

Ch. 57 A Scourgey Secret Is Spilled: ““Cricketpaw!” he screamed, but his blue-gray sister had already sped over the Thunderpath, even as a monster soared by, nearly nicking her tail. “What?” she called back. “Come on! Just go fast! They aren’t that dangerous.””

Ch. 60 Creekflower and Oliver Mourn the Lost: “While Fireheart paused at the black path’s edge, Cricketpaw bounded after Claw without fear. Featherpaw hesitated before he followed after his sister, glancing down the Thunderpath.“

Ch. 64 Feathery Fluff: ““Let’s hunt down by the Thunderpath,” Cricketpaw suggested. “Nobody ever hunts there.”........“Why don’t monsters eat their kills?” Cricketpaw wondered, her ears twitching and paw briefly dragging across her neck. She stepped onto the rough surface of the Thunderpath, padding around the dead squirrel curiously......He glanced back to see Cricketpaw still on the Thunderpath, poking at the squirrel.” [The flattened squirrel is a direct ‘omen’ to her future dead body]

Cricketheart is my favorite dead character because she like so perfectly fits that “thinks she’s invincible; gets killed by the thing she thought she controlled.” but her death isn’t the only thing about her! she was also a very supportive and defensive sister, who wanted to protect but not coddle Feathercloud at all costs. she was also not that code-orientated, and had no qualms breaking the code for funsies. she lacked severe judgement and was very interested in BloodClan/twolegplace life (though she did critique the harsh parenting skills of Gremlin’s parents and the sickly, unhealthy conditions cats were in).

though in life she was always confident and endlessly optimistic, in death, she’s more subdued, and she puts on a front of optimism and acceptance, but underneath that...?

her romantic/sexual orientations are “i dont know” because she never thought about it/never explored. she’s not highly romantically inclined or anything, but.... 

darude

its the gal! sandstorm!!! a little less spicy than canon I’d say, a lot more supportive over all. out of the Girl Gang, she’s the one whose most friends w/ Mousefur, whose like Out of the Gang yknow. Just Slightly Adjacent. Mousefur was friends w/ Lightningpaw/fur but “hated” the rest of the firesibs (she didnt want to be associated w/ them cause they were ‘forbidden kits’ yknow but she also didnt want to be alone and thus gravitated towards Lightning and decided she was “good”), then Lightning left, and Mousefur was alone. She hung out w/ Sandpaw/storm in the background though because Sand was also kind of “adjacent” to the gang at that point. they’re not besties but SandMouse is a friendship I’d kinda like to focus more on in the future! they just chillin

also, for those like “whose Beach???” see ch. 57! Beach is a BloodClan kittypet, and in that chap he’s mentioned to be Minty’s mate and the father of Ash and Soot. he’s even mentioned to look like Sandstorm! later in ch. 60, Brindleface makes a comment about it being good that her litter has “warrior blood” bcus of Whitestorm being their father. this is supposed to be a reference towards Beach being Sandstorm’s dad and therefore not having pure “warrior blood”!

lynxpaw???? yo who coulda guessed i’d do her ref

she’s p much the character that i secretly really really like but she never gets enough screen time for me to actually show her personality and motivations :/

okay so basically: Lynxpaw is Swiftpaw’s sister. the two are very close- they are also close to Longtail and Cherryfur, as they are half-sibs + Long is Swift’s mentor so they just happen to be on patrols/training a lot together and are close because of it. she was also quick friends with Dustpaw/pelt! she actually admired him a lot, and, while at first it was just a “woah he’s cool, lets be friends!” the closer friends they became, she did develop a crush, tho she kinda tries to hide it while also being jelly when Dust likes/hangs out with someone else. with ambiguous-moralled, homewrecker womanizer Patchpelt as a father, Longtail as a close older brother, and Dust as a friend, she quickly took their ideals, believing cats like Featherpaw to be weak and a hinderance to the clan. she and Cricket got into a LOT of spats over this, as Cricket was fiercely protective of Feather, and Lynx would actually rarely be mean to Feather’s face (he prob thought they were genuinely friends for a bit), only behind his back where he literally couldn’t hear her.

Lynxpaw is the kind of gal to talk shit about her friends behind their backs to make herself look better to others. kind of a “pick me” girl type, honestly. she’ll suck up to authority, and bully those she views as beneath her. but to your face she’ll often be polite or friendly, though sometimes condescending or passive aggressive. she is a very very jealous person- she bonds a lot with Dustpelt over the fact that they were “made warriors late” or “others were made warriors before us unfairly.” or, well, in her case, that she still isn’t a warrior! she and her brother Swiftpaw are both of the strong mindset that they should have been warriors MOONS ago. i mean, as of Ch. 115, they really are over 12 moons, the normal age where apprentices are made warriors.

ebenezer scourge

its the little gremlin man! it brings me so much joy lol. favorite villain to ever villain <3 (Thistle is my favorite Bad Guy, but Scourge is my favorite Villain, ya feel?)

okay okay so. first off, the flags? aromantic little man, heart as cold as stone, but also would not recognize if someone was flirting with him like ????? honestly probably doesnt know romance is a thing, but its not his style. and his sexual orientation? what are you, A Cop? (he doesnt know/doesnt care/is okay w/ anything, basically unlabeled/queer/aspec-leaning). he is non-binary! because Gender? never heard of her. no literally i dont think he cares about genders or whatever, past like forcing mothers to keep mothering sometimes (even then he do be respecting their pronouns and identity). literally i think BloodClan is THE most non-binary clan lmaoooo. likely still a little sexist in nature, but moreso specifically towards kit-bearing mothers that dont Conform. anyway anyway SCOURGE is a he/it enby and you can pry that from my cold dead hands. he doesn’t actually care what pronouns you use- he, it, they, she, xe, etc. in fact he’d be down to be she/her or they/them-ed for a day, but he/it are his primaries because everyone calls him he/him anyway and like he’s still A Tom he just doesnt care about the whole Gender Bit of It. he likes it/its because it makes him feel cool and powerful to be this enigma, or sort of spooky ghost tale figure. its a power rush, pleasing, and he loves it (it being it haha)

so its little relationship chart stuff. its friends arent necessarily its friends but closest allies/trusted guard. well i think Bone and Brick are Genuinely Its Friends, but the rest are all just “cats its closest with but probably still wouldnt hold a casual conversation with”. i just didnt change it to allies cause i have like a theme and i cant break it lol. similar for apprentices! those arent actually its apprentices, clan rules-wise, but rather just cats it trained. Gremlin and Scraps less so, they just got training by proxy of being its guards’ kits and Storm n Night’s friends

AND FINALLY. its personality traits. so! i actually rotated through a few traits for him. so while Scourge is a big meanie, he does have an odd merciful moment here and there, mostly in situations where its showcasing his power (ex.: showing Ruby and Socks that HE now had power over them, and he was choosing to let them eat). and in BT, he DOES help TC, and he also (spoilers for ch. 116) lets Storm go despite threatening to kill him. so its not exactly that he’s merciful, but... the next closest word i got was “indulgent”- having a tendency to be overly generous to or lenient with someone. also could double as him being selfishly indulgent with his own needs/pride. but it still didnt fit quite right, and i stumbled upon biased which i think is better! he’s got some bias- whether that be a strong resentment towards Tiger, Thistle, cats who wronged him etc., or playing favorites like in the case of Storm and Night (Night esp). also i think he develops bias quickly towards cats who help him at his weakest (ex.: Bluefur, that old cat, Bone/Brick even, Spottedleaf).

and the other word i flipflopped for was dishonest! i think i had overconfident before, which is true, but felt only partially right- because it is very, very skilled and not to be underestimated. then i remembered! he lies! like a lot! a lot a lot! it lied about: his time in the forest as a kit, how he got the dog tooth stuck in its collar, how he defeated the old scared dog, to Tiger about the truth of their alliance, (in BT) telling TC about the lost kits, to (spoiler) about already knowing his parentage. like damn! chillax on the lying my guy!

dawmcwoud

she smol <3 ahhh our lovely gal!! she just so she :) my favorite bit about her is how she’s related to like every important shadowclan cat ever lol. Raggedstar’s half-sister, Blackstar’s half-sister, Badgerfang’s half-aunt, Brokenstar’s half-aunt, Rowanclaw’s half-aunt, Russetfur’s half-brother’s half-sister, Yellowfang’s mate’s half-sister, etc. etc. she’s even Dovewing’s half-grandaunt-in-law!

so, BT versus canon her- BT was written BEFORE Exile From ShadowClan and just at the release of Blackfoot’s Reckoning, which means the half-sibling shenanigans was only half-known (as in, Dawn isn’t technically supposed to know she’s Black’s half-sis but oops she does in BT woopsies), and also Exile From ShadowClan retconned her brother (Volewhisper) back to life which is AWESOME and would have made a LOVELY STORY LINE but WE HAD ALREADY WRITTEN BT WELL PAST THAT POINT. (on the plus side we somehow managed to predict ShC!Ashfur being forced to retire to the elders’ den early due to injury/exile). ALSO! EFS gave her BLUE EYES and we had her have AMBER EYES. urgh