#oakstar

Oakstar 🧡

She does! She eventually learns this from Thistleclaw, but at that point she was already obsessed with Tigerclaw and extremely biased.

Surprisingly, she isn't fixated on blood the way Mapleshade is with Appledusk's descendants. Bloodpetal is more laser focused on Oakstar, who she associates more with ThunderClan, the Warrior Code, and StarClan as the real enemy. So there is some cognitive dissonance there. She associates Tigerclaw more with rebellious liberation and autonomy. (Him killing Redtail was perceived as defying fate and freeing himself, which made her realize Thistleclaw was only trying to control her)

It didn't help that Thistleclaw was trying to encourage bitter rivalry and any interaction was forbidden. This just made Bloodpetal cling harder to Tigerclaw out of spite and pure defiance lol. So Bloodpetal can fairly easily look past the bloodline. It's not a big deal to her. I can't say the same about Tigerstar tho :(

this is what they think happened

I truly believe she should’ve went after Oakstar and atleast try to take a few of his lives. In the ultimate guide everyone believed she was fit for deputy so clearly she was headstrong and passionate for the role. She would’ve beat his ass quick. Missed opportunity from Vicky. 😭😭😭

Ugh, Mapleshade's Vengeance is my favourite book ever because I'm smarter than all of you and have nuance, but your stupidity really ruins the party, so let me spread my propaganda again, this time with added-in arguments.

1.) "Mapleshade is an unreliable narrator."

Pre- and post-exile theres nothing in the book that implies or even suggests that Mapleshade is lying about anything; there may have been the possibility that her reality blurs the lines because it's noted in the beginning of chapter 5 that she has a fever after Appledusk had saved her from the river. There is all the proof in the world that everywhere was horrible to her. Her excerpt in the ultimate guide and the original early version of it further back up her story despite it not going into too many details to recount it.

2.) “Mapleshade lied with malicious intent."

In chapter two, the book directly contradicts this lie. Mapleshade’s lie wasn’t out of the need to harm but the need to protect her children from an extremely conservative and xenophobic society. Frecklewish was the one who pushed this narrative onto Mapleshade that Birchface had fathered her kits, and Mapleshade simply didn’t respond. Mapleshade had her privacy invaded, and she was put on the spot, and Frecklewish didn’t even wait for actual confirmation before spreading that birchface was her "mate." As a queen it is her right to keep the father of her kittens a secret. Grief doesn't excuse that. The blame falls on Frecklewish for assuming. ‘Mapleshade was only wrong for refusing to apologize for allowing them to believe her lie, even if it wasn’t her fault and if she was doing it for a good cause.

3.) “Frecklewish didn’t deserve the dark forest."

In chapter two, from the moment Mapleshade’s kittens are born, Frecklewish and her father plan out in front of Mapleshade how they’re going to essentially indoctrinate her children and raise them into being battle weapons so they can unfairly dogpile on and kill an innocent cat who was only defending himself from a battle they likely caused in the first place. Regardless, if they didn't, they’re still indoctrinating kittens to murder an innocent cat. In chapter 4, when Frecklewish finds out about Mapleshade’s lies, she attacks a mother in front of her children before calling those children the equivalent of a real-world slur against mixed-race individuals. Obviously she’s grieving, and she has every right to, but in no way are her actions justified when, if anything, her putting Mapleshade on the spot and forcing herself into her business is the catalyst for where all the lies began. Frecklewish is then the first to demand that they’re driven out, and she had no empathy for their well-being despite them being innocent in this. She deserves her place in hell alongside Ravenwing and her father. When Mapleshade confronts Frecklewish and accuses her of being glad that her kits are dead, Frecklewish never once denies this accusation. And don’t try to say, "Well, frecklewish says that she’s thought they’d be saved." That doesn’t mean anything. This also further backs up the accusation Mapleshade makes that she watched them die because she specifically says, “I thought they’d be saved." Nettlepaw earlier in the book tells Mapleshade that Frecklewish told the clan that she’d seen them fall off the rocks and that she’d seen RiverClan warriors on the other side. Nettlepaw and Frecklewish’s recap match up. And no one is saying that she should’ve thrown herself in the river to save them, but it was half of her actions that led to those kittens being in that situation and dying in the first place. It’s annoying when you place all the blame on Oakstar when Ravenwing and Frecklewish are equally as guilty.

4.) “Ravenwing was just doing his job."

To start this off, I often see the misconception that Ravenwing was extremely young when he became a medicine cat, and that’s a lie. There is nothing in the text that implies that Ravenwing was forced into his position so young. The text quite literally reads as if Mapleshade as a full adult is significantly older than him. And his mentor just died unexpectedly. That is all. Regardless, the possibility of him being young doesn’t negate how well versed he is in medicine and prophecies. His job is to save lives; it'd be fucking stupid if Oatspeckle didn’t teach him everything he needed to know. And there is nothing in the book implying that he read his prophecy wrong. That also leads me to wonder why you people even think that StarClan would care about the well-being of half-clanned kittens. Mapleshade broke the warrior code. In their eyes she practically deserves everything that happened to her. 

Onto the point: Ravenwing wasn’t just doing his job, as he also broke a sacred law. That no cat can neglect a kit in pain or danger even do they’re form another clan. In chapter 3, when Ravenwing catches Mapleshade and Appledusk together, he immediately deduces that Appledusk is their father. He acknowledges that Mapleshade’s kittens will suffer for her actions, and despite her begging and pleading, he has no mercy on them and goes on to endanger them. When Mapleshade says that the kits are ThunderClan kits, he coldly states that they’re half-clan. Refusing to accept them. He was not just doing his job. His job doesn’t require him to snitch on anyone, and considering that Goosefeather had withheld prophecies without consequences, that further backs up the point that he had no real reason to do what he did.

5.) “Appledusk let their children die."

This is never once implied to even be a thing in the book. In chapter 4, when Mapleshade is caught in the river, she is the first one he saves, and his immediate reaction is to ask where their kittens are. And when Mapleshade asks the patrol to save the kittens, he is the first to realize they’re caught in the river and promises to her that he will find them.

6.) “Appledusk threw her under the bus."

Another case of this fandom just using words you don’t know the meaning of because this never happened. To throw someone under the bus would be to condemn someone for an action that you’re also guilty of, which never happens. When they arrive at RiverClan camp, Appledusk explains that three kits have drowned and that he is their father. Not once throughout this entire scene does he blame anything on Mapleshade other than their kits' death because that is what he perceives as the truth after Mapleshade says that she deliberately brought them to the river.

5.) “Appledusk never truly loved Mapleshade or their kittens."

Again, this is a case of none of you having media literacy and conveniently leaving out scenes. In chapter three when he first meets their kittens, he pushes his muzzle close to her, wanting to be affectionate (his clanmates are watching in this scene), and he says that they're are wonderful, strong, and brave as any RiverClan warrior. And he says that he’s so proud of Mapleshade before telling her that he doesn’t want to see her or their kittens near the river again. And the text specifically notes afterward that “But the longing in his eyes told a different story” after he says this, specifically implying the opposite, that he’d like to see them again. When Ravenwing approaches them in this scene, Patchkit tells him that what Appledusk whispered to him was that he was a very brave and good swimmer. In chapter four, after Appledusk finds their children, the text notes that Mapleshade couldn’t make out his expression in the darkness; his words are short, and he makes little effort to communicate with her as he wordlessly leads her to their kittens' bodies. Appledusk remains quiet and unresponsive until Mapleshade says, and I quote, “I’m sorry!” Mapleshade wailed.

“I was trying to find us a new home. I didn’t know where else to go." To which Appledusk immediately asks her what she’s talking about and asks her if she deliberately meant to cross the river in the middle of a flood. 

When they're in RiverClan camp and Mapleshade is asking for her, Appledusk is refusing, using the specific sentence of "Why should I? It’s your fault that these kits are dead. I never want to see you again." He is specifically denying help because, in his perspective, her recklessness has cost the lives of their children. Now is it her fault? No, it’s not; it’s ThunderClan’s fault, as they exiled her and forced her and her kittens into a storm. But does Appledusk know that? Obviously not; he only knows on a surface level that ThunderClan found out about their secret and exiled her, not that they’re persecuting her specifically because of her accidental lie, and he wasn’t aware (much like Mapleshade) that she was actively being stalked in the forest to make sure she’d left. Often see the misconception that he’s called them mistakes, and to even be arguing that makes you slow in the brain because it is so fucking obvious that his so-called mistake refers to him breaking the warrior code because that is literally what Darkstar is persecuting and trying to exile him for. 

He never once denounced his children as being his own. Only Mapleshade, because he’s upset at her for what she did, and he’s not wrong for being upset. He later shows her mercy, telling her to leave instead of immediately attacking her like Frecklewish did. Despite the fact that she kidnapped his apprentice and was holding him hostage. When Mapleshade accused him of killing their kits, he took it personally and said that “you killed OUR kits, making them cross the river." He never once denounced those kits as being his and claimed them to be his kittens despite the fact that there was a witness (Perchpaw) nearby who could snitch on him and say that he’s still faithful to Mapleshade.

6.) “Mapleshade could’ve crossed the bridge."

No, this is a lie because, for one, the only bridge close enough to her was on the farther end of Thunderclan territory, and she needed to leave the land right away to protect her kits. The RiverClan bridge that everyone is referring to isn’t even on their land; it’s on RiverClan land that connects them to WindClan territory. Was there a possibility that Mapleshade had other places to go? Absolutely, but she is unknowingly being stalked, and she only wanted to be with her mate for safety after being attacked and having the top part of her eyelid split open. It was absolutely reckless for her to bring her kittens across the river, but again, she had no real choice.

7.) “Mapleshade is schizophrenic/had psychosis."

No, she didn’t. And this is a very tone-deaf thing to say, and it’s incredibly ableist. People that primarily suffer from visual and auditory hallucinations are already demonized enough as is; to slap that label on a serial killer who had no signs prior to having this condition is gross, and you’re weird as fuck. In fact, the book and her trivia page contradict either of these points. In the beginning of chapter five, the book notes that Mapleshade had a fever that was a result of being in the river. The trivia also states that her hallucinations were further a product of her own grief from literally watching her children die in front of her. If anything, the accurate label to slap on her is that she has post-traumatic stress disorder.

8.) “Oakstar was justified."

He absolutely isn't, and you're crazy as fuck if you’ve even reached this conclusion. Again, like Frecklewish, when Mapleshade had just given birth, he and Frecklewish planned in front of her how they’re going to indoctrinate her children and then turn them into battle weapons to kill an innocent cat. During the exile, Oakstar then states that the kittens cannot stay because they’ll bring nothing but danger; he is demonizing them for something they’re innocent and unaware of. And RiverClan themselves weren’t even aware of Appledusk and Mapleshade’s relationship until Appledusk brought her there.

9.) “Reedshine is innocent, and Appledusk caused Mapleshade to go after her."

Yeah, ah, no, absolutely not, and anyone who thinks this is a moron. From chapter one, Mapleshade already didn’t like Reedshine because she kept harassing her mate. And being touchy with him. When Mapleshade arrived at RiverClan camp, Reedshine grossly asked why she was here. When AppleDusk rejects Mapleshade for her negligence Reedshine jumps on the bandwagon of xenophobia and cruelty to come at Mapleshade and say that she “caused enough trouble tonight” despite the fact that her children just died. She just screams "pick me" energy because she’s inserting herself in Appledusk and Mapleshade’s business. She can’t even begin to understand the extent of what either of them are feeling or suffering, and she’s simply trying to snuggle up to Appledusk now that he rejected Mapleshade. I can’t lie, with how she’s speaking to Mapleshade, it almost feels as if she was vaguely aware of Appledusk’s relationship with Mapleshade, and it’s why she’s being so especially nasty to her, trying to flaunt that she has her mate now. But no, AppleDusk did not cause Mapleshade to go after Reedshine: Mapleshade never liked her to begin with, and Reedshine stayed with her mate after knowing he and Mapleshade were once mates and had kits. She stayed, knowing that he was a traitor to his clan and the codes; she has no self-respect for herself. Mapleshade came after Reedshine because she just never liked her to begin with, and Reedshine wasn’t even her initial target she just so happened to arrive at the right time when Mapleshade was trying to fight Appledusk.

10.) “Appledusk got off Scott free."

Again, you made this up. The kittens that he loved dearly just drowned, and he was one of the first to find their lifeless little bodies, and he couldn’t do anything about it. His mate admitted that their enemies were the ones who pretty much caused this entire disaster, and his clanmates are persecuting him over the act of loving a cat outside his clan and are attempting to exile him for it. To even have dead children was enough of a punishment for him. And frankly neither he nor Mapleshade should’ve even been punished because what they did wasn’t even worth being exiled or being treated like that for. Again, everything is simply a product of conservatism, xenophobia and misogyny. The misogyny bit comes from the fact that Mapleshade’s privacy as a queen to not reveal the father of her kits was violated, and she was forced into a narrative that she didn’t even come up with but had to go along with for the sake of her children.

These next ones aren’t misconceptions but just opinions I’ve seen that I think are stupid.

11.) “Appledusk should’ve gone to the dark forest in place of Frecklewish."

Lol, no, if anything, Appledusk is the only innocent one and the least deserving of death or suffering out of Mapleshade’s victims. Frecklewish and Ravenwing actively contributed to Mapleshade suffering when they chose to break the code and exile children and send Mapleshade off with nowhere else to go and no safe route to RiverClan. And as I stated, all of her actions above made Frecklewish deserve her place in StarClan along with Raven and Oak.

12.) “Mapleshade did nothing wrong."