#shellfern

I think I understand why you feel that way. I think it's that a lot of cats have suffered and died for the cross-clan law, plus the way the narrative was so dismissive about migration in the last chapters of Star. It's offputting that we would get the first cheating plotline in years with Shellfur and Fernstripe specifically-- right at a time where the narrative is grappling with legitimizing the validity of these relationships.

After ASC had Berryheart radicalize a portion of ShadowClan on this, too. A plotline that was spectacularly fumbled, ending with a heroic death defending her family and not a single word of input from her hate crime victim, Fringewhisker.

It could also be that's there's something terrifying, but interesting in the idea too. Discomfort in the "worth exploring" type of way. What if you moved countries for a lover, only for them to leave you? Or for them to turn out to not be as kind as you expected?

For Fernstripe, that's a horrific situation. One that would be worth delving into (in fact im planning to do something like that with BB!Nightsun, details will come soon btw) with a dedicated POV. One of the unexplored evils of strict migration laws (particularly ones that depend on marriage or family) is that it's really easy to become trapped in a foreign country if the people you're relying on end up being abusive.

But.

A character is a narrative tool-- and the timing here is just terrible. I don't think it's wise to explore that now, not as a follow-up to an arc about bigotry and how it contributes to political radicalization. That's also assuming the writers aren't rat-hearted bastards trying to paint half-Clan relationships as bad things because they hate that they had to alter the status quo even slightly-- which I don't put past them.

Furthermore, from what we've seen, it's treated with all the casuality of an editor's mistake.

You can't just drop that a major supporting character has done something that should be a massive deal without follow-up. Shellfur dumping his mate less than a few months after her migration was plot relevant should cause an uproar in ThunderClan.

To have that unceremoniously done off-screen is just... beyond incompetent. Genuinely frustrating. This is an action/drama series and there's barely any action these days, so what's even left?

I hope this is just a mistake. I hope the writers see the backlash and put out a statement to fix it. I hope they DON'T decide this is a "good idea" and barrel towards it.

"Straight" Warrior Cats pride ships! Reminder that just because you're in a "straight-passing" relationship, it doesn't invalidate your queerness!

I did doodles for the new book! you have been warned