Larchkit's Faith

[larchsprout]

Rereading Mapleshade's vengeance and she just. Immediately goes 'I must kill Ravenwing' even BEFORE she has her 'hallucinations'. I'm wondering if they're even hallucinations and not simply Mapleshade *imagining* that she must avenge them.

[larchsprout]

Larchpaw still blames himself for not being able to save his siblings, Petalkit and Patchkit, from drowning. Sometimes he thinks Mapleshade would’ve preferred if they had surived.

[larchsprout]

Mapleshade is responsible for her kitten's death. This is not the same as saying she *intentionally* killed them. But, it is Mapleshade's decision that lead to their deaths - this is not up for debate. She chose to cross the river. She ignored Petalkit when she said there was too much water - insisting that they'd be *fine.* The deaths of her kittens are on Mapleshade's paws, even if she loved them all dearly - and perhaps that's why she went off the deep end. Because Mapleshade loved them. Mapleshade killed them.

Her inability to come to terms with their death and her role in it is a compelling thing to me. Oakstar may have exiled them, a cruel act, but it was Mapleshade that made them cross the river - and this is not the first time Mapleshade did this. In the first chapter, Patchkit almost drowns in a little stream and Mapleshade refuses to go into the water...because she doesn't want to get her paws wet.

Mapleshade is a flawed mother. She loves them dearly, but it's quite clear that she doesn't think that her kittens will ever come to harm. She thinks they're special. Exempt from any kind of pain, and her refusal to accept the consequences for her own actions makes her *very* compelling to me.

[larchsprout]

Larchkit's Faith

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

What if Petalkit & Patchkit both drowned in the stream that Mapleshade brought them to? Before Appldusk could save them? What if Larchkit was the sole survivor, and became an apprentice in ThunderClan? What if Mapleshade got to reveal her secret when she decided it was time?

[pawberri]

I think if you make money drawing anime you should care about Japanese politics and history and the Nikkei communities around you and asians in ur community and abroad in general and should care about them even more than anime. Many furries have Japanese branding and aesthetics and couch their whole identity in weird Asian pastiche and call themself an Japanese name and dont care to check how Asian diaspora around them or Asians in the fandom feel abt that

[pawberri]

Some of you have imperial japanese flags in the bg of your ramen dragon prints and dont even know what an imperial japanese flag is or what imperial japan is

[larchsprout]

Larchkit's Faith

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

What if Petalkit & Patchkit both drowned in the stream that Mapleshade brought them to? Before Appldusk could save them? What if Larchkit was the sole survivor, and became an apprentice in ThunderClan? What if Mapleshade got to reveal her secret when she decided it was time?

[larchsprout]

Mapleshade; Warrior Of ThunderClan, Larchpaw's Mother More than anything, Mapleshade wants the storybook ending of her life; RiverClan and ThunderClan brought together, StarClan blessing her lineage forever more. Everyone is a character in her grand tale.

[larchsprout]

Appledusk; Loyal Warrior Of RiverClan...Or so it seems. Ever since the deaths of Petalkit and Patchkit, Appledusk spends a lot of his time glancing at the stars. He wonders whether StarClan have accepted them, or whether they are being punished for his actions. He hopes they are not.

[larchsprout]

Larchpaw - Son Of Mapleshade & Appledusk; ThunderClan Apprentice. Currently saddled with the shadow of his deceased father, Larchpaw is a thoughtful and polite apprentice. He's incredibly hard-working, yet it is clear that Larchpaw feels deeply unhappy and frustrated at being constantly compared to the likes of Birchface.

[larchsprout]

Larchkit's Faith

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

What if Petalkit & Patchkit both drowned in the stream that Mapleshade brought them to? Before Appldusk could save them? What if Larchkit was the sole survivor, and became an apprentice in ThunderClan? What if Mapleshade got to reveal her secret when she decided it was time?