I know I don’t exactly have many watchers or interested parties, but for my own sake and any future watchers, I’m setting up tags for my projects as well as descriptions for them. I still take just about any requests for reviews out there, so feel free to send them in!
General Blog Tags:
#buildaclan: Should be on all Clan building posts.
#warriorsworldbuilding: All posts (that I can remember) that have to do with worldbuilding
#warriorsocs: Posts including my or others OCs
#myart: Posts including my art
My Project tags:
#oracleclans : After a false prophecy and betrayal by a medicine cat which started a war between all clans, starclan has withdrawn their power and protection from medicine cats and have instead promised a single cat to keep the peace by moving between the clans and learning their culture, they would be given the power of foresight, flashes of foreknowledge. But not everyone in the clans agrees with this, they see this oracle as taking away each clans autonomy and individuality, and one day there will be a reckoning.
#Thejourneymatters : A re-telling of the second series, with several twists and changes from canon.
Sub projects for this universe:
#SkyclanReborn: A descendant of Cloudstar and the old Skyclan, named Sky, is brought up to rebuild Skyclan. Under the instruction of an ancient she-cat, his grandmother, granddaughter of cloudstar. He learns the basics of clan knowledge, including a mangled version of the code, two part names, and the importance of Starclan. From this he goes about building Skyclan from the ground up.
#Beforethejourney: Not completely rewriting the first series, but including enough background information and headcanons to build a basis for the second series.
“My father failed the clan, but I will not. I will be the greatest warrior that ever lived.”
One of the many tragedies of canon, are the villains. As one of my goals I will be writing one-shots to try to rework some background villains which won't be immediately in my journey re-write, but relevant to context and background. Tigerstar is the first and holy smokes I had no idea it would get this long sorry guys. Also I did write this on mobile, and I checked it, but I may have missed some bits, so sorry for any mistakes.
In this world, Pinestars mate is closer to his age, and he is older, more world weary. This is a Tom who has lived through so much, seen so much war and suffering. Things he cannot change or fix as a leader. This is a Tom who has died eight times by the time his son comes into being, and as with most things it is an occurrence of sorrow. His mate, older and less resilient does not survive, and he watches in pure pain as his daughters drop away, one then the other. Only one kit, the small, sickly one, remains. As new leaders take the reins of other clans, Pinestar watches his friends, his colleagues, die. But Pinestar has already died, and he is tired, so tired. The call of Starclan does not excite him, not with the knowledge of what they have done to him, what they do to every leader. The young do not realize what sacrifices they choose to make. But he does. As he watches in apprehension every day to see if his son survives, Pinestar finally decides he has had enough. He announces to the clan that he is retiring, he will go to become a kittypet. What he doesn't tell them is that he has decided that for his life of sacrifice he deserves a little peace, a little rest. He is not ready to die, not again, and he doesn't want to have to watch anyone else leave him.
Of course none of the clan understands, beyond an elder or two, and there is still incredulity, resentment. And even though the clan does their best, the looks are still there, the whispers. Coward. Traitor.
Tigerkit, against all odds, survives. The queen fostering him routinely says he's blessed by Starclan, and he grows stronger and stronger. The queen loves him to bits, but once Tigerkit is old enough he learns that his parents are gone, and he wants to know more.
At first his clan tells him about his mother's death, and the death of his siblings. That is simple, and matter of fact. Death is expected in the clan, even if it is still sad. But everyone gets squirrelly when he asks about his father. They say he was a great leader, and that he passed on. But whenever they talk about it, they get this weird look, and it unsettles Tigerkit. Of course there are some cats who always give him this weird look, but when he catches them, they always look away.
You can't blame a child for their parents mistakes. But some cats wonder, and some can't help but be suspicious.
Of course this only fuels Tigerkit’s curiosity. But the clan is careful, and any apprentice or young warrior caught discussing Pinestar is reprimanded before young Tigerkit can hear.
By the time Tigerkit becomes Tigerpaw, he is big, strong, and confident, a perfect candidate for an apprentice. He is still given Thistleclaw for a mentor, and although the tom has that odd look he has seen from some cats, there is also determination, and an intensity which gives Tigerpaw a thrill of energy. Thistleclaw makes him a promise that he will make Tigerpaw the best warrior in the clan, no matter what happened in the past.
The words puzzle Tigerpaw, but the young energetic cat doesn't mind too much, and takes to training with a ferocity and excitement the other apprentices envy.
He is doing so well, that Tigerpaw is chosen for the next gathering, and it is there that the truth comes out, and in the worst way possible. Tigerpaw is introducing himself excitedly to apprentices from other clans, when a sneering Windclan cat says “Oh you're Pinestar’s kit? How does it feel to have a kittypet dad huh?”
Tigerpaw is rightfully shocked. How dare some grass-skinny crow from Windclan say that! “My father was a great leader! You take that back you walking piece of freshkill!”
“No, your coward father took Starclan last life and went to that the kittypet place, I can only imagine what kind of a weakling he sired.” the Windclan apprentice cackled.
The commotion draws other apprentices, and even a few warriors, including the pretty Bluefur who managed to keep Tigerpaw from shredding the other apprentices ears. Another skinny Windclanner cuffed the apprentice behind the ear and dragged him off, hissing something about provocation and did the apprentice want a war with Thunderclan?
Tigerpaw reeled from the encounter, and Bluefur, one of the warriors he had seen with suspicion in her eyes, now only looked at him with pity. She promised to tell Tigerpaw the truth, which sent a shudder down Tigerpaw’s spine, but only after the gathering.
As they returned, Bluefur had a word with Thistleclaw, who seemed a little hostile towards her, but eventually, allowed her to take Tigerpaw with her. She took Tigerpaw a different route, towards the twoleplace. It was only now that Tigerpaw realized that somehow he had never been this direction, every time his mentor had had some excuse or another to avoid it. And now, Tigerpaw was beginning to understand why.
Bluefur took him the edge of the forest, and showed him the homes, explaining two legs and how they lived, and explaining kittypets. Then she confirmed the apprentices story. Pinestar was here somewhere, maybe even still alive. But the clan preferred to act as if he was dead, and had hoped to spare him the knowledge.
Tigerpaw thanked her, and they returned to camp. Bluefur at that point, thought the situation was over, but it wasnt.
For nearly a moon after, he had nightmares, and his emotions were so skewed that he could barely interact with others. The only thing that helped was Thistleclaw’s training, and Tigerpaw asked for more, pushed himself more. He became an angry, intense apprentice, and his frustration became a biting point. However there were some cats he could never quite bring himself to be angry with: Thistleclaw, the queen who had nursed him, and surprisingly, Bluefur.
She had been the only one to tell him the truth, and for a while he nursed a little crush on her, a pretty older she-cat who seemed to be on a path to be deputy. A perfect role model.
Over the moons of his training, Tigerpaw mostly mellowed out, and started to gain better control of himself. But it was obvious to the medicine cats, and any warrior who knew him well, that there was a deep seated anger, and sense of betrayal.
It came about that one day Tigerpaw was patrolling with his mentor, near the twolegplace when they found a small pitiful cat who seemed lost. His scent screamed kittypet, and Tigerpaw felt his heart race. Finally he could prove his worth to the clan, he could get rid of an intruder.
Tigerpaw arched and spat, hissing at the cat to leave and never come back. But the thing seemed frozen, trembling. A weakling. At that moment, the Windclanner insult surfaced, as if it were whispered into his ear once more, and Tigerpaw struck out tearing at the small black cats ears.
It was only when the small mewled and he scented the wash of fear that the kits scent finally bled through, and Tigerpaw stared at his bloodied claws in shock. He was about to back away when he heard and yowl from the direction of camp, and Bluefur sprung from the undergrowth. The injured kit fled before Thistleclaw or Bluefur could prevent it, and the small clearing was left silent with only blood, fear, and uncertainty remaining.
Bluefur, filled with righteousness indignity and stung pride, ordered them back to camp. Thistleclaw looked like he was about to argue, they were equals after all, but Bluefur threatened to tell Sunstar what they had both done. It sunk in that Tigerpaw had broken the code, and one of the more sacred tenets as well. True fear filled him then. If his clan mates heard about this, he wouldn't be allowed near the nursery ever again. He would effectively have destroyed any chances of gaining a mate or kits in the future.No she-cat allowed aggressive toms near kits.
So Bluestar made a pledge with them. She would tell no cat of what had truly transpired, but they owed her.
After that he strove harder to become a warrior, and worked to bury his aggressive streak. Instead he became confident, charming, and a staunch defender of the code. When he became a warrior he was honored for his skills, and named Tigerclaw.
His first trip to the moonstone, actually made slightly after becoming a warrior, he dreamed. He was in a forest, a forest with many paths, some darker and some lighter, with different scents and sounds that wafted towards him. From one path came a familiar scent, but one he could not place. As he went down it, the trees blurred to different terrains one after the other, from Thunderclan, to twolegplace homes, to riverside to deep pines. With every step, the scent of blood grew stronger. Just before the dream ended, Tigerclaw saw him, the little kit he had once harmed, white muzzle reddened by blood, laughing as the stars in the sky were snuffed out one by one. The dream was disturbing, but soon forgotten, unlike some of the other nightmares which played repetitively through Tigerclaw’s nights.
For some moons all was well, until it became clear that Tawnyspots would not recover from his sickness. At that point, the acknowledged candidates by the clan for deputy were Thistleclaw and Bluefur.
This was when the oath price came. Bluefur told Thistleclaw that he would have to tell Sunstar he did not want to be deputy, if she wanted to keep their secret. Thistleclaw, although ambitious, eventually agreed. He did not need his already tentative reputation destroyed by one mistake from his past.
Bluefur became deputy, and functioned well until her pregnancy forced her into the medicine den. But when the kits were birthed, a strange thing occurred. About a half moon after their birth, Bluefur, Sunstar, and Featherwhisker left camp with the kits, and then returned with only Ivykit (Mosskit). Sunstar announced that Sunning rocks had been returned to Thunderclan by Riverclan and their territory would be respected, and that Thunderclan would be going to mark it right away. It could only be guessed that the kits had been traded to Riverclan in return for the land. No cat knew how to react, other than to raise Ivykit carefully and kindly, and say nothing of what happened to her siblings.
Tigerclaw finally understood why the clan had not spoken of his father to him, and worked to protect young Ivykit from the same grief he had suffered. He saw the glances, like ones he had received, but made sure those glances never came from him. Thankfully, Bluefur was there to help raise her, although much of the love and affection came from Thrushpelt, who had become Bluefur’s mate and was assumed to be the father of the kits. But when the time came, Tigerclaw asked to mentor Ivykit, and Sunstar obliged.
He bonded quickly with the fiery young apprentice, and taught her everything he could. But for some reason, the small she-cat was drawn to the river. She frequented Sunning rocks often, and played in the shallows when he let her. And one day, only half way through her apprenticeship, he watched her as she played near the edge of sunningrocks, in a dense cluster. He heard her cry, heard her fear, and watched as a snake slid away. Ivypaw died at his paws, and Tigerclaw anger was renewed.
Moons passed, and small resentments built one on the other. Bluestar was named leader, with Lion heart and her side as deputy, and led Thunderclan to several victories. But her arrogance and utter belief that she was perfect in Starclan eyes drove a thorn deeper and deeper into Tigerclaw. Soon Tigerclaw was given another apprentice, Darkpaw, who began to hold the same beliefs, and passed them on to his own apprentice.
But Tigerclaw believed in the code, believed in Starclan. When the time came he knew that he would be given his chance. He was already greatly respected in his clan and all the others.
Eventually he was given his third apprentice, Ravenpaw, and began to train him.
This is where the story of Fireheart begins.
For many moons Tigerclaw had made sure no kittypet set foot within the forest. The whispers of dangerous wildcats came from him and his staunch defense of the border. But when Bluestar accepted a kittypet, barely old enough to be an apprentice into the clan he was furious. But he was careful. He never outright contradicted his leader, nor antagonized the young Fireheart. He simply took the side of the code. He was a kittypet, a soft toy for twolegs, and unfit for warrior life. It grated on Tigerclaw that his own apprentice was less able to keep up with training than the kittypet. Eventually the warrior had to accept that not every cat was suited to his training, and Ravenpaw became Spotted leafs apprentice.
But the failure only made Tigerclaw more frustrated.
And then when Riverclan attacked, Tigerclaw and Lion heart fought side by side. This battle was particularly frustrating to Tigerclaw and he snarled at Oakheart for being ungrateful, that the lives of two kits werent even enough to make Riverclan respect Thunderclan’s territory. Then an untimely rock fall killed both deputies, but Tigerclaw was ironically saved by Stonefur, who had tackled him to get him off Oakheart. While Tigerclaw labored to recover from a fractured leg, Red tail was named deputy. Red tail had always been a
good warrior, but fragile, yet Bluestar would have him as her deputy?
While he recovers, he becomes good friends with Goldenflower, and although she has a mate, they speak at length about their loss of Lionheart. Goldenflower is the first cat who Tigerclaw ever opens up to, and she is the only one willing to listen. After the birth of Swift kit and the ensuing disinterest by her first mate, Tigerclaw steps up for her, and tenderly cares for her while she is in the nursery. So much so that not long after Swift paw becomes apprenticed, she is pregnant with Tigerclaws kits, and he adores her.
Tigerclaw took out his frustration by being the best. He was always out on patrol, always hunting, offering to help do a group training or mentor apprentices. In many cases, when Red tail could not do something, it was Tigerclaw who took charge. As time passed, Tigerclaw watched as Bluestar began to wane, and it was up to Tigerclaw to do the majority of Firepaws training. Despite his misgivings and displeasure with the kittypet, he did his duty, and he trained the tom as hard as he could. Perhaps he was trying to drive him away, but he ended up instead making the tom stronger and more resilient. It was unnerving.
Firepaw became Fireheart, and Tigerclaw then began to block him out. He was too busy taking care of the clan, while Bluestar spaced out and spent days in her den, muttering about Starclan and prophecies and death.
Tigerclaw is impatient. Red tail continues to hold on, often sharing duties with Tigerclaw, but Bluestar is slipping ever further into madness. Even so, her madness is private, and usually does not disrupt any clan decisions. But Starclan sends no sign to the two medicine cats, Spottedleaf and now Ravensight.
But then Red tail passed. Every cat in the clan knew, expected Tigerclaw to become deputy, until Bluestar named Fireheart instead.
The shock rippled out amongst the cats, and nervousness as well. Here, Fireheart is still young, even less experienced, and his feud with Tigerclaw is more private and less malevolent. Only half the clan is willing to listen to young Fireheart, while the other naturally gravitates to Tigerclaw experience. Tensions are mounting, and Tigerclaw only knows one solution.
One day he confronts Bluestar.
Unfortunately he picked a bad time, and moons of anger and suspicion coalesce as Bluestar spits fire anger at him, reminds him of the day she saw him harm a kit. She had never trusted him after that, and now, he was staging a coup? Angry, he shot back that was not right, not fit to lead, her choices were erratic and dangerous. She attacked him and together they tumbled out of her den to the middle of camp.
When they are pulled apart, Bluestar claims Tigerclaw attacked her. Although he denies it, she is the leader, and he doesn't have the best track record. Tigerclaw challenges Spottedleaf and Ravensight, asking them who they believe the rightful deputy of Thunderclan is. Spottedleaf says that Starclan sent a sign, claiming Fireheart as the cat to save the forest.
It is the ultimate betrayal. The clan he had lived in, toiled in his whole life time was turning his back on him. Starclan itself was turning his back on him. When he looks at Fireheart, the image of that kit, the scent of kittypet washes over him again, and finally after all this time something snaps. He attacks Fireheart and they fight, tooth and claw. It is a battle in the making of many moons and seasons, a cat who was clan born, but suspected from the beginning, never fully trusted or appreciated by the clan of his birth, against a cat who had found happiness, life, family, and divine approval.
The clan ends it, with Whitestorm restraining Tigerclaw, and Graystripe pulling back Fireheart. Tigerclaw knows then that his time with the clan is over. He can see the fear in his mates face, how she pulls her small barely two moon old kits behind her, hiding them from him. There is no need to exile him, and he voluntarily leaves.
From there he wanders, aimless. He has no ties, and has lost everything he had, hope, family, belief. He drifts into the twolegplace, but is driven out by the menace of a group of cats. In particular one cat who is the very same the kit he hurt, now survived to harm others. Scourge cackles at Tigerclaw’s sorry state, and doesn't even bother killing him. For Scourge, the humiliation and pain he deserves is worse than death, and he relishes in it.
Eventually Tigerclaw is caught by a Riverclan patrol, but invited to rest awhile in their camp. They had heard the story, and many warriors sympathized with him, seeing Fireheart and a young upstart, who knows not enough about the code or clan laws. Leopardstar soon takes a liking to him and flirts with him. The welcome in Riverclan soothes his hurts, as foreign as it is, and he is grateful for the distraction. Although he does not love Leopardstar, he has too much pain for that, he does accept her attentions and gives her what she wants.
Soon however, news from his home clan makes him anxious and he sets out to see if his family survived the fire. He manages to catch a sympathetic Longtail in the territory and begs for news of his kits. Thankfully he learns, they survived. Unfortunately not everyone was so lucky, and Spottedleaf died saving one of her patients. But now Tigerclaw must go elsewhere once more, he had left the clan, and that was all there was to it . He heads towards the Shadowclan border, thinking to cross and go around Shadowclan, and seek a new life beyond.
To his surprise, Shadowclan warriors find him at the border and practically beg him for his help. They had just lost their leader, and hearing about his misfortune, thought he might consider joining the clan and helping them rebuild. Brokenstar crusade had cost them much, and now they needed strong warriors. Tigerclaw agreed, but when he entered the clearing he was surprised when a practically skeletal figure emerged from the elders den and stumbled towards him, eyes milky from age. Yellowfang, once Shadowclan medicine cat. “You!” she exclaimed, “You're the one! I'm still alive so I guess this is a scourge time line then.” Which made no sense to anyone present. But as the days went on, Tiger Claws presence and strength seemed to return a sort of vitality to the clan, as he made the decisions others were too paralyzed to. And then the clan asked him to become leader.
His second trip to the Moonstone is different, and he is filled with the weight of responsibility. He stands before the moonstone several long seconds. If he chooses this, there is no going back, to Thunderclan, his family, or his past. Finally he knows his choice and touches his snout to the Moonstone.
Starclan greets him, their glittering eyes seemingly impassive, welcoming him as future leader of Shadowclan. Brokenstar is the first to approach and give a life. This is the life of wisdom. In this place there is no good or evil, this is simply the place beyond, and Tigerclaw now knows that in Starclan they see all. All possibilities, all futures, all choices, all good, all evils. But Tigerstar cannot know until he joins them.
Next are his two sisters, with lives of trust and love, to replace his sense of betrayal and loneliness. Then his mother, with a life forgiveness, for himself, and for others, the ability to move on and not be stuck in the past. Them comes Lionheart, with a life of loyalty, to honor and protect the code to the best to his ability, even when it seems like no one else will. Next Red tail with a life of endurance, to weather all struggles, and get past them. The last three come from his very own father, who steps from legions of misty cats. The lives are Hope, Decisiveness, and Fierceness. That he may make his decisions and stick to them, and fight with all the ferocity of Starclan, and know there is always hope, somewhere.
With these lives and this advice, Tigerclaw becomes Tigerstar, and leads Shadowclan. Over the next few seasons, he watches as the clans are slowly, stealthily persecuted. A pack of dogs is set loose, killing Bluestar in Thunderclan before heading to Shadowclan. Tigerstar withdraws his clan to hide, while setting baits and traps to lead them to the twolegplace. He knows if not for Thunderclan’s sacrifice, his clan would not have known in time to save themselves. His daughter, Tawnypaw joins him in Shadowclan, echoing many of the words and thoughts he had had as a kit, about feeling like they were suspicious of her. He welcomed her gladly.
And then rogues begin invading, stealing food, attacking small patrols in every clan , crisscrossing territories as the clans throw blame at one another. Tigerstar waits patiently and looks to twolegplace.
He knows the cause of the clans troubles.
He created it.
That little kit he once harmed became the greatest enemy of the clans. That path he once saw during his first trip to the moonstone, that cat would be the undoing of the clans. Scourge.
So Tigerstar went to Firestar, told him of who it was. Then offered to support him should the need arise. Together they gathered the clans and fought off Scourges Bloodclan. Many cats lost their lives that day, including all leaders, who lost at least one life of nine. But Scourge was defeated, and the clans saved.
As Tigerstar stood over the dead Scourge, he remembered him as a tiny vulnerable kit. He imagined what it might have been like if he had made a few more wrong choices, allowed his anger and bitterness to reign. Would he have risked everything to take down the clans? Killed any cat who got in his way just to win? Would he have allowed Fireheart to get to him and destroyed not only himself and his clan in the process?
What mattered was he didnt, and after he shared a respectful nod with the young Firestar, he was able to return to Shadowclan, his new home, confident he had made the right choice, and for the first time, empty of anger, resentment, and fear. He was finally free to be the best warrior, leader, and clan mate he could be.
