Duskfur Time
This is going to include a lot of stuff that isn't canon but I do generally try to stay within what Could have happened in canon without breaking things. Love this woman love her flaws
Duskfur appears out of nowhere in the middle of Power of Three [Eclipse] fully grown. [This happens to a few other Riverclan cats as well- Icewing, Graymist, etc] Might be a bit of favoritism but due to us not knowing anything about her past, I like to imagine her as a former rogue/loner, which informs a lot of her character and actions [in my mind] moving forward.
Leopardstar has a history of taking in rogues [Sasha, Hawkfrost, Mothwing] and was seen to be close to Hawkfrost as his mentor as well as afterwards before his death. Eclipse takes place less than a year after Hawkfrost's death, and since Duskfur has an apprentice the first time we see her we can assume she arrived a bit earlier than her initial appearance. Leopardstar voice me when a colorpoint brown tabby former loner asks to join my clan right after my colorpoint brown tabby former loner apprenticeson dies [She will not fill the hole he left]
I imagine Duskfur tried a couple other clans first and was harshly denied. Much like Hawkfrost experienced, despite Leopardstar's personal approval, she would probably face hostility and distrust from many of her clanmates. I can't see her as ever being 'soft' or naive, but she regardless grows more stubborn and cold and works harder to prove she's just as useful to her clan as any cat, if not more so. I think she also projects a lot of hostility towards the other clans sort of as a show of her loyalty. [As seen in. Most of her appearances from outside perspectives] She questions some aspects of clan life, tradition, and religion but keeps these thoughts nearly entirely to herself, and is respectful to most of her clanmates, especially those in positions of authority.
Here comes the Duskreed section. Reedwhisker is still grieving for Hawkfrost ofc. Reedwhisker voice me when a colorpoint brown tabby former loner joins my clan right after my colorpoint brown tabby former loner unofficial mate dies [She will not fill the hole he left]
I wouldn't go so far as to say either of them really Love the other in a romantic sense, but they do at least like each other. Reedwhisker is one of if not the only cat to reach out to Duskfur and treat her kindly while engaging and taking interest in her personally. When they get together though, Reedwhisker is half doing it as a rebound + because he believes it's his duty as a grown warrior in his clan to start a family, and Duskfur is half doing it to cement her place in the clan.
Reedwhisker never really gets over what he'd had with Hawkfrost though, and his milestones with Duskfur only remind him of what he Could have had. When Leopardstar dies and Mistystar appoints him as deputy, his duty, in his mind, is no longer to start a family but to support his mother and work as hard as he can for his clan. His children are already born, anyways. They're still kits when he leaves Duskfur 'to focus on his deputy duties'. She's upset and perhaps angry and hurt about being left to raise them on her own, even if fathers in the clans don't typically play as big a role in parenting, but she doesn't Openly hold a grudge against him afterwards. She's better than that, and she's more than capable by herself. I do think she still respects Mistystar quite a bit.
I also don't think Curlfeather holds some intense anger or hurt or whatever over this that led to her plotting his death. She probably hardly remembers the time he was in her life and I think that would be Boring anyways. I Do think she could attribute this, among other things, to his traits of being unable to commit and prioritizing doing what he Thinks is expected of him as a clan cat over what might actually be right for the cats around him. I also think Reedwhisker holds a lott of guilt over several events in his life where he stood by or looked away when he should've Done something- he's a generic good boy and he does what he's told and he supports his mother and his clan but he's constantly aware of his flaws and the effects of his inaction yet does nothing about it his entire life. But I could make a whole other post for him.
Duskfur is seen in Mistystar's Omen stressed and struggling with raising her kits on her own. I think she was fairly strict but tried her best as a mother. I don't think she was a very Good mom but I don't think she was a Terrible one either. Her parenting [in my head] feels very real and flawed to me
She guards the nursery and her kits in the great battle with the dark forest
Duskfur's wariness of how her clanmates see her sort of isolates herself in her clan for a long time. As Curlfeather grows up, their bond grows very strong, for better or for worse. Think like Borderline the kind of mom who's always venting to her daughter. Not quite there, but pretty close. Get some friends your own age. Not that a large portion of their relationship isn't positive for the both of them. I don't think she shares this same bond with Podlight- she loves her son, but she doesn't think a tom could understand her in the same way. I imagine Podlight feels a bit neglected by both his parents; Even if she did everything she was supposed to do to raise him she didn't engage with him emotionally so much.
Duskfur feels like Curlfeather is the only cat she can be really open with. A lot of her views and criticisms regarding the way things work rub off on her daughter. Curlfeather also believes she can share a lot of her own thoughts and criticisms of what happens around them with her mother that she couldn't speak of elsewhere. Starclan and such.
Quick excursion. Duskfur's apprentices
Duskfur first appears with her own apprentice, Copperpaw [<3]
After existing for only a few books, Copperpaw disappears forever. Is she dead? Did she just leave? Who knows.
Duskfur's next apprentice is Shadepelt [AVOS]. Although unnamed, Duskfur scolds Shadepaw after the apprentice speaks up during a gathering. Again after existing for only a few books, soon after receiving her warrior name, Shadepelt is killed in the battle with Darktail and the kin- during which Duskfur is also severely injured.
Her last apprentice, Dappletuft [!!!!!!] lasts a while longer, but still dies in the next arc. There's a lotttt that happens in his life once again I'd need to make another post for his entire family- But I do think some of her views could have rubbed off on him in similar ways as they did to Curlfeather. He has a lot of reasons for the way he acts but it easily could have been a contributing factor. He dies in an assassination attempt against imposter!Bramblestar before he's revealed to be Ashfur.
Back to AVOS!!
Duskfur is part of the battle between Riverclan and The Kin, which is ultimately lost. Her former apprentice Shadepelt dies here, and Curlfeather is injured to the extent "Her pelt had been ripped off in several places" [etc]
Does Duskfur feel guilty that she couldn't protect these cats who were once her responsibility? Was she torn between them in battle? She and Curlfeather are both taken prisoner, although Duskfur's injuries are only described as 'a torn ear and a face covered in scratches'. Could she have stayed somewhat voluntarily to avoid leaving Curlfeather in such a state? The two escape the kin's imprisonment on their own to Windclan after some time.
Not long after this, while Riverclan is recovering, Starclan strikes their camp with lightning and starts a widescale fire to get them to work with the other clans again [<- this is canon]
She does literally nothing in TBC [That we see on page] But this is when her last apprentice dies and her grandkits are born. Curlfeather's plans start up here also. Duskfur has become much more confident within her clan by now, voicing her opinions often- she's lived here most of her life and shown her loyalty the whole time after all- but the ways she's learned to adapt through still hold her back some. She never really managed to get close to anyone emotionally outside her daughter. Obviously she's torn apart when Curlfeather dies in ASC.
She tries to support her granddaughter in Curlfeather's absence, but her success rate here is mixed. Being one of the most senior warriors, she's also very focused on figuring out what's best for Riverclan, on top of balancing her grief. She's willing to die for them when Shadowclan takes control, only surrendering when Splashtail calls the battle off. She's very angry about the Shadowclan cats taking over and occupying their camp. I think you could draw parallels here with her experience as a prisoner in her own camp in AVOS to explain why she feels especially strongly about it. She vocally disagrees with everything Tigerstar implements- even when it gets to the extent of being a detriment to those around her.
Eventually Tigerstar agrees to slowly lessen the amount of control and cats he has in Riverclan, and Duskfur takes her place as a temporary leader. She can't be particularly happy about it though as about this time Frostpaw is "confirmed" to be "dead". She's visibly affected by this when she announces it at the gathering, but seems to be trying to push those feelings away to focus on taking care of Riverclan, as shown by her "It does no cat any good to leave a wound open" speech. <- And then Frostpaw shows up alive 30 seconds later
There's an implied woww you're alive that's awesome but I do think it should've been more. Though she doesn't react with offense or hostility like a lot of other cats at Frostpaw's claims, Duskfur 'finds it impossible to believe Curlfeather would ever have done such a thing". I imagine it must feel wild to hear your granddaughter tell your entire tristate area your daughter was evil. She also is implied to feel hurt that Frostpaw didn't feel safe enough to come to her. I think she's trying to keep things controlled, especially in front of the other clans with their shaky standing + the current occupation they're trying to get rid of- But Frostpaw definitely should've been given wayyyyy more credit and concern here from literally anyone
Been a while since I put an image in here huh. I want to break it up a little give you a little visual relief. Here's your sidequest- The first Duskfur I ever drew is in here. Can you find her? Million dollar prize
Duskfur intends to discuss the matter further within Riverclan borders, but I imagine with Splashtail in control and Frostpaw not around to explain her side, that doesn't go very far. Duskfur doesn't defend Frostpaw when Splashtail refuses to welcome her back. Not very cool :\
Duskfur questions Splashtail during the start of his leadership. Eventually she starts working secretly Mothwing and Icewing to try and convince their clanmates that what he's doing is wrong, while outwardly supporting him. She makes sure to keep Mistpaw and Graypaw away from the dangerous parts, wanting to protect them, and she along with Icewing manage to tell Frostpaw what they're up to. She tells Frostpaw she doesn't want her taking any risks either.
Unfortunately the three get caught in the middle of trying to convince Harelight to defect, and are forced to run. Mothwing has already been injured badly as a punishment for questioning the false leader. Splashtail orders the Riverclan cats to kill them on sight. The three seem to have been brought together very closely through recent events, even if they may have had disagreements in the past. Duskfur refuses to let Mothwing downplay the extent of her injury, but seems less furious than Icewing. She seems thoroughly dejected by the clans' inaction.
They travel to Shadowclan's camp to get treatment for Mothwing, who Duskfur acts very concerned for. She also tries to make sure Frostpaw takes care of herself, eating and all. Duskfur still doesn't seem able to speak poorly of her daughter when Frostpaw brings her up, which only upsets Frostpaw further. The apprentice [rightfully] snaps at Duskfur for doing nothing when she needed her before storming off
etc etc you know how the book goes. This is already soooo long. #myessay
She checks in on Frostpaw while she's dying, and has a whole bout of apologies for every way she failed her once she wakes up. She's seemingly done a lot of thinking. I think this along with some of the earlier parts could have been written better, but such is the way of warrior cats.
I think she has a lot of growth through ASC-Star. In my mind. She finally forms a close, true relationship with cats other than Curlfeather [Mothwing and Icestar] through working together under Splashtail's reign. I think she'll feel more free to grow closer to the cats around her from here.
I also think, seeing Frostpaw on the verge of death, she can finally confront like. Why is it that every cat she's ever cared and been responsible for ended up dead, or 'evil', or severely hurt? And maybe she has some sort of responsibility in that. Maybe she should have been there in ways she wasn't, should have paid more attention or treated them with more care, maybe focused less on her own image. And I think her apologies and taking accountability at the end of ASC marks a change in the future of her relationships with her grandkits.
But anyways all this is subject to change; My headcanons can morph the further I think into everything. I just think she's really really fun to think about :3 I'd love to hear anyone else's thoughts on her, even if they contradict mine. Thank you if you've read this far this is so much longer than I anticipated oops oops