#Maybe ill bust out the Bright surrogates for him... let him have Amber and Snow or Dew. I know I want Amber in Shadow for some reason

[bonefall]

Just curious, is Russetfur still Raggedstar’s half sister in this universe or are they completely unrelated now? Also do you have anything on Boulder? He was always one of my favorite background cats

If they are half-sibs, it's not relevant! They won't know or care.

Chelford cats are matriarchal. Sires don't inherently play a role in the lives of their children, and seeking that sort of company is something a parent keeps discreet. Uncles and brothers fill the role of "father" in raising the kittens, with cats tracking their lineages through mothers

So Russet has no idea who her father is and doesn't care. Ngl, I also just... don't care about Hal lmaooo

(Imagine writing a super edition about one of your most popular characters, with a story that people have been begging to hear in detail for years, and then dedicating the entire opening to her shitty husband's daddy issues. Couldn't be me.)

Instead, Russetfur is related to the leader of BloodClan at that time. Brick is her sister. I might make Hal her uncle or older brother.

The conflict that occurs between BloodClan and ShadowClan at this time will cause the leader to be killed suddenly, triggering the Frenzy, the period of time during which a new leader is chosen. Pinestar is already having issues over in ThunderClan, and starts seriously thinking about leaving to go help out.

(Though it's certainly not his last straw.)

In any case... if Russetfur and her buddy Boulder had been having second thoughts about Clan life, getting the BloodClan Leader killed and burned the hell out of THAT bridge.

Anyway.

Russetfur and Boulder are in danger during TigerClan. Serious danger. They were loyal to Brokenstar and were safe as long as they were good warriors, but Tigerstar had his eye on them.

So, I feel they may have supported Deerfoot's Rebels, but deniably. I want Blackstar picking Russetfur to be heavily based on her participation, but I also need her to stay safe.

(Might end up having her escape and take refuge with Mistyfoot...)

Boulder is a lot more passive. I like him a LOT and want to expand his role a bit, just because... I Like Him. Literally just blorbo lmao. It's funny how the fandom consensus is just, "this guy's cool!"

I go back and forth on when Boulder's kids are born, and who they are. But he WILL be having kids

I'm set on Whitethroat being one of them, and leaning towards Wetfoot being another.

If Wetfoot is one of Boulder's kids, Firestar knows Boulder as a concerned dad. Wetfoot is going to get a bigger role as a friend in ShadowClan and Deerfoot Rebel.

In my head, Boulder likes the community of Clan life more than the violence, but because he's huge and served under tyrannical leaders he gets forced into battles he doesn't enjoy.

He massively regrets following Russetfur, honestly. He doesn't want to leave and go rebuild his reputation in BloodClan... but he also wishes he never came here.

In my heart, TPB is like the WORST period in this poor guy's life. Background character going through an absolute WRINGER

He's anxious for himself, anxious for his friends, anxious for his kids. Loses Whitethroat. Might lose Wetfoot to the Plague. Serves under TigerClan, terrified that if he isn't a perfect warrior he will get killed.

(And he's right. His fear is warranted. If Russetfur does something, like if I go with her being a refugee in ThunderClan, HE is going to get punished.)

And, of course, he is eventually used by Tigerstar to open up talks with BloodClan.

Even though he has Sasha, Nightwhisper, and Jaggedtooth to serve the same purpose... Tigerstar chooses Boulder.

He doesn't trust Jaggedtooth after he "fails" to contain the prisoners that escape to ThunderClan. He "proved" his loyalty by following his order to execute Deerfoot, but Jaggedtooth is now at the bottom of the pecking order.

Sasha is being reduced to a mate Tigerstar can control, even though she served as one of his mercenaries. He doesn't give her ANY agency.

Nightwhisper is a stupid tool, in Tigerstar's eyes. He does not respect his intelligence, just his eagerness.

So Boulder is chosen. He's smart enough to translate properly, fearful enough to do what Tigerstar says, has lived long enough as a Clan cat... and if he HAS any remaining kids, there is the implicit threat that if Boulder tries something funny, his child is who will pay for it.

After TigerClan ends, I feel like Boulder is desperate to retire early, but also feels like he can't ask for it. He's only survived this long because of his usefulness. It would be hard to trust that he can just... not serve, anymore.

If I can scrounge up more kits for ShadowClan (IT'S SO SMALL), I also would like him to end up having another litter mid-Po3.

Hopefully one of the kids of his first survived, so I can play around with the harrowing dynamic of, "Our dad is so much happier while raising you... I envy my younger sibling's childhood."

And on a final note, Boulder is probably going to get a Warrior Name during TPB. It doesn't really make sense that he just keeps his old one, unfortunately, when Clan Culture is at its most xenophobic and he's in active danger. He'll get Boulder back as a request between TPB and TNP.

#Better Bones Au #BB!Boulder #BB!BloodClan #BB!Russetfur #BB!TPB #Maybe ill bust out the Bright surrogates for him... let him have Amber and Snow or Dew. I know I want Amber in Shadow for some reason #Also idk his warrior name yet. Maybe Cold-something. Ill probably have Broken force one on him. #So it's going to end up sounding edgy #Broken's names are edgy #Lmao his name is like. Sharpstrike or Edgeclaw or something #Just something wild and super unfitting for him #Leave him alone he just wants to be a dad #Born to grill cursed to murder #(SOBBING) i judt watn to grill pela ae i waant ro gri ll... #I made runny evil in BB so I needed SOMEONE to be the Saddest Fucking Thing in shadow