Transcript
Speaker: This is Never Grow Off, a show about two grown-ass adults discussing their love of middle-grade fiction. I'm one of your hosts, Laura. And I'm your other host, Jerrica. And it's time to get back into Fawking Warrior Cats with part two of The Darkest Hour.
Speaker: Laura, let me tell you. okay It has been agonizing having to wait for part two of this. Find out what happens because. wo these cats.
Speaker: Oh, these cats. The cats, like, they're fucking out of control. ah They do crazy things. Yeah, they really do. um
Speaker: And we finally have Firestar. We we do Alright, let's just get into it. I need to know how this ends. Okay, well, let me tell you. When they get back to camp, um unfortunately, more bad news. Because why not?
Speaker: Bragginfur is very worried and goes to Firestar and says, Hey, Tawnypaw is missing. Who was one Tigerstar's kids. Uh-oh.
Speaker: Yeah. And... And and which what's what is their mom's name? Goldenflower.
Speaker: Goldenflower. OK. And Brindleface was. um The mom that is cloud. I'm just going to call him Cloud Kit because that's how want to think about him. ah Foster mom, right? Yeah.
Speaker: OK. And she's died. Yes. Sorry, I thought you were talking about Golden Flower still for a second. i was like. and These fucking names, man.
Speaker: kind of So they track her down through her scent and they don't smell any other cat. Like they think originally that a ShadowClan cat came and stole her. But the scent is just her and she's just wandering off on her own and it leads...
Speaker: who It's leading away from the camp, obviously. And Goldenflower is pissed because she thinks Firestar is not worried enough. because firestar Her assumption is that Firestar thinks she left the clan willingly. And does Firestar think that?
Speaker: No, I don't think he does. um I think he's conflicted about it Oh, well, I was giving him the benefit of the doubt. he like He's not really sure what to think.
Speaker: He's never really sure about lots of things. I mean, that's true.
Speaker: But like... i feel... I mean, he...
Speaker: He's no...
Speaker: he doesn't He doesn't come off as like an amazing leader, but he also it basically he comes off as, yeah, he's incorruptible.
Speaker: Yeah. Yeah, and i think actually that's actually a good read on it. And I think that's why he is where he is now.
Speaker: He's a very typical like Hero of a middle grade story that doesn't always do the right thing, but always has the right morals. Yeah.
Speaker: And unfortunately, that goes a long way and in this story. Why unfortunately? Because that means there's a lot of traitors.
Speaker: Oh, I see what you mean. So they go back to camp and... um Life continues. At one point, there's like discussion about some of the cats don't like that the RiverClan cats are there.
Speaker: To which WhiteStorm points out, he's like, hey, so these are all half ThunderClan cats anyway. So they kind of have a right to be here besides the fact that just yeah we shelter them because Tigerstar tried to kill them.
Speaker: And the cats the cats are like, oh, but, you know, we have no prey, whatever. And Graystripe says, ah don't worry about it. I'll feed all of them. All three of them. And Mistyfoot is like, bitch, I'm a warrior. I've been a warrior longer than you. Like, yeah i can take care of myself. I can hunt. Just because I'm on a different territory doesn't mean I can't hunt. Like, fuck off, man.
Speaker: Which is also funny because I'm like, well, and the apprentices are apprentices, so they also can hunt. Like... Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: they're Yeah, they're they're not actually kids. ah Yeah. And um Firestar finally makes a correct decision. And a he asks Sandstorm to help with the apprentice's training because Stonefur had been apprenticing Stormpaw. And so he's like, I don't want Mistyfoot to have to take on both of them at once. So, like, can you help her with her training?
Speaker: And Sandstorm is like, it's about fucking time. Yeah. she but She's been waiting for an apprentice for like so long. Yeah. Which.
Speaker: It's very. i think it's confusing because. because oh wait. No, I was wrong. I'm so sorry. Yeah.
Speaker: He actually, okay, it doesn't actually make sense because he gives, he says Graystripe should mend her Stormpaw. And Sandstorm should help Mistyfoot with Featherpaw's training.
Speaker: Oh, come on So, actually, that doesn't make sense. I take back everything I said. Yeah. So do i I don't know what I said, but I take it back. Yeah, we fucked up.
Speaker: Sorry, listener. It happens.
Speaker: But after they decide all of this, Mudclaw from WindClan bursts into their camp. And he's like, you have to help us. Tigerclaw is attacking our our camp. WindClan, I feel like, has just been the sort of, like, innocent bystander of this whole arc.
Speaker: They've just, like... Shadow, you know, ShadowClan, you know, displaced them and then ThunderClan's like, oh, no, here, we'll help you. And then they're they're just there, i feel like.
Speaker: but They're always getting fucking destroyed and they're always asking ThunderClan for help. Kind of makes you.
Speaker: kind of wonder why they were like, no, you can't come through here to go to go to the. Right. Four trees. It's like, uh, bitch, do you know what we did for you? hmm.
Speaker: You wouldn't even be here it wasn't for us. Literally, because they didn't even want to come back at first until they were convinced that Broken Tail was gone.
Speaker: gone, was he? He sure wasn't. But he might as well have been. So.
Speaker: ThunderClan gets there too late. Oh, come on the battle is already The battle's already over. Aura!
Speaker: Don't do this to me. The WindClan cats are, like, sitting huddled around the clearing, obviously have just been through a really tough fight, and in the middle of them...
Speaker: is the body of Gorsepaw, who was the cat Fireheart helped bring across the thunderpla the Thunderpath in the second book.
Speaker: And he has been, like... Kind of paying attention to his training because he feels this special bond with him. And his mother, Morning Flower. Damn it. Yeah.
Speaker: And his mother, Morning Flower, is like... We're all his mothers named Flower. Apparently. ah so this This... Hold on. I need a second. this Okay, yeah. This sucks. oh This sucks so much.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So, yeah, Firestar is very shook because he realizes the purpose, the whole purpose of this battle was to just instill fear in WindClan. And Tigerclaw, as he killed Gorsepaw, told everyone that this is a warning and this is what's going to happen to all of you if you refuse to join Tigerclan.
Speaker: Yeah, that's... That's what I was afraid of. Yeah. and Firestar and Tallstar like shuffle off to the side to talk and they're like, yeah, so we're not joining Tiger Clan, right? And yeah, Tallstar is like, I would rather die than join Tiger Clan. Let's ok yeah yeah let's just team up with each other to fight these motherfuckers off.
Speaker: And so.
Speaker: Lion and Tiger. They're not calling himself Lion Clan though, right? I don't think at this point they do. At this point? um
Speaker: Oh And Tallstar is also like, Bluestar made the right decision in asking you to join the clans.
Speaker: I mean, yeah, she probably did. the Later, Tigerstar makes a visit to the ThunderClan camp. And gives Firestar the same offer. He's like, OK, you need to join in with what?
Speaker: How does he even get there? How does he not get attacked? He refuses his feet. No, like he makes a visit. Why is he even ah allowed to visit this motherfucker?
Speaker: He should be kill on sight. Sorry.
Speaker: Oh, they mean i'm so no they meet at four trees. You're right. I double checked. I was going to say that didn't seem right. um And...
Speaker: and Now, internally, Firestar is calling them Lion Clan, but he hasn't like said that outright. It's just a ah fantasy in his head, I guess.
Speaker: Which he wouldn't even think of unless he got that prophecy. That's what's... Uh-huh. So, we're yeah, we're not going to interfere, except we are. Uh-huh. yeah, Lion Clan and Tiger Clan meet at Four Trees, and Brackenfur...
Speaker: brack and fur notices that oh look there's tawny paw with the shadow clan cats god damn he he's like tiger claw did steal her and tiger tiger star is like steal her oh no she just came to live with us willingly
Speaker: to him and what about her brother Well, he calls out to her and he's like, what are you doing? Like, come back to ThunderClan. And she just like looks down at her paws.
Speaker: The thing is that. In ThunderClan, all of the cats had started treating Tawnypaw and Bramblepaw like shit. Yeah, I yeah, even Firestar. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, that's fucking rough, man. Yeah. so Fire ah Tiger Star is, you know, all OK, are you going to join us or not?
Speaker: And Firestar obviously says, no, fuck you. and especially the fuck you. Yeah.
Speaker: And. a bunch of fucking cats. Fan out on either side of Tiger c ah tiger Clan. More cats Firestar. He's like, this is more than any group of cats I've ever seen together, even at a gathering. And Tigerstar is like, are you sure you don't want to join us?
Speaker: Yeah, because like if he said yes, it would it would it would go well for them. Right? Yeah.
Speaker: Firestar sees this huge black and white cat and he's like, okay, that must be the leader of this new group of cats. but it's not. Tigerstar says, oh, here's BloodClan, my new friends.
Speaker: And i yeah, just so you know, the forest is going to be ruled by two clans now, TigerClan and BloodClan. So we're going to just fucking kill you if you don't join us.
Speaker: Can mention how much I fucking hate this guy? They still, you know, say no we're not going to join you. So Tigerstar is like, BloodClan, attack!
Speaker: And none of the cats move.
Speaker: And he's like, ah the fuck? I told you to attack, do it. And then the teeny tiny black cat, who we know as the leader, Scourge, steps forward and is like, actually, these are my cats and they don't take orders from you. So they're going to attack when I tell them to.
Speaker: Right in front, like, that has to piss Tigerstar right the fuck off. Uh-huh. Tiger... The look Tigerstar gave him was incredulous and glittered with all the hatred he had ever shown to Firestar.
Speaker: me but I mean, I'm sure that Tigerstar planned on, like, getting rid of him anyway, eventually. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker: And so Firestar takes this as his opportunity and steps forward to talk to Scourge and he's like, hey, um I don't know if you what you know about Tigerstar, but anything he's promised you, he's going to go back on. And i think that we could exist peacefully together, but you know we we don't have to fight about this. and
Speaker: Scourge is like, ah Well, you know, he told me about the conflict. i don't know why I should believe you over him, though.
Speaker: And finally, Fireheart, Firestar fucking tells the whole forest, the whole story behind Tigerstar. Like, I don't understand how it's taken this long. that It was revealed in book three what happened. And it took them two more goddamn books for Firestar to tell all the clans.
Speaker: Well, he did try and then lightning. ah Yeah, that's true. So that wasn't necessarily his fault. So as he's going through the story. One of the things that Extra makes all the cats turn on Tigerstar is when Firestar brings up that he set up a trap that Cinderpelt got stuck in with the Thunderpath. And he's like, yeah, he crippled her forever. And the cats across all of the clans disapprove of this because everyone fucking loves the shit out of Cinderpelt.
Speaker: And he's like, damn, she is popular. Oh, yeah, that's why that's why she couldn't be a warrior. Yeah. I.
Speaker: Yeah, I thought she got hurt during training or something, but. Oh, yeah, I remember now because she was helping because fire fire your heart.
Speaker: Was her mentor, right? Yeah. Oh, and that, yeah, and then that's why I got mixed up because he blamed himself and Cinderpelt's mom said no, but secretly she did. um No, she didn't blame Fireheart.
Speaker: I thought she did like secretly in her heart in her own heart. No, when he started apologizing to her and she was kind of just like...
Speaker: dismissive in like not a disrespectful way like she was kind of like no I don't blame you and then goes back to her own mourning like she's like I don't really have time to deal with your guilt because I'm my child almost died So, Tigerstar is fucking pissed that Scourge is talking to Firestar, and he's like, hey, we had an agreement, so, like, you better fight beside me and honor all of what I have, like, honored our agreement, and I'll give you what we wanted. And Scourge is like...
Speaker: Um, actually, Firestar, he's like, Tigerstar did tell me all the horrible things that you're saying. Like, with the dogs specifically, he told me how he was going to wipe out your clan. But he didn't tell me it failed. And he, like, side-eyes Tigerstar. Ooh. And he's like...
Speaker: I'll think about what you said. We're not going to fight today. I'll go back to the two leg place and we'll come back later after I've had some time to think about it. And Tigerstar.
Speaker: Oh, Tigerstar.
Speaker: Screams at him that he's a traitor. Leaps up at him. He's about he want he's going to try to like tear him apart. And Firestar is like, oh no, this teeny tiny cat is about to get ripped apart by Tigerstar.
Speaker: I don't think so. And Scourge i dodges it easily. He turns to face him and he lashes out with his claws, which have been reinforced with sharpened dog's teeth.
Speaker: Whoa.
Speaker: he ah he a attacks fires star i sorry He attacks Tigerstar, who falls over onto his side, exposing his belly.
Speaker: And Scourge takes his claws and rips him from his throat all the way to his tail. Oh, shit. and so shit! shit!
Speaker: Like, that's pretty graphic for a kid's book. Yup. And Tigerstar, there is a lot of description about his convulsing, his choking on blood, and eventually goes still, and Firestar is like, oh, shit, like, he's losing his first life.
Speaker: And there's, like, silence in the clearing as everyone is just shocked at what is happening. And then... Tigerstar's body spasms again, yeah and he's like, screaming and starts, like, it's the process starts again. He's, like, choking and flailing around, and Firestar is like, oh my god, he's dying again.
Speaker: hey hold on. The wound that Scourge gave him was so horrible that is shit it was unable to heal after he came back to life.
Speaker: it's like It's like you were at the bottom of the ocean and you drowned and then you... came back to life and then immediately drowned again. Yup.
Speaker: Whoa, fuck. so all of the cats just watch as this keeps repeating until finally Tigerstar just stops moving and all of his lives are gone and he's not coming back.
Speaker: Serves him right. Yeah. I yeah kind of wish it was Firestar, but, you know, that did Yeah, well, Firestar is looking at the body, like, in disbelief, like, oh my god, this cat that I've had beef with for so long has been my enemy and has caused me so much grief. Like, he's he's gone just like that.
Speaker: He, like, doesn't even know how to process it.
Speaker: And so Scourge, not having a lifelong feud with Tigerstar, is just like, okay, so this is what happens to cats who defy blood clan.
Speaker: ah You're gonna die horribly. so you better fucking, you know, do what we say. Firestar is like,
Speaker: Yeah, we don't want to like tell you what to do or anything. All we want to do is live in peace and um feel free to hunt before you leave. like I want to coexist peacefully with you. And Scourge is like, oh no. No, no, no. What do you mean?
Speaker: we're not leaving the forest ah entirely. no it's great here. We've realized how awesome it is. We're not really having enough territory in two-leg place. Cats are having to fight for food and scraps. And he's like, no, I'm going to rule the forest and two-leg place. And I know you probably need time to process this. So I'll leave you three days.
Speaker: And then on dawn of the fourth day, I'm going to come back and I'm going to be ruling the forest. And anyone who disagrees is going to be met with this fate. Oh, fuck.
Speaker: That's even worse than fucking Tiger Claw. Sure is. but So. ah Yeah, they. are
Speaker: They got an even bigger problem now. Yeah, they do. But now all the clans get to unite and just be Lion Clan instead of Tiger Clan and Lion Clan.
Speaker: So the all the rest of them, like, even Shadow Clan, are like, oh, uh, yeah, we're gonna go with you guys?
Speaker: Yeah, they... They're not really sure at first because all the Tiger Clan cats just fled when Tigerstar died. But Firestar is talking to Tallstar and he's like, we need all the clans united on this. Like, we simply do not have enough cats to deal with this if we don't get ShadowClan on our side.
Speaker: And they do eventually. Yeah, the clats all the cats join in to form LionClan. And they're okay with it being called LionClan? but know that Firestar has actually vocalized that.
Speaker: and Okay. So Ravenpaw brings Barley to talk to Firestar. and So are they still just... Are they still in RiverClan? Or did everyone like go home? or um They all went home at this point.
Speaker: They learned ShadowClan went to shelter in RiverClan.
Speaker: Yeah, that makes sense. Yeah.
Speaker: So, Barley tells Firestar that he technically grew up in BloodClan. so Whoa! Uh-huh. So he's got a lot of ah inside knowledge to share.
Speaker: now wonder Barley's, like, hiding out in a barn. Uh-huh. Yeah, he said he grew up there with his littermates and it was pretty awful. It's kind of like all cats for themselves, which we could gather just from the attitude of these cats. But he says they don't live by any kind of code like the clans do.
Speaker: and Usually the mother will hunt for the kits because even Scourge knows that he needs more kits to grow up to populate his clan. But then after the kits are self-sufficient, they're just like not allowed to be together anymore.
Speaker: Like i said the moms. Yeah. So essentially families aren't allowed to stay together. Shit. Because he doesn't want anyone to ah build any sort of resistance. And he knows that separating them is going to make them more dependent on him.
Speaker: And plus, like, they won't have loyalties yeah to anyone by him. Yeah. So it's pretty messed up. And Firestar, know, is thankful for everything that Barley can tell him.
Speaker: So is Raven... Ravenpaw, right? Yeah. Okay. ah Is Ravenpaw still... like Now that Tigerclaw's dead, is he just like, well, I'm out now?
Speaker: He wants to live with Barley still. Oh, but yeah, he's still in the fight, yeah. Okay. Yeah. He and Barley are like, I'm gonna stay here and fucking fight. Yeah.
Speaker: Okay. I know that he's going to live with Barley. I think we all know why. ah Yeah. The same reason Pines Star and Jake went to live with Jake.
Speaker: So all the cats are preparing for this big battle, and Sandstorm gives a little hint to Firestar and is like, you know, Sorrelkit is doing pretty good for being a little kit. She's like practicing battle moves even though no one's teaching her. I wouldn't mind being her apprentice when she gets to be apprentice age. And Firestar says, okay, yeah, when she is an apprentice, you can have her.
Speaker: So finally, Sandstorm is going to get a fucking apprentice. Except one of them is going to die before that happens. Who knows? you You do.
Speaker: but And the shadow does. The shadow? The shadow knows. What the fuck are you talking about? ah I'll tell you later.
Speaker: Okay. I didn't want to get into a long tangent. it's all Yeah. yeah Firestar goes to warn his sister Princess to like us stay inside essentially.
Speaker: oh yeah yeah yeah yeah. And she's she's a little a scared little kitty cat. Kitty pet. oh she's very impressed with him for being a leader though even though she doesn't really understand anything yeah oh that sounds nice was that sounds nice rusty good for you
Speaker: Yeah, pretty much. Whitestorm does some more ah playing devil's advocate for Firestar. He talks to him privately and he says, a lot of cats are going to die in this battle. Like, that's for sure, even if we win it.
Speaker: The Blood Clan is so big and fierce and cats are definitely going to die. Do we really think this forest is worth all of this? Should we find a new place?
Speaker: Oh, now that's actually some pretty fucking smart ah thinking. See, who one day White Star.
Speaker: Firestar is absolutely against this idea. he says, no song yeah no fucking way. but We're not doing that. I mean, I knew that was coming. Yeah. and White Storm is just like, okay, well, I told you my opinion. That's what, you know, I did my duty as a deputy. I'm not going to respect your decision because White Storm is fucking awesome.
Speaker: Even though ah his dad is a little sus. Yeah. At least according to Blue Star anyway. i mean, we saw a whole book of him being sus.
Speaker: Yeah. Poor Snowfer. Yeah. Firestar has like a moment of, um, he's essentially having an existential crisis. Cause he's like, how am I supposed to lead all these cats? Did StarClan really choose the right cat for this? And to four trees and asks. Well, he's ah he's in such, he's so distraught over it that blue star comes to talk to him. Yeah.
Speaker: And he accuses her of...
Speaker: of trying, like, to destroy the forest, essentially. He's like, well, because he's like, you guys, and there are a few other StarClan cats there too. And he says, you sent the lightning down at the gathering so that I couldn't tell them what Firestar was up to. So like, what the fuck are you trying to destroy all of us? And Blue Star says, wait, no, Firestar, you don't understand. StarClan doesn't rule anything.
Speaker: and he's like, ha what? but And she's like, no, we watch over you and we send you omens and dreams. But like, we're not in control of the storm. We're not in control of what Scourge or Tigerstar does.
Speaker: We leave the freedom up to you to decide what to do with things and we don't interfere with it. That's not what he wanted to hear. she tells him,
Speaker: and she tells him He has a warrior spirit and the strength of a true clan cat. And his faith in StarClan is all he will need to win this battle. Meanwhile, right before she died, she's like, fuck StarClan.
Speaker: Yeah. I wonder how that went down. It's like, oh, yeah, fuck us, huh? I would love to see her entry into StarClan. Firestar goes to talk to RiverClan and ShadowClan and this is when he convinces LeperStar to join together and become LionClan even though she's like
Speaker: She's like scared to fight BloodClan and she's like, what did you even see what Scourge did to Tigerstar? Like, we can't fight that. And he's like, well what are you going to do Leave the forest? And she says, well, actually, we did send a scouting party out to look for new territory.
Speaker: um But in the end, Firestar is able to convince her to join together. And she asks him if he will be the leader of their temporary united clan.
Speaker: Like, not like, hey, will you be the leader? Or is it so are you going to be leader? No, she's she literally says she's like, will you lead us? I don't have the strength to take care my cats into battle.
Speaker: Fucking leopard star. Because of everything that's happened to them, she like, yeah, she's she's not up to it, essentially.
Speaker: Well, at least she got her comeuppance. and so they announce it to the cats. and fucking Darkstripe.
Speaker: Fucking Darkstripe is still there. And he's like... is he still there?
Speaker: And he's like, a kittypet leading us. Are you out of your minds? If I was Firestar, I would have been like... I would look right there and be like... Darkstripe is still here?
Speaker: Why? get the fuck out of here. Like, remember when he was super excited to kill your deputy?
Speaker: This fucking guy. Yeah. Firestar is like, what the hell are you talking about going on about me being a kittypet? Tigerstar fucking brought BloodClan here and now we're all going to die. Yeah, well, you know.
Speaker: Yeah, pretty much. yeah Exactly. Like, he doesn't have an answer. um And then apparently Boulder, a ShadowClan warrior, also used to belong to BloodClan. Is that why they don't have a ah second name?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: And he was the one who introduced BloodClan to Tigerstar. And he's like, oh, I tried to tell him that Scourge was dangerous, but... you know, we...
Speaker: ah We never thought that he would kill Tigerstar. Really, dude?
Speaker: Please, you... If you grew up in BloodClan, you've seen some shit. Yeah. so apparently what happened is after Tigerstar died, ShadowClan cats fled.
Speaker: As well as the RiverClan cats, but... And they went back to their camp, and then BloodClan came and attacked the ShadowClan camp... and the majority of those warriors fled to RiverClan. However, some of them changed sides and decided to join BloodClan instead. and Fucking ShadowClan.
Speaker: And Jaggedtooth joined them, which who was the warrior who was guarding the apprentices. Mm-hmm. Yeah. and Figures. Figures.
Speaker: And he had also followed Broken Tail, so it's like, yeah, maybe this is a sign to not let cats who continuously follow evil cats into your clan. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Speaker: Bramblepaw and Tawnypaw have a discussion about why she left, and she tells him that he... didn't want to be judged for what Tigerstar was doing. She's like, yeah, my life was turning out to be awful because everyone thought I was an evil cat because of Tigerstar, but like, I'm just a fucking apprentice trying to live my life. And I joined ShadowClan and all of that goes away. Like, they all just accept me and i get to prove who I am as a cat and not just live in his shadow. Yeah.
Speaker: Shadow. Shadow. and So do they do they do they refer to him as Tigerstar or do they refer to him as dad? I don't i don't don't know. Oh, they never say dad. Any cat. Ever?
Speaker: No. Okay. And Bramblepaw asks Firestar if she can come back into the clan and Tawnypaw's like, well, okay, hold on. I didn't ask that. Like, I didn't say I was going back to ThunderClan.
Speaker: Whoa. And just straight up says like, yeah, I've seen how ThunderClan is. I see how they treat cats that they deem not loyal warriors. So like, yeah, I'm not going back there. And she wants to stay in ShadowClan.
Speaker: Well, so ShadowClan's not.
Speaker: Not hooking up, but they're not going to become part of LionClan.
Speaker: They are, but she's saying after they go back to being their own separate clan. Gotcha. got i Gotcha, got you gotcha, gotcha, gotcha. Okay, we love to dunk on Darkstripe. So let's do that for a scene. Well, because he fucking deserves it, laura so everyone agrees, okay, yeah, we're going to go fight BloodClan tomorrow. And Darkstripe is like, you're all mad! You're going to let a kittypet lead you? Hell no, I'm not doing that.
Speaker: And Leopardstar is like, you're gonna obey orders. And Darkstripe just says, nope, I'm not. You're not my leader.
Speaker: Leopardstar says, thanks, Starkland. I'm not. You're about as much use as a dead fox. but Well, I mean, don't wouldn't they eat the fox?
Speaker: Well, the fox can't defend itself, I think, is what she's getting at. Oh, okay.
Speaker: And Darkstripe finally leaves. For good, and we never have to see his face again. Until.
Speaker: but I don't know what he's going to do because. Tigerstar is dead.
Speaker: yep You know, he could have been that he could have been one of the redemption arc characters. But no, he is going to continue to be an asshole. Well, that's what we have Longtail for. Yeah, so I guess fuck you, Darkstripe.
Speaker: ah And we'll definitely never see Darkstripe again. He's gone forever.
Speaker: ah The way you said that... but Come on, you don't really think that's last we're going to see of him ever, right? No, of course not. so the day finally comes, the last day that ah Scourge had given them to decide. so they all join together and i go out to meet BloodClan. On the fields of battery. Uh-huh.
Speaker: and Firestar is like hesitant about taking the lead because he's like, oh, we're all leaders. like It feels weird to be leader of leader. But Tallstar and Leberstar are both like, nah, nah, go ahead. You're the one who's taken charge this whole time. Go for it. And if you go south, you're the one that's going to blame.
Speaker: So Firestar goes up to talk to Scourge and he's like, okay, we don't have to fight. You can go back to Two Leg Place. We'll stay in the forest. We can have peace between us. And while he's doing this, he's looking over Scourge thinking like, damn, that memory of you slicing Tigerstar's belly open though. I'm a little bit intimidated.
Speaker: I'll just don't let him near your tummy. Yeah. and Scourge obviously says, no, the force is ours. And also fuck StarClan.
Speaker: He's like. go Scourge you even know about StarClan? Firestar is like, we rule here by the will of StarClan. And so Scourge is like, StarClan is for kids. They're not going to help you. And gives the order to attack.
Speaker: So... Alright, let's... Let's... Fucking Pelennor Fields up in here. so big battle starts. Cats everywhere. Screaming, clawing.
Speaker: at one point, he sees... No, so, is this... Sorry, I'm so sorry. no is Is this, like... All the cats? Like... Yeah. Even, like, the...
Speaker: Not the elders, surely. yeah, no, not the elders, sorry. Not the elders and not the kits. Not the elders and not the kits. There's actually a conversation Firestar has with one of the elders, Speckletail, because she wants to come fight, and he's like, no, because like you guys are all just going to die. We're not fighting warriors who will who don't have to kill their enemies to win. like We're fighting cats who are just going to kill you.
Speaker: At some point, he sees... so we get, like, glimpses of some cats throughout this battle. We see Mistyfoot fighting shoulder to shoulder with Featherpaw and Stormpaw. Brightheart is doing very good with the battle. Yeah, with the battle moves that she and Cloudtail practice, she ah is pretty much an expert now at, like, any time they try to get in her blind spot, she just, like, weaves around and doesn't let them, you creep up on her anything.
Speaker: It's almost like, you know, having a disability doesn't mean that you can't do fucking anything. Yep. We see Morningflower... Just going fucking buck wild and screaming about Gorsepaw. Like... Yeah. She, uh... She's getting some of her anger out.
Speaker: Did we ever find out ah what, uh... Golden... Was it Goldenflower? Yeah. Uh... Like, what she thought about Tigerstar and all the shit that he did and ah She does not approve.
Speaker: Okay. Yeah, she didn't realize that he was doing what he was doing. It kind of, you kind get the feeling that, like, her and Tigerstar were never in love. They just, they were just mates, you know? They just fucked. Yeah. Like, obviously, there are a lot of cats that fall in love, but there are also a lot of cats that are just like, yeah, we're cats, so we have mates.
Speaker: Yeah, you're, okay. Yeah, no that that that's that's a pretty pragmatic ah view to take. Yeah. Yeah. And honestly, I guess that's a bit fucking monogamous centric of me.
Speaker: that You know what I mean. Yeah. Firestar is looking for Scourge in this battle because he's like, okay, if I kill Scourge, maybe that will end the whole thing. Maybe. I'm not sure because there's no way of knowing, but maybe. Because these cats are like crazy and bloodthirsty. So he's kind of thinking like, okay, well, there's, I don't know how loyal they are. Like, are they going to just continue killing everyone, you know?
Speaker: okay But the cat that he finds instead... is our friend dark stripe god damn it fucking just take care of this guy once and for all firestar just gosh and dark stripe uh-huh and dark stripe is like okay i am finally gonna get to kill you and fire firestar says do you have any loyalty in you at all? Because you were loyal to Tigerstar and now you join the cats who murdered him.
Speaker: Like your whole thing was how you love Tigerstar. And Darkstripe is like, nah, I don't care about any of these fucking cats. I just want to kill you. so if being on their side is what makes that happen, you know, that's yeah that's what I'll do.
Speaker: Darkstripe is out for Darkstripe's self. Yeah, so Darkstripe and Firestar are fighting, and Graystripe joins in, Okay, if there's one more Stripe, son of bitch. I know.
Speaker: Graystripe joins in and flings him off him, and fucking puts his claws into Darkstripe's throat, Jerrica... jericah yes dark stripe fucking dies good i i just thought that would make you very happy i mean don't stripe on stripe violence i'm not sure about but yeah i just wanted to say that that's i know his last words he chokes out there's nothing left it's all dark everything's gone and then he dies
Speaker: Yeah, good good good luck getting into StarClan, friend. You're going to go wherever Tigerstar is. Fucking, i don't know. I
Speaker: i don't i don't know what the hell for Cass would be like. Well, we'll get to it. Oh, shit. Okay. It's a little teaser there.
Speaker: Firestar is confused why Graystripe looks so distraught. And Graystripe is looking in a different direction across the clearing and he's like, oh no, Firestar, look.
Speaker: And he looks over Bloodclans deputy Bone is standing over another cat. and Firestar realizes that it is Whitestorm on the ground under him.
Speaker: No! And he's not moving. Yeah. So... Wait, so, wait. BloodClan has a deputy? Yeah. Even though they don't follow the... Even though they... Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Speaker: Okay. I mean, it's pretty much just the second in command. I don't know that BloodClan actually calls him a deputy. Gotcha. Okay. So... They're about to attack him, but then...
Speaker: Bramblepaw and Ashpaw leap on him and they're like going fucking crazy attacking him because they're so pissed. that's That was their dad?
Speaker: Well, Bramblepaw is Tigerclaw's son. Right. But Ashpaw is, yeah, Whitestorm is his dad. Was.
Speaker: Well, yeah. And so the apprentices are distracting Bone, so Firestar has a moment to go, and White Storm is, like, just barely alive. So it's essentially the movie movie moment of they have time for one last conversation. Yeah.
Speaker: And... Firestar is all like, no, no, don't leave. Like, I need you. clans need you. And Whitestorm is like, trust your heart, Firestar. You have always known that Graystripe is the Catstar clan destined to be your deputy.
Speaker: and Firestar's like, yeah, but... okay Are you sure? Yeah. Like, he's my best friend and all, but like... Uh-huh.
Speaker: Yeah, Firestar doesn't have those reservations. He's just like, okay, Graystripe, you heard what he said. Whitestorm chose you. And then right then and there, says the words to declare Graystripe as a deputy.
Speaker: So immediately, Graystripe is the the deputy. Well, so much for Whitestar. Yeah. When you said that, my heart hurt a little bit. oh I'm sure there'll be another white star somewhere.
Speaker: yeah i ah the corners, I. Oh, shit. That's the last. That's the last. No, Mistyfoot's still alive. Yeah. OK. All right.
Speaker: Sorry. i Well.
Speaker: There's also Ashpaw and Fernpaw. well you were going say the glass cat. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, okay. Yeah, okay. Out of the corner his eye, he sees that the apprentices are still fighting Bone, and ah more have joined him. So we now have Bramblepaw, Ashpaw, Featherpaw, Stormpaw, and Tawnypaw just beating the ever-loving shit out of this cat. They all fucking hate him.
Speaker: yeah And yeah, they straight up just kill him. Nice. Yeah, there's there's no there's no like like beating them until like, it you know, it's over sort of thing. This is this is this is to the death.
Speaker: So Firestar is looking around the battle and he's realizing that they're losing it And he's like, okay, i have to find Scourge because like clearly we are not going to be able to do this and I have to take him out. So he finally finds him.
Speaker: And Scourge beating the shit out of one whisker, which Firestar doesn't like because they're friends. And so he leaps across the clearing and attacks him. and Scourge,
Speaker: he has his his dog teeth collar and his dog teeth claws. So Firestar is quite intimidated. And they fight. Don't be intimidated, Firestar.
Speaker: Why not? You got this. I'm just, I'm giving him a pep talk. Because clearly he can hear me.
Speaker: um believe in you. Well, here's the thing, Jerrica. Scourge raises up one of his dog bone claws and bashes Firestar over the head. and Firestar...
Speaker: has like pain washing over him and he falls back and his vision goes and ah he wakes up at four trees still but this time all the cats are gone and everything is kind of murky and he realizes he's in StarClan.
Speaker: Hey, but that's just one of his lives. i Right? Well, he's pissed off because he sees some StarClan cats and he's like, ah send me fucking back down. Like, we're in the middle of a battle. I can't just be here.
Speaker: And Bluestar is there and tells him that he lost his first life. and he like, sees himself on the battlefield, like, dying and shit.
Speaker: And he's like, send me back, send me back. And Blue Star says, well, OK, your body needs to recover. So like you have to stay here for a minute. And he's like, no, that's I can't. I have to get back to the battle.
Speaker: And. i I mean, you've got no choice, bro. right And Bluestar kind of just talks him up a lot and she's like, you're you've been so great for Thunderclan and you, you know, pointed out that Tigerclaw was evil and you've done a good job and you've laid them so well.
Speaker: And I gotta let Gambit in. yeah yeah You lead them so well. Yeah, and he's like, but I'm not leading them. I'm here and we're gonna die and this can't be the will of StarClan. There have always been four clans in the forest. Like, were we wrong about this?
Speaker: And
Speaker: Bluestar goes, no, Firestar, there aren't four clans. There have always been five. And he realizes that she's talking about StarClan. Yeah. Of course.
Speaker: And Scourge is furious when Firestar wakes up and he's like, a fuck, I killed you. How are you here?
Speaker: oh he doesn't understand about the nine lives thing, huh? Because he thinks StarClan is a myth. Oh, okay. And so Firestar is like, yeah, you sure did kill me, but StarClan fights with me.
Speaker: And then at this moment, he realizes Gurg's lack of faith in StarClan is his greatest weakness. without Without belief. Okay, that's okay.
Speaker: Without the laws and customs of the forest cats, Scourge did not have the nine lies of a leader. When he died, he would be dead forever. Okay, that's a little heavy-handed, Aerith. Come on.
Speaker: So Scourge Firestar are fighting some more and Scourge at one point has him like pinned to the ground and Firestar is not able to get up. And then he remembers the first trick that he ever used against Graystripe of playing dead.
Speaker: And he he does one of those, and he waits until Scourge kind of lets up on him, and he's yelling in triumph. And then at the same or and then at that moment, Firestar hurls up and scratches Scourge's belly open.
Speaker: yeah And i he is ready to deal a death blow to him, and then he's like, Oh, wait, i i ah I've taken care of it already. Scourge is dying, and he looks into his eyes as the light goes out. Hold.
Speaker: approve. And Firestar wonders where he's going. Like, what is his afterlife like? And then he's like, not StarClan, that's for sure. yeah You don't gotta be a dick about it like come on now and then once the blood clan cats realize that scourge is dead they all get scared and flee back into two-legged place because they were they were afraid of scourge but they're probably like yeah i didn't want to do this anyway man
Speaker: Right. They're like, I just want to fucking be in my two leg place and eat trash. Hmm. So then in the aftermath of the battle, there's like a lot of cleaning up of wounds, the medicine cats running around, and the leaders join to talk to each other. And Leopardstar tells Firestar that she has made Mistyfoot her new deputy. and Firestar is surprised that she even wants to go back to RiverClan after Mistyfoot continues.
Speaker: allowed her brother to be murdered. And Mistyfoot says, ah yeah, we're going to have to get through that, but I'm a RiverClan warrior at heart. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Let's go back a second. Uh-huh.
Speaker: Mistyfoot let her brother die? I thought she was a captive as well. No, wait. Leopard started. Oh, okay. Sorry. No.
Speaker: Um, so apparently Leopardstar had asked Mistyfoot before the battle if she would be deputy, and Mistyfoot feels obligated to her clan, and she's kind of like, regardless of what Leopardstar I want to lead my clan well and be there for them. So she accepted.
Speaker: Good for you. Following in your mama's footsteps. And Graystripe is hopeful that his kits will join ThunderClan, but they say no, they're also going back to RiverClan.
Speaker: I mean, that's fine. I feel like the clans are going to be a little less like strict about like borders and shit now.
Speaker: And if they're not, then they're dumb. We'll see. we'll see He meets up with Blackfoot, who was the deputy under Tigerstar, and he's like, okay, so what are you going to do now? And Blackfoot says, well, I'm going to go be leader.
Speaker: But your heart says, okay, I'll see you at the next gathering. And Blackfoot, you would do well to learn from the mistakes of your predecessors. I saw what you did to Stoneford at the Bone Hill.
Speaker: and And there's just like a look that flashes across Blackfoot's eye and he doesn't say anything because he fucking knows Firestar's right. And Firestar fucking killed the cat that killed Tigerstar.
Speaker: Yeah. So by the transitive property, Firestar killed Tigerstar. Sure. That's how math works, I think.
Speaker: And when Clan goes home and Firestar has a little moment to himself and he's like, oh, thank you, StarClan. I don't know how I could have ever won this battle without you.
Speaker: You would have been dead. And he smells spotted leaf. And she says, Oh my god. You're never alone, Firestar.
Speaker: Your clan will live on, and I'll watch over you forever. Well, not forever. Eventually, he'll be up there too, and... ah And Graystripe and Sandstorm join it with him and they, you know, just look on and they're like, wow, we did it. And Bluestar was right. Fire did save the clan.
Speaker: And Graystripe says, and now there are four clans again, just as there should be. And then inside his head, Fireheart's like, I know there are five clans. Like, as if he's taking what Graystripe says too, literally.
Speaker: And they watch as the sun rises and floods the clearing with light and warmth. And Firestar i is happy with the peace that they have brought the forest.
Speaker: Aww. And that's how we end. Okay. So it's not going to end on a sad note. Except how many cats died.
Speaker: Yeah. Let's see. Okay, for the main cats, like, Darkstrap dying is obviously a good thing. We lost White Storm. We lost Stormfur earlier.
Speaker: Is that it?
Speaker: Oh, that might be it. We actually got out of this pretty good. Other cats die, but they weren't named. Yeah, they weren't named, so who cares? Yeah. So what did you think of this book, Jericho? man ah It okay.
Speaker: There would I have to stop trying to expect more out of these cats. Because they're cats.
Speaker: ah They're not going to do the things that I would expect them to do. Which is not be dumb. They love to fight.
Speaker: Yeah, well. Apparently, since mine fight all the time. um
Speaker: oof I think I think it was a good. A good wrap up to this, this whole arc, I think. I think it did a good job at using everything that was built upon it in each of the other books.
Speaker: Yeah. To come to ah a crescendo and a finale that is satisfying.
Speaker: So I'm, I'm, I am, and I'm in fact satisfied. The only downside is now we have Graystripe as deputy. Man. Maybe he'll grow up now, right?
Speaker: There's a lot of a ah disagreement in the fandom because a lot of people think that Breck and Paul should be deputy. Because he's like the most level-headed but also brave cat in the clan right now.
Speaker: Like, he actually thinks things through and doesn't just like go straight to violence. But he's also brave when he has to be. Like, he without hesitation, he will go do a dangerous thing.
Speaker: And that's that was Tigerstar's kid, right? Yeah. No, that's Bramblepaw. Fuck! These cats! I know. So, okay, so Brackenpaw was Brindleface's kid?
Speaker: Brackenpaw was, I believe, Frostfur's kid. Jesus Christ. Okay, let me look it up to make sure. Uh... Frostfur, yeah.
Speaker: Okay, and Frostfur's just a cat? Yeah. Okay. Frostfur and Lionheart's child. Oh. So wait, Breckenpaw... Who was training Breckenpaw?
Speaker: Well, that was the one that Graystripe was technically his mentor, but it was actually Fireheart. That's what I thought, yeah. And that's the one who Bluestar didn't want to make a warrior?
Speaker: No, he'd already been a warrior at that point.
Speaker: The ones she didn't want to make a warrior were Ashpaw, Swiftpaw, Fernpaw, and Brightpaw. But he's Breckinpaw, so he's not a warrior yet.
Speaker: No, he's Breckinfur. Breckin... Oh. Fuck.
Speaker: This is so hard. and You know what? This is the easiest ah family tree of cats to keep track of. Man! It just gets more and more complicated. i am doomed. Fucking doomed.
Speaker: So, okay. I like Misty Foot being deputy. i think that's a good... I think that that feels good. um
Speaker: There's just a lot of cats who are like,
Speaker: made a lot of bad decisions and like.
Speaker: Like leopard, like leopard star.
Speaker: Well. I just pisses me the fuck off. Yeah, because she started shit when she was de when she was just leopard fur. She started shit when she didn't have to. Yeah.
Speaker: She was a bitch. She started i forming an alliance with Tigerclaw when Argystar was still alive, too.
Speaker: Yeah. And nothing bad happened to her.
Speaker: Yeah, no. she Well, I mean, emotionally, let's hope, but... Right. Yeah, she just stood by and let Stonefur be killed. um There is... She has a whole super edition, and also Mistyfoot has a novella in which she talks about how difficult it was going back to normal life after that happened.
Speaker: Yeah. So ShadowClan's still around. Mm-hmm. I hope that they learn from all of this. Not to just... Just be chill, man. just Just accept what you got.
Speaker: Don't try and... You know... Don't be evil and... Don't be sus, just be helpful, maybe.
Speaker: i hope all the clans learn that we should be helpful and we should stick together as cats, right? Instead of just... This whole clan mentality, I hope, kind of goes away a little bit.
Speaker: The clans definitely have a hard time adjusting to anything.
Speaker: Like, any type of change they hate, anything that's different they hate.
Speaker: Cats are like that too, though. but Well, I'm also like that too, to be fair. ah Oh my god!
Speaker: Sorry, I'm looking at family trees and I just found out two cats are related who are mates and they're like cousins. Whoa. Anyone I know? Not yet.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: Oh, man, that is not cool. So, Laura. Yes. This was a wild ride that I thoroughly enjoyed. And so i want to i want i want to thank you for, you know, telling me the story and telling all of us the story.
Speaker: But where do we go from here? Well, I'll tell you where we go from here because we're not done with Warriors just yet. Dun-da-dun-dun!
Speaker: We have two more episodes in this season, this first season of Never Grow Up, ah where we will cover, one we'll cover the graphic novels and the two second we will cover the novellas of this era.
Speaker: And let me tell you, Jerika, let me just give you a little sneak peek, okay? Okay. One of the graphic novels is a trilogy about Ravenpaw.
Speaker: Okay. the ah The other graphic novel is called The Rise of Scourge.
Speaker: That makes sense. Mm-hmm. I think people are going to want to know where this fucking cat came out of nowhere. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: And then we have the novellas. We have Redtail's debt, which made me fall in love with Redtail. And we have Blackfoot's Reckoning. Ooh. Okay.
Speaker: A fun fact about the fight between Tigerstar and Scourge is that Vicky Holmes always intended for Firestar and Tigerstar to be like the ultimate battle at the end. um But then one of her colleagues suggested, wouldn't it be crazy if Tigerstar was killed by just some other random cat?
Speaker: And so Vicky was like, oh, that's that's a good ass idea and just ran with it.
Speaker: I will say. if the if there is one criticism I have, it's that this whole BloodClan thing. Did kind of come out of nowhere.
Speaker: Yeah. At the end. And I feel like.
Speaker: I feel like they were getting to this point. I'm like, well, shit, I don't know. Oh, yeah, let's introduce this. um And I don't I don't like that. Like when we get to the like the the last episode of a season or or the last issue of something like it's like, oh, yeah. And by the way, it's this thing that we just invented for this one. Like, all right. Like, I don't.
Speaker: Yeah, I think the thing is that I like BloodClan and I think they're cool and I like that they exist, but it does feel like they just thought of it at the last minute and I wish it had been integrated a little bit more.
Speaker: I mean, even if it was just like they'd mention it like. It's like like a rumor, like a myth, you know? yeah during ah During a conversation with Barley, he could have said how like he was previously a part of these this bloodthirsty group of cats and he's glad he escaped it or something like that. And so you would have just gotten the idea of like, oh, what's going on in Two Leg Place?
Speaker: hu
Speaker: Or even in the last book when we spent a little bit of time in Two Leg Place. Yeah. With um fucking Cloudtail. Mm-hmm. Cloudtail could have mentioned something. Mm-hmm.
Speaker: Like, oh, I yeah i seen this. I seen these cats. Yeah. yeah Honestly, Cloudtail having insider knowledge above Boulder, I think, would have been really good because Boulder is kind of just not.
Speaker: He's a very side character. so giving that to Cloudtail instead, yeah, would have been good. oh Well, Laura.
Speaker: Yes. If somebody would like to discuss this, this series of books, this arc, this ending with us, how would they go about doing that?
Speaker: Well, the best way to do it would be to join us on Discord, which you can find the link in the episode description or on our website at glitterfoxmedia.com, where you can also find all of the other things we do, like podcasts and blogs and Twitch streaming. And it's a great place. and Come hang out with us.
Speaker: Yes, please. Please hang out with us. We love you.
Speaker: Well, I have been Sparkleheart. And I have been Snowstorm. And everybody, please, please, just because you grow older doesn't mean you have to grow up.
Speaker: Bye. Bye.
