annamatopoeiaa:

Okay I know Crowfeather is a bit of a decisive character, but how about an AU where Crowfeather goes, “You choose your clan, well I choose you.” He lost Feathertail he isn’t losing her. 

Warning LONG POST 

So he joins ThunderClan and while Leafpool is a medicine cat they have no one else so they keep her as a med cat. ThunderClan is very wary of Crowfeather and  it takes a while for him to become accepted as he is a very prickly cat. He misses his clan deeply and avoids going near the WindClan border and WindClan at gatherings. He feels deeply guilty for leaving and becomes very sharp when WindClan is mentioned. Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw vouch for Crowfeather, while they weren’t amazingly close on the journey. They know him as a genuinely good cat and Squirrelflight sees how much he loves Leafpool. ThunderClan accepts him and he finds a home there, and while he still feels guilt over leaving WindClan he is happy in ThunderClan.

After a while of doing fine with a mate and being a medicine cat Leafpool slowly comes to the revelation that, that part of medicine cat code is just unnecessary and works to get it changed. The resistance is strong but cats in Star Clan that were effected by this start to agree, like Yellowfang and Spottedleaf. They give not only the medicine cats visions of approval, but leaders, deputies, and queens too. The process is long and seeps even into the Power of Three but eventually the unspoken rule of Medicine cats not having a mate is seen as not needed anymore and is removed. The med cats of this generations, save Leafpool, remain mateless but this will effect later generations.

This purpose helps Leafpool gain independence as a cat becoming more confident in her abilities and while her core personality is the same she is much stronger in standing her ground. It gives her more to do then be a love interest and makes her a stronger cat as a whole. Crowfeather supports her all the way. Some cats ask if he thinks that cross clan relationships should be allowed. He is against this as he knows how torn he felt between his clan and his love for both Feathertail and Leafpool. 

 The three are born and Leafpool takes a quick break with Brightheart and other cats helping out. Crowfeather is thrilled and as they grow older take turns with Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw in taking care of them. Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight are proud Aunt and Uncle and since they haven’t been able to have their own kits love to help out.

Leafpool explains the importance of being a medicine cat and this catches both Hollykit and Jaykit’s interest. Hollykit still really wishes to be important and powerful to the clan, her motivations are the same. Jaykit however see how much his mother loves it and how she walks with Starclan like he does and wishes to understand and most of the events of them as kits stay the same. As they settle into their roles as apprentices, Hollypaw and Lionpaw as warrior apprentices and Jaypaw starting as a med apprentice, the same basic stuff goes down minus Breezepaw. 

Lionpaw is slightly ashamed of being half-clan even though he and Crowfeather are on good terms and he loves his father. Ashfur brings things up constantly still being extremely harsh on him because of how much Squrrielflight cares for him. Tigerstar uses this and Lionpaw trains in the dark forest to prove himself to his clanmates. This comes to a head with Heatherpaw and when Hollypaw finds out she tells Crowfeather. Crowfeather knowing how it feels talks to Lionpaw and this ends up in him telling him about his insecurity about being half clan plus about Ashfur. Crowfeather shares some of how he felt when leaving his clan and the fact that just because he came from WindClan doesn’t mean it is his home. The two bond and Lionpaw finds he doesn’t need the dark forest training anymore. Crowfeather confronts Ashfur about his ‘training methods’ and the two fight. While they don’t tell anyone Ashfur holds a grudge towards Crowfeather and his hostility towards Lionpaw increases.

Hollypaw stays mostly the same and she feels a deep connection with Squirrelflight often asking for advice. She feels very connected with her and her go getting attitude. Looking up to her as one would look up to a personal hero.

Jaypaw also mostly stays the same though his and Leafpool’s relationship changes, Leafpool is more assertive and doesn’t long to tell him about who she truly is so she takes a lot less lip from him. He is still very snarky but he knows not to sass his mentor.

Much of their warrior lives are the same, minus Breezepelt up till the fire and that whole deal. Ashfur still sets the fire and threatens the three and Squirrelflight. When cornered she decides the best action is to just face him head on and Ashfur caught off guard by his rage falls in. Hollyleaf is deeply disturbed by this she looked up to her and she was sure the Squirrelflight could get out of it. 

On top of this Rock (or another star clan cat) reveals that Hollyleaf is not the third cat and when she is told this it is too much for her and she runs into the collapsing tunnels.

That’s where I’ll stop, what do you think? This is just a rough AU but I think it could be interesting and add some well needed good father roles as well as expand on both Leafpool and Crowfeather’s character. If you have any suggestions just tell me I’d love to hear it.