Brackenleaf

Bayleebee

StarClan

Limbo

Fernberry (Mother, WindClan)

Unknown WindClan father

Midnightstreak (adopted)

Duskmind

Wrenpelt

Gladespirit

## Overview

Brackenleaf has led two different lives, with two different appearances, personalities, and histories:

ShadowClan: A medicine cat. Willowy, pale tortoiseshell with white paws and chin, and bright green eyes. He is cold and bitter towards most other cats, determined to keep them away from him, but vulnerable and kit-like once the thorns were beaten away.

WindClan: A senior warrior. Stocky dark tortoiseshell with yellow eyes, a white maple leaf on his forehead and a white line across his chest. Occasionally, he snaps at others or becomes dazed, but mostly he is strong and kind and opinionated.

He is a former medicine cat of ShadowClan and a prophecy cat .

## Detailed History

### ShadowClan

Brackenkit was born in ShadowClan, closer to the dawn of the Clans than to modern day. While his parents were never in the picture, he had an older sister Fawnpaw who cared for him through his early life as his only friend and companion, at least until a younger kit called Fogkit was old enough to play.

As Brackenkit grew, so did his confidence. He became fast friends with Fogkit and her sister Mistypaw, as well as the deputy Appledusk and a warrior called Darkflare. More friends were made when Brackenkit and Fogkit went on an outing to the ThunderClan border, where they bumped into a gang of ThunderClan kits also out for an explore. The outing was interrupted by a rogue kit named Beastie who pinned Brackenkit in a stream in an attempt to drown him.

Beastie, of course, was adopted into ShadowClan as Beastkit immediately after this incident and become one of Brackenkit's best friends, much to the displeasure of a warrior called Hawkstrike, who did not like the idea of adopting rogues.

After Brackenpaw was apprenticed to Rowanleaf, ShadowClan's medicine cat, he and Fogpaw began to drift. Fogpaw, with a kittish crush on Brackenpaw, was heartbroken that he would never be able to take a mate. Brackenpaw, too, was heartbroken, at least until his sister Fawnstep was killed in the Dark Forest, and soon after, Darkflare was murdered in the territory. With new vigour and nursing a flame of rage, Brackenpaw threw himself into his studies.

The problems began when Darkflare, now a StarClan cat, visited the young Brackenpaw in a dream to warn him of a traitor and murderer in the Clan, her nephew Tigerstripe. Determined to find answers, Brackenpaw, Fogpaw and Tigerstripe went for a walk together, during which Brackenpaw confronted the warrior about Darkflare's murder.

This confrontation resulted in a fight, broken up by Hawkstrike only after Fogpaw's spine was broken and Brackenpaw lay bleeding on the ground. Tigerstripe, claiming a rogue attack, was pardoned. This fight began a life of misery and paranoia for Brackenpaw.

After another attempted drowning by a rogue, and falling through an icy river and almost drowning a while after, Brackenpaw began to have dream visits by the original ShadowClan leader Savagestar. Every night, Savagestar held Brackenpaw under water and made him fight his way free, until Brackenpaw became a master of swimming and water fighting.

Brackenleaf's problems continued after his naming ceremony, during which Rowanleaf left the Clan to become a loner, leaving Brackenleaf as the sole medicine cat of ShadowClan. This did not sit well with Brackenleaf, as he did not trust any of his Classmates save for a few: Gorsepaw and Midnightstreak, his disaster adopted brothers, Appledusk, the deputy, Fogsky and Beasthunter, his childhood friends, and Dolorosa, a young loner taken into the Clan.

Brackenleaf and Dolorosa took an immediate liking to one another, and became inseparable. His paranoia meant that Brackenleaf often struggled to leave camp, and would only do so with Rosa by his side.

Though Brackenleaf's life was punctuated with random attempts on his life by his own Clanmates, the worst involved a cat named Nightshade, Brackenleaf's apprentice Sandpaw, and his brother Gorsethorn. Despite trying hard not to form attachments to any cat, Brackenleaf had such a close circle of friends that Nightshade decided to kill Sandpaw.

This failed. Gorsethorn died in the battle, and Nightshade became the first cat on Brackenleaf's list of murders.

The loss of Gorsethorn and the murder of Nightshade near destroyed Brackenleaf's sanity. He spent his time in the medicine den, hallucinating Gorsethorn and Nightshade trying to hurt him while Sandpaw took over his duties. He refused to see anyone during these long moons, not even Rosa. With these deaths, Brackenleaf was broken and reforged in patchwork steel.

From then on, Brackenleaf faced every cat who tried to hurt him claws first. He was a medicine cat by day, and a warrior by night, training in the StarClan, Dark Forest, and with any rogues he came across. He was ruthless and angry, fearing for his life in the Clan but refusing to leave despite Rosa's begging, not wanting to abandon the paralysed Fogsky or the still learning Sandwillow.

Brackenleaf's life came to a close the night he told Rosa he would leave with her. They would run away together, go wherever they wanted, outside the confines of Clan laws. When Brackenleaf tried to go back to camp to say goodbye to his loved ones, Hawkstrike took her chances and slashed his throat. He died before Rosa could get to him.

### WindClan

Brackenkit was born in WindClan, under the reign of Petalstar. He, as well as Rosa (Now Rosekit) had been reincarnated in WindClan to protect the Clans from the collapse of the Glade, an underground cave that held the dying Tree of Life which Rosa was connected to by life force.

While Brackenkit and Rosekit were not aware of their history, a selection of other cats were. Petalstar, Applestar, Midnightstreak, Tigerstripe, and Hawkstrike were among the few, and while the latter three stayed out of the way for the most part, the two leaders doted on the kits as though they are their own. Brackenkit did not know how to deal with this, as he felt more as if Applestar were an old friend than a new mother figure.

The truth came to light midway through Brackenpaw's apprenticeship, mentored by a cat called Lifeclaw. He handled it as best he could, searching every Clan for his old friends so he could rekindle a relationship. Even Tigerstripe, older and calmer and living in RiverClan, became a friend.

The two cats took their old names during their warrior ceremony, beginning the next chapter of Brackenleaf and Dolorosa, this time without the medicine cat code to keep them from being together. They trained, and learned of their purpose, and fell in love. Together, they defeated the cat responsible for the dying of the Tree, a cat called Weed, buried alive as Rosa controlled the roots of the trees through StarClan-given powers to drag him underground.

Able to finally live the life they'd always dreamed of, Brackenleaf and Rosa tried settled down. However, still paranoid and expecting a monster at every turn, they took their first litter of kits and ran away with them, determined to raise them away from the Clans. This plan collapsed by the timely arrival of Beasthunter and Hawkstrike, evidently in the middle of their own tussle. Beasthunter was killed, and Brackenleaf took Hawkstrike's life in return. It became clear that the Clans may be safer than originally thought, so the family turned around and went home newly traumatised.

They raised two litters of kits in WindClan and adopted others, Wrenpelt of rogue origin and Duskmind of ShadowClan. These were some of the only kits of Brackenleaf's who did not turn away from their parents and label them as monsters.

As elders, Brackenleaf and Rosa could finally have the life of peace they'd always hoped for. However, this peace was drawn to a close by the uprising alliance of RiverClan and SkyClan, who saw WindClan as the weakest Clan and intended to take over.

Rosa, being one of the only cats brave enough to stand up to Batstar, was killed quickly as an example to the rest of the Clan about what would happen if they dared to speak up against their new leaders. This example did not go through to Brackenleaf, who, in a fit of rage and agony, followed in his mate's footsteps.

His last words to Batter, "How does it feel to know nobody has ever loved you?" earned Brackenleaf the right of being torn apart on the highledge, in front of his friends and family.