Ashfur

Ashfur is a secendery antagonist of the Warrior Cats book series by Erin Hunter. Serving as the main villain of the secend half in Power of Three Arc. Starting as a minor character then failed love interest,  Ashfur's villainy is reaveled in a plot twist. Bent on getting revenage on the Main character, Squirrelflight who rejected his romantic pursuits.

History
He was born into a wild cat group known as Thunderclan. As an a kitten and apprentice, he had a standard upbrining. Close to his family, to the point of hiding his foster brother, Cloudtail illegally getting food from humans. Despite Cloudtail having a seprate background as a born House cat, this wasn't shown to bother Ashfur. As an adolescent, his mother, Brindleface was killed by the exiled deputy, Tigerstar while trying to lure dogs to Thunderclan. Though he helped average her by tricking the pack to fall into a river. Shortly afterwards, he proved his revengeful nature again by being the only apprentice to celebrate killing an invader named Bone.

As a grown warrior, Ashfur was an average and reaspected warrior. Even as Tigerstar's son, Ashfur still became friends with Brambleclaw. Though he and another cat, a young Squirrelflight, would go missing on a prophecised quest. When they returned, Ashfur showed a surprising amount of relief for Squirrelflight, despite never being interested before the quest. While moving territories, the two became close friends, seeking his  comfort when going through agruements with her crush, Brambleclaw. Though Ashfur assumed Squirrelflight's friendship were signs of love, overprotective and poesssive of the indepdent she-cat. When his intent on becoming her mate was clear, Squirrelflight briefly considered it before comfrounting him, politely asking to remain friends. Though he refused to accept her answer, repeatenly stating he loved her. Even guilt-tripping her by bringing up the fact, Brambleclaw was Tigerstar's son, Brindleface's killer. Unstafised, Ashfur ingored her completely, even with simple greetings. When Squirrelflight's Medicine cat sister, Leafpool recieved a vision for Brambleclaw's future deputy postion, Ashfur accused it of being fake. Soon, he began his life-long's obession with his former friend.

His first major attampt at revenage was going after Squirrelflight's father, Firestar. He teamed up with Brambleclaw's Half-brother, Hawkfrost to do so, whom had a seprate motive. Tricking his nethew and apprentice to send a false message to Firestar, Ashfur claimed Shadowclan's leader was trepassing by the Lake. During investigation, Firestar was lured into a foxtrap, slowly taking his nine lives, with Hawkfrost overseeing the crime scene. At the same time, Brambleclaw had been inviteted by Hawkfrost to the beach, unaware of Firestar's ongoing murder. While Hawkfrost tried to convice his brother to overthrow the Thunderclan leader, Ashfur backstabbed his crime partner. Asking for 'help' from Squirrelflight and Leafpool, he exposed Brambleclaw and Hawkfrost standing over a dying Firestar. However, Brambleclaw refused to Hawkfrost's offer, forced to kill his Half-brother in defence of himself and Firestar. To Ashfur's disappointment, he'd accidentally made his rival a hero, enforcing Squirrelflight's love for him even more. The next day, Firestar lost one life due to his injury, however still had five more to spare, so was reivied. Luckily for Ashfur, he remained unexposed to his part in the crime.

In light of his failure, Ashfur went through a cool-down phase, continuing to live normally like nothing had happened. Though he became visably more bitter, he manged to hide the full extent of his emtions from his peers, remaining popular in Thunderclan. The relationship between him, Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw became restrained, but predended to tolerate them to avoid suspension. Though this grew forever challgenging when Squirrelflight had Brambleclaw's litter: Jaykit, Hollykit and Lionkit. Due to their parents, When their children became the age of apprentices, Ashfur was assigned as Lionpaw's mentor. To other Thunderclan members, Ashfur had the facade of a typical mentor. However was actually emtionally distant with Lionpaw, his praise often lacking enthusiasm. Though at two points, Ashfur allowed his hidden anger to publicy show, getting into violent fights with his apprentice during training sessions.

When Squirrelflight's three kits were given their warrior names, Ashfur was given another opportunity for revenage after many years. A thunder storm caused a fire in Thunderclan camp, trapping the three siblings on a ledge. Wounded from a pervious war, Squirrelflight was unable to lower a branch to them. Discovering the scene with no one else around, Ashfur released his chance. After lowing the branch at Squirrelflight's request, Ashfur suddenly blocked their only escape route, now in full control on who lived and died. Going into a long rant over his built up feelings, threatening to make her watch her three kits to burn alive. When Lionblaze prapared to leap at Ashfur, he orders his former apprentice to stay put. The fire grows so dangerously close, Hollyleaf falls off the ledge, only alive thanks to being caught by Lionblaze. Eventually, Squirrelflight is forced to predend she wouldn't be effected by their deaths, confessing they're adopted. Thinking it's more painful to be hated by her children, rather them simply dying, Ashfur allows them to live. Swearing to expose Squirrelflight's secret to all Four Clans at the Gathering, in hopes of getting her exiled.

On the next few days, the four family members beg Ashfur not to tell the secret in their own way. But Ashfur doesn't care, despite warnings that Thunderclan's reupation could be ruined after a recent war and a whole family might be driven out. Even giving Jayfeather, a Blind Medcine cat, a secend death threat for pestering him. The Gathering serval hours away, Hollyleaf saw no other choose but to kill Ashfur while he was alone hunting. Even in death, the sistuation Ashfur started causes Hollyleaf to have a mental breakdown, commiting her own crimes and subsequent self-exile. In a way, Ashfur was still able to succeed. As despite his death, Squirrelflight was exposed at the Gathering by Hollyleaf, her mate and adopted children prolongly disowned her for lying to them. Meanwhile, her daughter, Hollyleaf went into self-exile, allowing Squirrelflight to believe she was dead.

Unexpectedly, Ashfur ended up in Starclan, the holy afterlife of the Clans. When Jayfeather spotted him there through his powers, Ashfur glares angrily at his former victim before running away. Another spirit explains to Jayfeather, he simply found his way there and Starclan can't do anything about it, since it's in the control of higher forces. When Starclan goes to war with their evil counter part, the Dark Forest, serval years later, Ashfur doesn't get involved. Even when the Dark forest is leading a gencoide against the Living Clans and Ashfur's sister, Ferncloud is killed, he still doesn't show up.