| “ | The Clans have always fought, but this is the first time the medicine cats have been divided. I feel as if something bad is coming. The water is calm, but currents pull beneath the surface. Though they can't be seen, they have the power to drag cats to their death. | „ |
| ~ Onestar to Jayfeather |
| “ | I'm sorry! This is just how it has to be, but once we find our new camp, I'll come back. I'll find you in the Twolegplace. | „ |
| ~ Onestar making false promises with Smoke. |
Onestar is a major protagonist in Erin Hunter's Warriors book franchise.
He is a resident of StarClan, formerly a leader of WindClan and a friend of Firestar. Born in WindClan under Tallstar's leadership in the forest territories, where he was growing up, Onewhisker befriended Fireheart after his Clan had been driven out by ShadowClan. The two toms' friendship survived many hardships, ultimately seemingly ending once Onewhisker became leader of his Clan, following his predecessor's death. Onestar attempted to cut all ties his Clan shared with ThunderClan, becoming particularly hostile towards it and his former friend. Despite his sudden change in behavior, Onestar sided with other Clans in times of great need, although his attitude towards ThunderClan remained unchanged.
However, upon the arrival of Darktail and his rogues onto the lake territories, Onestar recognised the rogue leader as his son, almost immediately coming to regret his past actions and mistakes, before deciding to help the other Clans in driving out The Kin, as well as apologizing to Bramblestar and cats of ThunderClan. In the final battle against The Kin, Onestar confronted Darktail, resulting in both of them drowning each other in the lake. After his death, Onestar went to StarClan and after several moons ventured into the Dark Forest in hopes of helping living cats in defeating Ashfur. He is Darktail's archenemy.
Personality[]
Onewhisker was initially a very friendly and open cat, quickly befriending Fireheart. This friendship would continue even after Fireheart became leader — Firestar. And just before Tallstar‘s death, he chooses Onewhisker to become the new deputy and leader of WindClan rather than the aggressive and especially anti-ThunderClan/Firestar warrior Mudclaw in hopes of continuing the friendship between the two Clans.
But after Mudclaw led a rebellion in an attempt to overthrow Onewhisker due to his heavy reliance on Firestar, Onewhisker grew fearful and insecure. As he ascended to leadership, he realised how much of WindClan despises and considers him weak because of his reliance on the ThunderClan leader, and became no better than what Tallstar expected of Mudclaw if he were to become leader. As Onestar, he is cold, uncaring and overly critical of the other Clans, including and especially to Firestar, much to the ginger tom’s initial confusion.
After Darktail and his Kin come to try and take over the Clans, more of Onestar’s selfishness is further revealed, now on a more personal level. It turns out that as Onewhisker, he fell in love with a kittypet named Smoke, who fell pregnant and gave birth to his kits, though only Darkkit survived. Fearing the repercussions and stigma of Onewhisker being in a half-Clan/forbidden relationship, he rejected Darkkit under the premise of the dangers of Clan life. This angered Smoke, who vowed to teach Darkkit to hate the Clans and seek revenge as an adult.
Later on in a battle, Darktail confronts his father about his rejection in front of the other Clans cats. After the battle, Onestar confesses at a Gathering that Darktail is his son and tells them the story of him rejecting Darktail, which lead to the Kin leader becoming who he is today. But Onestar vows to set things right, and this marks his path to redemption. In another battle, he tries to apologise to his son, but the younger cat refuses his apology and Onestar realises that his son has gone too far. Onestar wonders that after all he’s done, would he be sent to the Dark Forest or not. However, he ends up sacrificing his final life to kill Darktail, and dies a good cat, earning his place in StarClan.
Biography[]
The Prophecies Begin[]
In the prologue of Fire and Ice, Onewhisker and Deadfoot are sent by Tallstar to seek out a temporary camp after Brokenstar drives them out of their territory. Later, Onewhisker quickly befriends Fireheart when he and Graystripe find WindClan living in the sewers and bring them back home. The WindClan cat, along with his deputy, escort Fireheart and Graystripe back to their own territory. However, while taking a shortcut through RiverClan, The four run into Leopardfur's patrol where a fight ensues near the gorge, with a RiverClan warrior Whiteclaw accidentally being knocked over the edge. later, When ShadowClan and RiverClan team up to attack WindClan for their territory, Onewhisker is sent to ThunderClan camp to seek their aid.
In Forest of Secrets, Onewhisker is among the WindClan cats who invade ThunderClan's camp with ShadowClan to kill Brokentail, who was being kept prisoner there after Bluestar refuses to kill him. The invaders are ultimately chased off, however.
At a Gathering in Rising Storm, Onewhisker greets Fireheart and introduces him to his new apprentice - his nephew, Gorsepaw.
When Bluestar plans an attack against WindClan in A Dangerous Path, believing the were the ones who were stealing prey, Fireheart goes behind her back to try and stop the invasion. He runs into Gorsepaw, who fetches his mentor, who Fireheart requests he be brought to Tallstar. Fireheart tells the WindClan leader, along with Deadfoot, Muclaw, and Onewhisker himself, about Bluestar's plan, to which Tallstar agrees to meet up with her to settle their misunderstanding.
In The Darkest Hour, Fireheart - now Firestar - arrives at WindClan's camp just after TigerClan had left. He finds Gorsepaw dead, and Onewhisker explains to him bitterly how Tigerstar had pinned the young apprentice down and forced the rest of the clan to watch him kill the WindClan cat, to act as an example for what the rest of the Clan could expect should they still oppose him. Later, Onewhisker is briefly seen fighting against Scourge.
The New Prophecy + Winds of Change[]
When the forest territories are being torn down, Onewhisker joins the rest of the Clan cats on the Great Journey to the lake. The light brown tabby constantly finds himself at odds with Mudclaw, as the deputy takes on most of Tallstar's duties while his leader grows weaker, and is very needlessly hostile to the other Clans. Shortly after they arrive, Tallstar begins losing his last life from his old age. He tells Onewhisker in private that he is to be the next leader of WindClan instead of Mudclaw, regretting his decision to make the latter deputy and believing Mudclaw would only wage countless wars as leader. With his dying breaths, Tallstar wishes for the new leader to uphold the friendship between ThunderClan and WindClan.
Onewhisker struggles to be confident in his leadership, without the Moonstone to grant him nine lives. Mudclaw, furios that his future leadership was stripped from him, gathers other WindClan cats who believe he is the rightful leader and starts a civil war against Onewhisker with the help of Hawkfrost. However, during a storm, a tree falls on top of Mudclaw, killing him and extinguishing the rebellion. When Leafpool discovers the Moonpool, the amber-eyed tom travels to it and receives his nine lives from StarClan, becoming Onestar. After becoming leader officially however, Onestar is noted to grow more distant and bitter towards the other Clans.
The Power of Three[]
Onestar is often switching between being friendly towards other Clans, being neutral towards them, and being openly hostile. This happens most often between him and Firestar, causing a large rift between ThunderClan and WindClan. When the kits of the WindClan queen Gorsetail go missing, Onestar suspects RiverClan had stolen them because a RiverClan patrol was seen near their territory, and thus plans an attack to find the kits. When he finds RiverClan isn't responsible, he then turns his attention to ThunderClan. Breezepaw stops him and informs his leader that he, Heatherpaw, Lionpaw, Jaypaw, and Hollypaw have found the kits at the lakeshore. Onestar apologizes, no longer planning to attack RiverClan.
Later, Onestar resumes his hostility towards ThunderClan by utilizing the tunnels running beneath the two Clans to trespass and steal prey. He says that ThunderClan is not the most important Clan, and that WindClan will take as much territory as they want to prove they don't need ThunderClan's help. The WindClan leader starts a huge fight that eventually involves all the Clans, but the battle is cut short by a solar eclipse, which the cats interpret as StarClan being angry with them all for fighting.
Omen of the Stars[]
At a gathering, Onestar and Leopardstar get into a fight over the fish in the lake, the latter claiming that the lake and all of its fish belong to RiverClan and that she'll start sending patrols around it. Onestar threatens her to stay out of his Clan's territory. Later, Onestar finds Dovepaw and Ivypaw in WindClan's camp, checking on Sedgewhisker after the warrior was attacked by a dog. He sends Heathertail and Breezepelt to escort the two apprentices home. At the next Gathering, Blossompaw complains that Onestar acts as if WindClan refilled the lake alone when the leader reports on it. He also warns punishment for any trespassers, hinting towards Ivypaw and Dovepaw.
At yet another Gathering, Onestar provokes a fight with Firestar yet again when the former sees a trespasser on his territory and accuses ThunderClan of planning an attack. Later, he and a patrol of warriors threaten to invade ThunderClan and drive out Sol themselves if the other Clan doesn't do it first.
In The Last Hope, the light brown tom reports scenting Dark Forest cats deep in WindClan territory, but not near the borders. When the Great Battle comes, Onestar participates and helps the Clans drive out the invading Dark Forest cats.
A Vision of Shadows[]
Onestar is noted to be much more old and frail-looking and continues to be standoffish and judgmental towards the other Clans.
When he loses a life to Darktail's rogues, he becomes notably more hostile than he already was, punishing his warriors for even the slightest violation of the warrior code. When ShadowClan falls ill with yellowcough and requires lungwort - an herb only WindClan has - to save them, Onestar refuses to help them, blaming them for Darktail and his rouges. Kestralflight and Harespring deliver the herb to ShadowClan behind his back, infuriating the leader. Even as his own warriors glare at him accusingly for letting ShadowClan suffer, Onestar claims ShadowClan are a bunch of rouges.
In Shattered Sky, all four remaining Clans (most of ShadowClan has been merged into the Kin) band together to chase out The Kin. However, while battling Onestar, Darktail whispers something into the WindClan cat's ear that causes him to retreat from the battle followed by the rest of his Clan, causing the Clan cats to lose the battle. At the Gathering, Mistystar and Bramblestar demand to know why he retreated. Onestar doesn't answer, instead shifting the blame onto Rowanstar once more. While discussing The Kin driving out SkyClan, Onestar suddenly becomes incredibly defensive, closing off WindClan's borders from the rest of the Clans. Alderheart deduces that Onestar is hiding something, as the leader continues to close his Clan off even after RiverClan's camp is overtaken by The Kin.
In another battle with Darktail, The Kin's leader begins taunting Onestar, leading to the other Clan cats wondering how they know each other. When Darktail reveals that Onestar had done something to him in the past that's his motive for what he's doing, Onestar claims the black-and-white tom isn't to be listened to. Darktail tries to resume his attack, but is driven off, swearing that things between him and the leader of WindClan were not over.
Onestar later explains his connection to Darktail. As a warrior in the forest territories, Onewhisker had often visited the kittypets of Twolegplace, including a gray she-cat called Smoke. He and Smoke fell in love, and eventually she became pregnant with their kits. Smoke asked Onewhisker to let her join WindClan - however, both knowing Smoke wasn't fit for Clan life and fearing what his Clanmates would say about being mates with a kittypet, Onewhisker turned her away. Smoke would then return moons later with a single kit - the only one who had survived her kitting - and begged the forest tom to at least take him in. Onewhisker refuses again for the same reasons, causing Smoke to develop a deep hatred of Clan cats and vowing to teach their son that same hate.
Onestar then explains what Darktail whispered to him that caused him to retreat that day: that the Dark Forest would surely have a place for him, being a cat who rejected and then killed his own son. Onestar regrets his actions heavily, apologizing for not facing Darktail and owning up to his mistakes until now. Determined to stop his son and make amends once and for all, Onestar engages Darktail one last time in a battle between The Kin and all five Clans. The two fight while edging deeper and deeper into the lake, eventually being submerged completely, with neither resurfacing again. WindClan holds vigil for their lost leader, and Harespring steps up to become the next leader of his Clan.
Appearance[]
Onestar is a small, lithe tom with pale brown fur and amber eyes. He has a scar behind one ear and one whisker that's notably longer and thicker than the rest, hence his warrior name Onewhisker.
Relationships[]
Family[]
- Wrenflight (mother)
- Stagleap (father)
- Ashfoot (sister)
- Morningflower (sister)
- Whitetail (mate)
- Smoke (ex-mate)
- Heathertail (daughter)
- Darktail (son)
- Unnamed kits (children)
External Links[]
- Onestar on the Warriors Wiki
