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| “ | I'm loyal to my new Clan! Your time is over, you're nothing but an elder growing old over and over. Why don't you just give up and die? | „ |
| ~ Redwillow to Blackstar in The Last Hope. |
| “ | At last I can fight properly. You’re right about the Clans being weak and lazy. This is easy. They’re so obsessed with being honorable and sticking to the warrior code, I can pick them off like mice! | „ |
| ~ Redwillow to Shredtail about the Clans. |
Redwillow is a minor antagonist in Erin Hunter's Warriors book series, serving as a supporting antagonist in Omen of the Stars arc and a minor anti-hero in The Broken Code arc.
He is a resident of the Dark Forest, and was previously a warrior of ShadowClan. He was recruited by The Place of No Stars and trained by Ivypool in preparation for the Great Battle against StarClan and the living Clans. As a ShadowClan warrior, Redwillow was disillusioned with Clan tradition, and felt that the Clans were too soft and weak. During the Great Battle, he fought on the side of the Place of No Stars, and was killed by Blackstar for it.
After his death, he went to the Place of No Stars for his crimes, and later served under Ashfur, though he joined Bristlefrost and rebelled against the tom alongside Maggottail and Sparrowfeather. During a retreat from a fight with Ashfur, he fell into a river of dark water and drowned, causing him to fade away forever.
History[]
The Fourth Apprentice[]
Redwillow is seen near the ending of the book, when the patrol chosen to deal with the beavers successfully returns home. He is excited and relieved to see that his Clanmates came back alive and well and escorts the patrol back to ShadowClan's camp.
Night Whispers[]
Redwillow playfully slides around on the surface of the frozen lake with Pinepaw. Pinepaw goes to play prey-stone with some other ShadowClan cats, including Flametail, who falls into the lake and drowns. When the ThunderClan cat Jayfeather is accused at the next Gathering of drowning Flametail, Redwillow yowls out that murderers deserve to be punished.
Sign of the Moon[]
Redwillow begins training in the Place of No Stars alongside a few of his Clanmates.
The Forgotten Warrior[]
When the ThunderClan cats Cherrypaw and Molepaw are announced as new apprentices during a Gathering, Redwillow eyes them thoughtfully, considering the possibility of the pair becoming Dark Forest trainees.
When on patrol, Redwillow, Dawnpelt, and Scorchfur meet the ThunderClan warriors Ivypool and Hollyleaf at their shared border. Dawnpelt is overly hostile towards the two ThunderClan she-cats, but Redwillow mollifies her because Ivypool is a Dark Forest warrior. He nods to Ivypool knowingly as he does so. At the next Gathering, Redwillow shares a similar look with Breezepelt.
The Last Hope[]
Rewillow trains against Birchfall under Ivypool's mentorship in the Dark Forest. Birchfall nicks Redwillow's ear, and Ivypool orders them to stop fighting. However, Redwillow argues that the Clans need them to be the best warriors they can be.
Another night in the Place of No Stars, Tigerstar announces that he will take the trainees around the lake territories so that they can learn the best places to fight, much to Redwillow's excitement. The cats tour ThunderClan territory, and during the walk, Redwillow remarks that the more he learns, the faster he'll be able to become a "real" Dark Forest warrior. He says that he feels like he's training with pet cats when he's with his Clanmates, and that only the strongest should survive, just like in the Place of No Stars. When Ivypool asks him if he'd let his weaker Clanmates die, he is alarmed and afraid that he's said too much. He lies and says he just meant they had a lot to learn from the Dark Forest warriors on how to be stronger.
During the Great Battle, Redwillow fights on the Dark Forest's side. He participates in an attack on ShadowClan's camp where he attacks Dawnpelt, but releases her when Shredtail calls him over. The Dark Forest spirit asks him how the battle is going, to which Redwillow enthusiastically replies that it's going well, before boasting that he is able to knock away his Clanmates like mice. This is overheard by Snowbird and Blackstar, the former of whom attempts to lunge at her Clanmate, though she is stopped by her leader.
Redwillow says that he's loyal to the Dark Forest and that he finds Blackstar to be old and weak, before asking him why he won't just die. Blackstar, however, replies that despite his age, he still is leader of ShadowClan and condemns Redwillow for betraying his Clan, before slashing at his chest. Astounded, Redwillow looks from Blackstar to the wound on his chest, before collapsing, dead. He descends to the Place of No Stars.
The Broken Code[]
Seasons later, when Ashfur takes over the Place of No Stars, Redwillow works under him alongside many other Dark Forest spirits, believing that Ashfur will make it possible for him and other spirits to possess the bodies of living cats in order to live again. However, he starts to doubt the Dark Warrior's promise, along with Sparrowfeather.
During their argument with Maggottail, they catch Bristlefrost, whom Redwillow attempts to possess, but to no avail. The Dark Forest cats learn that Ashfur was lying to them about them being able to possess living cats, and agree to help Bristlefrost.
When Maggottail says he's not sure if what they're doing is a good idea, Redwillow reassures him that they can say Bristlefrost is their prisoner if they run into Ashfur, uncaring that Bristlefrost can hear what he's saying. The three spirits begin to wonder if Bristlefrost is lying because she doesn't want to be possessed, and Redwillow suggests that perhaps they need to kill her first. He continues to argue that Ashfur might not be lying, before Sparrowfeather tells him he just wants it to be true.
Redwillow decides that before they choose a side, they should find out if Ashfur really can give them another chance at life. Upon admitting how he's been tricked into fighting for a leader who didn't care about his warriors' lives, he says he's not falling for it again unless he knows there's a "real reward" for it.
As he ponders whether or not to help destroy the barrier blocking the tunnel between the Dark Forest and StarClan, StarClan cats arrive on the other side. He fearfully sinks into a defensive crouch, though he relaxes after Bristlefrost posits that he could rule the Dark Forest after Ashfur is dead. They successfully break the barrier into StarClan and when a StarClan cat, Needletail, questions the involvement of the Dark Forest warriors, Redwillow tells her they want to save their territory as much as she wants to save hers.
Needletail thanks the spirits for their help, and says that they have proved that the spirit of a warrior "can never be entirely lost", upon which Redwillow puffs out his chest with pride. The gap in the barrier is hard to get back through, so he helps Needletail and the other spirits widen it, but they're unable to get her through before Ashfur arrives. Fear-scent flows off of Redwillow as Ashfur calls him and the other Dark Forest spirits traitors.
He and the other spirits back away from Needletail. However, they stay their ground in the end and Redwillow notes that Ashfur is outnumbered before the former StarClan tom calls his minions back to him. The group briefly fights against Ashfur's minions before retreating. However, as they run from Ashfur and his minions, Redwillow falls into one of the Place of No Star's black rivers. The thick substance sucks him in, preventing him from doing anything but screaming in fear before drowning, killing his spirit.
After Ashfur's defeat, Redwillow is mentioned as a cat who might've deserved forgiveness and entrance into StarClan, but the point is decided to be moot since he is dead.
Physical Appearance[]
Redwillow was a mottled brown-and-ginger tom with a wide head and a small nick in his ear.
Personality[]
Redwillow was a battle-hungry cat who valued strength over morals, and believed only the strong deserved to live. He enjoyed killing those he deemed to be weak, but showed strong loyalty and respect towards his fellow Dark Forest trainees, and the members of the Place of No Stars. He believed the Clans were weak due to their adherence to the Warrior Code. However, he was overconfident in his belief that Clan cats will always stick to the Code and refuse to kill; this was proven incorrect when Blackstar took his life.
After his defeat at the paws of Blackstar, he regretted following Tigerstar, reasoning that Tigerstar didn't care whether Redwillow lived or died and there was no reward for his hard work. He didn't want to fight more battles where he stood to gain nothing. At his core, he only cared about himself.
Despite his skewed moral compass, Redwillow did also enjoy playing with younger Clanmates, and gossiping with his peers, even those of other Clans. He also respected the idea of courage, and of being a true warrior. Even when he felt afraid or unsure of himself, he'd think of reasons he had a chance of winning, and use that as motivation to keep trying. He also found joy in being praised, even if the praise came from his enemies-turned-temporary-allies.
Trivia[]
- Redwillow has been described as dappled ginger, as having a tawny head, and as being a tabby, all in error.
External Links[]
- Redwillow on the Warriors Wiki
