Consequences of the Great Journey by Nettlepaw

Nettlepaw takes a look at the downsides of the Great Journey.

Hey Blogclan, it’s me, Nettlepaw, back for another blog. Today I am finally getting around to typing out one of the blogs I have been most excited to write, as it contains some topics that interest me a lot. That’s right, today I’m going to talk about The Great Journey. What went wrong, what went right? Let’s dive into this like a Riverclan cat.

One of the most obvious things that went wrong with the great journey was that Smokepaw died. I believe he is the only one who is mentioned to be dead as a consequence to the Great Journey, but you could also argue that Feathertail died as a result of The Great Journey, as if she hadn’t set out to find a new home for the Clans, she would have survived. Although this is slightly morbid, part of me believes that more cats should have died! It was emphasised a lot how dangerous the journey was, but really not that much happened, so I don’t know, it just never seemed that perilous to me (¯_(ツ)_/¯)

The Great Journey caused a lot of uneasiness in the Clans too (Yes I’m looking at you Blackstar, but if I went down that route this blog would take years to finish) Cats felt unsure that this was their true home, and rightfully so.

After they arrived at the lake territory, there were a lot of issues with sorting out the boundaries. I do believe Shadowclan deserved more territory (Biased, I know, as I LOVE Shadowclan) I also felt a little sad when Windclan mentioned how much smaller their new territory was. However, I like the new Riverclan territory more than the old one.

Of course, and this is in my opinion, the most heartbreaking, but interesting part of this, is that four elders didn’t even embark on the Great Journey, that’s right. They stayed.
These elders were: Speckletail and Frostfur of Thunderclan, and Loudbelly and Shadepelt of Riverclan.
These cats were all elders, and stayed behind because they thought they would slow the cats down/ wouldn’t make it. This event is super sad, but I would love to read a novel/ graphic novel about these four.

The Great Journey wasn’t all bad though. As a consequence to the Journey, cats from all clans built strong relationships with each other. It is stated multiple times that the clans acted more as one group than four separate ones. They were united as one.

(As I’m reading this over for mistakes, I’m now remembering I put tabs on all my books, for my favourite moment quote. So I’m going to put some of my personal highlights here! I’d love to hear some of your favourites too!

“Suddenly a tiny cry came from the far side. Leafpaw stiffened. One of Tallpoppy’s kits had wandered back on the Thunderpath! Dazed, it wandered in a circle on the hard path, mewling for its mother. Dustpelt and Mousefur flattened their bellies, ready to make a dash for the kit.
‘Wait!’ Brambleclaw ordered. ‘It’s too dangerous’
The Clan held its position.
Tallpoppy began to struggle through the mass of Shadowclan to reach her kit, but one of the Riverclan queens was closer. Dawnflower leaped on to the Thunderpath and scooped the kit out of the way of the monster. She carried it back to the verge, dropped it on the grass, and began licking it roughly.
Suddenly she stopped and swiped her tongue around her lip in confusion as she realised the kit was not her own. She glanced self-consciously around at her Clanmates as Tallpoppy bounded over and snatched up her kit. Leafpaw tensed, hoping Tallpoppy wasn’t offended by the Riverclan queen’s intervention. But her eyes were brimming with gratitude, and she dipped her head to Dawnflower before carrying her kit away.”

That’s it for now. Sorry if this blog was a little shorter/ less in depth. I haven’t been writing for ages so I’m just starting to get into the flow of it again. If you’re still here reading this, thanks for sticking around!

Bye!
-Nettlepaw