My favorite mates (image made on Canva).

There are numerous couples in the Warriors series, but some stand out more. I’m going to share some of my favorite ships from Warriors since Valentine’s Day is coming soon. None of these ships are ranked because I like them all, and the time I’m publishing this, I’m currently reading Lost Stars and have finished the other arcs that come before it, including Dawn of the Clans.

Firestar and Sandstorm

One of the classic first ships in the fandom. I love a good enemies-to-lovers dynamic, and Firestar and Sandstorm are the perfect couple for that. As an apprentice, Sandpaw bullied Firepaw for being a kittypet, but got jealous when he received his warrior name before her. She continues to resent him until Fireheart saves her from falling off a cliff, which is when Sandpaw falls in love with him. Her friend, Dustpaw, is jealous because he always thought they’d be mates one day. As warriors, the two become very close, but Sandstorm is hurt when Fireheart chooses Brackenfur to mentor Tawnypaw instead of her; however, when Fireheart becomes Firestar, he gives Sorrelpaw to Sandstorm to mentor. Sandstorm and Firestar go on a journey to rebuild SkyClan, and moons later, Sandstorm gives birth to Squirrelkit and Leafkit. Sandstorm ended up living longer than Firestar, even though he had more lives than she did, and she missed him a lot when she decided to retire. However, she found comfort with her grandkits, Alderpaw and Sparkpaw. Eventually, she died on Alderpaw’s journey she had forced herself into, but regretted nothing. I know a lot of people love this ship as well, and I can see why. They both stuck together until the end, and eventually found each other again.

Leafpool and Crowfeather

I know they’re no longer mates, but I still love this ship. This is one of my favorite Crowfeather ships, and Nightcloud x Crowfeather is my least favorite. Forbidden romances are one of my favorite plotlines in Warriors since, most of the time, the couples end up having forbidden kits. What makes this forbidden romance even more forbidden is that Leafpool is a medicine cat, which means she can’t have a mate or kits because her duty comes first. She and her sister, Squirrelflight, travel a little far from camp when Leafpool knows she’s going to have her kits. She gives the kits to Squirrelflight to keep her duty as medicine cat, but her secret gets spilled by her own daughter, Hollyleaf, at a Gathering. The saddest thing for me is that Crowfeather denied being the father of the three kits and claimed that Breezepelt was his only son and Nightcloud his only mate, but nobody believed his lie. I felt bad for Crowfeather when Leafpool died because I think he wanted to save her from the landslide, although I’m not sure if this is factal so don’t take that the wrong way.

Lionblaze and Cinderheart

Cinderheart is one of my favorite characters, and I love her relationship with Lionblaze. I knew the minute Lionblaze thought Cinderheart wasn’t Heathertail that he loved her. It was heartbreaking when Cinderheart found out she was Cinderpelt and started to regret all her decisions, and was confused about who she really was. She started to work as a medicine cat—since Cinderpelt had been one when she was alive—and told Lionblaze she couldn’t love him anymore. It wasn’t until Jayfeather told her she was Cinderheart, and only Cinderheart, that she told Lionblaze she loved him, and Cinderpelt’s spirit ascended to StarClan. It was unique that they named their first litter of kits after cats who’d died in the Great Battle, and Hollytuft is my favorite name from that bunch.

Brackenfur and Sorreltail

Another one of the classics. This ship was one of my favorites the second they got together. They would always spend their free time together and mourned when their kits, Molepaw and Honeyfern, died. As Sorreltail was kitting, Cinderpelt died saving Sorreltail and her kits, so Sorreltail named her gray she-kit Cinderkit in honor of Cinderpelt. Their only son, Molepaw, dies of greencough, and later one of their daughters, Honeyfern, was killed by a snake bite. The couple then had a second litter of kits that included Seedkit and Lilykit, but Sorreltail was cut off too soon from raising them. Sorreltail had severe wounds from the Great Battle; however, she didn’t tell anyone about them because she wanted to be with her kits, and soon collapsed and died. Brackenfur was heartbroken (I was as well; I felt so bad for him) and believed he wouldn’t be able to move on without her. When his kits become apprentices, Seedpaw drowns in a flood, but thankfully, Lilyheart survives to become a warrior and a mother.

Fernsong and Ivypool

A softie and a blood-born warrior, who would’ve thought these two would’ve been together? Fernsong just knows that Ivypool will protect him from anything, and flirts with her that way. Ivypool wasn’t sure if she wanted kits, even though she knew she wanted to start a family, because she would miss the life of a warrior too much. Fernsong offered to raise the kits once they could eat fresh-kill so that Ivypool could hunt and go on patrols and not have to worry about the kits. Fernsong is so awesome for being the very first nursery dad in Warriors. They’re both a wonderful match for each other, even if they seem like they aren’t.