TB AU Lore -- The Sisters / The Family

So! I've thought about the Sisters some... and how they would work in the TB AU! Here we go:

The Family -- The Sisters are now called the Family! This change makes sense with regards to the changes I've made to their society.

Society -- Originally, the Sisters are a group of only she-cats who send their toms out on "wanders" so that they can... do... something?? It's not specific, and they can never return, and their attitude towards toms in general is... ehhhhh.

Instead of removing the female hierarchy in the TB AU, however, I've decided to keep it - but I'm altering how they treat their toms.

The Family is, as the name implies, one big family (consisting of multiple families related through the main she-cats) of cats. They wander from place to place, settling down for summer or winter, or when one of the she-cats is expecting. They're still very large, very formidable, and all descend from one family of kittypets long ago.

While she-cats stay with the group to lead and rear their kits, toms at a certain age take themselves on what they call a Wander -- a journey to find themselves, and their own place in the world, often solo, sometimes together. Though all toms take this journey, they aren't expelled from the Family - some toms, even, find themselves Wandering back to the Family, and take up very similar roles to the she-cats, using their experiences to aid the Family.

Toms on a Wander can choose to go wherever their heart (or the earth) desire, and some often take up residence on their own or start their own groups. Some even become kittypets! One notable Family kittypet we'll be meeting in Dawn is Branch!

These cats value family above all else, believing firmly that home is where your family is, not where your borders are, and that your family could be anyone.

Their Powers -- How they got these powers is largely unknown, but ALL the Family (toms AND she-cats) possess a remarkable connection to the earth and the souls of those that departed. They can summon and commune with these spirits at will, through their own effort or a ritual, and often try to solve their lingering regrets and problems so that they can rest. Their connection to the earth makes the Family very difficult to sneak up on, as they are often warned of danger before it approaches, but it's largely unchanged from the original series (other than she-cats having this ability too).

Generally, the she-cats are better at sensing spirits, while the toms have a better connection to the earth, but this isn't always true.

One Family legend states that their powers came from a blessing received at a pool of water that seemed to glow like the moon...