Mossypaw

## Appearences

### Living:

The New Seer

**Mossypaw** is the current healer apprentice of RigidClan. She found out she was a seer at her first healer meeting, when she had a vision of the Starcave collapsing. She's an anxious pushover who is haunted by what she has seen. She cannot take action on her own, requiring the help of one of her mentors or Peatpaw, the closest thing she has to a friend her age.

## Appearance

Mossypaw is a small, long-furred, gray-brown lynx point molly with dark leaf-green eyes. When she is receiving a vision, her eyes blur and stars appear within them.

## Personality

Mossypaw is a very anxious cat who is prone to crying. In nearly every situation she is a follower, unable to take intitiative herself. Because of her shy nature it is hard for her to raise her voice, making it easy for cats to step all over her.
She cares deeply for the lives of other cats, even if they've wronged her. Occasionally grim thoughts about letting them die will find her, but she quickly brushes them away.

## History

### Section One: The First Vision

Mossypaw is at her first Starcave meeting with the other healers when she has a vision of the cave collapsing. She screams and gets the attention of her mentor, Dappledstone, who knocks her out of the vision. The other healers are left in shock and confusion as Dappledstone and Cragshiver escort the apprentice out of the cave. Mossypaw learns that she is a seer and is fearful of what it means for her future. Her mentors reassure her, saying that her gift will save lives. Mossypaw feels a little better.

### Section Two: The First Leafbare

Mossypaw has her second vision not too long after the healer meeting. She spots a snake-like cat standing atop Highledge addressing the Clan. The vision provides her comfort as she sees some of her current Clanmates still alive in well in the vision. Dappledstone comes in and rants about Slatetongue and her distrust of the healer. Afterwards, Mossypaw is told to bring basil leaves to the queen to calm her down. Mossypaw does as she is told and gets a poor reaction from the queen. On her way out of the nursery she trips on a mound of dirt and is laughed at by the other apprentices.
Cragshiver comforts Mossypaw, saying that they will respect her once they realized she'd be treating their wounds. Mossypaw disagrees and goes to her nest for an unsatisfactory nap.

One moon later, leafbare came in swinging. Most of RigidClan is ill and their herb store is depleting. Mossypaw knows they don't have enough catmint to treat all the ill cats and fears for their lives. Mossypaw receives a vision one morning where a blizzard struck camp. The nursery and apprentice's den both collapsed, killing all the cats inside. Mossypaw, horrified, wobbles back into the healer's den. She finds that the pool of water in the den has frozen. She is pulled into the pool by a white cat, who laughs until Mossypaw is forced out of her vision. Dappledstone gets Cragshiver and they go along with Mossypaw to speak with Coarsestar about her vision.
Mossypaw's vision is seen as a simple dream by the leader, who refuses to take action. Dappledstone begs him to at least get warriors to reinforce the dens, but Coarsestar is firm on his decision. Mossypaw is sent away with tears in her eyes.

The day after, Mossypaw begins to have a vision only for it to be interupted by a fight going on behind her. She watches the white cat shredding Peatpaw apart with unnaturally sharp claws. The white cat is suddenly blown away and Mossypaw is given the freedom to move. Pricklepaw and Lichenpaw accuse her of attacking Peatpaw, which she denies. Lichenpaw scratches her before Dappledstone returns and drags them into the healer's den. Mossypaw falls asleep sobbing, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

The night of the attack, Mossypaw's grandmotherly-figure Flintfall dies in her sleep. Mossypaw greives alongside Goshawksnow, Flintfall's son. Mossypaw hums the melody Flintfall used to sing to her as she sobs into her fur. Goshawksnow goes to remove her, then decides leave her be, realizing her relationship with his mother. Flintfall's body is carried away by the healers and her kits, leaving Mossypaw alone. Coarsestar, clearly ill, calls the apprentice into his den. He tells her to begin using their catmint or else they'd lose more cats. Mossypaw refuses knowing that there wasn't enough to treat all the ill cats. Coarsestar shuts her down and tells her that if she didn't do it, her mentors would. And they did.

Treatment of the ill cats goes well, as after the catmint is distrubuted only one cat dies. Mossypaw delivers catmint to Coalflame then takes fennel and cornflowers to the nursery. She is able to give herbs to Slatetongue and her kits with little pushback, and the other queens and their kits with no pushback at all. On her way out she hears one of the queens doubt her ability, and question how long she would live. Mossypaw brushes it off as the queen believing in a bad omen until a cat agrees with the queen.
The Cat of Clouds reveals themselves and introduces themselves as such. They tell Mossypaw about how all seers before her had short lives, cut off by visions from StarClan or from hostile Clanmates. Mossypaw asks why they attacked Peatpaw, and they reply that they thought Peatpaw was going to harm her, and that they were simply protecting her. The Cat of Clouds offers Mossypaw their assitance, promising not to harm another cat. Mossypaw, desperate for a friendly face, agrees. The Cat of Clouds leaves on the promise that they would return with the next vision.

The catmint supply runs out quickly, and though nearly all the ill cats are healthy once more, Mossypaw is anxious. Clouds loom over the horizon bringing with them flashes of her vision. She is sulking in her nest when Peatpaw comes in and drags her off to the apprentice's den to speak with the other apprentices. Mossypaw tries to object, but can do nothing against Peatpaw. Peatpaw reveals her plan of making the nursery collapse so Coarsestar would believe Mossypaw's vision. Mossypaw objects, worried about queens getting injured, but the apprentices go through with their plan. Their plan works and half of the nursery collapses. They lie and say a falling branch caused the tree to fall. Coarsestar, worried for the safety of his kits and the apprentices, decides to have all of them sleep in the elder's den since there was enough room.
Mossypaw thanks Peatpaw for saving their lives. Peatpaw jokes that she was saving her own hide before she runs off with her friends.

### Section Three: The Thaw

Mossypaw goes to her first gathering. She zones out after kits are discussed, thinking about her mother and wondering what she was like. Dappledstone snaps her out of it and tells her to answer Hillheart's question. Mossypaw tells the SheerClan healer what herbs RigidClan needs. SoundClan's healers arrive and Mossypaw is pushed out of the conversation. The Cat of Clouds comforts her and tells her not to focus on them and to instead focus on the gathering, as it was important. Mossypaw turns her attention to the leaders, following their advice.

Mossypaw chants for Quakepaw and Droughtpaw when their names are announced, believing the gathering is going well. She goes silent when Sleekstar prevents Coarsestar from sitting down. Sleekstar reveals that RigidClan has a seer in their Clan, causing anger and fear to erupt in the clearing. Mossypaw is terrified, frozen in fear as Dragonflystar demands she be killed. Coarsestar calls for his Clan to leave quickly after. Cragshiver shoves Mossypaw forward and she races out of the clearing.

Once the Clan has safely reached their territory, Coarsestar tells them that they need to prepare, as he believes Sleekstar will use the situation to take their territory. Mossypaw is too distressed to listen to the entire meeting and goes to her nest, hoping to drown out the angry yowls of her Clanmates. She falls into a restless sleep, alone.

### Section Four: The Crimson Coat

Mossypaw feels awful the morning after the gathering, unable to leave the den. She's surprised by Peatpaw, who offers Mossypaw a squirrel. After inspecting it for any foul play, she takes a few bites. Peatpaw says she knows what happened at the gathering last night and doesn't think its fair. She also apologizes for being so rude to Mossypaw for the past moon. Mossypaw is only partially paying attention until Peatpaw mentions that she knew Mossypaw made the deal with the Cat of Clouds. Mossypaw is then grabbed by Peatpaw and is told that Peatpaw's been seeing ghosts for a while and that she doesn't want anybody else to know, or else she could lose everything. Peatpaw mentions Mossypaw has parents, which confuses her. Peatpaw is shocked that Dappledstone and Cragshiver haven't adopted her considering how parent-like they acted. Mossypaw has little time to process it as Peatpaw darts out of the den to go do some battle training.

Dappledstone and Cragshiver return after gathering herbs. Mossypaw decides then would be the best time to ask, as she didn't believe she had much time. They're both caught off guard by the question, Dappledstone especially. Cragshiver says he's always wanted to be a father and that he'd be glad to be known as Mossypaw's father. After a bit of thought, Dappledstone decides that she'd become Mossypaw's mother, and promises she'd do everything in her power to keep her safe.

Mossypaw is terrified when Coalflame bursts into camp and reveals that WealdClan is invading. Mossypaw hides in the den while Dappledstone and Cragshiver leave, herbs slung around their neck, to aid in the battle. All she could do was hope that the opposing warriors had a sense of mercy.

Mossypaw treats Marblebelly when he is brought into camp. She works efficiently and is able to get him patched up rather quickly. She tries to move onto Lichenpaw, but the tom is unwilling to receive treatment. She's confused, as his wounds look painful. Peatpaw tells him to get over himself and he eventually lets Mossypaw treat his wounds, though he absolutely hates it. Mossypaw goes to ask Coalflame to get her some more sage, but the tom had fallen asleep. Peatpaw retrieves the sage instead. She tells Peatpaw not to think about the weird feeling around her mouth, which Peatpaw is annoyed by. Once all the cats are treated, Mossypaw goes into the back of the den and passes out.

Mossypaw is woken by a yowl that the battle patrols have returned. She is greeted by the overwhelming stench of blood and death. Shadowsky asks if there's anything they could do, and Mossypaw tells them that she needed water and cobwebs. Peatpaw and Shadowsky go to find cobwebs while Pricklepaw and Lichenpaw go to get some water. While Mossypaw is soaking moss to help clean wounds, the Cat of Clouds appears to her and tells her that the forest is littered with the body of sparrows and to watch the trees. Mossypaw sees a vision of a thundering red sky and a large tree falling into camp, resulting in the death of a mother sparrow. Dappledstone slaps Mossypaw on the back and she gets to work treating the injured.

Mossypaw treats Quartzshine first. She is instructed by Cragshiver to use chamomile instead of chervil, as they needed the chervil for more serious injuries. Mossypaw takes the chamomile, applies it to Quartzshine's eye, then moves on to treat Obsidianpelt. She goes from cat to cat without much break, and is therefore exhausted by the end of it. Peatpaw and her group return with the moss and cobwebs she requested. She thanks them and heads back to her nest. She knows she has to participate in a burial that night, as she knows at least one cat is dead, and is dreading it. She flops over and immediately falls asleep.

### Section Five: The Dead Sparrow

Mossypaw watches the vigil of Killdeerfoot from the entrance of the healer's den. She didn't feel much sorrow cleaning up the warrior's pelt for her vigil, just a hollow feeling in her gut. Only when she watches Slatetongue sob into the warrior's bloodied pelt does she feel the same pang of sadness she felt during Flintfall's vigil.

Hawkclaw, an elder of the Clan, says that they should just kill Mossypaw and save their souls. Coarsestar snaps at her which starts a small argument between them. Hawkclaw returns to her spot with a scowl. Her son Talonstrike and a few other warriors are shown to support her idea of killing Mossypaw.

Mossypaw feels a tap on her side and turns to see Bullfinchkit standing beside her. Mossypaw is startled and leaps back, which causes the kit to do the same in response. They stare at each other for a few moments before allowing their pelts to lie flat. Mossypaw asks if the kit needs something. Bullfinchkit asks why the healers couldn't heal Killdeerfoot, as they had healed Chaffinchclaw just fine. Mossypaw hesitantly explains the concept of death to Bullfinchkit, who takes it surprisingly well. The kit returns to Eagleheart upon Mossypaw's request. Mossypaw wonders if StarClan was watching over her as they did with her Clanmates.

Mossypaw is left alone in camp when her mentors go to help bury Killdeerfoot. She watches Goshawksnow assign patrols and takes note of how terribly quiet the camp is. She feels a sense of unease. The shaking branches of nearby trees is enough to make her shiver. Droughtpaw trots up to Mossypaw and asks if there was anything she could do. Mossypaw decides to send her to get chervil and parsley, and suggests she goes with Eagleheart in case she ran into trouble. Droughtpaw groans, stating that Eagleheart was "too nice", so Peregrinethroat goes with her instead.

Mossypaw blames herself for Killdeerfoot's death as the Cat of Clouds whispers in her ear. Mossypaw feels the breeze wrap around her like a feathery tail as the Cat of Clouds tells her that it was not her fault Killdeerfoot died, and that they were foolish for trying to take her gift. Eventually the Cat of Clouds is able to cheer Mossypaw up, leaving her with a warm feeling. Her moment of relief is shattered by Bullfinchkit scaring her once again. The kit is bored and so she sits by Mossypaw until her mother returns. Slatetongue casts a cold look at Mossypaw, which she interprets as the queen's way of saying 'stay away from my daughter'. Mossypaw ducks away, not wanting trouble.

Dappledstone asks if any cats were up and Mossypaw responds with a shake of her head. Dappledstone says that they couldn't live like that for much longer. Cragshiver tries to bring a positive light to the situation, saying that most of the apprentices were healthy, but Dappledstone disagrees and snaps at him. Dappledstone, noticing his expression, ducks away into the den. Cragshiver tells Mossypaw not to worry about her attitude, as she was never good at handling her stress.

Days after the battle with WealdClan, Mossypaw is inside Coarsestar's den listening to him rant. He begs her to give him any sort of vision that could help their Clan, but Mossypaw lies and says she hadn't seen a vision recently. She manages to get out of his den by saying that she didn't want the Clan to get into a frenzy over one of her visions. Coarsestar tells her not to tell any cat about what he said or did to his den then lets her leave.

She enters the healer's den and tries to apply a poultice to Quarryclaw's chin, which has become a difficult task due to his dense fur and poor attitude. He swipes at her, refusing to let the poultice stain his pelt. The other injured cats tell him to get over himself and allow him to be healed, and he reluctantly submits. He pushes past Mossypaw on his way out and she does everything in her power not to scream at him. She goes to reorganize the herb piles in hopes it would calm her down, but it does not.

Boulderpaw starts to cough so she gets him some water. Concerned at his state, she decides to get him some prey, as he hadn't eaten yet. She finds that the fresh-kill pile is empty except for a mangled and rotten sparrow. Ravineriver asks what was wrong, noticing her gagging, and she stammers that there was a rotten sparrow in the pile. Panic quickly spreads and a crowd forms around the pile. Goshawksnow bounds over to the pile and sniffs at the sparrow, but finds no cat scent. Hawkclaw interprets the sparrow as a sign from StarClan to show their displeasure.

Hawkclaw says that Mossypaw had too much power and had brought nothing but misfortune to the Clan. Yes, she had seen the vision of the blizzard, but according to her any cat could've sensed the instability in both the nursery and apprentices' den. Cats begin to nod in agreement and Mossypaw ducks under her father to hide herself. Her ears roar with terror. Coarsestar leaps down from his den and gets into an argument with Hawkclaw.

Warriors begin to spit and hiss at each other as the argument escalates. Talonstrike says that they couldn't wait any longer and that the decision to kill Mossypaw had to be made that very moment. Mossypaw books it into the healer's den with Cragshiver shielding her from her own Clanmates. She presses her side against the back of the den, her body shaking like crazy. A fight starts outside when Hawkclaw lunges at Chaffinchclaw. The injured cats inside ask what was going on and Cragshiver tells them that there were cats outside trying to kill her daughter. Basaltfang gets out of his nest and charges out of the den, unable to believe that his Clanmates were so willing to kill an apprentice. Quartzshine joins him after telling Mossypaw to keep safe, and that she didn't deserve what was happening to her.

Mossypaw covers her ears as images of that moon's gathering flash in her mind. Everything has become a nightmare and she struggles to grasp that she really was in that situation, cats actually wanted her dead. She is hit with the revelation that Hawkclaw might have been planning her death moons in advance. The fight ends with the exile of Hawkclaw and her supporters. The Clan is left in silence, unable to comprehend what had just happened moments ago.

### Section Seven: The Brisk Winds

Mossypaw hovers over Boulderpaw as he is given a dose of cornflower and eyebright for his illness. Mossypaw whispers to her mentor that Boulderpaw should be walking, and Dappledstone responds that he refuses to leave his nest. Mossypaw gently tells him that he needs to get moving or else he won't get better; staying immobile will only make his illness worse. Boulderpaw decides a lap couldn't hurt and Mossypaw says if he needs any help she'll provide it, but Boulderpaw cuts her off before she can finish. She wants to snap at him but keeps quiet, keeping an eye on him as he walks around the den.

Dappledstone jokes that Boulderpaw should get her a mouse for compensation and Boulderpaw says that he didn't want the other apprentices to see him in that state. He mentions that he wasn't able to fend off the CurrentClan apprentices, and Dappledstone loses her smile. She goes to get him a mouse instead. Mossypaw is caught staring at the tom and is forced to tell him what she was thinking about. Not wanting to upset him, she lies and says that she was thinking about what herbs they could pick due to the change in season. Boulderpaw believes her and lets her go. Dappledstone returns with the mouse then heads to her nest for a nap, telling Mossypaw to wake her if Coarsestar came into the den.

With both her mother and Boulderpaw asleep, Mossypaw is left to her thoughts. She is too antsy to get anything done and so she leaves the den to gather herself. She isn't pleased by the sight of a dead camp and cats covered in cobwebs, and the outside world only pulls her deeper into her thoughts. She knows that Coarsestar would soon bombard her with questions. She tells herself that she was the seer, the messenger of the stars, and so she had to remain level-headed. She couldn't let Coarsestar or any other cat get in the way of that.

## Relationships

### Dappledstone & Cragshiver

Mossypaw idolizes her mentors and was more than delighted when they adopted her. She loves them dearly and looks to them for guidance. She can trust them to comfort her when she is down, and to heal the sick when she cannot. The moment she was assigned them as mentors she knew her life would change for the better.

### Peatpaw

Somehow, Mossypaw developed a friendship with the bold molly. Peatpaw took Mossypaw under her wing, and she can't complain. She's the only cat Mossypaw can relate to. Mossypaw hopes to find out more about Peatpaw's ability, which the Cat of Clouds said was similar to her own.

### Cat of Clouds

Mossypaw respects the Cat of Clouds more out of fear then admiration. She has seen what they can do, and doesn't want to get on the other side of it. She would love for them to open up about their past life as a seer to figure out which side of the story was true, but doesn't want to be *too* intrusive.

## Art

Mossypaw's healer app referenceA headshot of Mossypaw
## Quotes

**Mossypaw**: "*T-The cave–the cave it…everything…You were all dead, it killed you–there was your blood–and-and…The cave collapsed!*"

**CurrentClan Healer**: "*The last time a healer had a vision of the cave collapsing nothing came of it...It’s her nerves getting to her; new healer apprentices deal with this all the time.*"

**WealdClan Healer**: "*How did you even survive such an event?*"

**Mossypaw**: "*There was a wave and I-I was, uh, I was thrown back. A bunch of–a lot of trees–no..no, leaves and sticks covered me.*"

—Mossypaw telling the other healers about her vision *The New Seer*, page 2

**Slatetongue**: "*Did you have a vision about them?*"

**Mossypaw**: "*N-No, I haven’t..but I don’t-*"

**Slatetongue**: "*Then you don’t know for sure if they’ll be alright. What if one of them chokes on prey? What if a hawk grabs one of them? What if a-*"

**Mossypaw, loudly**: "*The crow cawed* after *their birth, you’re worrying about nothing!*"

—Mossypaw growing frustrated with Slatetongue as the queen frets about her kits' futures *The New Seer*, page 6

**Coarsestar**: "*You need to start using the catmint, the other herbs aren’t working. Since the beginning of the outbreak, only two cats have gotten better out of dozens. Flintfall’s death will mark the beginning of mass death if cats aren’t treated.*"

**Mossypaw**: "*B-but we don’t have enough to treat every cat– [Coarsestar lowers his head] I-I-I…I can’t…I-I-*"

**Coarsestar**: "*Either all the ill cats die or some of them. You’re a healer, you will have to deal with death at least once in your life...*"

—Mossypaw speaking with Coarsestar in his den *The New Seer*, page 15

**Mossypaw**: "*We can’t heal everything, we can only do so much. Killdeerfoot was too hurt and so she passed on before we could do anything. Sometimes cats….just do that…*"

**Bullfinchkit**: "*Oh…Eagleheart told me when a cat is dead it means they’re asleep forever. Is that real?*"

**Mossypaw**: "*Yes, when a cat is dead they can’t wake up. They move onto StarClan and leave their body behind.*"

**Bullfinchkit**: "*It’s far away.*"
**Mossypaw**: "*Yeah…that’s why we can’t see them. They can see us, though. She’s watching us right now. Each star is a warrior who has died, and they are always looking out for us at our darkest times.*"

—Mossypaw explaining death to Bullfinchkit *The New Seer*, page 43