Softstream

**Softstream** is a sleek, shorthaired fawn she-cat with paler hints on her paws and nosetip. Her eyes are a faint hazel. She is of Abyssinian origin, most clearly shown in her profile. She has been mute since birth.

## Personality

Softstream is quite expressive for a cat with no speech. The widening and narrowing of her eyes, cautious blinking, stiffening of her shoulders all contribute to the facile language which she communicates to her clanmates. Despite being a mute she enjoys when cats come to visit her, and she is able to heal them or supply them with remedies.

## History

Softkit was born mute. Thinking that perhaps she was only a very shy kit, her mother tried to coax words out of her once she was old enough to start speaking, but her voice never came forth. She did alright when young, but as she aged she found she struggled to get across more complex ideas.

She was apprenticed to the medicine cat Myrtletail, hoping that this would let her grow more comfortable in associating with others. Softpaw settled into the work of a medicine cat fairly easily even without speech, and found it to be her ideal job.

Receiving her full name of Softstream was a proud day for her, but at the same time it felt somewhat bittersweet to hear her Clanmates cheer a name she could never speak herself.

### First Leaf-fall

Softstream awakens with a start after having a vivid dream that she suspects might be a vision from StarClan, but dismisses for the moment. She is visited soon after by Oakclaw, who noticed the movement in her den and brought her a mouse. Though she tries to offer it back to him, he refuses it. They have a short conversation, Softstream feeling slightly embarrassed for being unable to speak to Oakclaw in the usual way. Oakclaw tells her to not sit in her den all day before leaving to take Heronheart and Nightshadow out hunting. Softstream eats the mouse and ponders how to tell either Flystar or Oakclaw about her dream, unable to easily express the complexities of what she had seen, then leaves camp to forage for herbs.

Returning to camp, Softstream visits Flystar's den to check in on her. She finds Flystar near death in her nest, with only enough energy remaining to say goodbye to Softstream and urge her to tell Oakclaw of the dream Flystar had also had the night before. Softstream leaves the leader's den to see Oakclaw, Heronheart, and Nightshadow returning from their hunt, and leads Oakclaw into Flystar's den to witness her body. She watches sadly as he says his goodbyes, and sits by him as he announces Flystar's death and appoints Heronheart as his deputy. When the meeting ends, before returning to Flystar's den to begin preparing her body for burial, Softstream licks Oakclaw's cheek.

While beginning to prepare Flystar's body for the vigil, Softstream is joined by a mournful Petalfoot, who asks if Flystar passed alone. Softstream is saddened further on Petalfoot's behalf, and confirms that she was there when Flystar died. Anointing Flystar's body with herbs, Softstream is assisted by Petalfoot gently grooming Flystar's fur.

After Flystar's body is brought out, Softstream returns to her den to think about and prepare for Oakclaw's leader ceremony at the Peace Bounds. She feels somewhat nervous, fearing that she might not be able to fulfil her duties properly due to her lack of speech.

At the vigil, Softstream is one of the cats present. She is largely quiet throughout, but feels pride at Petalfoot's mention of Flystar's admiration of Softstream's talents.