Mousefur

Mousefur is a small, wiry dusky brown she-cat with thick fur, a skinny brown tail, and a graying head.

Bluestar's Prophecy

 * Mousekit is born to White-eye and Sparrowpelt along with her brother, Runningkit, and she is about three moons older than Bluefur's kits, Stonekit, Mistykit, and Mosskit. Runningkit is seen trying to watch Bluefur's kits being born, while Mousekit falls asleep, too tired to stay awake while waiting for her new denmates to arrive.


 * Half a moon later, she and Runningkit are flicking lumps of snow at Mistykit, Stonekit, and Mosskit, then trying to look innocent when the kits complain. Their mother, White-eye, scolds them for doing so.


 * Later, after the battle with RiverClan over Sunningrocks, Bluestar asks Spottedleaf if she will be all right, which she replies that her wounds were deep, but she is young and strong and that the wounds would heal quickly.

Firestar's Quest

 * She goes out on a hunting patrol after Longtail's eyes are scratched by a rabbit.


 * Mousefur is on the border patrol that catches Smudge in ThunderClan's territory.


 * She is the first cat to protest when Firestar announces that it is time for him and Sandstorm to leave for SkyClan.


 * Later, after Firestar and Sandstorm come back, she is on Firestar's patrol with Brambleclaw, and he tells the two cats that he wants them both to attend the Gathering that night.

Into the Wild

 * Mousefur is first seen as a young warrior, participating in the Sunningrocks skirmish between RiverClan and ThunderClan. She is pinned to the ground by a RiverClan warrior, who makes a deep wound in her shoulder, but Tigerclaw manages to save her life by knocking the RiverClan warrior away. When the battle is over, Bluestar asks Spottedleaf how Mousefur is, and Spottedleaf says that her wounds are deep, but she is young, and her wounds will heal quickly.


 * She joins Whitestorm's patrol onto ShadowClan territory to rescue Frostfur's kits, and she helps drive out Brokenstar and his followers.


 * After coming back from the fight with Brokenstar's rogues, Graypaw asks Mousefur to check between Spottedleaf's claws to see what color fur the cat that killed her had. She runs over to Spottedleaf's body and says that Spottedleaf's killer was not a gray cat, which proves that Yellowfang is innocent.

Fire and Ice

 * When Fireheart brings Cloudkit to the forest, Mousefur is strongly against his staying, complaining that he would be a burden, and that it would be five moons before he could even begin training. She is convinced that he would have greencough by sunrise.


 * Later, Mousefur joins the sunhigh patrol with Fireheart and Whitestorm. She is the first to scent intruding ShadowClan cats, who are later revealed as Brokenstar and his outlaws. Tigerclaw chooses her, along with several others, to accompany him on a ShadowClan attack. They soon return to the camp, where Yellowfang is tending to Brokenstar's wounds. Mousefur is shocked by this, as is the rest of the patrol.


 * When WindClan is being attacked by ShadowClan and RiverClan, Mousefur is chosen to go with Tigerclaw's group to help WindClan. At the battle, she and Whitestorm are seen fighting Leopardfur.

Forest of Secrets

 * Mousefur receives an apprentice, Thornpaw. She is later mentioned to be taking him out to show him the territory with Whitestorm and Thornpaw's sister, Brightpaw. Also, later on, she is said to have taken all the apprentices out hunting with Runningwind.


 * Mousefur is chosen to go to the second Gathering in the book, and when ThunderClan is intercepted by ShadowClan and are forced to travel on their territory, she is prepared to fight if need be.She sees Fireheart's worry for Graystripe, and she asks him if he's alright. At the Gathering, Mousefur is ready to defend ThunderClan when Nightstar reveals ThunderClan sheltered Brokentail, and she is standing beside Darkstripe and hissing at some ShadowClan cats. She takes place in the battle with WindClan and ShadowClan, and is seen fighting Cinderfur, the deputy.


 * In the battle with the rogues, Mousefur battles against a huge tabby tom, eventually driving him off. When Tigerclaw's treachery is revealed after that battle, she brings up the point of how he could have expected the Clan to support him if he killed Bluestar.

Rising Storm

 * Mousefur is seen going on a border patrol with Longtail and Thornpaw. During a Gathering, she annoys Leopardfur by asking about Mistyfoot's kits, "the ones Fireheart saved." She, her apprentice Thornpaw, and Runningwind are all attacked by Tigerclaw and a group of rogues. Runningwind is killed, and she and Thornpaw are injured. Since she was the least injured of the three, Mousefur leads Fireheart and a patrol of ThunderClan cats to Runningwind, and they are ambushed. She fights against the rogues and Tigerclaw again when they are attacked in the same place when she leads the patrol back to the spot.

A Dangerous Path

 * Mousefur volunteers to go with Dustpelt, Ashpaw, and Cloudpaw on the dawn patrol after the Gathering in which Tigerstar reveals himself as leader of ShadowClan.


 * Later, when Fireheart tells his warriors of his plan to prevent a battle with WindClan, Mousefur somewhat supports him after Whitestorm says that Fireheart is right in not attacking WindClan, for dogs had been taking the prey, not WindClan. She does not go with him, however, as she feels she could not disobey her leader if she was ordered to attack.


 * She takes part in the chain that would lead the dog pack to the gorge. She is in between Sandstorm and Graystripe in the chase, and tears a claw.

The Darkest Hour

 * When Bluestar's secret about Mistyfoot and Stonefur are revealed to the Clan, Mousefur is suspicious of Fireheart, not knowing whether he is lying or not. She shares her thoughts with Frostfur and Speckletail, who have similar feelings. Although she is is unsure of what he says about Bluestar, she supports his right to become Clan leader, saying that the deputy always becomes Clan leader, and that is the tradition of The Warrior Code, despite Darkstripe's protests that Fireheart had been a kittypet.


 * It is mentioned by Whitestorm that while Firestar is gone at his leadership ceremony, Mousefur and Brackenfur took all the apprentices out hunting.


 * Later, Mousefur goes out on patrol with Firestar to test her apprentice, Thornpaw's warrior skills, though she thinks Firestar shouldn't have any doubt about them, as Thornpaw's warrior ceremony is long overdue. After the patrol, she proudly escorts her apprentice to his warrior ceremony, where he receives the name Thornclaw.


 * At the battle with BloodClan, Mousefur fights along with LionClan. The only time she is mentioned in the battle is with Brackenfur, and it is said that she had deep claw marks along her side, but was still fighting formidably.

Midnight

 * She is now Spiderpaw's mentor and a senior warrior.


 * When Brambleclaw is preparing to leave for his journey, she rebukes him for attempting to take a second mouse for himself, as he hadn't hunted that day. He then joins Mousefur and Spiderpaw, saying to herself that young cats thought they knew everything.


 * Later, she finds out Brambleclaw didn't sleep in his den the previous night; Mousefur had sent Brightheart to get him because she had wanted him for a patrol.

Moonrise

 * When the Twolegs come and start destroying the forest near the Thunderpath, Mousefur takes part in a patrol to investigate. One of the Twolegs grabs her, and she manages to get away, but is captured by another and ends up coming back to the camp with a severe wound. It is later said by Cinderpelt that she dislocated her shoulder. Cinderpelt and Leafpaw put it right after feeding Mousefur poppy seeds to deaden the pain. It is still horribly painful for Mousefur, who screeches, but she is able to stand on her paws and soon recovers altogether.


 * When Cloudtail and Brightheart are captured by Twolegs, and it is unknown to the Clan where they've gone, she thinks that Cloudtail went back to being a kittypet, and tells it to the Clan. She is persuaded otherwise by Firestar and Cinderpelt.

Dawn

 * When Brambleclaw and Squirrelpaw return from their journey, Mousefur greets them hostilely, believing them to have deserted the Clan because they had seen what was coming.


 * When Graystripe is captured, she is the first to say that Firestar has to choose a new deputy before moonhigh. Mousefur is rebuked by Squirrelpaw, who fiercely tells her Graystripe isn't dead and ThunderClan has no need for a new deputy. She leads one of the patrols to save ShadowClan, and when Leafpaw asks about RiverClan, Mousefur misunderstands her warning and thinks that Leafpaw is suggesting that they ask RiverClan to fight with them. Mousefur doesn't believe that RiverClan will fight alongside them, but is soon proven wrong. When Firestar is giving Brambleclaw orders, Mousefur says that he sounds like he's talking to Graystripe, and wonders why Firestar doesn't just name Brambleclaw deputy and be done with it.

Starlight

 * She appears to have struck up a friendship with Heavystep of RiverClan on the Great Journey. She was one of the cats who was made ill from the tainted water given to her by Mothwing, which caused her an excruciatingly painful belly-ache, and also cause her to vomit. She is helped through the night by the helpless medicine cats, who with no herbs could do little.


 * On the way to the new camp, Squirrelflight manages to persuade Mousefur to cross the stream with the promise of a warm nest. When they reach the camp, Mousefur chastises Brambleclaw about finding her a nest, and when he snaps at her, Brackenfur helps her and gathers bracken and moss for her nest. When Brackenfur tries to soothe her, telling her that Brambleclaw was trying his best, she sniffs and says that his best was pretty poor. It is commented by Brackenfur that Mousefur has a short temper only because she is exhausted and growing old.


 * Later, she becomes an elder after Spiderpaw's warrior ceremony, where he becomes Spiderleg. Brambleclaw said that it must have been difficult for her to admit that she was growing old, but her recent illness because of the tainted water proved it to her. He also said he would miss her bravery and fighting skills.


 * Mousefur makes it her job to lead Longtail around safely when they reached the new camp.

Twilight

 * When Firestar expresses his desire to go to WindClan and see if Onewhisker has gotten his nine lives, Mousefur does not agree with him, telling all the Clan that ThunderClan already had gotten fur ripped off for Onewhisker and done enough for WindClan. She does agree with Firestar that they should keep up the warrior training, as she states that when a cat has lived as long as she, he'll know that battles can spring from anywhere.


 * Mousefur is one of the cats who starts treating Brightheart like a medicine cat, asking her in front of Leafpool if she could have some poppy seeds to help her sleep.


 * Mousefur is hostile towards Daisy and her kits, though eventually warms up to them.


 * During the battle with the badgers, Mousefur insists that all the elders stay together, and guides Longtail, along with Goldenflower, up to the Highledge where they all hide.

Sunset

 * After the badgers have gone, Mousefur climbs down from the Highledge with the other elders. She claims a badger tried to climb up and get them, but they sent it packing.


 * She responds to the fact that Leafpool is back harshly, asking if she was back for good, or until that WindClan warrior sniffed around again. It is noted by Brambleclaw that Mousefur sounds harsh only because she is shocked and wounded. Mousefur also greets Stormfur roughly, asking him why he isn't with RiverClan, as he was a RiverClan warrior before he joined the Tribe. She is rebuked by Squirrelflight, who says they need all their friends right now. Mousefur is prevented from giving a sharp retort by Ferncloud, who is devastated because she can't find her mate, Dustpelt.


 * Later, after Stormfur and Brook have been exiled from RiverClan, and Firestar offers them a permanent home in ThunderClan, Mousefur isn't keen on having outsiders in the Clan. After Daisy, Berrykit, Mousekit, Hazelkit, Stormfur, and Brook join, she and Dustpelt call a Clan meeting, stating that ThunderClan is becoming too "mixed". When Firestar intervenes she tells him sharply that he can punish her if he likes, but she tells the warrior code as she sees it.


 * To reassure the Clan, Firestar says he will choose a deputy, but that also meant admitting Graystripe was dead. Mousefur and others are appeased by that, because they all knew Graystripe and grieve for him. When Firestar chooses Brambleclaw as deputy, Mousefur angrily protests, saying that Brambleclaw is inexperienced and hadn't had an apprentice, so it was against the warrior code. After Leafpool explains her dream about StarClan accepting Brambleclaw, Mousefur accepts then him.

The Sight

 * Longtail starts bringing Jaypaw in to examine Mousefur, who'd been coughing some nights. Mousefur rebukes him lightly, saying that he worries too much about her. Longtail continues to hint to Jaypaw about Mousefur's coughing during the night until Jaypaw realizes that she has the deadly greencough. Mousefur selflessly demands Jaypaw to check on the kits and make sure they were okay, and not to waste herbs on an old cat like her. Although she spreads the sickness around to other cats in camp, including Whitewing, Ferncloud, and Poppypaw, they all make full recoveries.


 * When Graystripe returns, Mousefur welcomes him back and gives Millie, his new mate, a nod, even though she was a kittypet and states, "Still breaking the rules, I see, Graystripe".

Dark River

 * She is weaker than any cat after her greencough epidemic, but refuses to admit so. When Hollypaw happens to mention that she thought talking instead of fighting would solve the problem with WindClan and RiverClan, Mousefur gets interested and talks to Firestar about it, persuading him to send Leafpool and Jaypaw to talk to Onestar. However, while Hollypaw is cleaning the den, Mousefur asks her if she expected to return from RiverClan being hailed as a hero. When Hollypaw snaps back that she was trying to help and stop a needless battle, Mousefur becomes startled. Hollypaw becomes hopeful when Mousefur acts interested, but Mousefur simply turns around and begins spreading fresh moss, stating that more moss will be needed. Firestar tells Leafpool and Jaypaw that Mousefur said that Hollypaw was right in the fact that the battle had grown out of gossip and guesswork.

Outcast

 * She remains an elder and still guides Longtail. She is seen when Icekit and Foxkit pestered Longtail for a story. She says to him that he should tell them something, and then maybe some cats can get a bit of sleep.


 * Later, when Berrynose and Birchfall are being punished by being put on apprentice duties, Hollypaw calls to them mischievously to make sure they squeeze all the water out of the moss and that Mousefur would claw them if her fur got damp.


 * When Talon and Night come to ThunderClan to ask for help, Mousefur doesn't agree with Firestar that they should help them. She says that if the Tribe can't defend its own borders, then it was their problem.

Eclipse

 * During the Great Battle, the two elders watch for other Clan warriors on the ledge of the cliff. She warns Longtail not to move because he might step on a kit, and when Blossomkit falls asleep curled up next to her, she tells everyone to leave the kit be and let her sleep.

Long Shadows

 * Mousefur remains one of ThunderClan's elders, along with Longtail. During the greencough outbreak, she is reluctant to eat herbs that will prevent her from getting sick, telling Jaypaw to save them for cats who are really sick. When Longtail starts coughing, she gets cranky with Jaypaw, saying, "a fine medicine cat you turned out to be if you haven't even got any catmint", though Jaypaw realizes that she is just worried about her sick denmate.


 * When the sick cats leave camp to go to the abandoned Twoleg nest, she tells Brambleclaw that she's an elder and that it doesn't weaken the Clan if she gets sick. She then tries to go to the abandoned Twoleg nest to take care of the sick cats but Brambleclaw tells her not to and says that he knows Firestar already said no, and she can't get around him either. She stays reluctantly, and walks away muttering about how Brambleclaw thinks he knows everything.

Sunrise

 * Mousefur becomes close to Purdy when he joins the Clan, acting calmer and not as spiteful towards the younger cats. It is shown that she does enjoy gossiping with him. She tells Jayfeather about the herb Leafpool gave her many moons ago, and comments that Leafpool expects her to live on tansy every leaf-bare. She also correctly identifies the herb when Jayfeather catches a scrap of it on his pelt.


 * She is shown to enjoy basking on the Basking Rocks and, just before Honeyfern died, she had fallen asleep in the middle of Purdy's story about a mouse. She is annoyed to be woken up by the younger warriors asking for a turn to bask, and says that they can bask if some cat fetches her fresh-kill. Honeyfern fetches her the fresh-kill, and Mousefur moves away with Purdy still trying to tell her the story about the mouse.


 * When Honeyfern dies, she states that Honeyfern was a fine cat and the last thing she ever did was get her fresh-kill. Later, when Firestar announces her death, and explains that it may have been the cats sunning themselves on the Basking Rocks, she and Purdy exchange a shocked glance, and says that it could have been them. Mousefur blames herself for this, saying, "Better it had been me, than that poor young cat."

The Fourth Apprentice

 * During Ivykit and Dovekit's apprentice ceremony, she guides Longtail out of the elders' den. She seems to be feeling the limitations of her age more and more, and Jayfeather suspects that Longtail might have been giving his share of food and water to her.


 * Mousefur complains when Rainstorm is brought into ThunderClan's camp to rest, and demands to know why he has to rest there. She seems to support Thornclaw's idea of asking for fish in return for helping Rainstorm, and she points out that the drought is affecting ThunderClan, too.

Fading Echoes

 * When the tree was falling into camp, she would not leave her nest, saying to Brightheart if she left it, it would get wet. Only Lionblaze was able to make her leave. Then she wanted to go save a dead mouse, because she believed that StarClan would be angry if they wasted prey. She began to go back into camp, while the tree was still falling, and Longtail slipped past her saying that he would get the mouse. Longtail went to get the piece of prey, with Briarpaw following him, shouting, "It's not safe!", but the tree fell on top of him, killing him and breaking Briarpaw's backbone. She is distraught at his death, and believes that she should have died instead. Mousefur missed Longtail, and Purdy tries to calm her down and comfort her as they sat vigil for the dead elder. Throughout the book Mousefur continually blames herself for Longtail's death and also refuses to look at Briarlight due to the same reason, seeing her injuries as her fault.

Night Whispers

 * Mousefur is mentioned when a few of the warriors are fixing the elders' den.


 * She is later seen complaining about water dripping through the roof, but Purdy tells her that the warriors will fix it soon. Lionblaze thinks that she had gotten some of her reasoning back after Ivypaw had brought back a fat water vole for her.

Sign of the Moon
She is mentioned when Jayfeather is leaving for his journey. He tells Purdy to look after her while he is gone.

The Forgotten Warrior

 * Purdy tells Dovewing that Mousefur cannot get comfortable on the moss that she and Whitewing had collected, and Lionblaze notes that ever since Longtail's death, Mousefur wasn't herself anymore, and that he would give anything for her to complain.


 * She is seen sitting outside the elder's den, and Jayfeather tells her that she needs to be in her nest, but Mousefur asks why she can't look at the stars, Jayfeather softly tells her that she can, and wonders if she's looking for Longtail.


 * When Jayfeather shows Cinderheart Cinderpelt's memories, they see a younger Mousefur complaining to Cinderpelt during the Great Journey that her paw hurts from walking on the stones, saying it was not natural for cats, and Cinderpelt promises to give her some dock leaves as soon as they rest.


 * Later, when Jayfeather enters camp and Hollyleaf is taking Purdy out for a walk, she complains to Jayfeather that her legs ached. Jayfeather offered get her some daisy leaves, but Mousefur says that she wanted to talk about Hollyleaf. She describes to Jayfeather how Brambleclaw told every cat that he had seen Ashfur attack Hollyleaf and fell into the stream by accident and that Mousefur had heard everything. She then asks Jayfeather if he knew it along, and he nods, and she asks why Jayfeather didn't tell anyone, and he replies that that Hollyleaf was gone, and that the situation was more complicated than it looked because of Ashfur's threats, and that he threatened Jayfeather, too. Mousefur questions that Jayfeather suited him dead, and Jayfeather retorts that it suited the whole Clan, and that Ashfur was determind to cause trouble for every cat, and Mousefur says that was no harm done, because harm had been done to Ashfur, Hollyleaf, Brambleclaw, and Jayfeather, and asks Jayfeather that now the Clan had to carry on as normal, and is that what Jayfeather wanted, and he says that he thinks there are bigger things to worry about right now than the death of a cat many moons ago.


 * After a long silence, Mousefur asks Jayfeather if darkness is coming, and Jayfeather asks her how she knew, and she replies that she didn't know anything that could help them, and that her dreams have been troubled for a long time. She thought that she would never live to see the end of the Clans, and Jayfeather says that the Clans would not end as long as he had breath in his body. He stays with her until she falls asleep, and wonders if she knows what she is talking about because she's so old. He starts to wonder if Mousefur is the fourth cat in the prophecy but he pushes the thought away because Mousefur is an elder.

The Last Hope

 * Mousefur is seen saying she wants to hunt again. Mousefur fights alongside Purdy in the Dark Forest battle to protect her den. She is happy to see Longtail when he arrives. She is brutally attacked by a tabby Dark Forest warrior and she collapses. Longtail lunges for her attacker, grabbing them by the spine then dropping them on the ground, their body twitching. Longtail attempts to get Mousefur back on her feet but after he grabs her by the scruff he notices her head is twisted in an odd way and her eyes are dull, showing that she had died.


 * When Firestar dies and the StarClan cats come to take him to his new home, Mousefur's spirit leaps up from her body and runs around the clearing as invigorated as a kit, then pads away with him, along with Ferncloud and Hollyleaf's spirit.

Battles of the Clans

 * At a Gathering, she is pointed out by Dapplenose, and she is mentioned to still have grief clinging to her as a result of Longtail's death.


 * In the battle with the foxes, Mousefur provides the scent lure for the foxes by dragging a rabbit along the ground to lead them into a ShadowClan ambush. This tires her, and she has to pause to catch her breath before joining in the chase. She later narrates the story of when Lionheart, as an apprentice, lacked courage and learned from it.

Trivia

 * Mousefur never had any interest in having a mate.
 * She has been mistakenly described as a brown tabby.
 * In Starlight, she is listed in the allegiances as an elder, even though she doesn't join the elders' den until later in the book.

Members
Mother:
 * One-eye: Deceased, Suspected StarClan Member

Father:
 * Halftail: Deceased, Suspected StarClan Member

Brother:
 * Runningwind: Deceased, Verified StarClan Member