Dappletail

Dappletail is a dappled tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with a patchy, thick, and shiny pelt and a muzzle gray with age.

Crookedstar's Promise

 * Dapplepaw is listed in the allegiances as a ThunderClan apprentice, mentored by Windflight.


 * Dappletail is at Crookedpaw's first Gathering, although not mentioned by name. When Bluepaw is talking to Crookedpaw, she flicks Bluepaw's ear with a paw, and crossly tells her to be quiet.

Bluestar's Prophecy

 * She overhears Patchkit telling Leopardkit, Bluekit, and Snowkit that he was looking forward to sleeping in the apprentices' den, because then Swiftbreeze wouldn't get to tell him when to go to sleep. Yawning, Dapplepaw walks out of the den, remarking that he’d be glad to get some sleep once he began his training. Bluekit is surprised when she sees how big Dapplepaw is, making Patchkit and Leopardkit seem small in comparison. Dapplepaw tells Patchkit and Leopardkit to show Snowkit and Bluekit where the dirtplace is, remembering how her best friend, Whitepaw had been complaining about cleaning out the nursery that morning. Bluekit declares that she and Snowkit can keep their own nests clean now, to Dapplepaw’s amusement.


 * She is shown to have taken an interest in Leopardkit and Patchkit, and has a good relationship with them. She gives them advice on their hunting crouches. Patchkit later reminds her that she had said she would take him and his sister to the sandy hollow. Dapplepaw protests that she had never promised, but agrees in a lower voice to take them to the edge of the ravine. Also, she and Whitepaw make nests for them in the apprentices' den, and are the first to greet them after their ceremony.


 * She next appears as a young warrior, now called Dappletail. Standing beside Stonepelt, she listens as Goosefeather, the medicine cat, interprets a dead vole to be a sign from StarClan warning them that WindClan would destroy them if they did not act. Among the cats who are eager to attack, Dappletail says that WindClan didn't know they had been warned, and they must use the advantage they had been given. Adderfang challenges Pinestar when the leader is reluctant to make a decision, asking if it was Goosefeather he doubted or StarClan. Dappletail mutters that if they couldn't trust StarClan, they were lost.


 * Pinestar decides to carry out the attack at dawn. Stormtail, one of the senior warriors, gives Dappletail some fighting pointers beforehand, showing how to roll and then jump with her forepaws ready to attack. He reminds her to keep her claws sheathed until the leap, and she tries the move again successfully. Stormtail seems pleased as well, but says she needed to be quicker, because even though they were stronger, WindClan cats were faster, and any slowness on their part would be taken advantage of. Later on, though, Stormtail contradicts himself when he tells Moonflower that WindClan’s nimbleness wouldn’t count for anything against ThunderClan's strength.


 * During the battle, Dappletail is attacked by two cats at once, but Stormtail hears her wailing, and comes to save her. Moonflower goes into the medicine cats' den to destroy the supplies, but Hawkheart attacks her; Stormtail is too busy defending Dappletail to rescue his mate, and Moonflower is killed shortly afterward. When ThunderClan retreats, she has to lean on Stormtail to make it back to camp for treatment, and his gaze "never leaves her".


 * Dappletail receives Goldenpaw as her first apprentice. At her first Gathering, Goldenpaw murmurs that she hadn’t realized there would be so many cats. Dappletail comfortingly tells her that the truce would hold so long as the full moon shone. While the leaders are speaking, she is annoyed by Bluepaw and Crookedpaw talking over them, and reprimands them twice.


 * She is seen clearing snow away from the entrance with the help of Stormtail. When RiverClan tries to take back Sunningrocks, Pinestar plans two attack patrols, and chooses Stormtail to lead the second one. He is ordered to take Dappletail, along with Smallear, Sweetpaw, White-eye, and Tawnyspots. She also sits beside Stormtail when Bluefur and Snowfur are made warriors.


 * She is surprised when she hears that Leopardfoot had begun her kitting so soon. She asks if Goosefeather was with her, but Bluefur replies that Featherwhisker was instead. Dappletail demands to know where Goosefeather was, to which Stormtail replies he had seen him staring at the sky, muttering about clouds.


 * After Sweetpaw’s death, Dappletail tells Featherwhisker the Clan was lucky to have a medicine cat as talented as him. Bluefur notices that nobody spoke up for Goosefeather, and thinks the Clan had lost faith in its old medicine cat. If Goosefeather noticed Dappletail's slanted comment, he doesn't react. She continues to comfort Poppydawn, murmuring that she’d help her prepare Sweetpaw's body for the vigil. They sit together beside the dead apprentice shortly before Pinestar returns to camp, only to tell the Clan that he was leaving the Clan to become a kittypet.


 * Dappletail has to stay in camp with Featherwhisker after she gets a seed in her eye, so Thrushpelt takes her apprentice out for training instead. Goldenpaw exclaims that Dappletail would never have let her climb up a tree as high as Thrushpelt did, and says she was going to ask Sunstar if he could be her mentor forever. Embarrased, he says that Goldenpaw seemed so certain, he had assumed that Dappletail had let her do it before. Purring, Bluefur promises not to tell Dappletail.


 * She is seen in her and Stormtail’s usual spot beside the nettle patch; it is noted that they spent so much time together, the Clan was waiting for them to announce they were having kits, but Poppydawn told Swiftbreeze that some queens never had kits, no matter how badly they wanted them.


 * She listens to Sunstar's plan about walking to RiverClan’s camp to tell them that they were the rightful owners of Sunningrocks, and they would shred any RiverClan cat who dare set paw on it again. She blinks at him, and says it would be suicide. Tigerclaw growls that it wouldn’t be if they sent a strong enough patrol, commenting that they would go in peace, but threaten war if RiverClan didn’t cooperate, clearly approving of the plan.


 * Dappletail is seen on two other occasions--when Thrushpelt was late to be sorted into a patrol because he had been eating, she tells him that he would have made Weedwhisker proud. She also mutters that she hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in days because Tawnyspots would walk in and out of the den all night, going and coming from the dirtplace.


 * Many seasons later, Dappletail has retired to the elder's den, along with One-eye, Patchpelt, Halftail, and Smallear.

Into the Wild

 * Dappletail is an elder of ThunderClan.


 * Dappletail is first seen when Graypaw takes Firepaw on his tour of the ThunderClan camp. When they come to the elders' den, Firepaw meets Dappletail along with the other elders. Dappletail is polite to the newcomer. Smallear then wonders out loud when Bluestar will choose a new deputy, since Redtail was dead. Dappletail and One-eye remember the season that Bluestar herself was made deputy. She also remarks that Bluestar had lost her kits since then.


 * She attends the Gathering with One-eye and Smallear. They go to talk with elders from other Clans before the leaders start speaking.

Fire and Ice

 * When ThunderClan is discussing the Gathering back at their camp, Willowpelt asks why ShadowClan and RiverClan would want WindClan's hunting grounds when they have plenty of territory of their own. Dappletail and Frostfur then point out that some RiverClan elders at the Gathering spoke of Twolegs taking over part of their river and scaring the fish away.

Forest of Secrets

 * While Cloudkit is tending to the elders, Dappletail tells Fireheart that he is doing a great job and is very efficient for a young kit. Dappletail seems to enjoy having Cloudkit in the elders' den.


 * Yellowfang later goes and tells Fireheart that Smallear told her that he had aching joints because of the damp bedding Cloudkit was bringing in. When Fireheart goes to ask the elders about it, Dappletail defends Cloudkit by saying that Smallear complains all the time, and by pointing out that Cloudkit was only a kit. Fireheart is surprised that Cloudkit had managed to win the elder's sympathy and respect.


 * Later, when Cloudkit is made an apprentice, it is noted that she and her fellow elders were the first to congratulate the new apprentice, showing that she had formed a good relationship with the young cat.

Rising Storm

 * She is seen talking with the other elders about the new deputy, Fireheart, who had been chosen in place of Tigerclaw after he was exiled. One-eye says that she didn't believe StarClan would punish them because they chose their deputy late, since the circumstances were so unusual. Dappletail says that made it worse, and wonders what StarClan would think of a deputy who had been chosen after moonhigh, going against the warrior code, when the previous deputy had turned against the Clan. She says it would look like their cats couldn't be loyal, or perform the proper ceremonies.


 * She is later seen with One-eye padding away from the nursery after seeing Willowpelt's new born kits, their eyes soft with affection and warmth. She is later seen sitting with Smallear and One-eye near the fallen oak, sharing tongues with them.

A Dangerous Path

 * She is present when Cinderpelt is diagnosing what is wrong with Snowkit, Speckletail's son. She is walking toward the elders' den, and stops to murmur something into Speckletail's ear. The pale queen snaps something in return, but Dappletail doesn't react, simply sitting down beside Cinderpelt. The young medicine cat tells Speckletail that Snowkit was deaf, but Speckletail retorts she had already known, as she was his mother. Dappletail comments that white kits with blue eyes were often deaf, remembering one in her first litter, contradicting previous statements that Dappletail is infertile. Fireheart asks what had happened to her kit, and Dappletail tells him that he wandered off when he was three moons old, and they all assumed a fox had gotten him. Speckletail says that a fox wouldn't get her kit, and she would look after him.


 * Lostface is later seen grooming her for ticks. When Fireheart later realizes that the dog pack will be coming to the camp, he tells the Clan they must evacuate the camp. Dappletail asks where a good place would be that they should go to, to which he replies that they will go to Sunningrocks.

The Darkest Hour

 * Dappletail flanks Speckletail along with Smallear when they return to the camp after the dogs are defeated. She approaches the Highrock with them to share tongues with Bluestar one final time, as the old leader had died going down with one of the dogs into the gorge.


 * Firestar comes to the elder's den to speak with One-eye about how to change Lostface's name. Smallear complains of not getting any sleep, but Dappletail tells Firestar not to listen to him, and he was always welcome to visit them.

Midnight

 * Dappletail is now the oldest cat in ThunderClan. Brambleclaw sees her curled up asleep in the elders' den as he enters the den to help Squirrelpaw with her duties. Leafpaw is ordered to take her a poppy seed because her teeth were aching her so badly, though she is to warn Dappletail to go easy on it.


 * Squirrelpaw tells Brambleclaw when she is trapped under a patch of gorse that Dappletail wanted a vole to eat, so she thought she had better oblige her, remarking that it seemed like Firestar wanted for her to feed the elders forever.

Moonrise

 * Dappletail starves, along with the rest of the Clan, when the Twolegs begin to destroy the forest. She sees Leafpaw separating a rabbit from the fresh-kill pile, and says she hoped that was coming to the elder's den, giving it an appreciative look. Cinderpelt tells her that the Twolegs were poisoning the rabbits, and some WindClan cats had died from eating them. Dappletail is annoyed, saying she had never heard such nonsense, angry that since WindClan had a problem, ThunderClan had to suffer as well. She says that WindClan had always been a proud, deceitful Clan, and accuses Barkface of lying to Leafpaw and Cinderpelt about the rabbits. The two medicine cats exchange a glance, seeing that there would be no convincing Dappletail that the rabbits were bad.


 * Firestar tells her that the decision had been made, and now Leafpaw was going to bury the rabbit outside camp. Dappletail exclaims that she would do no such thing, and darts forward. She devours the rabbit, tearing it apart hungrily, despite Cinderpelt's protests. Firestar forces himself between Dappletail and the rabbit, ordering her not to eat it. Looking into Dappletail's eyes, Leafpaw sees the desperation there, and how thin she had become. She remembers her as one of the gentlest queens in the Clan, and only starvation could have driven her to this. Dappletail demands how Firestar could call himself a leader, and the whole Clan would starve because of him. Cinderpelt insists that Firestar was doing the right thing, but Dappletail only growls and goes back into the elders' den. Leafpaw prays that the rabbit hadn't been poisoned, and that Dappletail would be okay.


 * Spiderpaw finds the medicine cats later on, and tells them that Dappletail was complaining of bellyache. Leafpaw remembers how Barkface says that only the strongest cats made it through the poisoning, and Dappletail was old and weakened by hunger. She goes to fetch more herbs, and when she returns, Cinderpelt tells her that Dappletail was dead and Cloudtail and Brightheart were missing, shocking Leafpaw with the lack of emotion in her voice. Leafpaw later wonders how long it would be until the rest of the Clan would become desperate enough to eat rabbits, like Dappletail had.

Starlight

 * Dappletail is among the ranks of StarClan when Leafpaw discovers the Moonpool, and is one of the first cats the young medicine cat recognizes. Leafpaw sees that Dappletail was graceful and beautiful now, not thin and desperate as she had been when she died. Dappletail's eyes glow with welcome, and nods toward two kits nearby, who are Hollykit and Larchkit, two kits of Ferncloud's who died of starvation before the Clans left the forest.

Secrets of the Clans

 * While Sandstorm is giving a tour of ThunderClan's camp, she looks into the elder's den, annoying Dappletail. Sandstorm asks her if she didn't have an apprentice to torment, then leaves.

Code of the Clans

 * Dappletail and White-eye are young warriors of ThunderClan.


 * They decide to steal fish from RiverClan because even though ThunderClan's forest was thrumming with prey, White-eye wanted to know what fish tasted like and why RiverClan was so superior about it. On the way, White-eye complains that she was stepping on her paw, and Dappletail apologizes, mistaking it for a pebble. Dappletail remarks that the river looked spooky at nighttime. She climbs onto a rock, saying that she didn't see any fish, wondering if they were asleep. White-eye angrily says that fish didn't sleep, but Dappletail protests that they must, otherwise they'd be really tired. White-eye tries to position herself for fishing, but Dappletail is uncertain whether or not RiverClan did it like that, remarking that she looked like she was about to fall in. She watches White-eye fall into the river and struggle against the currant, calling out to her. Dappletail begins to panic, and yowls for help, although White-eye tells her not to, otherwise they'd get into trouble. Dappletail ignores her pleas, and continues to yell.


 * When she doesn't see anyone coming, Dappletail jumps into the river to pull White-eye out herself, but she finds she's unable to swim. A RiverClan warrior, Owlfur, sees them, and demands to know what they were doing. He is ordered by his leader, Hailstar, to pull Dappletail out, while he rescues White-eye. Dappletail tells Owlfur that they were going to steal their fish, and apologizes.


 * Pinestar and Sunfall find them shortly afterward. Hailstar says, referring to the two she-cats, that he and Owlfur had caught some unusual prey that night, and invites them to come take a closer look. Dappletail hisses that she was never going to listen to White-eye again. Pinestar chastises the two for breaking so many rules, but Owlfur interrupts, saying that since they were so determined to be RiverClan cats, they might as well taste the fish, pointing out that White-eye had caught it. Dappletail, surprised, wonders if they weren't going to be punished. She takes a bite out of it, but is immediately disgusted, trying hard not to vomit at the unpleasant flavor. She barely swallows, and asks them not to make them eat any more. Pinestar sternly tells them that the warrior code existed for a reason, and ThunderClan didn't have anything to do with the river at all, the same way that RiverClan didn't have anything to do with the forest since they didn't eat squirrels. Hailstar says that nearly drowning was enough of a lesson for now, and orders them to go and leave the fishing to his Clan. White-eye agrees, promising never to fish again. Dappletail also says that she'd have no more andventures ever, thinking that RiverClan could have all the fish in the world.

The Elders' Concern

 * Dappletail is seen fussing with Halftail, Smallear, and Patchpelt about Bluestar announcing Fireheart's deputy position after moonhigh. Dappletail makes sure One-eye is asleep so she and the other elders don't have to hear her complain about not being able to hear them. She says that Fireheart had only been in the Clan for half a moon and it rarely happened in her days. She agrees that Fireheart should not have been named deputy. She thinks that there is something Bluestar knows about Fireheart she is not telling them about. She suggests that Bluestar purposefully did that because she knew StarClan would reject the decision anyway. She shivers at the thought of Bluestar turning her back on StarClan. Like Smallear and Patchpelt, she does not believe that Fireheart was the true deputy of ThunderClan.

Trivia

 * Erin Hunter has confirmed that Stormtail and Dappletail didn't have any kits together.
 * On the official Warrior Cats website, she is mistakenly said to be Spottedleaf's mother.
 * In A Dangerous Path, she says that she mothered a litter of kits, but in Bluestar's Prophecy, it was largely suspected that she was unable to have kits.

Members
Mate:
 * Unknown Tom: Status Unknown, Most Likely Deceased

Kits:
 * Unidentified Kits: Status Unknown, Most Likely Deceased