Barley/Main article

Barley is a short black-and-white tom. He has a plump belly, big paws, broad shoulders, a broad face, and blue eyes.

He is a loner who lives in a farm on the edge of WindClan territory in the forest. He was born into BloodClan, along with his siblings Violet, Hoot and Jumper. Because of BloodClan's code forbidding cats to take care of each other, Barley was forced to watch his two brothers, now Snake and Ice, attack Violet after Barley was caught by Scourge taking care of Violet. He escapes BloodClan and helps his sister become a kittypet so she could get medical attention for her wounds.

Once he escapes, he finds his way to a barn and makes his home there. He is shown to be an ally to the Clans, as he houses Bluestar, Tigerclaw, Ravenpaw, Graypaw and Firepaw on their journey to Highstones. When Ravenpaw decides to leave ThunderClan, Firepaw and Graypaw bring him to Barley's farm, and Barley takes him in, growing incredibly close to the former apprentice.

Author statements

 * Vicky believes that Barley will not go to StarClan when he dies, as he lacks the necessary faith. Kate, however, believes that he'll live just on the outskirts of StarClan.
 * Vicky has stated that Ravenpaw and Barley loved each other and their life together.
 * Vicky doesn't think that Barley is still alive.
 * This is later contradicted, as he appears alive in Hawkwing's Journey.

Interesting facts

 * Ravenpaw and Barley would rather die then let BloodClan take over the barn, and they are safely in control of it.

Mistakes

 * He has been mistakenly called tall.