Mapleshade

Mapleshade is a ragged, large, sturdy, thick-furred primarily ginger tortoiseshell-and-white she-cata thick, fluffy white tail, a white muzzle, a massive, scarred head, a broad face, thorn-sharp claws, soft, sleek, scarred, patched, matted fur, sharp, yellow teeth, and amber eyes.

Crookedstar's Promise

 * When Stormkit falls and breaks his jaw at the stepping stones while escaping from Goosefeather, he sees Mapleshade, although she is not named in the text. She tells him it wasn't his time to die as she looks down at him through the river, then she disappears.


 * Later, when Stormkit, now known as Crookedkit, runs away from RiverClan, she appears and advises him to go back home. She asks Crookedkit to make a promise, saying that he can become stronger than his Clanmates, as long as he follows the warrior code and remains loyal to his Clan above all else. Crookedkit promises, and Mapleshade tells him he has a great destiny ahead of him. Crookedkit constantly thinks about how he is being mentored by a cat in StarClan, and she gets him under the impression that she is doing him a favor.


 * When Crookedpaw is made an apprentice, he is eager to finally train with Oakpaw, his littermate. Mapleshade constantly reminds him he must be loyal to his Clan, as he had promised. She tells Crookedpaw that he couldn't be friends with Willowpaw, because she would distract him from his training. Crookedpaw gets mad at Mapleshade as she says this, and continues to be friends with Willowpaw.


 * Mapleshade continues to train Crookedjaw even after he becomes a warrior, saying that his training isn't over yet, and that he is still her apprentice.


 * Later on, Crookedjaw is luring a dog away from the RiverClan camp when his mother, Rainflower, dies on the riverbank. He wants to fetch Brambleberry and try to save her, but Mapleshade tells him to keep fighting, and that he needed to save the rest of his Clanmates. Crookedjaw reluctantly joins Oakheart, leaving Rainflower to die. Oakheart is angry at Crookedjaw for leaving her, saying if Crookedjaw had stayed with her, Rainflower might have survived.


 * When Shellheart steps down from his position as deputy to become an elder, Hailstar interprets a misshapen, crooked-jawed squirrel on the fresh-kill pile as a sign from StarClan saying Crookedjaw should be the new deputy. Mapleshade later reveals, though, that she had created the omen.


 * Shredtail, while training with his apprentice, Thistleclaw, reveals to Crookedjaw that he was not training in StarClan, but the Place of No Stars, the place where dead cats' spirits went if they didn't make it into StarClan. Upon hearing this, Crookedjaw is furious with Mapleshade for lying to him, but Mapleshade smoothly points out she never said they were in StarClan. Crookedjaw refuses to listen to her from that point on.


 * When Hailstar is about to die in a battle with rats, Mapleshade tries to kill Hailstar in an effort to make Crookedjaw Clan leader, but he refuses to let her kill his leader. He dies from severe wounds, though. Mapleshade does not approve of Willowbreeze and Crookedjaw being mates as she says he is breaking his promise to her.


 * After Crookedstar's leader ceremony, Mapleshade appears to him. She tells him that both of them kept their promise and asks him if he is going to thank her. When Crookedstar turns away, telling her to leave him alone, she tells him that he cannot run away from her.


 * When Willowbreeze dies shortly after delivering her kits, and two of the kits also die, Crookedstar is very angry and depressed as he knows Mapleshade and his promise to her are to blame. He visits her in a dream, and tells her that he lost Rainflower, Shellheart, Hailstar, Willowbreeze and two of his three daughters, Minnowkit and Willowkit, due to the promise he made. She acts innocent, saying it was a sacrifice he had to make to become the greatest warrior ever reminding him that he promised. He then tries to fight her, but she stops him by telling him about her terrible past: ThunderClan exiled her for taking a RiverClan mate. She tried to take her kits to RiverClan, but they drowned in the river. The kit's father blamed her, and she was rejected when she tried to join RiverClan. Her former mate then had kits with a RiverClan queen. They had a daughter, whose son was Shellheart, the father of Crookedstar and Oakheart. She told Crookedstar the reason she sought revenge on him was because StarClan had destined him to be a great leader, yet she believed that he should not even have been born and it should have been her kin who had a great destiny. She tells him she was testing him to see if he was weak like his kin, and she tells him that he is. Mapleshade doesn't bother him after that, and Crookedstar improves his relationship with his remaining daughter, Silverkit.


 * In the manga at the end, Crookedstar sees his daughter, Silverstream, with Graystripe, and hears Mapleshade's words ringing in his ears. When Silverstream dies, Crookedstar sees Mapleshade when he was on the border of StarClan and the Dark Forest. She tells him his punishment is now complete, and he has lost everything. Crookedstar tells her that she is wrong, and that everyone he has lost is waiting for him in StarClan while she has nothing and no one. That is the last time he saw her.

Night Whispers

 * When Ivypaw is chasing after Antpelt in the Dark Forest, she knocks into Mapleshade, who retaliates by pinning the apprentice down. Mapleshade threatens Ivypaw until Hawkfrost steps in and tells her to back off. She obeys, growling at Hawkfrost to try and keep his visitors under control, then stalks off. As she is leaving, Ivypaw notices that Mapleshade is translucent, and can see through her to the trees beyond. Hawkfrost comments that Mapleshade had taken residence in the Dark Forest for a long time, but she would fade completely soon. Ivypaw believes him as her glowing figure fades into the outlines of the trees.


 * Later on, Mapleshade taunts Ivypaw when she tries to wake up from her dream in the Dark Forest. Ivypaw, frightened, asks why Mapleshade wouldn't just fade away. Mapleshade replies that she isn't going anywhere until she's settled some scores, then tells Ivypaw that she is training her that night. She forces Ivypaw to try and knock her paws out from under her when she's neck-deep in river water. Ivypaw tries, but Mapleshade pins her down underwater. Ivypaw struggles until she kicks a rock with her hind paws, and she is able to swim away from Mapleshade.

Sign of the Moon

 * Mapleshade is briefly seen after Ivypool wins a fight with Thistleclaw during a training session. She tells Thistleclaw that he had lost the session. She talks with Ivypool and tells her that she had her doubts about her in the beginning, but trusts her now. She also reveals that a battle between the Place of No Stars and StarClan will be soon. Ivypool later tells her sister, Dovewing, that she has a reputation for being one of the oldest cats in the Dark Forest, and many cats, including Tigerstar, are said to respect her.

The Forgotten Warrior

 * While Ivypool is visiting the Dark Forest, she runs into Tigerheart, who is listening to Mapleshade talk about the end of the Clans. Ivypool notes that she has begun to fade into mist, and she looked even paler than before. Ivypool reflects upon how terrified she'd been of Mapleshade when she tried to drown her in a training exercise. As Mapleshade is talking, she stops suddenly, saying she smelled fear. Ivypool is afraid Mapleshade would come for her, but instead, she turns on Snowtuft, and, after insulting him, knocks him away.


 * As Brokenstar holds a Dark Forest meeting, Mapleshade is noted to be standing with Tigerstar and a few other Dark Forest warriors. When Brokenstar is interrupted by Hawkfrost, claiming that Ivypool wished to speak, Mapleshade hisses, and doesn't seem too happy with the sudden intrusion.

The Last Hope

 * After Hawkfrost sends the living cats home, he meets with the senior warriors of the Dark Forest to discuss about the final battle, including Mapleshade. Ivypool comments that she could see the trees almost perfectly clearly through her. When they discuss ideas, Mapleshade plots to kill the kits in the Clans first. She believes that if the kits died, the mothers would have nothing left to fight for.


 * During the battle, Mapleshade is seen attacking Dovewing, asking why she doesn't just give up. Dovewing continues to fight her, and when Dovewing is knocked down, Ivypool comes to Dovewing's side and attacks Mapleshade, biting deep into her shoulder and flinging her backwards.


 * Mapleshade attacks Sandstorm, claiming she had everything Mapleshade ever wanted: taking a mate who loved her, having kits that she could watch grow up and one day have kits of their own, and respect from her Clanmates, which she believes that StarClan stole all that from her, which results in Spottedleaf yanking her off. She taunts Spottedleaf about why she would save the cat that stole Firestar's love from her, to which she retorts that she never did and Sandstorm made Firestar happy. Mapleshade then attacks Spottedleaf and slices her throat open, killing her. While Firestar grieves for Spottedleaf, Sandstorm chases Mapleshade out of ThunderClan territory.

The Ultimate Guide

 * She plays a major role of Crookedstar's page. Mapleshade walked in Crookedpaw's dreams, making him promise that he would put his Clan above everything else. She let him assume that she was from StarClan, and Crookedpaw saw no trickery behind this. Mapleshade trained Crookedjaw hard, honing his skills, and expecting Crookedpaw to watch as one by one, the cats he loved most were taken away from him. Mapleshade tested Crookedjaw's love for Willowbreeze by luring a twoleg kit to Willowbreeze, causing her to be captured. Crookedjaw rescued her, knowing exactly what Mapleshade has done. Urged on by Mapleshade, Crookedjaw went to help other warriors instead of rescuing Rainflower, who died. Mapleshade made the prophecy in the fresh-kill pile that shows Crookedjaw will be the next deputy, and that night, Crookedjaw finally realized that Mapleshade indeed walked in the Dark Forest, and Crookedjaw vowed to never return. Mapleshade never let Crookedjaw go, and made his world slowly fall apart. Thanks to Mapleshade, Crookedstar achieved everything he wanted, and lost everything that mattered.


 * She has her own page.


 * It has been mentioned that Mapleshade was once a loyal apprentice, however, she had made one of the most terrible mistakes that would break the Warrior Code—falling in love with a cat from RiverClan, named Appledusk. She secretly kept this by meeting him near the river, sneaking out at night with no cat noticing, but then one night she gave birth to his kits. No cat offered her help, and the medicine cat realized that Mapleshade's kits and Appledusk all look very much alike, which caused an uproar to ThunderClan, forcing Mapleshade to leave the Clan forever for betraying the Warrior Code. The former ThunderClan warrior had no choice but to cross the river along with her kits, but the river was too much for them, and drowned Mapleshade's kits. Mapleshade made it alive,  but her kits were not, and Appledusk blamed her after this tragic accident. Appledusk betrayed Mapleshade by not wanting to be with her, and even RiverClan would not let her stay for one night after the discovery.


 * Alone now, from ThunderClan, RiverClan, and even Appledusk, the one tom she loved the most, Mapleshade had no choice but to live as a rogue. She felt a strong sense of hatred for RiverClan and ThunderClan, for the way they have treated her. However, she could not get revenge while she was alive, so when she died and became a Place of No Stars wanderer, Mapleshade watched over Crookedkit and his life, rejected by Rainflower, cut off from his Clanmates, and stepped in. She promised to make all of his hopes come true in return for one thing: that he would hold his Clan more precious than anything else in the world. After some time, Mapleshade trained him to become the warrior she had been, believing that she stole everything he loved the most. She forced Crookedjaw to watch Rainflower drown, Oakheart falling in love with Bluefur, and Willowbreeze and his kits dying from greencough. After Crookedstar's last surviving daughter, Silverstream, fell in love with Graystripe, she died giving birth to Graystripe's kits. This satisfied Mapleshade, knowing that a RiverClan cat suffered just as much as she did. After the Clans moved to the lake, Mapleshade followed and plotted with the other Dark Forest cats to use discontented warriors in the living Clans in the greatest battle of all. Mapleshade wanted all of the Clans to suffer just as much as she did, believing that she did not deserve what had happened to her.

Tigerclaw's Fury

 * Mapleshade first appears when Tigerclaw is in the Dark Forest. Earlier Tigerclaw had heard a voice in his head that turns out to be Mapleshade. She tells Tigerclaw that they are in the Dark Forest and that ShadowClan needs a strong and powerful leader. A short while later when Nightstar dies, she tells him that it is his moment and that he is treading on the thinnest ice and must be careful that he does not fall through. Not long after, she warns Tigerclaw not to overdo the humility because it isn't terribly convincing. When he is invited into ShadowClan, she tells Tigerclaw to remember this moment because it is what power feels like. She tries to stop Tigerclaw from going towards the fire in ThunderClan after he makes his way to the camp, wanting to be sure his kits would be safe. When Tigerclaw becomes leader of ShadowClan, she tells him that she had told him it would happen.



Mapleshade's Vengeance

 * Mapleshade is first seen on her way to a Gathering. A WindClan warrior hisses at her, telling her she walked on his tail. She apologizes and plunges deeper into the crowd of cats. Meanwhile, Oakstar speaks about ThunderClan's warriors tracked some adders to their nest and blocked the hole with stones. An elder grunts and states they were lucky not to get bitten. Another cat remembers an apprentice, Marshpaw, was bitten by an adder on his first patrol. Mapleshade goes by some RiverClan cats who snarl at her and remember the day one of their warriors, Appledusk, who striked a ThunderClan cat, Birchface, so hard that he fell into the river and drowned. His apprentice, Flowerpaw, leaped in to save him, but died along with him.


 * Mapleshade is interrupted by Appledusk, the RiverClan warrior. She is happy to see him, and demands to know where he was in the past few moons. Appledusk replies that patrols had doubled, and he was unable to sneak out of the camp, he promises that he would see her tonight. Mapleshade tells Appledusk that she is expecting his kits. Appledusk is delighted, and Mapleshade tells him to not see her until she had given birth. A RiverClan warrior, Reedshine calls Appledusk away. When Mapleshade sees the two cats padding away, heads close, she silently tells Reedshine to leave Appledusk alone, with the kits to prove that he was hers.


 * The next morning, Mapleshade is woken up by Nettlepaw, who tells her that Beetail wanted her on the dawn patrol. When Mapleshade stumbles out of her nest, Nettlepaw asks why she is so slow, and Mapleshade teases him, asking him what he thought Deerdapple would do to him if he had spoken to her like that. Embarrassed, Nettlepaw admits that she would probably make him search for ticks for a moon. When Beetail beckons Mapleshade to join the patrol, Mapelshade tells him she is expecting kits, and Beetail excuses her from patrols, congratulating her awkwardly. Frecklewish runs up to Mapleshade and asks her about the kits, when she asks if Birchface was the father, Mapleshade doesn't reply, and Frecklewish enthusiastically tells Mapleshade that she is happy that her brother would live through Mapleshade. When Mapleshade lies down in her nest, Frecklewish lies down beside her, promising that she will care for Mapleshade. Mapleshade reminds herself that she never said Birchface was the father, no that it was Frecklewish who insisted on the idea.

Trivia

 * Mapleshade is often described as ginger-and-white.
 * She has been described with green eyes.
 * She is said to have broken the jaw of a pike in order to make Crookedjaw deputy in The Ultimate Guide, when she actually broke the jaw of a squirrel in Crookedstar's Promise.
 * Although listed as a RiverClan cat in The Ultimate Guide, Mapleshade was never truly accepted into RiverClan. Crookedstar's Promise, The Ultimate Guide and Mapleshade's Vengeance state that she was rejected, the second book of which also states that she wasn't even allowed to stay the night in RiverClan's camp.

Members
Mate:
 * Appledusk (formerly):

Daughter:
 * Petalkit:

Sons:
 * Larchkit:
 * Patchkit: