Millie VS. Blossomfall by Foxpaw

Foxpaw analyzes the volatile relationship of Millie and Blossomfall.

Okay, here we are on one of those topics that split the fandom in half. So, Millie is that spunky, adventurous, awesome she-cat who replaces Silverstream, saves Graystripe’s life numerous times, and gave up her life to live as a warrior. Not many people liked her at the start for replacing Silverstream, and some others started despising her after Briarlight’s injury. But the biggest blow was in Sign of the Moon, when Blossomfall explained Millie’s neglectful attitude to Dovewing.

Strange how one scene can cause one character to get blown away by hate from ferocious fans.

Now let’s explore Blossomfall’s character before we get back to the incident. As a cat in general, Blossomfall is a determined she-cat, and some might say…spoiled. Why? Well, as an apprentice, remember when she was on the Leaders’ Tree at the Gathering? She was well aware she was not supposed to be there but I agree, this is a common young cat’s mistake. But Millie, however defended Blossompaw even though she knew it was wrong of her daughter to do that. This is a big blow on Millie’s character too that many readers missed/ignored. So this type of parenting, kind of spoiled Blossomfall to the point where she thought she could do anything. Even as a warrior, Blossomfall was quite rude and possessive especially when Bumblestripe wanted to partner with Dovewing. She most likely felt in need of someone after Briarlight’s injury but she reacted quite negative and was mean to Dovewing after that. I’m just saying, Blossomfall wasn’t always a good cat. Remember when she acted like Dovewing was better than Ivypool in front of the latter to anger her as an apprentice? Yeah. Not always a nice cat.

This ties into the scene. Blossomfall must have misread Millie’s actions as she always felt used to her mother always being there for her that now, as an adult, she still wants support. I’m not saying that’s wrong, but Blossomfall could act a little better about the situation. Briarlight, a sweet, gentle, shy she-cat always wanted to be the best warrior as she could be. Then she goes and tries to save an elder, when she gets paralyzed. All her dreams – gone. Erased. Can never happen, EVER. Now, she has to watch cats obsessing over her, treating her like a kit, her sister feeling neglected because of what happened, feeling like everything is her fault and she is such a burden. Imagine that.

Blossomfall knows it’s wrong to despise her sister for that but she does so anyways. She doesn’t have to go to the Dark Forest for her feelings. She is a hardworking warrior cat and she has the choice to be good, but she gave it up, thinking if she had exceptional battle skills, she would capture her mother’s attention, stealing some away from her sister who needed it more.

Anyways, now about the scene where Millie yells at Blossomfall. Let me pull up her exact quote,

“Where have you been?” Millie snapped. “You’ve wasted a whole morning when you could
have been hunting!” Glancing back at Briarlight, who was struggling to join the group at the fresh-kill pile, she added, “Your sister would give anything to be able to help feed the Clan! It’s time you grew up, Blossomfall, and started to behave like a proper warrior.”

Okay, maybe that was harsh. But if Millie did not care at all, she would’ve either ignored Blossomfall or called her things like “worthless” or “stupid” which she didn’t. And it is time Blossomfall grew up. She expects her mother to cater to HER needs instead of her crippled sister, she’s wrecking her own life just for more attention, when she’s an adult and she can take care of herself.

Now, remember my point about Millie spoiling Blossomfall as an apprentice? Well, I feel like she’s a protective parent, but not the best as she didn’t notice how Blossomfall was turning out until Briarlight’s incident. So overall, Millie is a true mother that cares about all her kits, and she’s sensible but she is kind of overprotective, as some may say.

As for Blossomfall, I guess this could be kind of bias as I never really liked her character to begin with, but I do see how she’s changing, especially after the Great Battle. Learning how the Dark Forest betrayed her, has seemed to make her a much better cat, and she seems to be growing more independent and caring, so I have to give her credit for that.

In conclusion, neither side is at fault, nor innocent. They both have negative traits that collided and created a deep misunderstanding, but, in the end, they do love each other, mother and daughter.