My opinions- Palebird by Foxsplash

Foxsplash shares their opinion on Palebird.

Hey! Foxsplash here, and for my first article I will be discussing my opinions on Palebird. For convenience, I’m separating this article into a few sections to get all perspectives of palebird’s character to make a final opinion on her. If you disagree, feel free to discuss in the comments in a positive manner. Spoilers ahead for Tallstars Revenge and possibly other books.

Who is palebird?
Palebird is most widely known as the mother to Tallstar, but she is also the mother to Flypaw, Bristlepaw, Rabbitpaw, Wrenflight, and Finchkit. Palebird was said to have depression after loosing Finchkit, and did not appear to recover. Palebird was a tunneler, however she spent most of her time in the nursery even after Tallkit was born, likely due to her depression.

Palebird and Tallstar
Tallstar is Palebird’s first son, fathered by Sandgorse. After Tallkit was born and Finchkit died, Palebird became more distant with Tallstar, due to depression with Finchkit dieing. Tallkit spent more of his time with his father and with other apprentices until the tunneling incident. After the tunneling incident she consoles Tallkit and reassures him. After that they became distant to the point where Tallpaw was surprised to hear palebird say “I love you”. After tallpaw becomes an apprentice, palebird stays in the nursery due to her depression. After loosing her mate Sandgorse, she becomes sadder and starts neglecting Talltail further. Talltail feels betrayed by Palebird when she takes Woolytail as a new mate. In my opinion, Palebird should have been a better mother. Tallkit deserved a more attentive mother, however through all of her depression, she could have done worse. It is clear that as hard as both of them tried, Tallstar and Palebird never had a great relationship.

Palebird and Sandgorse
Sandgorse was palebird’s first mate, and it is clear all the affection shared between them unlike many mates in the series. He still supported her through her depression of loosing Finchkit, however they disagreed often about Tallkit’s future. Palebird was clearly saddened by the death of Sandgorse. In my opinion, they were a very good couple and appeared to have a good relationship.

My opinion
In my opinion, palebird was not the best character, or the best mother. I think that in the book her depression should have been more explained than implied. She was all things considered, a decent mother. However she did neglect Tallkit, so depressed or not, she was not a good mother. She was a good mate to Sandgorse, and while we never saw much, she appeared to be a good mate to Woolytail as well. I also think that she could have been a better clan mate, however I understand why she stayed in the nursery that long.
So anyway, that is my opinion on Palebird, if you disagree, I would like to know why in the comments!
-Foxsplash