Cattery Spunge (always referred as "Nanny") is a supporting character in The Wicked Years. She has worked for the Thropp family for years, having nannied Melena Thropp and Melena's children, Elphaba, Nessarose, and Shell.
Wicked[]
Nanny served as the nanny to Melena Thropp and practically raised her in the absence of her wealthy parents at the lavish Thropp estate, Colwen Grounds. After Elphaba was born, Melena and her husband, Frex call on Nanny to help them raise green-skinned Elphaba, and she often visits them at their cottage in the village of Rush Margins to assist in her upbringing.
Nanny is a devout worshiper of Lurline, which puts her in conflict with Frex, a Unionist minister. At Melena's request, Nanny travels to the Emerald City to secure medicine (from Yackle) to prevent their second child from being born with green skin, however, the medicine instead causes the newborn Nessarose to be born without arms and hardly able to support herself, leaving Nanny to permanently join the family again to serve as her primary caretaker, causing Nessarose to be lavished with affection, more so than Elphaba. Later, Nanny travels with the family in Quadling Country when Frex and Melena become missionaries and soon after that becomes a sort of surrogate mother to the Thropp children after Melena dies in childbirth of their third child, Shell.
Years later, at Shiz University, Elphaba’s roommate, Galinda Arduenna Upland’s ama Clutch is incapacitated, so Nanny takes up the role of being chaperone to both Galinda and Elphaba, and also bringing young Nessarose with her to begin schooling at Shiz. After Elphaba's drops out from University, Nanny continues as Nessarose's caretaker until she gains the power to walk up right with no support thanks to a spell placed on her jeweled slippers by the now Glinda the Good, at which point Nanny leaves Nessarose and makes her home with Elphaba in the Vinkus at Kiamo Ko, a place where she would remain for the rest of her life.
Son of a Witch[]
Nanny and Elphaba’s orphaned son, Liir have a brief conversation after he returns to Kiamo Ko to visit after deserting the Emerald City military. It is revealed that Nanny is being cared for by Chistery, the other winged monkeys, and brought food by local Arjiki peasants from the village of Red Windmill. Due to being advanced in age, Nanny is becoming very senile in the mind and the castle is left in a bad condition, however, Liir sets the castle right before leaving again. Later, Nanny is again visited by Liir who asks her about Yackle.
A Lion Among Men[]
In a flashback, a middle-aged Nanny visits Yackle in the Emerald City to find something to prevent the pregnant Melena from giving birth to another green child (her first being Elphaba). Yackle provides Nanny with pills, however, the strange magic pills instead cause the newborn Nessarose to be born without arms and hardly able to support herself.
Nanny also gives Yackle the bottle of Miracle Elixir (which Melena was given by the Wizard the night Elphaba was conceived), and Yackle predicts to Nanny that Melena's daughters will change the history of Oz.
Out of Oz[]
Still residing at Kiamo Ko, an even older Nanny has a brief conversation with Rain, who she confuses for Elphaba. Nanny also refuses to tell Rain the truth about Elphaba’s death, stating that it is not her business. Along with Chistery, Nanny tells Rain that she is the one who is meant to save everything, also granting her ownership of Kiamo Ko. Later, she speaks to Chistery and claims to have seen Elphaba on the stairs, although this was most likely Rain, who inherited her grandmother's green skin.
Personality[]
At the beginning of Wicked, she is described as being gossipy, unabashed, wise and colloquial. By the end of the novel, she has aged to the point where she is very senile; she often eats things that are not food and doesn't notice when dangerous situations are around her. She is, however, still vital well into her eighties. Her attitude reflects this, as she is stoic, speaks her mind, and holds to somewhat inflammatory 'Lurlinistic' pagan beliefs. However, she regains enough mental strength to prevent Liir from seeing Elphaba's dead body, though she sinks back into her senility afterwards. In the sequels, she wanders in and out of senility, usually when others are addressing her.
She is also the only one to have witnessed the aftermath of Elphaba's death but refuses to reveal the truth.
