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Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2014 13:44:33 GMT
Grumbling darkly in the many shadows of the medicine den, an elderly cat sorted through her herb stores and the piles of fresh herbs that had just been collected. It was good to get as many herbs stored as possible before things got hard or cold simply because of the ever occurring storms that battered the territory and sent cats to her den with anything from splinters and twisted paws to broken bones.
Sighing inwardly, Lionsong's deep mew rumbled against the thick bramble and stone walls. "got to get more comfrey and horsetail..."
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 12, 2014 4:47:52 GMT
Thunderpaw pattered into the Den, looking around in passing curiosity at the herbs and what not. His gait was more like a horse's trot than a cat. He smiled at Lionsong good naturedly. "Hey Lionsong, what's up? Anything I can help you with?"
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2014 5:04:23 GMT
Flicking her ear at the tom's greeting, Lionsong continued her sorting. There was plenty to be done, and she could use the help as her eyes were not what they used to be. Giving a sigh, the elderly she-cat grunted a yes and becomes him over with her tail. "You may be a warriors apprentice, but you can still be useful." Ciming from the bad natured medicine cat, it was almost a compliment.
Without looking up, Lionsong passed Thunderpaw a pile of herbs. "Parsely. Pick out any crumbling or wilted leaves." With smaller herbs, the older she-cat knew that an apprentice would be able to tell a healthy leaf from a bad one more easily than she could. Finished with her pile, Lionsong padded to the back of her den and squeezed through a crack to her herb store. Placing the fragrant herb in it's own special spot, the brown medicine cat returned to check on Thunderpaw."Not bad. When you are done, put above the ground in my store on one of the ledges that are empty."
Turning back to the few piles left, Lionsong began sorting through some yarrow. Some of the bad leaves made her crinkle her nose, but it was a good sign. Leaves being left to rot meant that they were unneeded, which was good.
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 12, 2014 19:33:50 GMT
Thunderpaw sat down and began going through the Parsley. Before long the young apprentice was stifling yawns of boredom, but he hid them well and didn't say a word. He liked helping out his clanmates when he could, but he was completely certain now that being a Medicine Cat was absolutely NOT something he was cut out for. He got through the sorting easily enough, happy there wasn't too much to be wasted. "How is this, Lionsong? Ready for the stores?" he asked the Med Cat.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2014 21:46:19 GMT
Lionsomg looked over at the apprentice and nodded. "Yes, Thunderpaw." The elderly brown she-cat started on the last pile, muttering to herself while Thunderpaw put the parsley away. She was making notes of what needed to be stocked up on and what was fine. When the medicine cat was finished, she stepped into her store to put them on the shelf next to Thunderpaw's parsley.
With a list in mind, Lionsong turned to her current helper. "Seeing as you're so eager to help me, I have another task. Herbs need to be collected, two noses are better than one and two cats carry more." More of a statement than a question, Lionsong knew that there weren't many apprentices who liked gathering herbs, but Thunderpaw was on the old she-cats 'smart' list and she didn't mind the assistance, even if she was too stubborn to say thanks.
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 13, 2014 5:22:20 GMT
An easy grin stole across Thunderpaw's face. Gathering herbs didn't sound like the most exciting way to spend the day, but it did mean getting out and exploring the territory, and Thunderpaw wouldn't dare dream of turning down that opportunity. "Sure Lionsong, that sounds great!" the young tom said, trying to appear calm and altogether failing. "What do we have to collect? Where are we going to look?" If he were lucky perhaps he'd be able to exercise his hunting skills. All at once Thunderpaw was finding it extremely difficult to sit still.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 14, 2014 0:22:02 GMT
Nodding at his enthusiasm, the medicine cat took a moment to groom the stale flecks of herbs from her short brown fur. Lionsong then padded back into her store and pulled out four tiny bundles of herbs that looked quite pathetic. The first was a single long leaf that was fuzzy to the tough and smelled of marsh, the second was a small pile of seeds easily identified as poppy, the third was a small green leaf that smelled strongly, and the last was familiar marigold.
"These are what we need. The largest leaf is horsetail." Out of habit, the deep-voiced she-cat almost went into what they were used for, but remembered that a warrior's apprentice could care less. "You should know Poppy and marigold from how often its used to treat wounds. This last one is comfrey. Remember how they smell and look. Don't just grab if you think you've found something, there poisons in our territory as well."
With a deft nod, Lionsong turned to the entrance to her den to leave. Now that she was walking, it was painfully obvious how old the she-cat was. Her legs shook with each step and her gray-flecked muzzle looked like a marking as opposed to the mild graying of age. At 24 seasons old, the she-cat outlived every cat alive in any of the clans. To be both plagued with age and her duties made her life a very lonely one. It wouldn't be long before she couldn't make half-moon trips anymore.
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 14, 2014 5:30:35 GMT
Thunderpaw saw the way the old she-cat walked and felt a pang of sorrow for her. Lionsong was such a Clan staple, and had been so since long before his parents had been born, maybe even their parents before them. He couldn't imagine the Clan without her. The young apprentice stopped ranging ahead and padded back to walk at her side. He was quiet, a rare brooding moment for him, until he spied bright golden leaves and sprang towards them. "Hey Lionsong, are these the Marigold?" he asked. The flowers were tall, almost two fox-lengths, and the centers were full of brown seeds. Thunderpaw frowned at them. They were bright and sunny yellow, like the marigold, but they didn't look quite the same. "No, this isn't quite right, is it Lionsong?" he asked softly.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 14, 2014 16:51:13 GMT
Huffing at the tom's energy, Lionsong looked over the huge flowers and shook her head. What Thunderpaw had found was sunflower. It was useful as a belly filler when cats were low on food, but otherwise had no proper place in the medicine den. Still, Thunderpaw had an enthusiasm that Lionsong couldn't hate. "That is a sunflower. The seeds are covered in a hard shell and can be used to stave off hunger. I usually put it in traveling herb packs. Don't chew the stems or leaves, though, they give a bad bellyache."
Continuing on, the brown medicine cat kept an eye on Thunderpaw while she checked the undergrowth and such for herbs. "Marigold grows in clumps close to the ground. It usually is yellow, but can be orange or red." Pointing with her tail to a small patch in the sun, Lionsong explained the difference between the smaller marigold and massive sunflower he had found before.
As Lionsong picked the marigold, she waved Thunderpaw forward to try and find the other three things they needed. The old she-cat had been right to bring another cat with her, now she knew another place that sunflowers grew and would spend less time looking for herbs.
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 14, 2014 19:45:37 GMT
Thunderpaw sniffed, trying to pick up the scent of the horsetail, poppy, or comfrey. The poppy he would know on sight, but not the other two. For those he was depending on them smelling fresh much as they did dry. A familiar scent wafted towards him on the light breeze. "Hey Lionsong! I smell the comfrey! I think." The young apprentice darted off in the direction of the scent. Collecting herbs was actually turning out to be much more interesting than he would have thought. All the Med Cat duties so far weren't too bad. He couldn't say sorting herbs had been the most fun he'd ever had, but in retrospect it wasn't as totally boring as he'd first thought.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2014 17:11:17 GMT
Lionsong Huffing, Lionsong padded after Thunderpaw with the bundle of herbs in her mouth. The young apprentice in front of her seemed to be getting more excited about helping her. When they were in her den, the she-cat had caught Thunderpaw stifling a yawn once or twice, but had chosen not to acknowledge his boredom. Now he seemed almost enthusiastic about trying to find the herbs and Lionsong mused that he must be thinking of it as a tracking game to improve his warrior skills. Thinking of it that way, Lionsong almost found herself amused as well. Once the elderly medicine cat had caught up, she bent down to take a whiff of the plant that he had pointed out and nodded. "You have a sharp nose, Thunderpaw. This is comfrey, why don't you pick and carry some this time?" Less of a question and more than a hint, the older she-cat also expected that he would find a fun challenge in scenting the horsetail and poppy with comfrey in his mouth. It would also slow Thunderpaw down so that Lionsong would be more easily able to keep up with the tom. "Horsetail grows in marshy, waterlogged places. Where in our territory do you think you can find some?" The large, frail she-cat asked. She would test his knowledge of the territory, even if testing him for herbs was useless. Even if his mentor had let him off the hook for helping her, the young tom wouldn't get away from learning something as long as he was with her.
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 19, 2014 17:53:40 GMT
(Your kitty pictures are AWESOME!!!!)
Thunderpaw carefully collected the comfrey, only taking the freshest and healthiest sprigs and being careful not to damage them. For a Warrior's Apprentice and not a Med Cat he didn't do a half bad job of it, in his own opinion.
"Now, where is the ground marshy...?" Thunderpaw muttered around the comfrey caught in his fangs. His adult fangs weren't even all in yet, they were coming a bit late. "The Graveyard?" he asked, referring to the place where all the trees had been blown down. The ground was pretty wet there. "Or by the stream?" he suggested. It overflowed its banks fairly often, making the area around it a bi swampy.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2014 19:08:48 GMT
Lionsong Both were good places to look, and Lionsong narrowed her eyes as if she was thinking about his answer. "Both are good, but which one would be most likely?" The graveyard was always full of tall growing plants that could be horsetail, but the river was marshier and would seem more likely to have the wet-loving plant that was good for sore paws and small cuts. It took a moment for Lionsong to realize that she was beginning to treat Thunderpaw like a medicine apprentice and shook her head at herself. "Let's look by the stream first." Answering her own question, the she-cat headed in the direction of the stream. It was a bad idea to teach a warrior's apprentice too much about medicine because warriors and apprentices alike thought that they could cure themselves after a single lesson. It took a cat who respected the ways of a medicine cat and understood the dangers of herbs to learn properly. In all her life, Lionsong had seen one time where the leader had asked her to teach the warriors simple things like bellyache and soreness cure-alls. It had not gone well.
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GlitterFlame89
Bird Catcher
Posts: 107
3 Characters
Bluespeckle, She-Cat of RiverClan
Aspenpaw, Tom-Cat of AdderClan
Thunderpaw, Tom-Cat of StormClan
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Post by GlitterFlame89 on Jul 20, 2014 4:54:43 GMT
Thunderpaw padded along at Lionsong's side, looking about them, eyes wide with wonder. He had yet to see the entire territory and he wanted to see and remember everything. "I would have picked the Graveyard." He told Lionsong, trying to make conversation as they walked. "The stream seemed too obvious." The day was lovely warm and sunny but not overly hot.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 21, 2014 18:41:08 GMT
Lionsong
The she-cat continued quietly for a moment after Thunderpaw's comment, thinking of how to put her reply without driving him away. She needed the help carrying all of the herbs back to camp. "Avoiding the obvious may be good for a warrior." Lionsong growled in her already very deep meow. "But the extra time means loosing the life of a cat in times of danger." Snapping harder than she intended, Lionsong paused at the bank, looking over the stream to see if she could spot the tall fronds of horsetail.
The old she-cat's point had been made. She had watched too many cats die to ignore the obvious path and, while Thunderpaw was a warrior's apprentice, it was good for him to learn and understand why Medicine cats were as respected as they were. Few cats at his age had seen that a medicine cat stands between a cat and their trip to Starclan, and her snappy reply might just have brought that thought home to the young tom. To carry the weight of life and death on your shoulders was a hidden job of the medicine cats. It was covered with soreness cure-alls and scratch patches. Few apprentices witnesses major battles and gaping wounds during their training and Lionsong was grateful for that much at least.
Spotting the plant, the elderly medicine cat headed in that direction, flicking her tail to follow just in case Thunderpaw was too lost in thought to notice her move away from him.
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Words: 250 Muse: Average, been low lately Notes: I just noticed you complimented my pics XD Thank you!
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