[Hellion]

Swanfeather

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Her blue eyes watched the path ahead of her, black paws with a slight spotting of mud kept a brisk pace. The sharp features of Swanfeather studied the grass and bushes around her as she attempted to find the specific golden flowers. This outing was a teaching moment, Ottersplash her new apprentice was on his second herb outing with his mentor. The she-cat intended for the tom to go out on his own but decided that she needed to stretch and instead lead the herb searching.


Slowing down Swanfeather turned to find the pelt of her apprentice and spoke out toward him. "What are some of the uses for marigold? She asked as they neared an area she knew normally had the golden flowers. Swanfeather waited until he answered before continuing.

---

ll the lights are misty in the river
In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me forever and forever
And I know it's only in my mind

Word Count:: ---
Tag::Amber
Notes:: short i know

[Deleted]

The silver tabby followed just three steps behind his new mentor. He had already been trained in the ways of a warrior, but now a new path was laid out for his paws, and he would follow it dutifully. With Swanfeather's eyes focused ahead of them, Ottersplash was able to relax slightly, and his pawsteps were easy and light, showing off the hidden grace he possessed.

Swanfeather slowed and turned her eyes to him, and his step faltered, back to his graceless and heavy steps. He looked at her with wide eyes as she spoke, a small panic rising in his chest. He was almost certain he knew the answer, but the stress of being put on the spot like this had him doubting himself again.

"M-marigold helps stop i-infection." He flinched as his uncertain stutter came out and he looked away from his mentor's eyes, tensing as though expecting a reprimand for a wrong answer or uncertain response or any other reason his mind could think up. His brown eyes flicked around, trying not to meet her gaze while also trying not to stare down at his paws. His ears flicked back slightly, trying not to panic as the silence seemed to drag on.

Hellion
Poor thing is so easily terrified

[Hellion]

Swanfeather

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Praise was not easily given out by Swanfeather, that would be something that Ottersplash would have to learn quickly. She expected him to learn the herbs, understand his duties and be an asset to his Clan. Considering he was able to keep up with her an managed to answer her question he was heading on the right path.

"Correct, now since both parts of the plant are useful we need to make sure we get a sizable amount." She told him, covering the distance to where the yellow flower was growing freely. Her black colored paw moved the flower back and forth, showing the leaves and stem. "I've always collected but taking the time to dig up the flower a little. Might not be the fast way but it ensures a good and usable size. When lives are on the line, you use all that you can." Swanfeather didn't intend for her words to be harsh or light, instead she was being straight forward. Ottersplash might have misconceptions about being a medicine cat, it wasn't the lifestyle for evertyone.

"Now other properties or marigold is it's use for stiff joints. I prefer the use of daisy leaves. They grow pretty well in Greenleaf, save marigold for infections and don't waste it on stiff joins. " The she-cat respected the elders in the camp but she also valued the lives of hunting and battling warriors, a elder would be in pain to save a warrior's life. Using her own technique she pawed at the flower enough to ease the dirt before bending down and giving a quick tug. The root broke but a good length of the flower and stem was in her maw, a few leaves clung to the stem.

"We won't need to collect too much, but enough for a small mouthful. We are making one more stop before returning to camp. Do you have any questions?" Swanfeather waited for his reply, as she began working on anther flower to take back.

---

ll the lights are misty in the river
In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me forever and forever
And I know it's only in my mind

Word Count:: ---
Tag::@insertname
Notes:: ---

[Deleted]

When no reprimand was given, and Swanfeather acknowledged his correct answer, Ottersplash let out his breath in a silent whoosh. Knowing that he had given a correct answer gave him a small confidence boost. Not much, but enough to allow him to look to his mentor again as she contined to speak.

He listened intently as she explained how to best collect the golden flowers and informed him of another one of marigold's uses. He nodded to show he understood when she advised him to save the herb for infected wounds and to use daisy for stiff joints. When she moved on to actually collecting the flowers, he watched her paws carefully, memorizing every movement.

Stepping up to one of the flowers, he took a slow breath in. Lifting one sheathed paw, he poked and prodded the dirt, shifting it around until it was loose and easily brushed away. He leaned down, gently closed his mouth around the base of the stem as close to the ground as he could, and pulled.

The roots came up with the flower, and Ottersplash's eyes widened. A panic filled his chest. He had done it wrong, somehow, and he could already hear the sharp scolding Swanfeather was sure to give him. Dropping the flower, he pinned his ears back and cringed away in a pathetic show of submission. "I'm s-s-sorry! I c-can f-fix it!"

He crawled forward, keeping his eyes away from his mentor. As carefully as he could, he bit down right above the roots and chewed a little until he felt the stem break. He pulled the roots away and gave a small gasp, seeing the mauled stem tip. Fur standing up, he took leaned forward and took the stem tip into his mouth before biting down sharply. He felt the break and backed away, spitting the end out.

The flower stem finally looked decent, and Ottersplash remained close to the ground, ears back and eyes down. He had really made a mess of things, and he just knew he would pay for it. He trembled slightly, waiting for the storm he knew would rain down upon him.

[/i][/div][/div][/div]

[Hellion]

Swanfeather

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Swanfeather had seen her fair share of nervous cats but never ones like Ottersplash. He seemed so fragile and easily shaken that it was a bit concerning for the medicine cat. Would her new found apprentice shatter under pressure? Their jobs weren't as stressful as leaders or deputies but they had their own causes of anxiety that required them to learn how to handle it.

Swawnfeather's personal source of stress was her own anxieties of leaving her work undone. Her recently string of bad luck with apprentices made her worry for the future of RainClan. Could she train a suitable successor before her death? She hated feeling unable to care for her Clan.

However, it still bothered her that Ottersplash was so shaken by a simple and quite honest mistake. It was time for Swanfeather to take firm action with her stuttering trainee. "Ottersplash, stop." She said firmly first, putting her paw in front of him to stop his frantic movements until finally let go and flattened to the ground.

She mimicked the flattened state of her apprentice to meet him at eye level. Despite her well known cold and harsh nature, Swanfeather wasn't going to yell at a clearly stressed out cat. "It is a very common mistake to bring up the roots, now no sense acting like there is a badger in front of you. Pick up your herb and lets go home," She was stern with him and straight to the point. She might not yell at him but she wasn't going to coddle him either. Flicking her ears before rising to full height she gathered her own herb and waited for him to follow her toward camp again.
SPEECH

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all the lights are misty in the river
In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight
And all I see is him and me forever and forever
And I know it's only in my mind

Word Count:: ---
Tag::Amber
Notes:: ---