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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2018 1:13:25 GMT -5
Can you hear my heartbeat? Tired of feeling never enough...
Tigerkit had been encouraged out into camp by his father, which was hardly where he wanted to be, but he also didn't want to disappoint Russetfall. The old tom was the best father ever, Tigerkit was convinced, so he tried to swallow his fear and ventured out. He'd heard some of the other kits talk about the elders and the stories they told, and that didn't seem terribly frightening, so he slunk along until he figured out just where the elders' den was. The warriors and apprentices were easy to pick out, there were more of them, and they made him nervous. The elders' den had a weird scent to it... vaguely like various herbs, but also something else. Did age have a smell?
His whiskers twitched at the thought and he paused at the entrance, shifting nervously on his paws. You were supposed to respect elders... they'd served the Clan a long time. He hoped he didn't do anything to upset them. Maybe this had been a bad idea. He didn't want to make them mad and get in trouble. A soft purr sounded inside, calling out to him softly, “You can come in, you know.” He froze like a rabbit that had just noticed it was in a predator's sights. What did he do now? “Don't worry, we're too old to have sharp teeth and claws,” the she-cat's voice was still an encouraging purr, full of amusement.
Hesitantly, Tigerkit stepped forward, tiny step by tiny step, until he came into the den. Firebird purred at him, her mate Darkcloud curled around her, eyes closed and appearing as though asleep. “Hello there, little one. You must be... Tigerkit? I was wondering when you would come to visit us.”
“Y-you were...?” he squeaked, looking up at the old queen with wide amber eyes. How did she know his name!?
“All the kits do eventually,” she explained, leaning toward him slightly as if about to impart a secret, lowering her voice, “I tell the best stories.” Her own amber eyes flashed with mirth. She flicked her tail, indicating he should come closer, and after a moment, he did, settling before the elder queen's forepaws. He glanced behind her at her mate, who still seemed to be asleep. Firebird purred again, “Don't mind Darkcloud, his hearing isn't what it used to be. Truth be told, neither is mine, but its a might better than his yet.” She tossed a fond glance at the tuxedo tom, “He won't hear us.”
“O-oh... okay...,” Tigerkit's ears flicked back uncertainly. He became aware that he and Firebird had similar pelts and tilted his head at her, “Are we kin?”
Firebird shook her head, “Oh, no, actually.” She giggled softly, “Very distantly, perhaps, but not in any generation I know of. You'll know my grandkits, though. Shadekit, Spark-kit, and Ivykit?”
Tigerkit nodded. He knew them of course, they all lived in the nursery together, though the other three kits were older, and bigger, and he mostly avoided them. “Uh-uhm... what... what's your name?”
“Dear me, I've forgotten my manners. It's Firebird.”
He wasn't sure how he felt about that. “Fire... bird?” His mother's name was Firestar. It hadn't occurred to him that another cat might share part of her name. One of the other elders grunted at them to keep it down, because their ears worked just fine, thank you very much, and Firebird shot them a look.
“Well,” the ginger and white queen attempted to push to her paws, letting out a low groan, and Tigerkit stumbled backward to give her room. She let out a low hiss of pain as she took a step, casting an annoyed glance back at her hips.
“Wh-where are you going? Are you okay?” Tigerkit looked the old she-cat over with concern.
“Some cats are acting like angry porcupines, so I thought it best we move our little chat outside,” she dipped her head to give the kit a quick reassuring lick between the ears and winced as she moved stiffly forward.
“No, you don't... you don't have to do that. I can just leave...,” his voice became a bit shrill in his growing concern for the old cat, “You should lay down.” She had seemed fine before she had stood up.
“Nonsense,” she flicked the kit with her tail as she led him out of the den, taking a long few moments to settle herself back down once they had emerged into the open, “The sun will do me some good. It's just my hips acting up. Kindleflare will be about soon, fussing with a poultice I'm sure.” Her whiskers twitched with fond amusement at the mention of her daughter. The medicine cat took care of her these days, rather than the other way around, and it made her proud of the cat her daughter had become and wistful for the kit she had been.
Tigerkit didn't know what a poultice was, but he could put two and two together and figure out it was medicine related. Cats took medicine when they were sick or in pain. “Your hips hurt?”
Her tail flicked dismissively, her tone light as she tried to alleviate the young tom's worries, “They always hurt, little one. That's what happens you've passed your hundredth moon.” She poked fun at her age, hoping the self teasing might show him she was fine despite the pain.
His ears perked slightly, and he announced in perhaps the most confident tone he had ever spoken, “If it hurts, you should take something to make it better. I'll get Kindleflare.” He tore off and left the elder blinking after him in surprise. With a soft purr and a shake of her head, she rested her chin on her forepaws, resigned to waiting for the kit to return.
He kept to the edges of camp as he quickly made his way to the medicine den, doing his best to keep out of sight and out of the way of the warriors and apprentices going about their business. It wasn't a long trip, the medicine den was close to the elders' den for good reason. He paused at the den entrance, ears twitching uncertainly now that he was there. What if Kindleflare was busy? What if she was taking care of someone already? What if she wasn't there? But Firebird was hurting.... Ears pressed to his head and tail tucked slightly, he plodded onward, calling out in a small, hesitant, high pitched voice, “K-Kindleflare...? Uh-uhm... Firebird... her hips hurt... I thought... maybe... you could help?” He tried to remember what the old queen had said, “Uhm... she said... she said... you had ahhh... a... poultice?” He still didn't know what it was, but he was pretty sure that's what Firebird had called it.
I close my eyes and tell myself that my dreams will come true. BlooRey DVD (sorry it got so long I was having fun x'D)
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| Conquer the monster in your head, and then you'll fly |
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GaleClan Medicine Cat
INVENTORY
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Post by BlooRey DVD on Mar 11, 2018 12:42:48 GMT -5
 The ginger and white medicine cat recited a small list in her mind, a reminder of the things she had to do today. They were daily tasks, but she found some form of comfort in talking to herself. She didn't get much chance to talk to anyone nowadays, being alone in a den and all. Sure, family visited every now and again, but she was becoming increasingly more aware of the fact they had their own lives. Nightstep was a father now, Firebird and Darkcloud weren't as mobile as they once were, and Brightpool... She always seemed preoccupied.
Her younger siblings were always out and about somewhere too. With a flick of her tail, she dismissed the thoughts, reminding herself that such things didn't matter. What mattered was that the cats she cared deeply about were happy, and that she was doing something good for the Clan. Wh-Which reminds me... I n-need to g-get moving. She chided herself gently, reaching into her herb store. Borage leaves for Palescreech. Kindleflare did her best to stop in when she could, if only briefly, to ensure all the queens and kits were happy and healthy. She was mid-reach for some fennel when a tiny voice near the den entrance startled her slightly.
With a surprised intake, Kindleflare's wide, dark amber eyes flicked to the den entrance to find... "T-Tigerk-kit?" She breathed to herself, surprise etched on her features. The young tom was the shyest of the current kits, so seeing him here was unexpected to say the least. But then she registered what the little tom had said and her ears shot up. "O-Oh S-StarClan.. H-Has she b-been moving about a-again? She knows sh-she should be t-taking it e-easy!" She scolded quietly to no one in particular, until she remembered there was someone else in the den with her.
Her pelt heated up slightly, but she focused on her task, quickly grabbing some fennel, daisy leaves, and a small sprinkling of ragwort along with a few juniper berries. As a last minute thought, she reached for a bit of chamomile too. As she worked to wrap the herbs in a small bundle carefully setting aside the borage leaves for later, Kindleflare's ear flicked toward Tigerkit. The healer was at a bit of a loss; she had no idea how to interact with kits. Admittedly, she'd not been the greatest big sister for Firebird's other litters.
Clearing her throat softly and glancing toward him again, she offered a kind smile. "W-Were you... Ch-Checking in on F-Firebird today? I o-often check up on h-her too, e-every day in fact." Stooping to pick up the herb bundle, she directed herself toward Tigerkit, timidity visible in her gait and the way she held herself. Pausing momentarily, she managed to speak somewhat clearly around the herbs in her mouth. "W-Woulth y-you.... Like t-to help m-me today?" With a gentle motion of her tail, she invited the young kit to walk with her to where she could see Firebird lying out in the open.  |
@zen Note: 55 moons old |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 12, 2018 12:11:08 GMT -5
Can you hear my heartbeat? Tired of feeling never enough...
Letting out a soft squeak as Kindleflare turned to him, he was suddenly certain he'd interrupted something important by the way she had startled. An apology tumbled from his muzzle, jumbling up in a rush, “I-I'm sorry Ididn'tmeanto.” He crouched a bit, took a half step backward, prepared to hurry himself back to Firebird and leave the medicine cat to her work. Then a stuttered scolding fell from the ginger she-cat's mouth, but it wasn't for him. But... it was still his fault.
His ears twitched back and he lowered his head slightly, shuffling his paws miserably while Kindleflare gathered up a number of herbs. He watched her with hesitant curiosity, looking over all the different things she gathered up and wondering how she knew what they all did, how she could remember it all, keep it all straight. Did StarClan help her? Russetfall said medicine cats talked to StarClan. The idea of talking to dead cats was about the most frightening concept Tigerkit had ever heard of, but Russetfall assured him that StarClan was wise and kind, and there was nothing to fear from them. On the contrary, they watched over and protected the Clans, sending signs to the medicine cats to help them prepare for any dangers that the future held.
He dipped his head, startled from his thoughts as Kindleflare asked if he'd been checking in on Firebird. “S-sorry... it... it's because of me she's hurting.... We were talking, but one of the other elders got mad, so she... I told her she didn't have to. I was just gonna leave them alone, but she said we could talk outside, and then....” He recalled how the old queen had winced with each step, his pelt prickling guiltily. He should have just left. He shouldn't have gone at all! This was why he should just stay in the nursery.
He was even more surprised when the healer invited him to help her. She wanted his help? But he'd just made more work for her. He slunk along beside her, however, because if a cat made a mistake, the least they could do was help fix it, even if all he really wanted to do was run back to the nursery and curl up with Russetfall and never leave his nest ever again. He realized he hadn't actually answered her question and another soft squeak left his mouth, “Mm-y-yes! I-I mean... it's my fault so... I'll help, if... if I can....” He didn't know what a kit could do to help, but if there was anything at all, he would do it.
Firebird raised her head as the two approached and purred softly, “Welcome back.” Her amber gaze turned fondly to Kindleflare, “Really, Kindleflare, I'm just fine. You ought to save your herbs for a cat that needs them more. It may be newleaf but the new growth has only just begun.” Still, the pain of her hips was evident in the roughness in the old cat's voice, as much as she tried to hide it, “A bit of sun is all I need.”
Tigerkit's ears pricked slightly as he figured out something he could do for the elder, “Are you hungry? C-can I get you some prey?” It might not help her pain exactly, but if she couldn't walk without pain then she couldn't go to the freshkill pile for food. He knew that was the apprentices' job, bringing prey to the elders, but he felt like he owed it to the ginger elder to help take care of her today.
Firebird purred again, “You're very thoughtful, Tigerkit. I would love to share some prey with you. Why don't you go see what's on the freshkill pile for us?”
He gave a short nod and darted off. He wasn't big enough to carry a rabbit or a hare across camp, so he frowned a bit when he reached the pile and that was all he saw at first. Padding around it, he caught sight of black feathers and tugged the blackbird free of the pile. It was still a bit awkward, but he managed to drag the prey back to Firebird and Kindleflare, settling it at the old queen's paws and plopping onto his rump from the effort, “Is... is this okay?”
“Perfect. You can take the feathers back to your nest with you when we're done,” she offered the kit a kind smile and pulled the bird close, ripping out feathers for him.
He shook his head, “I'll put them in your nest. They're soft... you should have a soft nest.”
“You have a good heart, Tigerkit. I hope that never changes,” she replied softly, leaning over to give the kit a quick lick on the forehead.
“Th-thank you...,” he shuffled his paws sheepishly, unsure what to make of the compliment, and looked over at Kindleflare, a bit more determined to be helpful, “Is... is there anything else I can do?”
I close my eyes and tell myself that my dreams will come true. BlooRey DVD
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| Conquer the monster in your head, and then you'll fly |
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GaleClan Medicine Cat
INVENTORY
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Post by BlooRey DVD on Mar 31, 2018 15:07:59 GMT -5
Smiling softly to the young tom from behind the bundle of herbs, Kindleflare adjusted her pace slightly to ensure he could stay at her side comfortably. As they approached, Firebird's attempted appeasement was entirely expected. Setting the herbs at her paws to clear up her mouth, Kindleflare made a soft sound of disagreement as she gently touched her nose to her mother's. Before she could say much more, Tigerkit piped up, an idea evidently blossoming in his head. Watching him with a surprising fondness, the dark ginger healer watched as he latched on to his new task and darted off.
He.. H-He reminds m-me a l-little of me. She thought to herself distractedly, before pulling her dark amber gaze back to Firebird. "N-Nonsense. It's my d-duty as a m-medicine cat to e-ensure the wh-whole Clan is as c-comfortable as possible. A-And it's my d-duty as y-your daughter t-to take c-care of you. Just... Just l-like you took c-care of me for so l-long." She mewed softly, settling down to begin un-bundling and re-sorting the herbs she had brought along. She'd just finished gathering the ragwort and juniper berries into a small pile when Tigerkit returned with a blackbird in tow.
She listened silently to the exchange between the kit and her mother, smiling softly to herself. He was extremely considerate for a kit as young as he was, constantly concerned with others. It warmed her heart to hear him declare the feathers would be used to line Firebird's nest. When the young kit's attention turned back to her, Kindleflare's warm gaze settled on him. "W-Well, I was j-just about to prepare the d-daisy leaves. If you c-could take this collection of ragwort leaves and j-juniper berries to F-Firebird, a-and instruct her to eat them, th-that would be a g-great help." She purred.
"Y-You can a-also tell her that... T-They w-will help e-ease some of her aches." She wasn't sure whether it was true for all, but many young cats seemed curious about herbs and what they did. Last season, two separate apprentices had come to her asking. Maybe Tigerkit would be interested in knowing what she was doing, and how he was helping Firebird, too? Leaving the fennel stalks in tact for now, Kindleflare set herself on the task of chewing the daisy leaves into a pulp, for application to Firebird's hips later. All the while, she watched the young tom in his task, both out of her own curiosity concerning the kit, as well as to make sure the herbs were delivered successfully.
It dawned on her that having someone to accompany her in her duties was actually... Nice. Teaching, to her, was a frightening thought, yet... She couldn't deny that companionship would be a pleasant experience. Per... Perhaps I s-should... T-Talk to Firestar a-about Bumblepaw o-or Cedarpaw... She thought distractedly. |
@zen Note: 55 moons old |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2018 14:51:25 GMT -5
Can you hear my heartbeat? Tired of feeling never enough...
Firebird couldn't entirely argue with her daughter. It was her duty to take care of her Clanmates, just as it was a queen's duty to care for kits. She could relate in that at least. She heaved a mockingly dramatic sigh, “If you insist.” Then she purred, amusement returning to her tone, “I certainly would never presume to tell a medicine cat how to do their job.”
Firebird returned to pulling out feathers as Kindleflare told Tigerkit he could help her give the old queen some herbs. His eyes widened slightly. That seemed important. She would trust him with something like that? Herbs were important, right? He shifted a bit, nervously, but gave a small nod, an anxious sort of determination enabling to push through the fear that he would mess up somehow. More than anything, he wanted to help.
As the medicine cat explained that the herbs would ease some of her aches, Tigerkit really thought about it for the first time. He had known herbs could make you feel better when you were sick, of course, but he'd never really actually thought much about it before. The idea that eating a certain thing could make pain go away was kind of amazing. With a look down at the leaves and berries Kindleflare had told him to give to Firebird, he ducked his head and very carefully took them to the ginger elder, placing them at her paws, “Uhm. Kindleflare said these will help your aches go away if you eat them.”
Firebird paused, nearly finished defeathering the blackbird, and purred, “You're a wonderful helper, Tigerkit.”
The tom kit's ears twitched back, embarrassed at all this praise the old queen kept giving him, “Er-um, thank you.” He ducked his head a bit, feeling a bit warm under his fur, and prodded the herbs toward her, “You uhm... you should eat them, so you don't hurt so much.”
With an amused twitch of her whiskers, Firebird dipped her head to eat the herbs, wanting to set a good example for the kit should he ever need his own medicine. Swiping her tongue over her muzzle, she pulled the blackbird back over, “Thank you, Tigerkit.”
He brightened a bit and purred softly. That wasn't so hard! As Firebird finished pulling out feathers and tucking into the bird, Tigerkit turned back to what Kindleflare was doing. Tilting his head, he watched her chewing up some leaves for a moment, “Why are you doing that? Do you have aches too?”
I close my eyes and tell myself that my dreams will come true. BlooRey DVD safe!
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| Conquer the monster in your head, and then you'll fly |
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GaleClan Medicine Cat
INVENTORY
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Post by BlooRey DVD on Apr 30, 2018 20:22:49 GMT -5
She'd drifted into a contented lull, happy to listen to the small exchanges between Firebird and Tigerkit, happy to see him seem... Well, happier as he completed the little task she'd given him. It was this haze that left her momentarily startled when suddenly the curious kit was speaking to her again. Ginger ears darted up, dark amber eyes widening a fraction as she stiffened mid-chew. The herbs stuck to her tongue as she awkwardly fumbled to free her jaws once more, still retaining enough sense in her to gather to pulp on the large leaf she'd brought the herb bundle in.
Ignoring the way her coat heated up beneath her embarrassment, Kindleflare ducked her head in an attempt to remain somewhat professional as she worked the remaining pulp out of her teeth. Once satisfied enough, the ginger and white she-cat cleared her throat, busying her paws with making minor, unnecessary adjustments to the leaf before her (flattening a folded edge, nudging renegade pulp back to the center...). "O-Oh, n-no, I've g-got n-no.. N-No p-pain myself!" She promised him, gaze flicking up long enough so she could offer him a gentle smile. "Th-These a-are.. These are d-daisy l-leaves." She told him, as though that would mean anything to the untrained kit.
"Y-You s-see... H-Herbs can be u-used for... For a l-lot of d-different things, b-but a-also in a l-lot of different w-ways. Ragw-wort, wh-what you g-gave Fireb-bird, can b-be eaten, o-or a-applied in a s-sort of... Poultice, is what we c-call it. A p-paste that you p-put o-on instead of e-eat. D-Daisy leaves d-don't d-do much wh-when eaten. B-But... They're s-soothing to a-aching joints w-when.. When appl-lied as a p-paste." With another soft clearing of her throat, Kindleflare shifted and edged the leaf further into view so Tigerkit could get a better look.
"H-Here... L-Let me sh-show you h-how to.. To p-put it on." Rising to her paws, the ginger healed smiled gently, motioning with her tail for him to follow as she stooped to grab a hold of the leaf and drag it closer to Firebird. Settling down near the elder's flank, Kindleflare glanced over at Tigerkit. "I'm s-sure m-mom mentioned th-that... That her h-hips hurt her, r-right?" She asked him, waiting for a response before tilting her muzzle slightly. "D-Do you know w-where you h-hip is, T-Tigerkit?" After a moment, she used her tail to guide him through her simplified explanation.
"I t-typically f-find them b-by starting at the sp-spine. Th-That's easy to find b-because it r-runs a-aaaall the w-way down your b-back. N-Now, down h-here, n-near where your l-leg m-meets your b-belly... A-Although it's a v-very imp-portant joint, and much e-easier to f-find... You've g-gone t-too far. B-But, i-it's between th-that j-joint and your s-spine. So, if y-you f-follow that bone there b-back up t-toward your t-tail... C-Can you f-feel it th-there? It's a l-little b-bit h-harder wh-when a c-cat is s-sitting, so it c-can be b-best to ask them to l-lay down, if they c-can move." She continued, nudging his nose in the right direction.
"A-Along that b-bone, you w-will feel it ch-change d-directions, b-back toward your sh-shoulder a l-little. Right th-there, where it sh-shifts, i-is your hip." With a soft laugh, she flicked an ear. "I-It's a l-little h-harder to f-find on y-yourself. I'll sh-show you on F-Firebird, a-and then, if y-you'd l-like, you c-can try to f-find m-my hip." She told him, turning back toward their patient. Narrating her previous instructions again (albeit a little more short form), Kindleflare used gentle prods of both her paws and nose before settling on the spot she'd mentioned not long ago.
"R-Right ab-bout here, i-is Firebird's h-hip. Y-You can t-touch, i-if she says it's a-alright, b-but b-be gentle. R-Remember, her h-hips hurt h-her, so we h-have to be.. Be extra careful." She told him softly. "The s-same goes for w-when we a-apply the poultice t-too." Ducking to collect the daisy leaf poultice on her tongue, she relocated the elder's hip with her paws, and stooped to transfer the herb mix. As the poultice covered more and more of Firebird's hip, causing her fur to lie flat, application to the skin grew much easier, and Kindleflare transitioned to mostly using her paws to pat the remaining herbs onto Firebird's flank.
"Th-There, a-all f-finished n-now. You w-want to m-make sure the whole a-area is c-covered b-by the poultice. A-And, e-even when you think y-you're d-done, you sh-should a-always ask if there i-is anywhere e-else that... That h-hurts." She glanced toward Firebird, who shook her head to indicate nothing further bothered her today. "I-If the p-patient s-says we're d-done, then w-we can b-be sure we're d-done!" Lowering herself into a laying position so she could begin working the poultice out of the fur on her paws, she glanced back to Tigerkit. "W-Would you... L-Like to t-try f-finding th-that h-hip j-joint a-again?" She asked, unsure if that sort of question would be considered odd by the kit.
To her, it was a lesson she'd had to learn some moons go. But others might have a different opinion of it, especially those who had no interest in the medicinal field. |
@zen Note: 55 moons old |
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