[Deleted]

Featherpaw had had a dreamless night for once, and though she found it restful, it also left her feeling a little lonely. No matter, though, she would have company soon. She smoothed out her long fur with quick strokes of her tongue before padding deeper in to her cave, towards her herb stores. Pausing, she breathed in the sharp scents around her, lingering on the least familiar stalks. Goatweed. 

She thought back to the dream that had led her to it. In the dream, she'd stood beneath a brilliant starry sky, out on the moor. The yellow flowers had stood out in rays of silvery light. It was a bit dramatic, she planned her StarClan mentors. Overkill with the light, too; I'm not daft. Still, the purpose of the formerly underutilized herb was clear. The dream had come on the eve of Hazepaw's return. His case was a most peculiar one, and none of the living medicine cats had ever dealt with it before.

She'd met with Snowheart, and with her permission gathered the herb from LightningClan's open plains. Picking up a jawful of the vibrant golden petals, she strode towards the entrance of the cave. The sun would lifting ever higher in to the sky by now. They'd be by any time.

Character; Featherpaw
Word count; 213
Notes; This took forever because I kept getting distracted.

The hunting patrol had taken slightly longer than Nettlefur intended. His catches, a small hare and toad, swung from his maw as he hurried back to camp. He'd left Mothstorm and Darkblaze on their own to finish up, though he regretted it. It was the first patrol he'd seen the gray warrior go on in quite some time, and it had only happened after his explicit request to Slatenose. She'd seemed almost surprised, as if she'd forgotten the former deputy's daughter all together. Nettlefur didn't blame her. Mothstorm's dulled pelt was not a common sight anywhere that other cats might be. She seemed to spend all of her time in the recesses of NightClan's cave home, slithered in to tunnels far from any light.

It showed. Her pelt hung loosely over her gaunt, weakened frame, and she seemed to be having a hard time keeping up with their small patrol.

Pushing Mothstorm from his mind, he dropped his prey in the fresh-kill pile and went to rouse his apprentice. Hazepaw was back. Warmth filled him. He had been devastated when Hazepaw had gone missing, and since his return, he'd hardly been able to pull himself away from the young tortoiseshell's side.

Hazepaw had been seen by the medicine cat every day since his return, though it had only been two sunrises. The first day, Featherpaw had inspected him thoroughly, giving him a mix of herbs Nettlefur had no hope of recognizing to keep up his strength, then demanding he eat at least three full meals a day until he filled out. And no training until she instructed otherwise.

He poked his head through the apprentice's den entrance, spotting Hazepaw's mottled pelt. He picked his way through the sleeping bodies, stooping to run his tongue over the young tom's fur. "Hazepaw," he murmured quietly, so as to not disturb the others, "Featherpaw will be waiting."

She had been gone almost a full day, gathering a new herb, from what Nettlefur had heard. The young she-cat mumbled to herself quite a bit while examining her patients.

Character; Nettlefur
Word count; 344
Notes; ~

[Fawn]

HAZEPAW

15 Moons || NightClan || Tom || Narcoleptic

The multicolored tom may have returned to NightClan, but his thoughts, apparently, were still marooned on the mountainside, and this displayed itself most poignantly through dreams. Hazepaw felt lost and alone, surrounded by foreign looking plants he swore he'd never seen before; the cry of a bird was badly distorted, as if he'd stuck his head under water and was trying hard to listen to what was going on. Darkpaw? Brightpaw? He called tentatively for his siblings, glancing east and west, tail starting to bristle with worry, short coat more prickly than plush when his emotions were heightened like so.
Where are they? ... What if they'd left him here? This isn't funny, guys! Sunpaw, come out!

Before he could get too stressed, too caught up in the uneasy grip of his fears made manifest, a familiar voice rumbled by his ear and smoothed away the nightmare, not unlike a ray of sunlight on a stormy da. "F.... Featherpaw?" A drowsy mumble from a drowsing tom, Hazepaw sat up, giving his pelt a thorough shake as if he could cast off the last of his illusion stresses, his heart still beating. Oh no, had he overslept again? It was embarrassing how that was a frequent worry of his; ever since he'd come home, the fifteen moon old cat who was still stuck in the apprentices' den, he'd tried hard to get some kind of schedule going for himself. Darkblaze and Brightfeather had vowed to help him, but they had warrior duties that needed doing, and they weren't always there to regulate his sleeping habits.

Maybe this time, things would be different. The prospect of meeting with Featherpaw always sparked a sensation of hope for the tortoiseshell tom, hope he so badly wanted to be justified; he trusted the she-cat, she was a medicine cat after all, but it wasn't as if the idea that he couldn't be cured hadn't crossed his mind. Oh please StarClan, let her be able to help me! A desperate call from his heart, Hazepaw followed Nettlefur from the apprentices' den, wearing a smile that was more cheery and encouraging than he actually felt.

He couldn't even think about breakfast, not until he heard what Featherpaw had to say. Hazepaw was already walking towards the healer's den, his head turned towards Nettlefur, as if expecting the warrior to give him the go ahead so he could run (well, trot) over to find out what Featherpaw wanted to see him for.

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Word Count: 413 Words
Tags: nimble

[Deleted]

Nettlefur nodded to Hazepaw, letting him lead the way to the medicine cat den, stifling a purr so that he wouldn't wake the other apprentices. Hazepaw had grown, but it seemed stunted by his days in the mountains. He was lucky to survive, the tortoiseshell reflected, feeling grateful to StarClan for his deliverance. He'd taken it upon himself to ensure that his apprentice followed Featherpaw's orders, but it wasn't a difficult task. Hazepaw seemed eager to improve, and did what was asked of him, even if it meant choking down the sharp-tasting herbs that their medicine cat prescribed.

The mottled warrior followed his apprentice in to the den, his eyes adjusting to the dimmer light. Featherpaw had gotten straight to work examining Hazepaw, mumbling to herself. A spark of determination shone in her pale green eyes. For such a young cat, and one who had lost her mentor so early in her apprenticeship, she really was quite impressive. StarClan must be guiding her paws with extra care, he mused, sitting back on his haunches and wrapping his tail around his paws. He didn't bother interrupting her; he knew she would tell him all he needed to know when she was ready. Instead, he observed in a contented silence, happy to have Hazepaw back.

Character; Nettlefur
Word count; 213
Notes; ~

Approaching pawsteps stirred the young medicine cat to rise, greeting the tortoiseshells with an urgently courteous nod of her head. She was anxious to get to work, already feeling the tug in her paws. Hazepaw's peculiar condition had always made her feel restless, and when he'd disappeared, she was still left wanting. Finally, she'd be able to achieve closure. Using her tail to guide him inside, she instructed him to sit with a pointed flick of it. She stooped to sniff the pile of herbs separate from the goatweed. Daisy leaves, sorrel, burnet, and juniper berries. Snowheart had traded herbs with her many times, taking the time to teach her their uses. She was grateful. There was much she wouldn't have learned had she had a typical single-clan apprenticeship...

"Eat," she instructed before striding over to him, hardly pausing before she began prodding at him with her nose and paws. Her examination drew all of her attention, and she hardly noticed anything else. He was still lean, but it was clear that her prescription of ample food and strengthening herbs had paid off. And, of course, the juniper berries to take off the edge... after all, it was a rather sudden increase in his diet, and she didn't want him to fall ill.

When he'd first arrived, she'd taken the time to remove the fleas and ticks from his dirty fur, then had Nettlefur groom the wayward tom's pelt. Featherpaw would not tolerate filthy little bloodsuckers on her patient! No further mouse bile would be necessary, it seemed. Good. Flicking her ears, the silver tabby withdrew from her exam. He was done eating. Good.

"There's a new herb I'm going to have you try, Hazepaw," she began, speaking in a tone that suggested her words were important to remember. "It is called goatweed." She nosed the yellow flowers towards him.

Character; Featherpaw
Word count; 310
Notes; ~

[Fawn]

HAZEPAW

18 Moons || NightClan || Tom || Narcoleptic

"There's a new herb I'm going to have you try, Hazepaw,"[...] "It is called goatweed."

The tom's heart somersaulted in his chest, and he felt a tinge of drowsiness try to edge its way into his vision, but he fought it, fought it harder than he'd ever tried to before; what if this can help me? Afraid he'd have another attack before he could eat the herbs, Hazepaw wolfed them down, feeling a small stab of alarm as he noticed the strange color coming out of the flowers. It looked like blood, and the taste was an absolute shock; yuck. Still, he'd eat a hundred more of these flowers if he had it on good authority that they would cure him of his condition - or, at the very least, help him manage it. There was no disguising the nervousness and excitement chasing themselves around Hazepaw's stomach like a couple of excited hares, his eyes bright as he gazed into the pale face of the medicine cat apprentice.

"Now what? Do I wait? Can I wash my paws?" A shadow of his older self came flaring back to life, that young, impressionable apprentice who had loved to ask questions, loved to learn, had a thirst for life despite spending much of it with his eyes closed. The juice from the - what had she called it? Goatweed? - made his paws feel sticky, and though he hadn't taken more than a couple of heartbeats to groom himself when Nettlefur had first roused him from the apprentices den, Hazepaw didn't derive much pleasure from feeling as though he'd walked through a puddle of pine sap.

Apart from that, Hazepaw didn't feel any different, but his spirits were, nevertheless, shaking off the depressive dust of hopelessness and rising back to their usual altitudes. He glanced over his shoulder to Nettlefur, a question shining in his eyes. Can we go training after this? He'd been following Featherpaw's dietary instructions, though it had made him feel awfully guilty at first, but now was his chance to make up for all of the prey he'd consumed since he'd gotten back. It was time to show the Clan he wasn't as useless as they thought he was.

[Deleted]

Pleased to see that Hazepaw not only willingly but eagerly consumed the herbs, as instructed, Featherpaw relaxed. Too late, she remembered to warn him of the gooey red nectar that oozed from the golden petals of goatweed, but the small tom seemed unruffled. Good. It was so much easier to treat a patient who wanted to get better...

The apprentice's eyes met the medicine cat's as he finished, and she could see the excitement in them. Now what? She purred in response, amused. "You may," she replied, dipping her head. "But you are not to leave the camp unsupervised; I want to make sure you're improving, and safe." She emphasized her words with a flick of her ears. "I want you to start taking short walks through the interior of our territory, accompanied by a warrior with whom you'd like to spend your time." She didn't want him to be humiliated, and was well aware of the slimy natures of some of her clanmates. She glanced at Nettlefur, who had been watching in silence, grateful that he was not among those ranks.

"Continue to eat as I've instructed you," she instructed, the tip of her tail twitching. "You may remain in the apprentice's den, but you must visit the medicine den daily for your herbs. I'd prefer you do so around the same time each day." She paused before adding, "Your training can resume in a few sunrises, but don't over do it. I'll let you use your good judgement to decide where the reasonable limit lies." 

Character; Featherpaw
Word count; 257
Notes; ~

[Fawn]

HAZEPAW

18 Moons || NightClan || Tom || Narcoleptic

Hazepaw would've sung at the moon until sunrise if Featherpaw thought it would heal him, and he would've done it with unquestioning obedience every single night she instructed him to; flooded with relief and feeling almost delirious because of it, Hazepaw noted with sky-high optimism that having to eat a bunch of disgusting herbs once a day was a small price to pay for the chance to be a decent warrior. I won't be left behind again! Not in the physical sense, and not in the sense of warriorhood; he would catch up to his siblings, he would catch up to Sunpulse and Moondance, it would take work but Hazepaw was ready to commit himself to his Clan. Almost feverish with delight, Hazepaw leaned forward and gave Featherpaw's shoulder a nuzzle - not meaning the gesture to be overly affectionate, it was more the best way he could express his relief when words wouldn't quite do the trick.

"Thank you, Featherpaw! I won't overdo it, I'll take Nettlefur"--he glanced back to his mentor, hesitating only a few seconds to give the warrior time to nod at him--"or Sunpulse with me." It may've been too soon to tell just how effective these new herbs would be, but Hazepaw clung to the hope that they would work. He needed them to work, StarClan knew how badly. How long would it be before the herbs took effect? He didn't physically feel any different, apart from a sense of resurrected happiness that had been forgotten for some time, but Hazepaw was willing to be patient. Of course, in his excitement, his condition was close to being triggered, not that he could tell, really. After a long, deep sleep, he was less likely to slip into one of his abrupt naps, even when faced with life-saving sticky red ooze and the yellow flowers it came out of.