Boragewisp quietly walked through the territory, looking for tansy. It was super helpful, from healing wounds and getting poison out, to help stop cats from getting greencough. She walked across the territory, getting farther away from the shore and started to walk onto the more brittle grass.
A few days have passed since Oatblur became a warrior and even though he was happy, it seemed as though his insecurity was still with him. Boragewisp soon came upon the yellow flowers by the more softer grass. Their leaves were spiked and prickly, but Boragewisp knew that the petals of the flower were gentler. She cautiously started to pick them, placing them down on the ground. When she had collected a few more, she picked up the bundle and headed back to camp.
When she got back she saw that the Clan was very busy. The annoying - at least to Boragewisp- Honeykit was playing around with Oatblur who seemed to like the young kit. I can't wait until he's an apprentice. Maybe then he won't get into so much trouble. She thought. Then sighed. Never mind, I highly doubt that will happen. Wolfblotch was organizing patrols and Fuzzstar was quietly grooming on HighTree. Ashmoss was talking to Riverclaw as the two padded off to the warriors' den. It seemed as though the two had made up after the little stunt Riverclaw pulled. Meanwhile Amberbite and Clawpaw were walking toward the exit, but Clawpaw kept looking back at Riverclaw and smirking. Boragewisp just shook her head. That young she-cat was going to do great things, but she kept acting strange sometimes.
Boragewisp took her precious herbs to her quiet den, happy by the soothing darkness that surrounded her. Sometimes she just needed peace and quiet from all the kits that seemed to have been from chaos itself. She padded through the den, feeling the familiar fragrance of plants swarm around her. She gently placed the tansy on one of her shelves before returning back outside.
When she sat down, she relaxed and watched her fellow Clanmates. She enjoyed it, but she couldn't help but feel saddened. She was growing much older, but she knew that Honeykit wouldn't seem fit to be a medicine cat apprentice. She wanted to have a succeeder before she joined Sunnypaw in the stars, but her Clan was still so small. She didn't know how to help them.
As she was watching them, she noticed Honeykit was playing a bit too rough. Honeykit let out a roar and leaped forward, trying to tackle Oatblur to the ground. Oatblur only smiled and darted away. Honeykit soon landed onto the ground a lot more aggressively and let out a small groan. Boragewisp stood up, her eyes wide. Is he hurt? She wondered and dashed over to the old kit. Oatblur froze and stared in shock.
Honeykit sat up and let out a few complaints as Boragewisp looked around on Honeykit to check for any wounds or even just a few bruises. However, she did notice some cuts and scrapes. "Honeykit, you shouldn't be playing that roughly." Boragewisp stated harshly. Honeykit didn't flinch. "Oh, I'm sorry Boragewisp. Can I continue playing now?" He asked, staring innocently at her.
Boragewisp stood up, her eyes glaring down at the young kit. "No, let me clean you up first." She snapped. Oatblur cocked his head at her. "He's not terribly injured. Why are you so upset?" He asked. Boragewisp looked back to look at the ginger tom. "I'm annoyed because this little kit is never helpful and is always casing problems for other cats." She answered. Honeykit didn't seemed too effected by it, but he did seem a little hurt.
Oatblur opened his mouth, but soon closed it. "Just don't be so harsh on the kit, okay Boragewisp?" He asked. Boragewisp didn't agree. "He's going to be an apprentice next moon you know." She replied and picked up the kit by the neck scruff and carried him back to her den. She quickly started to treat her patient, licking his fur and getting rid of all of the dust and rocks and other things that got stuck in it before cleaning his scrapes. When Boragewisp finished she stood up and looked down at Honeykit. "Okay, you're free to go now." She meowed.
Honeykit looked back at her with a smile on his face. "Yay! Thanks, Boragewisp!" He cried and bounced away. Boragewisp ruffled her pelt. Good riddance. I'm getting too old for these little shenanigans.
She walked back outside and grabbed a sardine from the fresh-kill pile and walked back over to her den to quickly eat. Time passed by and soon she had finished and started to groom, trying to get every whisker in place. After all, the Gathering was coming up very soon and Boragewisp wanted to look okay in front of the others. Especially the other medicine cats, after all, Sloestem could be a thorn in one's side sometimes. Arrogant furball. She thought bitterly. Her gaze softened when she stopped and looked back at her Clan. Even though there were still cats that she wasn't terribly fond off, she still liked this Clan. Her home.
Amberbite and Clawpaw soon came back from their patrol and Clawpaw seemed honestly kind of bored. Boragewisp watched as Clawpaw saw Riverclaw and smiled. The nine-moon old apprentice went over to check with the older cat and murmured something to them. Riverclaw seemed happy with the idea and went into the warriors' den. Confused, and also a little concerned on what Clawpaw was up to, Boragewisp went over to talk with the young she-cat. "What was that all about?" She asked. Clawpaw jumped in surprise, not seeming to have noticed Boragewisp walk over to her. "Oh! I was just suggesting that they should go check their nest. Maybe decorate it, rebuild it, fluff it up. Something like that." She explained. Boragewisp soon relaxed after Clawpaw's confession. It seemed legit and honestly not that bad.
That was... until she heard a yowl coming from the warriors' den.
Boragewisp, Amberbite, Oatblur, and Clawpaw all dashed into the den where they saw Riverclaw hiss in pain. Boragewisp walked over to them. "What's wrong?" She asked. Riverclaw looked up at her. "Well, you see, I was fluffing up my nest like Clawpaw suggested, when I, well... let's just say that I was pranked." They answered, showing Boragewisp one of their paws. In it was a thorn stuck in their pad. "Hmmm..." Boragewisp hummed while thinking. Why would someone put a thorn into Riverclaw's bedding? Especially a thorn this size too!
Behind her, Clawpaw started to burst out laughing, Oatblur following her. The older warriors and medicine cat looked at them, confused. "What's so funny?" Boragewisp asked. Clawpaw looked at her. "I put the thorn there when Riverclaw wasn't looking." Before anyone could ask why, Clawpaw immediately added. "For revenge last moon!" Amberbite whipped their gaze to Oatblur. "Did you know about this?" They asked. Oatblur nodded. "I wasn't a part of it, but Clawpaw told me what she was doing after she already snuck the thorn in." Oatblur flinched when Amberbite glared at him. Meanwhile Riverclaw grinned. "You got me good!" They exclaimed as Boragewisp fastened her teeth on the thorn, ready to pull it out.
She soon yanked it out, which caused Riverclaw to yelp in surprise and limped back. Small drops of blood started to leak out, staining the ground. However, the gray and white cat grinned and looked at the young apprentice. "You got me good." They remarked. Clawpaw blinked and stood up straight, her tail started to rise up. "Really?" She mewed happily. Riverclaw trotted over to her, but careful not to use their leg. They gently nuzzled her head-fluff with their muzzle, amused. "Oh of course not! That was quite a stunt. I'm proud." Clawpaw beamed from happiness at the troublesome cat's praise.
Amberbite meanwhile didn't seemed as pleased. "I for one didn't like it." They meowed, lashing their tail left to right. "You pranked another cat, but by injuring them? Clanmates don't hurt each other." Amberbite snarled. Riverclaw looked at their denmate. "It was just a joke." They tried to reason the ginger and white warrior. "A bad one." Amberbite hissed. "I'm going to have to tell Fuzzstar about this. With this little prank of yours, you might not be able to go to the next Gathering!" They snapped. Clawpaw froze, her cobalt eyes widening. Oatblur stood in front of his former denmate in defense. "H-hold on now. Sure she did something a little was more for someone to get a thorn, but she's a good apprentice and deserves to be with her friends... from other Clans." He added quickly.
Boragewisp felt her fur tingle. She knew why Oatblur had added that part by the ending. Clawpaw didn't really have that many friends. She was close to Luckpaw from GullClan, but since they were from different Clans, they couldn't speak to each other that much. And Clawpaw wasn't super close to anyone in the Clan.
Amberbite sighed. "I'm still going to tell Fuzzstar about this." They said and walked away. Clawpaw's ears drooped slightly, and she too walked away. Oatblur and Riverclaw glanced at each before racing back to go after her. Boragewisp sighed and followed her Clanmates out of the den. And while she didn't like what Clawpaw did, she hoped for the best for the young she-cat. The medicine cat soon walked back into her den, catching sight of Amberbite talking to Fuzzstar with Clawpaw behind them, ears drooping. Pity for the she-cat started to overwhelm Boragewisp, and she went into her den to find some more peace and quiet.
~|~|~
"Wake up, sleepyhead!" Mewed Howlpaw, gently nudging Clawpaw who had recently taken a nap during sun-high. She looked up and saw that the sun was slowly going down and she felt grateful for the young tom's wake-up call. To be honest, she did miss Oatblur, but with Howlpaw instantly moving in as well, so she didn't feel too upset. Besides, next moon Honeykit will join them in the apprentice den, and it might start to get a little cramp.
Tonight was the night of the Gathering, and while she had been nervous because she was scared that Fuzzstar wouldn't let in go because of the stunt she did a day ago, her leader had been merciful and agreed to let her come. Along with Ashmoss, Oatblur, Boragewisp, Wolfblotch, Howlpaw, and Amberbite. Riverclaw had said that he would stay and watch over Honeykit.
"Come on, Clawpaw." Howlpaw meowed gently. "Fuzzstar is going to lead us to the Great Willow really soon!" While the black tabby tom was usually a very calm cat, he seemed excited to go to his first Gathering. And Clawpaw didn't blame him, it truly is a wonderful time.
The gray and white smoke she-cat soon got up and followed Howlpaw out of the den and was soon greeted by her mentor who gave her a curt nod. Fuzzstar came out of her den and let out a yowl. It's time to go! Clawpaw thought excitedly. As the cats that were going to leave gathered around, Honeykit scampered over to where Howlpaw was. "I'm sooooo jealous that you get to go a Gathering!" Honeykit wailed. Howlpaw smiled. "Don't worry, you'll be an apprentice soon." Howlpaw replied gently. Honeykit slumped, looking unimpressed. "I wish I was one now." He grumbled.
"It's time to go!" Fuzzstar yowled and flicked her tail for her Clanmates to follow. Clawpaw walked close by her mentor feeling a bit insecure and awkward, but occasionally she would look up at the sky, watching the stars twinkle and felt as though she could touch them. When they soon came upon the slope, Clawpaw itched to run up ahead. But she knew better than that. She felt as though she was walking on eggshells with some of these cats, but she didn't know how to prove herself. She was quiet the entire time the cats journeyed to the Great Willow.
Almost immediately after her Clan got to the willow tree, they all disbanded to either go to their special places or went to hang out with their friends from the other Clans. Clawpaw had noticed that it seemed as though all the Clans were here except for WheatClan. Which was strange considering how the slope to the Great Willow was literally on their territory. Clawpaw ignored the strangeness of the delay and trotted over to where the other apprentices were.
Her friend, Luckpaw noticed her almost instantly. "Clawpaw! Come over here and meet the newest apprentices!" She cried. Clawpaw nodded and bounded toward her friend. As she gazed at all of the familiar faces and some of the still familiar from the trip faces, but still new, she thought about how strange it was that Oatblur and Rattlegleam weren't with them. Luckpaw was about to talk to Clawpaw when the WetClan apprentice noticed Howlpaw, who seemed lost.
"Howlpaw! Over here!" Clawpaw invited, waving her paw for him to get his attention. Howlpaw seemed to have noticed and padded over, looking at the other cats shyly. Ridgepaw, the Bubbleclan apprentice, looked around. "Where's Oatpaw?" He asked. "Oatpaw's a warrior now." Clawpaw answered. The apprentices let out their congrats before settling down and introducing one another.
"I'm Siltpaw from GullClan!" A dorsal-striped brown tom with gold eyes meowed to the group. Something about the tom made Clawpaw almost immediately trust him, but Clawpaw didn't think too much about it. Some cats were just like that. "And I'm Murkpaw." Said a dorsal-striped brown and white tom with cyan eyes. However, green herbs covered the young apprentice's pelt. "I'm Sloestem's apprentice actually." The medicine cat apprentice admitted. "Oh, and one of my Clanmates, Cloudkit, gave me these herbs." He explained. Many cats murmured to each other and Clawpaw pictured the fluffy she-kit giving the new medicine cat herbs in congratulations. "And I'm Howlpaw from WetClan." The black tabby tom mewed finally. With all the introductions out of the way, the apprentices started to chant to one another of how their training was going and all the drama in the Clans.
Eventually, WheatClan cat with an angry Lightstar leading them. Houndpaw cautiously walked over to her friends who greeted her happily. As WheatClan started to sit down, a long-furred dark gray smoke she-cat with sunlit eyes sat down next to her with the more recognizable Clawcurl. And while Clawpaw did see her sometimes during the travel, it was only in glimpses, and she never got to know the she-cat. She had never seen her at any of the Gatherings and concluded that this must be Budtree, the WheatClan cat who had been mangled since the start of the Clans.
And yet... there was something about the stranger that she just couldn't understand. A feeling. Clawpaw felt naturally safe around the WheatClan warrior. She felt comforted. Cared. And not only that... but Budtree's scent seemed so familiar to her. As though she had smelled it for a long time.
"Hello." Clawpaw's greeting was barely a whisper, but it made the smoke-designed she-cat to look at her. "Oh, hello there." Budtree greeted. She cocked her head, her eyes suddenly shining. "Are you Clawpaw? The kittypet that joined us during the journey?" She asked. Clawpaw nodded. "I am." She replied. Budtree nodded, but she didn't look away. Instead, Budtree's eyes were wide with wonder. "I'm sorry. But you look like someone that I used to know." The older she-cat explained. "Oh, I guess that I have one of those faces." Clawpaw mumbled, suddenly feeling very anxious. What did Budtree mean?
But Budtree shook her head. "No, there's more to it." Her eyes widened. "What do you remember, nine moons ago?" She questioned. Clawpaw blinked in surprise, not expecting a question like that. "I- I don't-" She stuttered. "Think." Budtree replied, sounding desperate. Clawpaw silenced herself. Concentrating hard, she went back through her memories. She didn't remember much, she was born nine moons ago after all, but she did recall vivid flashes. A meadow that seemed to stretch farther than the eye could soon until there was a glisten of sunlight reflecting off of water. She remembered peace and happiness, suckling to her mother without any siblings by her side. But then she remembered something else. When there was a warm embrace by a she-cat's tongue and soft fur, it was shattered by the cold bare hands of a Twoleg, grabbing her and taking her away. She opened her eyes and looked at Budtree. "I remember a meadow, warmth and love from a mother, and then the coldness of a Twoleg, taking it all away."
Budtree was silent after that. But her eyes soon seemed to lighten up and the older she-cat beamed with happiness. "Clawpaw... you're my daughter."