Longpaw's Herb Training

It was early in the morning, but Willowstream had been up all night. She was excited and scared at the same time of training an apprentice. She wondered if he would like her, or if they would even be able to stand one another. What if he didn't understand anything, and Starclan had chosen the wrong cat? What if she wasn't supposed to be a medicine cat?

And so the questions rolled, until finally, mercifully, the sun rose, and the she-cat was able to rise. She stretched, and glanced at her herb stock. A shock went through her when she realized she was running really low. Thank Starclan Longpaw and I will be going out today, she thought to herself.

Silently, so as not to wake up Longpaw, Willowstream padded out of the den, entering into a world so quiet, it took her breath away. She stood for a moment, looking across camp and craning her neck to try and see across the moor, taking in the beauty of it all. The sun just barely touched the dew-dropped grass, making the air appear to sparkle. Birds chirped and tweeted, beginning their morning songs somewhere in the distance. Closing her green eyes, the tortoiseshell cat took a deep breath and smiled. She loved being a medicine cat.

Longpaw padded up to Willowstream moments later, he yawned before talking to his mentor "Hi Willowstream" he greeted happily.

Willowstream started. Once she realized it was Longpaw, she chuckled.
"Good morning," she mewed brightly. "Are you ready to start your training?"

"You bet I am!" he cheered with a smile.

"I need to restock my herbs," Willowstream told her apprentice. "So along the way, I'll teach you what each one means. Eat something first, though." She herself approached the fresh-kill pile and selected a small mouse, quickly eating it.

Longpaw purred "Sure, but should we get moss for the elders?" he asked thinking of the elderly first.

Ooc: there are no elders ;n; / lepoof

Willowstream shook her head.
"That's for the other apprentices to do," she said. Once she finished her mouse, she got up and took a couple of pawsteps towards the camp entrance, moving slowly for Longpaw to catch up.

Longpaw nodded not bothering to stop for food, he was just too excited! Longpaw purred in pleasure, his first lesson too.

They walked out along the moor, the sun still low in the sky, tinging the clouds a golden-red color. After a while, Willowstream came up to a small clump of plants. There were small flowers on the ends with white petals and big, yellow middles. She nodded her head at the plant.
"This is feverfiew," the she-cat told her apprentice. "Give it to a cat to eat, and it will help them with their chills, fever, cough, and headache."

Longpaw nodded and turned towards a bush with scarlet red like berries "What are those?" he asked with wonder, pawing at them with a snort of disgust "It doesn't smell adible." he complained to Willowstream, his darker ginger paw batted it a bit. Longpaw stuck his tounge out in disgust and turned around to bring Willowstream to what he had found.

Willowstream hissed involuntarily when she saw what Longpaw was touching.
"They aren't," she snapped. "And don't bother trying. Those are called death berries, and they'd kill you nearly the instant you swallowed them. Don't get them mixed up with juniper berries, though. Remember, red signifies danger, or death berries." Steering Longpaw away, Willowstream showed him the death berry's cousin, juniper berries. "These can cure coughs and stomachaches. Just a few will do the job."

"Really but if you smear them in a poulituce or somthing does it help the paw cracks or somthing?" he meowed the smell still lingered in his nosterils, he began poking the juniper berries with his other paw.


OOC: Longpaw has a thing for poking things and he heard it from around camp.

Nodding, Willowstream said, "Yes, it can also help with that. There are few herbs we chew into a poultice, but it is sometimes essential. Come this way now." She began walking across the moor once again.

Longpaw followed obediantyly padding after his mentor his brown eyes grazed across the clearing "where are we going?" he asked as he padded a mouse-length from his mentor. His ear twitched at the sound of prey "I hear prey" he purred happily actually being aware of his surroundings and his mentor.