Tools of the Trade

Spiderquill looked over his painstakingly sorted herb collection, neater than ever with Thornpaw helping to manage it, and frowned. It was growing ever smaller, the drying up of the river having limited herb growth. This pile was twice as big back in Newleaf, he was sure of it. At least twice. Brow furrowed, he turned to his apprentice. "Thornpaw, wanna go gather some herbs with me? We're running low, and you've never been on a herb patrol before. Two birds, one stone, r-right?" He stood awkwardly, gangly legs shuffling as he waited for Thornpaw's response.

Thornpaw felt a stab of guilt as he realized how unfair it was to lump her duties in with her mentors worries; He was kind and considerate, any cat would want him as a their teacher. Even when they're are moments of hesitation lingering in the air he still looked out for her. At the very least she could help the tom in collecting herbs. "Y-yes, of course." She spoke rather curtly sitting aside from him patting down loose moss bedding from their nests. Not wanting to let him be troubled by smaller things the large apprentice aimed to finish her duties before they left. To the brown tabby the dry heat was all she had been familiar with and the sight of dwindling herb store hadn't quite struck much concern as it did to SpiderQuill.

Spiderquill smiled kindly at his apprentice. He could hear the hesitance in her voice, it was as if she thought she was in the way. He gently brushed shoulders with her as he left the medicine den, calling for her to follow. He was reminded of his own first herb hunt, which he remembered fondly though Mistleshine hadn't been there. It seemed like so long ago now. He sighed as he exited camp, walking for a bit before coming to a stop. "Okay Thornpaw, you already know your herbs pretty well, so i trust you know which ones to pick. We're especially short on goldenrod and chickweed, though any and every herb helps. If you find anything poisonous, carefully wrap it up in these cobwebs and bring it back to me. Never know when you'll need it... he trailed off, a melancholy tone seeping into his voice. Shaking it off, he smiled as he began to search for the familiar scent of herbs.
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Okay, so the herb hunting system is fairly straightforward. Whoever started the topic picks a few herbs that we'll be looking for and lists them along with the roll needed to find them. Everyone on the herb patrol then takes turns rolling dice and picking a herb from the list based on their roll.

1:Nothing or poison
2-3:Dandelion, poppy seeds, chamomile, ragwort, lamb's ear
4-5:Wild garlic, horsetail, daisy leaves, chervil
6:Chickweed, goldenrod, dock

Going past her Thornpaw followed the medicine cat to the bright outside world causing her to squint. The bright sunlight streamed across the camp evidently signaling time was on their side. Let alone that, she wanted, no, needed to make this a good experience for both their sakes. The brown tabby followed him to their destination where she gathered herself ears perking up as he explained what was needed. That reminded her the stash that stored all their herbs having been formerly in a mess before she came along as his apprentice. "We get to use poison?" Her eyes shimmered dangerously in the light, she looked at Spiderquill looking as to why that would be the case. Nonetheless a certain herb had caught her attention, a patch of chervil settled nicely in the ground behind him. "Sorry, that was besides the point. I know - I think that's chervil behind you."

The member 'WildHunt' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Effect Dice' : 4

Spiderquill opened his mouth to answer Thornpaw's question, but she had evidently noticed something behind him. "Chervil, you say?" He turned to look, nodding at his apprentice when he saw the delicate white flowers among an inconspicuous bunch of ferns. "Well done Thornpaw, this is a valuable herb! You can never have too much chervil. Pick a few of the leaves, not all of them, and put them somewhere memorable. We'll gather all our herbs in a pile so we don't have to carry them around. Chervil's quite versatile, do you know what it does?" As he spoke, he sniffed at the ground like a dog and tried to pick up some unique scent. After a bit of searching, ears still focused on Thornpaw, he noticed the strong scent of herbs coming from behind a pile of stones. He approached the pile, shifting it with a paw to reveal a large patch of horsetail, tall from the abundance of sunlight. Nostalgia washed over him as he pictured his first ever herb patrol. It had been with Mossbloom and Ivystar, Ivybrook at the time. Mistleshine had been sick. He could still feel the joy and pride at finding his first herb. In fact... 

"Thornpaw, come here. I wanna show you something." He waited for his apprentice to approach before continuing. "This very patch of horsetail was the first herb I ever found. Barely knew a daisy from a dandelion back then. See, this is why we don't pick all of the herb. They grow back, bigger than ever. This was only a tiny clump of stems when I discovered it as a 'paw, and look at it now. Look at me now. Growth is an amazing thing, isn't it?" He trailed off again, a wistful smile on his face and a hardly noticeable lump in his throat. He swallowed it and turned to his apprentice. " Uh, sorry. Rambling, ignore me. Let's see what else you can find, hm?" He grabbed some stems between his teeth and pulled, placing the horsetail with the chervil.

The member 'Snickerdoodle' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Effect Dice' : 4

Thornpaw gave a quick response, flattered at her mentor's kind words. "It was because of you." She admitted modestly. "I have a great teacher to thank for." Having said that she took no push as to give Spiderquill an adequate answer. "The leaves are used to cure infection? Yes, and um, the stem is used for soothing belly aches." Her memory grew foggy at times when she was put on the spot. Her interest peaked watching the other medicine cat go out to pluck some herbs of his own, to which the tabby took note of when she walked towards the fern patch. The apprentice takes care mimicking how careful and gentle the other cat was being. She sets down the leaves she took only to notice another type of herb, this time it was horsetail. "Oh my..." Thornpaw mumbles looking at the fern noting how it fit in with the rest of the ferns.

The brown tabby tail swished behind her when Spiderquill called out to her. She obeyed walking next to him admiring what he had just found. Not only had he found it but the story behind it made her all the more interested as to why he was invested with just this patch alone. "That's...amazing." She purred in awe, glancing down at the horsetail and then to the apologetic tom. "I might have found own horsetail too. Maybe everyone has their own horsetail to nurture and grow."

The member 'WildHunt' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Effect Dice' : 5

The corners of Spiderquill's eyes crinkled as a grin spread over his face. What did he do to deserve such a wonderful apprentice? She even put up with his mindless ramblings. He mentally noted the location of the horsetail she found. It was silly, but he'd grown quite attached to the herb. Maybe she'd tell her own apprentice about her first herb someday. These fond thoughts in the forefront of his mind, he sniffed at the air and looked around for any other herbs.

His search didn't last long, as he finally came across something. A leafy plant, with something that looked like blueberries. A memory of Mossbloom flashed across his mind, but he couldn't quite remember what it was. He came closer to sniff it before recoiling and pinning his ears back. He took a deep breath, relaxing a little bit, before gingerly taking the berries between his paws and placing them in a swathe of cobwebs. He wrapped them up and picked the package up in his mouth with such hesitance that you'd think it was a package of writhing snakes. He came back to where Thornpaw was standing and placed the berries a safe distance from the herbs. Sure, maybe it was overkill, but he wasn't going to risk it. "Sorry to annoy you again, Thornpaw, but this is important. These," he gestured at the berries, half-visible in their protective blanket, "are deadly nightshade berries. Not false advertising, I assure you. We pick them so that curious kits don't get the chance to eat them if they wander into the forest, and in... Other cases. Sometimes there's just n-no saving a c-cat. Um, j-just remember not to eat them, and k-keep them away from the young'uns." He turned away, inwardly cursing his stupid stutter. Not quite meeting his apprentice's eyes, he continued, " Well, anyway. We've j-just about got a good stash here, I think one more each and we can haul this lot home. Steer clear of nightshade."

The member 'Snickerdoodle' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Effect Dice' : 1

Thornpaw took delight at Spiderquill's visible display of joy, it wasn't like this everyday but it counted towards progress. A small smile grew on her maw when the tom began his long winded dialogues. While he was friendly he gave her plenty of knowledge to work with. Perhaps she was in good paws after all though she couldn't help but to worry about the ruffled cat who would be happy enough to chat someone's ear off.

It was admirable yet it was cut short to one of the first questions she'd ask at the beginning of their herb hunt. She looked down at what was presented by the well experienced medicine cat. In his paw was a tiny little berry that held resemblance to something her brother would eat without second thought. She blinked taking the newly found poison in full detail all the while its dark purpose made clear. "I thought all we did was saving?" The tabby's tone shifted from curiosity to melancholy, she shifted her paws uncomfortably. The reality that not everything was in their paws sent shivers down her spine. In hindsight the apprentice winced at a tingling sensation beneath one of her paws, she lifted it to reveal a plump stash of chickweed sprouting from the rocky surface.

The member 'WildHunt' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Effect Dice' : 6

"Sometimes this is the biggest kindness we can offer someone. That is saving, in a w-way. If you're so sick you're sure to die, wouldn't you rather go painlessly?" he fought against the lump in his throat. Why did he have to be so emotional? This was literally his job. If he couldn't do that, what good was he? Dewshine had made a mistake, way back then. He was sure of it, but he could hardly go back and tell her that now. RiverClan depended on him, pathetic as he was. He suddenly felt intensely drained, as if someone had sucked all the energy from his body. He just wanted a nap, honestly. He distracted himself by praising Thornpaw for her discovery with a semi-forced smile.

Though he wasn't even looking for any herbs this time, a bright red flower caught his eye. His spirits lifted a little when he saw it. Poppy seeds. Ol' reliable. You can never have too many. He padded towards the plant and gently took the seed pod, returning and placing it with the other herbs. Waiting for his apprentice to place the chickweed in the pile, he then wrapped the whole thing with cobwebs and motioned to Thornpaw. "That's about enough, I think. I'll grab the n-nightshade, you carry the herbs. Well done, by the way. This is a great haul, especially for it being your first time. You'll make a wonderful medicine cat once you're fully named." the fautige clearly showing in his movements, he slowly loped in the direction of camp. He wanted to rest when he got home, but he knew there was no way. He had too much to do, herbs to sort, cats to heal. He'd have to make do with what little sleep he got at night, he supposed.

The member 'Snickerdoodle' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'Effect Dice' : 3