Starlight Hideaway [open!]

Despite the fact that ShadowClan's medicine den was well-shaded, even the marsh and the den combined couldn't keep the light out of it. To some, that might be an annoyance, but Mothglow preferred it - she couldn't see herself in a dark, silent den for any longer than she needed to be there. The light filtering through every open space was a welcome addition to her life, as she found herself working by it now. Whenever she looked out the den's entrance, she saw the light reflecting off the leaf-bare snow; and couldn't hide her smile.

The day's gathered herbs thus far were sorted into several piles, most of them far smaller than she would have liked - the downside of leaf-bare was the shortage of prey and and lack of herbs. A difficult price to pay, she would admit if pressed, for sparkling snow and memories of her kithood. But it wasn't a price they chose, and so she embraced it for what it was. Besides, she was warm enough - her nest was soft when she slept, and her long dark fur kept her warm the rest of the time.

So she worked, lost in her own little world as she began bundling and placing herbs away. She recalled the chaotic mess it had once been with a hint of fondness. Now everything had a place, even if she was the only cat capable of understanding what that place was and why it had to go there. The herbs used in traveling bundles were kept close together, as were herbs for kitting, which she thought was simple enough. Aside from that, her system remained chaotic, but it was a more organized sort of chaos now.

Less understandable were the things with only tangential relations to medicine - the pretty rocks that lined the corner of her den that held her nest (in the corner that received the most light), not because they meant anything to sick cats or to StarClan, but because they meant something to her; but that was okay. She understood why it mattered. No one else needed to, really.

Mottled-ginger-and-black ears poked up from a bush near the medicine den. Her ears twitched before they turned towards the medicine den. The split-faced kit blinked towards it, eyes different shades of blue, shining with curiosity. She blinked her eyes, wondering if Mothglow needed help with anything. Sticks stuck in her long, tortoiseshell fur she padded forward, turning her head to look inside. At first she couldn't see a thing, before her eyes spotted some light and it spread out across the den.

She crept inside, her ginger and black nose twitched and her eyes sparkled. The herb-scent filled her nose and she silently crept towards it, if her body was more black than it was ginger then maybe she would've been hidden. But no, she was completely visible. Eveningkit didn't even know that sniffing at all the herbs in the dark den she forgot about Mothglow or even the fact that her mother might be looking for her.

"Hey there, Eveningkit," Mothglow greeted, no stranger to cats wandering into her den. Usually, though, they were sick or injured - it was rare for cats to come here just to keep her company (rarer than she would have liked), though she saw nothing wrong with the kit before her, at least at a glance. However, she also saw no reason to chase her potential company away; it wasn't like the medicine den was off-limits, and she wasn't currently tending any patients. "What brings you all the way over here? Thorn in your paw? You look okay to me."

Eveningkit jumped, facing the medicine cat with her two-faced grin. "Mothglow!" She purred. "You're mummy's aunt, right?" She questioned. "And yeah, I'm fine, I just wanted to talk, Mothy." She had a few herbs down at her paws, they weren't damaged, Eveningkit was simply taking a look. "Mama told me you took her to the moonstone so she could become a warrior!" She gently bent down to put the herbs back. "Hopefully you don't mind me looking around, what's it like being a medicine cat?" It was a question that could have more meaning behind it but the fluffy kit just looked interested in how her relative was doing. She didn't really have much family in Shadowclan to talk to, mother was too busy with Foggykit and Tanglekit- especially Tanglekit.

Eveningkit was fine by herself though, despite being odd-looking she was happy and friendly. She must've gotten it from her mother, daddy just seemed like bigger Foggykit and Tanglekit. She was obviously not focused on Mothglow at the moment before she blinked.

"I am," Mothglow confirmed. "Your mother's mother was my sister. And that's perfectly fine, you'll always be welcome here," she added, not wanting to discourage the kit from spending time where she liked. "Mhm. Medicine cats take apprentices to the Moonstone when they're nearly done their training, so I've taken a lot of our Clanmates there. And look around all you like, but try not to touch anything, okay? Some of these herbs are dangerous if they get mixed up!" Gently, she nudged the kit away from the herbs she'd been looking at, returning them to their proper places. "I can tell you about all of them, though, if you want to know."

The question caught her by surprise. It shouldn't have, she supposed - kits were naturally curious, after all, and medicine cats lived a rather different lifestyle to their Clanmates. "I get to help all my Clanmates," she said after a moment. "Warriors serve the Clan when they hunt and fight - and I was a warrior apprentice first, though I never got my name. Now, though, I serve my Clan by knowing the uses of all of these," she added, gesturing to the recently-sorted herb stores with her tail. "And by my connection to our ancestors. Medicine cats are typically chosen by StarClan," she explained. "I wasn't, though - we didn't have a medicine cat at the time and I didn't want to be a warrior anymore, so I made the choice to train as a medicine cat on my own. Even if they didn't draw me there on purpose, though, they accepted me once I chose my path, and they taught me what the other medicine cats couldn't. Medicine cats are closer to StarClan and closer to each other than most cats are; we're almost like kin despite our Clan ties. We work together after all, apart from Clan rivalries, and we share our knowledge with one another. Like if leaders and their deputies actually got along most of the time," she joked.

"Oh yeah! I wanna learn!" Her eyes sparked with pure excitement. As she learned about being a medicine cat her attention didn't seem to drift away like it normally did. She looked at the herbs and to Mothglow's eyes. "Mothy." She mewed. "How do you get to become a medicine cat?" The little kit waved her fluffy tail as she stared into Mothglow's eyes. "Away from all the fighting and stuff, plus you get to see Starclan more often- it seems cool!"

"You're not always away from the fighting," she murmured, recalling the battle with the foxes. "You're just not expected to actively participate. And speaking with StarClan isn't all fun and games - it's a responsibility, to hear and interpret what they have to say."

Mothglow paused as Eveningkit inquired about how to become a medicine cat. "It's like I said before. Usually, StarClan sends a sign for the cat they think would be a good medicine cat. But that's not the only way, and I've always believed in choices. I would never take on an apprentice that didn't want to be my apprentice, StarClan sign or no! For one, I'd have to live in this den with them for the rest of my life - medicine cat training isn't like warrior training; a fully-named medicine cat is still their mentor's apprentice, for as long as their mentor remains a medicine cat. But I've also never thought any cat should be forced to take a path they didn't want in life. I didn't want to be a warrior, and nothing called me to this path other than the fact that I wanted it. I'd say I've done fairly well for myself on this path I chose, wouldn't you?"

She paused, turning to the herbs once again. "Since you asked, though, let me tell you about... Hm... This one," she decided, gesturing to a particular herb with her tail. "It is leaf-bare, after all. This is catmint, and we use it to treat whitecough and greencough. You'll know it by the smell, usually; but it's often hard to come by. It grows mostly in the Twolegplace," she explained. "I suppose I should consider going to fetch more myself..."

Eveningkit blinked her eyes at them before sniffing them, her nose twitched a few times before she turned to Mothglow. "Mothy, can I come with you?" She asked, leaping to Mothglow's side. "Mama said I can't got outside of camp without permission from other cats and I have to be with a warrior!" She looked down, scenting a little bit of her mother's scent drifting into the den. "Mama, please, can I go with Mothy?" She asked, her tail waving in the air.

Shadestrike peered into the medicine den, she had been looking for Eveningkit all day. She followed her kit's scent inside Mothglow's den and the fur on her neck rose, what if Eveningkit was being silly? What would Mothglow- the medicine cat- think of her? All her worries faded as she took a closer look in the dark den, there she was, her two-faced kit, asking her for permission to go... Where? "Eveningkit, you know what I said about leaving- also the cat you call 'Mothy' is Mothglow I think you'll find most cats find that disrespectful!" She narrowed her eyes but as she saw the kit's shocked reaction she wondered if she took it too far, she looked over at Mothglow- or 'Mothy' as Eveningkit called her- with a gaze only asking if it would be alright. Maybe she worried too much.


"Sorry mother, Mothglow, can I go with Mothglow?" Seemed to be the only words that escaped her little kit's mouth. Shadestrike thought that even when she had said it correctly, it seemed off for Eveningkit to say it. "That- That's not up to me, Eveningkit." Again, she looked over to Mothglow, her yellow eyes again, seemed to hold that same question.

"You're certainly not going to the Twolegplace," Mothglow said sternly. "It's no place for a kit - or an apprentice, for that matter! It's not like the territory, it's not nearly as safe." Her gaze turned to Shadestrike - when had her niece become such a strong warrior? - and her expression softened. "Oh, let her call me what she likes. It's not like she's hurting anyone. But you'll remain here in camp for the meantime, Eveningkit; where it's safe and there are warriors to look after you. Like your mother."

Still, she tucked away the thought of a trip to the Twolegplace for herself in her mind; she really did need more catmint. But who would look after the clan while she was gone? It would likely take her a day or two to return...

"Once you're an apprentice, though," she told the kit, "I'll see about taking you along when I'm collecting herbs from the territory. That seems fair to me, at least."