Closed Thread [Closed] A Different Kind of Sentinel (14FG20)

Pinestep padded through the rain, breathing in deeply. The fresh scent of water mixing with dirt and grass always made her feel more alive-more awake. The she cat had decided that she simply must get out of the Warrior's den or she'd go completely mad. It had felt so stuffy and dusty that Pinestep had the idea to head outside to find some bush branches to sweep the dust out of the den. That was when she'd truly noticed the rain and plans changed completely.  "It's far too nice out to go back inside" Pinestep sighed softly to herself "perhaps I'll just take a few more moments. Rain never hurt anyone after all!" Chuckling, Pinestep picked up her pace slightly. That was when she noticed her sister, Rowanglade, standing outside the Medicine Cat den. Her fur was starting to get soggy and she looked positively miserable. With a small smile on her maw, Pinestep approched with a wave of her tail. "Rowanglade! What are you doing, mousebrain? You're getting all wet!"  Her teasing was all in good fun and Pinestep purred happily. 

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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"Mousebrain yourself, don't splash! You'll get the Celandine wet." The words were accompanied by a warm, if damp, purr to soften them. Rowanglade leaned down and carefully, lest she drip on her half-dried prizes, ensuring all was still well.

Maybe she was being a bit obsessive about the process, but being interrupted by rain was the worst that could happen to drying herbs. "I'm making sure the herbs I picked yesterday actually dry out despite the weather."

"Well we certainly couldn't have that could we?" 

Stepping closer, Pinestep glanced at the herb Rowanglade was inspecting. "What does that one do again? I can never keep all these different plants straight!" 

Her tail, now heavy with rain water, flicked back and forth for a moment before Pinestep realized she might actually be splashing far too much-so she paused the swishing and scratched at the mud instead. Pinestep had always admired Rowanglade, especially with all she'd done for her in the past, but hanging around the Medicine Cat den never ceased to cause her brain to feel full of fluff. There was just too much to remember! 

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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"It's good for purifying. It works inside and outside. Stubborn wounds and the like." Rowanglade tried to keep it brief and simple. She had to remember that this was her sister and not an apprentice who had asked the question. Dosage and preparations would keep until that time came. Pinestep was a warrior, after all. She'd care the most about wound care.

"What has you out in this? It's like you're enjoying it."

Pinestep's ears twitched against the rain drops as they tickled her fur. Even though medicinal things went over her head, Pinestep always enjoyed hearing Rowanglade explain her profession. Obviously there was much more to that dried herb than just purifying, but Pinestep wasn't about to get too deep into the details.

Shrugging at Rowanglade's question, Pinestep glaned out at the wet camp, taking in each drop as it touched down upon the earth. "Well, the Warrior's Den just felt so musty and quiet, I was on my way to get some branches just to clean it up a bit." A smile crossed her maw again and the wet tail flew back through the air, drops of water flicking around Pinestep as she did. "The rain is nice isn't it? Kind of freshens things up a little."

As she spoke, Pinestep realized just how quite the camp was against the sound of the rain. It was a bit odd. 

"Oh, and by the way, have you seen anyone else around today?"

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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"With luck you'll find some nice dry branches to clean the place out with." Rowanglade's ears flickered in approval. Cleaning was always useful, and it was always nice to see others being useful. Then Pinestep drew attention to the strongly quiet camp.

"I think the patrol assignments were heavy this morning. It's probably just your imagination that no one's been here." It was a gathering night, soon enough they'd all be loitering around, waiting to see who got to go and who had to stay. "The rain is fresh, yes. Just inconveniently timed. If it had held off another day or two I'd be able to enjoy it."

Love is just a cloudy sky as far as I can see
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Cloudflare was a patient tom, but not when it came to 'holding it'. The fresh rain descended, spilling droplets and drumming on every object in camp. Starclan, would this new-leaf rainstorms ever let up? The ginger and white tom padded back into camp from making dirt, heaving a great cat sigh as the water gave his coat a slick, sodden sort of look.

Copper eyes slowly scanned the camp, looking for stranglers having come back from this morning patrol, but instead he spotted two she-cats, one an older tortoiseshell and the other her younger sister. Rowanglade and Pinestep. Cloudflare tested the weight on his front paw subconsciously, recalling his visit to the medicine cat's den a few days ago where the two had shared some needed conversation.

Warmth rose in his chest despite the casual nip of rainy chill as he approached the sisters, eyes falling on the subjects of Rowanglade's concern. Ah, so she had gone herb hunting! Yet those words brought a twinkle of good humor in his eyes as he remembered her saying that trying to dry herbs in damp weather was a hassle, and he didn't blame her for the sentiment.

"The rain keeping you both in good company?" He sat a respectful fox lengths away from Rowanglade's handiwork, knowing he was dripping.

Pinestep was just about to reply to her sister when another voice caused her ears to perk up. Turning her head and squinting through the rain, Pinestep noticed the ginger and white form of Cloudflare. "Oh, hi, Cloudflare! Good to see you." The she-cat smiled at her clanmate and motioned towards Rowanglade with her nose. 

"I'm enjoying the rain quite a bit, but my dear sister here is quite inconveniced considering she's attempting to dry herbs. How are you doing today?"

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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Rowanglade gave a nod of agreement as her sister spoke. "It would be lovely if the rain stopped for a day or so." She knew that no-cat could control the weather, but some days she really wished that she could.

Love is just a cloudy sky as far as I can see
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Pinestep was a radiant face in the rain while her sister seemed deeply concerned about drying the plants in her care. Cloudflare had a deep respect for the medicine cat - it was unfortunate that she was struggling. Starclan was in the process of nourishing the land; he couldn't wait for all the moorland prey to fatten on new greens.

"It's good to see you too. And don't worry, Rowanglade. It can't rain all moon as much as Pinestep might enjoy it." A soft rumble rose in his throat, pleased despite how soggy he seemed - and probably looked. Hmm, probably should try to look his best in front of them. Cloudflare swiped his tongue against his paw before meticulously giving himself a brief, if futile, bit of grooming.

Pinestep couldn't help but chuckle at Cloudflare's attempt to groom himself in the rain. "Well, even though I like the rain, swimming in a lake of mud is far from something I'd enjoy! Which is exactly what would happen if it rained all moon!" The she-cat hopped to her paws as she spoke, gesturing with a paw at the camp around them. 

"Anywho, is everyone looking forward to the gathering? I really  hope I'm chosen to go this moon, it would be so fun to see who else attends!"

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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"We would all certainly suffer if it rained all moon!" The thought of a spring that wet horrified Rowanglade. No herb would ever correctly dry! Thankfully, the topic shifted to the gathering.

"It always is interesting to see who shows up from other clans. Though it tells more about the Leader than anything else." Leaders picked cats they felt made the Clan look good, strong. They seemed to consistently favor Senior Warriors who they trusted implicitly. You could learn a lot about a cat based on the sort they trusted.

Love is just a cloudy sky as far as I can see
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The Gathering certainly was a nice change of pace. Cloudflare paused in his impromptu lap of his tongue, blinking thoughtfully as his copper eyes grew more excited at the possibility.

"Hmm, would be nice to be picked to go. Imagine the soggy sight - all those wet mousebrains. Half of them complaining about the rain, the other half complaining about each other."

He paused, his joke fresh on his tongue, finished with a somber murr. "But it could be worse."

A laugh decorated Pinestep's purr as Cloudflare made his joke about the soggy clan cats. That would certainly be a site to see! "I can picture it now, droopy ears and angry eyes as cats sit around in the rain just waiting for leaders to start the silly thing." As she spoke, Pinestep hunched over and dropped her ears, mimicking the description briefly before returning her posture with a smirk. 

"I for one won't mind in the slightest. It's good to get your fur wet every once in a while!" Pinestep turned to get a better look at Rowanglade beside her. "You'll probably get to go won't you, Rowanglade? I feel like Medicine Cats are always a first choice!" Although now that she said it, Pinestep couldn't remember if that was actually true or not. It just seemed self explanatory that a healer of the clan would want to know what was going on with the rest of the clan cats. 

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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"Leaders count on Medicine Cats to advise them. We can't do that if we don't hear the news straight from the source." Rowanglade gave a shrug-like flick of her tail. Medicine Cats almost never got left behind on gathering night. It was her job to catch what the leader missed while making announcements. "This gathering is going to have a lot of complaining about the weather and bragging about prey actually running. It won't be anything too exciting."

Before Pinestep had a chance to respond to either Rowanglade or Cloudflar, a black cat with a mouthful of prey came skidding into view. Shadesleek! The young warrior looked like she'd been brought in by the wind itself and Pinestep couldn't help but chuckle at her enthusiasm. 

"Excellent catch, Shadesleek! However it is definitely better now that you've dropped it. I didn't understand a word before!" Pinestep purred at the younger cat and flicked her tail playfully towards the prey now resting on the ground.

"And yes, we were talking about the Gathering. There's been no word on who's going yet, but hopefully we'll be called together for the announcement soon!" 

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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Rowanglade hoped that she managed to keep the laugh out of her voice when she spoke next. "Another unusual catch for you. Moles are especially tender, well done." She remembered back when she was so excitable about the gathering that it trumped all else. It was a shame that it would overshadow such a difficult piece of prey to capture as the mole Shadesleek had brought. Rowanglade gave a nod of agreement when Pinestep covered the wait for the gathering announcement. It would be anytime now.

Love is just a cloudy sky as far as I can see
⤝ ⥈ ⥈ ☁ ⥈ ⥈ ⤞

Cloudflares eyes sparked with mirth as a young she-cat sprung into view, carrying a precious treasure in her mouth. Moles were worth the challenge as they were quite delicious - especially fresh.

"Look what the moors brought back! Delicious tidbit you have there." Cloudflare couldn't remember the last mole he caught. Definitely last season. Would make sense that they'd be surfacing from their burrows more. Luckily Pinestep explained they were just waiting around for the announcement so Cloudflare took that moment when perhaps eyes were elsewhere to lap at a paw, flexing his claws as he itched between his toes - the one he'd opened up days ago and had healed without complication.

"They've probably already made their decision. We're still speculating who'd be picked." Heaving a sigh, the ginger bi-color tom took a respectable length away from Rowanglade's herbs before he shook himself free of some of the dripple.

"Ah wonderful, another fellow Windclanner who can appreciate the rain!" Pinestep flicked some water playfully at Rowanglade who still sat hunched next to her herbs. It wasn't her intention to cause a fowl mood, but it was definitely good for her elder sister to realize that live wasn't all bramble bushes and bee stings. 

Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.

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Rowanglade decided to ignore her sister's teasing and even the splashing despite it being far too close to the laid out herbs for comfort. Pinestep simply had no respect for the challenges of a Medicine Cat. Instead she turned her attention to Shadesleek.

"Yes, they're the ones from yesterday." She purred, happy to see the young cat showing an interest on top of her hunting prowess.

Love is just a cloudy sky as far as I can see
⤝ ⥈ ⥈ ☁ ⥈ ⥈ ⤞

Cloudflare was pleased to have so many of his clan members brought together. The rain was good at doing that too. Keeping cats close by and under some sort of shelter. Preferably.

"You bring up a good point. You can really use your environment to your advantage when it comes to a lot of things." He paused to blink, thoughtful as he mouthed his next words. Tail tip flicking idly. Pondering, more like. "I wonder what my best catch was? Difficult and delicious are too different things… "