Brightmaple had managed to coaxed Barleyswipe to settle down in her cozy nest in nursery to keep an eye on the sleeping Fallkit while she went to see Rowanglade and Piperpaw in the medicine cat's den. Hopefully Fallkit wouldn't wake, but if he did, the other elder would be available for cuddles and perhaps a story to fall back asleep to.
As she made her way to the den, she hoped they might have good news for her and the clan. It had been almost a moon since she and Barleyswipe had enjoyed a pleasant afternoon together down at the Rockfields and she had been hoping weariness she felt and the heaviness in her belly was an indication that their afternoon had been productive and successful. It felt very familiar but she knew the best way to determine if she was correct or not was to speak with the medicine cats.
Shaking the wetness from her fur, as the rain had begun back up once again as she entered their den, she called as she made her way down. "Rowanglade? May I take up some of your time? I have been feeling a little off and I was hoping you could help me confirm the reason why."
9
Rowanglade, Piperpaw, and Brightmaple
Confirming the upcoming litter
Med Cat Den
Piperpaw:
The elder entering the den wasn't Piperpaw's concern. She has been messing up with herb identification all morning and she was only a few misnamed berries away from a mental breakdown. The whole fiasco with Badgerstar last moon was not improving her mental state any either.
But... it was nice to hear from Brightmaple. She was one of the older cats in the clan - the mother of their current... deputy? Leader? Either way Fawnbriar would need all the support they could get.
Piperpaw found a moment to ar least acknowledge the older cat with a wave of her tail, before accidently crushing another berry with her forepaws. Tears prickled at her eyes but she managed to keep them under control with a heavy sniff and a stiff lip.
Characters:
Coldgaze: (M) Ruthless Riverclan Deputy
Lawn Gnome: (F) Motherly Semi-Feral Shecat
Redpaw: (M) Thoughtful Shadowclan Apprentice
Sootbounce: (M) Bubbly Shadowclan Warrior
Sturgeonpaw: (M) Altruistic Riverclan Apprentice
Sunstrike: (F) Anxious Thunderclan Queen
NPCs:
Quailcall: (F) Fierce Thunderclan Warrior
Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.
‹‹‹‹ ››››
Rowanglade was aware of her apprentice’s frustration and distress. They were hard things to miss when the pair of them worked so many hours every day shoulder to shoulder. She brushed her tail encouragingly under Piperpaw’s chin and along her shoulder.
”It’s always a pleasure to visit with you, Brightmaple!” Rowanglade and Brightmaple were of an age, and had shared dens before Rowanglade has been selected for the Medicine Cat’s path. A warrior’s life put more pressures on the body, however, meaning Rowanglade still held her rank while Brightmaple had retired. ”In what way are you feeling off? I hope it isn’t anything too serious.”
She truly did, given than the clan has so much else to worry about with a missing leader but no hint of where to chase to find him, the mysterious kit presented to them by StarClan, and the inexplicable deaths happening with little rhyme or reason.
Brightmaple saw Piperpaw's tail wave of greeting and then saw her sharp paw movement and heard a heavy sniff. Seeing Rowanglade's tail brush, the torbie she-cat purred encouragingly to the apprentice. "Be easy on yourself, sweet Piperpaw. You'll figure out your way as long as you aren't too hard on yourself."
Then she shifted her golden gaze to the older medicine cat as Rowanglade inquired about her. "I'm hope I'm feeling off in a good way." Brightmaple settled herself in front of the duo and curled her tail around her paws. "To start with, my appetite has been a bit off. I know I should be hungry but thinking of eating has been making my belly upset. I've also been feeling rather tired and a little heavy in the belly." She paused a moment as she considering if she had any other symptoms she could offer up before an ear twitched and she looked back at the other she-cats. "I had a nice afternoon rendezvous last moon with Barleyswipe so I'm hoping you can give me good news and confirm what I'm hoping."
Piperpaw:
"A rendezvous..." Piperpaw cut herself off, now looking up from the berries in earnest. She hadn't heard this diagnosis before. Despite getting the same explanation all kits got from their mothers at a young age and a debriefing from Rowanglade early in her training, Piperpaw had no idea what Brightmaple was referring to for a good moment, her brain absolutely fried from memorization. "Off in a-"
It finally, finally hit her.
"Oh. Oh!" She shook herself a bit, her tail puffing with embarrassment for being so dense. Herbs really were going to be the death of her. But - Kits! Oh, she loved kits. They were so cute and there hadn't been any in Windclan since herself and her brother. The closest she had seen was 6 moon old apprentices from the other clans and Nettlepaw's descriptions of the Riverclan kits are the gathering. She had to hold herself back from cuddling Fallkit when they had been brought into camp.
Honestly... not having a family of her own was something that stung Piperpaw when she learned about the restrictions on Medicine Cats. But, if other queens did - well she could always live vicariously though them!
Characters:
Coldgaze: (M) Ruthless Riverclan Deputy
Lawn Gnome: (F) Motherly Semi-Feral Shecat
Redpaw: (M) Thoughtful Shadowclan Apprentice
Sootbounce: (M) Bubbly Shadowclan Warrior
Sturgeonpaw: (M) Altruistic Riverclan Apprentice
Sunstrike: (F) Anxious Thunderclan Queen
NPCs:
Quailcall: (F) Fierce Thunderclan Warrior
Healing is a matter of time,
but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.
‹‹‹‹ ››››
”This will be an excellent learning opportunity for you, Piperpaw!” Rowanglade couldn’t help the thrill of excitement that flowed through her at the thought of a new litter of kits in the clan. She was old enough to have seen cats grow from their mother’s sides to having kits at their own side but still couldn’t help the sense of amazement that came from the entire process. And there was so much to teach her apprentice about the process!
”Appetite changes and weight gain are very typical early signs. Brightmaple, have you noticed any changes or sensitivity in your teats?” Rowanglade’s eyes slid down the body of the she-cat, assessing. Brightmaple has always run to the solid end of the spectrum and fluffy too, so no easy way to just look and know for sure. ”If you’re willing to lay down and roll over we can take a look, and perhaps have a feel to see what we can find.”
Brightmaple just off a soft purr at the excited eagerness of Rowanglade and didn't respond to Piperpaw's embarrassment as she didn't want to upset the poor apprentice anymore than she had. She shifted her forelegs, giving a delicious full body stretch forward until she rested in a light sploot, before rolling over to expose her belly to the medicine cats.
She was perfectly comfortable letting Rowanglade given her an examination and delighted she could give young Piperpaw paws-on experience. Rowanglade had been the medicine cat to care for her when she had kitted her first litter and she trusted her clanmate explicitly.
"No sensitivity yet, but when I've been grooming, I think the fur is starting to thin along my belly around them."
Piperpaw sat, hesitantly watching. She knew that it was part of her job now and Brightmaple was very much more experienced than she was but the very idea of doing anything made her nervous! What if she did something wrong!!
Either way, she pushed the berries away from her - horrible things - and shuffled over for an impromptu lesson.
"Does your fur usually fall out? When you're kitting I mean." She wasn't familiar with that symptom but it did make sense - she didn't remember getting a mouthful of hair when she was still a kit. "Is hair loss only restricted to the teats?" She hoped it was.
Characters:
Coldgaze: (M) Ruthless Riverclan Deputy
Lawn Gnome: (F) Motherly Semi-Feral Shecat
Redpaw: (M) Thoughtful Shadowclan Apprentice
Sootbounce: (M) Bubbly Shadowclan Warrior
Sturgeonpaw: (M) Altruistic Riverclan Apprentice
Sunstrike: (F) Anxious Thunderclan Queen
NPCs:
Quailcall: (F) Fierce Thunderclan Warrior
Healing is a matter of time,
but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.
‹‹‹‹ ››››
”The queen’s fur falls out around the teats in preparation for the kits coming while she’s pregnant. I will also grow back once her body has recovered from nursing.” Rowanclaw began in response to Piperpaw’s question.
Rowanglade gave a please purr in response to Brightmaple’s accommodation of her request. ”Thank you.” She laid her paws gently on the now exposed abdomen. She gently pressed with claws carefully retracted. Her eyes drifted closed as the moved from the middle area of the abdomen towards the Brightmaple’s hind legs. Then she opened her eyes.
”I know what I think, Piperpaw. But it’s your turn to have a feel. Press gently but firmly. And if you want to have another feel of my abdomen to compare what you’re feeling…” Rowanglade slid easily to her side and exposed her belly. The only way to learn was to feel it herself. All of the lecture in the world wouldn’t compare to getting her paws on a patient.
Gently but firmly... wasn't that two opposite things? Piperpaw scrunched her face for a moment trying to figure out how to follow her mentor's instructions but didn't disagree or protest. It was best to check on her mentor first... probably.
It wasn't like she hadn't felt bone and tissues before - tactile was often the best diagnosis and sometimes treatment for certain thing like spasms and soreness. But poking Rowanglade made her feel somewhat awkward before she swapped to Brightmaple.
After a moment, she paused. "I'm not sure... we only really talked about physical indicators. Pinkish coloration... Uhhh." She blinked, trying to remember. Even if there was something to feel, Piperpaw was checking too high on Brightmaple for it to matter.
Characters:
Coldgaze: (M) Ruthless Riverclan Deputy
Lawn Gnome: (F) Motherly Semi-Feral Shecat
Redpaw: (M) Thoughtful Shadowclan Apprentice
Sootbounce: (M) Bubbly Shadowclan Warrior
Sturgeonpaw: (M) Altruistic Riverclan Apprentice
Sunstrike: (F) Anxious Thunderclan Queen
NPCs:
Quailcall: (F) Fierce Thunderclan Warrior
Healing is a matter of time,
but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.
‹‹‹‹ ››››
”You’re too close to the base of the ribcage, dear.” Rowanglade rolled back to her paws and gave a firm nudge with her nose to send Pipepaws paws to the right place.
”The nest for unborn kittens is back between the hind legs. If the kits are there you’ll feel them, or at least the little skulls, as harder lumps. When unborn kits grow they stretch the kit-nest forward into the space between the pelvis and the ribcage. That will be when a litter begins to really show, and it’ll be a bit less than a moon before the clan has new members.” She gave her apprentice an encouraging purr. ”When you think you know if there are kits or not whisper it too me and if you’re right you’ll be the one to announce the diagnosis.”
Brightmaple was just as relaxed as can be as she let the medicine cat and her apprentice poke and prod her belly. They were gentle and, while it felt weird, it didn't hurt and so she had no cares on Rowanglade using her an exam for a medical lesson. She merely waited for them to finish, to at least hear Piperpaw whisper to Rowanglade and for her suspicions to be confirmed or denied.
Piperpaw:
After a moment of prodding gently, Piperpaw kept a straight face. She wanted to hedge her bet; although she was pretty sure she did feel something! After a moment of staring into space - double checking, she scrambled over to Rowanglade.
"I think there are kits." She whispered conspiratorially. "Although... isn't it more risky for older shecats? Is there anything we can do to make it less risky?"
Characters:
Coldgaze: (M) Ruthless Riverclan Deputy
Lawn Gnome: (F) Motherly Semi-Feral Shecat
Redpaw: (M) Thoughtful Shadowclan Apprentice
Sootbounce: (M) Bubbly Shadowclan Warrior
Sturgeonpaw: (M) Altruistic Riverclan Apprentice
Sunstrike: (F) Anxious Thunderclan Queen
NPCs:
Quailcall: (F) Fierce Thunderclan Warrior
Healing is a matter of time,
but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.
‹‹‹‹ ››››
Rowanglade purred warmly in response to her apprentice’s whispered words. ”You have it. Tell her, and then we’ll discuss the rest.”
Piperpaw spun around, with a big grin on her face. It wasn't hard to guess what she was about to say, but the kit-like excitement of the apprentice was contagious.
"Congratulations!" She hopped over to the elder, purring. "You have kits on the way! Oh, the clan is going to be so excited! Especially Fallkit- you should tell them as soon as you can!"
If Piperpaw was going to have kits, you would see her yelling it from the top of the Speaking spot!
Characters:
Coldgaze: (M) Ruthless Riverclan Deputy
Lawn Gnome: (F) Motherly Semi-Feral Shecat
Redpaw: (M) Thoughtful Shadowclan Apprentice
Sootbounce: (M) Bubbly Shadowclan Warrior
Sturgeonpaw: (M) Altruistic Riverclan Apprentice
Sunstrike: (F) Anxious Thunderclan Queen
NPCs:
Quailcall: (F) Fierce Thunderclan Warrior
Golden eyes glowed as the elder-now-queen rolled back over to her paws and sat up, watching the apprentice as she whispered conspiratorially with her mentor. She was pretty sure she already knew the answer but Rowanglade had been right in saying that this was a good teaching session for young Piperpaw.
"Thank you! I'm glad I have some good news to tell the clan!" Brightmaple purred back, offering a light headbutt of gratitude and affection to the younger she-cat. "It just seemed like the nursery was going to remain empty for a while so I wanted to help my clan and given them some good news."
Healing is a matter of time,
but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity.
‹‹‹‹ ››››
”Piperpaw had an excellent question concerning age and pregnancy, and it is best that we all go over the matter for a moment.” Rowanglade was excited to continue to impart such important knowledge. No medicine cat would be able to function at all if they couldn’t safely get a queen through to kitting. The clan would risk death without good care here. ”If Brightmaple hasn’t had her first litter I would have major concerns. Specifically a late first litter can easily go long. Kits are much more likely to fail to be delivered when the time comes. A queen who has successfully kitted without complications is unlikely to experience difficulties in the following litters.”
She couldn’t help but be pleased with both her apprentice and the future lives the clan had just gained. ”Do you have any questions, Brightmaple?”” The queen had done this all before, but it never hurt to ask.
Brightmaple wrapped her tail around her paws as she listened to Rowanglade further teaching Piperpaw. It was still reassuring that the medicine cat didn't have any concerns with her kitting at her age.
"No questions. I was more worried maybe I was imagining the litter I was carrying- I've heard of queens who went through the motions of being pregnant but had no litter. I was also perhaps a little worried that you'd be concerned I'm having a litter at my age."
Purring softly, she closed her eyes in a smile.
"You've greatly settled my mind. I'm glad I have such talented medicine cats looking after me! Thank you!"
