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The medicine den was quiet for the first time in a quarter moon. Water dripped softly from a crack in the ceiling, collecting in a small, shallow pool in the corner. Bright midday sunlight shone in from the cavern’s entrance, warming Leafpool as she sat cleaning out the herb stores, removing any plant that showed signs of rot or decay. The young mostly brown cat had recently been made a full medicine cat— though with the tasks her mentor was assigning her lately, it sure didn’t feel like it.
“Oh good, I see you are almost done.” Cinderpelt said as she entered the den. The smokey gray cat set down her bundle of herbs and then gave her twisted back paw a long stretch.
“Just about,” Leafpool said as she worked. “The borage you asked me to gather this morning is over there. It’s still drying.” She turned and gestured with her head to where a bunch of herbs lay spread out, drying in the sunlight by the den entrance.
Cinderpelt knelt down and inspected the borage with a paw, spreading it out and sniffing the petals. “Looks like you found some in great condition. That’s a relief.”
Leafpool nodded, “There’s a bunch growing at the old Twoleg den.”
“Is there now? I’ll have to remember that,” Cinderpelt said, leaving the herbs to finish drying.
Finished sorting the herbs, Leafpool got to work tossing out those that had gone bad while Cinderpelt, noticing the condition of their bedding, set herself to replacing their nests with fresh moss. A pleasant silence fell between the two cats as they worked and in no time Leafpool was finished.
“That’s everything you asked me to do today,” Leafpool said, her tail raised happily behind her. “I was hoping to go down to the lake if you don’t need anything else.”
Of all the changes from the forest, the lake was Leafpool’s favorite. The water was clear and nice to dip your paws in and all sorts of interesting creatures called the place home. Mothwing had even promised to teach her how to catch a fish one day, provided of course Leafpool taught her how to climb a tree. She purred, thinking about what a good friend the young RiverClan medicine cat had become.
“I’m sorry, Leafpool, but there is one more thing you could help me with,” Cinderpelt said, lifting her head from her work.
Leafpool sighed softly to herself, “What do you need?”
“We’re running low on chervil.”
“Are you sure?” Leafpool asked, surprised. “Didn’t we just pick some the other day.”
Her mentor nodded. “We did, but I’ve been using it to treat Thornclaw’s wound.” She paused then shook her head. “I swear it’s more stubborn than him. Did you know he asked if he could go back to his warrior duties today? The mouse-brain.”
The wound Thornclaw had received in the battle against Mudclaw and his rebellion was a deep, nasty gash that ran down from his back towards his belly on his left side. In the days following the battle, the wound had begun to fester with infection, leaving the warrior feverish and bedridden for days and in need of constant supervision. Leafpool shuddered as she remembered cleaning the wound and prayed to StarClan it would heal soon.
Leafpool forced a smile. “Alright, I can fetch some more. Where should I look? I picked the spot near the ancient oak clean last time.”
“I spotted some by the WindClan border the other day.”
“Okay, I’ll start there.”
Cinderpelt dipped her head. “Thank you, Leafpool. I don’t know how I could have managed this past moon without you.”
It was late afternoon when Leafpool arrived at the WindClan border. A gentle breeze was blowing across the moor, causing the heather that blanketed the hills to sway this way and that. Leafpool thought it was a beautiful sight and wondered how nice it would feel to lay in the flowers.
She padded along the border, keeping an eye out for any sign of the herb. After a bit of searching, she found it growing in green, leafy patches beneath one of the large oak trees.
Carefully, Leafpool dug up each plant, pulling it from the ground root and all. When she was satisfied that she had collected enough, she gathered up the herbs and placed them in a large leaf wrap for easy carrying. Using her teeth, she tightened the bundle, then gave it a few shakes to ensure everything was sturdy.
Her ears perked up as she heard movement. With a snap of her head, Leafpool turned towards the moor where spotted a large rabbit that was making a mad dash for the forest. Behind it, a dark gray tom gave chase, gaining on the prey with each breath and leaving a large cloud of dust left in his wake.
Leafpool was certain that the rabbit was done for and the cat would surely pounce, when the cat pulled up short, skidding to a quick stop as the rabbit dashed across the border and into a nearby brush, out of sight. “Fox-dung!” the cat exclaimed. Hearing his voice, she recognized it as Crowfeather.
Crowfeather had a bit of a reputation for being prickly. The young tom could have a sharp tongue at times, but he could be sweet and caring as well, Leafpool had found. Like in the way the tom spoke of the late RiverClan cat, Feathertail, who he had loved dearly, or the concern he’d shown for the friend’s he made on the journey. Though the latter he would deny.
“It was a good effort,” Leafpool said, calling out to him. “I thought you had it.”
Crowfeather turned his gaze towards her, only just now noticing he wasn’t alone. His eyes softened as he recognized Leafpool and he padded over to her. “Thanks, though a good effort won’t feed the clan. I’ll have to find another.” He sighed. “It’s good to see you though, Leafpool.”
Leafpool dipped her head in greeting. “It is good to see you too. How is WindClan?”
“We’re recovering,” he said after a moment. He sounded tired, Leafpool realized. Being one of the uninjured cats, Crowfeather was probably as busy as she was. This was likely one of many hunting patrols he’d been on that day.
“I’m glad to hear that,” she said, “I was worried when Barkface didn't show up to the half moon meeting.”
“Poor Barkface, I don’t think he’s had a minute to himself,” Crowfeather said, shaking his head. “He’s resorted to recruiting some less-than-thrilled apprentices to help him get everything done around camp.”
Barkface was WindClan’s medicine cat. He was getting up there in seasons, yet still didn't have an apprentice. Leafpool wondered when he’d make the announcement that he had taken one.
“Better than tick duty at least,” Leafpool offered.
“As far as they are concerned, not by much.” Crowfeather’s whiskers twitched, amused.
Leafpool let out a small mrrowl of laughter. “I can relate. It feels like all I’ve done the past moon is collect herbs for Cinderpelt.” Leafpool gestured to the bundle of herbs that she had set by her paws. “Which reminds me, I should get back to camp before she worries. Best of luck on the next rabbit.”
“Take care, Leafpool. And congratulations on becoming a full medicine cat.” Crowfeather dipped his head and Leafpool thought she saw his cheeks grow red under his dark gray pelt. “Leafpool is a really nice name.”
Leafpool dipped her head in return, her own cheeks feeling hot. “Thank you, Croweather.”
The walk back to camp was filled with thoughts of the dark gray tom. He was just being polite, wasn’t he? There was no way Crowfeather liked her, was there? Leafpool shook her head. He was just being friendly because they had traveled together. In a season he’d hardly look her way, wouldn’t he? Plus, she was a ThunderClan cat and even if she wasn’t, she was a medicine cat. Nothing could come from this even if he did like her— but stars was it nice to dream about.
Cinderpelt was in the medicine den, speaking with Sorreltail when Leafpool returned. “—and if anything feels wrong at all, you tell me.”
“Okay Cinderpelt. I will.” Sorreltail said. The tortoiseshell cat dipped her head and left, smiling at Leafpool as she passed.
“What was that about?” Leafpool asked.
“Oh, her stomach was bothering her. I wouldn’t worry about it too much, she is fine.” Her mentor waved her tail dismissively. “You can set the chervil over there, I’ll get to it soon.”
Leafpool padded to the back of the den and dropped the bundle. Her stomach growled, reminding her how long it had been since she last ate.
“You’ve had a long day, you should go grab some prey. I’ll finish up here.” Cinderpelt gave her a warm smile. “But before you do, I wanted to tell you that I spoke with Firestar and told him I’d like you to attend this moon’s gathering as ThunderClan’s medicine cat in my place.”
“Are you sure?” As the clan’s senior medicine cat, Cinderpelt was often asked to weigh in on topics and speak on behalf of StarClan. Without her there, the leaders would be looking to Leafpool to fulfill that role. This was Cinderpelt’s way of showing that she saw Leafpool as an equal.
Her mentor’s eyes were full of warmth when she said, “Of course I’m sure, Leafpool. You’ve grown into a fine young medicine cat. You’ll do a great job, I know.” Cinderpelt touched her nose to Leafpool’s.
“Thank you, Cinderpelt,” Leafpool said, a purr building in her chest. I won’t let you down.