`It's getting WARMER...[OPEN]

[Anidori >^.^<]

`Rosestep

A slant of light angled into the medicine cat den through the entrance, revealing the presence of dust and insects that swarmed through the air. A dainty, cream colored she-cat blinked her amber eyes at the ray of light before turning back to her work. New-leaf is here. Finally. Rosestep thought. Now she could stop worrying about greencough, whitecough, and the dreaded blackcough. The fresh-kill pile was growing as well, which made for stronger warriors that could resist sickness more easily. But New-leaf meant one more big thing for the medicine cat: kits.

It was almost always consistent. New-leaf brought kits. When it was warm and comfortable, it seemed like the nursery exploded with the little furballs. Rosestep liked kits, but they could be a nuisance. And their mothers were never just perfect. The moss in the nursery was never soft enough, the mouse never plump enough. It was all for their kits, Rosestep knew that. They just tended to get on her nerves. And the fathers were the worse. 'What should I do to help her?' or 'Are you sure there's nothing else you can do to make her comfortable?' Were just a few of the worried statements from toms that chaffed away at Rosestep's temper. Rosestep glanced at her pile of Borage Leaves. It looked like they had enough to keep nursing mothers content that their kits wouldn't starve. Good.

The kits themselves were always a joy, of course. Rosestep loved watching them learn how to walk and talk. This thought brought a new one to Rosestep, a thought that she'd been turning over in her head for a long time. I need an apprentice. Rosestep wasn't very old, but she was still worried. She needed enough time to train an apprentice. And it would be useful to have a cat that could do the small errands for her while she did more important things. Perhaps this season will bring a good kit to choose. She thought. I'll keep my eyes open.

[Howlpaw]

h o w l_________
The sun was rising in the sky, clouds nowhere to be seen across the vast expanse of blue. The wind had started to pick up, but in the gentle, soft way that made one's pelt shiver with delight at the gentle touch. But it didn't feel that way to Howlpaw; the touch of air made him flinch, it made his skin crawl as it separated his fur. In the distance the airy singing of birds could be heard. Whenever the sound of singing could be heard it was supposed to lift your spirits, lift your heart, or at least make you happy. Though it didn't make the Windclan apprentice giddy, or the least bit appreciative of the beautiful music. Others would call him a grump--a joy-kill, but others would defend him and say that he was only like that because of what his father did to him. Or they would say it wasn't his fault that his mother and brother--the most precious things to him in his whole life--had to die from Greencough. His stomach convulsed and his throat choked up. He didn't want to think about that right now--they couldn't drill their way into his mind once again. It hurt too much to think about them, especially when he let his emotions take over. That was the worst.

His mood was sour, bitter at the pain he was experiencing in his fore-paw. While out alone, taking time to himself, a big thorn was stuck deep in his pad and he couldn't tug it out on his own. Usually he wouldn't resort to going to see the Medicine Cat but this time he had no choice--he was either going to let his pride get the hold of him and ignore the help he could get, then get an infection and possibly die. Now, Howlpaw wasn't stupid and he knew what he had to do even though he didn't like the sound of it. It was hard for him to ask for help. I don't even think those words have even came out of my mouth before. Tail lashed from side to side, lips were pressed together in frustration. This was going to be awkward for him. How long ago was the last time he actually talked to another cat? Ears flattened against his skull. Hm. Three weeks ago? Not as long as I thought, but still... Sucking in a deep breath, he finally reached the camp entrance after about thirty minutes of hobbling on three paws. This is it. Another deep breath of oxygen cleared his mind a little, and he limped into the clearing.

Everything was noisy and active as usual, but no one stopped to inspect or question the lonely apprentice who came to camp limping. Good. I don't need questions anyway. Nobody needs to ask why I'm limping and I don't need to converse with anybody. I'm perfectly fine on my own. Making sure his clan-mates wouldn't try to communicate with him, he lifted his chin, let his eyes darken, tail waved back left to right steadily, and he proudly carried himself over to the Medicine Cat's den which was far across the clearing. The pain was starting to get to him but he would not let the others know, for if they did, then he thought he would be perceived as weak. That was something he did not want.

Something hit his leg and made Holwpaw jump sideways in surprise. "What the? The tom swung his head to look at the thing that had collided into him. As he turned, his eyes caught the attention of the ball of fur sprawled in the dust. It was a tiny kit. He had eyes that glowed like emeralds. The small tom scrambled up to his paws, fur fluffed up, and eyes as big as golf balls.

"I'm sorry! I tripped and fell, then went rolling..." He mumbled.

Howlpaw really didn't know how to feel about kits. He didn't hate them or anything, but he wasn't sure if he loved them either. Maybe it was a faint liking? He just sniffed. "Eh, alright." Trying to get a grip on his dignity again, the tom started trudging along across the clearing.

Reaching Rosestep's den made Howlpaw sigh in relief. He just wanted the thorn to be removed so he could go back to the Apprentices' Den and sleep the pain away. Pushing his way in, the young tom's nose filled with the scents of different herbs and remedies. Then he sneezed, nose wrinkling from all the different smells. Who would want to live here all their life, surrounded by all these different smells? It would hurt my nose if I lived in here. With another wrinkle of his nose, Howlpaw lowered his eyes and shuffled over to Rosestep. He cleared his throat. "Um. Rosestep?" He held up his paw to show her the thorn embedded into his pad. "A thorn is stuck in my paw." Anxiety started to settle in making him edgy, nervous, unsure of his actions. His biggest fear was being alone with another individual. What was he supposed to say? Oh, good evening, so and so, how was your day today? Uh, no. That wasn't Howlpaw and how he acted. He didn't interact with others so how was he supposed to act happy and cheerful, when clearly, that's not who he was and how he acted. Yellow eyes swept from side to side and he stepped closer to the female Medicine Cat. Holding up his paw, Howlpaw accepted the fact that he needed help, to his utter despair. Jaw working and locking, he tried to come up with the words. It took about five minutes for the three words to slip out. "I need help."

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[Anidori >^.^<]

`Rosestep

From the back recesses of her den where she was organizing her herbs, Rosestep heard the sound of another cat enterring her tidy habitation. Who could that be? She thought. Of course, she was the medicine cat. Cats tended to need her help. Quite often, actually. Somebody could always come up with some reason to visit her. One thing was for sure, Rosestep never had an entire day without visitors. That thought made Rosestep feel important for a moment; and why shouldn't she? If some horrible sickness were to fall upon the camp, who would the clan look to? The leader wouldn't know what to do. The leader came to Rosestep for help too.

The medicine cat was interrupted from her musing when the visitor came into view. One of the younger apprentices walked-no, limped-to Rosestep's storage area. Howlpaw. Or, based on what she knew about him, Hauntpaw. Whenever she'd seen the tom, he'd been meandering around the camp and not speaking to anybody. Not exactly a friendly thing.

"Hello, Howlpaw." She said quietly, padding forward to greet him. She looked the apprentice over. He seemed to be fine. There was no blood on him that Rosestep could see. She figured it must have something to do with his paw, considering he'd been favoring it on his way into the den. She waited for him to explain though, as she was sure he would.

'A thorn is stuck in my paw.'

Rosestep glanced down at his paw. It did indeed have a nasty-looking thorn embedded in the pad. "Well, have you tried getting it out?" She asked. Of course, she was sure that he had. He didn't look like too much of a mouse-brain. But still, sometimes a cat would just assume it would be too hard and come straight to her. Those ones annoyed her a bit, but she was patient with them anyway.

The medicine cat waited, beginning to be impatient. Her tail swished from side to side-safely away from the neatly stacked herbs, of course. Finally, the apprentice spoke up. 'I need help.' "Well, why didn't you say so?" Rosestep said, happy that she was done waiting. She leaned toward Howlpaw, inspecting his paw. "That's in there pretty deep. But I can pull it out." She paused for a moment. "Would you like something to bite on?" She asked. She'd seen how much this could hurt.

[Howlpaw]

h o w l________
His jaw locked when Rosestep spoke to him. The temperature in the den was about the same as it was outside--except it was a little warmer. He didn't mind the weather. The only time it bothered him when it was hot, sticky weather. Eyes went back up to gaze at Rosestep. He really didn't know much about her--he'd seen her around plenty of times, yeah, but he had no clue about her. From what others told him she was nice. Oh, yeah like that was help. Weren't all Medicine Cats supposed to be nice? And if they all weren't kind, then who ever heard of an evil Medicine Cat? Well, not Howlpaw anyways. The only time he got to see her she was usually in the nursery checking on queens, or by the fresh-kill, pile, or visiting the elders to check on them. So, she cared, she was the mother of the clan, taking care of all her babies. She wasn't allowed to have children so wasn't this a more efficient way to pretend you had kits? Huh, what a weird way to put it, but that's how it was. So I'm like her kid in a way? A strange, deranged way? His eyes were locked onto her. I can't imagine being her son...I'm too...blah and she's too nice, sweet.

But this was his first time ever coming to her--ever. Ever since the past Medicine Cat had told him that his mother and brother had died he decided to stay away. Why should he go back to the place where they had took their final breaths? Took a last look at everything, never to see another cat besides the Medicine Cat? How did it feel like, knowing you were dying and with the knowledge that you wouldn't ever see your family again? How must it feel? pondered the tom. Although, each time he passed by the den he'd start feeling sick and flashes of his mother and brother would pop in his mind. That was hard enough, but now was much worse. For some reason he could smell his mother. The scent was overwhelming--not faint. His heart started to pound and he examined everything with his eyes; he looked in the farthest corner, the darkest corner...but nothing. All he could scent was the smell of wild flowers and hay. But it was her scent...how could that be? She was dead. Scared and unsure of what to do he focused on Rosestep. Howlpaw wasn't going to take the chance of past memories trying to get the best of him. I should have never come here. I'd rather be ignorant than face all this.

If he got a scratch that actually bled a lot or sprained his fore-paw he usually let the wounds heal by themselves. If it wasn't life-threating then he wouldn't waste his time going to be treated. Though this was another scenario, a more serious one at that. Or maybe he was just overreacting? Maybe he could have pulled out the thorn with ease? Like I didn't try. The thing wouldn't even budge and when it did move it hurt in more words than he could think of. Tears even came to his eyes(though it was hard for him to admit it--even in his thoughts). He had never cried before--not even when his mother and brother died. Was that heartless of him? Not to even shed a tear of emotion? It's not that he didn't want to he would of...it's just that he couldn't. Strange, yes, but true. Even when he had a dream of his mother and she told him that she loved him he couldn't even shed a tear then, even if it was a dream, he couldn't come up with an ounce of emotion. Did that make him a emotionless robot? Howlpaw's ears pricked and his whiskers twitched.

Nose was pointed in the direction of the Medicine Cat. He wouldn't answer her question. She didn't even know how hard it was for him to ask for help. That's probably the most embarrassing thing I've done yet. He lowered his skull, staring at the ground and the paw-prints that were printed in the dirt. I wonder how many cats came in to visit her today? I wonder if I should ask her? I mean, I would be starting a conversation, right? It's rude not to talk...and I know that because the elders complain about it all the time I go to clear their ticks. A shiver ran up and down his spine and he imagined the smell of the mouse bile and it made him want to gag, but he kept his facial expression calm, only his muscles tightened. "So how many cats have visited you so far today?" His voice was low, flustered for even asking. What a stupid inquiry. I should have just kept my mouth shut.

Tail swished behind him and it started to get covered with dust. Pain. I've dealt with it before. The paw that wasn't being held up in the air was set firmly on the ground, claws unsheathed as they dug into the soil, then unsheathed as the claws came back. It didn't bother him. What doesn't kill me makes me stronger. Huh, funny saying. Listening to Rosestep he took another look at his paw, then gave it back to the Medicine Cat. "I guess that's why it hurts so much." he mumbled. Wrong choice, buddy. You don't interact with others so why are you starting now? Just keep shut so this can go faster. a little voice hissed inside his head. Once again the apprentice ducked his head and stayed silent until he made the decision to answer Rosestep's other question. He couldn't be rude--that was one thing he didn't like. Rudeness. And he wasn't about to go against his own private rules by just giving her the cold shoulder. As much as he didn't like talking to others he did have respect for the cats older than him, unlike some of his fellow den-mates who thought they were big shots and didn't need to respect their elders. "No. I can handle the pain." The brown tabby grimaced. Pain likes to give me visits from time to time and I just have to suck it up and face it like a real tom.

[Anidori >^.^<]

`Rosestep

He sure takes his own sweet time answering questions, now doesn't he? Rosestep thought. Howlpaw appeared distracted by something. For a moment, the medicine cat wondered if there was perhaps a fly buzzing around-but she couldn't hear anything. What in the medicine cat den could be so interesting that the apprentice was looking around almost frantically into every dark, musty corner of the storage area? The cream colored she-cat turned around, trying to find whatever it was that Howlpaw was looking at. Nothing. The den was just as it always was. Tidy stacks of herbs were lined up along the rear wall. A few old withered leaves in a neat pile for disposal. The moss curtain that separated the herbs from the rest of the den was in place. There seemed to be nothing to catch a young tom's interest here. He must just be nervous about getting that thorn out. Rosestep decided.

'So how many cats have visited today?'

The medicine cat kept a calm mask on, shielding the surprise that had been kindled by Howlpaw's question. Wait, he's talking now? Rosestep had watched this apprentice in the camp many times, and never had she seen him talk to any cat. She reminded herself that most cats were usually more comfortable talking to her-the medicine cat-than to other cats in the clan. But she didn't think that Howlpaw would be comfortable talking to anyone. He wasn't exactly experienced in the art. Rosestep took a moment to mentally commend the apprentice for stepping out of his comfort zone to be polite. Doing something that you were afraid of was one thing, but doing it voluntarily, when it wasn't even necessary? He even had an excuse to just keep quiet. He could just have the cats think that he was in too much pain to make conversation. But no, here he was, asking her a casual question. She did hear a shake in his voice. "Oh, not too many." She answered him, her voice cheery. She wanted him to be as comfortable as possible. "One of the warriors twisted his leg on patrol, but he's okay. And then just a worried tom that wanted some borage for his mate." She refrained from saying another worried tom. Howlpaw didn't need to know how annoyed she was by them at the moment. Rosestep nodded toward the borage leaves that she'd gotten out. "We have enough supplies to keep him happy."

'I guess that's why it hurts so much.'

For a moment, Rosestep was confused. Why would having enough supplies hurt? After a few seconds, the medicine cat realized that he was talking about what she'd said earlier. The thorn was in there deep. She turned her attention back to the nasty piece of plant that was in his paw. The pink thorn was outlined in crimson-blood. It was too bad that plants had to defend themselves too. Rosestep flexed her own claws. Plants had claws too. Nasty ones that came off to stay in you. I wonder what they were defending against... They didn't fight each other like cats did. They must be defending themselves against us, I suppose. She thought. It made sense. Just look at the piles of plants she had right here. She grimaced, remembering the thorns on some of them. If she was a plant, she'd want thorns, too. Good thing she was named after one of the thorniest of them all.

'No. I can handle the pain.'

I can handle the pain. I can handle the pain. There were no five words that could be worse, in the medicine cat's mind. They always seemed to come from toms, too. Mousebrains. What did their parents teach them in the nursery. The idea that pain is good was the worst one that could be thought up. It went against every survival instinct she had. If something hurts, you do something about it. Right then. Or it could get worse. Rosestep decided that Howlpaw needed a talking to for this. "Mousebrain." She began. She needed to get across to him what was wrong. "Do you think that it's good to have more pain, if you have a way to lessen it?" She stood up, flicking her tail from side to side. Rosestep was not a very large cat, but she could still be very imposing. "Do you think yourself brave, to embrace the pain? You believe it will make you stronger. It won't. It will only increase your tolerance for pain. You will just be in more pain, which means everything will be harder for you, because it will be painful. Your body will give more strength to your healing, sapping your energy." She sat down again, instantly calming down. "Now, I shall ask you one more time; would you like something to bite on?" She looked at Howlpaw-almost glaring, almost menacingly-waiting for him to answer. Don't get it wrong... She said to him in her head. She hoped he learned the lesson.