A Get-Well Rose

[Dolomedes]

"The Rose Petal Princess!"

Rosepaw
#TheBlossoming
@namen_roodles

How did it go so wrong? Rosepaw had watched as all of the cats from the otter patrol returned to camp. It was awful, the fear that forced to watch and cry out, so much blood. She knew that otters were a huge threat, she understood that, but seeing just what they could do to how many of Thunderclan's best was... devastating. Since then, Rosepaw has merely been staring into the medicine den. What could she do? Nothing right now, and it made her upset.

Moments passed, and eventually things had seemed to settle, even if barely. Enough for her to not feel like a disruption should she enter the medicine den to check in on the cats from the patrol- or rather, one specific one. Every cat there was important to Rosepaw, her idol was among the bunch after all, but she also knew that those cats had others checking in on them, or that she wasn't close enough to check in with them.

One though, her eyes adjusted to the darker den as she stepped into it, she figured she already bothered him enough. ( She also wanted to make sure that Flintclaw was okay. ) She had seen her brother dead in the clearing once, and her adoptive mother had disappeared alongside her sister, Rosepaw didn't want to lose anyone else, and if she did, well she would prefer to be with them as they left. No questions, no one taking them before Rosepaw knew, and this time, she could attend the burial.

In the worst case, that was, Flintclaw wasn't dead. Her eyes stung with unshed tears despite the reassurances the russet tabby was giving herself. Oh there. There he was. The russet tabby made her way over to the nest that was holding Flintclaw, "Flintclaw?" Her voice was tight, as though she was trying not to cry ( she was ) but it was simply the trick of the ears, Rosepaw didn't cry.

[namen_roodles]

Art by Dolomedes
FLINTCLAW
Thunderclan warrior | 22 moons | Massive dark tabby tom with pale blue eyes and a thick scar across his chest.
Killer Aptitude T1 | Just a scratch
~~~

Exhausted.

The adrenaline had long worn off and the medicine cat den had calmed down. Everyone had been treated... most were not leaving these nests today... Perhaps for many days. Ravenfire was close by, naturally, since they had arrived at the same time. Dragonflycliff... She was still being closely cared for by Wolfhawk and Hollowpaw. So far, everyone had come back, at least he thought they had... Except Sunstreak... good riddance.

The massive tabby was a mess, limp form probably looked dead if not for the shaky rise and fall of his chest... Certainly, he couldn't look as bad as some of the others. His fur was in all kinds of matted tangles, but it had mostly dried. Wounds along his form, a missing ear, front left leg stretched out tenderly, and a rasp in his breathing that he hoped would go away soon. He looked like he was almost more cobweb than cat in some places. It didn't matter how Flintclaw laid in the nest, either. The pain in his chest was ever present. Every move, every breath, every bit of pressure. The poppy seeds helped, but could only do so much in safe doses. He wasn't one to request more, either. Give them to someone else who needed them more...

"Flintclaw?"

Pale eyes snapped open at the sound. It's not like he could sleep in this condition, they had been shut because the den kept spinning around him. It took a couple more blinks for them to focus again. He knew that voice, didn't he? The small, russet apprentice came into view. Rosepaw was here? Was she here to ask him how long it would take for him to be ready for the large predator training he had promised? Was she wanting him to give her a detailed report of the battle? Now wasn't the time...

He blinked again and some part of his brain clicked. Those were tears in her eyes. He didn't blame her for that. It was probably the first time she had seen so many warriors come in at once with such severe injuries... Why come to him, first, though? There were so many other cats that he was sure she knew. She got her paws into everyone's business.

"Yes, Rosepaw...?" Flintclaw croaked. He didn't have much energy for questions and answers, but he would hear her out. He was preparing himself for the pain that would certainly rise in his chest when he needed to tell her to leave... then she wouldn't, and he would have to either snap at her or explain why he couldn't talk.

@Dolomedes (Oh, baby Rose, please don't cry. If you cry, I'LL cry! ;_; )

[Dolomedes]

"The Rose Petal Princess!"

Rosepaw
#TheBlossoming
@namen_roodles

For a long time, the russet apprentice only stared at Flintclaw, her eyes never leaving him as though she was trying to reaffirm that he was alive, when she has spent days subconsciously preparing herself for the worst for someone else that she liked and cared for. It was different in some ways, for cats like Bumblestar and Spiderthroat, they felt, in her 5 moon old mind, unkillable. They were the leader and deputy, they wouldn't fall. The same could be said for the hornets on the patrol. But Flintclaw didn't have any fancy titles to soothe Rosepaw's brain.

She sat down, shuffling her paws and finally responding. "I just.. I'm sorry to bother you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay." Well less 'okay' but like.. alive and on the way to being okay. Rosepaw wasn't sure on how to put that into words properly though, at least in a way that made sense and wasn't something a crybaby kit would say. "You are okay, right? You will be? How hurt are you?" Her voice cracked while her questions turned rambling, and to her horror, the tears she was trying to keep at bay were starting to tumble down her fur.

She frowned, her ears pulling back as she raised her one of her paws attempting to wip them away before Flintclaw could even tell that she was crying. Sadly, Rosepaw was cursed with being baby, and despite her attempts at acting like a warrior, she's still only 5 moons.

[namen_roodles]

Art by Dolomedes
FLINTCLAW
Thunderclan warrior | 22 moons | Massive dark tabby tom with pale blue eyes and a thick scar across his chest.
Killer Aptitude T1 | Just a scratch
~~~

Oh. Wait. She was crying. Flintclaw tried to convince himself it was fake. A show for attention... Well, he didn't really have the energy or heart for that right then. There was a kit in front of him, crying. Not just crying. She was crying about him. Stars, why did she have to cry.

There was still one thing that had somehow, miraculously not been injured on the large tabby. His fluffy, striped tail lightly landed on top of her. Hiding her face and shoulders from his view in its fur. He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a breath before he replied. "St'p tha' worry'n'," He croaked, opening his eyes again. His chest heaved as he took as deep a breath as the sharp pains in his chest would allow and he lifted his head before removing his tail from her face.

" 'll be fin... j'st g'tta r'st 'n heal." His speech felt and sounded slurred and raspy to his ears. He couldn't imagine how it sounded to her. It was hard to move his jaw, and most vowels... well, with how painful it was to breath, they were off the table. He wasn't even going to attempt to speak properly. He had felt that when he had just said her name. No one could deny the confidence that he had in his own survival, though. At least that was something he could still communicate in his tone.

Was the room spinning again? No, that wasn't good. The large tabby blinked at the too young apprentice and laid his head back down on his good leg. Hopefully that had been enough to subside her crying. "See? Fin." He grumbled. He still didn't understand why she was so worried about him. Why she shed a tear for him. He had never been particularly friendly towards her. Bluntly honest, yes. Still available... well, he had to be. Bumblestar would've had his hide if he was aggressive to her... Not that he wanted to be aggressive towards a kit. He had mostly just wanted her to leave him alone.

Now he felt responsible not to leave her alone. Not until she stopped crying and felt like he was safe enough. Stars, how did he wind up in this situation?

@Dolomedes

[Dolomedes]

"The Rose Petal Princess!"

Rosepaw
#TheBlossoming
@namen_roodles

It probably did the opposite of its intended effect, Flintclaw's attempts at making her feel better about his condition. He sounded awful, and even though she couldn't see him anymore, he was likely dying or something. What had happened with the otters? How could it have gone so wrong? Rosepaw wanted answers more than anything else but knew that it wasn't the time to search for them, at least not from Flintclaw who was going to pass out or something. The apprentice sniffed, and pushed Flintclaw's tail off of her face, "You should rest more. I just wanted to make sure you were okay, and if you don't rest I'll be very upset!" The words didn't hold any real threat behind them like she usually had when she 'scolding' someone.

[namen_roodles]

Art by Dolomedes
FLINTCLAW
Thunderclan warrior | 22 moons | Massive, scarred dark tabby tom with pale blue eyes.
Killer Aptitude T1 | Just a scratch
~~~

Well, that didn't turn out the way he had hoped. The tabby blinked pale eyes as the small apprentice attempted to... scold him? He wasn't quite sure exactly what the little russet apprentice was trying to get at. She was already upset, how did this change much? Apparently, not even him raising his head to show he could still move had worked.

Why were kits so complicated?

"Aye, aye, Rosest'r." He had meant to tease by calling her "Rosestar", but it came out sounding far more like "Rose-ster", which would be a funny nickname, instead. It didn't matter, though. He doubted the gentle teasing would have cheered her up, anyway. He was exhausted and didn't mind that Rosepaw was going to let him rest for a while. He might not sleep much, but rest was a necessity.

@Dolomedes

[Dolomedes]

"The Rose Petal Princess!"

Rosepaw
#TheBlossoming
@namen_roodles

After Flintclaw had settled to rest, Rosepaw figured that she needed privacy to get a hold of herself and her emotions. She wasn't a crybaby, nor was she a kit- she hadn't even really cried when the patrol had first gotten back to the clearing, why was she crying now? "Sleep well."

---

The next time that Rosepaw entered the medicine den in search of Flintclaw, she was holding a mouse in her maw. Breakfast for the recovering warrior as energy was necessary for that and eating meant energy. She also wasn't sure if anyone has been making sure that Flintclaw had food.. Bumblestar, Violetfreckle... most others she was pretty sure had someone that could bring them prey as need be.. Not that Hollowpaw and Wolfhawk would let their patients starve, Rosepaw just wanted to be sure and they were probably busy so she was helping out.

"Fimt?" Her words came out muffled as she approached where the tom had been last time, setting down the mouse at his front paws before settling back on her haunches. Her ears forward to listen, maybe he would sound better? It hasn't been very long since her last visit but healing has improved everyday, little by little. "How are you today? I brought some prey for you, if you're still hungry I can fetch some more."

[namen_roodles]

FLINTCLAW
Thunderclan warrior | 22 moons | Massive dark tabby tom with pale blue eyes and a thick scar across his chest.
Killer Aptitude T1 | Just a scratch
~~~

At some point, the half-mainecoon had fallen asleep. He wasn't sure when it was. Some time after one of the medicine cats had checked on him shortly after Rosepaw had left. His dreams were hardly cohesive. The were just broken fragments of the battle. Rushing water. Screams for retreat. Screeching and hissing. Flashes of red and blue and brown. Numb, cold paws. Dragging Bumblestar out of the water. A loud, uncomfortable crack. A squeaky voice?

Pale eyes slowly blinked open as the pain flooded over him again. It spread from his chest, first. The sharp pains carried with every breath. The aching and stinging of his mauled foreleg. The dull throbbing in his flanks. The battle hadn't just been a nightmare. The sight of the medicine cat den made his chest clench. Yesterday... They had lost. Thunderclan had failed. He had failed.

And there was Rosepaw, dropping a mouse in front of him. His stomach churned, both hungry and threatening to heave if he dared to look too long at the food. He felt his ear twitch, but, for the moment, forgot it wasn't there anymore. She had asked him a question. Flintclaw had almost been certain that she would forget to come back... Not hoping for it, though. He couldn't hate her until he had made sure she wasn't crying anymore. Kits...

It was awfully hard to hate a kit.

The dark tabby lifted his head. There was certainly more strength in him, though he still felt like everything was far too heavy. The spinning hadn't stopped, but it was more tolerable. "I'm... better." There was still a rasp. It still hurt to talk. Easier with how quiet he let his usually rumbling voice be. "Thank you... for the... mouse... Rosepaw." Oh, he would have to get used to those short breaths. He really wished he could take a deep enough breath to get a full sentence out... but it was better than nothing.

Here goes nothing.

The dark tabby bent his head forward and took a bite of the mouse. This would show the kit that he was getting better. She could stop worrying so much and go back to... whatever duties her mentor had for her. It was still baffling that she was visiting him, but he wouldn't lie and say he didn't appreciate someone thinking about him and bringing him food. He was sure that Hollowpaw or Wolfhawk would have done it as soon as they were available, but it was one more thing that was taken off of the burden of caring for so many cats at once.

@Dolomedes (It's funny, I imagined his voice being similar to original Mufasa... now Mufasa if he had a rasp. O.o)

[Dolomedes]

"The Rose Petal Princess!"

Rosepaw
#TheBlossoming
@namen_roodles

Rosepaw watched with a sway of her tail, listening to the way that Flintclaw sounded as he spoke.. surely that should be better now? Maybe he wasn't getting enough water? That helps when you wake up with a cold doesn't it? The russet feline wasn't used to anything healing, but she could pick up on patterns quickly so maybe water would help. "Have you had water recently? I think it helps with speaking, I can get you some? Medicine cats carry it around in moss..." There was probably moss growing in camp somewhere so she wouldn't have to leave.

"Here, wait one second." Before Flintclaw could have a proper chance to respond, or rather if he did Rosepaw was already out of the medicine den and so didn't really hear it. It didn't actually take too long for her to find some moss, given that Thunderclan's camp had trees and the likes, though it wasn't much, it would be enough. The next stop was actually back in the den where she dunked the moss in the stream that runs through the den before returning to Flintclaw and placing the soaking moss onto the ground next to the prey.

The russet tabby sat back down, and looked over her shoulder, looking around for any of the medicine cats and briefly at the other patients. "Has Wolfhawk or Hollowpaw said how much longer until you and uhm Bumblestar are going to be better? Or anyone really?" It's been a couple days since the patrol had arrived back- Rosepaw knew that Bumblestar had lost at least one life- the guilt of learning that after her behavior that day worsened but there wasn't anything she could really do about it.

[namen_roodles]

FLINTCLAW
Thunderclan warrior | 22 moons | Massive dark tabby tom with pale blue eyes and a thick scar across his chest.
Killer Aptitude T1 | Just a scratch
~~~

Water? Flintclaw opened his maw to reply, but Rosepaw was out of the den. He felt the phantom ear twitch. The strange sensation much like brambles wrapped around an ear that he was told no longer existed was another thing to get used to. He hoped it wouldn't last forever. It's not like his ear would grow back to refill the place where he still felt it.

Flintclaw could admit he was thirsty as he chewed another bite of the mouse, fighting back the nausea. Maplehaze had given him water, but since then many of the helpers weren't around. His tail tip twitched. Wolfhawk and Hollowpaw were hardly around, either. Perhaps they were too busy with Bumblestar...? He couldn't say. Everything was still quite the blur around him and the pain in his chest only worsened with every move he made. They certainly hadn't come back to him since. He could only assume that they were too busy with the others to deal with him... at least, for now. Despite their lackluster show of capabilities during the first day... He still felt they would fix it.

Their lives were in Wolfhawk and Hollowpaw's paws... they had to fix it.

And she was back. Rosepaw dipped moss into the water and brought it over to him. He bent his head to pick it up and squeezed the moss, drinking what he could. It did help his dry, ragged throat. The mouse was almost gone, too, despite the stomach that wanted to betray him and reject everything he took in. He already felt exhausted, which was insanely frustrating.

He wanted to be back out there already.

Flintclaw put the moss back down and paused to gather his thoughts. Had Wolfhawk and Hollowpaw even looked his way since yesterday? He couldn't remember. All the excitement and business of the day before had the helpers and medicine cats split so much between everyone. "They... Haven't said... anything yet..." He told the apprentice, not willing to tell her that he hasn't been checked on since. What was an easy diversion?

"Good job... getting the herbs... they needed..." Flintclaw said, deliberately changing topic. He vaguely remembered her running off with the patrol that acquired several things he assumed that Wolfhawk had asked for. He didn't feel the need to bring up hearing her arguing about something or other. Whatever issues had come up probably had not helped the chaos that had broken out in the clearing, then medicine cat den.

@Dolomedes