[p]I have broken down in shame

**Crown_Sage** · #1 May 7th, 2025, 03:03 PM

Squirrelpaw
WindClan Apprentice ⯎ She/Her ⯎ 8+ moons
"Is there really no one like me?"

Squirrelpaw tried to help Dreamheart lean against her as she limped into the medicine den, but she could barely hold herself up. Almost... Almost there! She squeaked, blood rolling from her flank and pouring from her other wounded areas. As she stepped into the den, she yowled for help. Ms. Medicine cat! Help us! Please?
{ @Dreamheart // @Alchemist Kitsune }

***Dreamingstars*** · #2 May 7th, 2025, 03:53 PM

DREAMHEART
Windclan Warrior ~ 29 moons ~ She/Her

She was leaning against her apprentice. She shouldn't be doing that. Dreamheart pulled herself to the other side, lifting her weight from Squirrelpaw's shoulders. Blood ran from her torn ear into her eye, and she turned her head this way and that to see from the eye that wasn't covered with blood. Hm. It had stopped bleeding, maybe, but the blood was still just.. there. The pale warrior limped heavily along, biting her lip to keep from letting out a moan whenever her injured paw brushed too hard against something. Stars, that hurt. When Squirrelpaw called out, Dreamheart looked around, wondering if Lightning storm was here and she just couldn't see her. Probably. "Squirrelpaw," The blue/grey she-cat meowed, her voice surprisingly steady and only betraying a hint of her pain. "Make sure you get treated before she sees to me... You're bleeding far more." That was dangerous. Dream wouldn't let herself get treated until her apprentice was safe, because bleeding out was more pressing than a bad paw. The warrior lowered herself to sit on the ground, hissing at the pain in her hips from the scratches scored across them.

@Crown_Sage | @Alchemist Kitsune
(Just so I don't forget, her injuries are a torn right ear, three big scratches across her back hips, and a paw twisted in a spiral fracture)

***Alchemist Kitsune*** · #3 May 12th, 2025, 06:54 PM

She had heard the commotion up the tunnels before the metallic stench of blood began permeating down to her. It was the usual type of visit these days, and it took all in her power to not groan in frustration. She wasn't feeling any level of animosity towards her current patients. It was just... a lot. A medicine cat did grow thicker skin and eventually grew somewhat numb to all the injuries and terrible mishaps they witnessed, but having a harsher outlook on reality and what to expect and being completely devoid of feeling towards it all were two very different things, and she could never be the latter. Not even when her heart and mind had been consumed by the hatred she'd felt after WindClan had turned on her had she been able to be completely unfazed by her patients' suffering, and this current time in their lives, with the twolegs so prevalent and so dangerous, breathing down their necks as they were was no different, no matter how common injuries were turning.

Large ears flattened on her head with urgency as she made her way through the tunnels towards the entrance chamber, catching the far end of the conversation between the two she-cats as she entered. Surprise stopped her from instantly glaring at the warrior who seemed to be under the belief that she had any say in how and when she treated her patients. For starters, it was clear from the horrendously twisted paw she was sporting that she had broken her leg. The two of them had severe enough injuries that they would carry reminders of this for a long time - if not the rest of their lives - but a broken limb needed time to be prepared. The warrior would have to take precedent, whether she liked it or not. She just hoped she was dealing with the misplaced yet thoughtful warrior who understood she had her reasons for dealing with injuries in a particular order as opposed to the usual arsehole who simply thought they knew better than her. Those were far too common for her liking.

Stepping forward as if to make sure, it took only a swift assessment of their injuries for her to make up her mind. These were not the injuries of the traps, but of battle. It was almost a relief. Almost. The thought of having to deal with the consequences of a clan taking advantage of their current predicament was not a pretty one. Despite Lightningstorm's preference to not ask many questions when it came to injuries, this time, she would have to pry.

"I am sorry to disappoint, Dreamheart, but I do not take orders from warriors or apprentices when it comes to who gets treated and when. I'll need to start with you if I want to have that leg of yours ready to be set by the time you fall asleep from the herbs I will be giving you. If it makes you feel any better, I will be treating Squirrelpaw while the herbs take their effect on you, but that is the last I want to hear about anyone attempting to tell me how to do my bloody job. Now... if I have made myself clear, you two follow me. I'll be taking you both to a shared patient nest. Squirrelpaw, you will be ready to leave as soon as I am done with your patch up, but you are free to stay with Dreamheart until she wakes up. Come on now, this way," she mewed in a stern voice that left no room for argument as she turned around and twitched her tail, signaling for them to follow after her.

"It's not a long walk," Lightningstorm added, taking a look back as she walked, "so if one of you could give me an update on who attacked you, I'd appreciate it. Is there a reason for WindClan to be concerned? Twolegs are a right pain in the arse as it is, it'd be a problem if we aren't aware of something else going on and more cats get injured like the both of ya di- Ah. Here we are. Settle down you both. I need to give you both proper check ups to get some herbs to treat you."

Having arrived towards one of the closest patient dens to the entrance, a few empty nests lay inside, and the medicine cat allowed them both room to settle into their chosen nests before she closed in on the both of them to see which herbs she should be using and how deep or wide their injuries were. Sometimes the blood on them made it harder to assess them from a mere glance. A part of her wondered if she should call over her current long time resident, Cottonpaw to help. His... general self esteem had no doubt taken a hit after his assessment had to be paused due to his own broken leg, and the worry that he would now never make warrior might perhaps be a little assuaged by the sight of a warrior with a broken limb as well. The understanding that this sort of injury was something that could happen to anyone, young or old, would no doubt help boost that confidence. Maybe. And it would give him something to do... and her an extra mouth to carry herbs... because this was going to take a few trips to her herbs stores. Thank the stars she had just gotten her herbs restocked. These types of injuries were being far too common for comfort of late as it was.

@Dreamingstars [Dreamheart] | @Crown_Sage [Squirrelpaw]

**Crown_Sage** · #4 May 12th, 2025, 08:32 PM

Squirrelpaw
WindClan Apprentice ⯎ She/Her ⯎ 8+ moons
"Is there really no one like me?"

It was a big tom! Squirrelpaw gasped, her eyes widening as if she was reliving the moment. And he attacked me, and then Dreamy came and fought him! She exclaimed, grinding her teeth in pain. And then I helped her, then she killed him! He was on our territory! She growled, pausing as she finished her story. Is Dreamy gonna be okay? She furrowed her brows, her breath catching in her throat. Are we gonna die?
{ @Alchemist Kitsune // @Dreamingstars }

***Dreamingstars*** · #5 May 12th, 2025, 08:51 PM

DREAMHEART
Windclan Warrior ~ 29 moons ~ She/Her

Well, honestly that was a bit of a relief. Her paw was killing her, and so was her back. Dreamheart was worried about Squirrelpaw, but stayed relatively calm and simply nodded to Lightningstorm. "Alright. I didn't mean to tell you how to do your job. Just worried." When Lightningstorm padded off, the blue/grey she-cat hauled herself to her paws and limped along behind her, looking back every now and then at Squirrelpaw. Her fluffy tail twitched, and blood dried in and on her eye from the torn ear, and when they reached the dens, Dream gratefully flopped onto the offered nest. Hearing her apprentice's explanation, Dreamheart winced slightly. "That is correct.. Well, I don't know if he died.... But they were nasty wounds. And," Here, the slim warrior glanced at Lightningstorm, "I'll live, at least. You won't die, Squirrel." Hoping that the Medic didn't say anything too harsh in response to that, the fluffy she-cat flicked her ears and dragged her broken, twisted paw in front of her. Oh, it looked awful. Blood blood and more blood, but not too much of it... Right?

@Alchemist Kitsune || @Crown_Sage

***Alchemist Kitsune*** · #6 May 14th, 2025, 09:25 PM

As the two she-cats gave their report, the herbalist kept her large ears turned to each in turn, attentive even as she inspected their injuries. This would definitely require multiple visits to the herb storage, and she couldn't help but inwardly groan. Gratefully, despite the blood, the injuries were... far from the worst she had seen this past moon alone. Even the broken, twisted leg was a pleasant, almost welcomed friend in comparison to... the other encounters she'd had. No less important to get to, but far more important to ensure the well being of both warrior and apprentice before settling on a form of treatment. Her herbs were being more used now than they had for seasons prior, and she had a feeling it was only going to get worse. She wouldn't deny them the herbs they needed, but she needed to make sure she did not waste herbs needlessly as well.

Still giving her clinical assessment of the injuries, she nodded, reaffirming Dreamheart's response without turning her gaze, far too focused on the twisted paw to bother with looking at each individual cat while she spoke to them. Multitasking... perhaps it didn't make her seem like the friendliest of cats, but it did make her efficient. Besides, WindClan had made it clear plenty enough that she was not there to be their friend, only to be their healer. If their feelings got hurt in the process, well... they would at least be able to live with it. Far better than the alternative, as far as Lightningstorm was concerned.

"Dreamheart's right. Neither of you are going to be dying. You'll just be proper sore for a few days. Well... Squirrelpaw will be. That leg of yours is going to take a fair bit longer, innit?" she pointed out to the warrior, her nose wrinkling in concentration before standing up and heading towards the burrow's exit. "Both of you stay here. You need rest. I'll bring the first few herbs you'll be needin' and then make another trip back. And another... The downfalls of not being one of WindClan's few mountain sized cats. Be back in a flash."

Her last few words spoken with an air of lightheartedness, Lightningstorm gave one final glance towards both of her patients before padding off. Hopefully they would stay put. Yes, they were in no danger of dying, but stars alive had she seen a few cats really try their hardest to make it to StarClan on the smallest of injuries. The first priority was to get some poppy seeds into Dreamheart. She needed the warrior asleep. A few mushrooms for that paw as well as marigold and cobwebs for Squirrelpaw, too. And Dreamheart as well... There was more, of course. So much more. Broken limbs liked to deplete her storage. Gratefully she was well stocked, but no matter how well organized the storage was, she was just the one cat. She was going to be running up and down the tunnels for the rest of the day. And Crowtooth claimed she needed more exercise. The nerve of that tom.

@Dreamingstars [Dreamheart] | @Crown_Sage [Squirrelpaw]
| Usually I would have had Lightningstorm come on up and begin with the healing already, but since there are two of you, I figured I could let your characters speak if they would or just react in general as they would have plenty of time to do so while she goes get the first wave of herbs. Squirrelpaw should be healed with Lightningstorm's next post but Dreamheart will take a bit longer but it will start as soon as Lightningstorm brings the poppy seeds and she falls asleep, so it shouldn't take too terribly long, no worries!

|

***Dreamingstars*** · #7 May 15th, 2025, 01:59 AM

DREAMHEART
Windclan Warrior ~ 29 moons ~ She/Her

Oh fantastic. Dreamheart admired Lightningstorm yes and all that, and she expected as much, but it still wasn't very nice to hear that she'd be confined in the Medicine Den for longer than a few days, probably. The pale warrior didn't show any of this, though, and simply rearranged herself in the next so that her scratched hips didn't hurt as much. The fluffy blue/grey she-cat wiped her good paw across her face to try and get the blood out of her eye. Darned ear. "Well, that's good news Squirrelpaw. See, you'll be fine." Dream assured her apprentice, tail flicking. "Lightningstorm is an expert." I mean, that much was obvious but Squirrelpaw could miss basic things sometimes.

@Alchemist Kitsune [Lightningstorm] | @Crown_Sage [Squirrelpaw]
(I'm okay with that! When she goes to sleep, should I just post her as sleeping or not post because she's asleep...)

**Crown_Sage** · #8 May 15th, 2025, 02:35 PM

Squirrelpaw
WindClan Apprentice ⯎ She/Her ⯎ 8+ moons
"Is there really no one like me?"

Squirrelpaw let out a sigh of relief, nodding. Oh, Okay. She nodded, taking account of her mentor's words. As she watched Lightningstorm leave, she settled down next to Dreamheart and began licking the blood that was pouring from her wounds.
{ @Dreamingstars // @Alchemist Kitsune }

**Daragca** · #9 May 16th, 2025, 03:33 AM

Cottonpaw
he/him | Windclan Apprentice | 12 moons
The Collector - Lucky Duck T3 - Survival Instinct
The Stowaway Child

Cottonpaw was taking a light nap when a sort of commotion awoke him. His ears gently flickering this way and that as he tried to distinguish what was going on. He caught snippets of it, an intruder on Windclan’s territory. It seemed like it was common happenings for the medicine den, it was its purpose after all. He slowly got to his feet, careful with his leg and peered around the corner. His eyes widened a little at the sight of the two cats who had been admitted, there was a lot of blood but both looked rather alive and well for now. His gaze trailed down to the older one’s paw, it looked awfully reminiscent of what he’d experienced to his own, not quite the right shape. Was that what it looked like on other cats? It surprisingly didn’t make him as queasy as seeing it on himself. It was different, it just looked more like a problem to be solved then anything else. But then again seeing it on someone else certainly didn’t come with the pain.

He caught a snippet of Miss Lightningstorm’s conversation and before he could help himself he found he was stuttering out his words. ”M.m.m.miss L.lightning.s.s.storm, w.w.w.w.would y.y.you l.l.like s.s.some h.h.help c.carrying things o.o.o.o.over?” His voice was sweet and gentle, he wouldn’t be particularly fast of course, but he could easily carry stuff in his mouth and help out that way. It was something to do at the very least, he’d had his fill of napping. Enough to last him all the way through until warriorhood and he couldn’t help but get itchy paws. Being stuck doing nothing.

He brought himself around into full view and offered a gentle smile. ”S.s.s.sorry I didn’t m.m.m.mean t.t.to e.e.eavesdrop, j.j.j.just t.t.thought I c.c.could o.o.offer a.a.a p.p.paw.” He blushed a little in the face, realising how he might have came across at first, he didn’t mean to appear like he was snooping around or listening in on purpose. Just curiosity about what was going on, that was all, alongside a kind urge to offer his help where he could. It was a weird feeling being rather useless. He typically would have been out on a patrol this time of day, or maybe helping some kits practise their please and thank yous. Maybe even just shooting the breeze with Owlpaw, he missed normality. Doing a helpful task would restore some of it, he hoped.

[ @Alchemist Kitsune @Dreamingstars @Crown_Sage ]
[ Alch has asked me to join you guys! Cotts is a long term resident here at the moment due to a healing broken leg and is offering some help to carry herbs <3 ]

***Alchemist Kitsune*** · #10 May 19th, 2025, 09:30 PM

A familiar voice stopped Lightningstorm on her paws as she glanced towards the burrow's entrance, seeing the very cat she had considered calling to help with the herb hauling showing himself without the need to be beckoned. Well... that was good to see. His injury had been substantially worse than Dreamheart's, and even though he was younger, it still worried her whenever a cat was down for so long. To see him up and about and alert enough to have caught on to their conversation was good. Moments like these almost made the stressing out over patients worth it. Almost. In a perfect world there would be no patients and nobody would ever get hurt, but she wasn't enough of an optimist to even consider dreaming of such things.

Instead, she offered a grin of gratitude to the younger tom, twitching her tail in a gesture for him to follow after her. "Ya weren't eavesdroppin', no worries. Voice carries over in these tunnels pretty well. Makes sneaking up on a medicine cat pretty hard, assuming you can get through the maze and find the right den," she purred, waving off his apology with ease. "Be glad to have you, though. Thanks! Taking care of all the herbs I'll be needin' will be a proper pain in the arse all by myself. Follow me, love."

In an instant Lightningstorm was making her way through the tunnels, well accustomed to the route towards the herb storage. The lack of a flowing wind current underground had made it so that slowly the entire den had been permeated by the scent of herbs, her drying plants only further contributing to the widespread reach of the pungent aroma. The storage, however, was were it all hit you over the nose all at once, the burrow deeper than any of the patient dens, the lack of air flow here making the place dry and with barely any light to hit it. It had taken moons for the medicine cat to get used to the place, but in time maneuvering through her different medicines had become second nature to her.

"Right, here we are. We'll need a moistened moss to clean up all their injuries, but that's always a given. Squirrelpaw is easy enough. Needs a bit of marigold to keep that wound from bleedin' anymore and to keep it free from infection. Useful little herb, that. Not the most potent, but I'll be damned if it isn't the one I use the most. Cobwebs to keep the poultice in place... That should be enough for her! Honestly, it's Dreamheart I'm worried 'bout. Here."

Lightningstorm's speech was almost muttered. A tick she had more so than an actual attempt at a conversation. She spent so much time alone she had eventually resorted to talking to herself. Not that she was fully alone, of course. The beetle that resided within her den wasn't bad company. He kept the herbs free from other bugs that might prey on them, and she liked to pretend he could understand her. Made for a more present listener than most other cats, in any case.

As she spoke she rummaged through her herbs. Holes and crevices dug into the wall of the burrow into which she kept each type of herb for ease of access. Dustbunny had made this for them when they had moved to the new camp, and she had been thrilled. Up until the point she realized Cowtuft had a problem with sleep walking and messing up all of her efforts to keep the den organized. Who would have thought she would have missed the tom's night excursions so much and given anything to walk into yet another disaster of his making?

"Dreamheart's injury's going to be a bloody pain to fix, though. First, two poppy seeds. I want her knocked out before I start trying to fix that leg. If it looks that badly twisted on the outside I can't imagine she'll want to be awake for the procedure to try and straighten it. The shock alone will kill her. Here, these two sticks will make a nice splint. Going to need some moss as well. Couple sheets of that too. Ivy vines to keep it in place... And here, some more cobwebs for her other injuries. Tsk. I'm going to have to send out patrols to get some of those for me later on, ain't I? They're starting to run a bit lower than I bloody well like. Some broom for both her injuries and that broken limb should suffice, too. Oh... and the mushrooms to soak up that bleedin' while she falls asleep would be proper useful too."

Looking at the pile of herbs and tools she had taken out of their small pockets in the wall, she huffed, satisfied. Thank the stars for Cottonpaw. What would have been two unnecessary trips would be turned to this single one. Dividing the herbs into two bundles, she grinned at the pale apprentice, her tail swaying with ease behind her.

"Sorry 'bout the rambling. I tend to be down here alone. Grab that pile, will ya, love? Best not keep Squirrelpaw and Dreamheart waiting."

Without another word, Lightningstorm grabbed her own pile of herbs and begun the trek back to the patient burrow where she had left the warrior and apprentice pair at. Dropping her stack of herbs, she rummaged through them in order to find the poppy seeds she would be giving Dreamheart. Fishing two from inside the poppy flower she had brought with her, only to drop them before the warrior with a soft, calculated touch. She did not want them rolling away. The seeds were plentiful in her storage, but that didn't mean she was about to be wasteful with them.

"Eat these. They'll help with the pain and allow you to sleep through the worst of the procedure. I need to ask you both... this intruder that did this to ya both- Did he carry clan scent with 'im? Twoleg scent maybe? Or was he a rogue messing about with the wrong pair of she-cats? I know you both said you killed him, but we need to be ready for a fallout with another clan if this was a trespassing incident," the herbalist noted as she grabbed her poultice stone and began mashing away at the particularly large mushroom she had brought with her, efficiently turning it into a paste before beginning to press it against Dreamheart's broken limb, hoping to stop most of the blood flow before she began dealing with the injury itself.

It would hurt, no matter how gentle she was, but it was a necessary evil in order to more efficiently handle the leg itself later on. Healing as quickly as possible was always essential for broken bones... just not so fast you became sloppy and succeeded in busting the limb even more than you managed to help it. It was a careful balancing act, but one she had done so many times in her life it was almost second nature to her at this point in time. This done, she began making the poultice for Squirrelpaw's injuries, the marigold dropped into the poultice with some water from her moistened moss to begin the rehydration process before she could make use of it.

"Here, let me help, Squirrelpaw. Water is much better for cleaning injuries than your tongue. Gives me a chance to assess the damage to your wounds too before I apply the poultice," she mewed in a light hearted voice as she approached the she-cat, looking to her back as she offered a grin to Cottonpaw with a wink. Your work here is done, love, but feel free to stick around. You'll just be hearing the conversation from your nest if you leave, anyway."

@Dreamingstars [Dreamheart] | @Crown_Sage [Squirrelpaw] | @Daragca [Cottonpaw]