so uh. Here's that aforementioned written piece. I think this is probably the best place to put it given that I want the end of the post to be about the end of the update:
It's still early in the day when Oatdawn and Beechdream set out in search of herbs, padding down the mountain into the forest of the valley.
Birds chirp and flutter in the trees. Iron-mud-red squirrels dash through the leaf litter after each other, oblivious to the cats trodding steadily along nearby. This forest is probably the liveliest place in several kilometres, other than maybe the shore of the lake. It’d be lovely, if not for the fact that all the animal smells are making it hard to find herbs.
At least if they can’t find anything it’s not a long walk back to the cave, something she wouldn’t be able to say if she was by the lake. Oatdawn dreads things fairly often, and one of them is the walk back up the mountain if xe must get herbs from all the way down there someday.
She glances to Beechdream for a second. He went there just recently to get xir a fish. He doesn’t even like fish.
..This walk is rather lovely, actually.
The scent of a mouse hits Oatdawn’s nose. Yet another animal distraction, yet another small creature she wants to pause and watch. But her duties as a medic must come first, as always.
You could use the bile against ticks, her mind chimes, tempting her, though she knows..
She doesn’t realize xe’s stopped until Beechdream does as well, his head tilted in silent question.
Oatdawn flicks her tail to point to the source of the smell, and seconds later there’s a skittering in the leaves in that spot. She watches, amused(surely this twinge in her heart is that), as Beechdream lowers himself to a hunting crouch.Â
He fumbles the catch, which is probably for the best, though Oatdawn does struggle to believe that when xe catches a sharp bitterness in his eyes.
“When did you get so into hunting?” She asks, tone light enough to ease the edge in Beechdream’s eyes as he looks at xir. “I still remember- you used to hate it, didn’t you? And now you’re fishing and going after mice and challenging eagles, always out- when’d that happen?”
Beechdream stares at the ground for a second. “I got tired of not being able to.” He glances up to Oatdawn after a second, sees xir’s curiosity. “Like- skill wise? And from my job back home. I’m sick of being cooped in.”
“You did.." Oh, she wishes xir memory was better. "Camp security, yeah?”
“You still went out to get brambles and stuff, though. Was that not enough?”
He shrugs. “No? I’m glad your plants are for you, but. Not for me.”
Oatdawn stills, considering. Xir eyes drift to where the mouse had been.
(That twinge in her heart, as xe watched Beechdream smoothly stalk along the forest floor, his movements precise and certain. Was that admiration or jealousy?)
Well. Even if she wanted to hunt, she doesn’t know-
“How do you.” She swallows, face hot. “how do you hunt?”
Any distance that’d been clinging in Beechdream’s eyes fades. “You-? Of course, you’re a medic. Ok, uhm-”
He launches into a very - dare xe say adorably - flustered explanation of a hunter’s crouch, glancing back at Oatdawn far too often(“I keep thinking- that clearly you know this so it’ll be rude to explain,” “snrk-, It’s not, I promise,”) for it to be a smooth process.
She does learn, though. And soon the mission of collecting herbs is forgotten, as Xe hunts for the first time. It takes a couple of tries but soon Oatdawn has a mouse clamped tight in her jaws and triumph settled nicely into that aching spot in xir chest.
She’s well familiar with having to talk around things, and lifts xir paw to set the mouse down on it to say “Thank you.”
Beechdream grins, and the two of them bask in the moment.
before Ochrewillow glances over his head.
“Oh. That’s rosemary.”
Oatdawn stares for a second. “I should probably harvest some sprigs from that.”
So xe should probably give Beechdream the mouse.
Passing it to him is easy. It means that he stands there, apparently too busy holding it to help gather rosemary, but that’s fine. This is fine. He should get the credit for it anyway, he’s the warrior.
When she’s gathered as much as xe can easily hold in her mouth, Oatdawn turns to face him again. Beechdream pads closer, takes the mouse from his mouth with a paw and- sets it on her head?
“What? You’ve got good balance.” He says, grinning, and pads past her to start breaking twigs off of the rosemary bush. “Just- this size good?” He asks, holding a piece up.
Oatdawn goes to nod, then pauses, humming a m-hm instead.
this is really happening.
She really shouldn’t bring this back, Spirestar wouldn’t- Heronstar would. He would approve. They’re breaking out of the specialties now, aren’t they? Defenders and medics can hunt. Fighters can learn to build barriers. The kits are growing up without having to pick that strict a role, without a war.
She just did her first, and hopefully far from last, hunt.
and now we resume our regularly scheduled comicing, with a Veilbreak and Rainpaw patrol!
ah yes. neon orange. a sure sign that Plot lurks the area.
For anyone who skipped the written scene, SĂlexclan wasn't the only name dropped; Oatdawn also thinks of a cat named Spirestar.
I don't plan on doing the huge written pieces often, but I had a lot of fun exploring it. One thing I've Not been having a lot of fun with is keeping these damned lineless cats from blending into the background. if anyone has any tips they'd be much appreciated
I'm still like. Hoping to eventually start updating more frequently. The reason this took so long is in large part because I started college partway through making it. So far I'm relatively low on homework though so here's hoping
So yeah! Hope you all enjoyed and that you have a lovely day!
