Hi! Took me a while to edit but I think 1000 words per chapter is enough? If not, let me know (Kat!) XD
"Quit moving, you've been waking me up all night!" a muffled voice called.
Sootpaw opened her eyes and looked around the den. She glanced at the heap of light grey fur beside her.
"Sorry, Beetlepaw," she whispered, removing her tail from his nest.
She looked up at the branches above her and saw the sun shining through the cracks. Yawning, she sat up and stretched out her sore muscles.
Training was hard yesterday, I hope I can rest today, she thought hopefully.
She pushed through the hanging leaves and out into the camp. The sun was rising above High Tree, casting dappled light onto the soft grass beneath Sootpaw's pads. The apprentice looked longingly at the fresh-kill pile, she never really understood why it was called a pile since it was in a hole in the ground, all she knew was that she was starving.
At first she thought every one was asleep until she saw the bright white fur of Cloudfur, a newly appointed warrior, guarding the camp entrance which, in this case, was a hole in between two shrubs.
"Good morning!" she called across the clearing.
The warrior nodded, his eyes kind. Sootpaw used to share the den with the tom and they were good friends, until he became a warrior, now they only say hello to each other every once in a while.
"Whats with the yelling?"
Sootpaw jumped as her friend emerged from the den.
"Sorry, once again, Beetlepaw," she apologised, touching her nose to his ear.
"Its alright," he purred, "What are we supposed to be doing today?"
Sootpaw shrugged.
"Not sure, it seems all the mentors are asleep."
"Thats a good thing, means more sleep for us! I'll see you in a bit, flea-brain!" Beetlepaw said.
He turned around and padded back through the leaves, his white tipped tail disappearing into the darkness. Sootpaw laughed gently, shaking her head.
Whenever the pair were parting they'd say 'Seeya in a bit, flea-brain!' They'd say it instead of the formal 'goodbye' or 'goodnight'.
"Sootpaw! You're awake!"
Sootpaw turned around to face a light brown she-cat.
"Not sure if I could say the same for you, where have you been?" she asked, her head tilted.
Her mentor shook her head, smiling.
"Bossy paws! Unlike you, I wasn't snoring and dreaming of my lovely denmate whom I love very much, I was hunting."
"For the last time, I do not like Beetlepaw!" Sootpaw protested.
"She really doesn't!" A voice called from the den behind her.
Sootpaw nodded.
"Thank you!"
Birdflight shook her head.
"Sorry for teasing, lets go, lots to do today," she sighed, flicking her tail.
Sootpaw inwardly groaned.
"Such as?"
"Well, Blizzardsong needs help organising herbs since he doesn't have an apprentice and Blackfang has been complaining about ticks."
"So basically nothing fun." Sootpaw sighed.
Birdflight nudged her.
"Hey, cheer up. If you can manage to help the elders and Blizzardsong I'll take you to the Flower Cave."
Sootpaw brightened, excitement pulsing through her.
The Flower Cave was a cave Birdflight and her apprentice had discovered. It had countless beautiful flowers and was also teeming with prey. Catmint even grows there, beside what Twolegs call a 'ladder'. The ladder is very rotten and old but when you reach the top of it you can sit in a little extra den at the top of the cave where you can see the night sky through a little hole in the roof. Cats often went there to relax and sometimes practise battle moves.
"Sootpaw! Are you my assistant for today?" A dark grey tom purred, as he appeared in front of Sootpaw and her mentor and rubbed his cheek against the young apprentices.
"Hello father," she purred warmly. "Yes I am, I hope I can help."
Her father purred.
"Of course you'll be able to help, you always are."
Birdflight flicked Sootpaw's ear.
"I'll be in the elders den if you need me, don't get up to mischief," she teased, purring as she walked towards the den made of well woven bark.
Sootpaw rolled her eyes and turned back to the medicine cat. He was leading her towards a very large hollowed out tree stump.
Everyone always assumed Blizzardsong went against the medicine cat code when they heard about his mate and kits.
Blizzardsong was once a warrior but was called by StarClan to become a medicine cat. His mate died a while after kitting and so he had to raise Sootpaw alone, though Mistblaze looked after her when she was too young to eat prey. Sootpaw still doesn't see Mistblaze as her mother but has a very strong bond with her father.
"I'm not sure if you've ever helped me in here so just whatever you do, don't eat anything," Blizzardsong warned, his blue eyes slightly glowing. "Though I know you're a very smart cat, you know not to."
Sootpaw smiled.
"I do. Now what do I need to organise?"
Blizzardsong thought for a moment and looked around the little pockets carved into the stump that were filled with different herbs.
"Somehow the blackberry and borage leaves got mixed up, I need you to separate them. The borage leaves are attached to small star shaped flowers and the blackberry leaves are quite prickly," he explained, scooping a pile of leaves from a divot and laying it on the ground in front of his daughter. "Once you've done that, the chamomile and dandelions need separating as well. You know what they look like right?"
Sootpaw nodded, the image of yellow and white flowers appearing in her head.
"You gave dandelion to me when I stepped on that bee when I was a kit," she recalled the memory, slightly laughing.
Her fathers eyes smiled.
"Yes, I remember that. The chamomile is the-"
"White flower, yellow centre," she finished.
Blizzardsong nodded.
"They're there."
He nodded his grey head towards the divot the flowers were in. Sootpaw nodded and sat down, facing the leaves on the ground.
Slowly, leaf by leaf, she managed to organise the blackberry leaves into one pile and the borage into another. Little hairs from the borage leaves stuck to her paws, causing her pads to feel very weird.
"Can I lick the hairs off my paws?" she asked her father.
He looked at her, his paws sticky from a poultice he was creating.
"Of course, it's only used to calm fevers and to help queens make more milk."
Sootpaw nodded and started grooming her white paws. The hairs stuck to her tongue.
"This is terrible," she complained, getting up and walking towards the small pool of water outside the den. Lapping the water made the hairs disappear down her throat.
Thank StarClan.
"Its quite warm in here," she mewed, padding back into the tree stump.
Blizzardsong nodded thoughtfully.
"Softfeather got the other apprentices to finally weave a roof on top of this stump so no more soggy mornings and cold bones."
Sootpaw looked up at the sloppy weaving above the pair.
"Could do with some work," she trailed off, wondering if Birdflight would help her improve her fathers roof.
"If you could get on top of that, that would be amazing. I can't have sick cats covered in rain."
"At least the rain is helping herbs grow. I love New-leaf," Sootpaw purred, closing her eyes and breathing in the mingled scents of the medicine cats herbs.
Blizzardsong glanced at her then returned to his mixing.
"As do I, as do I."
Hehe, yeah this first chapter is crappy, I kinda rushed the first part of the story but I think I got better at describing Sootpaw's thoughts and feelings later on in the story. Thanks to Cloudjumper Kat for helping me with this, you're amazing.
Hopefully I can get the next chapter done by tomorrow, thank you for reading if you are :)
Happy Hunting!
~Fernsky