"S..Specklepaw are you thinking about your father?" Mousepaw asks.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Mousepaw knew it was the wrong thing to say.

Specklepaw's fur bristled, and his claws came unsheathed. "That old man?" The ginger tom hissed, "He better be dead. Coz if not I'm gonna hafta punch him in the snout."

Mousepaw flattened his ears, now Specklepaw was going to be thinking about him the whole time.

"O..okay, well let's just find the catmint and go then.." Mousepaw says, scrambling onto the fence after him.

The two tabbies check to see the coast was clear and hop down to the other side. The twoleg yard was wide and open, worriying Mousepaw they could be easily spotted. He hurries across the open grass and into a bush by an even taller fence. Specklepaw was sticking close by.

"Through here, it's a secret way in." Mousepaw whispers, and motions for his brother to follow. The medicine cat squeezes through a hole in the wall. Specklepaw could probably jump over the fence easily enough, but it was still out in the open.

Once through, the cats are greeted by a neat square stump, filled with rows of unnaturally orderly plants. Specklepaw waits for him to point out the ones they needed. Mousepaw heads towards the strongest scent first, the unmistakable smell of catmint.

Mousepaw hops over and bites off a few bundles and puts them to the side. He raises his tail cheerfully and walks down the rows of plants to see if there was anything else he needed.

A bundle of sorrel!

Chamomile and daisy flowers!

Tormentil!

Mousepaw yanks the low growing leaves out of the ground, and snips off a group of the small white flowers. He scoops the yellow flowering tormentil out to get the roots.

"Alright Specklepaw, I think this is all we can carry!" Mousepaw mews and looks around to find the ginger apprentice.

Specklepaw was sniffing around the yard suspiciously and jumps in surprise. "Oh. Ya, I'm coming." Specklepaw replies. He stalks over and picks up all of the catmint. Mousepaw was surprised he managed to carry all of it, and takes the other little bits of leaves and roots in his own mouth.

As they head back to the fence, Mousepaw regrets he didn't find any tansy. Sure they had plenty of catmint, but tansy is what would prevent them from getting greencough in the first place. And the little bit of tormentil root wouldn't last long.

Mousepaw and Specklepaw squeeze back through the fence, careful not to let the herbs get damaged. As they step out, the medicine cat notices some unusual shadows. Mousepaw purrs a bit, appreciating some pretty cresent shaped lights on the twolegpath. But he doesn't have much time to admire them as Specklepaw is already dashing across the yard.

As the two apprentices make their way to the small fence, Mousepaw pauses to catch his breath. Specklepaw stands by him, still looking serious and protective despite the ridiculous amount of catmint in his mouth. Mousepaw can't help but giggle at the sight. His brother gives him a look that could only mean 'what's so funny?'

"W..we did that faster than I was expecting!" Mousepaw purrs, "It's not even past sunhigh yet."

Specklepaw just nods in response.

Looks like Mousepaw was doing the talking.

"Well, if you want to, I think we should go home and..."

Original Poll Options:

15 Votes

1. Take a break, we've earned it! - 13.3%

2. Come back to Twolegplace. We still need to find Tansy! - (46.7%)

3. Find Petalstripe in HailClan, maybe we could help her with something. - 20%

4. Look for more herbs in SunClan. There are herbs there Petalstripe can't find in the forest, and we already have what we need from Twolegplace. - 6.7%

5. Look for herbs in our territory. We found plenty here, but there's still some things we need closer to home. - 13.3%