all of honeymask's problems can be summed up with one word. leaf-bare. he hated a lot of things, but his hatred for leaf-bare had no comparison. it was always cold, so cold it practically chilled his bones, along with the prey. all of the mice and squirrels and frogs had burrowed under mud or ground to wait out the cold within the warm depths of their natural cage. something honeymask wished he could do. scrabble the frozen dirt away and create a hollow to sleep until flower roots tickled his nose.
but alas, he had to tough it out with the rest of the clans.
his herb stock was depleting more each day, with sicknesses running rampant from the lack of health in shadowclan, the plants were needed, but not enough was coming into his den. it seemed it was carved with deep furrows in his brain to constantly glance at the place he stuffed his remaining flora, almost as if his gaze would make more greenery appear.
scuffling his paws on the dirt, honeymask wet the fur of his foot with a dusty pink tongue, slipping the bumpy surface over his cracked pads. the tips of his paw fur was tinted the lightest of greens from sorting through various herbs, and the herb-y smell always seemed to be present, dancing through the follicles of his fur. truth was, he found himself in solitude within the confinements in his den more than, say, chatting with the rest of his clan, so it wouldn't be a surprise that he would eventually adapt a... unique smell.
notes: sorry talls, hope you can scrounge something up from that terrible post.
it wasn’t alright. the freezing cold, the biting winds, the frost getting between your toes and paw pads. everything about leafbare screamed hardship, and it seemed this season wanted to test the clan’s endurance and faith. if starclan controlled nature, he was almost positive they directed their wrath completely at him and his clan. why? because they could take it, and tallstar never felt prouder in his life. being the subject of such an evaluation made his fur stand on end, and he licked his lips, egging it on.
while the prey barely fit into the pile and his warriors walked around, tired and hungry. tallstar sat comfortably in his den, watching the scenic atmosphere as small pods of white fell from the sky. he tried not to bother himself too much, because as much as he wanted to be out and helping other cats, he felt it was no longer his alleged duty. how could he be a medicine cat and a leader? you can’t have a paw in two worlds. tallstar closed his eyes, remembering the valued words of his past leader, twilightstar. guilt hung heavily in tallstar’s heart.
with little left to do than scrounge around for food which didn’t exist, tallstar stood and stretched, padding out of his den with the confidence of a baby bird. with no one around to glare at him, he felt a bit safer and securer, that is, until a patrol came back empty pawed. figuring he might as well help briarheart with the supply, tallstar padded towards the very edge of windclan camp, looking both left and right before he crossed the thunderpath. he dashed madly over the asphalt, halting to a stop at the other side. he took a deep breathe in and froze. shadowclan. he was on shadowclan territory, now! fearfully, tallstar looked left and right, but the only cat he smelled was himself. not knowing any alternative, he dashed towards honeymask’s den, the only cat he knew in the area. hopefully littlestar didn’t smell him…
“honeymask!” cried tallstar as he barged through the ferns. “honeymask! i need herbs!” desheveled, tallstar stood with his fur puffed out, eyes wild with fright.