Adrift No More [Open]

Driftkit was laying in the shadows on the roots of the nursery, his eyes fixed on one den that had been empty for a while. It was rare for a cat to slip in but they never stayed for long but...Why was it empty? What was in there? He couldn't deny the curiosity that had only been growing with every night that it remained empty. Finally, the large kit pushed himself to his paws and hopped down. As carefully and as quietly as he could for a kit of his size, he scrambled into the den. The first thing that caught his nose was the musty scent...But also sweetness, smells he didn't even know existed. He glanced around, noticing that there was a couple nests. But...If this place had nests, why did nobody stay in here? Mostly when it smelled so nice! He padded around, trying to locate the source of the scents until he found the corner where they were tucked into.

"...Flowers?" he murmured as he poked at them, surprised by the collection of plants that seemed so carefully tucked away. He frowned as he crouched, studying the plants - they all seemed so different, some carrying nice smells, some with bitter smells now that he was closer. Something bugged in the back of his mind, like he ought to know where he was but he had been told so many stories by the older cats, it was hard to know which one he was suppose to be thinking of.

Admittedly, Hawktalon wasn't all too familiar with the kits in the nursery. He'd never really enjoyed young cats at that stage, feeling they matured during apprenticeship. But StarClan knew, this one seemed interested in the medicine den, and already from a quick glance he seemed more mature than most. Plus... With Blackclaw and Ravenpaw gone, they needed a new medicine cat. Maybe this one...? The tabby resolved to follow Driftkit into the medicine den anyway. Maybe he was completely wrong and this kit wanted to shred the herbs. Either way, it was still good to have supervision around with kits. Entering the den behind the fluffy kit, Hawktalon was careful to not block the only entrance, lest he seem threatening. "I don't think I've seen you around before. What's your name? I'm Hawktalon, the deputy," he offered.

Driftkit jumped at the voice, his fur fluffing up as he spun to stare at the large tom that was standing behind him. His ears slicked back as he crouched, suddenly getting the idea that he very much wasn't suppose to be in here. "D-Driftkit," he mumbled, doing his best to make his voice loud enough to be heard. Hawktalon...Right, he had heard a little about the deputy - his momma had told him all about the important roles in the Clans. The leader, the deputy and the medicine...Cat... He blinked, turning to look back at the herbs as it dawned on him what he had been forgetting. The medicine cats, they used plants to make cats feel better, didn't they? Was that why there was all the odd smelling plants in here?

He titled his head as he studied the plants, amazed that they somehow made cats feel better. Then, he remembered he wasn't alone in the den. He turned to look back at the deputy, a sheepish look on his face as he kicked at the ground with his paws. "I-I'm sorry for sneaking in here, I...I was just curious cause I saw nobody ever really entered and..." he blinked, nose scrunching up. Wait, if the medicine cat was important then why was the den empty? Shouldn't there be a medicine cat? His momma had told him all about how every Clan had one so...Why didn't they? "...This...This is the med-ah-cin cat den right?" he questioned, doing his best to pronoun the odd word - he had heard it enough times but saying it was something else. "...Why is it so...Empty?"