Ann | Shrink | ♀

When the two were sixteen months old they came across another group of cats. There were four of them in all colors and patterns. They said that they traveled together for safety, and that Toby and Ann were welcome to join them. They accepted immediately and began traveling with these new cats. They were kind, friendly, and all shared prey. It finally seemed as though things were looking up. Ann was over the moon and Toby finally seemed to be getting better. He even grew sweet on a molly from the group- a pretty and tall white molly with sun-golden eyes. She was nurturing and affectionate and took to Toby very quickly, going on and on about how adorable his stubby little legs were. Ann couldn't have been happier for the two of them.

Ann began to learn the ways of more detailed healing from one of the older travelers, a molly named Dusk. She was a tortoiseshell with amber eyes and a sharp tongue, but good intentions. She taught Ann of rare illnesses and their treatments, of mental health and how to handle it in other cats. Ann was fascinated by the new knowledge and ways of helping others. She absolutely ate Dusk's lessons up.

Toby continued using his poppyseeds, though he didn't have to as much with Mint around. That was her name, the white molly. It suited her. She was refreshing to be around. Ann became good friends with the molly and they often talked about their pasts and future hopes and dreams together. She grew to love Mint as a real sister. It seemed that that would be their relationship too as Mint and Toby grew closer and closer. They were so happy together. Ann loved it. Life really could get better.

When Toby and Ann were twenty five months old, Mint fell pregnant. Toby felt so alive and it was clear in his every action. Ann's heart soared for the two of them. The rest of their ragtag group of travelers congratulated them with gusto. Toby ceased his usage of poppyseed. He wanted to be a good father to his kits and he couldn't do that if he was all doped up. Ann applauded his decision, more proud of her brother than she had ever been.

But all was not to be well. Mint's pregnancy had complications. She complained quite frequently about pain and as the pregnancy went on, her belly grew wider but her face and limbs grew thinner and thinner. The kits were sucking the life out of her. When the time came for her to give birth there was too much blood. The kits, despite Toby's small stature, were too large and tore her from the inside out. She bled out in Toby's paws as he wept over the love of his life.

The kits survived. But not for long. Without a queen to nurse them there was little hope. Toby tried his hardest to feed them. Mixing water with pre-chewed prey, he fed them and fed them but they never swallowed. Hope dwindled as the kits- 6 of them- grew weaker and weaker until they finally passed. All of the travelers were devastated, Toby most of all. He began using poppyseeds again. More heavily than ever before, he tried to numb himself to the pain of the world. Ann tried using the treatments that Dusk had taught her on her brother but nothing seemed to work. He was too far gone. 

One day Toby took too many poppyseeds. It had to have been on purpose- no cat took that many on accident. When Ann awoke he was already gone. He laid beneath the willow where Mint and their kits had been buried, body strewn across both of the graves and tears still in his glazed eyes. Her brother, the only cat Ann had relied on for so long. Her lifelong companion, her twin star. Gone in the blink of an eye. And she hadn't been able to help him. Ann fell deep into a depression of her own. They buried her brother next to the kits and Mint under that same weeping willow tree.

Her friends comforted her, but it was never enough. Ann blamed herself. She thought that she hadn't been there for Toby as much as he had needed. It was her fault for not trying hard enough, not taking his poppy seeds away, not keeping a closer eye on him. Until Dusk began treating her. Her mentor gave her herbs and daily therapy, counseling her on what had happened and where she should go from here. For a prickly cat Dusk was oddly empathetic and Ann found comfort in her words. There was nothing she could have done. Toby, like their mother, had a certain gene that made him prone to depression and suicide. Ann carried it as well. But she had to fight. Fight through her depression and come out on the other side. Toby was gone and he would never be coming back. Mint, the kits.... She had to live her best life for them. She had to live the life that they would never get the chance to. 

Bit by bit, Ann clawed her way out of the pit of depression with the help of Dusk and her friends. By the time she was 31 months she had recovered as much as she ever would. That was when the cats began to make their way towards Viridity. They had heard of a large group of cats who lived peacefully with one another and all knew how to heal, and figured that joining them was their best shot at survival and preventing something like what had happened to Mint, Toby, and their kits from ever happening again.

Once they found the lands they were shocked by how beautiful they were. Silvery birch trees, thin undergrowth, cat scent all around and plentiful prey in spite of it. They, lead by Dusk, found the council members and requested that they be allowed to join the ranks of Viridity. They were quickly accepted. The five traveling cats settled into their own seperate dens in the large territory, effectively ending their traveling together. They remained close friends and visited eachother very frequently, but no longer saw eachother on a daily basis as they had for the past seasons upon seasons.

Dusk and Ann were the only two who stayed together. They had a strong bond and Dusk still had much to teach Ann. The two lived together for a few seasons, Dusk teaching Ann all they knew. Ann began taking in patients of her own under Dusk's guidance, helping them with their problems and medicating them when needed. The council members took notice of this. They offered Dusk the position of Shrink first, but Dusk bluntly refused. She'd lived a long, painful life and didn't need to see any more pain in her old age than she had to. But she recommended Ann. Still young and virile, the mottled brown molly could take and see to patients for seasons upon seasons. The council members then offered Ann the role, and she accepted.

Dusk left Ann once she started seeing her patients, telling her that she'd taught her all she knew and that Ann would lead a fine, prosperous, helpful life. She retired to the bottom of an old oak tree a ways away from Ann's new home- a fallen log surrounded by flowers. Ann thanked Dusk for all she had done for her. She was like the mother she'd never really had. She'd nurtured her, taught her, helped her through the hardest times in her life. Ann would always be grateful for that.

Currently Ann works hard as Viridity's shrink, seeing to patients and helping every cat she can overcome their demons. She sees her former traveling companions- Dusk, Dawn, Tom, and Lucy- on a frequent basis and is always interested in seeing how they're doing. She's made a beautiful home for herself and has aided in saving the lives of dozens of cats already. Hopefully she'll be able to help many more before she finally takes on a trainee of her own and retires.