An oath of confidentiality [hobbit]

Stay alive, stay alive for me 

You will die, but now your life is free

Deep in the silvery birch forests of Viridity's land there was an ancient log. Tall enough for a cat to stand in comfortably but not so tall that a human could get in the log was grown over by lush bushes, soft moss, and thick lichen. Flowers and ferns surrounded it and the canopy of trees granted it its own little clearing. It was a long thing, hollow all the way through with boulders leaning up against it and extra bark laid atop it for water coverage. All in all a good place to live and an even better place to visit. Its' owner wanted to give it a beautiul yet homey and comforting vibe, as evidenced by the ridged shells and sparkling stones encircling it. Those things gave it just that touch of love that Ann was looking for.

When you went inside the log, you would find a smooth, clean wood floor and walls just as smooth. Ann took pride in this place. She spent long days sweeping out dirt and dust with her long pluming tail. Oh yes, Ann was a cat. A beautiful little molly to be truthful. Gentle grey eyes, soft dappled brown fur, and legs as short as a kit's- she was a sight to be seen. She currently sat in the middle of the long log, marking on the walls with her claws. There was one spot in the log that wasn't smooth, and that was her marking wall. She checked off the days there, one delicate claw by one long day. The wall was so strewn with organized tallies it looked as though a human could have done it. But no, just a very dedicated cat with good intentions.

She had to check off the days. After all if she didn't, how would she know when her next appointment was? Appointment you might ask? Well yes, it was her duty as Viridity's shrink to make appointments, take patients, give therapy, and prescribe herbs accordingly. No matter what colony or lack thereof they were from. Her herb stores were further back in the log, stacked neatly on a cascading pile of rocks that blocked up what would have been the other entrance. There was a determined expression on her face and she even stuck her tongue out a bit in concentration as she marked the deep groove on the wall. Today she had a patient. The appointment was supposed to be around when the sun reached the highest point in the sky... So that should be soon.

Ann flicked her tail thoughtfully as she finished her day-marking. So long she'd been here.. And she still hadn't seen to every cat by the beach. 'Maybe someday' she smiled. She loved this job more than anything else in the world. If she could prevent only one cat from doing what her brother had resorted to... It would all be worth it. And she'd already saved so many more lives than that. She'd had cats come to her den months after ceasing appointments, telling her how she'd saved their relationship or their kit's life. It was something that made her life feel complete. Making other cats happier was what she had been born to do, and she'd be damned if she wouldn't continue to do it until the day she died.

A shadow fell over the entrance to her den. Ah, her patient! Trotting along the log Ann looked up with a smile. "Hello there! I can take you now, Would you like for your appointment to be inside or outside?" 

𝔦𝔞𝔪𝔥𝔬𝔟𝔟𝔦𝔱