Meadowlark Prairie the birds and the bees

ooc; anyone welcome!

even though Moonspear was her home now, Willoughby was still keen to explore other places. how could she grow as a person if she stuck herself in one place? there was only so much of the pack to see and only so many people in it to talk to. she figured she could use the exercise anyway and wanted to go find something to take back to her pack. maybe some plants. maybe something to eat. maybe something to play with. she wasn't sure if anyone was expecting pups though, and the breeding season was almost over anyway.

ignorant to such things, Bee would float amongst the prairie in a daze. she wasn't yet mature enough to have children, and she was still too young for such thoughts anyway. right now she'd just focus on finding something to do. there were plenty of birds to catch and bring back, but she didn't really want to disturb them. they seemed so happy; so free and chirping excitable things. the girl would watch as the larks circled in the air, unaware it was technically their breeding season too. that's why they were all so excited. a hum lifted her spirits as she continued on. if she couldn't hunt the birds, she'd find plants!

now that she knew what to do, she began searching the grounds for any signs of foliage she actually knew the names to. her snout was to the earth, walking along and completely unaware if another was nearby.

Every once in a while, it was good to stray from the cloying darkness of Blackfeather Woods, if only because it was so empty, now. She knew Ramsay traveled a fair bit outside, and so, why not her, as well? Blue seemed thankful for it, too; the grackle flew above her, landing occasionally on her shoulder with a squawk when he tired, since there were no trees to be found out here.

The dark woman appeared in the edge of her vision; Maegi chuffed to her, for it looked like she was doing what the Melonii did quite often—looking for plants. Right? Unless she was hunting, and Maegi had just disturbed her hunt. Whoops.

Anything good? she asked, flicking an ear backward in query. Blue's talons tightened a little on her shoulder. He was wary of other wolves (she couldn't blame him for that) until they became familiar to him, and obviously non-threatening. This was a stranger that was easily capable of harming them both—though she didn't look particularly unfriendly.

Bee's head would shoot up, startled that another had snuck up so easily on her. oops. she should have been paying attention to her surroundings. though her momentarily stunned look would curl into a friendly grin. "nope!" she didn't seem phased at all she had failed to pick anything so far "I don't know a lot of plants" the girl would continue on, still brightly "so I just want to find what I do know." for she could potentially poison someone in Moonspear if she brought back a bad herb.

eyes would stray to the grackle, her tail wagging in welcome. so this wolf had a friend too? like Sheri and Myrto. she wondered if the earth had whispered to this woman and told her of where to find her companion, whose voice rang clearer than the other animal voices... "I'm Willoughby" she'd introduce herself "of Moonspear!" adding the pack name like a second thought right now due to her newness there. still, she displayed some pride in it. "who are you and your friend?" she'd include the grackle of course.

What do you know? Maegi shot back, intrigued. Do you have a purpose in mind, or just stocking caches? She took in the name given her, eyes cutting sideways toward her companion. I'm Maegi, and this is Blue, she responded, letting herself relax and smile a bit. It was pleasing to her that Willoughby had asked after the bird. That made her think that the stranger wasn't a threat to the grackle.

Oh, Willoughby had given her home, too. I live nearby, she explained, rolling a shoulder in vague illustration of direction. Forest. Nice and quiet, lots of plants. That was enough information not to look like she was hiding something, right? But this young woman didn't need to know where she lived. That was crazy.

"well..." she would muse, taking on a thoughtful look "apparently some lady in my pack can mentor me, so I just want to bring some basic herbs to her. show her I mean business." everyone mentioned a woman named Speedy, but had failed to introduce her to the other. Willoughby didn't have much luck trying to find her so far either. maybe if she showed up, eager for tutoring... she'd magically appear before her? 

Bee's face lit up even more at the introductions. Maegi. such a cool name. and Blue was an obvious choice, but nonetheless special! there had to be meanings behind both names. "nice to meet you both!" she'd chirp, eyes going round at Maegi's mention of a home. "it sounds so lovely" but maybe not for her. she was a social creature; if it was very quiet she'd go nuts. but probably good enough for the woman before her. "so you know about plants? does anything good grow here?" 

maybe if the new Moonspearian took some super special and native to this location, her pack would be impressed.

She made a small hum of understanding, coupled with a nod. Leaving the subject of her home aside— I know some plants, yes, Maegi answered, dipping her head slightly. I'm more interested in poisons than anything else, but I know some basic healing, too. Moss, poppies, the like. She didn't mention her recreational use of the latter. Probably best.

Maegi began to take off slowly at her hobbling pace, Blue gripping her shoulder like a kid on his first pony ride when the beast started moving. Maybe we can look for plants together? she asked, glancing at Willoughby. I bet you know some that I don't, and I know some that you don't.

She expected this mentor wouldn't be too pleased if Willoughby brought home a bunch of toxic weeds, though.

"poisons can be useful" Bee would reply kindly enough, even if it wasn't for her personally. she could appreciate someone's countless hours into a task. learning of them, studying them. "oooh! I should gather some moss!" she said, bouncing slightly. Speedy maybe didn't have enough. Maegi would go on to walk away, causing her to follow after the woman and her bird. she suggested they look for plants together.

the Moonspearian wolf would wag her tail happily. yes yes yes! she wanted to learn more if Maegi wanted to help. "I don't know a lot of rare ones" she'd confess "but I know some basic ones you probably have heard of!" the woman seemed like she knew loads, and Bee wasn't going to overplay her limited knowledge. she wasn't trying to impress anyone. "does Blue help gathering herbs too?" her eyes strayed to the grackle. sometimes companions did tasks too.

She sure was ebullient, this one. It lay in stark contrast to Maegi's impassive mien, but that was fine. Some days it would have bothered her, but today was a fine afternoon. Blue was back, and her family (well, most of it) too. She was happy to spend time with the excitable girl.

Moss runs out quickly, yes, Maegi remarked, then shook her head at the question. Blue is just my friend. He does his thing and I do mine. He just likes to hang around. As if to emphasize this point, the grackle emitted a squawk, then began to preen at his sleek plumage, gleaming in the sun.

The bright red of poppy flowers caught her eye, and she wandered toward them. Poppy is good for pain, and if a wolf can't sleep, she explained, looking back at Willoughby. But you can't take too many seeds at a time. It becomes a poison, and will put you to sleep forever. As it almost once had for her.

"ooooh" Bee would look to Maegi as she spoke, an easy grin on her face. "I've met some people with friends before" she'd explain. both inside and outside the Teekons "they always seemed to help reach places their wolves couldn't. but I guess Blue is too much of a looker to get his feathers ruffled!" the girl would giggle, not at all offended by the answer. Blue obviously had better things to do with his time than help out. plus it was a cute little compliment directed at the grackle.

"poppy for sleep and pain..." Willoughby's brows furrowed together, trying to commit to memory. the thought of poisoning some wolf never ever crossed her mind. "how much poppy then? and is it the seeds or the, um, flower itself?" or maybe even both. she didn't know that much but was clearly eager to learn all that Maegi had given her so far.

She chuckled softly, thinking of Blue helping her out. Truly, she hadn't even considered it. They didn't do much communicating beyond some strange form of telepathy, and even then, she doubted any directions given by her to the bird would be comprehended. She could train him, she supposed? But that seemed like a lot of work; she was more keen to just let him be.

Seeds, Maegi clarified. No more than two or three at a time. I. . . She trailed off, mulling whether or not she should reveal her own troubled past with the plant. Ah, well, personal examples tended to be compelling. I once took too many. Three times that, maybe more. I almost died; if my friends hadn't found me, and gotten me to throw the seeds up, I wouldn't be here.

She drew her tongue along her jowls, disturbed at the bitter taste she found there—as if the seeds rested on her lips, now. Yarrow, if you want to make a wolf vomit, the Melonii explained. Helps with any poison, or at least all the ones I've dealt with.

"seeds" Bee would repeat, storing that information away in her budding mind. she'd tilt her head as Maegi hesitated, a look of shock on her face as the other explained further. "oh! I'm sorry!" for what else could she say to such a thing? "it's good your friends were there. I'd be sad... I wouldn't be able to talk to you if you passed away..." she trailed off with a frown. the message was clear; don't do something stupid, girl. she'd remember this.

yarrow was good for throwing up the contents of your stomach, got it! "you know so much" Willoughby would gasp in amazement. she wondered if she'd ever know as much as Maegi one day. probably not. her focus was entirely on the stars but... she had promised Charon and the other Moonspearians she'd try to do healing stuff too. "what does yarrow look like?" she didn't know, after all.

She glanced away, a little embarrassed at the apology. It wasn't Willoughby's fault, after all, although Maegi knew where she was coming from. She seized on the less-emotional sentiments, instead. I'm still learning, too, the Melonii said humbly, lowering her head in slight deference to all those who had taught her. You never should stop learning.

Yarrow has white petals, with light golden fronds in the middle of them, she explained. The stems look kind of fuzzy. If I see it, I'll point it out. She hadn't, so far. Not much more than the poppies and some weeds around here, it seemed.

Maegi turned to Willoughby again. Do you know lavender? she asked. It's super easy to spot, and I hear it helps calm wolves down—maybe it could help them sleep without being dangerous, like poppies could be.

she'd grow silent, sticking her tongue out of the corner of her mouth while her brows furrowed. listening to Maegi's words and largely wondering how someone with her knowledge was still learning. Bee always thought once you learned everything, you'd stop. that was it. you were a master of the craft. to hear it differently... she was thinking seriously now about her want of being a healer. maybe there was a different path for her. 

"I know lavender!" she'd break out saying, her silence not ignoring Maegi but merely thinking long and hard. Ma used to line their dens with lilac and lavender to make it smell good. "the smell helps people calm down, I think. it can be eaten? wow..." she never knew that. always assumed it was to be sniffed and looking pretty as is. Bee didn't seem to think some plants could be ingested. maybe she was more of a flower child over a doctor. 

she liked the idea of plants but maybe her strengths lay in stargazing. Bee'd frown, turning to look at Maegi. "I think I'm useless to my pack" she'd confess, looking seriously worried for a moment "the more we talk about it, the more I know I won't remember all of it. I like nature but I don't like the idea of, y'know, using it" she didn't trust herself to administrate medicine to others. at least not yet. "Moonspear took me in to train as a healer, but I dunno, Maegi..." would they kick her out now?

The question had her smiling, and she gave a shrug in response. See, that's the thing, Maegi replied. I've actually never seen it used—only heard of it. So your guess is as good as mine. . .although I've learned the hard way that you have to be careful with eating unfamiliar plants. There was humor in her voice, but it was grave, too.

And then Willoughby launched into a rant about her supposed worth in her pack, her doubts, her future. . . Maegi wasn't the best to handle this kind of conversation, and she took it in stride, her brow furrowing. She let the words sink in and then paused a moment, parsing her own response.

I get it, she said at last, nodding. I get feeling like you don't belong, like you're useless. I'm not a very good hunter; I don't really know how to fight. I guess all you can do is. . .keep learning? Find something you like, and then get good at it. Another shrug; she really was bad at this. This was not her strength, nor something she really enjoyed.

she didn't expect Maegi to have any form of a reply to her. nor even some advice. at this point, Bee was rambling. there was a bit of awkwardness after her words were spoken, and the girl would shoot her head away, worried that she had screwed up a new friendship. instead, the woman would be kind and understanding. she felt emotion well up in her eyes and she feverishly blinked the tears away. a lot of people had been kind so far, but everyone expected her to be something. to do something she didn't know.

she wasn't going to be a healer. she knew that now. but the expectations... it carried weight, and she felt the noose loosening. "I'm sorry" the girl would say at last, voice quivering "I ranted at you. it isn't... it isn't your business. it isn't your concern, but... thanks" she finished awkwardly. it helped to just talk about it. to know someone else felt like she did. "for listening to me." so maybe she wasn't cut out to be a healer but at least she could focus on something else.

She made an awkward face at the apology; she never really knew how to handle that, either. It's okay, Maegi said. Although I usually just rant to myself. But it's not a problem. She shifted her weight, feeling slightly uncomfortable. As if in signal, Blue tightened his own feet against her shoulder, and she gave him a cursory glance before turning to the woman again.

I have to get back, though, she said, looking at least a little contrite. Lots to do back home. Good luck with Moonspear, though—I'm sure everything will be fine.

With that, she turned and began the journey back to the woods, wondering if she'd just shaped the course of a life with a couple shreds of fleeting advice. Gods, she hoped not. Maegi knew prayers and poisons; she was out of her element with counseling on non-spiritual matters. Everyone had their strengths, she supposed.

maybe she made Maegi a bit uncomfortable confessing and apologizing. Bee tried not to look disappointed - for she did enjoy the other's company enough - and instead wave her off with a constant friendliness. "bye then!" the girl would break out cheerfully, a stark contrast to her previous mood. as Maegi and Blue disappeared, she'd turn back and head back to Moonspear.