King Elk Forest -- and we will rise above, open our eyes up

another round of snow had fallen on the king elk.  once again she saw what mato had when they'd first traveled here together, the beauty that the forest had.  somehow she had still managed to hide from the beast that the forest was named from, while it seemed everyone else so far had seen him.

perhaps some other time she would seek him out.  for now, she was hungry.  her captivity and journey home had left her body more angular than it'd been when she'd left, pitiful underneath the plush winter coat that was starting to grow in.  

yet instead of scouring the caches today, she decided that maybe she could muster up the energy to hunt something, even with her bum leg and deep gouges.  and perhaps one of the new members would join her.

The woman is new; at least, she thinks. watching her now from the cover of dead underbrush, the girl scents the air again and declares her scent foreign, at least to her. She is hurt, too; something the girl realizes with interest. Her ears flick forward, and she forges out into the open, approaching the woman in what she hopes is an entirely unthreatening manner. She chuffs a greeting, waiting for the woman's attention to fall to her.

 "you're hurt"  She says, offering a moment later, "I can help." The words seem odd; to offer one's services to a stranger is wrong. But they are packmates, and, surely, this is what packmates do. Besides, the prospect of someone to practise on help is appealing.

so she had been replaced, in some way, by a girl who already probably knows much more about medicine than brienne.  however it is.. unfair to place blame on the new ones for simply existing, so she keeps the bitterness that rises to herself.

oh, she returns, sure, i suppose.  i was just going to try to catch something.. or whatever.

how graceless the speech came, although brienne no longer seemed to care about keeping up appearances.

Her ears flicked back uncertainly, the girl's tail beginning a slightly nervous twitch that she quickly put a stop to. "I found marigold. it could...help." She tries, but her attempt to forge ahead unaffected by the woman's lack of interest falters. Curiosity glints sharply in her gaze as she appraises the wounds, that don't seem especially fresh but painful all the same. The offer is made tentatively, umber eyes finding the woman's warily. She doesn't seem especially interested in her offer, instead wanting to hunt.

marigold.  briefly and suddenly, brienne finds herself back in the vale with genie, telling her about marigold and its properties.

a small, sullen smile works its way to her lips, a chuckle falling out.  sure.  what do you say we get me healed up a bit and then hunt together? fill their bellies and the caches. i'm brienne.

[ooc] so sorry for the wait!
The girl smiles, slightly, when the woman seems to take her up on her offer with a bit more kindness than she's seen thus far.  "I'm Anatha" Tail wafting at her hindquarters, a little eager to be useful, she promises quickly that she will return in a moment and turns tail, moving at a fast clip as she seeks the little collection she's gathered. Marigold found, she is quick to return to the woman, dancing back towards her and dropping the herb at her paws, gaze silently asking permission to aid her.

sorry to you as well! things got busybusy around here.

she lays before the sun kissed girl with an ease she'll soon be used to (out in the forest with a dark girl), tipping her head up to the sky as she yawns, making herself comfortable.

how long have you been here, anatha?  it can't have been long — she wasn't gone long but small talk was better than no talk, and she couldn't bear the silence.

she moves easily towards the woman, mechanically chewing the poultice and remembering the careful instruction of her mentor. moving to place the herb against her wounds with a careful tenderness, the girl pauses once to answer her question. "a few weeks, I think." time passes slowly and then all at once, and it takes her a second of thought to reach the conclusion. when she finishes, she steps back carefully, admiring her handiwork and making sure that it will hold. 

reassured, with a faint glimmer of pride, she mentions then the group of turkey she'd seen earlier that week. it takes little to point out their general direction, and the girls set off in their general direction, words floating between them as they begin their hunt.