Blackfoot Forest All the plants in the world, it’s a party.

When Elixir mentioned the hoovers killing wolves for fur and putting them on the ground, she refrained from telling her that her own friends and family had used furs for bedding and that just recently a delegation from Easthollow had brought a huge bison hide for that purpose. Should she have felt grateful to the beasts to whom the fur had belonged once? Should she have said "thank you" every time she killed a small or a big game? It had never occurred to her and now that it did... she began to wonder, if the fact that she had never given much thought about the animals she killed, made her a bad person. And, if so - were she any better than the aliens Elixir was describing. 

She did not voice these ponderings out loud, because something about her companion gave her a feeling that she would not entirely understand the dilemma. "I will watch out for those bad guys," Wraen concluded. "Would you fancy some strawberries? You told me so much, that I think I owe you not only knowledge but some experience too," she offered.

Elixir felt some relief after she was done telling Wraen about the humans, even though she wasn't sure if they'd ever be around telling one wolf might save their life. The forest still gave her some chills down her back and she moved a bit to get them to go away before looking up at Wraen as she was talking. "Sure I'll have an experience. But don't feel compelled to tell me anything because of something I've done." she reassured the wolf that even if she gave her much needed information that Wraen didn't owe her anything.

Trading was not foreign to the wolfdog since it was in her past, but she was fine with it as long as it was with words and not was she had experienced at the Market. The wolfdog was content with trying whatever Wraen had in store for her because trying new things and even learning new things was her element. A small smile appeared on her face.

"Well, take this as a friendly gesture," Wraen replied after contemplating little on wolfdog's answer. They had not spent too much time together, but, while listening to the other's stories as well as experience with alien beings, she had begun to like Elixir. To the point that, if she had been a stranger she had met on the street and begun to talk by an accident, she would have invited her for a cup of coffee and a muffin. 

"We will have to check the fringes of the meadow," she explained to the she-wolf, while leading the way. "And you have to look closer to the ground - it is easy to miss them in the tall grass. Small, red and smell just as sweet as they taste," she went on. "Do you know the story of how they came to be in the world?"

Elixir nodded, a friend?, this would be a first for the wolfdog. She had Grezig of course but sometimes she felt as if the woman was annoyed with her at times. Her face was lit up like the 4th of July as Wraen was leading the way to the experience. Look close to the ground., Elixirs eyes went to the ground as they were walking looking for what they were going to eat. Her mouth watered at the sound of sweet tasting, that was her favorite type of anything kind of like a child. 

“Actually I don’t. Do you?” Elixir asked shifting her gaze to the darker woman as they padded forward. She sniffed the air to try to smell the sweetness. It was a wash because all she smelled was the grass so far, but she was intrigued to know about how they came to be in the world.

"Well, in that case it is a good thing that you have met me," Wraen replied with a pretend smugness, but the smile that was tugging at the corners of her mouth and the cheerful glint in her eyes told her that she was simply happy to share. 

"It is kind of a childish and short, but it deals with a very greedy dragon, who loved and hoarded all things beautiful and shiny, but he held a particular love for colorful gems - blue, black, red, green - you name the color and he would definitely have it," she told, while they walked towards the meadow. 

"And as all treasure hoarding dragons do this one had a spacious den in the mountains, where he slept on his pile of gems during the day and ventured outside during the night to hunt for more. All was good as well until one day a small, but proud goddess of the forest, whose name I have regretfully forgotten happened to find the dragon's den and saw all the treasures inside. And she liked the gems so much that she woke the dragon and asked him politely to give her some.

The dragon refused, of course, because he was a greedy fellow, and all would have ended well, had he not used some bad words that insulted the forest goddess deeply. She turned on her heel and went away from the den, making a promise that things weren't going to be left like this. 

When early in the next morning, when the dragon was returning to his home, he felt the earth shaking and grumbling, and realized that his mountain was about to collapse and therefore burry his treasure. In panic he dashed inside and grabbed mouthfuls of the colorful gems and then fled. 

But this was not the end to the dragon's troubles, because the little goddess was nearby and put a curse to punish the creature for his greediness. The dragon was turned into earth and grass, but the shiny jems scattered everywhere and became various berries. And the red ones - since they were dragon's favorites - were turned into the sweetest of them all - strawberries," Wraen finished and beckoned to the small things in the grass. "See and try them for yourself."

We can fade out here and, if you wish, we can have another thread together. Elixir is such a lovely character.

I would love another! And thank you :)

Elixir smiled as she said it was lucky to have met her. A brief nod came about before she started the story, that was true if she wouldn’t have met her than she wouldn’t have got all of this knowledge or a new found friend. During the time of the story Elixir was shifting her gaze from the grass to Wraen and her ears were raised as much as they could for how floppy they were. The story was a bit childish but that’s why Elixir loved it, it was a nice story for how they came about and who knows maybe it was true. 

As she ended and pointed to the strawberries Elixir understood why in the story the dragon loved red gems, they were so beautiful. “That was a beautiful story and these are beautiful. I understand why he would want red gems.” She said and then plucked one carefully with her mouth. She chewed slowly and as the burst of sweetness filled her mouth her eyes opened wide. These were amazing, like a treasure found in a haystack where the needle should be. She swallowed, “These are amazing.”. She ate another and then realized how long she had been gone from the band, feeling guilty she thought she might be getting back. “Thank you for all your knowledge, know it won’t go unused. And thanks for being a friend. Hopefully we will see each other around but I must be getting back now.” She said bowing her head a bit and then turning to leave toward where she had left her band mates.