Redsand Canyon shale

it could be assured that tamar had already brought a first set of bedding for @Aquene and @Kallik, but today she had come back.

tamar had discovered a flash of red feathers, no doubt left behind by an owl's hunting of another bird, and after carefully gathering them, she brought the items to their threshold. 

a gift, perhaps. tamar had beautified the den she shared with arsenio. perhaps aquene would care to do the same for her own.

It was morning, another time of the day he could have Aquene all to himself before they both left to tend to their duties. He still wished to keep his pregnant wife locked away in their quarters, but he kept the desire to himself; he knew Aquene would not appreciate it, and he had no intention of forcing her to ignore her work, especially when she had promised she would take it easy. 

He was nuzzling into her nape when he heard steps approaching their den. He tensed but quickly relaxed when he was met with the scent of Tamar. 

With a kiss to his mate's cheek, he sat up. Tamar, he called out. Come in. He wondered what she was doing here.

After having horrified him of tales of how her mother had passed and her imagined failure, she imagined Kallik would have liked it if she’d simply laid down and slept and ate for the rest of her pregnancy… but it was not something she would do. As the sole healer at the moment, she could not, and as a stubborn woman who craved independence she refused to. Still, she did not mind her sleep. She had been sleeping as late as she could allow herself as the exhaustion simply weighed over her.
 
She did do her best not to push herself… which reminded her she really needed to speak with Tamar about training, so she might be able to lighten her own load some more. As if speaking of the devil, her scent appeared at the edge of the den. Kallik had gone from nuzzling her to greeting their guest as admittedly tired eyes gazed over the woman with a soft smile. He had invited her in so Aquene remained seated and trusted the conversation would find it's way to her.

tamar could have died.

somehow she had only expected aquene. but they were both here, together. the healer seemed quite tired. both were welcoming but watchful.

"i brought you congratulations," the plebian said in a too-high voice. she took a breath. "i found these feathers," she explained, pushing them along the floor, "and i thought they might be pretty in your d-den."

she wanted to run away. tamar cleared her throat and smiled wanly at them both.

The scutarius could sense the denkeeper's nerves, though he didn't quite understand what had made her feel that way. He decided it was likely his presence. Maybe she felt more comfortable around the women, probably more so inside their shared den. 

Thank you, Tamar, he offered as gently as he was able.

He turned to his wife. I should get to my patrol. He stood and kissed her cheek. I will see you later. Please take care of yourself. She looked very tired today, and that only intensified his constant worry. 

He looked to Tamar and dipped his head respectfully. Then he trotted from the den and to the west where he was meant to patrol. 

he can be skipped!

Tamar started to explain and stuttered through it, causing a worried frown. She seemed almost… nervous? Kallik excused himself and she smiled warmly at him, offering a soft nuzzle back to his neck before he disappeared. She then smiled at Tamar. “Please, stay… come in.”  She offered to the woman, her tail waving lightly from side to side.
 
She shifted into more of a sitting position. “Actually, there was something I wanted to talk to you about.” She added in hopes of swaying the other Plebian to stay behind. Hopefully with her husband gone on his patrols she might feel a little more relaxed.

kallik was excusing himself.

tamar dipped her head with a mumbled goodbye.

but as his footfalls faded away, she glanced back up toward aquene. her friend wished her presence and so she sat upon the floor of their den, wrapping tail around forepaws.

her smile was easier now, more genuine. "speak it," tamar invited eagerly.

She noticed that Kallik’s disappearance brought the woman back out of her shell. It was curious, but Aquene would not pry for now. “I was wondering if you might be interested in learning my craft.” She started to explain, shifting to allow herself to become more comfortable.
 
“I was wondering if you’d be interested in becoming my apprentice. Learning how to tend to wounds more formally and helping me like you did with Glaukos and with my own injuries after my attack.” Discussing the attack left a hot iron down her throat but she got it out all the same.

tamar nodded.

something was different about aquene. she did not question it. "i would like to learn, yes." she was humbled by the other's mention of glaukos, but pleased all the same.

"you still intend to be medicus?" tamar asked, seeking assurance that her friend would not suddenly want to step down. her tan eyes were filled with many things, chiefmost among them delight.

She did not wish for the woman to worry that she would have to take on all of her roles, so she nodded with a soft smile. “Yes, I do intend to still hold my role… it is just easier to treat and keep things stocked with an extra set of paws. Handling all of the soldiers care by myself has proven quite intense.” She knew Kallik also worried about her overdoing herself and as a result sharing the same fate of her mother by dying during childbirth… she hoped this would help soothe him as well.
 
The woman seemed delighted at being her apprentice, and she offered another warm smile. “And there are times where I will not be able to manage care, mostly on myself… childbirth is hard enough without having to also supervise your own care…”She hummed out as well, knowing the woman would do just fine in that regard.

tamar had known but she had not.

aquene's confirmation brought the girl's attention to her belly, only for a moment.

"this is good news," she managed with a genuine smile. "i am happy to help you and to learn from you." the green-haired jealousy flipped and roiled in her gut.

"what should i know first?"

lady ruenna! towhee! aquene! and herself, unchanged, girlish as ever.

Good news. She smiled softly and nodded shyly. She still was not sure how she felt about it. She was not certain she would even make a good mother but she was going to try her hardest to not screw things up in the process.
 
What should she know first? Well, there was much to attend to. “First, it would be best to walk through things that can happen during birthing, I suppose… we do not have to start right now. We could start lessons later this week… it might be easier to do them when the Matrona is closer to delivering her brood.” She offered, giving the chance to pause and carry this conversation a later date.
 
“With healing… apart from learning how to identify plants, it is easiest to learn through practical experience under the observation of trained eyes… like when soldiers come to be treated.”

tamar nodded eagerly.

"i will learn what you want me to learn. when you want me to learn it," she said breathlessly, feeling oddly formal in aquene's presence.

her ears twitched. "i know a few plants already. the poppy. and the crocus, i think that you used it once," she said quietly, waiting for her friend and now mentor to correct her. "what did you use on the cougar wounds?"

She frowned at the formality. “I may be your teacher now, but I will always be your friend first, Tamar. It’s important that you know that too.” She offered because she valued the woman for more than just the healing prowess that Aquene was going to instill upon her.
 
She admitted she knew of poppy and crocus. “Yes, I use crocus often for it’s healing properties. It helps ward off infection and also helps treat already infected wounds.” She offered with a soft smile. “Poppy is a very powerful pain medicine. In larger amounts it can also be used as a sedative because it makes wolves very tired… it is also very addictive so I try to use it only in extreme circumstances. For the cougar wounds, I gave Kallik poppy for treatment. Glaukos refused the pain medicine which is his own right. Their wounds were already infected so I used willowbark to scrape out the infection, which formed as puss and drained the wounds. Glaukos had a fever. I gave him pineapple weed because it helps control it. After that, I created a poultice dressing on willow bark that contained prairie crocus and yarrow ground into it to help further treat the infection. From there, it was a matter of both of them resting and keeping an eye on things to make sure that it stuck.”

tamar was overwhelmed. 

but she would never say it. her desire to learn all of this knowledge outweighed her brief internal panic that she could not. aquene knew so much and her friend would be patient as she learned. the plebian relaxed somewhat and focused upoj committing these new names to memory.

"glaukos is very stubborn," she chuffed. "i was surprised when he allowed me to touch his wounds." she did not yet have the equestrian's confidence.

"suppose someone is very hurt and bleeding. what can i do to stop the flow of blood so that they will not die?" tamar asked, dedicated to being a dutiful pupil.

She felt that Tamar’s statement was an understatement for she had never experienced anything other than resistance from the man unless it was lording a victory over her in a way she had deemed inappropriate. It was met with a snort, an agreement. “I admittedly was too… he is very stubborn, and it’s maddening at times.” She had found herself frustrated many a time with it.
 
The next question brought her focus back and she hummed. “I prefer cobwebs, when I can keep them in supply. They help the wound close and dry and catch blood that flowing until it stops… it does not work in bigger wounds, such as amputations… there are also a few plants that can be used to help stop the bleeding by ingesting them and letting them work into the blood. My preferred is ergot.”

cobwebs and ergot.

"what does ergot look like?" she asked, wondering if she had ever seen it before. and amputations — the girl's ears flagged for a moment. "what sort of wound would require that?"

tamar hoped never to see such a thing.

the day was growing long. she would have to leave soon. but not yet. not before a final lesson and a final fellowship.

The question was met with a soft hum as she tried to figure out how to describe it without having the plant in front of her. “It’s a golden grass and it grows tall. It has little thin whisps that grow, seeds that grow on the end. The ergot grows on grains, and it is darker.” She explained to the other woman. “Wounds that bleed widely from an area, or is bleeding fast. You want to use them in tandem with one another.” She wondered if the woman had any more questions, or if she was just as ready for a nap as the pregnant woman was.

tamar put the information into her mind.

"thank you."

she was rising now, but not before pulling the other into a deep embrace. "i am very happy for you."

it was a vague statement, and one she did not want to clarify with more than a soft smile before she departed the den.