Valley of Gold Feeding Their Minds

The grassy plain was more than a welcome addition to Phobos' journey. While he never cared rough grasses or wheat it was better than what he had been traveling through previous to this.

For now this wasn't something he was concerned about though. He laid himself flat in the grass, stretching out his limbs and grimacing at the cracks and pops that came with it. A rest was certainly needed if he planned on staying in the desert for any longer.

She stared at the odd man who had come to their little valley. Where once she might have turned tail to go tuck herself against her siblings, she knew they needed knowledge. They needed to trade. How often had other adults come across them?

He looked peaceful, unfortunately she needed to break the peace.

Are you a trader?

Maybe an odd question for a girl still underneath her first year of life. Yet she had no interest in anyone who did not want to exchange items or knowledge.

He lifted his head at the sound of the small voice, soon spotting the pup. How odd - was she alone? Where was her mother? Pushing his own questions aside, he chose to respond to the one asked of him.

"I could be - however I'm not sure I could do much for you."

His immediate assumption was that the pup was hungry. Why else would she act so boldly? However, if that was the case then she was out of luck. Phobos couldn't catch a half-dead rabbit if he tried.

His answer seemed dismissive. He had not even asked her what she wanted to trade for! Maybe he was a poor trader or one who already had all his riches. Thankfully she was not yet deterred by this.

Why?

Her features pinched together. Brows knitted firmly above radiant gold eyes.

He blinked back at the pup. Even he had a bit of a soft spot for them, but that just meant that he didn't want to make them upset. He was rarely any good at talking to them.

"You barely look old enough to be away from your mother." He responded. "I can't do much to feed you or care for you in general. My legs are weak and my nose is no good."

He raised his head to look through the grass above her, eyes searching for a larger figure who may be her caregiver.

It struck a chord. Maybe he had not intended it but the mention of her mother was enough to nearly cut her tongue free of her mouth. She was old enough to be away from her mother. She had to be. Only she suddenly wished for her sisters and knew she would never be old enough to be away from them.

Her intention was not to be mean but her voice came out pointed, sharpened by her disappointment — What can you do then?

A hurt heart unintentionally hurt others sometimes.

He wasn't offended - after all it was a fair question. If he couldn't do the obvious things then most would wonder what it was that he could do in place of it.

"I can tell you which plants to rub in a wound - that's about it." He snickered, laying his head back down.

Usually he would be much more prideful when it came to his talents, however he didn't want to bore her. Pups rarely showed interest.

If her features had still been crinkled with her disappointment, they smoothed out nearly instantly as the man laid his head back down. She almost wanted to call Fox and Dahlia to her at once, but she needed to make sure he was being truthful first.

Granted she had no way to compare his knowledge but...

Then tell me. She planted her rear onto the ground firmly as a sign she refused to leave until he did so.

He blinked, surprised by how eager she seemed to be. Well, he supposed it was better than if she wandered off on her own.

"Well it's a pretty wide spectrum of things - what would you want to know?"

She didn't look injured or sick, and that essentially took away his whole baseline for what knowledge he should spew at her.

You said what plants for a wound.

She thought of her mother and she imagined finding enough herbs to fix things. Unlikely maybe, but she could dream. She could hold onto this determination for a moment.

Tell me. She said once more with a waning patience for a slow lesson.

He took a short moment to think of what he had seen on the way - after all she likely wouldn't have access to the same herbs he was used to.

"I prefer to use marigold and comfrey roots - you can chew them up and rub them in the wound. Some wolves like to put cobwebs over it afterwards too."

He flicked his tail, lifting his head back up as if it would help him think better.

"It might be hard to find those around here though. It might be easier to use goosegrass - it can stop the bleeding and keep things decently clean as long as you remember to switch it out for clean grass every so often.

Marigold. Comfrey. Cobwebs. Goosegrass.

She repeated these names in her mind and the concentration was clear as day on her face. What do they look like? She was quick to ask, already she had leaned in some with her interest.

She could find these. Trade them, use them. Whatever it would take to make things better.

"Marigold is easy to spot - they're big bright orange flowers. They usually grow around riverlands though, so I doubt you could find them here."

He crossed his front paws, finding himself much more comfortable now that the topic was on something he understood.

"Comfrey root is pretty self explanatory as long as you can find comfrey. They're round, sort of purple flowers - the plant itself can be used to help with inflammation on broken bones. Don't waste it."

"Goosegrass is annoying though. There's a lot of it, but it grows in small patches and the texture is only a bit different from regular old grass. It holds shape better though."

Rivers were not in the valley, but she had seen them in their travels to this place. She bet she could find them if they were so distinct. Perhaps that was foolishness.

The next would be purple flowers and she had to imagine those would be impossible to miss. Had she ever even seen purple flowers before? If she had, she could not recall them or where they might be.

As for the last...she worried she might never be able to find that without a proper example. Regardless he had already given her important knowledge.

What do you want for trade?

He shook his head at the statement. He didn't need anything - he had shared because she asked, he wouldn't take from a pup.

"I want you to get back to your family."

He decided. If something happened to her it wasn't going to be on his paws.

"It isn't safe to be out here on your own - that's how you get picked up by birds."

Her features turned somber to a degree. Too big to be picked up by birds, but she knew danger was out there in other ways and surely that was the message he meant to send.

Will you tell me one more plant before I go?

She knew it was selfish but she wanted to take as much knowledge as she could before they parted.

He sighed, feeling a twinge of guilt for sending her away so abruptly.

"..Alright. How about Arugula then?"

He took a moment to recall the plant. It would be useful for a pup her age.

"It's the weeds you find around. The long, green, spiky looking leaves. Eating them is good for pups, it will help your bones stay strong if you're feeling weak."

Arugula. It sounded silly for a name, but perhaps that would make it easier to remember. Long, green and spikey.

She nodded then and stood up again.

Okay. He had done his end of the deal which meant it was time for her own. Thank you. She was prepared to move off now, if that was all.

thank you for a fun little quick lesson!! hope to thread with him more again sometime <3

He nodded to the pup, curling his tail around his legs. With this over with he was ready to take a short nap.

"Get back safe."

I would love that! Just lmk, I'm usually around here or on the discord <3