Phoenix Maplewood tongue-clicking

She elected to not try to explain why Spring hadn't licked his wounds for him, because it was none of her business. There were various possibilities. Perhaps Spring had assumed that he'd do so himself, or perhaps his wounds were of the type that would be hurt by a tongue more than the soft dabbing of moss. Alternatively, perhaps Spring simply didn't want to lick his wounds, knowing that moss would work fine. This would all have to be something for Esaro to work out on his own.

As for the moss's abilities as a sponge, Shreya replied: sometimes even a few drops of water can save a parched tongue or bring someone back to consciousness. Carrying water with moss is not ideal, but sometimes it's necessary. We have no useful alternatives. Why don't you take a bit of the moss here and see how it absorbs the water and lets it out again. It's okay, she added, theorising that Esaro would want to save the moss rather than pick it for experimentation, there's plenty.