Ravensblood Forest you can't wake up this is not a dream

somehow, she had been able to find the strength to scoop up the plant in her mouth. there was a moment of satisfaction at the expression she made regarding the bitter herb. at least she was getting a taste of the stuff she’d tried to test on him. of course, illidan would have never told her such things to her face. he appreciated her company more than he wanted to tell her that her leafy greens tasted like a rotten squirrel. it must have been the cost of staying alive, or at least that was what he’d imagined. he had learned very early on that good things did not fall on good people. he had also learned that if he could not weather the storms through the bad, he would fail.
 
cadeau mentioned a plant called rattlesnake master. she offered a shaky description of it and then managed to tack on the nickname that she’d provided him nearer to when they’d first met. his brow was creased so that his eyes looked shaded over. there was an intense frown on his lips that did not vanish at her attempt to comfort him into knowing she’d be alright until he got back. the wildling knew nothing about herbs, save for what she had shown him.
 
“okay… but if you die out here, i’ll find a way to bring you back just so i can kill you myself,” he returned to her with a serious nod of his head. he would not have been able to help how he would feel entirely responsible for such a loss, if it were to happen. he wondered if she was upset at him for all of this. it had been his idea to go on a great adventure and to visit the other packs. she wouldn’t even have been in that same area if it had not been his plan.
 
casting the thoughts from his mind, illidan raced back the way they had come in search of his peculiar plant that she needed. his eyes darted from side to side, nose to the earth, while he searched for the herb. the more time ticked away, he more frantic he had started to feel. it wasn’t long before he had all but lost his mind. then, as though someone from above was smiling down on him, the boy latched his eyes on the shape that had been described to him by cadeau. he lurched forward and gripped the stalks in his mouth, ripping them from the earth.
 
then, he turned back to where she had been left and sprinted until he could not get air into his lungs. when he finally caught sight of her, he dropped the plants at her face and scrunched his up into an expression of disgust. “these ones taste worse than the first ones,” he muttered to her in a grumbling voice. then, illidan waited to see if she would be able to eat them. he stared intently at her, sides heaving.