Herbalists' Cache a body, troubled with secrets of a romantic affair with the stars.

Medic thread for @Heloise! Current week.
Logging this as Botany for m’girl! I’ll worry about timeline stuff later. bleh

”It has been some time since I have come here.” The whisper of a late winter’s breeze charioted Aurëwen’s musing back to @Opalia, her own airs full of a hesitant urgency. She’d since brought Dio’s bairn with her further into the Taiga after a night amongst the willows. It was still early, chilled, but not so much that Aure was sent ashiver; dewdrops that nodded upon various fronds had yet to freeze over, and even then those winking bits of watery light might not have the chance to.

Returning to the forefront of her own mind, Aure strode with a singular intent of beginning her long-due forage, drawing the creamy lass into one of the many fern-limned groves. At the present moment, the lunar herbalist wasn’t quite sure what she was looking for; Rose’s own caches were abundant as it were, and she supposed if nothing could be scrounged up or identified properly, at least she’d come all this way to try.

passing the Taiga before, she never quite noticed the location. there was plenty to see, limitations on what to actually do though she would attempt to make strides. in... some way. Heloise was not quite sure what to attempt first. options lay before her. she was always a very focused individual, very get-go and very sure of her intentions. Teekon was too vast. she had decided to remain here for now. let us start with that.

though 'here' here was not the Taiga in particular. she had no potential way of knowing what the future would hold for her. only that she kept moving when possible. the ivory woman would step until a pause entered. pale gaze would focus on the pallid woman a few feet away. many assumed Heloise was made of ice, though this stranger would take the proverbial cake. their eyes were paler. scars did litter her features, as did Heloise's own. 

it was as if she was looking at a mirror at times. she did not mean to stare. the other merely shocked her. noting the smell of pregnancy, Heloise would stand back. expecting mothers were often very suspicious of strangers. she did not want to startle the woman. "greetings" though she would at least offer a passing hail.

Thin spirit curved towards the greeting, and she was otherwise slow to react. But Aure rose, indeed an inkling wary, yet replied all the same with her own wisp of ”Elen síla lúmenn' omentielvo,” a frail ear shying back to where she guessed Opalia would be hovering near. Her voice, forever foreign, seemed to have a far-away quality; as if her star-numbed mind only now began to rouse itself from the prospect that No, you aren't meeting your reflection.

Still, she stared for a few moments longer, before her willowy, slighter body — save for the tender lull of her womb — flickered with muscle, which in turn shivered the fur along her taut form. As if the physical of herself ruffled her, returned her to her senses and she knew, then, that staring was impolite. ”Have... have you come to forage ze hollows, too?”

For although the porcelain-made Other was bedecked in rubies and just as spindly as the skayona, she was tall; drawn up up up with a height that Aure could never fathom to achieve. In another life, perhaps her make of frost was what Aure would've frozen to, had she stayed in Rhaesuial; could only wonder towards, as she did with feeble airs of regality that she herself clung to. But she was no heiress — not anymore.

the ivory beast would only stare as the other spoke her foreign words. the meaning completely lost on her ears. she could at least assume it was pleasant, for the other would soon follow up in a heavily accented tone. taking her eyes away from the other woman, Heloise would note the decent stock of herbs in this vicinity. "no" she would answer, having no proper way to store what she collected anyway. it would be a fruitless effort. "do you require some aid in the gathering?"

she did not want to assume the other could not handle it. it was mere politeness returned to the mirror mind. the other smelt of a community and Heloise could only guess that the woman was gathering for her packmates. as a newcomer to this landscape, it was important to forge some semblance of relationships. especially where packs were concerned. it would do her good to learn more. still, though, she did not approach recklessly. she maintained her distance to the other. another show of respect.

probably mainly a cameo so go on without her since she's just listening for now <3 i might post again a little later but idk. pp her vaguely or tag her if you wanna

She had rested well during peaceful, easy night spent in the willows. It left her starting anew, and honestly, in surprisingly good spirits as she took further time to adapt to the company, plus the duty required of her. She didn't take time to miss the small, subtle shifts in scent she picked up in their treks. It was.. only a little odd to her, a wolf who mostly stuck close to home until just now because just maybe, she hadn't been quite ready. But now, it seemed to click a little better before and she was easily in the role of a serious guardian, set to an important task of keeping their healer safe and secure while she gathered the herbs she needed to do her thing.

Anyway, Opalia's nerves were relieved when Aure had at least some recollection of the place and path, even if it had been a while. The young gona knew too that her dad and others around the pack had traveled with her mother on very similar treks as this one time and time again. It was just how it was so she was determined to get comfortable with the routes between here and home, especially if it was going to be her job to help keep it safe for what they needed done.

When they reached some points of interest, sometimes, she fanned out wide a bit as they foraged about and kept in eyesight at least. Yet, often, because she was not yet entirely as confident as she liked to put on, she stayed closer to the skayona's side than that but of course, she was hovering off aside when she turned enough to see the other pale-coated stranger their travels had come upon. That new realization had her quickly shifting gears, and slowly had her working her way in close again, all on alert, but not launched into high defense thanks to scoping out the other's posture.. and how alike her and Aure looked, which was a more unsettling fact than she was prepared for when she got close enough to see her facial scars--although different, prevalent enough.

So.. although she didn't say anything, she gradually phased in next to a spot beside Aure and made it pretty known that she was listening more closely now. She was painfully curious of the stranger, but hey, if she offered help on the gathering here, could she be that bad? And maybe she knew something they could use too. Opalia glanced wordlessly to the skayona, ready for seemingly anything. She hoped.

Her eyes never left the she-wolf before her, even when she felt Opalia's presence, cautious but curious, move closer. A blink answered the first, and then a flicker beat in her pale jaw, letting her eyes list about as she considered the offer.

With another set of eyes and mouth, and hopefully knowledge, Aure supposed it wouldn’t do harm to allow her to join in...? The wanderer was already here, anyways. Looking back to the pallid she-wolf, ”At ze present moment, I am unsure where to begin, truth be told. Ze last time I was here, it was full winter — and there is so much new sprouting, so much green yet to arrive.”

Actually, it was because the writer is exhausted and doesn’t want to look up specific herbs at this very moment, so she’s writing as vaguely as she possibly can — but whatever, either way, Aure gave a roll of delicate shoulders, her eyes glancing across the passerby. ”Help of any sort would be welcome, though. Thank you.”

another would approach. if they did not hold sway as a familiar of the pregnant woman, Heloise would have been quick to snap her jaws at the blatant way she approached the first. eyes would turn to look at her, calmly and with a certainty of her position that she relaxed her shoulders. she assumed from the same community as the other woman by scent. "what do you seek?" the ivory beast would look back to the first. she was not ignoring the one who failed to speak, merely giving her a brief acknowledgment with a subtle nod. 

she only knew a handful of plants. Liri, another pale woman, had taught her the uses of marigold. she did spot it amongst the greenery as well, though her paws remained where they were. Heloise had a passing interest in healing. her main concern was endurance and keep active. though she could still name a few plants off-hand. and she was not going to approach the first lady to pluck some herbs from the ground. she remained where she was, allowing the pregnant wolf to get used to her company before that happened.

Aure gave the request some further thought, and when she'd made up her mind on what to forage for, to inspect, she relayed them to her taller almost-mimic, and the atmosphere shifted the same as the morning deepened into lateness: a cautious, curious sense of comraderie. The trio — assuming Heloise lingered for some time — spent their time in the Cache, dallying information of their respective selves, as far as properties went.

When the Drakru bade their own farewell, their jaws were bursting with new spring growth; meeting the loner in general was another memory to name; another face to keep after, should they ever cross Paths again.

tl;dr permission to close thread early given