I'll tough it out, I won't give in

It was almost noon by the time Álarr rolled out of bed. With all the festivals and everything going on he'd been totally zonked by the time they returned to Legion. He promptly curled up in the family den and went to sleep and he had little interest in moving until Afi walked in with some fermented fish that sent him scrambling out of the den. Thankfully Afi followed right back out and slurped the fish down. Valentine would skin the cat alive if he stunk up the den.

Stretching, Álarr started hunting about the range. He knew why the cat had gotten him up so early. It was crunch time. With less than a month to go before winter they had to scramble to get as many herbs gathered as possible before the winter set in. While winter was supposedly milder in the north, Afi made it sound like it would be the end of the world. First and foremost on his list was Yarrow. It was one of his favorite herbs and he wanted to be sure he had enough.

Herb-gathering was definitely on Asvor's agenda, especially now that fall was winding down. At least here in these southern lands it was far easier to count on finding herbs until the end of fall.. even if the temperatures seemed to be dropping rapidly, this was nowhere near as chilly as the lands she was used to. Perhaps she might even be able to find some plants hanging on when winter fully set in. The thought was a tempting one, though wouldn't deter her from today's mission, not by any means. As she veered around one of the crumbling fences, Asvor silently thanked Chaos for choosing such a fertile land. She'd seen the various foods that still sprung up here and there, supposedly leftovers from creatures that had once inhabited this world; they were overgrown now, but with enough determination and rummaging it was possible to find treats hidden in the long since abandoned fields. Today she wasn't after snacks, though, but herbs to bring back to her den, which seemed to flourish sporadically near the field. It wasn't much of a surprise to find the young healer already out scouting for something. She'd bet her own snake on it that he was after herbs too - though he'd been conveniently left to his own devices today. Grinning, she let out a bark of greeting as she rounded him, sniffing at the air as she tilted her head skyward.  "What's it we're looking for today, Alarr?" Admittedly Asvor wasn't the biggest fan of pups, but this boy was not only of Legion, but.. he was a kindred spirit, she knew it, even if she didn't know much about him. He wasn't like most pups - he seemed hard-working and studious, which she appreciated, and which made interacting with him that much easier.

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Álarr scrambled through the range. He knew he'd seen it around before but he just couldn't quite remember where. A bark of greeting pulled him from his thoughts as he turned to see Ásvor. He grinned and trotted over to the woman, his tail wagging lightly back and forth. "Hey Ásvor, how are you? I'm looking for some yarrow. I know I've seen it in the Range before but now I can't remember where. Have you seen any?" Ásvor had been in the pack longer than he had. He had a feeling she'd have a better idea where to look. He knew it had a tendency to grow everywhere but that also made it hard to find as there was a lot of ground to cover.

He seemed pleased to see her, and she mirrored the expression readily, grinning back at him. "I'm not too bad. Enjoying a nice day." Summer had long since departed, and though the lands were more temperate now as they moved toward winter, the following season wasn't anything she wasn't prepared for. Collecting some herbs before then was definitely a priority, and Alarr was clearly off to the right start. "What about you? Besides the herb hunting?" Having another wolf in Legion who seemed so deeply dedicated to healing was a pleasure, regardless of his age. "Yarrow... I think I've seen some in the fields at the northern edge of our territory," Asvor mused over it for a moment before answering. "Shall we go look?" Spending the afternoon collecting herbs for her stores for Alarr sounded like a good plan to her. Deciding he'd probably accompany her, she started off toward the northern edge of the territory, glancing behind her to see if he was following.

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Álarr had to pause to consider Ásvor's questions. How was he besides herb hunting? As he thought he reached up and scratched at the top of his head where the two bumps still sat, unperturbed by Afi's earlier attempts at bringing them down. "Umm… fine, I guess. Except I got these bumps on my head." He tipped his head forward. "And they won't go away. We've tried everything! If you got any ideas I'm all ears."

At least his luck seemed to be going better when it came to actually finding herbs. The older healer had a place to start and he nodded eagerly. "Yea, that sounds good!" He started bounding his way north. It was a pleasant day and he didn't feel the need to fill the air with chatter as he looked. Soon he spied what he was looking for. "There it is!" He pounded over to a patch and got right to work gathering the herb. His teeth seized the plant around the stock as he chewed through it and pulled one of the plants off its base.

Setting it down he pondered what to do with it. "Say, Ásvor, what do you make out of yarrow? I know you can make a tisane but what else do you do with it?"

He'd got some bumps on his head? Hm. She pursed her lips as she leaned toward him and tried to get a better look, though without nosing through the fur at the top of his head there wasn't much she could see. "Bumps from hitting your head? Or something else? Do they hurt?" Asvor pressed him as she lifted a brow, curious as to what had caused the bumps. Maybe they were minor and nothing worth worrying about, but until she learned more about his symptoms and what had preceded them she couldn't be sure. He was quick to follow after her, earning a grin directed in the boy's direction. She was grateful for both his company and the fact that he didn't feel a need to fill the void of silence that settled between them with pointless chatter. Talking was fine and all, but pointless talking wasn't her thing - especially when their was work to be done. As they neared the spot she'd directed them toward, Alarr was quick to spot the yarrow and head straight toward it, beginning to dig some up without hesitation. Asvor wasn't far behind, only slightly less eager as she too found a bunch of the herb and begin to dig at the dirt, loosing the roots before gingerly trying to pull some up. Perhaps if she could bring some back near her den she could attempt to re-plant them.. not that there was much growing time left this season, if any at all. Either way, it was worth the attempt. "It's good for bleeding and bites - so I've heard. Haven't had a chance to try it myself, but worth keeping around, just in case." Perhaps Legion had been lucky in not attracting much trouble yet, but she knew peace was an illusion easily shattered, and being prepared was always a safe bet.

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

He shook his head in response to her question about the bumps on top of his head. "No, they're hard, like bone and I wouldn't say they hurt so much as they're uncomfortable and kind of itchy." He shrugged. Afi and Brynhildr had both examined him and they hadn't really found much but he also wasn't sure they were being totally honest with him. The conversation turned to healing and he listened as she mentioned what it was good for and he nodded thoughtfully. "Ok, then it might be good for a poultice. I'm gonna try and make one. You want to join me?"

He didn't wait too long for her answer as he'd already decided he was going to practice making a poultice. He didn't have an actual patient but that didn't mean he couldn't practice. Álarr stuck his head into his pack and pulled out a strip of hide that was ratty and torn funny. It would be a good practice piece to use as a bandage. Now as to the yarrow… he reached down and picked up between his teeth.