Honey Snow Herb

It hadn’t taken long at all for early winter frosts to turn quickly into heavy snow. He doubted it was nearly as heavy in the deserts and coastal area of the west, but Valhalla was seeing a decent covering. With the deeper cold came the first year of aching joints beyond the general twinges.

He grumbled softly as he rolled from his furs and pulled himself to his paws. He supposed he was probably a little young for these twinges. Perhaps he needed to be more active than herb hunting. He shook out his coat and padded slowly into the herb room, pausing to tuck a fresh log into the fire. It was early yet; most were sleeping other than likely Aurielle and other warriors on patrol.

He pulled several plants he knew would be useful for the aches from their spots, nipping leaves into the mortar bowl. Slowly he settled in, working to grind the plants into a dust with the familiar rhythmic motions of his paw over the pestle-stone as he considered a good method for taking them. They weren’t exactly the sweetest plants in the world.

Honey might help, and they had plenty in stock… Perhaps snow, as well. Yes. He checked the herbs and nodded idly to himself, rose and padded out of the cave and down the ravine. He brough with him a rabbit’s hide and, as he reached the open plains, he dropped the hide and pawed snow onto the hide. On his way back he took his time to take in the pre-dawn atmosphere of a winter morning.

He settled, humming under his breath and pulled one of his honey pots over. It was just one of roughly twenty, and this one he opened and let Kayode tip the ground herbs into the pot of honey. He took a peeled stick in his jaws and worked the herbs into the honey, stirring clockwise for several minutes, then counter-clockwise.

He withdrew the stick and tasted it. Better, definitely. Still, the honey could use to sit with the herbs steeping in it, so that the medicinal effects would be well-spread in the honey. He spent an hour idling around, making other herbal concoctions, several for Aurielle, some for Regulus that were more intensive arthritis medications and concoctions that would boost his immunities.

Finally, he went back to the snow and honey pot. The snow had melted some, so he poured it into the pot and worked the slush into the herb-infused honey.

A further idea struck him, and he asked Kayode and Ime to carry the pot as he led the way out into the frozen cold of the plains again. It was quite true that the west might not be cold enough to achieve what he was hoping to, but it was work a try.

He found a clean patch of snow and ran toe-marks through it, tamping the marks down and packing the snow. Kayode and Ime then began pouring the honey-slush into the holes in lines. Paladin covered the lines with fresh snow, sitting back and waiting while Koyode and Ime began a fresh batch of lines, this time covering them without the wolf’s help.

Paladin waited for an hour more. If he pulled this off, pups could possibly enjoy medicine. At least during winter. Absently, he found himself wishing he had some of his own. But it seemed that that possibility was long gone. He was no fool, he knew that he’d been falling for Sterling during her time in the pack healing. He just hadn’t realized it back then. He had, perhaps, been falling even before he’d found her injured.

Kayode prodded the Incandescent and he blinked back to earth, grunting as he rose to his paws and checked the herbal honeycicles. They’d frozen pretty well. If there was a way to preserve them in the caves, he would be particularly thrilled. Bending, he crunched into one, letting the flavor and cold roll over his tongue as he chewed then swallowed.

The cold was definitely pleasant. He could see this being a major relief for a wolf battling a fever. The cold would be pleasant, and it would be a decent way to get medicine down a sick wolf’s gullet. He couldn’t guarantee that a more recalcitrant patient might spit out the medicine just to be an ass—he’d had a few like that in his time with the Nomads. They’d been elderly, cantankerous wolves, and perfect training subjects for a learning healer.

Paladin bent and began tucking the honey-cicles into the pot. There were too many to fit, but he’d been making them for himself to start with, so he simply ate what wouldn’t fit. They’d probably melt over time, but he’d have to look for a particularly cold chamber in the Seat to tuck the jar in. Or, perhaps he could seal the jar with wax and put it in the spring pool. Yes, that would work.

Kayode took the jar as he led the way to the chambers, intent to do just that.

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