Home improvements

Gwynevere had been spending a lot of time out in the greenhouse now that the weather had seemingly returned to normal and there was a better possibility of propagating plants to be grown out there. So far she had a lot of luck with some of the more hardy, easy to plant herbs like marigold, motherwort, lamb's ear, lavender, and even a small juniper plant. She had just begun trying to grow a couple others that were harder to find in the wilds like ginseng to have on hand for Lillith and some trillium since both her mother, Ulric, and Artorias were all in some form of serious relationship and she wanted to be prepared on the off chance that they needed to prepare for a litter to be born. Besides, trillium was good for cleaning wounds so it wasn't like she wouldn't use it even if The Hallows didn't end up with more pups some time soon.

She was proud of the progress they had made on their garden, but she didn't think she'd be satisfied until they had at least one plant of every kind in here - though she wondered if she wasn't going to need a larger greenhouse sooner rather than later if she was going to do that. Perhaps there was some herbs that could be left out of the selection they kept on hand... But before she could even start making that decision she needed to just get the basics planted and growing well first. Eilwen was perched on top of one of the wooden watering cans near by, watching the busy Seneshal move back and forth across the enclosed glass room. Eilwen had always admired her master's dedication and brilliance when it came to the art of healing, but she had also felt that Gwynevere didn't make nearly enough time for herself. "You know," she began, eyeing the dark coated wolf, "Perhaps if you're going to be spending so much time out here you should make yourself an area to relax outside of the greenhouse as well. Maybe bring out some furs to lay on, make a place for a campfire... Just a suggestion of course, but might be good to get your mind off of all these plants for just a moment."

Gwynevere paused what she was doing to look up at Eilwen with a skeptical look. She knew her companion often worried that she was over working herself, but she had only ever felt that she was when her mother was recovering from her other mother's bite. That extra emotional strain while tending to such a serious wound had stretched her very thin. These days, now that things had calmed and settled, she was feeling much better. However, she could tell from the look that Eilwen was giving her that the pale raven wasn't going to let it go. She sighed and gave Eilwen a small smile. "Fine... We can take a break to make something like that." The white raven perked visibly and gave a pleased ruffle of her feathers. "Wonderful! Why don't you go inside and gather a couple spare furs and I'll go start collecting some kindling and branches for the fire?" Gwynevere nodded and the bird flew out of the greenhouse, taking off toward some trees. Dutifully, Gwyn went back into the castle, finding a couple of unused pelts from the pack's storage, and carried them back out to the greenhouse. When she got there she already saw a small pile of twigs forming outside the greenhouse where Eilwen was clearly flying back and forth dropping them off.

Gwynere dropped off her furs next to the pile before going a short distance away and beginning to dig out a circular area that they could make into a fire pit. She didn't want to make it too close to the greenhouse just in case the flames could accidentally do something to the wood and glass structure. She spent some time digging up the grass, making a slightly bowl shaped dip in the earth. Once she as satisfied, she stepped back just as Eilwen landed on her shoulder, expecting her work. "Maybe some rocks to go around the edge?" she suggested. "To help make sure the fire doesn't spread." Gwyn nodded and went in search of some rocks they could use, finding her answer in a pile of rubble from a collapsed part of the old castle wall. She started carrying the old stones one by one to her new fire pit, picking some of the smaller ones that were a little easier to carry. She placed them around the edge and then started piling in the wood that Eilwen had collected as well as going to find a few larger pieces that the raven wasn't able to carry on her own.

By the time they had the actual fire pit constructed and she was rolling out the furs beside it the sun was beginning to set, casting the world in colors of orange, red, and purple. She got the fire going pretty quickly, used to starting them now from keeping the fires going in the hearths around the castle through their long winter. She sighed as she settled down beside it, Eilwen nestling into her side. "I guess this is pretty nice," she admitted with a smirk to her companion, the raven giving her a glance that said 'I told you so.'

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Gwynevere | Eilwen