Panting, Integra maneuvered through the muggy swampland in search of Fireweed. The beautiful plant was one of her favorites and in short supply in Imperium being one of the lesser used plants in Alacritis. She'd had the luck to persuade Birna, the massive warrioress, to escort her outside of the territory on this mission. The older woman was quiet but a somewhat comforting prescence on this journey. She wasn't likely to be bothered with a beast such as the Xanilov in her company. Pausing, Integra scented the air but came up short for any sign of the plant she sought and so she continued moving through the marshy swampland. The trees offered some shade but the moist and humid air was only making the summer heat that much hotter. Hopefully she could find what she was looking for soon. ""

Birna stalked silently behind the little healing slave, her ears flicking in agitation as a the gnats bit the sensitive appendages. She was not a swamp wolf and wondered why, of all the herbs in existence, Integra was so determined to gather herbs out here. She supposed a wide variety of plants grew out here. The bear woman yawned, blackened lips pulling back from her ivory fangs. She'd taken the night patrol and had been planning to sleep most of the morning but here she was on a trip. Birna hoped Valentine would not mind. He'd been so busy she hadn't bothered to clear the trip with him but as she was off patrol duty for today and for obvious reasons the warrior wanted the healers well-stocked with whatever they would need. As Renhett specialized in mental health and Rhythm in mother and pup health that left only Evangeline and the little slave girl as their main battle medics. Cascade as well though with such a high rank the Saxe woman had plenty of other duties to tend to without taking on healing as well. Speech

Starling was never not busy, never not knee deep in his craft whether it was mental or physical. Even when he was laying around and relaxing he was thinking about his stores, or going over what each herb does or thinking about those that had promised to teach him. He thought of Aunt Rhythm and how he should probably go see her one day, and Aunt Harmony and where she had ended up, thought of Anias and wondered when hed he able to go out and train her children, and of Lyndvarr and their promise of mutual learning. With all this travelling he was doing, he was getting stronger, quicker….perhaps not nearly as coordinated as he wanted to be, but that came with time, as Lyndvarr said. He never stopped, which was why he was a good distance from home, nose in the much and searching for anything that could be of use. New things he'd pick as well, to dry out and take to any of his many teachers to ask if they know. Hed always leave one flower, something to help the plants return in the next season or year. He was so intent he barely noticed the new company, sky blue eyes so set on the ground as he moved. Suddenly he'd blink, a pretty purple color catching his eye. With a slow blink he'd step towards it, the plant was just taller than him, but it looked gorgeous. Hed pause, tilting his head as he tried to decide if it was poisonous or not before hed set to work on the roots, not wanting to take home something the future little ones might get into and get sick….that reminded him, he had to make a better store. His mind was lost in thought as he gazed at the flower, just dazed as his mind reeled with ideas and plans and promised. "Burn Baby Burn" "Italian"

"Come on… where are you?" Integra muttered to herself as she leapt over a fallen, decomposing log. Numerous birds and insects were filling the air with sound and the nature of the swamp made it full of intense and varied scents that made it difficult for her to track down the plant she desired by scent. Thankfully though the brilliant magenta flowers were hard to miss and she grinned as she finally found a patch of the plant, with fronds growing almost five feet into the sky. As she moved in to gather the plant she noticed a young man was also there. Oh company! Was he a healer as well? "Hello?" she spoke cautiously. "Are you gathering some Fireweed to?" ""

Birna was panting and sweating and sighing as she continued trotting after the little slave. Her thick, woolen coat was not doing her any favors in this hot, muggy swamp and she was wishing now that she'd made the girl go herb gathering in the north. This was ridiculous. Sniffing some odd moss growing on the fallen log she wrinkled her nose. There were a lot of strange smells and noises here and she was unfamiliar with dangerous of the swamp. There were unlikely to be bears here but what else took place as the top predators? With her luck they'd run into one of those strange…. toothy lizard things. It seemed Integra found what she was looking for, a tall plant with rather pretty flowers however Birna's startling blue gaze went right to the unfamiliar male. She dipped her head in greeting. "Hello." Speech

Starling stared unblinkingly at the pretty plant when two voices suddenly washed over him. Blue eyes blinked and grew wide before he suddenly turned towards them. They smelt of another pack, one that he recognized just a bit. He had to think about it for a moment before it clicked. That boy on the mountain! He would look to them then before blinking at the one girl who spoke more than a greeting to him, catching up on what she had actually said. "F-fireweed?" He asked lightly then, squinting before quickly looking at the plant before him, the long pretty stalk before he laughed weakly. So that's what that was. "N-no, I just...f-found it. Fireweed, huh?" He asked lightly, tilting his head before lookng at the woman. She was looking for it, which meant it was important...she must be a healer. Oh his luck! He seemed to have a radar for other healers or something. "A-are you h-herb hunting?" He asked softly then, grinning brightly. Maybe he could learn a thing or two from this...fortuitous meeting. "M-my name is Starling. It's n-nice to meet you...both." He said with a delicate smile as he looked to the other woman. If the first wasn't a healer he probably would be scared and make his leave, but the very idea of more knowledge pulled him in, and he couldn't think above the temptation of learning. "Burn Baby Burn" | "Italian"

Integra's head quirked to the side as the boy spoke. Was he really nervous and shy or was there something goofy with his mouth that made him speak like that? It was a curiosity that would wait as he spoke of herb hunting and she grinned, nostrils flaring a bit as she tried to subtely take in his scent. She recognized the pack scent of Abaven as well as a variety of other plants as well. Had she met a fellow healer? He seemed to be the same age as her and she couldn't help but wonder how his studies were going in comparison to hers. She felt like she'd lost so much time the season she'd spent with the nomadic travellers that had taken her in. Integra nodded. "I'm herb hunting indeed. Fireweed is a very useful herb and plentiful in certain areas. Have you ever used this herb before? Sorry to assume, you smell like a healer to me." She grinned. "My name is Integra!" ""

Birna remained a bit back as they spoke, the young man didn't seem to be an immediate threat and she wasn't sure she'd go out on a limb for a slave anyway.  However, she did admire this girls pluck and determination to rise above her station.  It was a motivation she wished she saw in more of the slaves and even members of Imperium. "A pleasure Starling.  I am Birna of Imperium, a warrior.  I am merely escorting Integra on her herb-gathering quest.  Are you attempting to accomplish a similar task?" She caught the pack scent of Abaven a pack that Imperium was reasonably friendly with.  She'd learned of Rhythm's familial relations there that influenced the packs relationships.  She'd make note to keep an eye out for both healers while they worked. Speech

Starling would smile softly then, his eyes shifting shyly away from then before looking back at each of the women in turn. "I-it's nice t-to m-meet you..." He said softly before looking back at the herb in question. "Y-yeah, I've b-been a h-healer, pr-pretty much s-since I w-was born." He said softly then, thinking of his first spring and how he had fallen in love with all the pretty colors that blossomed. That was the start, he collected them for fun untill he learned that they could do things. "A-and y-yeah, I-I'm h-hunting f-for herbs. I-i pr-pretty m-much d-do it e-every d-day" He'd laugh softly then, looking at the two before humming lightly and turning his attention to Integra. She was the one who would know. "I-i've never h-heard of F-fireweed before...I-is it a p-pain or r-reactant h-herb? A-and how d-do you ex-extract it?" He asked, eyeing the stalk. It wasn't like his more ground crawling herbs, and it would be hard to fully dig it from all this much. This one ought to require a different way, right? "Burn Baby Burn" | "Italian"

Integra was pleased to meet another healer also hunting for herbs. When he stated he hadn't heard of fireweed she grinned, happy to explain the plant to him. "Fireweed is a favorite of mine, mostly because it's the first plant I learned about. It has a lot of uses but it's mainly used topically to reduce the bleeding and pain of minor, sometimes moderate, injuries and to help reduce skin irritation and infection. Fireweed can also help sore throats if taken internally. As for how to gather it." Integra moved to one side of a stalk of fire weed and placed her paws several inches from the base, leaning her weight against it until it snapped. Moving to the torn stalk she set about chewing it free, the strong spicy taste and strong smell making her nose wrinkle. "It's a bit smelly and bitter this late in the season but that's when it flowers. You can use both the flowers and the stem. The roots…. you know I'm not for sure about the roots. I'd have to ask Kassander again." Moving to another stalk she repeated the process until she had four good-sized stalks to take home. "Birna, you'll help me carry these back right?" ""

Birna listened as the young man spoke, another young healer? She stood aside and let Integra discuss the herbs though she wasn't quite sure how she felt about the sharing of information however she did remind herself that Abaven and Imperium did have good relations. It probably wouldn't hurt to share intel. "How are Abaven's healers? Are there quite a few of you? You seem quite young to be wandering about like this, have you no mentor?" Birna couldn't help herself. Once the questions started they rolled out of her mouth in smooth succession. She wanted a bit more information before they parted ways. Her attention turned back to Integra as she stared at the plants, wrinkling her nose. The girl wanted her to put these plants in her mouth? Birna sighed heavily. "I suppose I can…" Speech

Starling's ears swiveled forward then, grabbing every word Integra spoke. He listened intently and smiled softly. A wound binder! Well, some sort of binder. He listened intently, staring at the herb. "I-is there a-any s-side a-affects, a-and w-would y-you r-recomm-mend it t-too pr-pregnant w-women o-or no?" He asked softly, tilting his head as he watched her "extract" the herbs. And then his ears flew forward. "K-kass-sander i-is st-staying in a-abaven…i-i could a-ask fo-for you." he said with a grin, moving to step forward when he paused, looking back at Birna. His brows knitted just slightly then. "O-oh, Ab-abaven h-has a g-good a-ammount o-of healers…an-and I a-am the m-mentor." He said with a grin, turning back to the stalks and stepping forward in an attempt to repeat what Integra showed him. When the stalk snapped, however, he stumbled over with a yelp and landed on his side in the mud. Fantastic. "Burn Baby Burn" | "Italian"

Integra pondered the boy's question, reaching back in her mind for the answer. "As far as I know there are no serious side effects however obviously you'll want to start out easy on the dosage. Too much too quick could cause problems. A little is fine topically for pregnant women but I don't think I'd let them ingest it. Oh! say if you know Kassander you should definitely ask and check in with him about pregnancy. In general fireweed works best for reducing inflammation in various forms. I prefer to use the herb topically though so I'm afraid I don't know much about its internal effects. I think it can be used to help with intestinal inflammation and fevers as well. Does that help?" Integra was surprised to learn the boy was a mentor. "Wow, that's cool! I'm just a slave for now, but I won't be for long. I'm going to learn as much as I can and show the alpha that I'm serious about contributing to the pack." She shot a grin to Birna who seemed equally surprised but the older woman didn't comment on it. Instead she pawed at the herbs and Integra could sense her impatience. "Is there anything else you'd like to know before we go?" ""

Birna would remain silent as the boy would respond, she was impressed that one so young would know so much. Was he some sort of prodigy? Well, she'd have to report this to Valen if he didn't know already. Imperium's healers were some what lacking in her opinion. There were just to few of them, many of them young or with stronger interests elsewhere. Knowing that Abaven seemed to have a healthy supply of could come in handy in the future. "Well, it's been a pleasure to meet you Starling, we should be going." Birna bent down, nose wrinkling at the strange odor of the plants and the bitter taste as she took two large stalks in her jaws and glanced at Integra. Speech