Another day, another patch of ground to comb over, looking for anything useful. Ankaios enjoyed this quiet work, and he was content to while his hours away in just that fashion. He hummed to himself as he went. Around him was the constant buzzing of insect life, and he flicked a smoldering ear as a bee buzzed just a bit too close. He didn't know what he searched for today, finding himself distracted again and again by plants he did not have a name for. There was still so much he had to learn, he knew. But without another healer in Talis, he had a poor chance of learning anything from another. He saw flowers of every colors, plants with every leaf shape and feature, all so different and with so much unknown potential. He was half-convinced to start testing them on himself... but his sense of self preservation was just a bit too strong for that. "Talk" "You" Think

But you'll never find the answers, until you set your old heart free

Lydia continued to linger in the south, gathering up as many herbs as she could to bring with her back to her den back in Boreas. She was dearly wishing she had something better to carry them in but for now she opted to carry everything in a scrap of deer hide with two corners folded up and the herbs resting in the middle. She trotted along with the makeshift tote, as she scoured the lands for interesting places to continue her hunting. It wasn't long before she came upon a place that showed a lot of promise. Carefully she set down her bundle and began to hunt. She didn't have anything in particular in mind but knew she'd know it when she saw it. As she peered through the garden a flash of startling fiery hues caused her to yelp in surprise and stumble back into a cluster of bushes. Slowly she peeked her head out to stare at a man with a most astonishing pelt.

Ankaios looked up from his work at the sound of rustling branches and paw steps. He froze, and watched as a grey youngling emerged from behind one of the crumbling stone walls. She was a bit smaller than him, and he waited with baited breath. It couldn't be long before- She looked up, saw him, and immediately stumbled backwards. "Watch out for the-!" Annnd there she went. She tangled backwards into a clump of bushes, and he winced. Cautiously, Ankaios took a few slow steps forward. "Er, hello? Are you alright?" He waited a moment. The girl's head popped out from behind the bushes and he coughed, trying again. "My name is Ankaios," he started, "and I promise I'm quite harmless. Are you here for the herbs as well?" "Talk" "You" Think

But you'll never find the answers, until you set your old heart free

Lydia swallowed sharply, unable to take her eyes off of him but as he spoke she slowly nodded and extricated herself from the bushes she'd backed into. Shaking the leaves from her coat she spoke. "I… yes, I'm fine. You uh, you just startled me." She felt terribly embarassed but there was something just eerie about the way his pelt looked. It wasn't that she felt he was malicious in anyway, in fact the man, Ankaios, seemed quite friendly but it was so startling to see such brilliant colors on a wolf!

"I'm Lydia. Yes, I'm herb hunting. I've been thinking of gathering up some lavendar and perhaps valerian root, things to aid in sleeping. I saw your coat and I thought you were a spirit or something."

The young female seemed to recover her sense, and was working on recovering her dignity as well. She said he'd startled her, and well, he couldn't fault her for that. Ankaios knew he wasn't what most creatures expected to find out in the woods. He gave her a small smile, humor more than kindness turning up the corners of his lips. "Well I'm sorry to have startled you," he said, watching her with twinkling eyes. She confessed she was seeking herbs, just as he was, and his interest took a new turn. "A healer, then? Me as well." He took a few eager steps forward, tail held aloft. "Albeit one who's education is far from complete. Valerian root, you say?" He was familiar enough with Lavender, but the second name was not one he'd heard before. Always eager to grasp new bits of knowledge, he found himself hoping she wouldn't object to sharing her secrets. Ankaios knew some guarded their knowledge jealously, and while she didn't seem the sort you could never be too sure. "Talk" "You" Think

But you'll never find the answers, until you set your old heart free

Lydia's ears tilted forward as the man mentioned he was a healer. It had been awhile since she'd run across another healer and she found herself wondering if the man might be interested in accompanying her. She hadn't really had the chance recently to talk with someone who had similar interests. The man, Ankaios, stated that his education was far from complete and mentioned the Valerian root in a questioning matter. She nodded. "Yes, I was trained in healing from when I was very small. My mother was the pack shaman and I always helped her where I could. Valerian root can help with coughs, insomnia and anxiety. With winter coming I thought it might be good to have some on hand. Would… would you like to help me look? We could share."

The woman seemed friendly enough, he decided. Younger than him, but clearly intelligent. He had no idea where she came from so the odds were good she knew a fair few things he didn't, and vice versa. Well, there was no harm in trying to find out! He smiled, drinking in the short tidbits she provided. "Gladly," he said with a smile. "Lavender I'm quite familiar with, but I'll need shown this root, I'm afraid." He was not afraid to admit it, even if he was a bit conscious that he had not been studying the art all his life like this youngling apparently had. Oh well, he'd catch up sooner or later! "Where have you searched so far?" He didn't want to look anywhere she'd been over already, after all. "Talk" "You" Think

But you'll never find the answers, until you set your old heart free

Ankaios stated that he knew of Lavendar but wasn't familiar with Valerian root. She nodded lightly. "Well I started south of here and I've just been working my way north. Valerian grows in marshy thickets and the borders of ditches and rivers so I'm hoping to find a suitable terrain here. Would you know?" Lydia didn't know if he was a native of this particular area but perhaps he'd have a better idea of the terrain, certainly better than she would anyway. "Once we're in the right area if there is any Valerian it should be easy to find. It's a tall plant, about three or four feet tall, a single stem and it should be still blooming. You'll find clusters of light pink flowers."

Ankaios tried to imagine what he knew of the area as if he were a bird, drawing on his brief inspection of Talis and it's surrounding lands. "Well, the most noticeable water source is east of here. One river and some lakes stretched between for miles, north to south... more or less. Either way if we head east we'll hit it. I'm certain theres marshy soil somewhere along it's length. As to lavender," he trailed off and spun on his heels, smoldering tail brandishing about behind him. The garden he was very familiar with of course, and he had spotted a bit of lavender the other day but thought it too young to pluck. Now it might be in better condition. "I think I can help you out with that one." He trotted over to the farthest corner of the garden, where the young stalks were growing close to the wall. He wondered if it liked the light there, and made a note to inspect it as it grew this season. He gestured with a flourishing paw. "All yours. I've a bit back at my den already." Perhaps it was a gesture of good faith, and perhaps it was laced with a gilded thread of something closer kin to manipulation. Could you blame him? He certainly wanted things to get off on the right foot with this young woman, if she could teach him a thing or two. He had not gathered any lavender at all, but he knew where it was and it was close enough to home that he wasn't bothered by the notion that she might take too much. It was early in the season, after all. He kept a pleasant smile on his face, quietly hoping she would gather what she wanted quickly so they could move on to the more interesting bit. "Talk" "You" Think

But you'll never find the answers, until you set your old heart free

Lydia listened intently as Ankaios described the landscape and she nodded. They would head to the east then but first they would take a detour to gather some lavender. She followed the man to the farthest corner of the garden where fronds of lavender were waiting to be gathered. "Thank you!" She moved in to help herself to the herbs. Deftly she snipped fronds of the plants about six inches below the flowers so she'd have some nice stalks to carry. "There we go. Now for the Valerian root." She gently set the fronds of lavender in the scrap of deer hide, folded up the two corners and took off toward the east.

Lydia picked her way expertly through, ears alert for the sound of water. Once she heard it she began searching. Her keen eyes riffling through various plant materials until at last she saw the towering stalks of the Valerian plant. Moving swiftly toward them she set down her bundle. "Here they are! It's the root we want so we'll have to dig." Autumn was the ideal time to harvest the rhizome but on the cusp of summer crossing into autumn Lydia felt the crop would be decent enough. She set to digging, her paws working furiously through the moist soil until at last she had freed one of the roots. Snipping through the stem with her teeth she added the root to her bundle. She eyed the flowers and steam. She was not as familiar with their properties and she had only a limited amount of space. Settling for more Valerian she took back to digging, becoming absorbed in her work.

Ankaios watched the woman's deft demeanor with an air of approval. At his core he was a critical wolf, who set unintentionally high standards for his companions. It was unusual if he found someone who could possibly meet them. Oh, sure, he could tolerate just about anyone, but when it came to enjoying a presence? Well, so far Lydia had been concise, intelligent, and kind which were three things Ankaios typically found lacking in others. "Lead on," he said in his aloof, ever polite tone. His mind had begun to ramble, and he knew himself well enough to know he'd be useless at navigating for the moment. Anyways, it was obvious the young fae had a good head on her shoulders, and he marveled that she had required it so young. When he was her age, he was a downright pompous twat, and he'd be lying if he couldn't admit that perhaps a bit of that lingered yet today. "Here they are!" Lydia's voice broke him out of his thoughts. Kai stepped closer to where Lydia had stopped, just before an impressive patch of stalks and leaves, domed with clusters of small white flowers. Lydia commanded that they dig, so dig he did. Wordlessly, he moved himself to a patch near yet not entirely adjacent of hers, hoping to give them each a bit of room before setting in on his task. The root structure was complex, a mass of thin tendrils which clung tightly into the earth. He wanted to be careful not to damage them, and was likely a bit more delicate with them than was strictly necessary. Finally, his specimen tugged loose. He held it in his mouth gingerly, and looked to see what Lydia had made of her own quarry, and found her with at least one extracted plant and well into working on another. He shrugged, proud of himself anyways, and started in on a second plant of his own. "Talk" "You" Think

But you'll never find the answers, until you set your old heart free

Carefully Lydia dug until she'd extracted three more plants. Tail wagging lightly she grinned at this haul of plants. This ought to take care of a good deal of sleeping issues for awhile and she could work on her methods for maintaining the plants as well as possibly starting her own garden so they were within easy reach. Though, that would work best in a pack setting and was something for the future. Gingerly she set each plat down onto her rabbit skin, both the Valerian and the lavender. When she had her bundle secure she looked over to Ankaios with a grin. "Thanks for herb hunting with me. It's been fun. Maybe we can do this again some time?"

Lydia folded up the corners of the rabbit skin and set off back toward her winter retreat.

-exit-