As Life Rolls By

How does the time fly by so fast? It was a thought that often crossed her mind as she sorted and stored herbs in their various deer and rabbit hide bundles. Winter was in its latest stages, and Spring would be here before they knew it. With it would come a bounty of herbs to replenish her dwindling supplies. With it would come an influx of new life; fawns on spindly legs, and hairless, sightless, deaf kits hidden away deep in the warrens of rabbits. With the arrival of Spring would come the departure of her first pupil in the family, Zuriel. She’d be sad to see her go, but in a way, there was gladness in the leaving. Zuriel needed the venture into the world. There was only so much Kavdaya could teach her young relation when a lot of the plants she had worked to imprint descriptions of and uses for into the young woman’s mind didn’t grow in this end of the continent, if anywhere at all on it.

With Spring, also came her seventh year of life. And her sixth cycle of heat. For the last several years, she’d simply ignored the cycles. She’d kept busy, and taken herbs that dulled the effects of a body that was preparing itself to house new life; and threw quite the tantrums when no measures were taken to begin those new lives. She simply hadn’t been looking for a prospective mate; there were herbs to gather, categorize, learn, and store. Regulus and Surreal had both been ill multiple times over the last year or so, and she had been helping Zuriel and Falk, supplying her knowledge to their efforts. She already feared Surreal would never be quite as powerful as she had been before the illness that had sunk in during her pregnancy. The older woman still had a faint rattle in her lungs, and a light cough that refused to let up.

So love had not been set to the forefront of her priorities. Part of her wasn’t too bothered. If it came, it came. And if it didn’t? Well, she could always adopt children and raise them as her own, much like Erani had done. Still… Another part wondered what she was missing. Alright, well, she knew what she was missing, to be honest. Love, companionship, a shoulder to lean on, and an ear to confide her fears and dreams to.

She was padding down the ravine, headed out to gather any herbs she could find, and wasn’t paying much attention to where her paws took her; or what was ahead of her. Should she take young Solveiga out on a gathering expedition? The girl seemed eager to learn. It had been a while since the last healer’s meeting, too… She was slacking. She didn’t like that.

Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think