capsized by the weight of it all {AW - herb collecting thread}

Ara wasn't entirely sure what to do with herself.

Leo had made it clear, in much nicer terms, that she needed to stop straying from Fiori if she wanted to continue to be part of it. And she did - she really did. She had never really known the life of a rogue, and she wasn't interested in finding out if the lifestyle fit her now. Every day she felt Novel's loss even more strongly, but she wasn't sure she should go finding her. Surely she had made it to Ahlon long ago, what if she simply didn't want to come back? Leaving meant that their sons wouldn't know where either of them were, if they needed them. She was conflicted about it all, though she kept searching nearby lands diligently for any signs of her family.

Today, though, she needed to do something for Fiori. Anything, really, to show that she cared. She wandered closer to the falls, feeling the water spray against her pelt and send a shiver through her core. The season was rapidly changing, and with winter on the horizon the normally pleasant eastern lands felt a bit less comfortable. It was far from inhospitable, but she was unused to the weather and found herself longing for warmer days again. She braced herself against the cool water as she navigated around the falls, her head low to the ground as she nosed about the vegetation, sniffing out the flowers that remained. Most were losing their color, and their scents were fading as the earth cooled and made survival harder for plant life. She'd have to get her stores ready for the winter, she decided.