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

She confirmed she was new to Fiori, and Ara smiled warmly.  "Good choice, coming here," Ara commented gently, her tone conversational. It was a good choice. She had enjoyed living in Seracia, too, but she had been younger than and life had been simpler. Now she couldn't imagine leaving Fiori, not for anything but her family, if that was what they wanted. God, she hated that she couldn't stop wondering what might happen if she left to go to Ahlon.. not that she knew where Ahlon even was, and anyone who did know was long gone. She shifted her attention back to Faelyn to avoid such somber thoughts.

As they moved together, she asked which herb she used the most. That was a tough question, since many had different uses and were found in different lands.  "Well," she started thoughtfully, as they moved with Faelyn at her side toward the edge of one of the pools of water, not far from where they stood already.  "It really depends where you live, with what you'll use most. Dandelion is one of the most common flowers I've seen in all my travels. They're those yellow ones, with tiny petals, that grow in vast fields." Maybe she'd seen it - probably, but it was possible she couldn't place an image to the name.   "They don't taste great, but they're great for the stomach." Her eyes roved over the vegetation here, searching for anything that stood out.

"Marigold is another flower that grows often in the fields here," Ara stated, veering to the side to approach a cluster of small flowers.  "It's a lovely orange-yellow flower. This, though," she gestured to the small cluster of flowers. They were wilting, though they were still recognizable to her.  "Is called Valerian root. It's not exactly the season for it, but it can still be useful, even if it's not as potent as it would be in the warmer months." The flowers were clearly dying, wilting pitifully, though they maintained some of their soft pink color around the edges. Ara frowned slightly, though moved forward to nose around, looking for some of the less-wilted ones and tugging them from the ground.

"Something good to remember is that the root of the plant, the part that comes from the ground, is how plants take water and nutrients from the soil." She was gentle and concise as she paused, trying to gently pull one from the earth. Luckily, the soil was damp and pliable here and it wasn't a difficult feat.  "If you break it away from the root, it will die much more quickly. Sometimes I even like to take plants and set them in puddles, so they stay fresh longer." Living in Fiori made that far easier, for the ground was always damp and bog-like much of the time.  "Valerian root is a pretty abundant herb here. It's great for helping sleep and easing anxiety, mostly."

She realized she was talking a lot, and had probably said an overwhelming amount. She couldn't help it - as she spoke, her voice grew more passionate and sure. Healing was one thing in her life that she was certain about, and comfortable discussing and doing. Regarding most other things, she was an uncertain mess these days. "Sorry if that's a lot," she said quickly, dropping the flower she'd harvested at her paws. "You can try to gather some, if you want. Or ask any questions." The older woman smiled gently and glanced at Faelyn, wondering what she thought so far.