Ara noted that he almost seemed hesitant to admit that he'd never been here before. She, of course, had been born in these lands - much of the terrain, in particular the more central and eastern lands, were deeply familiar to her. She'd been to this particular orchard more than once; she remembering spending time with Novel here long ago, in the spring before the flowers on the trees had turned to fruits. "Yep, fruit," she said gently - her voice gave no indication that she thought he was being stupid. Ara knew there was always knowledge to be gained, and wouldn't fault anyone for not knowing something, no matter how simple. "And it is edible! Fruit is very sweet. Definitely something you only want in moderation," she added with another smile. "It's hard to imagine that rotten thing tasting good, but I'm sure in a few weeks that will have fallen and a new flower will form. Another few weeks, and you might even find a piece of fruit in its place."
At his next question, she nodded again. "Herb is just another word for a plant that has some kind of use," Ara explained, her tail waving lightly behind her at his hesitant interest. "A large majority of the plants and flowers you find have some kind of purpose, however minimal that purpose might be, believe it or not." If he was from lands far beyond those of Boreas, or even the southern continent, well.. it was no surprise he felt lost here! Ara knew as well as any how vast the world and its inhabitants was, and plants were certainly no exception.
His declaration that there was always beauty - you just needed to find it - she nodded in quiet understanding. "I wouldn't eat that thing, if I were you," Ara warned him gingerly, watching his interest directed back toward it as he watched the fruit. "It'd probably make you sick. Who knows what kind of worms might be living in there now." The very thought made her cringe, hoping nobody would dare try that sort of thing.
