we're a strange herd

Kiyo had largely been going about her days as normal: spending time with her grandchildren, collecting herbs and napping. It was a calming existence, at least it was now that the horrible oozing sickness had dispersed. Everything seemed to be back to normal, something that left her sighing in relief. Everyone she loved was in one piece, and to prove that, they were expecting new little ones into the Ashen ranks.

Kiyo had met Plague, Rava and Void on a handful of occasions, Plague more than the other two. She knew of their situation and, honestly, she couldn’t be happier for them. The pale man was the brother to her daughter-in-law and that was enough in her book to make him family. The ghostly woman never judged someone on sexuality or how they chose to spend their lives, and it was clear that the Trio loved each other very much and were excited about the arrival of their litter. She wished she could be around more, but she also wanted to give Rava plenty of time to get acclimated to her surroundings and she didn’t want to impose. So, most of her treatments were sent periodically through her Akita or Macaque companions, who reported back to her anything important to note.

When Aoi sped into her clinic, letting her know that the red woman had gone into labor, Kiyo had made quick work gathering the supplies she needed. Trillium for the pain, Alfalfa for milk production, and ginseng root for energy and immune health. While she packed them in her medical bag, her Akita and Macaque went to work gathering old, clean pelts for the blood and a bowl of warm water and bandages for sweat and comfort. In total, it was perhaps 5 minutes before she was out the door and heading down the hallway with her companions in tow, med bag hanging from her mouth.

She entered the room quickly, warm silver gaze looking to the woman and to Plague before offering a bow of her head. She set the bag to the side and rummaged around in it before moving over to Rava and Plague, a smile on her lips and a wag to her tail. “Hello dears. How are you feeling, Rava? I have some herbs for the pain and some for energy. I’ll go ahead and give you the ones for energy now, but it might be best to wait a bit for the pain herbs until we get closer to time. You can only take so many or they may affect you and the pups,” she advised. The woman handed the dried ginseng root to her Macaque companion, who quickly ground it up then placed it in a teapot to steep. A few moments later, a cup was poured then handed to the woman. “Its best in tea form, I’ve found. If it’s too bitter, we can place some sugar in it.”