gilded thicket

The early spring was setting the bristling thickets to a bright yellow bloom. Scotch broom and forsythia grew copiously throughout the thickets. Her own wildflower eyes spied pink salmonberry blossoms and the early signs of yarrow growing among the roots.

The young woman Iris glided through the gilded thicket fluidly, dancing between the thorns and catching vines. A dainty string of cleavers clung to her dark legs as she passed it. She wondered if she could find a rare herb among this thicket—either Solomon's seal or the elusive trillium plant. Unfortunately, between the roots and branching trunks, she could only find ramps and some button mushrooms. She collected a few of the choicest of those and wondered if she could find some early nesting birds that had already laid a few eggs. It'll make a good lunch for the healer. She wasn't overly cautious of her footsteps and even whisked her dark tail over the plants to make them rustle intentionally, just because she liked the sound.