Build me up from bones, Wrap me up in skin, Hold me close enough to breathe me in

Drífa worked her way back home to Winterfell with fresh marshmallow nestled snuggly in the rabbit hide pouch that hung from her jaws. Dark clouds were gathering in the sky and obscuring the sun. The smell in the air seemed to speak of a blizzard to come which didn't quite surprise her. Spring was slow to emerge in the north and with the colder winter she had a feeling it would be even slower to fully bloom this year. She worked her way to the S.S. Antiox where she'd set up a small den inside the strange, metal cave. It lifted into the horizon, a dark shape incased in ice. Snow and ice clung to its frame but she knew it would be warmer once she'd gotten inside and settled on her deer pelt bed.

Claws clicking on the metal she slipped inside and made her way to her room where she dropped off her plants before wandering back into the hall and heading for a storage area where there were a number of jars and tins.



1/3 crafting tisane

What a strange place this was. Not in an entirely bad way -  but it certainly was strange nonetheless. Kirsi wasn't used to these strange structures that existed in Boreas, since her homeland hadn't been even mildly similar to many of the unusual places she'd encountered thus far here. This one was exceptionally unusual and today her interest was piqued by it. Slowly she veered around the ship, occasionally lifting a paw to touch the cold metal, which seemed even more frigid than the air surrounding it. Surely it had some practical use, otherwise she found it difficult to imagine why Acere would've chosen this place as part of his pack's territory. Briefly her mind went to the storm that seemed to be brewing nearby, signified by the dark clouds that hung in the sky. More than once she'd had to find more stable shelter during a dangerous blizzard and this ship seemed like it could withstand the worst of the elements - even time itself. The sound of something inside the structure caught her interest, and the small woman's ears flicked idly atop her head as she zeroed in on the source of the sound. Intriuged by the possibility of meeting one of her new packmates - presuming whoever was inside was, in fact, a packmate - Kirsi tentatively slid toward one entrance of the submerged ship, peering inside as she let her eyes adjusted to the dim light. The sound of her own claws clicked against the smooth metal floor as she moved down the hall of the ship, noting just how many rooms and contraptions could be found inside. It wasn't long before she grabbed hold of Drifa's scent and moved to peer into the room she inhabited, offering the stranger a faint smile of greeting. "Pardon me if I'm interrupting," Kirsi started, though she wasn't necessarily apologetic for the intrusion either. Mostly she was curious about what she was doing in this room full of jars and containers - perhaps they had some use to her.

Build me up from bones, Wrap me up in skin, Hold me close enough to breathe me in

Drífa looked carefully through several jars and tins until she found a small round tin with a lid that would be perfect for keeping her tisane in. The marshmallow she'd just picked would need to be hung up to dry before it could be made into a tisane. Luckily she had some drying nearby. Halla had strung the herbs up from the ceiling to hang for her. She was not sure where the macaque was but if she had to guess the monkey was sleeping snuggly under the desk in her room, swathed in yak hide.

Reaching up Drífa plucked one set of the dried marshmallow from the ceiling. She set them down on a nearby table then moved back to the tins. She was just about to pick one up in her jaws when the sound of approaching pawsteps caught her attention. She turned and gasped as she saw the beautiful woman standing there. The markings on the woman's pelt left no mistake in her mind. This woman was of the northern tribe. Of her tribe. "Oh! No, not at all. Please, come in. My name is Drífa. I'm sorry if this is an odd question but are you of the Northern Tribe? Or perhaps the name Fyri or Ignatius ring a bell?" She was normally not so pushy in her inquiries but she really had not expected to see another member of her tribe again and she did not want to let go the belief that this woman just might be one of them.


2/3 crafting tisane

Getting to know her packmates was a priority now. She'd spent so long wandering with Song that she wondered if she was beginning to forget what other company was like, and she knew that was a dangerous thing. If Kirsi was good at anything at all, it was knowing exactly how to interact with others - how to bend them to her will and sway them in a particular direction. At least that was what she herself thought, and letting those skills slip seemed a dangerous thing. A faint smile touched her lips, an expression that could hardly be described as warm at all, as Drifa turned to acknowledge her. She didn't react to Drifa with the same familiarity, at least not initially. Her life with the northern tribe felt like so long ago - she'd been a different wolf back then and she wasn't sure what all those wolves knew regarding what had happened with Ignatius and his brother. "Glad to hear it," she responded, regarding the fact that she wasn't interrupting. "Kirsi," she introduced herself swiftly, with a dip of her head, though Drifa's next words made her heart flutter. Nervousness wasn't a feeling she was overly familiar with, but the recognition caught her off guard, as she stood here in this stifling vessel. "I am," Kirsi answered, her tone a bit more guarded than it had been before. "I spent a brief time in Fyri. Ignatius and I used to be close, ever since we were children." Perhaps she'd know rumors of what she'd done; perhaps not. Either way she had no reason to believe it would effect her life here, unless she went running her mouth. Kirsi's jaw tightened, trying to mask any sign of discomfort. "You do look familiar," she added, almost as an afterthought, as she studied the older woman carefully. Her memories from her early life were muddled, distracted - she'd spent more time lingering with the southern wolves than she should have, looking back on things now.

Build me up from bones, Wrap me up in skin, Hold me close enough to breathe me in

The woman introduced herself as Kirsi and Drífa felt a chill shiver down her spine. Kirsi. She knew that name. That was the woman that Ignatius had been betrothed too, if she remembered correctly. She wasn't directly in the royal circle so all she knew was from rumors. Kirsi had been stolen away but that fire sodden whats-his-face. A prince that had been far too much like his father for Drífa's liking. She pitied this poor girl.

Kirsi confirmed that she had been part of Fyri for awhile and Drífa nodded eagerly. "Yes, we probably caught a glimpse of each other at one of the meetings. I… I suppose since you're here in Winterfell you don't know what's become of Ignatius?" All Drífa really wanted was news that the young man was ok and of course she wanted to know why he'd just upped and disappeared, leaving Fyri to collapse in on itself.

Drífa removed the tin from the shelf and set it down before carefully running her paw along the dried marshmallow to mash it into finer and finer pieces. She gingerly used her claws to scrap tougher pieces out of the mix. Still not quite satisfied she worked to mash the pieces even smaller as the conversation continued until at last she had what she needed. Drífa would often mix other herbs together but for now she opted to stick with just the marshmallow. Carefully she scrapped the tisane into the tine.

3/3 crafting tisane

It was hard to not shake the slight discomfort at seeing someone from her past, even if Drifa hardly knew her. Who knew precisely what she knew of her, of Ignatius, and of his brother? She felt her skin crawl at the thought of how Drifa could complicate things for her here if she chose to, but she had to hope that wasn't her intention. Though she was uncomfortable at the meeting of someone from her homeland, part of her also felt oddly relieved - and reconciling those feelings was proving to be difficult. "I have no clue where he is," she admitted, trying to hide the strange mixture of annoyance and sadness that touched her at the mention of her once-lover. "There were no signs that he meant to leave. I thought Fyri was going well," Kirsi sighed at the thought. It had been a small pack, sure, but Ignatius had high ambitions at the time... she didn't know him to be the type to flee, though perhaps in regards to that he'd taken a page out of her book. The thought that his abandonment was somehow a punishment stung, but she had trouble telling herself that wasn't fully the case.

"What's it you're doing there, anyway?" Kirsi questioned her curiously. Drifa seemed like she had a decent grasp on whatever it was she was doing. Things to deal with plants and healing had never been Kirsi's forte but maybe it wouldn't hurt to know a few things if she was going to stick with Winterfell and participate in these raids that Acere spoke of. The blue-furred woman knew she needed to soon stretch her fighting muscles and remind herself what she needed to work on, and already she was planning a trip outside of Winterfell's borders to search for a suitable partner, but for now she was content to reconnect - if it could even be called that, given the fact that they were hardly more than acquaintances - with someone from her past.

Drífa rested a paw on the tin and nodded somberly. "I feared as much." It really did seem as if Ignatius had simply vanished in the dark of the night and it made her worry for him even more. She hadn't recalled seeing any signs of struggle but she wasn't a detective either. Had he been abducted? Her mouth pursed into a thin line before she sighed and shook her head. "I thought Fyri was doing well, too. That makes me worry even more, but there's little we can do now. I just hope he's safe, wherever he is."

The conversation turned to what she'd been doing and Drífa was grateful for the shift in conversation. There was only so much talking about the past these days. "I'm making some marshmallow tisane. When the herbs are soaked in warm water they release healing properties that can help calm a cough if you drink the liquid." She gently picked up the tin in her jaws and placed it on the shelf where she had a number of dry herbs stored. She turned back to Kirsi.

"I was also planning on putting a travois together if you were interested in helping me. It's a means to carry items, or perhaps even a patient if that should be required. But if you wish to go I won't keep you here." She could sense a bit of unease in Kirsi but she wasn't sure if it had been the conversation or if the woman just had other matters to tend to.

It was hard to shake the feeling that his sudden departure had been a direct result of their reunion, whether that was even partly true or not. Perhaps he was continuing to punish her for all she had done - as if the universe hadn't done that tenfold. She didn't believe in anything as foolish as fate but she knew her betrayal had somehow been cosmically punished, and she'd hoped that would justify her and Ignatius starting things anew. But clearly he'd had other plans. "I hope the same," she said finally, deciding to push that conversation to the side. She didn't wish ill on him, not really, but likewise... she wasn't totally sure she wished him complete prosperity. He'd hurt her enough that she couldn't help but harbor a faint level of resentment for him, mingled in with an amount of love she didn't dare admit, even to herself.

Drifa explained she was making a marshmallow tisane. Drinking it would help a cough, apparently - interesting. "How's it taste?" Kirsi asked after a moment, a faint smirk touching her lips for a moment. It didn't sound delicious, and she doubted it really was, but she was curious; not that it mattered if it helped. Healing was a good skill to have and something she herself had never really considered or dabbled in, though knowing bits and bobs here and there didn't sound like such a bad idea.

"I have nowhere else to be. I'll gladly help, just give me instruction. I have no clue where to begin." Internally, part of her was cringing. She wasn't the helping type... but having a way to transport items sounded interesting, given that she knew Song had interest in crafting. Though part of her wanted to leave Drifa for now, a bigger part of her knew that staying a bit longer was likely beneficial for her in more than one way.