I wanted to seek, but I got distracted

Lúta watched the autumn days tick by with disdain. Each lost day brought her closer to winter and so she'd set aside a day to get as much crafting done as possible as well as some last minute gathering. The best place to do so seemed to be the southern regions which would feel winter's sting later than the north would. She settled down in a clearing in Fern Gulley and set about getting her supplies out while Ragna got a fire started.

Lúta pulled out a small bundle that contained abscess root as well as a bottle of Ragna's whiskey. She planned to make a tincture of the root as well as an infusion that would help with coughs and colds. She also planned to dry some marigold and make an infusion of it as well but to do all that she was going to need bowls. Lúta pulled out two bowls and set them down. Now to hunt for the marigold while Ragna busied herself with the fire.

Marigold was one of her favorite flowers and it bloomed later than most. It didn't take her long to find the precious herb right next to her camp. Grinning she bent her head and carefully snipped off a few stems.

Through everything Rhyme still knew he had a duty to his family and to his pack, that meant he needed to upkeep his responsibilities, more now than ever. Coming to terms with the way he handled her death made the old man feel ashamed of himself. When his children needed him the most he had lost control of everything.

He shook himself of the thoughts, they only served to bring him down. He made many mistakes, and wouldn’t be able to make up for most of them. He could only move forward and try to be better while he still could.

Rhyme made his way to the gully, a place that healers had frequented much longer than he had been alive. Solitude and Imperia accompanied him, but he was soon distracted by the presence of another wolf. She was set up to work, her tools laid out with a fire. Rhyme could only assume she had come here to bolster her own supply.

”Mind if I ask what you’re planning?” He questioned politely.

I wanted to seek, but I got distracted

Lúta eyed the amount of marigold in front of her and then began to snip off a few more plants. As she was crafting a few things from them today she'd need quite a few. She examined what she'd gathered and decided that was good enough for now. If she needed more she could always hop over and grab some. Her ears perked up at the sound of someone approaching and she turned to see an older man who spoke. "Oh, um, hi. I'm just gathering some marigold. I'm planning to dry some and make an infusion with the rest. I also have an abscess root I need to process." Goodness, she was getting in over her head! "

She trotted back over toward her bundle and set down the marigold she had gathered. She pulled out a number of stems, about half and bent her head to arrange them so they were all going the same way. Next she picked them up in her mouth and laid them on a piece of leather twine she had already set out. "What about yourself? Are you here to gather herbs?" Carefully she worked to tie the twine around the bundle until it was secure.

Eyeing the other amount of marigolds, she began to chew the tops off so that she had all the flowers in a pile. She examined the stems for a moment. Maybe she should try boiling these as well? Maybe she could try drying them. "My name is Lúta by the way. This is Ragna" She tried to be polite while working at the same time and in a way it would be nice to have some company. The macaque smiled and nodded at the man. "Nice to meet you."

Hmmm… as she thought about what she wanted to do with the leftover stems she moved over to the two abscess roots she had. Lúta maneuvered a small, flat stone about the size of her paw onto a flat piece of land. There she set one of the abscess roots onto the rock. She then took another flat stone and leaned on top of it with her paw to smash it. She proceeded to do the same with the other. Once each was smashed she took one root and set it in a bowl and then she took the other and set it in a jar before sitting back to wait a bit on the fire Ragna was working on. Soon the flames began to kindle and stretch up the kindling. "You're welcome to share our fire if you like."

She had marigold in front of her, Rhyme was sure he could identify those flowers. He was a little out of practice when it came to healing, and he needed to work on his skills. He also needed to teach Theory more as well, she’d shown an interest and he felt as though he was failing in training her. She was so incredibly mature now he forgot how young she was, and how much she still had to learn.

”Infusions?” He asked as he tried to focus on the beautifully pelted woman instead of the problems he had at home. ”I am, I’m sure you’re aware winter is not so far off.” He chuckled, though the emotion didn’t reach his eyes. Rhyme hadn’t quite decided on what he was going to bring back, but the short blooming flowers were on his list. She looked as though she were finished harvesting so Rhyme took up his turn.

”Rhyme,” he returned as he gave a nod to both Luta and her companion. He was sure Imperia was high above their heads, so he didn’t bother introducing the raven. ”You’re too kind.” He returned with a quick smile as he continued to gather up what she had left behind.

I wanted to seek, but I got distracted

Lúta carefully took a bottle from Ragna's stash, a small bottle of whiskey. It was terribly precious as it took the monkey fairly long to make. She worked the cork free and then with Ragna's help she poured some of it over the root. The alcohol would help leech the healing properties out of the root. She worked the cork back in and set it aside.

She took out her waterskin next and carefully poured some water into the bowl that held the root. She set the skin down and looked up at the man who introduced himself as Rhyme. She nodded. "Yea, infusions. By soaking a medical herb in water you can sometimes infuse the water with the healing elements of the plant. The water can make it easier for a patient to get the medicine." She carefully scooted the bowl closer to the fire. "Sometimes heat can help this process."

Lúta took a moment to place the marigold flowers in a bowl as well. She then added water to this one and carefully pushed it next to the fire with the other bowl. This would be a useful infusion. "You can use the infusion of marigold petals internally as well as externally so there are lots of possibilities."

She nodded at the mention of winter. "Yes, I hope it will be a milder winter but it's really hard to tell these days." She bent her head and picked up the bundle of marigold she had tied earlier. She walked over to a nearby tree and then swiftly leapt up into it, using her claws to stabalize herself as she climbed out onto one of the low branches. Once there she bent her head and tied the bundle of marigold onto the branch. Satisfied that that task was done she leapt down.

The old man watched as Luta worked the cork of the bottle free, he tried not to think of all the trouble such a liquid had caused in his life. Though he couldn’t blame the drink for his own actions. It was a big reason he had his children. The only part of his relationship with Shaye he felt regret for was their close family ties. He knew the realness of what he felt for her, and would never regret the devotion he’d felt or those few days he had called her his.

Rhyme easily got lost in such thoughts and had to bring himself back as the lady spoke. Rhyme listened intently, he was more of a warrior than a healer, but he practiced field medicine with ease. This seemed like yet another way to be prepared for anything, which was a quality he needed to work on. ”Thank you for the information, I’m eager to go at one of my own.” Maybe he’d try and talk to his mother, if anyone could make use of the information it was Rhythm. There was one more thing he needed to do for Shaye. ”I should probably get on with it. It was a pleasure meeting you, hopefully it won't be the last time.” Rhyme offered her a polite grin and made his leave.