~ ADELAIDE LAZURITE ~ It was excruciatingly hard to go through with this, considering all that had happened recently. Ebony had lost its most experienced healer to childbirth, of all things. Adelaide let out a trembling sigh as she made her way into the familiar garden of rocks. Elsa had died. It pained the white maiden that she'd never gotten a chance to know her. But Ebony lived on, and now there were duties to attend to. So the woman stood with her head high and lifted her eyes to the clouds. Her clear howl rang out across the territory, calling all remaining healers to this lesson. They had to move on, no matter how painful it would be. She and Maximous would stick together, along with whatever other wolves wished to attend. She honestly didn't care who wanted to come, as long as they held this lesson and got it over with. Already her sapphire eyes were beginning to burn with the underlying threat of tears. But not now. This wasn't the time for crying. With one last sigh, Adelaide let her call die out and moved to seat herself upon a large rock. She curled her tail neatly around her body and waited, a look of eternal patience on her visage. Ebony lived on. This was the thought that put pride in her heart. We live and we learn, she told herself grimly. And we take it all one step at a time. Walk. "Talk." Think.

Time had a funny way of working on a broken heart, but Hajime had seen the impact his love had made on the rest of Ebony wolves. Elsa had been a very well loved healer, and the loss of her through the days after she gave birth to his children brought half of himself to blame. But Raisa, she had saved the children, she had agree'd to help and for that he was thankful. These wounds would take some time to heal, but his time in Ebony would be treasured as well as his ever such loyalty to the queen for doing a thing as she did. The man would rise to the call, he would move towards it. While he was no healer, he felt like this was just another step in his mourning. Also it never would hurt to learn the basic herbs so that maybe he could take care of his children without relying on others fully. Hajime wanted to make sure he kept them, and Ebony safe. It was his duty, and his blood had him tied here for as long as the little bundles lived in Ebony. Speech,

The call of a female would rise through the air, and Lior would move towards it, excitement building within her. This had to be the meeting for the healers -- the path she had decided she wanted to test her skills in. She didn?t like the idea of fighting... Of hurting others... But helping them, and being able to mend their hurts... That interested her. Especially after she had seen what had happened to her mother?s eye. The earthquake had been very, very scary... And she felt helpless. If she had been a healer she could have helped the wolves of Ebony, even her mom.

The small gray girl would approach the white and black woman, speaking up in a bit of a quiet voice. ?Is it okay if I sit in? I want to learn about herbs.? Her tail was wagging a bit, hope in her heart. ?I want to be a healer someday...? She would add. She hadn?t learned that one of their healers had passed on yet either... And she would look to the brown male with the mask with a frown. He looked really sad... How come? He had seemed fine when he called the warrior training meeting.

The man had heard of the ivory woman's death though had not actually been there to help her. He blamed himself. He kept telling himself that had he been there she would still be alive even though she wouldn't have wanted him there. She hadn't liked him from the moment he became part of Ebony, and taking over when ever he arrived at a scene didn't help his case any.

When Adelaide had called him to her, he complied. Searching for herbs had been a distraction for a short time but it was slowly becoming an insufficient one. The distraction Adelaide was ordered to provide at the pack meeting should be plenty. Or so he had hoped.

He would arrive with his typical mouth full of herbs. A few common and a few uncommon would hang from his powerful jaws. Icy blue eyes would show no sign of his self resentment and neither would the rest of his face. Eventually the self hate would dissipate and he would be himself again. Until that happened he would be slightly different.

Taking a seat a few feet away from the others, he would set the plants on the ground at his feet and sit. He would give a nod to each Hajime and Adelaide and then a smile to Lior. He knew Hajime felt horrible and Adelaide looked as if she were going to cry at any minute. He would say nothing as he waited for Adelaide to begin the training.

~ ADELAIDE LAZURITE ~ The woman continues to rest on the stone, hoping to portray an image of elegance as her students arrived. Her composure was quickly back in her grasp, any threat of tears forgotten. She gracefully stepped down unto the ground and nodded at each of the members in turn. Her stare lingered a bit on the male that was mated to their deceased healer, sending a look of condolence into his amber eyes. Then she gathered herself and put on a welcoming smile. "Good morning, everyone. I am glad to see you all here. Seeing that no one else has arrived, we shall begin." Adelaide steps a bit closer to the male with a raven coat. Her blue eyes meet his, causing her smile to brighten. "Sir Maximous, I see you have some herbs with you. Do you mind sharing them for this lesson?" If the brute had no objections, she would gently take them in her own jaws and spread them out with the other supplies in her stockpile. She naturally wanted to move them into groups and categorize them, but then an idea struck her. She turned to the young female who had expressed early interest in her learning. Her knowledge would be very basic, and this could be her first step. The white maiden turned to her, speaking softly. "Miss Lior, I need someone to separate these herbs into groups. All you need to do is find the ones that look alike and put them into categories. How would you like to give it a try?" Her eyes sparked with enthusiasm, encouraging the silver girl to give it her best shot. After nodding once more to Lior, the snowy female would step away again and address the other two wolves in attendance. "Maximous, this will be basic knowledge for you. Feel free to assist me in teaching whenever you please." She gave him a wink. "At least until things get more difficult." Adelaide was hesitant to bring her sapphire eyes to Hajime again, but at last she brought herself to do it. "I am aware that... she... was a healer," The woman sighed, fighting back that lump in her throat once more. She had to move on, as did the rest of them. Besides, she really had no reason to be emotional. She never really knew Elsa. "Did you ever watch her during a healing process? How is your understanding of herbs?" Adelaide would need to assess his skills before giving him a task to complete. After all, she didn't want to give him something to simple or too challenging to do. Walk. "Talk." Think.

One more wolf would arrive, another male, carrying herbs before the white and black fae would begin the healer meeting. Very, very few wolves had arrived... Only four? The pup was a little disappointed, but that meant that she had to try even harder to become a good healer. Adelaide would address her then, saying that she needed the herbs put into different categories. The young gray pup gave a nod, eyes shining with eagerness as she bounced over to the herbs. ?Yeah! Leave it to me!? The pup would look down at the different plants that had been gathered, the adults being pushed to he back of her mind as she started to work out what plants might go where.

She would pick out the ones with bright flowers first, moving them to one side. Then she chose the ones without flowers, but leaves, particularly ones that had little fuzz or smelled strongly, and placed them in another pile. Then she got the tall, skinny plants with really small leaves and put them in a pile before gathering the ones that still had their roots attached and put them in a pile too. The pup would look over the herbs them, giving a soft ?hmm? as she tried to think of ways she could break down the plants further, moving to separate the flowers but the type of color they had -- warm {reds, oranges, yellows, pink}, cool {blues, purples, dark}, or white.

Isi hadn't really known Elsa but the loss of a pack member had certainly struck her a little, perhaps if only for the atmosphere of the rest of the pack. She'd been quiet for a little while now, keeping her head down and certainly a little more serious than her usual light-hearted manner. She almost had the appearance of a scolded pup really, though she had certainly done nothing wrong, she just really didn't feel too happy at the moment. In true fashion for the girl though she would still arrive to the lesson a little late. She was no healer, fighter or hunter just a pain in the arse really and it was probably about time she at least made an effort in these areas whether they did the hyper young female much good at all. She'd eventually made it to recent fighting lesson though for no real reason at all this time would still arrive even later to the healer lesson, it'd already begun and Isi simply stood there orange eyes now glancing around not sure what to do. "Hi." She greeted simply, announcing her arrival.

Walk | Talk | Think

They were all gathered and the training session was underway by the time Callisto snuck in among them. For all of a minute she had thought she would not attend. She had been receiving her training from Maximous alone so far, and she was content with it, with him, and hardly wanted the full class-type experience. A recluse by nature, and impatient in the worst way, staying behind, maybe even asking Max himself how it had gone, had seemed the better option. But would her lack of attendance be a mark against her? Could it hinder her chances of one day rising to the rank of Sola?

So grudgingly she had gone to see what the meeting was about. Her silvery blue eyes watched the white woman who led the group, studying her and trying to gauge what her technique for teaching would be like. Very briefly her gaze spotted Isi among them and Calli quickly turned her gaze away. Maybe the overly chatty girl had not seen her. Quietly her long grey legs carried her shadowy body over to Maximous, offering him a look if he had noticed her, and without a word sat down beside him to watch as the young pup finished sorting plants into different piles of like characteristics.

Adelaide would begin speaking shortly after his arrival and his ears would perk forward. A few seconds into her speech she would look at him with a smile before asking him to share his herbs, and of course he would comply. "Sure, I do not mind sharing them." he would answer with a returned smile.

A few more minuets and the black and white woman would address him once more as one of their other pack mates would arrive. He did not know her name, but would remember to learn it sometime after the lesson if it wasn't given during. Before the newcomer could give her small greeting Adelaide would tell him to feel free to help teach when ever he saw fit...that is until it got difficult.

Silently he wondered what her version of difficult was. Before greeting the other woman "Hello, don't worry you've not missed the teaching yet. Just the introduction to the lesson." At the end of his statement, Max noticed his student sneak into the group. A small smile would appear as he thought that she wasn't coming, though he did not let her know he knew she was there until she moved to his side. At her look he would speak softly "I'm glad you decided to come, Callisto."

Bored. He had been feeling this way for quite some time. He needed to get out more, but for the time being he wanted the time to fly by. So what better way then by observing a healing lesson? He would make his way over to the small crowd, moost of them familiar. It pleased him to see that certain individuals were making an effort around Ebony, Though there was many who werent quite so keen. Where were the others? Sleeping? Resting? Being lazy as not to think about it. He would raise his crown, a smile pulling against his lips. He would nod his head. " Adalaide." Today he was simply here to watch and observe perhaps hewould be able to learn something new. " Its good to see some familiar faces making an effort around Ebony." He would take not for the next meeting, wishing for no one to feel like there rankthey deserve.

image by Luisiana

~ ADELAIDE LAZURITE ~ The woman watched with gentle appreciation as Lior correctly sorted out the herbs. Her ears would twitch occasionally at the sounds of new arrivals, but these she would only address as soon as the categorization was done. The young girl had moved every plant into its own neat little pile, taking note of similarities as Adelaide had instructed. One pile represented the roots, another represented the berries, and still others represented flowers and leaves. These could be split up into more specific groups, of course, but the child had done an excellent job. All thoughts of their late healer were forgotten as she smiled proudly at her new little student. It gave her confidence to see such knowledge blossoming in a younger mind. She felt like her mother, tutoring children of her own in the ways of healing. She had taught the white maiden everything she knew. She was why Adelaide was able to stand here today. "Wonderful job, Lior, and thank you for your help. That will be all for now." With a nod, the snowy woman would dismiss her and turn to see who had entered the scene. Three new wolves had come to the lesson, and Adelaide didn't even mind that they were late. She turned a welcoming smile to them and nodded at the words Maximous spoke. "Yes, we have only just begun the lesson. Please feel free to come and participate." One wolf was Isidora, a member of Ebony who - to her knowledge - had no prior herb experience. But that didn't matter. Now she could learn. The other new student was Callisto, the young woman that Maximous was teaching. She instantly moved to his side, her expression a bit wary. But she could be of help as well. Lastly, there was the High Lord himself. Vaughan. The white female gave a little grin, her blue eyes shining happily as he greeted her. She always enjoyed his company. "Good morning, Vaughan. I'm honored that you would care to observe the lesson. Just make yourself comfortable." Feeling confident in his abilities to make himself at home, Adelaide would turn away from the High Lord and once more speak to the students that had gathered. Hajime remained quiet, but none could blame him. "To those of you who have just arrived, I assigned Miss Lior the task of organizing these herbs into groups. Now that she has done so, let me name a few of them to you." She would gesture with her paw, pointing at each pile in turn. Luckily most of the groups consisted of the same species. Nothing would be too complicated. Her small white foot hovered over the cluster of dark berries first. "These are called elderberries. They are normally used to strengthen the immune system, but can also aid in respiratory problems. The patient must ingest only the berries, however, as the bark and root of the plant can be known to cause side effects such as nausea and vomiting. Nobody wants that ," She added with a light smile, moving to the next herb. She didn't want to bore them with too many facts, but it was important that they know the basic information. Her paw now touched a pile of brightly colored blossoms. "Most of you will recognize these. They are quite common," she explained, nodding at the flowers. "These are known as marigold. Their petals can be applied to minor burns, cuts, and insect stings. I have also seen them chewed up to help ease gum and throat pain. Any questions so far?" The woman glanced at Maximous, the look in her eyes giving him permission to add any information he may have wished to. She had no problem with him helping her out. He was more experienced than the other students, and was the only other member to call himself a Sola Knight. She would not take over completely. They could be a team in this... especially now that Elsa had passed. Walk. "Talk." Think.

Hajime's lips would curl into an odd smile for the woman, his body shifted with the weight of his body. The mourning process was slow, and his depression was simply affecting the rest of the pack, as was Raisa's since Elsa had been a friend of hers. Though that was not what he wanted, he had five children to look after, and to top it off a duty to the pack as a whole. Ever since Raisa agree'd to surrogate them, he was forever indebted to Ebony from those moments. "No need to act as if her name is taboo Adelaide. Elsa was a wonderful healer yes, but I did not get a chance to watch her when she did these things. Hopefully her children won't be as useless as me in the art of healing." he chuckled lightly. Things would get better and he knew that. When he thought about it, maybe Elsa didn't want him crying over her so much? Otherwise he'd make his little princess cry. Hajime sat quietly after that, listening intently on the words of the herbs their appearance and more. Noting every inch of them with perfection of the prince's memory. Like lessons his uncle would give him when needed when he would sneak into his brothers private ones. Tanner was supposed to take over the kingdom back then, but he had prevented that. These were things that surfaces on his memory after the death and the birth of his family members. His own family, and the walker blood would continue like his mother would have wanted. Speech,

Adelaide would speak to her as she finished, the gray pup looking up to her with bright eyes and giving a nod. She was glad that she had done a good job, and she went back to sit down near Hajime. Some others had arrived as well -- two femmes and a male. The male and one of the femmes she recognized from battle training, but not the other. She would listen in as the femme started to explain different herbs, direction their attention first to the dark berries.

The girl would lean her head forward a bit, ears perked and showing her interest. They were good for the immune system, so good for fighting sickness, and respiratory problems. Just the berries had to be used though, cause the bark and roots could have some side effects that weren?t so good. The girl?s mind was already working, eyes shining bright as she moved on.

She would speak of the marigold next. Petals were applied to burns, insect bites, and small cuts to soothe them. They could also be chewed up to ease gum or throat pain. Then she asked if there were any questions thus far. The girl would voice up, tilting her head to the side.

?I do! Um... First... You said the bark and roots of the elderberries could cause nausea and vomiting. This is normally bad, but if a wolf eats something poisonous could you use them to make them throw up to try and get rid of the poison? More importantly then that, how do you know how much of something to give to a sick wolf?? Too much could be really bad and have negative side effects, right? And too little would mean that it wouldn?t be all that effective.

The man would listen as the Ebon Knight spoke. Elsa had never liked him much nor had she really given him the chance to get to know her, yet he still missed her and felt bad for Hajime. Before Max could think of anything to say to the man Adelaide would thank Lior and begin her lesson. From his chosen spot to sit he could hear her well and could see which herbs she was talking about.

Looking at the grouping Lior had done, Maximous couldn't help but to agree with the other Sola Knight. The young girl had done well and as Adelaide began naming each herb and then giving off plants his mind was going over the same information she was giving. He found himself biting his lip to keep from being an echo. Just as he had had to do to his mentor in the past when he went over things to many times.

When the other Sola finished speaking and gave him freedom to give any further information he smiled. "For those of you who don't know where to find them. Elderberries grow in shrubs both in dry and wet soil however your more likely to find them in direct sunlight than in the shade. And the best place to find Marigold is in moist soils." he would then sit silently as he listened to Lior's questions.

Both were excellent and he found himself answering before he could stop himself. "You can use the bark and roots for that but I prefer to use a different plant to get poison out of someone's system. The bark and roots, in my experience tend to take too long to get something like poison out of the system unless you use a lot and then it causes more problems." he would pause only momentarily for her answer on the amount to give a patient. "I base the amount of herb I give some one on how large they are. Say for instance a large patient like a big cat or a horse would be given two or three stalks, a smaller patient such as an adult wolf would receive only one and a child would receive only half of that."

He would catch himself too late and give an apologetic look to Adelaide before fixing it aloud. "However, Adelaide may do those things differently and this is her lesson so her input may be more helpful than my own as I do not know everything she knows and vise versa." again he would give her an apologetic look for butting so deeply into her lesson.