Location: The Starlit Plains

Duchess had the idea of gathering some herbs and flowers while Indigo was north visiting family, and she was sure he would enjoy at least her attempt at gathering the useful herbs for his supply. Of course, she was making it more into a bouquet, but he could figure out what he wanted to do with it when he got back.

When she exited the castle and ventured into the plains, she looked up at the sky, remembering that first cold night here she had with Indigo. She was told the stars lit up the whole plains, but they didn't get to experience it that night. The clouds covered up the whole sky, but they were busy cleaning Indigo's wound anyway. Coming back to reality, she moved forward across the more lush looking grasses that she hadn't experienced in her first season living here in The Hallows.

She made her way toward the river that ran through the land here, starting her way up stream and looking in both directions for just any type of general flower. She started with some dandelion, and after a bit of walking she found some Meadowsweet too. She didn't have an idea in the slightest what either did, but she was just looking for pretty flowers after all.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

As Gwynevere tended to do, she threw herself ever more into her work, ignoring grief entirely in favor of taking advantage of the now lush plains near the castle. After two whole seasons of living here with little to nothing to collect as far as herbs went it was extremely exciting to be able to go out and actually see green around her instead of incessant ice and snow. Eilwen rode on her back for a while as they left the castle, but once they were out in the starlit plains, the white raven took off and started flying around the general area, also on the lookout for any good herbs that they might be able to take back to the infirmary. After her mother gifted her the furniture to turn the room into a real, functioning infirmary she had thrown her all into fixing it up and filling the shelves with herbs. Now she felt like she owed it to her mother to really make use of the space and to continue training so she could be the best healer she could possibly be.

As she slowly worked her way though the plains she kept her lavender and sage gaze peeled for any signs of helpful herbs, making sure she looked throughly so she wouldn't miss anything. Some of them were harder to find like smaller dandelions that she had nearly missed because they had gotten lost among some taller grasses or the boneset that was harder to catch with its tiny white flowers. But then she spotted a patch of marigold near the river and she grinned as she trotted over to the bright orange-hued flowers and began carefully picking them and adding them to her bag. Sometimes finds were easier than others and she was just thrilled to be seeing flowers again after so long. It made her think of the lady's slipper she had hunted down with Indigo and Bowen, the thought making her pause as she looked at the flower in her paw. She missed spending time with her siblings like she once had and she hadn't really even interacted with Indigo even though he was one of the few remaining healers. It was her own fault really for pushing everyone away, but she didn't know what else to do.

Gwynevere | Eilwen

Duchess had traveled across the river through the plains and move back the other side of the bank. Most of the flowers she had gathered were only dandelions and maybe even a few colorful weeds. The small bunch of meadowsweet she found somehow looked more important, or worthy so she had it in the middle of her bouquet.

She would spot the girl, she assumed related in age to herself but wouldn't ponder too long on it. She saw her put the marigold in her pack, reminding her of when her and Indigo first met. She shook her head, travelling across the river again to meet the girl, letting out a low hum to address her presence. "You're a healer?" She asked, but without much intent in her voice. She gently put the bunch of grasses and flowers from her mouth to the front of her, gesturing with a sway of her paw "Are any of these useful? I don't mean to bother you, but I'm gathering them for a friend." Duchess vaguely recognized the young girl from around the pack, but mostly from Resin's funeral. She hadn't necessarily attended, but when Indigo joined them she had viewed from the hallway balconies. She wouldn't bring up the ill thoughts though, she assumed it was too soon to be prodding others about their feelings.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

A voice pulled her attention up from the flowers at her feet, giving the smaller, purple-marked woman a surprised glance. She generally tried to keep to herself, more than happy to quietly do her work, but she obviously wouldn't turn away someone. She was too polite and non-confrontational to do anything like that. She blinked a couple times at the other woman as she immediately launched into a couple of questions about the plants that she had gathered, asking if they were helpful or not and stating that they were a friend. She didn't know her name, but Gwynevere had seen the other woman around the pack on occasion and had seen her going in and out of the infirmary with Indigo sometimes. Gwynevere didn't often interact with others, but she was certainly observant.

Focusing her attention on the bundle of herbs she was being questioned about, she lifted a paw to gently lift a few of them and move them around to peek underneath a couple of them to make sure she didn't miss anything. "Absolutely, dandelion is always helpful to have around. The roots are more potent than the greens, but it's all handy. These are meadowsweet and that's good for pain relief so I like having a lot of that in the stores as well. The other ones are mostly just pretty weeds, but that's okay. They look nice in the bouquet." She smiled softly and lifted her marbled eyes up to the other woman's again, adding, "I was just collecting some of this marigold... Would you like some of it to add to your collection? Is it for Indigo?"

Gwynevere | Eilwen

Duchess looked towards her bundle of flowers as Gwynevere explained. Dandelion was easy enough to identify, and because the meadosweet was the only other 'useful' looking flower, she assumed it was the other. She nodded as the healer explained each one, and the weeds that at least gave the bouquet a little vibrancy.

Duchess looked back up to the young girl as she asked if she wanted the marigold she had found for her bouquet as well. "Yes, they are for Indigo." She stated with a smile, but her face turned a bit more solid as she didn't want to accept the herb the healer offered, "But you can keep the marigold, these are probably just going to sit around the room and go to waste. I'd much rather you use what you find." She inhaled from the thought of the saber cat again, still focusing on turning the memory into a happier one rather than the fear she found inside herself of Indigo killing the cat, if only protecting her. "Thank you for the offer though, could you tell me what the marigold is good for? We found some a while back while herbs were scarce."

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Gwynevere nodded in understanding when the woman denied the flowers to add to the bouquet she was building. She certainly wasn't going to turn down more marigold to add to her stores. She was a little surprised when she asked for an explanation of what the orange flowers were used for, but she was more than happy to teach. She didn't know if the smaller woman was an inspiring healer or if she was just learning more things to relate with Indigo on, but either way she certainly wouldn't turn her down. After all, she had given Artorias a lengthy lesson on the subject only for him to not remember any of it - something she still didn't quite forgive him for.

"The petals are good for a bunch of things - burns, cuts, insect bites, stings... So for those you would apply them on the surface. I like to crush them into a bit of a paste so they're easier to apply and they seep into the wound better. They can be crewed up too to help with gum pain or sore throats. It doesn't really have any side effects either so they're a good general herb to keep in the stores." It was one of those herbs that she felt like they couldn't have too much of, especially since she could dry the petals and still get a pretty similar effect out of them.

Gwynevere | Eilwen