To say the woods made her uneasy was an understatement, and now the leaves were making their steady descent to the forest floor it was even worse. Perhaps it was the knowledge that @Skoll had spilled blood here, and not just any blood - but that of a pack leader. Or maybe it was that there always seemed to be something underfoot. Brittle bones that crumbled and cracked, dried branches, dense leaf litter that could be hiding any manner of slithery foe…

She pushed her concern aside, allowing her lip to pull back in a silent snarl as a very large, very hairy spider dropped on a thread of silk to dangle in front of her face. She snapped her jaws together, the threatening pop doing little to deter the formidable arachnid as she turned with all the grace of a silk dancer and began to climb back up the way she had come.

As the wind passed through the trees she could have sworn she heard someone whispering in some foreign tongue, causing her to turn her head this way and that. Why she kept coming by this way she was yet to figure out. “Ginger.” she repeated to herself. It was one of the few places in relic lore the medicinal root could be found. “Where are you hiding?” she pondered aloud as she cast her head over the skeletal remains at her paws, locking eyes with the empty eye sockets of a decapitated skull not far away that looked disturbingly canine.

Not here. That was for sure.

Here. A feminine voice answered with none of the breathy masculinity of the breeze that rattled the leaves overhead. Her head swung towards the voice, eyes squinting as she searched through the muted light. She wasn’t used to such a thick canopy overhead, and it left her feeling half blind. Her tail was held level with her rigid spine, her head dipped low to cover her throat when another question came from the foliage. She relaxed. Anyone making this much noise clearly wasn’t interested in a surprise attack. Her tail began a friendly wave as she chuffed in the strangers direction to give her a bearing while she moved to meet her half way.

She finally spotted movement ahead and called out “Hey wait up!” She wanted to lay eyes on the stranger properly before she gave too much away. She moved to a small gap in the trees and waited, watching with a tilted head and a smile, tail sweeping in a friendly wave over her back. With the presence of another some of the creepy feeling ebbed away from the woods surrounding her. Her mission was all but forgotten in this moment. She was far more interested in the opportunity this might present, in the form of information or otherwise.

The stranger stood back a respectful distance, now that she had full sight of the woman she could only be grateful. She was quite large, and Morganna was quite small (although her speed often made up for her lack of size). She went on to say that her sisters used to call her ginger and it was easy to see why. When she introduced herself as Capable, a puzzled look passed briefly over her face but she supposed she must be as she said to be out here alone wearing no scent but her own. She was far more adventurous than Morganna who always returned to the Willows when her journey was done.

“Morganna Archer.” she responded, her stance relaxing  as she considered whether or not she had been interrupted. “Only my imagination runnin’ away on me.” she responded with a laugh. “I’m just gatherin’ what I can before the snows set in. This is one of the few places around ‘ere you can find ginger. It’s a handy thing ter have if yer can find it.” she mentioned conversationally. Wondering what sort of wolf the fates had ushered her way this time.

Pleasant, respectful and helpful? This had to be a dream. A casual shrug of her shoulders brushed away the last of any tension or formality from her shadowy cloak and an easy smile made its way to her face in its place. Growing up with her mother, she often forgot not all wolves knew of the usefulness of some plants and the dangers of others. While she was more into gathering than the actual application of them, her younger sister showed great promise and so there would always be a need to keep their stores replenished.

Since wolves knew neither what ‘heart-shaped’ looked like, nor the anatomical description of a kidney (other than ‘that tasty bit,’) she was at a bit of a loss for an adequate descriptor to use. Usually the plant would have reddish brown flowers, but those had long since fallen off. “They-uh, have roundish flat leaves an’ usually brownish flowers but they’ll be gone now. It’s the root we’re after, the plant itself’ll be low ter the ground.” she hoped her pained look was enough to convey her apologies, she hadn’t had to teach anyone anything before and her own mother had shown her the plant first and then explained what to look for and what its uses were. “It’s good fer upset stomachs. I’ll show yer what I mean about the leaves if we find it.” she offered as a consolation. At least she would know after this encounter if she ever had a need for it.

Peachy eyes scanned the area, feet quick to close when she thought she might be in luck. She supposed the leaves did have a smell, but it was difficult to describe, as they smelled so much like the root beneath. She couldn't have been searching for something easy to describe like lavender hyssop or yarrow. "It took my mother years ter track any down, it doesn't really smell like anythin' else I've ever smelled, it makes yer head rush if yer get too much ofa sniff. Sometimes th- leaves are splotchy..." she nosed through the undergrowth seeking the familiar sharp scent that would make her nose wrinkle and send the blood rushing to her head if she breathed too deeply, "An- it seems ter prefer th- shade... Like this!" she finally declared triumphantly, stepping back to let her companion get a good look at the plant.

"Mother's the healer, I just know enough ter get by, what I should gather while I'm out scoutin', what ter leave well alone." at one point she may have considered exploring those dangerous plants in more detail but it was enough for her to know they existed at all. When her companion had finished checking the plant over they'd be able to dig it up and she could show how the roots grew like gnarled claws. "How about you?" she finally questioned back, wondering if perhaps the other woman was an aspiring healer or scout, "What do you want ter be?"