Round Stone Crest The Unexpected Hurts a Lot

Gent was happy to hear Draven's response, filled with interest and curiosity, music to any father's ears. His pale gaze dropped upon the boy as the child picked up his pace so as to bring his tiny ears closer to the answers that would be easily issued from the king's jaws. His questions were simple but necessary, as Draven was clearly making connections between what he knew and what he was learning, fitting together the puzzle pieces as best he could.

"That's why it's so important to clean any scrapes and cuts as soon as you can," he informed him, eyes turning ahead to see the grouping of verdant growth and pale flowers that marked the entrance to what had once been Lugh's place of work and source of pride ahead on the horizon, "and why your mother always makes sure to bathe you guys regularly. Sometimes, though, whether it's because we didn't clean them properly, or because the gross stuff got too deep into us for our tongues to reach, we still get infected."

Once they reached their destination, he did not allow Draven to step inside the infirmary, instead peeking his head in and quickly grabbing what it was they would need. The more and more he thought about the situation, he was glad that it had happened. Though he still regretted the pain Draven had been in all this time that he'd kept his festering injury a secret, it was becoming the perfect opportunity to teach him some very vital lessons. The solution to the problem was easy enough, so simple in fact that the child should be able to do it himself, given the right instruction.

"Firstly," he spoke after depositing two small bundles of differing plants between himself and his pupil. "we're going to make a poultice, which is a pulpy, moist mash of different things. What's going to be in it is what's going to make you better. This," Gent pushed the Pineapple Weed toward Draven, "is called Pineapple Weed. You'll find most of these plants have pretty funny names. This is edible, meaning you can eat it. Remember: not everything in this den is edible. Some of it will make you very sick if you eat it, or even kill you. So even though I'm teaching you these things, you still need to come to me before you try any of this on your own, okay?"

He stopped there, definitively as he leveled Draven with his glacial gaze. It was very important that the child affirm that he understood Gent's command before they went any farther.

(This post was last modified: Oct 29, 2015, 04:40 AM by Gent.)

Draven listened intently as Gent explained why his toe had gotten infected. He supposed what the giant said did make a lot of sense - even though they'd cleaned it pretty well, the boy remembered very clearly how deep the mouse's teeth had seemed to go into his toe. It probably did really go too far into his foot for even Minka to reach it. Draven did try to push past Gent and get inside the flowery, overgrown-looking den, but the behemoth blocked him easily and eventually the Crest prince was forced to admit defeat. He sat down with a huff, his little body plopping down ungracefully as he watched Gent fish around for whatever healing plants he apparently needed. Then he had to scootch backwards so that Gent could drop two bundles of... green stuff in front of him. Little black ears swiveled forward again ad Draven hung on every word that came out of Gent's mouth. He wasn't just gonna fix his foot, then - he was gonna teach Draven how to do it, too! The boy couldn't help but swell with pride at the thought; surely Kino and Ari hadn't gotten this privilege with the King yet! It took him a moment to realize that Gent had stopped speaking to him, and was waiting for him to say something in response. Draven wasn't very worried; Gent probably just wanted him to let him know that he'd gotten everything Gent had said. And of course he had - don't eat the stuff, don't do the stuff unless Gent was around to help him with it, something about a mash they were gonna put on his toe that would make it better. Easy. “Got it,” Draven said, his tail beginning to wag behind him. “What do we do first?”

Just remember, we gotta stretch this out to 6 posts of Draven actively doing medicine stuff, and your next post will be his 1st. c:

Good, Gent thought to himself as a smile washed over his muzzle, pleased both by @Draven 's willingness to comply and his clear interest in learning. The king was quite content to allow his son to do the work on his own, giving him the best opportunity to remember and grasp the details of what was to be done. Reclining upon his haunches, he allowed enough space for the boy to reach the herbs and do what would be instructed.

"Alright, as I said, this," he lifted a paw to point out what exactly this was, "is Pineapple Weed. We'll be using its flowers and leaves, which help contain infection. This other plant," again he indicated visually, "is Goldenrod. Both the leaves and the roots help ease pain, but it's harder to get a poultice out of the roots, so we'll just be using leaves. Since these are both edible," a pause to ensure that Draven remembered what that word meant, the king ever vigilant for signs of confusion amongst his ward's features, "you can simply chew on them to mash them up. They'll mix with your spit, and make a slime. Be careful not to swallow any of it. Go ahead, try it."

(This post was last modified: Oct 29, 2015, 04:41 AM by Gent.)

ooc: Draven medic post 1/6.

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Draven listened intently as Gent explained what the plants were and what they would be doing with them. “Pineapple weed to deal with the infection,” he repeated, wanting to be sure he got it right. “Goldenrod for the pain.” He tilted his head, nodding as Gent explained what parts of each plant they would mash up and how they would do it. Edible. “That means it's okay if I accidentally swallow some, right? I'm not gonna,” he added quickly. “But if I do, accidentally, it won't be a bad thing.” Figuring he understood well enough what to do, the boy reached down and scooped up a few leaves and started chewing them up - only to almost spit them out again in disgust. They tasted nasty! So much for being edible! Muzzle scrunched against the impulse to spit - or worse, swallow it away - the boy continued chewing, thinking up plenty of things to yell at Gent when he could spit the goop out again. Except... where would he spit the goop out? Still chewing, the pup glanced around, thinking that surely he wouldn't just spit the stuff out flat on the dirty ground. How would it help his foot feel better if it had all kinds of leaf bits and dirt in it? Wouldn't that be just as bad as not treating the infection at all?

-fluff fluff fluff- 2 down!

He further appreciated not only the boy's attentiveness, but also the parotting that he performed. It proved that he was not just listening but understanding, and while he trusted the child to be old enough to handle such a simple portion of a medic's responsibilities, he knew that this was still possibly a dangerous thing should Draven take things too far. Yet it seemed the boy comprehended the importance behind Gent's warnings, and he was satisified in knowing that his son was smart enough to heed his father.

"Right," he encouraged with a nod of his muzzle, and watched as the boy went ahead and began as instructed. A chuckle escaped the king as Draven's snout swiftly twisted with distaste; he hadn't thought to warn him that the leaves would be far from palatable. Yet he persevered, grinding through the awful taste, showing maturity and diligence. Gent noticed that the boy's eyes began searching, and he could easily infer what the question was within his tiny back skull.

"Onto your paw, on the injury," Gent instructed with a smile. He supposed as a treat, to reward Draven for being such a good student, he would catch him a nice juicy rabbit with which to erase the bitterness from off his tongue. That would work, right?