Secluded Spring A Change of Scenery

The young golden wolf sat and contemplated her choices. Solarra had told her to go south to find her destiny, yet the mountains before her were almost directly south of her former home. The towering rocks brought shivers of pure terror to the girl and she knew that she could never go that route. She didn't know where her unreasoning fear stemmed from, only that it was bone deep and she wasn't strong enough to overcome it, at least not yet... if ever. So, the mountains were out, which meant traveling southwest from here. Her sea blue gaze took in the terrain with it's usual smattering of trees and long dead grasses covered in a pristine white blanket of snow and she nodded the herself. I can do this.

She stood and shook the snow from her pelt, determined to discover whatever awaited her. She was a bit afraid, being on her own for the first time, in the dead of winter no less, but Solarra had been adamant that her destiny was upon her and the time to depart the land of her birth was upon her. She'd said that Azariah shouldn't wait for the safety of Spring. Destiny. How many times had her old mentor gone on about it? More times than she could count, that was for sure. But, she trusted the old Healer with her life or she wouldn't be in a strange land in the fulness of winter as a half-trained healer and a mere yearling to boot.

Well, there was nothing to do, but look Destiny square in the eye and move forward. Taking that first step was the hardest, but the miles and days melted away and before she knew it, she came upon a body of water as the sun was setting for the evening. It was a beautiful spring, sparkling in the fading sunlight and framed by snowy ground. When she laid eyes upon it, she knew that she was headed in the right direction. She slowly made her way to the water and sated her thirst thoroughly for the first time in days. Then she lay down sphinx-like and just watched the play of colors on the water as the sun set.

Yes, this was a good place to rest for a while and take a small break from traveling, before moving on and discovering whatever else this mysterious Destiny had in store for her.

Destiny leads and I follow...for I am Destiny's Child

Ooc; sorry this took so long to get up! <3

IC;

It had been a long travel from the Cherry Orchard that Foal had left behind. He mad met the mysterious and rather unfriendly female beneath the long tree on the crest of the hill. The large male made his way aimlessly through the edges of the trees. He guessed that in the summer this place was a sight to behold; dead vines hung from towering branches, tree trunks packed tightly together. It had to be dense when in full bloom. He made a note that he would come back come spring and see it again. He continued, stopping only when yellow eyes analyzed a faded game trail diagonal to his own. It was a deer and it wasn't fresh, but it was following a natural trail within the trees - as if it were looking for something. His nose touched to the cold ground. No scent left, but turning tail he placed his own large paws inside the premade mold, crushing the size of the hooves.

It wasn't long until he came out on the other side, now aware of what the deer had been searching for. There was a spring before him, practically frozen over completely. Faol knew that it took time for a spring to freeze, and the tracks lay undisturbed, which isn't common in the woods. Something told him that this place was not frequently traveled and for that reason he enjoyed it more. However, his nose betrayed his line of sight. He wasn't alone. The sun set was shining brightly off the surface. Casting ombre shades of red all along the opening in the woods. Stoic as he was, Faol had to appreciate the beauty before him. It took a moment for him to see the wolf that had alerted his nose. She was golden in color and was blending in well with the light casted on their surroundings. She appeared to be resting and Faol thought not to bother her, but he assumed it to be unnerving to have a large black wolf pass by you without letting his presence be known; especially in a desolate place such as this.His head was still slightly foggy from the mushroom incident, and he let out a faint gruff as a "hangover" of sorts thumped in his head.

Azariah had enjoyed to silence that engulfed her once she settled and it stretched on for a while as she admired the myriad of colors that the sunset was painting on the ice free portions of the spring. Even so, her mind drifted back to her friend and mentor. Solarra had saved her life, given her a purpose and love. It may not have been the love bestowed by an emotional close-knit family, but it was sure and strong and she never doubted how the older woman felt about her. Of course her own birth family had given up on her and had resolved to leave the sickly pup to the elements. Solarra had claimed her and raised her as her own. In her heart, she knew that the Healer had passed on to the Afterlife by now. She knew now that that was why she had sent her away.

She was lost in her thoughts and her sea blue gaze had misted over with her memories. When the sound of footfalls and soft grunt came to her golden ears, she blinked rapidly to clear her vision and gracefully rose to her feet. A little ways around the spring was a large mature male. He was black with a blending of browns and grey and white fur giving his underside the look of silver. He seemed fit, but her Healer's instinct told her that something was a bit 'off' with him. He didn't look ill, but he didn't look as if he felt all that well either.

The golden fae kept her stance neutral and waved her long golden plume a few times at the stranger, before she spoke in a soft almost musical voice. "Hello. I'm Azariah" She gave him a friendly smile, then tipped her head curiously with a slightly concerned look on her face. "Are you all right?"

Destiny leads and I follow...for I am Destiny's Child

curious, fearless, yet held of high regard

behold the rogue! Faol Bayard.

It took a moment for his mind to focus. His vision had been altered for hours previously, and the bright sunlight reflecting from the water had suddenly caused a relapse of sorts for a moment or two. He closed his eyes tightly, blinking them rapidly upon opening. Although his sight was not completely lost once again the lines of figures were not completely defined. His gaze was cast to where the voice came from, its tone lightly buzzed in his ears. Yellow eyes came upon the golden figure that had laid next to the water just moments ago. He could tell almost instantly that this wolf posed no threat. Her stance was calm, neutral, and her voice almost whimsical in tone. For a moment he thought that he must be hallucinating for he had never come upon a wolf with such colors. However, he had better sense since sleeping off the symptoms of the fungus the night before.

His voice was in complete contrast to her own. Deep and thick like molasses."I - I'm fine. My head is just," he said, pausing when another throb passed through his skull. Faol imagined this wolf would want to help, but he wasn't expecting her to know how. A least the effects were nearly gone and he was connected with his reality once more. Even if it wasn't a preferable reality to return to. For a moment he felt he might plotz from his inability to cure himself quick enough and his lack of sleep. If anything doing so might give him the ability to fully rest and be done with this inconvenience. He looked back up to her, his gaze was hard, and his eyes were unfocused. The female's tail waved, her head falling sideways in concern. His first thoughts of her consisted of the words young, golden, naive. However, he said nothing more, but winced with another insistent jab to his brain.

(This post was last modified: Jan 30, 2013, 05:12 AM by Faol.)

(I am so sorry for the unforgivable delay!)


Azariah watched the as the stranger almost seemed to cast about. As if he couldn't see very well, but he also looked pained and she started cataloging what might be wrong with him. There were really too many possibilities and she knew that she would have to ask to find out what had happened to the male. This didn't appear to be a simple headache as he started to claim before a wave of pain seemed to overcome him. Although Azariah by nature was somewhat shy, having not been raised normally in a close nit pack, her shyness was quickly overcome by the man's distress. The Healer in her wouldn't let her stand back and let him stay in pain. Surely, she had something in the small cache of dried herbs that she had brought with her and collected along the way to help him. If he would accept help from an unknown wolf, and a yearling to boot.

Many lacked faith in the young, but she had been the sole pupil of a Master Healer and she had faith in her abilities. She took a few steps forward, closing the distance between them a bit. While her tail lowered to show she meant no harm, her head lifted slightly with confidence. No one wanted a cowering Healer. A Healer must take charge of the situation and do her duty to the best of her abilities! She could almost hear Solarra's accented voice reciting one of her favorite mantras. A good one to live by if you practiced the healing arts, to be sure! "I am a Healer and I can help if you like. Why is it that your head hurts so? What else ails you? That is not your only trouble." The last was not a question, but a statement. All the while her voice held confidence, despite is soft tones. Ironically, she was a veritable contradiction of submission and strength all rolled into one small golden fae.

Destiny leads and I follow...for I am Destiny's Child

Ooc; I'm sorry for the delay. I finally got my computer back! Pardon the shortness, I'm trying to catch all my threads up <3

Ic;

After the initial pain had faded and he could look at her without a fog hanging over his head. The small golden girl appeared soft around the edges, but her head was held with a certain confidence. How convenient for him to come across a healer in such a short time after being ailed, like something he had taken the time to daven. The large black male didn't usually appear friendly to others so he inwardly applauded her quickness to aid him. As she approached him he glanced over her, taking in her scent. She asked him what other symptoms he had been experiencing, perhaps to better diagnose him.

"In the beginning I experienced images that were not real, a loss of vision, and altered sense of smell," he said, recalling the day with the small silver fae that still lingered in the back of his mind. He gritted his teeth at his stupidity remembering how he had unwillingly ingested the fungus. "I came across a mushroom of some kind. It got into my nose," he added, falling quiet and looking to the young one curiously to see what she had to offer him.

(This post was last modified: Mar 25, 2013, 04:09 AM by Faol.)

She saw that the wave of pain seemed to be easing, at least somewhat. After a few moments, he answered her question and she raised an eyebrow. That must have been some doozy of a trip. She had learned of the effects of certain mushrooms from Solarra, but many produced the effects that he had spoken of. Just as many were perfectly harmless. It seemed that any real danger had passed, leaving the poor man in varying stages of discomfort. She knew of no treatment for the ingesting of a hallucinogen, although she was sure there was one. Even if it was just time. What she could help him with was his headaches. And perhaps more with her tiny store of Hellebore. Luckily, he had come upon her here or she would be at a loss as to where to find any such medicine in this new land. It would take a while to learn all that this region had to offer.

Giving him a sympathetic nod she replied, "Yes, many mushrooms can be highly hallucinogenic...making you see things that are not there. I have no exact treatment for that, as I'm only partially trained I'm lacking yet in many areas. However, your headaches I can definitely help with." She turned and moved gracefully away from him at a trot to a small rock where she nuzzled through a few of her precious dried medicinal plants. Selecting a small bit of Hellebore she made her way back to him. She lay it in front of him and instructed, "Take a small amount of this and chew it thoroughly before swallowing. Be very careful not to eat too much or it might make you sick, instead of helping. This is enough for three doses, if you need that many. It will alleviate your headache and any other minor aches that you might have. It's called Hellebore."

The name would likely mean little to him, but she was a firm believer that you should know what you put in your body. Then she added, "Also, for the next few days, I would drink as much water as possible. It will flush out the last of the mushrooms effects and will likely help with the headaches as well." As an afterthought, she lowered her head and divided up the Hellebore into three parts. With his head hurting so, she didn't want to risk him accidentally taking too much at once.

Destiny leads and I follow...for I am Destiny's Child

curious, fearless, yet held of high regard

behold the rogue! Faol Bayard.

It took Faol a moment to register what the girl was saying from the throbbing inside his skull, but he had managed to understand the gist of it. The young girl didn't appear to be more than three years of age, but her confidence in helping him did not waver. He had given her the list of his ailments and she had quickly turned tail on him to find something to alleviate the discomfort. He watched as she swiftly moved from him and came back with a herb of some sort. It was deemed 'Hellbore'. Quietly Faol listened to the young girl as she instructed him what to do, and he must have had a look of bewilderment because she took the time to separate the doses for him. Normally he would have been wary of someone who jumped to help him so quickly. Someone who was attempting to get him to eat foliage unknown. It was impossible that this young wolf would be nothing less than a kind soul. After a moment of convincing himself, and the fact his head was pulsing, Faol bent over and took the plant inside his mouth.

He chewed it, rolling it around on his tongue, and exposing his teeth. It was like eating grass when canine digestion needed aid, but the foliage had a distinct taste that he had not come across before. After a moment he swallowed and looked back to the girl."I do hope that you are well versed in this kind of thing," he said. A small inflection of question in his voice.

Azariah watched the male as he concentrated on what she said and then cautiously chewed a dose of the medicine. She had worried that he would choose not to trust her because she was unknown to him and very young. Her small size did nothing to help with that matter as she looked even younger than her year and a half to most. She gave a pleased nod as he consumed the medicinal herb. It might not be the tastiest of meals, but it would help his head... and it was far from the worst she could have treated him with.

When he finally swallowed the herbs and spoke, she couldn't help a tiny smile. "I do hope that you are well versed in this kind of thing," She might be young and inexperienced in life, but she was well ahead of most others her age when it came to healing. Most wolves were just making the decision to become Healers by a year or more of age. She'd been trained by a Master Healer from only six months of age. When she was sure that all of the medicine was down and it seemed as if it would stay put she finally answered with a confident nod. "Please don't let my size and age mislead you, Sir. I studied under the very best for over a year. You will feel better soon. Please, drink some water as well. It will help the Hellebore do it's job and ease your discomfort." Her voice was soft and soothing as she stepped back to allow him easier access to the water.

He seemed to be scrutinizing her and she wondered what he might think of the strange young fae from the north. Really that was unimportant. What mattered right now was that she fulfilled her calling and helped him. Her sea blue gaze raked over him looking for the tiniest sign of relief from his pain. It would take a bit, but not terribly long and she was anxious to see her impromptu patient on the mend and feeling more himself.

Destiny leads and I follow...for I am Destiny's Child