Iridescent Lagoon after every sunny day

Bliss. That must be the only word that could describe Veho's current state. No matter how scary joining a pack for the first time had seemed, Grizzly Hollow had been nothing short of a delight. Borden, though perhaps a touch off, was a pleasant enough alpha. @Rook was an absolute delight, as if there were any doubts. He hadn't much contact with the other members of the pack, though he had little reason to, and less reason not to trust any other wolf marked with the Lyall's scent. He'd simply been busy – he had an entire den to organize! First it was digging out space for supplies, then it was flattening the floor of the small hideaway, and that was followed by acquiring a few, soft pelts to line the dirt with. He'd no idea if he'd be helping patients here – it probably depended on the severity of their ailment – but should anyone ever need to take up residence in the medic's store, he'd want to offer them whatever comfort he could. On top of all this, there was learning the borders, strengthening them with his own scent, and hunting to add to the pack's cache. Normal wolf things. Normal wolf things he'd never done before. It was like being a child all over again, only with all the wisdom of the world at the very tips of his paws. All the same, his heart felt so light it might have floated away if not for his sternum to hold it in place. Gracefully the male floated across the forest floor, chasing the river south of the pack borders in search of plant life that preferred a damper habitat. The Iridescent Lagoon offered just the location he sought, and soon he found one of the items he sought – Hellbore! It would not grow within Grizzly Hollow's land, he knew, so the man gingerly began to pluck the small, bushy stalks from the ground, laying them in a careful pile as he worked diligently along.

The limp had gotten worse. Walking was no longer something she could do by second nature, it was a downright chore. @Urien had not been lying when he'd told her that there was a thorn embedded in her leg, that which had otherwise escaped her battle with the blackberry bush with nothing but a scratch. She'd refused his assistance though. He was just too strange for her to want him anywhere near her, what with the way that he had licked at her wounds without permission. She'd snapped that she'd pull the thorn out on her own, but when the moment of truth came she lacked the guts to do it.

Like she had been told it had festered and swollen. What should have been a minor wound had turned into a nasty infection. Swelling in the muscles beneath the skin caused a constant ache, the girl now travelling on just three legs, hopping on all but the rear right foot. It had added to her irritability, which only cause her mood to become worse than normal. Arrogance was intensified by the secondary effects of her injury. Pain and hunger and fatigue. How could one tiny little thorn cause this much trouble?!

So when she did move, it was not with any kind of grace. All but stomping her way through this hideous and ugly lagoon, steps splashed loudly as she grunted and panted with her movements. This was not fun, but she wanted to believe that the otherwise stagnant waters would help to dull some of the burning pain. So she entered the water, knowing not whether it was even clean enough to drink, and just let the bottom half of her limb sit beneath the surface of the water. No care for anyone who might have been disturbed by her loud splashing.

While Veho had not been expecting company, nor had he been seeking it, the twitterpated young man was not at all opposed to the notion of another wolf joining him – even if said wolf seemed to be having a veritable temper tantrum.  That, or it was very large, but one glance away from his growing pile of hellbore made it quite obvious that the latter was not the case.  For a moment, the medic remained quiet, simply observing the female as she splashed around the lagoon without a care for who or what she might be disturbing.  After the briefest thought of ignoring the girl, for she clearly did not call out to him, despite no attempts to mask himself, the Hollow wolf cleared his throat before he spoke, not wishing to startle the loner.

"Hello there," the medicine man called, not moving from his pile of herbs.  He did not want the stranger to feel threatened – his intentions were anything but to harm her.  "You look like you are in need of assistance, friend.  My name is Merlin, I live nearby," he hummed, only realizing after that Rook had suggested his packmates not give out their names so freely.  Heat rose to the male's cheeks, but he well couldn't take it back now.  The traveler was so used to introducing himself to anyone he met – it would require some training for him to break the habit.  Regardless, the damage was done.  It was best he see what his new acquaintance suffered from.

"I am a healer, friend.  You look like you might need a bit of help from a wolf like myself, no?"

(This post was last modified: Aug 08, 2015, 02:39 AM by Veho. Edit Reason: Fixed Veho's code name~ )

Was it a matter of stupidity or ignorance that had her blinded to the male's presence until he'd spoken? The issue could be argued for hours, but it was ultimately pinned on the latter. The pain in her leg as it progressed through the days was occupying her concentration. Immune to her surroundings in search of some relief from the agonizing burn. The concept of infection was a new one to her. She knew that it existed and that it could get very serious in some cases, but beyond that there was no knowledge. Nobody had taught her, and so her only association was that the heat in her muscle could be solved by water in the same way as fire could be snuffed by rain.

His initial greeting was met only with a huff and blatant, rude ignorance as she struggled to sink her leg far enough into the water to completely. Teeth clenched as a result of the movements, but determination was evident in the constant persistence. Part of her assumed that by remaining quiet on the issue that this stranger would walk away - leave her be and let her take care of herself. That was until he mentioned his role. Healer. There had been one of those in her old pack! The ones that took care of the wounded warriors upon return from battle. That was what she needed!

Eyes widened and her head snapped to stare at the male with an almost shocked look, like she hadn't known healers to exist outside the sheltered little world she had once known. "Yes." She blinked once, staring without moving as her injured... infected leg twitched with pain. "I was... attacked." Almost true, but it was in her mind at the very least. Urien had pushed her into the blackberry bush on purpose to make this happen to her. There was not a shred of doubt on the matter. "You have to help me." Ah, and there was that trademark sense of entitlement...

There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health

Attached? Veho's ears swept back at the notion of someone assaulting another wolf – one young, small, and clearly on her own. She was no threat to anyone. Even if she was of the less savory sort, perhaps caught stealing, or inciting another wolf, it really was untoward to cast injury upon anyone, really. The male sighed softly and shook his head, wondering what exactly drove a wolf to such actions. But that, that was a thought for another time, when someone wasn't actually in need of his particular talents.

"I will help you, friend. Of course I will help you," he hummed, mildly surprised there was any ever doubt. But that thought was discarded – clearly the female was feeling a bit skittish around strangers. She had, after all, gotten herself into such a predicament in the first place. The Grizzly Hollow subordinate approached the edge of the water and motioned for the lone wolf to join him. "Come, to the shore, please. It's much simpler to inspect on the dry earth," he explained, taking a few steps back to give the vagrant her space in case she required it.

As she brought herself out of the lagoon, Veho cleared his throat, and spoke again. "Can you tell me your name, friend? And explain what happened, perhaps? The more I know, the better I will be able to mend you, you see." Already, his mind was racing, his silver gaze searching the area for suitable painkillers. If there was an infection, he would need a different plant. If there was more than one injury sight, that would change his entire plan.

With her insistance made clear the dark girl watched, wary of the other male despite his seemingly good intentions. She stared him down, awaiting his response. Maybe this was another trap though. Maybe he - like Urien had done, simply wanted to promise her healing so that he could get his tongue on her and taste her pain. The memory made her cringe as it ran in the back of her mind. What kind of freak would do something so foul. Those kinds of behaviours were meant for mated alpha pairings. They were certainly not intended for complete strangers.

He would help, and at the announcement she seemed to brighten just a fraction. Finally! She might not have to suffer through this burning and searing pain for another day. Of course it was in her expectations that the process of healing would be instant. She was completely oblivious to the idea that it was going to take some time, and likely some kind of medication, to get her back to the point that she could be considered fully healed. When the time came it was bound to enrage her, but for the moment she just remained as she was. Blissfully unaware.

She would when prompted turn and make her way to the shores by which he stood, and as she emerged from the murky water, fur on her lower half dripping with the unclean fluid she'd sought to bathe in, the extent of her injury would become a little more clear. What had been nothing more than a scratch had turned the way that Urien had threatened her. It had become infected without attention, and it was quite swollen and red beneath the short fur about her legs.

"My name is..." hesitation - what if this was a friend of Urien? "Karima." Urien had never learned her name, but he'd done quite the job of scaring her it seemed. There was almost nothing she could do without giving thought as to whether or not it might alert the strange male to her presence. To tell this Merlin her name was one thing, but telling him how she'd become injured? That was something else. Embarrassing is what it was, and so she lied. "Some weird man just... bit me out of nowhere." That was about all she seemed willing to share, at least for the time being.

Indecision danced across the young woman's face as Veho drew closer, requesting more information to properly do his job. He could only assume the vagrant had never needed the talents of a healer before, and found the entire process strange and confusing. But his patience won out, in the end, and after several silent moments, the younger wolf offered the requested intelligence with no further prodding. Rewarded the woman with a smile, the healer bowed his head gratefully, starting to shuffle towards her injured limb. He began to look for a bite, but saw little evidence of the savagery of teeth this far away. Of course, it would never do to touch her without permission, and he cleared his throat softly.

"Karima? Would you mind, perhaps, moving a bit so I might get a better look? Would it offend you if I touched it? I would like to see how deep the bite is, and if there is any chance of infection."

There was also the very slight possibility that this 'strange man' had contracted The Madness – Ancestors help Karima if that were the case, for he knew of no possible cure. In fact, even Veho would be forced to abandon her, something he would almost never consider of any patient, were it not for @Rook and the rest of his pack back at home. But he was hopeful she would have mentioned the man's other symptoms, were that the case, and was just indeed a territorial male who'd been a bit too trigger happy.

The eagerness that had been evident in her when he'd first mentioned his talent as a healer had seemingly faded as the moment came nearer. Still this male was a far nicer creature than what Urien had been. This one smiled when she offered what he had asked, rather than sneering and barking that she would get sick if she didn't allow him to help. It put her at ease, though it was ever so slightly. What put her off was not that he was threatening, but that he wanted to investigate. How deep was the bite? There wasn't a bite.

"It's deep." She had to bite her tongue. "It was before anyway." That there had never been a bite, though. Barely a scratch, but it had come with an infection, making the wound look far worse than it had been at first. Granted it could have been healed if only she had bothered to tend to it a little, but when one had never been gifted with the knowledge, how could they be blamed? She never knew any better how to heal herself than she did that dipping it into the kind of water she'd done would make it that much worse.

Move? She did as she needed, and though it took a long while she finally found something inside her that gave her the strength to agree to his request. "If you really have to touch it... I guess so... but you better not hurt me." How he might achieve that was a mystery, but she sounded intent with her demands. Already she was starting to prove why she was bound to have a hard time fitting in with any kind of a pack. She was young, yes. She was oh so desperately needy though as well.

“I’m afraid I do have to touch it, my friend. I promise I will be as gentle as possible,” Veho reassured his patient, waiting until verbal permission was given before approaching the injury any further. And this, my friends, was why it was exactly why it was so important to wait for the injured party to consent to treatment – clearly this loner was fearful, and simply brushing up against her would send the woman into a tailspin. Such reckless activity could even lead to further injury if a man wasn’t careful.

Carefully, he pressed his cool, moist noise closer, sniffing the wound for that telltale sickly sweetness. Finding none, he gave a soft nod and brushed against the fur before pushing his nose into the skin for but a moment. Pulling away, he spoke. “Fortunately for you, it seems your bite has started to close well with no infection – there is no heat, and it smells clean. You have done a find job caring for it yourself thus far,” he praised Karima, taking a few steps back to smile again at the woman. It hardly looked liked a bite – it could be an old wound, or not what the woman claimed it to be, but her life was her own business, and he would not pry into her private affair or how she’d gotten the injury in the first place.

“As I cannot see any reason to disturb the wound, I might suggest some hellebore for you. It will help with the pain, and is found in this sort of area. Does that sound acceptable, Karima?”