Thicket of Secrets Crataegus douglasii.

Finally spring had arrived and Emrys couldn’t be happier.  Now he would be able to find the plants he wanted in order to stock up his stores.  It was what he’d been waiting on all winter.  All that had been on his mind for the past few days was everything that he had to do to get himself established as s healer in his new home.  What had made things easier was familiarizing himself with the places he could find the plants during the winter.

Since he’d finished the preparations he’d needed to make at home it was time to start collecting the plants he needed.  Most of his morning had been spent traveling to the Thicket of secrets where he knew he could find one of the plants that was very important to have in his stores.

Emrys knew Black Hawthorn well, his mother had made it a point of making sure he did.  So when he spotted the white flowers he knew he he’d found what he had been looking for.  He didn’t waste anytime starting to collect the bunches , leaves included. All parts of the plants were very important for his healing.

The thicket had become one of the female's favorite places, as the seclusion and abundance of prey suited her well. Spring had come, coaxing seedling and blossoms up from the earth. Many of these were useful for healing, and as she recovered from an illness she had developed while traveling across the territory. She had finally gotten some food in her stomach, but she was weak and found sleeping difficult. She hoped to find a remedy in the thicket's underbrush. She had been snaking her way through a particularly thick patch of brambles when the scent of another wolf met her senses. The trail was fresh, so the lone individual had passed by quite recently. She had a mouthful of black hawthorn flowers, so despite her curiosity, she was tempted to ignore the trail and head back to her temporary den. However, she had been alone for quite some time, and was desperate for conversation. She was also curious about the packs in the area, and perhaps this was a pack wolf who could give her the information she sought. Her ears swiveled to try and pick up any sounds of movement but she couldn't pinpoint the location of the other wolf. She deposited the herbs she had collected in a small hollowed out section of an oak tree quite close to her makeshift home and followed the trail.

It was a male, and she wondered if she should be more guarded. She was a particularly small female, and most wolves could overpower her. She was fast and and agile, but the confinement of the dense forest would make a getaway more difficult. Her pace slowed, and her body tensed in anticipation of approaching the male. But she couldn't quite locate him. She paused in a grove of trees, completely surrounded by his scent but unable to hear or see him. Where is he? Her eyes narrowed and she bristled, now anxious. Is he hiding? Did he hear me coming? She had noticed broken branches, and in the hawthorn tree above her, twigs, leaves, and flowers were missing. Was someone else collecting the plant?

Thoughts | Speech

The white male was glad he could finally cross Black Hawthorn off his list of things to collect. As he pick a few of the branches he also took note that this grove would supply him for the summer. He'd also decided that he would have to come back closer to winter and stock up before the bushes went dormant for the colder weather. As he plucked the branches from the bushes he laid them in a nice pile in preperation of carrying them back to his den. He wasn't really sure how many he should take or would be comfortable to carry that distance. This stocking up on supplies was rather new to him so he had something to learn there too. There were still so many things to work out and do in order to begin his healing.

When Emrys had collected what he thought was enough to at least supply him for some time he wondered if there might be anything in the area he could use. So he left what he'd collected slightly hidden by one of the bushes and moved in one direction looking for signs of other plants. As he smelled the air the scent of another wolf, a female had caught his attention. He was sure the scent hadn't been there before and he wondered how long it had been there before he noticed. He made a note to himself to pay more attention to his surroundings while he was collecting his plants.

The question now was where was she and why hadn't she showed herself. "Hello," he called into the forest around him. "I know your there, can you please show yourself," he added hoping that might get her to come into the open. Emrys really didn't like the thought someone might be spying on him. He also didn't like the thought that someone might be trying to ambush him. He was always very careful about where he traveled to that he didn't step on anyone's toes, especially that of a whole pack. He didn't want any trouble with any of them so that in the future if they needed help he could do what he had been working most of his life to do..

(This post was last modified: Apr 27, 2016, 02:53 PM by Emrys.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

The seconds that had passed seemed much longer, so much longer that she was almost relieved when his voice cut through the thick vegetation to reach her ears. She could finally tell his exact location, and she stepped slowly into the light quite close to him, moving carefully so she wouldn't startle him. She assessed the male, noticing that like most wolves, he was significantly larger than she was. He was a medium build, almost entirely white, and contrasted greatly against the thick green foliage behind him. She was surprised she hadn't been able to spot him. Her dark coat blended much more easily into the shadows, which she always used to her advantage.

"I'm here," she said softly. "I'm sorry - I didn't mean to startle you." Her eyes fell on his pile of hawthorn. She suspected he was probably a healer, or a wolf working with a healer. There was no other reason to collect such a quantity of herbs. She tilted her head slightly, a small smile on her face, and sat back on her haunches, her body language relaxing. Apparently she was not the only one with their sights set on this patch of black hawthorn. She gestured to the pile with her head. "Are you collecting plants for healing?" she asked, not bothering to introduce herself. Since healing was her chosen path as well, she was much more interested in his knowledge of local plants than she was in his name.

She had been fortunate enough to find many plants, flowers, and herbs of use to her quite close to her den, but she was sure there were materials elsewhere that could not be found here, even in this overgrown area. She wondered if this male had traveled elsewhere in the region. Though she could not detect a pack scent on him, she was curious as well to find out whether or not he was a solitary traveller, like she herself was. The thought occurred to her that perhaps many solitary healers lived or worked in this area, as there was such an abundance of plant life.

(This post was last modified: Apr 27, 2016, 06:40 PM by Soren.)

After calling to whoever was in the area Emrys waited for a response his ears swiveling in each direction as he listened for sounds of someone approaching. It took a few moments but he finally heard a sound to indicate what he assumed to be the other wolf he’d caught the scent of approaching. He was a bit surprised when she came in to view rather close. She was one of the smallest wolves he’d seen and her coat was rather dark. His eyes followed her movements as she came further into view and took a seat in front of him. Emrys didn’t feel threatened by her presence though he was curious what she might be doing in the area.

“Don’t be but thank you for showing yourself,” he said when she apologized for startling him. Though she hadn’t really startled him, he just liked to know who was around. He didn’t want anyone to need help but to be too afraid to ask. He too had finally sat back on his haunches as well in hopes that he might ease any fears the female might have. After all he felt that it was only natural a wolf of her size to be a little worried about what could happen, even he worried about it when meeting a wolf larger than himself. Emrys looked to the pile of black Hawthorn when she mentioned it and asked about healing. “Yes, I am. I’ve been busy stocking up since spring has finally come,” he responded, “So you need help?” He asked just in case she might need some kind of help.

Though he hadn’t been practicing the healing arts for very long he was sure that he could take care of any minor problems that she might be having. Still to look at her she didn’t seem to be having any trouble, feeling sick or the like, still it didn’t hurt to ask. “What brings you here?” he asked letting his curiosity about why she was there getting the better of him. .

(This post was last modified: Apr 30, 2016, 02:59 AM by Emrys.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.