"Planting"

Cast: Seed (Deme) & Nyrandisa (Netha)

TLDR: Seed plants some seedlings that had began growing in his arm, as per usual. Nyradisa finds him and learns of what he's doing. They talk about a shared interest in herbalism. They discuss medicines for various races before departing.

Support Points Earned: 1

[10:09 PM] LadyDeme: Seed lifted his head towards the horizon, where the sun was sinking low, slinking down into the treeline that marked the difference. Really, it was a beautiful countryside; a part of him had missed it for a long time now, and that part opened up like a flower. Missing flower gardens -- missing the streaky colors that now filled the sky above him -- missing the particular soft-topped grass that grew in the region. It was sad that it was all such a mess. Seed was in the progress of finding spots where he could replant a few of his more mature seedlings, that were getting overgrown across his right arm's mossy bed and were starting to extend runners out towards his hand or drape themselves into his elbow, without disturbing that soft grass. He paused and hunched down in a shady spot near a few bushes he thought would serve well for a particular fern that was -- well -- the tall tree had to admit that it was making him somewhat ticklish.

[10:17 PM] NethaEmerald: As sunset slowly enveloped the landscape of the camp, Nyrandisa had set off on her own to find a quiet place to observe the sunset. She never saw them like this as a young Jera, and rarely had time to admire them as she hoped from place to place for a living. There was a sort of serenity to be had with the sunset for her. Perhaps it was inspiring for her that even if the light turns into darkness, light will always come back in the form of sunset. Or perhaps it was the soft reds and oranges that filled the skies, sometimes with blue or purples of the other colors of the sky. Regardless of such sentiment and awe, Nyra was focused on finding a place to sit down and just watch the sunset. As she fluttered along, grass swaying softly with her wingbeats, something caught her eye. It was someone kneeling down, and they appeared to be pulling things off them and putting them into the soil. Curiosity filling her, the shaman found herself fluttering to the source, which happened to be Seed. As she got closer, for recognized them as one of the priests of the group she was with. She personally hadn't needed the services yet, but knew that she would eventually. As she drew closer, she tried to approach as quietly as possible. Once within soft speaking range, she asked "Whatcha doin?"

[10:29 PM] LadyDeme: At first, he'd thought the voice was little but the rustling of the bush above, which loomed over -- some tall bush with hard leaves, all glossy green above and brown leathery underside below that he recalled as being somewhat interesting to feel, all told. It was slowly, piece by piece like the fragmented sunset drifting through the little copse of trees and bushes, that Nyara's voice settled into the Florkana's pointed ears. The effect was like a ripple, first a little breezy sway of the crown of branches about his head, and then to his face, and so on.. His fingers left the little layer of dirt he'd placed over the fern's roots. His hands' papery brown surface was streaked with a deeper brown soil -- he didn't quite know what to do with them yet, but he'd pulled them back as if he had expected something, to hide or to simply have something more to do. He'd already turned his head up to thr fluttering shamaness -- he'd heard her name, but not often; she'd come late, and he'd rather been in a meloncholy humor in the city that didn't lend itself well to meetings. "Ah, miss Nyrandisa. Well, you see, I was replanting this fern." He gestured to the little plant, which curled happily, undisturbed by the process of having moved it. "I occaisonally take up little seedlings -- something of a hobby of mine -- but there comes a time to let them out, before they get too big for my arm." He lifted that arm a notch, so she could see the slightly overtaxed nursery therein.

[10:41 PM] NethaEmerald: As Seed spoke about the plants in his arm, Nyra was kind of fascinated. She never saw anyone who carried plants on them to plant elsewhere like that. Perhaps it was also due to the fact that she didn't see many of Seed's race, but it was still awe-inspiring, in a way. Here was this priest of the staff, going around with a nursery of plants on him, to plant in areas that had little vegatation for what he was growing. The best Nyra could do was spread pollen by flowers to help plants make seeds on their own, which wasn't as grand; anyone could do that. As the plant seemed happy to be put into the new soil, she nodded and responded with "Interesting. I've never seen someone take the appleseed story so seriously before. It's inspirational, in a way. You harbor and foster life, to give it another chance at something greater, just like your healing magic can do. Bringing someone to a relatively healthy form again might do more for the world that at first glnce, just like your seeds. They might not do much now, but later on? Might prove to be home for multiple species and provide food for even more." After staying silent for a moment, she stopped looking at the fern and looked at Seed. "It's really a skill I want to pick up; to supplement what I know of natural, herbalist medicines, of course."(edited)

[10:57 PM] LadyDeme: Seed's face might have taken on a faintly greenish lustre, caught by the sudden and philosophical praise for what had been something of his more unusual hobbies -- it was never anything people thought badly of, but even among Florkana, something like that was a little striking. He'd picked it up more or less in isolation from anyone else... So the sudden praise was jarring, and he couldn't help but chuckle, even if he nodded. "Ah, you flatter my little hobby as part of a grand design... But I hope I do them, and the places I visit, a little good. I try to avoid transplants that could get invasive, but people rarely know the consequences of their actions. Perhaps you paint a true portrait... But perhaps the fern's enough, itself. It's sad, when something's struggling wherever fate left it." He shrugged and gestured to the fern -- as if its own self-evident quality was good enough. He also neglected to say a bit more to that, and hoped she wouldn't notice -- that it covered his own flaws, in a very real way. But before he could dwell too hard on his own avoidance, something she said caught his attention. "You're also interested in herbalism? I'll admit, gardening this way is very good for learning about that. I try to find uses for everything I can pick up; I guess I'd call it rent."

[11:04 PM] NethaEmerald: When herbalism was brought up of his own lips, she nodded back, not really noticing out of place. In response, she said "Well, I hope for the world you continue your efforts. Perhaps myths will be born of you, and others will follow in your path." with a smile. She meant no ill-intent with that. "As for myself? Yes, i'm into herbalism. Many years on the road on my own got me really good at finding natural ways to ease my own various wounds and illnesses. While I haven't had time to explore it while with the group so far, I hope to eventually pick it up again. Same as Alchemy. But right now? I'm almost a cook, just making candy for those who keep taking my own candy from me."

[11:24 PM] LadyDeme: "Don't worry; I don't intend to stop. Though, I admit, people following in my footsteps would be a sight." The Florkana's voice was bright with a more cheerful wistfulness, imagining a strange image. He rose up to his feet -- there was a lot of rise to that, most of it wrapped in a flowing, soft long tunic, in a shade of quiet teal that seemed sharp against his deep brown bark and his green leaves. His arms were bare up to the shoulder, which sprouted into whispy branches. "Ah, my history of it's much the same, though I had a little start in my own life from my first teacher..." He paused, remembering the candy he'd recieved from Saarva; that was some time ago now. Where had it gotten to? Had he eaten it, or perhaps it was still amid his things? "We have candy thieves?"

[11:28 PM] NethaEmerald: Nyrandisa nodded. "Indeed we do. Suleiman and Zain. They both took a huge majority of the Honey Candy I had before joining this group. At least I have some Honey to make more, but perhaps i'll keep it from their prying hands next time." she responded with a giggle. "Maybe i'll make them slave for me to make more candy if they want some of mine." That idea did sound and feel amusing to her. Regardless, she brought it back to Herbalism. "I learned all on my own. Wasn't pleasent with Poison Ivy got to... questionable places. But I have a really good idea on what's good to use for medicine and what isn't now. Haven't had the Ivy incident repeated. Perhaps we can collaborate sometime and make some natural cures for the group to apply to wounds if they get too careless? Or maybe something for common illnesses, like a cold."

December 6, 2017

[1:45 PM] LadyDeme: "Suleiman, I'd expect -- he's been missing sweets while on the road. But Zain? Color me surprised," Seed said, bringing up a hand to his face as he considered the possibility that Zain was such a relentless sweet-hound! He'd have to be sure to keep that in mind when making reccomendations or serving tea. Seed chuckled at her giggle, and her villainous plots of vengence. "Don't work them too hard, now." The poison ivy tale brought a polite sympathy to his face -- it wasn't exactly commiseration, though. Even his most delicate bark was thicker than most skin, and, well, it just didn't reaction the same to things like that. He knew how to treat poison ivy better than how it felt. "That sounds like a splendid idea. I'll keep an eye out for anything I think would be especially useful; while I have a few salves on-hand, I'm mostly relying on my staves and things I made before I left." There were a few plants that could grow in the area that would make for a decent salve sometime -- and she apparently had honey, which could be handy for something topical. Seed tapped his fingers up against his face, thoughtfully. "If you already have honey, perhaps working on an antiseptic would be prudent; while it can be used by itself in a pinch, though that'll depend better on what we can find. I'll let you know if I spot anything that'd be safe to work with... Though..."

[1:45 PM] LadyDeme: He paused and considered his audience. If the group was, by mass, mostly anything, that was beorc, branded, and laguz -- humans, in other words, whose biologies often had any particular quirks, but who were more alike than they were different. And he'd read a little on medicines for Kano and Ayzer, and what might be useful (Kano, for example, had a set of remedies around temperature control, but also found some plants productive for keeping all their internal barriers strong, as it were) ... But Jera were a little more mysterious. "Is there anything I should know about making medicines for Jera? With Suleiman and yourself as the Jera travelling with us, I think I don't have to worry about too much, but it'd still be very well to know."

[2:52 PM] NethaEmerald: "Well, I doubt that any of them even know how to cook, so it would be subpar candy." Nyrandisa responded to the first part with. As Seed spoke about the two of them working together, and about the honey, she felt stupid. "Oh, right! I forgot about that property of honey. I usually use it for it's sweetness than anything else. Maybe I'll try to set some aside for that very use, though I might get carried away and turn it all into candy." Nyrandisa admitted. She was eager to make some candy again, that she might forget to save some. As the conversation turned to Jera medicine, she thought for a little bit. "Most things that work on humans work on us. We have a lot of human anatomy, with some of insects too. Though ingested medicine should be sweet, not bitter. Bitterness is a bad taste for butterflies, and won't do us any good."

[11:21 PM] LadyDeme: Seed didn't know about Zain or Suleiman's ability to cook, and so let that topic lie a little -- though now he was pondering if either of them could; he suspected if Suleiman could make his own sweets, none of this would happen. "Well, if that happens, it's no trouble; it'll be best used for some insatiable sweet tooths. Besides... I have a small supply. For tea, usually." Seed explained. He liked it sweet -- well, he was himself a producer of a sweet fruit, though he was at the end of a fruiting cycle and now back to dainty purple blossoms budding throughout his branches. So he nodded at the reminder to keep medicines he gave her sweet, if it could be arranged. "I'll try to keep that in mind, then... But you know the point of medicine isn't that the flavor does one good, right? Still, I'll do what I can to make it easier going down, should I ever need to treat a Jera."(edited)

[11:36 PM] NethaEmerald: "Well, bitterness is usually associated with stuff in plants that insects shouldn't eat. Since we do have butterfly characteristics usually... I'm not saying we can't, but at least keep it in mind." Nyrandisa corrected on her last statement. She herself had no big problems with bitter; she liked to think she could handle most non-meat cuisine that came her way, but that didn't mean she liked it. Once that was taken care of, she flipped the question onto Seed "And what about woth Florkana? Anything we need to know if we need to treat you with natural cures? I can't say I know a lot about Florkana treatment."

[11:50 PM] LadyDeme: "I will do what I can," he answered thoughfully, glad that the lesson was a bit more specific. "Ah... Florkana don't get sick in that sort of way very often; we simply don't have the anatomy to suffer serious digestive or respistory ills," he admitted with a bit of a shrug. Still, he thought about it for a time, wanting to at least give her something. There were times he helped people in his neighborhood when they weren't wholly well -- but it was a little different. "More likely, we'd need some antifungals, or a prefferably targeted insecticide. Treatment otherwise would most likely involve pruning, water control, minerals, and care than explicit medicine." Seed explained -- most Florkana illnesses had some insect or fungus at their base, or an improper amount of water, light, or food: they were hardy against the sort of illnesses for that. "I can show you a few sometime." He then hesitated, drawing his gaze downwards towards his arm, and wondering, for just a moment, if he ought to say something. While the hollow was mostly secured, he did have to make sure it was in good shape, every so often. But he would be fine, fine. He didn't have to worry. "To be honest, even in the event we did get sick with a human illness -- I have, once or twice -- it'd be better to just supply me with some fetilizer or mulch, or something nutritious for us dissolved into water, placed over the roots or the ground where I'd rest; we don't intake enough of our nutrients orally for it to be very helpful regardless of the cause, and can fight off most things....So I guess your way of learning probably wouldn't have gotten me very far, come to think of it."(edited)

[11:57 PM] NethaEmerald: As Seed talked about treatment to Florkana, Nyrandisa listened. As she did, she realised that any natural things she could make for fleshy bodies wouldn't work on Florkana. She had to ponder and digest the information given to her for a moment before she responded, and she did do with "So like how you take care of a plant? That sounds... unique, but i'll keep it in mind. I know of a few oils that work well for fighting fungi, though they aren't terribly common. As for pesticides.... I hear peppermint works really well for repelling insects." If anything, she at least knew that Seed would be very hard to treat if magic was unable to be used on wounds he would suffer, but not impossible. "Sadly, I lack any of the materials I mentioned, but i'll keep my eyes open now, since they have bigger uses for the group."(edited)

December 7, 2017

[7:15 PM] LadyDeme: "That's right; I often prescribe a peppermint tea to a few people in my neighborhood... It sounds troublesome if you're used to more fleshy patients, but the fact of the matter is, a Florkana can go decades without any real health issues -- we're nothing if not resilient, and can mostly bounce back from a broad variety of trauma and injuries, given enough time." He tried soothing her a little with that reminder, since he could see from her sort of thoughtful face that perhaps that she was dwelling on concerns about taking care of his needs. She shouldn't worry, was what he'd decided, frankly long before meeting her -- before meeting any specific person in his life today. Seed fidgeted with his fingers, brushing some dirt off of him. "I have some dried mint, but that can wait. I'm sure we'll find a fair bit of mutual exchange here -- at the very least, in our supplies. If you don't mind some of your materials turning up in an herbal tea."

[7:36 PM] NethaEmerald: "Ooh... peppermint sweets and tea sound really good..." She thought when Seed said he had some dried mint on him. "Very well: I don't see why not. Though I hope you don't mind if I don't use them purely for medicine. Sometimes, good cooking and sweets is a good way to raise morale. I'll try to not do that too often, though, unless the supplies are my own." She responded back. When she noticed he was cleaning dirt off his fingers, she felt he was almost done with his little Johnny Appleseeding. As a result, she started to prepare to flutter again, anticipating movement soon.

[8:27 PM] LadyDeme: "I certainly would appreciate something like that, actually; a little meal for the heart of the group; the sharing of meals and the sharing of blessings is much the same -- and there comes a point when the sweetness of bread and the sweetness of hyacinths are alike to the soul." It was off the cuff, but the words dipped him briefly to a faintly lower voice, one that danced over the words with a bit more fluidity, one that was perhaps a touch more relaxed -- the flourish of his now clean hand suggested he enjoyed it, even if he wasn't sure yet if he was pleased enough to chase the notion. "I'm off to find another place, for another plant, if I can manage it -- you're welcome to come and help, and add to this legend you fancy; if not, I'll bid you farewell for now." He gave a little nod of his head. Seed could see that she'd gone restless herself, if only in response -- the sun goaded the sky into jewel-like tones of red and amber, and so the chances he'd have for this were sinking with the light. If not, another night of being tickled by his own little host of hitchhikers, these so-called legends in the making.

[8:34 PM] NethaEmerald: When Seed had spoke of wanting to move on to plant some more, Nyrandisa pondered the idea of accompanying him. While normally she wouldn't mind, she did want some alone time with the sunset. After all, that is what she originally set out to do. Plus it might add to this legacy if only one brave soul was going around planting new life. "While I would normally accept the offer, I think i'm going to go off on my own. I wanted to watch the sunset, and still do, with what time we have left. It also would improve your legacy if only one man was doing it instead of a group. Well, legacy for you, anyways..." As she finished saying that, she realized that legacy for something good would look good for her to go back home, but she could find her own. This was Seed's thing, and she'd let him take all the credit. "Well, see you back at camp, or on the way. Depends where I go to watch the sunset." She said to Seed as she waved bye with a smile and fluttered off to somewhere else.

[8:53 PM] LadyDeme: "...I think she vastly overestimates the sort of impact I'm likely to have on the world..." Seed said to himself, laughing just a little sadly to himself once she'd fluttered off in the distance, taking the whole notion that anything he did would matter once he was gone with him. So many concerns of legacy -- or legend -- of tale. People here fretted about those things, which might well outlive him. Part of him was inclined to want something like that; who didn't wish to be remembered? He began to set along the path that might see his twilight filled with one last planting, as a ranging seedling tickled at his gnarled arm. All the same, he wasn't sure he wouldn't much rather enjoy, oh, not a legend, but just a little chance to be a part of someone's world now... Though, at the very least, perhaps this gave him a chance for that.
He'd wander, lost in his thoughts about that, unsure if he was smiling or not, until night fell gently down. == RP End ==