The Beauty of this Season

[☼ Sunstorm]

[atrb=border,0,true][cs=7][bg=EE76EB] My eyes had wandering back to the tree, the one I was thoroughly pleased to come across, and I backed up a step as I looked upward. We needed the nuts and bark; having Dagonet here was handy, because he'd be able to tear bark off easily while it would have taken me a good while. His tone, though, along with his words, caused my eyes to sharply flash toward him. 'I’ve heard Dragunov’s woman is about ready to spawn.' Spawn? Well, that was such a light way to put it. I snorted, letting my eyes roll at his crude way of speaking. Guys. "What a lovely way to put it." I continued my assessment of the plant, and I noted that high up on the tree, completely unreachable, there were light brown fruits. Ah, yes, the fall time was their maturity season. Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to find fermenting fruits after all; I would only need patience for the things to fall and overrippen. 'So what’s it called?' "The Red Buckeye," I responded, lowering my nose to the ground as I searched for any of the nuts. Since there were pups on the way, these were essential. Normally I would have collected them just to keep them in stock, because it worried me to be low on any herb, though it appeared I woud use these soon. I'd have to come back, but now that I was familiarizing myself with the lay of the land, I could find my way back with no problem at all. "I'll gather some of the nuts, if I can find any. Would you mind stripping some bark? Just don't go too deep, I don't want the plant to suffer. Otherwise, I don't think it'll hurt it." And so I started sifting through the fallen leaves, searching. The only downside to gathering things like this was I'd have my mouth full, and therefore I wouldn't be able to speak. I was sure that the quiet natured Dagonet wouldn't mind that at all; I knew that maybe I was getting on his nerves, but here's the thing: I didn't quite care. That was the beauty of my personality, I didn't care what others thought of me. ooc:// I actually have no idea if it would hurt the tree or not. I just wanted to say. xD I'm kinda making this up as I go along; though the tree really does having healing properties. :P

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[Thirteenth]

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[atrb=background,http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x30/Silehnce/Valley%20Howls/stormbackground-1.jpg] Jocassee didn’t seem particularly amused by my choice of wording, but she didn’t take offense to it either. It was a pleasant change of pace; all of the sudden there seemed to have been a sudden increase in the over bearing feminist type. The ones who would take up an issue with any comment that could be perceived-even in the slightest of ways-as unflattering. Few things were more annoying than having one’s ass chewed by that type. So far she wasn’t too bad. A bit more talkative than suited my tastes, but she could have been considerably worse. The red buckeye. I'll gather some of the nuts, if I can find any. Would you mind stripping some bark? Just don't go too deep, I don't want the plant to suffer. Otherwise, I don't think it'll hurt it, she instructed, and I nodded slowly before walking around the tree to begin doing so. While she searched for the nuts I cleared away some of the leaves, baring a section of the forest floor so I would have a place to set the bark without loosing it among the debris covering the ground. The paper like bark clung stubbornly to the tree, peeling away in narrow strips, curling themselves when I dropped them onto the ground. It certainly didn’t have a very pleasant flavor, and the taste of the sap clung bitterly to my tongue as I continued to pull away the bark. In order to avoid taking too much from anyone section I worked my way slowly higher, until finally I was standing on my hind legs and propping myself up with one paw. Neither one of us spoke much. For Jocassee’s part, it was likely because she had her mouthful. For my own, the quiet didn’t much bother me. I could enjoy the company of another without feeling the need to keep a conversation going; trivial gossip and chatter wasn’t very interesting to me. I did, however, eventually want to speak with her a little more about the work she did for the pack, learn what all she had to work with and what she needed in case there was anything I could do to help. “How much more do you need?” I asked her after a few minutes had passed, voice muffled by the substance in my mouth. Dropping my paw from the tree, I landed on all fours again and let the bark fall into the growing pile, glancing towards Jocassee for a moment before I reared up again to continue harvesting the bark.

[Makarov]

ooc;; I was reading this thread (the cuties) and noticed your question Sunny and thought I'd throw in some of my random nature knowledge for kicks. It most certainly does kill or maim a tree when you strip off too much bark and too deep. But taking strips or chunks off a tree while keeping in mind not to take too much doesn't cause a problem at all.

Jocassee's knowledge on this is quite apt for just guessing. c:

[☼ Sunstorm]

[atrb=border,0,true][cs=7][bg=EE76EB] A silence fell over us as we began working; this type of silence never bothered me. At any other point in time, I'd feel an itch creep its way over me, encouraging me to work my vocal cords, but my mind had changed gears. I was focusing on my job as a Medic; something I felt I was quite good at; and I felt no need to speak. Dagonet knew what he was doing, for I had properly instructed him. If he had questions, he'd ask. Meanwhile, I'd go about my business collecting the fallen nuts. It took a great deal of sifting, for there was a thick layer of leaves blanketing the ground. I relied on my nose for the bittersweet scent, and it effectively did its job. I was delighted to find the first; my tail twitched and waved for a brief moment, the silver fur flashing up before falling again to its casual position between my hind legs. I took it into my mouth and set it aside to be sure I would not lose it. I glanced up at Dagonet to see how he was coming along, and I saw that he had propped himself up on one paw, taking bark from a higher section. A small smile pulled at my face, for I was approving. I turned away after noting how large he had seemed; not that he didn't seem large on all fours. I'd noticed that right away, but being reared up like that just seemed to intensify it. 'How much more do you need?' I spit out the nut I'd just found, adding it to my small, yet satisfying, pile, turning back toward him. I trotted over to where he'd collected the bark, the ends of my fur brushing gently on the tree. I inspected his collection, nosing my way through it as I took in the scent and thought it over. "That seems to be adequete," I said with approval, flashing him a smile before retreating to my own collection. "Now we can head to the stream, if you'd like." And here came the part where I wouldn't be able to talk even if I felt like it. I smirked and chuckled slightly to myself at that thought, fitting the few nuts into my mouth. It wasn't exactly comfortable, nor natural, really, but I payed no mind to it. It was a part of the job. I looked over my shoulder to Dagonet, my amber eyes resting on him with an inquiring attitude. Whenever he was ready, they were saying. ooc:// Took me forever. Sorry about the wait. But here it is. ^^ Annnnd....Mhm, I knew that it should be alright to take a little; and there are some trees that you can take as much as you'd like and it'd be okay. I saw that on Man Vs. Wild, but I can't remember what tree it was. Anyway, I'm having to google all the medical properties of things, and that's the only reason she knows. :D I'm only a tiny slice of Cherokee myself, there's no way I know this first-hand. xD

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