Solo Berries and Cherries and Bears, Oh My

[Sayana]

Spring 50, 515 AV

With the whirlwind of wedding plans, Sayana was feeling exhausted and for once she sought out the quiet company of Remi at the Rearing Stallion instead of trying to surround herself with people. The cook always seemed to be there bright and early and while it was only a bell past dawn, she was already in the midst of making food.

“You’re early today. Got something special planned?” The cook asked curiously as Sayana stepped into the kitchen. “I actually just want to get away from all the… busyness,” the Eypharian replied simply. The cook puttered around doing this and that. She seemed happy in the kitchen just as Orin had been. At last Sayana spoke again, “Would you… is there anything I could help with?”

The cook thought for a moment and then her eyes brightened. “Actually, I’ve almost run out of fresh berries and lettuce for my light summer salads. I didn’t realize how popular they would be. There might be another farmer coming in a few of days to restock my supplies, but until then… Have you ever gone looking for berries before? They are in full season right now. As for the lettuce, maybe if you brought back enough dandelion leaves I’d be able to make do.”

Sayana sat up with interest at the suggestion. As much as she loved the city, it was nice to get out every now and then, and she could always look for various herbs while she was at it. “So what do these berries and dandelions look like?” “Dandelions? You don’t know them? They are the yellow flowers all across the open area in front of the main gates. Or at least where there is grass.” “Well then why don’t you use those?” Sayana pressed thinking it was silly to go out of your way when the flowers were right here. “Those would be my last resort dear,” Remi answered with a smile. “And besides, you said you wanted to get away from the busyness.”

Sayana at last gave a nod. The cook had a point. Remi disappeared to fetch a container of berries and opened it to show the Eypharian. “These are the one you’ll be looking for. Blueberries, raspberries and strawberries.” Remi explained as she pointed to each in turn. “If you like, you can bring these along in case you’re not sure if it’s the right kind of berry. Be careful about any others because some berries are poisonous.”

Remi also found some empty jars to hold the berries and a few cloth bags for the dandelions. “One last thing Remi,” Sayana said as she gathered up the jars and bags to put into her backpack. “I’ve been starting to feel my back aching. Is this normal for pregnant women?” “You start to feel it more when the baby gets bigger,” the cook explained. “But one thing I found always helped was a big bath or going swimming. It reduces the strain.”

And with that Sayana knew exactly where she was headed.

[Sayana]

Sayana left the northeast side of the city and headed for the Hotsprings. She had been there a couple times before and it wasn’t too hard to follow the well-used trail that led to the springs. It was hot and Syna blazed down hard upon her. It almost reminded her of Ahnatep, yet here there was the thick forest to protect her from Syna. As she walked there were rocky outcrops with few trees and a less visible trail but soon enough it was clear again with as she scanned the trees for the path.

The soft babble of water announced that she had arrived at the springs. The Eypharian unslung her bag and carefully surveyed the area. She had brought her usual set of daggers at her hip and she hoped she wouldn’t have to use them. There was a soft rustle in the bushes and she quickly moved to draw a throwing dagger, but then she let out a soft breath as a bunny darted out from the greenery. Of course. How could she have forgotten about the rabbits that seemed to breed here.

Sayana took out a jar and cloth bag from her backpack and put it back on before starting to look around the immediate area of the hotsprings. She wondered if the dandelions liked the sun better and therefore weren’t growing so well in the forest. Thoughtfully, she decided to follow one of the trails leading out from the springs and see if it led to a clearing. Making a quick note of where the springs were and what direction she was going in, Sayana set out.

Before she came across any sort of clearing she spotted tiny red berries growing near the edge of the trail. They were shiny and round growing on little stalks. Sayana inspected them suspiciously. They were round like the blueberries but red like the raspberries and strawberries. And Remi had mentioned there might be other poisonous berries out there. Sayana decided to take a few back as a sample, but didn’t want to try eating any.

One clearing was small and just had a couple of wildflowers along the edges but she found a bigger one with a bright array of yellow that could only be dandelions. Excitedly, Sayana checked the fluffy yellow flowers and their prickly looking leaves. Yes, definitely dandelions. She began picking them, leaves, stems, flowers and all. Some of them she even ripped out the roots, but she didn’t really care about making sure she got the roots. The clearing managed to fill almost an entire bag but her back was starting to ache and it was just as well that she could take a break from all the bending.

She was just about to head back along the trail when she noticed some large bushes near the back of the clearing and went to investigate. From a distance she couldn’t see them but as she got nearer the bright little berries were clear. Raspberries. She took out Remi’s sample of berries just to be sure and they looked identical. Beaming at her find, Sayana began picking the berries and putting them into an empty jar. Even as she gathered them, she found that she had to peer beneath the leaves to find some of the berries. The raspberry bush was also somewhat prickly and she had to be careful not to let it scratch over her bare arms. Sayana made quick progress and often used several of her arms at once (one to hold the jar, another to push the bush away and another two to pick the berries). At last she got a jar and a half full of raspberries.

[Sayana]

Sayana carefully followed the trail back the way she came and was reassured as the steady babbling of water became noticeable again. She was getting rather hot from all the walking and the springs looked more inviting than ever. The Eypharian took off a boot and tentatively stuck her foot in the water. Her eyes widened at the temperature. It was quite warm, almost hot. Even though she had been to the hotsprings before, she was still amazed at the phenomenon. Regardless, even though it wouldn’t be quite as ‘refreshing’, she still thought it would be rather pleasant.

She stripped down and tossed her clothes in a pile on a rock and put her backpack nearby. She found a place to comfortably get into the water and with each step she felt the warm water luxuriously encompassing her body. By the time she was submerged up to her neck, she felt a lightness from her stomach. What had Remi said about going for a big bath or swimming? The warmth reminded her of Ahnatep’s heat and it seemed to ease away her aches. Recalling her swimming adventures with Solugh, she leaned back and tried to practice floating. Her rounded stomach popped up above the surface, a little island in the hot water. Gently she kicked her feet to swim across the hotsprings. It was far calmer than the swift Avitar river, which gave her ease and confidence. In the middle she tried to stand up and touch the bottom, and for a moment her heart skipped when she couldn’t feel it. But she managed to calm her momentary panic and start floating again.

Sayana flipped onto her stomach and slowly she swam to the other side of the hotsprings. She kicked her legs gently and swished her many arms through the water. From her new vantage, she could see little plants growing at the edge of the springs. Then her smile widened in excitement. Blueberries! She grabbed one of the little berries and popped it into her mouth. It was oh so sweet and tasty. Surely this was what Remi was looking for. Swiftly she swam back to the other side and got out a jar to collect them. It was trickier swimming with the jar, but she managed alright by keeping it above the surface with her high hands.

The blueberries seemed to cluster around the rocks and dirt surrounding the hotsprings. She picked them dutifully and tried not to eat too many of them. Occasionally she would plop into the water to reach another patch that was hard to access by climbing around the rocks. All the while she made sure not to get the jar wet or worse, lose the berries in the water.

[Sayana]

By the time the jar was full, Sayana had picked most of the blueberry bushes clean. Occasionally she had ventured further from the springs to gather more but many seemed clumped in and around the rocky terrain. Feeling a little more daring, Sayana found a rock jutting out into the springs and jumped off landing into the warm water. She plunged underwater and for a second time she felt a momentary panic. She remembered the powerful water of the Avitar closing in on her, trying to drown her, and then suddenly she was at the surface again.

The Eypharian tried to push the memories away and submerged her face again. This time the fear was lessened. It wasn’t really so bad. She forced good thoughts into her mind and swam across the hotsprings once more. Then she spotted some clumps of white flowers. How could she have not seen them before? Grinning, she hauled herself out of the water and went to gather the plant she knew to be Vyfox. She was careful to take both the flowers and the leaves, knowing each were highly useful. There were several more of the plants further into the woods which she was more than happy to collect. As she went, she started composing a poem for the helpful little herb.

Vyfox vyfox, cleans a cut on the knee
Vyfox vyfox, put it in a tea
Its little white flowers
Have purifying powers
And its leaves will heal you guarantee

It took a couple goes to get the rhyming just right but she was pleased at the verse she constructed. Nothing wrong with a little memory aid with so many other herbs she wanted to learn. The Eypharian returned and placed the five or so plants into her bag.

[Sayana]

By now her feet were dirty from walking about the forest nude and wet. With another large splash she was in the hotsprings, and this time not feeling so panicked when her head went under the water. The Eypharian brushed her long hair back out of her face and flipped onto her back to float. She could practically fall asleep in the warmth of the water and she gazed up into the clear blue sky directly above. She was glad to have come here. Already her back was soothed without feeling those earlier aches.

Floating on her back she kicked at the water, slowly swimming across once more. Though as she looked up she spotted a tree with interesting berries in it. Curious, she adjusted her position in the water and saw that it had bright red berries and some a deeper shade. Deciding she had swam enough, Sayana climbed out from the hotsprings and put her clothes on once more. She then approached the tree and reached up to pick one of the berries with the long stem. After scrutinizing over it for a moment she took a tentative bite. It was quite sweet and something seemed familiar about it. Maybe she had seen it when Orin made all those pies in the spring time.

Sayana took another bite but this time chomped down on the cherry pit. She winced but then carefully ate away at the fruit and spat out the pit. She picked another one, this time a darker shade of red and it was juicier and more succulent than the last. Remi would certainly find a use for these, whatever they were. She got out her bag and began picking more of them and every so often popping one into her mouth.

It wasn’t a very tall tree, but there were only so many of the cherries within arm’s reach. Perhaps other people had been here and had the same idea to eat the sweet fruit. She could grab more by pulling down on a branch but she was wondering if she might be able to climb the tree.

The Eypharian stood near the trunk and was glad of the fairly low but sturdy branches. She gripped one that was higher up with her high hands and walked her feet up the trunk until they reached the first branch. She held onto the bag she had used to collect the dandelions with her low hand and used her mid hands as necessary to brace herself or help her up. Once she got her feet onto that first branch she looked for the next easy branch to climb to. And so the Eypharian progressed higher into the tree, making full use of her arms to balance herself and to reach ever higher.

She didn’t actually get all that high. She stood on a branch about five feet off the ground but at that point they were getting smaller and she wasn’t sure if she could trust her weight on them. Regardless, she could now pick multitudes of cherries that she hadn’t been able to reach earlier and she happily tossed them into the bag she had brought along while keeping a firm grip on the branches with her mid hands.

[Sayana]

Sayana continued picking the cherries and tried to take whole clumps whenever she could. Once a couple of branches were cleared, she moved on to the others. Carefully she stepped to a new branch and moved a foot or two along its length while keeping hold of one that was higher up. Most of the time she held the bag with her lows, the branches with her mids and picked the cherries with her highs. She also had a nice view from where she was and could see quite a bit through the branches.

She heard it before she saw it. A shuffling of leaves and then a looming dark figure. Sayana inhaled sharply when she spotted the big black bear. It seemed to be lumbering along, looking for something, and then it turned its head at the sound of the Eypharian in the tree. Petch.

Sayana tried to climb higher but when she put a foot on the next branch, it buckled with her weight and she doubted that it would be able to support her. The bear moved steadily closer and sniffed around. Sayana quickly drew her throwing daggers in her high hands and her larger cobra-hilted dagger in her mid-right. She used her other mid hand and a low hand for support and watched as the bear grew near. She could throw them now, but what if she missed. Maybe the bear would just wander away and leave her alone. Her knuckles whitened at her grip and her heart pounded in fear and anticipation.

Then the bear growled at her. It growled and stood up on its hind legs. Now her height within the tree mattered little since it could easily reach her legs with its big black paws. She was trapped. She couldn’t climb higher and if she tried jumping down and running she was sure it would maul her. So she did the only thing she could think of.

She gave a loud growl in return and spread her arms wide trying to look menacing. She didn’t make the best ‘bear impression’ and the real black bear before her gave another low growl. With a roar she aimed her two throwing daggers at the bear. With her right high she threw the blade at the bear’s neck though it sank into the bear’s shoulder instead. Shortly after, she did a second throw, this time with her left high and the blade plunged into the bear’s chest.

There was an enraged bellow from the bear and it attempted to swipe at her with a paw. She now used her right mid to fend off the paw with her last remaining dagger. Not only did the dagger block the attack but it injured the bear even further. Yet it wasn’t without repercussions. The bear managed to claw some good scratches on her leg that stung with pain. But she couldn’t let that distract her. If she didn’t fight off this bear or scare it away, she’d have more than a few scratches to deal with. Gritting her teeth, Sayana made another loud growl and waved her arms about trying to scare the animal off.

At last the bear seemed to have made up its mind that it didn’t want to mess with this thing in the tree. The bear had mostly come to the springs in search of some food, namely the berries that grew around the area. The two daggers that had embedded themselves in its hide were certainly not what the bear had intended on this bright summer day. With one last growl in Sayana’s direction, the bear returned to all fours and began to lope away.

[Sayana]

With her heart still pounding, Sayana watched as the bear moved off. Was it luring her into a sense of false security? Did it want her just to come down? The pain in her leg wasn’t helping. She needed to get back home and tend to it with bandages. She also suspected that Aren would be rushing to her aid at any moment due to the call of the Lakan. She needed to get going and reassure him that everything was alright.

The bear was now out of sight even when she tried peering through the leaves and branches of the cherry tree. It was now or never. She kept her dagger at the ready in case it should return and she carefully climbed down the tree. She used her arms to reduce the amount of weight she put on her injured leg and landed softly on her feet next to the tree.

With one more look around, Sayana grabbed her backpack and tossed the smaller bag of cherries into it. Then with hardly a look back she began running along the trails that led back to the city. Her run was more of a light jog as she favoured one leg over the other. The scratches weren’t that deep but it still pained her when she put too much weight on her leg. This limping run got her back to the city and fortunately the bear didn’t seem to have any further interest in her.

Perhaps it was a good thing she found some vyfox that day. The moment she got home she started tending to the wound by pressing the white flowers to it and wrapping her leg up in bandages.

ReceiptReplace two throwing daggers: 2 GM

[Devi]

Your Grades have arrived! Sayana Skills: Foraging: 4 Swimming: 3 Herbalism: 1 Climbing: 2 Weapon Skills - Dagger: 1 Dual Wield: 1 Wilderness Survival: 2 Land Navigation: 1 Intimidation: 1 Running: 1 Lores: Herbalism: Recognising Vyfox Foraging: Recognising Blueberries Foraging: Recognising Raspberries Wilderness Survival: Scaring off a Bear Comments: Lost 2 throwing knives (though I can see you already added a receipt for the cost of replacing these!) Injury - scratches and bruising on leg from bear attack. Will take 20 days to heal, less with medical attention. Nice little thread - it seems like (bear attack aside) Sayana had a nice little break from the city for a day! The only thing I'd suggest for this one is that the bandaging in the last thread seems to be added almost as an afterthought. With a couple more sentences detailing what Sayana was doing and why you could have squeezed in an extra Herbalism point and a Medicine point too. Let me know if you have any questions or feedback. Don't forget to edit your post in the Grade Request Thread to say it's graded and leave a link in there for the Storytellers. Happy Writing!