Collcecting Herbs and...Berries?
RW Abbey: Cavern Hole
This room is slightly smaller than Great Hall, but still of a size large enough to accommodate a great number of gathered beasts. A large fireplace is set into one of the walls, and there are a series of small tables and chairs near one end for beasts who are eating late, or simply prefer the smaller tables for their meals. Cushions and blankets have been set in one corner. A short flight of steps leads up to Great Hall, and along the walls of the stairs, going both ways, the word 'Redwall' has been carved into the stone.
Exits/Entrances:
[G]reat [H]all
[Ki]tchen
Caleb walks into the cavern hole after finishing helping with breakfast for the day and sits down at one of the tables by the doorway to the kitchen
Cynthia smiles "Hello Caleb, I see you been busy this morning."
Caleb nods "Yeah I helped cook breakfast and made the rolls and some oatcakes with honey and some of whats left of the berries"
Cynthia smiles "Your cooking is always wonderful Caleb, you know strawberries will be ripe very soon and maybe me and you could find some wild ones as they always seem to ripen in the woods sooner than in the abbey"
Caleb chuckles, "Well I try my best and we could look for some maybe, I don't know though as the patch is fairly far. My dad will be looking for some herbs soon maybe we could go out when he does."
Cynthia frowns slightly "Is there some sort of danger outside? We could always go during the day and have an adult of some sort go with us, right?"
Caleb shrugs "I have no clue, sorry but yeah take an adult or dad's bird friend Thunderwing if he is around"
Cynthia sighs "I dislike being cooped inside too much; I need to have a walk in the woods. I mean it’s not like I wouldn’t be back ya know and I am sure you don't plan on disappearing either"
Caleb says, "Well they worry I guess cause of what happen last time."
Cynthia just nods"Yeah I know but if we are with someone, then it should be good right? We just wouldn't be out too long. We could see bout going out when your dad is looking for herbs maybe?"
Caleb at first looks like he won’t answer and then "I can ask ok, and ..well maybe, getting some strawberries would be good"
Cynthia smiles "That would be great and a chance to get a good walk in for a change...a shirt walk not a long walk"
Caleb says, "You can walk around the abbey ya know"
Cynthia shakes her head "Its not the same, and you can see more in the woods. Its good to get out once in a while you know"
Caleb says, "Well..yeah I guess so. The friar might like some wild strawberries also so and you can sometimes find things in the woods that are sort of neat"
Cynthia grins at this and nods,"Yep so...do we go ask while its early and light outside, we could have some wild strawberries by lunch time"
Caleb smiles “Sounds like fun and a good plan and it has been awhile since I took a break from being kitchen helper"
--Hour later in the woods somewhere—
Leon keeps an eye on the two beasts as they walk along. “You two stay close, that patch of wild strawberries is close but you never know what else is close by.”
Caleb nods “Course dad.” He smiles as he finds something else “Look dad some its Nettle you need some of that, and some red and even white clover is growing here too.”
Cynthia blinks “Those are herbs for healing? I just always thought of them as flowers to make chains from, well that’s sort of neat.” Guess it’s ok to learn while one is out and about.
Leon smiles “Good job son. I know you are a lot more interested in cooking rather than healing but knowing plants is a very important skill to have. You never know when your need to know one”
Caleb smiles “Well it’s not hard to learn more than normal when both your grandma and father are skilled healers. I even know some good herbs for cooking thanks to Friar Lacota”
Cynthia offers her own smile as she looks around, “It’s a sunny day at least, and that’s always nice.” She grins and goes to climb to a low branch on a tree.
Thunderwing is nearby keeping an eye out for any trouble and every so often pecking at some fish he has.”Sun shine day good day ya?”
Leon nods “yes, its nice you stopped by Thunderwing. Maybe you can let Lord Ciocan and his hares know we got back ok, though I am sure Zinnia has written a letter and sent it by now, then again she has not mentioned it if she did”
Thunderwing nods “Is ok ya..I go ask soon.” Soon seems to be now as he then flies off calling back to them “Thunderwing is back soonfast.”
Cynthia just watches him fly off “How does an eagle not make you worried or nervous at all, it does me as don’t those sort of birds like…eat mice”
Leon shrugs “I..don’t know he is just a friend to me know, I mean maybe when I first meet him he seemed someone to worry about but not so much now. I would trust the eagle with my life in fact, even if up in the air.”
Caleb smiles “You should let him fly you around maybe dad, get things done faster and maybe even safer.”
Cynthia frowns “Not catching me near an eagle” She looks up further into the tree and then back to the ground. “You can see things just fine in a tree and trees don’t move”
Leon goes a little further to get some mint he sees by a stream.
Caleb chuckles “You were just near one a little bit ago!”
Cynthia snorts and crosses her arms “Well…whatever” She then grins and climbs down from the tree” He is ok and won’t eat me, others might”
Caleb nods “You never know but Thunderwing is nice”
Thunderwing comes back and lands in the clearing as he looks to the others “Thunderwing go, he deliver message to the badger lord and bunnies from Zinnia badger…you be goods now okiekay” He then spreads his wings and flies off and out of sight after a short while.
Cynthia watches the eagle closely and chuckles “I hope he doesn’t call them bunnies once he gets there”
Caleb nods “yeah me too..look!” He points to the wild strawberry patch and smiles as he goes over, a good deal are ripe, some are still ripening slowly but there is enough for some desert for abbey beasts, or part of a desert anyways “YA! Lacota will love this!” He gets set to picking some of the berries.
Cynthia goes to help as well placing some in her basket and smiles as she enjoys the day.
Leon looks over at the two and smiles, he picks some more Mint, Clovers and finds some more Nettle. Dandelion, Plantain, Cleavers, and even some Ginseng is found. He looks back to the other two “We should head back now before beasts start to worry “
Caleb nods as he gets a couple more berries” Ok dad”
Cynthia pops a berry into her mouth and chews, swallows and smiles “Yep I approve these are delicious” She nods “Yeah we should get back Brother Leon is right”
Leon nods and adjusts his knapsack as he goes to lead them back to the abbey “Let’s get back, it will be a little after lunch, but that’s ok I am SURE Lacota won’t mind…too much”
Cynthia chuckles “I will sure he will forgive us since we have strawberries, and mint and I even found some Dill..Dill is a hard to find cooking herb I think usually or least in this area.”
Caleb smiles as they all head back, just a little after lunch they make it home.
