Quiet Appointment [Lymsleia]

Ellaira could feel her muscles loosen and the pain start to fade away as her runner's high started kicking in. She smiled, lips parted to make breathing easier, and inhaled deeply as she lengthened her stride, covering the length of the ground faster. The cool-but-warming air whipped against her face as she ran her favorite path in the dawning light, almost by memory. There was almost no greater feeling in the world than that of her blood taut beneath her skin, the wind whipping past her face, and the scent of the jungle's air driving deeply into her nostrils. It brought back memories of a different green and a different wind, and the memory of a young girl's first love.

She slowed to a trot as she passed through the living huts to the Weyr proper, finally dropping from a jog into a walk, kicking her legs out as she breathed, her pulse roaring beneath her ears. The sounds of the outdoors were changing, from the calls of evening creatures to the cacophony of the dawn chorus. The voices of insects and croakers wound down, as the beautiful darters of the jungle woodlands awoke on some internal clock, the rays of the sun not yet brushing their feathers. She could identify many of them by ear, remarkable creatures that had no names. Soon her own charges would be ready to go out and about, and it would be time to tend to them. But there was nothing like starting the day with a good run, a pleasure she always remembered to enjoy.

Her breath and pulse slowly returning to normal, Ellaira laced her fingers behind her head and pointed her feet towards the healer's hall. She was not the sole keeper of the avians of the Weyr (and thank Faranth for that!), and sometimes her mornings were her own. Mornings like today. Calmly, and quite as if she had some standard business at the healer's hall - she did have two children, after all, and a body of her own - Ellaira walking into the healer's hall, noting her name on the pad for recording entrances, and marking "headache" as her ailment. She took a seat near the hallway and waited for Healer Lymsleia to call her back for her appointment.

The only headache she had, after all, was the headache of having two children - and desiring no others.

Lymsleia  motioned simply as she finished with another patient. "Heya." her voice was gentle and quiet as she spoke to Ellaira. She'd forgotten what it was like to work with so many people day and day out. But she got something like a runner's high from it. Helping others. Being needed. "So what can I do for you today, miss?" she asked softly. She stepped towards the curtained off room.

She pulled the curtain closed in a quiet motion, and flexed her hand finding a seat and motioning for the other woman to do the same. "Please, speak your mind."

Ellaira nodded politely to the other patient as they left, mildly surprised to see someone else already at the healer's in the dawning morning. But, she reminded herself, There are plenty of ailments that one might not wish to have known. Like her reason for being here. Ellaira got out of her chair, stretching languorously for a moment as her chilling muscles protested quietly. She waited until the previous patient was gone to offer her own greetings.

"Good morning, healer," Ellaira said politely. The offering of title was not due to unfamiliarity - she'd tangled with the fiery young healer before, and seen her tangle with others more often. No, Ellaira just chose to offer the title, because Lymsleia held such secrets in her hands. Though it seemed unlikely that the healer would be inclined to report back to the leadership of the Weyr on wayward women, Ellaira had learned to watch her back. Offering the rough side of her tongue at every opportunity would not stand her on firm ground of any sort. She followed the healer into the curtained alcove and took the offered seat. Well, Lymsleia was nothing if not polite in her own way. A kind girl, and headstrong. An interesting mixture in this troubled time.

"I don't need any more children," Ellaira said. The words sounded blunter than she had intended, but the truth of them hung in the air with an ugly tinge. "I mean... it's not as if I don't love my children," she offered. "But I want to be eligible to Stand, and pregnancy takes that away. And it's not as if I intend to be celibate while waiting around in this rocky old mound." She shrugged, stemming the flow of her words before they were heated by anger at her circumstances. "I've heard... rumors, shall we say, suggesting you might have a tea for such a headache as mine."

Lymsleia leaned back against a small table.  She drew a breath. She'd forgotten  how many other women would come in the just before dawn to see her, and frankly it was intruiding on her sleep cycle. She yawned, and made a small attempt to cover it only to have her mouth open wider of its own accord. "That's do-able." she said with smile. "Though we'll have to find out which plants work best on you, most of my head remedies are running low." She admited the problem.

She glad Appy (Apparicus) had brought that other plant and few others, her own herbs were dwindeling, mostly due to over use. She reached in the draw, feeling the knotted cords and pouches. " Its going to be a different set of plants though, so let me know if immediately if you feel unusual.  Or start seeing ,hearing or smelling things, that aren't there." she  pulled out a pouch and set it on the desk. Dissappearing behind the curtain the sound of a water kettle being removed from a hearth was heard. "You're best bet.." She breathed as she entered into the curtained off area again. "Is to take it  once daily- probably before you get up, though take a break... once in while, this second tea should help..." she said producing a second pouch from the drawer.

Lymsleia ran in her head what little she knew of the woman, and carefully dispensed  herbal pouches in careful measurements. The woman's height, size, weight had to be accounted for, and the fact that she'd borne  two children- wasn't lost on her. "How are you children? Any fall colds? Or sniffles? The last thing I need is for the Weyr to come down with anything.." she said faking exaspiration at the thought of dealing with such annoyances as colds.

Ellaira winced slightly as Lymsleia explained her predicament. The girl looked tired, and rightfully so - had she been up all night? The mother in her reared her head, running through all sorts of scenarios. She tried, somewhat successfully, to tamp those instincts down. Lymsleia was quite capable of tending herself, she argued to that internal tender. Oh? that instinct replied. Then why does she look like a bird who's been left out in the rain? She had no answer for herself.

"I'd rather do without than see us wipe your headache plants off of the face of Pern," Ellaira said at last, as Lymsleia measured out various dried bits of green. "If you have seeds or cuttings, I would be more than happy to plant them in my garden come springtide. Surely other women would be happy to do so as well." She trailed off as Lymsleia started prattling off directions, and sighed slightly. It was just like a healer to do everything she could for others, and ignoring themselves. More firmly, Ellaira tried to shut down her mothering instinct. No adult liked to be clucked at like a small child. Even small children didn't always appreciate it!

"Oh, you know them," Ellaira said airily as Lymsleia asked about her children. She waved a hand absently, watching as the healer carefully measured out amounts for the tea. It was that fussy, was it? Well, no complaints on her end. Tea was easier than convincing someone to take her on a hop between, after all... "Ten is into his usual scrapes and adventures, but healthy as a wherry, and with the appetite to match! He's grown like you wouldn't believe. Takes after his father, that lad." She shook her head. "And Morallina loves to be pampered. She was faking sneezes last week so that 'auntie' would coo over her and make her hot soup. Trust me, if she comes down with so much as a sniffle, she'll be in here before you can believe. She loves the healers."

Lymsleia laughed in spite of Ellaira's comment. "Please, I have a few cuttings and at the moment its just prooving hard to get them  to remain. I have a farmer craft-friend who's helping me to make sure I have the plants I need and the Healers down here we have a system to keep from taking too much..." she stopped and poured the hot water and into cups. "Tea?" she said softly offering the woman a cup.

"Sorry I didn't mean to ramble. Iam just tired." she sank down into a chair. "And I'll make sure you get seeds, and cuttings from several of the plants we need more of. Amoung a list of others- just so it doesn't seem to weird." She begins making a list of plants on a nearby peice of  paper.

"I know .. of them." she stated. "I don't know them personally yet, only been here for wow nearly two years." she breaths the words and takes a sip of tea.  she smiled when the woman talked of her children. And for a moment wondered what the woman who'd been her mother- had been like. Did sShe - Lymsleia- bit her lip, did she even want children of her own? The thought for a second churned her gut, but let her a bit weak too. Her resolve was weaking wasn't it?

"It should help with your head-ache, and it got some other things in there that I think you should find refreshing. I've been trying to find a tasteful blend of herbs so I can pass them out a little better. "

She took a long draught. "I feel weird using my herbal knowledge to make simply good tasting herbal drinks, but its a useful thing. And I plan on having two versions or more really.." S

Ellaira took the cup of tea and held it up in a slight salute to Lymsleia before sipping it. It had a strongly herbal taste, not entirely unpleasant, but certainly not a comforting tea such as comfrey or chamomile. "I'm sure that you have things under control," Ellaira said after a moment. "It just might be, hmm, easier if you're not the only one who knows the 'recipe' for this 'headache' remedy. Grassroots spread widely and it's harder than is worth to pull them up entirely," she added with a smile, hoping that the healer would understand her meaning.

"You ought to sleep more," she said, pursing her lips. "Steady hands come with sleep." Ellaira shrugged and drank some more of the tea, swirling it around slowly in her cup. The warmth of it was pleasant after the chill of the morning, and the astringent and grassy taste would be a good way to wake up in the mornings after a run.

"I'm surprised you haven't met my children, though. Morallina is only three, but like I said... she's a lady. Any sniffle and she is in the healer's office! I wouldn't be entirely surprised to find her taking up healing herself one day. Ten - Vijeraten - is ten now." She smiled slightly at the unintentional wordplay. "He's rough-and-tumble, but I suppose not all scrapes are worth a healer's attention. But what is your specialty - aside from the troubles of women and the making of tea? I was under the impression that you also worked with young children."

She touched the warm cup and  gripped her fingers around the cup tightly. "I do, I wanted to expand.. I had a dream of making a craft-hold specifically women's studies.  Specifically to give women a place to go to learn, their bodies, the ways to handle it. A way to give all women not just healers, basic medical knowledge beyond the -basics-." she spoke proudly. "And Vijeraten, I love his name." she said softly. IT was a surprising gush from the young healer and she seemed shocked. " OH boy, Benden's birth... really affected me." She punched the small table, upseetting the cup, which she had put down with her hand.

She reached to steady the small vessel. "I -sorry-" she spoke softly. "I didn't mean to come out like that." She looked embaressed. What was happening to her? She stood slowly. " I should probably, get some sleep at some point today."

"A women's Hall?" Ellaira made a face without trying to. "Why separate women from the rest of the Halls? Wouldn't that just serve to make us more of an... 'Other'?" She shrugged, draining the rest of her tea. "I don't know... but I suppose I am not a healer of women, then." She watched Lymsleia carefully. The healer really did look tired, but when she spoke of founding a Hall for women, her dark face lit up. It was strange to watch, almost too personal, as if Lymsleia had given her an unbidden peek into her deep heart. Ellaira wanted to pat the girl on the back, tell her that it was unnecessary, but couldn't bring herself to do it.

"You should get more sleep," she reaffirmed. "I don't know that a women's Hall would be a success here in Katila... but if that's your dream, chase it, eh? There's no harm in being a little different. I don't know that I would have survived the turns in the wild had I been a shrinking violet of a daughter, after all." Ellaira shrugged, and stood, collecting her herbs and dropping a couple marks on the table. "Consider it an offering to whoever or whatever determined the bodies of women. You're doing a good work here."

Offering a motherly smile, Ellaira tucked her 'headache tea' into a satchel and rolled her shoulders. With a slight wave, she turned and left the room, mind picking apart the few minutes of womanly talk before settling them down into memory and returning to thoughts of wherries and quail, and all those breeding records that needed to be re-written in a more sane manner.