haebin: (11)
[personal profile] haebin
I am a little bit late but not too late. ;)
Please enjoy the newest chapter and thank you so much for reading! ♥


Ever since Anwyn and Trálír had become close, she had always been alone with her thoughts and feelings.
Confiding in Eleri now was a completely new experience for Anwyn.
“It's a little complicated,” she replied slowly, her voice sounding almost embarrassed.
“Do you want to confide in me?” Eleri asked gently and Anwyn nodded shyly. Then she began to tell her friend everything, without exception. How she had met Trálír, how they had gotten to know each other and grown close, and how quickly she had lost her heart to the high elf. She confessed how hard the first winter had been for her when Trálír ended their relationship out of fear that something might happen to her. Anwyn's throat tightened as she remembered how she barely had the strength to get through that day because his decision had hurt her so deeply.
She also mentioned her anger and disappointment towards Trálír to Eleri. And she also confided that at the time he apologized to her, she didn't know if she would ever forgive him.
Trálír's plans to marry Anwyn and the idea of only giving themselves to each other when they were man and wife made Eleri look up in surprise. When Anwyn discovered the astonishment in her eyes, she paused and suddenly felt a deep uncertainty.
The sudden silence confused Eleri and she reached across Yarrow for Anwyn's hand.
“I see uncertainty in your eyes, Anwyn. What is troubling your heart so much?”
“I asked him tonight if he would sleep with me,” she replied softly. “But he didn't want to.”
Eleri frowned. “Because he doesn't want to sleep with you until you're his wife?”
“Not really,” Anwyn admitted hesitantly and shrugged her shoulders bashfully. “He had asked me before if this was supposed to be our first night together, but I wasn't sure.”
After listening to her friend's words, a soft smile appeared on the half-elf's beautiful face. “Anwyn, there is no reason for you to be insecure or to question him. You confided in him that you weren't sure if you wanted to sleep with him and he respected your wishes. I'm sure his longing for you was unbearable for him.”
“Even though I asked him to sleep with me a little later?” Anwyn asked quietly.
Eleri nodded. “It seems he didn't want to take advantage of your first feeling of insecurity in a moment of passion. That is something not many men would do, whether they are human, half-elf or elf.”
“Then I did nothing wrong?” There was a mixture of uncertainty and shame in Anwyn's words.
“No, not at all, Anwyn,” Eleri replied with a gentle smile. “I'm sure you'll find a moment when you're both sure to indulge in each other. Until then, you can still enjoy your moments together, can't you?”
Anwyn pulled her lower lip between her teeth, embarrassed, and nodded with slightly flushed cheeks. Eleri laughed.
“Ah, I can see in your face that Trálír found some ways to pleasure you?”
“Gods, Eleri,” Anwyn breathed and giggled sheepishly.
“Elves are very clever with their words, I've heard. But that doesn't seem to be the only talent they have, for their tongues and lips can supposedly elicit the highest sounds from their partners as if they were playing an instrument and offering a song to the gods.”
Anwyn burst out laughing and Eleri joined in. Brin looked up in surprise from his mother to Anwyn, who were both laughing so hard they were in tears. Elyan also woke up from his sleep and when he heard his mother's happy laughter, he also began to chuckle and kicked his feet excitedly to draw attention to himself.

Still laughing, both women finally turned back to their work. Eleri worked the laundry in the lye, then handed it to Anwyn, who washed it long and thoroughly in the water from the spring. Each item of clothing had to be rinsed several times to remove the soap suds.
After each wash, Anwyn began to wring out the wet laundry with the help of Eleri and Brin. White cloth was placed on the slightly larger stones lying around to allow the sun's rays to bleach it so that the white looked fresh and radiant again. Anwyn laid the still damp laundry on top of each other and then took it in her arms to hang it up in the yard. Her father had rammed some branches into the ground at shoulder height and tied them with hemp rope so that Anwyn could hang the the wet fabrics there to dry.
Eleri asked Brin to put the now clean dishes in the wicker basket and while he complied with her request, she took the opportunity to put Elyan in the wrap and fasten it back on herself. Brin grabbed the empty canvas sack still lying on the shore and followed Anwyn with Yarrow at his side.
There was still some time before noon, so Eleri took care of feeding the animals while Anwyn cleaned the stables. It would be some time before Eleri would start cooking a hearty meal, as the two men would not return from the sea until noon.
Until the first catch came into their hands for further processing, Anwyn mended some used clothes with yarn and Eleri fetched water from the spring several times for everyday use.
Shortly before the men returned from their first tour on the sea, Anwyn had finished all her daily chores. As she stepped into Conall's and Eleri's home, Elyan scrambled up to Anwyn next to a wildly barking excited Yarrow and raised his little arms in her direction. With a tender smile, she leaned down and lifted the boy into her arms. She gave him a kiss on the cheek, which he answered with a happy squeak, and then stepped behind Eleri, who was preparing the meal.

“Mmm, that smells delicious!”
Her friend looked over her shoulder at Anwyn and beamed at the compliment she had received.
“You don't even know what it tastes like!” she replied with a laugh and Anwyn shrugged, but stroked Elyan's hair tenderly as he put his head between her neck and shoulder.
“I can safely say that you are the better cook of the two of us!”
“And I can certainly disagree,” Eleri replied and laughed once more as Anwyn took a step forward to smell the spicy aromas of the soup boiling in a cauldron. She recognized the scent of different types of mushrooms, herbs such as wild garlic, nettles, sorrel and ribwort as well as onions.
“That reminds me that I should go to the village market tomorrow, because we need milk, butter, bread and flour,” Anwyn murmured and Eleri nodded.
“I can do that for you if you like,” she suggested but Anwyn shook her head.
“I have more plans than just buying this,” she said and took the clean dishes out of the basket, which she began to arrange on the table.
“And that would be?” the half-elf asked and immediately concentrated on stirring the soup slowly so that it wouldn't burn.
“Actually, I wanted to ask you if you would allow me to take Conall with me?”
Eleri glanced over her shoulder and looked at Anwyn in surprise. “You're asking for my permission?”
Anwyn shrugged her shoulders. “Well, I'd ask for his permission too, of course, but I don't want to do anything you don't know about.”
“That sounds like you have a secret,” Eleri replied, turning away from the cauldron of boiling soup to pick up a loaf of bread and a ham from the shelves and place them on the table.
Anwyn laughed softly.
“Trálír suggested buying wood to make new furniture and to be honest, it's not a bad idea. With Conall's help, I could find the right wood and buy it. Of course, I know that the wood we have is not as valuable as that of the elves, who are allowed to cut theirs in the forest, but it would still be enough to renew the rather crooked and old shelves and storage areas. Perhaps he would also make me a narrow chest of drawers or a cupboard in which my father and I could store some things.”
“Hm, would it perhaps be possible for Trálír to make two or three shelves for me as well?” Eleri pondered, pointing to the wall in the back room. “There's still a bit of space that could be used here.”
Anwyn's laughter sounded warm and filled the room. “I'm sure he'll do that for you, Eleri.”
She stood on her tiptoes and looked out the window in search of her father and Conall. Were they already on their way home or still at sea? While Anwyn looked a little to the left and then to the right, she realized that neither of them were to be seen. They should be on their way home by this time to enjoy their lunch, Anwyn thought a little uneasily, but reassured herself the next moment with the thought that it was normal for fishermen to be late sometimes. Even when Anwyn's father had gone about his work alone, there were days when he didn't come home at the usual time. The sea and its bounty never kept to the same time when it came to rewarding the fisherman with a rich catch.
“Oh, I completely forgot that Old Marga had announced her arrival for the afternoon,” Eleri suddenly remembered and put a hand over her heart, as if she was afraid that her forgetfulness would cause Anwyn distress. “She told me about it when I bought vegetables at the market and I completely forgot to point it out to you. Forgive me, Anwyn, that was not my intention.”
“Old Marga comes to me every tenth day to buy the ointments, oils and teas for the sick and elderly who are too weak to make their way to me. Don't worry, you haven't put me in any trouble. After lunch, I go into the house and get everything ready. Thank the gods that the old woman can read and write, so I am able to set aside everything she needs. I can also include a little note with each remedy, which she can then read to the sick. I would also go to the sick myself, but you know Old Marga.”
Eleri grinned. “She is the true head of the village, even if Tendal, the mayor, thinks otherwise. And she would never miss the chance to take this little walk and tell you all the news from the village.”

Lunch and Conall and Doran's return to the sea were some time ago when Anwyn entered her house with Elyan in her arms. She closed the door behind her, laid the child on her bed and covered him gently with a thin blanket. The little half-elf yawned, stretched, smacked his lips and finally the little boy could hardly keep his eyes open, for he too had been fed by Eleri. For the half-elf's youngest son, this meant that it was now time for a little midday nap. Since Eleri had made her way back to the spring in the presence of her older son to clean the used dishes once more, Anwyn had agreed to take Conall's youngest son into her house and look after him while she took care of the order that Old Marga had put together for her at the last meeting.
Anwyn also sat down on the bed and gently massaged circles over Elyan's belly with her fingertips to help him relax and feel comfortable. She smiled softly as she watched his eyelids grow heavier and he finally fell asleep. Only then did Anwyn rise carefully, walked quietly across the room and reached for the old woman's note that she had pinned to a shelf.
As most of the men in the village worked hard, sprains, muscle and joint pains were common among them, so Anwyn would reach for several small jars of comfrey root and arnica ointment to soothe the pain and inflammation.
The female inhabitants of the village always needed teas made from lady's mantle to relieve their menstrual cramps and yarrow or horsetail as a tea mixture for heavy periods. Some struggled with indigestion or loss of appetite, which made Anwyn reach for a bag of dandelion root. And since she knew that the baker's wife often struggled with bladder infections, she reached for a small cloth bag full of goldenrod tea.

After Anwyn had put together all the teas and ointments the villagers would need for the next ten days, she placed them in a canvas bag together with all her written notes, which were attached to the respective cloth bags, so that it would be easier for Old Marga to carry them into the village.
The large bag was not particularly heavy but Anwyn wanted to make it as easy as possible for the old woman. Of course, Old Marga would insist that she was perfectly capable of carrying several canvas bags at once, as heavy as they would be, for no one would dare call her old and weak. Anwyn knew better, but she wouldn't rub the old woman's nose in it, for her temper hadn’t lost any of its power, despite her advanced age. Nobody wanted to run the risk of an argument with Old Marga, not even Anwyn.
Casting a glance over her shoulder, the young woman looked at the still sleeping child on her bed and then turned her gaze to the shelf in front of her.
Without opening the numerous jars or pouches that stood there, Anwyn knew how much or how little was in the jars and linen bags. The next day, she decided to search the forest for thyme, ribwort and coltsfoot, because even though fall and winter were still far away, she would be able to use them as expectorants for a bad cough. Marshmallow root, on the other hand, had an antitussive effect and would also be useful for the cold and clammy winter months. She would also keep an eye on the possible harvesting of lime blossom and sage in order to be able to treat the typical illnesses of the distant months, such as fever, colds and sore throats.
It wouldn't be long before she could harvest flowers, fruits or leaves, bark, roots and fatty seeds from the shade plants that Trálír had once brought back from his visit to the Shadowmoor. The fascinating thing for Anwyn was that every plant, however small and inconspicuous, had the ability to heal, it just depended on how you knew how to use it. A lifesaver? Death bringer? Everything was in the hands of the person holding the plant.
The leaves and flowers could be used as teas, the fruits could be dried, crushed or squeezed. Bark and roots could be cut into small pieces or chopped and boiled. There were many ways to use a plant to alleviate or cure serious illnesses. Wound pain was anaesthetized, deep cuts were healed, severe swelling and inflammation were reduced or weakened. The high elves of the Shadowmoor also knew how to use the shadow plants for healing potions.
Anwyn's knowledge had expanded in recent years, but she still didn't dare to try her hand at making healing potions or anything similar. Trálír had once told her that making them was as easy as baking bread. You needed the ingredients, put them together and, in most cases, let them simmer or boil hot for a while. However, as most of the ingredients were difficult to obtain or exorbitantly expensive for a normal inhabitant of Faerun, the clerics or wizards had dedicated themselves to this knowledge.

(no subject)

Date: 2025-03-02 09:07 pm (UTC)
profiterole_reads: (Default)
From: [personal profile] profiterole_reads
Trálír must have been sneezing from how much Anwyn and Eleri were talking about him. XD

(no subject)

Date: 2025-03-03 03:30 am (UTC)
ragnarok_08: (Original ★ ambelina oh ambelina)
From: [personal profile] ragnarok_08
This was reallt good!!

(no subject)

Date: 2025-03-03 09:11 am (UTC)
montmartres: (Default)
From: [personal profile] montmartres
Thank you for sharing ♥️

(no subject)

Date: 2025-03-03 09:08 pm (UTC)
yourivy: (Default)
From: [personal profile] yourivy
Das war mal wieder sooo gut!
Ich mochte besonders den Teil am Ende über die Pflanzenheilkunde, sowas finde ich wirklich richtig interessant!

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haebin

August 2025

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