Zemeia seemed to visibly relax at Traya's smile, nodding along with the woman's words in enthusiastic understanding. At the mention of her predecessor Zemeia's face fell some. "It saddens me to hear this. I know how insidious rumors can be. It would be an honour to work with her, should she ever choose to return." Taking a few quick steps to keep pace with Traya's unexpected exodus, Zemeia nodded again. "I understand," she said with a genuine, warm smile. It was a great relief, and very refreshing, to have someone treat her with such understanding and acceptance. Sending a silent prayer of gratitude to Kihala for the new life she was beginning, Zemeia followed Traya into the Medicine Room and listened intently as the woman acquainted her with the space; giving her a brief over view of where things are kept, how the facility is run, and her general duties therein. Then, with a knowing smile, Traya turned and left her to feel out her new position.
Zemeia introduced herself to the occupants of those beds which were not vacant, and familiarized herself with the state and progress of those who would be staying for any length of time. Having arrived rather late in the afternoon, she found that the majority of the patients had already received whatever treatments were necessary for the time being, and were now recuperating in the calm atmosphere. Knowing how essential rest often is to the body's natural healing process, Zemeia let them be and turned, instead, to the preparation of medicine.Moving into the adjoining work room, Zemeia took stock of the facilities available inventory. Astounded by the sheer scope of tools and herbs available to work with, she allowed herself a moment to drool over the possibilities, like a child in a candy store. Quickly though that moment was over and Zemeia hastily decided what she needed and set to work.
There were many herbs which Zemeia had never even seen before. However, she was confident in her ability to, at least, make a few basic concoctions that comprised the main staple of necessary medicines. Rosemary oil is easy to make, and Zemeia was sure that both the Medicine Room and the Massage House would find plenty of use for it. However, it would take quite some time to brew. So she carefully stoked the small fire that smoldered in the far corner of the workroom, and decided to prepare that first. Filling a large glass jar about 1/4 of the way full with rosemary, she then dumped the herb into a large mortar and bruised it lightly with the pestle, just enough to release the healing essences of the plant. The heavy, sweet scent of rosemary filled the room as she poured the prepared leaves back into the jar, she topped off the remaining space with oil, and hung it carefully over the fire to infuse. In two other jars she combined, individually, Filan flowers with strong spirits, and Lillian root with water, hanging these alongside the Rosemary infusion to steep.
While the other concoctions warmed and combined, she set about making a healthy portion of Tuljia Poultice. After rinsing the mortar and pestel, she added equal measures of aquatic jelly and Tulja root, macerating the mixture until they combined into a thick, uniform paste. Testing the goop between her fingers, she found it to be a bit gritty - which could potentially irritate a wound. So she added an additional small dollop of jelly and continued to grind the mixture until it was smoothe and creamy. Scooping all that she could out of the mortar and into a small pouch she sealed it tightly and tucked it away in the medicine cabinet before moving to check the other mixtures. By the time she was finished, the whole of the work room smelled heavily of pleasant herbs and dusky roots. The Rosemary oil and Lillian tea had brewed quite nicely, so she carefully strained the materia from the liquid, corked the bottles, and put them away to cool. The Filan essence was not quite as strong as she liked. So she set it aside to steep in the cabinet for a few days.
With a smile she surveyed her work - not bad for barely half a day - and made mental note of those herbs which she would need to gather; perhaps she could even find some Vayt's Ruse or some water flower for pipe mixes while she was out. With a contented sigh she checked on the patients one last time before closing the stock cabinets and heading home for the day, content with her days work and grateful for the chance to do it. |