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Draugr is by Despi!
The gurgle of the river and rush of the waves were audible as they drew nearer to the garden. There was a sweet tinge to the air, and Draugr followed this toward the low fence outlining the garden. Her red-brown ears twitched back to catch the sound of the man's voice. She had surmised as much -- the garden was close to the borders, and the Gale slave had been confined as of late. Though Siv thought the daughter provided quite enough leverage to keep him loyal, there was never any telling with a slave. Draugr, for one, wished to test his boundaries. It was a dangerous thing, to be sure, but she was young and quick and invincible, and there were many within Salsola who would hunt Gale for the joy of it, transgressions against the Family aside.
All sorts of things, she said, stepping gingerly over the little fence and into the orderly rows of plants. There were dirt paths between them, though aside from this and the neat rows, the pack's garden was as explosive of plant life as the virgin forest and uncultivated marsh. Draugr could not yet name most of them -- but her proficiency was increasing. She stalked toward the closest of them, a trio of low shrubs. The woody hybrid grabbed a leaf -- it was short and small, and impossibly green. The waxy feel was vaguely unpleasant, but Draugr squeezed the leaf together and held it up to the slave. Its scent was spicy, sticky sweet.
The leaves smell this way, she said. One must be careful with the oils, though. Odessa's book says such things might be dangerous. But then again, so many plants are both beneficial and dangerous, no? Too much and it's poison, just enough and it cures. This fascinated Draugr above all with plants -- their duality, and the way they might be used in different ways. The berries are different, though. They smell different. We boil them to make candles, she explained. The sweet smell of the candles was infinitely different from the sharp, almost cinnamon scent of the leaves.
Do you see anything you recognize? she asked.
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