B'ael smiles over and gives a wave, "Hey Jerissa.'
Farnham looks up from the report he's sort of reading and waves at Jerissa.

Jerissa pokes her head around the door of the infirmary, "B'ael, please come in here a moment" she says, disappearing with a wave to the others first, back into the infirmary

T'dry nods, filling his plate now. He balances it and carries it to the DawnGuard table. "Well he's just like that again, only bigger and feistier. He keeps waking up Avroth to tell him that he's done this or that and flown such and such a drill. Avroth doesn't care - he's never been hurt. It's kind of funny to hear Avroth grump about him."

Jesica grins and waves to Jerissa, "Hey there." she says as she settles back in her normal seat.

You go into the Infirmary, closing the door behind you to shut out the noise from the Living Cavern.

B'ael comes through the door from the Living Cavern. The noise level drops as the door is closed behind him.

B'ael looks around, "Let me guess, can't find something and think I can find it ?"

Jerissa grins, "Alright. You remember where the hides are kept, yes?"

B'ael nods, "Aye, how could I forget. I added to em whilst I was weyrhealer. Need to find something on a past patient of mine ?" He looks curious, "Can't read my writing perhaps."

Jerissa shakes her head, "Nope. I want you to find the stack that belongs to the dragonhealer program, please."

B'ael hrms, "Dragonhealer program ? Let me think." He scratches his chin and moves towards where the hides are kept, "Were they wrapped up together ?"

Jerissa nods, "They should have been, yes."

B'ael nods, "Think I know where they are." He ooks for a few moments and pulls them out, holding them out to you, "Rather dusty though." wrinkling his nose and trying not to sneeze.

Jerissa shrugs, "Dust them off then" she remarks, "Can't use them if they are dusty!"

B'ael makes a face, holds them out at arms length and just drops them. He waits for the cloud of dust to vanish, before taking them out and holding them out to you once more, "Here you go, dust free."
taking them out->picking them up

Jerissa hrms, quirking an eyebrow, "Well, that didn't help did it? Now the dust is simply elsewhere. Oh well, you can clean that up later. Now, those" she gestures, "are for you."

Vivian comes in from the bowl.

B'ael laughs, "There's no dust on the hides anymore though, and I'm sure Gayene will clean it up easily enough. I believe Master Thalia has her cleaning up around here most evenings." He holds the hides out once more.

Vivian says "Good evenin'," as she walks in from the bowl."

Jerissa shakes her head, "For you. Unless you've changed your mind about being a dragonhealer. Now, sit down, and you can clean up later. Part of your duties will be cleaning up the infirmary, or at least helping to keep it clean." She smiles at Vivian, "Ah, good even'"

B'ael hrms, "Me a dragonhealer ? Never even thought it." He looks at the hides he is holding out and pulls them closer as he just flops onto a nearby seat, looking well stunned or surprised.

Jerissa snorts, "Don't think I'm going to waste a perfectly good healer brain just cos some bronze walked up to you and said his name, do you?" Hrmf!

B'ael grins, "Have been till now." and turns his attention to the hides and starts glancing over em.

Vivian eyes B'ael curiously as she takes a seat. Her gaze moves from the bronzeriders to the Senior Dragonhealer, "This is the class on herbs isn't it?"

Jesica comes through the door from the Living Cavern. The noise level drops as the door is closed behind her.

Jerissa hrms at B'ael, "Well, if you don't want to, I'll understand" she remarks, "but if you've been wasting your brain up until now, it's your own fault." She takes a seat on the desk at the front of the teaching area and nods, "Tonight's lecture is on herbs."

Vivian motions Jesica over to an empty seat.

B'ael takes a quick look around and breaths more easily as he doesn't spot Master Snider. He settles back to listen.

Jerissa smiles, swinging her legs under the desk, "Alright. You three are the core nucleus of the new intake of dragonhealers, and you're also the first to come under my training hand here at Fort, so, I'm expecting great things of you all."

Jesica grins and settles down to listen to the lecture.

"The first part of the training program, is, to study herbs" Jerissa says, continuing, "And of all the many herbs, there five relevant to dragonhealer. Jesica, could you tell me one perhaps?"

Jesica hmmms and grins, "Redwort I think, cause it's a disinfectant.

Vivian smiles at Jesica, nodding her head to herself as she wiggles a bit in her seat, getting more comfortable.

Jerissa nods, "Redwort. Very good. And yes, mainly because it's a disinfectant." She stands up and reaches behind the desk, bringing up a potted plant-- small, shrublike in nature "This is a redwort plant. See the distinctive reddish veins running up and down its stem and, these" she pauses, finger touching one of the flowers "flat-topped reddish-purple flowers."

Jesica nods and watches, murmuring under breath silently. Perhaps she's making up a phrase to help her remember what the plant looks like.

Vivian eyes the potted plant with interest, taking in the distinctive features.

Jerissa carefully picks up the pot and hands it to Jesica, "Have a look at it carefully, and then pass it along. I'd like each of you to be able to recognise this plant." She smiles, "Now, as Jesica said it's a disinfectant. Healers use it to wash their hands before begining to work on _any_ open wound. However, it does like a reddish-pink stain on your hands."

B'ael grins, "Also use it so that numbweed doesn't numb their hands as they work."

Jerissa grins, "All your instruments need to be cleansed in soapsand and hot water and then redwort. As a dragonhealer you will be responsible for ensuring all your equipment, including yourself is sterile, _before_ you begin working on a dragon. This includes your local environment, and by that I mean the dragon's open wounds." She nods to B'ael, "Coming to that in a moment, or would you prefer to take class?" she asks raising an eyebrow to the former healer.

B'ael just shakes his head as he waits for the plant to reach him.

Jesica grins and looks over the plant carefully, fingering the plant and flowers a little before passing it over to B'ael.

"Now, as Baz said, it does negate the properties of numbweed somewhat. So

B'ael takes the plant and looks it over for just a moment as he listens. He offers it back to Jerissa.

Vivian wiggles a hand at B'ael. "My turn."

B'ael hrms at Vivian, "Sorry." and holds it over to the weyrwoman.

Vivian murmers her thanks as she takes the plant. She spends severl minutes looking it over before returning it to Jerissa.

"Now, as Baz said, it does negate the properties of numbweed somewhat. So" Jerissa says, "if you put numbweed on a wound, you need to wash it off with clean water before adding numbweed. Same with your hands. They'll be protected my redwort, but not alot. What I mean by this is, that when stitching or doing any other labour intensive job you need to use another protectant, for example oil. Now, stitching with oily hand" she smiles, taking the plant back, "presents other problems."

You say "And that is something each of you will have to study and practise with, even certain healers" she says, looking at B'ael, "Who've not had recent practise!"

B'ael nods at Jerissa, "I'm definately out of practice."

Jerissa grins, "Well, since your out of practise, why don't you tell us a little about one of the other herbs we might use?"

B'ael hrms, "I'm not a dragonhealer yet, so not sure what other herbs work on dragons or not. There's numbweed I know you use, and as everyone knows here that it deadens pain and feeling. But as for other herbs..." he shrugs, "not really sure which work on dragons or not."

Jerissa chuckles, "Well, tell us a little about numbweed" she remarks, "Anything you can remember to try out the rusty parts of your brain!"

Vivian chuckles softly.

B'ael grins, "Numbweed... lets see, in its raw form it blisters the skin, so when used it is as a salve. Which takes a few d ays to boil down, which I'm sure everyone has experenienced." He wrinkles his nose, "Its not addictive so liberal use is encouraging."

Jerissa wrinkles her nose, "I'm pretty sure we've all experienced boiling it down and the smell it produces."

Vivian wrinkles her nose, head nodding.

Jesica wrinkles her nose and nods, "Nasty smell, but worth the effort."

B'ael grins, "Aye, it stinks." He grows quiet waiting for Jerissa to continue.

Jerissa shakes her head, "No, you were doing wonderfully, continue B'ael."

B'ael chuckles, "What else is there to say ? That most healers carry it, that it can be found everywhere on Pern, that it grows in profusion down in warmer areas though it can grow everywhere ? Thats the sap is what deadens all feeling on contact and not the whole plant ?" He shrugs, "not sure what you want me to say about it Jerissa."

Jerissa grins, "Vivian, Jesica, do you both know what colour it turns when it's ready?"

Jesica uhms and shakes her head, "Nope, I susally got stuck helping pick it, cause I was too small tae be allowed near the fires."

Jerissa smiles, "Well, when it turns yellow, it's ready for decanting."

You say "Yet another herb we use is needlethorn, though we are lucky to have some metal needles that the smiths kindly make for us. These are rare though and incredibly expensive, so we don't have a plethora of them. Hence forth, why we use needlethorn."

Jesica ahhs and nods, "Most of the numbweed we use on the runners is in liniments, so I've never seen numbweed after it's been boiled down."

You say "We can only harvest needlethorn in the autumn, when the ging trees flower, if they don't, well, lets just say that it'd be a rather painful experience.""

Jerissa smiles, brushing hair from her face, "Now, they get used principally for giving injections, but that's to be covered in another lecture."

B'ael listens carefully, taking the information in.

Jerissa picks up another potted plant, and places it next to the redwort one, "Aloe is another kind of herb that we use. It's a great remedy for treating burns and for rashes. Thankfully, dragonhide is mostly impervious to things, but a good singe with a flamethrower is pretty nasty, as are heated embers from flamed thread. Now this plant" she comments, picking up the plant and passing this one first to Vivian, "can be characterized by its rosette of long, tapering, fleshy leaves that exude a thick sap when broken. See?" she says, breaking off one of the leaves, "You each have a go at that."

Jerissa sighs, "Unfortunately, aloe gel does not keep, extract, or dry very well. It is best when used fresh and so you'll find Aloe in the herb gardens"

Vivian takes the aloe plant, smiling as she nods. "I have several of these in my weyr. They are wonderful on sunburns."

Vivian breaks off a smaller shoot before passing the plant along. She swipes the oozing leaf over the back of her hand.

Vivian passes the plant to Jesica.

Jerissa nods, "They are!" She smiles, taking a branch from the desk with star-shaped blossoms on it. "Now this is Fellis. Be careful with it. I went down to Southern to get this after sweeps. Fellis" she says, handing the branch to Vivian, "can be fatal to dragons and so it is important that you reckonise it."

Jesica takes the plant and hmmms as she breaks of a piece and rubs the sap on her hand, "Does it harm the plant to break the leaves off like this?"

Jerissa shakes her head at Jesica, "Nopes. It doesn't harm it at all, and it grows fast, which is great."

Vivian takes the fellis branch, taking several moments to examine the flower before passing the branch to B'ael.

Jesica nods and hmmms again as she holds the plant until B'ael is ready to hand over the Fellis so she can pass him the Aloe.

B'ael takes the branch and looks it over before nodding.

B'ael passes the branch to Jesica.

Jerissa sits up on the desk again, wary of the plants there, "So, thats the herbs you need to know. I suggest that you study them in the next few weeks, before we do the next lecture on syringes, where you'll be tested on them and expect to recognise the plants when I hand them to you." She smiles, "In the meantime, you three get to organise a numbweed trip. B'ael, since you know what you're doing, you get to head up the committee as such. Talk to Andy too, the Weyr's supplies are low." A pause, then, "Any questions?"

B'ael grins at Jerissa, "Shall I invite the healers to come along ? I'm sure Master Judith has a few apprentices she wouldn't mind bringing."

Jerissa nods, "Yep, I think that would be a wonderful idea B'ael, but you and Vivian and Jesica, need to be the ones to organise and supervise the trip. Alright?"

Vivian smiles. "The more hands, the merrier! We can never have too much numbweed around, though I'm sure there are those who would argue that."

B'ael nods at Jerissa, "Aye, understood."

Jesica blinks a little and hmmms, "I can organize the pickers, since that's always what I did when we needed it. I'll need to get gloves, bags, clippers and face coverings for the people picking."

Jerissa grins at Jesica, "That's the idea, yes."

Vivian stands, moving over to the desk to take another look at the assorted plants. "Thank you, Jerissa. That was a very informative talk."

Jerissa grins, "Well, I certainly hope so, hate to think I'm standing up here talking to thin air!"

Vivian chuckles. "Well, Jesica, we'll have to talk to Anndora and Ebisu and see when we can steal a few of the hearths in the kitchen for a few days."

Jerissa smiles, "Well, I think I'm going to rest for a bit, before I go out on sweeps. So, thank you both for attending."

Jesica ahhhs and nods, thinking about everything, "Yeah, we'll need some of the huge kettles, lots of jars to decant the stuff into when it's boiled. I'll have to get leave from the stable, and we'll need to arrange some riders to take everything down to where we'll be harvesting. We might even consider taking the equipment down a day early, so that we won't have to scramble fore everything on Picking day."

Vivian waves, "G'night Jerissa." She turns to Jesica and nods.

Vivian says "Maybe we could turn it into an overnight outing then. :)"

Jerissa grins and waves as she heads out