<div class="floatright"> (http://i627.photobucket.com/albums/tt357/Niferbelle/my%20avatars/lucretzia42_zpsff4a18be.jpg)</div>Though it would be difficult to see any outward sign of it, Lucretzia was excited to be assigned to a patrol. Spring was upon them and she was anxious to shake off the stupor of winter and feel the sun on her fur again but more importantly, to replenish her stock of botanicals for healing and her other experiments which had dwindled down to nearly nothing. All of this was secondary, of course, to her proving she was of some worth to the Guard despite the fact she was not your typical tenderpaw. She knew some might say her skills were lacking when it came to the field and she certainly didn't have the social skills to win such naysayers over so she would have to rely on what she always did. Intelligence would have to earn her place.<br/><br/>The patrol set out and Lucretzia had any number of things to keep her busy. Like Cyd, who clearly was a mouse more comfortable on his own, she did her best to simply do her work -- foraging and setting out traps lest any predators draw near, assisting with any minor injuries or aches and pains that might come up, and just generally voicing her opinion on any matter that came up on which she felt somewhat qualified. Her pet beetle, Skitter, shadowed her wherever she went and was sometimes enlisted  to  drag along some of the petals and seeds she collected in a modified<em>travois</em>. She looked forward most of all to the teaching moments, especially those times when Lucien would invite George and her over to sit in on sessions with Noreen, which she would eagerly do and would soak up everything, trying very hard to remember it was Noreen's development being seen to as well. It was important that for Lucretzia to be mindful of this lest she commandeer the interaction with her own answers and questions which she understood socially would  be unwelcome.<br/><br/>Sprucetuck was both a welcome stop and a bit unsettling. Everything about being home, however briefly, was reinvigorating but also had the strange effect of making her homesick where she hadn't been before. Even the scent of her home town was a balm to her, the pungent smell of the evergreen that housed Sprucetuck was especially keen in spring as the great tree's sap began to flow again, but it served to remind her of how easy it had been to be ensconced in her comfortable home with her family around her and her father to inspire her with his ideas and she do the same with hers. She kept her visits brief -- just a few minutes with Reynaldo to bring him up to date on her wintering and of course longer with her family, a rather hasty meal where her brother spoke of his latest lady friend and her mother , Maddalena, grilled Lucretzia about the backgrounds of the others in her patrol. Lucretizia, of course, was a disappointment in this regard as she knew very little personal information on her fellow patrol members and so Maddalena had to be content with being introduced to them quickly as they were about to set out for Dorigift.<br/><br/>The matter of George continued to be somewhat of a conundrum throughout the trip. Lucretzia was deliberative but not indecisive and yet by the time they arrived at Dorigift, she had come no closer to reaching a conclusion about him. He was certainly pleasant to her, never harsh or discouraging, and yet it felt sometimes as if he were perfunctory in his tutelage. Just as she expressed an understanding of one subject or another and was expecting him to go on in greater depth, the lesson would seem to conclude or they would be pulled away to Lucien's lessons. She couldn't help but wonder if George would have preferred Noreen as a student as the two of them seemed more compatible and she often noticed him observing the other mouse. Lucretzia tried not to take this personally but had to admit it rankled a bit as she generally excelled in learning and didn't like the idea of being found unappealing as a student. But she simply continued on, applying her same diligent effort to whatever he asked of her, and hoped their relationship as mentor and trainee would approve.<br/><br/>Lucretzia was rooting around in a pile of petals and seeds trying to separate and pack the best samples of each before they were off again, when she heard Cyd's unprecedented invitation to join him. Her head popped up, unbeknownst to her a shimmering violet petal clinging atop her head like a cap, her eyes bright with interest. It would be quite the opportunity to see what Cyd did first hand, to know some quiet time away from the rest of the patrol. She had no experience with pathfinding and was somewhat keen to observe Cyd exercise his skill but as she paused to consider volunteering, she began to reason her way out of it. Surely she was the last person he would have expected to accept his invitation. Though she was good at locating sign and the various habitats of predators, physically she was not as capable as the others and of course, should trouble be found she was of little use in a fight. Her spirits sank a bit as she could only conclude she would be a hindrance to him and slow him down so she remained silent and waited to see if anyone else would take him up on his offer.<br/>