The blond-brown haired woman gave Dyanisa a deferential look. "Your name
is...?"

"Dyanisa."

"Gee, Herin, I'd say she knows enough about the language. How many diseases,
body parts, and drugs do you want her to be able to name after today?" the
woman said mockingly.  Herin stalked out.

<A dragon, named Amethyst, wants to know how well you know the warren,>
Sienra informed her rider.

*Well enough,* came the short reply.

<Do you have any questions?  Herin can be confusing sometimes.>

*Giving me the direct translation are you?* Dyanisa asked, approval seeping
into her mental voice.

<Of course,> came Sienra's slightly bored reply.  <Playing translator is
nearly as boring for me as it is for you so I'm shortening it as much as
possible.>

*Good.*

Dyanisa thought about it a moment.  She had plenty of questions, but only
one of them deserved to be first.

"Who?" she asked with a vague wave at the woman.  It was almost funny
watching the surprise and then the amusement run over her face.

"Noni, rider of Amethyst."

Now that itroductions were over with she randomly picked a question and
threw it out to Sienra.

*What exactly did Herin want to know?*

<Herin wanted to know what you know about medicine.>

*Oh.  Well why didn't he say so before?  Herbs.  Mainly in the waste but
quite a few of the ones around here.  I know preparation of herbs, potions,
harvesting.  I can give stitches, bandage, and I can diagnose it somebody
tells me the symptoms.*  

Dyanisa chewed her lip absently, dredging up the memories of what her mother
had taught her.  Mentally she created a check list: herbs in general, check;
verbal diagnostic, check.  Oh. Treatments from verbal symptoms.

*And I can tell you herbal treatments if told what the symptoms are*

<That it?> Sienra asked.

*I think so.*

Dyanisa couldn't help but find it slightly ironic that she could spurt of
medical diseases with all the ease of breathing, but could hardly remember
how to talk.  Of course you couldn't really memorize how to talk like you
could symptoms and such.  Pity.

<Noni wants to see how complete your knowledge is, so I'm going to relay
questions at you,> Sienra said, her tone sleepy.

*Have her say them out loud, thats how I learned and it'll jog my memory.*
Dy paused before adding, *Don't take a nap either.  I might have some more
questions.*  Her only reply was a feeling of being cheated.

Noni led Dyanisa into a room with two chairs in which they sat.

"All right, we're going to start with diagnosing.  Fever, sweating..."

Dyanisa half tranced out as she sorted through her mental medical library,
subtracting diseases as the symptoms got more specific.

"Kiner's rash, broth with crushed..." Dyanisa replied, remebering.