White Lazarus Petals

Written by RiverFang

The stone walls of Libra's Hearth are lined with small lace bags of white petals, some from months ago, others freshly sealed and waiting. What rests within these bags are the lifeblood of the town of Serebi and those that make it their home. For the next few months, the number of waiting bags will dwindle as the materials inside are removed and find their final calling. The delicate materials wrapped in lace are only one of many that the witches of the Flowered Hill Coven deal with, but they are by far the most important. The delicate black-veined white petals are deadly on their own, but by the gentle hand of the Witches, these petals will become one of the most important potions that can be created on the Northern Continent.. In the darkest of times, the final product of these deadly petals will bring life, saving those that by nature's way should not have lived.

Properties

Material Characteristics

The petals of the White Lazarus are small and thin, much like those of the rose bushes the plant looks very similar to. While a majority of the petals are white, petals from older plants are veined with lines of black, starting from where the petal touched the stem. Ones that are more black, or the lines of black reach to the other side of the petal, are from older plants and may not be usable for the process of Flower Distilling.

History & Usage

History

While the White Lazarus has existed as long as the Covens of the Tree have in Isekai, the uses of the flower were greatly underestimated for many years. The plant was often used to create strong poisons and other horrible concoctions, but through either luck or what many say to have been a gift of knowledge from Libra, the Witches developed a process to take the deadly properties of the flower and twist them to have more medicinal and healing properties. This realization occurred many centuries after the first usage of the plant and the refinement of the process to use the petals took many years. In current times, only the stems and leaves are used for poisons and the petals are left to be used in Flower Distilling and to create the Potion of True Life.

Everyday use

For those in the Flowered Hill Coven, the handling of the petals is a common occurrence, although for a large population of the coven, the petals are only handled during the Day of Roses. Others that are selected to aid in the process of Flower Distilling will handle the petals daily, but those that do are often sparing in numbers.

Refinement

To be used for potions, the petals must first go through a process known as Flower Distilling. The petals can either be fresh or dried, as their state does not alter their potency.

Distribution

Storage

The petals, after being harvested, are stored in small lace bags sewn by the witches. Once placed in these bags, they are arranged into the various storage rooms of Libra's Hearth, often by time of harvest. Those petals remaining from previous years are moved closer to the front of the building where the process of Flower Distilling occurs, while the freshly harvested ones are placed in the back rooms.