There was once an old woman named Harbitha. She lived in the woods by herself, where the elves and goat-folk used to frolic, before the soldiers of the empire chased them away from their fortified towns. Harbitha wore elegant purple gowns and green coats, dyed with the herbs she found in the local area. The purple dye was made from Trumpet Chain and Moonflower. Now, Moonflower is a white flower which is not useful in dyes, but it was reputed to be magical and Harbitha included it in her dyes because she felt that it augmented the quality of the finished clothing. She liked to feel that her clothing provided an aura of mystery and wisdom. Harbitha well deserved such an aura, and she preferred to project it intentionally.
The green dye, she made from common grasses and leaves. It was a yellow-green, and she could never make it dark enough to suit her tastes.
In her younger days, Harbitha had made all of the clothing herself from scratch, gathering flax and linen, spinning thread, weaving, cutting, and sewing. In her old age, with her hands aching, she bought bolts of fabric and cut them herself, or directed girls from the village to do so. She refused to wear anything made from animals, and she never ate meat. She did not even craft using parts of beasts or monsters. When the Brink Stream Empire fell, she was 213. After that, she disappeared.
Harbitha wrote a book of poetry, although really she dictated it to a translator. She was a Middle Human, but she only spoke the languages of the fey and the Mushroom Folk. The fey language cannot be written, and the script of the Mushroom Folk, which sprawls out in every direction, is not convenient to print in books. Apparently Harbitha dictated her poems in a pidgin mixture of Fey and Shroomish, and her apprentices did their best to translate her words into Imperial Common. In their attempts to preserve her original meter and rhyme schemes, they produced a number of awkward rhythms, atrocious rhymes, and incomprehensible sentences.
The book was called "Harbitha's Songs," and it became quite popular in the capitol. The arcane language seemed to augment her reputation for wisdom. Though a few of the songs were folk tales and ballads, the rest recorded common knowledge, including recipes, crafting processes, descriptions of plants and animals, and life advice. At the time, it was considered to be the most complete recording of indigenous folklore prior to the Brink Stream Settlement.
The clever apprentices omitted any mention of the magical uses of plants, as alchemy was illegal at the time. Most modern researchers agree that Harbitha must have known something of potion-making, because every single plant she mentions has magical potential. The plants are grouped into three cycles. The first cycle of plants all have healing, curing, or protective powers. The second cycle have powers related to poison, harming, and ill-fortune. The third cycle have powers over mood, illusion, prophecy, and transformation. These three cycles are separated by stories and lessons on similar themes.
