One Complete Heart

Chapter 13

The garden was significantly more peaceful without the rest of the team running around in there. Dimentio didn't expect to the the only one there when he showed up the next morning, so the empty space was a pleasant surprise. Despite being indoors, the air felt fresh. He could almost feel a breeze, although that didn't quite make sense. 

"Dimentio!" Tippi chimed, fluttering from the flowers she was perched by and over toward him. Her movements were smooth, unlike a regular butterfly's erratic flying patterns. 

"Tippi," he said with a slightly head bow. He sat down by the small pond. The water was crystal clear, showing the shimmering rocks that lined the bottom of the pool. He wondered if the garden would look more realistic had there been fish in there. 

"What brings you here?" the pixl asked. "Not that I don't love the visit."

"I was looking for the count," Dimentio shrugged, placing the tip of his index finger on the surface of the water. It wasn't warm or cold. In fact, he could hardly tell it was there. The temperature had somehow perfectly matched the temperature of the air. 

"Ah, well I haven't seen him since last night," Tippi explained. "He usually comes closer to sunset. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Dimentio shrugged. He didn't have anything urgent to discuss with him anyway. He was simply curious as to where he went. He wasn't waiting outside his cabin for the rest to wake up like he had been doing every morning. The count didn't seem like the kind of person to break routine, so he just wanted to be sure everything was okay. Not that he had anything to worry about. It was winter vacation. 

The snow had started to get a little heavier, so it was almost noon by the time Dimentio arrived at the garden. He spent an extra hour inside his cabin not wanting to go out and face the weather. The wind was pushing him toward town, though, so the walk wasn't as difficult as he thought it would be.

The view from inside the dome was quite interesting. Snow was starting to create a wall around the building, stacking up against the glass. However, the inside was still bright in warm, like he was in a completely different world. 

He wondered if there was a place where flowers could grow in the snow. 

"Timpani, do you suppose there are any places that look like this out there?" he questioned. 

The butterfly took a moment to herself, though Dimentio hardly noticed. He kept his gaze on the perfectly still water until the silence became awkward. 

He shifted his gaze to her, shrinking back slightly upon seeing her slightly unusual state. Her wings stopped fluttering, yet she still floated. It was as if she was a frozen computer image. 

"Timpani?"

"Don't call me that," she said without moving. Her tone was harsher than he thought capable of her. "My name is Tippi, remember?"

"Oh," Dimentio muttered, looking away from her slightly and bringing his attention to a patch of pink flowers. "Isn't that what I said?"

"Yes," she replied, her wings fluttering once again. Her voice returned to its usual warm state and the room felt bright again. "Yeah! Of course, it is. Sorry, I just misheard."

Dimentio smiled and chuckled to himself, grateful that the coldness was gone. He liked the garden. It was practically perfect. He didn't want to make things uneasy with Tippi and ruin the perfect atmosphere. 

"And to answer your question, no," she continued cheerfully. "That's what makes this place so special. The real world doesn't let all these flowers live at once."

"Right," Dimentio nodded. "Sometimes, the real world seems really harsh simply for the sake of being harsh."

"I know," she giggled. "Thank goodness this place isn't like that."