Poppies and Rosemaries

Wild Berries

Rosemary Coppinger stepped out to the balcony, taking in the scent of freshly cut grass. It had just rained the day before, and today, it seemed like something interesting would unfold. She sighed contentedly and took a sip of her excellent, warm coffee. It felt like a beautiful day, and even the humidity in the atmosphere didn't seem to bother her. It felt perfect...just perfect...

...until she heard a scream from a distance.

What just happened? Rosemary's mind raced as she ran to the docks, where the scream appeared to come from. Her heart was pounding; her feet were aching. She didn't have much time to process the scenery; it was a blur as she rushed past it. Finally, she arrived to find her friend Tsuki Hikaru on the ground screaming in agony, while Saffi Catarino held her hand and tears trailed down her beautifully tanned face.

"What happened?" Rosemary asked, finding herself overwhelmed with concern and exhaustion.

"I-I-I don't know. Tsuki picked some wild b-berries and ate them. Soon after, though, she fell and started screaming. I don't know how to help her." Saffi sniffled.

Tsuki ceased her screaming and collapsed, having passed out.

Rosemary turned to Saffi and started reprimanding her. "Wild berries? You let her eat wild berries? For all we know, they could've been poisonous. She could have died."

"You can't blame this on me! I told her not to, but she did it anyway!" Saffi retorted, tears still slipping down her cheeks.

"Look at the huge blisters forming around her mouth." Rosemary told her, "You should've taken her to the doctor the second you realized something was wrong!"

"We should probably take her to the doctor now," Saffi said coldly.

"Good point," she answered, "but wouldn't it be easier to bring the doctor here?"

"Just do something, for God's sake!" bellowed Saffi.

Rosemary got the message and ran as fast as possible to get her mother. Why would she get her mother instead of the doctor, you may ask? On this island, she was the only doctor around for miles. And she was one of the few people Rosemary trusted.

She had finally arrived at her mother's hospital–a small hut-like building. It was only one story tall and had a thatched straw roof to give it an island vibe. The inside was much more modern and had a nice, clean finish. Once she entered, she ran up to the marble counter to the right of the entrance area in the lobby, which was full of 5 people sitting on chairs. Out of breath, she asked the receptionist where her mother was.

"In her office," she answered calmly, "with a patient."

"Thank you," Rosemary panted, and the receptionist just nodded.

She ran across the lobby and toward the end of the hospital. She then ended up at her mother's office and slowly opened the glass door with the plaque that read "Dr. Caetlin Coppinger."

"Mother!" Rosemary said, gasping for air.

"Rosemary," her mother sternly said in her Irish accent, "can you not see that I am in the middle of a–" She was speechless when she saw the urgency written all over her daughter's face.

"One moment," she said to her confused patient. Dr. Coppinger exited her office and shut the door for privacy.

"What is it, my love?" she soothingly asked her daughter.

"It's Tsuki. She ate some wild berries, collapsed, and there are blisters all over her mouth–" Rosemary word-vomited.

"Oh no," her mother gasped, "this is not good. Quickly, take me to where she is."

"Okay," breathed Rosemary, as she was too exhausted to talk. Her mother rushed inside her office and brought out some medical equipment and books. The duo ran toward the lobby and out the door.

A few minutes later, they arrived to find Saffi crying even more and Tsuki still out cold.

"Oh my," Dr. Coppinger brought her hands up to her heart. She turned to them and asked, "What kind of berries did she consume?" Rosemary did not respond as she had not witnessed the incident.

Saffi eagerly answered, "They were a pale shade of red: almost pink, but not really. They were round and looked like cherries but were smaller. Like this small:" She indicated their size using her fingers. From what Rosemary took away, they were at least a centimeter in height.

Dr. Coppinger thought for a moment and pulled out one of her books. Rosemary got a glimpse of the title: "Antidotes for Poisonous Herbs and Berries."

Her mother flipped through the book until she found the page, or so Rosemary thought as she let out a loud, dignified "Aha!"

"You found it?" Saffi sniffled.

"I have good news and bad news," Dr. Coppinger stated after skimming through the page.

"Continue," Rosemary said, holding her breath.

"The good news is that there is a cure: the violet opium poppy,"

Saffi gasped, her eyes lighting up, and Rosemary shot her a be-patient look.

"The bad news is that it cannot be found on this island." Dr. Coppinger concluded.

Saffi deflated, but Rosemary kept her composure.

"Well, where can we find it?" she asked, unable to give up hope yet.

Dr. Coppinger grimaced, "You're not going to like it."