Clover's Bloom

Chapter Nine - The Gardens

After finishing their final lesson of the day, Hae suddenly remembered something Miss Adagnitio had said during their entrance ceremony.

"Hey, Miss A said something about gardens, right? Where would those be, anyway?"

"They would probably be behind the academy somewhere, since there weren't any in sight when we landed on the grounds after the entrance exam," said Dwyn.

Catharine grinned. "What, you wanna go look at the flowers, Hae?"

"Of course! I love flowers." He shrugged. "Who doesn't love flowers?"

"I suppose you just don't seem like the flowery type, Hae," remarked Jia.

"Pah! I'm the floweriest of them all!" Hae crossed his arms. A proud little smile snuck onto his face.

"Either way, I'm pretty sure I know where to go if you say they're behind the academy. I saw the rear exit during my scouting run on day one."

Lani chuckled. "Let's go check them out, then."

The group began walking ahead, following Hae's lead as usual. Reese stopped and turned her head around. Adair was just standing there, struggling to make up their mind about whether they wanted to come along or not.

"Hey, you coming with us, Adair? It'll be nice, I think. To get some fresh air, if nothing else," said Reese.

Adair shrugged. "Sure. Haven't been outside in a while."

"Awesome," grinned Reese. "Then let's go."

And so, the eight of them made their way to the gardens. Once they reached the entrance hall, they went down the corridor leading to the gym halls, and followed it around the corner at its far end. A tall wooden gate awaited them there - not quite as towering as the front entrance, but several times bigger than them nonetheless. They shoved it open.

A beautiful, enormous garden revealed itself to them. Flowerbeds overflowed with blossoms of every imaginable color. Paths were woven in between, stretching out far and wide. Lamp posts were dotted along them. Majestic trees in full bloom stood here and there, granting shade to students sitting on benches beneath. A handful of gardeners worked full-time to keep everything in check. They, too, were witches, using their magic to adjust the composition of the soil, to control humidity levels, and so on and so forth. It didn't seem like their work bothered them, however - they were quite happy and content, in fact.

"Woah!" Hae's mouth was wide open in amazement. "It's so huge! I've never seen so many flowers before in my whole life!" He took a deep breath and inhaled the soothing floral scents.

The others silently agreed with him and took in the view in awe.

"Well? What are you all waiting for? Let's explore this place!" said Hae impatiently. He sprinted off.

Catharine chuckled. "I'll make sure he doesn't get in any trouble." She ran after him.

And so, the group of eight scattered into smaller groups as they made their way down the winding paths of the academy's gardens.

After watching Dwyn stroll away by Jia's side, Lani had decided to stick with Adair. Jealousy had still taken its toll on her of course, but Lani had ultimately realized that it would be best to just let them go together. She figured they could both use a friend outside of their respective group. She smiled as she watched them wander off into the distance.

"You're following me," noted Adair.

Lani nodded. "Yeah, that's right."

"Curious. Why?"