The Gardenkeeper's Daughters

Natrina- 4

I wake up in the morning and something feels missing. At first, I can't really place it- the pain is so numbing, but then I look over at where Lotus would usually be, pressed up against me, and I realize that she's not there. I scramble to my feet and my head hits thorns instead of gentle underbrush, grown with love by a mother who tried, and I choke back something foreign and decaying that's found it's way into my throat.

The forest fire.

The transformation.

My mother.

The angel.

So much has happened in one day, and I begin shaking furiously. My head is throbbing where at least fifteen thorns hit me at once, and with a scowl, and I leave the den, barely squeezing through the tiny exit.

Lotus and Aislyn are already up, both of them chatting idly while Aislyn suspends three large rabbits in the air. I'd hardly call it a feast, but it should be enough to get us up and keep us going for the long day's journey. Lotus herself is carrying a large bundle of herbs on her back, her tail swishing wildly as it threatens to dethrone the victuals she's carrying. I approach them slowly, ignoring the sting of several thorns in my back.

"Next time, let's find somewhere more comfortable to sleep." I say.

"Grumpy Nat's finally up! You were muttering in your sleep," Lotus informs me.

I find my fur go very hot very suddenly as I look at Aislyn, who is clearly taking all of this in, with wide eyes. "Lotus! Stop it! First of all, you're embarrassing, and second of all, it was probably because of all of these thorns! I could barely sleep at all."

"You could say the shelters are a real... thorn in your paw!" Aislyn says cheerily, and Lotus makes her chirruping giggling noise. The two of them have clearly hit it off.

I give them the dullest look I can muster. "Can I have that rabbit now?"

Lotus picks the rabbit out of the air and Aislyn releases her telekinetic grasp on the other two, which fall to the ground limply.

I quickly eat my portion, adding in some of Lotus's herbs to help us keep moving over the long journey and then try to pull thorns out of my fur with my teeth, which is a painstaking process that yields few results. I resort to slamming my leg against my side multiple times, trying to brush it off, but I realize quickly that I look ridiculous and that Lotus is watching me with gleeful eyes.

I get up with an air of subtle grace, trying to regain my composure, and begin walking. Lotus scrambles to one side of me and Aislyn quickly moves to the other, her gait relaxed but also a little quick. She keeps rushing up to things and then stopping. She sniffs every single flower, even sticking her nose practically right into a bee. Miraculously, it doesn't sting her and she ambles along to the next completely insignificant thing in the road.

Lotus is looking off into nowhere, leaving me as the only one who probably knows where we're going at all. I've been told that the sun sets behind the castle, which is set close to some cliffs overlooking a broad valley. We're on the other side of the valley, where the land starts high and continues sloping softly upwards until it drops off completely. Though the sun is rising, I can use its current position to extrapolate where it will be later.

I decide to break the silence, as I turn to Aislyn, who is watching butterflies on a nearby bush as we pass by it. She looks completely carefree, her tail wagging fiercely and her wings unevenly pressed against her side like she was too lazy to keep them any closer to her.

"It's nice to meet you. Formally." I say. "Last night was pretty hectic, so I don't know if that counts."

"It's nice to meet you too! I missed you so much, Nat!" she says cheerily. "I kept thinking about you while I was away, but I'm back now."
"What? Away? I have no idea what you're talking about! We've never met before last night." I say, a bit astonished.
"You don't remember me? That stinks. Honestly, Nat, I thought you'd at least remember who I am." Her voice is mockingly condescending. I don't think she means to be, but it still ruffles my fur.