Flowery Language

Rose

Eclipse didn't think she was capable of loving anyone. She was a fae among humans - and she was different from them, and even if they didn't know why it didn't stop them from pushing her around and insulting her. Often she'd hide deep in the wooded area at the back of her school, tucked away among the trees and flowers, and transform into her true form. She wasn't supposed to - her fathers told her if she was ever caught she would be killed - but it made her feel better, having her wings, her horn, her tail. It was who she was.

No one understood. Even Knockout, who had taken her in when she'd been abandoned as a babe, was only a halfling. She'd never met another fae, because if she crossed the border she'd never be able to return. Sometimes, she wondered if she would be happier staying with the other fae. But her mind always returned to her fathers - all the love they had for her - and she couldn't bring herself to leave. No matter how much the human children at school made her life a nightmare.

The transition the highschool hadn't been much easier. It seemed like the kids around her were just getting more vindictive as time went on. But one thing had changed around her third year. A girl had moved from a private school to a public one - to Eclipse's school - and she'd been placed into Eclipse's form group, 9-A. Eclipse hadn't thought about it much, she knew a new girl was moving and that was about as far as her interest went. That changed when she walked through the door.

Her hair was soft, brown and fluttered in the wind, her dress was yellow with a bright red rose printed across it and her eyes were like the ocean, deep and shimmering.

Eclipse felt something build up in her throat, which became even worse when the girl moved to sit next to her. The girl smiled, holding her hand out to Eclipse:

"Hello! I'm Astoria, and you are...?"

Eclipse had to run out the room to stop herself from throwing up in Astoria's face.

Eclipse threw open the bathroom door, and began gagging over the sink. After a few heaves whatever lodged itself in her throat had managed to unfurl and fall into the waiting sink.

It was a single, red rose.

She blinked, not really understanding what she was seeing. The rose hadn't been there before - and if the trail of spit still connecting the flower to her mouth was to be believed it really had actually just been in her throat, but how? She wiped away the tears that had began forming in her eyes when she noticed something, her hand was purple. She looked away from the flower and into her reflection in the mirror and found herself in her true form - wings kept close to her body and tail swishing about.

She had to call her dad.

Eclipse transformed back into her human form, eyeing the rose. It would be suspicious just to leave it there - so she made sure to grab it and shove it into her bag before she headed to the nurse's office. After a quick confirmation with her tutor she was allowed to call her dads and head off home. When she rang the house phone, Breakdown was the one to pick up.

"Hey dad..." Eclipse said, throat still sore, "I threw up in the bathroom at school. They said I have to go home."

"Don't worry, sweetheart. We'll be there in a minute, alright?" He'd replied softly.

Eclipse smiled and said her goodbyes. She could faintly hear Knockout on the other end talking - though what about she wasn't sure. Breakdown was right though and the old beat-up blue truck was outside the school rather quickly. Eclipse packed away her things, taking a moment to glance at the flower in her bag, before stepping into the back of the car. She curled up slightly - resting her head against the window as they drove away.

"You didn't mention you were ill this morning," Knockout said, "You should've just told us you weren't feeling well."

"I was fine!" She replied, "Then..." Her mind drifted back to the rose, "I don't know. It just happened."

Knockout hummed, and Eclipse knew that meant the conversation was over, for now at least. She began drifting off into sleep, flickering in and out of consciousness.

She started awake when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes to see the car had stopped, and Knockout was watching her with a faint smile. His right hand was outstretched towards her, "Breakdown's gone inside, so you can show me."

Eclipse blinked, looking between her dad's empty hand and his face, "Hu?"

Knockout rolled his eyes, "I could feel the magic radiating off you the moment you stepped into the car. I know you're embarrassed so I made Breakdown wait inside." His smile softened, "So, c'mon. Show me."

Eclipse nervously reached for her bag, and the moment she saw the rose she plucked it out. In the darkness of the bag it seemed to glow a faint pink but out in the daylight it just looked like a normal rose. "Here." She said, handing the flower to her dad, "I spat it out of my mouth."

Knockout's eyes lit up as he looked over the rose, moving it in and out of the sunlight. He laughed softly, handing the rose back to his child, "A hanahaki flower. It's been a long time since I've seen one of those!"

"A hanah-what now?"

"A hanahaki flower," Knockout said, shaking his head, "I got them when I met your father, though you're rather lucky - rather than a rose bud, my first was a sunflower and let me tell you, dear, that was hard to get out of my throat! I had to get my fingers-"

"Alright!" Eclipse exclaimed, covering her dad's mouth with her hands. She moved her hands back when he started laughing, "So it's... normal?"

"For fae, yes. For humans... less so. You're fine for today, but you can't come home everytime this happens so you're going to have to hide it I'm afraid."

"But..." She looked at the flower again, despite being in her bag the entire time it didn't even look the slightest bit wilted or damaged, "what does it mean?"

Knockout grinned, "Darling," He paused, taking the moment to brush a stray hair from her face, "It means you're in love ."