Chapter 62
Chapter Sixty-Two
Iawoke to the feeling of my head being cradled, and when I opened my eyes, Eli was examining my face. I was disoriented, and I tried to look around. Where am I? What is Eli doing here?
Then a warm hand slipped into mine, and Callan’s face appeared in my vision. “Briar,” he said, his voice so tender that I wanted to ask what was wrong.
“She’s awake,” Eli said. I felt a touch on my wrist. “And her pulse is coming back to normal.” Eli directed his next words to me. “I’m going to sit you up.”
He assisted me into a seated position then pressed a wafer into my hand. “Eat this.”
I didn’t protest—the wafers had helped me in the past—and chewed the soft cracker-like substance. Within seconds, my head began to clear, and the evening’s events came rushing back. “Did it work?” I asked.
Callan smiled, still holding my hand. “By all appearances, yes. How do you feel?”
“A little groggy, but the wafer is doing its job.”
“I think you’ll recover quickly,” Eli said, still checking my vitals.
“When Callan and I had incidents with the shield, we were actively going against the restrictions in place. You blew those old restrictions out of the soil. I think your reaction was your body’s response to using so much power at once.
But color is returning to your face, so I don’t think the effects will be long-lasting. ”
“That’s good news,” I said, beginning to stand.
Callan used both hands to help pull me up. I smoothed the tulle fabric of my skirt.
“You sure you don’t want to go lie down?” Callan asked.
“And miss out on the rest of the fun tonight?” I teased. “Never.” Since my main piece of the mission was done and my energy was coming back, I was strangely exhilarated.
Callan shook his head, smiling ruefully. “Eli, do you think she’s clear to walk?”
Eli gave me another wafer, forced me to drink a few swigs of a special tea blend from a travel thermos he had packed, then nodded. “I think she’s good to go. Nice work tonight, Briar. That was impressive.”
“Thanks. Was there an earthquake?” I couldn’t tell if I had dreamed that bit or not.
“I think that was a ripple effect of the old shield being removed. We’ll have to take that and the nine blooming plants replacing the stones as confirmation that it worked,” Callan replied.
“Do we know how the distraction went with Feathergrass? Did he have contact with the jewelweed?”
“Not sure,” Callan said. “But it’s time we found out.”
We ran past the academy building just in time to see Feathergrass running out of it. Professor Sage was calling after him. “I need to put some more salve on that jewelweed rash!”
“You!” Feathergrass yelled, pointing as he spotted me. “What is going on?”
“Having a little trouble with an allergy?” Hollis called, drawing Feathergrass’s attention away from me.
I took the opportunity to join my friends in the meadow by the pond, where festivities had come to a halt. Botanists were gathered in the well-lit area, looking around as if preparing for an attack. A few students crouched under the cocktail tables.
“It’s all right!” Callan called, and all heads turned to him.
He was standing under the massive jacaranda tree, and I could practically feel the power rippling through him.
The leaves of the tree stood upright, then dozens of them tore away and floated around Callan, demanding attention. “It wasn’t an earthquake.”
“Then what happened?” several voices called.
“The shield has been reset,” Callan said.
“What are you talking about? You did the recharging without me?” Feathergrass asked, stepping forward as if getting ready to take charge of the situation. He was rubbing one of his forearms, which must have been where the jewelweed had made contact with his skin.
“Not recharged. Reset. With a new Floracantus.” Callan paused to let the words sink in. The space around us went silent. “By a magical botanist with all the affinity powers.”
For the first time since I had known her, Wendy Rhodes looked stricken. She put a hand to her mouth, and her eyes flitted between her two sons.
Feathergrass was staring in the direction of the charging circle, his mouth slightly open with disbelief.
“That’s impossible,” Wendy said. “No one but founders’ descendants could do that. Briar tried to recharge it last year. It rejected her.”
“You’re not hearing me,” Callan said. “Briar created a new Floracantus. She has the ability to create them from her Renaissance botanist ancestry. We thought that ability was long lost, but we were wrong. And with the new Floracantus she used, the shield is in place as long as all the plant groups exist here on campus.”
Feathergrass recovered more quickly than Wendy. “But there are so few defensives. And the fern population is shrinking. What if there are no students attending from those affinities? What happens to the shield?”
“It’s not about the students. It’s about the plants. As it always should have been. As long as all nine plant groups grow in this soil, the shield is in place. And if anyone ever tries to sabotage that,” he added, glaring at his mother, “they’ll be cut off from their powers here.”
Murmurs rippled through the group of collected botanists.
“Magical botanists have always been stronger together,” Callan continued.
“Not separated into founders’ descendants or affinity groups.
Do plants live in isolation in nature? Hardly ever.
Sure, they compete for resources. But they all have their niche.
This world wouldn’t be what it is without all of them. ”
Callan nodded to me, and I stepped forward.
“Go ahead,” he whispered.
“Outside these grounds,” I called, “we can’t treat humans like the enemy.
Our population of magical botanists is shrinking.
The answer to that isn’t to further separate humans from plants, to kick them out of natural spaces.
Instead, like with the botanical garden we’re creating in Weed, we need to invite them into nature even more. ”
When I saw a few nods of encouragement from the crowd, I continued.
“Humans need good food. They need medicine, clothing, building materials. They need temperate climates and beautiful, natural spaces to relax in. They need clean water and air. None of that would be possible without plants. So instead of trying to shield the plants from them, we need to remind them of the role plants play in their lives. Education. Experiences. These are the things that take root. This is what botanists should be dedicating our lives to.”
I looked pointedly at Feathergrass. “If some of us here get patents and hold positions of influence, there’s nothing wrong with that. But that path isn’t for everyone, and there is space in this world for all of us. Each of our unique gifts and dreams is going to make our world a better place.”
A chorus of “Hear! Hear!” came from the crowd.
“Evergreen Academy was built on a noble idea,” I continued, not trying to cover the emotion in my voice.
“That idea was for magical botanists to come together to study, so that we could take what we learn, go out into the world, and bloom in whatever way we were meant to. And that is what Evergreen Academy will continue to be as long as the students here have anything to say about it.”
Cheers rang out even more loudly, and flowers rose into the air on invisible spokes of wind once more. A shadow moved at the tree line, and I knew it was time to hand over my platform.
“Now, I would like to introduce someone we’ve all been missing. Botanists, please give a warm welcome back to Professor East!”
When I said the name, Feathergrass’s eyes widened, and for the first time, he looked truly nervous. Wendy Rhodes was squeezing her hands against the back of the chair in front of her.
Professor East stepped out of the woods and came to stand in front of the students and faculty of Evergreen Academy.