Chapter 65
Chapter Sixty-Five
The morning after the spring equinox, the students and faculty of Evergreen Academy gathered in the teahouse.
Sunlight streamed through the tall glass windows, the fragrance of herbal tea and organic coffee filled the air, and the buzz of happy magical botanists enjoying their first meal of the day was so familiar that, for the first time in weeks, I was completely at ease.
“How are you feeling this morning?” Yasmin asked, stirring her chia pudding while studying my face.
“Thanks to Eli and his concoctions, I feel as good as new,” I replied.
“It’s not every day someone uses months’ worth of magic in one night. That was pretty amazing.”
“I’m just glad it worked and that the shield seems to be firmly in place.
” I had been reaching out with my magic to sense the shield multiple times throughout the morning already.
Having created it, I could feel it in a way I hadn’t been able to before.
No one else seemed bothered, though, and I supposed I should have felt honored by their complete faith in my abilities.
Instead of talking about the new verdant shield, most students were discussing the resurgence of extra-affinity powers.
I smiled as I listened to the conversations floating around the room over tea and matches of Roots and Xylem.
I was just as curious about the history of the powers as the others were.
“Where are Aurielle and Coral?”
Yasmin pointed upstairs. “Still in bed, I assume. Everyone partied way too hard last night after Feathergrass got served the walking palm justice. The herbs started serving the strong drinks, and everyone was running around, hiding behind trees and pretending to have light bender powers.”
I laughed. “Have you seen Callan this morning?”
“He and Hollis went to check the grounds. They wanted to make sure everything was secured at the petal portal everyone came through and see if there was any damage to the area where the jewelweed bombs were set off.”
Nevah and Kai walked into the teahouse then, and they got food and joined us at our table. “What’s it like being back at the academy?” I asked after greeting them.
“The food at the aquatics conservatory is tasty, but nothing beats the breakfast spread at Evergreen Academy,” Kai said. I noticed the heaping quantity of food on his plate.
“Is it okay that Professor East revealed you have waterbending powers?” I asked him, remembering how Nevah had wanted us to keep quiet about it.
“It’s fine. He ran it past me beforehand, just in case he needed to use the information.
There have been rumors about my abilities for a while, since I used the ability for a display Nevah and I did when we were students here.
Most people didn’t catch on, since the power is rare, but a few people who remembered it were suspicious.
I’m kind of glad it’s all out in the open now and that there are others with extra-affinity powers. ”
“Well, now that it’s officially out, I assume you’ll be climbing the ranks at the aquatics conservatory,” I said, raising my eyebrows.
Nevah laughed. “That’s putting it mildly. A few select people there already knew about it, but I imagine the rest will be lining up for autographs when we get back.”
“Rivers, I hope not.” Kai formed a bubble and blew it toward Nevah so that it popped on her nose.
“When do you head back to Florida?” I asked.
“This afternoon,” Nevah said. “We both have time-sensitive research we need to get back to. Plus, we want to be there to show our support for the changes Professor East lobbied for while he was there. The conservatory plans to take a vote on banning humans from the state parks.”
“Which way do you think it’s going to go?” I asked.
“If I know Professor East, he made a strong case,” Nevah said.
“And word of what happened here last night is probably already spreading. Primrose Marsh witnessed it all firsthand. Any influence Feathergrass and Wendy Rhodes had must be dwindling by now. Even if they don’t end up facing serious punishment for poisoning the verdant shield, Feathergrass’s attack with the sandhill rosemary might trigger something.
Any affront to noninvasive plants is a major faux pas in our society.
He’s going to be persona non grata in magical botanist spheres of influence. ”
I nodded, glad to hear it.
Aurielle and Coral entered the tearoom then, followed shortly by Callan and Hollis. Each of them got breakfast and hot drinks then joined us. Other members of the Root and Vine Society, seeing us gathered, migrated to our table.
“Well, aren’t we just a merry band this morning. Secret society members, meeting in broad daylight,” Hollis said, squeezing onto the bench seat next to Coral.
Callan stood behind me and sipped his coffee as he absentmindedly played with my hair. I loved the new casual way about him. There was no tension, no wondering if scouting vines were watching us.
“How’s the area where you set off the jewelweed?” Ravenna asked them.
“Looks fine. We cleaned out the remaining pieces so they wouldn’t randomly explode. And we got rid of the steps you all put up against the wall at the orchard petal portal. We walked and drove around most of the perimeter, and everything looks back to normal,” Hollis said.
“What do you plan to do with the Vanished Compendium, B?” Nevah asked. “The real one.”
“I’ve been thinking about that. I want to share it with the rest of the community. Should we put it on display here, like I did with da Vinci’s book?”
The decision about what to do with the book had been weighing on me.
I had learned how to use the Floracantus instructions da Vinci left behind, and Oren was working on his family riddle, but there were other riddles in the book.
Some of those bloodlines might have died out, but surely a few of them had descendants out there.
Would those people want to know about their ancestry?
To activate their powers? To learn the art of magical botany and eventually craft their own Floracantus, if others were born with all the affinity powers?
I wasn’t sure how to approach it all, but I knew that the book belonged to more than just me.
“I imagine the conservatories will want to get it on a traveling exhibit eventually,” Nevah said. “It’s the find of the century.”
“And what about the other book? The one that’s been on display here since the Floral Fete?” Kaito asked.
“Well, I think it needs a new name now that everyone is going to know it’s not the real Vanished Compendium,” Meadow joked. “How about Da Vinci’s Lost Book of Floracantus?”
I knew she was joking, but I smiled. “I like it. Simple. Descriptive. Let’s run with it.”
At that moment, I glanced toward the doorway to see Professor East entering the teahouse.
He moved to the stage area, and the room quieted immediately.
His presence had always commanded attention, but since the students knew he could make himself invisible, there was an extra tinge of awe in the air.
“Good morning, magical botanists. Congratulations to those of you who managed to wake up at a reasonable hour this morning. Professor Sage and the kitchen botany rotation students have made sure your breakfasts have extra-restorative ingredients in them. Now, I know there has been a lot of excitement this year. But we still have one more term to go, and there is plenty of learning to be had. So I have never been happier to say classes will resume on Monday as normal!”
Cheers threaded through the room as if he had just announced we’d won the lottery. I guessed for magical botanists, getting to study and work with our plants in the way we wanted was the ultimate joy.
“So, what’s next for the Root and Vine Society?” Meadow asked.
“Know any more magical academies that need saving?” Kaito quipped.
The response was a mixture of smiles, eye rolls, and laughter—the room was filled with so much laughter. I glanced around to see students eating, drinking, jotting things down in notebooks, examining specimens under microscopes, and interacting with the plants in the room.
Callan got my attention by running a finger along the back of my hand. “Challenge you to a game of Roots and Xylem?”
I grinned. “You’re on.”
Evergreen Academy was back to normal, and it couldn’t feel more right.