WHEN FLOWERS AREN’T ENOUGH

Natalia woke up to the smell of fresh flowers. Her first thought was that she must have fallen asleep in a garden, but when she opened her eyes, Natalia could see that she was in a hospital room. The walls were white, as was her bedding, but the stark monotony was broken by an explosion of colorful flowers bursting from more than a dozen vases.

With her arm in a sling, Natalia lay on her pillow and looked at the ceiling. She remembered falling from the sky and a terrible explosion, but after that she was drawing a blank. Then it came to her….

“Max?”

He had been with her in the aerocar, but something went wrong. There was fire and blood. Panic struck her. Natalia tried to sit up, but she didn’t have the strength. She kicked at her sheets, but all she managed to do was cause a tangle. Natalia yanked with her good arm, but there were tubes in the top of her hand connected to an IV drip next to her bed. She touched her head and felt bandages.

“Let me out of here,” she said. Her head was swimming, and she was starting to feel nauseated, but Natalia reached over to rip the tubes out of her hand. She was too weak. Natalia could feel tears of frustration starting to form as she rocked her head from side to side.

“It’s okay,” a voice spoke as someone approached from her periphery.

“Get away from me!” Natalia said as she lashed out at gentle hands that were trying to soothe her.

“It’s me, Brooke.”

Natalia stopped flailing and turned to see Brooke Lundgren looking down at her. Honeysuckle was there as well, hovering over Brooke’s shoulder. Even though faeries weren’t supposed to be in the infirmary, she had snuck in inside Brooke’s handbag.

“Here, let me help you,” Brooke said. She placed one hand behind Natalia’s neck and another on her elbow to help Natalia prop herself up. She then walked over to a closet and fished out another pillow, which she slid behind Natalia’s back.

“Where are we?”

“The infirmary at Iron Bridge,” Brooke said. “You’ve been here for over a week.”

“But…” Pain shot through her temples. Natalia winced, closing her eyes as her shoulders bunched.

“Just relax,” Brooke said.

When Natalia opened her eyes, she saw Honeysuckle land on the nightstand by her bed and watched as she uncorked a crystal vial that was nearly as tall as she was. The pixie managed to lift it and pour a bit of the red liquid into a thimble.

Honeysuckle picked it up, flew over to Natalia, and hovered at her lips. Natalia looked at Brooke, who simply nodded.

“It’s okay,” Brooke said. “Doc Trimble left it for you.”

“What is it?”

“A special nectar,” Brooke said. “I forget the name of the flower, but he prescribed some for me when I wasn’t feeling well. It tastes a bit like strawberries and cream. Go on, try it.”

Natalia parted her lips, and Honeysuckle poured the nectar into her mouth. It felt warm as it went down Natalia’s throat and into her stomach. Within seconds the feelings of nausea were gone, along with the headache.

“See?”

Honeysuckle smiled as Natalia licked her lips to savor every drop of the liquid.

“That was…”

“Like magic?”

“Yeah.” Natalia paused. “Where’s Max?”

“I’m not sure,” Brooke said.

Panic returned to Natalia’s eyes.

“Oh, he’s fine,” Brooke said. “Nobody knows how he did it, but he walked away without a scratch. He almost got a ticket for flying that aerocar without a license, but Logan got him out of it.”

“What about Harley?”

“He’s a hero,” Brooke said. “They had a big article about him in the paper. That Mark Four he was driving is all people are talking about.”

Natalia closed her eyes and exhaled. “Have you seen my parents?”

“The nurse said that your mom left about an hour ago, but I think your dad stayed here with your sister last night. He should be here in a while, though. He’s going to be excited to find you awake.”

“What about Ernie?”

“Harley said it was a miracle that he’s even alive,” Brooke said. “He was caught in a slaver’s net, and then he disappeared. Literally.”

“He’s fast, but he’s not that fast.”

“It wasn’t his changeling speed,” Brooke said. “The nets those slavers used nullify changeling powers.”

“Then how’d he disappear?”

“Nobody knows,” Brooke said, “and Ernie won’t say.”

“That’s weird,” Natalia said, her eyes drifting to the ceiling as she pondered how Ernie could have pulled it off. “Oh, well,” she finally said. “I can’t believe I was out for a week.”

“It was more like ten days,” Brooke said. “You wouldn’t believe how many visitors you’ve had.”

“Really?”

“Most of your teachers, Raven, Max, Harley… Ernie’s been here more than any of them, though.”

“Ernie?”

“He does his homework over there,” Brooke said, pointing to a small table in the corner of the room. “The nurse has to kick him out when visiting hours are over, and somehow he still manages to sneak back inside.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Natalia said. “He’s been acting like he hates us.”

“I think he feels like all of this is his fault,” Brooke said. “Either that, or he needs a friend. The other changelings are blaming him for what happened.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“I told him that, but he won’t listen to me.”

Natalia felt her stomach rumble. “I’m starving.”

“You should be,” Brooke said. “I’ll call the nurse to see if she can bring you some food.”

Brooke was about to ring for the nurse when someone knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Natalia said.

The door slowly opened, and Ernie walked in.

“I’ll go check on your breakfast,” Brooke said. Honeysuckle slipped into Brooke’s bag before she left.

Ernie was holding a small vase filled with carnations as he stood by the bed with his head hung low.

“Are those for me?” Natalia asked.

Ernie nodded and set them on the dresser next to a massive bouquet from Max.

“They’re beautiful.”

“You don’t have to say that.”

“I mean it,” Natalia said. “They really are.”

“I also got you this,” Ernie said and took his backpack off. He unzipped the front compartment and pulled out a small package wrapped in white paper.

Natalia took it in her hands and gently unwrapped it. Inside was a porcelain unicorn standing on its hind legs. Its head was thrown to the side, and its mane and tail looked as if they were blowing in the wind.

“Where did you find it?” she asked.

“I had to order it,” Ernie said. “I didn’t think you had this one in your collection yet.”

“It’s perfect. In fact, I have the perfect place for it in my bedroom. So thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Ernie said.

“Brooke told me that you’ve been spending a lot of time here.”

“I just needed a quiet place to do my homework.”

Natalia smiled. “You know, Ernie, this isn’t your fault.”

“Yes, it is. I should have listened to you.”

“What do you mean?”

“You told me that I couldn’t handle it, and you were right,” Ernie said. “I led everyone into that trap, and now Hale is gone… and I almost got you killed.”

“Wait, what happened?”

“We heard that some of the slavers were hiding in an abandoned building, but it was a setup,” Ernie said. “They were waiting for us with nets and restraining collars. The only reason I got out was because…” Ernie almost let it slip that Obadiah Strange had given him the IPA, which helped him phase in and out like a ghost.

“Because why?” Natalia asked.

“Well, I got lucky, that’s all, but now Hale is gone, and it’s all my fault.”

“You didn’t know.”

“Maybe I should have.” Ernie looked down. “Everyone thinks that I’ve been telling Von Strife where we’re going so he can send the slavers after us. All I wanted to do was make Von Strife pay for what he did to Robert.”

“It’s going to be okay.”

Ernie bowed his head. “Not this time.”

“You should talk to Max,” she said.

“I’ve been such a jerk,” Ernie said. “I doubt he wants to talk to me.”

Natalia reached out to touch Ernie’s hand. “Yes, he does,” she said gently. Ernie looked up. She could see that his eyes were red. “Friends forgive each other, Ernie. Max understands how much pain you’re in, and he wants to help. We all do.”

Ernie wiped his eyes with his sleeve and stood up. “I have to get going,” he said.

“Promise me that you’ll talk to Max.”

Ernie nodded. “I’ll try.”