Chapter Text
Chapter 72:
Snip, snip, snip!
Bellflower was tending her prized greenhouse garden, specifically, she was pruning her sizable collection of roses. Her roses were in all sorts of beautiful colors, just like all the other plants. Her greenhouse was just like her in a sense, a perfect blend of beauty and danger. Sure, everything was somewhat organized, but she also allowed for any necessary chaos. Anything to satisfy Mother Nature.
“Jalapeño, dear?” The plantae addressed her new were-cheetah apprentice, “Would you be so kind and get me the watering can…its right by the azaleas. Oh and refill it, too, please!”
“Yes, ma’am!” Jalapeño navigated throughout the greenhouse, careful not to get close to the lilies, she found the azaleas and the watering can, “Found it! Do I need to put any special elixirs in the water, Lady Bellflower?”
“No need. I need to refine the rose nutrient elixir, anyway.”
The younger were-cheetah filled the watering can and carefully walked back towards the calm plantae. She handed the requested item to her, Bellflower responded with a gentle smile and a nod, and took the watering can.
“You seem tense, Jalapeño.” Bellflower glanced at her apprentice.
“Oh! Umm…I’m just not used to…not being reprimanded or not being punished for anything..”
“Punished?”
“...Reverend Mother wanted nothing but perfection from the Rosary Pawns. We were chosen in her eyes, and in the eyes of the Almighty Witch of Sacrifice.”
“Well…I don’t expect perfection. Perfection is impossible to achieve.” Bellflower watered the roses, “You can’t be good at everything, that’d just be absurd.”
Jalapeño handed Bellflower any additional needed tools from the countertop desk. She’s gotten used to all the names and functions of these once foreign objects.
“Like, I’ll admit, I’m terrible with people. I have patience, sure, but I also just creep them out. I’m a carnivorous plant monster, after all.”
Jalapeño chuckles, “And I crack under pressure.”
“...And I think I’m done here. Go change while I fix us an evening snack.”
“Did I do good?” The were-cheetah’s pupils enlarged.
“You did wonderful, You followed my instructions and you put in the necessary effort. I’m proud.”
“...Also still getting used to that!” Jalapeño heads to the showers towards the edge of the greenhouse. She closes the door to give herself privacy…another thing she’s not used to.
Bellflower takes off her apron and gardening gloves. She puts on regular gloves before heading to the kitchenette part of the greenhouse. She begins preparing mini sandwiches, finger food, desserts, and tea.
Once finished, she sets the table in the middle of the vegetable garden area of the greenhouse. Everything from the tablecloth to the arrangement of everything on the table itself is her responsibility. She would invite her girlfriends, but knowing them, they’re both currently asleep. So, it’s just her and Jalapeño.
And someone else. Bellflower glanced at the massive vat of botanical fluids in the floral section of her greenhouse. Within this vat was the sleeping body of a young girl…about 14 years old, at most. She has a brief recall of the events that transpired in order for them to meet.
–Flashback–
The Guild had just defeated the false magma dragon, and were checking on Dragon’s City to assess the damage and search for those who weren’t able to escape. Bellflower decided to scout out the city’s flower shop…or at least what was left of it.
The false dragon had burned the shop to a crisp. The plantae was not surprised but investigated further anyways. Her nose could pick up the scent of burnt human flesh.
“Oh…oh dear…” She then spotted the charred hand of a young girl poking from the debris, “..!”
With her many, many vines, Bellflower aggressively dug up and threw away all the destruction around it…There it was. The burnt remains of a young girl. The same sweet girl she met at the shop and taught how to maintain the wilting poinsettias. Where was her family? Where were her parents? Bellflower could only sense one body….no, this isn’t right.
Dewy tears began to flow from the flower’s face, “So they just abandoned you, huh?”
Using her plant magic, Bellflower wove a basket of unbreakable grass just big enough to fit what was left of the little girl. She carefully picked up the charred remains, cradling them gently as if she was the girl’s mother. She placed her body within the basket, and surrounded it with the beautiful poinsettias that the girl loved so, so much. Before she put a lid on the basket, she whispered something to the little girl.
“Perhaps I can give you a new, happier life..? Nobody deserves to die so young.”
That night, she wept near the abundant flowers of her greenhouse. Something only the gentle moonlight could witness. Surrounding her were notes on botanical resurrection.
–-End of Flashback—
“Lady Bellflower…Lady Bellflower, are you alright?” Jalapeño waved her hand at Bellflower’s face.
“Oh!” The plantae regained a grip on her surroundings, “Sorry, I kinda spaced out a bit there…got lost in a train of thought.”
Jalapeño sat down and poured herself a cup of tea. Bellflower seemed hesitant in letting her, worrying she might burn herself.
“Careful! It's still hot!” Bellflower hesitated.
“It's okay, Lady Bellflower, I am.” The were-cheetah handed her mentor the teapot, “What type of tea is this, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“A special herbal blend. The ingredients are a secret.”
“Ooh, ok! I quite like it!” She takes a sip of her cup of tea.
“I had a feeling you would, you’re always very keen on trying new things.” Bellflower gazed at the vat and sighed.
“..That memory still haunts you…?” Her apprentice’s ears lowered.
“The abandonment aspect does more than the actual sight of death. I’ve seen a lot of death in my day, it comes with the job of protecting others, but this is…significantly more chilling.” Bellflower lets a poinsettia flower bloom from the vase at the table, “I mean, what kind of people would abandon a child in the middle of a city being ravaged by a sigil of pure destruction?”
“...At least she’s safer here.” Jalapeño took a bite of one of the sandwiches, “When do you think she will wake up?”
“...Any day now. Her body is 100% restored, but as a plantae rather than a human. I thought botanical resurrection would be more ethical for dealing with the revival of a child than what my group typically uses to bring people back.”
“I can definitely see why…” The were-cheetah has finally noticed the sausage bits in the egg salad sandwiches, and she begins to purr.
“On the day she wakes up, you’ll essentially have a new little sister.”
Jalapeño’s ears perk up, and she smiles softly.
—Later, at around 11:00 PM—
The two women head off to their bedrooms. Jalapeño’s was made using plant magic, it is inside a gargantuan, hollowed-out willow tree. The room itself is on the inside of this tree, and is decorated quite nicely. Most notably, there’s multiple rainbows of roses with different colors. There’s also a gasmask hung directly above Jalapeño’s head.
The greenhouse, as well as the rest of the Guild manor grew silent. A sweet, serene, peaceful silence. But of course, this silence just had to be ruined. Luckily, it wasn’t the Order this time. But who was it…? Oh no…
—Outside the Manor—
“Shifty Snakeoil, is it unlocked?” Spicy Sausage quizzed.
CLICK!
“Now it is!” The naga inventor opened the door to the Guild’s greenhouse, “Wow…this place is nice.”
“Now remember Champion Cyclops…destroy the vat…nothing else.” Bitter Kale addressed the cyclops gladiator, “You saw what one Guild member could do when enraged at one of us.”
“Yeah, yeah, can I just smash it up?”
“Ah ‘erd that another one o’ em tore a guy’s face off with their teeth…” Spicy Sausage shivered, then adjusted her circlet.
“Oh my…” The green veiled, fallen prophet gasped, “...Just, meet the rest of us back at our new base when you are finished, understood?”
“So, I can go smash stuff now?” The impatient cyclops crossed his arms.
Bitter Kale sighed, “Yes, yes you can.”
“Huzzah!”
Champion Cyclops parted ways with the rest of his allies, entering the greenhouse. He uses his javelin as sort of a compass…though the fluid within the vat was a glowing pale green. Due to how conspicuous the fluid was, he was able to easily lock aim and throw the javelin at the vat.
Whoosh…CRACK!
Bullseye! The vat was successfully hit. Champion Cyclops rushed towards the machine and ripped his javelin from it. It didn’t hit the young girl in the container, luckily. Not satisfied with the internal smashing things quota, the gladiator cyclops punched the vat as hard as he could, shattering it completely.
Once the task was completed, he bolted out of there, not before picking a giant tomato off of one of the vines in the vegetable garden.
—The next morning—
Bellflower yawned and headed to the kitchen. She expected typical chaos, but something was off. There was still chaos, but WAY too much of it. The kitchen and dining hall looked like a Wafflehouse Free-For-All. Furniture was being thrown, vulgar language, too. Everyone in the group was fighting mercilessly, but none of them were using their powers, just their bare hands. Thank the Divines Avocado and Yam were out of town, because the entire group would’ve met First Cream ... .nah, more like Dark Enchantress.
“...” The plantae bolted back to her greenhouse and slammed the door shut.
“Lady Bellflower! Someone broke the vat!” Jalapeño shrieked, and pointed to the debris left from the vat.
“Oh no!” Bellflower rushed over to see the extent of the damage.
The vat that had contained the young girl was in pieces, the glass all over the floor. There was a little blood, too.
“..I may have stepped in the glass..” The werecheetah raised her bandaged foot.
Bellflower huffed in exasperation, “..Thank goodness I gave you all those pheromone-immunity shots.”
“..Oh! I think-!”
“Urghhh…Wh..what is this place..?” the young girl who was previously in the vat, began to open her eyes, “..Is this heaven?”
The two older women looked at the young girl as soon as words escaped her mouth. Jalapeño was more openly emotional than her mentor, her pupils expanding rapidly.
“..I would believe so, young one.” the plantae responded, gently lending her hand towards her new daughter, “My greenhouse is the pinnacle of serenity, for the most part.”
The young girl took Bellflower’s hand and slowly began to stand up. She was a little wobbly, given that she was asleep for an extended period of time whilst her body was being rebuilt from charred remains. She somewhat resembled her past self, skin still tawny, but with green, leaf-like extremities and cheeks. Her hair was platinum blonde, with accents of ruby red. Her eyes, once a reddish-brown, were the same ruby red as parts of her hair.
“Do you remember your name, young one?”
“...Hmm..Mahogany Flower…no…that’s not it…Or was it Mahogany Bloom..?”
“Oh..Would you mind if I referred to you as Poinsettia?”
“Poinsettia! Those were my favorite flowers…at least I think they were..What happened to me?”
“Cookies undeserving of a precious flower yet to bloom abandoned it, caring for themselves first rather than such a fragile wonder…It wasn’t right to see the ashes of that flower be left in the rubble.”
Jalapeño began sweeping up the broken glass from the floor whilst Bellflower comforted the weeping Poinsettia, taking her to a safer part of the garden. She gave her a lovely hand-me-down outfit, and styled her hair into a braided lower bun.
“Would you like some flowers in your hair..?” Bellflower softly offered.
“Red poinsettias, please..” Poinsettia sniffled.
Bellflower placed her hands on the sides of the younger plantae’s head and within a few seconds, two identical poinsettia flower hairpins appeared…completely made of plant materials.
“Would these work, dear?”
“Those are beautiful!” Poinsettia’s eyes glittered, “..Thank you!”
Bellflower placed the pins into the young girl’s hair. She also turned back towards Jalapeño.
“Would you like me to do your hair as well..?”
“An accessory would work just fine..”
Bellflower used her plant magic to create a jalapeño flower bundle hairpin. She walked over and put it on the werecheetah, giving her a gentle nod and smile.
“I’ll mop up the chemicals, you go sit down with Poinsettia. Afterwards, I’d like to teach both of you something my guardian once taught me.” Bellflower began to search for her mop and a bucket.
As their newfound mother figure dealt with the chemical solution on the floor, her two adopted daughters began to chat.
“Oooh, what a cute tail!” Poinsettia reached for Jalapeño’s tail, wanting to touch it, then she hesitated.
“Aww, how sweet, you can touch it.” Jalapeño giggled, “I don’t mind. Just don’t tug it.”
“So pretty, so soft!”
“Thanks! Lady Bellflower has been giving me plenty of supplements that keep me healthy! I guess a soft coat of fur is a bonus!”
The plantae woman began to setup the area in which she could make the antidote for the vat liquids's potentially poisonous side effects. She gathered her botany books, herbs, potions, and other substances neither of her daughter figures could identify. She had a sizable cauldron for this, and an equally lengthy ladle.
Her speaker was switched on, it began to play “When I Take My Sugar to Tea” by the Basil Sisters. Bellflower’s Playlist was a mix of serenity, chaos, and lesbianism.
“Lady Bellflower, do you need assistance?” Jalapeño offered, “We're both more than happy to help you!”
“Oh, no, no, girls, I've got this! I assure you!” Bellflower began to hum the song playing on her speaker, as she placed each ingredient in the cauldron.
As the plantae was putting the final few ingredients in the cauldron, she noticed something was off and compared what she had to the recipe.
“Hmmm…fae grass, ginseng root, chamomile, lavender, snake venom…I also got all those potions…and a human tooth…drat! I'm missing a vial of cyclops blood!”
“Do you need us to retrieve some, Lady Bellflower?”
“No need…You can never predict what this garden has to offer.”
CRACK!
Glass shattered. Poinsettia squealed in shock and tightly hugged Jalapeño. Champion Cyclops had entered the garden greenhouse again…and broke the door…how rude. Bellflower, busy with her work, didn't seem to notice. The hulking cyclops began to slowly walk towards his nemesis, with his trusty javelin.
Thump…
Thump…
Thump…
He raised the javelin, with full intent of skewering Bellflower’s skull like a mushroom kebab…but as he was about to execute his plan.
SMACK!!!
Bellflower delivered a mean left hook to Champion Cyclops's jaw. He dropped the javelin and collapsed to the floor.
THUD!
Bellflower, with absolutely zero hesitation, used the javelin to stab into her nemesis's arm. As quickly as she did, she had the blood transferred into a vial. Afterwards, she used a swab of cotton and some fresh gauze to patch up her enemy's wound. She's ruthless, but not a monster.
Her two daughter-figures stood in silence, befuddlement, and awe. Champion Cyclops, as soon as he regained some composure, bolted out of the greenhouse expeditiously.
“...” Poinsettia stared at Jalapeño.
“...” Jalapeño stared right back.
“See what I mean, girls?” Bellflower held the vial, “Completely unpredictable!”
“..We will take your word for that…”
“Also, can you two clean up the broken glass and get me those protein shake cups from the kitchenette?”
–An hour later–
Bellflower heads downstairs into the Guild’s personal indoor training room. Everyone who was affected by the toxins, was working out. And to her surprise, none seemed hostile.
“Guys, yoo-hoo!” She waved a vine to get everyone's attention.
“Oh, Heya there, Bell!” Rambutan’s eyes lit up, and she ran towards Bellflower.
“Sup, babe! Sorry about the commotion earlier!” Mala Sauce stood up and kissed her plantae girlfriend.
“Oooh, what's this?” Rambutan also kissed Bellflower and glanced at the numerous homemade remedies she had in protein shake cups.
“Just a little cure for aggression, and potential poisoning you may have been afflicted by. A certain golden cyclops broke into my greenhouse last night and destroyed a giant vat…luckily, the little sapling in there was unharmed!”
Poinsettia walked into the room and waved, “Hello!”
“This is Poinsettia, she will be my second daughter from now on.”
Everyone in the Guild took the remedies and chugged them like a normal energy drink. To them, it tasted like cold ginger tea. Mala Sauce and Rambutan also embraced Jalapeño and Poinsettia like daughters of their own. Because if Bellflower is going to be their mother, they might as well give the duo of young ladies two more moms. The more, the merrier.
“Habanero, your teacher called me regarding your classroom performance…your stepfather and I would like a chat.” Melon Bun addressed her son.
–Later that night—
Bellflower was awoken to a floral green light right in front of her eyes. She put on her glasses to see what the source of light was….
“Bellflower Cookie…you are the second one. Congratulations….”
“Whuh..?” Bellflower groggily addressed the voice.
“You have earned the Spark of Patience…you are to guard this and use it wisely, understood..?”
“...” Bellflower nodded.
“Good…expect to begin to see more gems like these appearing on each of your allies. They all have trials to pass…”