Work Text:
Springtime was creeping in, slowly but surely. It left Charmy buzzing in delight. Soon, the seasonal summer flowers would bloom! Soon, a nice, calm breeze would accompany their going ins and going outs! Soon, he'd be able to start gardening!
See, the last time they visited, Charmy asked Cream if they had any flower seeds. Cream agreed chipperly and showed him the seeds they had. They ended up going through it together.
As they looked through the seeds, Charmy admitted an interest he had about finding flowers that resembled his family and planting them in front of the agency. Cream thought it was cute, and she had rushed off to ask her mother if she could give him some of their seeds...if he could find any flowers he liked.
Vanilla agreed, and Charmy and Cream had spent the rest of their time together looking through seeds for Charmy to take.
They crossed Sunflower seeds first.
Sunflowers have many different meanings as is. The meanings can differ depending on the country or culture, but if there's one thing that's universal, sunflowers are typically known to be associated with joy or positivity. They're flowers that can also represent creativity and playfulness. It may not have been perfect, but to some degree, it was the best flower for him.
A while after that, they found Zinnia seeds.
Zinnia flowers are said to be ""a symbol of vibrant resistance". Their stunning colors show their meaning through their vibrancy, as well as their resilience. They're loud. They're bold. They remind him of Vector, and he knew he just couldn't change his mind after that.
Finding a flower that suited Espio was a bit tougher. Just as they were about to give up, they hit a slight jackpot.
They found Gladioli seeds.
The Gladiolus flower, also known as a Sword Lily, have a strong history of representing physical and moral strength. Their ties to courage haven't changed for centuries and is unwavering to this day. Even without the historical ties, the flower's build is a good metaphor for strength, with its upright stem and unbending structure that says it all. Even if it doesn't entirely fit his brother, Charmy certainly thought it struck a chord or two.
He's been waiting to use the collected seeds for months now, and finally, it was time to use them.
Springtime is always lovely.
It's the best time to start planting the seeds he was given, and there was no way he was passing up the chance to do it. As soon as spring rolled in and the frost had gone away for good, Charmy was out the door with a dollar store spade and the seeds.
Hardly even a minute in, Espio joined him outside.
"Gardening, I see?" he inquired neutrally. Charmy looked up from his work and flew over to his brother, flying around him with a wide grin.
"Sure am!!!! D'ya wanna help? D'ya???? D'ya!!!!!??"
"...Well...? I...don't see why not.."
And then there were two.
They spent a while outside together, gardening and making sure the to-be flowers would be growing someplace they could bloom comfortably. Hours flew by, but they hardly noticed till Vector called them inside for lunch.
Lunch then turned into hoping and waiting for a case of some kind. Then it turned to night, and then the next day.
When Charmy stepped out the next morning to check on the flowers, he found they were already being watered by Vector. He grinned widely and flew over to help him out.
With a little bit of teamwork and a whole lotta waiting, the flowers bloomed gloriously after quite some time.
The Sunflower.
The Zinnia.
The Gladiolus.
Together, just as they should be.