Page 13 of Magic Blooms
All the more reason for me to get back home quickly. I had responsibilities. Duties. My family needed me to fulfill my promises, and the longer I was here, the longer I was letting them down.
“You should’ve seen the way the flowers were reacting to her after she crash-landed. I wouldn’t mind having her help in the greenhouse for a few seasons.”
This particular aside told me that she’d spotted me long before I’d noticed her waiting in the woods. How much had she seen? How much did she know that she wasn’t yet letting on?
“I can’t be here for a few seasons,” I said pinching the bridge of my nose in frustration. “I need to get home quick. Preferably today.”
“Today might be a bit sooner than we can make happen,” warned Jasmine with a sigh. “Also I think you’re focusing on the wrong thing.”
This piqued my curiosity. “What do you mean?”
“I mean you’re focusing on how to get back. What you should be worried about is how you got here.”
“Understanding the mistake seems less important than correcting it.”
She shook her head in defiance. “People don’t just accidentally fall through portals. Someone sent you here, and it seems they did so against your will. What’s the point in sending you back if you’re just going to be pushed back through?”
I winced at the thought. “No. No one would have sent me here on purpose.”
Jasmine gave me a look of pity that made my stomach churn.
“I’m perfectly pleasant,” I insisted, uncrossing and recrossing my arms. “No one has any reason to attack me.”
Lorraine and Jasmine both chuckled as they studied me with matching expressions of wonder.
“Please don’t laugh. There’s nothing funny about any of this.”
“I just hope I never have to describe myself as ‘perfectly pleasant’,” said Lorraine. “You’re right. You are boring.”
“I’m not boring! I’m a good daughter. And a good citizen.”
“Yeah, and I bet you’re a good person, too,” Jasmine quipped with another untimely chuckle.
“I want you to help me get back home. Not judge me.”
Jasmine sucked air in through her teeth. “Honey, we’re not here to judge you. You can do that for yourself. What was it you said about listening with your heart?”
Funny. It really sounded like they were judging me. Not that it should matter. They weren’t my people. Let them think whatever they wanted. It shouldn’t matter.
And yet I still found myself clenching my jaw tightly.
Lorraine moved on, thankfully. “I’ve heard of people opening doors, but I’ve never done it myself. Let alone being able to choose where that door leads. I figured if anyone could help Polly get home, it would be you.”
“Well, yes, I am the best person to turn to. But like I said, it seems futile to send her back to a place that doesn’t want her.”
I sucked in a breath, and at last Jasmine seemed to notice how hurtful her words were.
“I mean, where at least one person doesn’t want you,” she amended. “Sending you back too soon could put you in far worse danger than you are here.”
I remained quiet. There wasn’t much to say to that. “Is the process hard?”
“It’s Peach Plains. You’re in the best place possible to get back to your home. You want a portal, you go to Peach Plains. But depending on your power level, portals can be hard to come by. The best way for us to open a door is to rely on nature to work with us.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means our best bet is going to be to wait for a full moon. Besides, I don’t yet have all the supplies I’ll need to open up a doorway.”
I glanced around her shop, which, to me, seemed to have everything under this strange yellow sun. “What else could you need?”
