lilies in the embassy

When Meridian heard about ambrosia, he was immediately deeply interested. A variety of elixirs, grown and harvested in an Embassy from practically another plane… well, that was almost exactly up Meridian’s alley. His basic research provided very little in terms of actual knowledge of the arcane and physical properties of the elixir, but that did nothing but heighten his curiosity. Luckily enough for him, he had a friend that was much more knowledgeable of things from up above.

He brought up the topic to Dove in their next tea party together, and they were more than willing to share a little about what they knew. However, they could see that a pure recollection wasn’t enough to fully satiate Meridian’s thirst for knowledge. Graciously, they invited him on their next visit up to the Heavenly Embassy. Those visits were few and far between, seeing as Dove much rather spend their time down in Burrowgatory proper, but they were willing to traverse up there alongside someone else.

Entering the greenhouse was a barrage of new senses for Meridian. Some proper looking bun shoved a bag of shining bulb-looking things into his hands, speaking only to Dove when instructing them to keep an eye on him. That did not bother him much; he understood that they must mostly want to keep these heavenly sprouts alive and healthy, and they were aware that he knew very little about maintaining them. Dove, however, did. They had never really gardened as a hobby in the Heavenly Meadow, but all cherubuns were taught enough about maintaining the plants that were so important to them.

The walls of this beautiful greenhouse were glass in most places, with some shaded areas. There were plots upon plots of various different plants, all of them shining or gleaming in some way. It seemed to be a place of great magic, and Meridian wonders for a moment what effect any runic carvings would have if done with the ambrosia in some of these plants. Surely, the effects would be heightened… But no, that is not his place. He is here to learn how to cultivate from those who have done it many times, and then perhaps he can ask some questions about the arcane qualities. The bun at the front of the Embassy had mentioned some things about a virtue of Diligence, but that would be a secondary prize to the examination of how this ambrosia could be used for his greater purpose.

Dove leads Meridian over to an empty plot, carrying two spades. They kneel down beside the plot of dirt, and Meridian follows suit.

“So, this plant will be the basis of ambrosia?” Meridian asks, holding the bulb-filled bag lightly. He takes the spade Dove hands him in his free hand. “Some sort of angelically delicious food?”

“Well, there’s many different types of ambrosia,” Dove explains. They survey the empty plot of land, picking a spot close to the edge of the planter. “Some ambrosia is for eating, some is more medicinal. The lilies we’re planting here are more medicinal than for tasty treats.”

“So not all ambrosia is for decadent meals… interesting. So these plants have healing properties if consumed?”

“Only if prepared properly!” Dove says, bringing their hand to their mouth to giggle quietly. “They are not good to eat raw. Even if the bulbs grow into something rather delicious looking. The cream color almost looks like some sort of butter…”

“Ah, are you speaking from experience?” Meridian raises an eyebrow.

“Perhaps,” Dove admits with a smile. “I may have been reprimanded for attempting to eat some of the lilies in my youth. They looked very scrumptious, and a friend of mine told me it was just like biting into a tart. Luckily, I was able to spit them out before any harm came to me. They can be poisonous in their unprepared state.”

“Well, I will avoid attempting to consume them preemptively,” Meridian says with a laugh. “Even if they look delectable.”

“Indeed,” Dove agrees, and then looks back over to the plot of land. “Now, to get them growing… First, we must dig a trench. It will be three times the height of the bulb, and long enough to fit each bulb with… hmm. I think three inches of space?”

Meridian nods and gets to work. There’s more than enough space in the dirt plot for plenty of bulbs, but the two of them do have a little trouble ensuring the trench is deep enough. The dirt is packed thick, but Dove assures Meridian that all the shifting dirt they’re doing will result in the flowers growing stronger. He chooses to believe that they’re attempting that on purpose over the possibility that they may just be bad at digging holes together.

Eventually though, the trench is dug (with much effort). Dove sits back, surveying the scene. Meridian follows suite, more unsure of their success.

“It… appears right! About three bulbs high…” Dove observes.

“And one small mountain of dirt to the left of us,” Meridian says. His runes are smudged with dirt, along with the normally bright metal of his chains.

“Part of the process,” Dove says with a soft smile. Their sheet white clothing is far more brown now, only the small bell around their neck still shining. Meridian ponders if they’ve cast any shielding spell on that as Dove stands to head towards a bag in the corner of the room alongside various gardening equipment.

They grab the corner of a burlap sack and make as if they plan to pick it up. However, it simply does not lift despite the clear effort they’re putting into it. It must be severely heavy, Meridian thinks as he rises to assist.

“No worries,” Meridian says. He takes a corner of the bag and tries to lift it entirely on his own. Unprepared for the weight, he almost tips over backwards. It weighs just about as much as he would imagine a sack of boulders would weigh. He quickly shuffles to put it down next to the dirt pile, huffing and puffing with effort. He can feel several muscles in his back complain about him having done that.

“Thanks, Meridian,” Dove says, and he can see the ghost of a smile at his expense on their face. Kindly, though, they keep it a ghost and do not summon it into the full cackle it could be. “The bag of gravel was a bit heavier than I thought it would be.”

Ah, so it was a bag of boulders. Given that, Meridian feels a bit better about not being able to lift it easily.

“What will we be using it for?” He asks, taking a seat. Not because he’s winded for that or anything, clearly.

“Well, we don’t need it for all ambrosia,” they explain. “But the lillies tend to root and grow better if you put a thin layer of gravel underneath where you situation the bulbs.”

“Oh? Adding rocks enhances the rooting of the heavenly bulbs?”

“Yes,” Dove opens the bag of gravel and tips it lightly into the trench they made together. “So it can snake it’s roots between the large gaps of the pebbles instead of the tightly packed dirt.”

“Ah, that makes sense. I’ll spread them into an even layer, then?” Meridian asks, and then gets to work with Dove’s approving head nod.

Together, they spread the rocks across the bottom of the trench and gingerly place each bulb standing up. A few of the bulbs have already sprouted, gleaming leaves emerging from the small brown shape. Meridian wonders at each one as he places it down, making a mental note to go back and compare them with the lilies of Burrowgatory below.

If there even were lilies! He had to admit, he had never really been interested in gardening or horticulture. It simply wasn’t a practice that assisted his arcane studies, beyond procuring a few pre-grown herbs and spices for his rituals. But he had not given serious thought to the origin and procurement of many of the flora he made use of. It was certainly something to research further.

They begin covering the bulbs and packing in the dirt. This part was fairly simple, though it somehow made the general veneer of mud on the both of them even more prominent. It was fun, though, and the two of them even had a few moments of tossing a few bits of left over sod towards each other, then pretending they had no idea where it had originated.

The time there hadn’t felt like the few hours it was. After all the bulbs are planted, the two of them return all the equipment they borrowed and Meridian hauls the bag of gravel back to its original place.

“Well, Dove, thank you very much for sharing your knowledge here today,” Meridian says as they’re leaving. “I know this is just the first step of the ambrosia process, but do not feel as if you must dedicate much to my pursuit of knowledge. Now that I have been granted permission to help tend to the gardens up here, I will try my best to not trouble you with my frivolous requests when the research lives already in these clouds. The attendant that assisted us at the beginning of today was quite direct, but I believe he was willing to answer questions as well.”

“It was no issue,” Dove replies. “I had a fun time today! And I appreciate your consideration. Feel free to ask me questions whenever! Though, I probably won’t join you for every step of the cultivation. I’ve done my time with it in my youth, and Jackal’s washing machine is very fussy sometimes.”

“Very well,” Meridian says with a nod. “Thank you again for your guidance. I have had a wonderful time today as well. I hope to uncover not just the information about the runic and arcane properties of these wonderful plants, but the ways they are important to the Embassy and the buns who live upon it.”

And the two of them parted, and went to their respective homes absolutely covered in mud, exhausted, and satisfied.