Chapter Fifteen - Oakley

“Surprise!” Tisha’s voice preceded her into the space as she bounced past the guard who was trying to check out the situation before letting her in. The poor man looked utterly resigned to his fate in trying to protect the hyperactive princess, but looked relieved when he saw the three of them in the middle. He probably thought that with them there, there was nothing to worry about.

He was absolutely wrong, and yet completely right as she quickly reassured Oakley that Tisha was, in fact, not intending to attack them, and was on the list of friends. As Hayden followed his little sister, she reiterated it for him. The guards were staying near the door, so she just left a note to be careful of the people who came with them, as sometimes they’d have protectors.

Camille cast a worried glance at the tree, then relaxed as she realized Jade was handling it. Looking at the guards, she ordered, “It would be best if you waited in the hall. We’re fine in here.”

“As you wish, princess.” They bowed before retreating and closing the door. Jade supposed that was a common enough order for privacy that they didn’t even blink before obeying. Honestly, there were so many ways in which that could go wrong. Illusions and hostage situations, but at the same time…if they questioned everything, it would get really annoying. Then again, maybe she wasn’t working with all the information. Maybe they had a secret signal for when things went wrong. It wouldn’t surprise her.

Intercepting his sister before she could pounce on Jade, Hunter gave his twin a look that, if she had to guess, was asking why he brought her here. She could easily read their silent exchange; Hayden raised his brows, as if asking ‘why wouldn’t I? You were the one who abandoned me first.’ The unspoken accusation hung in the air between them, until Hunter finally shrugged and patted Tisha’s head as she grumbled about the interception. “Remember that you can’t jump on her?”

The petite bundle of energy seemed to freeze until she deflated. “Right. I forgot. Sorry!” She smiled apologetically, but didn’t seem all that concerned, probably because she hadn’t actually done any harm…yet. Because her brother stopped her, but hey. Easily cheering up again, she chattered, “But you guys are so mean! You abandoned us at the Green Dragon! It took us ages to get out because we had to have a full contingent of guards and they made us go sooooooooooo slowly. And then Hayden only let me stop at two stores! TWO!”

In her hands appeared an overflowing bag, and she held it out excitedly to Jade. “At least I got you a bunch of the best sweets!” She stuck her tongue out at Hayden as she ratted him out, “He kept trying to stop me from buying much until I told him it was for you, and then suddenly I was okay to clear out the store!”

Reaching out to take the bag, she nearly dropped it as her arm sank until she quickly shoved it into her ring. She gave Hayden a teasing smile as she said, “Well, thank you both for that. I actually have something for you to try too.” She flicked out two plates, using a bit of wind magic to hover them as she deposited a few cherry types according to their affinities, sending them in front of them.

Tisha frowned, looking at her mostly brown and gray offerings which looked far less appealing than Hayden’s orange, violet, and light blue hues. Looking at her brother, she ordered, “Switch me.”

Protecting his plate, he countered, “No! These ones are mine!” He was casting a questioning glance at her plate as he continued on somewhat doubtfully, “I’m sure she gave you those ones for a reason…”

The three of them burst into laughter, and Hunter took pity on his sister as he explained, “He’s actually right, for once. The ones with your affinities taste a lot better.” Tisha scrunched up her nose, but nodded and picked up one of her metal cherries to pop it into her mouth. Her expression immediately smoothed into bliss as the flavors burst.

Hayden wasted no time in trying his own offerings, and a similar expression graced his face.

Happily finishing off her cherries, Tisha seemed disappointed and was giving Jade puppy eyes, but more treats were not forthcoming, so she sighed and turned to look at the enclosure more closely. She looked a little puzzled as she asked, “There are so many pretty trees. Why is the one in the center so boring?” She cast a disparaging look at Oakley, and Jade immediately tensed.

She didn’t know how else to describe it, but Oakley bristled. Tisha stumbled back a few steps as waves of indignation washed over her and the leaves seemed to look a lot more like knives. Wide eyed, Hayden pulled her behind him as he stared in horror at the tree that was now waving menacingly.

“Oakley, that’s enough.” Jade said sternly, rapping the bark. She could feel it responding petulantly, and she reiterated, “Enough. She didn’t mean to insult you.” Slowly, the tree lost its hostility, seeming to droop in an attitude of being bullied. Sighing, she gave it another pat as she introduced them, “Tisha, Hayden, meet Oakley. They’re a… what was that name again, right, machran. Anyway, Oakley is the guardian of this little orchard.”

She was trying to make it sound matter of fact so they wouldn’t freak out, but given that they hadn’t seen it from start to finish, they were a bit more freaked out after Oakley’s little showing. To be fair, even Camille and Hunter hadn’t gotten that strong of a reaction.

Eyes still as wide as saucers, Hayden asked, “A machran? How?”

Camille looked thoughtful as she added, “Actually, that’s a good question. What exactly happened? You were growing a tree one moment and then the next it came to life. Not that we could see a lot through the shroud of darkness you had going.” Which, to be fair, was probably a good thing. They’d probably have freaked out if Oakley hadn’t absorbed the signs of blood from the trauma of having her mana vacuum pumped out of her.

Realizing she hadn’t told them about her discovery, she grinned and explained, “Oh! I figured out what the last magic color did!”

“Wait, weren’t there three?” Hayden cut in, and she realized that she hadn’t explained a ton about her magical learning escapades last night. She’d briefly mentioned changing the fellacai, but that was about it. Derrick obviously knew more, and she assumed he’d clued Ashanna in, but the kids were still mostly in the dark.

Nodding, she explained, “Oh, yeah, there were. I discovered what two of them did in Mianach. So gold,” she pointed at a nearby tree with shiny edges and veins, “is actually creation magic. It’s what the dragons use to shapeshift, and what I used to make the fellacai queens.” Pointing at a silver tree, she went on, “Silver is time. Which was a really terrible experience, so suffice it to say, hopefully I never have to use it again.”

Taking a deep breath, she shook her head, then leaned against Oakley, still sending them soothing emotions because they were still a bit riled up. “So that leaves us with the copper color, which is apparently animation magic. Do I know how it works? No. But uh… it takes a lot to create a sentient being, apparently. I wanted a guardian, and I got Oakley, which is pretty amazing.” Was she buttering up a tree? Just a little. But you do what you gotta do to keep the children happy.

“Oh. Okay then. Well, it’s nice to meet you, Oakley.” Hayden recovered the fastest, and the excited tree reacted by extending a branch, which the boy gamely reached out to touch, his expression morphing into awe as the being communicated with him. While she could get a sense of what Oakley wanted without the physical connection, everyone else seemed to require it. Creator perks and all.

“That is SO COOL!” Tisha finally seemed to overcome her astonishment and reached out to hold onto the branch too, practically vibrating with enthusiasm. Jade winced a bit at the volume, but really…why did she expect anything different from the passionate princess? Still, it appeased Oakley even more, so she was gonna count it as a win.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

The awe with which the four royals all interacted with her little creation was nice to watch. She was also reminded that the basaigh she grew in Mianach probably was a lot closer to becoming a machran than she knew at the time. The real question was if it was possible for it to make that leap on its own because she’d already felt a resonance from it, or if it required an outside push. At some point, she should probably warn Derrick. And maybe mention it to Brayden and Elena so they could use the flocks to keep an eye on it. She didn’t really want a tree randomly gaining sentience to catch them by surprise. The giant, glowing rainbow beacon would be kinda terrifying if it started moving without warning.

Glancing at her pocket watch, she still had about forty minutes before they needed to meet up with Lochlann, so that meant about twenty-five before she needed to rocket them above the city. Waving her good hand to get their attention, she told them, “We need to leave in twenty-five, so I’m going to get a bit more work done before we go. You guys keep Oakley company.”

They chorused in assent, then she heard the new arrivals ask where they were going. She blocked it all out, starting to suck in the light behind her as she attempted to refill her reserves and get her further away from the danger point again. If she was going to be experimenting again, she needed to be back at full before they got there. Plus, she just didn’t worry as much when she had her full arsenal to work with. Too many things had been draining even her prodigious pool.

Grabbing some of the most mana-intense beast meat she’d been given, she started downing that too. She wasn’t worried about ruining her appetite. She could pretty much eat forever. Setting the absorption to run fairly automatically behind her, she switched her main focus to growing flowering shrubs near the viewing glass.

She wanted to create some bushes that looked beautiful and would attract the fellacai without being overly ostentatious, presenting a more normal vista for the passerby. It was just taking a leaf out of Earth zoo books and making a public and private space. So about a third of the way in, she started growing eight foot flower creations. There were gaps, so it wasn’t a true wall, but it would suffice.

Picking her favorite florals was easy. She’d studied them enough that she could recreate their likeness here. Restraining herself slightly, she made them a little more vivid than her memory presented them, but didn’t give them the wild colors the cherry trees sported. Racks of wisteria, weigela, camellia, forsythia, roses, lilacs, rhododendron, hydrangea, and caryopteris came into being. Most of them were already bright and had a wide range of colors, so she just leaned into that.

Satisfied with her addition, she filled the ground with grass, quickly completing that section in the limited time she had. She’d have to come back to finish filling in the other two-thirds of the enclosure, but now that Oakley was there to guard, she thought she might use this as a good place to try growing some of the medicinal herbs she could think of and wanted to experiment with. If time spirit creation cherries didn’t do the trick, maybe a ginseng would be more effective? She didn’t know, but it never hurt to try! She could create little zones around each tree, and she was glad she’d spaced them out and kept them further away from the glass so they wouldn’t block the view.

Yay for unintended consequences and benefits! Moving back towards the group, her little ones joined her. She’d noticed the fellacai had yet to move towards the sentient tree, and curiously asked mentally, “Do you not like Oakley?”

Ramoth took the lead in responding, as per her usual. “Feels dangerous.”

Hmmm. Were they still subconsciously radiating an aura to keep others away, not realizing it was affecting the butterflies? They’d already started investigating her new towering flowering bushes, but she didn’t want them confined to the edges, especially because Oakley was supposed to be there to protect them, not scare them.

Walking through a gap in the screen she’d created, she moved towards the group, and she could feel her little ones becoming more agitated, though they were strong enough to keep it under control. Ignoring the royals for a moment, she walked straight up to the tree and touched the branch that was extending towards her.

She spoke aloud as she sent mental images, “Oakley, I’d like you to meet my bonded. These are my queens Ramoth, Lilith, Willow, Amber, and Lavender, and their mates Rio, Cosmo, Andy, Bolt, and Carl. They’re still feeling a little anxious from your aura, so you need to tweak it so you don’t scare the fellacai.”

She could feel Oakley’s initial happiness at being introduced to her littles, and she got the sense they considered them family. Which, honestly, was perfectly understandable because she’d coded protecting them as one of the main purposes of the tree. That excitement turned into anxiety as they realized the reason they hadn’t visited yet was because they were radiating intimidation. Her domain told her minor tweaks were being made to Oakley’s aura until it turned more welcoming again, and finally her small family calmed down.

“Talk to your swarm, please. Let them know Oakley is here to protect them.” She got an affirmative from her littles, and they quickly flew off squeaking. Before long, hundreds of beautiful butterflies once more filled the air as they came to say hello to their new tree friend. The now-sentient being radiated happiness, being extremely careful with their branches so as to not hurt their delicate new companions.

Looking at the still mostly barren side of the enclosure, she nodded and said aloud, “All right. We’ve got to go for now, but I’ll be back today or tomorrow to continue growing this side.” Her little ones flew over to land on her, preparing to leave. Oakley seemed disappointed, but was quickly consoled by the presence of the pretties.

It was weird to worry about the emotions of a tree. The royals bid their own goodbyes, seeming a bit reluctant to part as well. She supposed it wasn’t every day you met a creature from myth and legend.

“Uh, what have you got there?” Hayden’s question drew her back to the present as he stared at his twin…and the little raphna he’d just collected from where she’d been playing in a tree. Of course, Rasu and Gaara chose that moment to land on Camille, and she saw Tisha’s eyes light up at the golden creatures. Although to her practiced gaze, it was more a strange glint. Considering that the princess had been the one to insist they kill them for feathers…

Camille took a step back from her sister, instinctively acting protectively as she announced, “They’re our new bonded. Meet Rasu and Gaara.”

“And Eris!” Hunter chimed in, presenting his little one to his siblings as she stared in adorable confusion at the person who looked like her companion, but wasn’t.

“You gave them bonds without us!?” Tisha asked in clear dismay, staring at her sister in betrayal. Hayden was masking his a little better, but he’d also taken Eris from his brother’s arms and was petting her in awe.

“It just kinda happened.” Jade weakly defended herself.

“Well I want one too!” The princess immediately insisted.

Giving her a smile that was as patient as she could make it, Jade explained, “We’ll talk about it later. Right now, we have an appointment with Prince Lochlann I need to get to. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to. We’re just going to be having lunch, and then I’m getting a lesson on alchemy.”

“We’re coming.” Hayden immediately cut in, and she could tell he really didn’t want to be left behind again, no matter how unappealing their activities might sound. Tisha rolled her eyes but didn’t refute him, so Jade accepted their presence, even if it was slightly grudging.

“All right, that’s settled then. Let’s get going!” Hunter tried to take Eris back from his twin, who stepped back and gave his brother a look as they communicated silently again. With a sigh, Hunter just gave Eris a little pat and resigned himself to letting his brother play with her for a while to appease him. She still seemed a bit confused that her companion had a replica, but was happy to receive pets and attention.

Tisha was still pouting because she’d moved to try and pet Rasu and Gaara, but they’d shifted away from her, hiding behind Cami’s hair. She kinda thought they understood some of how they’d been captured. They hadn’t really warmed up to Hunter either, and were still fairly cautious with her, too. Maybe that would change with time, but first impressions were important.

Opening the door, she saw the guards straighten up as they filed out. There were a few side-eyes at the new companions, but they didn’t say anything. It wasn’t their place. Camille was already talking to them, explaining that they could return as they would be accompanying Jade to visit the Saibreh delegation. That sparked a bit of an argument as they disagreed because going to a place like that was exactly where they needed guards.

She ignored them for now, letting them work it out amongst themselves. Instead, she spent a moment making a sign that said: Keep out unless you have received permission from Jade. This enclosure is self sufficient.

And it was true. Between the trees and the stream, they had everything they needed. With Oakley there, it was far safer to just leave them be. She’d probably need to introduce Eamonn to the tree, but for now she just put a subtle compulsion on the sign that radiated ‘go away’ to any random passerby who might be curious. No need to bother and/or expose Oakley unless it was necessary.

Satisfied with her work, she turned to the group and clapped her hands. “Okily dokely, let’s get this show on the road! Who all is coming with us?”