The Endangered Garden

The loud chime of the clock rang once, twice, three, four times, each one shuddering the floor of the clocktower, and therefore, Teo. He got up, bones still clattering from the vibrations, picked up his brown leather-covered case, and ran down the winding steps of the tower, out into the crisp early autumn air. He sprinted across the cobblestone streets, short mousy hair blowing across his forehead. The afternoon sun shone, reflecting off the water, yet hardly warming up the cool London air. Leaves blew through the wind, and drivers shouted as Teo rushed in front of horse-drawn carriages, weaving his way through the 4 O’clock traffic. He waved a friendly hello at a fruit stand as he hurried by, flipping a shining coin to the vendor as he passed. 

Out of breath, he arrived in front of the tall iron gates that were his destination. He stood there for a moment, pressing his back up against the gate, holding his case against his chest, bent over, breathing heavily from the exertion. The gate swung open, and he stumbled backward into the courtyard, landing on his butt, and dropping the case on the dusty ground. 

“Pfft.” Teo saw Marigold standing over him laughing. 

“What’s so funny?” He asked indignantly. 

“You!” She giggled. Teo stood up, dusted off his pants, adjusted his suspenders, and affixed his bowtie to sit properly underneath his collar. Scowling mockingly, he punched Marigold’s arm. 

“You got me all dirty!” he teased her.

“Why are you all fancy anyway?” She asked, attempting to raise an eyebrow at his outfit. 

“Don’t you r-” She cut Teo off, saying

“Nevermind! I want to show you something!” and motioned for him to follow. Picking up his case, Teo raced after her, not wanting to be left behind. Together, they darted through the garden. Even at a glance, the garden was a sight to behold. A beautiful stone path wound through it, with garden beds on either side. They were filled with multicolored lilies, purple, pink, and orange tulips, bright carnations, and an outer ring of towering sunflowers. The air was filled with the sweet scent of nectar and sneezing, as the pollen found its way into Teo’s nose. 

After rushing through the garden, Marigold led them down a dirt path Teo never remembered going on or even seeing. 

“We’re almost there, come on!” She called behind her shoulder. Teo ran to catch up and nearly slammed into her as she stopped suddenly in front of what looked like a brick wall, although it was hard to tell with all the ivy covering it. “Ta da!!” Marigold gestured to the wall.

“Ummmm…” 

“Let me show you inside!” Marigold was bursting with excitement, so Teo just sighed, and obliged her. Peeling back the curtain of shining ivy, Marigold ran her hand along the brick wall. She stopped when she came to a brick that was slightly indented into the wall and pushed her weight against the spot. A door swung open with a squeal of rusty hinges. Teo followed her inside, intrigued by what he had just witnessed. Marigold picked up a rock, a good bit larger than her fist, and set it down in the doorway, so it would remain open just a bit. 

Teo looked around in wonder,  marveling at what was before him. It was the most wondrous thing he had ever seen, with high brick walls creating a large room-like expanse, only lacking a roof. Teo estimated that it was as big, if not bigger, than his residence, in the clocktower, or at the orphanage. The ivy that scaled the tall brick walls reflected the sunlight off of its leaves. A willow stood in a corner, its branches of lush green leaves peering over the top of the walls, a woodpecker perched within its branches. The ground was covered with a spongy green moss with small footprints indented in it as if an animal had been there recently. There were flowers growing in scattered rows. There were white ones that looked like floating dancers, purple ones that grew in bunches like lilacs, and the crown jewel of it all. Coral-colored roses surrounded by their own thorns, protecting them from the rest of the world. 

Next to him, Marigold’s drawn-out breath synchronized with his own, as together they breathed in the scent of this magic. They watched as a chittering squirrel scampered across the top of the walls, as a beetle munched on fallen leaves, and as the woodpecker pecked at the trunk of its tree. 

“Marigold,” Teo began, somewhat sharply. “I am in awe. Truly. But I’m leaving for boarding school today! That’s why I’m dressed like this!” Marigold sighed loudly.

“Teo, don’t you see? That’s why I needed to show you. Everything here-” She gestured around the garden, “Is endangered!” And once she said that something clicked for Teo. The floating dancing flowers, the purple one that resembled lilacs, and the coral roses. He had never seen them before, and now he knew why. “You’re leaving today, which is why you need to have these.” Marigold held out a fistful of small drawstring pouches, presumably from her pockets. 

“Uh, what do those have to do with anything?”

“They have seeds. Seeds to all of these plants. You need to take them with you and plant them somewhere at your school. Because I think this garden-” Marigold gestured around her again, “ Is the last of many of these plants.” Teo took the pouches she had held out, and together they walked back to the main house. Marigold grabbed a piece of parchment, a quill, a piece of string, and a botany book she had acquired from the library. 

Looking at the book for reference, she carefully wrote down the name of each species, how they needed to be planted, and where. Marigold rolled up the parchment, tied it with the string, and handed it, along with the pouches of seeds, to Teo. Together, they walked in silence to the train station. Teo bought his ticket, and as the train pulled away, he released a seed into the wind.