Chapter Eleven: The Garden
"I've never been this deep in the forest," Miyo said aloud, observing the nature around her. She was in the Riyona forest by herself, surrounded by many growing trees and blossoming flowers. Suddenly, a butterfly passed in front of Miyo's face. Its wings were blue and marked with fantastic designs. Miyo, entranced by its beauty, began to follow it in awe.She continued to follow it, not fully paying attention to her surroundings. She soon reached a waterfall that she had never been to before. She forgot about the butterfly for a moment, leaning down and placing her hands into the cool, blue water. "Mm, this feels good," she said, closing her eyes. "I want to bring Vincent and Kohana here."
She breathed in the fresh air as she looked up to the clear sky through the trees. She soon faltered, sitting completely still; she had the vague feeling that someone was standing behind her. She cautiously turned her head to glance over her shoulder. Her eyes widened when she saw three shadowy figures in the distance. Miyo stared at them nervously, beginning to back away as they moved forward. She soon found herself pinned against the small pool of water coming from the waterfall as the figures began crowding around her and...
Miyo gasped as she awoke abruptly from her dream. She began breathing heavily, wiping her moist forehead of sweat and getting out of bed. "Who were they?" she whispered.
As Vincent sat in the living room, he looked toward the floor and saw as the sun's brilliant light flooded the room.
The man stood from his sitting position and stretched his arms wide. He cracked his knuckles and neck as he walked toward the front door and stepped outside to greet the day.
"Another beautiful day," the Turk whispered. Morning had come once more.
Miyo stumbled a bit when exiting her room, before catching herself and lightly chuckling at her own clumsiness. After entering the living room, she noticed Vincent wasn't there, feeling a bit confused. She went to check to see if the Turk was in Kohana's room.
"Good morning, Miyo," Kohana said cheerfully. "Yesterday was the greatest day ever! I'm going to ask Vincent about last night. I can't believe I fell asleep!" Kohana then rushed to the living area and shouted, "Vincent!"
Vincent's ears perked and he looked into the doorway to see Kohana calling his name. "Good morning, Kohana," he said in an upbeat tone. He came inside and presented the girl with a warm smile. "Sleep well last night?"
"Hiya!" she replied, rushing up to him. "Yeah, I slept great. Did anything happen while I was sleeping at the festival? I can't believe I missed the fireworks."
Miyo smiled at the two and crept back into her room for a moment, still a little dazed from her dream. She shook her head of the rogue thoughts and made her way back into the main area of the house. "Those two must be hungry by now," Miyo said softly to herself. "I know I am!"
Vincent shifted his eyes about and scratched his head. "Well, something happened alright," he said with a cough. "It's alright, Kohana. It's nothing you would have liked." He smiled and hid his embarrassment.
"Aww...oh well," Kohana replied with a shrug. "Next time I'm staying up the whole night!"
Miyo interjected herself by calling out, "Good morning. Are you both hungry? I'll make breakfast and we can all eat together. Wait...where's Kikyo? Did she come back?"
"No, I haven't seen her," Vincent said lowering his head. "I wonder where she is." Suddenly, a loud growling sound filled the room and Vincent looked down at his stomach. "I'm sorry. My stomach has never grumbled like this before."
Miyo and Kohana gave each other an amused look and smiled back at the Turk.
"You relax and I'll make breakfast," Miyo said. "Or, if you're up to it, Kohana can show you the garden out back."
"Yeah! I want to do that!" Kohana exclaimed.
Vincent nodded and smiled. "Alright, Kohana," he said with a bit of joy. "Will you show me to the garden?"
"Come on!" Kohana said with a bright smile, pulling Vincent outside.
"I'll call when breakfast is ready," Miyo said, watching them leave.
While Miyo began to prepare breakfast, Kohana held Vincent's hand and the two walked up a small trail until they saw a rather large garden with different flowers, vegetables, and fruits.
"It's lovely here, isn't it Vincent?" Kohana said. "We can sell most of this at the market. Miyo is going to teach me how to plant and sow. She says that our parents put their love into this soil. What do you think?"
Vincent smiled and nodded. He knelt down and touched the ground and was silent for a moment. He looked over to Kohana. "You know something?" the man asked the little girl. "I can feel the love in this garden. And I can feel all of the hard work and time you and Miyo put into it, too."
The Turk stood up and saw the garden in full view. "It shows," he continued as he looked at the lush plants. "It's wonderful."
Kohana beamed as she pulled Vincent along to show him all of the different crops and plants they had. The planted food was on the left side, all sorts of shrubs popping up from the ground. Signs labeled carrots, potatoes, and many other crops were scattered about. At the very edge of the vast area, an apple tree towered over the surrounding plants. The flower garden was on the right side, vibrant and full of color.
"I love the flower garden the most!" Kohana exclaimed. "It overlooks the gazebo."
Kohana pointed left and Vincent looked over to see a small path that lead down to the gazebo, where potted flowers appeared to be stored. It looked old, but still beautiful, with a few vines hugging it. The gazebo looked over a small pond with exotic flowers and tiny fish. The forest contrasted behind it. It was a breathtaking place that seem to have a relaxing aura around it.
Vincent felt himself out of breath as he laid his eyes upon the fantastic sight. It brought back memories of long ago when he often visited the countryside and got away from city life. "It's incredible," he said with wide eyes. "I haven't seen anything like this in many years."
"Well, don't just stand there, let's go!" Kohana said with enthusiasm, dragging Vincent along once again.
The Turk chuckled, willingly following the young girl. They walked along the same dirt path until they reached a small wooden bridge that connected to the gazebo, which caused Kohana to halt.
"Careful," she said knowingly. "They never got to build the hand-railing."
Vincent nodded and crossed over the water with Kohana, holding her hand all the way. After the made it across, the young girl gave a sigh of relief and looked up at Vincent. She grinned and exclaimed, "We made it!"
Vincent smiled at the young girl and the duo made their way over to the bench. After sitting down, the Turk took in the gorgeous sight of the small pond and forest before them. "The view is marvelous, Kohana."
"Thanks!" Kohana said happily, smiling with pride.
"So...why is it the railing was never built on the bridge?" Vincent asked curiously.
"I'm not really sure," Kohana responded. "Miyo told me their was a bridge before this one, but it got old and rotten. Our brother, Jei...Jeimuzu, I think, rebuilt the bridge, but never got to finish."
"Why's that?" Vincent questioned.
"He left," Kohana said casually.
Vincent nodded and replied, "Oh yes...Miyo told me, but she didn't say why. Do you know why, Kohana?"
"No," Kohana answered. "I was just a baby when our parents died, around the same time he left I guess. Miyo doesn't like talking about it all that much."
"I see," Vincent said, turning his attention back to the pond. "I would imagine it's quite painful to talk about."
Kohana took a deep breath of the fresh air and said, "Yeah...hey Vincent, did you have a place like this in your world?"
The man was silent for a moment and then sighed. "There used to be," he said with a blank expression, "but three years ago, someone destroyed everything that was once good. Now, there's almost nothing left in nature. All the flowers, the trees...everything's faded away."
Kohana appeared solemn for a moment, then replied, "Well we have lots of seeds, you can take back as many as you want."
Vincent smiled warmly at young girl, touched by her kindness, and answered, "Thanks, Kohana. Thank you very much."
Chapter Twelve: Breakfast > >
