A chat in the garden

With her mother finished blowing off steam and having turned to leave, Dahlia did the same. The day's tutoring sessions were over and now all that was left was her "free time," if it could be called that. Although her parents were abusive, it's not as though they locked her in a closet or prevented her from sleeping. Instead the expectation was so long as she stayed to herself and didn't leave the property, she could do whatever she wanted once her daily studies were complete.

Those studies may have once spanned from 5 in the morning to 10 at night, but now that both father and mother gave up on hopes of her becoming an heir, those hours were reduced dramatically, leaving more and more time for Dahlia to while away aimlessly. Not being allowed to talk to any servants, even if it's just to ask for help, this free time each day haunted her. All she had were her own thoughts and, with the influence of her parents, those thoughts were never good.

Earlier on in her life, the hours of free time turned into her "self reflection" hours, where she would construct a mental checklist of everything she did to disappoint her parents that day and slowly spiral into a turbid pool of thoughts that were only relieved once a fitful sleep took her.

Although still struggling with many of the same issues, Dahlia's way of dealing with her free time had become much better than before. She cooked her own meals, cleaned her room, read anything and everything, and finally she maintained her own little garden and greenhouse; which was the location she was going to now.

When she first picked up the hobby, she wasn't expecting to stick with it for any length. By that point, many hobbies were attempted and forgotten, all leaving her feeling bored and without sense of accomplishment. Even worse, most began to feel idle and left her undisturbed with her thoughts. But for some reason, gardening stuck. For some reason, she took to it with a fervency seldom found outside her studies.

As she made her way around the estate to the back where her greenhouse was, the maids and gardeners averted their eyes. Some seemed to have short glimpses of pity, but most ignored Dahlia outright or, alternatively, smirked with laughter clearly hidden in their eyes. Her parents never allowed the servants to abuse her outright, as they considered it shameful to see commoners treat a noble that way but… well, they certainly encouraged her complete and utter segregation.

The estate's gardens were standard for the area. Pristine, manicured, and just a little bit plain and boring. The style of the time was minimalistic and Baroness especially desired to be at the very leading edge of every trend. It was only Dahlia's little corner, hidden from view, that had actually embraced the chaotic wonder that some vegetation can bring.

The corner of the garden was never touched by others and had a wild, untamed look that made the manicured gardens nearby look lifeless. The greenhouse she had was chock full of climbing vines, lush trees, and exotic flowers. All of it was surrounded by an earthy scent that Dahlia couldn't help but inhale like a precious perfume. This was her haven.

A small curl formed on her lips as she walked into the warm and humid glass building, and she let her hands gently brush along the leaves on a nearby fern.

"How is everyone doing today, hmm? Enough nutrients? Enough water?"

A silly little grin was plastered on her face as she began talking to her plants. These plants… they weren't magical. They had no intelligence and they gave no response. Other than some rare varieties, there was nothing special or peculiar about them in any way. The only unique thing they had to offer was loyalty.

For Dahlia, that was enough. The moment she found that she could raise, love, and pamper plants and they wouldn't be cruel or be taken away by her parents, that was the moment she fell in love with gardening. These cute little plants were raised with more care than most parents raised their children, and in exchange they became Dahlia's mindless, silent companions.

"You know, today mom was off on another one of her fun little rants."

As she pampered each plant she chatted with them, though now in a hushed conspiratorial tone.

"Ever since the idea of the debutante came up again she's gotten worse. I mean, don't get me wrong, she hasn't beat me as often and even the way she talks has gotten better but… The topics are getting to me more"

She glances at a nearby orchid as if it just said something preposterous. It didn't.

"Well excuse me! Looking a gift horse in the mouth might be a nice idiom, but it doesn't apply here. Rather, according to my mother, I'll be the gift if anything."

A long weary sigh is released then and her eyes shift to a different plant. A giant succulent with big bulbous blue leaves. Seeing this plant, her eyes narrow.

"Don't call me a hypocrite! She may say they'll praise me if I do as they say, but I'm not stupid. I know they don't care about me and just want me gone. Besides, what they want is…"

She cut off what she was saying with a shudder, for just a brief moment her eyes wide and wild like a cornered rabbit. She then turned to a lush vine just about ready to bear ripe fruit and her eyes softened as she let out another, slightly calmer sigh.

"Maybe it's true that once upon a time I wished for a prince charming. Some kind noble boy or even a commoner to show up and sweep me off my feet. Someone that I could love and trust like all of you but… Over the years I've found that less and less desirable. Perhaps it's the company my parents make, but every man who has walked into this estate has either ignored me, treated me cruelly, or looked at me in the most disgusting way."

With another slight shudder and a look of disgust plainly on her face, she continued to talk while pampering the fruit bearing plant like it was pregnant.

"So no. Marriage is off the table, even if it would mean my parents might be a bit happier. I'll find a different way. One that doesn't involve selling myself off."

This continued for a while with the conversation slowly shifting away from her mother's abuse and to other subjects. First it was her relaying her desire to have a light aspect and if she's being greedy, a passable bloodline. The poor plants have heard this topic far more than they deserved, but they remained good listeners as always. The next topic on the list was centred on magic theory. Again, it was something that the entire garden had heard countless times, and being far from scholars, Dahlia had the inclination that they didn't truly appreciate her insights.

"Ok Mister Lily, I'm going to review it one more time, got it? You have to listen closely!"

Dahlia wasn't so far gone that she thought these plants could actually think, but treating them this way always made her happier which was clearly seen by the mischievous grin she had the whole time. Said grin had grown even wider since she began to lecture "Mister Lily."

"Ok, so starting off, lets just talk about schema, alright? I know they're complex and you can be a little slow, but for now we'll go over the basics of the basics. A schema is the method or ideology someone calls on when using their magic. It determines almost everything and can totally redefine how someone's aspect may behave."

She briefly glanced down at the flower, squinting as if trying to tell if it was really following along.

"Let's say we have three different people, each with the same aspect. Let's call it 'inferno' because that sounds cool but is relatively simple to imagine. The first person might have a draconic bloodline, so their schema could call on that and fuse their inferno aspect with their draconic bloodline, making them closer to a real dragon. The second person might channel spirits with their schema, using them to reshape mana and infuse the local area with the inferno aspect. And the final person might have a schema dedicated to rune-crafting, where they infuse objects with the inferno they control. That's just three really simplified examples. Honestly, if you are clever enough, the possibilities of schema creation are endless!"

At this, Dahlia did a little spin as if putting on a show and hoping to somehow amaze her audience. The more she talked about it all, the more excited and animated she got.

"So you see, the schema of magic is the one thing a person gets to choose. Bloodline? No! Aspect? You wish! But the schema can be anything or everything for a bright future caster like me!"

She puffed her chest out a bit at that, clearly hoping to impress her flower disciple. After a moment though, some of that pride started to be lost, replaced with a hint of uncertainty.

"Of course, the schema's efficacy totally relies on how well it pairs with a person's aspect and sometimes even their bloodline, so… I guess 'anything and everything' may be just a little too extreme. It's not like me creating a brilliant schema is going to change a water aspect to a light one, or my worthless muddy bloodline into the Burning Lion."

With each word she further deflated, finally ending with a dejected sigh and mumbling.

"Honestly, in the last five years I developed a schema I'm truly proud of, but that will only help me if I can at least get a light aspect. Without that, sure, I may still have a good schema but it's not like mom or dad will care."

This was a running theme with her train of thought. It always led back to the light aspect that she craved. She had no control in the matter. No sway in the outcome. Yet she obsessed over it endlessly.

Of the 98% of the population who developed mana channelling organs, only 70% actually developed an aspect. Knowing if you'll eventually get an aspect can be tested for at the same age as bloodline testing begins at twelve years old, but beyond that little is known.

So despite not developing until the absurdly late age of 21, Dahlia has always known that she would one day develop her aspect. The issue comes from the unknown.

Out of everyone, 50% would develop a common and simple aspect. These are things like "dewdrops," "grass," and "wind." While a potent schema or powerful bloodline can take these lacklustre aspects and turn them into something grand, they certainly weren't well respected by the elite.

These common aspects which often had only one element and restricted versatility frequently became shameful blots on a noble's otherwise spotless career. Combined with many noble families showing favouritism to certain elemental attributes, you can only imagine how thrilled a fire loving noble house would be with a child possessing the aspect of "gravel."

The remaining 20% of individuals would achieve uncommon, rare, or even unique aspects. Typically more powerful or containing multiple elements, the people falling in this 20% category have aspects as varied as anyone can imagine. An uncommon "waterfall" aspect would contain both water and gravity elements, while a unique aspect that occurred eight decades ago was named "cherry blossoms in an endless storm" and possessed air, nature, water, and electricity.

Needless to say, rare or unique aspects were thirsted for by those of the higher echelons, each hoping to attain such a high pedigree within their lineage.

Dahlia's case is no different. Noble families married politically, but also with the intention of producing heirs with high bloodline purity and suitable aspects. These properties couldn't be perfectly controlled, but in the case of the Lionysus family, developing a light based aspect which is typically on the less common side becomes substantially more likely.

Just because it was more likely though didn't mean it was a certainty. Genetics definitely played a role, but so did environmental factors as well as sheer luck. Dahlia hadn't deluded herself into thinking she was guaranteed light. She just prayed for it. Now that she would finally have her aspect in just a few short days, her reality had begun to sink in once again. Currently, everything she was using to hold on and not lose hope was directly tied to a gamble.

With so many thoughts swirling in her head, she had gone quiet now. The excited girl full of smiles now stood still. She never took any frustrations out on the plants, but sometimes her train of thought dragged her to places where even the garden couldn't maintain her smile. Now, alone in a silent garden stuck with her fears and uncertainties, Dahlia slowly continued to take care of her little green babies, trying to nurse them as well as her own mood.

It was under this heavier atmosphere that a maid arrived behind her.

'Well, they aren't supposed to be here or interact with me, so I know what this means.'

Turning around, she looked at the maid who seemed to look straight through her. As if the air behind her was more interesting than she was.

"The master has called you to his office. He said he wishes to discuss some matters with you and ensure that there won't be any mishaps"

The maid didn't wait for a response and having delivered her message, she turned and walked away, seeming to be uncomfortable in the mere presence of Dahlia. For her part, Dahlia simply frowned with a heavy crease forming on her brow.

'Huh, and here I was hoping we could avoid this conversation.'