The Garden

And a bitch xe are, but xe still have something I want. Several somethings, in fact. After cleaning up the spill from the plant as best I can, I'm left with the options of where to go next. Or I can turn tail and run back down and pretend I never came here, which I'm not gonna lie is a very appealing prospect. But I didn't come this far for nothing, and I am a foolhardy idiot that doesn't back down when I set my mind to something. It'll get me killed some day for sure, but that day might not be today. And if it is, well, I lived longer than anyone expected.

So. Left, right, or back? I think I'll go left. I'm left-handed so left just feels better for me.

The short hallway leads into what looks like a tropical garden with some ferns on either side of the door, obscuring my line of sight a little. I can hear rushing water, and the whole place seems like a natural paradise, were it not contained in an apartment building. I can't see anything but plants, can't hear anything but a waterfall, and can't smell anything but pollen. Altogether- it's beautiful, and it would make a perfect spot to be ambushed, given it just overwhelms all your senses at once. People build whatever they want- but sometimes nature has the best ideas anyway. It makes me happy to see that plants are just as smart as people, they're just… a little slower. They're still trying though! And it's cute as hell. Now. Back to focussing. No more tangents just because plants are cool.

As I return to focussing, I realise I can kind of make out the sound of rustling leaves somewhere off to my right in the garden. As much as I wish this were a stealth mission, it isn't and it can't be. So now I need to head towards the noise and try to negotiate with whoever is making the noise. I trot towards the left slowly and loudly- I don't want whoever it is to try and murder me just because they were surprised by my entry. If they want to murder me they'll have to find a different reason for it. I'm not going down like that, I'm certain of it. Passing through the plants, I try to identify any of them- and fail miserably. I don't think this can possibly be plants native to New Zealand, the temperature and humidity here is just too high. It's not become icky and sweaty just yet, only pleasantly warm, although I don't doubt it will annoy me severely quite soon. Through the ferns I can sort of see someone gardening, but I can't tell what they look like or anything, just a vague person-shaped blob.

Continuing through the greenery and ducking past low lying branches irritatedly.

It looks like a lady from here, but I still can't see their face. Do they know I'm here? I couldn't even begin to tell. I haven't been quiet, but they (she?) haven't reacted to my presence in the slightest.. I guess not.

"Excuse me?" I say quietly, trying to act timid.

They don't answer or react, and It's confusing.. Maybe she's deaf?

I circle around them, giving a wide berth and then stand in front of her, but she still doesn't react in any way. I stomp one of my crutches on the ground, just enough to make a bit of noise and hopefully the movement will notify her of my presence. But no. She still doesn't move, but her body language is telling me they noticed- her shoulders tensed and such.

So I repeat the action, sharply tapping the end of my crutch on the ground twice.

Finally she looks up at me, and then I can see her face. She looks quite plain, with medium length brown hair framing her face and I can see her spring-green eyes. The most striking part is that her face is covered in a spiderweb of scars, centred near her temple. The scars almost look like a firework of pale lines, bursting across their face. She shakes her head at me, looking like I upset her. I open my mouth to speak but before I can she shake her head again, with more vehemence, raising her arms to form like a cross, or an X? She seems to be telling me not to speak, which is a bit strange but hey, it doesn't affect me much.

I pat my chest and then point at the ground, raising my eyebrows, trying to ask if I can sit down. She nods, and I take a seat on the ground facing her.

She mimes zipping her lips and throwing away the imaginary key, and I nod back like 'Yeah, I get it, I gotta shush.'

She half-smiles with satisfaction, nodding to me in return. She points around the garden and then shrugs, which I interpret as 'Why are you here?' I purse my lips, not sure how to answer that, but then I come up with something that kind of works. I raise my hand above my head, trying to show someone taller than me, which Thomas is, then point at myself, then make a hugging movement, which I think is vague enough that she can't exactly question the authenticity of it, but not so vague that it's an obvious lie. But I'm not the best judge of people, and I might have misjudged it, given the way she's frowning at me. Before she can make any movement to try and explain why she looks so discomfited, there's a great crashing in the bushes behind me and a little to the left, then something springs from the bushes, leaping on to me and knocking me on to the ground, sending one crutch skittering across the earth away from me.