Rosie Oakhum's Arc

Chapter 2 of 3

Rosie woke with the flower stuck in her mind. She had a thread now, but no name to pull it with. A red flower thick with fur, a bee that glowed pink and black. She didn't know what either one was. Until she could name the flower, she couldn't guess why the village hid it from her. So she cut one bloom from the greenhouse, wrapped it in a rag, and went to find someone who knew flowers. The flower shop sat on the ground floor of the Village Square Apartment, its window boxes spilling color. Hazel Derry ran it. She was young and quick-eyed, and she waved at everyone who passed. Rosie had watched her for years. Hazel knew every plant in the district. If anyone could name the strange bloom, it was her. Rosie stepped inside. Hazel looked up from a bucket of stems and smiled. "Morning, Rosie. Need something?" "Just a name." Rosie set the rag on the counter and folded it open. Hazel's smile dropped. Her hand went still above the flower. She didn't reach for it. She looked at the red petals, the fine hairs, the long curled threads, and her face went pale. "Where did you get this," Hazel said. It wasn't a question. "Found it. What is it?" Hazel wrapped the rag back over the bloom fast, like she was hiding it from the window. "It doesn't have a name. Not a real one." She glanced past Rosie at the door. "Some folks call it a hairy lily. But it shouldn't be here. It doesn't grow anywhere near Ivywood." "So someone brought it," Rosie said. "You need to put it back." Hazel pushed the wrapped flower across the counter. Her voice dropped low. "And you didn't get it from me. You didn't show me. Please." Rosie held her ground. "Why's everyone so scared of a flower?" Hazel wouldn't meet her eyes. "It's not the flower. It's what it's for." She turned away and busied her hands with the bucket. "That's all I'll say. I mean it, Rosie." Rosie picked up the bundle. She had her name at last. A hairy lily, grown where it had no business growing. But Hazel's fear told her more than the name did. A flower didn't frighten a woman like that. A use for it might. She walked out into the square. The name had answered one question and split it into three. What was the lily for? Who had brought it to Ivywood? And why did knowing it scare Hazel more than lying to her face? Rosie tucked the flower into her apron. She had traded a mystery for a bigger one. Now she needed to learn what a hairy lily could do.