Wings of the butterfly – The twin gardens tale

Wings of the butterfly – The twin gardens tale.

Wesley opens his eyes and reaches for his glasses then his phone. Three fifteen. No calls. Wincing, he puts the phone back on the nightstand, and lays back down. He is sure the phone rang. Woke him from a deep sleep too. Nerves. Of course it was nerves. He has a date with Mary later this week. Furthermore, he’s been looking forward to it since the other day when they were at Miss Garret’s place.

It was almost the perfect day. Until Miss Anderson showed up. What a mean piece of work that one is, he thinks. His eyes grow heavy and before long, he is sound asleep again. The night is quiet and the moon is full. Outside the air is warm and still. A shadow moves across the ceiling as a small pair of fluttering wings pass by the window.

Wings of the Butterfly

Princess Anna coaxes the last of the fluttering creatures into the special container. The container is made from the fishing nets of the village fishermen. Currently it contains a large swarm of butterflies. Each butterfly is unique in some way. And the fluttering, rapid movement of the multitude of wings, has a slightly hypnotic effect on her senses. She gives orders for the castle’s royal gardener to release the butterflies at the appropriate hour. This will be the first test of their new system.

That day in the tower room, above the bridge of the last resort, they made these plans. Furthermore, they planned the use of the night blooms. The communication problem solved itself once the gardens were realigned. However, they needed a backup plan. Therefore, Prince Stephen suggested this alternative. She imagines Prince Stephen is making ready on the other side of the river. She also wonders how he knew the butterfly could do these things. The gardens are enchanted. The enchantment goes back to times long before Anna was born.

During their time together on the bridge, they discovered there was an enemy in their midst. Someone bent on destroying the magic that united their kingdoms. A magic put in place centuries ago. Neither Princess Anna nor Prince Stephen knew the identity of the enemy within. Neither did they know in whose kingdom the enemy did reside. Therefore, communication known only to them was a safe and trustworthy solution. She looks out over the river toward Prince Stephen’s castle. It is almost sunset. Soon they will know if the butterfly backup plan will actually work.

The Twin Gardens

Wesley spends the day tending to his own yard. Mr. Conner is out of town for the next two days. As Wesley looks over at Mr. Conner’s thriving garden, he discovers a new row of pepper plants. Their dark green leaves beginning to show the first buds of peppers. Wesley knows if he gets his binoculars, he will find that Miss Garret’s garden also has a new row of freshly budding pepper pants. He smiles because he knows that Mary lives next door to Miss Garret. Only two more days and the date would happen.

A butterfly flutters its way past Wesley. It’s on the way to a destination only a butterfly would know. It takes him most of the afternoon to tend to all his outside duties. By the early evening he feels famished and decides to make a large dinner. In fact, since it’s almost sunset, he decides to fire up the grill. Nothing like the smell of charcoal and the sizzle of a good steak on the grill. After lighting the grill, he steps back inside to prepare the steak.

Next week they are going to the town council. Wesley wants to help his neighbor, Mr. Conner. Furthermore, he can’t understand how a town council could show such blatant disregard for its citizens. A butterfly lands on the table next to Wesley’s hand. Its wings have a myriad of colors. Mostly deep royal blue, and some dark forest green. The wings slowly swoop down, then slowly swoop up again. Likewise, it’s facing Wesley. Similarly, he feels the sensation of being watched.

Butterfly Wings

It takes another ten minutes to prepare the steak. Additionally, he decides to grill some onions and an ear of corn. A meal from the grill. All the while the butterfly stays there on the table beside him as he prepares the food. Then, he steps back outside to put the food on the grill, and freezes on the spot. His entire backyard is covered in a blanket of butterflies. They must number in the millions. He watches the ground move and ripple with color. The effect is hypnotic and the shock of the sight, renders him speechless.

Then in one fluid motion the blanket begins to flutter and it starts to rise from the ground. Wesley watches as the butterflies form a line and smoothly flutter to Mr. Conner’s garden. And then the miracle happens. The multitude of fluttering wings begin landing in Mr. Conner’s garden. Within thirty seconds they are still, and Wesley’s miracle is the message that forms across the garden. Three words, but utterly unmistakable. Wesley Help Mary.

He reacts without thinking and runs back into the house. Grabbing the binoculars he races to the front porch, busting a shin along the way. He looks through the binoculars toward Mary’s house. A bulldozer. He can see the diesel smoke coming from the exhaust stack. It’s moving and it’s moving toward Miss Garret’s garden. He races back through the house to the backyard and turns off the grill. Over in Mr. Conner’s garden there is still an unmistakably clear message, and he races back inside to get his car keys. He has to get to Mary. Now.

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