Week 1
The door burst open with a loud CRASH! Luka tore into the room, his breath coming in deep gulps, face red with exertion. His hair brown hair was disheveled, with twigs and leaves sticking out, making it look like he had fought a tree to get here.
Calin jumped, startled by his friend’s sudden appearance.
“What in the name—”
“…big trouble…” Was all he could get out through his ragged breathing.
He glanced about nervously, then suddenly crossed the room and leaned towards Calin.
“Oi! What you trying to do? If you try to kiss me I’ll know your teeth out.”
“What?” Luka leaned back, his brown eyes widening in astonishment, lowering his voice he said “I’m trying to tell you something, but no one else can know.”
“Fine, but you can tell me from right there, no more leaning.”
“It’s the… this morning it was fine and then… black, its all turning black. I’ve killed it!” His face turning red as a tomato, Luka fumbled with the words.
“What?”
“It’s turning black”
“What is?”
“The Garden.”
The look of incomprehension on his friend’s face made Luka’s frustration rise. Grabbing Calin’s arm, right on his blue tattoo encircling his firm bicep, he pulled him through the door.
“Come on, I’ll show you.”
¥
“When did this happen?”
The two boys stared in disbelief at the black growth on the great oak. It began at the base of the oak, on a small portion of the roots; it moved up from there, about halfway to the first branch. It looked like vines, but no vine Luka had ever seen carried with it such a foreboding of imminent death. Ok, maybe that was a bit dramatic, but it definitely did not look good.
“I found it right before I came to find you, when I was doing the checkup of the Garden.”
Luka paced back and forth before the tree. “Father is going to kill me when he returns. One month. I had to keep a garden that has been around for thousands of years alive for ONE MONTH and I failed.”
“Well, have you looked in any of the chronicles or anything? Maybe there is an answer there.”
“What do you mean?”
“This garden is supposed to be something left behind by the Weavers, right? At least that’s what your Da always told us in those grand stories,” glancing at Luka, who nodded his agreement, Calin continued, “so, maybe there is something in those old chronicles that your Da keeps. Maybe someone has seen this before.”
“Cal! You’re a genius!” After wrapping his friend in a hug, he dashed off in the direction of his house.
“I know I am! But seriously, you need to stop violating my personal space!”
Either he did not hear, or did not care to respond to the jest, and continued at full speed towards his house. Calin began to walk after his overeager friend.
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