Commander Almandoz,

I sincerely hope this letter finds you well. Before I address the concerns raised in your previous correspondence, I find it necessary to provide an update on a matter which has understandably fallen by the wayside in recent times.

As you will recall, you contacted me concerning the issue of an Elder Tree sprout discovered on the morning of that unholy day. I am pleased to report that despite the impossible odds against it, the sprout is healthy and growing strong here in the University’s moon sciences lab. Additionally, my efforts to lobby the Board of Directors were successful — ‘Asha’s Tree’ has been thusly named and will be provided a plot of land on the University’s west side grounds this spring. As the last gymnosperm the Princess observed in the garden she loved ever so dearly, the board unanimously agreed the tree would serve as a permanent monument to an extraordinary life so tragically taken away from us. I look forward to the day you can observe the young tree’s brilliance in person.

Onto the matter at hand. I have had some time to consider the nature of your proposal, and I must admit that I do not find myself qualified to act on it. I am, chiefly, a botanist. However, I can understand the nuances involved in such a matter. Therefore, I wish to propose a meeting in person to discuss it further. I understand you must be quite busy given the situation abroad, so I would have our engagement in the Palace Garden to avoid any undue travel on your part. Listed below are some proposed times for your consideration.

The late Princess once confided in me the location of her favorite plant — the Varecian Rosebush located at the southwest corner of the native plant gallery she so dutifully cared for in her spare time. I’ll see you there.

Bernhard Willow

I refold the letter and drop it on my desk, feeling a sense of satisfaction. I was concerned about the response I would receive in contacting — of all animals — the professor at the heart of Princess Asha’s attempted foray into public education. He’s not wrong. A botanist is hardly the person I need to execute my plan. But it seems my intuitions were correct, and the man feels he owes a due to the late Princess. To think, A tree as epic as the legendary Elder Tree, named in remembrance of Asha! It makes me smile, imaging how jubilant she would have been to learn the news. She never quite knew it, but there were those who cared deeply about her.

Truly then, Willow understands just what is at stake and why his participation is so vital.

Perhaps I should have just called the man instead of resorting to a letter. Then again, his concern for discretion was correct. There may be undue suspicion from the public should our plans become known. The fact of the matter is this is a personal endeavor to give meaning to Calypso’s sacrifice — Nothing more. Involving the Queen or other resources from the crown is wholly unnecessary, if not negligent. While the Morthans successfully convinced Her Majesty to stand down from war, Nortane has yet to relocate their ships from the vicinity of the disputed island.

But, should our efforts be fruitful and we uncover the serpentine diamond on that cursed ground in the hollow…

…

…Well. We will cross that bridge should we arrive at it.

I grab my trusty pen and remove the cover to the inkwell, eager to craft a response to the professor. The time has come to put my plan into motion!

“Oh!” I say, stopping at the corner of a chest-high plant. “There you are, Professor!”

Peering around the leafy shrub, I spot Finch and the tall Fisher Professor at the end of a decorated garden path, standing beside a well-manicured Rose bush. Several days have passed since mailing my response to the professor, and the time has finally arrived for our meeting. I hope I haven’t kept them waiting for long.

“Commander,” Willow smiles and waves his paw. “We meet again. It is good to see your face.”

I exhale as I approach the group, trying to catch my breath after jogging from the palace. It’s been some time since I visited this section of the garden, and I found myself somewhat lost. I had to stop and ask one of the groundskeepers for directions. “My sincere apologies for running late. I’m afraid Her Majesty’s meeting with the Eternals ran longer than expected.”

“The Knights Eternal?” Willow echoes, his thick brown tail swaying behind him. “I suppose such is expected when they’re involved.”

“Their meetings usually go long,” Finch says, adjusting their uniform. As ordered, they escorted the Professor to this secluded location in the middle of the garden, away from those who might overhear our conversation. I hesitated to enlist their help with this personal endeavor for several reasons. However, besides being one of the survivors of the tragedy, I imagine their insatiable curiosity about my work schedule would eventually lead them to uncover my plans.

I place my work bag against the ground and clasp my hands together. “Well, then. Thank you both for showing up today. We are here to discuss the tragedy.”

“That’s right,” Willow nods. “And I must say, I found your offer of an off-the-record expedition… intriguing. But I am less certain how I, a botanist, can be of service.”

Well, that’s easy. “The way I see it, of all the animals who knew the Princess, you understood her penchant for botany better than anyone else. Your eyes may see something in the hollow that the investigators did not.”

“Perhaps,” Willow says, undoing the buttons on his tan sack coat. He opens his muzzle to continue but then pauses to gaze over the hedges surrounding our location in the garden. In a subdued voice, he continues, “I must confess that I have not read the report. I do not particularly wish to meddle in the crown’s affairs….”

“I will take all the necessary precautions,” I assure him in a confident, normal tone of voice. “You have my word that an airship and a pilot will not strain the Kingdom’s resources. Thanks to the Morthans, the situation abroad has calmed down.”

I will, of course, need to enlist Max, the only pilot I could possibly trust for this mission. Like the rest of us, he was pretty rattled after the tragedy in the hollow. Still, I do not anticipate any opposition to performing a favor such as this one.

Willow’s brow furrows — he seems unconvinced. “For now, it has calmed. But King Finn has praised Nortane’s response to the tragedy, and there is still much speculation about Crow Wing’s involvement. During our labs at the University, I often overhear my students talking amongst themselves about the tragedy. Some have even asked me about my relationship with the late Princess….”

“Then you understand why this is so important,” Finch says.

“I understand the risks that your plan carries….” Willow replies, his voice drifting off. He averts his eyes and droops his shoulders. “You see, I am not a man who prefers to rock the carriage. And what you two are proposing is a considerable rattle.”

Well, then. I can’t say I blame the professor for being anxious. Finch and I are in service to the crown, soldiers who stood before the Queen and swore an oath of loyalty to the late Princess. It is our duty to protect the Kingdom with our lives, if necessary. But Willow is a citizen, a Fisher with a sultry accent who spends his days in the classroom teaching students. Even with my assurances, to travel secretly to the scene of an international crime is a considerably big ask. If our plans were to come under public scrutiny, then his career and everything he’s worked for could be jeopardized.

“Professor,” Finch says, curling their tail into a spiral. “I understand the risks of joining us on this mission. I really do. But you were one of the few animals close to the Princess. Don’t you think she deserves a better legacy than the Lordanou who died young and lost the serpentine diamond?”

Willow seems contemplative, holding his muzzle in his hand. His eyes wander in thought, but he offers neither endorsement nor rebuttal to Finch’s argument. Does he know of the Lemur’s belief in the afterlife? That in death, they watch us from beyond far? Finch has given their piece on the Princess, so perhaps I should offer mine on Calypso.

“I believe Colonel Durham would have sacrificed himself before giving up the Princess to thugs.” On mentioning my spouse, Willow’s eyes snap to me in attention. “And if it wasn’t for the Lithan, Princess Asha might still be with us. She was prepared to offer herself as hostage should the situation arise, and the Queen prepared to pay the ransom. We may not return the Princess, but we may retrieve the diamond. And I’m certain that would revere the Colonel’s sacrifice.”

Willow stares at me with a face like a stone before lowering his head. “Let me tell you something,” he murmurs, barely audible over the groundskeepers chatting away in another garden section. “On the day everything went so wrong, I saw the Princess here, in the garden.”

He stops to gaze at the rose bush, which was Asha’s favorite. It seems exceptionally cared for, even among the garden plants, growing up the side of a white trellis that arches over the pathway. He smiles, extending one of his fuzzy paws outward to hold the remains of a flower, withered and brown.

“I was here to observe the sprout of the Elder Tree,” he says, studying the rose. “And she happened to pass through before her trip to the eastern weald. She became ecstatic when she saw the sprout….”

Willow’s voice dissipates, and his face turns dour. I snap my eyes to Finch and spot them staring back at me. Why would Asha’s excitement cause Willow grief?

“I joked with her… that if she should ever encounter a Lihan, she should ask it how to sprout an Elderus. I never thought….”

He closes his palm and rubs his claws into the dried-up flower, disintegrating the petals. As he opens his paw, the wind whips through the garden, suffusing flaky remains like snowflakes into the crisp winter air. “Of all the days for a Dragon to reappear in Ellyntude, of all the places... I’m sure you’ve thought the same, Commander.”

I frown but remain silent. I, too, have ruminated endlessly over such unsettling thoughts. But I never knew the Professor had his own story to share about the Princess on that cursed day. It was a harmless joke, nothing more than a terrible coincidence. But as I have come to learn, it’s far too easy to appoint blame on yourself when closure is so elusive.

Willow squares his shoulders and straightens his back. “So, despite my reservations, I will join your mission. For the Princess and all those who died that day.”

I exhale in relief. I was beginning to worry his story was a long-winded justification for why he couldn’t join us. ”Thank you, professor. I look forward to working with you.”

“Yes, of course. Ensign!” Willow whips his head and stares down at Finch. “Please, escort me to the entrance of the palace.”

Finch recoils a little in surprise. “A-Already?”

“Yes,” Willow answers firmly, buttoning his jacket almost recklessly. “We must rid me of this place and the bad thoughts it brings. I only wish to dwell on the future and the prospect of our success.”

Finch nods slowly in acknowledgment, flicking their eyes to me and passing on a peculiar gaze. I agree — even by my standards, the professor has a particular way with words.

As Willow grabs his briefcase, I step to the side to allow them to leave. “I’ll send you a letter once we have a ship?”

“Yes,” he says simply as he passes by without giving me a second look, one hand holding his bag and the other his bowler hat to keep it from blowing away. He rounds the corner past the leafy plant with Finch on his tail, and the two disappear from view, leaving me alone beside Asha’s treasured rose bush. As their footsteps grow soft, I gaze into the dried-up flowers, momentarily captivated by their complexities. Is the Princess pleased by our efforts? Is Calypso?

As sure as the seasons, these flowers will bloom again.