When he had been ripped from Thorne, it had been the shock at first that had kept Chris from doing anything. He had stared dumbly at the hedges after his first yell for Thorne, his first realization that he was alone and that the sound wouldn't carry. Panic had come and gone in that moment, through him fast and quick but then replaced with a cold sort of dread that had been trained to him through his constant interactions with Other Ashdown. It made him feel as if his chest had been filled with lead, but it was something that at least kept him grounded as he stood there and desperately tried to make a plan.

The facts for the moment, were these. The garden had worked against them for some reason, had separated them on purpose and made it so they couldn't just fight their way through the hedges. They couldn't yell for each other, since Chris assumed the magic of the garden was preventing it. They virtually had no way to see each other or guide each other, which made it that they were on their own.

That was mostly where the problem lied, as Chris was the one who knew the garden. It would take him some time to find his bearings, but he could figure out a way back, could find a path around and out to get himself moving. Thorne was the one with a terrible sense of direction and since Chris himself hadn't even been paying attention to the path in, there was probably unlikely a chance that Thorne had. So Chris would have to find Thorne and guide them both out, get them home. The bigger part of their problem though, was the fact that the garden would probably try to actively prevent this.

If the garden had separated them in the first place, he knew it probably wouldn't make it easy for him to find Thorne. He didn't know if the action was against him or Thorne, he didn't know its reasons for doing this, and it was unlikely he would get an answer. The hedge was too big and old a spirit for Chris to summon, it would take more power than Chris could give. He would just have to hope that it wasn't feeling anymore malicious than it already was, that it wouldn't try to actively deter Chris anymore than it had. Wis had warned him before that not everything in the garden was friendly and Chris knew that, but this was a rude wake up call. He hoped, desperately, that this was just for some sick prank.

With that assessed, Chris knew that he had to get moving and quick if he wanted to find his way back to Thorne. Thorne wouldn't stay put probably and Chris didn't want him to honestly, with the way the garden was acting. He could only hope Thorne wouldn't stray too far and that Chris knew where he was. So he ripped his attention away from the hedge and looked around at his surroundings.

The part of the garden was unfamiliar to Chris and he could tell that he had gone a little deeper into it than he had intended. It had probably been the reason the hedge had been able to do that, since Chris would have noticed otherwise. He could spot plants he had seen in the distance before but nothing that completely stood out to him and he walked in a circle, trying to take place of the path. There were three, one that went straight, one to the left, and finally one to the right. Already he knew he would be taking left or right - the problem was which?

If he was lucky the garden would be symmetrical, but Chris knew that it wasn't that way at all. There were too many sections, too many areas that it wasn't likely or possible. His luck wasn't that good. He stared between the two and then, realized, there were two plants by each. On the left was a bluebell, the right a grouping of daisies. He eyed them carefully, wondering if he should ask them. They were deep in the garden enough that they might try to mislead him but it was either take a chance on them or nothing.

Taking a deep breath Chris, Chris stood in the middle of the path, staring at the bushes. He usually tried to touch the plant to summon them, found that it took less of a toll on him magically, but he didn't have the time or patience here. He needed both out, especially in case the hedges trapped him in on the path he took. He would have to make the decision carefully and so with that thought he closed his eyes, using his power to seek out the two flowers.

It was a strange thing, asking them to come without feeling his hands on the plant, without his touch to offer his presence. He felt no resistance at his question though, a curious sort of thought, but when he opened his eyes he was faced with a pair of spirits. The daisy was bright eyes, hair short and dressed simply in shorts and a crop top, looking to be around the age of fourteen. The bluebell was in pants and a long shirt, asymmetrical bob framing their face, about the same age as the daisy. There was a bit of silence, before Chris offered, "Hello."

The dam burst then, the daisy's face brightening as they threw a very excited "Hi!" back at Chris. The bluebell was a little more cautious but they replied with a sweet smile "Hey." Chris smiled warmly between the pair, sticking his hands into his pockets, feeling a little casual.

"I know this is a strange question, but do you guys know which way leads to the front of the garden? Between your paths, I mean. I lost my friend and I need to find him," Chris asked. The two flowers looked between each other, gears turning clearly in their heads. There was a few minutes of unorganized gesturing, before the daisy finally spoke up.

"We kind of know, at least between the two of us which will lead back up to the ivy gate. We even know the next plant to talk to that can help you! But you need to do us a favor for that!" They said, twirling a little in place. "We'd like you to spread some leaves near us, just something to act as food. We're good on seeing each other and talking but leaves don't come to us often and we'd like some. There's a tree up ahead that can give you the leaves, if you talk to him. We promise the hedge won't trap you in - we don't know what it's doing but we think it's done moving."

The daisy and bluebell exchanged a worried look and Chris looked between them, before giving a small smile. "Sure, I can do that," He said easily, taking his hands out of his pockets finally. "I'll be back as soon as I can," He told them and then moved straight to find this tree. While he hadn't wanted to do a favor, he could see that it was how things got done and this wasn't one that would bind him. He would do it easily.

The walk to the tree was both shorter and a little farther than Chris expected, enough that he could understand why the bluebell and daisy didn't want to make it but close enough that he didn't feel he'd get lost again. He looked up at the huge maple, wondering what to do, before finally sighing. He'd have to summon it - he didn't want to just take fallen leaves from it without asking and face more repercussions. He walked up to the towering tree and placed his hands on it, summoning again.

To his credit at least the spirit appeared quickly, looking a little grumpy but surprised mostly at Chris. He eyed him and then in a gruff tone asked, "What do you want?" in lieu of a hello. Chris just looked at him and then said, as polite as he could manage, "Could I have some of your fallen leaves?" The silence that followed that was slightly awkward, as clearly the maple hadn't been expecting that. He seemed to be thinking it over, as far as Chris could tell, eyeing him expectantly. Finally he said, "Yes, but if you do me a favor in return."

Inwardly, Chris groaned, but he only kept his very small and polite smile up as the maple continued. "I wanna tell this flower, I haven't seen her in awhile, that I miss her. She's only a little down the other path, I think somewhere near the front. If you can do that for me, I'll give you the leaves." Chris blinked at him and then said instantly, "Deal. I'll do it." The maple nodded and then gestured at the expanse of fallen leaves, making it clear Chris was free to take. "The flower's name is aster. She's a bright pink color." With a hurried nod he leaned down and gathered a pile, rushing back down the path.

When he returned with the leaves the daisy and bluebell looked absolutely pleased. They helped him spread the leaves between him, grinning the entire time. Once they were done the bluebell turned to him and said softly, "You'll be going down my path. Near where you need to turn, there will be a patch of clover. They'll guide you next. Good luck!"

Chris wasted no time and gave a hurried thanks, moving down the bluebell's path as quick as he could. Meeting the clover was the same as the flowers from before - they wanted a favor in return for information and Chris did his best to try and fill it all. He knew they were capitalizing on his kindness and it was draining on his time, but he didn't want to anger the garden more. If he wanted to find Thorne, a few minutes wouldn't matter than if he had to find yet another path because the hedge decided to move.

Regardless of that though, Chris could feel himself getting drained. It was hard keeping the summoning open even in the magic abundant Other Ashdown, which granted him a more expansive use of his abilities. Every time he added another spirit to it he felt himself become a little more drained and it worried him, but he pressed on. There wasn't time to worry about it and he needed to go, to keep moving.

It finally came to a head when he seemed to near the front. Things were starting to become vaguely familiar as Chris dragged himself through the garden, exhaustion wearing on him. He had only one request he hadn't fulfilled and it was the maple's to speak to the asters, who were closer to the front than Chris had realized. But as he continued on the path he spotted the bright pink patch of flowers, which he realized he had been directed to talk to next. They were clustered within a group of goldenrods and wild sunflowers and he stared at the patch wearily, before crouching down to begin to summon.

What Chris had meant to do was just focus on the aster and summon them and only them, but his focus was off. He could feel the weight of the other summonings on him, the trickle of power that was barely keeping him going and it was distracting him. Instead of summoning only the asters, he ended up summoning the group of spirits that was in the patch.

For a second, he could see them all standing there. The aster was one that came alone, but the goldenrod had come in a pair of twins, standing next to each other. The wild sunflower was also a single, but there was a younger one standing next to her. It appeared he had accidentally summoned a smaller patch along with her and the group stared at him cautiously. There was a sudden shimmer between them, a sudden fading and when Chris blinked, they were gone.

Them and the weight of every single summon from before.

He wanted to feel something like relief but all Chris felt was palpable exhaustion, clawing at him desperately. He wanted to close his eyes, he wanted to sleep, he wanted to just stop moving. He didn't know how he was still going, how he hadn't dropped like the first time with Heddy, but he wasn't going to question it. For a very, very long moment he sat there, stock still, just willing himself to breathe. To feel what it was to be him instead of overcrowded with spirits.

And then, once he was settled, he reached out and very carefully summoned the asters with the last of his power.

Like before she came quickly, a delicate thing dressed in a even more delicate dress. She looked at Chris with surprise, then her face softened into something warm. "You called me again," She said and it was a statement, surprised but happy. Like she knew it was going to happen. "I had a message to pass, I made a favor," Chris said tiredly, looking up at her from his spot on the ground. He hadn't been able to move.

The aster moved towards him, settling nearby so that he could still see her but that she wasn't too close. She tiled his head at him and then said, "You're traveled quite a bit. Done so many things for others too, I can feel the echo through the garden. That must have taken a lot of power." Chris only managed a nod, very carefully trying to not upset his carefully maintained balance. She looked at him more, dark pink eyes seemingly staring into his soul. Chris was too exhausted to look away, laid bare before her.

It could have been minutes or years before she finally spoke again, soft and gentle, "You could have just continued onward. You're starting to recognize things and you're at your limits of your power. But you decided to stop to still grant me a message, to finish your favor. Acer wouldn't have even known if you hadn't, and still." She smiled at him kindly, like she already knew the message. With a delicate hand she reached up and touched Chris' cheek, a whisper of a gesture.

"I will return to you something for your kindness," She said. "Help on a way out, but help of another kind. You deserve it. So for now, please, just close your eyes. When I am gone, you can open them."

Exhausted, tired, Chris only nodded and rasped out a very quiet, "Thank you." His eyes closed and the last thing he saw was the aster's sweet smile. It was a long few minutes before he opened them but when he did, she was gone, only the flowers and the emptiness of the garden before him.

Chris was alone and did not know anything but to continue left.