I helped pick dandelion flowers and leaves with Diane in the brisk morning air. This early in spring they were one of the first things to bloom and the event lady wanted flowers for the funeral tomorrow.
I looked over at Diane, "Diane? What if everyone doesn't like dandelion flowers? My old neighbor didn't like them."
Diane looked over at me in amusement, "Well Laura, if they don't like what we picked for them, they can come out here and pick their own flowers."
I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, "But there aren't any other flowers blooming yet..."
She grinned at me, "Exactly."
I blinked before starting to giggle as I saw her plan and logic. I continued picking dandelions with a grin on my face. I somehow doubted that anyone would complain if they were told that their only other option was to go pick flowers themselves.
Most people were terrified of going outside of the fence. I didn't see what was so scary about it though. Dozens of Foragers and Raiders did it every day. Then again, if that zombie in the barn got loose, or if another one showed up, I wouldn't want to be out here with it either.
In the end, we did manage to find a couple crocuses and snowdrops. Diane figured they would go to those closest to the guy being buried.
The sun was shining and the day looked like it would a really nice one. It was too bad that it had to start with a funeral. Everyone had been handed a small bundle of greens to drop as they said their goodbyes.
Each bundle had 11 dandelion leaves and 1 dandelion flower. It reflected the eleven group members left behind with the flower representing hope for the future as well as the fact that he had stood out and would be missed. I thought it was a nice touch.
Others apparently seemed to think so as well. At least no one complained about being handed dandelions. Our turn came up far too fast. I doubted that I had ever met this man and I had no clue what to say. I simply murmured a small goodbye as I dropped my dandelions.
We had the rest of the day off and I looked forward to it. Trish had been working night shifts the last two days and simply wanted some time with Nathan since they hadn't seen each other much. Diane led me over the playground.
For once, there were no kids or anyone else around. A game of tag or catch me if you can really needed more than two people. Especially with Diane's speed.
We started playing in the sand and ended up building a sand castle in the shape of Wainwright Fort. I tilted my head, "That third building is angled like this, isn't it?"
Diane glanced over at my line in the sand and nodded, "Yes, it is."
This was more like a memory exercise than anything else. Yet, it was still fun. "Are there two windows between these two doors, or three? I can't remember."
Diane thought for a moment, "There are two in the first office and one in the second office."
I put two small twig window frames in the proper locations.
Diane glanced over her shoulder, "Good morning."
I hadn't heard anyone come up and I twisted to look behind us. Two men were approaching. I looked at their name tags. One was a Cook and the other was from one of the Building Maintenance groups.
The cook nodded, "Good morning, mind if we join you for some company?"
Diane nodded slowly, "Okay." It was polite enough, but I heard a hint of reluctance under her voice. I had a feeling that she didn't really like these men that much.
They walked around us to the other side of our sand castle. The building guy crouched down and looked surprised, "That is a very good model of the grounds."
Well, if Diane was polite, then I could be polite as well. I smiled at him, "Diane was helping me. The sand keeps drying out and it is kind of crumbling though."
The cook stood beside the building guy and watched as he took another tiny stone to mark out a door on the second building. I had finished the first building and was working on the third one. Diane was doing the fourth building as it was the largest.
I tilted my head, "Did the corridor connect here or here?"
All three glanced at my hands and I had to concentrate in order to not pull my hands back in a burst of shyness. The cook shrugged, "I think it was the first one, but I am not sure."
The building guy shook his head, "No, it goes in the second spot."
I started building the corridor on the second spot. The maintenance guy started working on the fence as Diane finished the balconies on the main building. I was amazed that she knew exactly how many there were and how much space was between them. I had never paid attention to them since they were so high up.
It was finally more or less completed. The maintenance guy sat up as he inspected our handiwork. He looked at me, "That is pretty good. Have you built models before?"
I shook my head, "No, but I help Diane with the maps when we go out foraging."
He cocked his head at me, "You go outside the fence with her?" He sounded surprised.
I nodded, "Yes, I am learning which plants are safe to eat and how to mark good patches on a map."
The cook chuckled, "That is quite impressive. I know that the Foragers deliver lots of stuff to us in the kitchen, but we always assume that anything they give us is safe to eat."
Why would a cook worry about what we gave them? I responded, "We don't take anything that we aren't positive about. Or else we put it in our backpack and look it up later."
He nodded, "Do you mind coming to the gardens over there and telling me the names of some plants? There are a few there that I am not familiar with and have not seen in the kitchen before to ask."
I looked at Diane, who was fiddling with some twigs while she listed to our conversation. She ran her hand through her hair, an unusual gesture for her. I blinked and glanced more closely at her hand. It was actually a hand signal. Stay by my side.
Diane looked at the Cook, "Why don't I go with you? Some plants look very similar when they are small."
The two men nodded and the cook replied, "Sounds good, I am curious to hear a Forager's views on the plants that the gardeners grow."
We all stood up and headed to the garden. I stuck close to Diane and played along as Rick had taught me. Perhaps this was their idea of a surprise test. It wouldn't be the first time Rick set something like this up with people I didn't know.
I followed just behind her right elbow like I should. The other two didn't seem to notice. We entered the gardens that weren't that far from the playground. The Cook and Diane discussed several of the plants we passed.
The Cook crouched down by one raised bed of plants, "What are these? They have special care, but I do not recall seeing them when cooking."
I walked forward with Diane to look at the plants. Diane glanced back over her shoulder, "Do you mind standing over here? Sorry to ask, but I have some Raider training and sometimes I react without realizing it."
"Sorry about that. Of course, I can stand over here."
I turned my head. The maintenance guy had been about to walk up beside me to look at what the cook was talking about. After all of Ace's training, it was probably smart for Diane to warn them since she was still wearing her dagger and sword. She didn't like me being between her and someone else. It must have been a fighter thing that Ace trained her to do.
Diane went down to one knee as she let her eyes scan the tiny sprouting plants. She looked at me, "What do you think these are?"
I leaned forward. The plants were just starting to sprout and many plants looked similar when they were small. I ran through what I had been memorizing for months, "They wouldn't plant tansy here, and this bed isn't the best for carrots, so my guess would be yarrow."
The Cook blinked in surprise and Diane grinned at me, "Correct, this is yarrow. Since it is in this raised bed it is likely a special cultured strain that has advanced medicinal properties. And what would the medicinal purposes of yarrow be?"
I thought for a second, "As a tea it is good for fevers and muscle cramps. When rubbed on the skin it can ease rashes. A poultice of it can help stop bleeding and prevent infection especially if it is combined with plantain."
Diane's grin got wider. I could tell that she was proud that I managed to memorize that. I loved making her proud. Even if it meant memorizing things that I didn't completely understand.
"Exactly. The tea can also be added to bathwater to relieve bruises, fever, aches, or cramps."
The Cook looked impressed, "I guess that is why I haven't seen it in the kitchen, because it is a medicinal plant?"
Diane nodded, "We will collect small leaves like this to add to the salad occasionally, but they are very bitter and more appreciated by the nurses."
She gently ran her fingers over the tips of some of the finger nail sized leaves. We moved to other raised bed to discuss the plants that were sprouting. Twice more Diane asked them to not stand beside her. At this point I knew that Diane didn't like these men. In my opinion, they seemed nice enough, but the maintenance guy really needed a shower.
We reached the end of the row of raised flower beds and Diane looked at me, "Looking at all these plants is making me hungry, feel like going for lunch?"
I nodded happily. I was also glad to get away from these odd men. If they made Diane uncomfortable, then I didn't want to be around them.
The cook looked at us, "Thanks for showing me all of this. I might have to join some Forager sessions on plants. It was quite interesting."
We walked back together. The maintenance guy looked at me, "What are your plans for the rest of the day?"
I didn't want these men to hang out with us later on. It would ruin my time with Diane since they put her on edge. And the one guy smelled pretty bad. I couldn't say that though. It was rude. This had been one of the things covered by Rick. Distraction.
I grinned at them, "We were going to go play hide and go seek in the barn just down the west road."
The Cook looked at me, "In the barn just around the corner of that road?"
I nodded innocently, "Yes, have you been in it yet?"
He shook his head, "No, but I would love to go inside and see it."
That would change the instant he realized what was in there. I grinned, "Anyone is welcome in there at any time. As long as Matthew doesn't catch Diane for a discussion of the best foraging areas during lunch we will head over just after lunch." Always leave a loophole...
The Cook nodded, "Thank you, we will go out there after lunch to check it out. Hope to see you there."
We said our farewells and parted ways. Diane headed to the mess hall and seemed quite amused, although she said nothing. We grabbed trays of food and sat down.
Diane started to chuckle quietly, "You are a very clever girl with some evil ideas."
I giggled mischievously, it wasn't often that I got to initiate a prank. I looked up at Diane with a big grin, "I saw your hand signal and how you didn't trust them, I figured it would be a good place for them to visit. That zombie is spooky. It should give them something else to think about for a while."
She shook her head while chuckling. My ploy had obviously amused her. Her eyes were even brighter than usual with her amusement.
I wondered what the two guys would make of the Swift in the barn.