“When you came for the quill, what was your goal?” Callan asked, and I could hear multiple questions being asked in one.
Wyatt’s words were even and measured, as if he’d been planning how to explain it. “We knew we had to keep the quill out of the hands of any members of the Board of Regents, since we didn’t know who could be trusted at that point. TheVanished Compendiumrecovery team was breathing hard down our necks. Mom or Feathergrass getting their hands on theVanished Compendiumwould lead to far fewer options for us. You two and whoever you have been working with had more intelligence than we did on that front.” Wyatt gave me a nod that seemed strangely like approval.
“So you haven’t been working against us?” I asked.
“Not directly. Does the DBI think college students were the best ones to be in charge of the quill and the fate of theVanished Compendium? No. But as it turns out, you all may have been better caretakers than we could ever have been.”
“What is the DBI’s endgame?” Callan asked.
“Believe it or not, the DBI believes in a free intellectual and academic community here at Evergreen Academy and at our research conservatories. We believe magical botanists operate best by taking a light hand in society whenever possible, not by extending our control in the bolder ways the Board of Regents seems to want.”
“So we’re on the same side?” I asked.
“If by ‘side’ you mean supporting the academy—and our society—and the traditions and conservation efforts that we have been fighting for in the shadows for years, then yes, we’reon the same side. But what I need to know now is what the two of you have planned next. I take it sharing that book today wasn’t the only trick up your sleeves?”
I cast my eyes to Callan, and he studied my face for a moment before turning to his brother. “You’ve come here with a nice story, Wyatt, but why should we trust you?”
Wyatt leaned back, trying to force a casual posture, but he ran a hand through his hair, something I had seen Callan do multiple times when he was hesitating on what to say or do. Finally, he spoke. “The origami I sent you was an olive branch. Growing up, that meant something.” His voice, which had softened, held a meaningful tone, and for a moment, I felt like an intruder on a private conversation.
Callan touched his pocket. “A truce.”
“We sent it when we wanted to clear the air after a fight. While we haven’t been fighting, exactly, I know I haven’t been around much. I left you to the mercy of Mom and Dad and all the pressure they’ve always put on you with your magic-sensing powers when I joined the DBI. The olive tree is my way of saying… I’m sorry. I want to make this right. And I want to work together.”
“And if we share our plans with you, what do we get in return?” Callan asked.
Wyatt crossed his arms. “I can give you Professor East. And we can help you put him back in charge at Evergreen Academy.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
“So, this other book, the realVanished Compendium,” Wyatt said, mulling over everything I had just told him, “it’s written in riddles?”
The three of us were still in the secret tree founders’ descendant room, our heads huddled together, over an hour after Wyatt’s surprise arrival.
Once Callan and I agreed to bring Wyatt into our plans—at least partially—the atmosphere had relaxed a hair. For the moment, we were all on the same side, and that side was going to do whatever it took to protect Evergreen Academy and all that we loved about it.
“Yes. We’re working on trying to solve the one from da Vinci.”
“Feel like sharing?” Wyatt asked.
I looked at Callan, who nodded. I was the only one who could use da Vinci’s riddle, if we managed to work it out, so I didn’t see the harm in Wyatt knowing it.
I recited, “With two hands, we gather power. Bring each botanical gift to center. Lay to canvas. Sprinkle light. Make the new creation bright.”
Wyatt contemplated it for a moment. “Have you tried following the instructions verbatim?”
Callan rolled his eyes. “Of course she has.”
“Here. I’ll show you.” I took an empty journal from the bookshelf and spread it open in front of me. “With two hands we gather power.” I raised my hands over the journal. “Bring each botanical gift to center.” I tapped into all nine affinities. “Lay to canvas.” I set my hands on the notebook. “Sprinkle light.”
Callan stepped aside so that light from the overhead window filtered directly onto the page. “And before you ask,” he said, “yes, we have tried other sources of light.”
“Make the new creation bright.” I thought through a simple idea for a Floracantus, inspired by the bonsai tree in the corner of the room. I envisioned its branch structure flipping, turning into the mirror image of itself. But as I thought it, no magic moved from my hands to the page. The bonsai didn’t change. There was just… nothing.
“We’ve tried having her write out instructions. We’ve used a painting canvas instead of a journal. Something seems to be missing,” Callan said.
“I see. Well, continue to work on it. What is your plan, when you decipher it?”
I appreciated the way he’d said ‘when’ and not ‘if,’ but I was not quite so confident. “If we can decipher it and it truly contains instructions for making new Floracantus, then we plan to use that as leverage against the Board of Regents.”
