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The gardens have become the Dag's new sanctuary.
Before, when she and the others had been locked in the Vault, her favourite place had been beside the window that overlooked the desert. She liked the view, how it reminded her that there was still life outside their four walls, but had liked the potted plants and creeping vines that had lingered there even better. Just being next to them gave her a feeling of comfort, as they acted like a balm to her frayed nerves, giving her something to concentrate on when the world was just too much. Sometimes, in the quiet of the night, she would softly sing to them, lullabies that she half-remembered, half-made up on the spot and none of the others would mind her noise, listening to her words as they drifted off into an uneasy sleep.
Leaving them behind had hurt, but she had reminded herself that there would be plenty more plants to see when they reached the Green Place.
(And when she realised what the Green Place had become - the creepy place with all the crows - she thought of her plants, wilting and withering away in the sun without her guidance.)
Now, after her return, she could see that most of the pots had been destroyed, with nearly all of them smashed upon the ground like a child had threw a particularly nasty temper-tantrum, and the sight broke her heart.
There was still one pot remaining that hadn't been too badly damaged and she picked it up, knowing just the place where to replant it. Of course, the gardens had been off-limits to her, but now that she and her Sisters were free, it was the first stop on her agenda. The Greenthumbs turned as one when she entered through the hydroponics pathway, looking at her curiously, but had kept working on their own projects, leaving enough room for the Dag to settle her small plant on the hungry ground. She had read all about the art of gardening in the wordburgers Miss Giddy provided her, and so all that was left to do was to put theory into practice.
... ... ...
By around midday, Cheedo had found her, covered in soil and completely oblivious to the world around her.
"Hey," she whispered, not wanting to shock her sister from her trance.
The Dag looked up at her, a smile on her face. Cheedo could now see that she somehow managed to get some dirt on her face and went to wipe it off her, which the other grudgingly accepted, her grin never wavering. They both looked towards the recently planted sproutling, looking healthier than ever now that it had been watered and had its own patch of land to lay its roots in.
"Plenty more where that came from," The Dag said, opening her right hand to show a couple of black seeds on her palm.
"What kind are they?" Cheedo asked, peering at them as if she could decipher what they would grow into if she looked hard enough.
"The Keeper said it was 'watermelon' when I asked her," she replied, a frown on her face at the mention of the Vuvalini member.
"Do you mind if I help you plant some?"
"I would very much appreciate that."
It wasn't particularly hard work, but it engrossed the two sisters so much that by the time they had finished, the sun had set and the stars were just starting to appear. Now they were both covered in dirt, but neither seemed to mind as they laid across the unused soil, gazing up the moon above which had cast everything in a bright glow. It was just the two of them left, with all the other Greenthumbs turning in for the night, but it felt like the seeds underneath the earth, ready to bloom under their care, surrounded them. They cuddled close together, both for warmth and to remind themselves that they had both lived this far to see new changes in the Citadel begin to blossom.
That was how the pair spent most of the day rebuilding the Citadel from the roots up.