Ch6 Spruce Onions: The Path to Healing

Linna held on to Niamh as tight as she could. For now, she and Niamh were together, and that gave her broken heart a bit of solace.

She’d heard the affini’s “biorhythms” before in propaganda transmissions, but it was totally different in person. There was something… contagious about them; like they weren’t just conveying information, but also instructing her body how to interpret and react to said information. It was as if soothing music could go directly into her head and force her brain to ease off on the anxiety chemicals a bit.

Well, she figured that whatever drugs she’d been dosed with in the hospital room were doing some heavy lifting, but there was also a clearly noticeable correlation between proximity to an affini’s ‘background music’ and just how stifled her anxiety was.

The pair of newly rescued Terrans were being carried by Veralia - who had startled Linna at first by their merger into an even larger shape during their introductions - down the massive hospital corridors. Or, she supposed ‘xenoveterinarian clinic’ was more accurate, as that was what the affini called it.

At first, Linna thought the other human, Talia, was a new arrival - like herself and Niamh - who’d already been claimed as a pet, but she quickly began to doubt that. She was too clean, happy, and healthy to be a newly captured soldier or fellow servant from the God-Given Right, but she was also far, far too content with her place in an affini’s vines to be one of the rich pricks or free-Terranist bodyguards. This likely meant she’d been with the affini for a while. Linna couldn’t help but get the sinking feeling that the fates of Niamh and herself were already sealed in a tangle of vines, just like Talia’s.

Despite it all, though, she was here with Niamh. Linna tried her best not to linger on the ramifications of having her old capitalistic overlords swapped out for planty new ones as they were carried outside.

Through the huge affini-sized doorway, a gorgeous, canopied promenade was lined with beautiful naturey buildings fit for a town of druids. There was no noticeable curve in the hospital - er, xenovet’s clinic - but out here, Linna could see the ground gently sloping up as she gazed down the huge pathway. At first she suspected they were inside a colossal artificial gravity ring; confusingly though, when she looked up, there was no ceiling in sight: it was as if there were a clear blue sky above them!

“Oh stars…” Niamh muttered from next to her. She too was observing their perplexing surroundings for the first time.

“Are we on a planet?” Linna asked.

“Nope! We’re aboard the affini ship Abiegnis, in ring two! This is the one that spins counterclockwise!” Talia’s cheery voice replied from the arms of the orange affini. “The sky is just a clever illusion!”

“Abee- what?” Linna furrowed her brow.

“Abiegnis! It’s latin for spruce, named as such because this ship was grown from actual Earth spruce trees!” Talia beamed brightly. “I know it’s hard to believe given how huge everything is, but the affini are incredible in their design and construction skills!”

“This huge place is on a ship? So this is like, the Spruce Goose of spacecraft…” Linna mused idly, continuing to absorb the monumental sights around her.

“The Spruce Goose?” Carrot repeated. “Is this another kind of genitalia? Or is it just another latex condominium or some such device?”

Niamh and Linna shared a look of confusion as the vines holding them gently vibrated.

“Oh Care-Bear…” Veralia sighed, failing to mask a little giggle.

“I know! The Spruce Goose was a famous aircraft centuries ago!” Talia clarified. “It was huge, and made mostly of wood too! Though, it wasn’t really made of spruce… and its only real similarity to a goose was that it could fly.”

“Oh, do you like aviation too?” Linna perked up a little. The fact another Terran was so friendly and seemingly shared a special interest with her was heartening. She could already feel her worries beginning to slide onto the backburner in her mind.

“Of course! How could I not? Flight is so cool!” Talia beamed brightly. “I’ve wanted to build my own glider, but I guess… I’m not really ready yet.”

“Oh, petal…” Carrot cooed, lavishing xeir floret with a series of welcome petting and cuddling. “I promise you can do that eventually. You’ve been recovering so well, and you’ve been so patient, but…” Xey couldn’t bring xemself to finish that sentence.

“Talia dear, your body has been through a lot. You’ve been doing so well, but Care-Bear and ourselves just want to make sure you’ll be safely ready to handle a construction project of that scale.” Veralia hummed, a hint of sadness making its way into their combined biorhythms.

“I know, Miss Veralia. I know, Mistress. I understand, and I don’t blame you.” Talia gently grasped one of her affini’s orange vines and brought it up to within nuzzling-range of her face. “I love you all so much.”

“We love you too~” Veralia slithered some vines over to join Carrot in petting the adorable floret.

Carrot leaned in close and whispered sweet nothings, which Talia replied to with giggles and kisses.

The group continued along the promenade at a leisurely pace, giving them all plenty of time to watch the world go by. Colourful birds from a variety of planets flew among the trees. A cool, gentle breeze rustled the affini’s leaves and humans’ hair. The sunlight was pleasantly warm, even if it wasn’t ‘real’ sunlight.

It seemed that there was a surprisingly even distribution of florets and independents going about their day. A number of Terrans were being walked on leashes by their affini owners - some of whom were on all fours. But that wasn’t all, as there were also a number of Rinans around, plus a few people of species Linna had never seen before.

Rinans… Linna was reminded of Pichati, realising that in her focus on Niamh, she’d forgotten about the other prisoners.

“Pichati…” Linna muttered quietly.

“Hmm? Need something, flower?” Veralia hummed.

“Is Pichati ok?” Linna mewled concernedly. “He’s a Rinan from our ship.”

“Oh stars, I forgot about him…” Niamh muttered.

Before the Terrans could so much as blink, Veralia and Carrot were rapidly typing away on their tablets. Veralia slithered a few vines through the air in petting proximity of Niamh and Linna, but they stopped and fell away as if their movement was accidental - instinctual, even.

Only a moment later, Carrot spoke up. “Pichati is currently in room 107 being treated by Forrest Helios, Seventh Bloom. He has been assigned a wardship with Forrest and Helix Helios, Fifth Bloom.”

“Helix and Forrest are lovely and caring, and I know they’ll give your little friend only the very best. He’s in good vines, I promise.” Veralia assured kindly. “Speaking of Helix…” They began, checking their tablet again. “...our new hab unit isn’t quite ready yet. Helix and his darling little florets have been building a place for us to call home, and it’s almost done!”

“‘For us’? As in…” Niamh trailed off, squirming a little as she clung to Linna tighter. Linna, of course, did the same in return.

“‘For us’ as in for Fractalia and Vera, though it will also be for you and Linna for the duration of your wardship!”

“Wh-what do you mean by wardship?” Linna took a turn asking for clarification.

“We - Vera and Fractalia - are to be your caretakers for the next two weeks. Fret not, little ones, you will not face mandatory domestication. This wardship is just to aid in your recovery process and to help you acclimatise to life in the compact. Naturally, this includes helping you find your path forward once your wardship ends…” Veralia hesitated a moment. “Though there’s no rush to make big decisions! You’re more than welcome to remain with us however long you need… or want…”

Talia giggled quietly, staring smugly at Veralia.

“Is… is this like, a test?” Linna summoned all her courage in the face of the large, powerful plampts. “If y-you decide you don’t want us as pets, are w-we going to be sent to labour camps? P-please don’t send Niamh there! Please d-don’t separate us again! Please, just-! Just-!!”

“Nobody will force you to do anything you don’t want, and nobody will ever take you two away from each other ever again, I promise?” Linna felt the sincerity in their words almost as if it were tangible.

“Do you…” Linna gathered her resolve as she took a deep breath. “Do you want to take us as your pets?”

“Stars, yes!” Talia burst excitedly. “It’s written all over their face! They want to make you two the happiest florets ever!”

Carrot hummed by vibrating xeir many leaves in what Linna could only assume was a giggle. Veralia, though, simply looked away shyly.

“Is that why you’re being nice to us?” Linna continued.

The affini’s biorhythms subtly shifted, as if soured by the question. Linna mentally kicked herself for being so forward about that. She hoped this didn’t mean she’d already made a bad impression with the gigantic overpowered plantfolk who could topple empires, lift mountains, shoot lasers out of their pretty metallic eyes, and probably crush a whole OCNI ship just by blinking.

“Oh, petal… No, that is not why we’re taking care of you.” Veralia spoke softly, again hovering a few vines within petting range before retracting them once more. “We’re taking care of you because you deserve the means to be your best selves; for you to blossom into happy, healthy, and fulfilled sophonts. We would absolutely love it if you decided to be our florets, that much is true, but that is your decision to make and you will not be forced, coerced, or otherwise roped-in to domestication.”

“B-but…” Biting her tongue, Linna refrained from saying more she might regret.

“‘But’ what, flower?” Carrot prompted her to continue.

“But… what d-do you want from us? Even if it’s true that you don’t have money, nobody just does all this for nothing…” Tears were forming in the rescued Terran’s eyes. This made Niamh nuzzle closer as she too began to cry.

The affini stopped to sit on a pretty park bench lining the median of the promenade. Carrot shifted Talia closer so she could speak with the distressed women.

“Hey…” The floret said softly. “I know it sounds impossible, but you aren’t expected to compensate people for the things you need. The Compact doesn’t do this for labour, or for wealth, or for power. They may have a bit of a saviour complex, and they definitely do love taking florets, but those aren’t why they care for people either. They care for us because they care.”

Linna pondered everything, wiping away her tears only for more to take their place. “B-but why?”

“Would you care if a kitten appeared before you, alone, hungry, and afraid?” Veralia spoke up. “Would you feel the urge to nurse it back to health if it were hurt and distressed? Would you hope that the kitten lives to see a better day tomorrow? You wouldn't expect the kitten to give you anything in return, correct?”

“Y-yeah…” Linna mumbled thoughtfully.

“And if you happened to fall head over heels for the kitty along the way, wouldn’t you want to adopt it?~” Carrot purred as xey adoringly pet xeir floret. “This is why we take in florets and pamper them silly!”

“You are in need of aid, and we are more than capable of providing it.” Veralia lifted a few vines once more. “Would you like us to pet you, little ones?”

Niamh and Linna thought for a moment. They slowly nodded to each other, then to the affini.

“Yes please…” Niamh squeaked.

“Ahh…” Linna shuddered as fuzzy little vines carefully and lightly massaged her body: through her hair, down her neck, over her back, around her arms, and across her legs - the comforting aliens’ touch felt simply divine.

“There, that’s it~” Veralia murmured in two low voices speaking as one. “Good girls~ That’s it, just rest your weary little heads… Feel each other’s comforting embrace… Feel our soft vines slowly petting you… You’re safe now. You’re safe here, among friends. Mhmm hmm hmm, you are such good girls~”

Though a part of her didn’t want to admit it, Linna was feeling much more comfortable now with those reassuring words and vine pets. Still though, she couldn’t help but wonder if she were making a mistake in beginning to trust the affini; the last people who had complete control over Niamh and herself were sickening bastards who would lie to anyone if it meant getting what they wanted. Even though she was already confident the affini weren’t as bad as Robert Pearson and his ilk, that was an incredibly low bar.

She wanted it all to be ok, not just “less bad”. Time would tell if Linna and Niamh would be able to etch out their peaceful, content existence together here among the plantfolk, but for now, she tried to just focus on Niamh’s welcome embrace and Veralia’s gentle petting.

—

Talia nearly dozed off in her affini’s arms as she received pets and pats just the way she liked them. She could hear Niamh and Linna sniffling and whimpering a little nearby, but she knew they were on the path to healing, and that fact was heartening.

Still, she couldn’t help but yearn for their friendship, and… maybe even something more. The cotyledon may not have had the same insightful skills as an affini would for reading sophonts like a book, but that didn’t matter since Niamh and Linna wore their hearts on their sleeves. Talia just knew in her heart that she wanted these kindred souls to remain in her life.

“We’re here, flowers~” Carrot hummed with a little flourish.

“Huh? We… we’re not still on the bench?” Linna’s head popped up from the cuddle pile in Veralia’s vines to survey her surroundings.

“No petal, we’ve come to the Spruce Gardens Cafe; a lovely little floret-run restaurant which is a favourite of Talia’s~” Veralia sent a few vines over to pet the cotyledon, a gesture which Talia gladly accepted.

Looking up from her own bed of vines, Talia took in the beautiful decor that never ceased to please. The main seating areas were located on a mossy stone patio encompassed on its top and its sides by vibrant flora-adorned trellises and wooden support structures. The Patio was in the shape of a hexagon, with towering spruce trees growing from each of the six corners. Massive affini-sized booths were placed around the perimeter of the patio while Terran-sized tables were scattered a bit further in. In the center of the patio was a partially-exposed kitchen built into an adorable stone-brick structure. The whole thing was surrounded by picturesque parkland; the side Talia liked most even faced a pretty little duck pond and clusters of wildflowers. The Spruce Gardens themselves, where most of the establishment’s produce was grown, was largely out of sight on this side.

“Floret-run? I thought you said nobody had to work here…” Niamh questioned worriedly.

“That's right, nobody has to work, but they can if they choose to.” Carrot explained. “The Spruce Gardens Cafe is the passion project of a group of three lovely little florets, and one lovely little independent.”

“Why do they want to do this, though?” Linna wondered aloud.

“Why don’t you ask one of them yourself?” Veralia gestured to an approaching sophont.

“Hello Miss Carrot, Miss Veralia! Hiya Tal~” The waiter - a short, twinkish Terran femboy named Theo [he/it] - greeted warmly. His scruffy blue hair was accentuated by a little coconut pin, and he was wearing a palm leaf-pattern companion dress, soft black leggings, and cute high heeled booties. “Oh, and two new faces! Are these some of the new rescues?”

“Why hello, little one! It’s lovely to see you again!” Veralia showed their adoration by slithering some vines over to pet him as the group made their way to their usual booth. “Indeed they are! This is Niamh, and this is Linna. They’re a pair of precious little darlings who’ve been through a lot, so we thought we’d bring them here to your lovely little restaurant today. Plus, I believe they have a question for you! Isn’t that right, little ones?”

Niamh and Linna exchanged awkward, shy glances while the affini settled themselves into the large booth with their Terrans carefully propped up in their vines.

“Welcome to the Compact! I’m Theo Palma, Second Floret, he/him and it/its, and I’m happy to answer questions!” Theo patiently waited next to their seats for them to work up to asking.

“...Why do you do this?” Linna squeaked. “Work at a restaurant, I mean. We’re being told nobody has to work, but… here you are.”

“Ohhh, I see how that could be confusing. It’s true, we don’t have to work at all, but we do this because we want to.” Theo explained enthusiastically. “You see… We used to have a lot of food problems in the accord - ‘we’ being my boyfriend Gray, their sister Georgie, and our friend Mihleel.

“We were made to compete for our meals working as emergency OCNI conscripts when it was clear the Affini Compact was unstoppable. We worked trying to develop anti-affini weapons with hundreds of others crammed into a claustrophobic underground lab. We were lucky if we had a whole synthcube between the four of us for the day…” Theo rubbed its head reflectively, but quickly returned his attention to the present. Carrot and Veralia couldn’t help but pet and comfort him as he recounted such hardships. “Sorry, I won’t get into the upsetting details.

“When we and many others were rescued, our needs were met as best as possible - but wounds don’t heal overnight. Not everyone fully trusted the affini, or replicated food for that matter. Some people lost their appetite altogether. Others couldn’t stomach anything but synthcubes without reflexively, uncontrollably regurgitating it all. My insides burned whenever I ate, and Mihleel… well, her body just wouldn’t digest anything properly. And worst of all, in most cases, these experiences were psychological. There was no physical operation that could help us; plus, xenodrugs and hypnotherapy could only do so much at a time.

“We were far from the only Terrans going through such horrible food-related problems, and we swore we’d never let anyone go through anything like that ever again if we could help it. So, we started a community garden and would help people cook food if they wanted. We were kind of bad at it at first, but we were determined to learn. And honestly? It was fun! It was so satisfying and relieving doing this. It helped others get better even if only a little bit, and it helped us too! Eventually, we expanded the garden bit by bit, added a patio, and set up a kitchen here. Now, we’re a fully fledged restaurant, specialising in helping sophonts heal and develop healthy eating habits - while providing nice food, too! But of course, all are welcome even if they don’t have special food needs.” Theo took a breath as he finished his story.

Talia looked over to Niamh and Linna to see two stunned, teary faces. Linna slowly rubbed her eyes and Niamh’s lip was quivering. She desperately wanted to cuddle up with them and comfort them some more, but she knew it was best to give them space.

Unless they asked. She hoped they’d ask for her.

“Oh stars…” Linna muttered.

“Are you alright now? All of you?” Niamh asked quietly.

“Oh of course! I’m happy to report my family and I haven’t had health issues like that in a couple years now!” The effeminate man beamed. “Every now and then we get new arrivals in need of our little restaurant, and we do our best to help out. Not to boast, but I’d say we’ve been doing a lot of good here!”

“That you have, little one!” Veralia praised.

“Hell yeah you have, Theo!” Talia leaned over to give the waiter a fistbump. “I’m proud of you, dude! I’m proud of all of you!”

Theo’s face blushed as he shyly held his hands behind his back. “Awww, thanks Miss Veralia! Thanks Tal~” After a moment, he continued. “Did you have any other questions? I’d be happy to answer!”

“I, um…” Linna began hesitantly. “Are… Are you happy here?”

“Yes.” His response was gentle but resolute. “I’m living a life greater than I thought possible. I have a loving family, a fulfilling and impactful purpose, and comfort and happiness beyond what even the quadrillionaires had! But beyond that, I have a future with all my loved ones.” Theo was getting teary as it finished its heartfelt retelling.

Talia watched Theo’s words slowly sink into the pair cuddling in Veralia’s vines. Theo’s explanation was good, but words could only do so much. Talia remembered seeing Theo and his family start the community garden way back when. She’d watched their project grow from a little plot to what it was today; she wished she could share those memories with Niamh and Linna.

Talia could only imagine what it felt like to absorb everything all at once after such a traumatic week, and not just regarding the Spruce Gardens Cafe. The floret desperately wanted to help, to say something that would put their hearts at ease, but she opted to remain silent for now. The last thing she wanted to do was overload them and come across as pushy.

“Thank you.”

“Th-thanks.”

Niamh and Linna simultaneously thanked their waiter.

“You’re very welcome! I hope this helps you acclimate a bit. One last thing though: there’s no shame in being afraid. The four of us were terrified when we were new here, so we understand.” Theo gave a genuine, comforting smile. “Anyway, beverages! Can I get you all anything to start?”

“Two bowls of mineral water please.” Veralia hummed, placing a menu in front of the Terrans in their nest of vines.

“Make that three bowls, petal.” Carrot added.

Talia spoke up next. “A glass of cloudy apple juice please.”

The rescues looked over the menu with puzzled expressions on their faces for a moment before Niamh faced Talia.

“Um… what do you usually order, Talia?” Niamh’s big, wide eyes darted shyly between the floret and the table between them.

“I love the apple juice Mihleel and Georgie make, so I always go for that when it’s in season! If that’s not your thing though, I’d also suggest the masala chai if you want something hot.”

“Alright, I’ll have the apple cider too, please.” Niamh decided.

Linna didn’t think any longer, either. “And I’ll try the masala chai, please.”

“Of course! I’ll have them for you momentarily.” Theo quickly scribbled onto his notepad before scurrying away to another table.

Everyone in the group sat quietly as Niamh and Linna looked through the extensive menus. The affini made sure that nobody went without loving pets and cuddles, even intertwining vines with each other. Talia could feel the love and contentedness within her mistress even without taking xeir bioryhthm into account, which made her heart sing. She couldn’t help but wish lunch dates here with these same sophonts became a regular thing.

When Theo returned with a little food cart, the affini lifted the group’s beverages up to the table, then submerged a few vines into their bowls of mineral water.

“Do you all need some more time to decide?”

The pinnates in Veralia’s lap shook their heads almost in unison.

“So… You’re serious that this will be free?” Linna asked again.

“I’m serious. No bills, no charges.” Theo reassured warmly.

“Ok… can we please get a large veggie deluxe pizza? With regular crust and tomato sauce, please?” Linna winced a little, fear creeping into her body language. Veralia was quick to comfort both her and her pinnate with more petting.

Talia’s heart began to ache. First Niamh’s trouble with breakfast, and now this… They must have some heavy food-related trauma.

“Of course! That’s a very special one to us. The first thing we did when we harvested our first batch of crops was make a huge forty-inch pizza with some of everything we’d grown! Hee hee, we had to ask Miss Palma to compile us an oven big enough for it to fit!” A slight shine reflected off of Theo’s watery eyes. His face wore a soft, authentic smile as it recalled its happy memory. “Anyways, how about you Tal? What can I get you?”

“I’ll have the chicken curry, please.”

“Can do!” Theo nodded and walked off.

After the pinnates slid their menus aside, they returned to cuddling up in each other’s grasp. Linna started tearing up yet again, which led to Niamh following suit. Their wincing faces relaxed as their eyes locked, helping to ground themselves in each other’s presence. Talia’s warm gay heart practically melted! She felt she was experiencing the affini urge to smother sweet little cuties in hugs and pats and kisses.

Maybe they’d want to hang out with her… but what could they do together? Watching movies was chill but not very social… Floret Fantasy XIV would be fantastic if they’re into that sort of thing, but it could be overwhelming, and they might not even be interested in the same parts of the huge, expansive game as her… Building together with ARMO building blocks would be social and open-ended, if they even liked that sort of thing; stars, they might find the idea too childish for them, though…

Few memories from before her jump drive accident were accessible to her, but most of the remaining memory fragments had been seared into her mind thanks to strong emotions. A murky ocean of barely-remembered thoughts and feelings lingered beneath the surface of her consciousness: scoldings for being ‘bothersome and intrusive’; ridicule of her most personal, heartfelt creations; scrutiny for failing to meet expectations which were never even communicated to her; punishment for defying social hierarchies… Talia knew she had a place with her affini family, but was afraid of messing up and ruining her chance to truly bond with other Terrans - especially Niamh and Linna.

“Petal?”

Everything Talia had seen and heard of the pair showed her that they were far from the kind of malicious, bigoted, pretentious people from her past; but that wasn’t what she was afraid of. What if she was too weird for them? Or too childish? Or too boring? Or too loud and obnoxious? Or too excitable? Or too clingy?

“Talia, darling.”

Or too personal? Or too forgetful? Or too quiet? Or too obsessive?? Or too eccentric?? Or too controlling?? Or too possessive?? Or too scary???

“It’s alright baby, I’m right here… Come back to us, petal…” A familiar, fuzzy flower was pressed to Talia’s face as Carrot whispered gently from all around her. “Breathe… Just breathe…”

Nearly instantaneously, Talia’s mental spiral was cut short by a calming blend of xenodruggies administered by her loving affini. The pale yellow flower was lifted away from her face, and the first thing she saw were two pairs of big, wet, concerned eyes looking at her from across the table.

“Are you alright, Talia?” Niamh squeaked.

“You were shaking…” Linna added.

Talia slowly nodded her head and flashed a weak smile.

“My sweet Talia will be fine, little ones, but thank you for your concern.” Carrot said as xey massaged all over xeir floret’s untensing body. “This poor dear has been through a lot, and sometimes it can be overwhelming for her. Nothing that can’t be treated with love and care~”

Nuzzling closer to her mistress, Talia closed her eyes and simply felt Carrot’s warmth on her skin and biorhythm in her heart. It was much easier to believe everything would all be okay when she was being cradled so tenderly by someone she loved.