Chapter 26: Awakening

Oohs and ahhs quietly sounded throughout the cramped canvas enclosure, as a single lightbulb began to barely illuminate the space. Sitting dead center was a pearlescent flower, almost seeming to glow against the darkness surrounding it. 

“It’s amazing… You say it will have already wilted by morning?” Mebuki asked quietly.

“That’s correct Mebuki-san.” Fuyumi whispered back. 

Logically there was no reason for hushed tones. Delicate and fleeting as the snow-white flower blossoming before them was, it had nothing to do with sound. Despite everyone knowing that, they whispered anyways; it felt like a sacred moment. The few hours in an entire year that the princess of the night would blossom. Whispering just felt like the right thing to do. 

Standing around the crowded tent were the Harunos, Yamanakas, Chōji, Shikamaru, and Shino, who Ino felt like she should invite. They had been carefully tracking the mysterious princess of the night cactus that the Aburame clan had gifted Ino almost a year ago, and the last three nights in a row had all gathered in hopes of watching its annual one-night-only blooming. Hush, Ino’s adopted kikaichu was watching just as intently as the rest of them were, along with some of his kin. It was spellbinding to all. After some time Ino’s parents began to fidget nervously, Ino guessed that they hadn’t expected everyone to stare at a flower for so long. 

“I think it’s just about bedtime for you youngsters.” Inoichi said after another couple minutes. “Ino? Will you make some tea for our guests? We’ll be just a minute.” 

“You aren’t coming?” Ino asked, confused. 

“Er… We just need to do one or two things before we come in.” Her dad said, uncharacteristically skittish. “To help the plant and such.” He added belatedly. 

As he said the last bit, Fuyumi closed her eyes and took a very deep, calming breath, shaking her head ever so slightly. “To help the plant?! You should teach me!” Ino exclaimed. “It’s my plant so I have to learn to take care of it sooner or later! I would hate for it to get hurt!” 

Inoichi had to struggle to stop himself from facepalming, turning it into a head scratch instead. “Uhh yep! You’re right! So basically, the Princess of the Night is considered an especially rare and valuable plant because of the variety of medicines that can be made from its blossoms. So, before they wilt, we need to get those and seal them, and hopefully get what we need to cultivate more of them.” 

As he spoke, he began removing sealing scrolls from his pockets and laying them out carefully. Meanwhile Fuyumi began to extract… something… from the flower with a syringe, slowly transferring it to a glass vial she was holding. Inoichi then stepped forward and began carefully removing the petals, placing each one delicately in one of the sealing scrolls. 

There was something off about her parent’s behavior, but Ino could not for the life of her figure out what it was. Still, she watched attentively as her parents sealed up the various parts of the flower that they had harvested, and then went in to make everyone tea as she had been told. 

It had been a night full of questions and amazement and more questions. But Ino couldn’t shake the feeling like there was a whole layer of information that she hadn’t been able to get to yet. The next day when she went out to look at her plant the bulb bad shriveled up black, almost like it had been singed. Sighing she left to attend her birthday party. 

A whole ‘nother year until I see it again.