"Everything," Lily said. "It listens, even to us."
"Then we must be careful."
Lily’s eyes widened, then she broke into a quiet laugh, unable to hold the seriousness for too long. It seemed to surprise her, though she did not try to stop it.
"We could confuse it," Lily decided. "Then it cannot possibly listen to us."
"How do you propose that we do that?"
"We say things that do not make sense."
"That will not be difficult."
Lily grinned at that.
"You go first."
Eleanor considered this briefly, then again, with a serious look on her face.
"The roses are plotting against the strawberries."
Lily stared at her for a moment, then laughed again, this time unable to contain it at all.
"They are not even near each other," she said.
"That is what makes it suspicious."
"That makes no sense!"
"Exactly."
Lily shook her head, still laughing for a moment before settling as she prepared to continue the game, then pointed at another flower.
"That one eats clouds."
"An ambitious diet."
"It only eats the small ones," she added.
They continued like that for some time, the rules shifting as quickly as they were made, neither of them attempting to keep it the same for long. Lily spoke more easily, without pausing to consider and without watching for approval. She reached for Eleanor’s hand again without thinking and did not let go. By the time they slowed, the laughter had begun to hurt Eleanor's cheeks.
It was Lily who noticed him first. She stopped abruptly, her attention shifting past Eleanor’s shoulder.
Eleanor turned to see that Julian stood a short distance away, just beyond the edge of the path, as though he had not intended to interrupt. He had likely been there for longer than either of them had realized, given how distracted they had become.
He was looking at them in surprise.
His gaze moved between them, taking in the small details without comment. It was clearly not what he had expected. Lily tightened her grip on Eleanor’s hand slightly, then lifted her chin.
"We are busy, Brother" she said.
Julian’s attention settled on her. He was not angry that she had said it. If anything, he seemed to rather like it. Eleanor wondered if he was simply relieved that he was not alone in Lily's care anymore.
"I can see that," he replied.
"We are confusing the flowers," she explained. "Eleanor said that we need to protect ourselves."
"That seems… very productive."