Page 76 of The Botanist and the Beast

"Don't say things like that," Theo stammered as his face went hot.

Sebastian tilted his head confused. "Does praise make you shy?"

"No. I mean...I don't know."

"How cute," Sebastian said with a laugh. "It definitely does. I can do it more if you want."

"It doesn't matter," Theo said his face just getting hotter. "The medicine is over—Ah!"

A blinding pulse of green light spawned out of thin air above their heads, making Theo's eyes burn. It rippled out in a circle and passed through the walls of the greenhouse. At high speed it raced across the kingdom.

"What was that?" Theo groaned as he rubbed his eyes.

As if answering him, the clay pots around the room rattled and clattered. Then the impossible happened. Green vines and leaves sprung out of the long dormant frozen soil. The tree branches that stretched across the ceiling sprouted green leaves, and columns of purple wisteria rapidly bloomed and hung above them. The dried hydrangeas that spilled out the old piano fell away as fresh, soft white ones erupted from it and cascaded down to the floor.

There were loud groans and creaks as the trees outside stretched and filled with leaves and colorful blossoms. The castle grounds came alive in the wake of the rippling green light. Plants burst through snow and ice and reached for the sky.

"It's over?" Sebastian said in disbelief as he stared at the greenhouse now overflowing with flowers.

After the initial shock wore off, Theo sat up and threw arms around him. "We did it."

There was a crack as he held him and when he pulled away, he noticed an opal patch on Sebastian's cheek looked as if it had been shattered. Carefully, he brushed it, and the stone fell away, revealing soft, pale skin. He let out a gasp of relief and hugged him again even tighter now. "We actually did it."

Sebastian kissed his cheek and eased him back to the floor. "Tell me where the medicine is. I'll get you cleaned up best I can before we go back."

Sebastian quickly cleaned the wounds, pressed yarrow into the cuts, and wrapped tight bandages around his abdomen.

"Looks like we're even from the first time I helped you bandage your cuts," Theo said with a tired laugh. "I've been giving out plants for ages and never really used them myself."

"Hopefully they help you just the same," he said, focused on making sure he got every bite mark. "I bit pretty deep. I think healing may take a while."

"I know, but I expected that," he said, caressing Sebastian's arm. Another opal patch cracked and fell away. One of the pretty shards on the floor twinkled in a beam of light, and they both snapped their heads to the roof. Through the snow-covered glass they could see sunlight.

Sebastian helped Theo to his feet, and once the two were wrapped in cloaks Theo had also tucked away ahead of time, they made their way outside.

The sky over Amaryllis was clear for the first time in ten years. It was a gorgeous ombre of light blue and pink as the sun lifted over the horizon. Its rays were subtle, but they could still feel the slight warmth on their skin.

Sebastian broke into heavy sobs and Theo swore he could see the weight of the kingdom finally leave his shoulders.

He wrapped his arms around him and kissed his head between his shrinking antlers. "Let's stay here and enjoy the sun for a minute before we go back."

Chapter Forty-Five

Every corner of the kingdom was overflowing with pure bliss in the days after. The grey stone that covered the citizen's skin was steadily crumbling off. Likewise, in the place of the brittle twigs each person, was now dotted with unique flowers. Jacques was dotted with white dahlias, and Oliver was wrapped in a red climbing rose.

Sebastian had Lyle, who had sprouted red roses, escorted to the edge of the kingdom by Oliver and Jacques as a crowd gathered to hear his address. Theo was curious why Lyle was needed but he trusted Sebastian's judgment.

"There's some apprehension about whether or not the curse has truly fallen and if we can walk out the kingdom." He turned to Lyle. "Our noble general has offered to test it."

Lyle's eyes widened for a second, but he quickly steeled himself. Without waiting, he closed his eyes and marched forward out the gate. A second passed as the crowd held their breath. Then another. And another. Lyle turned around and smiled at Sebastian as the crowd burst into uproarious cheers.

Sebastian held up a hand to quiet the crowd. "You can all celebrate in a moment. I just have one final thing to say. As you see, the curse has finally lifted. I know many of you have plans to leave Amaryllis. I won't stop you and in fact, I encourage you all to find peace outside of this place. That said, I would try and travel with those who can look out for you in the wilds and be a good leader on your travels." He turned to Lyle again. "I suggest my general, though I am unsure if he will accept."

"Prince Sebastian, may we speak?" Lyle said, quickly stepping forward.

"Of course. I hope you see you all at the ball tonight. Enjoy your afternoon." He gave a nod and stepped away to talk to Lyle.

Theo joined Sebastian's side. "Is everything okay? You sure you want to speak with him?"

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