Canaan Club - 28. Chapter 28

They never found the elusive barbarian until the next day in World Formation, where he pretty much had to make himself present. Rafe thought he would just skip, but twenty-four hours was apparently enough for the fellow first-year to recuperate.

They had badgered him out of concern. The blond superhuman even tried a bit of humor, half-joking when he asked if he wanted to maim a few of his clan members in retaliation, but that only got a hint of a grin from the brooding redhead.

“You sure, man?” Joe spoke to him during a group assignment. “You can come by and hang out for a minute or two. We don’t mind.”

Daeran agreed, shaking his head and shrugging to show that he didn’t mind.

Frodd feigned the umpteenth grin and declined. “Nah, mate. I’m bang on. No need to worry your heads off about me, alright?”

“If you say so, bro.”

“Just know that the offer stands anytime you need it,” Andre said, that bright, compassionate, and kind smile on his face that softened the hardest of hearts a beacon to the barbarian’s walls.

Frodd swallowed as he nodded, gratitude glimmering in his eyes when he croaked the omé and answer. “Thanks. Really.”

The idea of group activity spread to AL Gardening when Ms. Rishi began class after taking attendance. She clapped her hands before sliding across the grass, encircling her students. “Time for some group work, my seedlings! And fear not. I already have the perfect partners set up for you, so nobody gets left out.”

Rafe was almost positive there was an even number of students in the class but whatever.

“The task is rather simple,” the naga instructor continued. “Or, at least, the directions. Your pair will be scoping out our beautiful garden, courtesy of I, for each of the plants listed on your worksheet. Over the weekend, I’ve been busy re-planting and regrowing some lost florae for our little scavenger hunt, so don’t concern yourself with thoughts of whether you can find the plant here at all. Just skip right to the fun part and explore!”

Murmurs rose as the class wondered just what they were expected to find. Rafe turned to look down at Andre, who had an excited smile on his face. Of course, he was giddy. The little wolf had a nose that could smell a person out from halfway across the planet. Anybody would be lucky to have him as a partner in a scavenger hunt.

Rishi began to call out names in pairs, raising a couple of sheets of paper in the air for each duo.

“…Joe Sloane and Monty Heath, come get your sheet. Andre Watson and Daeran Davidson, come get your sheet. Rafe Gold and Froddgenskaenn, come get your sheet…”

Well, he wasn’t with Andre like he wanted, but this was an opportunity to check more closely on their somber barbarian friend.

A few minutes later, they were all coupled up and spread throughout the garden. Andre, as expected, was already on a mission, leading his timid partner in a specific direction while his nose twitched in an uneven rhythm. As they passed by, the omé’s eyes found Frodd, who was quietly conversing with Rafe.

“You think he’s okay?”

“Definitely not,” Daeran took one look at the redhead and shook his head, looking certain. “I’ve been asked that question and answered that way many a time. Keep in mind that when they say the words ‘I’m fine,’ that’s code for ‘I’m not fine.’”

Didn’t Andre know it. Rafe scolded him for making the same excuses after every run-in with a bully tribe member.

“Why were they like that anyway? I mean, he did his best, didn’t he? He had magic and everything.”

Andre thought for a moment. “I’m not completely sure, but from an outsider’s point of view, they’re acting like a pack of wolves. At least like the traditional kinds. The alpha sets the example of how to… you know, be, and the rest have to follow suit. Anything less is unacceptable.”

He had Alpha Renkin and his son, Jarekid, in mind. He may have been a jerk, but Andre couldn’t help but feel bad for the alphason, having to live up to a strict ideal fabricated by years of traditions and customs and unable to stray even an inch.

It might not seem like it, but being an omega was much more enjoyable. At least, in Andre’s eyes, it was.

“And because Frodd lost,” Dearan mentioned, “he basically splashed paint over the image they wanted to present to the world.”

“Basically.”

“Sounds familiar. The lot of us seem to have the same family dynamics, huh? No wonder we gravitated towards each other.”

If that was what Daeran’s familial situation was like, then Andre would agree, but Joe’s roommate was so secretive. He had an uncle named Declan who taught him magic. No mention of his parents, siblings, or anything like that.

“Hey,” Daeran eyed his surroundings as if there was something suspicious in the atmosphere. “I just noticed something. Aren’t there like… four teacher’s aids?”

Andre briefly took a gander at their surroundings. “I think so. Why? Is there something wrong?”

“No. Nothing wrong. Just… Rishi didn’t mention it. Just a random thought in my head.”

The omé’s never paid that much attention to the things in the background. Daeran, however, was a cautious individual, content to observe from a distance. He must have noticed something “out of order.”

Andre’s rumination was cut short when a faint, familiar odor wafted under his nose.

“That smell…”

Apparently, Daeran caught the scent as well, his face lighting up in recognition. “It’s… the smell from the satchel.”

The two were immediately on its trail, nostrils flaring as they were led toward the edges of the garden, in which a small, wooded area sat. There was a dirt path that split into four other lanes, leading deeper into the forestry. They sauntered down the third path from the right, on the move for half a minute before the scent was at its strongest.

“Right here!” Andre stopped and pointed at a stone rooted to the ground. However, it was the patch of clover-esque weeds that grabbed his attention. “This is…”

Daeran looked at his sheet and scanned it, skimming through each picture of plants he’d never seen before until he landed on the image that had a similar appearance. “Here. A… greycell plant. It’s one of the bonus point searches, though. It must be rare. The teach is gonna love this.”

They leaned in closer for a better inspection. It certainly looked like it could come from Earth. The greycell was in fact the color gray with five round leaves on the end of its stem. In its center was a tiny, yellow bead, the only sign of an actual color on it. When Andre uprooted it, its roots spiraled around each other like strands of DNA.

“It definitely has that smell from the bag Zoel wanted, but what’s so special about this thing?”

Daeran sniffed once more before his face scrunched up in disgust and began to move away. “Smells like mushrooms. Let’s just take this to Rishi and ask her about it. You know she likes to go on tangents whenever we ask her shit.”

And just like the brunette mage stated, Ms. Rishi happily proceeded into her long and prompt history lessons, but not before praising the pair.

“Well done, you two! I didn’t think anyone would discover the greycell plant. Well, not in this lifetime. One of you must have a pretty keen nose,” she pinched the greycell carefully at the root and lifted it for the rest of the class to lay eyes on. “Such a unique plant, this one. It’s not completely known where they come from, but they are certainly not earthborn. They were grown on some planet most likely in the next galaxy over. A very high price in the trade market because it was all the rage, but nowadays, they seem to be all but forgotten. If you cook it right, it can become edible.”

“Must’ve been tasty then,” Andre joked, but Daeran gagged behind him.

“Can’t imagine it. Folks must have come to their senses and stopped selling it.”

“Why, though?” the omé questioned, facing the purple-haired naga.

Rishi smirked, looking every bit serpentine as she responded. “Why else does any other product become obsolete? There was new merchandise in town. Although, the history of the greycell plant is a bit muddy. Just like its origination story, it’s not totally known why it went out of business.”

Rafe, listening in as he trudged through the field, snorted as he watched Frodd crouching and peering down at an array of flowers. “But we can make a mean dish out of it. You think we should start up a culinary business?”

Every now and then, Frodd’s head would twist around to glance at where Rishi, Andre, and Daeran were conversing. Of course, Rafe’s eyes strayed there too, although, only to one person in particular. The barbarian, however, seemed… anxious. Like the teacher was going to slither on over and sink her fangs into his skull at any moment.

“You alright, man?” the superhuman asked.

No answer. Frodd just ogled the trio for a few seconds longer.

“Dude,” he waved a hand in front of the redhead’s face, which surprisingly did the trick.

“H-Huh? Oh, sorry. Just, uh, just thinking to myself,” he spun back to look down at the flowers, aimlessly picking at them.

“Yeah, okay.” So convincing.

“Just… clan stuff. Still eatin’ my head off for the tryouts loss yesterday,” he managed a fake laugh. “You know how they are.”

“No, but I can give them a good talking to. Back at the Coat, I’ve dealt with that shit every single day. A couple of knuckle sandwiches here and there might dislodge their heads out from their asses. It worked for me.”

This time, the barbarian let out a genuine snicker, making Rafe feel strangely accomplished. “Sounds ideal, mate, but cowardice ain’t an option. I gotta be brave and stand up for myself, you know?”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you have to suck their-” he coughed before rewording his sentence, “suck up to them while they walk all over you.”

Frodd stood up and gazed back at the blond, his somber mood beginning to melt incrementally. “And that’s what I gotta prove myself first. Besides, we still haven’t had our sober rematch scrap yet. I’m working my way up the ladder here.”

Atta boy.

“Oh, yeah. That’s right. I’m still sour about that. I’m letting you know my punches aren’t pulled without a couple of drinks.”

Frodd grinned. “Good. I saw what you can do when you aren’t inebriated, and I feel cheated out of a good fight. I can’t wait to swing at your face again.”

“Same,” Rafe punched his palm.

His partner was in a better mood now. So, at least there was that.