☼ - What an odd place Iota had made herself comfortable in. Even the inhabitants struck her as unusual as she passed them, shying away from direct eye contact with them in favor of staring at the two sets of front paws that marched diligently forward. Delphinium wasn't sure what she had been expecting from the outside world - but something quite so... old? Wasn't what she was expecting. Perhaps it was because she was accustomed to the crisp white walls and up to date atmosphere of the Sanctuary that an aging town like Tanglewood caught her attention. She wouldn't quite call it falling apart, but its age was very apparent. Had anybody got tetanus wandering the streets? A smile flickered across her lips at the thought, olive green gaze turning upward to watch Iota masterfully navigate the streets so unknown to Delphinium. How long had she been here? How long had she wandered without a home after escaping the Sanctuary, before she found Tanglewood?

Rounding corners to homes she was unfamiliar with, the duo came to a greenhouse in much worse condition than its surroundings. Decrepit and broken, Delphinium couldn't help but wonder exactly why they had come to see the greenhouse. As Iota entered the greenhouse there was a moment of hesitation from the ashen kitsune, nervous of stepping on glass. Yet her drive to stay close to her friend pushed her forward despite her hesitations, gaze once again locked downward but instead of trying to avoid the attention of others she was on the lookout for anything that could cut her. Despite the crumbling outside, however, the inside was rather immaculate in comparison. Instead of fragments of glass scattered across the floor there was only bear soil, some well trodden as walkways and some tilled for future planting. Delphinium's head drifted up, following the tall arches of potted larkspurs surrounding the entrance of the greenhouse. Her prejudice drained away immediately as the mythic stretched herself up onto her hind legs, wings spread to maintain balance to press her nose into one of the many flowers on the larkspur. Relatively scentless on its own, the act itself was more than satisfying for the girl, small smile broadening into a grin as she lowered herself back onto all fours and drew her wings back in before turning to Iota to listen to the cherry blossom feline speak.

So this was her home, then? It didn't take much stewing for Delphinium to craft a theory, gaze tracing the jagged edges of the partially shattered walls. Delphi hadn't been so keen on the place at first. But of course it would be Iota's home. In disrepair, overrun by nature, overflowing with life - everything the Sanctuary hadn't been. The heat of the sun magnified by the glass, potted plants and wildflowers alike taking hold in the fertile soils, nature's own creation that Iota was there to assist rather than create or destroy. "I love it," she breathed out. Delphinium remained in place as Iota wandered further into the greenhouse, basking in the sights of the overgrowth. Her friend returned to her shortly with a small book unfamiliar to Delphi, evergreen eyes briefly scanning over the bindings before quickly wandering away. It wasn't quite her place to inquire the meanings of the book.

The conversation quickly moved forward as Iota spoke once more, directing the kitsune further into the greenhouse on a small tour. A small bundle of cloth marked her friend's bed, a curious sight in itself. It was better than the ground alone, but she figured that Iota would have given herself the best of the best, what she deserved, instead of remaining modest. Delphinium could always rectify that for her, she supposed. Rounded ears flicked back as Iota drew her from her thoughts once more as she spoke, this time presenting a roundabout question that immediately caused a smile to spread across her features. Without the offer, Delphinium wasn't sure what she would have done: she didn't know her way around well enough to find shelter of her own, and even if she did, sleeping alone hardly seemed appealing right now. "I've had enough isolation for a while," the eight-tailed mythic commented lightly, choosing to not comment on that further as her gaze slid away from Iota. "You have too, 00- ah, Iota." Delphinium responded to her own words by shifting uncomfortably, having pushed herself into a corner she didn't want to be in. This was supposed to be a happy moment. Flicking her gaze back, Delphi flashed another smile, this one much more confident than any of her prior ones. Iota granted her a strength she had not found in herself in many months. "We can share a bed until I get my own, I promise my feathers are soft." Although it hadn't been phrased as a question, Delphinium felt anxiety take hold in her stomach once more. What if Iota still wanted her space?

Instead of letting herself fret further the kitsune bounded forward into the greenhouse, brushing against the leaves of flowers as she did so. "I haven't ever tried to grow anything on my own, I always stuck to those old books." The kitsune confessed, turning her head back to Iota and tilting it to the right with a grin. "Anything I can help with?"

☼ - Even without Iota explaining it, Delphinium could see the love that had been poured into her surroundings. The love that the flowers were returning. The Garden in the Sanctuary had been so manufactured, manicured. Trimmed grass and vibrant flowerbeds, blatantly fake but still pleasing to the eye. This was nature in its raw form, not a plot of soil for humans to meddle with, and it far outshined whatever could have been produced falsely. Maybe once, long ago, the greenhouse had simply been a tool for humans. But it had since returned to nature. Fallen into the paws of Iota. Delphinium's chest tightened as Iota referred to the greenhouse as her livelihood, turning her gaze toward the cherry blossom feline with a closed eyes smile. "Don't apologize," the ashen kitsune affirmed, rolling her head to the side. It wasn't the first time Delphi had said those two words to Iota, and they likely wouldn't be the last. "It's..." There was hesitation as Delphinium considered whether or not she wanted to share the whole truth. After a brief pause, the kitsune continued. "It feels... so good to know you still care enough about me to cry," she confessed, the back of her eyes stinging as she fought her own swell of tears. The kitsune stepped forward and moved to press her nose gently against the smaller feline's own, a chaste but comforting touch. Iota's reaction caused her own feathers to ruffle out, instinctually reacting to being flustered in return. "It'll be the slumber party we never got to have."

As Delphi pulled away from Iota, she had tears gathering in the corner of her eyes, but she had successfully managed to keep them from falling. Instead the mythic flashed another warm smile, deep navy ears flicking back as a gentle breeze blew through the openings in the greenhouse, shifting the numerous plants. The sound of organic matter sliding against eac other was not one Delphinium was accustomed to. Delphi matched Iota's grin with one of her own, not noticing the additional length to her canines - not that she would care to begin with. Delphinium had enough odd aspects about her to not bother with the small differences in others compared to what was "natural". Humming pleasantly as her tails coiled and wound around themselves, olive eyes followed the motion Iota made gesturing through her greenhouse. "I can do that," she confirmed, paws moving listlessly forward. The flowers she passed on her path to the watering can were familiar, ones she had intimate knowledge of. Before reaching the watering cans' perch Delphi stopped in her tracks, slowly turning to face a healthy cockscomb reaching toward the sunlight. Argentea. Her gaze grazed sluggishly down the line of flora, identifying each of them as her gaze crossed them. Genista. Strelitzia. Delphinium. The tears she had been holding back flowed freely down her cheeks as she silently grabbed the watering can at the end of the row between her teeth, carefully tracing the outline of each plant in her mind as she re-approached Iota. The bird of paradise lacked it's signature vibrant flowers. It wasn't quite unhealthy, but it wasn't flourishing like the others. Placing the can at her paws once she had returned to Iota, Delphi lifted her teary gaze up toward Iota.

"... Do you have a - a spider plant, as well? Chlorophytum?"

☼ - Ruffled feathers slowly smoothed back down to her side as Iota spoke, chest warming at the cherry blossom feline's confirmation. Without prompting Iota tucked herself beneath Delphinium's chin, a blush spreading across her features but concealed by her fur. Cautious to not damage the flowers on her companion's head, Delphi leaned into the contact and closed her eyes. Old fears met a silent death in their embrace. Long awaited, long needed, aged worries soothed into a soft grave as Delphinium questioned why she had ever doubted Iota's love in the first place. Sanitized floors, blinding white walls, countless needle pricks, none of it could have stepped between the connection the two unlikely friends had forged at such a young age. Impressionable and naive as a child, equally as hopeful now nearing adulthood, Delphinium leaned into Iota's touch with a content smile. The duo separated after an extended pause, and Delphinium considered re-attaching herself to Iota and refusing to move from there. To truly never let go of what they lost once.

Instead Delphinium was quickly occupied by the task given to her, navy tinted ears inclining back slightly as she ducked beneath overgrowing flora to re-approach Iota. The usage of "darling" caused her feathers to ruffle out once more, although this time Delphinium did not respond - not because she was uncomfortable, but rather her mind was occupied elsewhere that even the honeyed callname could not break her away from. Iota had quickly picked up on the weight in the eight-tailed mythical's question, the kitsune responding by letting her gaze drift off of Iota once more to instead float down the line of specially tailored flowers. Chlorophytum was one of the most popular houseplants, but this was not a house. This was Iota's home and she had fixed it up with flowers that would provide her a challenge to provide for. Delphinium's breath hitched in her throat as Iota entertained the idea of having a spider plant, quickly following behind the peach feline on shaking ocean-tone paws. Hanging from a rusted nail on an aged thread was the exact plant she had been looking for, spindly and flowerless but beautiful in it's own right. Just like the girl named after it. "Yes," the kitsune answered softly as Iota commented on Delphinium's affinity for the plant. Unlike the other plants, Delphi could not simply reach up and touch it. Not until she could fly, at least. Instead she had to settle for simply watching the thin plant shift in the breeze.

"... When you named me -" the kitsune kept her gaze fixed solely on the spider plant as she spoke, words catching in her throat before she forced herself to continue. "You named me Delphinium instead of 015. Instead of that number. That was really important to me." An understatement of almost horrific proportions, but Iota did not need further words to know that. If Delphi were to continue with that explanation she would be choking on tears rather than letting them slide silently down her cheeks. "I named the others in the Sanctuary as you had done to me." Though she now knew that it was a laboratory rather than a haven, and it deserved no sort of kind name, calling her old "home" the Sanctuary was a habit that would never die. "It was personal, it was meaningful, and it was beautiful, y- you know?" Delphinium's stuttering began as her emotions began to get the best of her, vision clouded with tears. "My sisters, my family, they deserved something more than just numbers. They were- are- so much more than that." The fact Delphi had instinctually called Iota by her old number made her stomach churn. The fact she had almost willingly referred to her family as truly gone by using a past tense chilled her blood. "So I named them from that old botany book we could hardly understand back then. Genista, Argentea, and - and Chlorophytum." A pause. "They fit their names so well, they grew into them so well."

Delphinium sniffled, pressing her eyes closed as the stinging grew too intense to fight keeping her eyes open. Her head lowered to stare down at her paws, body trembling as she sobbed silently. But she did not want Iota to feel guilt. Did not want Iota to feel bad for making Delphinium feel so intensely. "It means so much to me that you have them here, even if it's only by chance," she concluded, finally picking her head up to meet Iota's gaze once more with a pained smile.