Garden Snake

For the first time since Chris has arrived in Laura's "Wonderland", he enters a room that is bathed in sunlight. He is genuinely surprised to find a flourishing greenhouse instead of a witch's bedroom, as he expected. The space has a high white ceiling interlaced by a metal support structure that enables it to open and close. A fresh breeze and warm sunlight filter in from "outside", making the large room quite comfortable.

Danielle's plant creature flies to a large tree at the center of the greenhouse, where it perches on a branch that is close to the ceiling. It spreads its wings in the sunlight, seemingly absorbing the solar energy like any other plant would. 

Chris follows Danielle along a stone path running through the garden. "This is your room? It's huge! I'm guessing everything in here isn't going to try and kill me, right?" 

"You're safe here." Danielle reassures. "Or, as safe as you can be, relatively speaking. I have the dangerous sections of the greenhouse marked off."

Danielle leads Chris to the side of the greenhouse, where a tiny brick house is situated among the greenery. 

"This is the bathhouse. Please feel free to wash up." 

Chris looks down at his dirty, dusty, and sweaty body. "Is now really the time for a shower?"

"I want you to stay here until I can resolve things with mother."

"Resolve things? What is there to resolve?" Chris responds hotly. "I understand that you're trying to save me, but I don't think reasoning with her is the way to do it."

"I'm going to try. I don't think violence is the answer." Danielle responds matter-of-factly.

"Fine." Chris peels himself out of his winter jacket, placing it over the back of a nearby wrought-iron bench. The long-sleeved shirt he is wearing underneath is soaked in sweat. "I don't want to leave without confronting your mother, but are there any other ways to escape? I saw glimpses of the outside world when we were walking through the loading dock. Why not leave through there?"

"The doors won't let you through." 

Chris recalls how the doors slammed open and closed at an unnaturally fast pace. He thinks quickly. "What if I snuck onto one of the trucks and hitched a ride out?"

"You could, but if you're found you'll be killed by whatever witch the truck belongs to. Not to mention that you'll be stuck wherever that truck goes. Believe me when I say that there are worse places than the Sweet Nightmare's Confection Shop." Danielle explains confidently. "The only reliable way out is the store entrance that you came through."

"Then both of us should confront your mother. I'm not going to wait around while you try to argue for my life."

"I don't want you there with me. I can't guarantee your safety if we face off against mother directly."

"I don't care." Chris responds flatly. "I'm tired of running."

Danielle gives Chris an "Are you stupid?" look. He just crosses his arms and stares back at her.

"You stink. Take a shower." Danielle waves her hand in front of her face. "We'll talk more once you're done. I need to gather some plants, anyway." She stalks off without another word.

Chris looks at the cozy bathhouse and shrugs, heading inside. The interior is immaculately clean, with a river rock floor and white-tiled walls. Imitating the greenhouse outside, plants populate the room. Verdant vines climb the walls and planters hang from the ceiling. The humid air smells incredible, naturally filtered by the many plants.

"Now I just need to find the controls..." Chris mumbles as he looks around the extravagant bathroom.

About thirty minutes later, Chris reemerges looking clean and revitalized, though he is stuck with his dirty clothes. He looks around as he ties his jacket around his waist, but Danielle is nowhere to be seen. 

"Hey! Where are you?" Chris has to think about it before he recalls the witch's name, which he hasn't heard since Laura introduced her in passing back in the confection shop. "Danielle?!"

"Over here!" Danielle calls back, voice emanating from the corner of the greenhouse to Chris' right.

The sound of her voice is soon followed by another noise on Chris' left, where the entrance to Daniel's room is--the doorknob loudly and slowly turning. Chris watches the knob with confusion and concern.

"Danielle! Someone's opening the door!"

"What?!" Danielle says in alarm. "Stop them!"

Chris rushes forward to hold the door shut, but he is too far away to make it in time. With a click, the door unlatches and opens, swinging open easily. Instead of a person appearing on the other side, the upper part of a snake slaps bodily against the stone path. Chris recognizes it as the same multi-colored gummy-snake that was wrapped around Danielle at the beginning of the night. It licks the air before surging forward, directly towards Chris.

"It's the snake!" Chris calls in alarm, running away from the serpent and towards Danielle. "Now what!?"

Danielle stands up from a garden bed, hands covered in dirt. A rope barrier separates her from the rest of the garden, a yellow "DANGER" sign planted in the soil nearby. She sees Chris running towards her, followed by the rainbow-colored reptile sliding across the ground after him. When Chris runs up to her, Danielle confidently stands between him and the snake. It's quarry blocked, Circe the gummy-snake coils up in front of Danielle, raising its head high into the air in order to look Danielle directly in the eyes.

Danielle immediately understands what is happening. "Mother sent you, didn't she?" 

Circe looks at Danielle as if to say, "Yes, now get out of my way."

Maintaining eye-contact with the snake, Danielle calmly instructs Chris, "I need you to pull out the plant that is right behind me. Once you do, take it and run for the door. I'll be right next to you." 

Chris looks down at the various plants that are "right behind" Danielle. Conscious that he is now in the literal danger zone of the garden, but trusting that Danielle knows what she is doing, he reaches for the one that is closest to her. "The one with the long leaves?"

"NOT THAT ONE!" Danielle cries, making Chris and the snake jump. "That's a mandrake! Whatever you do, don't pull it out of the ground!" 

"Uh, the one with the black leaves, then?"

"Yes."

Circe is moving from side to side, trying to get around Danielle, but the witch keeps herself between the snake and Chris. Chris grabs the black plant by its stalk, pulling on it, but it remains firmly stuck in the soil.

"Quickly!" Danielle warns. "Please!"

Chris adjusts his grip on the plant, throwing his body weight into it, but it still refuses to budge. "I'm trying!" Chris grits his teeth and hauls on it. "Arrrgghhhhh!"

With a hiss, Circe lunges forward, knocking into Danielle and pushing her out of the way. At that moment, the spindly black plant erupts from the soil with an audible pop. Black smoke starts pouring from its roots, concealing Chris in a pungent scent akin to an incense pot that has been thrown into an industrial incinerator. Circe hisses strongly, recoiling from the fumes.

"Run!" Danielle encourages Chris as she takes off for the door. "And don't drop that plant! Apple!" She calls to her plant creature, which glides down from its tree branch to join the escape.

Thankfully, the amount of smoke isn't enough to completely envelope Chris, allowing him to see where he's going. Together, Danielle and Chris bolt for the door, a trail of smoke roiling behind them. Even with the cloying smell covering their tracks, Circe slowly follows the teens, staying close to the ground in an attempt to avoid the smoke. 

Danielle bursts into the hallway, Chris right behind her, holding the smoking plant close to the ground as they make their escape. As they run down the hall, taking what feels like random turns, Chris asks, "Where are we going now?" 

"The kitchen." Danielle responds darkly.