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Argyros actually gasped. He got to his feet and came near to peer at the sapling.
“Oh, well done, Cassia,” Javed said.
Thenie cooed and reached out, and Bosko held her where she could touch the leaves with her clumsy baby hands.
Zoe scooped up Moonbeam and Aurora an instant before they hopped onto the bench. “No eating Uncle’s plants.”
Lyta drew near to admire the young tree. “What manner of plant is this?”
“You mean you don’t recognize it?” Cassia asked.
Argyros spread his hands. “In all our years together, she has never seen a live one.”
A look of consternation crossed Lyta’s face. “You don’t mean to say this is a coffee tree.”
Argyros couldn’t seem to take his eyes off the sapling. “I cannot fathom how, in the middle of Orthros Boreou when all our trade with the Empire is at its seasonal standstill, you not only managed to procure a coffee tree, but also kept this prime specimen alive between your door and mine.”
“It’s your coffee tree,” Cassia said. “The pot is different because it needed transplanting into a larger one, twice.”
His eyes widened. “Mycoffee plant? This thriving masterpiece cannot possibly be the pathetic creature I entrusted to you for study.”
“You asked me to fix it. I couldn’t leave it like that.”
“I thought you might discover something from it that would inform future attempts.” Argyros let out a laugh. “I never imagined you would bring it back to life.”
Cassia couldn’t hide her smile. “Surprise.”
“That’s the coffee tree from your desk?” Kadi asked.
“The very one whose unsightly presence your mother has been generous enough to tolerate in our home.”
Lyta grinned. “What did I tell you about every experiment of yours?”
“And how many of my successes have been possible only thanks to your support, my love? But in this case, the credit for such a triumph goes entirely to Cassia.”
Argyros turned to her again. “However did you manage it? You must tell me everything. No, wait—I will retrieve writing supplies from the library. I would like to take notes.”
“You don’t have to do that,” said Cassia. “It was really quite simple. I couldn’t have done it without Lio, though.”
“It was Cassia’s idea,” Lio was quick to say. “I was happy to assist.”
“I suggested we do for your coffee tree what revived the lost roses we discovered in Tenebra.”
Argyros frowned. “The biology and care requirements of roses and coffee are entirely different. How could the same techniques work?”
“This method always works.” Lio smiled.
“We gave it our blood,” Cassia explained.
Argyros’s brow furrowed. “I don’t understand. That shouldn’t have affected the plant at all.”
“It was my idea,” Cassia answered, “but I think it was mostly Lio’s power. Hesperine blood can revive anything, can’t it?”
Javed shook his head. “Blood magic only works on creatures with blood. That is why we feel no Blood Union with, for example, jellyfish or flatworms. It’s also why Hesperine blood does not heal plants.”
Lio was looking at her, a slight smile on his face, his brows raised expectantly. “Your green thumb.”
“Thank you,” Lyta told her.
