Unable to break his old habits on his first night in his new pavilion, Mel sat in the garden, watching the sky. While he lay still on the hardened earth, he massaged the dirt where he rested his head, as if wanting to soothe it.
"No Botanical Master has lived here before; the soil hasn't been turned even once. What do you say, my old friend?"
Anyone looking from the outside might have thought he was crazy because there was no one beside him to hear these words. But Mel, sitting in the embrace of the quiet night, was calling out to the tree living inside the cave deep within his mind.
"Yeah, planting you in this dirt is impossible, but let's not lose hope. According to the notes my grandfather left behind, one of the gardens looks perfect for you!"
Mel looked very comfortable lying on his back upon the barren earth. Just a short while before the night turned to morning, he closed his eyes and drifted into a brief sleep.
