Barnaby
In a world where everyone seems to go in circles, Barnaby Austin had a peculiar quirk: he could only walk in straight lines and sharp 90° turns. This habit, of course, made navigating supermarket aisles and other public spaces look like a high-stakes game of Tetris. Barnaby also had an equally peculiar job. He was a collector of lost and unusual things. He didn’t find your wallet or your car keys, in fact, he didn’t find anything for you. He found them for himself, spending endless hours researching and tracking down lost items that may or may not even exist. Both of these quirks made his sudden inheritance of the Whispering Woods Estate a bit of a challenge, but also incredibly exciting. It was rumored that the estate was home to the rare Solaris Bloom. This flower was so elusive it had only been mentioned in a few obscure books, with only one eyewitness account on record. That eyewitness happened to be Barnaby’s third cousin twice removed and, until recently, the owner of Whispering Woods Estate.
Arriving at the estate, Barnaby was far too excited to care about the dilapidated state of the mansion. He dropped his luggage right there on the front porch and ran straight to the back. The backyard was a massive, centuries-old labyrinth. The towering boxwood hedges, much like the mansion, hadn’t been maintained in quite a while. Unfortunately, the labyrinth was grown in a Fur Elise pattern, which created a fluid sea of sweeping curves and elegant circles, but absolutely zero straight lines.
Barnaby stared at it for a minute, letting out a heavy sigh. There was nothing for it; he had to get to the center of that maze. The allure of the Solaris Bloom was simply too strong. It was said that the bloom was a vibrant flare in the dark, and when its petals moved, they rustled with a sound that resembled an old jazz tune playing softly on a vintage Victrola.
He took a deep breath and stepped inside. Left turn, straight… oh my gosh, there’s a curve. Maybe a right turn, straight… another curve! Finally, utterly unable to navigate the musical geometry of the path, he gave up on the trail entirely. Squaring his shoulders, he marched forward in a rigid, unwavering line and stepped right through the thick branches with a polite, “Excuse me.”
In short order, Barnaby had blazed a trail through the boxwoods and arrived at the green house marooned in the middle of the labryinth. He opened the glass door with some effort, pushing against thick ivy that seemed determined to keep him out. Inside, in keeping with the unkempt state of the rest of the estate, the greenhouse was a riot of tangled flowers and towering, menacing plants. Barnaby took a deep breath and started to fight his way through the heavy foliage. As he drew closer to the center, his excitement mounted. He broke through the final layer of leaves, and there, sitting on a table under a glass dome, was the Solaris Bloom. It took Barnaby’s breath away. The flower was rich with neon purples and golds, with a deep green that hinted at eternal spring. With every slight movement of the air, it played its vintage song. Barnaby stood frozen for quite a while, just staring at its resplendent beauty. Finally, he carefully picked up the pot, keeping the bloom safely under its glass dome. He made a sharp, ninety-degree pivot, and headed for home
©tlwhitaker2026
