Senoniya could have found the garden if she'd been blindfolded. There was a certain feeling she got, a general sense of where the concentration of plant life would be. The estate garden didn't feel... exotic... but well tended. Nothing felt distressed, which was a sign of neglect. Granted that the Therabel were wealthy enough to have a gardener, nothing should be in a ragged shape. The health of the plants didn't reflect on the owner, but rather, the caretaker. That most families left this sort of work to someone else had never escaped Senoniya. Her parents had been the same. It had only served to reinforce their decision that Senoniya not learn any more of what she could do. Such a gift was not something a Lady should concern herself with. And to please them, she said naught of it since they made that call. If she spent some of her evening hours in the courtyard, relaxing, then no one was concerned. Senoniya never did more than look, touch... watch the plants. To do more might have invoked her parents ire, and if she wanted to inherit the estate, then that was something she could never do. Even without once watering, trimming, potting, or touching the dirt of the plants, Senoniya's touch had resulted in the growth and prosperation of the whole courtyard. If their gardener had to trim more because of how quickly they grew, or was able to bring cut flowers into the estate more often, no one but Senoniya and the gardener noticed.
She'd had the man fired along with the rest of the old staff, and instead, she'd taken over the care of Courtyard. Fawn, and her more able bodied attendant, Cahal, did what dirty work and heavy lifting she opted not to do. Though she was free to pursue her interest now, she wasn't about to wear the soft skin of her hands down or do the more labor intensive work. Senoniya was a Duchess. Such things simply were not done.
Senoniya was calmed somewhat when they finally arrived. She'd not even noticed anyone during the walk, nor had she heard any of the gossip as they'd passed through the crowd. It would be easy to speculate, and she was sure there would be inquiries and invitations sent after this night. Plenty of opportunities to learn what she may. She justified her lack of attention the account that it would be nothing she'd not heard before, or could not guess. Senoniya's courtship escapades had earned her a bit of attention since coming of age, where most who knew able men were biding their time, making guesses, and trying to plant their suggestions around her so that she may take notice and pick one. Thus far, she had not.
The sunlight had faded completely by now, encasing them in the dark glow of night and the pale rays of the moon. Despite the misconception a garden was only so stunning during the day, the shadows, highlights, and shapes created there in by the moon and plant life was equally stunning to Senoniya. Flower colors were muted shades of what they were during the day, adding an ethereal quality to the setting that was missed when the sun was up. As soon as they'd stepped outside, Senoniya had paused briefly to close her eyes and take a deep breath. The night felt silently alive, as it truly was. Each plant had an energy to it, each one vying patiently for water, light, space, and nutrients with its neighbors.
Senoniya shifted her attention to Atharon when he spoke, finding his response to her confession almost amusing. She was pleased he'd not tried to falsify his ability with plants to catch her attention, and it even made her smile a fraction when he admitted to crushing them more readily than encouraging them to grow. Not entirely a bad thing. When he paused to glance around, so too, did Senoniya. The setting was truly private, with not another soul in the garden. No human presence to hinder her feel of the life around her... and nothing that attempted to distract or hide Atharon's presence in front of her. Set against the backdrop of the garden, Atharon was easily the most dominant thing around her. He commanded attention by simply being who he was. There was no request for it, nothing about him that suggested he could easily be swayed by others... he just –was-. More predatory than the plants around her, more animated than the ripple of the leaves through a breeze, and more domineering than the most aggressive of organic life around her. She could readily admit to herself she was drawn like moth to a flame. Senoniya was never in the habit of denying how she felt. Better to know, and ensure she act accordingly, then deny and reveal what she did not wish to be seen.
When he looked back to her, Senoniya's gaze naturally met his. "I focus instead on more on developing my mind. So much so that I learned to do things like this."
Atharon's words piqued her curiosity, drawing her attention then to his hand... then the basket of monarda. A single, delicate flower was lifted from the rest. My, my, there was definitely more to him than she'd originally thought. She watched, her breath soft and silent, as the small cluster of pale pink flowers, all stemming from purple-reen bracts, found its way to his hand. And then was presented to her with, "For you, milady."
Senoniya accepted the gift with what many would have considered a neutral expression. Rather, Senoniya was guarding her reaction. Merely being careful as to what she revealed. When her deep blue eyes flicked back to him, he would know it had been a very appropriate gift. Small in nature, but she was incredibly pleased. Her look was very brief however, as Senoniya was beginning to suspect he had an easier time reading her than most. She studied the flower, feeling it in a way most people could not comprehend, let alone explain. A type of non verbal communication, something she had no explanation for. "Very impressive," she breathed gently, watching as some of the smaller blooms actually opened up simply from being in her hand. Without even trying, the monarda was responding to her presence. When she was sure she had her thoughts under control, she looked back to Atharon as she lifted the flower closer, inhaling the sweet smell of basil and mint put off by the blossoms. She'd never thought that he might have been gifted in other ways, something more than his confident air and charm. This was something that had her admitting that, while she was not falling in love with the man, she felt a very primal want for him. In their brief meeting, he'd displayed all the characteristics she'd wanted in a partner, with none of the social flaws or physical blemishes she was so used to seeing. Dare she say he was perfect? Or was there something she'd yet to see that would shatter this wonderful feeling? Senoniya knew how very delicate such attraction could be. One misstep, one thing that they both could not waver on could snap all the good, all the potential there was between them.
[ >_> Went a lil overboard here.... sorry... ]