Free The Stargazers by Allison M. Dickson

next morning, while Ruby still lay buried beneath her blankets with only her feet sticking out, Aster slipped into a pair of shorts, a p ink cotton shirt, and her favorite floppy hat before heading downstairs for some gardening time. She was not used to having her legs exposed, and she fought a naked anxiety for several minutes , pacing back and forth in the kitchen, before she gave into her need to have her hands in the dirt.
    She took a few minutes to eat an apple and drink a glass of milk, and lamented the dull flavor of the food and drink in this world. It was as if someone had coated her tongu e with wax. Maybe with her help and a little luck, the bounty from their backyard garden would taste a little more like it was grown from Ellemiren earth.
    Dew still covered the grass, reflecting like glitter dust in the early morning sun. She removed her shoes so she could feel the individual blades licking her feet and ankles like little tongues. Having such close contact with the vegetation always quickened her pulse and made her feel more alive, and it was the perfect way to escape the worry always troubling her mind. But when she saw this garden, her stomach roiled with nausea and dread.
    T he variety was good—green beans, peas, cucumbers, peppers, squash, tomatoes, and a couple others she couldn’t identify— but the plants themselves were shriveled and sad. Tomato plants that should have been producing succulent orbs any day clung to their cages like starving children, their tiny fruit wrinkled like raisins. Three raised beds held moldering lettuces and insect-bitten herbs. A quick dig into the hard dirt revealed rocks and sand and soil starved of nutrients. But what the plants needed most was a good watering, and she wondered where she might find the nearest well or stream. Then she spotted a water spigot next to the shed, and it was attached to a long hose.
    She’d not watered with such a contraption before, but the knob on the spigot turned easily enough, and soon, ice cold water was flowing from the end of the hose. Aster could have jumped with joy. What a marvel this world was! She had to keep herself dancing as she gave each plant a good soaking.
    Afterward, she dabbled a tiny bit of her special magic on each plant the way a painter would stipple a highlight onto a still life. She had to be careful not to do too much, or she would risk drawing too much attention to herself. Still, she smiled as she imagined how the girls would react upon seeing a fertile paradise of produce in their backyard. Perhaps she could do it for them as a going away gift.
    After grabbing a hoe from the little tool shed, she cleared weeds and loosened the rows of dirt. It was hard work, but it was made a little easier with the soil moistened . And she was a fast worker. She had to be. W orking under Oleander’s oppressive supervision since birth had drilled it into her . 
    An hour later, the sun was shining full and a mountain of w eeds lay at her feet . She took a few minutes to wipe some sweat from her brow and take a drink from the garden hose.
    “Jeez. You sure know how to make a girl look bad.”
    Aster turned around to see Ruby standing in her pajamas, her hair a frazzled mess of spikes, nursing a hot drink. “If you like, I can put it all back.” She grinned.
    “Don’t you dare. I’ll just move all that stuff to the compost pile so it looks like I at least did something.” She took a few steps closer to the garden and put her hands on her hips. “ You know, the plants look better already. I was sure those tomatoes were goners. Do you have some sort of magical green thumb or what?”
    “Something like that.”
    Ruby grabbed the wheelbarrow from beside the shed and started moving handfuls of weeds into it. “ If we get done early, I think I can talk Ivy into letting me take you around the town a little bit. The main drag is just a short walk up the street.”
    Aster perked up at the idea of a walk. Anything that didn’t