โ The 'Queen' of Spades โ
As he led Aria towards a tree with greenish white flowers* in the centre of the garden, Fiore briefly wondered if this was a smart move on his part. Not even the Chains in his own domain knew of his residence.
He waved a hand, taking a sprig of the greenish white flower and blowing on it gently, watching the small flowers float back towards the tree. Almost immediately the rose vines creeping up the tree shot outwards, before creeping around an expanse of air, winding together to frame an arch made of seemingly empty air.
"This way." he called out, stepping through the arch, taking her hand in his to urge her inside and prevent any questions or hesitation.
Immediately the arch closed, leaving the two of them standing in a pergola latticed with rose and ivy vines, stretching for as far as the eyes could see.
"Rose is one of my favourite flowers, if you can't tell by now." he intoned, laughing a little.
After a while of walking, they reached another arch like the first, except with ivy vines mixing with the rose framing the arch. Stepping out, he ushered her in past the two lantern trees bordering the arch, and down a lane of trees with yellow, violet and red flowers, disregarding the occasional little benches placed along the sides.
"That pergola is a magical one. No one can go out of here or come in without my permission. Even if someone caught the trick of opening the arch, they would get lost in the pergola, walking to their end, so if you feel the need to go outside, please tell me first so you do not suffer such a fate." he told Aria, voice serious, before taking on a lighter tone. "Ah, here we are."
Before them stood a small Japanese style ( he could safely say he had a particular liking for the Japanese culture, they were always so elegant in their decorations and lifestyle - if you discounted some things, of course. But then, nobody could be perfect, could they? ) cottage, led to by seven small steps, all dusted with flowers from the trees bordering them, overrun with flowering vines and hedged with flowery bushes, all in full bloom. Of course, everything in the Chess Board was always in full bloom - it was his world, after all.
Leading her inside, he gave her an apologetic smile.
"I am afraid my home is not very grand or magnificent. I do hope you will find it comfortable enough, though."
He opened the sliding door for her.