If it's between 8 am to 8 pm, 85% chance Laurence the librarian is in there, reading or dusting, ready to help you with your informational and/or literary needs.

I can't believe she doesn't have a favorite flower. Earth must be a strange place indeed.

Jade shook her head slightly in bewilderment.

==> From the Halls of Amber.

During much of the discussion (Jade, playing at trickster), Ballad’s manner suggests pensive consideration. She’d offered Jade a brief, luminous smile when she suggested bouquets, her chin lifted daringly: Go on. If there was a vibrant gleam of easy amusement—why, isn’t there almost always?

“I do like a message delivered by herb and blossom,” Ballad replies. Didn’t she seal the note she sent down to the cousins with a sprig of some herb? Given this new context, her cousins may presume that it probably meant something additional which went unremarked. “But my favourite flowers... I like them in crowns, or I like them wild. You know, utterly unconstrained. Evening primrose, violets, moonslippers, shepherd's hearts, black-hearted Jacks, cutthroat's purses, even thyme and dandelions. Do you know those little black flowers called sailor's remembrance, Jade, which grows down by the sea? But there may be a particular soft spot in my heart for a simple rose and,” (indeed, here there's a quiet introspection: a sense that, this time when she smiles, it is a private thing entirely), "I like a geranium."

"Yes, those are called Night Slippers to my people in Rebma. Those are nice and fairly unique. Morning glories, I think my favorite thing about them is how they open and close. Something magical in the simplicity of it." Then Jade blinks.

"Oh, you know how some nobles use fans for communication, kind of like ships but much more on a personal nature. Mayhap we could work out a coded language by floral arrangement."

“A private one, just for us? Let’s do it! Who knows when a way to signal ‘help’ or ‘under duress’ or ‘distract them’ will come in handy, here or out in shadow? What are the most important ideas we might want to convey secretly?”

"Something short and simple to convey. Just like you said. Perhaps something like safe here, Danger, Chaos Spawn, I seriously need your help, Search for me, and similar things like that."

*smiles* "I shall keep those in mind." he says addressing all three. "And I shall make sure to at least become familiar with the basics of the complex Amberian flower language."

Listens to Jade's suggestion. "That is a good idea.  We may even want to take it so far as to be completely unique to us, regardless of the flowers normal meaning.  Perhaps even pick a signature flower for ourselves that we can pair with the message flower or flowers so that we know who left the message."

"Signature flowers, sounds good. I will have to probably pick orchid since my favorite Lotus flowers are a bit hard to find."

“As I said, Jon-o: a private language, just for us,” Ballad says, when he says unique to us, regardless, etcetera. She gracefully lifts her pen again, finds a sheet of notes she does not mind adding to, sketches a square and in the square gamely writes down Jade's suggestions and her own:

Help, Under Duress, Distract Them, Safe Here, Danger, Chaos Spawn, I Need Help (she crosses draws a line from this to 'Help' and circles it, then draws two tinier lines: 'I' and 'your' for emphasis and question marks after them), Search for Me' then Signature Flowers: ???? Orchid = Jade

“I’ll compose a list. You all do so, too. Then we’ll figure everything out." Here's the starry edge of a smile. "Flowers that are easy to draw might be wise for some of these meanings, so we don't always need have them on hand. Perhaps we should go on a botanical hunt on the wild side of Kolvir? Troupe into the outskirts of Arden for a picnic and flower gathering."

Is anybody surprised at this point that Ballad, in charming extrovert mode (her only mode?), is ready to create a social gathering lowkey party out of creating a secret flower language? Probably not.

Jade nods, "Oh ! A pic nic, I have heard about those and would like to participate in one. I have never had the occasion too."

“What? No, truly? There were no picnics in Rebma at all for you? No excursions beyond the city and castle? We will picnic.”

Ballad's eyes crinkle at the corners. "I'll raid the kitchens and make one of my favourite picnic items." Is it a drink? Is it candy? Will it involve eating flowers? Only time will tell: Ballad puts on an air of inviting mystery! Cue the music!!

But now, speaking of social events: “If the day's getting on, should you three be hieing off to see Ezra now? I do need to do a little more reading, but I'll find you. Dining in the city? Perhaps I could wrangle a picnic for tonight on the mountain. What would make you happiest?"

Jade shook her head at the questions of pic nics.

Then she said, "Oh it will still be a full moon tonight, could we mayhaps have a pic nic near the stairs to Tir again. I enjoyed it last night, but I am also open to a nice sunny pic nic with a view of the sea."

*Nods* to Ballad, acknowledging his error *smiles* "You are amazing.  Thank you for taking this on." pauses for a moment at Ballad's mention of pictures. "Hmm, cards, perhaps we could have decks of cards of the various flowers and we can leave those" *chuckles* "Drawing is not my forte.  And decks of cards should be easy to replenish and replace." *grins at Ballad* "An excellent scholar, how is your artistry?  Could we perhaps get Ballad originals as our template?"

"I would be up for a pic nic under Tir-na-Nog again.  Consider it done, even if it just us." he says to Jade, but it is clear that Ari and Ballad ARE included.