Plot bunnies are sneaky little creatures. They can pop up anywhere. Lately I've found several irresistible cottontails playing among orchids. Their exotic colors, patterns, and shapes invite me to find a hidden meaning.
Warning for minor spoilers for the Crossed Lines series
An orchid bunny first wiggled its nose at me when I was writing The Queen's Jewels. It was born out of a desire to give Mozzie a place to hang out other than Neal's loft. In canon that was virtually the only place Mozzie frequented with any regularity. Not a good idea—not for Mozzie and definitely not for Neal. To ensure continuing harmonious relations between the two, I created the Aloha Emporium, a store specializing in everything Hawaiian. The owner, Billy Feng, is also an orchid enthusiast. He has orchid grow rooms on the upper levels of his building.
Billy has a touch of the inscrutable Chinese philosopher in his personality. He's fond of using his orchids as metaphors. In The Queen's Jewels, during a time when Neal was contemplating fleeing from New York, Billy compared his situation to the difficulties he had in transplanting a Hilo gold orchid.
In the Crossed Lines series, Electra and her sisters also have a strong connection with orchids. They have orchids growing throughout their house in the woods. In Witches' Sabbath, an American native orchid, the small whorled pogonia, is one of the ingredients in a hex bag. In Fireflies at Midnight, a locator potion is derived from Greek horned orchids. Fire orchids play a much more important role. I'd first been drawn to them because of their name. But when I saw a close-up photo, I was struck by how much the center of the flower resembles a vampire. That inspired a bushel basket of what-ifs.
Greece is home to a wide variety of native orchids. The plant's name comes from the Greek word orchis, meaning testicle. The ancient Greeks associated the plants with sexual reproduction and fertility. They believed satyrs ate orchids to increase their virility. In Greek mythology, Orchis, the son of a satyr and a nymph, was killed by guests at a festival after he tried to have his way with a priestess of Dionysus. His father prayed to the gods to restore him to life. They compromised by turning him into an orchid. I created a twisted version of that legend for Electra.
My earlier post The Hidden Power of Flowers has more about the use of flowers in our series.
Orchids of Greece website
Fireflies at Midnight on Archive of Our Own
Fireflies at Midnight on FanFiction
No comments:
Post a Comment