The Secret Garden Chapter 20: Conclusion by D.L. Copyright  © 2011 D.L. All Rights Reserved. Inspired by the classic children’s tale by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

Lord Headley walked through the grounds to his private rose garden. It was one of the walled gardens on the estate. His father was a believer in the spiritual side of nature, and had given his sons patches of ground to look after and nurture. Although he no longer had time to tend to the flowers full-time, he would always tend to the roses whenever he had opportunity.

The gardeners now looked after the majority of the flora, but he still enjoyed looking after some of the plants. He found the time spent outside pottering about most therapeutic.

The gardeners were working at the other end of the estate today. Some of the large, older trees bordering the fields had been damaged in recent high winds, and they were pruning the dead wood away and planting new saplings.

While smelling the roses, he became aware of the sounds of laughter echoing through the quietness. It had been several years since the sound of playing children could be heard on the estate. He remembered fondly listening to his sons playing, and recalled his own adventures exploring the grounds as a young boy.

The sound he heard now was different. The chuckling was higher in pitch. Rather than being the raucous laughter of boys, he was hearing the giggling of girls. He wondered if he was just hearing Hattie, but his ears could soon determine that two voices were carrying on the wind. His assessment of his young charge seemed to becoming stronger in his mind. He was now almost certain that he had a niece and not a nephew.

The girls, for it now seemed that was the appropriate gender for his brother’s child, were obviously having fun somewhere in the gardens. Lord Headley knew that the children liked their privacy, and went out of their way to hide from observation. However, his curiosity was piqued and he decided to follow the sounds to find them.

Slowly and quietly, Samuel Headley emerged from his garden and started to stroll round the estate looking for the youngsters. He circled through the open grounds, listening for sounds of their presence. However, he didn’t find them anywhere. Pinpointing their location was tricky by sound alone, as the noise tended to bounce around the walls and trees, making it difficult to discern the direction. In addition, the children were quiet for much of the time.

Having walked through the majority of the grounds without spotting the children, Samuel concluded that they must be hiding in one of the walled gardens. This seemed to be where he could hear them the loudest, and he couldn’t see them in the surrounding open landscape.

There were seven walled gardens running north to south to the east of the house. Starting in the northernmost enclosure, his private rose garden, Lord Headley moved through each looking for the two girls.

In each garden, the sound of play became slightly louder, but each was in turn empty. Finally, after exploring the sixth walled enclosure, Lord Headley stopped to wonder. Could it be possible that Rosie had found a way into the final garden? Had her father given her the elusive key before his death? The garden had been locked since Fredrick left for India and nobody had disobeyed his instructions not to enter.

With nervous anticipation, Lord Headley crept along to where the old door lay hidden. It took him a few minutes to locate the missing entrance, having not set foot in this space for almost fifteen years.

Lifting back the ivy curtain, he saw that the way in was not only unlocked, but also slightly open. Pushing the door, he expected the old hinges to squeak in protest, but they had been freshly oiled and it swung open in silence. Before him was a freshly swept and weeded flagstone path leading through a tunnel of foliage. Being careful not to make a sound, he crept down the path.

As he emerged from the tunnel onto a neatly cut lawn, he stopped to take in the scene in front of him. Two beautiful young girls in pretty summer dresses sat in the garden. One was sitting with her back to him on a small stool, an easel erected in front of her as she painted the scene. The other girl was lying on cushions in the summerhouse, reading a book. Neither had noticed the man arrive, both being absorbed in their activities.

He hardly recognised the people in front of him. Gone were the tomboyish clothing and masculine appearances. Hattie was attempting to read aloud, but not doing very well. Rosie sat correcting her while she painted. Hattie, obviously looking for mischief, kept mispronouncing words deliberately and giggling.

“Stop messing around, and stay still, I can’t paint you if you keep moving,” Rosie said to her friend in mock anger.

Hattie looked across to her friend and immediately froze on seeing the man watching them. She slowly sat up and put her book down. Rosie, on seeing the shocked look of her friend, turned to face Lord Headley.

On seeing her uncle, she stood and held her head up high in a dignified but determined fashion. Rosie was now fully dressed as a young girl, in one of her favourite and most feminine dresses, her hair neatly combed into a feminine style. Samuel examined the person standing in front of him. Any doubts over the gender of the individual disappeared from his mind.

Lord Headley walked towards the young girl, who although nervous stood her ground. Bending down, Samuel took her hand in his, lifting it to his mouth. He gently kissed the back of her hand. The child visibly relaxed at his gesture, having been worried about his response to the sight before him.

“Rosie, you look exceptionally beautiful this afternoon,” the man declared, “I am proud to have such a lovely young lady as my niece.”

“You don’t mind that I am going against nature in my choice to change gender?” the child asked.

“I have consulted with my friends, and I agree with their assessment. You may have once been male, but you are most definitely a young girl now,” he replied. “Reverend Swan has even agreed to rechristen you as a girl.”

The long held emotion, that as Richard the child had to hold in, suddenly exploded. In a burst of tears of joy, Rosie wrapped her uncle in a hug, repeatedly shouting, ‘thank you’ as she squeezed tightly.

Hattie stood nervously to one side, having risen and walked round the small pond to where the two members of the Headley family stood embracing. On seeing the other girl standing alone and dejected, Samuel extended his arm and beckoned the girl over.

“I haven’t forgotten my other little girl. You are after all, the closest thing to sisters. Hattie Jenkins, from this day forward you can consider yourself adopted. Welcome to the family,” Lord Headley declared.

The younger girl’s expression changed to delight as she ran over to the other two and wrapped herself round them in a three-way hug. The united family members embraced for several minutes, the two girls crying in happiness. Even the usually restrained gentleman felt moisture start to form in his eyes as he opened his heart to the girls.

“I like what you have done with your garden,” Samuel stated after a few minutes.

“I hope you don’t mind us being in here,” Rosie replied.

“Of course not,” Lord Headley replied, “This garden was given to your father, and as his sole heir, this is now yours as far as I’m concerned.”

Mrs Medlock was sipping a cup of tea with the cook when she heard the shouts of Gwen and Martha. The two ladies, on hearing the commotion, headed up to the main entrance along with the other staff from various parts of the building. Quickly taking charge of the situation, the housekeeper called for order and arranged the staff in a line outside to greet the three people walking towards the house.

At first, the identities of the young girls coming up the drive weren’t obvious to the observers. However, as they got closer it became apparent whom the three figures walking hand-in-hand were.

The fact that the trio were holding hands, and the smiles on the faces of the girls, told Mrs Medlock all she needed to know. She glanced across at Gwen, Martha and Hilda, all of whom now realised that his lordship had effectively gained two daughters.

Nobody would miss the passing of a small mute boy who never really existed in the first place.