[closed] june catch-all

[artorian]

WHO: Artoria and sundry
WHERE: Where not
WHEN: Before the event probably
WHAT: Flower stuff and etc.
WARNINGS: Pollen

[ Hit me up via PM or chipsnfish if you wanna plot something out! ]

Comments

fran and the other one!

[artorian]

[ So... gardening. Not one of Saber's usual interests, but how hard could it be?

After a morning of bustling and scavenging, she shows up in the afternoon to collect Mordred and Berserker, wherever they happen to be. She comes with a creaky little cart in tow stuffed with containers of water, trowels, mysterious seeds, and an assortment of uprooted flowers in various buckets filled with soil.

Saber herself is dressed for work today in a nondescript tunic and loose pants tucked into boots -- an ensemble low in glamor but high in mobility, and she looks entirely comfortable in her dirt-flecked peasantwear as she regards Berserker... or Mordred... or both. ]

Are you ready? We should set out while the light is still strong.

I MISSED THIS PING I'M SORRY

[uuuh]

[She's surprised that the blue Saber was so fastidious in preparing for this. She is a methodical person, and dedicated, but something like this seems so small that Berserker never expected her to take it seriously.

While she usually prefers to wear her normal outfit (being made of mana, it's easier to handle and manage than the uglier, simpler clothes around the town, but today she's been coaxed into trying some of Chroma's fashion, wearing a simple ankle-length dress and and a wide-brimmed peasant farmer's hat.

Maybe she hasn't completely figured out just how deep the conflicts between these two run, but something tells her that she'll have her hands full with more than the flowers. She's already made sure to warn Mordred not to get carried away and traipse over the flower bed.]

Uuuu! [She nods firmly, an answer that everyone here should easily be able to understand, and gestures toward an open patch of ground between two buildings.]

here's the other one

[rebeliune]

[ Not wanting to dirty her usual tube top and shorts, Mordred is dressed similarly to Saber... albeit with the bottom half of her tunic cut off to expose her stomach, because of course. (At least she's wearing pants.) While she'd never normally go silently along with one of her father's plans, it's different when Berserker is along for the ride. Lashing out would just ruin it for her.

So when Saber arrives, instead of acting aggressive, Mordred keeps her big mouth shut and just hovers protectively beside Fran, like a grumpy dog told to behave. She tilts her head at the gesture, eyes following along to the patch of ground. ]

Over there, huh? [ With a nod of her own, she moves to take command of Saber's cart. ] Let me take that. You go on ahead with Berserker.

[ This is not out of a sincere desire to help, only a desire to impress Berserker with how Strong and Helpful she can be. ]

let the tricycle commence

[artorian]

[ Saber looks at Mordred strangely. Mordred is acting... helpful and mature?? If she didn't know better, she'd think Mordred was under the influence of another of Chroma's random enchantments.

But the true X factor here is Berserker, who judging by that forum post seems able to keep Mordred in check. Mostly. It's an impressive feat, and not one Saber has any intention of disrupting. She turns to follow Berserker, leaving Mordred with the cart. The cart is a small but dense affair, and it'll rattle loudly of metal and wood over the ragged Chroman street. ]

I was not certain which flowers would survive well outside of the forest, so I sampled a wide variety of them. I leave the selection and arrangement of them to you, Berserker.

IT'S FRAN DAY EVERYONE BEHAVE

[uuuh]

Uh-huh! [Yes, she can take the lead on this!

And she does, rushing forward with a little more excitement than is normal for her, putting more distance between herself and the two Sabers. By the time she reaches the open plot she has to wait for them to catch up, her foot tapping just slightly on the loose earth.]

Uuh! [The first thing they should figure out is how much space they have and how many flowers it can accommodate. Berserker holds her palms very close together and makes her fingers "wilt." Flowers need space, too!

So! Sabers, how many are they looking to plant in a space this size?]

about that

[rebeliune]

[ See, Mordred has every intention of behaving herself today... but when she's handed the cart, the whole thing just becomes too tempting. Soon, the rattling of the cart becomes even louder as Mordred jumps on it, whooping as she rides down the street... with a little help from a mana burst to keep things moving.

Predictably, it all gets out of control once she has to turn, and she ends up hurtling towards Fran and Saber with no way to stop herself. ]

Out of the way! [ Assuming she doesn't crash into either of them, she comes to a stuttering halt about ten meters down the road, just barely managing to not tip the cart completely over. At least the flowers are safe. ] Jeez, that was way too close... but way too fun as well! Berserker, you're okay, right?

[uuuh]

[Mordred will at the very least find herself speeding past an extremely startled and defensive Fran, who's jumped in front of the garden patch they've sectioned off and is waving her arms wildly. Berserker instinct might normally make her the immovable object that collides with the unstoppable force, but at the very last moment she dodges the cart and starts running down the street after the runaway transplants, seeds, and bulbs.]

UUUUH?! [Is she stupid?

Yes.]

maya!

[artorian]

[ Sup, Maya. Saber's knocking on your door with a small cart parked behind her. It's filled with a variety of tools and equipment, but the odd leaves and flowers sticking out of it here and there might betray its true purpose.

Whenever Maya answers the door, Saber will look up at her solemnly, her posture as noble as ever despite her dirt-dusted peasant clothing. ]

Good afternoon, Maya. I hope I am not disturbing you from anything important.

[scooptimistic]

Saber!

[ Maya beams, shaking her head, but also curiously looking past her to the cart. That... huh. Okay, that explains a lot. ]

Were you having a gardening day?

[artorian]

[ She nods. ]

I noticed a patch in front of your house that might serve as a favorable spot for flowers.

[ She gestures toward said spot. It's a little patch of soil breaking up the Rugan brick street. Perhaps it was blown free by a dragon. Perhaps an unnamed Servant got a little too excited and tore some of the street up. So much is damaged around Chroma that it's probably not worth wondering about. ]

I wondered if you would be interested in having some planted. They would require your maintenance, but I thought you might find them worthy of the effort.

[scooptimistic]

Oh, sure! [ Maya takes a closer look at the soil that definitely wasn't there at some point. Thanks, unnamed Servant? ]

I don't have as much on my plate here, so I could definitely dedicate some time to helping them grow!

[artorian]

Very well. Then please pick out any flowers you like while I prepare the flower bed.

[ She gestures to her little cart. It's filled with buckets of small flowers, tall flowers, saplings, and even tiny bushes. Saber knows nothing about flowers, so she just brought one of everything colored that would fit in the cart.

While Maya looks over them, Saber grabs a trowel and kneels over the little patch of soil. With a little help from her best friend Mana Burst, she neatly plucks up (read: rips out) a number of bricks around the soil patch to widen the spot up. She stands the loose bricks up on their ends and tucks them tightly against the edges of the patch to form a crude wall.

She also has no idea how to properly use a trowel, which is why she uses it like a knife to stab into the packed earth and loosen the soil. Again, she's got her BFF Mana Burst; her face is calm as she murders the ground into submission with roil of dirt.

After a minute of work, here lies a very modest flower bed. ]

[scooptimistic]

[ Damn. Saber is a beast. This poor, poor earth. But Maya still looks impressed, once she's selected a small assortment of both smaller flowers and the kind that tower over the smaller ones like bullies. Variety! And Mordred will probably want bigger plants anyway. ]

I don't actually think the flower bed was prepared for you.

thancred!

[artorian]

[ When Thancred steps out of his cottage one day, he'll find Saber on her knees in the dirt nearby. She's at work pulling weeds from what once may have been a small flowerbed, indicated by a loose outline of rocks. Her brow, furrowed in consideration, clears when she notices Thancred, and she gives him a nod in greeting. A small wooden cart is parked nearby, filled with a variety of buckets, flowers, and tools. ]

Good morning, Thancred. It has been too long.

[wordsinthesoul]

[He does stop for a moment, surprised, but he offers her a smile and a nod back.]

Far too long- but I am glad to see you again! I… might not have thought it would be here, but I am mos glad of it. I take it you're trying your hand at the gardening quest?

[artorian]

Yes. I cannot speak for my efficacy, but...

[ She thought it sounded like a worthy quest that could improve the morale of the town. In practice, though, it's a bit more than she anticipated. She adds the last weed she pulled to a small, neat pile of others. ]

By any chance, do you have experience with flowers?

[wordsinthesoul]

It's still the beginnings of something.

[He wonders if maybe the town has been listening to them, honestly- but also…]

I would consider that I have some experience coaxing blossoms into full bloom. It certainly seem like something the town wishes to encourage right now- don't you think? We seem to have had a number of flowers' colours return, after all.

[artorian]

In a way, the flowers are like a counter to the forest pressing in. In spirit, if not in fact.

[ Though she wouldn't be surprised if it were in fact... in fact. Anything could happen in a land threaded with magic. ]

It sounds like your experience exceeds mine, so if you have the time for it, might I bother you for your counsel?

[wordsinthesoul]

Hm. Perhaps there's something to that- I've been in lands where it is a wonder to come across a flower.

[There had, at least, been interest in trading particular flowers from Gridania to Ul'dah. And then there's the existence of elementals…. Hard to say if it's the same sort of thing here, though.

He nods.]. Of course. I'd be happy to spend the time with you, Saber.

hawke!

[artorian]

[ Saber is just strolling along on her merry way, her little wooden cart rumbling pleasantly behind her on the rough-hewn street, when a sound from behind her makes her pause. She doesn't sense any malice, so she turns slowly to see what it is.

That's her fatal mistake. She's hardly faced around when her little cart appears to explode. Flowers, dirt, and tools burst violently in all directions, and a massive, hulking shape crushes her poor, modest cart under its overwhelming pounds. In an instant, that same monster barrels into her. She has no chance. She topples over completely, lost to the mercy of the beast.

- BAD END - ]

[trident]

( it happens in an instant. that's all it takes for meat to transition from happily plodding along beside her during one of their routine walks to torpedoing himself directly into saber.

there's no time for hawke to even call out for her dog before he's smashing into the cart and throwing saber to the ground. he barks happily before trying to lick at her face. )

Meat—!

( this damn dog! he even has the nerve to look at her and bark as if he's proud of himself.

hawke is at saber's side in an instant, gesturing for her unruly dog to get off. )

Are you alright?

[artorian]

[ Saber is slow to rise as she comes to terms with the dog happily slopping its tongue all over her face. On one hand, she loves this dog. On the other hand, her cart is dead.

She knows better than to be angry at a dog, though, so all she has left is sadness. She sits up... ]

Hawke. Is your hound in the habit of ambushing people on the street?

[trident]

Not unless I tell him to, no.

( which is true. mabari were very intelligent and very well behaved creatures. meat is no exception. he is fully aware of the proper manners.

she casts him a harsh look. he barks in response, butting his head against saber's shoulder affectionately. )

Oh, I don't want to hear it. You know better!

( he answers hawke with a soft "awoo" before moving to sit, ears flattening and tail stilling from its previous excited wagging.

then she's extending a hand to saber to help her up.)

What's with the cart?

[artorian]

[ Well, it can't be said that Hawke doesn't discipline Meat. Watching all of this, Saber silently approves. It takes a strong heart to resist the charm of a loving dog, but it must be done. Treats, headpats, and belly rubs can come when they're deserved.

She takes the hand and rises to her feet before dusting her clothes off. ]

It bore all of the samples and implements I needed to plant flowers around town. I made good headway, but it seems I will have to be finished for the day.

[ She surveys the damage. The cart is all but destroyed, wheels, bearing, and bed badly splintered. Some of the plants and tools survived the explosion, but they're altogether strewn across the street. A few have even been hurled a number of yards down the way, a testament to the force of Meat's descent. ]

[trident]

You're planting flowers? What for?

( despite her attempts to the contrary, hawke is admittedly very interested to know. there doesn't seem to be much of a reason to do anything like that, but she supposes she hasn't really been in the neighbourhood, so to speak, long enough to know.

she casts a glance from saber's face over to the destroyed cart. she makes a very pointed gesture towards the spilled mess. )

It's time to apologise, Meat. Collect her things.

( and just like that, he's racing off to start picking up items and dropping them off in the general area of what is left of the cart is. )