Open Dunnstads A Flower For You

[Harveste]

The capital region of Dunnstads- a place full of cities, towns, a beautiful coastline, and a few flower fields. At one such field, a small Faerin was singing a serenade to the flora, watching them bloom to her words. She'd heard talking to plants helped them grow happily, so Harveste was sure singing to them would work too. And so, she sang a gentle melody, twirling and dancing clumsily in place.

When she saw the flowers bloom, she clapped merrily. "It worked! It worked!" She chimed. Her singsong voice was filled with laughter as she knelt to the ground to pluck a flower from the ground. "Now that they've bloomed, I can give them to people."

She began to collect all the flowers, before skipping to a nearby town. One by one, she offered flowers to the people of the town and any travelers passing by. As someone walked by her, she ran up to them, grasping the hem at their arm ever so gently. "Excuse me! Would you like a flower?"

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Carrying his huge shield on his back, Hanno was lost in deep thoughts, with his hand holding an apple that impressively enough hadn't been bitten yet. The worries and stress from the last few days have been consuming his mind slowly, and he simply couldn't manage to pay attention to anything, including the girl that was cheerfully giving out flowers to people.

Walking past her, he only managed to notice her when she tried to talk to him, quickly snapping him out of his thoughts.

He managed to halt himself from abruptly turning to her, avoiding hitting her with his shield by accident by taking a side step before facing her and impressively enough, having to actually look down.

For a moment he stayed speechless, gesturing at himself.

"Me?" He asked, looking behind his back and noticing the obvious before clearing his throat and smiling faintly at the fellow faerin.

"Thank you, buddy." He smiled, picking up the flower and looking at it carefully. "It is so pretty, did it just bloom?" Hanno asked.

@Harveste

 

[Harveste]

When the man turned to look towards her, she took a step back just to make sure the enormous shield didn't scrape her on accident. She knew how painful a scrape could be, after all.

The man seemed confused at first. "Who else would I be- actually, don't answer that." A soft laugh left her as she realized the busy streets were full of people- people she could have been trying to get a hold of, though none of them were the man in question. "Yes, you! Would you like a flower?"

With a surprising thank you that called her a friend already, in Harveste's mind, the nature mage giggled a bit as he asked about when it bloomed. "Flowers like when you sing to them," she told him abruptly. "And I just happen to be good at singing to plants." Wondering if he'd catch on that she used magic in her voice, she opted not to explain any further.

Instead, she simply grinned ear to ear. "I'm glad you like it! I was hoping to see some smiles today."

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"I see, I did hear something about that. They grow faster when they listen to music, right?" Hanno looked at the flower over and over, taking a sniff of it before carefully tucking it in his ponytail. Its fragrance would certainly get stuck on him through the day.

He then looked at the girl again, with his faint smile turning brighter and genuine. Those were words he liked to hear, especially when things didn't seem to be going in the way they should. "You are doing a great job then. And the flowers are probably loving your singing, I will keep this with me." He gestured to the flower.

"I do wonder if I can make it last forever with divine magic... It would be a shame if it died while I was logged off." He crossed his arms, being sure that Rhiannon's power would manage to keep a life last longer in a flower, but unsure if that would be right to do.

His eyes then trailed back to the girl, and he looked at the apple in his hands before offering it to her. "Here, buddy, as thanks. Name's Hanno, Hanno Futaba. Yours are?"

@Harveste

 

[Harveste]

Harveste gave a knowing nod in his direction. "That's right! You sure know your stuff! Plants grow faster when you interact with them in general though, I hear. Some people actually have conversations with their gardens." She put a finger from her free hand to her lips, thinking over what that would be like. "I happen to like singing to them more though, so the fact that music helps them too works in my favor."

Grinning broadly, she was more than happy the man seemed to like the flower she'd given him. When he mentioned logging out, she giggled softly. "You're a very kind person, worrying for the flower so. I'm glad to meet such a kind person!" She was soon surprised by the gesture of an apple being handed towards her.

"Thank you very much, Hanno!" She chimed. It was rude to say no to such a kind gesture, after all, wasn't it? So, she took the apple and held it close. "My name is Harveste. It's nice to meet you! And now I don't need to worry about getting hungry while I hand these out!"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"Oh, that I didn't know, I thought it was only with music." Hanno rubbed his chin, acquiring the new knowledge and pondering. "Talking with a garden sounds fun. I think sometimes we need to talk to something that will just listen to us endlessly." His shield rumbled for a moment, making Hanno nudge it with his elbow. "I know, I know." He rolled his eyes playfully, recovering a bit of his humor after meeting the cheerful faerin.

He looked back at her, keeping his smile on his lips. "Thank you, it is great to meet'cha, Harveste. You are a dear yourself." Hanno nodded with a grin, tapping the flower on his head and making it brim with golden holy magic for a moment. That probably would be enough to keep it alive for a while until he got a way to keep it permanently safe.

"I'm glad to know it will help." Hanno said, looking at the flowers, then up at the sky. He had plenty of time. "Say, do you need help with those?" He asked.

@Harveste

 

[Harveste]

"That might just be a thing I read about somewhere," Harveste admitted earnestly. "But it can't hurt to try!" When the shield rumbled for a moment, Harveste was almost surprised- had this other Faerin the ability to bring his shield to life? She'd remembered that being a possible mastery. As a martial artist, she couldn't see any good coming from that for her. Shaking off the confusion, she smiled and even giggled a bit. "True, having something to talk to is usually good. I normally just talk to trees or my computer."

She watched with awe as the man made the flower glow. She sniffed the air, having just obtained an ability to smell magic. It was a warm scent- something she was re-learning to understand. The warmth overwrote the smell of the flower for her, but it warmed her heart that someone cared so much for the flower she bloomed.

Then, Hanno surprised her, offering to help her. The flowers weren't particularly heavy or bulky, but she did worry she might squish them in her arms. Smiling gently with a thankful tone, she nodded. "That would be great. I was just wondering if I was hugging them too tightly!"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"It never hurts to try." Hanno nodded in agreement. As long as no harm was done, mistakes and learning from them was always welcomed to the table.

Hanno couldn't help but chuckle at the idea of talking to a computer, though the tree was something more common. He didn't judge, however. "You talk to your computer like how? You rage at it when it is lagging?" He asked playfully, knowing that wasn't what she meant. "I used to like talk with A.I., but none of them are compared to those of Terrasphere. In here they are very... real." He didn't refer as realistic, and that wasn't a mistake of his part.

The thankful words made Hanno's expressions soften even more, and for a moment, the worries that were haunting his mind were hidden from himself. His mind was now occupied on how to help Harveste and how to make the flowers last longer.

"I am sure they are fine." He said, offering to take as many as the small woman wanted her to pick.

"Besides, both of us can reach more people, faster." He grinned.

@Harveste

 

[Harveste]

The smaller woman nodded in agreement. "That's certainly true. As for my computer... I do admit that I yell at it when it lags, but I also just ask it things sometimes. Like, 'how am I going to get past this block?' I ask it that a lot. It never responds- okay, rarely. Sometimes it responds with that built in AI thing so much technology has had since years gone by." She was old enough to remember the major AI in phones and such, after all.

"I've used AI in general, but... I agree. The people in Terrasphere are certainly much more interesting and lively." As if on cue, a passing-by NPC asked her for a flower. She graciously gave them one, and wished them a good day. She then turned back to Hanno. "See? That lady even thanked me cordially."

Harveste gave him about half the flowers- which there were still quite a lot of, in the end. They were colorful and had a gentle scent that made her smile every time she took a whiff. "Thank you for helping me, Hanno. I never expected such kindness to find me today, but I'm sure happy it did!"

@Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"Everyone does, don't worry." He chuckled. Even he, who was considerably chill, got pissed sometimes at the shenanigans of lagging.

When a Lander approached to get Harveste's flower, Hanno waved at the now grateful woman, and he glanced at Harveste again. "Right? They are amazing."

"Honestly I didn't expect it either. So thank you too, buddy." Hanno smiled warmly, tucking the flowers around his arm gently, and walking next to Harveste and helping to offer the flowers.

One or another Lander got intimidated about the shield of the Faerin, but eventually a bolder one picked one up, which encouraged others to not be so afraid of it. Grateful words bloomed just as much as the flowers they were handing, and it tickled Hanno's heart in a way.

"Buddy, do you have Lander friends?" He asked, handing another flower, feeling happier the more they managed to give away. "And well, what you think of them? And UI-Locked players?" He dared to ask further.

@Harveste

 

[Harveste]

Harveste was impressed by Hanno. He was kind and seemed to match the pace of her short legs pretty well, too. That he continued to call her 'buddy' made her smile. She'd have to remember to send him a friend request later.

She stopped in her tracks when asked about Lander friends and UI locked fellows. The feelings she'd been running away from came rushing back to her, and she had to fight to stay calm, thinking deeply about how to answer. "...My girlfriend was- is- I... I don't know anymore. I just know she's gone in our world..." Harveste sighed deeply.

"I want to find her, to know if she's okay. I've heard rumors of a drunk pervert roaming around the last four years that I thought might have been her. The rumors say she stopped drinking, but... Either way, I don't know if it's really her or not, and if it is... If she'd want to see me here again..."

She shook her head rapidly, a more forced smile taking over her features. "If I find her, I'll give her lots of flowers and a stern talking to. As for Landers... I've met a lot of really nice ones. There are some in a nearby town that let me sing to their gardens sometimes."

 

[Darkness]

A sudden sneeze broke her conversation with a lander, Kaede rubbing her before apologizing to the individual and handing them this month's shipment of medical supplies and the sort that she was asked to bring over due to increase in players taking up a lot of the normal things. Once the transaction was done she would adjust her travel bag and start making her way down the street, though stopping not long after when she noticed the small faerin that looked a lot like someone she knew.

Eyes blinking a few times as she turned a slight shade of red and not long after quickly moved away from view in a fit of panic and shock. Last time she had seen her was right after she was declared dead in real life, since then she knew damn well Harveste would hate to hear some of the things Kaede had done since then. covering her face as she tried to think of a way out of the situation.

If she moved deeper into town Totetsu would rush in to try and catch her because of the rules she set with the hound, and last thing she needed was people panicking as the bear sized puppy ran across streets with zero regard for others outside Kaede. Thinking it over though Kaede noticed something, her magic marker on the hound was infact moving already, and towards her. Cursing as she recalled that Totetsu also new Harveste and the hound was a softy and loved reunions.

Not long before the panic would cross the streets claiming a large lunatic hound was running down the streets and heading this way would prompt Kaede to rush out from the little alley and rush past Harveste to get between the small faerins and the massive hound as it came into view. She looked a little different, hair was darker and her attire was more worn down, but she knew the moment she spoke if this in fact her little spider lily she would know from her voice as she shout at the incoming hound.

"TOTETSU SIT!"

Her slight shout was enough to make the hound skid and try to stop moving while also listening to the command of it's 'mother' or 'care-taker' would be the better word for how they two acted with each other. Scratching the back of her head some as she turned around and Totetsu placed her head on her shoulder as she looked down towards Harveste. A blush across her face as she tried to get the words out her mouth.

"Like a true pervert would, mention me And I'll appear... Long time no see Spider lily.~"

A half hearted smile across her face as Totetsu, who at the time did not have a name yet would bark almost in agreement to Kaede's second statement. Shifting to give the big hound enough room to lick Harveste before pushing the hound away to avoid it trying to tackle hug something less then a fourth it's size.

@Hanno Futaba @Harveste

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno halted his steps just as quickly as Harveste did, for a moment feeling like he had stepped on a mine judging by her reaction... And when she spoke, his lips pursed in a bitter expression. Certainly, he wasn't the only one that lost friends in this mess, and knowing the list he had with him, he couldn't help but feel like he should do something about it.

He placed a friendly hand on the fellow faerin's shoulder, mustering a smile. "We can try to find her. Levi, from Lion's Arms, gave me a list of the UI-Locked players they registered. Maybe your girlfriend could be one of them?" Hanno wondered, but not having the heart to mention that in four years she probably was much more different from the same person she used to love. "I'm glad to know you've made friends with Landers though, they are-"

Before he could finish the sentence, the sudden appearance of a dark haired woman and a giant puppy made him blink surprised, letting Harveste's shoulder go and tilting his head confused.

"Like a true... What?" He asked puzzled. Like a pervert? Why?

"Who's Spider Lily?" Hanno asked, glancing at Harveste.

@Harveste @Kaede Hoshi

 

[Harveste]

Harveste knew things had probably changed. Staring downward for a moment, she shook her head, smiling sadly at the bunch of flowers still in her arms. "I should find her myself... There's a chance she wouldn't want me to find her, though... But I'm still going to try."

It was as if on cue that she heard a familiar voice shouting, as if to a dog. And it was to a dog- a ginormous dog. A dog that felt somehow familiar, but all the same not. But that voice- she hadn't heard it in four years, but she knew for fact who it was immediately.

"K-Kaede...?"

She glanced upward, eyes glazed as they watered ever so slightly. Something was different, but the small woman couldn't place it offhand. Sure, she was wearing worn out equipment and her hair was darker, but something else felt different to her- it was probably just the way her heart was racing, though. "Did you... get taller?"

Using her free forearm to wipe away any pesky tears that could try to fall down her cheeks, Harveste soon raised her hand when Hanno asked who 'Spider Lily' was.

"They're my favorite flower," She explained. "They smell horrible, but they're really pretty."

She looked away, red in the face herself. She'd been sure Kaede could have forgotten about her, or at least wouldn't want to see her. She wasn't sure why she felt that way though. She knew a lot could change in four years- surely something had to have. As she pet Totetsu when he licked her, she managed a soft smile.

"And you shouldn't just agree with people when they call you a pervert, Kaede." Even if it tended to be true, Harveste knew that wasn't all there was to her. It was just a lot of it. "Plus, it doesn't work that way. If it did, you'd have appeared as soon as I signed in pretty much."

Laughing nervously, she held out a flower to Kaede. "Here, for you. We're handing out flowers. You're still prettier, though."

@Kaede Hoshi @Hanno Futaba

 

[Darkness]

Kaede would listen to the two of them pointing over at Harveste when the other faerin asked who spider lily was. When she was told not to admit she was a pervert she brushed it off like always, what people thought of her was their choice anymore. When she got called out for not showing up sooner she would puff her cheeks like a small child before laughing and addressing the matter.

"Well I can only travel so fast, even with this girl here helping the risk of side track to chase something is high..."

Moving to the side of the street to hint for the large dog to stop blocking the road as it's tail swayed making crossing a game of dodge and duck currently. Once to the side though she would nervously take the flower and place it in her hair doubting it matched her outfit but fine all the same until it started to decay because of her magic opting to hide it in her cloak with a nervous laugh.

"Hello little Faerin buddy? of Harveste? I'm Kaede. part of me wanted to make a joke about the two of you on a date but you already cleared that possible misunderstanding up.~"

Kaede would reach her gloved hand out to Hanno as a greeting, her other hand was also gloved but magic was still a damned thing when you mix it with a nervous mess like Kaede was at the moment. Trying to ease her nerves by humming lightly and if the handshake was not taken she would recoil it back to her side, or if it was the same motion would be taken but quicker.

"I can go back to work if you two want to resume your little flower power spreading.~ Doom and gloom me giving flowers out is a... bad... very bad idea... ha ha..."

Another nervous chuckle as the petals of the flower she had been given fell from the cloak already black and whittled. Dark magic was a mess, she was a mess, and with so many Landers nearby she really did not want to have a meltdown here and could easily be seen on her face she was looking for reasons to get away. Though some might not know why, or think other things.~

@Hanno Futaba @Harveste

 

[Hanno Futaba]

The hint of sadness of the newfound buddy made Hanno feel a bit down himself. Probably because he knew how she felt, in a way. But the sudden turn of events made Hanno caught off guard about a lot of things, and as answers came through.

Was this her girlfriend? Judging by the reactions-- And Kaede... That name sounded familiar in a way, but Hanno couldn't quite pinpoint it. "Hey now, here you go." Hanno said, tucking his hand into his pocket and pulling out a handkerchief to offer Harveste if she wanted. "So that's what a spider lily is, I will search for it when I log off later." He said, then watching the scene unfolding in a way that made him feel slightly third-wheeled, not that he minded since he thankfully had the flowers to hand out while they had their reunion.

The woman's words caught him off guard, however, and his face burned for a moment. "What- No, yeah, we aren't dating. We just met." He said with a chuckle, then glancing at the flowers, clearing his throat and handshaking Kaede.

"It is a pleasure to meet'cha though. My name is Hanno."

@Harveste @Kaede Hoshi

 

[Harveste]

"Something smells weird," Harveste suddenly blurted out, sniffing the air. The decaying flower wasn't what caught her attention. It was magic, she was sure of it! "I smell some sort of magic. It's kind of a weird smell though. Reminds me of what I think spider lilies might smell like."

She turned to Hanno for a moment, noticing his face turning color a bit. "What's wrong? Was this a date and I didn't notice?" She turned a slight pink herself, though she wasn't sure why. She laughed a bit, smiling up at him as he cleared his throat. "In all seriousness though, you okay, Hanno? Kaede always liked teasing me."

Of course, Harveste turned back to the woman as she said that, eyes narrowing slightly. "You're not all 'doom and gloom' to me. I'd happily take a flower from you if you gave me one." She grinned like a goof, before taking a flower from Hanno's bundle and putting it behind her ear. "Now we've all gotten a flower!"

 

[Darkness]

Somewhere in Dunnstad

Kaede took a little bit of a worried stance when the mention of something smelled weird, she did bathe if she recalled properly. Looking to Totetsu who tipped her head in response. When the smell was mentioned spider lily Kaede drew the two lines together that it was her magic and tried to place a few extra layers to seal it to remove the smell worried she would get judged harshly for having all taboo magic. The smell likely fading to the background and only coming off Kaede, a flaw with sealing it was giving the remaining only on herself.

"I'll have you know I mess with everyone equally! If you caught me not aware it was you or back at the clinic you would be saying otherwise little spider lily... Four years and forcibly getting sober does a number on someone..."

Kaede spoke as she reached to pet Totetsu and hint for the hound to reduce her size to that of a normal dog, though the purple runes and small flares of blue fur stood out a decent amount in the black fur. Either way the hound would move to circle Kaede while getting attention and Kaede would nervously chuckle about the flower mention as the last petal of the flower she was given fell to the ground. Nervously she would move her boot over it and hide it behind her stance along with the others that had fallen.

"Either way, I'll let they two of you keep passing the flowers out, I have some other deliveries to make then need to get back to the Clinic to work on the next supplies to be shipped out to the smaller settlements."

With those words said, Kaede would start to make her leave of the situation, she did not want to stick around when she was barely keeping her emotions calm, not able to tell when she might either go full pervert, or burst into tears, or into a angry shouting that Harveste came back to this cursed game after knowing what it could do to someone. Hand reaching to the side as she clicked her tongue and Totetsu would rush after the elf after spending a moment looking at Harveste.

Rolls

None taken

@Hanno Futaba @Harveste

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"Weird smell?" Hanno muttered a question, looking at Harveste and then at the decaying flower. Crossing his arms, he hummed and glanced at Kaede, slowly realizing what was happening, thanks to his affinity with Divine Magic and Aura, allowing him to understand the true source of the flower's death.

He partially opened his mouth to point it out, but Harveste's words caught him off guard. "S-So it is a date after all?" Hanno's face grew even redder, but soon he noticed that the other faerin was just teasing him as well, making him cross his arms and chuckle nervously. "Come on guys, you are pulling my leg too much." Not that he minded some humor.

"I am okay, yeah." He shrugged carefreely, then peeking at Kaede, tilting his head while pondering about her words, and her name finally becoming familiar enough for him to understand. "Four years... Wait, you are- Are you UI-Locked?" He asked, making the connection. Harveste did mention something like that too, and in this case, that was more than obvious.

Soon Kaede started to try and make her way out, and Hanno took one step forward before halting himself, remembering Levi's words. He then glanced at Harveste, wondering if she would do anything about it.

@Kaede Hoshi @Harveste

 

[Harveste]

"I mean, it could be?" Harveste answered honestly when her teasing went unnoticed. To be honest, Harveste had been serious when she showed confusion about it being a date- she'd always been a bit dense with things like that. "Did you want one? A date, I mean."

She felt sort of guilty asking this in front of Kaede. But then, Kaede made an excuse to get going- one Harveste would accept, a sad smile on her face. "It's fine if you have to go, but... Just remember not to be a stranger, okay? Promise?"

As Totetsu looked at her, she waved shyly and watched the two leave, leaving her alone with Hanno once more. Her face was red, and her smile was weak, but she grinned up at him like a goof anyway after a few moments. "Sorry about earlier. I didn't intend to tease you necessarily, but your face was so cute that I couldn't hold back in the end either way."

@Kaede Hoshi @Hanno Futaba