[open] Won't I be something today?

[cetra]

Who: Aerith Gainsborough & anyone else
Status: Open!
Where: Various spots
What: There are quests to be done - plants to plant and lightning to shoot! 💪
Warnings:None (secret pear eating?)





Seeds of Hope 🌱

This is supposed to be "her thing". Her little hobby-turned-job, flowers and planting and gardening. This is Aerith's thing.

So, after days of frustration when Aerith just cannot coax these seeds to grow, she gives up. At least, she gives up planting them in her garden area on the ship.

No, this calls for a more natural setting.

There's word of a group who are asking for help with planting and tending to the seeds found within the Abyss. It makes her feel a little better that this is a group effort, rather than every woman for herself. She's not done something like this before, though, so she's a little nervous.

Lack of the Lifestream's presence is the main factor in her worries. What if she wasn't very good at this? What if it was just the Lifestream's doing, with her as a conduit to help foster her flowers growth. Here, all she has is herself and her hands.

With a slightly anxious bounce to her step, Aerith is off and searching for a place to set up her efforts, no matter how successful they may be.

Along the way, she comes across someone she may recognize (or even a stranger - if they're going in the same direction she is, anyway). Aerith sidles up to their side with a bright smile, a basket of her findings tucked right into her elbow.

"So, are you looking to plant something or just help out? I'm a little of both," she holds up her arm a bit, shaking the basket.

🌸

Later (either the same day or even days later), she can be found humming as she throws herself into the work - patting seeds tightly into the soil, making sure there's plenty of water (but not too much). She's also investigating those upside down trees that some have managed to bring up and plant. They aren't like anything she's seen before, and Aerith looks a little awestruck as she's standing underneath one.

She makes it a point to be there most days, doing what she can to assist (and doing her best to learn). Obviously, she always took the Lifestream for granted, if the hard work she's doing now is anything to go by.

It's rewarding, though, and she feels much better about her own abilities as she manages to encourage a few plants to bloom. Maybe she can do the same back in her own garden...it's something she finds herself pondering on occasion, sitting off to the side as she watches others work on their own efforts.

She can be caught nibbling on one of those pears from the upside down trees. Maybe she's not as inconspicuous about it as she likes to think she is, which is why she can be easy to startle when there's a snack in hand.

Light THUNDARA Cleaners⚡

Getting to the temple was one of the more interesting trips she's made in her life.

Becoming a mermaid is apparently something she should've added to her mental bucket list a long time ago. It's not going to be the last time she does it, either, but for now - there's a job to do. So she's heard.

And thus, Aerith is in the temple, her staff in hand(s) as she searches for a place where she can be the most useful. Using a thunder spell willy nilly doesn't seem like the best plan to her, so surely there's someone about who can give her some direction, or a good place to start.

There's also some weariness from her, hoping she doesn't accidentally shock someone with a stray cast.

Soon enough, she's approaching anyone she comes across, ready to be put to work.

"Hey, so I just...shoot the oil, right? No special part of it or anything?" Does she sound unsure? She straightens her shoulders, doing her best to exude confidence. Aerith's totally a professional here.

Wildcard💐
[OOC: Find her and do anything! Follow a prompt or just make up your own, I'll go along with whatever. I'm down for brackets or prose, I'll follow u. If one of the quests doesn't ping anyone, feel free to msg me (wittyisland @ disco, PM works too) and I can write up something for us. And absolutely, she can accidentally shock someone with a thunder spell and she'll be so apologetic, if anyone wants to run with that idea.]

Comments

Seeds of Hope

[scooba]

Despite how tough things got last month, Freminet knew he couldn't sit around and mope in Father's house. If anything, that would make it worse. All he could do was just get up and get some fresh air even if the last thing he wanted was to talk to people. He had hoped going on a quest with some aspect of gardening would make distract his mind some as he looked around for something to plant.

And yet, despite his efforts, it seemed a little more challenging than it looks. Looking at the ground before him, he gave a sigh as he wished he signed up for an easier quest. Although, when he heard a voice, he raised an eyebrow at her.

"...I'm the same way. I'm trying to see if I can plant or help some people out..."

Wasn't she someone whom she seen on the ship from time to time?

[cetra]

She has indeed seen him a little bit on the ship, always missing the chance to introduce herself. Now is the perfect time, in her mind at least, to get to know each other.

"I think the more the merrier, honestly." Bringing her arm back to her side, she gives a little nod as she agrees with herself and her little saying. "I'm sure there's always a need. That's the feeling I got, and I know when I'm trying to plant something help is always welcome."

There wasn't much of it back home, except her mom on occasion. This will be new for her, very new, and she's equal parts excited and nervous to be part of a...collective? Aerith's not sure how to label it.

"My name is Aerith. I've seen you on the ship some, right? Seventh Heaven?"

[scooba]

That was everything Freminet needed to know about her. The moment she started to talk, he found himself a little unsure of what to think. She was definitely a lot friendlier than he thought as she kept on talking. That was why he stared at her as he didn't know what to say

"...I wouldn't say no to that. I never really planted anything before so...I figured I should try it now."

In the back of his mind, it just made him all the more nervous should the day she ever finds out just what he does.

"Uh...my name is Freminet, it's very nice to meet you Ms. Aerith. And yes, you are correct. I believe I've seen you around as well...?"

[cetra]

"Oh, just Aerith is fine!" She waves a hand in front of her with a laugh. It's cute, like she's a teacher or something, but it's also a little formal. "Unless you'd prefer to call me that, maybe I can call you Mr. Freminet?"

She's just playing, happy to have company on her way to...where ever it is they need to go. Hmm.

"So, I actually don't really know where to go to do this. Do you?" Not that she's trying to place the responsibility on him, but hey if he knows she'll happily follow. Otherwise, she doesn't care a whit to bother strangers along the way as they figure it out.

🌱

[starshower]

[She does find Tifa there, indeed, and looking quite lost herself. She holds several small packets of seeds in her hands and some small potted herbs at her feet, and she is trying to find an empty spot in the soil to plant them. Aerith's voice startles her out of her thoughts, and when she turns around—]

Oh. Aerith.

[—there is a bit of doubt and uncertainty colouring her features, and she glances down at the pots lined neatly at her feet.]

I was gonna try to plant things, but I realized that I may not know exactly the right way to do it. The slums weren't exactly a great place to do a lot of planting, and I'm not even sure if these are the same or different as the flowers I used to help my mom with...

[cetra]

Tell me about it.

[ The slums weren't so great at cultivating life of any kind. In fact, she's got a suspicion the reason her flowers flourished in the church was due to the Lifestream itself. She would find little pockets of it, spread out through the blooms. Maybe that river that flowed by her house. No way to find out now. ]

These little guys want to be trouble, it seems. [ She's got her own seeds, along with a few of the dried Life Flowers in her basket she's brought with her, so she gives it a little pat. ] Definitely picky about where they're planted. The pots are a great place to start, I think.

[starshower]

Are they? I wouldn't have known and planted them in the first spot I could find.

[Tifa's fingers fidget with the bag of seeds as she looks to the basket, then back at Aerith.]

Have you tried planting them yet?

[cetra]

Yeah, it didn't work out so good.

[ Does she sound put out? SHE IS. Going to start at the most basic of basics and build up from there. ]

At least, in my area on the ship. Here might be a different story... [ She glances around, noting others who are starting out just like they are - pots filled with soil. She has similar back in her area but there's something to be said about being out in a more natural setting. On the back of a turtle.

...she's not gonna try to dissect that. ] I think if we can manage to get these in the soil, we can test how much water they really need. Maybe they need less, maybe a little more, maybe different times of day. Until we can see a sprout.

Thundara Cleaners

[emet_sulk]

Emet-Selch had made his way as an octopode, calmly jetting or pulling himself along as needed until he reaches the place. He's mentally congratulating himself on the choice to invest in this magical spell, even if the form it takes for him is unconventional.

As he's leisurely examining the oil on the walls, deciding on his own course of action, he hears her question and glances over.

"Rather than shoot it, perhaps you ought to concentrate it in a smaller area and use static bolts to erase this muck," he suggests.

[cetra]

She takes a moment to nod, as though she’s tried being that precise. She steps closer to a wall, hand up to reach forward. Her fingers stop short of actually touching it, instead she curls her hand into a fist.

“This place isn’t like the last Temple I was in.” Aerith tilts her head back to take in the whole of the wall in front of her. “Do you know how they narrowed down what kind of magic works?”

She was just informed of what did work, so she’s a little curious how they reached that point.

[emet_sulk]

There's a brief pause before he replies, somewhat shamefully.

"No, I didn't ask. But once it was clear that traditional methods of cleaning were ineffective, it surely wouldn't have been a great stretch of the imagination to start using magic."

In a world where magic is commonplace, magic seems the next most logical step to experiment with.

"...Granted, levin is not what I would have imagined to be effective against this muck," he mutters.

[cetra]

There’s a little hum of agreement from Aerith. She doesn’t have experience in removing this sort of substance, but obviously this isn’t just regular oil - or whatever it can be called.

“It seems to come back no matter what anyone’s doing, I think it only disappears for a little bit.” Taking a step back from the wall, she sighs and glances over at him. “I didn’t think about how precise I’d have to be down here. So, I’m kinda rethinking my whole plan.”

Her very intricate plan of casting magic at a wall. Hard to plan when she didn’t know exactly the conditions of the place.

⚡

[afflatusexarch]

[ This is hardly G'raha's first time with fish-like features. Yet it still feels odd with out his actual tail being present. On the other hand, it isn't as though it is needed for balancing purposes now is it?

Now he, as both an admirer of adventuring and a historian, can't help but be curious about this temple. Previously, Rem and G'raha had been researching only to discover there had been pages missing from the books. Now to think that something is covering those engravings only makes him all the more eager to discover those secrets.

He also has brought his staff with him, head tilting to the side curiously as the young woman mentions shooting. ]

I... Suppose. Though I would hope that it doesn't leave a mark behind.

[cetra]

[ That didn’t even occur to her, and she frowns at the oil as if it personally offended her. ]

Right, gotta be careful. [ Can’t just go rushing in firing magic at something. Finesse is called for at this point. ] Have you gotten rid of some yet? I’m a little worried about casting this kind of magic, since it’s so damp.

[ Her hair is going to rebel soon, she dreads it. ]

[afflatusexarch]

I've a few spells that I believe will work.

[ Only because of how bright they are. It's not like he can gather Blood Lilies right? G'raha taps his chin in thought. ]

That being said, I would implore you to close your eyes.

[cetra]

[ There's a little bit of relief, someone knows what they're doing better than she does. That's always a good sign to her. ]

Will do! [ Aerith's not interested in going blind today (or...ever), so she squeezes her eyes closed, wondering if she'll be able to catch any light through her lids. Wait, maybe she should go a little extra.

She covers her eyes with a hand, just to be safe. ]

All right, work your magic.

⚡⚡⚡

[ramuhs]

[Hearing that "light" based attacks, including lightning, is effective against this strange substance, Cid has joined the efforts as he is also curious about this place and what it could reveal about these Ancients.

So he will also be mulling over how he could best use his levin and whether something else could be constructed for it when he hears the voice and turns to look at the young woman with a friendly smile.]

Was considering that myself... However, that doesn't seem effective to me.

[A small gesture of his hand toward the expansive wall as he floats in the water.]

Even if we were to create a veritable storm and strike the wall, I hear it doesn't stay cleared forever. That means we'd have to keep using our powers for that brief window, and I don't know about you, but I'm not too keen on wearing myself out for little gains.

[cetra]

[ Good thing she even thought to voice a question, instead of just going straight to the magic. Aerith didn’t even consider wearing herself out. ]

Yeah, I’m not either. [ It’s not as if she can cast endlessly. ] Is it just going back into the wall? Like it’s trying to hide?

[ She’s not sure what to make of that idea. Sentient oil? Aerith hopes not, that sounds hard to get rid of and also probably not something to piss off. ]

[ramuhs]

Now that I'm not quite sure. That's the theory I've been hearing, but I haven't tried yet to see for myself.

[He glances at her with a light grin.]

Shall we do a small test? See what it is we're up against?

seeds of hope 🌱🌱

[activatingcombatmode]

How about we call it a little of both?

[As if Zack would ever leave Aerith hanging when it came to work of any sort. Planting things least of all. Zack doesn't think he's much of a green thumb but if the girl needs help with her work then Zack is here to help her out.

Besides, he still thinks he's got years of not being there to help her out to make up for. Everything's a start.]

What kind of seeds and plants did you manage to get your hands on? Was it stuff from the abyss too?

[Put him to work, Aerith!]

[cetra]

Yeah actually -

[ She reaches into her handy little basket, pulling out a dried flower. It’s one of the teal blooms from the abyss, the helpful kind. ]

These would make me feel better after sniffing them, I heard someone call them Life Flowers. I figured I’d start with planting these, see if I can get the hang of it.

[ She frowns at the flower for a moment. ]

They aren’t cooperating very well, which is why I’m gonna try planting them somewhere else. Maybe I need more sun?

[ She gives the flower a little shake, as if to tell it she will learn all of its secrets. ]

[activatingcombatmode]

Life flowers, huh? Kind of looks like the colour of the lifestream.

[Which would be a fitting name for them maybe. Zack's kind of shooting that comparison in the dark, though. He didn't manage to find these flowers in the abyss, himself. He crosses his arms and peers at the flower in her hand.]

The abyss didn't have much natural light down there, though. I wonder if it needs something else?

seeds of hope 🌸

[pinksidekicking]

[ Chances are very good that Aerith has seen a pink animal on the Seventh Heaven since her arrival. Nimona sort of felt like she was on autopilot the whole month, helping Cloud with his delivery business or up in the crow's nest on lookout. Sometimes she'd help Tifa in the kitchen and bar, but didn't really do much else.

Right now, she's a pink cat in a tree above Aerith's head. A paw reaches out to bat at one of the pears - essentially knocking it off the tree... as cats are wont to do. ]

Whoops, heads up.

[ The cat did just talk, yes. Probably not surprising after Red. ]

what a qt

[cetra]

[She has notice a little pink creature on occasion, one that looks like a different animal every time she spies it. At one point, she questioned her sanity a little, and as she looks up, there’s a moment she questions it again.

The moment is fleeting and she kneels down to pick up the pear, brushing it off on her skirt to knock away the dirt.]

Thanks for the warning. [ Looking back up, she squints at the cat, marveling at her color. So cute!] Wanna knock another one down for me?

[pinksidekicking]

[ Nimona wonders how many people question their own sanity when they're dealing with her, she's fully aware that she's unique. And chaotic. Pesters people and probably makes them question why they put up with her.

But she's glad she found this crazy bunch of people from the same world. Now Nimona just has to bug Aerith again. It was obvious that the brunette came back without memories and that just means another chance to pester the woman.

The cat lounges on the branch after seeing Aerith doesn't get hit by the falling pear. ]

Thinking about taking a bunch back to the ship? Or should we gather them up only to have eaten them all on the way back? I definitely think option two sounds fun.

[ Another bap of her paw and... ]

Four! I think that's a golf term.