949/Peddling Petals

Peddling Petals
Date of Scene:	31 December 2023
Location:	Plot Room 1
Synopsis:	Hinoiri tries, and fails, to keep some flowers she stole from her mentor's garden alive. Fortunately for her... Chiyo's grandfather may have a solution. And surely all the dark energy she'd been using on them won't cause any issues, right?... Right?
Cast of Characters:	Hinoiri Kirara, Chiyo Sakai

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Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was, well... tampering with some of the stuff she'd stolen from Kirakirafantastica. Some of the stuff was minor. Some of it...

... Some of it was from home. It was such a silly thing, she knew. The bright red flower. It looked simple enough. A six petaled flower, white, but... oddly... brighter than other flowers? It had a delicate scent, kind of like fresh walnuts. Even edible. Similiar to flowers of this world, but a little different. They hadn't been that hard to grow...

"What do you want from me?" she asked the three plants in front of her. She'd planted them near the leyline, fed them dark energy, done all she could to get them to grow....

But they were dying. She could try to spin it all she wanted, that these flowers were going to be used for some elaborate ritual, and they were often used for potions back home... but... The truth was?

It was a little slice of home. And they weren't surviving. She put them in the sun, with water, and... nothing. She'd even moved them up here, to a small clearing along one of the trails, hoping other plants might help them thrive... but no matter what she did, they weren't. And sadly, she wasn't exactly a botonist.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Mr. Sakai, owner of Nounamu Sweets, was not a botanist either. He was however an avid flower admirer thanks to his now-passed wife of many years. It was close to the New Year so the shop was being run by his assistants, proteges, and part timers while he had opted to take a long walk outside to enjoy the crisp air. Another holdover from his wife.

The old man who was remarkably spry and fit for his age doesn't immediately approach the girl that was crouching near some flowers because he figured she had her own situation going on. He was merely passing by on the path, minding his own business, and not trying to steal a glance of the unfamiliar yet admittedly pretty flowers.

At least until he overhears her complaints to the plants.

A little snort of derision comes from him while he pauses, hands clasped behind his back, to turn a wisened gaze toward her. He was usually short on words. It was his actions that typically spoke more for him. His wife had been the one good at expressing herself. He... was curt. Concise. Sometimes regarded as gruff.

"Of course they're not going to thrive. It's *Winter.*" He remarks with a sad shake of his head. "You need to transplant them to pots and bring them indoor until the weather warms, and the ground softens."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara started a little, her eyes going wide and jerking, she jumped to her feet a moment later and turned so quickly she... lost her balance and fell on her butt with a startled squeak.

She then got up again, dusting herself off. "Who do you think--" she snapped... then saw him. And she gave a sigh. "Yeah. I know it's winter. But I tried taking care of them inside and it was even worse. They were sadder, but just... it's not like I have a lot of choice. Inside, they're dying. Outside, they're dying. It's not like I can just magically change the weather here. So unless you've got a better idea, how about you just beat it?" Because changing the weather was totally a thing someplaces. Totally.

She crossed her arms, looking at him with annoyance and just a bit of anger before... finally, she just sighed. Her gaze softening. "Sorry... it's not your fault. Plant care was never really something I was... good at." She turned and knelt back down, poking one of them.

"Probably serves me right, anyway. You can't take home with you, no matter how much you want to..." she muttered. Well, he was old. It wasn't like she had to worry about him uncovering who she was. He couldn't touch magic.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"Hmph." Mr. Sakai waits until Hinoiri gets it out of her system. He had surprised her after all so he lets it slide with a stoic expression in spite of her emotions clearly swinging back and forth.

"Ah. That would also be a reason, then. If they're not native then the soil here probably isn't a good environment for them. Outside or in." He steps forward with a little shuffle as if he weren't really used to *walking* much. Standing for long hours sure, but walking was a bit of a process these days. His hands were just fine though. Arms were just fine. He crouches down to reach for the ground by the flowers with long fingers that were still deft, and flexible in spite of his age, to drag up a bit of the dirt. It's pinched between thumb and forefinger to rub testing it out.

"What was it like where they grew before? Were there trees around? What kind? Other types of flowers or plants?" Hte questions come, a list of possibilities as he's clearly thinking. "If they grew near pines for instance, the soil would be vastly different than if they grew near conniferous-- Leafy trees." Maybe she wouldn't know what a coniferous was. "I could try to mix some soil similar to what they're used to. My wife was very good at such things."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara sighed and shook her head. "Yeah. They were in a... very curated environment. The kind of stuff they have here likely isn't nearly the same." Well, they needed magic to grow. And when flowers and weather was adjusted, manually, by the people living there? It was definitely a different environment.

"... My old home had a gardener. These were from there. Not really... the same environment, though. They lived in a... greenhouse," Hinoiri said. They had those, at least. "There were some bushes and leafy trees. Fruit trees, even. Probably... best this way. They're... just flowers, after all."

... She didn't sound like they were just flowers, though. They really were just a piece of home to her. And having them die and being helpless to fix them... it was breaking her heart a lot more than she meant for it to. "At least they'll be pretty before they die. Heh. Eh..." She poked one of them and... weird, it was almost like the flower gave a sad sigh. But that had to be an imagination thing.

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Mr. Sakai just nods thoughtfully with a hum that was neither negative or positive. The weirdness isn't really noticed, but the sadness of the girl was. With a huff of breath as if he were being SO PUT UPON he reaches into his pocket to pull out one of those foldable shopping bags that were so great to carry around in a pinch. It's unfolded and lain out on the ground open so that he can reach down and start to carve out the dirt in a good circle around the flowers so as to not harm their roots.

"They're still alive," he states simply, firmly, before continuing. "I have a greenhouse. The soil probably had leaves and rotting fruit in it to help fertilize and that's what they need. Let me see if I can save them."

Whether she helps or not he gets his hands right into the dirt not seeming to care that it was getting up under his fingernails, or that the ground was cold enough his fingers were numb. "You can come by my shop in a few days, see if I've managed to get them back to sorts. It's the sweet shop by the school."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara blinked a few times. "Wait, that matters to plants? I mean, the fruit? Ugh. I really should have taken a real botonist class at some point..." More annoying, since she could do botonist MAGIC. In fact, she'd tried a bunch on these plants.

Yet, it hadn't done anything. If anything... it seemed to make them worse. Little did she know, it had. Dark energy... wasn't the most conductive to life. Especially when it was driven in like that.

"You have a greenhouse? Huh. I wouldn't have thought that. Wait, shop?"

Hinoiri, at least, didn't seem to object to getting her hands dirty. Digging right in next to him. Moving them to the bag. "If you think you can fix them, well... good luck. Heh."

Then looked up. "Ohhhh! Wait, you're from that shop? I won the little sucker contest you guys had. Heh. Want one? ... Actually I guess you probably are drowning in those things since you make them and all."

While she didn't understand plant care, she did at least seem to understand 'be careful not to damage the roots' when digging up said plant. And didn't object, even though it made her hands numb... And made sure she grabbed two of the plants and he only had to do one once she realized how cold it was. After all, he was old, his circulation wasn't as good, probably. And they were her flowers. She doubted he could manage it, but who knew? Miracles happened sometimes./

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
"Mm. Plants need to eat too. They just do it through their roots. What goes into the ground becomes the soil they feed off of." By the time he finishes digging the one out the others are already in the bag, but he sets it in as well adjusting the bag so that it won't smoosh them as he transports them. "Some require different types of things to eat. Rotten leaves. Compost from fruit and vegetables."

There's a little smirk as he admits, "Orchids are notorious carnivores. They love fishbones and egg shells in their dirt." With the explanation made he stands again dusting his hands off with a few quick claps of his hands smacking together. "Ah. I thought you looked familiar. Yes, we have enough. My grand-daughter came up with those." A pause before he adds, "We have a small green house behind the shop. Our apartment is above it. It's just for personal use, mind," he warns as if she might think of trying to bring more, or tell others about it. "There's some room for these though." And while they may need magic to grow, they might surprisingly thrive there for the fact that the 'cat' that often wandered through to nap in the sunbeams of the warm greenhouse was in actuality a fire spirit that helped out his mahou granddaughter. Unknown to him.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara nodded. "I guess that makes sense. You'd need different nutrients. Not... sure what kind of food these ones eat. Soil. Never really had a green hoo-- hand." Thumb. A green thumb. "Heh. Guess I'm not a good orchid, then. Vegetarian myself. Guess it's only fair, we eat them, they eat us." Pause. "Well, not orchids, but... nevermind. The joke falls apart if you overthink it."

She wiped some of the dirt off her hands, blowing on them a little. Ugh, she was soooo going to use some magic on them soon. "The miracle pops were a pretty good idea, I think I've met her a few times. Smart kid. I'll try and uhhhh... swing by in a few days. Thanks. Good luck with those, I guess.... they're just a lot more trouble than I expected. Heh..."

Chiyo Sakai has posed:
Mr. Sakai just grunts again but he does nod as well. "It may not work," he warns stiffly. "But while something is alive it's worth fighting for. You only fail if you stop trying. The rest is just stepping stones to learning." Here he pauses to stare Hinoiri in the eye with a firm, stubborn sort of look. The old man doesn't smile. He doesn't need to. He does add, "So don't think you failed. They're still alive. You did good for not knowing what to do."

He turns to go then taking up the bag with the flowers in it to start back down the path he'd originally come. The hike would be cut short, but he had a new project to work on. Without looking back or even asking Hinoiri's name he adds, "If they die now, well, they're plants. Collect the seeds. Try again. In Spring."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave a small nod. "Yeah. The only failure is one you learn nothing from. I used to tell myself that all the time."

... She told herself that, not somebody else did. That wasn't... the best sign. Yeah. Collect the seeds. Try again. As if that would ever work... it...

She sighed and wondered if she should even go. Those flowers weren't... it was a part of her home. And frankly... Some days it helped to remind herself what she was missing. Why she was doing all this. Why she was the bad guy. This wasn't her home. This would never be her home.

... Her home was Kirakirafantastica. Once he was gone, fire erupted around her and her hands were washed clean, before she disappeared in a small burst of dark flames.

She hoped he could bring that piece of her home to life.