[OPEN] there's a pain i’ll carry with me.

[23wishes]

WHO: Aerith and ANYONE.
WHERE: Nonah/N6
WHEN: All through April
WHAT: A catch-all for the new girl
WARNINGS: Don't step on the flowers None yet


a:

[Having spare money is a new thing for Aerith. For most of her life, her and her mother just got by, with her mother's work as a maid and her selling flowers. But now, she has a real job, with a real weekly salary; there were no opportunities for those in the slums under the plate. It's strange, of course, being comfortable financially, but she seems to be dealing.

Right now, she's wandering all over the retail district in downtown Nonah. She can afford to have a little fun. She already has one or two big bags in her hand, and she's showing no signs of stopping. She's only paused to look in the window of a little boutique, and put her bags down for a moment...

Okay, maybe she's stopping. Having been ported here with just the clothes on her back and placed in a bare bones bedroom, Aerith had a lot of things to get. The heavy bags are getting tiring to hold. Come give her a hand?]

b:

[It's a nice, sunny day in Nonah and Aerith's out front Nonah 06, planning her flower beds. Depending on how early or late in the month this is, she could be doing anything from sectioning out the area with a lot of spray paint, to digging up the squares in the grass, hauling around wood and rocks, or just tending the plants.

Aerith's really small, actually, and there's loads of work to be done. Maybe she could use some help. Maybe you don't like seeing a pretty girl get all sweaty doing work. Or maybe you just want to bring her some iced tea. Who knows.]

c: WILDCARD

do whatever you want! honestly, she's up for it all.
HMU at MahouShoujo if you want.

Comments

B!!

[dormition]

[ Minato goes to Nonah on a regular basis-- to Aerith's next door neighbors in #5, in fact-- and he notices her working in the garden diligently as he walks past today. He doesn't say anything at first, just continues on his errand dropping groceries off, and once that's all settled he does, in fact, come back with iced tea.

Well. Juice. He'd just pilfered whatever they had at N5 (he probably brought it himself last week; it's allowed) and dumped it into a thermos to bring out to her.

He stands on the sidewalk at the edge of her yard and holds it out, asking in his customary calm monotone, ] Want to take a break?

[23wishes]

[It's true she's been working at it for hours. It's easy for Aerith to lose track of time when she's working in the garden, and to be honest, she didn't even notice Minato the first time around. The second time would have been the same if he hadn't spoken up.]

Huh? Oh! I'd love to!

[She hops up out of the grass and... and... wipes dirt on her...

her...

--She makes a note to buy clothes she doesn't mind getting dirty and claps the dirt off her hands before going over to the visitor. She takes the thermos from him and takes a drink immediately.]

Thank you! Do you live around here?

[dormition]

No, but I'm the guardian for a good friend of mine, so I try to make sure he has groceries... He lives right there.

[ Minato jabs a thumb over at #5. And, really, it's progress that he refers to himself and to Ken that way, rather than just as a teammate. ]

I'm Minato.

[23wishes]

Ah, another one. It seems like a lot of people live over there. Every other new person I talk to lives there, or knows someone that does.

[She giggles, then holds out a still dirty hand to Minato--

And quickly draws it back, blushing.]

I'm Aerith. That's sweet of you, to take care of someone so well.

[dormition]

Ah... yeah, it's pretty crazy over there, isn't it? [ he says, sounding like that's a pleasant fact of life rather than disparaging.

He would've shaken her hand dirt or no. Minato compromises with a tiny little shallow bow, though his hands being stuck in his pockets sort of ruins the formality of it. ]

Mm, I'm team leader at home. I wouldn't really know what to do if I didn't have someone to look after... [ That's a little too blandly stated to come off as properly self-deprecating. ]

wild caaaaard

[protects_the_small]

[The day after this conversation Kel hangs around the porter, hands hooked in her belt and whistling a tune she'd heard at work. Such tunes were odd and unfamiliar but they helped keep her mind off her boy Tobe back home, from whom she'd learned most of the songs she knew.

Seeing a familiar figure appear out of the porter, she smiles and waves]

Aerith! Here!

[23wishes]

[Aerith's a little late, because, well, that's just the kind of person she is. It's never malicious or thoughtless or anything like that. She just gets distracted easily. For instance, today, though she knew she was already running behind, she decided to stop in a convenience store to pick up something for Kel and herself.

Finally, she makes it to DeChima, apologizing right off the bat for the half hour-ish wait. But, see, it was worth it because she got them lunch! Two hot, cheesy sandwiches, "fresh" from the 24/7 near her house.]

It's so great to see you again!

[protects_the_small]

[Kel's days are not as full as she's used to anymore, so hanging around with no demands on her time is novel yet. And anyway, free food. Somehow that's become more and more welcome now that meals are not provided as part of her pay.]

And you! Been settling in well?

[23wishes]

Great, actually! I have a nice roommate, and tons of neighbors. I've made a garden, too.

[Sure, this place isn't home, but she's more than happy to make it comfortable for now. Rick said he'd been here 8 months. Might as well settle in.

But she can't keep up small talk for long, her excitement bubbling under her skin, and finally she gives in and asks--]

Did you bring the horse?

A

[radioclub_jp]

[It didn't take Paprika long to find out about the Porters to the other cities, nor long after that for her to start exploring said other cities. And when she gets to the shopping district, well! Time for some window shopping. Not real shopping just yet, since she sort of has no ID and very little money, but it's still fun. So yeah, she's just making her way downtown, a smile on her face and a spring in her step. (Almost literally - the way she skips, it's like gravity has relaxed its grip on her a little.)

Coincidence brings her to the same boutique window as Aerith, admiring a red dress on one of the mannequins.]

Ooh, I wonder how much that is.

[23wishes]

[Of course they're both admiring the same red dress. Red's a good color on her, after all. But Aerith's not the jealous type, and hey, they probably have more than one of that dress in the back somewhere, anyway.]

Ah...

[She takes out her wallet and looks inside, considering it.]

Probably too much for right now~ I think I might've gone overboard.

[You know, motioning down to her big bags.]

[radioclub_jp]

[Paprika follows the gesture, and smiles as if she only just noticed the bags.]

A little bit, maybe. But it gives you something to look forward to for next time, right?

[23wishes]

[Aerith smiles back at her and nods.]

You're right. Hopefully it'll wait for me. I'm supposed to be buying less fancy clothes, anyway. Do you know if there's a secondhand store around here?

b.

[glowsferatu]

[ It's the weekend, and that means Kanaya's free to relax more, and between her two jobs, that's well overdue. Of course, to relax for her usually just means finding some other way to work, because maybe she has a problem.

She lets Ashiah loose to run through the yard, where she nibbles on the grass and continues working on the same hole she's been trying to dig all week. It's good for Kanaya to see her playing in the yard, having a yard to play with, if nothing else, made the move to MAurtia Falls all worth it.

Kanaya herself is nearly an entire foot taller than Aerith, if she needs someone for grunt work, she's got just the roommate for it. ]

So, what sort of layout have you decided on, so far?

[23wishes]

[Aerith, luckily, isn't a skittish person. There were plenty of bugs in the slums, and also plenty of monsters, and more than a few combinations of the two thanks, probably, to the Mako pollution and contamination. All of this means she doesn't even flinch when a little bug baby runs around near her. Truthfully, it's more surprising that she's friendly, but she's happy for the company anyway.

Ashiah being there had to mean Kanaya was right behind so it's no surprise to hear her speak up, even if Aerith seems busy and distracted.]

I'm gonna make two rectangular beds along the fence. One for flowers, one for vegetables and spices. Riku suggested I should try growing something more 'useful.'

[Not his exact words, but that was what he'd meant. Still, she knows he's right. Those will sell well too. Variety will be fun, anyway.]

... Will that get in Ashiah's way?

[glowsferatu]

Oh, don't worry about her, much as she may want to think otherwise, it isn't all hers. If anything, I'll want to make sure she doesn't burrow in here. [ As she says it, the grub is rolling around in her half-dug hole, munching on some dirt. She's the classiest 3mo-old around.

Kanaya scoffs lightly as she kneels down next to her, getting a sense of what it will look like. ]

And flowers are useful! They aesthetically and aromatically enrich any environment they're introduced to, and that's plenty of use. Riku's just being a boy about it.

[ Though there's nothing more seriously chiding in her tone than a finger wag. She knows Riku, he's good people. But no one talks shit about flowers. ]

[23wishes]

[Aerith laughs pretty loudly.]

Being a "boy" about it! That's perfect.

[She sighs happily and goes back to weeding.]

Whether he's right or wrong, it will still be fun. Back home, we really didn't have vegetables anymore. And even if we did, I wouldn't want to eat anything grown in that soul. But everything is so clean here. I can try something new.

a, after sunset;

[hisheartsdesire]

[One of Aerith's bags catches onto something and tears, its contents suddenly spilling out behind her.]

Whoa, miz! Steady there... [A voice with a Northern English accent calls out behind her.] Your things are falling about—do you need a hand?

[23wishes]

[Aerith's a city girl at heart, so being out late at night is normal for her. This city's the same as hers deep down; people will mostly leave you alone if you leave them alone. Those that don't... well, she can deal with them.

It is annoying, though, to rip open one of her bags on a fence. Her new clothes spill out onto the dirty ground.]

Oh-- Would you mind?

[While she busies herself making room in her second bag.]

Thank you. I should have been paying closer attention.

[hisheartsdesire]

You're welcome, and I don't mind at all—here. [He lightens her load enough for her to transfer clothes from the torn bag.] Could've happened to anyone.

[Not that he's staring or anything, but Toby happens to see her imPort tattoo as she arranges her things.]

Ah, I. Just happened to notice; you're also an imPort, right? Are you new around here?

[23wishes]

[She looks down at the glowing tattoo on her wrist, scowling at it. She's going to have to do something about that, but for now she just bunches her bracelets over it.]

Pretty new. I've been here for a couple of weeks. You too?

late as fuq, continuing from network post

[rassera]

[Because Kaneda just doesn't see the point in phoning up your neighbors when they're right next door (no seriously, ask Bucky Barnes or Peggy Carter, they're victims of this too), he decides to cut the conversation on the comm short and work his way over to the neighboring house. It takes a few minutes longer than it should--he certainly has a goal in mind to do something before he shows up--but nonetheless...

There's a knock on her door.


Do you dare open that, Aerith?]

[23wishes]

[SHE DARES.

Not that she ever expected to end up in this position, but it's pretty much impossible to back out now. She hangs up, tucks her phone in her pocket, and while running downstairs, glances over the house to make sure it's clean enough for company. A giant baby bug lives here, after all.

Finally, she takes a deep breath and swings open the door for the kid-- for the very tall kid waiting.]

Um. Hi!

[rassera]

[There's no 'hi' back, but a two fingered salute with one hand while...a flower nicely wrapped up in a towel, roots intact and dirt and all inside in the other.

Yes. He did just prove his 'plants are free' thing. Please help this child.]

So you're our new neighbor? Man...I can't remember the last time we got someone near us...

[It was Phoenix. And in your own house, Kaneda.]

Nonah's the friendliest city, so you'll fit in.

[23wishes]

[IS THIS FRIENDLY?? Is this what he considers friendly. Is this what friendly is here.

Help.]

Y-yeah, it's nice so far. It's an improvement over my own city, so I can't complain too much.

[She's been staring more at the uprooted flower than Kaneda. It's not happy about any of this. Aerith smiles, forced and a bit nervously.]

Did you bring me a housewarming gift~?