( open ) march catch all

[cranekin]

WHO: Tsurumaru and you
WHAT: Museum lore, civilian shenanigans, and collecting sword friends
WHERE: Misc.
WHEN: March
WARNINGS: N/A for now

i'm also open to reusing any tdm prompts if you want to carry any prompts over to this log.
tdm top level and cr meme comment for reference.
if you would like an original starter or have your own idea, hit me up yosakoi | discord: diejoubus

Comments

( OTA ) do you sell them?

[cranekin]

(in a quieter part of neotokyo there are stylish boutiques and aesthetic cafes for people to visit on their leisure. each shop is small and cozy and it's a popular place for people who want to get away from the regular flashy lights and sounds of the city… if they don't mind paying a little more for the peace.

there's a cafe popular with photographers for having a storybook vibe and a kimono shop that sells high quality robes in traditional and modern styles. situated between them is a flower shop. the shop sells "designer" flowers that have been modified to come in various natural and unnatural flowers. some of the flowers have had their scents enhanced and others have them muted depending on the purpose. for other flowers, you can control when they bloom or manipulate how they grow to always be the perfect size or shape for your living space. they live longer, they look better, and they can be arranged into elaborate displays or delicate corsages for custom order.

and in the back, in a certain display, there is a smaller selection of flowers. they're just as beautiful as the rest of the stock, but if one looks closely, they'll catch faults: blemished petals, withering leaves, and flowers blooming at different stages. these are real flowers. natural ones that are coveted by traditionalists. most of them are white for the upcoming white day holiday and the prices are… high.)

Are you interested?

(judging by the apron he's wearing, it's obvious tsurumaru is working here today. whether you knew it before or not... his civilian identity is one "rindou adachi" and he's a florist. he's at one of the counters arranging a bouquet for an order.)

I can give you a special price~

[leveling]

[ While wandering the streets of Neo Tokyo, Jinwoo feels like he's been thrown into a sci-fi movie except there are no props, decorations, or actors. However, everything is real and people live in this city, and have jobs and families. He feels a bit silly thinking of movies under his current circumstances right now, but at the same time, he just can't help it.

It's a relief that after exploring some of the busiest parts of the city, Jinwoo finally ends up in a quieter area. When he passes the boutiques or the cafes, they seem somewhat familiar, even if he can spot the differences easily—the holograms and the robots remind him that this isn't the Earth he knows.

While that isn't a part of his plan, he stops by the flower shop after seeing the designer white lilies and some other enhanced plants. Jinwoo takes a while to look around before noticing the display in the back with the flowers that look less appealing compared to the artificial ones he's seen just a moment before. ]

Me? I'm just looking. [ Currently, he sure is staring at the bouquet Tsuru is working on. ] Those are real flowers, right?

[ There's something strange about this florist and his aura, but he can't really pinpoint what it is. ]

How much for a bouquet just like this one?

[ White flowers remind him of someone he's met at the main base, so maybe it would be a nice gift. ]

[cranekin]

Oh, you can tell!

(This pleases him and he smiles. Lifting his hands from his work, he shows off what he's done so far. It's a nice bouquet, each flower carefully arranged to make the whole thing come together. When hears that Jinwoo is interested he replies naturally,)

100,000 kryptos.

(Almost 700 dollars. This is it. This is the special deal.)

[leveling]

[ After hearing the price his gaze shifts from Tsuru to the bouquet and back to the Tsuru again. Jinwoo even opens his mouth to say something but no words come out for a while. ]

...

[ After considering his options for a while, Jinwoo finally asks: ]

What about one flower?

[cranekin]

(Innocently,)

10,000.

(And he. Just. Smiles! He's pratically sparkling... and then he looks down at the counter, acts like he's just noticed something and looks surprise,)

Oops. It looks like I added some zeroes.

(The entire thing is expensive but not that expensive. )

[leveling]

Added some zeroes, huh...

[ Is this why there aren't many people around? The florist casually adding zeroes to the prices might be terrible for a business. ]

So the final price for one flower is 1,000 kryptos?

[crisantemo]

[ Lapis has been doing her best to explore around Neo-Tokyo as much as possible, both for information purposes and for her own interests. It's all so... bright and loud, crowds brushing by her as people go on with their lives, despite all the looming threats. It's strange, but she doesn't mind it - it's nice to see a place so lively, when she's spent so much time to herself before.

But she's still glad when she stumbles across somewhere more quiet, and the moment she spots the florist, she can't help but gravitate over. Both because of her own love of flowers, and because there's... something else. A presence she's never felt before.

...?

Lapis recognises the florist, as she steps in, but what she senses from him is something completely different - why didn't she sense this before, were her powers not fully... uploaded or whatever? For a moment, her focus is solely on Tsurumaru; head tilted, as she regards him with an almost bird-like curiosity. What is he...

Then her gaze flicks over to the flowers, the real ones with all their blemishes and imperfections, and she feels a pang as she thinks about the flowers she was growing back home. She supposes they'll still be fine, if 'she' is still technically there, but still.

Though the prices sure are... painful to look at. ]

Ah... I'm not sure if I could afford them even with the deal.

[ Which is disappointing. She would've liked actual flowers in her room, even if the designer ones are still pretty. ]

[cranekin]

(The bell at the door's entrance jingles and he knows a customer has entered but he doesn't greet them. If they want to buy something, they can find him and he's more than happy to surprise them if they ever thought they were alone.

He works on his bouquet until his guest comes into view over the many displays. Recognizing her, he only smiles,)

You might be surprised. If you never ask, you'll never know.

[crisantemo]

[ Lapis considers that for a moment, before stepping closer - mostly to take a better look at the bouquet he's working on. It is very pretty, but she also has a massive bias for white flowers. ]

Mm, alright. Then how much is it?

[ Though that's only one of the questions on her mind, but she'll start with that first. ]

[cranekin]

(Simply,)

50,000 kryptos.

(Nearly a 400 dollars. He's waiting to see her reaction to the price tag.)

[crisantemo]

Oh.

[ Oh.

Expensive... Her arms fold over her chest, lips slanting as the lone gear in her head turns. ]

Is... Is there anything cheaper for real flowers?

[icyspicy]

[ Winter is more or less trying to get the lay of the land. He is stuck here whether he likes it or not, and it pays to be prepared. His implant has a map, but navigating it is another matter. He's much more of a parchment and ink kind of guy, but since he can't get that with his very meager starting stipend, then in person will have to be the next best thing.

While visiting a flower shop might not be the most tactically relevant choice, he is curious about the flora in this world, having stopped by the base's greenhouse a bit ago. As he's perusing around, he does note that the real flowers are very expensive indeed. He glances up at the fellow in the apron, noting dimly that he's seen him around the base. Perhaps even in his team's wing? ]

Really? For little old me? You're just saying that because I'm pretty.

[cranekin]

(He's hard to miss at the base. White hair, pale skin, and always wearing white, and probably flitting around from one place to the other like if he stays still he might combust. But right now, he just seems to be relaxing and working at his arrangement.

In turn, he recognizes Winter. He's one of the newer arrivals, right? They hadn't spoken but now, he's glad they are. What confidence! What charisma! How can he not be endeared? )

Consider it a welcome gift.

(And he smiles,)

For a pretty face.

(Winter started it.)

[icyspicy]

[ Yes, the more Winter looks at him, the more he remembers seeing him flit around the base. His fellow Outsiders are really all over, aren’t they? Even the nicer parts of the city.

Winter smiles back, amused and a little pleased to find someone who plays along so easily. ]

Thank you. Still, I’ll have to decline. Even discounted, I doubt I could afford it. Not when I’ve just arrived.

[ aka he has NO MONEY. ]

[cranekin]

(Please, he loves having fun. How could he turn down a fellow playful spirit?)

...

(He sets down the bouquet, pausing his work for now and watches Winter, pale gold eyes considering his new comrade for a moment and then-- )

What would you do if you had them?

[icyspicy]

The flowers? A good question. They seem to be rather sparse around here, don’t they?

[ He lifts a hand, as if he means to let his fingertips coast along one of the petals, but ultimately decides he better not touch the very expensive merchandise and lowers it again.

Ice colored eyes flick back over to Tsurumaru. ]

What do most people do with the real ones?

[queenofkur]

[ There is no denying those designer flowers are beautiful. They remind her of the flowers Merlin could create at will... The ones he had filled her Underworld with for a short but oh-so wonderful time. And normally, she would have been content purchasing them, had she not stumbled upon those flowers in the back. Real flowers. They're so beautiful. Imperfect. Ephemeral. Just like humans... And it's not like the designer flowers aren't beautiful! She would fill her Underworld with them if she could, without hesitation. But those real flowers... There is beauty in imperfection, isn't there? In how little time they have to live, yet how brightly they shine during that time.

Then why are they in the back, why are they so hidden from view?

Oh, she knows all too well. What a silly question! Because they're not perfect, of course. Because their withering reminds people of their own mortality. How disgusting it must be, to the humans of this world. Why would you put something so hideous and repulsing in the front window? It's best to put them in the back, where they can be forgotten and ignored. It's best to put a ridiculous price over them - so that even should someone stumble upon them - they'll turn away and focus on the perfect flowers. Nobody cares for hideous, imperfect things.

As she is about to reach for them, she hears a voice-- ]

You...?

[ Is he stalking her? Hmpf! Unlikely... At least this time she's properly dressed so she won't have to back away if she is to reveal who she is. ]

How much?

[cranekin]

(Of course he isn't stalking her. He works here when he feels like it and today is just one of those days. )

You've just arrived, right?

(She's a newbie. Fresh meat. And he remembers what that's like. They didn't have much money to spend.)

485 kryptos.

(Signigicantly lower than what they're being marked as.)

[queenofkur]

[ 485 kryptos...? She doesn't know much about this economy, but this sounds very low! She'd been expecting for there to be a couple more 0s and she would have totally paid that much if needed for such beautiful flowers! ]

T-That little?!

[ She is tempted to buy them all for that price!! But that would be incredibly selfish, and a perfect goddess ought not to give in to such impulses. Other people deserve to enjoy those flowers as well. ]

Are you sure this is alright...? [What if he's paying from his own pocket for this discount? She cannot accept such kindness!] I am ready to pay more if needed.

[cranekin]

(He laughs. What an open and honest reaction.)

That much!

(It's not a little. It's a lot!)

Consider it a welcoming gift. And if more people come after you, you must return the favor.

[queenofkur]

[ Return the favor...? So offering her services at a discount for newcomers, huh? That sounds reasonable, and honestly if she was a florist too she would absolutely do that! Not just for newcomers, but for absolutely everyone! Flowers are something truly beautiful and they should be enjoyed by the entire world. ]

W-Well, I would but... [A pause. That is one of those dreaded social interaction she doesn't know how to handle.] I work at a graveyard.

[ She stares at him. Very very awkwardly.

It's not that she won't offer her services to newcomers at a discount if she has to. It's just that it would be truly unfortunate. ]

[wheft]

[ it's a shop that quickly caught ishmael's eye as she makes her way down on her hoverboard. the flowers on display makes it stand out from the neon landscape, and her curiosity got the better of her. nothing else to it. she's got plenty of time to get back to the base after poledancing practice anyway.

as expected, the flowers here are artificial. not surprising since the City doesn't have real flowers anymore, or at least, none that she knows of. then she spots the natural flowers further into the shop and she goes in, observing them up close and jumping slightly upon hearing tsurumaru's voice. ]

Huh? Er --

[ blinkblink ]

I'm just looking. I can't afford these anyway.

[cranekin]

They are pretty expensive.

(He says it plainly because, well, he really is just stating the obvious,)

I'm surprised since it costs nothing to pick them if you find them.

(Not that he's seen any in the city but he wonders what it's like outside the main city. Surely, the fields and mountains beyond the new capital would have something for them to find.)

I've never seen flowers for such a high price before.

[wheft]

I'm not surprised. Seems like natural flowers are becoming rare in this world too. And cultivating them would be pretty hard considering the current landscape.

[ she would know. the only time she sees actual flowers is when yi sang uses the spicebush E.G.O, the yellow flowers obscuring half his face as he whacks the enemies with its branches. they were beautiful. ]

I guess they're for this holiday called White Day? Why the color white?

[cranekin]

For a world so bright, it's lost so much color.

(He puts his hands down, finishing his work with the current bouquet and leaves the counter to go to the cool displays to grab a few more. Most of the flowers are white but there are a few splashes of color mixed in there...)

White is pure. (He reaches to take one gently as if he were handling very delicate merchandise,) The way love should be.

(Not that it is. He's been alive long enough to know love is more complicated than that.)

But love isn't that simple.

(Before he closes the case, he looks oer to Ishmael,)

Which color do you think will go best? We need something to stand out.

(Too much white is boring.)