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Mercy side-eyed Hafwen and sighed. She really didn't care if she necessarily got a bargain or not - it's not like she was strapped for cash. She had quite a bit stashed away in her purse with her - enough to easily get what she wanted and not worry too much. Smiling at Krishna she bowed her head. "I really don't mind either way, I just need a dozen red, a dozen pink and only two yellow roses."

She bowed her head and smiled at the older man. "Then I'm probably going to need to speak to this Mr. Richard about chocolate - once the flowers are secured, of course."

She jumped a little and almost squeaked when the dog started making all the noise, clinging to Hafwen she peeked around her older friend to watch the dog and make sure it wasn't going to come chasing after them.

Turning her head toward the newest arrival, she bowed her head in her direction. Purple was a nice color - not as nice as pink - but nice enough. She shot the new girl a polite wave, straightening out her dress from her near fright from the dog.

And so it seemed that the shopkeep of the flower store was shrewd enough to be open to alternative arrangements should the need arise. It was a gesture that Hafwen appreciated greatly regardless of what Mercy thought of it. Money was not easy to come by, hence she had made it a personal habit of hers to ask about the options available prior to making her decision in situations such as this. See if she could stretch her dollar and get what she wanted at the same time.

"Indeed it is. An annual day dedicated to the celebration of love and friendship among all. If you could do that, I'm sure that the intended recipients of Mercy's gifts will be in for a real treat since they can enjoy both your flowers and Mr Richard's chocolates at the same time." Dipping her head slightly to express her appreciation towards the older man for his thoughtful gesture, she smiled at him then at Mercy who was suddenly clinging to her, presumably after being startled by the dog leashed to the booth set up for the festivities.

"It's alright Mercy. The dog is just as excited about Valentines' Day today as we all are." She gently patted the little girl's back, giving her a couple of seconds to reassure herself that everything was fine before offering a polite smile at the other female who was asking about purple flowers. "Flowers first then chocolates from the Sugar Shanty. Do you need the red and pink roses in a mixed bouquet or something? He could probably put them together like that if you want you know." She then patiently waited for Mercy to take the candy wrapper that Krishna had hastily scribbled on so that they could start heading towards the flower shop as instructed next. "Alright. Let's go look for Gwen then."

Sirsce drew to a stop in front of a heavily decorated booth set up in the parking lot of Sugar Shanty's. It seemed an ideal place for her next venture, as her legs ached after the marathon dancing she'd done at the arcade. She could use some sugar in her to keep her Valentine's Day escapades going until her curfew. However, the smells that assailed her weren't simply confections - there were roses adorning the booth as well.

It sounded as though the men running the booth were selling something, undoubtedly a Valentine's Day special. However, before she bought the candies on sale, she wanted to peruse the variety of sweets inside the shop. After weaving her way through the loose-knit crowd, she reached the lace-laden door of the building. It rang lightly as she pushed her way inside.

The shop itself didn't have as much traffic as the booth, though Sirsce couldn't speculate why. Maybe it had something to do with the guy who was trying to sell roses to everything that breathes, or the giant dog that slobbered over anyone who came close? Okay, maybe she could speculate, and the dog was rather cute... Maybe she'd take a stop by the booth after all. Who knows, perhaps she'd find something nice for her mother in there.

The selections offered inside the shop didn't appeal to her greatly; it looked as though their stock of peanut brittle was sold out, and she didn't like their selection of lollipops. They had some delicious-looking candy, but an entire candy bar was out of the question. However, there were some raspberry-filled chocolates in the sampler trays that looked absolutely delectable. Carefully she reached through the small group encompassing the tray and seized one of the bite-sized candies. However, as she bit into it, she found she didn't appreciate the combination of raspberry and chocolate. Rather than spitting it out, she choked it down and discarded the empty wrapper into a half-full waste basket. Maybe that wasn't such a good idea.

Sirsce exited the building with a disappointed huff. Perhaps she would visit the booth after all; surely they offered something a little less rich than what was inside? Upon excusing and apologizing her way through the crowd, she managed to reach the booth's makeshift counter. "Ooh!" She exclaimed, as she felt a wet nose brush against her leg. It turns out the dog was as interested in her arrival as a certain businessman who assailed her soon afterward.

"Oh, um..." Sirsce stumbled. "Is this your dog? He's really cute. Oh, and... That sign says 'see Richard for bacon'. Who's Richard? And can I really feed the dog?" She reached down to pet the wolfhound as she spoke. He seemed incredibly friendly. "And does he like roses?" She considered leaving one with the dog once she took care of her purchases.

Gwen hadn't gotten nearly as much done in the shop as she wanted to before Krishna seemed to throw her to the wolves, or rather, throw the wolves at her. The chime of the bell was her only warning before the three girls appeared in the store. By this time, Gwen had managed to find the freesia, though now she wasn't sure if she'd need it anymore. She had spent so much time finding this one plant that she didn't hear what the other two were in there for, but that didn't mean she couldn't do her absolute best.

She looked to the girl with the green hair, holding up the freesia and hoping that's what she wanted. Her beaming golden eyes shot to all of the customers, hoping that what she lacked in knowledge, she could make up for in sheer enthusiasm, "Hey, welcome to Padma's Bouquet! I'm guessing Mr. Dhawan sent you in here for your flowers? If you tell me which ones you need, I'll get them for you!"

She was a little flustered and had come in late, so she wasn't sure which order to address them in. Hopefully they would have kept track of that themselves, though she couldn't imagine things getting too bad if there was a little bit of a dispute. It were three girls in a flower shop... Gwen pitied them if they tried to start a ruckus in his store!





Baldwin could not be happier with the attention he was getting at the hands of Harper. He couldn't understand the words she was saying, but the mirth in her voice and the loving tone it took was enough for Baldwin's tail to wag and wag and wag. He sniffed her again, hoping for some sign of a treat on her or incoming and when he smelled nothing but chocolates, roses, and her deodorant, he moved his nose to the next girl that had ventured close enough. Maybe she would have a treat for him?

He did not see them read the sign, but Richard had, as he turned to both of the ladies when they approached him. His mind was simply on the sale and after his ordeal with Alexandre he felt as if he had a lot of ground to catch up on. So, he put forth his best face, getting halfway through his little sales pitch before realizing what the two were there for, as well as recognizing the little hussy with seaspray green hair. He almost, almost lost his smile, but he felt he recovered well. "I hope you two ladies are finding everything here delectable and pleasant. Is there anything I can assist you wi...with, besides treating my best friend?"

He never once regretted bringing Baldwin, and in truth, his dog was being very well behaved, all things considered. Not to mention it seemed that the dog had done well in distracting Harper from recognizing him as the weasel that flirted with her recently legal friend less than a month ago. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a plastic bag, snapping a piece in two before opening the bag and handing them a piece each. Baldwin's ears perked and the dog began to whimper with excitement, smelling the bacon but knowing to refrain. "Now, watch your fingers, young ladies. There is nothing Baldwin likes more than this, except perhaps straight from the skillet."

Baldwin's tail wagged so hard that it almost threatened to take down the booth, but at the sight of Richard placing a finger to his lip made the dog drop to its belly. He wanted that bacon so bad, but he couldn't disappoint his master. He looked back and forth between the girls, and if the dog could talk, he would be BEGGING right now.

Strickenized

Aqua Drageen

Mercy took the wrapper from the brunette gentleman with a smile and a curtsey. "Thank you, kind sir," she spun around in place with the wrapper for a minute before clutching it close to her chest with one hand and taking Hafwen's hand in her other and skipping towards the flower shop she looked over her shoulder and smiled.

"We'll be back soon for our chocolates!" She called to the two men, before following the other girl into the shop.

She bit her lower lip a little when she saw what state the poor girl running the shop was in and, hoping she wasn't cutting in line, scooted up to the counter and handed her the note.

"M-Mr. Dhawan gave me this to give to you, Miss," She scuffed her foot on the floor again, scooting back away from the counter and looking down at the floor. "I-I hope it's alright,"

The elven-year-old wasn't normally this shy - but she felt kind of bad that she was basically getting a deal that she normally wouldn't.

"Of course, who wouldn't want to shower Baldwin with love and affection? If my hands weren't full, I'd be giving him a good belly rub right now!" Richard kept his tone pleasant and upbeat, despite the smallest sliver of jealousy at the sight of his dog getting so much attention, as well as some nervousness in if Harper would recognize him. He kept his full attention on Sirsce for now, even as she accepted the bacon and was contemplating on how best to feed Baldwin. At her hesitation, Richard could see the longing in Baldwin's eyes and his whimpers got louder, and now he was growing agitated. 'Would you just... give him the piece before he has a heart attack, the poor thing?!'

It took much of his considerable effort to keep this scream mental, but thankfully, it seemed that the young girl wasn't a dog torturer after all, and that was enough to ease the growing anxiety within the candyman for now. Given the way his day was going, who knew how long this tranquility would last?

Baldwin didn't care. It was worth the wait for that one piece, and as much as he loved bacon, he made sure to use only his tongue to lap of the piece and only crunching down when the piece was in his mouth. For all of the dog's patience and calm, the way he devoured that piece of bacon made it seem as if he hadn't been fed in weeks (which, if one knew Richard, that was a blatant lie). His whimpers ceased, replaced with excited yips, as he looked to Harper. Baldwin was a smart dog- he knew his master gave her a piece, and now he waited as patiently as possible for the next piece, though the way his tail wagged, his whole body shook. He REALLY loved bacon!



Gwen felt like she had opened her mouth and inserted her foot right in there, but since when did that stop her from doing her best? She gladly accepted Mercy's ticket first and beamed, as it was the easier of the orders. She placed the freesia down on the counter and spun around to look at Fleur, since Hafwen seemed to disappear down an aisle while she was setting the plant down. "So, I have an order for a dozen pink and yellow for you, and what would you like, ma'am?"

It was weird to be calling people around her age 'ma'am' and she was certain that it might have offended them, but dammit, she promised Krishna she'd make a conscious effort to be more polite, if she couldn't be knowledgeable!

Mercy frowned and looked back up at Gwen. No, that wasn't right. Ticking off what the ticket should say on her fingers, going one by one, she moved back to the counter next to Fleur, trying to not get in the way and shook her head.

"Miss, that should be a dozen red, a dozen pink and just two yellow roses," She spoke up, frowning a bit. "I don't mean to be a bother, but, I do want my order right - it's very important..."

She shot a glance Hafwen's way and smiled. A dozen of those roses were for her "sister" after all, even if she didn't know it yet.

Changing her frown into a smile she giggled a little. "It's okay though, you seem to be very, very busy - it's a simple mistake." Opening her purse, she pulled out a small money clip and looked over the cash she had (it was not a small amount by any stretch of the imagination.)

Turning to look at Fleur she chewed her bottom lip for a minute and spoke up again. "And I would like to pay for her order as well..." She tilted her head in the direction of Fleur.

Valentines was about spreading the love right?