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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 11:32 am
Who: Ian and Nell Where: Thistle Do Nicely When" Early afternoon Nell's days off had been consumed with cleaning and organizing and planning, trying to make her apartment ready for an unknown roommate who would show up at an unknown time. While she had cleaned out the loft space and found a space for everything that had been stored up there, she was at a loss as to what to put up there now. A bed, of course, but what kind? How would they like it to be decorated? What else would they need? A trip to several furniture stores didn't really clear up her confusion at all, but she at least managed to order a rather neutral bedroom set, which was a start. But now she had to figure out how to decorate it. A completely blank space wouldn't be very welcoming in her eyes, so she decided to spend the rest of her day wandering around town to see if anything caught her eye. After a couple hours of aimless wandering and several unsuccessful stops, she found herself walking past a flower shop with a name that brought a smile to her face. That alone was worth a peek inside, in her mind. The smell of flowers hit her like a wave when she opened the door, but it was a welcome change from the crisp autumn air.
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 12:46 pm
Bethany had left earlier that day for her afternoon classes and Ian was manning the store alone, but it was thankfully pretty slow. Most people were already gone for the holiday, or too busy preparing food plans to worry about ordering flowers. So when a new customer entered Ian was able to give her his full attention.
"Welcome to Thistle Do Nicely, how can I help you?" He couldn't help the very slight widening of his smile as he said the name of the store. He'd always loved puns, no matter how stupid, and he was glad he'd followed his gut when naming the place. After all, if you couldn't draw people's attention how were you supposed to stand out? He wiped his hands on his apron as he approached the woman, smiling warmly. He usually had no problem talking with customers, because he knew the process and had a 'script' of sorts.
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 1:24 pm
So engrossed was she in the riot of colors and scents in front of her that she didn't even notice Ian walking up to her from further in the shop. She jumped slightly when he spoke, smiling sheepishly as she turned to face him.
"Oh! Hi! Yes, um. Actually, I'm not sure what I'm looking for," It seemed like such a shame to buy such lovely flowers only to have them wilt before they could be fully appreciated, but it just seemed right to have more natural decorations for someone who was made up of things from nature, as well. But how to go about asking for something for a mystery person without making it sound too weird?
"I guess I'm looking for something I can decorate a bedroom with, but I don't know when exactly they're going to arrive, so I guess I'd need something that would last a while?" She did, however, give all of the bright flowers a bit of a longing look, as if she'd rather just take an armful of those back with her instead.
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 2:47 pm
When the woman jumped slightly from his greeting, Ian chuckled softly. "Sorry for startling you," he apologized. Her description of what she needed was fairly vague, other than needing to last a while. But it sounded workable.
"Oh, alright. Hmm... Well, do you know anything about what they like? Favorite colors, favorite flowers?" He tapped his chin in thought as he glanced further into the shop. "You'd probably have to go with mostly leaves, and some hardier plants... Are you opposed to silk flowers? Fresh ones aren't likely to last as long, unless you have a somewhat solid time frame?" He glanced at her again and smiled.
Some little part of his brain wondered if she was in the same boat he was, waiting for a Raevan. But it wasn't really his place to pry, and her explanation was vague enough that she could be talking about anyone and anything.
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 3:23 pm
She flapped her hand in response to Ian's apology as if brushing it away. "Oh, uh, I don't really...." She trailed off for a second, chewing on her lip as she mentally debated whether to spill the whole story or try and make it sound as reasonable as possible. With a sigh she started rooting through her purse, thinking that she could at least give him some idea with the photo of the soul bottle and jar of what she was working with.
"This might sound a bit weird, but this is really all I have to go off of," she said when she finally found her phone, scrolling through her pictures before pulling one up and handing it to him. It was a simple photo of a jar with a rock that had a hole in it, and a round bottle filled with brown smoke. Not really the most exciting of color palettes to work with, but hey.
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 3:32 pm
As the woman began rooting around in her purse, Ian watched curiously. What could she be getting out? Perhaps she has some sort of description, a profile of an adopted child, maybe?
But soon enough his questions were answered and he smiled brightly. "Oh! You're waiting on a Frei!" He beamed at her, before realizing how over-excited he'd become. He cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair, cheeks flushing lightly. "Ah um, sorry. It's just... I'm actually waiting on my own Raevan at the moment. I just turned the bottles in a month or two ago. Time really flies..." He fished his own phone out of his apron pocket, pulling up a picture of his own. "I had cherry blossoms, and managed to capture a nymph soul." He turned to look at her again. "Do you know what your soul was? The colors are so rich and earthy..."
After a moment he blinked, eyes widening. "Oh, I'm sorry! I completely forgot to introduce myself. I'm Ian Flynn." He offered her his hand sheepishly, smiling. "It's good to meet another newbie."
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2015 4:34 pm
"Oh! Well that makes it much easier," she said with a relieved laugh. "I think I probably sent mine back around the same time as you, actually." It was weird to look back on it and see how little time had passed, it had felt like it had been months and months that she had been in possession of the bottles rather than just a few weeks.
"Nell," she said, shaking the offered hand. "Nice to meet you, Ian. I seem to be jumping into people from the Lab all over, small world, huh?" She knew there weren't too many people that were a part of it, from looking at the contact list, but it seemed like every time she turned a corner there was another one. "And mine was a hag stone with an oak tree soul. Not quite as exciting as a nymph, though!" The essence and soul she ended up with always seemed to pale in comparison to the more fantasical things that other people were catching.
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Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2015 10:13 am
"Nice to meet you, too." He took a deep breath and let it out as a sigh. "It was an... interesting capture, to say the least." He smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes as he glanced further into the shop again. He wouldn't have done it any other way, but it hadn't been pleasant. "So, and oak tree! Well... You actually came at a good time, we have a lot of seasonal things. We might even have a few small oak branches."
He beckoned for her to follow him, and led her over to the seasonal autumn bouquets. There were some with bright orange and yellow and red flowers, but others were more earthy, with cattails and wheat stalks mixed in. "Flowers probably won't last too long, but these will be hardier and stand more of a chance long-term." He smiled at her. "What other sorts of preparations have you made?" Personally, he was pretty much floundering at this point other than knowing he should sort things out. He still needed to figure out the bedroom situation, since Caroline was still living with him, and then possibly a bed if she took hers... He felt a little flutter of anxiety in his stomach at the thought of all that he still needed to do. What if his Raevan came early?
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Posted: Wed Nov 25, 2015 6:19 pm
"Yeah," she said with a small sigh of her own. While likely not as dramatic or interesting as dealing with a nymph, it was much more excitement than she was usually comfortable with. "But if yours was anything like my experience, I hope things stay a bit calm for you for a bit!"
She perked up a bit when he seemed to have an idea, and she happily trailed after him, peeking around the shop curiously as they passed by the various bunches of flowers. "Oh, gosh, not much honestly. I've cleaned out the space where their room is, and I just bought some furniture for it, but that's about it. I kind of feel like I should leave it up for them to decorate, but it seems kind of...unwelcoming to have it completely blank, you know?" She frowned slightly as she looked over some of the bouquets, trying to push aside her desire to get the brightest and gaudiest flowers that he had.
"I actually have some branches from the tree the soul came from, but that seems a bit....morbid, now that I'm thinking about it."
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Posted: Sat Nov 28, 2015 1:31 pm
He laughed softly. "I know what you mean. Not knowing anything about them at all makes decorating a little difficult. I suppose getting the basics is all we can really do, huh?" Going out after they had arrived to select bedding and decorations sounded like a better idea, but welcoming them with a completely stark, undecorated room wasn't ideal. "Maybe a few things that can be customized after they arrive..." Dressers and bedside tables could always be painted, after all.
At the mention of branches, Ian's brows raised. "Oh, really? I'm not sure... It's kind of like telling them where they came from. It could be nice, but they also might be conflicted about it." He sighed, but a smile stretched at his lips. "Well, we have a lot of pine cones, wheat, cattails, and some ornamental leaves and plants that technically don't flower. Those will be a bit more long-lasting, given your mystery of a timeline. Does that sound okay? You can pick them out, of course." He glanced at the more vibrant blooms that she seemed especially interested in. "You could always add a few of those and replenish them if needed, as well!"
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Posted: Mon Nov 30, 2015 11:58 am
"I guess so! Hopefully they get here soon, though, or else I'll keep putting things in their room every time I get too nervous," Which is any time she thought too long about her mystery raevan, to be honest. "But as long as they have a better sense of decoration than I do they'll be fine, I think." Her attention was kept from wandering for a few moments from the choices laid out before her.
She let out a sigh that was a bit gustier than necessary, but shrugged a bit in agreement. "Just hope they feel that way, too." Instead of finding it a bit unpleasant that they were being presented with part of their former dead body. "And yeah! Those all look great," Her eyes trailed over the bunches of the more neutral flora in front of her, a grin spreading across her face at his last comment. "Not very subtle about it, was I?"
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Posted: Tue Dec 01, 2015 9:21 am
Ian chuckled and waved a hand gently. "It's all right. You're welcome to pick some out, if you like, and I can whip up a quick bouquet for you. Do you like any of the premade ones?" He figured he use build upon it if she did find one, or use it as inspiration.
As he looked at the autumn arrangements he sighed again and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm a bit unsure about the whole... past self thing, as well. I mean, should I tell them about the nymph? I should probably- you know, wait until they ask." He laughed sheepishly. "But even then, what do you say? 'Oh, you used to be this person, but now they're gone and a part of you'? That's bound to be confusing..." The whole process in itself was stressful and confusing. But he would do it all over again, because he knew it would be worth it. Just the thought of his Raevan finally arriving sent a thrill through his limbs and he couldn't hold back a smile as it twitched across his face. "Have you thought of any names?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 8:56 am
She 'hmm'ed quietly as she looked over the plant and bouquets in front of her, trying to mentally pair them up with the furniture she had just bought and the oak branches that were already in the room. "Something like this might work the best," she said after a moment, gesturing at a few bouquets that were a bit taller rather than wide.
"Yeah, I don't really know what to do about that either. On one hand I don't want to keep it from them, but..." she shurgged and spread her hands helplessly. "I can't really think of a good way to make it not sound weirder than it already is." Someone should really come up with an Idiots Guide to Raevans or something. A small frown twisted across her face for a moment at the mention of names and she shook her head. "Nah, I've been looking but nothing's really jumped out at me yet. You?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 9:18 am
Glancing at the bouquet that Nell had picked out, Ian nodded. "That's a good one; it'll leave room for the branches you have. Did you want any additional flowers?" He asked as he picked up the bouquet. He wandered a few steps away to wrap it up in tissue, but hesitated to wait for confirmation.
"Exactly," he chuckled. A guide would certainly have been useful, especially in the first few weeks when he'd been floundering as to what to do. "Thankfully everyone is super helpful, though. I know I asked a ton of questions when I got the chance." He smiled and remembered how he'd peppered not only Zeke but also Justin, Henry, and Ethiriel with questions about soul captures, essences, feeding, and all sorts of things.
Ah, names. He let out a somewhat heavy sigh and chuckled softly. "Nothing specific yet. I'm trying to find something pretty gender-neutral, and also simple enough to pronounce since... I don't know how good their vocabulary will be right away." He smiled. "I want to maybe give them a middle name from the nymph, since she was an old friend, of sorts..." He realized that was fairly vague, but he didn't exactly want to burden Nell with a lengthy explanation.
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Posted: Thu Dec 03, 2015 12:45 pm
She was in the middle of shaking her head when she stopped herself with a grin. "Maybe a few of those," she added, pointing to a bundle of sunflowers, which decidedly didn't go with the other bouquet that Ian had in his hands. "The rest of the house isn't safe from my questionable decorating, however." Thankfully, for today, she was just going to stick with the sunflowers rather than go around and make an eye-blindingly bright bouquet. That could wait until a bit later. "Thankfully," she agreed. "I'm still trying to work up the nerve to call up a few people they suggested I talk to, seems like it'd be a bit awkward, but everyone said it'd be alright," With such a small group of guardians she supposed they would be pretty close-knit, but even with all of their assurances she still wasn't quite comfortable with that just yet. "Well, at least that'll give you a good start," she said cheerfully. "Part of me just wants to close my eyes and point at something and just use whatever it is I land on sometimes, just too many choices out there."
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