Now that she has made a new friend with Okenite, Aiolos felt safer wandering about on patrol. As much as she wanted to see if Emain could come with her, he didn't stay at the Bells house and she didn't want to be a burden on the human. Thus, she continued to wander on her own at night, searching for trinkets she could add to the growing collection in her room. She did find another pretty acorn so that was going to be hung above her bed along with the maple leaf and pinecone she found earlier. While she was gathering and looking down at the ground so she doesn't potentially miss anything tasty [the dandelions she finds all taste pretty sweet, even if the humans look at her funny for putting it in her mouth].

She was not paying attention to anything in front of her, which is why she bumped into something solid.

With a squawk, she jumped back with her head down. “I….Sorry. N-No mean to…”


Grieve had just been standing there, arms crossed, watching the basic wander around picking up trash off the ground. Sure, it was edible trash, but this city had more than enough restaurant dumpsters that could feed a person a lot ********’ better than flowers off the ********’ ground. It was pretty funny to watch. Especially when she was so focused on the ground that she didn’t seem to even notice another senshi nearby. Even more when she ended up running right into Grieve herself.

Stepping forward to loom over the tiny Aioloian with a jagged grin, Grieve replied, “What? This wasn’t an attack? You weren’t trying to knock me down and rob me of my ********’...” She glanced down at what the small senshi held, “...acorns? Huh?”


And suddenly, Aiolos felt very….VERY small.
The tiny senshi chirped and looked up finally at who she bumped into, promptly squeaking and falling on her behind. With the way the creature was looking…Wasnt that a…Youma? They can talk?! “N-No!” Her head wings covered her face while she held out her hand to offer the acorn she just found. “Y-You has! N-No h-hurt please!” She didn't have any way to defend herself and no way to call for help. Great, she was going to die and she would never be able to learn any of the Earthen languages she wanted, or get more seeds from Okenite.
Her room at the Bells would be half decorated, and she wouldn't be able to add anymore pretty flowers and sticks to it. The thought brought tears to her eyes and she instantly started crying. “I-I…Sorry!” She got up and her head wings removed themselves from her eyes so she could touch her finger to the forehead jewel to summon her healing baton. “C-Can heal? Please don't hurt…I help.” Nevermind the fact that she didn't feel anything…Wrong with this person, but that was beside the point. The poor senshi was in fight or flight mode and she was definitely leaning more towards flight.

Plucking up the offered acorn with a quiet, “Yoink,” as was Earth custom, Grieve settled back to watch the little basic cry and scramble for a little while. Eventually, when she’d had enough of the show, she reached down and put her hand on the girl’s head. It was less of a comforting pat and more of a firm indication that the basic should stay still.

“Aiolos.” Grieve stated, just as firmly. She’d never crossed paths with the specific iteration of the senshi, but she recognized those headwings, that sort of tail. “If I wanted to hurt you, it’d have been while your head was up your a** and your eyes were too busy finding s**t on the ground.”

She gave a small snort, “If you’re going to be distracted outside, at least bring a ********’ partner.” She wondered if the basic was FFS, fresh from space, or if she was just like this.


There was a quiet cheep of sorts, and Aiolos couldn't get her body to stop shaking. But at least the hand on her head didn't hurt and kept her from moving? Was that a good thing? Shouldn't she do something about that? At the mention of her star name, Aiolos looked up at the tall senshi [because NOW it registered to her] before her. The sentence did not make sense to her which had her looking confused. “I….No understand? a**?” What was that?! It sounded…Vulgar but she wasn't sure if that’s how the word was meant to sound. She DID know what distracted meant and the small senshi blushed with embarrassment.
“N-No Partner. Alone.” Which was true. She WISHED she had a partner but…Sometimes she just couldn't find one and there were acorns to be discovered. But…Maybe…This senshi, who seemed familiar, would be her partner? “You…Help? Looking for acorns~” Her demeanor went from scared shitless to inquisitive in under five seconds. Now that she knew this person was a senshi and not a youma, Aiolos felt more comfortable. “Looking for…Berries. Need for room~”

With a roll of her eyes, Grieve snorted and lifted her hand. Crossing her arms once more, she looked down at the tiny, child-like senshi and grumbled, “Fine. You gather, I’ll kill whatever comes.” She didn’t have much else planned tonight, and could sympathize with wanting to get free s**t for her room and snacks, even though it meant being exposed to the city’s factions as a weak-a** basic.

She held up three fingers, “You give me three berries for every five you collect. Protection fee.”

Kill? Why would they kill?
Aiolos blinked and shook her head. “N-No kill! U-Uhhh…Kill bad?” at least it was on her planet. Why kill when you can have a diplomatic conversation? It just didn't make any sense. She tugged at the senshi’s outfit, “N-No kill please?” It would be fine if they got incapacitated, but killing is…It just made her queasy. “Can give…..Four berries instead if no kill?” That seemed reasonable right? She was sure she could find a blackberry bush and get plenty of berries from there. Truth be told, she really wanted raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries, but those didn't grow wild and the last time she tried to get some, she was chased away screaming by a four legged animal that did not appreciate her being in its space. It was a good thing she had her basket in her subspace, because she could keep her berries in there and they would be safe should she get attacked.
“Also want…Seeds. Sunflower~”

Grimacing at the order to not kill, grieve finally gave in for the extra berry distribution. “Fine, if something tries to eat you I’ll just kick it around a bit until it stops.” Which probably wouldn’t kill whatever dared to trespass tonight.

Scratching her ear as the list of things on order continued, grieve nodded along. Trust a client to start adding s**t as soon as the agreement was made. Some things were just universal. “Saw sunflowers about a street away.” Sure they were in someone’s yard, but if it was outside their house, it was free game as far as Grieve was concerned.

If it were possible, Aiolo’s eyes would have lit up, but sadly all she could do was look up at the tall senshi with wonder and happiness. “Agree~” Since there were sunflowers somewhere she would prioritize those first. “Oh! U-Ummmmn….Name? What I call you?” The senshi knew her name but while the other felt familiar there wasn't a name coming forth. It was only polite to address people properly! “Show…Where Sunflower yeah?” She waited, head wings flapping excitedly while her tail practically shook with anticipation. Maybe she made another new friend?! One that she might have met in the past?! That would be nice given the fact that she's only really met chaos so far…Did the order just hide? Or maybe the chaos outnumbered them? That would be concerning.

“I’m Grieve,” the tall senshi answered, giving the smaller one a pat on the head that was a lot more friendly this time. The kid was cute, maybe a little stupid and unwary, but cute things could get away with that s**t.

“C’mon I’ll show you.” Greedy a**. Probably trying to get out of the berry fee, huh? Still, Grieve found herself grinning indulgently as she led the other along until they reached with a big house with an even bigger yard. A very big fence to go along with it, with spiky green and brilliant yellow peeking over the top.

Glancing up at the top of it, he held out a hand to Aiolo, “Need a boost up?”

“G-Grrrrieeeve….” She frowned while trying to make sure she pronounced the senshi’s name correctly, “Grieve!” There! That was a lot easier than trying to pronounce Okenite, but she would get there at some point. Following Grieve’s lead, Aiolos was looking around for anything that she could add to her collection, picking up a shiny piece of metal in the shape of a tiny four-legged creature. It was a bit dirty, but she could clean it off when she got back to the Bell’s house. Oh! Look! There looked to be a very pretty broken vase? She really liked the look of the gold on the rim so maybe she could find a way to restore it? Or she could always frame the piece she liked.
The fence she was brought to looked….Tall. But then again, she was starting to realize she was an anomaly in terms of height. “Is okay? N-No…Creature?” the last time she went over a fence she almost got mauled. “B-Boost? Yes, umm…Go up yeah?”

“I’m the biggest creature here,” Grieve assured her. Then lifted an arm to flex her wiry but still well-cabled muscles for Aiolo. Making sure that whatever scraps the basic had picked up were either tucked away into her subspace or otherwise secured, Grieve placed her hands at the girl’s waist and…

Directly tossed her over the fence, jumping over with ease right after.

Hands on hips, she surveyed towering forest of sunflowers they were suddenly in and nodded to herself. Yes, she was super ******** good at this. Then she looked for Aiolo to gauge the level of client satisfaction.

Well, she supposed that would be reassuring.
Aiolos blinked then let out a terrified squawk when she was tossed over the fence, arms flailing while her eyes closed since clearly she was going to get hurt here. However, she managed to land on her feet, eyes still squeezed shut till she finally opened them. Oh! She made it! That relief was short-lived as soon as she saw the field of sunflowers in front of her. “OOOOOH!” There was a chirp and trill of excitement, followed by her head wings flapping as if they were trying to take off. “Sunflower!!!!” This was AMAZING! There was no way she would run out of seeds! Oh she wanted to give Grieve more than just her share of berries! Aiolos quickly turned and practically jumped, wrapping her arms around the tall senshi. “Thank you Thank you!!! I give more than berries!” Oh she should start picking already!!! Sunflower seeds!!!! The avian senshi started tweeting and singing while picking away, a wide smile on her face.

Grieve let out a triumphant, “Hmmf!” Clearly her client service was still number ********’ one out of The Nameless. The hug was a nice bonus, and the offer of more on top of the original deal was even better.

“Alright, alright. You better keep your word or I’ll stand outside your window until you do.” As she vaguely threatened Aiolos, Grieve began reaching up and bringing the fat headed sunflowers to bend down within the basic’s reach.

“You haven’t been on Earth long, have you?”

The vague threat did seem to go over her head, but she nodded anyway. Why would Grieve stand outside her window when she could just come in? That was a silly notion, but maybe it was a custom on her world? She would have to ask about it later, reaching up to pick the seeds off of the flower Grieve had so politely bent down. Her question wasn't odd, but she did have to think a little. “U-Ummm…First Earth day was erm…” How was she supposed to tell time? “N-No, not long. Earth is…Strange.” that was putting it lightly, but she did find some good things about it. “When…L-Landed…No f-fun…” Her head wings sagged a little while she remembered that scary encounter with the other corrupted senshi. “B-But! Made…Friend! O-Okenite~ Gib seeds and no hurt!” He was supposed to bring her pistachios next time they met and she couldn't wait. “G-Grieve know…Piiiiiiii-sta-chi-os?”

“You get attacked or something?” Grieve mused, wondering how this baby basic could manage to survive any sort of attack. The mention of an Okenite had her frowning soon after. They weren’t all very capable, especially if they were low ranking, and some could even be pleasant but…

“Sounds like someone with Chaos. Be careful they don’t poison you. Even if they bring out the pistachios, which are pretty ******** good. Especially with chicken.” She eyed the basic up with a sharp, playful grin.

With a slow nod, Aiolos started shaking with fear. “B-Big…I thought sick, ermmm…feel wrong. Didn't know…N-No middle?” She pointed to her forehead and then to her chest, “S-Say something, m-make me do then pain.” She still couldn't describe accurately what the senshi did but all she knows is that she doesn't want to run into them again. They have the ability to make her do things against her will and that was scary. “E-Emain come save. Help and no more hurt.” There was another nod and she shook her head, “O-Okenite chaos but…Nice. Gib seeds and berries! I heal when hurt~” She pointed to her leg, making a circle like a hole. Oh! Grieve DID know about pistachios?! If she says they're good then she couldn't wait to try them. “W-What…Chimken?” she tilted her head to the side, not getting the playful joke. Was a chicken some sort of food? Maybe she could try it?! “I try! Would like chimken~” She went back to picking more seeds, squatting to pick up some that fell on the ground.

Emain. Vaguely Grieve could recall the Earth Knight. Was the type to show up and show out when needed. Aiolos had gotten lucky.

With a considering noise, she relented a bit on the warning, “Guess you made a good deal then. Healing makes for a pretty decent offer. Still, just because ******** made a deal with you, doesn’t mean others like him won’t be dangerous. Don’t let any of them close enough to stick a hand through your chest.”

The pronunciation of chimken was ******** adorable, though. “You should ask whoever you’re staying with for some. I’m sure they’ll arrange it.” Heh. In a good mood, Grieve brought down another flowerhead. And then another, allowing for swift and steady collection.