The Gentle Flitter - Chapter 2 Post

Roadie 🪶Jack

R.N.A. “Ah… Jack… You have to… avoid the roses… doubling up in color. Look at the ones that don’t have… green roses in them already.”

While it took way too long for processing, Jack managed to get the gist of it eventually. He frowned and scanned the vases that hadn’t been ribboned off yet.

“But they all have green…” he whined. Apparently he was counting Viper’s shade of green. As well as one bouquet that didn’t have either, but he was an expert on seeing things that weren’t there. Best not to worry about it.

Or maybe he was just misunderstanding… something. Whatever. This was enough standing around.

He went to throw his rose into bouquet 6 just because Melvin was already there and Jack needed to be a nuisance.

Narrator

Melvin Greene try bouquet 6.

Roadie 🪶Jack He went to throw his rose into bouquet 6

Neither feels right here.

Melvin Greene

Narrator Neither feels right here.

Well, Melvin’s officially out of ideas. Red doesn’t seem to mesh that well with either 3 or 8 to his completely untrained and very exhausted eye. He’s got no clue what to do with this thing.

Roadie 🪶Jack Still don’t get half a’ these.

Never thought he’d be agreeing with Jack on pretty much anything, but this is a little over his head too. But damn it, he’s not going to be the one who holds them up if he can help it (not least of all because if the next car is bigger, he might be able to take a second smaller break out of Abel’s line of sight.) Unfortunately he does not know how to help it, and is still a little too frustrated to actually give it more than half a moment’s thought. Just blank out all the vague threats some of these people are tossing at each other, it’s fine. This is fine.

“… ugh, maybe two? Six?” Grumble grumble.

The more observant present might note that he’s already got one in 2, and 6 has in fact already been completed. He seems to be pacing between the tags on 3 and 8 trying to get a better feel for which one it maybe might be.

Abel Lazarus

Sliding an Abel in here to finish a Bouquet for someone else <3

He waits until no one is paying any particular attention to slide a Lime rose into Bouquet 6. He tucks it carefully against the Green rose and the leaves to obscure it as much as he can from any prying eyes. Once he knows it’s correct he’ll leave.

Let’s get this closer to over with y’all <3

Narrator

Abel Lazarus He waits until no one is paying any particular attention to slide a Lime rose into Bouquet 6.

Once Abel has pulled away, the handcuff tag morphs into a little ribbon and ties itself round the vase with a bow.

It really musses up the beautiful arrangement to position the flower so, but there don’t seem to be any consequences! Aside from potentially making an NPC a little sad, who knows.

Abel Lazarus

Narrator Aside from potentially making an NPC a little sad, who knows.

Sorry little NPC! Abel doesn’t care about your feelings as much as Viper’s. After gently moving his own Rose a little to make it seem like that’s what he was up to- He quickly leaves again. Hoping no one paid him any particular mind. (Plus if it helps he’s also bothered by how it looks. He’s just pretending SO hard it doesn’t matter.)

Matsu

Matsukaze is Tired. They are tired and their leg hurts, they want to be closer to Certain People but also want to be farther away from certain Jacks, and they compromise with themself by… sitting in the floor against a wall as far out of the way as they can in the small shop. The process of sitting is inelegant, but they’re sure no one is actually watching them.

They’re not any help, at least not yet, though they do at least seem to be thinking. (Was it about the bouquets, or about kanji?)

Roadie 🪶Jack “I know two of us got the same dagger.”

Until Jack yanks them out of their thoughts by a very pointed comment. Their eyes widen and snap up to look at him (was he looking at them?), and even with the mask covering the lower half of their face, it’s clear that the color drained from their face.

They had been hoping he’d forget about that.

“Well sucks that there isn’t an arrangement for that,” they snap. Try to not let him know you’re terrified. Matsu’s hand does go to their pocket, like they’re ready to pull the dagger if he moves towards them at all.

Roadie 🪶Jack

Well, it’s sure easy to go sneaking flowers into vases without Jack noticing, at least. He took his rose back out of bouquet 6 and spun it in his fingers.

Matsu “Well sucks that there isn’t an arrangement for that,” they snap.

He did keep an eye on Matsu’s hand. Always nice when they told you exactly where they were keeping what you wanted.

“Seem awful sure ’bout that. Why don’t we try one, see what happens?”

Viper “Oi. Be nice,” She huffed at him, “Jus’ look at gettin’ this puzzle done, yeah?”

While he managed to completely miss the Look, he at least heard that.

“Sure, I can be nice.” He held out a hand. “$500.”

“And hey, I don’t see you solvin’ it, either.”

He flicked the tag nearest him.

“Still don’t get half a’ these. Too many with other people in ’em, I guess.” Not that he understood the doohickey one, either.

Viper

Just when had Viper left? Who knows. But she was back! Trailing in a good few hopefully not suspicious minutes after Abel, she seems in as good of spirits as normal. Whether she had heard Jack’s jab at Matsu or not, she drifts toward them, pushing her back to the wall and half-sitting just a few shuffles distance from them. Perhaps… she wanted to see if they would move closer.

… that was definitely what her plan was, but the way she was poised also suggested that if needed, she could jump up to defend them. We stan a protective queen? She fixes Jack with a careful Look.

“Oi. Be nice,” She huffed at him, “Jus’ look at gettin’ this puzzle done, yeah?” Maybe its more of a threat than a question, with how she says it. Viper protecc <3

Viper

Roadie 🪶Jack “Sure, I can be nice.” He held out a hand. “$500.”

Viper visibly rolled her eyes, “I ain’t got five hundred. Maybe next time I get a second ta exchange sh-t I’ll trade in some stuff. An I-O-U?” She snorted, but her gaze does flit over to Matsukaze. “'Long as ya leave ’em alone.” Hands off, or… knives off, Jack, thats her tsundere.

She keeps her gaze on him as she momentarily moves away from Matsu’s side.

Viper picks out a clear rose, waiting for it to change colour, before placing it in bouquet 5.

She colours another and puts it into bouquet 8.

Her gaze doesn’t leave Jack for a moment- no matter how much she fumbles with the roses. She’s actually making an effort to show Matsu she cares. Whilst she had moved away, she’s still ready to act if Jack does.

Roadie 🪶Jack

Melvin Greene “… ugh, maybe two? Six?” Grumble grumble.

Wait, two for him or for Jack? Or was that the number of roses in the bouqah screw this gosh frick.

Viper “I ain’t got five hundred. Maybe next time I get a second ta exchange sh-t I’ll trade in some stuff. An I-O-U?”

“Sorry, only ’ccept I.O.U.s overseen by a licensed notary. Maybe next time.”

Viper She snorted, but her gaze does flit over to Matsukaze. “'Long as ya leave ’em alone.”

Ugh. Maybe it’s just a few words, but the general sentiment turned his stomach. Protective, huh? Good luck with that.

“Or what, you’re gonna fight me off?”

But now his soured mood didn’t wanna bother making a big deal of it—or bother even listening to the answer. None of his business what other people thought they could do. He just chucked his green rose back into the pile of clear ones and wandered outside. Maybe things’d be a little easier to stomach thataways.

Narrator

Melvin Greene He seems to be pacing between the tags on 3 and 8 trying to get a better feel for which one it maybe might be.

Well, the illustration for 8 doesn’t look like anything he normally wears. Granted, the illustration for 3 doesn’t look like anything he normally uses, either, but then again it doesn’t actually look like anything specific. So basically, he hates this situation. But you didn’t need me to tell you that.

Viper Viper picks out a clear rose, waiting for it to change colour, before placing it in bouquet 5.

Oh, this one doesn’t go there at all. Fashion disaster.

Viper She colours another and puts it into bouquet 8.

Almost passable, but no, it doesn’t look right here, either.

Viper

Roadie 🪶Jack “Or what, you’re gonna fight me off?”

“Drama queen.” Viper scoffed as Jack turned tail and left after dumping his green rose back in with the clear ones. Regardless she had achieved fending him away from Matsukaze for now, and hopefully they’d stop looking so afraid!

She plucks back out her roses that don’t seem to belong. Instead, she reaches for Jack’s abandoned rose and plops it into bouquet 10.

Narrator

Viper Instead, she reaches for Jack’s abandoned rose and plops it into bouquet 10.

While the color seems like it should fit in, the rose just doesn’t feel right in this one. Hmm.

Matsu

Matsu was very tense as they watch Jack and Viper closely. Every muscle tensed, bracing for it to blow up…

…

But it doesn’t.

They exhale in relief and their shoulders drop as soon as Jack leaves the shop. Only then do they start to get up, though they are definitely favoring their injured leg and using the wall heavily to support themself in the process.

“… So what is this supposed to be?” It seems the room had cleared up enough for them to actually participate – or maybe they had been waiting for Jack to leave all along.

Matsukaze hesitates, their hand hovering over one of the clear flowers, before picking it up and looking closely at it. Let’s see what their color is… though we all already know. They move towards the end of the row, too, lowkey seeking Viper Moral Support. Which means, they take a look at the tag for 10. They squint at it, thinking, then hesitantly put their rose in bouquet 10.

Narrator

Matsu Matsukaze hesitates, their hand hovering over one of the clear flowers, before picking it up and looking closely at it. Let’s see what their color is… though we all already know. They move towards the end of the row, too, lowkey seeking Viper Moral Support. Which means, they take a look at the tag for 10. They squint at it, thinking, then hesitantly put their rose in bouquet 10.

The flower turns pale yellow, and into Bouquet 10 it goes! It feels like it ties the bouquet together quite nicely.

If only certain dudes hadn’t just walked off before they could remove their own flowers, huh.

R.N.A.

Narrator If only certain dudes hadn’t just walked off before they could remove their own flowers, huh.

Robot to the rescue! R.N.A. removes Jack’s rose from Bouquet 10. That should work.

Unsure what to do with Jack’s rose, they place the green rose into Bouquet 3.

As for their own rose… Well, they have to place this grey rose somewhere. So they place their grey rose into bouquet 8. It hardly makes sense, but it lacks a grey rose, so maybe it’s the answer?

Viper

Viper perks up as Matsu approaches her, and as their rose completes the bouquet so nicely.

“Hey, good job!” It’s an earnest compliment, “D’ya think… any more need ya?”

Her hand brushes theirs just a little at her side as she looks over the other bouquets again. What ones were still incomplete…

“Think I’m all done, probs.” She doesn’t see any more she feels her roses would fit in that they weren’t already in. “How about tryin’ one in here? Ya gotta have some other ones ta put roses inta. Ya kinda wear… almost a hoodie?” Viper nods to the bouquet with the hoodie tag.

Seems like she’s actually motivated to be helpful now…

Narrator

R.N.A. R.N.A. removes Jack’s rose from Bouquet 10

The three-figure tag morphs into a little ribbon and ties itself round the vase with a bow.

R.N.A. they place the green rose into Bouquet 3.

Nope, clashes marvelously.

R.N.A. So they place their grey rose into bouquet 8.

Once R.N.A. has pulled away, the hoodie tag morphs into a little ribbon and ties itself round the vase with a bow. They’re on a roll.

Melvin Greene

Battleship/chess/trial and error approach GO, red rose to B3, which Melvin is still internally referring to as ‘2.’ Maybe takes the green one out of there for good measure too, because even he can tell that looks wrong.

Narrator

Melvin Greene

Once Melvin has exchanged the roses, the gadget tag morphs into a little ribbon and ties itself round the vase with a bow. Trial yes error no.

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