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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 27, 2024 15:30:02 GMT -6
Ugh. What a horrible day, Fiera noted. It was freezing cold, but somehow bright and shiny, which wasn't helping the hangov- er, migraine she had this morning. She had hoped some fresh air and a walk with her pet would help her work that off, but it really wasn't helping much. If anything, Fiera just wanted to vomit. The air was heavily humid, practically still dripping from last night's depressing slush storm, and Mango was teetering left and right to avoid the various lumps of half-melted snow and pothole puddles. Fiera herself was trying to avoid stumbling over the cobblestones, and her pet was almost forgotten in her focus- so much for a pleasant, bonding walk. She walked next to a strip of shops on the sidewalk, small and jammed together. They were more like stalls than stores, though the presence of a roof made them technically count as buildings, she supposed. Mango 4.1/6.1 1 (Completed this quest once before.)
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 27, 2024 15:45:43 GMT -6
She got a distant sense of pleasure from the fact that they looked just as miserable as she did though. Despite all of the snow around the city right now being old and crusty, it was still piled high on the rooves here, looming over the stores. The storm last night had been harsh and it showed here. The chairs at the little cafes were blown over, the canvas overhangs over the jewelry stores were flipped up around the edges, and one store's sign was even gone entirely, leaving only an un-sunbleached shadow where it should be... or perhaps that store was just between tenants, Fiera noted as she squinted at its facade. Well, regardless, it looked like Fiera wasn't the only one wandering around with ruffled feathers this morning. She was sure the store owners would show up and be dismayed at the sight of their livelihoods soon enough.
Mango 4.2/6.2 2
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 27, 2024 15:49:45 GMT -6
As Fiera came to the end of the street though, she saw one store that was a bit larger than the others- in property, not actual size. The rest of the square footage was taken up by a patch of earth, little tiny pickets surrounding it. Apparently it was supposed to be a garden, but after last night's storm it resembled a mud puddle more than anything. An elven woman with enormous glasses and a few gray hairs and creased lines around her mouth looked at the 'garden' disapprovingly, hands on her hips and shaking her head quietly. She glanced around, her eyes finally landing on Fiera. "No, no, come on, please-" Fiera muttered under her breath, but the woman seemed to light up upon seeing her. "Oh, hello there! Are you here from the quest board, by any chance?" She said, giving a little wave. Fiera felt herself being drawn towards her, her sense of social politesse not allowing her to decline.
Mango 4.3/6.3 3
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 27, 2024 15:59:59 GMT -6
She hadn't been to the quest board, frankly she didn't even want to be outside, but here she was anyway. "I'm so glad someone came." The woman said, and Fiera tried not to look completely sour. "I realize it was a little last minute, but the storm last night was really bad. My shop is in shambles!" She said, gesturing to it. Fiera looked over her shoulder. 'Pleasant Parasols' was hand lettered in a looping font along the front, but other than the garden it seemed to be in good shape. Heck, it even had less snow piled on top than the other stores on this street. "...Uh huh." Fiera said unenthusiastically. "You know, I just kind of skimmed the notice- uh, wanted to get here quickly- what needs to be done, exactly?" She said. "Oh, well the garden needs to be fixed. Maybe add some mulch to it, try and save some of the flowers." The woman replied, gesturing to the mud puddle.
Mango 4.4/6.4 4
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 28, 2024 9:56:43 GMT -6
"And you'll be...?" Fiera said, frowning. She wasn't thrilled by the idea of cleaning up this woman's mess when she was perfectly capable of doing it herself. The shopkeeper pointed down the street. "Recollecting my stock." She said, heaving a deep sigh. Fiera leaned over. Sure enough, she just now realized that there were a few stands knocked down around the front of the shop, and dozens of parasols had been blown down the street overnight. Fiera had to relent her displeasure- it was admittedly more important for a parasol seller to make sure she had parasols to SELL rather than clean up her puddled garden. Fiera was on her own for this one. "Fine then. But I do hope you're good for the reward listed." She said, not knowing if there even was a reward. But even then, she was sure she'd be able to talk this woman into it.
Mango 5.0/7.0 5
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 28, 2024 10:29:02 GMT -6
"Oh, yes, of course. I just have to go uh..." She glanced at the scattering of umbrellas. "...Go fetch it." She said awkwardly. Fiera smirked. "Hurry back, then." She said, and turned to the garden. "Okay! The gardening stuff is just inside the shop, should be easy to find!" The shopkeeper shouted after her as she trotted off down the street. Fiera hummed quietly and tugged on Mango's leash, leading him into the shop. She looked around briefly for the gardening supplies, only to find Mango sniffing at a bag of mulch. "Ah, good job, kid." She said, leaning down to grab it. She also grabbed a trowel before heading back outside- this wasn't a problem that any fancier equipment could fix. Then, she took a proper look at the garden beds. They were slightly raised beds, with dirt held back by plastic sidings and fancy little pickets around the perimeter.
Mango 5.1/7.1 6
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 28, 2024 10:45:52 GMT -6
This held them up above the sidewalk, presumably so it was more difficult for people to go tromping right through them so they could cut the corner. Now though, they were pretty much big buckets of frigid, muddy water. Luckily, them being raised up meant that there was a rather simple solution to the problem. She walked around the siding, looking for a spot where two segments of it were connected. Once she found it, it was easy enough for her to get down there and simply pull them apart a bit. She only needed to lean one away from the other about an inch before the retained water started gushing out from the opening. It wasn't sinking into the soil fast enough to avoid drowning the plants, but she figured it could just as easily flow onto the sidewalk. Within a few minutes she was able to repeat the process on the other bed.
Mango 5.2/7.2 7
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 28, 2024 10:53:08 GMT -6
The beds were now draining, and once they had finally stopped she could plug the holes back up again so the soil wouldn't erode out over time. She considered telling the shopkeeper about the problem and how to fix it herself, but if she did... well, that would mean less quest points for everyone, eh? She'd keep it to herself for the time being. Speaking of the shopkeeper, Fiera could see her just up the street chasing around an umbrella that had come open and was now dancing along in the wind. She would be a while still. That gave Fiera more time to work on the garden though. It looked like the bed was mostly filled with perennial flowers, still dormant through the winter. They might still be alive, so she couldn't just pull them up- though that would be a lot easier. She would just have to mulch around them.
Mango 5.3/7.3 8
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 28, 2024 11:15:24 GMT -6
She pulled the bag of mulch open and started shaking it onto the bed in an unoccupied corner, making a small pile. The mulch would help protect the plants from the cold, but would also absorb and retain more of the water without drowning them. Fiera was surprised it wasn't on there already, but she supposed the shopkeeper might have been waiting for spring. Now Fiera had to do it. Once the pile had been formed, she spread it out across the patch of garden, carefully pushing it around the base of the plants rather than just sweeping it over top. Once the pile had been depleted, she repeated it again, spreading even more around. Finally the bed was done, and it was looking better already- as in, it looked like an actual garden bed instead of a puddle of mud. She repeated the process on the other side as well.
Mango 5.4/7.4 9
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Feb 28, 2024 11:17:41 GMT -6
The longer she worked the easier it got, as the water had already mostly drained out and left the soil behind. Soon the other bed was completely filled with mulch as well. Fiera clapped her hands off, satisfied with her work, and nudged the gaps in the perimeter of the beds closed with her foot. The only evidence they had been there were wet streaks on the sidewalk from where the water flowed out. As she had been working, the shopkeeper had been setting her stands back up, and she too appeared to be getting close to finished. "Wow!" She said, wiping the sweat from her brow. "That looks better already! I mean I'll have to keep a close eye on the flowers for root rot, but..." "There's not much I can do about that." Fiera said with a shrug. "Right." The shopkeeper replied, before offering Fiera an umbrella. "It's supposed to rain later today- not as bad, luckily- but still, here! You've earned it!" She said with a smile. Fiera offered a weak one back- it was better than nothing.
Mango 6.0/8.0 10
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Post by Silver on Mar 8, 2024 17:11:40 GMT -6
Congratulations, you have successfully completed the quest! Your QP will be added to the bank, and your prize will be sent out shortly.
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