( New AU lol. I'm not sure how this one will go, or even if it'll go at all. But we'll see...)

He was bored.

Stretching out lazily he stared glumly at the dregs of cooling coffee in the bottom of the styrofoam cup. Surely this had to be the lamest job ever, though it was his own fault for owing his uncle a favour. He'd been called on it, and as a result had to pull shifts here at the quiet, out of the way garden improvement store. The place smelled...green. At first he hadn't understood when his uncle had said that, but he'd been right. It smelled of growing things, of soil and leaves, and if he had to admit it, it was kind of nice. Just boring. If he carried on working here he'd end up talking to the plants like some sort of fruitcake. Uncle says working here could teach me a lot of things - like how to slow down... True, he did like to live life a little too fast - his business and social life meaning he rarely had the time or inclination to relax.

"All the same, there's slowing down then there's stopping altogether.." He flicked a jelly bean from the tin on the desk into the air to catch it in his mouth. "It wouldn't be so bad if any of the girls that came in here were under 40.." Female company he wasn't short of, his easy charm and self-confidence drawing them to him - he was rarely alone on nights out. His father often accused him of being a 'wastrel' and a 'barfly', having a new girl on his arm every night of the week, but he couldn't think of another way to pass the time. It's a way of keeping boredom at bay, having company that doesn't last. Living life in the wind...

After pottering about the store for a short while, checking the water levels in the various plants, he wandered back to his desk, intending to call his assistant at the shop to see how things were going...but the tinkle of the bell over the door caught him off guard. Fixing his best 'salesman' smile on his face he turned around ready to greet the inevitable old biddy wanting a potted geranium or something.

Only for the smile to freeze solid.

Standing there looking up at the seed rack was a girl. She wore a hat and thick peacoat against the winter weather, her figure further disguised by a long skirt and boots, and the tip of her nose was cherry-red from the cold - but that wasn't why he was staring. He was staring because despite her heavy clothing, she was easily the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. Pale skin, wisps of chestnut hair escaping from under the hat, eyes framed by long dark lashes, and she wore a little half-smile as she studied the seed packets. He was entertaining thoughts of not letting on he was there, of watching her for as long as he could, but as he leaned back he knocked over the tin of jelly beans, scattering the contents over the floor.

"Oh!"

Feeling like the world's biggest dork he rubbed the back of his neck, not meeting her eyes. "Sorry. Didn't mean to disturb you.."

"That's all right." Her voice was soft and quiet, suiting her perfectly, and he glanced up. The girl was looking right at him, expression a little hesitant. "I need some help.."

"With plants?" She must have noticed how his face had fallen, because she sighed.

"Don't worry about it. I'll come back another day.."

"N-no, wait!" Hurriedly Mwu made as though to run and stop her, managing to knock over his not-quite-empty coffee cup in the process. "Sorry, sorry. I'll help you." Clearly surprised, the girl watched him mop up the spilled drink with paper towels - thankfully she was too far away to hear his muttered curses at his own stupidity. He stood up rather shamefacedly afterwards, running a hand through thick blonde hair. "Sorry 'bout that..."

She studied him carefully, seemingly sizing him up. For a moment he was sure he'd blown any chance he might have had, but then she nodded with that same little smile. "It's all right. I know what it is I'm looking for. I just need help carrying it to my car.."

He sighed in relief, shoulders slumping. "That I can do."

To his delight the girl smiled properly, lighting up the room as though the sun had come out. And he wasn't able to help smiling back, though he was aware his must be an idiot's grin. "R-right. What is it you're after?"

"Everything, really. I just moved here with a friend, and the house we're sharing has a huge garden that needs some work. I have a list.." She produced a sheet of paper covered in neat handwriting, and he whistled.

"Half the store, I think."

"That's what my friend said. She's just fed up because she has to help me. But I have it all planned out." She quirked another smile at his evident bemusement as he scanned the page. "Do you know any of those?"

"No," he admitted sheepishly. "My uncle runs this place, and I work here part-time as a favour to him. I really don't know much about it..." And I've never regretted that more than now...

"All right then. I'll show you." The girl's answer surprised him, as did the sweet smile she gave him. "I'll show you the plants I need, and teach you about them if you'd like. Do you have a trolley?" He nodded and ran off to fetch it, feeling much more enthusiastic about this afternoon than he had earlier.

"You sure do like roses.." She'd bought a dozen of them, and though the green budless plants looked all the same to him, she'd assured him that they would all be different kinds and colours. She'd described them all in that soft voice, the different shades of red, yellow, pink and even orange that would fill her new garden next summer. "What colours will these other plants be?"

"Let's see, This is lavender, and those are hyacinths, so they'll be purple. These are cornflowers, and they're blue. Narcissus are yellow, and these sweetpeas are pink. They won't all bloom together - the narcissus and hyacinths will come out in springtime - but it's better having colour all year round than for only a couple of months." She grinned. "And roses are my favourite.."

"Planting all this stuff's going to take some work. You sure your friend will be okay with it?"

"Oh, she won't be too happy about it, but she'll do it. I promised to take her for ice-cream if she helped out. And it'll do her good to get out of bed earlier on a weekend."

He chuckled. "We should all be so lucky." The girl nodded, her smile becoming slightly rueful. She placed another tray of bulbs, these ones apparently tulips, on the trolley, and surveyed her purchases.

"I think that'll do. If I take any more Erica will kill me."

"Is the garden all ready?"

"Not yet. There are a lot of weeds, and some old tree roots that need to come out - it'll take both of us to get it done.."

"I could help you with those.." His suggestion seemed to surprise the both of them, she blinking those large gold eyes as she processed what he'd just said. Mentally kicking himself he again rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Sorry. That came out without me thinking. I mean, I'd like to help out, but I shouldn't have suggested. I mean, you don't even know my name.."

"Mwu."

"Huh?"

She pointed to the name tag pinned to his shirt. "Your name is Mwu."

"Oh. I forgot about that.." The girl giggled, the musical sound making him smile. "Aw c'mon. I always forget it's there..."

"You forget your name?"

He pretended to scowl, but her soft laughter was so infectious he couldn't keep it. They'd known each other only around ninety minutes or so, but in that time they'd become friends. She was quite shy, but also warm and kind, easy to get along with - very different from the company he normally kept, but nonetheless very pleasant. "Do you remember yours?"

She touched her hat politely. "Murrue."

That name suits her. Like music, almost... "Well then, Miss Murrue, if you'd like, I could come over at the weekend and help you with those roots.. Sound good?"

"It does, but.." She raised an eyebrow. "Will this cost extra?"

"If you'd teach me more about plants, then that would more than enough.." I'd get to listen to your voice all day...what other reward would I need?

"Someone sure looks happy. I thought you didn't like working at that store?"

"Yeah well, today went pretty good." Oh boy, had it ever. Her address was tucked securely in his wallet, the memory of her smile and floral scent clear in his mind. "Did you get that work finished?"

"Sure did," His assistant pointed to the bike in the corner of the dim little shop. To Mwu's satisfaction the machine looked exactly as he'd wanted it to, the chrome and royal blue paintwork gleaming in the half-light.

"It run okay?"

"Seems to. I ran it up and down the road a couple of times - it purrs like a kitten."

He nodded in approval. "Good job, kid. You should get more commissions 'cause of that."

Kira poked his head out from the tiny kitchen. "Does that mean more money?"

"Why wouldn't it? And you'll get all the money from this one - I only helped you sketch it out. Buy some decent clothes and impress that fancy girl." The younger man flushed scarlet and vanished back into the kitchen, causing Mwu to laugh out loud. He felt better now than he had in months...was it really just from meeting one girl?

It'll be interesting to see where this weekend goes...

( i like random ideas :grins:

please read and review! )