Chapter 1: A New Garden
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OC.
Hey guys! This is a 'sequel', if you will, taking place after Trouble in Paradise in which the records are successfully restored and once more Pester is foiled. New plot, new problems, new gardener and a new garden for Pester to try and ruin. Hope you all enjoy!
A/N: New realm – Oakata Forest (Oak + Piñata)
He'd had his eye on this piece of land ever since he moved to the small village. It was a barren land, a garden, or at least it was, according to Arfur. Like Jardinero's old garden, it too was destroyed by Professor Pester and his Ruffians and no one had claimed the land since. The only hint of its former glory was the large oak tree in the middle of the land that needed some water and a tree house that served as the residence of the old gardener.
The one thing stopping Kenzie from buying the land was the fact that it required a gardening deed, a skill that he sorely lacked in. He'd spoken to Jardinero, who was unofficially the one in charge of the deeds, and had asked if he could buy the property separate, but the man was firm. Whoever owned that house would own a garden and was required to cultivate the land for habitation by Piñata.
"Hey milky!" Arfur greeted as he walked in. "Found a place that you like?"
"Hi Arfur" the man replied as he sat down, gratefully accepting the pint of milk. "And yes, but as we already know, it requires me to become a gardener"
"So why not?" the innkeeper asked.
"I kill plastic plants! Never mind live ones!" he said.
"Translation, you think you have no skill" Arfur said and the other nodded. "Let me tell you a story about two people who came to this island"
"Oh not this one, guv!" a Watchling protested.
"Hey, the new guy needs to know" a Sprinkling retorted.
"The first of the two came here not long after ol' Jard's garden was trashed. See the garden that is there now?" he asked and Kenzie nodded. "That was the work of a guy who had no skill whatsoever"
"He didn't even call on us for help" a Weedling said. "Well, he called on the Diggerlings to help him find the Dragonache, but that's beside the point"
"The second?" Kenzie asked.
"Remember the records incident last year?" Arfur asked as he cleaned a glass and the other gave a slight nod. "Piñata Central called on anyone available to turn a patch of land into a garden. This guy steps forward, no skill, eight hundred coins to his name and he manages to turn it into a paradise filled with newer species too…and he lived right next to Pester's lair of all places" he chuckled.
"You mean what's left of it…after that guy restored the records, Pester up and left with his Ruffians and whatever remained of the Sours…" the Watchling said. "Been out of a job since"
"He's not gone…we know that" Arfur said grimly.
"The point is, newbie, that if two people with no skill and precious little knowledge of this island can make a garden and become an Ultimate Gardener to boot, then you should have no problem" the Sprinkling said.
"Jardinero deals with the deeds…he'll provide you with the basic tools, some starting cash and a journal…plus everyone in the village will be on hand to help out" Arfur said and the other sighed.
"It's not like that land can get any worse, right?" Kenzie asked and the Helpers cheered.
"That's the spirit, milky" Arfur grinned.
The village road led down to the residence of Leafos and Jardinero, as well as the garden that had since come back into its old glory. The owner was hard at work in the middle of the land as he worked on expanding the central pond. Leafos, who had just returned from the other garden that lay next to Piñata Central, spotted him and smiled.
"Hi, I'm Leafos. You must be the new person Arfur was talking about"
"Arfur talked about me?" Kenzie asked with curiosity in his voice.
"He sure did. My father's been waiting to meet you so he can give you the rundown of what you need to do" she said, gesturing to the small shack that had been built into the side of her home. "He can be a bit grouchy but he does mean well" she warned and he gulped.
Walking into the shack, he saw the veteran gardener sat in his chair, looking at his old journal. Not looking up, Jardinero merely gestured for him to come in fully and the other did so nervously, but not before closing the door behind him. He shuffled nervously for a moment as he waited for the older man to speak.
"The innkeeper tells me you're interested in gaining the deed to the old garden in the middle of the Oakata Forest" he said.
"Yes sir…" Kenzie said, mentally headslapping himself for sounding so nervous.
"Back a long time ago, that garden was one of the first. A lot of history in that land, my lad. Are you sure you're up to the task?" he asked, holding the rolled up deed.
"I'm willing to do my best" he said and the other nodded.
"I expect nothing less. I've lost the cynicism that I used to have on new gardeners. Two have proved themselves to be capable of dealing with anything, be it Sours, Pester or the Ruffians. I will warn you that the numbers are down in Piñata Central, so they will not wait too long before they call you in to provide for their parties"
"Yes sir" he said, with a little bit more determination.
"Right…sign here" he said, unfolding the deed.
And with that, Kenzie now worked for Piñata Central as a gardener…
Provided with a shovel that had the strength to dig seed holes, a watering can that held plenty and a packet of insta-grow grass that never ran out, he returned to his new land. The builder agreed to fix up the house in the Oak Tree, a job that he described as 'quick, easy and free', considering that new gardeners got one free construction project.
"Hello again" Leafos said and he jumped slightly.
"Uh…hi Leafos… why are you here?"
"I'm your bookkeeper" she said, holding up his new journal. "Obviously you're going to be busy with the physical work so I will be updating the journal as we go along" she said with a small smile.
"Alright…" he said, placing his tools just outside the garden boundaries. Eventually he'd have control of some of the forest when he gets the full space upgrade, but for now he was limited to the area just around his oak tree.
His first order of business whilst Willy was busy fixing his home was to deal with the junk that had since been overgrown, a testament to how long this place had been abandoned for. When he managed to get that done, as well as collecting coins to add to his account. As he began to scrape up the soil, Leafos tapped his shoulder and he saw a white and black piñata poke its head out of the ground.
"A Whirlm…the bread and butter of any garden…soil or grass, so long as it's comfy, it'll become your first resident easily" she smiled and he smiled slightly too. He'd done something right, but there were still plenty of opportunities to mess up in the future, so he was still cautious.
As the sound of saws, hammers, drills and a jackhammer broke the silence of the garden and its surrounding area, Kenzie focused his attention on planting grass over his soil, which he managed easily. The Whirlms had been residents for over an hour by now and were watching the gardener move around awkwardly, but he got the job done just as the builder finished.
"All done, guv! Give the shed a whack with your shovel and the scaffolding will collapse on its own"
Climbing up the rebuilt steps he swung his shovel against the shed where it collapsed and vanished, revealing the new tree house in its place. The building was styled to look like the ones in the Village, despite been made of wood instead of stone and inside it was definitely cosy. He smiled once more as he now had his dream home. From a hole in the thick trunk of the tree, a white and black bird emerged. A Sparrowmint, if he remembered rightly.
"Right, guv, I may not know much about gardenin' but I do know some of the basics about these guys. Feathers here needs these two to romance so that you will be providing a food supply for them to live here" Willy said.
"Whirlms only require a house in this case" Leafos chipped in.
"It's fifty-five coins for the house…pick a site and I can start work and be done in no time"
"Alright then…whatever gets me started" he smiled, choosing the site at the corner of the garden.
As time passed, the land around the tree was now green and capable of supporting life. The tree would likely recover thanks to the water from his watering can and his home was set up. "Perhaps this gardening lark ain't too bad" Kenzie admitted as he looked at his Whirlms and Sparrowmints.
"This was exactly how the first new guy started when he came here…tomorrow, you, me and our resident wrangler, Langston, will be heading to the desert so you can learn how to trap piñata and how to care for them in your own garden. I also want to teach you some magic…"
"Magic?"
"Most residents on this island are capable of performing magic in some form or another. Tinkers can change basic items into more complex ones, hunters have heightened senses to track piñata but it's the gardeners that have the most magic. In time, you'll eventually be able to conjure tools to your hands with a mere thought and a click of your fingers. You'll also be able to understand your residents as though they were speaking to you in English. Some of the tools you use are magic too. The grass seed that replenishes itself and the watering can are prime examples"
"I can learn all of what you described?"
"Only the tool conjuring. Understanding your residents is a skill learned over time"
As the two conversed, they were unaware of a man dressed in red and black observing them from his new hideout, hidden deep in the mountains of the island. Oh yes, he remembered that garden from long ago. The candy he was able to steal from there had been some of the sweetest and quite a few of its residents had served as good Sours too.
"It would seem that some fool has decided to start making a garden…it's like they want me to get a cavity. Piñata in Oakata Forest are some of the sweetest around… my last scheme may have failed, but I will get rid of that pesky gardener and destroy his garden when it's at his prime. Victory is mine!"