Leafos could always tell if something was wrong.
"Are you alright? You have been very quiet this morning," she commented, her gloved hands folded neatly over one another. Her head tilted to the side, her eyes watching Hunter carefully. By the way his tired eyes looked and the Juicygoose bumps on his exposed arms, something had clearly spooked him.
Although, his only reply was, "We lost our Bunnycomb."
"Aw," Leafos said, sounding quite sympathetic. Even though a Bunnycomb was very low level pinata, it was always hard to lose the first one you ever have become resident in your garden.
"Those Pretztails can be quite sneaky. If it makes you feel better, Pretztails are pretty good for beginning gardeners," Leafos said in an encouraging tone. Hunter shook his head.
"It wasn't a Pretztail," Hunter mumbles, picking at the ground with his fingers. He had been picking at the grass for hours, tearing quite a bit of it up. He always had a tendency to pick at things when something was wrong, whether it was food, grass, or the loose strings that hung off of his clothing. He pulled his hand from the ground, examining his fingernails, now caked with layers of dried mud.
"Well, then what happened?" Leafos asked. She had no idea what it could have been. The Bunnycomb was only a resident for a short amount of time, so it couldn't have gotten so upset in a short amount of time for it to leave. If a Pretztail didn't get to it-
"It got sick," Hunter continued. "I didn't see it... I was just checking on the flowers, and I wasn't paying attention." Leafos nodded, listening carefully. Deep down, her gut started to feel uneasy, since she was just figuring out what had set the young gardener off.
"I didn't hear it squeaking or anything. I heard nothing, to be honest. I just started to feel uneasy, and-"
"It was Dastardos, wasn't it?" Leafos asked, cutting him off, which was something she didn't do often. She just couldn't bear to hear the story. She always cringed at the stories of the young gardeners losing their pinatas to the heartless reaper, feeling just awful for them and the poor sick pinatas.
"Well... yeah, actually," Hunter said, now looking up at the older woman. "Do you know him?" Leafos shook her head, her bushy pigtails brushing against her shoulders.
"Not exactly. I only know of him," She starts. "He's a heartless soul who wonders around, breaking open sick pinatas with his pinata stick."
"Oh," Was the only word Hunter mumbled. He gently bit on his lower lip, glancing at the ground. If only he had grabbed his alert system when he woken up- maybe he could have called someone. Or at least thrown it at Cameron for just walking away like that and leaving him with a so-called reaper.
"Okay buddy, here we go!" Speaking of Cameron, the older teen finally appeared, walking towards them. In from of him was a wheelchair, one that was made of metal instead of wood. It squeaked slightly as he pushed it across the grass, a few blades actually getting stuck on it. Hunter looked at his brother curiously.
"Why did you get my wheelchair?" Hunter asked. Cameron just smiled, walking out from behind.
"Because we are going to go to town and getting some more carrot seeds," The older brother said. Hunter chuckled, still looking a little confused.
"Why?"
"To get you a new Bunnycomb, of course," Cameron said. "Can't garden with a frowny face."
"Well, thanks, but I think I want to stay here. I want to find out how it got sick in the first place. Gotta think about the other pinatas too," Hunter said, watching as two Mousemillows scampered on past him. Cameron frowned, crossing his arms.
"Oh come on, you aren't going to make me do it myself, are you?" He asked. "Besides, I already got the wheelchair."
"I will be fine. Besides, it's only three seeds- six if you want to get two of them," Hunter said. "Besides, I need to watch over the Mousemillows too. We don't want Syrupents in here," Hunter said, referring to Cameron's hatred of snakes. Cameron grumbled, shaking his head.
"Gotcha. Well, it's here if you need it," Cameron said, patting the metal chair. Leafos looked over at the older brother, chewing her lip slightly.
"Um, if it would be okay, would you mind if I came with you?" Leafos asked, before shooting Hunter a glance. "I mean, unless if you need help here." Hunter shook his head, smiling.
"No, I got it. I don't want to be a third wheel," He said, his smile turning into a smirk. Leafos didn't quite understand what he meant, but Cameron just burst out laughing.
"Third wheel! I get it. Good one," He said, wiping a tear from his eye. Hunter raised his blonde brow, since he didn't quite get it. When it did hit him, he simply rolled his eyes, unamused by his brother's wheelchair joke. As he turned back to his plants, Cameron turned to Leafos, wiggling his eyebrows as he walked off. Leafos made a face, as she always did whenever Cameron would wiggle his brows or wink at her. He wasn't exactly her type.
"Alright, we should be back shortly," Leafos said, waving to Hunter. "Just alert me if something is wrong!"
"Will do," Hunter replied, not making any sort of eye contact. He just smiled a little bit, remembering that his older sister back at home was the same way towards him whenever she had to leave.
A few paces outside the garden, Cameron had put his hands on the back of his head, whistling contently. The actions of that morning did not seem to phase him in the least bit, despite how embarrassing it was for a stranger to see him sleeping naked.
Oh well, he thought, sighing a bit as he did.
"Cameron, wait up a second," Leafos called out, walking quickly to catch up to him. Cameron turned around, his green eyes flashing a bit as she caught up a bit.
"Look Leafos, if you just wanted to hang out with me, you could have just-"
"Where were you this morning?" Leafos asked, interrupting his thought. She was not in the mood for listening to Cameron make remarks.
"Uh... well, I was sleeping next to the Blackberry bush like I always do," He said nonchalantly. Leafos squinted her eyes a bit, as if he was lying.
"And?"
"Well, then I woke up because my blanket was taken off of me."
"Go on."
"Uh, then I saw a floating midget talking to Hunter, and then I got dressed," Cameron finished, making a weird face at her. What, was he being interrogated or something?
"You mean you left Hunter out there with some creep?" Leafos asked, her tone sounding quite angry. Cameron gulped. Angry women was not something he could deal with.
"Yeah. He didn't look harmless. Just looked like he was on some serious meth or something," he answered calmly. "I mean, at first I was a little concerned, but then again, Hunter is way too smart to buy any sort of drugs-"
"You left him out there alone with Dastardos?" Leafos asked, her tone now sounding more shocked than angry. Cameron's relaxed expression from before started to turn a little more serious.
"Who's Dastardos?" He asked. Leafos smacked her forehead.
"The creepy man that was in the garden this morning," She said, her blue eyes starting to look a little sad now. "He's a pinata reaper."
"A reaper of pinatas?"
"Yes."
"Sounds serious," Cameron commented. Leafos gave him a long look, blinking as she did so.
".. Indeed," She said. "Not only that, but he only reaps pinatas that are sick. Smashes them open and then takes away their life candy."
"Why?"
"Nobody knows," Leafos said, starting to walk towards the village. "Some say that it's because he needs it in order to stay alive. Other say that he brings it back to Pester for the Professor's own wicked reasons."
"... And Professor Pester is...?" Cameron said, twirling his hand around as a gesture to go on. Leafos mentally slapped herself- Cameron and Hunter haven't even met the third Ruffian, or Ruffian 3 as most gardeners called them. How would he know who Pester was?"
"Well... I'll tell you that another day," Leafos said, chewing her bottom lip slightly. Cameron pouted, but decided to leave it. After all, it probably wasn't best to tell his little brother about another possible threat just yet. Besides, with a name like Professor Pester, the guy could just be a laughable excuse for a villain. Cameron looked over at Leafos, and noticed the bright smile on her face now.
"Well, enough of the evil talk. I do have a surprise for you, the real reason I wanted to come out here," Leafos chirped, holding up a finger. Cameron smirked, leaning forward sightly.
"Leafos, babe, all you had to do was ask if you wanted some time alone," the brunette purred. Leafos scrunched her nose.
"That's not what I meant," Leafos murmured with a slight click of her tongue. Cameron blushed slightly, scratching the back of his head.
"Oh. I knew that," He mumbled, not exactly doing all that well to hide his disappointment. Leafos rolled her eyes, continuing her walk towards the village.
"Oh just come on..." She mutters. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all...
Petula had to force herself to bite her tongue.
"Aw Gracie, you look so cute!" Cooed the blonde standing behind the counter. Petula knew her well- the gardener Karisa. No one could mistake the thick, bouncing braid that fell over the younger's shoulder, or the two long strands of hair that framed around her pale face, complete with a few cheap bobby pins as a desperate attempt to keep her bangs out of her face. Petula rolled her eyes. Karisa did her hair like an eight year old.
What made it even worse was that she brought, yet again, her annoying Juicygoose, Gracie. Apparently, Gracie was Karisa's most prized pinata, although it was hardly even accessorized besides the buttercup flower on it's head, and right now, the bright red tail bow the gardener was thinking about buying. Petula had to look away, for it was the most standard form of accessorizing she had ever seen. She didn't even want to waist her breath trying to tell her what was wrong with the whole fashion statement.
"I just don't know if that's your color though..." Karisa said, her voice sounding like it was trailing off, like it always did. Gracie turned her long neck around to look at the bow, to see what she thought. She had to agree with the gardener- the deep red didn't match her purple and orange patterns.
With a shake of her head, Karisa turned to Petula. "You wouldn't happen to have it in another color, would you?"
"Sorry. That's the only color it comes in," Petula said, not sounding apologetic at all. She just wanted to blonde to leave so that she could continue her mid-day nap. Her frown grew wider when the front door opened, revealing two more costumers.
"Well, hello there ladies," Cameron coos as he walks in. With no mask on, and with Leafos walking in beside him, Petula knew exactly what was going on.
"New gardener huh? Well, you know where the masks are," She said nonchalantly, waving them off. Cameron looked at Leafos.
"A mask? That's why you brought me here?" he asked. Leafos nodded, clapping her hands together.
"Yup! It's a tradition on Pinata Island to wear a mask," she chirps, walking further into the store. Cameron looked even more confused them before, looking around the "Paper Pets." There was so many frills and ribbons hanging off the shelves, as well as a few other accessories beyond those. He frowns, not liking the idea of buying a mask from a pet shop.
"So, you're buying me a mask from this place? So lame..." Cameron muttered. Petula rolled her eyes.
"The masks are on the other side of the store," Petula said, using a warning tone. Karisa put the tail bow back on the counter, looking away from Cameron. She wasn't that good with meeting strangers, and was much to shy to introduce herself to him. She gently nudged Gracie, trying to get the little goose pinata to hurry. Cameron, unfortunately, noticed this and went his way to stop her.
"Hey, no need to be shy," He coos, putting his arm over her shoulder. Karisa's cheeks turned a little pink, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
"I really need to get going," She said, smiling as she took his hand off of her shoulder. Cameron chuckled, putting his hands up in defeat.
"Hey, hey, you don't have to be shy around me," he says, winking at her. Karisa raised a brow, turning away.
"Thanks Petula," she said, ignoring Cameron's comment. With Gracie close behind, Karisa hurried out of the store. Cameron clicked his tongue.
"Ah, I guess she wasn't ready for me yet," He mumbles, turning to Petula. With a smirk on his face, he began to speak.
"So, do-"
"Don't even bother," Petula said, holding up a hand to his face. Cameron pouted.
"You didn't even know what I was going to ask," He mumbled, walking away from her. He tried his best not to sulk as he walked over to Leafos, who was holding up a pink flutterscotch mask.
"... I hope that isn't for me," he commented. Leafos looked at him, a bit of a teasing smirk on her face.
"I was only looking at it, while you hopelessly tried to flirt with Karisa and Petula," she mocked, putting the mask away. Cameron childishly stuck his tongue out at her, walking over to the bins. Just with a quick glance, he could tell that these masks weren't top quality.
"Geez, is this it?" he asked quietly, not wanting Petula to overhear. Leafos nods.
"Yes, unless you want to make the long trip out into the city for ones that cost more then a Dastardos shovel," she says, holding up another one. Cameron nods, starting to look through the bins. He found a couple that maybe Hunter may have liked, but knowing that kid, he probably would just want a little eyeband rather than something that would make him stick out.
"Now, you want to puck something that represents you, or your garden," Leafos said, continuing her search. Cameron wasn't paying too much attention, since he was just tossing masks around. A lot of them were quite girly looking, which was what he guessed since the store itself was a little girly.
"I dunno. I might just have to go with a-" then he stopped. At the bottom of one of the bins, he had found the perfect mask. It was a faded red, just like his shirt. Along with orange marks and pointed ears, it only covered half of his face, meaning that there was enough of it left for the ladies. He slipped it on over his face, making sure he could see through the eye holes before he turned to Leafos.
"So, what do you think?" He asked, stroking his chin as if he had a beard there. Leafos turned around, examining the mask. It looked very good on him, especially with his green eyes, although she didn't want to say it. There was no need to boost his ego.
"Do you like that one?" she asked. Cameron nodded, looking at the mirror hanging on the wall. He liked how it looked, and thankfully, it was the perfect size. He walked over to the front counter, and tossed a handful of bills in front of Petula.
"Keep the change, sweetheart," he said, winking as he walked out the front door. Petula raised a brow, picking up one of the green pieces of Leafos sighed, taking out her wallet to grab a few chocolate coins.
"Sorry, he still thinks he's in America," Leafos said, paying for the mask and walking out the front door.
Karisa sighed, shaking her head as she mentally scolded herself.
Wonderful impression Karisa, she thought. You meet the new gardener and you manage to embarrass yourself. She pouted, her hands reaching up to fix her purple flutterscotch mask. With her hasty retreat from Paper Pets, it had fallen a little out of place. But what could she do? She didn't even know the guy, yet he was hitting on her.
"Alright Ethan, I need to go build a pinata home. Think you can manage the store on your own for a bit?" Called a very familiar voice. Karisa knew that tone anywhere. It was none other than Willy Builder, the owner of the Builder shop. She looked over, seeing that Willy was standing in the doorway of his own shop. The chubby builder had his toolbox in one hand, while the other was holding the door open as he was talking to whoever was inside.
"Yeah, I can do it," called the person inside. Karisa smiled, while Gracie looked a little confused. The Juicygoose strained her neck a bit, wanting to see who Willy was talking to. Alas, she could not see over him.
"That's my boy. I'll be back in five-ten minutes tops," the builder said, shutting the door. When he turned around, he grins at Karisa.
"Well, if it isn't Karisa! How are you doing?" He calls out loudly, despite her only being a few paces away. Karisa giggled a bit, putting a hand on Gracie's head as she did.
"I'm doing great Mr. Builder," she said cheerfully, returning his grin. Willy nods, flicking at the giant hammer on top of his mask.
"I'd love to stay and chat, but I have to go build a helper home for someone," He said. "Ethan's inside if you were wanting to talk to him. Well, see ya later." And with that, the Builder politely pushed past her and made his way south. Karisa stood there a moment, hearing him mutter something about the walk being too far before she walked towards the door. Since she was already here, she might as well say hi to the Builder's son.
Ethan was one of the first friends she had made in the village, besides Leafos of course. He was quite tall, and well built for an eighteen-year-old. He was always found wearing a pair of overalls over a rolled-up shirt, along with the Sweetooth mask that would cover only half of his face. He always was in a relaxed mood, although it didn't take very much to set him off.
After shushing Gracie, to make sure the Juicygoose didn't make any noise, she slowly crept in. Unlike all of the other shops in town, this shop didn't have a bell or any sort of indication of someone being in there. Ethan once told her that was because his dad didn't like it, especially if he was trying to catch up on his sleep during the slower days.
Speaking of Ethan, Karisa said, looking over at the counter. Sitting on top of it was none other than Ethan. There was no mistaking the blueish/grey mop on his head. The older teen was pre-occupied at the moment, balancing the end of a hammer on his hand as he tried to balance it. His blue eyes were so focused on it that he had no idea that he had company in the store. Karisa looked down at Gracie, nodding her head. The Juicygoose knew exactly what she meant.
"SQUAWK!" Gracie suddenly burst. Ethan let out a yelp, jumping at least a foot off that counter. He landed on the wooden floor with a loud thud, and the hammer fell just a few inches away from his head. Karisa and Gracie bother burst out laughing, the gardener having to hold her sides when they started to cramp up quite quickly.
"That... was so not funny," Ethan growled, picking himself off of the floor. "I could have died you know, if that hammer had landed on my head." Karisa made a "tsk tsk" sound, shaking her head.
"Well, that's what you get for slacking off while on duty," She teased, walking over to him. She offered him a hand, which he took. She almost fell over though, since she was small and did not have have the strength to pick the taller man up. Ethan sighed, looking down at her.
"So, did you need something?" he asked, already getting over his previous blunder. Karisa shrugged.
"No. I just thought I would just stop by and say hi," she said, watching as Gracie was poking around at the shelves. Ethan nodded, looking over at Gracie as well.
"Were you signing up for the P-Factor or something?" he asked. Karisa shook her head.
"No. I brought Gracie down to Paper Pets. She wanted something to spice up her appearance," She sighs. "Sadly, there wasn't anything that looked right."
"Ah," Ethan responded, looking down at his hammer. He tended to do that whenever Karisa would talk about accessories. He had told the girl many times that she should try out for the P-Factor, being a judge or a contestant, but the girl had a bad case of stage fright. Besides, she would just end up staring at her crush the whole time and forget about what she was supposed to be doing.
"I heard you were going to be in the Pinata races tomorrow though," Karisa said, snapping the builder from his thoughts. Ethan smiled, nodding proudly.
"Yup. It's gonna be a tight competition though."
"How so?"
"Flapjack and I are up against a Horstachio and a Zumbug. Bear's Fizzlybear shouldn't be too much competition, but I might not make first," Ethan said in a very literal tone. Flapjack was a Flapyak, and was Ethan's favorite pinata. Sadly, no matter how much Ethan loves the big pinata, he couldn't give it a more creative name.
"Well, if you talk like that, then you definitely won't win," Karisa scolded. Gracie squawked from behind, as if to agree with the gardener. Ethan chuckled.
"Well, it's-"
"Have more faith in Flapjack. He's pretty fast for a Flapyak, you know," the gardener argued, jabbing Ethan in the shoulder. The builder glared at her, smirking as he did so. After that, there was a small beeping sound.
"Yeah, yeah, excuse me for a minute," he said, walking around Karisa back to the counter. He thought he had heard his alert system go off, and he reached for it. With a quick glance at it, there was a new message on there from a new friend of his.
Hey Builder! Just got a new mask. Also met two really cute girls at Paper Pets ;) -C
"Of course you did Cameron," Ethan muttered, alerting the brunette right away. Karisa tilted her head to the side, leaning over the counter.
"Who's Cameron?" She asked. Ethan looked up at her.
"He's a new gardener. He's a pretty cool guy," he answered. "Although, he spends a little too much time looking at girls."
"Oh. He sounds kinda like the guy I saw at Paper Pets today. Although that guy was kinda creepy," she said, resting her head on her hand. Ethan raised a brow at her, looking up from his alert system.
"... At Paper Pets?"
"Yeah," Karisa said. "Why?"
"Oh, nothing," Ethan mutters, starting to type a quick alert to Cameron.
Good for you bud. Unfortunately, the blonde thinks you're a creep. -E
Dude, how did you know one of them was a blonde? -C
Ethan didn't respond after that, deciding to leave if for now.