Now that that's said though, lets see just what we're doing, shall we?
It is... Spoiler: Do do doo, what do we do~ MONDAY: Choose 2 Worth of Action Points Below
[X] Bond with? (Costs 1 Action)
-Kristen
[X] Analyze Samples (Costs 1 Action)
-Dandylion
And there we have it folks, now, lets get down to all that lack of action in 3! 2.! 1!
START~O!
You were so happy to be back in the comfort of your underground Lab, outside of the horrid Jungle apparently ruled by a crazy old Wood-man. And you weren't even being metaphorical about that either, as you learned from Wuya on the flight back.
You gave a silent stutter as you felt that information go through your mind again, and had made no small effort to remove any piece of live vegetation from any bathroom, window, or otherwise restricted area that you could allow.
As you were in the middle of clearing away the last set of shrubs from the windowsill, you caught the form of Kristen, who looked to just have woken up, if the half-worn sweatshirt marked with paw prints of all kinds was any indication.
It seemed she was just as surprised to see you as you were, but that might have been due the fact that you currently had your hands full with the bastard hybrid of a shrub and cactus. It stung something fierce to hold for long, but you would be DAMNED if you had some old Oak to spy on your every move.
"Well well little Jacky, finally trying to get a green thumb are ya?" Kathrine cajoled as she trudged through the thick grass around you, circling you like a predator its prey.
You ignored trying to track her with your eyes as she wanted, and instead brought your attention back down to the thorny bastard in your hands, taking care to not let any branches or such get between the combination of your gloves and long sleeved coat.
"Hey Kristen. Haven't seen you in a bit. How's things?" You ignored the jib about your gardening skill with the ease of long practice, and responded with a question that DID have some truth to it. Before these last few weeks, she had been the one to go on all the globe trotting adventures, leaving yourself to the basement of whatever house you're staying at for the time, working on perfecting this and that for your various projects and studies.
THIS time, you had some things to share of your own...
"Heh. Nothing too big, just a little arson for some big wig's 'private' jet. Even got to raid the bar and a few other goodies before it sunk, so that was fun. What about you little bro, stay in your basement doing your usual ne~rd thing?" Kristen sort of purred as she finally stopped circling over near the wheel-barrel you had to 'dispose' of the pesky plants.
Your answer was both quick, concise, and said offhandedly as if it was an average day for you. Just as you had practiced it.
"Eh, nothing too major. Accidentally became part of this mystic war over ideals and magical artifacts, and I just got back from the Amazon, where I met this guy who's half tree and can see through plants. What all did you get from the boat?
"Oh, well I got...Wait, what did you just say?" It seemed it took a moment for your words to land, but sure enough, there they did.
You took a moment to savor seeing someone else do a drawback at hearing otherwise outrageous information. You could see why people keep doing it to you. It felt GOOD.
"Yeah. There's a guy out there named Oro, can apparently see through any plant he wants too like a window. Hence, why i'm moving these from the bathrooms." At this, you motioned over to the wheel-barrel full of otherwise fine shrubs and potted trees.
"No. No, not that. HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ORO!" Kristen screamed in your face as she grabbed your shoulders and knocked the plant out of your hands.
Now it was your turn to look shocked.
"Wait, YOU know Oro!?" You yelled back.
How? HOW did your sister know about the thousands of years old Grandmaster you had no idea even EXISTED last week.
"OF COURSE I DO! HE'S WHERE OUR FAMILY STARTED!" Kristen yelled right in your face, even as it sounded farther away as your mind skipped multiple beats at that little tidbit.
what. What. WhAT. WHATWHATWHATWHATWHATWHATWHAT!
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTTTTT!" You yelled at the top of your lungs, causing Kristen to break her grip on your shoulders, AND leaving your suddenly jelly like legs unable to support you, causing you to fall backwards onto your butt. You didn't even notice.
"ARGH! DAMN IT! Right in my EARS!" Kristen shrieked as she held her ears in pain for a moment.
You didn't care. You quickly shot back to your feet and grabbed HER shoulders this time, completely reversing the position you were just in.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN ORO IS 'WHERE THE FAMILY STARTED'!?" You screamed as you shook her back and forth, oing a good job of snapping her out of the minor haze of pain her ears were feeling, and providing her enough momentum to land a pretty solid headbutt right at your chin.
As you were knocked back on the ground for the second time, you felt that the blow to the head did more help than harm to you.
You needed that. The pain gave you something to focus on and calm yourself over the fact that you were RELATED TO THE HORRIFYING TREE-MA-
You slapped yourself before your thoughts could go back down that road, and quickly ran through the process of building a Jackbot in your head, a sure-fire way to calm and center yourself.
As you took a few deep breaths, you felt yourself calm enough to deal with whatever the hell this conversation would be. As you looked up, you saw Kristen staring down at you, the mid-afternoon light shining behind her.
"Ya ready to NOT freak the fuck out now?" Kristen asked you, blunt as ever.
Again, you ignored that VERY JUSTIFIABLE outburst, and merely nodded to her as the two moved back into the kitchen, leaving the plants to be taken care of by either one of the many butlers and gardeners of the manner, or a Jackbot. Whichever came first.
As you sat down at the island, you watched as Kristen made herself a long Island Ice Tea, and then take the seat beside you.
"Alright, let me shed some light for you Jacky boy, cause APPARENTLY, you just STUMBLE into family secrets if you go outside. SO not the cat's meow..." Kristen mildly complained.
At this, you just set your eyes into a slight glare, and made a motion with your hand to move on, prompting an eye-roll of her own.
"Fiii~ne. Ahem. Long ago, in the backwaters of China like, 300 or some shit years ago, there was a group of people called the Spicers. Why were they called that? Cause they grew fucking spices, and nobody was original back then. So, there they were, growing spices and shit for the local area, doing well but not great. Then, HE came." Kristen spoke in the story telling tone, complete with her stupid flashlight shaped like a cats face.
Before you could ask anything, she held up her hand not holding the flashlight, and continued on.
"And before you ask, YES, that was Oro. The fuck he was doing in China back then, I don't know, and don't particularly care. Anywho~, the rest of the family didn't really give a fuck either, he was just some guy after all. But that changed when they found him... appropriating culture with the local midwives...and their daughters...and some of the new crops. Yeah, it was a REAL CLUSTERFUCK. Zing!" At this, Kristen turned her hand into a finger-gun, while you just continued to look at her, non-plussed at the joke.
"God, be more of a buzzkill why don't you...Anyway, where was I? OH right, the fucking. Yeah, that happened. So, he did the dirty and planted some seeds, and wouldn't you know it, they ALL got pregnant. Even the crops, which is why have saffron, by the by. S'why I make sure nothing I eat has any in or on it. But, ah, yeah. That all happened, and wouldn't you know it, those kids were really good at their job. Like, SCARY GOOD. As in, trees growing in months rather than years in their footsteps good. So, the people put two and two together, and got three. They decided the strange man was a Foreign God of some sort who had blessed them, and wrote all kinds of shit about him and what he looked like so 'their descendants could likewise bear his gift', the pricks. But, fast forward a few hundred years, a small valley of plant farmers now crossed the worlds and held a monopoly on a product that LITERALLY took them weeks or hours to grow what others took months to YEARS. Then, one day, one of our family found the old scrolls and decided 'Fuck it! I have money, time, and fuck all other to do! Let's see if there was anything to this!'. And he did just that. He somehow tracked the somehow still living guy who was going across the States like Johnny Fucking Apple Seed, and got the story out of him. And BAM, ZOOM, we're MAGIC!" With the story done, Kristen threw her flashlight into the air, giving you a brief view of her jazz hands as she said the word 'magic'.
The first question that came to your mind was a simple one.
"Why is this the first time I've heard this story." The words came out slightly sour to your lips, but it had to be asked.
Kristen leveled a flat gaze at you for a moment, before answering.
"Before now, none us us but Nainai, Grandpa, and me at times have really been fond of you, plus you didn't really show any interest in the family business or talent before this point."
"O...kay. Ignoring that hurtbomb, I'll...just say thanks for telling me that." As you said this, you made sure to look Kristen in the eyes.
She looked surprised for a moment, but those eyes then softened a bit, and you got an answer.
"Sure. No problem...Little Bro." At this, you both smiled softly for a moment, before a brilliant idea came to your mind, one that already fit into what you wanted to do later today.
*Special EVENT: Synergy of Kittens*
"Say, Kristen...I found this really cool cat thing while I was in the Amazon...Want to help me see what makes it tick?" You said with a slightly teasing grin.
"Nah, You you do you're...did you say CAT thing?" Kristen began to say, before growing excited at the chance to see a potentially new version of her favorite thing.
"I did indeed." You confirmed, enjoying the sight of Kristen's eyes light up, giving even more prominence to her somewhat almond shaped eyes. Thsi was one of the few surefire ways to get your sister in a good mood, and in your childhood, you remember abusing it mercilessly.
Now, you were using it to grow closer to your family, and you couldn't find it in yourself for wish for anything better.
DAY: COMPLETE
GAINED:
Kristen/Catnappe: Sister with Sharp Claws Rank 3 4!, Next Ability at Rank 5
Understanding of Dandy-Lion?: You understand every aspect of its existence, from its ability to photosynthesis, to its preference to hunt birds more than fish. What you CANNOT understand is how it biologically EXISTS. You suspect Magic, and Kristen suggests Oro just not being two picky. You eventually decide, it's probably both. More study of factors beyond your understanding is needed.
END OF CHAPTER
To those of you who probably saw this coming, Brava to you. To those who didn't, Ha! Hope you enjoyed it! And to think, we still have a full week, most likely!
Until Tuesday comes, whenever THAT is!