New Problems: Filler and Fluff!
Disclaimer: I own nothing! .:author breaks down sobbing:. Well, except Cat. .:smiles through tears:.
Shout-outs:
Theshadowcat: Well, I dunno... Growing and changing could be a bad thing too. People who write in IM shorthand bother me. I swear it's a plot to destroy the world... I have no problems with it used in author's notes, but in an actual fic I can't stand it. Thank you for your wondermous reviews!
Umbra the Dark: You like them? .:wonders:. My words, I mean. I'm so glad you like it! Thanks for the review!
Lioness78: Three reviews? That makes me feel so special! Thanks for brightening up my day with them. .:smile:. And yes, there may indeed be liking on the part of Hellboy. Oh yes indeedy...
epalladino: Sorry, but short is the way I write. And that chapter was four pages, actually! Which is really good for me. I average between two and three, so consider it a near miracle.
Anna-Melinda: You really think it's brilliant? .:wonder once more:. There must be an explantion... Something quantum has gone wrong with the universe! No one to ignore, but thanks for your kind advice and excellent review!
Let the ficcage begin:
The next day, at around ten, found Cat moving around, albeit rather shakily. She carefully made her way down to breakfast, collapsing into her seat upon arrivalwith considerable relief.
"What's wrong?" asked Liz, concern for her friend tingeing her voice.
"Nothing much. I just came down with a case of powdery mildew, probably from the shock of my collapse. It means lots of sunshine and rest for a few days, but it's not serious. Wouldn't get it normally, but, like I said, my system was compromised and this came through."
"Tough luck. Powdery mildew, though?"
"Like I said, I'm part plant and part human. Means I can get both colds and the botanic equivalent of them."
"Fun. Bet winter's pretty hard on you."
"Oh, definitely. Not enough air circulation and sunshine, too much damp. It's absolutely miserable."
"How's your breakfast?"
"Pretty good. But then, I've always liked French toast, no matter how badly it's cooked." After a moments' thought she added "Not that the cooking's bad, just that I'd like it even if it was. Waitaminute, now I'm confused. Oh, hell."
Liz giggled helplessly at the verbal trap Cat had set up for herself. Acting mock hurt, Cat shot her an aggrieved look and then stuck her tongue out at the older woman playfully, only sending her into further paroxysms of laughter.
"Want to go work in the garden?" asked Cat as Liz started to show signs of stopping, or at least slowing down.
"Sure!"
The sun was bright overhead as the two people walked out to the plot and began to work, Cat showing Liz the rudiments of soil amendments.
"This is bone meal, then that's blood meal and then, in order, comes kelp meal, horn-and-hoof meal, kelp meal and then nitrogenous rock. This jug is liquid kelp, and the other one dilute fish emulsion. Also, compost, alfalfa pellets and, finally, sterilized sand. (1)"
"Are you sure that's really all we'll need? Why don't we just bury a whole cow and save a lot of time?" said Liz, half-joking and half serious.
"Probably a good idea. Anyways, all the meals are sources for nitrogen, potash and phosphates. Kelp meal and fish emulsion are for the same things, as well as having high doses of trace nutrients. Compost is to neutralize the soil as well as enrich it, alfalfa pellets to add more organic matter and the sand is just in case something I plant needs better-drainingsoil."
"Sounds…complex. Where do we start?"
"Give a good sprinkling of nitrogenous rock, bone meal and blood meal, then a lighter sprinkling of kelp meal and horn and hoof meal. Then I'll follow up with compost; the alfalfa, sand, liquid kelp and fish emulsion'll be doled out once the plants are in the ground. It's hardly an exact science."
"What plants?"
"That's what I'm going to be working on."
Cat went to a patch of grass a little ways away from Liz and pulled out several packets, each, coincidentally, containing seeds. A few minutes' worth of concentration per packeton Cats' part produced several seedlings, each one grown to a developmental stage of a few months or so.
After the soil was suitably improved Cat and Liz took a quick break for a picnic lunch, and then plugged in a few of the not-quite-seedlings, chatting aimlessly about what they liked in a garden. Cat jotted down a few notes concerning shrubs, bulbs, grasses (2) and the placement thereof, and then they retired back inside.
Cat was walking down the hall, back towards her room, supporting herself with one hand against the wall. Her breathing was slightly shaky; she was still feeling the results of the previous days' collapse, the powdery mildew and the exertion her powers caused. A slight rough patch in the floor made her trip, falling backwards. Slight dizziness still lingered, and it was just enough to send her to the ground.
Except that she was caught. After she regained her balance she turned around, as quickly as her circumstances allowed, to find herself facing Hellboy. A slight blush started on her cheeks, not particularly noticeable.
"Umm… Thanks," she managed.
"No problem." HB growled at her, voice rough to hide his embarrassment.
She put out a cautious hand, touching his arm gently. "You didn't have to catch me," she said quietly. Then, blush more apparent, she walked off. Hellboy watched her go, surprise on his face, absentmindedly touching the spot she had held him as he stared at the corner she had disappeared around.
(1) In case you're wondering where Cat got all this from, she took them to the Bureau with her. Obsessive gardeners are like that. She managed to fit most of this into two suitcases "and change". She left her clothes behind when she moved, but not her soil amendments.
(2) She doesn't carry bulbs because they don't stay viable long, as well as space restrictions and bruising worries, not to mention the difficulties of keeping them in the right conditions. Shrubs generally need grafting, something she can't manage reliably, and grasses don't come true to seed. Which is why she needs to purchase/beg/steal them off of other people. And yes, there actually are problems with people stealing plants. Let's put it this way: ever heard of "rose rustling"?
A/N: I have no doubt a lot of avid HB/Liz fans are now angry at me. But at least hear my reasoning? First off, HB is still in a more teenagered stage of his development. Liz is considerably older, developmentally speaking. I see their friendship as just that—friendship. Also, in the comics they both have a long history of breaking up and then getting back together again, with neither particularly happy with the situation. I just see him'n'Cat as better suited to each other.
