Description: The Fighting Otaku Florist continues collecting autographs! This time, the 'Don't Call Him Famous' Frei visits her shop. See what happens when the two most modest people in all of Southtown meet! Monk verses Flowergirl! Who wins? Who becomes poor? Read and find out!
Aaaaah! Another wonderful afternoon in Southtown!
The little hole-in-the-wall Flowershop, sandwiched between two larger, more permanent businesses on a scenic section of the rustic Village, seems to be doing quite well. Well enough that apparently the owner has started reducing her hours, staying open only during the afternoon where traffic amongst her student clientelle is at its height. Leaving the late-night open for watching all of her DVR-recorded fighting matches. :9
The perky owner herself is humming some old tune to herself as she carefully waters each and every flower in her care. Tending to her inventory one blossom after another with meticulous attention. Fingertips occasionally checking leaves for health as she squints through her thick, wide lenses. "Oh! Oh! Good afternoon Daffodil-san! Are you feeling well? Oh my! Your poor leafy arm is withering a little!" Frowning in deeply as she settles her fists at her hips, "Well don't you worry none Daffodil-san! Chisa will fix you riiiiight up! Yes she will, yes she will!"
Immediately ducking under the workbench and fishing for some fresh fertilizer and her pruning shears. >-<! Victory will be hers!
When you know where to look, it really is amazing what you can do with real estate.
Left homeless by his sojourn to China with the tiny mistake of not telling the landowner he was renting his small shrine from, the monk was left with no choice on his return to Southtown but to find somewhere else to be. Which wasn't as hard as it sounded; between his mysterious trust fund and his fighting revenues, he has more than enough money to live somewhere 'nice' for a single person. The result was an attic loft in this very region of Southtown, where the commercial and the residential collide. Prime location, lots of open space to practice, big cathedral windows. Sure, it lacks the flavor of Shinto, but Frei's always been more of a Baskin Robbins when it comes to world religion.
However, the place is effectively bare, Frei himself not being particularly materialistic. A debate over whether or not to get a cat or a plant was decided by a coin flip (it was heads, by the way). Thus he finds himself on a foot tour of the many small shops surrounding his neighborhood to get some plants. Curios, furniture, all of that has been taken care of... and it's with some relief that he swings open the door to this particular flowershop, looking inside by poking his head in the door and glancing around. "Shop!" he says perkily, borrowing from his British heritage.
*BOMP*
As Frei opens the door and announces his presence, the cheerful Chisa -SLAMS- the top of her head against the worktable above her. @.x "O..oooowww.." The clutz then wobbles upright once more, a hand painfully touching the bump growing on the back of her head as she winces.
"Oh! C..Customer-sans!" Blurry images of a small army of Frei's swirl around as she waves to each of them in turn, "..C..Chisa will be with you all in just one moment! Please! Enjoy your wonderful dancing for a moment longer.. Eegh.."
The small, mousey thing then wobbles back towards her counter by the old-style register. Knocking over a half-dozen empty pots as she shambles along. By the time she arrives she then -slaps- the side of her own head, eyes shaking in place a moment until the legion of Chinese Fighters focus into one. "Oh! I..Impressive technique, customer-san!" Then bowing promptly and eagerly, "How can lowly Chisa be of assistance!" ^-^
Um.
Unaccostumed to both servility and Vaudeville, Frei actually stands in the doorway like an idiot for a moment while the storekeeper goes through a really impressive pratfall act (it's so realistic!), overwhelmed by the situation... which for a relatively unflappable character like Frei Tsukitomi-Renard, takes some doing. The redhead winces as pots clatter to the ground in her wake, and in the fracas he decides to step inside and shut the door behind him, lest Chisa be loosed upon the world in some sort of malestrom of accidental destruction. Southtown's got enough problems.
Deciding to match her bow with one of his own, Frei ducks his head, then straightens and rubs his hand across the back of his head, giving the (surviving) plants the once over as he drawls through his response. "I'm here for some flowers," Captain Obvious responds, before realizing that and pinching the bridge of his nose, then giving the (hopefully standing) Chisa a goofy smile. "You knew that. I just moved into an apartment and I want something to put in my windowbox for color... and maybe company, I guess. The coin said 'plant', not 'cat', so." What?
The dizzy florist grins her brightest to the young man! Attentively listening to his request as she bobs her head once in acknowledgement, "Oh flowers yes! How wonderful yes! Chisa will do her best! Y.."
her own voice cut off a moment as she blinks again, her blurry vision finally focused once more as she gets a clear look at the handsome, short fellow.
Or maybe she's just puzzling over how a coin can talk.
"F...Frei?" The bumbling shopkeeper ventures, eyes slowly widening behind her dinner-plate sized lenses, "Are you Frei?!" Voice shaking with growing shock, her opposite fingertips touching her lips as she points at him almost accusingly!
That's not the response the monk was expecting. His fans are typically a little... well, for starters, they're not florists, or at least he wouldn't EXPECT them to be florists. Of course, he muses to himself, there's no guarantee that she's a fan. ~ She may be Inigo Montoya, ~ Frei Almas, pursing his lips a little. ~ I may have killed her father. I should prepare to die. ~
Beat.
After a moment he extends his hand, the autumn leaf-colored qipao jacket pulled away from pale wrist as he does so. For starters, he probably has nothing to fear from this woman. And secondly, he DID intend to leave here with a plant, so he's got to answer her question if he wants to escape with one. "I would say I am Spartacus," Frei responds cheerily, "but I feel like that joke's sort of played, you know?"
"SQUEEE!"
Chisa hops once in place as she claps her hands together happily! "Chisa knew it! Chisa thought she recognized you!"
The young girl immediately begins to bow in rapid fire as she rambles quickly, "Chisa is honored to meet you! Chisa is a HUUUUGE fan of Neo League and fighting circuits!" Immediately the woman then dashes to the side, knocking over a vase as she yanks open a drawer and withdraws a thick red book titled 'Neo League Official Roster 2007'. Racing back infront of the young man as she flipflipflips through the pages rapidly, revealing nearly hundreds of notes over dozens of pages with vital statistics, performances, wins, losses, damn near all public knowledge about every fighter who ever touched an official tournament.
Yeesh! A Fighter Otaku Florist.
Quickly openning it to Frei's page, revealing an earlier picture of him during his first fight with Hotaru years ago, well before his Chinese soujourn, "I..If Frei would feel so generous as to honor lowly Chisa w..with an autograph?" Grinning brightly as she quickly holds the book out to the young man, along with a black pen. ^-^!
The third person? Is beginning to freak Frei out.
However, true to form, the monk seamlessly flows through the situation without needing to stop to breathe or reasses, taking the black pen and inscribing his name just below his picture, once taken in 2006 that features his old 1P color with the black headband and the shorter hair. "With all the red-haired half-British Japanese in the league," he says languidly, the tone intended to include Chisa in the joke rather than make her the butt of it, "it must have been difficult pinning me down."
Deciding to milk it for all its worth, he hands the book and pen back to Chisa with a cheshire grin, pointing at said ginger locks with one finger. "I'm mistaken for Ken Masters CONSTANTLY, you know."
The fangirl titters, besides herself with glee as the famed fighter jots his name down in her Guidebook of Autographs! "Thankyouverymuch! Thankyouverymuch! Heeee! Oh no no! Chisa won't be fooled so easy-like!" Waggling her finger gleefully as she adds, "Ken Masters is much more blonder! And American! And Red!" ^-^ Holding her hands outwards as if revealing some grand secret that only she was let in on.
Unfortunately, wit seems to go waaaay over this poor girl's head.
As the autograph is finished, she quickly snatches her book back and hugs it to herself in sincere affection! ^-^ "Eeeee! Thank you Frei! Eeee!" Even going so far as to plant a small rain of kisses on the binding. *-* Muah! Muah Muah!
...Muah..?
Pausing in mid-literature-smooch, Chisa's eyes quickly sweep back to the poor monk. Her self-consciousness catches up with her as she SWIFTLY hides the book behind the small of her back, grinning from ear to ear nervously, "A..Ah yes! C..Chisa would be happy to help such a bold and wonderful fighter! She has a discount for all local fighters in town! The best prices in town for great athletes like the great Frei!" ^-^;;
It's true. Ken Masters is pretty red. There is something Peculiar(tm) about this woman, something that's gnawing at the monk's sixth sense, but he doesn't pay it any mind; after all, fighting is probably the world's one great sport and without question the most democratic. Everything else requires a certain body type, a a certain feel, a certain look even... not so with fighting. The sublime and the profane therein mix, and secretly that's why Frei likes it so much.
He draws the line at 'great athlete' though, for while he may be an expert in chi, he is by no means a 'great athlete'. "Well, I don't know that I'm any of that," he demurrs, walking across to a row of starter plants in neat rows of little cardboard boxes, ready for transplant, and runs his fingers under the leaves of a nasturtium before turning back to Chisa. "I guess I can accept 'bold'. I may have done some bold things." Which is true. Kissing Alma on international pay-per-view was pretty gutsy. A number of his cosplay fights have been kinda gutsy.
The monk's green-eyed gaze falls again on Chisa, taking her in a little more closely now that the tempest has been forced back into the teapot. "Well, do you have any suggestions?" he asks. "I'm not really very good with flowers. Well, except one..."
For a young thing that seems so inept, Chisa seems to take remarkably good care of her floral charges.
Frei can see that many plants are well tended to here. Each individually cared for with painstaking attention to detail. Course, it only makes sense that a girl so absent-minded and clumsy has to make up for it in other arenas!
"No no, Frei is being too modest!" She shakes her head emphatically, dismissing his modesty.
However, as he considers his options, the florist scoots from behind the counter. Nudging a small spade from the countertop to clatter on the floor as she quickly moves next to the fractionally taller young man, "Well! Perhaps.. Ah.. Perhaps Frei could tell Chisa where he would like to place such flowers? So Chisa, with her meager skill, can offer what advice she can?" ^-^
There is a pitched internal battle here that Chisa is not privy to, but which washes across Frei's face whenever he isn't looking directly at Chisa, and it most certainly has to deal with her way of speaking. How do you CORRECT that? Don't you usually have to tell people 'Oh, just Frei is fine'. But she's already using it! What kind of response does that dictate? 'No need to stand on ceremony with your proper nouns, a simple 'hey you' or 'that guy' is fine!'?
A daisy stares back at Frei as he ponders this. Neither monk or blossom appears to have the answer.
But his normal smile is back when he turns to the flowershop owner once again, putting a hand to his cheek in thought. "Well... I like lotus blossoms. Particular red ones... the red lotus has a special meaning in my..." He pauses, about to say the word 'family'. One of the Tsukitomi honor blades is named 'Guren', after all... the red lotus that symbolizes fire. "...to me. But lotuses are water plants, right? I just want something I can put in a windowbox." A beat. "Something colorful."
Chisa patiently watches the meditative monk as he considers the options before him. Completely unawares of the small war that rages within his noggin over her bizarre speech pattern. She seems completely unaware of her own odd mannerisms. A strange blend of someone who seems supremely self-conscious, and yet.. at the same time.. not.
"Ooo! Lotus blossoms.. Ooooo.." Chisa murmurs with widening eyes, "Ooh.. Very expensive plants. Symbols of purity. Many holding deep significance! Chisa.. ah.. Chisa regrets she does not carry many in stock. Not red ones..ah.."
The florist quickly looks about her own wares a moment. Not wanting to disappoint her wonderful customer as she quickly rushes over to a forest of colorful blossoms, stacked amongst eachother in a chaotic fashion. After pushing a few pots around she carefully lifts a vase, "Perhaps.. this?" ^-^
It does look quite lovely, actually. The green vase blends into the tropical leaves, arranged artfully in a rush of luscious crimsons, fiery oranges and subtle pinks. "Chisa calls this.. Her Paradise of Fire!" ^-^ "Heliconia, ginger, protea and Orchids! Perhaps this would be fitting as well for Frei's needs?" ^-^
"I just have an affinity for the lotus," Frei says self-consciously. He was introduced to the flower when he was a Buddhist in India, where the flower represents immortality because it opens and closes each day. Frei himself never bought into that (quote: "It just opens and closes each day. So does a K-Mart! K-Mart doesn't represent immortality!") but the flower itself had a sort of delicate strength to it. Thus it stuck with him.
But the flowers that Chisa do appeal to him, green eyes sparkling a little bit as he reaches out and takes the vase, chewing his lip and surveying the various flowers, all of which pass right over his head except perhaps orchid and ginger, the plant with the same orange-red as his hair. "Well, Milton might laugh at the audacious title, but it certainly is lively."
Chisa bows her head in acquiesence to his preference, "Yes yes, Chisa admits the Lotus is a very lovely flower. S..She apologizes for her poor selection!" Quickly bowing her head once more in clear shame. ;-; "Ch..Chisa will do her best to add more lotuses in the future! S..She can try to special order some for wonderful Frei? If it pleases him?" Straightening as she then holds out her colorful arrangement, "Chisa will give her best discount she can if.. if Frei would accept this laughable bouquet in Lotuses stead?" Saddened by failing such a prominent customer. ;-;
"But I'm telling you," Frei tries cautiously, "it's a water blooming plant, I would never expect a florist to have any..." There's a long list of things that Frei Renard refers to himself as. The top of the list is 'Frei', followed by his full name. 'Hey You' is somewhere in the low 40s. 'Prominent' is so low on the list it can't be expressed in real numbers; the monk's humility is really quite entirely predicated on his own assertion that he is *unimportant*. And thus Chisa's obseqiousness is beginning to tire hire him out because he has no way to RESPOND to it. The only way to get her to stop acting this way would be to lie through his teeth and pretend to be as important as she asserts, or deck her in the jaw and run away with the vase.
To his credit, option B only stays in Frei's mind long enough for him to envision some sort of 4-panel comic rendering of the situation, with panel 4 ending in his arrest by Southtown police while Chisa sobs into her mother's arms in the background. That's a horrible story, Frei. Don't punch Chisa!
Instead he just tries his most PLACID smile, the one he uses with Jiro quite a lot, and places the vase on a nearby shelf to dig out his wallet. "Anyhow. This one is gorgeous, I'll take it. How much do I owe you? And there's no reason to special order lotuses. Knowing me I'll have forgotten about the flowers inside of a week anyway, that's just kind of my nature."
Chisa sniffles lightly, trying to contain her own rising surge of inadequacy and worry! If.. If Frei is unsatisfied with her floral selections, then he'll go out and tell all his fighting friends that Chisa's shop isn't good enough! And then other fighters won't want to come to her shop and Chisa's dream of owning a flower shop all the fighters of the world come to will crash down in a ruin and and... ;----;!
The little florist snaps out of her spiral of depression as Frei suddenly admits that the arrangement is lovely! *-* "C...Chisa thanks you!" Excited beyond easy measure as her fears dissolve away, promptly racing back around to her counter and register. Knocking over a shovel while doing so. "Chisa insists on giving Frei her best price!" Loud, mechanical clacks fill the air as the mousey woman types up the total, announcing proudly,
"6000 Yen!" ^-^!
Eyebrow. Well... you can't put a price tag on beauty! Or at least, that's what Frei is telling himself as he counts out 7 separate 1000 yen bills and then hands them to Chisa dutifully. Are you supposed to tip florists? Well, he just did, so that's that. And the truth is, even if it IS a vase full of plants, they're something to talk to while he is sitting home alone, contemplating... well, whatever he contemplates. This man is a professional contemplator, kids. Don't try this at home.
"Has this shop been here long?" the monk asks, turning slightly to look around. "I've lived here for about a year and I don't remember seeing it, but of course, I don't buy flowers all that often, so it's natural that I might have missed it..."
The florist beams proudly as the wonderful fighter forks over his hard-earned yen notes. Accepting the bills with a gracious bow.. Although she slowly slides the 7th bill out seperately, blinking once as she holds it back to the monk, "Chisa apologizes, but she believes Frei may have overpaid!" Apparently not in the habit of accepting tips so readily. Especially not when she's trying to woo fighters with her excellent prices!
However, at the line of questioning, Chisa sheepishly rubs the back of her neck. "Oh! No no.. Chisa only recently moved to Southtown. Her little, poorly stocked shop has only been open for.. Oooo.." Her eyes roll upwards searchingly. Trying to recall the specific numbers as she counters a few invisible points in the air, lips soundlessly working as she contemplates.
Oof.. She might have hurt something! Chisa certainly isn't a pro at contemplation!
"Ah.. A month?" ^-^; "Chisa has a dream where.. where she will open a flower shop and all the famous, famous fighters in Southtown will buy flowers from her!" Blushing brightly as she hides her cheeks in her palms, shaking back and forth self-consciously, "..It.. its a silly little dream, Chisa has. Yes Yes." *^-^*
Something about this scenario seems familiar. "Did you happen to come here from China, perhaps?" It all falls into place: the third person, the obseqious commentary, the humble shop with shockingly puissant arrangement... there's no doubt about it. And of course, Frei notes that such women are typically older than this one... but universally quite shrewd. Damned if he's taking that 7th bill back though. "Consider it payment for the conversation," he says quickly, taking the vase up, paper for the flowers crinkling against his shirt as he does so.
Taking a few steps toward the door, the monk turns around. Only now is he considering that something is not right in this situation... but in a surprisingly logical turn for someone so intuition driven, he pays that absolutely no mind whatsoever. "It was nice to meet you, Chisa," he says, and generally means it. "I hope your shop does great business, though... something tells me hoping for a clientele of fighters might be a bit much. Still, I suppose even they break up with boyfriends or girlfriends, sometimes..."
"C..China?" Chisa blurts in surprise, eyes widening at the odd accusation. She looks to her left and right a moment before returning the look, a bit dumbfounded, "..C..Chisa has never been to China? S..She apologizes.."
While, she would argue with the wonderful young man over his generousity, she does not wish to insult him either! She then accepts the bill, resorting it with the others as the bashful florist then bows low and sincerely. Her forehead nearly bumping the countertop, "Thankyouverymuch for coming, Frei! Please think of Chisa and her lowly shop should Frei desire more color for his home!"
True, it is a silly little dream of hers. But.. its slowly starting to come true! So many autographs from great fighters already! ^-^ She should coach her expectations a little better.. but she can't help but brim with excitement!
Heee! Frei bought -HER- flowers! Oh what a wonderful place, Southtown! ^-^
Log created on 22:56:13 05/21/2007 by Marise, and last modified on 02:31:42 05/23/2007.