Job: The Rarest Flower (Malm and Sakura)

Job Description:

Malm let out a silent yawn as he got off the train in Magnolia. Having just woken up from a short nap a few minutes ago, he was still kind of tired and a good part of him wanted to just get some more rest. Yet the teen just ignored it as he began to make his way through the city. It was still fairly early in the morning, and so not many people seemed to be out at the time. Malm was slightly worried he had arrived here a little to early, but it was better to be early then late.

You see, Malm was here is here for a job sent out by a medicinal shop in town. Apparently they needed some help to retrieve a plant from the Spooky Forest that they use in some of there medicines. Being a plant mage himself, Malm believed he could prove to be quite a bit help for this job. After all, finding flowers was his specialty.

After a bit of searching, Malm eventually came across the medicinal shop and saw that it was open. Good. That means he wasn't here to early. Taking a deep breath to firm his confidence, he entered the shop.

"Hello?"

Sakura sat in the corner of the dusty shop on a wooden stool that creaked every time she moved a muscle. She looked around at the plants and flowers floating in liquid filled jars around her and could not help feeling a little creeped out. The shop as dark and clearly it never saw light often due to there being broken blinds over the grimy window. A single cobweb hung above Sakuras head, when she saw it she jumped up immediately and rushed over to the other side of the room, heart pounding and eyes stretched wide. She hates spiders, and wherever there was a cobweb a spider would not be far behind. She shivered and hugged her arms.
At that moment she head the shop door swing open and the bell above it sounding. Sakura jumped once again and tried to compose herself for when the person saw her.

"I'll be with you in a moment." An elderly voice replied from the back room. Malm could only guess that the man was probably preparing some fresh medication from what little information his plant sense could give him. It made enough sense to him.

So, as he waited, Malm decided to take a quick look around his new surroundings. It was definitely not as inviting as he was expecting it to be. The place looked pretty old and in need of repairs. There also seemed to be a fine layer of dust on just about everywhere he could see. Perhaps Malm should offer to help clean this shop up some after he was done with this job.

As he gazed around, something caught his eye. Or to be more exact, someone. A familiar looking girl was standing there all composed, as if she was trying to make a good impression on him, or whoever else happens to step through that door. He couldn't exactly comment on the matter though seeing how he usually did the same thing.

"Ohh... It's nice to see you again. I have to admit I nearly didn't recognize you there. Sakura, right?" Malm asked in a friendly manner. He thought back on the job the two did together to retrieve a young woman's engagement ring. Was it possible that she was here for this job too? He didn't want to jump to any conclusions seeing how she could also just be here for another reason entirely. This was a medicinal shop after all.

As all this went through Malm's mind, Sakura may notice that a (small) spider is slowly climbing up Malm's right shoulder without him really noticing.

((Sorry. I couldn't resist. Also, is Ebony going to be a part of this thread, or have you decided against adding her in this? Just want to make sure.))

"Ah. Malm-sama," Sakura walked over to the green haired boy who had just walked through the door and bowed. She was glad to see him here, the last time they had seen each other (which was actually the first time they had ever met) was on a job they had done together a few days ago, Sakura remembered that he had been very polite and kind. She straightened up and hoped that he had not seen her reaction to the cobweb she was moments before he had come in. She could not help wondering if Malm was here to to the job as well, that would be a strange coincidence. She hoped he was doing the job with her.
As Sakura examined Malm she noticed a black dot on his shoulder, she leaned forward to brush it off then shrieked once she saw what it was. The black dot was not dot. It was a spider.
She pulled back her hand immediately and jumped back a few steps with great agility. Her eyes widened and her body shook as she stared at the spider sitting on her friends shoulder. Spiders were so scary. Their eight scuttling legs and abnormal eyes. Sakura shuddered and backed away from Malm once again.

((sorry I forgot to add Ebony in. I will make her appear in a later post if you want.))

((Okay. So we'll either have her join them on their way towards the Spooky forest, or just have Sakura find out he's guildless and extend the 'invite' herself. Or just do something else entirely Xp ))

Malm smiled a little as he heard Sakura greet him. If memory served him correctly, she was pretty shy when they had last met during that ring job. So having her greet him like she did instead of just silently hanging in the background was nice to see. Still, he still couldn't help, but wonder why she was here. He did secretly hope she was here for the job. He had enjoyed her company during there last job, and he would like to get to know her better.

He then notice Sakura leaning in towards him as if to wipe something off his shoulder. Yet instead of that, she just suddenly shrieked as if she saw a ghost. Malm jumped back a bit, frighten by her sudden screech, trying to figure out what caused her to suddenly act this way. As he looked around, he took notice of a small baby spider on his shoulder.

"Huh. What are you doing there little guy? Trying to hitch a ride." He asked it as if he expected to give him an answer. Of course he knew it wouldn't.

"What's all that racket about?" The elderly man asked from the back room, slightly annoyed.

Malm thought quickly as he picked up the spider with a cup hand, "Sorry about that sir. I... accidentally spooked the young miss here." Malm explained, believing it was best not to disclose the fact that Sakura was scared of a little spider, "I'll be right back in moment." Malm then told her as he left the store, keeping a careful eye on the small spider he had in his hand. He wasn't afraid of it, he just didn't want to accidentally squish it.

Right outside, he saw a good bush for the spider to make a new home at. "Here you go little buddy. This should suit you just nicely." Malm said as he cautiously released the spider into the bush before heading back inside.

The familiar ring of the bell chimed as he walked back into the store. "There you go. Nothing to be afraid of." Malm said with a small smile as he looked at Sakura.

A few seconds later, they would hear a door creak open and close as an old man entered from a room behind the counter. "Now what can I do for you two?" The man asked as he eyeballed them suspiciously. The little shriek from earlier seemed to still be on his mind.

A sigh of relief escaped Sakuras lips as Malm returned back into the shop spider-less. However she now felt embarrassed of her dramatic reaction and hung bang into another corner of the room (only after making sure there were no spiderwebs there).
Another man had also appeared in the room, he was apparently the owner of the shop and displeased to hear the racket from just a moment ago. "What can I do for you?" although the mans words seemed kind he said them in a way which suggested he would like to kick them out of his shop soon.
"The job," Sakura replied quietly, her voice still shaking from her encounter with the spider.
The old man eyed Sakura then spoke "I dont think I will need your services."
Sakura was rather upset at this, if people didnt let her do jobs how could she become a stronger mage? "Why?" It wasnt a question, it was a quiet demand.
"You dont look like you know anything about plants, please be off," He indicated to the door with his shriveled, drooping hand and smirked to himself. Sakuras cheeks went red.

So Sakura was here for the job afterall. Well that was nice to know. Though it seems that the shopkeep was not so happy about it as he claimed he wouldn't need her services. This seemed to understandably anger the normally timid girl. Yet what should Malm do.

Malm coughed into his hand, "Excuse me sir, but the kind lady here is with me. And while she mmay or may not have much knowledge about plants, I can assure you I do." Malm said in a very gentleman-like tone.

"You do, do ya?" The elderly shopkeep said as looked Malm over, "I admit you look like someone who knows his plants, but why should I believe you?"

"In the back, you were using Magebane in order to make anti-magic medicine, right?"

"Ho-how did you know that?" The shopkeep asked, flabbergastted that Malm could know that.

"I'm a plant mage and able to sense any plant near me." Malm explained.

"Is that so? Alright. Your hired."

"And what about my companion? "

"What about her? I only need one man for this job, and you seem to be good enough for it."

"I must insist that you change your mind. The Spooky Forest isn't exactly a safe place to go and I rather have someone watching my back. She's a powerful mage in her own right afterall. Besides, you wouldn't want to trust a guildless mage such as myself to go on this job alone." Malm told the man simply.

The man grumbled as he looked over at Sakura, trying to make up his mind. "Fine. Your both hired, but I'm expecting a good job from the two of you." The man said as he glared.

"Of course. Now what exactly do you need?" Malm asked, happy that he managed to convince the shopkeeper to hire Sakura.

((I probably went a little overboard with this -_- I just didn't want to leave this post in the middle of Malm and the shopkeep back and forth, but if you want, I'll retconn the post so that Sakura could jump in. Just wanted to leave that option there.))

Sakura smiled brightly at Malm, her annoyance vanishing at once. The old man had agreed to let her do the job thanks to Malm and his knowledge of plants and persuasion skills. "Thank you very much," Sakura said quietly to Malm and the shop keeper whilst bowing "I wont let you down."
"Better not," The wrinkled man mumbled to himself as he walked over to the shop counter and sat down on a stool of his own. Sakura fumed silently as he heard his response to her gratitude but remain perfectly composed when she caught him looking at her with a glint of dislike in his eyes. She had found the courage to speak up and this old rat wasnt even being grateful or kind! She decided she did not like the man before her.
Sakura looked over at Malm with bright eyes, careful not to look at his shoulders in case there was another spider perched there, and waited for him to speak. She was eager to start the job, especially since they were doing it together.

Malm smile grew slightly as he heard Sakura's thanks. He was happy to be of some assistance to her. Yet it seemed the shopkeep still possessed some dislike for the girl. He didn't quite understand why, but he decided it was best not to press things for now. No need to make things any worse between the two.

The shopkeep looked at the two from his stool as he began. "The job I have for you two is simple. I require you to travel deep within Spooky Forest and retrieve a rare silver flower with tear-shaped petals for me."

"Moon's tear" Malm interjected.

"So you have heard of it. Yes. Once you have gotten the flower, head straight back here for your reward. And make sure you don't in anyway crush or destroy the flower. It'll be useless to me in that condition. Understand?"

"I believe so sir." Malm answered.

The wrinkled man's eyes looked over as he awaited for Sakura's response. "Good. Now go. I have other things I need to handle." He told the pair. Malm obliged, holding the door open for Sakura before exiting himself.

As Sakura stepped out of the shop a gust of warm Autumn air hit her, glee filled her every pore as she headed down the street towards. She was going on a job! This as truly the best feeling, knowing that you could put your magic to good use by helping other people and sorting their problems out. She skipped half way down the street before a thought bit her, she stopped abruptly and turned round to face Malm who was a couple of meters behind her. "Where are we going?".
Sakura felt as though it was a stupid question however it needed to be asked.
"Where is the flower?" She hoped Malm would have some idea where it was, with him being a plant mage and all that, or this job would be really hard.
Good thing Malm is doing the job with me, Sakura thought, or I would be lost already with no idea of where the flower is.

Sakura seemed to be in a much better mood then Malm expected. The elderly man's foul mood must have not effected Sakura as much as he thought it did. That, or she had chosen to simply ignore it for the sake of the job. Either way, at least she seemed to happier.

"Well, like the client said, we're going to be heading towards Spooky Forest." Malm answered, "As for where the flower is, I don't really know. From my understanding, Moon's tear usually prefers to grow in well shaded areas were the ground is very moist, so we'll probably find one deep within the forest itself. I wouldn't worry to much about it though. If we run across it, we'll know." He assured her, knowing full well if they reach within a close distance of it, he'll be aware of it's presence.

"Now I suggest you make sure you have everything you need. If memory serves, Spooky Forest is a bit of a trek from here, and I doubt either of us would want to walk all the way back because we forgot something?" Malm suggested as he stretch. Being a bit of a newbie at this himself, it felt a bit weird being the one to say all this. But he wanted to make sure that Sakura was completely ready as he knew that the Spooky Forest could be a dangerous place to travel through, especially the deeper parts where the flower was said to be at.

So he waited until she told him that she was ready, and then they were off.

((So how exactly are we going to have Sakura or Ebony suggest that Malm should join FT, or are we going to drop it entirely?))

"The spooky forest..." Sakura repeated the name of their destination, a little wary of its name. She wasnt really fond of scary things and the name of the forest implied her worst fears. "Um, lets go," Sakura muttered before walking down the road once again. The mention of a spooky woods had totally just wiped out all of her enthusiasm.
She stalked ahead for the first few minutes of walking, needing to plan what she was going to do if something jumped out at her in the forest, but eventually she returned to Malms side quietly.
A thought erupted inside Sakuras small head, how had she not thought of this before! "Guild?" Sakura asked Malm quietly. Her mood had totally changed compared to before she found out about the forest. Maybe if she was paying more attention earlier she might have heard the shop keeper say something about the forest, she would've been more prepared that way.

Malm took notice of Sakura's change of attitude the moment he mentioned they were heading towards the Spooky Forest. He should suspected as much though. Very few people would be excited to head somewhere that's called the Spooky Forest. The name itself left to much to the imagination for what could possibly call such a place home. It's little wonder why few would even dare enter such a place at all.

As they walked, Malm began to think on what exactly lied ahead of them inside the forest. So much so that he had nearly missed Sakura's question. "Huh... Guild?" Malm repeated making sure he heard the question correctly, "Uhh... I'm currently am not a part of any guild at the moment. I... I wasn't lying when I told the shopkeep that I was guildless." Malm informed her simply. It was obvious that this was something that he didn't really like to talk about. To be honest though, he had hoped to one day be able to join a guild, but that just seemed unlikely now. Perhaps one day in the future he will.

"Join Fairy Tail," Sakura said simply, it wasnt a demand. It was a suggestion. It would be nice to have another person she trusted and liked within the guild however at the end of the day it was Malms decision what guild to join and when he joined it. She hoped that this conversation would take her mind off of the spooky forest which could be seen from where they now stood. Its dark foliage stood silently in the dimming sunlight and seemed to whisper as they neared. Almost as if it didnt want the two mages to enter it. Sakura shuddered and grabbed Malms hand in a rush of fear. She was used to holding someones hand for she spent a lot of her time with her best friend Chloe who was never afraid to do so. She hadnt even thought about Malms feelings on this but as soon as her movement had registered in her mind she snatched her hand back in embarrassment. Her cheeks burned red against her pale complexion. Her eyes widened in horror, what if Malm took her movement in the wrong way! "Sorry," She mumbled looking down at her feet and letting her long locks of silvery hair hide her face from her companions view.

Malm was honestly surprised by Sakura's sudden suggestion that he should join Fairy Tail. He didn't exactly knew what to think of it. Sure he wanted to join a guild, but this was a bit sudden. Was he really ready to join a guild?

"Uhh... Thanks Sakura. I'll have to think about it though." Malm told her as he rubbed his left shoulder, "I'm guessing that means your a part of Fairy Tail?" He added as he noticed the girl had yet to tell him what guild she was a part of. Though why else would she suggest he join.

It wasn't long after that when the Spooky Forest appeared in the distance. Despite the number of times he's been here before, it felt a little creepier somehow. Malm had almost jumped a little as he felt something grab onto his hand. However, on closer inspection, he saw that it was just Sakura, who quickly pulled her hand away and apologized.

"It's okay." Malm told her as he noticed her trying to hide her face. While he understood she only did it because she was scared, a slight blush was visible on his face.

"There's nothing to be worried about Sakura. I doubt there's anything in this forest that the pair of us can't handle." He then assured her to not only help her, but to steel his own nerves as well as they stepped into the forest.

Sakura nodded her head slightly in response to Malms reassurances. She forced herself to forget everything that had just happened and all of her previous thoughts. The forest was not going to scare her, and she certainly wasnt going to let Malm (or anyone for that matter) think she was a scaredy cat!
She took a deep breath to help gather her courage and then began to walk towards the forest once again. One foot after another, the trees began to surround her, as did their darkness- it was a shame Sakura had no spell which could help her in this situation. Their dark branches seemed to reach out at her or any living thing in their vicinity. A wolf howled somewhere in the distance and Sakura forced herself to smile, a wolf howling was always a stereotype for a spooky forest.
She carried on walking for a few more steps when suddenly soething jumped out of the darkness in front of her. She jumped back a few steps in surprise and pulled her tarot cards out of her bag, ready to attack before the monster could even move. She hope Malm wasnt that far behind her and he was ready to fight as well. She didnt want to job to end horrifically.

The member 'Sakura Iris' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

'Monster Dice' :

As Malm began to walk through the forest, he made sure to keep a careful eye out for everything around him. Yet that began to prove to be difficult as the forest around them became darker and darker the deeper they went in. Malm had to admit that the forest was starting to make him a bit paranoid. Despite being able to traverse through with little problem thanks to his plant sense, he could not shake the feeling that they were being followed.

Malm then took notice of something jumping out of a bush and towards Sakura. He went to draw his sword before noticing that it was awful small, and seemed frightened when Sakura suddenly jumped away from it. Instead, it quickly ran towards Malm's side, allowing the plant mage to get a closer inspection of it. "No need to worry Sakura. It's just a fire ferret." Malm said as he lowered himself towards the frightened, reddish-brown ferret. Then a question came to his head. Why was it so frightened?

A nearby howl rang throughout the forest as a pack of four wolves emerged from the nearby foliage, surrounding the two wizards. The ferret had then quickly climbed into Malm's cloak without invitation, but despite being slightly inconvenienced by this, Malm had decided he had more pressing things to worry about now. The plant mage drew his sword as he moved closer to Sakura, keeping a wary eye on the wolves circling them. Just waiting for the right time to strike.

"Sakura. If you want, I believe I can give you an opening so you can run away?" Malm offered the girl. While a good part of him knew she would likely decline, he wanted to give her the option anyway. No reason for them to both get harmed or even possibly killed after all.

---

HP: 100%
MP: 100%

Enemies:

Wolf A HP: 2 D rank hits
Wolf B HP: 2 D
Wolf C HP: 2 D
Wolf D HP: 2 D

Sakura was completely oblivious to the fact that the ferret was not an enemy and she tried to leap at it and catch it, however the trees around them were suddenly filled with howling and she leapt back to Malms side.
He asked her if she wanted to run and leave the battle to him, Sakura was horrified to think that Malm thought she would abandon him in battle and run away in fear."Dont worry I am fine.." Sakura didnt really mind the wolves in general, she found them to be more teddy-like than frightening. Although these wolves werent like normal ones, they seemed to have a dark aura about them. Sakuras reactions were quick as she delved into her shoulder bag and pulled out a few tarot cards. She held them in front of her fanned out, "Jolt of fate," she whispered.
As soon as she had spoken bolts of yellow lighting erupted from the sky and stuck all four of the wolves in front of the small girl. The wolves jumped into the air and collapsed onto the floor, the lighting having hurt them badly. However they stood back up once again and made their way back towards the pair. Angry and wanting revenge.
Sakura smiled to herself, satisfied with her work. The wolves were now half finished off, surely Malm could take these out by himself now without Sakuras help. She glanced over at her companion and waited for him to make his move.

Now this was odd. Malm noticed how the wolves seemed to be moving in front of Sakura. Did they see her as an easier target? Malm didn't really know, but it proved to be a bad move as Sakura managed to electrocute them all in a single spell. While it wasn't enough to take any of them down, it was enough to seriously injure them.

Malm knew he could just finish this now with a single seed barrage, but not wanting to kill the wolves, he elected not to. Instead he quickly pressed their advantage by slashing his sword at the wolf closest to him, and followed that up with a sudden jab. Both attacks found their target, and while non-lethal, were enough to cause the two wolves to retreat. That left the pair to deal with the two remaining wolves.

In the corner of his eye, he noticed one of the wolves towards their right was moving to attack Sakura. "Sakura!" He quickly called out as he instinctively moved to push the girl out of the way. The wolf didn't seem to mind as Malm was forced to through his right arm up to protect himself from the attack, which the wolf gladly chomped down. Malm nearly screamed as waves of pain shot throughout his arm, but he forced himself to ignore it as he countered the wolf's attack with a slash of his own.

The wolf howled in pain from the wound Malm gave it as it ran away like the others. That left them only one last wolf to take care of. Malm did his best to try to cover his bleeding bite wound with his other hand as he watched the remaining wolf carefully. Yet that proved mostly in vain as he coundn't cover it and carry his sword at the same time. There was also something else bothering Malm. He still felt like they were being watched.

---

HP: 90% (Not in direct sunlight. No regen)
MP: 100%

Enemies:

Wolf A HP: 0
Wolf B HP: 0
Wolf C HP: 0
Wolf D HP: 1

((In case you were wondering, Malm is left handed.))

The member 'timmir1' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

'Monster Dice' :

Sakura sigh of relief was soon turned into anger, four four wolves had just appeared, coats shimmering in the rising moonlight. Sakura leaped out of the way as the wolf closest to her pounced high into the air and landed on the spot where she had previously been standing, its claws sharp and ready to attack.
Wolves kept on pouncing and clawing at the two mages, Sakura dodged all of the attacks with little injury. However Malms wounds from the previous attack were looking bad. And there was nothing she could do to help him, especially since there were four angry wolves surrounding them right now. Without warning one of the wolves clawed at Sakuras thigh, she yelped in pain quietly and kicked the wolf in its neck. A nasty move but something that had to be done. The wolf howled and staggered slightly. "Sorry," She whispered. The wolf snarled back at her and prepared its next attack. Sakura sniffled and moved next to Malm so that they could fight together, hopefully this will make the job quicker and result in a lot less injuries.

Great. More wolves. Just what they needed. Malm eyes kept glancing back and forth from the group of wolves attacking them. As he did so, he noticed the remaining wolf from the first group (he could tell from it's slightly scorched fur) trying to attack him. Instead, Malm managed to score a direct kick to the creature's face, earning him a whine of pain as the wolf ran away.

Malm turned towards Sakura just in time to see her get clawed by the wolf. It angered him that he wasn't able to protect her, but was happy that she managed to kick the wolf off. With both of them injured now, Malm knew he'd have to end this quickly if he wanted them to not end up in worse shape then they already are. Yet how exactly he could do it didn't sit well with him.

"I have to be careful. Don't want to injure us or kill them." Malm said to himself as he began to focus. He only had one chance at this, so he better make it count. "Seed Barrage" Malm called out as a magic circle formed in front of his right hand while he swung it like he was throwing something. That something turned out to be three walnut as they sailed through the air to just behind the group of wolves. Then, after a couple seconds, the seeds exploded, injuring all the wolves, but not close enough to hurt either Sakura or Malm.

The blast seemed to be to much for the wolf Sakura kicked as it quickly ran away. Despite this small victory though, the three remaining wolves stood there ground as they continued their attack on the two mages.

---

HP: 90%
MP: 90% (5 Posts before regen)


Seed Barrage: 2 Post Cooldown

Marksman Aim: 2 Posts Duration; 7 Post Cooldown; Can only be used one more time during this thread.

Enemies:

Wolf D HP: 0
Wolf E HP: 0
Wolf F HP: 1
Wolf G HP: 1
Wolf H HP: 1

The attacks from the other three wolves kept on coming, they didn't seem to care whether their 'friends' had fled or not. Sakuras leg was beginning to slow down her movements, the same thing seemed to be happening to Malm. "Right then..." Sakura rummaged around in her shoulder bag whilst the wolves were momentarily distracted, she pulled out a fist full of cards and held them up to her shoulder. "Burning Cards," she muttered under her breath then flung the cards forward to the wolves in front of her. The cards set on fire as they traveled through the air and buried themselves into the fur of the wolves, leaving a trail of red behind them. Their silver coats were now on fire and they were rolling around on the ground to put it out. The fire burned its victims and scorched their skin, not a very nice feeling. She smiled as she knew the wolves were now weakened and their attacks would come less often.
"Your turn," She said to Malm who was standing beside her.
She hoped they would finish the fight off soon, she really wanted to finish this job and prove to the old shop keeper that she could do this. Thoughts of the rare flower they were to find kept on popping into Sakuras mind as she dodged the wolves who had just ran at her.