Two days without work, it was both unnerving and relaxing for Lily as she returned to the store. Entering and ensuring the plants were in no worse shape than when she left them. A few of the plants were growing strangely, the growths would lead to issues later in life, so she was quick to prune and add nutrition mix to the water reservoir. Who’d have thought that a ship filled with plantlike aliens would have some of the best nutrition mixes money… well… paperwork could offer.

Smiling at a job well done, she made her way to the desk where she quickly set up the necessary paperwork. One form, it was around 20 pages, was a request for a coworker in the shop. The specified requests were for any sophont to help ensure that the plants and the store was wellkept and to potentially help with paperwork while Lily was busy with her grafts. All in all, she was grateful to Echona for the push to look for a helper, she realized she was actually starting to her old, “independent” state.

Sighing, she added a few more points of request, she needed someone with an understanding of botany and how to take care of flora. Along with that, she also needed someone who was willing to be touched in the workplace. The latter was more of a precaution, she wanted to ensure that no affini would cause a panic attack in a sophont due to her not being there to stop them from engaging in their pleasantries. Nodding to herself, and ensuring the paperwork was fully in order, she signed the paper and placed it to the side to be delivered to the bureaucratic section after the shop closed.

The first customers started to stream in, affini with their florets, she even noticed a few independent sophonts looking at flowers, there was even a couple. Their hands entwined and smiled as one smelt some of the flowers. She tried to disregard the sudden flash of her in Tara’s arms, crying and pulling her close. Tried was the word. Looking for a distraction, she looked to her appointments, making sure she had everything in place for any possible grafting that was happening later today. Soon an affini came to the counter, waiting patiently as Lily finished her preparations. “Apologize Miss Elowin, I-” Lily looked up quickly, surprised to see that it was indeed Elowin standing there, seemingly as shocked before smiling at the shocked look on the terran's face.

“I’m glad you recognize me from just one meeting, I’m simply here to order some flowers. My dear partner has been quite stressed lately with her case and I wanted to lighten her mood with a few sunflowers.” Lily shook herself from her reverie, she nodded and put on her best smile. “Of course, I’m assuming you want it potted. Perhaps some nutrient mix to go along with it?” The affini nodded as Lily fiddled with her datapad. “I’m happy to announce that we already have one that has grown to a healthy size. I’ll go and grab it for you.”

Moving into the storeroom, she fiddled around with her datapad some more before finding the sunflower in question. Returning quickly with it in her arms as she settled it on the counter. “How have you been? I see you’re quite proud of my graft! I’m quite honored.” The affini’s leaves ruffled in what was normally seen as pride. A small grin spread on Lily’s face as she noticed. “Yes quite! My partner loves it! Even her adorable floret seemed to enjoy it, she was quite happy to nuzzle against it~” The pair laughed as the affini finished the paperwork, the terran taking the time to read a message from Echona.

Three affini have already shown interest in her case and have sent in requests to meet her; she couldn’t help but groan slightly, eliciting an intrigued noise from Elowin. “Something the matter? I hate to see such a beautiful face in distress.” Lily simply waved her hand dismissively before explaining. “Simply some issues I’ve been having recently, nothing to worry about.” Elowin straightened slightly, her vines tightening, was she concerned? “Are you sure? Perhaps we could have dinner later and we could discuss it?”

Lily’s belly fluttered at the thought as a blush formed on her cheeks, Elowin snorted, clearly amused by the reaction. “I.. a-am busy unfortunately, I have a grafting session that requires me to work past closing hours. P-perhaps at a later date? Maybe in three days? I’ll be busy tomorrow and the day after will be relegated to possibly training an assistant and grafting.” Elowin beamed at the proposition, nodding vigorously. “Yes! Yes! I’d love to, there’s this… what do you terrans call it? Fusion restaurant, I was recommended by my partner’s Floret.”

“The wok and talk?” She asked, it was her old date location with Tara. There was a sudden guilt as she was reminded another time of the girl. “Yes! That’s it, it’s supposed to have some wonderful nutrient mixes and a very comforting atmosphere. I could book a table for us if you’d like.” Lily nodded, smiling and waving to the affini as she left the store. Once gone Lily experienced an emotion she’s only felt once before, she missed Elowin. She realized it after she hadn’t seen her the past few days. There was a strange comfort to the affini that made Lily want to be near her.

The rest of the day went by with a strange melancholy tone to it. She’d often find herself reminiscing over the times spent with Tara, the strange hole that was left after she broke up. Even the pain she felt at having to leave once more. Her thoughts strayed to other matters, her soon future as a floret, her fears, hopes and wishes. Even the idea of finding someone who saw her, appreciated her, accepted her wish to still be independent in the flower shop. Such thoughts filled her mind as she met her first client.

Elada was… eccentric. This wasn’t her first time getting a graft, nor would it be her last. In a way, she reminded Lily alot of Elowin in a way. The difference was in what they wanted grafted. Elada always put in a special order, entering the shop, the carnivorous affini came strolling in.

Elada apparently bloomed from a texaliasis, it was a plant that closely resembled many plants of its kind. Her vines were dark, her “leaves” the bright pink of the plant's buds. They were sticky to the touch, made to hold a prey and let its enzymes break it down. Lily had first time experience with touching them, as her hand became stuck on one as a jest while she was grafting the affini for the first time.

Other carnivorous plants were grafted on her, all of them harmless to sophonts, well, she didn’t know if it was harmless to Beeple. Nevertheless, she was a strangely warm affini. Her outward appearance strangely unfitting the often soft interior. “Lily! Oh you look absolutely adorable. I love the eyes, I see that the surgery went well, what with you working!”

“Thank you Miss Elada! I’m glad to see you’re well as well. I truly enjoy working with you, your choices in grafts are quite interesting and prove a challenge. Today was the Drosera Capensis, yes? It’s quite an intriguing terran specimen. I’m glad you lot managed to reconstruct it.” Walking over to where she placed the plant, the vine-like plant had strange protrusions up its length, each with a drop of fluid that worked as an adhesive against and prey. Opening the door to the grafting room, Lily waves the affini in as she moves to find the proper salves and gels.

“Oh yes, I was quite intrigued by it as I was watching a terran nature documentary with Levin, the sophont… I don’t remember his name, David something… he talked in great detail about the different flora on 21st century terra!” Elada quickly sat down on the chair and smiled as Lily returned with the utensils. “Quite interesting! Could you send me the documentary perhaps? I always enjoy looking for more information on plant life.” Without much more in reply Lily went to work. Before starting to graft the Cape Sundew, Lily quickly checked on the previous grafts, it was of the venus flytraps. The plants seemed to have bonded well, she didn’t expect any issues as she wasn’t contacted, but she always made sure to double check.

Nodding with how well the graft came out, she started on the new plant, finding a nice lateral length that would fit well almost like feathers on a cape. Marking out the desired placements, Lily looked it over before muttering something and working on it again. Eventually the desired shape was forming in the form of many marks along the top of Elada’s vined back. Her hand was sticky from having touched one of the “leaves”, that grew from Elada’s vines. “This should work, it’ll take a while, carnivorous plants can be fiddly to work with”

There was a nod from Elada as she observed the marking, clearly intrigued by what the terran had been planning on. “Quite interesting Lily! By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask, but how come you’ve started grafting affini? Wouldn’t continuing your pursuit of helping patients be your first choice.” Lily stopped for a moment at the question, thinking over how best to phrase it to a creature whose only focus was the betterment of others.

“I was a surgeon and a medic… because I did believe in helping others. My drafting was less enjoyable as I wasn’t given the chance, nor the resources to act out my vision of helping. Once the war ended and… our ship abandoned their mission, well, I can’t truly say that I want to see another patient, dying in my arms again.” Lily felt a vine grow in her, thorned and poisoned, wrapping her heart as a mantra softly whispered in her head. A poem, a tune, a song, each name, another failure. “That and well… I enjoyed art! And plants. If I failed as a doctor, my next choice would have been a botanist, or florist. In a way I’ve found a way to merge the two, still enjoying the fruit of my labor, while also finding a new joy in it.”

Elada nodded, she’d noticed the slight hesitation, the soft breath in as if a knife was twisted. “And what of your eyes? I heard you were getting your surgery, but I was expecting something like cat eyes. Not flowers, they do look so pretty.” Lily smiled as the topic was changed, her marks being slowly cut open before gently placing each Sundew into the marks. The plants seemed to wilt, and part of her grew concerned that she was messing up, but she made sure to research them before attempting such a project. They were simply closing in on themselves, the disturbance causing them to confuse her fingers for a fly and moved to wrap it up quickly.

“They come from an old terran myth, or several. It’s quite an interesting one, stories told of fae or faire people. They were creatures who dealt in mischief and deception, yet never lied. Some were benevolent, while others were not. A few of the stories tell of them as people of forests, carrying children into strange places. Dryads were fae who would bond to trees and become them, helping protect and nurture.” Lily continued her work, noticing the ones which wrapped up slowly untangling themselves. “I was always fond of the stories, and the dryads, even before the affini arrived. I guess, in a strange way, florets are dryads and you are trees.”

Elada listened, intrigued by the words of the terran, the stories she sometimes recounted or the facts on the plants. She was clearly invested in knowing its history and meaning. “So you mean to say you are showing you are a dryad? Aren’t you independent?” Lily stopped and looked down, the decision for her eyes was an old one, perhaps fate had called. “I… I am yes, though I feel more like a dryad who hasn’t found her tree. Always searching and hoping to find the right one.”

The rest of the grafting continued in small talk, simply to fill the air. Lily eventually started to grow more distant as she thought, the only thing breaking her stream of thoughts being the end of her work. The “feathers” of Cape Sundew looked exactly like she hoped, the tendrils sticking out, feeling the air and wobbling slightly as Elada moved. “Oh! This is fantastic! I absolutely adore your work Lily!” The praise continued, Lily simply smiled and nodded, helping Elada finish her paperwork before waving a goodbye as they both left the shop and returned to their habs.

Returning to her hab, the simulated day and night cycle having delved the area into darkness, Lily slowly made her late night snack. It was quick and simple, comfort food in a way, a bowl of mac and cheese as she watched the TV. The operation was well underway and the Athelum was one jump away from the supposed position of the Rebel fleet. The final warning for Affini to keep their florets from moving too much was announced as they were to engage in a few days' time.

Yawning, Lily soon went to ready herself for bed. Taking a bath and brushing her teeth as she thought, her mind grew distant as it traveled from Elowin’s date, to Elada’s question, to Tara and to the ship. She recounted all the casualties under her care and went over all the names, 163, all died because she had failed. Returning to bed, she did something she hasn’t done in a while and put on a cuff, to help monitor and administer xenodrugs into her system as she injected herself with Class G and Z xenodrugs, and went to bed. She knew the nightmare would come as soon as she closed her eyes.