Cauldrons Need More Than Water.

[Jade]

notes here. Lerical words: 509

Jade waited near the outskirts of town, knowing that sometime soon Lerical would show up. The cute girl from lunch the day before. They had found out they both were pharmacists and well here she was. Hopefully they could find some materials to make some potions, after all it was a pain to do it alone, this way it would go much quicker and they could help each other in a bind. The wonders of science were never ceasing. While there were the recipes that came with the game, Jade supposed that with their understanding of the real world, they could find new uses for different ingridents, and once she got good enough she could actually research some. For not though she was stuck with the basics. Which required endless amounts of random plants in this grove. That would go by much quicker with the help of Lerical. Jade leaned against a tree, she had left Arcadia alone today as it would be easier to keep up with Lerical if she wasn't on horseback. She could always summon her, if they needed her anyways. It was nice to have friends to do stuff with. The exciting part of this was that perhaps eventually she could research with Lerical, and then they would more easily make new things. Even with magic, medicine had a long way to go here, if they were going to get anywhere close to the real world. It was a bright day, and the spot Jade waited in was a small clearing, she was on the edge and it was just outside of town. The walk to the grove wasn't that far from here and most creatures around here left adventurers alone if they didn't stray out of the paths. This was the beginning of the path and it wasn't odd to see a party meet here but right now it was just jade. The wind and sun were just right to make this the perfect day to collect plants. She hoped that they could get enough for a while as Jade felt that there were better things to do than gather materials, like train Arcadia but still she couldn't pass up the invite for this. She really did need to work on her Pharmacist Level. It was rather sad as she had been focusing on her Guardian class so she could help out parties she was in more. After all being the tank meant she had to take the agro from the enemy and that meant she needed the right skills. Jade cracked her neck and sighed, she was still wearing her dress, not wanting to change yet, though at this point she had the macros set so that she could switch much easier than before. Jade yawned more out of boredom than anything else, she really should of found something to do or read as this standing here was really not working for her. Still she stood still and strong. Jade didn't want anyone to think she couldn't handle a bit of waiting after all. of two

Made by Sifr @ THQ.

[Lerical]

ghost 'Cause the world might do me in / It's all right cause I'm with friends / Cause I'm giving up again / It doesn't matter + 438 + #7fc7d1 + Jade

She didn’t know if she was late, or if she was early. Lerical hoped that she was at least on time, or almost, as she scurried down the path. Last night she had been excited--so much that it had been a bit hard for her to fall asleep, as childish as it sounded. The other day the Bard had met Jade and a few others, and the two found that they were both Pharmacists. It would be nice to party with another and work at the craft instead of doing it on her own or in the company of her self-appointed off and on tutor back in Londinum. So the two decided to party and Lerical had gone back to the inn room she’d been staying in and had gone over her menu for hours on end, reading pointless things that she had taken notes of during her time there. Which made her wake up a bit later than usual and on her way to the meeting point like hounds were on her heels. She hoped the blonde wouldn’t mind too much, if she happened to arrive late. It was a nice day, and maybe Jade had already started without her. If she had, Lerical wouldn’t begrudge her. The Doctor would commend her, in fact. It was nice seeing someone working hard, and the bumblebee seemed to be the kind of person that did that from what she’d managed to gather about her from the small amount of time they’d spent together. “Please don’t get lost, please don’t get los-st!” The last syllable dragged as the trees began to part, and the woman recognized the area that she was nearing. The clearing was in sight, and she came into it with her voice raised so that she could greet the Guardian, “S-sorry, I slept in!” Lerical laughed nervously as she neared her friend, and waved her hand a few moments before she dropped it down by her side. “I didn’t make you wait long, did I? I’m usually the early one,” She brushed her skirt a few times, and started to tug on her hair. Lerical had gotten ready in a hurry, and there was the most uncomfortable piece of hair that didn’t feel right in her pony tail. So she pulled it out and moved it to the front of her fringe, and smoothed her bangs to the left of her face. “Thanks for this, by the way. I haven’t gone gathering with anyone before, or talked about the crafting class all that much with others. Not a lot of people go for this one, you know?”

© seadra of gs

[Jade]

notes here. Lerical words: 536

Jade smiled and waved her hand as to show she didn't mind that the woman was slightly late, the truth was Jade had been early. She had wanted to make a good impression to her friend. It wasn't like there were many fellow pharmacists to do such things with. "You were fine, I got here early so that part of the wait is my fault. I couldn't sleep late if I tried, I have always been an early riser." She said beginning to walk through the bit of the forest they needed to pass to get to the grove. It was a nice day and she was excited to talk about her crafting class with a fellow Pharmacist. " I know, I was surprised, I just think about the possibilities of what we could do with researching this worlds fauna and such. I mean.. I am by no means trained but I took care of my family with mostly home made recipes so it just sort of made sense to pick this class for me. I am glad now, cause I don't think I would be much good at anything else besides maybe cooking. " She said with a smile. They would find the forest get darker as they walked only to start getting lighter, as they neared the entrance to the grove. It was hidden in the forest but full of many plants that had different properties. She had been wanting to go but she didn't want to do it alone. After all it was boring to do something like this all by yourself. Jade was so glad to have found a friend to do this with. "I brought a picnic too, for later after we work up an appetite. I hope you don't mind sandwiches, I bought different kinds just in case you were picky. I wasn't really sure what you might like." She said worried she might of gotten something that the other woman didn't like. That would be her luck though, it was so much easier packing picnics for those you were better friends with. She had gotten up early and bought them from some vendors fresh and stored them in her magic bag to stay fresh. Jade would make sure to keep an eye for danger, knowing that as the guardian she was the one who would have to make sure the other survived. she didn't know how good a bard was in the fight so she was ready to do whatever it took to protect her friend. She knew that the early levels sucked for everyone but especially anyone magic based as they couldn't wear much in armor and didn't have much hp. She had learned that somewhere when trying to figure out what to pick when she got this game. She also had been lectured by her brothers about stuff and was given many eye rolls when her and her sister kylee had picked many of the things cause they were cute. Jade didn't regret those choices though especially now she was stuck as her character, granted she looked rather similar to her character so it wasn't much of a change. She was now just cuter, which suited her just fine. multiply life by the power of two

Made by Sifr @ THQ.

[Lerical]

ghost 'Cause the world might do me in / It's all right cause I'm with friends / Cause I'm giving up again / It doesn't matter + 474 + #7fc7d1 + Jade

Jade didn’t seem to mind, and the Bards posture loosened. Her shoulders dropped and she held her hands in front of her, fingers laced together. Lerical had never been much of a morning person, but she’d always made an effort to get up before noon back home and have a sort-of normal routine when she wasn’t on call. As the Guardian moved forward, Lerical took that as a que to follow after her. She kept her pace by the other’s side and looked around as they walked. “Pharmacist isn’t as easy as I thought it would be at first, but it makes more sense now. It’s like you said; this place has so many different plants different from our own. It makes the whole process a lot more interesting.” A hum came from her lips; she didn’t have her pegged as a cook but then again, she didn’t know Jade all that much. “I envy anyone who's cooking skill is above putting a frozen pizza in the oven and doesn’t burn it.” The area came into view, and her hands unclasped as a mental preparedness swept over her. They were leaving the path now, and entering the area. It held monsters, but they shouldn’t have much of a problem unless they went in deeper than the outer edge of the field. Having someone with her to make the trip made her feel a lot better; the last time she’d gone out by herself, it had been a close call. Surprise filtered over her face, and she let out a small noise as she waved her hands. “I’m not picky, thank you very much. I can’t wait to try them.” She was already being taken care of by her; Lerical thought with a mental sigh. Really, Jade was very dependable. It must be from taking care of her family--the blonde was very adult-like. “I’ll have to return the favor sometime, I didn’t even think to bring anything along…” Maybe not in the form of making the meal herself; Lerical would pick up something one day or pay for them both to eat out. “Well, shall we get started?” Lerical looked over the field, her hands rested on her hips as she looked over it. “Let’s see how much we can get; I wanna set a record that’s hard to beat.” The Bard didn’t see anything moving in the area that might be threatening to them immediately, as she looked around. After her quick scan she sent Jade a small grin. “I never thought I’d be doing this sort of thing though, you know? Not that it isn’t fun or anything, it’s just really weird. I mean, not weird but odd.” Her eyes went to the ground and she angled her head downwards, and and Lerical began her search for a good place to start the search.

© seadra of gs

[Jade]

notes here. Lerical words: 546

Jade nodded " I know I wish I was good enough to experiment with them but I suppose its better to stick with the recipe's for now. I was getting lessons from a person of the land the other day, I found that you get better results from doing it manually rather then using the menu to make things." She blushed " Well I didn't cook them, they just turn to goop when I try that, even though I knew how to cook in real life, it seems you need the class to do anything. So I bought them, It was what I did this morning to keep myself from getting here any earlier. I always worry I am going to be late and end up places far too early." She said knowing that was something she needed to work on. She was glad that Lerical wasn't picky, that meant there was a chance that she had gotten something she actually liked. That would make lunch easier for sure. "Please don't worry about it, I just wanted to make sure we didn't go hungry while working out here. Your company is more than payment enough." She said as she looked out at the large field, there didn't seem to be anything too dangerous. That was always a good sign. Jade was still ready however for now it seemed all was fine. "I know what you mean, here we are gathering plants. It really is sort of odd. But together, I think we can set some sort of record." She said looking down. It was still weird that she had to figure out what was what, surely it would be easier at some point to just buy the ingredients but for now she was stuck having to gather them. She needed health potions and other things, The people of the land also bought things from them. That was something that had her curious, The quality difference that seemed to happen between most adventurers and people of the land. They seemed to be able to make things better depending on the facilities provided of course. For now however she needed the right sort of plants. She saw some roses with a white ring around the petals, she knew they grew here and were important so Jade picked some, carefully loading them into her magic bag. There were so many things that had some use in this world that people ignored. She was sure most people walked right by these plants never knowing their worth. "You look nice today by the way, I wish I could wear something other than this armor but I was afraid we might be attacked so I made sure to have it equipped. " She said complimenting the girl who she did thought was cute. She couldn't help but sneak a peak of the girl when she didn't think she was looking. Sadly most of the girls that were in this world didn't seem to like girls. Jade liked both but favored girls, about them that drew her to them. She shook her head and tried to keep busy, she was sure that Lerical didn't think that way about girls and thus it wasn't going to do her any good thinking about being anything more than friends. multiply life by the power of two

Made by Sifr @ THQ.

[Lerical]

ghost 'Cause the world might do me in / It's all right cause I'm with friends / Cause I'm giving up again / It doesn't matter + 544 + #7fc7d1 + Jade

“‘Learn the basics before you end up killing yourself,’” Lerical made the pitch of her voice change and wagged her finger a few times. “--that’s what the Lander that taught me a little bit told me, anyways. I tried to make something without knowing what I was making or doing and ended up making a poison the other day.” She sighed, and tucked away the new tidbit for later usage. “I really should have read the guide for the game, I guess.” She laughed a bit when she spotted a red tint to the girl's cheeks and shuffled around before she found the marker indicating it was a place she could start at. “That’s too bad though. It’d be nice if we could make food, but I guess it makes sense by the game’s logic. Or does it? I dunno about you, but I don’t want to wake up in the middle of the night wanting a sandwich and have no means to make one.” It was more of a joke than anything; Lerical couldn’t wake up if a bomb went off on the floor below her. “Well since you bought them, I’ll have to treat you one day. Just think of it as another reason to hang out again. We could invite some of the others too.” The plants she managed to find were put in her bag and she moved over a little to start searching again. It was work; people usually just bought the materials but she didn’t see the sense in paying for something she could get for herself, when it was out there waiting to be picked. “This is actually kind of relaxing,” She rubbed at her wrist absently, her eyes narrowed as she turned her search a little further outwards to check once more for danger. They went back to the grass and flowery things in front of her and Lerical shifted her weight so that she could sit down, mindful of what was underneath her as she did. “ Could be a weekly thing; coming out here.” Jade commented her on her clothes, and she looked down at the blue material with an absent look and made a noise of confirmation that the Bard had heard her. “Looks real safe, right? Unfortunately, Bards can’t equip plate. It’s leather or cloth, if I’m remembering correctly. I went with this one ‘cause it’s lighter, and I’m glad I did.” Leather would have been a pain; she could just see herself sweltering in it, or trying to practice her acrobatic class and not being able to move as freely. “You could have worn that dress you had on the other day,” she told her with a wave of her hand. “It looked cute on you; the bumblebee look. Makes me think of a play I was in grade school where were were all decked up in stripes and cardboard wings.” Lerical looked over at Jade and smiled, “I’m pretty sure we can deal with the small stuff that comes our way together. Next time you should wear what you’d like.” It might be a good idea if they wanted to go in deeper that the Guardian wore her armor, though. At the edges though, she heard that it was pretty safe.

© seadra of gs

[Jade]

notes here. Lerical words: 521

Jade nodded as she began to search for suitable plants, it was interesting that more people didn’t do this as it certainly let you get familiar with areas more. “I agree, I think everyone should be able to do whatever they want, not just whatever their class is but this is the way things work it seems and it just raises more questions for me. I was wondering what someone else thought, do you think we are aging, if we can have children , and if so would they be adventurers or people of the land. “ She let Lerical stew on her statement for a bit content to pick at things, finding some plants here and there. Looking at Lerical she smiled and agreed. “Well then let’s do that sometime, we can have a lunch or something your treat. We could go back to that place we ate at yesterday, it was pretty good. “ She liked the sound of a weekly thing, it would certainly help her wallet she thought with a small giggle. Then she heard the compliment on her dress, and she blushed. She was not ready to hear such a thing from the girl who she had found to be cute and actually gave her the time of day. This was a brighter blush than earlier. “Well, my little sister helped come up with my character, and I do really like that dress. It is really cute I try to get out of my armor whenever I can as there is nothing cute about bulky plate mail. “ She said trying to imagine a younger Lerical with cardboard wings and everything. Jade opened her menu and unequipped her armor, leaving her vanity items as her main equipment and thus her dress appeared as magically as the armor vanished. It was nice to be out of it, and without the game menu armor was a real pain to equip. “There we go, much better. I suppose we could handle anything this part of the glade can throw at us. I have to say that it is much nicer doing this with a friend then alone. It would get quite tedious.” She said moving to collect some more, they had found some nice patches of plants that would do perfect for their craft. “I actually got the wings and head band made for my outfit because I had promised my little sister that I would when I had enough gold. I know it’s silly but I wanted to keep my promise even if I may never see her again. It is the least I can do. “ Jade said missing her sister at that exact moment. It was too bad they had no idea if they were stuck her or if going back was ever going to be a possibility. She had more or less accepted this was life which meant she wanted to look into making a living until it made sense to settle down. After all the Adventuring life really wasn’t her ideal situation. Though it worked and enabled her to do what she did enjoy. multiply life by the power of two

Made by Sifr @ THQ.

[Lerical]

ghost 'Cause the world might do me in / It's all right cause I'm with friends / Cause I'm giving up again / It doesn't matter + 560 + #7fc7d1 + Jade

Lerical fell silent as she listened to Jade, humming here and there when she said something that piqued her interest. “We’re stuck here for now,” she started while leaning back. One hand gripped a shoulder and she rolled it before she leaned back forward and started the search once more. “and it feels so real, so I don’t see why we wouldn’t be able to. There are ways to find out, but I don’t think we can do them here; I haven’t tried but it doesn’t seem like one can perform an autopsy or anything like that. The best way to see is time, I suppose.” “But, it makes you think about a lot of things, though. Each of those questions raise another, we could go on forever probably asking more and more about this place, and we’d never really understand it in the end.” Lerical’s eyebrows tightened and she shook her head. “If this wor--...game, worked like that; where we could do what we liked, such as cooking when we don’t have the skill, then it’d be one step closer to resembling our own, I think.” And that didn’t make her feel very good. It sounded bizarre in her head and it didn't make any sense coming out of her mouth either. “It’d be interesting to look into though.” She agreed while picking a few more herbs, examining them before they disappeared into her bag. “Great, then!” Lerical clapped her hands together briefly and smiled. “We can pick a date whenever for whenever. Scheduling isn’t really a problem with this new profession. Adventurer,” The Bard snorted a bit in laughter and shook her head. “It sounds like a child’s dream come true.” She noticed the blush as she kept the blonde in her eyesight, mostly to keep an eye on her back. Another because Lerical had start to find her facial expressions amusing; Jade was a very expressive person, it seemed like. “You and your little sister did a good job, then.” She commented as the Guardian unequipped her armor and the dress she had complimented her on was now visible. “It really is adorable. I wish you could do that uh, what’s it called again… screenshot? Yes, it’d be nice if you could do that and show it to her.” Lerical said once more before her attention drifted back down in front of her and she put her hands back to the search once more. “Tedious is right, though--” Lerical pushed her bangs back behind her ear as she leaned forward. The silence would be unbearable; the Doctor had gotten used to having someone around her making noise, whether it be the Lander she was taking lessons from or one of her new friends. “I think I’d get bored and quit real fast if there wasn’t anyone to talk to. First though, I’d probably start talking to myself. Then I’d get bored of doing that because my head isn’t the best solo-conversationalist.” “I’m glad you’re here, and everyone else as well” She finalized as she stopped in the middle of her run-on. “We can’t see them, our family” Lerical placed a hand over her heart briefly as she looked at Jade, “But we have them here. We may see them once more, and then you can tell her all about the bumblebee wings and how you were an adventurer. I bet she’d be jealous,”

© seadra of gs

[Jade]

notes here. Lerical words: 545

C "I have come to assume this is just our world now, its been two years, Things are becoming more and more real, I would like to side that this is our new world, and we won't be able to go back. I have even debated finding someone to date, It would be nice to have someone that close after all. But you are right we could go on and on with questions about what is and isn't possible in this world. I just wish it wasn't so confusing. Lets just do it tomarrow or the next day? I am free as you said, being an adventurer means you really don't have much of a schedule." She thought about it and would like to have lunch with the Lerical "We could even just do it next time we go out here to get supplies and take turns every time." She said figuring that way they could make a thing out of this and just have an ongoing system to balance lunch costs. Jade had to admit that Lerical was fun to be with. Though she blushed at the compliments again. She nodded and smiled. " Thanks, I wish I could show her too, perhaps if I am wrong and we can leave here one day I can show her." She said with a sigh and picked more plants up, placing them into her bag. It was easy but tedious work, the plants came up easy enough though. She kept up in the conversation and pondered about the fact that being alone was something that was hard to do, if nothing else there were landers everywhere. "I know it is sort of a dream come true I suppose, if only we could of somehow gotten our family in here too. But enough depressing things, lets talk about something of a brighter nature, like if we like someone or what we did in the old world or perhaps what our goals are. " She said keeping at the gathering, moving every so often to keep in position to have something to gather. "I am glad we have become friends, On that brighter note, I suppose I will tell about me In the former world I took care of my brothers and sisters and was in my final year of school. It being my last year home and the two older siblings finally getting old enough to help out I was finally getting some free time and my Youngest brother got me this game, and my youngest sister helped me make the character. They were so cute, they saved up to get it for me. As they have gotten older I get insisted to let them do things which is funny cause I always ended up redoing most of it anyways but I let them have their victories. Though the other two actually were helping It is why I am not so worried I know without me they will pick up the slack. It is tough being the oldest out of 5 kids. My parents were working all the time so that left me to do most of the household things. I suppose that is why I do things like prepare lunch for an outing, just something I am used to. multiply life by the power of two

Made by Sifr @ THQ.

[Lerical]

ghost 'Cause the world might do me in / It's all right cause I'm with friends / Cause I'm giving up again / It doesn't matter + 571 + #7fc7d1 + Jade

‘Right, someone her age would be starting to think about that kind of thing,’ Lerical mused to herself her as she stretched her arms up. “I think that’s a… good idea.” Was it? They were here indefinitely after all, so maybe it was. “I wish you the best on the dating front, Jade.” She hoped that it worked out for her, in this new world. Lerical looked over at her, pondering what kind of person the girl might be interested in. It was hard to pin a type on her, but maybe she’d ask her one day. “That sounds like a great idea,” she voiced, her tone lifting up as she smiled. “I’m in favor of that; taking turns would be a nice thing to start doing.” “I hope we can. Leave, I mean. It’s nice here and all, but…” ‘I worry about back there sometimes.’ She finished inside of her head, her hands pulling up a few more herbs that were added to the growing number in her bag. It was going well, so far. Lerical wasn’t keeping an eye on the amount, but between the conversation and her losing track she hoped that it was a good number so far. “Oh well, though.” Most of her family consisted of old people and middle aged children like her; a few of Lerical’s cousins had children but she could count them all on one hand. She wouldn’t ask for them to be here, nor did she want them to be. The Bard didn’t think many of them would like the idea of being stuck in a game; the glamour would wear off and they’d want to go back to their lives, like she had the first year of being here. Now it was just a matter of accepting that they were still here in another world. It still seemed like a game to her. She let the topic drop--it was getting heavy and she didn’t want to dwell on it anymore than her friend. Lerical leaned back and took a small break from the gathering to rest her hands behind her and tilt her head up to the sky to listen to Jade as she spoke of her life before the game. “Sounds like they love you very much,” Lerical idly lifted her hand to her mouth and chewed on the side of her thumbnail with a small smile. “Final year of highschool, huh? That means prom and all that. Getting ready for college; those were hectic days, but the funnest.” Even if she didn’t go to prom herself. She had stayed home that night with popcorn and watched MacGyver all night. “I can understand the helping the family bit. I had to do that quite a bit growing up. My dad wasn’t able to get around and my mom worked, so I took care of him a lot when I wasn’t in school.” Lerical leaned back forward with a huff and started back to work once more. “Umm… I worked in a hospital in the ER. I was a surgeon, had been for three years after I had graduated from Med School. I started playing this game when a friend at work told me about it, and said I should try it out. But only because my family kinda had a full house and I couldn’t crash with them for awhile, I wasn’t really big on games aside from Scrabble.”

© seadra of gs

[Jade]

notes here. Lerical words: 521

"Thanks, It means alot,I just have to find a cute girl that is interested." She slipped in there hoping not to make the big deal of the fact she liked girls. She smiled, "Then it sounds like we will have lots of future meets where we harvest together. It goes much faster if nothing else when you have someone else to distract you. I know what you mean.. I want to leave and see my family too but at the same time I don't know I am not minding it here. I could make due with everything. " Jade kept harvesting flowers and other small plants, Moving along the meadow at a nice pace stopping to gather and only moving when they had gotten everything, it would be a while before the meadow respawned she thought. Glad the world was at least quick in that respect. It was nice to be here talking nad getting to know a friend. While Lerical was cute, Jade had a feeling she wasn't one for girls. She giggled at that idea and just kept picking. "Yeah.. it is exciting, but so busy.I like life here better in that regard, much slower. Everything isn't always so rushed. " Jade kept working and listening noting that Lerical also took care of her family, in her case her dad. That made sense she could tell that she had a kindred spirit in that regard. "So you were a doctor? That is so cool, I actually was going to go to school for that, I wasn't sure what sort of doctor but I was going to figure that out as I got my undergrad out of the way. I am with you.. I had to have my younger siblings teach me how to play and read some guides as I was completely lost at what to do. I had mostly played board games and such when they were younger. I loved Monoploy myself, though I don't think I ever finished a game. Scrabble huh, that is a fun game but I never could really get anyone to play. It was a bit advanced for 2 of my siblings and the other two couldn't care less for any game that required a degree of thought like that. " Jade giggled a bit, "It is sort of funny that I end up befriending you, so what was it like being a surgeon? I bet it was tough, I was reading about residency programs I don't know how you had any time. It seems like they keep you pretty busy." She said trying to keep up the conversation. "Perhaps one day I can go back and actually be a doctor, that would be nice. " She thought thinking about how much she had worked for good enough grades to do what she wanted. The financial aid she had gathered and it was all going to waste. Not only that she was wasting time here, if only there was some sort of way back but well that didn't seem to be an option so for now, she had to make due with this Jade supposed. multiply life by the power of two

Made by Sifr @ THQ.