watering blues

Helping Hops was becoming more and more common in Hana’s life, which was something that she shouldn’t have been surprised about, but nonetheless decided that it was just going to be a thing now. Hana was a “go with the flow” type bun for all of her whining, and since the requests were not exactly ludicrous or out of her depth, she was normally fine with doing them. It wasn’t like she had anything better to do on days where she didn’t have to work.

With the coming of the new month, it appeared that things were starting to settle into a more normal day to day living (save for the constant rain showers. She didn’t miss those; she missed the colder weather where she could bundle up and pretend she was a little thing in a mass of clothing). She got the call from Hops one fine, cloudy afternoon while she was playing a game on her handheld console. Stifling a yawn, she grabbed the phone from her bedside table and answered it, wondering what today’s task might be this time around.

“Wait what?”

Hana furrowed her eyebrows, putting the console down and then idly fiddling with her ear.

“Hops, I’m not a gardener. I mean I have succulents and they’re actually alive, but I don’t…oh, you already got other buns to plant the seeds?” A pause. “I guess watering them shouldn’t be too difficult…but what if I overwater? That’s a thing right?” Another pause. “Okay okay, when do I have to be there? Now? Fiiine. Give me, I dunno, twenty minutes. You’re lucky it isn’t raining. Yep, I’ll bring an umbrella. Okay, buh bye.”

✲

Even if it wasn’t raining outside just yet, she still made sure to dress up with clothes that were a little more waterproof (or that she didn’t mind getting wet, or would dry quickly). She hoped that the sun decided not to peek out today, as when there was no rain, there was humidity and heat, and she once again missed the colder weather that swept Burrowgatory just a few weeks before. Thankfully she still had working rain boots after a mishap last year, but she had no gardening gloves. Well, Hops did say it was just going to be watering, so this shouldn’t be an issue. Hopefully. Hopsfully?

She lightly shook her head to get rid of the terrible pun and made her way to the Wonderland Casino, specifically somewhere in their large backyard which was really more like…a large large garden. Farm. Hard to say, really, but thanks to working here sometimes, she didn’t get lost finding it. There were actually a few other buns tending to the bumpy, dark soil; some she recognized as fellow waitresses and bartenders. It was Hops who spotted her first, waving energetically and beckoning her to join in the watering. Lo and behold, there was already a spare watering can near Hops’ feet.

“You said twenty minutes!”

“Twenty-five? It took me a while to find everything, okay?”

“Honestly, Hana, you’re overdressed. Afraid of getting wet?”

“I just don’t want the hassle of walking back soaked.”

She swore that a lust bun had turned their attention to them with an eyebrow raise. Hana decided to ignore it by rolling her eyes. “So where do I get started?”

“That patch over there. We still have a number of patches to go for the day and these plants are thirsty. Even with the rains! Can you believe it?”

“If buns can be thirsty any time of the day, I can believe it.”

“True.” Hops handed Hana the watering can, which was much heavier than she expected. “Well, they’re not going to water themselves. Thanks in advance!”

The sloth bun groaned, “Sure, I’m getting something out of this, right? What’s with all of the watering anyway?”

“Oh, I didn’t tell you? These are Hazeblooms!”

Hana, of course, had no idea what they were.

“Expensive stuff, I’ll tell you more about it later.” A pause. “Fine, we’ll do it over a drink, on the house. You can cut out the pleading eyes now.”

“You’re the best, Hops.” she grinned, finding it much easier to work knowing that she’ll get a reward by the end of it. With her heavy watering can (she could feel the water slosh around in there, and she had to be careful for none of it to spill out) and her heavy boots, she made her way to the patch she was directed to. Looking intently at the soil, she wasn’t exactly told where the seeds were planted, so she assumed that she just had to water the whole thing carefully. Don’t overwater, she thought, just spread it out evenly.

And thus her afternoon was spent in hard concentration under a cloudy sky, listening to the chatter of other buns hard at work and the clear water hitting the soil.