Flower Power (15) : Destiny City has erupted with colorful wildflowers, both beautiful to look at and surprisingly fragrant. The aroma is incredibly alluring, and it's difficult not to be tempted to get a closer whiff. As expected, it smells even more amazing up close, and immediately after inhaling the aroma, colors seem brighter. Lights appear softer. The world takes on a warm, dreamlike quality where everything feels just a little more magical. Some describe glowing trails of light, shifting colors, or patterns that seem to move when they aren't looking directly at them. Others find themselves unusually cheerful, creative, or sociable. Unfortunately, not every experience is pleasant. What begins as a pleasant daydream can quickly become overwhelming, and the same flowers that inspire wonder in one person may leave another feeling confused, anxious, or trapped in an unpleasant hallucination. The effects always fade with time, maybe a few minutes, maybe a few hours, but no one seems quite sure why these flowers have such unusual properties. If you're the type to stop and smell the roses--be careful.
The flowers on his home planet had been sparse even before the Chaos. Lovas was a dark, cold, dry world that didn't lend itself to much flourishing vegetation. Or much vegetation period, for that matter. He didn't consider it something he was missing out on, but given that Lovas was not on his planet, shouldn't he try to enjoy the rarities he would otherwise not get to experience?
This random overgrown lot within the city had sporadically sprouted. It happened practically overnight, going from this unmowed, brownish blight on the eyes to a colorful and flourishing garden. Lovas had never, in all his years, seen something erupt in such a way. Surely it was magical in nature and should be hidden from the common eye- but no one else seemed to think so? The regular Earthans seemed only to marvel briefly and then walk on, chattering pleasantly.
But Lovas was nothing if not a curious beast.
He ambled through the dense patches of florals, trying not to disrupt or crumple them with his imposing figure. Bees and little birds fluttered lazily, and he had to remind himself that most living things were not for eating (though Lovas didn't think it would be hard to catch anything in this little garden)...
Instead, he meandered toward one of the edges of the lot, folding down to sit on the ground where he would be out of the way of any passerby. He selected one of the many flowers nearby- something with many petals and deeply purple- and snapped its slender stem, bringing it first to his nose for a little sampling of scent (very sweet, sweeter than any natural scent on his world. And he did so love sweets). And then up to tuck the blossom behind a long, pointed ear, nestled into a mess of waves- just like he'd seen Earthans do on the TV programs!
Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2026 12:57 pm
When all else failed, Nemausa followed his nose. And there were so many scents in Destiny City, so many exciting tastes and sounds and--and sometimes Earth could be a little overwhelming! If he was being honest! There were good things and bad things and just - things absolutely everywhere, things he didn't have the names for or words to describe. Things that no other Nemausan had ever - would ever - experience. That made him a little sad, and only added to his overwhelm.
So he tried to get away from the noise. He was already powered up, and he didn't want to be completely alone, he just wanted it to be a little bit quieter, a little bit - nicer, in some way. Fewer of those big old ugly machines that burped out smog. Sometimes the ickiness was comforting - reminded him of home - but at that moment, he just wanted something...
He wanted something beautiful. Beauty had been in short supply on Nemausa, except what they made themselves, and Earth had so many...what were they called? Traas? Triis? Something like that. Nature, at any rate. Earth had a lot of it, and Nemausa felt like he'd never stop discovering new aspects of it.
Like this field of flowers he happened upon, drawn by a gentle whiff of something fresh and light on the breeze. That was a lot of flowers! Wow! Nemausa dropped to all fours to run faster toward the field, standing back up before he entered the explosion of color and scent.
Oh! And there was a buddy! Nemausa grinned over at them; he could tell that they were a friend. Or at least that they weren't...like the people who were not friends. The ones that made his ears itch, who wanted to do bad things to the people that lived on this planet.
"Hi!" Nemausa called, leaning down to pick two flowers. He kept one for himself and began to make his way with more intention toward the stranger, stopping when he was just beyond arm's reach. He extended the other flower to the stranger, and gave him a wide, gaptooth grin. "I'm Nemausa! It's nice to meet you!"
At least, he hoped it would be nice to meet him. There were some people who were mean, even if they weren't the ear-itchy guys, but he didn't really think mean people would stand there and enjoy the pleasant smell of flowers. They'd probably just try to smush them down, and this guy wasn't doing that, so he was - for the moment - okay in Nemausa's book.
And people who were mean almost definitely wouldn't put a pretty flower behind their ear! That was purely a nice person thing to do, Nemausa was nearly sure of it.
(Mmm, books. Books were yummy. Paper had such a fun texture! Especially old paper! He'd have to find a way to sneak back into the library when that mean library lady wasn't around to kick him out again...)
Lovas definitely shouldn't expect to remain alone in Destiny City. His aura could draw friend or foe at any time, and consequently, he should always keep his guard up when wandering the city. And that shouldn't be difficult for him! He'd had his guard up for... centuries and centuries, always ducking away from the poison that dogged his steps on his planet. It did not bother him to be in such a state of alertness almost constantly. Lovas knew no other way to exist.
...He couldn't explain why it gave him such a ridiculous startle to hear a voice pipe up from the flowers. The lull and serenity of the garden must have dulled his awareness, because a simple 'Hi!' from an unfamiliar (but friendly!) face made Lovas nearly jolt out of his skin.
And that was weird.
But Lovas was nothing if not decently practiced at hiding things that unnerved him. And the small boy that scampered through the garden did seem friendly and good intentioned. So tucking his trepidation away, Lovas offered a wide, fanged smile of his own. "Oh! A little rodent-man! Not a human, then." And so probably not from this planet. "It's always a pleasant rarity to see someone else from the great expanse of space."
"Nemausa," he greeted with a little nod, accepting the offered flower by scooping it up into a broad palm. This one was a gentle blue in contrast to the deep purple one he'd plucked for himself, hardly a few moments ago.
They'd look nice enough together. Lovas brought it to join the other tucked behind his ear and then smiled warmly at his new friend. "I am Lovas. Did these sweet scents draw you in?" He asked, canting his head toward the array of flowers around them. "There was nothing quite so lovely on my planet."
Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2026 8:04 pm
Nemausa positively beamed - he hadn't known there were any other Senshi from other planets here!! That was so exciting!! He wondered how long his new friend had been on Earth - maybe Lovas could teach him things? - but he did his best to focus on what Lovas was actually saying, before he got carried away with himself.
"Mine either! My planet was way different than Earth, like way different." Nemausa glanced around, gave a cautious sniff. "And these flowers are way different than any other flowers I've ever seen here," he added, cupping the one he'd plucked to his nose to take a nice, deep, long whiff.
He made a soft noise of contentment and blinked slowly, his eyes taking a moment to refocus back on...on...what was his new friend's name again? L...L...Lo....Love? Love. Love was a nice word. Love love love love love.
"Love," Nemausa said with a doofy smile. "Hi," he said again, then nibbled absently at the petals of the flower in his hand. A broad grin spread across his face. "Oooh. This is yummy! You should try it!!"
"It is a little difficult to get used to," Lovas agreed, giving a slow, sagely nod. He had not even been here for a full cycle of this planet's calendar year: there were many things he was not accustomed to, many things to explore, many things he had no explanation of. But given the choice between staying in this strange and lively place or returning to the prison of a planet he'd lived on for the past thousand years... Well, the choice should be obvious to anyone. Lovas expected this little mouse held similar priorities.
And he was certainly very lively and excited (why shouldn't they be? Anyone who escaped the devastation of their own world and made it here? Why shouldn't they feel a renewed zest for adventure and life?).
Lovas did as well. "Hmmm?" The note was low and teasing, pale eyes immediately lighting with amusement, and a great, glinting, fanged smile springing to his face. "Feel free to call me whatever is easiest to fall from your lips. I don't mind at all." Despite his name having such an easy and obvious short form, it was nearly always Lovas calling his new friends 'Little Love,' and it was equally as frequently that they Did Not Approve. The last Page he'd given the nickname to had looked like he wanted to stone Lovas- and so he tried to reserve its use for occasions that... didn't involve murder were more lighthearted.
As this one seemed to be. They were sitting on the ground eating flowers together, after all...
Or about to be, anyway. Lovas was not a picky eater in general, and he'd tasted many, many of this world's great myriad of offerings (some of which were apparently not meant to be sampled), but he had not yet found himself eating grass or flowers. ...Maybe he should. They did smell nice. His palate tended to prefer hearty, meaty meals or very sweet treats that he'd never had access to before.
But if the snacks could be plucked directly from the ground...? Lovas leaned over to take a quick sniff of the flower in Nemausa's hand- it did smell nice and looked quite fresh. But he was not a delicate eater and simply took a great chomp of fresh petals-
...And it was... fine...
A choked little sound escaped him. It wasn't that he couldn't eat it or even necessarily that he found it completely unpalatable... But... "Ahaha! It does... have a unique flavor!" He invited conversationally, tongue swiping back and forth over the dulled tip of his fangs as if trying to taste anything else. "I'm not sure I need to experience it again."
