Floriography (Penelope, Casual) -FIN-

[OSRIC YOUNG]

Osric was a man of many pleasures, and they ranged from giving people hugs to music to shiny rocks to animals to everything else. Flowers was, naturally, included in this list. He'd never really learned the language of flowers or anything, but it did interest him, that flowers had their own special meanings.

When he was younger his mother had always had flowers around the house, and he liked to water them and take the crawly bugs off the leaves and release them back outside where they belonged. Once he had gone to Canada to the Montreal gardens to see the Lantern Festival and it was gorgeous, and since then he liked to those places a lot.

Not that he really ever went to them, but he liked them a lot.

So he had decided to go today, with a paycheck and a day with absolutely nothing on and he decided he wanted a flower in his apartment like his mom had had in their house. Of course, it'd have to be small and he had no idea where he would put it, but flowers brightened up a room and Osric wanted that. At the botanical gardens - it was a perfect place to look at all the gorgeous flowers and maybe get an idea of what he might want in his house.

He was quite enjoying the place, until he accidentally knocked over one of the smaller pots with his arm. It did not break, but the dirt tumbled out and Osric felt awful for probably bruising the poor plant, and so he went up to the nearest employee that he saw there and said, "Miss, I'm really sorry, but I knocked that plant over, d'you think you have a broom or something I can sweep it up with, or something?"[/b] He said the slightly illiterate comment earnestly, an honestly apologetic look on his face.

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope turned from her work rearranging the chess piece topiary garden to see a young man looking rather embarrassed beside a fallen pot of azaleas.

"Miss, I'm really sorry, but I knocked that plant over, d'you think you have a broom or something I can sweep it up with, or something?"

Penelope smiled and chuckled at the young man. "Oh it's fine. I'll do it, you wait here." She went to a gardening closet set at the edge of the topiary garden. She opened it, grabbed a ceramic pot, a broom and a dustpan. She quickly swept up the dirt and poured it into the new pot and replanted the azaleas, which are thankfully still intact. She swept up the broken pottery and through it in the trash after setting the pot to the side and threw the fragments in the trash. she went back to the shed and pulled out a halfempty bag of dirt and trowel and proceeded to take the pot and surround the azealas with fresh new dirt before returning them to their spring garden setting.

After returning all her equipment to the shed and locking it, Penelope turned back to the young man and smiled.

"There, all done. Now, where you interested in any of our displays sir?"

[OSRIC YOUNG]

The woman turned and smiled at him, looking perfectly fine with the fact that he had, on closer look, broken the pot. She was quite pretty, he noticed. A pretty woman surrounded by pretty flowers, indeed, how lovely.

"Oh it's fine. I'll do it, you wait here," she said, and Osric tried to say, "No, I'll do it," but she was already gone. He stood quietly embarrassed while he watched her sweep, and when she was done, he regretting calling someone so obviously young "ma'am" when she said, "There, all done. Now, where you interested in any of our displays sir?"

Really, no one called him Sir unless they were under fifteen or making fun of him. He was probably quite amusing to he, unfortunately. "No, not really, I was just looking at plants because I want one for my room but mostly I just like to look at them," [/color]he babbled, cursing the way he spoke in circles when he was flustered. "Do you think you know any nice plants that are smallish and don't die if you forget to water them sometimes?"

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope didn't miss a step. "You want an orchid for sure. It re-blooms after dying so even the worst gardeners can have them around for a long time. And if you get the right type, you'd only have to water it once every one to two weeks. You'd probably want Phalaenopsis, the moth orchid, I'll show you some samples."

She proceeded to take the young around to a spot towards the back of the botancal centre to a display of tropical flora, where she pulled out a small clay pot holding a long-stemmed bloom in a vibrant shade of magenta (www.orchids-plus-more.com/images/30136571b.gif).

"These are common houseplants and you can find them almost anywhere," She said, "You just want to make sure whoever you buy it from gives who exact instruction on watering it, and how to properly cut it so it re-blooms. You wouldn't believe how many people drown their orchids because they don't look for proper directions."

[OSRIC YOUNG]

The girl seemed to know just what she was talking about as she answered quickly, "You want an orchid for sure. It re-blooms after dying so even the worst gardeners can have them around for a long time," she said, and yes, Osric definitely was probably one of those "worst gardeners" she was referring to. "And if you get the right type, you'd only have to water it once every one to two weeks. You'd probably want Phalaenopsis, the moth orchid, I'll show you some samples."

"Brilliant, thanks,"[/b] Osric said, impressed, and followed her to where she showed him a beautiful pink-purple plant. He recognized seeing them before.

"These are common houseplants and you can find them almost anywhere," she said, confirming his suspicious that they weren't rare, "You just want to make sure whoever you buy it from gives who exact instruction on watering it, and how to properly cut it so it re-blooms. You wouldn't believe how many people drown their orchids because they don't look for proper directions."

"Oh, okay, I will,"[/b] he said with a smile, promising himself to remember the directions she was giving him and the directions whoever sold one to him. "Do you know any good but, er, cheap stores around here that sell them? I'm afraid I'm a bit tight on cash," he admitted sheepishly. He knew it probably wasn't polite to admit so, but he did need to know.

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope chuckled and put a hand on her hip.

"Not to worry," She said, "You can probably by them from any Home Depot. They're really quite common. It's okay, everyone's been hard up for cash at least once in their life. If I hadn't landed here, I'd probably still be begging my parents for rent money. If you want, I could could give you one of my orchids. I have too many to keep track of, and I'm afraid it's starting to show." She smiled sheepishly.

She held her hand out in introduction. "I never caught your name. I'm Penelope, it's great to meet you."

((OC: I'm really sorry, I've been busy the past week XD.))

[OSRIC YOUNG]

"Not to worry, you can probably by them from any Home Depot. They're really quite common," Penelope said. Osric nodded, smiling. She was really nice, polite and stuff. He'd be sure to drop by one of those places and get a plant soon. He needed a little color in his flat, it was so boring.

"It's okay, everyone's been hard up for cash at least once in their life. If I hadn't landed here, I'd probably still be begging my parents for rent money. If you want, I could could give you one of my orchids. I have too many to keep track of, and I'm afraid it's starting to show."

Well, that was very… direct. Osric smiled back. It was a bit strange to him, hearing someone so open about otherwise tender subjects. He rather liked that! He shook Penelope's hand eagerly, excited to hear someone who didn't hide dumb things like money. "I never caught your name. I'm Penelope, it's great to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too!"[/b] Osric replied eagerly. "My name is Osric. Osric Young. Nice to meet you! Oh - wait - I just said that."[/b] He laughed nervously, internally smacking himself for acting an idiot. Oh, well, hopefully Penelope wouldn't mind.

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope chuckled. "It's nice to meet you too. Osric. I like that. It's an unusual name." Smiling, she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears. I was nice to meet new people in this great big city. She looked at her watched, than back at Osric.

"I get off in 20 minutes." She sad, "You can wait for me, if you want. check out our new butterfly garden in back." She pointed to a small greenhouse structure at the back of gardens. "What do you think?"

((OOC: sorry. I've been busy ^^))

[OSRIC YOUNG]

Thankfully, Penelope did indeed take his verbal blunder quite gracefully and said, "It's nice to meet you too. Osric. I like that. It's an unusual name." She smiled and tucked her hair behind her ears, and she was very pretty. He liked her, and that she liked his name.

"I get off in 20 minutes," she said, "You can wait for me, if you want. Check out our new butterfly garden in back," she pointed, "What do you think?"

"You mean, you'd go with me?[/b] Osric asked. "Well... sure, I mean, that sounds great,"[/b] he decided. Perhaps it was strange the woman was offering to go with a complete stranger, but then again, he did it to other people often enough, it was just happening to him now. Huh, someone as unaware of social warnings as he was in favor of friendliness. It was... odd. Good-odd. But odd.

"See you, then,"[/b] he smiled, and went to the glass house she'd pointed to before. He spent the next twenty minutes wandering in the garden, admiring the plants and fascinated by butterflies. He also somehow ended up talking to some a little girl in very, very broken French, helping her find her mom who was on the other side of the small building.

"Merci, merci," the mother said.

"De ren,"[/b] Osric said awkwardly, and the mother laughed and patted him on the shoulder before leaving with her child. He felt good about himself, just then, and also he was pretty sure he'd said You're Welcome wrong. It'd been a long, long time since high school French classes that he'd payed very little attention to. Oh well, it was of no matter, because he did a good-thing today. He hummed quietly to himself Michelle by the Beatles, because it was one of two songs in French that he actually knew that weren't nursery rhymes, simply because he thought of doing it. He anticipated Penelope coming, because by his watch she ought to show up soon. Not that he minded if she didn't come, but their imminent adventure excited him.

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope finished the rest of her work - watering the plants, pruning, taking soil samples for analysis - and headed to the back room to change out her her lab coat and uniform.

She smiled as she changed, thinking about the affable young man she had rather rashly invited over. Rash it may have been, but she had been been lonely for the past few weeks, her friends becoming increasingly busy with the upcoming holidays, and her own family to far away for regular visits or phone calls. She needed a new friend.

Changing into grey legging and a red plaid dress with black buckled boots, Penelope made her way back outside and to the butterfly garden, where she saw Osric sitting and admiring his surroundings.

"So, are we ready to go?" She asked as she art beside him and smiled.

[OSRIC YOUNG]

Penelope approached him, and she was now wearing a pretty red plaid dress with nice boots that resembled ones Osric himself owned at home. Her leggings matched nicely and she was staggeringly pretty. Osric thought perhaps this was a bit like an strange date. He was ever so excited.

"So, are we ready to go?" She asked him.

"Oh yes," he smiled at her, and held out his arm for her to take. It wasn't something he often did but it was a gentlemanly thing to do and he wanted to be polite for her, as she seemed to him. "Shall we go?"

They began walking, and made their way outside, where Osric hailed a cab. "Where to, again?" He asked her as they got in. He was awful with short term memory, it was a horrid loss of his.

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope smiled and giggled as she took Osric by the hand and led him away from the taxi he had had unnecessarily. "Were heading to the subway, actually. I'm sorry you did that for no reason." She nodded at the taxi, which had already begun to drive away, "But it was very polite and gentlemanly of you to do it. You must be the nicest person I've met so far in New York. Everyone else is always rushing about on their own business. No one has time to stop for a minute, say hello, smell the air, take in the sun, that kind of thing,"

She led him down the steps into the underground terminal, she smiled and continued prattling.

"I hope you don't mind me talking so much. I do it when I'm nervous around new people, and don;' want to kill the conversation with awkward silence. Anyway, I dont make enough money to take a taxi everyday, so the subway is my transportation of choice. Oh! How stupid of me! Do you need a token?"

She winced and looked at him apologetically, forgetting to ask him earlier if he had subway tokens, or the proper change.

[OSRIC YOUNG]

[/b] she said, and oh, silly him, he'd assumed (ass you me, said his eighth grade teacher) that they were taking a cab. He felt a bit bad for wasting time, of the driver and of Penelope.

"But," Penelope continued, and Osric looked a little guiltily at her, "It was very polite and gentlemanly of you to do it. You must be the nicest person I've met so far in New York. Everyone else is always rushing about on their own business. No one has time to stop for a minute, say hello, smell the air, take in the sun, that kind of thing."

"I know!"[/b] Osric exclaimed, still a little embarrassed but too pleased at having someone who had the same opinions as him to talk to. "It's such a cool place, but everybody's all rude, and stuff."[/b] He followed her eagerly down the underground, still holding on to his hand and just following where she led him.

"I hope you don't mind me talking so much. I do it when I'm nervous around new people, and don't want to kill the conversation with awkward silence," said Penelope, and oh, Osric knew the feeling. but anyways, he didn't think she was talking that much. And she was saying good things, so it didn't matter even if she was. "Anyway, I dont make enough money to take a taxi everyday, so the subway is my transportation of choice. Oh! How stupid of me! Do you need a token?"

He gave her a smile to show he wasn't at all bothered, "Yeah, but that's okay,"[/b] he assured her. He usually walked wherever he went, or got a ride with one of his friends if he couldn't. He walked quickly over to the machine and rummaged about in his pocket to find change for two dollars. He was lucky to find just enough quarters - he had a nickel left over. He put them in the slot - oh, he rather liked putting things in slots, it was fun - and out popped the little token. He held it up to Penelope - "There we go!"[/b] He grinned. He heard the subway coming, the vibrations in the floor. "Should we catch that one?"[/b] He asked excitedly. They could easily run and catch it! They had just been talking about taking it easy, but Osric did do that, mostly - the only thing was, when it came to the subway, there was no waiting. It was a mad dash, here! He hated it in a lot of ways, but it was also pretty exciting.[/font][/ul]

[PENELOPE LAFONTAINE]

Penelope smiled and nodded as she took Osric's hand and led him onto the train.

"I'm sorry about making you scrounge for change. I always hate doing that. It should only take about fifteen minutes and then we just walk a couple of blocks south until we reach my apartment. It's not that bad."

The car rocketed forward and rattled back and forth on the track as she took a seat by a window. She glanced out the window watching black walls wizz past her and the sudden burst of light and blue sky as they clattered over an open bridge. She look down at the cars flying down the freeway below.

Penelope looked back at Osric and patted the seat next to her. "So Osric," she said, "Tell me everything about yourself. That way I can assure people I didn't let a complete stranger into my home."

[OSRIC YOUNG]

[/b] Osric blinked in his seat on the train and realized - oh, maybe this was a date. Why were the going to her house? Well, surely she had more things about plants there, or something.

"So Osric, tell me everything about yourself. That way I can assure people I didn't let a complete stranger into my home."

Right. Perhaps it was a date then. Which was a bit awkward. Still, it made him nervous and cheery at the same time, and he chuckled. He liked Penelope; she was nice, and polite, and funny; definitely pretty. Despite the fact that this may have become something he hadn't intended, he was pleased. Well,"[/b] he wondered, "My name is Osric Roscoe Young."[/b] He started carefully; he didn't want to say something weird so he went with facts. I'm from Utah. Only child. I'm twenty-three years old... I like writing. And I like music a lot."[/b] He stopped there, deciding that was enough for a bit. He realized he didn't have a school or job to talk about really, and he wasn't going to say 'Oh and once I was almost famous but now I'm some kind of one-hit wonder, you've probably heard my song and not care where I got to, and I'm basically unemployed except sometimes and I have a wee addiction to pain killers.' That'd scare her off. That'd scare himself off!

He looked at her expectantly, "And what about you, Ms. Penelope?"[/b][/ul][/font]