❀ diamond in the rough, a flower blossoming in the slums

[gardeningaia]

Perhaps getting thrown down here was part of the plan. The great quest. The attempt to woo sweet Agrabah princess, or just fetch what that weird rug merchant asked you to get.

More likely this particular stop wasn't on the itinerary. Boy is that Saucer of Wonders picky! The moment you--or a faithful but not always reliable animal companion--got distracted by something shiny, it was down the hatch to a natural desert prison, surrounded on all sides by quicksand. There's evidence that people have been here...and evidence they died here. You're not about to find anyone alive and kicking in the rundown shacks anytime soon.

Look long enough, though, and you'll find a dusty watering can lying on its side. The weathered metal has certainly seen better days, but maybe it could be cleaned up with a little polish?

Or maybe you're more interested in the "water" part of "watering can". This is a desert, after all.

Pick it up?

[ No? But thou must! Not much is going to happen until that can's picked up, and Aerith might get a bit impatient if your character ignores her. Oh yes, indeed, she's in there as the Genie.

In a little spin on the theme, I'm using the Disney take rather than the classic version itself. Also, if you want to find the watering can in a completely different place to better fit your own character's quest, that's fine! (And I do mean completely different, never underestimate the power of cosmic ...powers.) The Gold Saucer/Corel Prison just happened to suit the Cave of Wonders sequence nicely. ]

Comments

[midgarhorizon]

[Surprised, he drops the can and takes a step back, readying for anything, especially an attack, but-]

Aerith?

[He's slightly skeptical at this. Now he's seeing Aerith in the dreams. What next? A talking chocobo?]

The hell are you doing in a watering can?

[gardeningaia]

How does anyone ever find themselves in a bottle? Or....a bottle-like thing, anyway. I'll give you three guesses! [ She raises her hand with three fingers raised. ] By the way, that's an important number, three.

[midgarhorizon]

Cut it out, I don't feel like playin'.

[Oh. Three guesses. Three wishes. He gets it. Kind of cliched but he would roll with it.]

You're the genie, huh?

[gardeningaia]

So you will play along sometimes! [ Though she certainly had made it easier. ] That's right.

...By the way, you can't ask me to kill anyone. Just so we're clear on that. [ ESTABLISHING RULES WITH TURKS. ]

[midgarhorizon]

[He sort of smiles at that.] You? Kill anyone?

[The idea was a little difficult to resolve in his head. Not to mention, if he needed anyone dead he would just do it himself.]

Let's just go with some water.

[gardeningaia]

[ She flaps her hand, trying to brush it off. ] You get all sorts of weird requests in this job. ...You probably know how that is. [ Turks are the genies of the corrupt corporate? ...It makes sense. Somehow. ]

But water? That's a cinch. [ Aerith snaps her fingers and then picks up the watering can, tipping it to pour water in the glass suddenly in her hands.

She offers that to Reno, surreptitiously conjuring up another arm at the same time to hold a canteen that's also getting filled with water. For later! "Some" isn't really specific......and genies are used to big wishes.

In fact Reno might figure out what kind of scale Aerith's used to when the sounds of pool construction start up behind him. He didn't say this was just drinking water, she can't assume! ]