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Crafting A Future; Felicity, Freeform
Topic Started: Mar 29 2011, 01:09 AM (211 Views)
Kirin
Kirin the Bloodedge
This is a March entry.

Word Count: 5,861
Summary: Felicity, in an attempt to solve her financial problems, sets about learning how to craft apricorn Pok Balls. However, a goal is not always so easily achieved...
Rewards:
Apricorn Crafting Kit (10 :ffexp cost)
This custom kit allows Felicity the rare privilege of crafting apricorn-based Pok Balls, a thing done only by those in rare circles. It requires one post to craft the apricorn balls, and then 200z plus one post cooldown per apricorn ball crafted in a single session. A maximum of ten balls can be crafted per session.

Then, of course, the usual EXP.
Notes: Someone please grade this ;_;
Kit approved by Frac.
log





There were times when things just didnt seem to be going the way that they were supposed to. This, Felicity thought to herself, was one of those times. Even psychic powers didnt manage to make money magically appear in front of her, and so she needed to get herself some kind of money. Somehow. She had costs to cover, and things that she needed to buy. Even being the Seer, the overlord and master, of the regions fastest-expanding criminal empire, was not raking in the dough the way it should. With a sigh, she examined her budget with list of income and expenses while she lounged in her study at home, and regarded it with a forlorn shake of the head. Felicity was not pleased with what she saw.

While her business, Berry Good Florists, was doing well enough, it wasnt really providing Felicity much income other than what she needed to pay basic living costs. And, true, Talon was starting to provide a little extra spending money. But it wasnt enough. It barely covered all the costs of running her Pokmon team, and that was causing her some problems too. Abyss, her large and strong Salamence, ate a lot more food than shed expected. And Gamzee well, she still didnt even know what the hell he ate, plus all the juggling clubs that he wanted her to buy and kept breaking were starting to pile up. Okay, so it was funny to watch her mutant Mr. Mime go apeshit bonkers and ram one down someones throat and make them choke on it but she had to buy him more or hed eventually turn his capricious nature on her.

Man. And this was supposed to be her day off, too.

It was obvious that shed need to make her money come in more. Without more money, shed not be able to finance her plans. And how many of those she was concocting these days? She needed a crack team of Pokmon bodyguards to make it all happen. And, true, she had three as it was. However, all three of them needed to expand their knowledge. And knowledge cost money. A hell of a lot of money, she grumbled. Felicity was smartening up to just how expensive things were in this world. No more was she her daddys precious little daughter. Especially because, yknow, shed killed him herself. But he didnt have his money to rely on any more. She had to get her own from somewhere. But what the heck could she make some money from? She had a shop. Short of stealing which, she decided, needed to be done very selectively so as to minimise the cost of operating thefts, she didnt really have much way. Many of her old college friends would have instantly said pornography or just plain old selling herself on the streets, but Felicity had standards. She was nobodys whore. She would not reduce herself to the level of street-stalking trash. No, she owned the people like that. She was the mistress. She was the domineering puppet master. All thoughts of that vanished from her mind. Now, she was seeing it as one less way of making money any time soon.

Reaching over to the little white laptop that she kept to keep an eye on Talon activities, the one that she needed when her personal assistant wasnt around to look up facts and figures for her, she powered it up and waited the requisite few bored seconds while it booted. Maybe shed find something really useful in there, Felicity thought to herself. After all, shed vetted most of those items available on their black market network personally. What was made available to her Operatives and Executives was property of the Seer by proxy. Perhaps, with a little ingenuity, shed get some ideas from looking through all of those exquisite goods. Things like the Talon all-terrain vehicle? Sure. They were definitely good, but shed get nowhere smuggling vehicles. What about weapons? There were guns, knivesthe knife design theyd stolen from Vanishing Point was an excellent one, for instance, and she could easily pin the blame on thembut no. It still wasnt enough for Felicity. She needed something more.

The list scrolled down, towards the equipment they set aside for thieving operations, and she started to zone out. Yeah, this was getting her nowhere. Thinking about numbers and making money was for her assistant Alisha, not for her this wasnt what she did. She paid other people to do it for her. Felicitys mind started to numb and zone out, as if she really didnt want to think about this crap any more. A solution would eventually come along, she mused, before her thoughts drifted over the horizon and far away

The sudden ring of her Poktech woke her from her reverie. She reached over and checked the message shed just received. It was unusual for her to get anything except as self-deleting Talon messages, so she wondered who could possibly be dropping her a line what time was it, even? Two in the afternoon, so it wasnt entirely unreasonable for her to be getting something now, while people were still on the move and getting their legitimate work done. However, the message was written in a strange language and, in a colour she had to instantly recognize.

look at your screen. HONK. >:o) heheheh. YOURE MOTHERFUCKIN SCREWED WITHOUT ME. heheh. HEHEHEHEH. honk :o)

It had to be Gamzee, Felicity thought instantly to herself. She knew only one who could communicate like thatno need to ask how a Mr. Mime had gotten access to not only a Poktech, but her messaging addressand now he was turning it on her to make sure she did something that was right. Or, so his powers said. Well, if Gamzee had stronger psychic powers than she did, shed have to trust in his judgment and abilities, right? She cast her chocolate gaze over to the screen that glowed in front of her face, and saw one of Talons new and experimental items: the Black Apricorn Extract. This stuff was great for removing someones memories, most specifically a Pokmons, after youd caught them. It induced amnesia in the weakest of minds, and made it so they hated you less, essentially. She recalled the day shed approved adding it to Talons inventory, but she also remembered how hard it was to secure supplies of the apricorn extract because they didnt have anyone who could really work with apricorns, making them reliant on outside sources

And then, like a freight train, it hit her full-force. Apricorns. Those tough little fruits could be turned into very expensive Pok Balls, which could be sold straight to a shop or to other people. And there was another item in the Talon inventory that relied on apricorn extracts, too. Either way, theyd make an awesome source of income if she could find a way to make them into Pok Balls herself. Hell, she owned a freaking berry shop. Why hadnt she thought of this before? Felicity smacked her forehead with the heel of her palm, cursing her own stupidity for not seeing this ever-so-obvious idea before. She was working on a degree in botanical science. If she could do that, she could sure as hell learn how to craft a stupid Pok Ball.

Felicity had her means of making money. Already, she was on her feet and sprinting upstairs, to the florists shop she had a lot to go and find out. After all, this could solve so many of the problems she and Talon were having in a single collective idea. If she could craft apricorn Pok Balls, then she could make money legitimately as part of Berry Good Florists. That would give Felicity all the cash she needed to help fund Talons operations properly and on top of that, it would give Talon the apricorn extract supplies they needed in order to continue creating the items they needed, at discounted prices for the team. The possibilities of cost-saving and expediency on team supplies were racing through her mind. Why hadnt she thought of this before? Perhaps she was getting a little too reliant on her powers to do things for her

Nonetheless, as she raced up the stairs that led to the shop from her home, Felicitys mind was set on its new, all-enduring goal learn to craft apricorn Pok Balls. Thoughts of fame, of money and benefits, all flitted through her mind, and the greed rose inside her. Yes, Felicity was prone to succumbing to the darker side of human nature these days, but shed stopped caring once she was forced to don the mantle of the Seer.

As soon as she reached the storefront, unlocking the door there and walking right out, she put on her green Berry Good Florists apron and looked around. There she was Alisha, her Talon chief of staff, working as one of her retail minions. It was such a lovely set-up. Of course, they had some other people there working for them, but there was nonetheless a rather convenient nature to the dynamic that Alisha and Felicity had worked out. They did both like working here, anyway. Of course, her chief of staff knew almost everything there was to know about both Berry Good Florists and Talon. So, whenever she needed numbers or ideas, Alisha was Felicitys go-to girl.

Physically, Alisha was what most guys would consider well above average. She was a little over five foot seven, with long blonde hair that ran down to her shoulder blades when she wasnt wearing it up in a ponytail with a black scrunchie. She had the body of someone who exercised regularlyand, for the sake of the male population, said exercise was usually swimming in some kind of bikini. Her breasts were just shy of a full C-cup, and she had the curves that had the guys making a double-take when she was really going all-out to show them off. She had the body and she wasnt afraid to use it, either more than one guy had been seduced, slept with, and conned out of money in her lifetime. That conniving nature was what brought her to Felicity in the first place. Shed also been to Brightopolis University, studying finance and that, the Seer had decided, was what made her so invaluable to her staff.

Alisha, Felicity said, a knowing, twinkling smile playing upon her ruby lips, have we had any apricorn shipments come in lately? Preferably any big ones?

The accountant considered the question for a moment. What kind of business her boss was having really wasnt entirely her business, even if their nature as confidantes would reveal to her the truth anyway. That and she wasnt entirely sure, she realised after a moment of thinking. Reaching under the storefronts counter, she pulled out a tracking log, flipping through to the most recent page and putting her finger upon the appropriate line, complete with the signature of their delivery person.
Here. We just had a shipment of apricorns in for the greenhouse, but it had surplus. Ten blue apricorns, twelve reds, fifteen blacks and eight greens, she replied. Alisha had the habit of stating clearly what was going on before delving into verbal shorthand to ensure her audience knew exactly what she was saying. Such clarity, in her world, was critical.

Perfect. Can you order in another shipment exactly the same? I know its a little sudden, but we really need those blues, reds and blacks.

Alisha suddenly knew exactly what was going on. Those three varieties were the ones Talon used for their illicit substances. Can do, boss. Any particular time you need them to arrive?

Felicity pondered a moment. I need them as soon as possible. Twenty-four hours would be great. And Im going to need a few manuals on how to make Pok Balls. What do you think of us selling crafted apricorn balls?

Alishas eyes narrowed in contemplation. While most looked to the sky, or perhaps put their hands to their chin, her eyes narrowed as if truly thinking hard about what was in front of her. It also made her look unnecessarily angry at times. Good source of money. Ill see what I can do Ill try and use my contacts to order some crafting kits, but it might take a few days.

Felicity grinned, turned around, and winked. Itll do. Thanks, babe, she said playfully, before walking back to her quarters downstairs. For now, she had some research to do maybe the internet would have some of the answers she needed. Either way, the goal was set, and the method was given to her clearly. Yes. She would be the regions newest crafter of the rare and valuable apricorn balls.



It had been a particularly long wait, but Felicity finally had what she was waiting for: her shipment of extra apricorns, her crafting materials, and her books on the subjects of apricorn Pok Balls and regular ball crafting. Now, all of them lay out on a bench in the florist shops upstairs greenhouse. The suns rays filtered through the glass roof, warming the greenhouse to high temperatures and, with all the flowers and berry trees growing, provided a warm and rich aroma to surround her senses. It was an ideal working condition for the botanist, who loved the fact that she had all the time in the world to study all this. However, the sooner she got her studies out of the way, the better.

Slowly, she reclined in her fold-up chair, a book in her hands. The first book she had to read was the history of Pok Balls, to understand not just how to make them, but why itd be a rather important part of what she had to do. And, hey, it helped her to answer any of the awkward questions that she might be pitched. She had a hunch that most of the desk jockeys and retail monkeys at Apricorn Hut couldnt answer half the stuff this book was talking about. If knowledge was power, then she had to make herself more powerful than those guys. No matter what they all did and said in their line of work, Felicity would make very sure that she was prepared.

She began to read.

It turned out that Pok Balls were all created over in the Johto Region, a place very far from Opaddeka across the seas, and a hell of a long way away from there. Needless to say, she wouldnt be going there to visit for historical reasons. However, it was there that the apricorn trees were first discovered. Back in the times before Pok Balls were mass-produced and given their special properties, Pokmon were called magical beasts. Indeed, people thought of them as supernatural legends and not simple animals that co-existed with humanity, which was an interesting twist. Humanitys dominance was what changed their nature they were no longer the amazing myths that they once were. That thought made Felicity chuckle just a little as she turned the page in her book and continue reading.

It was the Johto region that also began to first shape Pok Ball creation. The apricorn tree, discovered and rarely harvested for its fragile nature, was an interesting beast. Pokmon did not eat the fruit because it was extremely tough on the outside. So fragile was the tree that held those hardy fruits, however, was such that it could only be plucked for the apricorns once per day though, it did tend to sprout and bud quickly to make up for this. These fruits could be picked by crafters, then cut in half, carved out and fitted with a capture device and hinge. From there, the first apricorn ball was created and then, eventually, companies such as Silph Co, for example, began to mass-produce the Pok Ball into the form that was so prevalently seen in the modern world.

There was more. A lot more, of course how Pok Balls migrated from region to region, with varying differences from the different companies that competed with one another to produce different designs. However, it was the original apricorn balls, now with modern touches, that had many of the most unique and original properties some that were potentially more useful than the mass-produced series ever could be. Indeed, it was the amazing properties of the apricorn balls that led designers of Pok Balls to try and emulate the concept of special effects in regular, factory-produced balls.

With a heaving sigh, Felicity snapped shut the book on the history of Pok Balls and reached for the crafting manual that came with the big crafting kit that shed managed to have procured. Alishad done some seriously good work on getting it so quickly, mused the psychic. Maybe shed need to give her a bonus in her pay some time soon. Not like she needed it, considering she got two sets of pay from Felicity. However, that was not what she needed to focus on, and Felicity resumed her studies quickly, trying not to let her thoughts drift too far away.

Creating a Pok Ball was a simple enough process. The device inside a Pok Ball was already pre-made and had to be properly be affixed to the outer shell of the ball or the apricorn. A hinge had to be added to the shell in order to get it to open and close properly, and the shrinking device was also necessary, which formed the button on the front of the ball. Then, finally, all the mechanisms needed to be linked together, and in the case of apricorn balls, a portion of the apricorn extract needed to enable the special talents of that particular brand of ball to make themselves apparent.

It seemed simple, in theory, but the trick was actually getting it all done. First, special tools were needed just to cut open an apricorn, considering how thick the shell was. You could throw an apricorn at a brick wall and it would only barely dent. Then you had to scoop out the insides and keep the extract only a portion of it was used in the balls imbuing stage, which gave Felicity some extra left over for Talons use. These could be sold or used for, primarily, medicinal purposes, providing apricorn crafters a solid source of income. Affixing the capture device, the shrink button and the hinge required jewellers tools and jewellers precision, which took a serious amount of focus and a lot of careful accuracy.

Needless to say, it took a lot of time, effort and practise. And, as Felicity looked to the gold watch affixed to her right wrist, she realised shed been reading for about nine hours and in a half-hour, she had a Talon executives meeting. Alisha was already standing in the doorway, tapping her foot. Shit. She wouldnt get anything done tonight, for sure. With a sigh, Felicity placed the book under her arm and went with her assistant downstairs, locking the door behind her. Shed have to get back on the job tomorrow, when she actually had some time to try it out. At least she was armed for the job and now she could actually report some good news to the executives. Felicity smiled inwardly as the mantle of the Seer was draped across her shoulders.

A half-hour later and the Seer found herself in the Talon HQs meeting area, surrounded by her executives and her chief of staff. Yes, she had to instruct them as to the progress that Talon was making. The heavy book of Pok Ball crafting was dropped on the bench before her with a heavy thud.

This, my friends, she told them, slyness dripping from every word, is the solution to our supply problem. Soon, I will have the means to provide Talon with all the apricorn extract we need and then, I will have my financial goals complete. And so will you.

The executives agreed the Seer would deliver once more.



For Felicity to complete her financial goals, she actually needed to be able to use the means to complete them. Unfortunately, she was now sitting on front of her workbench once more, the crafting manual opened to the right page, and a massive assortment of scattered and broken apricorns across the bench. Something had gone horrifically and catastrophically wrong in almost every one of her crafting attempts thus far, even though shed followed the instructions exactly. This was so not as easy as shed thought, and no amount of psychic powers would help her manage to pull this off. In fact, shed have to rely on pure intellect and some technical skill. It also explained why there werent many apricorn crafters in the world.

With a frustrated groan, Felicity leaned back in her seat and threw one half of a blue apricorn to the floor. This was so freakin tiring. All of her attempts and there had been plenty so far had just made her more angry. However, she was not one to give up. Felicity was the kind to plot and plan, then come back with a vengeance so overwhelmingly strong that her opponents curled up in abject surrender - if, of course, they werent dead in the process. An apricorn could not be killed, and was hard to destroy. Besides, these had cost her a pretty zenny to get her hands on in the first place. A few were not recoverable; theyd cracked right down the middle and she wasnt going to bother with that. Some of the extract had leaked on the greenhouse floor, and there was an interesting red, black and blue stain right under her feet and on her clothes. A few of the capture devices had snapped, and shed lost a few buttons in the process, too.

Fuck! Fuck this shit so hard!

It was so un-lady-like, but there was no other way Felicity could express her frustration.

Her voice had summoned a wanderer into the room, however. The sweet scent of a Pokmons aroma wafted into the room, and the soothing smell gave Felicity pause. She turned to the opened doorway to see the be-petalled sight of her first Pokmon partner, Lotus the Vileplume. On her face was written a confused smile, one laced with concern for the human that looked out for her. But there was also a little bit of pity? Felicity couldnt see it straight away.

Not going so well? the Vileplume asked rhetorically, sadness tinging her voice.

Oh, what do you think? the human replied bitterly, casting her hand around to indicate all of her failed attempts, of which there were many. It was obvious to Lotus that Felicity was not in a good place. And if she kept getting angry, shed go nowhere. After all, this was a delicate thing.

I know you know this already, but you really need to slow down and take your time. Its just like working with flowers. Be careful, and remember youre dealing with life just as much as a doctor would.

Felicity took a breath, looked and Lotus, and simply stared for a few moments. She knew that, and yet this was so insanely frustrating that she couldnt keep her emotions in check. Trying to craft one of these was like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, and it wasnt fitting no matter what she tried. This wasnt going the way she planned. With such a mess, and so many failures littering the greenhouse, how could Felicity expect to recover all of this? Her head suddenly buried itself in her hands, and she rubbed her eyes tiredly. She didnt need this bullshit.

Calm down, and lets give it one more try, Lotus said, trying to encourage her. It cant hurt, can it?

The psychic looked over at the Vileplume, staring for a few moments in sheer disbelief. Lotus was trying to do a kind thing, and here she was, acting like a spoiled child. Fine, was all she could bring herself to say. At least its something, Felicity mentally chided herself. What could be the worst that could happen, right? One long, slow breath and the woman reached for one of the untouched green apricorns, lying on the workbench. It was one of the few unbroken ones so far, and she felt the need to start again.

First, halve the apricorn down the middle and extract the contents, Felicity said, just as much to herself as it was to Lotus. She reached for a wooden-handled apricorn cutter, a specialised device akin to an oversized old-style cheese slicer. Battery-powered, it was a vibratory device that sliced down properly through the apricorns skin. It took a power tool to cut an apricorn and this one cut it perfectly. With a slow push downwards, the apricorn gave way, oozing out green liquid with some pulpy bits flowing through it. This was the apricorns extract, which was sort of like extra-pulpy orange juice in texture. Quickly, Felicity poured what was left in the apricorn halves into a beaker, then wiped the bits spilling onto the workbench with a rag. Shed have to work out a better way of doing that. Finally, she reached for a device that looked oddly like a melon baller, then scooped out the actual fruit. Again, it was similar to an orange, but thicker. It was scooped into the same beaker that the juice was, and left there to sit. The fruit and pulp needed to be blended together in order to get the extract at the right consistency for use.

Now Felicity had two hollow apricorn halves sitting in front of her. Lotus looked on with considerable interest, holding the beaker with one of her hands and trying to discern what the mysterious scent of the green apricorn was. She couldnt quite place her nose on it. So far so good, though. Next, take tools and affix the mirror sphere to each half of the apricorn.

Felicity took the lower half of the apricorn, and the bottom half of the mirrored sphere, examining it once more. It had four mirrors around the outside, as well as a green control in the middle, plus eight screws to hold it up against the apricorns outer shell. The screws were tiny you needed a jewellers drill to get it in, and then any adjustments had to be made with a tiny screwdriver and a cover had to be added using a pair of tweezers. It was probably the hardest part of the task, placing all eight screws in. This was where it got tricky, Felicity thought, placing the mirrored half in the apricorn shell and aligning it as best she could. With the jewellers drill in her right hand and the first screw pressed down with her thumb for a moment to break the inner shell as best she could, she pulled her hand away to start drilling the tiny bronze screw in. The whirr of the drill was loud as she moved the screw in.

Until her hand slipped, and the drill went into her thumb.

Damn! Felicity cried, quickly putting the drill down and lifting her thumb to her mouth to suck away the first vestiges of blood. The drill had pierced straight through her fingernail and into skin, and now blood was squirting out like never before. Boy did that hurt like a bitch. Shed screwed up by having the drill slip before plenty, but never like that. Lotus, however, was already freaking out.

Felicity! Are you okay?! she asked, panic suddenly lacing her voice and she moved to get a closer look. What happened?

Drill slipped. Go get the first aid kit, Felicity said matter-of-factly. Damn. She could barely even feel her thumb any more, she was losing that much blood. The coppery taste of it was starting to build up in her mouth, and blood was not a flavour she relished at all. The Vileplume rushed off promptly, hoping severely that Felicity was going to be okay. She was hoping for the same thing, too.
So, she waited for the Vileplume to return, who did so quickly, fetching a red box that bounced on top of her flower with every step of Lotus mincing gait. The box bounced up into the air and into Felicitys free hand, who tore it open and found some iodine to apply to the top of her nail, before wrapping it up with an extra heavy duty bandaid. Itd have to do, because she really couldnt see any other options. She moved her thumb, and it was an absolute pain. Could she keep going?

Did she have a choice?

Felicity decided to try it using the screwdriver. Yes, it took a lot more time and a lot more force, but it was better than drilling yet another finger straight through. If that happened again, she might not recover from that. Taking up the tiny screwdriver in her right hand, she twisted it between her index finger and thumb, holding the mirrored dome down with her middle finger to ensure it didnt slide around. It took a minute or two to do, but the screw went in. One down. Only fifteen more to go! Felicity sighed loudly.

The next screw would be the one to its left, so that she could do the exterior screw and not worry about holding the sphere in any more. It took a needle to jab into the surface of the apricorn, for the screw would not simply go in on its own. A quick pin-prick and the screw had enough give to twist its way into the hole Felicity had made for it, and eventually gave Felicity a second jewelers screw into her green apricorn Pok Ball. The process repeated itself six more times in the next hour; grunting, squeezing and a heck of a lot of profanity went into the work, and eventually Felicity could marvel at the first half of a Pok Ball that shed created.

Unfortunately, there was a slight problem. All that blood shed been losing was starting to leak out of the bandaid, and her head was starting to feel rather faint. She was losing too much blood and was starting to look a little pale. It wasnt a particularly large wound, but itd been left alone for an hour or so now. She was even threatening to fall out of her chair, and Lotus knew it.

Felicity, stop, please, the Vileplume begged and, as fate would have it. Alisha the assistant took that exact moment to come in and see her employer toppling around in her chair. This was not going to end well.

Felicity! Alisha shrieked, and the psychic could barely turn her head around before her vision swam black, and then dissipated completely.



One day later, and Felicity was released from the hospital. Shed required a small transfusion of blood and a few hours on an IV, but was otherwise fine. It was an unfortunate accident, but such things happened. After all, Felicity wasnt going to let herself be stopped by such outrageous folly. Of course, when Felicity got back to Berry Good Florists, the first thing she did was go upstairs, and to the greenhouse. Straight back to work, she knew, was the best thing to do. It was not right to let her talents go to waste, and if she wasted any more time on this she would never make any progress on her project.

However, when she went back upstairs to go get started once more, she found a box gift-wrapped on the bench in metallic green paper with a red ribbon tied around it, plus a card. The box itself was fairly large; it was roughly the size of a cooler and mostly rectangular, too. Had someone decided to drop off some alcohol for her to drink?

Perhaps she needed to read the card. She picked it up between a few fingers, and then started to read as she flicked it open.

Felicity,

I thought this might be a really useful gift. No more cutting your own hands open with power drills and no more fuss making these apricorn balls. I wanted to get this to you before but couldnt get one. You can thank our friends.

Have fun with your new customised apricorn crafting kit.

Alisha.


Felicity shook her head and made a mental note to definitely pay her more some time soon. However, the psychic immediately tore off the wrapping to the box and found what was inside to her liking. It was, really, sort of like a cooler it was a big orange box with a white lid and a carry handle, and the lid opened in the middle to split out much like a toolbox. Which, in some respects, was exactly what it was. Inside the top there were tools, paintbrushes, storage spaces and places to keep the capture devices necessary for a Pok Ball plus, in the bottom was a specialty tool built hand-made for Felicity. It almost looked like a sort of wine bottle opener, which was almost right. It was designed to put two of the screws in at once by pushing them in by pneumatic action, thus degrading the apricorns shell less and making her life easier. There was even a magnetic aligner for the button. And there was even an item ball for the case.

This box had everything for making apricorn ball crafting a snap.

Felicity shook her head, pulled out the tools in the case and reached for the unfinished green apricorn. Her goals were going to be finished soon enough and Berry Good Florists would have a new market soon enough. Blood and sweat had gone into making it a reality, but that just made the victory all the more sweet. The screws were pushed in within a couple of minutes, the hole for the button carved and the button itself snapped into place, and the design applied with a special appliqu paint brush and some hard vinyl gloss. Finally, some of the green apricorn extract shed kept lying around was dusted around the inside of the ball to give it that special extra quality.

In Felicitys hands now rested one completed Friend Ball. Shed have to give that to Alisha as payment for her amazing work as well as some money. After all, gifts could be traded, not just given freely. Yes, Felicity could finally say that shed done something with her degree that was very much worth it. With some friends and a few black market contacts, shed managed to acquire one of the very rare few apricorn-crafting kits in Opaddeka. How sweet it was to be the leader of Talon, sometimes. After all, it let her go places and get things that most people could never dream of. Now she had the means to the end. And, Felicity thought, she was one step closer to total financial freedom. That was a goal worth achieving.
Edited by Kirin, Mar 29 2011, 01:10 AM.
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DarthEevee
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Cute and Fluffy Evil Overlord
Can't sleep, and I've been working on this for a while now when I have the time, but never end up actually getting that far with it due to stupid distractions. *coughs* So yeah. This may be a little sketchy, but I figure sketchy is better than nothing and I am tired of getting stuck. May be a little delirious, so I apologize in advance. I just need to do something right now since sleeping is fail.

Lesson one I got out of this freeform is that putting one over into a word processor shoves the typos in your face so its impossible for me to tell if I would have noticed them myself in a more organic reading. And I can't recall offhand how many I noticed first read-through, either, since I was kinda fuzzy then too.

Lesson two. Perhaps I should try and do stuff like this when I'm not trying to deal with health issues or lack of sleep. This takes all the fun out of life tho...

Aaaanyhow. All the typos were of a very similar bent, actually, where an 's' was used instead of a 'z,' or a 'c' in one case (realized, minimized, practice). Jeweler is apparently also with only a single 'l' in it instead of two, and apparently my copy of office doesn't recognize crafter at all, even though that's spelled correctly throughout. It also doesn't respect british spelling. But at least I know some of what that is. (Edit: Apparently my half hunch that some of this was also national spelling barriers was more than half right, so yay for caution winning about not taking anything off for this in the grading process.)

And now I'm trying to figure out if I've been confused for three years now and it really is Zenny, or if it's Zenni like I always thought. o_o Bah.

Otherwise, random observation: Considering how much time is spent describing Alisha and a few other points, I come off with an impression that Felicity is a lesbian. I don't know if that's intentional or not and maybe I'm just high, but really, this piece makes me wonder about that repeatedly.

And yay for deux ex Alisha at the end with the convenient delivery of the kit and no explanation at all of these 'friends' that it was procured from or anything. Maybe they're discussed somewhere that I haven't read or can't see, I don't know...but still. It's so remarkably convenient that they pop out a custom kit just for Felicity that solves all her problems in the end with sunshine and rainbows and fluffy unicorns.

Maybe that's just me, but I felt that the drilling through her finger and passing out after half completing it shortly beforehand was completely wasted even more after that bit of grimcrackery. And I had found it kind of a 'meh' scene before the sudden providence of unexplainedness (to me anyhow).

On the other hand, yay for accents. *chuckles* If I weren't so lazy, I'd use them more myself. Kudos for taking the time and effort to put them in their proper places.

And I really do think the description of the history and how one is made and all that was very good, to make sure that doesn't get lost somewhere. I'm tired, like I said.

But whatever. Once I do a few arcane things with an abacus and a dead chicken, the results look to be that you get your deus ex machina kit of doom and 9.8 :ffexp . After the 1.5 multiplier, that is. I can't imagine this not meeting the requirements for last month's contest, anyhow.

.4 for me, as I recall. Fwee.
Edited by DarthEevee, Apr 3 2011, 03:20 AM.
Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present. ~Oogway

Ben Summers
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APL: 50
MPL: 50
Full Circle - Freeform
Revenance - Freeform
Trial By Fire - Co-Op Freeform with Celeste
Lex Cambridge
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APL: 50
MPL: 50


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