Horticultural Related Questions

(Mallory)

Swoosh.

By now, picking out when and most importantly where the real Cass would appear on World's End was a bit of a game that Mallory played. This was her personal game she played to keep her senses constantly engaged. There were no other competitors, and there was no real score, mainly because Mallory almost never won.

Scoring was simple, you gained a point when you realized that the actual Cass left World's End, now this point was tricky as it had to be earned before she was reported as being out and about by her various outside contacts and informants. One would think the fact that she had spent the past fifteen days strapped inside a giant metal killing machine would be easy to spot going missing. And it was, which was why Mallory had gotten the first part so easily today. Now to get her second point and actually win this competition, all she had to do was follow the outside Cass Simulacrum around all day, and wait for the real Cass's return.

There was of course just one problem, there were currently three Cass Simulacrums running around World's End currently. Again, this was just a game, one that only Mallory played with herself. But ever since she mentally defined the rules and began playing the game, this was the first time that she knew for a fact she could win.

Granted she was sort of cheating, as Cass had to return and exit inside the shell of Raygunnr, meaning her quick body switch would no longer work. This meant it would be clear when Cass changed herself out for one of her Simulacrums.

Fortunately, there was a way to tell the Simulacrum apart as well. First, Rune-Ulacrum was the one wearing the nice bridal outfit that Penelope made months ago for the original four Simulacrum. This meant that the other two wore generic looking clothing, as Penelope had not gotten around to providing uniforms for those four at this time. Which logically meant that the two not in the familiar uniform would be Terra-Ulacrum, the one hell bent on Terraforming the world into a magical stronghold, and the Super spy one, Espy-Ulacrum Mallory thought her name was.

Given that Terra-Ulacrum almost never set foot on un-Terraformed land, logically that meant that the remaining Simulacrum who was shabbily dressed had to be Espy-Ulacrum, the one that Cass would likely perform a switch with.

Mallory's plan was perfect, follow the remaining shabbily dressed Simulacrum, then watch as Cass re-entered World's End territory and finally win this odd obsession with her. Yes, it was cheating, which was something Cass herself would approve of, particularly as Mallory never told anyone other than herself the rules. She might have told Gwen, but she was fairly certain that this didn't matter. The rules were made up, and the points didn't matter, but it was fun to see if she could finally do it, track Cass "quietly" leaving and returning.

The fact that Cass had left and was doing something odd in Legrand Territory had already made its way to her. Fortunately, what she was listed as doing was something that wouldn't break any of the peacetime treaties. By all accounts all she could be credited for was building a particularly sturdy tree, and healing a bunch of kids. There were more reports that she might have done more to those kids, because of course why just heal kids, when you can also improve them to be superior soldiers who will be raised to take you down in the future? But that was who Cass was, an eternal optimist.

Maybe it was the fact that Mallory might have expected more from a Simulacrum who specialized in Espionage, but this Simulacrum just seemed lacking. Yes, she still had that same intelligent gleam in her eyes. She still had that same youthful beauty that Cass and all of her Simulacrums held, but Mallory almost expected a grittiness that seemed to be missing. Maybe it was due to her being on home soil, which logically meant she would not be trying to conduct operations here, but that edge should still remain, right?

Shaking her head Mallory assumed shew as expecting too much. This was still an aspect of Cass, one that even if devoted solely to spying and spy type operations would still ultimately be kind and gentle.

"Oh, you are resting here?" Gwen asked, finally finding Mallory sitting on a bench that happened to give her peripheral vision of the Cass Simulacrum wearing shabby garments, the one that had to be Espy-Ulacrum.

"Yeah," Mallory stated lightly, not wanting to admit that she had been stalking Cass's Simulacrum.

"Still trying to catch my mother when she gets back?"

At that question, Mallory inwardly bristled. This was the unfortunate thing about telling Gwen her mental game she played.

"Yes, but don't distract me, this is my first time when I know I can win."

Hearing her comments, there was a moment of silence as Mallory resumed her view of the spying Cass. Then out of the corner of her eye she saw Gwen sadly shaking her head from side to side. Catching the gesture, Mallory turned and looked at Gwen to see that she was biting her lower lip in that seductive way that let Mallory know she was about to hear bad news. Seeing the gesture and related body posture, Mallory could tell instantly what the bad news was that Gwen was about to unleash upon her.

"She's already back?"

Gwen nodded.

Doing a quick scan of the area, Mallory was confused for a moment and then asked, "where?"

It's not like it was easy to miss a twenty-foot-tall killing machine, let alone the now glowing with power version of a modified Teleiotís that was Raygunnr.

Gwen just pointed to her right, arm stretched out pointing in a direction that her eyes clearly couldn't see. Of course, this was due to Gwen having that same amazing blessing that her mother had, Angel's Sight, one that has since been banned and only available to Spiritlight descendants. Apparently, Rob Jr's extensive progeny, all of which had Angel's Sight was a bit much for the world and forced the expensive Merit to be banned altogether from creation.

Mallory was pretty sure that Cass could unlock that ability within her, but did not want to chance it, and instead relied on Gwen and her version to let her know what other magical practitioners were doing. More importantly, Gwen let her know how quickly Dr. Spiritlight's training regimen was going for the students. Which seemed to mirror the seemingly rapid advancements that each student was experiencing while under her tutelage.

Looking in the direction that Gwen was pointing, Mallory saw it, the giant glowing metallic rock that was in fact Raygunnr's new appearance. Seeing that somehow the real Cass had gotten here without her knowledge, despite being in a clearly identifiable twenty-foot tall glowing mechanoid suit caused Mallory to exhale slightly.

"Dang it!" Mallory noted, as she stood up and was almost ready to go over and talk to Cass. Arguably one of the brightest parts of her day, seeing that little pixie ready to change the world to a more interesting place made her smile every time. Even if she came away from some of those meetings more frightened than usual.

For a moment, Mallory was about to leave, but then turned to face the clearly shabbily dressed Simulacrum that had been conspicuously easy to find and follow. Only now did she realize that the Simulacrum knew.

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"Did you know?" Mallory asked.

Mute silence.

Of course, the Simulacrum went back to her default she can't talk as a Simulacrum persona. Something that Mallory hated, but secretly respected, especially as she herself was trying to play her own imaginary game against Cass and the Simulacrums.

Poof.

Then almost as if on cue, a second Simulacrum appeared, one wearing the wedding uniform that marked the original four Simulacrum, the piece that Mallory had been banking her deductions on. That's when something completely odd happened, the two touched fists to each other, and in an instant both Simulacrums changed clothing with each other almost immediately.

Now the shabbily dressed Simulacrum that Mallory had been following wore the enchanted wedding regalia that identified an original Simulacrum. Simultaneously, the Simulacrum that had been wearing that same garment a moment ago, now wore the shabbily dressed clothing that all new Simulacrums wore.

Seeing the change, Mallory felt frustration boil within her.

"Wait, you all knew?" Mallory snapped, at the two Simulacrums. At which point both Simulacrums turned and looked towards Mallory in shock as if seeing her for the first time. Both held up their empty hands in defensive gestures, only a faint tugging at the corner of their lips let Mallory know she had been played.

"You two don't even know the rules!" Mallory exclaimed, at this the smile on the two Simulacrums could not be held back as both went to wide grins that covered their faces. That's when the shabbily dressed Simulacrum pulled at her right eye and stuck her tongue out in a playful gesture before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

Poof.

Poof.

Mallory stood there staring at the space where the two Simulacrums had once been standing, only to close her eyes and try to regain her composure.

"How?" Was all Mallory could say, mainly to herself but as Gwen was still there she responded.

"How what?"

"How did they know I was trying to follow them?"

"They have vision and senses that are far more advanced than anyone could imagine."

"Right, but it's not like I wanted to harm them, I was just monitoring them," Mallory added her own words sounding hollow at her comments.

"You are trying to play a game of deception against a pack of pixies, of course you are going to lose."

"But they didn't know the rules," Mallory protested.

"Doesn't matter, they can get more by watching you, than you can by watching them. Besides, even for a Simulacrum, didn't you think it was odd that one remained within plain sight for over an hour?"

At that, Mallory winced. Yes, she had expected there to be a bit more following and trying to look inconspicuous involved. But honestly, Mallory was happy for the moment to rest and relax, while playing her game. Did the Simulacrum expect this? Is that why she stayed here, in this open park? Mallory thought to herself as she tried to understand what had just transpired.

"We should probably get going, particularly if you want to as Mother what she was doing this time," Gwen cut into her thoughts.

Sigh.

At that Mallory just let out a defeated breath and accepted defeat.

"Get over here." Mallory called out, using her Guild Summoning power that could only be used once a day, this was another method of winning she used. If she could get through an entire day without having to use any of her guild powers to summon, or instantly get to Cass, then those were two points as well. Ten points overall is the goal. The most she has ever managed, was three points. Today, even with cheating, she would be down to two points. Had she guessed where Cass would appear and not had to use her power, she would have been at four points.

Chin tap upwards.

Mallory felt a hand gently push her chin upwards, only after the familiar gesture did Mallory realize she was presenting bad body image. Which she really needed to work on. The moment her head went up, she got into a better mindset, trying to focus on good things.

Poof.

With that the giant form of Raygunnr appeared, with Dr. Spiritlight in tow. That was the other thing that was odd about her relationship with Dr. Spiritlight. When she was in the presence of the real Cass, her presence was undeniable, all but radiating excess energy, which was when her mind went to the Dr. Spiritlight persona. But when they were separated, she was just Cass, the crazy friend who always had a smile on her face, and always made the world better, even if her methods were a bit unorthodox.

"Hello," Dr. Spiritlight began, her tone almost breaking up as she seemed to know she was caught doing something she wasn't supposed to.

"Hello Doctor, mind telling me where you might have been earlier?" Mallory began.

Tongue-click.

Hearing her tone, Gwen made a clicking sound with her tongue that let Mallory know she was being a bit too stern. Hearing that Mallory nodded, and instantly tried to relax. Ever since the war with the Legrand Empire began, Mallory found herself getting more and more tense, and more and more agitated at the smallest of things, which was what Gwen was now trying to help correct. Unfortunately it seemed that a lot of her frustrations justly, or unjustly might have been directed at Cass, something she wanted to work on. Fortunately, Gwen was a great advocate for her mother, who would also hold her mother accountable when she might have crossed a line.

"I mean, did you do anything exciting today?" Mallory asked, her tone smooth as honey.

"We planted a tree," Dr. Spiritlight stated.

Chuckle.

Yes, Mallory had already gotten multiple reports of the seemingly indestructible tree that would break metal axes, and grew when under magical attacks.

"Oh, what kind of tree?" Mallory asked, trying to get Cass to say what she had done.

"I mean maybe twice as tall as Raygunnr here," Dr. Spiritlight replied while stretching Raygunnr's hand over his head.

Inwardly, Mallory could only laugh at this, as this was exactly the type of response she expected form Cass, but it still never ceased to amaze her. How Cass could answer the question being asked, without actually answering what you wanted to hear. This too had infuriated her, while she was stressed during the war, which again was something she needed to work on, particularly as Cass was not only one of her greatest assets, but also someone who Mallory truly counted as a position beyond just being a friend. Someone who met that legendary "family" status, someone so entrenched with you that you thought of them as just as, or more important than most of your blood relatives.

Smile.

Mallory smiled, which caused Cass to shiver slightly. Seeing the gesture, Mallory inhaled and calmed herself again.

"Oh, did you do anything fun?" Mallory asked.

"I learned a few things," Cass responded, and she was now Cass, not the overwhelmingly powerful Doctor of magic that could understand the meaning of the universe from just thinking about how to bake cookies with magic, but the person who Mallory wanted to reforge a true relationship with.

"Oh, like what?"

"Like how we can learn not just from the enemy, but how to beat the Legrand Empire in the Qualifying rounds."

"Oh?" With this Mallory was intrigued. "Care to write out a game plan?"

Cass heard that, and just sighed. Seeing that, Mallory realized she might have pushed too far. It was clear that the Doctor was getting close to burning out with classes, but still felt obliged to continue so her students could also survive the Qualifying rounds.

"I'll try, but remember you can't rush perfection," Dr. Spiritlight added noncommittally. Hearing that Mallory decided to push the banter a little bit.

"Sure you can, it just doesn't always end up well. But you can rush it."

"All right fine, but you can't hurry love." Cass responded, at which point Mallory doubled down and began speaking her reply before she even realized what she was saying.

"Then how do you explain what a quickie is?"

Warning: You are exchanging potentially explicit language with a character deemed to be a minor. Your account is going to be placed on monitoring for the next ten minutes. Should any future infractions occur during that time…

It was the same exact message box that almost always came when Mallory spoke to Cass.

Shiver.

Once again, Cass cringed slightly. Seeing her twitch, Mallory looked confusedly for a second. That's when Gwen intervened.

"I believe others are experiencing a slight involuntary reaction to your sudden surge of hostility, care to explain what just happened?"

Hearing Gwen's comments, Mallory centered herself and finally responded, "sorry I just got the ten minute timer for speaking inappropriately to a minor."

There was a pause as everyone looked around confusedly, Cass most of all. That's when Mallory tried to hammer home the point, "I know we will all be thankful when you are finally an adult and aren't subjected to the filters, and we aren't subjected to these warnings."

There was a moment of silence as Cass let that comment sink in, before responding.

"Wait, do you often get like that when you receive these warning messages?"

At that question, Mallory paused trying to think back. But after a moment she realized that this was probably part of her bad body image that she was projecting as a leader, the same image issues that Gwen was helping her deal with now.

"Probably, I have a dirty mouth. Something I didn't think so before, but now that I keep getting these messages, particularly around you, I realize I might be worse than I thought. That said, the world will truly celebrate once you turn eighteen. Or at least I will."

Another moment of silence passed as Mallory tried to make sure her words hit the way they were supposed to. Then finally Cass lit up with a smile.

"Me too, that's when the training wheels will come off and I can finally see everything this world truly has to offer."

Shiver.

Hearing that declaration, a shiver ran down Mallory's spine as she realized that Cass meant every word she spoke. Worse, she almost expected Cass to be able to accomplish everything she just noted. Hearing that, Mallory's eyes went wide as she wondered if they had enough plans in place for what Cass might actually do once she becomes eighteen.

Perhaps seeing her sudden change in demeanor, Cass paused, scrunching up her shoulders tightly, a gesture that was mirrored by Raygunnr. Realizing this was likely the best spot to end things, Mallory decided to end early.

"All right, I thank you for planting your tree, and let me know if there is anything else I should know."

With that Mallory hoped that Cass would take the hint and bare all her secrets, but she went the opposite route.

"Right, well have a great one!"

Poof.

And like that, a giant killer robot that looked like it swallowed a glowing pixie with a fanny pack in the shape of a coiled dragon disappeared.

Blink.

Mallory blinked once and then just found herself nodding. At that, Gwen stepped up right beside Mallory, placing her hand on Mallory's shoulder in comfort. Then she asked the ultimate question.

"Do you ever regret it?"

"Regret what?"

"Taking us all in?"

Hearing that question, Mallory paused and then turned to lock gazes with Gwen. Locking gazes, Mallory realized this was solely for her benefit as Gwen's eyes were clearly dead. But she felt the gesture was needed to express her thoughts clearly.

"Not for a moment."

"Not even when we are getting requests to remove a rapidly growing magic tree from enemy territories?"

At that Mallory paused, realizing that this might not be as hypothetical of a question as Gwen noted.

Sigh.

"Okay, what are they asking…"

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