#∿ 🌷 𓂃 𓂂 f i n n : t h r e a d s

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & kyle (@kyle-washington)

finn had spotted him from the other side of the beach and wasted no time in making his way over, picking up a beer for them both on the way out of the goodness of his heart. he wanted to be entertained, and he would bring a peace offering of sorts in order to get what he wanted. upon arriving he wordlessly handed one of them to kyle while also taking a sip from his own. "i heard someone talking about fairies," he then noted, looking at the other man expectantly. he knew him to take all strange creatures quite seriously. "are you on that, or?"

[ephcmcral]

why hadn't finn gotten a tattoo yet? honestly, he wasn't sure. it wasn't like he didn't want any, he actually had several ideas that he knew he wanted sooner or later. he just never got to it. "i don't know. i think about booking appointments and then i just instantly lose interest." he considered it. "if you just told me when to show up i totally would, though."

he waited obediently where she'd told him to, hands disappearing into his pockets and feet kicking at a few pebbles on the ground. as he caught sight of her thumbs up he couldn't help but let a small chuckle escape him. he returned the gesture.

he happily obliged in walking over to the bench she decided on and plopped down on it. he held his arm out, and then came the question of his parents and he sort of... froze. and though he tried to not let it show, something shifted within him. and while the state of his relationship to his parents were not her fault, she should know better than to bring them up, shouldn't she? she should know better than to assume that they would be excited for him, with how they didn't have feelings and all. he tried to nonchalantly shrug it off despite the growing pit in his stomach. "i don't know. i haven't seen them around, so..."

The smile on his face made Emilia assume that Finn was simply playing along with her teasing. From what she knew of both Finn and Renzie, she didn't expect anything to actually be wrong, they were both sweethearts! So she chuckled at how sure he sounded. "And yet, I have yet to see your name on my appointment schedule, what's that about? What's the truth?"

They continued on their way and the first aid tent was finally in sight, thankfully not too busy and for the sake of the people stuck at the tent, it stayed this way. It probably wouldn't be a very fun event anymore if suddenly everyone ended up here for one reason or another. "I'll be one second." she told Finn before she went over to ask one of the nurses if she could borrow a wet rag for her temporary tattoos. They were kind enough to help her out and as they went to go grab it for her, Emilia turned to Finn and gave him a thumbs up.

With a gracious smile and bit of a bow, she thanked the nurse for the rag before heading back over to Finn. "Alright, now we're all set to give you the tattoo sleeve of your dreams! Let's have a seat over on that bench there and I can arrange these for you." His comment about the flower exchanges being good for business was something that was sticking with her, she knew the business was something that his parents gave him, which was the thought process that brought along her next line of questioning. "Your parents must be excited for you every year when the Flower Dance rolls around, huh? With business booming with all the bouquets and flower crowns. Do they usually come to enjoy the dance too?"

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & chiara (@chiaravitale)

finn was stood by the table of joja merchandise, carefully inspecting the monstrosity that was their fake flowers. he held one in his hand, turning it around, bending the stems, not believing his eyes. he knew the corporation to be evil, but this was just unnecessary cruelty taken to its peak. he'd seen them earlier, but he'd been... distracted. he had to come back for a second look, though. how could he not? it was like witnessing a car crash, he couldn't look away.

he heard the footsteps approaching, but he didn't turn to see who it was. the expression on his face was puzzled, and quite clearly annoyed. they had a superb florist in town, did they not? was there a need for this? "who would want this?"

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & adrian (@misterturnip)

it was a slow day, most people were at the beach. only a couple of people had come and gone, but finn didn't mind it. he would have time to join the festivities, later. he stood by the counter working his way through his lunch - a sandwich, nothing fancy - and had started reading to make time pass quicker. there were always things to do around the shop: shelves of pottery needed dusting, water needed changing, seed packets needed to be organised- but today he allowed himself to not do any of the aforementioned things in favour of relaxation.

the bell above the door rang. if asked, finn would absolutely have denied it, but even the least observant person would have noticed how his face practically lit up as the florist caught sight of his favourite customer entering the shop. his back straightened and he chucked the half eaten sandwich aside in preparation of greeting the man. here he had thought this day would simply have continued in the same boring fashion it had started out- how wrong he had been. he covered his mouth with his hand and waved simultaneously, his chewing picking up speed so that he could speak. no cell phone today, he noticed. that made clear way for questions. "sorry," he excused himself and placed a bookmark in the book he'd been reading before dutifully shoving that aside as well. he leaned against the counter, hands clasped and elbows supporting his weight; and he smiled sweetly at adrian. "hey. come to buy a flower crown?"

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & willow (@woolenwillow)

he was not here for work, but he couldn't help but stop by the flower arrangements he'd delivered earlier that day to make sure they had been handled with care when being set up. with great concentration, eyebrows narrowed and a cigarette pinched between his lips, he plucked away some leaves that had started to look sad. his head snapped up as he heard footsteps approaching, though he quickly averted his gaze upon seeing who it was. she wasn't his favourite person in the village, but it was mostly her choice of pets that had caused the strain in their relationship. he stood up straight and plucked the cigarette out of his mouth to speak clearly. "if you want to take home a snack for those cretins of yours, go ahead," he commented dryly, motioning towards the flower arrangement.

[ephcmcral]

finn could have sworn... but living in thistleberry all his life had made it second nature to drop things he couldn't easily find an explanation to. it could have been anything. perhaps a field mouse that had come to join the festivities.

the florist reaches into his pockets to fish out his wallet to pay. "for sure," he agreed, the weather was lovely indeed. business was booming. he had no reasons to complain. well, not many, at least. "it's been good! it's nice to see everybody out and about."

"Hm? Hear what? Sorry, hearin's not what it used to be." Easy breezy comes the white lie. While Reinaldo had been the reason for the noise, he, himself, hadn't exactly heard it squeak over all the talking. That's what he convinced himself of, anyways.

"One mote con huesillo comin' right up!" All it takes is a few scoops to even out the peaches to mote and the drink's served with a colorful straw. "How's the dance been for you? Perfect day for it too, huh?"

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & elio (@seaoflcve)

finn wasn't the kind of person who littered. truly, he wasn't. he cared for nature, loved it. he had a plot of land overflowing with flowers of all kinds to prove it. he enjoyed a good hike through the forest, a stroll along the beach. he cared about nature, and under normal circumstances he wouldn't be caught dead doing something as stupid as littering. it was, however, something he currently had to do. it was the price he had to pay in order to get what he wanted. what he wanted being elio's attention.

it was a subtle, well calculated move. as he pulled out a packet of cigarettes from the pockets of his oversized jean jacket, out fell an old receipt. it was hardly noticeable, and an honest mistake. how could he be blamed for something he didn't notice happening? it was unfortunate, though, unknowingly adding to the already existing trash all over the beach. hopefully someone would notice and do something about it. he pulled a cigarette out of the packet, used a lighter he always kept on him to light it, took a drag of it, and waited.

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & malia (@maliajaiden)

tough finn's nature was of the competitive kind, he did have a heart. so when a child had challenged him to a potato sack race, and he had found himself unable to say no, he'd obviously let them win. he was, however, not very graceful in doing so. his pretend stumble-and-fall had unfortunately turned into a real one, scraping his knees and the palms of his hands in the process. after acknowledging the win of his tiny friend, spinning them around in celebration and ruffling their hair, he made his way over to malia in search of help for his now bloody-and-riddled-with-dirt-and-sand knees and palms. he held his hands up, showing off the damage with an expression similar to that of a child who had been caught causing mischief. "...i fell."

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & will (@raggcdwood)

finn had just closed up shop, having spent the morning selling flower crowns for the occasion. he even wore one himself as he made his way down to the beach, a lit cigarette between his lips and a can of modified joja cola in his hand. he had to do a double take as he spotted someone he hadn't expected to be here, and quickly waltzed over to join him by the table of joja merchandise. no, he didn't support the corporation. he did, however, support this one singular employee.

his eyebrows knit together as he caught sight of the fake flowers on said table, even further so as he picked one up to inspect it. he held it up and gave will - he'd learned through name tags - a questioning look. without commenting on the atrocity he put it back down on the table, and instead he plucked a single flower from his head to place behind the ear of the joja representative. all without even greeting them. "are you on the clock or are you here voluntarily?"

[ephcmcral]

"oh, it was. take it to heart, you earned it." finn put the cigarette out against the sole of his shoe before tossing it into a nearby trashcan, a nod to elio's constant battle of keeping the beaches of thistleberry clean. he knew his flower crowns were beautiful, he did not have to be told, but he did enjoy having it confirmed. even when the messenger someone he didn't quite care for. "mhm, really? wildflowers are free, you know, and it'd spare us both your trip to my shop."

Birdie’s fingers tapped a couple of times against the spine of the sketchbook, a reminder to not use her magic to throw Finn across the beach like the pixie. He was the only person who called her Elizabeth now and though she’d deny it, it hurt every time. “Careful, Finnegan, that almost sounded like a compliment.” She tilted her head slightly, her saccharine smile enduring, “I’ve noticed that a lot of people here are wearing flowers that they bought from you, they’re very beautiful, I was actually considering making a purchase - for my art.” That much was true, but not for any decorative purpose, no, the petals would be ripped off and turned into paint and the rest would likely be fed to local wildlife.

[ephcmcral]

closed starter // finn & oliver (@rcptide)

finn aimed at the dartboard, eyebrows knitted together in pure concentration. he'd never been good at sports, though this probably shouldn't be considered as such, but he enjoyed playing nonetheless. in his other hand he held a half empty half full can of sugar free joja cola. those had started innocently as a way to visit his favourite employee at joja mart, but now it had turned into somewhat of an addiction. to make it more fun, for the occasion, he'd dumped a shot of something into it. no one had to know. with one swift move he threw his dart towards the board and missed it completely. he chuckled and took a sip out of the can in his hand, turning to his opponent and holding his arms out triumphantly. "beat that if you can."

[ephcmcral]

finn considered telling her rather than having her find out through renzie. he would probably be able to momentarily put himself in a better light than the cafe owner would shine on him, but did it matter? would a positive light pointed at him for only a short while change anything? he decided against it. "no, ask renzie. i'm sure he'll give you all the details."

he shrugged his shoulders. obviously he was doing a better job, it was quite literally his actual job. yet for some reason he was currently doing it for free, who would have thought? "i've thought about it," he admitted, hands working on the flower crown as if it were second nature. "but then i'd be stuck at a booth for the entire dance, and where's the fun in that?"

Steph's eyebrows shot up in the sky, her curiousity getting so much stronger after that response. "Okay, now you just have to tell me. Whatever happened I'll get it out of Renzie anyway, so this is your chance to get the information to me from your side." She'd still listen to Renzie, really, they were the biggest gossips when it came to each other, but Steph now just wanted to hear it from Finn himself.

She settled down onto the ground while Finn fixed up the crown, watched the party, the vendors, all the people moving around them. "Maybe, but you're doing a much better job than I would have." Or maybe it was much easier to ask for Finn's help to begin with. "Have you ever thought about having a stand out here? I know a bunch of the vendors are selling food and drinks, but especially on a dance where it's flower themed?"

[ephcmcral]

finn only huffed in reply to his nickname, bringing his hand up to fix any potential mess that kyle had left behind. his personality had quite clearly proven not enough to keep anyone around, so what else did he have, lest he wants to spend every waking and non-waking hour with no other company than himself?

"good boy," he said pointedly with one eyebrow arched. he watched the placing of the seashells, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips at the thought of how uncharacteristic it seemed. "yeah, sure," he commented with yet another eye roll. "like yours? you wish. you'd have to stop calling me bud first."

"Aw, I'm sorry, little sand prince," he snickered, shaking his head and withdrawing his hand from Finn's hair to go back to sand castle building. Finn was very protective of his hair. It was cute. It wasn't that Kyle didn't enjoy looking good. He did. But most of the time, he was more concerned with practicality than style. He kept his hair buzzed relatively short for ease.

Whenever Kyle thought his wits had outdone Finn, the little shit bounced back. He always made Kyle laugh. "Okay, so no sex in Finn's flower beds. Got it." You could tell Finn was artistic by the care with which he placed the stones on their creation. Kyle never would have thought of that. Following Finn's lead, though, he gathered a few shells, attempting to arrange them to look like roof tiles. "Don't worry, bud. Lots of other kinda beds out there."

[ephcmcral]

finn knew chiara to be the kind of person who genuinely cared for others. the problem was that he couldn't differentiate between caring and pity in matters such as this one. "i'm tired, chiara, that's all there is to it." he cleared his throat and managed a smile. "i won't have you worrying about me."

he looked at the bottle and took it, examining it in his hand. "what is it?" he asked, the tiny thing piquing his interest. he'd long since given up on guessing or assuming whenever chiara were involved, their realities differed to such a degree that he would more often than not find himself completely missing the mark when thinking he knew something.

Chiara looked at Finn with a mix of concern and curiosity. She could sense that something weighed heavily on him, even if he tried to brush it off. The glittering particles in the air seemed to enhance the gravity of the moment, as if the festival itself was responding to emotions.

"Finn, I may not know the exact details, but I can feel that there's more to it than just an energy slump," she said softly, her voice carrying a gentle reassurance. "Sometimes, it helps to share what's on your mind, even if it's just a little bit. You don't have to carry it all on your own."

Her eyes searched his, hoping to convey her sincerity and willingness to listen. She knew that opening up could be difficult. Chiara reached into her bag's pocket and retrieved a small bottle. "If you'd like, I have a painkiller that might help ease your 'discomfort'. But if you prefer to handle it your own way, I won't pry. And I won't bother you with any more questions." She extended the bottle to Finn, her expression understanding. "I always seem to carry everything with me, you know, just in case. No particular reason." She offered a slight smile.

[ephcmcral]

finn stared blankly at the man in front of him upon hearing his words. he placed the bouquet on the counter, needing a couple of seconds to consider the turn of events. "sure. that's... normal." he nodded, figuratively and literally then biting his tongue. what an odd man this was. now whether it was simply frustration or a desperate wanting to know more about him that was clawing at his insides he couldn't tell.

he made his way back around the counter, over to the display of poppies and picked one up as if to examine it. "do you want only poppies, or do you want them mixed in with other flowers as well?"

The mention of a 'he' only further prickled his nerves. Adrian wasn't one to go about flaunting his business to people on the account that most people couldn't be trusted with it. What _were_ the chances of someone in Thistleberry catching wind of his previous exploits? He eyes only narrowed further.

Clearing his throat-- a dismissal of the implications of sorts--, he glanced down at the bushel of roses that had been prepared for him.

"Actually, I think I'll take the poppies. My apologies for the trouble," he said, his voice carrying a kind of stony professionalism one would only hear in the city. The addition of his old designer wallet being filled with paper bills only adding to the illusion of a businessman at best and a Joja employee at worst. "Worry not, I will compensate you for your troubles."

[ephcmcral]

"it's good for the soil," finn retorted quickly at her remark about his smoking. he was not quite as graceful as willow, all he needed was the slightest hint that he may not mesh well with someone , or an inkling that they may not like him, and he would run with it. call it self preservation or a defence mechanism, if you will. giving someone a reason to dislike him was easier placed the ball in his court, rather than someone disliking him for something that was out of his control.

so, he continued. "so what if i am?" now if he truly were, he would not make sure to only plant non-toxic flowers alongside the fence that separated his land from hers. but this was something he wouldn't be caught dead admitting. "it would sure make my life easier."

Willow made it a point to not dislike people. It was draining to be grumpy and between grief and optimism she had no energy to spare. That being said, Finn seemed to be gifted at maintaining pointless grudges. Case in point his persisting bad attitude upon seeing her. It had been months since a sheep had hopped the fence and munched on some of his flower beds and after an apology and even a strained offer of paying for the few lost goods, here he was in his sour, gangly glory. Some neighbor he made.

“Nicotine coated flowers,” she replied, sparing the arrangement (very pretty she thought, not that it meant anything to the boy) a glance. “What a gift to the herd. Those aren’t even edible. Are you aiming to poison them?”