Flowers for Makeover

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango tied her apron around her waist with her magic and surveyed her flower shop. All the plants were in order, the signs were turned to face the customer, and the floors were... ALMOST dry. She got her mop from the closet at the back of the shop and wiped up a pool of water under a table.
After inhaling the wonderful scents her shop gave off, she observed it again. Perfect.
She turned to the door and flipped the sign so it read "OPEN." Mango went back to her desk at the back of the shop, put on her biggest smile, and waited for customers.
After about an hour, the shop started to become a little busy. A colt getting roses for his girlfriend, a mare wanting to bring petunias to her mother in the hospital– all the usual sorts of customers. Mango's business was running normally.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover made her way to the flowershop, as she had planned earlier. The marketplace stalls had had just a small variety of flowers she needed, and the roses she had bought earlier were the only ones she had accepted to be used for now.
Considering the place she was now entering was a REAL flowershop, she had high hopes on the products.

She opened the door to some leaving ponies, who seemed to be extremely happy with their bouquets, and then she entered herself, taking a careful look at the supply.
"Good morning." she greeted the exotic-looking unicorn - who clearly was the worker here, as she wore an apron and everything, "I will be browsing first, but I might have some questions, soon."

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

The bell hanging above the door tinkled gently. Mango looked up from her cash register and saw two ponies leaving; she had just checked them out. Then a white pegasus with brilliant green hair trotted in.
Mango had never seen this pony before. Her mane was curled tightly, with not a strand out of place. Her coat gleamed as she entered, and rays of light seemed to surround her body. It made Mango feel pathetic. I wonder how many hours it took to make her look so good, Mango thought to herself. She stood a bit straighter and stretched her neck slightly. The mare seemed to make you want to look as good-looking as she did.
The pony spoke with a simple elegance. "Good morning. I will be browsing first, but I might have some questions, too." she said. Mango nodded and smiled brightly. "Of course! Please, take your time. If you need anything, please don't be afraid to ask! Is there a special occasion you're buying for?"

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover nodded to the unicorn serving. "It is for the Grand Galloping Gala, but not for me, exactly." she explained, "I am working at the spa, so many clients will want something special for the Gala and I thought of hair-dos with flowers adorning them."

Makeover then took a couple of steps around the shop, taking a good eye at the flowers kept in the buckets and vases.
"Therefore I need some thornless, sturdy and beautiful flowers, which won't smell too heavily." She turned to look at the unicorn with a smile. "I hope I am not being too difficult of a customer?"

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango grinned. This was where her expertise came in!
"Of course! I'd be glad to assist you." Mango stepped out from behind her desk and approached the pegasus. "May I suggest the Snow Goose flower? They're thornless, sturdy and quite beautiful to look at, but have a slightly strong smell." Mango walked over to where the white flowers were arranged. She allowed the pony to inspect them, then continued onto a different section. "The Chester Cathedral rose is quite popular also," she explained, pointing out a brilliant yellow plant. "They have no scent at all and are quite sturdy as well."
Mango continued around the shop, pointing out flowers that fit the mare's description. She was happy that she could help someone for once, instead of just sitting behind the counter and checking out customers.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

"I might want to buy some for samples, so I know, which flowers work the best while weaved with mane's strands. Also, this might sound a little peculiar, do you happen to have here - or know a place of - some field flowers? You know, poppies, forget-me-nots, that sort of flowers...?"

Makeover took her time to inspect the offered flowers, and as mentioned, Snow Goose was kind of heavily scented. "The rose might do, but I already found some white roses... Maybe I'll have a selection of those and these yellow ones. Any orchids around? I heard they are popular in Canterlot, the hottest thing at the moment."

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango nodded. "Well, I sell small field flowers in bouquets. You could buy one of those and take bits out, I suppose, or I could go out and pick some for you, which comes at a slight cost. Oh, and the orchids..." she motioned for the mare to follow her to another section of the shop. "Here they are. We've got a variety of pigments, as you can see; pink, speckled yellow, white, red, salmon..." She pointed out each flower as she said them. "I personally think white goes with nearly every mane color, but of course, it's your choice. Take your time choosing, and let me know if you need anything, mmkay?" She grinned widely.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover took her time browsing in silence. She pondered about those wildflowers, perhaps she should discuss with the clients first to hear about their general wishes. Most of all, she suspected, the clients would like to get their manes adorned with large and exotic flowers more likely than with field flowers. It kind of made the beautician sad, considering there was some field flowers that were magnificent - such as poppies, sunflowers and foxgloves.

Looking at the orchids, she finally found what she was looking for, a flower so dark purple it was nearly black.
"This one pleases my eye." she said and pointed at the dark purple flower. "I could take it packaged, as well as one of the yellow roses and um..." she eyed around, "Hey, how about lilies?" she then asked, looking around. "And something green too! Ivy, perhaps."

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

"Lillies! Of course!" Mango trotted a couple feet over to a shelf of various plants and searched through them quickly. "Here they are! Take your pick with the colors, we've got quite a few, as you can see. I'll go bring you some ivy while you're looking." She hurried off, eager to please the pony. Realizing how quickly she was walking and how overenthusiastic she probably looked, she slowed her trotting down to a casual walk. I don't want to encourage her to take advantage of me. I always forget the simplest rules of business... She leisurely picked a basket of ivy out of a carton and began to take her time getting back– but what if I annoy her by taking too long? she started to trot a bit faster. Sometimes even you can't figure out how you think, Mango, she thought, chuckling gently to herself.
"Here we go, nicest ivy in the area." She held it out to the mare.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover took a look at the range of lilies and took one faintly pink one and one sunset orange one out of the row, taking a closer inspection.
Something needs to be done with the pollen... she thought, as she touched the delicate petals gently with her hoof.

Then the florist returned with the ivy. Makeover gave a nod of approval as she looked at the greens; ivy seemed good and strong, it had healthy coloured leaves and it was free of pests.
"You really take good care of your merchandise." Makeover said and smiled to Mango.

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango felt her heart was melting; it wasn't often she received kind compliments like that, especially about her plants. She took extreme care of them, and not too many people thanked her for it. "Thank you! You're too kind, really." She smiled warmly, swallowed, then continued speaking. "Are there any other types of flowers you need? Sunflowers, maybe? Sunflowers never really go out of style, you know!"

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover pondered on the offer, then said: "Thank you, darling, but sunflowers are somewhat, well, sticky. Must be their nectar."
She then showed the shop owner the lilies she had chosen, the faint pink and rich orange flowers, "Is there anything to be done about the pollen? Some ponies I know pick the stamen off, is that possible with these?"

She noticed a little difference in Mango Azalea, and took notice her compliments had done something. Maybe the shopkeeper did not get much praise? Makeover made a note on that, also eyeing the mane of the unicorn, suddenly wondering what it would look like in gentle curls...

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango nodded in agreement. "Ah, of course, you wouldn't want nectar getting in the ponies's manes, would you? And the lillies, yes, I could cut off the stamen for you. Pollen stains clothes horribly! I learned that the hard way," she said with a gentle giggle. "So is that all? I could check you out right now," said Mango. She noticed the mare eyeing her mane, and she suddenly became slightly self-conscious. There must be something in it, thought Mango, looking down at her brightly-tinted locks. She couldn't find anything in it immediately, but she would check after the mare had left.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

"Sure thing, sweetie." Makeover said, eyeing around. "Let's see, I'll take a couple of the lilies, some strands of ivy, also two of those purple orchids and the yellow roses - two of them too. Or was it a bad luck number? Let's make it three of every plant I listed."

She took another glance at Mango Azalea, this time her hooves. Of course, as the unicorn was a florist, the hooves were almost black. Makeover brought her own, nicely treated why hoof on her own chin, as she listed all the things she could do to Mango Azalea - to make her shine like a polished jewel.

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango smiled and took the plants she had listed to the counter at the back of the shop.. Pulling out a pair of clippers, she snipped off the stamens from the lillies and started to enter numbers into the register. "Thanks again for buying! I can't express how happy I am that you bought so many plants!" She paused for a second and looked over at the crate of flowers. "So that's three lillies, three ivy plants, three orchids, and three roses?" she made sure, looking over at the green-maned mare.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

"Three of each colour of lilies, so altogether six." Makeover reminded the unicorn. "I have to check how easy or hard they are to work with. Oh, and how quickly they will wilt. But I firmly believe they won't wilt so easily."

She took another round around the shop, though at the moment she did not find anything else to be added. Then she took a look at the amount of flowers, wondering how she would be able to get them home.
Approaching the working desk, she said, "Can they all be tied in one bouquet?"

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

"Ah, six lilies then..." Mango entered the numbers into the register quickly and recited the total to the mare.
"That'll be six bits," she said sweetly, pulling wrapping paper and string out of a drawer behind the counter. She swiftly scooped up the flowers with her magic and cradled them in the paper, tying them with a yellow ribbon adorned with a pleasant flower pattern. She noticed she was almost out of the ribbon; it was her favorite one, after all. She would have to go look for some more later. She handed the flowers to the pony.
"There you go!" Her voice rang out, cracking slightly. "I hope your clients like the flowers!" she smiled warmly.

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

"If my clients don't like these flowers, then there is something wrong with my clients' heads." Makeover said with a wink, as she searched for her money purse to pay for the merchandise. "Really, these must be the most beautiful flowers I have seen in a while."
She placed the asked amount of bits on the counter, then adding a few extra for the excellent service.
Then she took the wrapped up flowers, hoping that there would be a vase big enough for them. If there was not, well, she'd have to figure out something. Also, now that she thought of the spa, she piped up, "Oh, and ... Well, to be quite honest, I am somewhat fascinated by your mane, dear. Is that your natural colour?"

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango glanced down at her mane when the mare mentioned it. Blushing slightly, she shook her head. "Well, the salmon color is, but the hot pink tips and lavender streaks aren't." Giggling, she remembered the day her friend convinced her to dye it. "It wasn't my idea originally, but I ended up liking it. I love exotic colors like these, so I'm not sure why I didn't think of it first!" She paused for a second, dropping the bits into the register. She looked up at the gigantic bouquet she had put together. "You sure you can get that all the way back? It's pretty big; how far is your spa? I could give you a wagon or something, if you returned it afterwards."

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover looked at the bouquet, a little doubtful. "I think I can carry it on my back." she then said, getting the load of flowers on her back. Raising the wings a little, she got it balanced and secured nicely, and the bouquet was not too heavy either - at least yet.
"Anyway, I would love to experiment with your mane someday, if you have any time or will to visit the spa." she then mentioned.

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

Mango nodded. Well, I get karma points for offering help, right?
Her ears perked up as Makeover suggested she come over to the spa sometime. "Oh, I would love to! I haven't had anyone play with this mess for a while," she said, shaking her bright mane. It had been straight and long for a while now; a change once in a while would be nice. "When would be a good time for you? This place is open until 6:30 most days, but it's closed on Sunday. Is your spa open then?"

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover pondered about this. "Well, usually it is not, unless there is an appointment, but we can book you one." she then said, nodding. Considering she liked to stay busy with work, and work did not usually even feel like work when pampering clients and gossiping, she was more than ready to come to the spa and salon on Sundays, too.

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

"Oh, I couldn't ask you to work on your day off just for me," Mango said, shaking her head. Makeover was a generous pony, she had to give her that–but Mango would feel guilty if she took up any of this mare's free time. "I could ask my mom to take care of the shop for a little bit during the day while I went. She does that sometimes, so I could go to your spa while you were open," she compromised. She hoped her mother wouldn't scold her for taking time off work to go to a spa, of all things. "Does that sound okay to you?"

Posts : 644 Join date : 2012-04-26 Age : 35

Makeover smiled at Mango Azalea, who was being very considerate of others. "Or... We could make you an evening appointment?" she suggested, not wanting to be a nuisance to the other pony's business - as Mango did not wish to be one on Makeover's free time.

She fiddled with the bouquet, rebalancing the load on her back, trying to figure out the best way to make an appointment fitting for them both. "Really, I get some appointments in evenings, as many ponies like to relax after work."

Posts : 130 Join date : 2012-07-02 Age : 30

"Oh, that sounds like a good plan," Mango said, playing with her mane absentmindedly, wondering what Makeover had in mind for it. "When could I make an appointment, then?" She pulled out a blue notebook from a drawer behind the counter and pondered over what resembled a schedule. "I'll be busy on... Thursday and Saturday evening this week. Do you have spaces available on any days other than those?"

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