Saint Joseph School

Paula and Em were hunting the Lost in Kings Row, but the word was out, so it was like they sulked back to whatever slimy pit they came from. What was it with the sewers?! She had heard stories as a kid, but this was some serious mierda! Hopping over a wall, the hispanic stopped in her tracks.

"Hey, Em! Get over here, 'miga. You gotta see this," she exclaimed on the comm. "There's a little tree over here, and it's all glowing and stuff."

Soon enough, her friend was there, as was the man in the tin can, they called Vegas. As the three examined it, Vegas stood as far away as he could without being out of range to assist the girls. Paula had, at one point figured it was something bad, and swung her war mace at it, but all she did was make a few leaves fall.

"Look! It's got little seed pods," she said as she leaned close. "Maybe we can take some seeds and grow a few of these back at the quad, eh?"

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you two," the gaudy hero said trying to dissuade them. "That's classified as Devouring Earth. It's liable to grow tentacles and do bad things in your sleep."

"Imagine the havoc one of these would wreak in the girls dormitories," Em said, jokingly.

"Hmmm," Pally replied, playing along. "Well, you know. I got a camera, and we could make our own live-action hentai movie! We'd make a killin'!"

Vegas seemed to quietly scrutinize the two girls at this point. And, Pally liked the thought of him fidgeting in his armour at the thought. It made her tough seeming. She didn't like men and boys thinking she was desperate because she didn't look like a glamour queen. In fact, Pally really could have cared less about a relationship. All she wanted was to have fun, dance, eat good food, and smash stuff with her mace. After collecting the seeds, she and Em made their way back to the campus, and Pally couldn't help but laugh to herself.

Tentacled trees?! iQue loco! C'mon! Get real...

Pally watered the Tree of Life in their Quad. It was huge and healthy, but more resembled a shrub or exceptionally leafy weed, than a tree. Kinda hard to imagine that a few months ago, this now beloved plant was just a seed! It was amazing what the Earth could produce, sometimes. Just look at humanity!

It was a wonder just how animated and sometimes sentient the thing seemed to be. Sometimes it seemed to shiver, and on other occaisions it seemed to face its leaves in the direction of the room's inhabitants. To say the least, Pally was growing quite attached to the plant. She had started making a habit of mixing fertilizer with milk and other super rich liquids and feeding it to the plant at least once a day, and sometimes twice.

Today, however, she had cut classes, and sat beside the plant in little more than a boyshort and tanktop, with her hair in pigtails. Sitting beside the plant, she opened one of her reading projects for English, and read to the plant. She always seemed to get a kick out of the feeling that it could understand her, eventhough her roommates all looked at her like she was a wierdo, when she did it. Well, today, the plant was going to learn, too. What it was that Jane Austen could teach a Tree of Life was beyond her, but, it might as well share in the misery.