World of Warcraft®

"You want me to do WHAT?"

Staring down first at the pick in her hand then to the Pandaren the Monk narrowed her eyes.

"I have come for seeds, not for training. You know, the things you push in the ground and food comes from?"

All this got her was an amused look and a lecture on knowing where your food comes from. Fine, if it got the boss gnome what she asked for then she supposed it could not hurt. In theory.

After about the third stubbed hoof and who knows how many blisters the farm was finally clear of all rocks. With a triumphant grin Castaa made her way back to the Pandaren.

"I am done! May I have the seeds now?"

...Still no. Starter seeds?! Who ever heard of starter seeds?!

With an irritated huff she tromped back across the lane shoving a bit of now soaked hair out of her eyes as she did so. Why did it have to be raining right now? Putting on her most charming smile she made her way over to the seed vendor.

"Hi! Lovely weather. Well...no I can't rightly say I like rain...? Oh...when you put it that way it's great, yep makes big crops...Saaay...do you have some Se...Oh! Yes that's what I was here fo...wait. Starter seeds? I just want NORMAL seeds! Oh fine fine..."

Staring at the two small seeds as she made yet another trip back the Draenai indulged herself in an irritated kick at a water puddle. Starter. What did they think she was, a kid?

"Here are your seeds, you want me to plant them too? ...no I wasn't being seriou...oh fine I'll plant them. Don't expect me to wa...what do you mean I have to water then?! it's RAINING for the light's sake...how can they not be floating away!? Fine!"

Finally after too many long hours a now mud covered and rather disgruntled draenai stomped over to the farmer holding out two large cabbages.

"Here. NOW can I go b...what do you mean you want me to look in the mud?! I am done! I just want my seeds! That's it! I don't CARE where they came from! FINE...if it will make people happy and make them sell me seeds, but that's it! No more, I am not a farmer and I do not farm!"

Finally! FINALLY she had a slightly muddy, very wet and oh so precious bag of seeds. It was probably best to keep this little adventure to herself. With a pleased huff Castaa headed back to the bay to leave the bag on Derscha's non-desk with a note "Do you know where your food comes from?"

Derscha waved cheerfully to her employees as she came into work, already planning her day in advance even as she grabbed one of Brae's muffins from a table and headed toward her office. It was the beginning of the month, time to get started on a new round of paperwork, after all.

"Miss Sprocketquill," she paused by the gnome's desk, "Did Castaa ever come back with the items I requested? We're on a deadline."

"Oh, yes," Cori Sprocketquill replied, glancing up from reading some new news publication. "She made it just in time; left them in your office, I believe."

"Lovely! Thank you."

Well, that made one less thing to worry about. She opened her office door, thinking about the next problem that needed to be tackled and-

-there was a still-damp, muddy sack of something sitting in the middle of her floor.

"What in the name of physics?"

She gingerly prodded the lumpy sack with one toe, worried about getting the mud on her pristine uniform. There was a slightly less mudstained note left beside it. Derscha picked it up and read it, then eyed the sack one more time.

Her nose twitched, once, then twice before she neatly folded the note and tossed it randomly aside.

Cori was still reading her paper when Derscha returned to her desk.

"Miss Sprocketquill, I'm going to need a form HR-15."

"The employee transfer papers? Is someone changing offices?"

"Yes, I think I've found a new office manager for the Ex- no, wait. Too easy." Derscha pondered the situation a bit more. "Get me the HR-15, plus a D-28."

"Right! Yes, ma'am." Cori decided not to question what her boss could possibly be thinking.

Later that day, however, a new office memo was sent out:

After careful consideration, the AAMS has decided to reinvigorate its efforts to give back to the community as we have done in the past, through such endeavors as our Renewal Projects. However, we will be working on a smaller scale, focusing on more personal attention and small projects.

The new AAMS Small Projects Department (name subject to change) has already received its first suggestion from one of our own Shield Bearers, who has shown interest in ensuring that all of our clients have access to healthy, safe, and locally sourced food. As such, Castaa will be in charge of visiting various communities to help establish local open gardens for public use.

Everyone be sure to thank Castaa for her selflessness and for committing to personally plant a tree in every garden.

Will you provide Abominusss with fresssh Gnome ssseedlingsss, yesss? Sssometimesss we desssire fresssh gnome BBQ ssspareribsss, ssslathered in Ssstranglethorn Vale Pepper Sssauce, yesss.

Gerhilda tilted her head curiously as she looked at the bag of seeds sitting beside the moderately sized but nonetheless empty wooden pot...er trough... thing. If there ever was an impulse buy then that hunk of wood was the dictionary definition of it. Starting a garden was the last thing Gerhilda envisioned herself doing but that gnome from the delivery company sure was persuasive. Still... she had absolutely no clue how to go about all of this and was hesitant to even start lest she mess something up.

“Oh me stars! I sure hope the wee lass comes soon to help meself.”

While Gerhilda's purse couldn't exactly afford the expense of setting up a garden, let alone finding a space for one in her cramped town house in the Mage Quarter, she was nonetheless grateful to the wee lass. After all the delivery gnome was generous enough to give... loan... lend... well was going to be bringing a whole bunch of fancy gardening equipment with her to do this proper. Gerhilda did not understand any of it but if she had learned anything about gnomes over the years it was their love for automating tasks. If this garden project of hers would literally take care of itself then it shouldn't be so bad... she hoped.

Still... Gerhilda wondered why Felicia kept signing her up to receive these mystery packages every month.

Where are the fish seeds?