>> Jay: Trim the Roses

[First Guardian]

Your name is JAY. It's a nice day in the GREEN. You have just finished your MODERATE EXERCISE. Next you will TEND TO YOUR GARDEN. You know the IMPORTANCE of keeping the plants IN LINE while they are GROWING, and you will ENCOURAGE them to grow the RIGHT WAY when you have to. You also know when to CULL THE WEEDS if problems persist. You have a BORDERLINE UNHEALTHY OBSESSION with RULES, which your friends have gotten to know decently well. Speaking of friends, you have appointed yourself as a LAW BRINGER of sorts, creating a LARGE LIST OF RULES to keep your FRIENDS both SAFE and IN ORDER. After all, it's a DANGEROUS WORLD out there.

SNIP SNIP

"Beautiful. Now the next."

SNIP...

"And another. "

snipsnip.... SNIP

"Such dreadful unwanted blemishes to such amazing beauties." Jay looked at his last rose as he set the clippers aside, the one that never seemed to fail him. "And you... the best of them all, the one that never strays of its course. "

He caressed the soft red petals as he smiled, before turning back to head inside. However, he heard a sudden buzz as he quickly faced the other side of his small, neatly kept garden. It was full of beautiful plants, many of which had earned their rewards, and even after death, he kept an image of their prime glory in a small book. But now, they faced a threat. 

A stray beetle happened to be buzzing around his garden, and it was quite clear which one was its target. His precious, loyal rose. He would not stand for this. By his side his fists were clenched in utter fury and justice. It was times like these that life was held in the balance.

>>Jay: STRIFE with BEETLE

[Erik Vrell]

A filthy beetle DARED to attack his garden. This botanical masterpiece, quite possibly the most beautiful garden in the whole of the tangled greens. This shining example of natural beauty was now under attack by an lowly, insolent beetle. Not if Jay had anything to do with it. 

Acting quickly, the boy drew his scythe. Technically, it was meant for gardening and farming, harvesting wheat and such, but Jay had found that it was much more effective when used for physical confrontations such as this. 

The boy swung his scythe horizontally at the beetle, careful not to decapitate any of his precious plants in the process. The beetle dodged the swipe nimbly, taunting Jay with its apparent indifference to the situation.

The fight was long and hard, the beetle was a worthy foe. Sure, he didn't hit hard, but he was quick on his wings and as nimble as the best ninjas in the green. The beetle realised that it could not win this battle, and made a hasty retreat. Before it could get far however, it sensed a please tell aroma coming from below. It dropped down to examine the scent before a pair of jaws snapped down on the unfortunate insect.

Jay let out a laugh, which sounded a little like a strange cough or sneeze. "After all that, he fell for the oldest trick in the book." Flytraps weren't easy to come by in Jay's neck of the woods, so he had to pay good money for some seeds from a merchant. Normally he wouldn't even consider paying so much for such an unnattractive plant, but they paid for themselves with all the free guard work. 

After one more check, Jay was satisfied that his plants were safe and in line. He hefted his scythe onto his back and turned to go back inside. Jay's house was little more than a shack in the forest, made completely of wood and relatively small in size. The house consisted of a bedroom, a living room and a kitchen. Jay hung his scythe up on a rack in his room and booted up his computer. "I wonder if anyone's online right now?" Jay said to himself.

[Erik Vrell]

Jay opened pesteromni and waited for it to load. While he waited, he opened up his browser and opened GameBro. Normally, Jay wouldn't be caught dead looking at an article like this, but he was interested in video games and enjoyed laughing at the writers. An article about SBURB caught his eye. He clicked on the link and glanced across his desk to the copy of SBURB resting nearby. He had been pestered by his friends to get it, and thought "hey, why not?" So there it was. After some dry laughter was had at the expense of GameBro, pesteromni had opened and Jay was pestered by Paul. 

[spoiler] 
VC: the garden is doing well.
VC: a filthy beetle tried to assault my flowers, but a flytrap ate it
VC: oh?
VC: urgh, larvae disgust me
VC: try quarantining the infested fruits
VC: no problem
VC: ok, good luck with your tomatoes
[/spoiler] 

A look of disgust crossed Jay's face. He hated filthy larvae, always trying to gnaw their way into his beautiful plants. Jay had lost enough precious flowers to the little beasts. Jay stretched and got up out of his chair. He grabbed his scythe and tied up his shoes. He needed to go for a run. He left his computer on incase anyone pestered him while he was out. Happy that his garden and house would be safe while he was gone, Jay took off jogging into the woods.

[Erik Vrell]

Jay took his regular path through the woods, one that was both efficient, safe and scenic. Through the gap between the two elm trees, carefully down the slope, then along the river until you come to a makeshift bridge of stone. Cross the river, then follow the dirt track through the woods until you come to the ancient oak, then simply climb another slope and you're back in Jay's garden. It had taken a lot of trial and error to find the path, but it was worth it in the long run. There weren't many things in life more satisfying than a jog along this particular trail. Little did Jay know that this familiar trail would hold a surprise today. 

As Jay skidded to a halt at the base of the slope and turned towards the river, he noticed something disconcerting. Where a patch of brambles previously grew was now a gaping hole. Jay bent over to inspect the damage and noticed bear tracks running through the destroyed foliage. This particularly worried Jay because there was a certain bear around these areas that was a particular thorn in his side. Not only did it relentlessly ravage Jay's plants, but the boy could hardly do anything to stop it. There was many an encounter which ended in Jay cowering inside and watching the beast destroy his garden through a window. Thankfully, it never seemed interested in the roses. Not wanting to risk a bloody fight in the middle of the woods, Jay clutched his scythe tighter and took off a touch faster than before. 

Jay arrived home half an hour later, panting and drenched with sweat from his panicked dash through the woods. While he had started off with a brisk jog, his paranoia grow until he broke into a full sprint. Jay stepped inside and hung up his scythe before checking pesterOmni. He had not one but two pending chats.

[spoiler] 
VC: whats up
VC: yeah, i have
VC: sure, i guess
VC: cya
[/spoiler]

A pleasant chat with Paul, nothing too out of the ordinary. What was surprising was a pester from Paige. While Jay liked Paige well enough, and they were what most would refer to as friends, the two never really talked that much. Jay was never one for Paige's talkatively, nor Paige for Jay's quietness. Nevertheless, Jay was happy to talk to someone. It got lonely out in the woods sometimes, and Paige and Paul both lived beyond walking distance.

[spoiler]
VC: yes, i am well
VC: i have recently come into possession of a copy of SBURB
VC: i didn't want to be the only one not to have a copy
VC: do we have a headcount?
VC: very good
VC: of course
VC: rules are what make the world work
VC: i won't bore you with another rules speech today
VC: i'm happy at least one of you guys see the light
VC: alright
VC: that's... odd
VC: please, go on
VC: i have
VC: hmm
VC: intriguing
VC: i see
VC: oh
VC: uh, ok
VC: this sounds... very in depth
VC: i may
VC: i don't see who else would fill the position
VC: really, frisk?
VC: don't get me wrong, the kid is great, but she seems so... shy 
VC: oh, of course
VC: you got me
VC: indeed
VC: of course, i meant no offence
VC: see you soon
[/spoiler]

Jay just sat there for a moment, taking it all in. It was all so complex, almost unnecessarily so. No matter, he would get everyone through this, no matter how convoluted. After all, who else is as qualified as him. Just as he thought this and a rare smirk crossed Jay's face, the sound nightmares are made of pierced the air. The roar of a bear. Not just any bear, but Jay's nemesis. The boy's face quickly morphed into a terrified expression as he dashed to grab his scythe. Jay crouched behind the nearest window, scythe in hand. He knew he should be safe inside, but if the bear went after his roses, Jay couldn't force himself to stay inside.