Chapter Text
"I'm getting bored of knife bullet patterns." Aqua announced flatly, completely out of the blue. Flowery blinked and looked up from his already almost finished attempt at sculpting a conveniently placed tree into the shape of himself, looking shocked for a moment but quickly flashing his usual (allegedly) award-winning smile.
"Really, Aqua? What's your new pattern gonna be?" He moved closer towards the small blue child, genuinely intrigued by this new development. Aqua tilted her head.
"What?"
"What?" Flowery parroted right back in confusion.
"Why would I need a new pattern?"
"Well, you said you were bored of knife patterns," Flowery offered. "So I figured you could try something different, right? It's in the nature of humans to grow, change and evolve." He reclined in a casual (yet still suitably dramatic) pose against a nearby pillar. "So, what's your plan? You wanna try something like Seth or one of the others, or do you wanna make something completely new? I can help, if you want."
Aqua frowned.
"I don't want a new bullet pattern." Then her eyes landed on the blades of Flowery's gardening shears, still lying near the tree, and in an instant, a huge grin flashed across her face. "I wanna play with real knives!" Flowery hardly had time to react before Aqua summoned one of her previously mentioned bullets and used it to chop the blades of Flowery's shears right off and hurl them into the air before spreading her arms wide. "Look Flowery! I'm gonna catch 'em!"
Flowery's eyes widened in horror. He just barely had time to leap into the air and snatch the blades before Aqua could catch them, hurling them through a nearby window with all his might as soon as he landed and producing a satisfying CRASH as a result. He rubbed the back of his head and offered a sheepish smile as Aqua stared at him.
"Sorry about that Aqua," He muttered with a slight blush of embarrassment. "But knives aren't toys. Your own bullet patterns can't hurt you, but real blades definitely can. You gotta be careful, flow- I mean, humans are fragile."
Aqua simply stared at him for a moment while he held his breath internally. Then, Aqua giggled and clapped her hands, causing him to exhale.
"Uee hee hee! I get it! It's like a new game!"
"Yes, exactly!" Flowery chuckled hastily. "You play by being careful, and if you successfully practice knife safety, you win!"
"YAY!" Aqua cheered, bouncing and spinning to and fro all over the room like a manic top made of rubber. "Thanks big bro!"
Flowery sighed and rubbed some sweat from his forehead.
"You're welcome, Aqua. Any time."
He just hoped this was a lesson she'd actually remember this time…