A/N: So, here's something a little different. I decided that as long as one of the two lovable dorks in the title is in the story, it counts here. So, here's a Viridi and Palutena story. I tried to find something that I feel these two could do together and I really like how this one came out.

Enjoy!

Story 3: Gardening

Palutena strolled down the south courtyard of her temple on a flourishing spring day. The sun shone and the wind whistled with a kind of cheerfulness that was unmatched to any other type of day.

"Perfect day for some gardening." The Goddess thought.

Palutena had always wanted to find an activity which allowed her to be released from her responsibilities as a Goddess and simply turn her mind off to the stressful world around her. Gardening was what she found. After buying a small bonsai tree in a market, she found a section of unused grass nearby an old exit to the temple and planted the bonsai. Ever since then, Palutena found herself slowly adding more to the area. First there was the bushes along the wall, then the bed of roses, then the stepping stone path, then the fencing around the garden; Pit had even helped Palutena dig a well and procure a special water orb from Poseidon to keep the well filled. Palutenas Private Garden became a place of calmness and zen for the Goddess and she loved to be in it as much as possible.

The return of spring finally allowed Palutena to see the blooming beauties she grew in full life again, and she simply wanted to clean up the place after a rough winter.

Rounding the final corner to the garden, Palutena stopped as she saw the doorway to the garden wide open. She pouted. "I thought I made it clear no one enters my garden without permission. What part of 'private' don't people get?" Palutena murmured as she walked through the door to face the unwelcome guest.

And upon peering inside, The Goddess of Light was surprised in the most ironic way when she saw Viridi wandering through the garden, arms behind her back and a curious look on her face, as if she was picking apart all of the intricate details of the garden.

"Viridi?" Palutena spoke up, breaking the silence and causing the Goddess of Nature to jump. "Aah!" Viridi whipped around and saw Palutena. "Hey! Ever heard of knocking? You scared me." Viridi grumbled.

Palutena's gaze turned into an upset scowl as she crossed her arms. "Have you ever heard of asking permission? This is my private garden."

Viridi responded with a smirk, "Ahem, Remember who made all of this?" The Goddess of Nature outstretched an arm and a vine growing on the wall slinked onto the small blondes arm like a snake before blooming a small flower on her shoulder. "I have as much of a right to be in here as you."

Palutena sighed and rubbed her temple. "This is supposed to be a calming place for me, Viridi. I like being here alone."

"Hey, who says my being here will ruin your zen? If anything, this place needs a bit of sprucing up." Viridi allowed the vine around her arm to slither off back onto the wall, and Palutena watched as flowers began to bloom on every vine across the temple wall.

"Well, since it's finally spring I wanted to come back out here to fix it up. Believe it or not, Viridi, I do care for nature in my own ways."
"I see the true care under the neglect winter brings. I honestly came here to check out your setup and see if I could help."

Now Palutena flushed a little, embarrassed. Viridi came here to help clean up the garden and here's Palutena wanting her to leave. The Goddess of Light gulped a little before responding, "Sorry. Of course you can help. I just like giving my own personal touch to my setup."

"Ok, now your rivaling my over protectiveness for plants." Viridi chuckled. "I won't take over your production, I'll lend a helping hand. How bout that?"

Palutena smiled and nodded. "I'd appreciate that, Viridi. I'm surprised by your sudden want to help me."

"It's more me wanting to help my babies, but sure, helping you is somewhere in my reason." The two giggled before Palutena made her way to the nearby shed. It was a simple wooden shed, but the wood looked ancient, jaded, and rustic, as if it almost outlived the temple in age. While Viridi inwardly fumed about the use of a tree in such a way, even she couldn't deny the way the aged look gave off a pleasant feel.

"We have everything we'll need in here. If I remember correctly I even have a few seeds left over we could plant." Palutena called out over the sound of tools clanging against each other as she rummaged through the shed. After two minutes, The Goddess of Light walked out sporting a large straw hat, covering her entire head in shade, a pair of faded yellow gloves, with a trowel in one hand and hedge clippers in another. Viridi suppressed a giggle at the stereotypical gardener look the Goddess of Light had.

"There's a spare set of gloves inside if you want."

"When it comes to gardening, Palutena, I don't mind getting my hands dirty." Viridi immediately walked past Palutena and set to work on a nearby rose bush, softly shifting the new buds of roses around.

Palutena smiled and made her way to a pair of hedges, "Do you mind if I trim the hedges?"

"As long as you treat it as a haircut for my babies, not a scalping." Viridi called out as her touch of nature caused the roses to slowly begin blooming, a satisfied smile growing on her face.

"Alright then." Palutena turned back to the hedges and readied her clippers, beginning to trim the most noticeably overgrown areas. As she cut further, she felt the essence of the garden begin to enter her as it always did, with a warm feeling washing over her that made the gardening not feel at all like work. Her job may sometimes be simple due to her stature, powers, and many hands available to aid her. But when she was able to sit back and simply act on her own accord with little aid, no powers, and no great consequences of every action she made; it was one of the most satisfying feeling she has felt in a long time.

Viridi had to admit this specific instance of gardening was of a different feeling over the work she's done at her own temple. After finishing with the roses, leaving the bed completely bloomed in bright red with the freshest rose smell she could give, Viridi watched Palutena work on the hedges. She saw the effort and care on her face, saw how much she wanted to make this area look beautiful for herself rather than just to make it a sight for others. The Goddess of Nature always felt alone in her feelings towards nature and plant life, as back in her own temple, Arlon always took care of plants as a butler would; not putting soul into the work and simply following orders, and Phosphora never showed much interest in plants other than select flowers she thought would be nice to have in her room. Even Pit, while showing genuine love towards nature, never wanted to put forth the effort to take care of it as she herself would without being ordered too. She hoped to one day open her boyfriend to the wonders of plant life he has yet seen.

But now, watching Palutena give so much love and care to this garden, and to gaze across the area and see it packed full of color and life, for the first time ever, Viridi not only found something she had in common with The Goddess of Light, but a feeling of having genuine friendship she felt with few people and hadn't felt since the night Pit started going out with her.

As time went on, the two Goddess' did more work together, cleaning up the water in the well, removing weeds from nearby the stepping stones, sprucing up the flowers which pushed through the winter and removing the wilted ones. They even began work on a new flower bed together.

When the girls found themselves looking at a clean, revitalized garden, the sun began to set. Palutena estimated they were working for about two and a half hours, and every minute was an enjoyable experience for the two.

Walking back inside, Palutena firmly patted her hand on Viridi's shoulder, "That was a lot of fun. Thank you for your help, Viridi. The garden looks even more pretty and peaceful than before."

"Your welcome. And don't let this next statement shock you too much, but I'd like to thank you for allowing me to help. That was a unique experience for me."

"Really? I thought you'd be a master of fixing a garden." Palutena said, curious at Viridi's statement.

"Well, I never had someone there who truly enjoyed the work and took in the beauty of what they were making at the same time. You were the first person I felt had actual fun doing all that stuff."

Palutena smiled a smile of childish cheer. "I'm so glad I could give you that experience. It was really refreshing to me as well for similar reasons."

As they rounded to the dining hall, Palutena had an idea, "Hey, if you want, I was planning on adding a whole new section to my garden specifically for some vegetables, would you like to help me put it together over the next few weeks when you're free?"

Viridi smiled happily. "Of course. I'll show you how to make the most delectable veggies in Skyworld, and that's a promise."

The two laughed as they made there way back through the temple.

A/N: I have a lot of ideas written down for this little side series so hopefully I'll get more out soon along side Picking Up The Fallen, which will hopefully be updated soon. Reviews are welcome as always, and have a great day!

Until next time, gotta fly!