Doing some Good for the Community [D Rank][1,190 Words]

Mission Taken - Fixing the Shop:

'Well now that's just sad.', Namie thought to herself as she looked to the bakery in the distance. It was blackened, clearly burned, and from what she could see there was a middle aged man attempting to haul what was clearly a giant stove out the front door of the shop by himself. A glance around showed that there was no one else there: he was doing this by himself. Namie had been planning on spending the morning doing some spray painting but perhaps she could do something a bit more constructive.

Namie slipped her un-used can of spray paint into her messenger bag where the rest of them resided and flipped down the flap before buckling it; doing this while moving at a steady pace towards the baker. When she got about fifteen feet away was when she was noticed. The baker turned towards her and gave a nod of greeting and a small smile. "Can I help you, miss?", he asked politely when he noticed that Namie was just standing there.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could help you? What happened here?", Namie asked curiously.

The baker looked shocked for a moment before nodding towards the stove he was attempting to haul out the door. "Help me out while I tell you about it?" Namie didn't hesitate and after some skillful climbing she hauled herself over the stove and to the other side. Once she found a good place to grip she helped to lift the stove so that her and the baker could begin working it the rest of the way outside. "There was a short in the stove I didn't know about. Last night when I finished baking today's bread I shut it off but I guess the short kept it on. I guess it got so hot that the heat itself started to catch the things around it on fire. Thankfully, I don't live above the bakery anymore, so no one was home. But, the fire got pretty out of control before it was able to be put out."

By the end of the baker's explanation they had carried the stove to the cart; the cart would be taking it to the shop so that it could be fixed, or failing that disposed of properly. "I'm sorry to hear that. I'll do what I can to help." The baker smiled and nodded, and Namie followed him back into the store. One by one appliance after appliance was dragged out and placed into the cart neatly so that it would all fit. Once the kitchen was completely cleaned out of items the same was done to the actual store room which thankfully wasn't nearly as bad since the fire didn't have much of a chance to spread beyond the kitchen.

With all of the appliances cleaned out the baker and Namie then went about placing fans around the place and opening up all of the doors and windows. Push mops were acquired next and put to use pushing all of the excess water out of the building; it had taken quite a bit to get the fire out and make it stay out due to how hot it actually had been. Once the water was out of the building, and while the floor was finishing drying, they turned their attention to wiping down the walls and cleaning them as best as possible of soot.

With the walls done and the ceiling done next it was onto the counters and all of the other surfaces in the place. When they were done the pair took a break, enjoying a cold glass of iced tea brought over by the baker's wife while they figured out their next plan of action.

With the floor, walls, ceiling, and surfaces dry; the latter of those being already clean; they went about giving the floor as thorough as a mopping as possible; thankfully due to it being mostly concrete it wouldn't need repaired.

"All that's left is the painting.", the baker said as their day was drawing to a close. It was nearly ten o'clock at night, and they had been working almost consistently for ten hours straight. He was exhausted, but Namie was still buzzing with energy due to being used to working late into the evening.

Namie simply grinned as she looked over to the baker. "Why don't you leave me to the painting? I'll have it done by morning and then all you'll need to worry about is getting the appliances in. Go get some rest, you deserve it." The baker was shocked, but simply nodded and grabbed his coat.

"Thank you, Namie.", he said before walking out. Namie simply nodded and then looked to the walls with a grin: this was going to be rather fun - and it was. After a coat of primer was put down on both the inside and outside walls - the fans helping it to dry fairly quickly - she pulled out her numerous cans of spray paint and got to work. The scene was laid out inside of the shop first since it would need to be dried before morning; it depicted the baker and his kids and wife - all whom he had saw earlier in the day - baking bread and laughing and smiling. There were mountains of bread on carts, as well as beautiful and delicious looking pasteries laid out. Once completed with the inside she began to work on the outside of the building; painting a life sized version of the baker who was holding up a sign with the bakery's name on it.

By the time Namie was finished it was nearly morning and the cart had arrived with the appliances fixed and ready to be installed. Not wanting to wake up the baker she simply helped haul them in, and after some careful instructions, helped get everything to where it was supposed to be and prepared for use.

By the time everything was said and done, and it was nearly seven o'clock in the morning, Namie was covered in soot, sweat, and paint: and she couldn't be happier. For once she had done something to help someone instead of hinder them, and it was a good feeling. When the baker arrived with his family moments after completion they were all in shock, and the baker's wife actually burst into tears as overhwelmingly happy as she was.

"My goodness, Namie, this place looks amazing. And the paint job... I didn't know you could do stuff like that. Thank you dear, thank you so much." Namie simply blushed and nodded, grinning from ear to ear. After a quick hug she was on her way out the door, leaving the baker and his family to get to work.

It wasn't until later, when she returned home and was beginning to empty out her bag of the empty spray cans did she notice the ryo that had been slipped inside. "Huh... I didn't even notice.", Namie muttered to herself before shaking her head and going off to get cleaned up...

Word Count: 1,190 / 100