Well... At Least It's a Job? (Job, Solo)

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Mayumi would admit that she hadn't expected starting off as a mage to be this... Boring. I mean, she knew she wasn't exactly a big shot or anything. And the few conversations she'd had with her sister since the other woman had joined a guild herself had included talk of some not-so-glamorous jobs. But Mayumi had foolishly thought that things would be different for her. After all, her sister had little more than cheap blades and some parlor trick magic, while Mayumi was a well-practiced warrior. She'd be able to find some impressive jobs and spread her name around, right?

Well, not so much. It seems that the best she could find was being a house-sitter. The only enemies she might run into were flies and leaky roofs. Plus one supposedly problematic dog. Clearly the home owner had some difficulties with security. But Mayumi had fixed that when she'd arrived. Made sure the front gate was securely shut, and all the windows and doors were closed. No way for that dog to get in now. All she had left to do now was survive the boredom...

Word Count: 186

The first thing that got to Mayumi were the flies. God they were everywhere, and she hated bugs. They were between the blinds and the windows, and their buzzing was so loud. They kept dive-bombing her head. She went to borrow a snack out of the fridge and promptly lost her appetite upon realizing they were in there too- mostly dead and scattered on the shelves, which was somehow even worse. How did anyone live here? It baffled her. She spent innumerable hours swatting at them. She had brought a flyswatter, having been forewarned by the job posting, but the nasty little buggers were fast. And numerous. She felt like she hadn't even made a dent in the little nuisances. And did she mention she hated bugs? She hated bugs. Why did she take this job again? Oh, right- it was the only one she could get...

She sighed. She needed some type of distraction from this unending barrage. Hadn't the owner said something about a leaky roof? As much as she didn't want to add extra work, at least that would be something to do, right?

Word Count: 187

Mayumi slowly made her way up to the attic to check out what was going on with the roof. Man it was hot up here. She knew nothing about roofs, or water leaks, but it didn't take Mayumi very long to spot the problem. There was a gap between one of the vents and the edge of the hole that had been cut for it. If the owner had really been that upset about it they could have it fixed easily. At home something like that would have been fixed within a day of it being discovered.

Then she sighed. Here she was slipping back into that mentality she'd had since she was young. She forgot that not everyone was as wealthy as her family. They may not be able to afford the fix. A lot of repairs were pretty expensive. Mayumi herself certainly wouldn't have money to fix it, or she wouldn't have taken a job like this in the first place.

She thought for a moment, staring blankly at the pot the owner had left under the hole, which was mostly full of water from the rain they'd had that morning. Then she finally got moving. Scouring the house, she finally came across something to work with. She found a roll of tape, and two old towels shoved to the back of the linen closet. She headed back up and stuffed one of the towels into the gap, then securely taped it in place, adding extra layers in the hope of stopping some of the water from getting it. Then she laid the other towel on the floor under the pot, just in case it leaked. That done, she carried the heavy vessel down and dumped the water in the sink before going up to put it back in its place. Well, no one could say she wasn't trying to earn her reward from the job. It was hardly fixed, but it was just a little better than it had been before.

Word Count: 334

Mayumi was just congratulating herself on her little improvement when she heard a crash downstairs. What on earth? She rushed down the stairs... And straight into a dog! And it was a huge one. The brown dog was practically the size of a small horse, with an angry-looking face and drool dripping from his massive jaws. How...?

Her sudden shock left her open, and the beast didn't hesitate to take advantage of it. He lunged forward, latching his jaws around her arm and knocking her down. She cried out as she punched him in the jaws to encourage him to let go. Thankfully it worked and she quickly scrambled to her feet, dashing around to the other side of the table to keep the furniture between her and the canine. Normally she liked animals, but this was something else. And she wasn't supposed to kill him. So... How should she deal with this without losing a limb?

Word Count: 157

Mayumi decided there was only one good option for her- she'd have to try and communicate with the dog. She had the ability to do so, although she tended to keep to herself when it came to animals she didn't know. After all, there was so much background noise. She thought the dog was too aggressive to be reasoned with, but she ought to at least try...

She was pleasantly surprised. She'd thought the dog a bloodthirsty beast. Turns out it was... A lot like her. He liked fighting, and he was bored. He didn't seem to recognize that he could badly hurt someone if he wasn't careful. Well, she could help with that.

She convinced the dog to come outside and play with her, very clear that this time there would be no claws or teeth. After a good hour of chasing and wrestling with her, the dog was finally tired out, and so was Mayumi. Man, who knew house sitting could be so much work?

Word Count: 167