[PQ] It's clean, it's clear, it's pure

George

George's efforts were frustrating, to say the least. Though he appreciated Hadama's attempts to interpret the blueprints from the water, the thief was sorely tempted to take the damned papers and look them over himself to see if he could translate any better than the mer king. Eventually, with Harper's help, they were able to finish the construction before the human king began to stack the volcanic rocks in their filtration system.

Finally, it was time to begin pouring the water. George looked at the barrels of water, considering. Instead of lifting up a full barrel and pouring it in slowly, which would require him to hold a heavy barrel overhead for an extended period of time, he wondered if perhaps it might be easier to pull out his handy-dandy bucket and simply ladle the water into the filtration system. (Work smarter, not harder, lads.) And so that was what he did, fetching his bucket and ladling the water in, pouring each batch in slowly.

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George tries ladling the water in rather than lifting the heavy barrel, because some of us don't have magic or elephant shifts. ;D

Harper

George is at a disadvantage for this round, it's true, but Harper doesn't mind filling in the gaps where necessary. Transforming once more, Harper utilizes his trunk a second time - and is grateful for the inherent strength of his shift, which allows for slow and precise movements despite being a behemoth of a creature one would not expect it from.

Eyesight is poorer, yes, but not so poor as to make him incapable of pouring the barrels of water into the filtration. It is slow and methodical work that strains the muscles in his trunk, but dogged persistence and stamina alike work in tandem to accomplish this last step in the final moments.

- - -

Harper lifts the barrels with his trunk and very slowly and carefully pours them in!

I am water - soft enough to offer life
tough enough to drown it away

This time around things went well for the team. George played to his strengths and went for toning rather than flexing his muscles. His choice to add water in reasonable bucketfuls paid off, as the smaller amounts didn't overflow the filtering barrels and he had plenty of time to rest in between each refill as the water slowly percolated through the volcanic rock system they'd built. Though his stint at filling the barrels might not have been as refreshing as a good nap, it went smoothly and he'd feel the benefits of a good day of light exercise by the time he handed off the barrels to Harper.

Shifting the filtrators on to empty barrels once the first ones were filled, the team continued. Harper did, indeed, work harder, but when you had an elephant shift why wouldn't you show it off? His strong trunk and endless reserves of endurance were more then capable of hoisting the full barrels of water and holding them over the filtrators at just the right angle for water to trickle out, keeping a steady stream going without overflowing the rim. Harper's nose might have been a little sore by the time he ended his shift and returned to human form, but not a drop of their carefully-gathered water had been wasted.

Hadama had to request help in order to get the lids of the last water barrels off, but once his friend had helped him with that he was able to use his magic to create a water serpent that moved from the barrel of stream water up to the top of the filter barrel. Using his powers to control the flow so that it was slow and steady, he rounded out the final batch of water and was able to relax while the last gallons worked their way through their system.

The sun was starting to drop low to the west by the time they finished and the King turned his attention to his co-ruler and their welcome companion. "Thank you. Now we are halfway to finishing the fountain," he rumbled, satisfied with their progress. "We will store these in the Court. I will treat you both to dinner, when it is convenient for you," he added with a grateful inclination of his head to the team.

Safely returned to Haulani, with the filtered water stored in preparation for the fountain that would one day be built near the Docks, the trio could finally rest after a long day's work.

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~fin~

Thank you so much for helping out with this RQ! Go get your MP :D