<> <> <> <> <> * Rochelle comes stumbling in right about now, taking a moment to kick off her workboots before flopping, face first, onto the couch. She lays there about five seconds before she says, "Fucking cat hair." <> * Katherine is sitting at her table, with lots of metal pieces on the table. Gun pieces. She's scrubbing one of them with a small brush. "Yeah, that's Eck for you. Didn't expect you back so early today." * Rochelle oofs as Eck jumps onto her back, but doesn't seem to have the energy to push her off. She keeps talking into the couch. "Yeah, she didn't want me to work tonight. Why the hell do so many people get drunk before two, anyway?" (Cham calls her him, so I start doing it. ;P) (BAD CHAM.) (Look, the cat acts exactly like mine does. And mine is male.) * Katherine smirks. "Because there's no bad time to drink when life's lousy." (And the answer, Rochelle, is that there are people like Maggie who actually exist!) (Yaaaagh, well, hopefully none of them will shoot me.) * Rochelle mutters something, then comes out with, "Least they pay more when they don't know what they're doin'." * Katherine starts screwing parts back together. "Always a bright side to drunk people. Sorry I didn't have food up, but like I said, I figured Momo'd work you to death again tonight." * Rochelle shrugs. Yeah, guess she doesn't want me to actually die. Sorta gets in the way. Ah, it'll get easier once you get past training. * Katherine pushes, and two parts go together with a noise of metal on metal. "Any end in sight for that?" * Rochelle isn't disturbed by that in the least. She twitches a little as Echidna's still on her back. "Fuck if I know. If I'm s'posed to believe what the other 'tenders say, she's never trained anyone else before." * Katherine puts the last parts of the gun together, and lays it down on the table, before standing. "... Jesus. Personal attention from Momo? Damn." * Rochelle turns her head so she's looking at Kat. "That's a big deal?" * Katherine sits down in a chair over by Roch, making it easier to look at her. "She's the one in charge, and trained at the best bartending school on the planet. And a busy woman besides." Just a little surprising, I guess. Oh. * Rochelle blinks. * Katherine shrugs. "I just do bouncing anyway. More my sort of thing." A smile creeps across her face. Huh. You worked there? As a favor, more than anything. When Val or Harty needs a night off. That's nice. * Rochelle grimaces a little as Echidna makes herself comfortable. * Katherine grins at the grimace. "Yeah, Eck needs to learn more about backrubs." She gets to practice on me. Yay. (She could get a gift certificate to a masseuse school!) * Katherine smirks. "Well, I could practice on you. I'm a bit better." She leans back in the chair. "Or we could ditch her and go shopping. You gotta spend yoour first paycheck. It's tradition." * Rochelle blinks. "It is?" * Katherine nods emphatically. "Yeah. Or at least buy something for yourself. What good's money if you don't spend it on yourself?" Thought I was s'posed to give it to you. Or something. * Katherine blinks. "Well, you could. But we can put that off a week or two, I think. For tradition." She winks. Oh. * Rochelle thinks about that for a second. "Yeah, sure. Does this mean I have to get up?" * Katherine stands. "You bet." Damn. * Rochelle tries to turn over, or roll off the couch, or something to get Echidna off of her. <> * Rochelle sits up and tries to straighten her hair. Kinda. * Katherine goes over to the other side of the room, tosses off her dark blue cut-off and slips on a tight white t-shirt and a red top with shoulder straps and, unsurprisingly, no midriff over top of it. Then walks back across the room and eyes Echidna. "You're just really selfish today," she says, while strapping on her sholder holster and the shiny clean gun. "Mrroowr." * Katherine dispenses the DunnoChow. "Yes, I know who you get it from." <> * Katherine smooths out her leather miniskirt, and turns to Roch. "Ready to go?" Yeah, sure. * Rochelle grabs her boots and yanks them back on. She puts a lot of effort into this. * Katherine just goes with boring normal flats, and her jacket and purse. "Time for shopping!" She looks greatly pleased. * Rochelle eyes Kat, possibly wondering what she got into, but she nods and leaves anyway. Since she didn't even bother taking her jacket off, she doesn't need to put it back on. Convenient! <> * Katherine walks, and takes a deep breath. "Aah, Friday nights." She's grinning widely. * Rochelle glances at Kat, then shrugs to herself and offers a tiny smile, too. * Katherine looks over at Roch. "Aw, c'mon. Smile more. It's Friday, you're not working, you've got money, and there's at least one worse place you can be." She heads down to the subway. <> I guess. Do I have to? * Rochelle follows like the obedient girl she is. * Katherine chuckles and goes Subwaying! "Well, you don't haaaave to. But why not? Life won't be more of a pain in the ass than normal for at least 4 or so days." <>| I dunno, I have to put up with old, disgusting men hitting on me in those four days. * Katherine will walk into the train. "Oh, that's what bouncers are for. Or getting to know the regulars and making them help you out." * Rochelle shrugs as she heads in, too. "I just keep them drinking 'till they pass out." * Katherine grins. "Wouldn't want 'em to stop paying, right?" * Rochelle gets that faint smile again. "Guess not." <> * Katherine just stands, holding on to a bar. "There you go, then." She yawns slightly, then chuckles, saying to herself, "Best sleep I've had in years, and I'm still tired. Christ." Yeah? * Rochelle hangs onto one, too. "No nightmares?" * Katherine stands there for a second unresponding, then says, "Yeah." She pauses for a second, then snickers. "I actually had a normal dream. It woke me up." * Rochelle laughs a little. "Good. That's great, even." * Katherine nods. "Yeah, but still weird. Is it normal to have dreams about just talking to people?" <> * Rochelle shrugs. "I guess. I have dreams about anything. They people you know?" * Katherine nods, and hops off the train, waiting for Roch to join her. "I think so, but it's fuzzy." * Rochelle gets off, too. She nods. <> * Katherine walks up to the streets, and hopes Cham will desc when she gets there! "Life could be a lot worse, you know? It's been a relatively good week. The end's in sight." She grins conspiratorially. "Then again, if Anders fell off a bridge, it'd be better." <> <> (RP tennis! It's your pose!) <> <> < * Rochelle looks up at it. "So... here?" * Katherine nods with a faint smile. "Yeah. I figured it'd be better than wandering around a square mile, after a day on your feet. Besides. The food's better." Food would be nice. * Rochelle pauses and listens to her stomach complain. "Really nice." She heads in! * Katherine follows, for once. <> <> So... Where do we go? * Katherine saunters up behind Roch. "Well, if you're that hungry, we should probably hit the food first. They've got good pizza and grille places." * Rochelle doesn't jump. Instead she looks back at Kat. "That works. Where?" * Katherine points off down the 'street' to the right and starts walking, push/turning Roch slightly with her left hand as she does so. "This way. After that, they've got most kinds of shops, and most kinds of clothing. A lot of the smaller clothing makers in town are here." * Rochelle is turned and walks along with Kat easily enough. "Clothes would be good. I think I haven't gotten new clothes since... uh, a while ago. I mean, besides the dress. Anders paid for that." * Katherine nods. "Well, they've got everything. Chinese style, fake leather, the sort of stuff Ian would go for... even Japanese and Russian stores. And all the niche stuff. Punkies that haven't sold out." * Rochelle wrinkles her nose. "Don't need the stuff Ian would go for." * Katherine laughs. "Me neither, but it's an option." She stops walking in front of a Pragmatic Grille, and gestures. "Here we go. Prag's is always good food." <> * Katherine seats herself, in a booth by a window. <> * Rochelle has a seat, too, and starts poking through the menu. Hmmm, food. * Katherine smirks to herself. "We should drag Thren here sometime. Maybe if he lives through going to Earth." * Katherine punches in for a glass of vodka and an Effluence Burger platter, with baked beans and fries, because Kat likes to start drinking early! I'm pretty sure he'll live. Dunno what he's talking about, but... (*pssst* Thren is whiny!) * Rochelle shrugs and orders a fajita pizza for herself, for pizza is good. And a soda. No alcohol, thanks. (You're probably right.) * Katherine chuckles, and says, "Well, a promise is a promise. Although I doubt he actually lived in... the southwest, they called it." Yeah. I dunno, it all sounds the same to me. * Rochelle flips through the menu, even though she isn't ordering anything. "Blue. It's blue, right? I saw pictures. They looked blue." * Katherine chuckles, and leans back in her booth, glancing out the window. "Well, that's what they say. Blue, and rich. Although apparently not all over." Which one? Blue or rich? Both. With actual animals outside the cities, and plants too. * Rochelle looks up at Kat. "Really?" <> * Rochelle checks how much it is, then sticks her thumb for the print like a good girl. <> * Katherine nods twice, and prints, "Yeah. A planetary atmosphere too." She grins. "I had a little time while you were working." <> * Rochelle laughs a little. "Yeah. Uh, Momo won't mind if I leave for a while, right?" * Katherine laughs too. "Well, mind or not, she doesn't have much choice, or else Fate'll come along and kick her in the shins." * Rochelle snickers. Yeah, but I don't wanna tell her that. "You have to let me leave, 'cause then Fate'll come and kick your ass!" Sounds like something Anders would say. Yeah, it does. We'll just tell her you have to go out of town for a few days. (By the way, Katherine's open as a nick now.) (Hooray!) (I feel real again!) * Rochelle blinks, then nods. "Yeah, that'd work." (I am not just a dumb nickname! I am a human being!) (By the way, the other Katherine did a nice job, despite Dicesuke. It's a good nickname!) (Hooray! Now it's time for Cham to drop a bag of money in our laps!) (Yay!) * Katherine mms, and takes a drink of her vodka. "Also, I've been thinking. We should probably take our suits along on the trip. You know, in case we need something a little sturdier than Leo." (... money? Laps?) (Yeah. We've got a theory. Alcohol leads to good things, like artifacts and $1000 bottles of wine. Katherine also leads to good things, like kicking Dicesuke's ass. It's a positive trend!) You sure? Guess it couldn't hurt... <> (MISS KAAAAAAAT! ~~~~~~;_;~~~~~~~~) (Don't spill that, or I'll send you to the torture room! Go practice throwing bombs and using your bazooka!) (And kill that pesky MegaThren!) * Katherine frowns. "I'm sure. I'd rather not get there and find out that we need them. It's always better to be prepared than to be dead." * Rochelle digs into her pizza. She's a hungry Rochelle. "Works." She swallows. "'Sides, they're 'bout as safe coming with us as they are if they stay." Maybe safer, especially yours. * Katherine winks, and then chomps into the burger. Yeah, I was averaging them. or something. (Kat Bonne. And her ServDemes?) * Katherine gnaws on some fries. "How're the other people besides Momo the slavedriver treating you?" * Rochelle chews on some crust and swallows. "I don't think they like me very much." * Katherine continues eating random things from her plate. "Mmm. Why not?" 'Cause they don't talk to me, and they talk about me. Sorta follows. * Rochelle doesn't seem particularly bothered by that, though. She finishes her slice of pizza and starts another. (Hello, Shar!) Oh. ( Oh, right, absolutely ridiculous amount of minis. ) (Yup! It's mostly Cham's fault, I think.) * Katherine chomps more. "Maybe they're jealous.' ( Well, yeah. ) * Rochelle laughs. "Of what?" * Katherine grins. "Well, you said nobody was trained by Momo but you." (ONly about half my fault. Maybe less.) (Lies and tomfoolery!) (Y'all came to ME for minis!) ( Actually I just agreed when Brett asked me. ) People could be jealous of that. Momo's awesome, after all. Yeah, I guess so. * Rochelle picks a piece of chicken off with her fingers and pops it into her mouth. "Least most of them don't talk about the whole TC thing." ( *finally reads topic* EVERY night is playing night here at AppleTC2s! ) * Katherine nods, and then the burger is eaten and gone. "Polite of 'em. " * Rochelle shrugs. "It's not a big deal either way. One of the 'tenders really goes out of his way to talk about it, though." ( Eat him! ) (Deme could eat him.) (Oh! I can bring Vwoof in! Good doggy.) ( Oooh. ) ( Vwoof c- Yes! ) (Vwoof eats *anything*. It works.) (Attack Vwoof.) * Katherine nods, and mutters, "Asshole." Her plate is mostly clean, but her glass isn't nearly empty enough, She sips. * Rochelle downs another slice and has some soda before she talks again. "Yeah, he is. Think Momo sticks him by the DJ so can't talk." * Katherine laughs. "Yeah, that sounds like a good plan." * Rochelle gives another small smile as she eats. "So, yeah. I guess they avoid me 'cause of that." Yeah, well. Some people can't get over it. Hey, look on the good side. On Earth you'll just be another lousy martian. Nobody will know the difference. * Rochelle giggles. "We'll all be lousy martians, huh?" * Katherine nods. "Pretty much. Lousy martians or spacers. Excecpt Thren and maybe Roy. I'm not sure. Sometimes he sounds earther and sometimes not." * Rochelle reaches up and scratches behind one ear. She has another sip of soda. I don't get Roy. Or Thren. * Rochelle blinks. "Am I s'posed to call him Thren or Ouka?" ( Whatever you like. *BEAM*) * Katherine says probably, "Either one. Thren's just easier for me 'cause he told me his name was Ouka while I wasn't really paying attention and drunk." Figures. That's the first date, right? * Katherine snickers. "Yeah." She hrms. "He came back to the apartment that night. You didn't wake up?" (Gee, that doesn't sound bad.) (Hi, Todd/Thren! We were just talking about you!) (Fancy that.) (What do you MEAN it doesn't sound bad?) (Oh, hi Todd!) (I mean it totally sounds bad and I expect Roch to respond appropriately.) (I hate you both.) * Rochelle stares at Katherine for a moment. "No," she slowly says. "I didn't wake up." ( *snickers* ) (*eyes pasting* Sadly, Cham was more or less on the money.) ( Cham's a tattle-tale! ) (I didn't paste nuffin.) * Katherine nods. "Well, I don't know. The buzz was coming off, and my head was spinning. Glad I can still talk quietly." (I did.) * Katherine eyes Roch suspiciously. "Why so cautious?" * Rochelle blinks. "Uh, nothing." She goes back to eating her food. It's almost gone! Uh-huh. So what'd you talk about? * Katherine drinks the last of her vodka, and puts it down. "Oh, this and that. Anders this, Dorian that. It was funny, though. Thren asked the hotel guy for an esoteric place to go, and they threw him towards Momo's. And when he told us that, Vera mistook what he said for erotic, and he blushed like the surface of Mars. It was hilarious." * Rochelle giggles as she finishes off her pizza. "Guess it is easy to get him to blush." * Katherine nods. "You betcha." Dorian. He's the Earth guy, right? * Katherine nods. "Yeah." She grumbles. "Fucking telepath. Had me on edge all night on Wednesday." (Idlish a bit.) * Rochelle blinks. "Telepath?" She somehow pales. "Shit." * Katherine nods. "Yeah, I feel the same way. Then again, Thren's a telepath too, but he's a nice telepath." She smiles faintly. "Ya can trust him, Roch. Really. Even if he is weird." (I feel like I shouldn't be seeing this.) (Bah. This'll be a public session. c.c;) (So far.) He's one, too? * Rochelle hesitates a moment, then says, "You're sure? Trusting him, I mean." * Katherine nods. "Yeah," She looks Roch right in the eyes. "Believe me on that one. He said he'd keep his mind to himself, and doesn't seem to like Dorian any more than you do." She eyes Roch's plate. "Ready to go?" * Rochelle nods and takes this opportunity to drink the rest of her soda! Slurp. (Conservationist! Excellent.) (I'll pop in at an appropriate time. ^_^) ( *pops Thren* Whoops. ) <> * Katherine walks out! "Aah, still my favorite grille in town. Anywhere you go a Prag's is decent food." She looks around. "Now, what kinda clothes do you want to look for?" * Rochelle shrugs and looks down at what she's got. "Something I can wear?" * Rochelle looks up and spots a directory. Hey, map! She goes to take a look. * Katherine rolls her eyes, and follows Roch. "Not knowing what clothes you want, honestly..." Me neither. * Katherine shakes her head. "No, no, I know what I want. Although at least I don't have any clothes to replace. A week of fighting and all my clothes are still intact. Must be a record." You're lucky like that. * Katherine smirks. "I guess so. Or maybe it's because I tend to wear as little clothing as possible. The less there is, the less you can damage." She nods at her sage wisdom. * Rochelle scans and apparently finds something that might work, because she starts walking. "But, uh..." If you're wearin' less, isn't there less between you and... whatever it is that's tryin' to hurt you? ( Deme's clothes are awesome and beautiful. ) * Katherine nods. "Yeah, but unless I plan on wearing around ballistic armor or something, I might as well not bother. Normal Polyester or DunnoLeather never stopped a bullet or a sword." Although it might stop a butter knife. Yeah, and we know someone who attacks people with butter knives. Yeah. Did you see Vera's arm, though? That was a solid hit. He's strong. * Rochelle nods. And blinks. Hey. Thren's a telepath, right? * Katherine grins faintly. "That's what I said five minutes ago, yeah." So if he's a telepath, why does he blush so much? (...) (At least she didn't ask him to his face. :P) * Katherine looks slightly confused. "Why would being a telepath make him not bl--oh." Well, he keeps his mind to himself, remember? * Rochelle scratches at the back of her head. "Oh, right." She thinks about that. "Maybe he actually does, then." What, you don't believe me? * Rochelle shrugs. * Figure is walking down the street nearby, slowly, and laden with bags. He's also wearing black, supertight pleather pants, a silver and oddly loose sleeveless halter that somehow works with his tummy, and his hair is a particularly light shade of violet. ( ... ) (...) (... Jesus!) (...) ( WHY WHY WHY ) * Rochelle doesn't give him a second glance. She must have either failed her recognition roll or made her sanity roll. * Figure is only recognizable as Threnody Renard at close range, and seems typically oblivious. * Katherine blinks, and looks around semi-frantically. "What the fuck..." * Rochelle stops and looks at Katherine. "You okay?" * Katherine starts scanning the crowd, and starts walking again slowly. "Maybe. Maybe not.." * Rochelle tags along. She starts looking into the crowd, too. "Someone you know here or something?" * Figure continues walking on, carrying his body weight in clothing store bags with agonizing slowness. I think so. O-kay. * Katherine continues walking and scanning. "So, where are we going anyway?" * Figure takes this opportunity to drive the plot forward by walking within five feet of your location, then saying "Ow!" sharply and dropping a bag to clutch his head. I saw a clothes store. It's on the second floor, but not too far- uh, are you okay? * Katherine starts to step towards Figure, and suddenly says, "... Damn, boy." She eyes him up and down. "That's one hell of an outfit." * Figure is now known as Threnody * Threnody sets all the bags down, rubbing his temples for a moment with his eyes shut. "Ah, fine, thank you..." He looks up and blinks. "Oh. Hello, Miss Rochelle." (And BRB.) * Rochelle starts, recognition seetting in. "Thren? Why the hell'd you change your hair?" (Setting, too.) * Katherine whistles, and looks him up and down again. "I'd love to know that, but... this is a definite change in style. I like it." (*cues the pr0n music* ) (In the middle of the mall?) (*sbo*) ( It's always a good time for pr0n. ) (*returns with snacks*) (... but it's not always a good _place_ for pr0n.) ( Depends. ) (Everyone goes shopping!) * Threnody ehes and rubs the back of his neck sheepishly, dropping a bag in the process. "Do you like it? I thought if I was going back to Earth, being incognito might help." ( Hi Zeg. Kat and Thren are about to get it on in the mall. ) ( And Rochelle's gonna watch. ) (I heard from Ard.) (I'm not pretty enough.) (Nah. I'm just into guys.) (Lemme check if Leo's any good at disguises. He might have something useful.) * Katherine whistles. "Well, christ. I barely recognized you until you fell over." * Rochelle nods. (Nope. Completly useless. :P) ( *borrows the narration brackets* ) Still sound the same, though. You're the only person who'd ever call me Miss Rochelle. << The bags are, on closer inspection, filled with more of the same. It's like he found the Mecca of historical raver clothing. >> (Leo the Useless Lizard.) * Katherine picks up one of the bags, because Thren is a clutz. "This is all for four days?" * Threnody stands up, collecting the horde as he does so. "Well, sort of. There's four of these outfits, a shirt and slacks from somewhere else for formal occasions, and a few looser outfits in case we have to do any fighting, plus they talked me into these bottles of conditioner for my hair, and one person suggested splicing a tail. What did he mean by that?" * Threnody also looks at Rochelle, babbling on. "Is that wrong? How should I say it?" * Katherine 's mouth gapes slightly, and she manages to say, "Splicing a tail? Why would you want a tail?" Uh... it's not... wrong... tail? ( Tails are good for balance.) * Rochelle looks thoroughly lost. * Threnody looks at Kat with alarm. "I didn't agree to anything. I didn't get one, did I?" He whirls around, trying to see. * Rochelle swallows, then says, "You'd be hurting a lot more if you did." * Katherine puts a hand on Thren's shoulder. "Whoa, whoa, calm down. No, you didn't get a tail. Nobody does splicing around here." She says splicing a little quieter than the rest of the sentence. <> * Threnody calms down a little and smiles sheepishly. "Oh, good. I didn't recognize it, but the man at the salon said it would fit my, er..." Cue the blush. "...backside. He had little wings. They were adorable!" * Katherine nods slowly, and has a faint smile. "Yeah, I'm sure they were. Can you not mention the spl-word until there's nobody listening and we'll explain later? We were trying to shop." * Rochelle keeps on trying to take in the sheer amount Threnody just bought on a whim. (Ha! That's a totally Roch reaction.) * Threnody blinks. "Oh. Um... I'd offer to come with if I wasn't carrying all this..." * Threnody smiles distractedly at Rochelle. "These might be a bit baggy, but you're welcome to any of it if you like it." Thanks? But didn't you get them for you? * Rochelle is a little distracted. He bought *that*? What's the point? * Threnody ehes again. "Well, I did go a little crazy. I don't know about the rest of this, but the hair felt like a positive change. I sort of like it." (Next I get tan, then I send five special rings to five special duellists...) (Your mother would hate it.) (Hah!) (I know. He picked it especially for that reason.) (That's exactly why he should keep his hair the way it is.) (...oh man. Now the way I said that is crossing Planeteers with Utena in my head and OH GOD.) * Katherine nods, and smirks. "Whoever did it knew what they were doing. You'll have to point the place out to me." She chuckles. "And you can come along if you want. We weren't planning to buy quite as much as you." ("Let our powers combine. Ass!" "Watch!" "Sex toy!" "Incest!" "Lesbianism!" "By your psychoses combined, I am CAPTAIN AKIO!") Ah. Well, if you don't mind helping me carry a bit of this, then I'd be happy to come along. * Rochelle looks at Threnody for a moment, then at the stuff, then at Kat, then back at the stuff, and finally says, "Sure, why not." She picks up a bag. * Katherine waves the bag she's already holding. * Threnody smiles and hefts the rest. "Thank you for the pleasure of your company. Where to?" (Polite + Earth accent + Punk kid = Disquieting.) * Rochelle points with the hand that isn't holding a bag. "That way." She's so helpful! * Rochelle walks that way. * Katherine follows Roch that way! * Threnody also follows, dutifully bringing up the rear guard like a gentleman. In tight pants. <> * Katherine looks at it with a grin. "You're good, Roch. I should take you shopping more often." * Rochelle shrugs with an almost-smile. "I try." Well, let's go. Sales don't last forever! * Threnody pouts a little. "I'm envious. I should have shopped around more." He seems oblivious to the fact that they probably wouldn't be carrying what he just bought. <> * Rochelle nods and heads in, looking around. "Oh, good." * Katherine heads in too. "I suppose I can pick up one simple outfit. It'd be a waste if I didn't." * Rochelle rolls her eyes. You were just looking for an excuse to go shopping. (Damn straight!) Hey, not just! * Katherine grins. "But why turn an opportunity down? Besides, I have to keep it down. The stupid double-wide connection is a pain in the bank account." * Rochelle snickers. "Yeah, sure." She starts poking around. * Threnody toddles along behind like a sherpa. "I'm surprised. You seem to live fairly well. But perhaps it's because of frugality." He turns to Roch. "What is it you do for a living, Miss Rochelle?" * Rochelle blinks. Well, uh... used to be nothing. Then begging. * Rochelle thinks. "Then nothing again. And now I guess I'm 'tending, or that's what everyone tells me." * Threnody blinks a moment. "Oh." Then he smiles. "Well, I train for a living, so I suppose we're not so different." * Rochelle looks up from the rack to Thren curiously. "Train?" * Katherine starts picking through the various clothes as well, mumbling various things about the outfits. * Threnody nods, face peeking out over the top of a bag. "Ah, in swordsmanship. I'm on a training journey." * Rochelle looks puzzled. Training journey? You get paid... what's a swordsmanship? (Ha ha ha.) * Threnody looks puzzled right back. "I g... no! No, I don't get paid. I'm training in using a sword." That's like a big knife, right? * Threnody looks even more blank, if such a thing were possible. He spends a moment in obvious thought, then ventures: "Katherine has a practice sword hanging in her home." She does? * Katherine puts down Thren's bag, and picks up something, laying it against herself. It's a simple sleeveless vest that's a bit too short for her body. "Yeah, it's on the wall, right by the bathroom. Near Steely. I don't keep it sharp, though." * Threnody nods, smiling. "The truth is, I use a wooden sword, anyway. I don't kill." Oh, that thing. I never wanted to ask about it. (...) (You're so ambivilent Roch.) (I seriously am.) * Katherine snickers. "Not on TV enough, eh?" * Threnody blinks once, then ohs quietly. "Ah... I'm sorry, then." Nope. They wanna show stuff about fishing instead, not swords. It's educational, or something. * Rochelle goes back to looking at clothes. * Threnody says, a little sadly, "There aren't many people who still consider the art of the sword an art left anymore." * Threnody picks up his bags and toddles after Kat, saying distractedly, "Sometimes I feel like Mother is the only one left." * Katherine puts the vest down, and picks up another leather vest, which has somehow been dyed a nice deep blue, which would still not reach her waist. "Well, I never had the chance to learn it as an art." She grins, and turns to Thren. "What'cha think, Thren?" * Rochelle doesn't even look up. She's busy inspecting clothing. More prices than style, but hey. * Threnody tilts his head. "It's... very blue." * Katherine eyes Threnody. "I was asking how it looked. Sheesh." She hangs it on her arm, and continues looking through things. ("It looks very blue.") * Threnody mmphs, looking rebuked. "...sorry." (You in fact asked what I thought, which was, in this order: "It's very blue." "Why is she asking me?" "I bet this is some sort of trick to get me home with her again." "SAY NOTHING!") (*laughs*) (*snort*) * Rochelle pulls a short, sleeveless black dress with a silver zipper in front. She looks at it for a moment, sticks it against herself, checks the pricetag, and throws it over her arm. Next. (*snicker*) * Katherine smirks. "Bah, don't worry about it." She picks out another top, this one purple, and made of less. And then she picks up Thren's bag of stuff and moves to looking at pants and skirts. * Threnody follows along dutifully, saying "You should try being one," on impulse and instantly regretting it, judging from his expression. <> * Threnody suddenly stops and rubs his temples a little, then resorts to saying, "You really should choose one or the other way to respond." * Rochelle picks out some a couple pairs of shirts and pants, every once in a while stopping to figure out just how much she's spending. <> * Katherine turns to Thren, and hisses, "Hey, I don't get this, alright? It's all new to me." She brushes back by him to the tops and exchanges the purple one for a gold-looking one made of actual fabric. * Threnody winces. "Think of it like trying to pay attention to two people talking in one ear each at the same time three inches away." * Katherine frowns. "Oh." She frowns at the blue one, and puts it back too. "I'll get some new boots instead." She walks over to bootsland. (If there is a bootsland here.) <> (Awesome.) (Oh dear. They're going SHOE shopping!) (Sweet.) * Threnody looks around for Rochelle, having lost sight of her and now terribly paranoid about looking for her the 'other' way. "Um, shouldn't we find... hey!" Sherpa follow. * Rochelle happens to be looking at stockings, which, yes, is out of Threnody's view. * Katherine smirks, but doesn't stop until she gets to the shoes area. "She'll be fine. She should find her way to the shoes eventually anyway." * Threnody mms faintly, discovers a fitting bench, and has a seat, setting the bags down with a loud 'whump'. "I suppose you're right." * SharyNap is now known as Sharyna * Katherine chuckles faintly. "I hope so." She picks up a pair of red calf-high boots and peers at them. "Mmm." * Threnody eyes the boots warily, then looks at the bags around him with something approaching despair. "I overdid it." Well, unless you're trying to be subtle. * Rochelle picks out a few more articles of clothing and comes wandering into the shoe section right about... now. * Katherine pops off her flats and tries the shoes on. She waves at Roch. "Hey. Thren was about to send out the search party." (Mecha: Wasn't that concept one of the arguing points of GCI?) (Was it?) * Threnody shakes his head. "I don't really know anyone in the Americas. I have no plans to go back to Japan either, unless there's dire circumstances, by my mother has friends all over the globe..." (Yes, it was!) (We argued about everything.) (We really did.) He has a search party? (Robert wanted to get suits, Sayuri and Maggie went for PUNKR) (And then it was irrelevant anyways.) (He?) (Thren.) (Unless he changed gender.) Not really. * Threnody blinks at Rochelle. "...what?" * Rochelle looks confused for a second, then sits the bag next to Thren. "It was a joke. This's yours." * Threnody is completely, typically blank. "Oh. Sorry. Thank you." * Katherine stands up in them, and takes a few steps. "Good, good." She sits back down and swiches back. "Hey, Roch. What've you picked out so far?" Stuff I can wear and stuff for work, which is kinda like stuff I can wear, only... yeah. * Rochelle lets out a sigh. "I guess I need work shoes, too." Probably, but don't forget the fun boots. Fun boots? ( * Rochelle regretfully buys five pair six-inch stilletto heels in various jeweltones. ) ...'Fun boots'? (Works. I can kick people in the face when they hit on me.) ( * Rochelle regretfully buys five pair six-inch stilletto heels in various jeweltones. ) ( Assuming you're able to walk up to them and do it, sure! ;P ) * Rochelle blinks at Thren. Did they just say the same thing? * Katherine nods, and points at a section of various knee high boots. "Yeah. Boots are the fun sort of shoes. Well, if they're not made of leather and steel." ( Stop me. I'm dumb. ) * Threnody eyes the boots briefly. "...I've always been partial to flats, myself, but I need the arch support for footwork," he comments offhandedly, looking a little dazed. Oh, yeah. I guess you're right. * Rochelle wanders over to the boots and starts looking through, pausing every once in a while and checking what she already has. * Katherine looks for a dressing room, and when she finds one, says, "Back in a sec," and carries her boots with her to it, goes in, and shuts the door. * Threnody watches everyone shop, then Kat disappear, and wanders over by Roch, browsing shoes with her. "How long have you and Katherine been living together?" Not that long. Since Sangria-Beltane, really. * Threnody mmms faintly, looking but not really looking. "I wanted to be here for that, but I didn't have the chance... did you meet at the festival?" * Rochelle nods. "Yeah. Anders threw the whole group together." She pauses. "I mean, I knew her from before, but- well, yeah." * Threnody mouths an 'ah' of understanding, then looks at the shoes again, his face coloring slightly. "I'm sorry if, uh... I've been any trouble." * Rochelle pulls out a pair of boots and looks at him oddly. "Trouble?" * Threnody gets really, really absorbed in some culottes. "Having been around, or making problems for Kat. She doesn't admit it, but I cause trouble for her just by being around." Oh. * Rochelle puts the boots back. "Well, if you caused that much trouble, she'd make sure you weren't around. So I guess it must not be that bad." * Threnody ehes sheepishly. "I guess not." He turns and smiles warmly. "Thank you for saying so." * Rochelle gives him another odd glance, but says, "You're welcome, I guess." So, um... What's Earth like? * Katherine wanders back from the dressing room. She looks pleased. * Threnody mms faintly. "It's... beautiful. I like Mars, but Earth has something about it..." He frowns. "The sad part is, most of the people who live there are just... epicures wanting to distance themselves from the normal people living here." * Rochelle tries to figure that out. "What's an epicure?" * Rochelle waves at Kat with her free hand when she wanders back. * Threnody smiles a little. "Someone obsessed with pleasure above all else." He knits his brow a bit. "A lot of people on Earth turn out like Dorian Parker. I'm very lucky to have been raised differently." You don't like him very much, do you? * Katherine nods at Roch's wave, and also sits down while she picks out boots. * Threnody frowns. "He just... he uses his gift in all the wrong ways. Telepathy is very dangerous, because it hits people where they are most vulnerable and least defended. To use it like a toy is an unthinkable crime." * Rochelle nods, digesting that. Something that's almost a smile comes over her face and she goes back to looking over boots. * Katherine smirks. "Hey, Thren. Did you really get four pairs of those sort of pants?" * Threnody holds up a bag in one hand. "I just happen to be wearing one." * Katherine nods, and glances at Roch. "Wearing 'em's probably a good idea. You might end up having to fight in them, after all, and you wouldn't want to end up falling over." * Threnody winces a little. "I'm hoping it doesn't come to that." Fighting? Or fighting in tight grippy pleather? * Rochelle grabs a pair of black leather boots that stop partway up her shin. She looks at them for a moment, then heads over to the changing rooms. * Katherine says, with a sad smile on her face, "It probably will. If Anders is even remotely right, this will be their last stand. And if they're smart, they won't wait for us." She pats the left side of her body. <> (Don't you?) (Nope.) * Threnody shakes his head and wanders back over to the bench, sitting down again. "I know this instinct that it can't end here is... 'hereditary'. I just know there's more to it." * Katherine smirks. "Paranoid? Well, I hope you're wrong. It'd been interesting, but I didn't come to NYC for the combat." * Threnody gets a sad expression. "I don't like fighting... if it weren't for my brother disappearing, I might have given up the study of the sword." ( Subtlest backstory revelation EVER. ) * Katherine chuckles. "Well, at least that makes you sane." She leans back a little. "You and Deme should get along well." * Threnody tilts his head. "I don't understand her... the truth is, she makes me nervous. The concept of a cyborg is..." He shivers a little. "I don't like it. But it would be stupid to hold it against her." ( But Deme's a sweetheart! ) ( She's adowable. Except when she's creepy. ) (What do Vwoofs eat?) (That was great. ( Thank yew, thank yew. ^^ ) * Katherine grins. "Just keep that attitude, Thren. Besides, A lot of us are cyborgs. She's just a full cyborg." She frowns. "Of some kind." ( Let me take you apart! I'll be gentle, promise!) * Threnody puts his chin in his hands. "She seemed very angry when Anders didn't readily jump to Vera's accusation last night... I think another person with her level of fury would have leapt across the table and strangled him. It was... disquieting." (Technically, a cyborg is a mix between man and machine.) (I know.) ( Iknow. I'm shtupid. ) (No. Deme is. :P) Huh. Maybe that's part of what she is. * Katherine looks thoughtful. ( Well yeah. ) 'Programmed' to be nonviolent, you mean? Maybe... but even if so, how sad. * Rochelle steps out. She looks more or less satisfied, with arms full of clothes and all. * Katherine says casually, "She definitely acts like it. Didn't even like a little B&E for a good cause." She glances over towards the dressing rooms. "Looks like she's done." * Threnody can't help but smile. "Then she and I should get along fine." Who and what? * Katherine stands, with Thren's one bag and her own stuff. "Just talking about Deme." ( Roch can dig it. ) Oh. * Threnody nods and stands up with his own bags. "Did you decide on what you wanted?" (Took me a sec to get that. >.>) * Rochelle nods, looking at all the stuff she's carrying. "I have enough. I'm pretty sure. With the sale, anyway." She wanders over to the counter. * Katherine follows. "Sure looks like it." * Threnody bobs his head and follows as well, hefting his purchases. * Rochelle rubs at the back of her head. "It'd be nice not wearing the same three things." * Katherine grins and pats Roch on the shoulder. "You bet." ( Mech: Tsky. ) * Threnody smiles vacantly. "I'm glad you found something you liked." (Tsky?) ( Tsky. ) (I no comprendo.) ( That's why the tsky. ) <> ( Deme spent nothing! ) (Thren paid with his innocence.) (Leo did his shopping already. ^^;) * Katherine has her own bag of clothes now, and still seems extremely pleased. "Ready to go home and crash in front of the TV, Roch?" she says with a grin. Uh, yeah. After I get some food for Vwoof. Oh. Good point. * Rochelle nods and grabs her own bag. It's hefty enough, but doesn't come anywhere close to Threnody's purchases. Thank goodness. * Katherine eyes her right arm. "And drop Thren's stuff off." She looks back at Thren and smirks faintly. * Threnody walks ahead and turns around, proffering his arms for his things. "I guess I'll take my leave of you, then." (... Why do I have a feeling if Leo went he'd end up carrying everything?) (Because he would.) * Katherine eyes Thren's arms. "You sure? You couldn't really carry them before." * Threnody tsks. "I could so, just slowly. It's fine. I'll call a taxi outside to get to the Red and Gold. Besides, I don't want to ruin a ladies' afternoon out." ( So would Deme. ) * Rochelle looks at Threnody for a moment, then: "If you say so." * Threnody smiles pleasantly. "It was a fun time. Thank you for letting me accompany you." He bows a bit at the waist; the bags shift dangerously, but do not topple. * Katherine eyes him, but nods. "We're going straight back home anyway." She gives him his stuff. "And we didn't even get to explain the tail stuff." * Rochelle snickers. Well, it's a long flight to Earth. We'll have plenty of time. (Mwehehehe. Long flight, he says.) * Katherine nods. "If ya say so. See ya later, and stop by sometime. Roch doesn't make for good conversation. Very quiet." She smirks at Roch. * Rochelle shrugs. * Threnody simply smiles, a little embarassedly, and then makes with the Tobli impression, waddling out of the mall. (Exit swordsman.) * Katherine exhales. "Hoo. C'mon, let's go. Now I want off my feet too." (Wrap up, twaa.) * Rochelle nods. "Yeah." She picks up her bag and exits. <>