Return of the Emblem Chapter Fourteen: Fight

[scorri]

"No boys huh... Girls then? Who's been telling you that you need to change what you wear? If you're comfortable with what you're wearing, why change?" She began to wrap the belt around the other girl's waist, careful to not pull it too tight. "This shouldn't be too restrictive if it's slightly looser than this, though you still may struggle to fight in it. Or ride your wyvern for that matter. Pretty sure they're designed to look good, not be practical."

[Nanami Touko]

That made Eva blush, just a bit. "M-Maybe. Er, no one's telling me to change, just... Try this stuff on, too. Er, as well as... A-And, Angelica, eheh... She just thinks it'd be nice if I wore a dress or a skirt, or that sorta stuff, sometimes. Not all the time, and I wouldn't change all the time; I like pants. But... This isn't awful. It's nice to look 'cute' sometimes, I suppose." She didn't sound confident, but she got herself smiling. That was enough confidence for her.

"I figured, the lady said something like that... But if I buy it and I need to, I can cut it shorter or make a tear in the leg to move around in. Would ruin it, but... Well, let's just hope we don't fight any time soon, then." The belt and bow were pretty snug, but it wasn't uncomfortable for her. She spun around a bit in front of the mirror, smile growing wider. "Yeah... This looks alright."

[scorri]

"Angel, huh?" Lumi took a step back and raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, I guess if you're ok with it. You do look cute, that's for sure." She gave a shrug. "Either way, I think you should get it. I just think that you should be careful about letting someone push you too far out of your comfort zone, that's all. Obviously some is probably good. Just be careful, that's all." She smiled at Eva and placed a hand on her shoulder. "If you ever need to talk to someone, let me know! Now, lets get you out there and let Jam see your outfit."

[Nanami Touko]

"Do I? Really? That's good..." Eva didn't know how to do cute, so if wearing this thing was making her cute, that was good enough for her. "Push me too far? Well, I still ride Sasha and swing a sword around. I think as long as I'm doing that, I'm not too far gone... But... Well, I gotta ask, then..." Since it felt like so many people had been worried about Angelica, now Lumi too, the question had to be raised. "Is there a reason people are worried about Angelica, and me? Maybe I'm reading too far into things, but... Just, feels that way. I know she's... Pretty open, and stuff, but... Well, she's still here, despite the dangers. Had plenty of chances to run off."

"We can just go see Jam if you don't wanna talk about it-- er, not that I'm upset, or anything, just... Curious." She was probably reading too far into this whole thing. Angelica was just flirty, was probably why people were worried.

Edited July 9, 2016 by Melissa

[scorri]

Lumi frowned slightly as she considered her answer. "Well... So I was worried before I knew it was about Angel. So really it doesn't have much to do with her as far as I'm concerned. What was standing out to me was that you were saying you were doing it simply because someone else told you to do it. It didn't seem like this was an especially comfortable thing for you to be doing and while it's a pretty harmless thing here with clothes, that can pretty quickly turn into pushing you further than you're comfortable in other areas. The biggest one being physically. So that's why I was worried. I don't like hearing that someone is doing something solely because their partner pushed them into doing it." She hesitated, wondering if she should say the next thing on her mind. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. "Though I will say this. If multiple people on the outside are worried about a relationship? They're... They're probably worried for a reason. Sometimes it can be hard to see things from the inside. The good parts can be blinding..."

[Nanami Touko]

"Oh, y-you meant like, that... Th-That stuff... Haha." Now Eva was blushing, hiding an awkward smile. "Well we haven't... Done uh, anything like that. Try not to worry. I wouldn't... W-Well, wouldn't mind, hah, but... We haven't. And she might be suggesting me wearing this stuff, but it's not uncomfortable to see myself in it, so I don't mind this, either." Truth be told, Eva was staring at herself in the mirror the entire time, spinning slightly and seeing how she looked in the thing. It was tight, but it wasn't form fitting. It was this odd sort of cute, but it definitely was. It made her smile more.

"Maybe... The only person I can think of who was actually worried was Erion. Others, well... No one's said anything. But... Just feels like they're uncomfortable with it. I don't get why. If someone knows something I should know you'd think they'd have said it by now... Oh well~" Eva sighed, picking up her slab of leather armor. "I need to pay for this, and see what Jam's wearing. Thanks for listening, Lumi. You're much better than the other pegasus rider I know."

Eva slid past her and went out the room, spotting Jam in her ensemble instantly, the shopkeeper holding her head in her hands over the sight of it. Eva couldn't help but laugh. "That all looks good on you, Jam! It's very you, hehah~ Ma'am, how much is this one? I got it on, I think it looks good. I'll take it."

[Phoenix]

On to the Next Place

"Maybe," Nena shrugged. "Safe travels," she bid them farewell.

With his new tome secure, and his mind finally starting to clear, Shadrak took a deep breath and turned to Angelica. "Alright, where to next? ... and what exactly do you expect me to be carrying by the end of this?"

Eyes of the Restorer

Amon expected to be holding something, a new trinket perhaps, but that clearly wasn't the case. Instead his eyes felt heavier, and took a bit more effort to move and focus. Just as he was beginning to consider that the regalia Raquel had mentioned was somehow connected to his sight, Malik cleared up the mystery for him. <"What's wrong with your eyes? They're ... like jewels, now.">

"Jewels?" Amon echoed in common.

Greta gasped and covered her mouth when she saw them. "Can you see, alright?!" As far as she could tell, his eyes were half flesh, half crystal, and she couldn't fathom how he wasn't blind as a result.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Amon nodded, though admittedly something felt off. His vision was normal, even though his eyes were a bit harder to physically manipulate. He hoped that was temporary and wouldn't cost him in battle. What was really bothering him about this was that despite having the same vision as before, strange, seemingly irrelevant feelings were lunging unbidden to the forefront of his mind. He couldn't stop them, only ignore them in favor of what was happening right in front of him. Those feelings pertained to what Amon could only describe as value. Anything that held his gaze long enough either grew or shrank in importance in his mind, as if he was comparing the value of everything to everything else. He couldn't be certain if there was a reference point for all of this; he could only be certain that these feelings were steering him toward his new goal, somehow.

Joanna decided it was time to broach the subject she'd been dreading since her trance ended. "Amon, that woman ... the one who looks like Raquel. Who is she?"

Amon sighed as he thought back to her. "You saw her, too?" Joanna must have used her own power to see into his sleeping mind. Not even close to a stretch for the emblem, he reasoned. "Raquel did something with the emblem and she was the result. She apparently isn't Raquel or even the emblem itself. Whatever she is, she wants to help us, but she had to help me first." It was an embarrassing bit of the conversation to be remembering, especially so vividly. She'd said he and he alone was the problem, an obstacle between her and the others. No doubt things were going to be quite different going forward, especially for Amon, himself.

"Help us with what?" Malik asked in common, "with the fallen? With this group's hierarchy issues? We could use some specifics." Amon scowled at him. Normally, such an expression wouldn't have fazed Malik at all, but with eyes that were anything but human, his scowl was surprisingly unnerving.

"If that's what people really want," Amon said somewhat bitterly. The emblem wasn't concerned with immediate goals like the fallen or sorting out the almost inconsequential leadership problem they were having. It went far beyond that. As Amon took in the scene to the east, he saw something in his mind's eye very different from Malik and the others. He saw potential. The ships on the water stood out the most at first, and reminded him of gold coins scattered in the streets, the kind beggars would trample and climb over each other for. The buildings were forever tied to their foundations, and yet even they seemed to have great inherent value. Some of the farm further north shined like beacons in his mind, and he felt almost compelled to go see them up close. "She's more concerned with personal goals. Long term ones. The really important things," he clarified as he continued to survey Urquium.

[Ether]

"Well, I'm mostly just intending to scour the market... as for what you'll be carrying, that depends on what I find, really. If I find a good deal on some food that keeps well, I might pick up some of that, I might re-stock on make-up and other things for when we come back to Ursium, it could be clothing or weapons or tomes... you have to keep your mind open in a big market like this one." Angelica replied, rattling off various things as they came to mind, scanning the nearby stalls as she spoke...

Speaking of clothing, the adept spotted both a familiar and unfamiliar sight at the same time, from the corner of her eye. Grabbing Shadrak by the wrist and pulling him along through the crowd, Angelica finally reached her destination after a few moments of weaving, druid still in tow.

"Jamilla darling, your rebellious sense of style is going to give that poor old conservative shopkeep a heart attack." She noted with a smirk, having not quite seen the others just yet, only just stepping out of the thick market crowd a moment before.

[Nanami Touko]

"O-Oh..." That was... Certainly an interruption she hadn't been expecting. Angelica would probably have gone shopping at some point, but to be here now was... Embarrassing. Maybe they could keep conversation on Jamilla. "A-At least she'll be turning heads, right? Haha... Gotta draw a crowd to be a proper dancer, I'm sure." Eva awkwardly scratched the back of her head, forgetting to fumble into her pockets to get her money to pay for the damn thing she was wearing. "What are you, uh... H-Here for, Angelica? Clothes, and stuff, I assume..."

[Phoenix]

Outnumbered

About all Shadrak could do without ripping his arm free was groan in protest as Angelica dragged him through the crowds to a clothing shop of all places. The theme seemed to be kigenese apparel, and Shadrak didn't feel entirely out of place here, though he was a bit unnerved by the prospect of being the only male involved in this shopping trip. If he wound up carrying all of their things, too ...

[Toogee]

"Thanks, Angelica," Jam replied, beaming at the positive attention she was getting from her friends. "But look at Eva! She's practically a native."

She was surprised at Angelica's sudden appearance, but not as much as Shad's. Was he here to help carry their things? That was so nice of him!

"Oh, Shad, you don't mind carrying a little more? Can you hold onto my things while I pay? OK thanks!"

Jam didn't even bother to wait for a reply before handing him her old clothes, running off to pay for her new outfit.

Meanwhile, the shopkeeper looked over Eva and was satisfied. Compared to Jam's "Kigen-inspired" style, at least the tall one was trying to fit in.

"Ah, the yukata suits you," the shopkeeper said to Eva. "You'll have no problem fitting in."

After quoting a reasonable price, gold was (presumably) exchanged. The shopkeeper's attention was then drawn to Jam.

"Oh child," she sighed, "Just...don't walk the streets alone."

[Ether]

Huh... Angelica recognized that voice from somewhere... that was odd though, she didn't know anyone with that sort of body type who would be caught dead in something as pink and flowery as that yukata. She had been about to turn to look at the mysterious interloper when Jam mentioned a familiar name. Eva? Angelica had been about to reply that there was no way that Evangeline of all people would be in such a place, but there she was. Immediately looking the Neviskotian rider up and down, Angelica gave an affirmative nod after a few moments.

"Nice, nice. Come now, spin for me hun, I've gotta get some more angles~" Angelica instructed, now with a wide grin as she brought her hands near her face to clap a little bit, releasing her vicegrip on Shadrak in the process.

[Nanami Touko]

"C-Come on, Jam, I don't... This looks okay, but..." She couldn't kill that grin, as much as she wanted to. Compliments about her clothes were nearly as foreign as the garb, so getting any was rather pleasant. She paid the shopkeeper and even got a compliment from her, managing to chuckle. "Thank you very much..." She was awkward, sure, but she was happy.

Even more so when Angelica finally realized it was her. "Took you that long? I'm not even wearing a disguise." But, spin? "Uhm, alright. Like this?" Eva lifted her arms up a bit and did a slow turn, trying to turn her head with her to see what Angelica was looking for. The whole thing's on... There shouldn't be anything wrong with it, right? She came back around and put her arms down, looking well enough confused. "Were those enough 'angles'?" The wording confused her too. Angles? Like... But that's for shapes, and stuff... Uh... Hmmmm.

[Ether]

"You're wearing something that counts as a dress, it's definitely a disguise." Angelica teased, watching Eva spin around, the adept taking in the view... as tempting as it was to give the rider a light smack on the rear as she turned, Angelica refrained... for the time being, instead opting to give her an affectionate whistle. She continued to nod as Eva finished acting upon her request, giving the 'Skotian a thumbs up as she turned back to face her.

"Yep, that was perfect~"

[Nanami Touko]

"You're the one that told me to try other things..." She pouted a bit, but for some reason Angelica had whistled? Was she trying to call something? Eva didn't pay it too much mind, but whatever she'd done had worked, so she smiled over it.

"Whatever I did, glad you liked it. I think this thing's pretty nice. I might even be able to get used to wearing something like this... Maybe if I can find one I can move more in. Have to ride Sasha."

[Ether]

"Well, you won't find any kimonos that you can ride in... unless you know how to ride Sasha from side-saddle. They tend to be pretty tight around the waist and legs, as you've surely noticed." Angelica replied with a grin, wrapping an arm around Eva's shoulder and pulling her in closer for a moment.

"But I sure know how to call 'em, don't I? I knew you'd look great in more feminine clothes, I just never thought you'd actually try them..."

[scorri]

Lumi frowned slightly watching the exchange but sighed slightly as the two hugged. I guess it's ok. I'm sure Eva knows what she's doing... Lumi turned to Shad and laughed slightly as Jam dumped her clothes onto his pile. "Do you want some help with all of that Shad?"

[Nanami Touko]

"I have, but maybe I can rig something up like Jam has! Just... With more pants. Eheh..." Angelica threw her arm around Eva's shoulder, the rider crouching down just a bit so Angelica wasn't literally hanging off of her. "I suppose... I mean... I like it, so, I guess you were right. But-- don't think I'm ever gonna stop wearing pants, okay? I'll just... Mix it up, every now and then." Eva wagged her finger and put on a stern face. Lumi was right, she couldn't let someone change everything about her. But... A dress every now and then, didn't seem so awful.

[Ether]

"Well duh, I wouldn't ask you to just stop wearing them. But variety is the spice of life, widen your horizons a little~" Angelica replied with a grin, pulling Eva down just a bit further to plant a kiss on her cheek, snaking her arm about the taller girl's waist.

"I'd be light on the mods though. You wearing it traditionally was just about the only thing stopping Jam from putting the poor shopkeep into a coma."

[Phoenix]

Market

Shadrak sighed, not having the energy to protest as Jamilla handed him her purchases. He tuned out most of what followed as he tried to put himself in a better place. That ended when Lumi offered to help him out. "Feeling guilty about the tome?" he tried teasing the pegasus rider. It didn't come naturally, and he honestly wasn't sure if he could bring himself to do it again. "Don't worry, I got a replacement." He glanced around momentarily, taking note of the guards, "and not a moment too soon," he murmured. "Anyway, I can handle this much on my own. If they decide to bury me in random stuff though ... feel free to grab something ..."

Splitting Off

There wasn't time to grill either Amon or Joanna on the details. It was obvious enough that Amon's own power had manifested, whatever it was. That was enough for Greta, at least. It would take some time for her to get used to his eyes. Those eyes were also why Amon decided to stay with Haythem and the avians for the time being; the otherworldly orbs could grab the attention of anyone who spared him even a cursory glance now, and were best left hidden.

Once Haythem convinced Sasha to cooperate, the two groups parted ways. Amon, Haythem, Malik, the avians, and the wyverns in one group; Greta, Nadya, Hoshi, Glen, Pete, Rolo, Alphonse, and the wagon in the other.

[scorri]

"Ah, no, I... I was going to buy you a new one. I promise. But I guess if you are ok with it, I'll just stick with helping you carry them then." She glanced around at the guards as well, and slightly adjusted the sword on her belt. "Yeah. So did Angel have plans on going anywhere else here, or are we just going to head over to the ship soon?"

[Phoenix]

Market

"She ..." Shadrak glanced in Angelica's direction, "still has some shopping to do. I'm not sure how much, yet," he shook his head. He wondered if they would be late in meeting up with the others. They hadn't set a time for the rendezvous, a mistake in hindsight, Shadrak thought. Slapping deadlines onto things did encourage rushed decisions, but they were already in a hurry, so knowing how much time they had left for this ... leisurely shopping trip would have been nice. He just hoped that if they weren't late, there was still a ship waiting for them at the docks.

[Nanami Touko]

"M-Maybe-- h-hey!" Eva actually squeaked as she was pulled down for the cheeky display, blushing and pulling herself back up quick. "A-Are you, sure the people around here are fine with that sorta stuff? I know it's just my cheek, but... I know you, so... Uhm... J-Just, wait until we're out of town, so we don't put any suspicion on the guards, or, anyone... I guess..." She still smiled, despite the worries. The little things were nice.

"I could, for this one, but I'll have to find something to wear and fit in while riding Sasha... Though, I dunno how well a wyvern fits into Kigen in the first place." That was something she'd need to ask about to find out an answer for.

Shadrak's situation was an easily solved one, though. "Hey, Shad, don't worry about her," Eva said, gently ruffling Angelica's hair, "I can carry whatever she wants. Now that I've said that, she'll probably push me to see what the carry limit is, but-- you don't have to worry about your arms." She chuckled and let Angelica alone, taking a moment to step away and spin in the new yukata again. "This thing's really nice~"

[Ether]

"Oh come on, it's just a little kiss on the cheek. I could have done much worse." Angelica replied with a smirk, letting Eva break away, and even offer to take the bags from Shadrak! Wow, what a friendly one she was.

"As for shopping, I was mostly looking about the market for anything of interest, and potentially grabbing some extra food for the trip... though if Eva is going to be carrying the bags instead of Shadrak, I guess he'll just have to pay me back for his new tome with more teasing, instead~" The adept noted with a grin. Maybe Eva's gesture wasn't so nice after all...?

[Phoenix]

Market

"Teasing?" Shadrak scowled, "can't you come up with anything else? How about something practical?" It actually took Shadrak a moment to come up with ideas of his own, which to him felt like too long of a pause. It gave Angelica enough time to shoot down the suggestion or come up with an equally ridiculous alternative to her teasing.