Oh, okay... [And right, walking around with a pie would be awkward so!] Yeah... I'll run this up to my apartment then, since it'd probably get in the way.
[Can't carry pie and shop after all, so she'll take off back into the apartments to go put the pie away.
( This was not the best plan Annie had, but on a scale of bad plans, setting back a start time with impromptu pie gifts is low on the scale of damaging. When Mew Mew is back on the ground level, Annie lifts a hand in an unnecessary almost-wave, nodding her head toward the door.
She too has been earning Moon Coins, and has a few goals involving both the Underground Mall and the Riki Store place, depending on where they end up making it to. )
There's a node we can take to the nearest entrance. Or we can walk. Just takes longer.
( Annie has a list of things to look for while they're ut, so while shopping isn't something she generally looks forward to, company (... and okay, she's eyeing the ears and tail Mew Mew has from the corner of her vision, and finds herself thinking they're so strangely cute) is a benefit rather than the silence of her own thoughts. )
Nearest one's down that way. ( She says, shoving her hands into her hoodie's pouch and heading the direction she'd indicated. )
If there any particular kind of outfit you're looking for?
[Her ears and tail twitch, as if they know that Annie is thinking about them, as she heads off in the direction staying in step with Annie.]
Hm, what am I looking for? [She... actually hadn't thought about that, mostly because she never needed clothing before!]
I guess something a little less? [As she walks she tugs on the skirt of her dress.] Like what you're wearing, I guess? I've never needed clothing before.
( Oh no, they twitch, and somehow that's... more cute? Annie reflects that she really does like cats if cat girls automatically get a cute notice from her, and sighs internally. The more she knows. )
Pants, hoodies, boots? Between the outworlders and the people who've always been here, it doesn't seem like tails are that strange. We should be able to find you some options.
( Though she can't say all the tails she's glimpsed in passing are attached versus worn for effect. It doesn't occur to her immediately that people ever would just wear one for show.
There's a short line at the nearby node, so Annie gets into line without any fuss. )
Right, the heat... does your fur make that harder or easier to handle?
( The fur on her tail and ears at least, Annie's not sure what it would do either way. When asked what she's looking for, she offers a curt but not standoffish nod, pulling out her phone. It takes a moment for her to unlock it, and it's very much like watching your least tech savvy auntie gamely do her best.
She's getting better at using the phone, but it's always throwing her for some new loop. Finding the note function was yesterday's discovery, when she was attempting to use the whole Cinder app and somehow was in a different app altogether. But she does find her note app, tapping into it and the only note within. )
A few things for swimming lessons, anything else to wear, clothing to handle the heat or the cold... socks. Can never have enough socks.
( The line moves forward, Annie moving along with it. )
I don't know! I've only been in this body for a little bit.
[Just casually admitting that, as she watches Annie with her phone. Goodness, yeah that is pretty tech unsavvy indeed. But she won't say anything, just letting the other young woman do things herself. But she does lean in a little, tail swishing back and forth.]
( Annie blinks, startled by that statement, looking toward Mew Mew. )
What happened to your prior body?
( Not even a question of can someone be in another body, but more of a why did it happen at all? )
I can swim, but it's not my strong point. So I figured I'd take lessons to make up for it. Someone on that Cinder thing works as a swim instructor.
( She shrugs, still looking a bit caught off guard at the whole "only in this body for a little bit" comment. One person's still ahead of them now, but it'll be their turn soon enough. )
Oh nothing, it just wasn't what I wanted? Although being a training dummy wasn't bad...
[She says that last part a bit wistfully, she will miss being wailed on by Undyne but! So far a few people have offered to beat on her here, so it's not a total wash.]
Huh, that's good. It would probably be hard to get better on your own.
[Look, if Annie asked about it? Mew Mew would totally explain that she's a Ghost and she needs to possess something to be corporeal. But it's their turn once the person in front of them is done and gone.]
( Annie wants to ask what in the world that means when she's being called into the node, and shelves the question for later. Minimally for after they're transported. Maximally for whenever she remembers next, if this ends up being a disorienting trip for either one of them.
Once she's been teleported to the destination node, Annie pushes her hair back off her face and breathes in deeply. Not a draining one, with the distance fairly short and the entrance to the mall not so far away. She turns her attention toward Mew Mea again to check that she came through unscathed. )
[Teleporting is not something Mew Mew is used to, quick travel in the Underground was just a dude with a really fast boat! And maybe asking a duckling to carry you over a gap. So once she goes through the node? She's a bit wobbly, and she's holding onto her head because hoo boy. It felt like it was going to pop off?
So when Annie checks on her? She lets out a nervous laugh.]
I'm good! Never done that before though.
[And she flashes a toothy grin and gives a thumbs up.]
( Annie raises a hand to catch Mew Mew in case she stumbles, her hand falling back to her side as she steadies herself. Compared to the speeds she's used to handling in maneuvering gear, this is easier on the body. Most people probably don't have comparable experiences, she realises. )
It gets easier the more you use them.
( Why has Annie already made consistent use of them? Acclimatization, if she's honest. The part of her used to gathering intel about new locations doesn't let her settle down and not figure out how to move through the area. )
( Annie's hardly going to question in — Mew Mew knows herself best, or should at least. Instead she nods her head to one side of the sidewalk, setting off at a brisk clip. mew Mew's a little taller than Annie is, so there shouldn't be any problem in stride matching (per Annie's thought process), so she tucks her hands back into her hoodie's pouch, phone nudged up against them. )
Apparently all under this city is a massive mall, which sounds like a place of shops and food and who knows what else. We can get down... up there.
( There's a neatly decorated archway a block or so away from them, with people heading in or out in small groups, conversation increasingly audible as they approach. Annie isn't the chattiest person herself, meaning she hasn't tried to interject much of anything so far that's not related to what they're doing. Once they hit the stairs, she's ready to head on down, feeling the temperature change to a much cooler one as they descend. )
I don't know if there's a list of stores down here... I do have the name of one for swimming gear. That's about it.
[She just nods, as she keeps up with Annie. Not making any attempt to out pace the young woman.]
Huh, a mall? I've never been to one!
[There wasn't anything like one in Waterfall after all, and Mew Mew didn't exactly go to New Home often enough to even know if there was one in the "big" city of the Underground. As to topics to discuss, she's not got much to talk about either. So she is fine in walking in silence with Annie until they hit the stairs.]
Well, we can start with that one and then maybe wander a bit and hopefully not get lost?
( She's not shopped here yet, but she did scout out a few entrances, true to her own impulses and nature. She nods to Mew Mew's suggestion, indicating they should head left once they've finished descending the stairs into the brightly lit interior of The Mall. )
There are faster ways to move once we're down this hall. We can check one of the maps, but the store I was recommended is this way.
( It's not long before they're passing stores with bright lit window displays and people walking past, some carrying various bags or packages, others eating or drinking as they go. A large, flickering sign on a flat screen stands in the middle of the hall, gently flashing a light labeled "You Are Here." Annie gestures to it as they approach. )
That whole screen reacts to touch I learned last time. We can use it to look for this shop, or to see if we can find anything relevant. Non-swimming clothing stores.
( Considering how she was using her phone earlier, it's amusing she understands this map screen apparently better. (It's just harder to mess up.) )
[She follows and listens, like a good friend should do? Although she can't help but turn her attention to everything around them as they walk through the mall. The whole thing is a lot, and she might be walking a little closer to Annie the further in they go.]
Huh, neat. I think that's something common with tech on the surface back home?
[She means, of course, the touch screen map. Since the Underground mostly got tech after humans threw it away so it wasn't that advanced either.]
( Framing that for context... Annie gives a small shrug of her shoulders. )
Maybe? It's nothing familiar to my home.
( She reaches out, tapping over the magnifying glass. She doesn't need to type anything, just says the name of the store she'd been given for the sake of all the swimming equipment. The search bar flashes a pretty blue and green, then a little dotted line starts to make its way across the map to the bright orange halo around their destination. )
... I can get us there now. How are you with crowds?
( She says, turning away from the map and heading down the perpendicular walkway. The mall is multi-story, even while being underground: if they look up, this section has painted the ceilings to be cloudy skies at a particularly beautiful and unfamiliar sunset. Looking down to the lower level, the tiles have an almost speckled pattern to them, like fallen stars strewn on marble. Annie catches a glimpse as she winds through the crowd, checking for Mew Mew over her shoulder every so often. )
[To answer the question about crowds. But she will do her best to keep up with Annie as she leads the way. Again she does look around at everything she can see though, which slows her down a little. But hey, one good thing is Mew Mew does stand out with how she looks, so Annie can't really lose her?
Unless she ends up surrounded by tall people that is.]
( Which, of course, inevitably happens. Annie stops where she is, one store down from the place with all the swim gear, and grimaces. Herself being short doesn't help when the crowd in this moment errs toward people blessed with the ability to reach clouds.
Annie loops back, elbowing past a crowd of rowdy teenagers who don't know what's good for them, reaching out to try and take hold of Mew Mew's sleeve or arm or something to wind them back out of the mass of people. )
We're almost there. The tall people thin out just ahead anyway.
[Good timing in finding her, Annie. As Mew Mew was getting flustered, and by flustered? It's actually angry, but she is jostled out of snapping at a teenager by having her arm grabbed.]
( Annie respects a good fit of anger. It's not as useful here, but it's respectable. )
Don't be. Teenagers are assholes.
( Says Annie, who definitely still looks like she's a teenager. There's some laughter from behind them as they break past into a clear spot in the foot traffic, and then she beelines them right to the swimwear store. It's about then that she lets go, eyes dropping to Mew Mew's arm. )
Sorry. Do you want to look around here? I need to get a few things, then I'm done. Including a swimsuit...
( Annie looks deeper into the store, and some of the less... athletic swim suits on the mannequins. She sighs inwardly. Clearly, a number of these aren't meant for really swimming. )
[Mew Mew just takes a deep breath at Annie's words, since the catgirl doesn't exactly know much about teenagers. Or really about humans, if we want to be technical. As to her arm after being held, no a single mark or sign of it being held.
The joys of having a body that is a doll/animatronic, that and maybe there is a bit of a flush to her cheeks by all this.]
Oh, sure? I don't mind looking. Maybe I'll see if they have anything that catches my eye.
[Not that she thinks she can swim, but hey can't hurt to look right?]
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Oh, okay... [And right, walking around with a pie would be awkward so!] Yeah... I'll run this up to my apartment then, since it'd probably get in the way.
[Can't carry pie and shop after all, so she'll take off back into the apartments to go put the pie away.
Surprisingly, she won't be too long doing that!]
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She too has been earning Moon Coins, and has a few goals involving both the Underground Mall and the Riki Store place, depending on where they end up making it to. )
There's a node we can take to the nearest entrance. Or we can walk. Just takes longer.
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[It makes sense in her mind, the point of this is shopping, so wasting time on the travel part is just silly?
Although in her short time here she hasn't exactly gone to any clothing stores, or the underground mall.]
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Nearest one's down that way. ( She says, shoving her hands into her hoodie's pouch and heading the direction she'd indicated. )
If there any particular kind of outfit you're looking for?
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Hm, what am I looking for? [She... actually hadn't thought about that, mostly because she never needed clothing before!]
I guess something a little less? [As she walks she tugs on the skirt of her dress.] Like what you're wearing, I guess? I've never needed clothing before.
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Pants, hoodies, boots? Between the outworlders and the people who've always been here, it doesn't seem like tails are that strange. We should be able to find you some options.
( Though she can't say all the tails she's glimpsed in passing are attached versus worn for effect. It doesn't occur to her immediately that people ever would just wear one for show.
There's a short line at the nearby node, so Annie gets into line without any fuss. )
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[Since Mew Mew found her body in a lab in the hottest area in the Underground, so she just assumes she can handle the heat.
And wow, short line! She will happily stand in line with Annie.]
Are you looking for anything in particular yourself?
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( The fur on her tail and ears at least, Annie's not sure what it would do either way. When asked what she's looking for, she offers a curt but not standoffish nod, pulling out her phone. It takes a moment for her to unlock it, and it's very much like watching your least tech savvy auntie gamely do her best.
She's getting better at using the phone, but it's always throwing her for some new loop. Finding the note function was yesterday's discovery, when she was attempting to use the whole Cinder app and somehow was in a different app altogether. But she does find her note app, tapping into it and the only note within. )
A few things for swimming lessons, anything else to wear, clothing to handle the heat or the cold... socks. Can never have enough socks.
( The line moves forward, Annie moving along with it. )
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[Just casually admitting that, as she watches Annie with her phone. Goodness, yeah that is pretty tech unsavvy indeed. But she won't say anything, just letting the other young woman do things herself. But she does lean in a little, tail swishing back and forth.]
Huh, you like to swim then? I've never done it.
[And moving with the line as well.]
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What happened to your prior body?
( Not even a question of can someone be in another body, but more of a why did it happen at all? )
I can swim, but it's not my strong point. So I figured I'd take lessons to make up for it. Someone on that Cinder thing works as a swim instructor.
( She shrugs, still looking a bit caught off guard at the whole "only in this body for a little bit" comment. One person's still ahead of them now, but it'll be their turn soon enough. )
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[She says that last part a bit wistfully, she will miss being wailed on by Undyne but! So far a few people have offered to beat on her here, so it's not a total wash.]
Huh, that's good. It would probably be hard to get better on your own.
[Look, if Annie asked about it? Mew Mew would totally explain that she's a Ghost and she needs to possess something to be corporeal. But it's their turn once the person in front of them is done and gone.]
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Once she's been teleported to the destination node, Annie pushes her hair back off her face and breathes in deeply. Not a draining one, with the distance fairly short and the entrance to the mall not so far away. She turns her attention toward Mew Mea again to check that she came through unscathed. )
Steady?
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So when Annie checks on her? She lets out a nervous laugh.]
I'm good! Never done that before though.
[And she flashes a toothy grin and gives a thumbs up.]
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It gets easier the more you use them.
( Why has Annie already made consistent use of them? Acclimatization, if she's honest. The part of her used to gathering intel about new locations doesn't let her settle down and not figure out how to move through the area. )
We can sit down for a moment to recover?
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Yeah, I've been mostly wandering about on foot? So I know how to get places on my own!
[As to recovering?]
I'm good, I'm good. [She'll even brush her hands down the front of her dress to make her point.]
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( Annie's hardly going to question in — Mew Mew knows herself best, or should at least. Instead she nods her head to one side of the sidewalk, setting off at a brisk clip. mew Mew's a little taller than Annie is, so there shouldn't be any problem in stride matching (per Annie's thought process), so she tucks her hands back into her hoodie's pouch, phone nudged up against them. )
Apparently all under this city is a massive mall, which sounds like a place of shops and food and who knows what else. We can get down... up there.
( There's a neatly decorated archway a block or so away from them, with people heading in or out in small groups, conversation increasingly audible as they approach. Annie isn't the chattiest person herself, meaning she hasn't tried to interject much of anything so far that's not related to what they're doing. Once they hit the stairs, she's ready to head on down, feeling the temperature change to a much cooler one as they descend. )
I don't know if there's a list of stores down here... I do have the name of one for swimming gear. That's about it.
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Huh, a mall? I've never been to one!
[There wasn't anything like one in Waterfall after all, and Mew Mew didn't exactly go to New Home often enough to even know if there was one in the "big" city of the Underground. As to topics to discuss, she's not got much to talk about either. So she is fine in walking in silence with Annie until they hit the stairs.]
Well, we can start with that one and then maybe wander a bit and hopefully not get lost?
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( She's not shopped here yet, but she did scout out a few entrances, true to her own impulses and nature. She nods to Mew Mew's suggestion, indicating they should head left once they've finished descending the stairs into the brightly lit interior of The Mall. )
There are faster ways to move once we're down this hall. We can check one of the maps, but the store I was recommended is this way.
( It's not long before they're passing stores with bright lit window displays and people walking past, some carrying various bags or packages, others eating or drinking as they go. A large, flickering sign on a flat screen stands in the middle of the hall, gently flashing a light labeled "You Are Here." Annie gestures to it as they approach. )
That whole screen reacts to touch I learned last time. We can use it to look for this shop, or to see if we can find anything relevant. Non-swimming clothing stores.
( Considering how she was using her phone earlier, it's amusing she understands this map screen apparently better. (It's just harder to mess up.) )
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Huh, neat. I think that's something common with tech on the surface back home?
[She means, of course, the touch screen map. Since the Underground mostly got tech after humans threw it away so it wasn't that advanced either.]
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Maybe? It's nothing familiar to my home.
( She reaches out, tapping over the magnifying glass. She doesn't need to type anything, just says the name of the store she'd been given for the sake of all the swimming equipment. The search bar flashes a pretty blue and green, then a little dotted line starts to make its way across the map to the bright orange halo around their destination. )
... I can get us there now. How are you with crowds?
( She says, turning away from the map and heading down the perpendicular walkway. The mall is multi-story, even while being underground: if they look up, this section has painted the ceilings to be cloudy skies at a particularly beautiful and unfamiliar sunset. Looking down to the lower level, the tiles have an almost speckled pattern to them, like fallen stars strewn on marble. Annie catches a glimpse as she winds through the crowd, checking for Mew Mew over her shoulder every so often. )
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[To answer the question about crowds. But she will do her best to keep up with Annie as she leads the way. Again she does look around at everything she can see though, which slows her down a little. But hey, one good thing is Mew Mew does stand out with how she looks, so Annie can't really lose her?
Unless she ends up surrounded by tall people that is.]
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Annie loops back, elbowing past a crowd of rowdy teenagers who don't know what's good for them, reaching out to try and take hold of Mew Mew's sleeve or arm or something to wind them back out of the mass of people. )
We're almost there. The tall people thin out just ahead anyway.
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Ah! R-right. Right... Sorry.
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Don't be. Teenagers are assholes.
( Says Annie, who definitely still looks like she's a teenager. There's some laughter from behind them as they break past into a clear spot in the foot traffic, and then she beelines them right to the swimwear store. It's about then that she lets go, eyes dropping to Mew Mew's arm. )
Sorry. Do you want to look around here? I need to get a few things, then I'm done. Including a swimsuit...
( Annie looks deeper into the store, and some of the less... athletic swim suits on the mannequins. She sighs inwardly. Clearly, a number of these aren't meant for really swimming. )
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The joys of having a body that is a doll/animatronic, that and maybe there is a bit of a flush to her cheeks by all this.]
Oh, sure? I don't mind looking. Maybe I'll see if they have anything that catches my eye.
[Not that she thinks she can swim, but hey can't hurt to look right?]
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i'm wheezing i'm sorry this is probably not what she was expecting
oh my god, bless annie
her concerns are very pointed!!!
they're adorbale concerns!
one of the few who finds them so!!!
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1/3
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i have such good ability to word tonight i see
eh words can be hard some days
so true, so true
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