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[waitingforplayer2]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, CHIAKI NANAMI.

FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX

*** galagamer has joined XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX
<galagamer> This is Chiaki Nanami.
<galagamer> I'll get back to you as soon as I can!

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[waitingforplayer2]

[ She hears his voice from across the arcade; she's been cleaning out one of the skeeball machines, but immediately she drops what she was doing and shrinks down again. Flying's faster when you're small.

Over she zips to him, practically a little glowing blue light in motion; but more perceivable as a faerie with glowing blue wings, once she's stopped to hover in front of him. ]

Abbacchio-kun!! You made it! [ She looks VERY different from the last time they spoke. At least she's cleared out the shell of her nymph body that was standing in the entranceway before, where she changed? ]

[riproduzione]

[ she cleared WHAT out of the entry?!]

I did. This is new… and very blue. What is it this time, faerie?

[ It seems every time the fog arrives — even as weak as it is this month — Nanami has changed forms again. Granted, he knows the fog has little to do with this most likely. She's ever-changing, perhaps that's why she appeared to like Moody so much. ]

I'm not interrupting, am I?

[waitingforplayer2]

No, you're not!!

[ She flips back to normal size, grown in just a moment. She's wearing one of her t-shirts and skirts, but no shoes (despite not having roots for feet anymore); and her buggy features are very clearly on display.

One of the shoulders of the t-shirt is pulled down so her left shoulder is visible, and there's a line of something white there, where her scarring was before - but it's hard to make out. ]

I asked Mana to give me wings so I could fly again. What do you think?

[ She doesn't look too weird, does she?? ]

[riproduzione]

[ Abbacchio is far too polite to tell her she looks weird, and she kind of does, in the sense that she's the most bug-like of the faeries he's met; even more than bug girl herself. Granted, he's only actually met three. Still… ]

… you certainly have wings, yeah. Mana probably could have just given you wings without making you a whole different monster, though.

[ The last sentence is mostly muttered under his breath. No, he doesn't trust Mana, no, he hasn't learned his lesson. ]

Still, if you're enjoying yourself then I suppose it's fine.

[waitingforplayer2]

No no, it's exactly what I wanted! Sort of. I thought she might make me a harpy, though.

[ She shrinks back down to normal and flits towards the door. Mall adventure time? ]

But I gave her the coins because I wanted to try being something else! [ At this size, her voice is a bit quieter but otherwise not much different. ] A nymph with wings might look kind of silly.

[riproduzione]

[ Abbacchio holds the door open, which is odd considering the size of Nanami and how she doesn't really require the door to be held open but, manners. ]

Could have ended up like me, too, or maybe manticore, demon, Nephilim… [ Okay, we get the point. ] I'm glad it worked out for you, but I do think a nymph with wings wouldn't look all that bad if you got to specify the type you wanted — something bug-like rather than feathers, you know?

[ It's kind of hypocritical of him to say so, considering how vague he's been with Mana. Do as I say, not as I do, etc. ]

Do you have a preference of where we start? I know the mall is probably the most obvious choice, but there are some places here in Bavan.

[waitingforplayer2]

Whatever I got would have been good! I've got a lot of monsters to be before I've been all of them!

[ What an odd thing to say! Also, she does appreciate the door being held open; she's not QUITE small enough to slip through this particular keyhole. ]

The mall's fine, I think...! None of my circles are any closer, really, so we can go from here. It's too bad I can't shrink you down with me, or else I could probably fly us both there in no time!

[riproduzione]

You're really going to try out each of them?

[ He knows she's mentioned it, but well… It's a lot of coins for Mana, and moreover it's a lot of changes to go through month after month. The implications that might have on her body, her wellbeing and her mental state, it all sounds like it could be quite troubling. Questioning that isn't his place, though, so he opts to keep his thoughts to himself. ]

Well, there's no saying I can't fly with you, [ a beat, and because he's worried Nanami might actually suggest that they do that, he adds in a hurry: ] I'm not actually confident I could manage that. So, walking it is, I'm afraid. Besides, there are one or two places on the way that we can stop in on before we get nearer to the mall.

[ One such shop isn't too far away, actually. It's a quaint little thrift shop, Abbacchio's been there once or twice and managed to pick up some fairly decent articles of clothing — good quality, reasonably priced for being second-hand. ]

[waitingforplayer2]

Yeah, I am! All twenty-three of them! Isn't that exciting??

[ SHE'S excited at least. Nanami's buzzing around him; she can fly faster, but she's letting Abbacchio lead the way, because she doesn't actually know where the clothes shops around here are. ]

We can stop in one of those places... [ Hold on back up reverse. The faerie suddenly zooms in closer. ] Wait, you can fly??

[riproduzione]

[ Biting his tongue so as not to be a downer on her excitement, he gives a short nod as they walk along the street. Or, try to walk anyway, he comes to an abrupt stop when she flits in close. Really, he can't keep walking into her when she catches him off guard, or it'll be all he's known for. ]

Sort of? Not properly… [ Flying is still a generous description, if he's honest. ] And not really for any extended period of time.

[ Translation: ten, maybe fifteen minutes, tops. Getting from Libeccio to Lake Dala at the start of the month was pushing it, and now he's paying the price — literally. There are aches in places he didn't even know could feel pain. ]

So, uh… Well, getting from here to the mall wouldn't be an option, is what I mean.

[waitingforplayer2]

You can fly!!

[ The little faerie is absolutely beside herself with excitement for him. She zooms around his head in circles a few times, before returning to hover at his shoulder. ]

Abbacchio-kun!!! That's amazing!! I'm so happy for you! What helped? Did you try jumping off somewhere high?

gonna have the dumbo song stuck in my head

[riproduzione]

I guess? [ Explaining that what pushed him to it was Reira's distress probably isn't the best of topics. ] I jumped off a van, so it wasn't that high… I should probably put some money aside to replace it or at least have their roof repaired.

[ In spite of the circumstances, the onslaught of praise has his scales darkening. It's silly, it's such a small thing and yet it's something he clearly struggled with more than he ought to have, for an array of reasons. Finally figuring it out feels good, but stranger still is that others seem to be invested in it. ]

A-anyway, the store is around this corner, near the end of the street.

[ Pointing off towards an upcoming road, and doing his best to divert attention away from himself and his steadily shifting scales. ]

disney stop putting flying songs in your movies, otherwise we'll get dumbo and peter pan mixed up

[waitingforplayer2]

[ She zips around him excitedly. Store or not, she's not going to let the subject get dropped so easily. ]

What was it like? Did you like it? Have you done it again since then??

DONT CALL ME OUT LIKE THIS

[riproduzione]

[ Abbacchio tries to keep up with her movements, in the end, it's easier to let her do as she pleases. ]

It was… [ A pause, long enough that it won't go unnoticed. ] Fine. I wasn't really thinking much about whether it was enjoyable or not, though, there were— That's not important. [ Conveniently, Nanami is so small he doesn't have to worry about being caught avoiding eye contact! ] Only a little… And it was much shorter distances. I think I might've pushed myself too hard the first time.

I AM CALLING US BOTH OUT SHSHSHSH

[waitingforplayer2]

[ Hmm? He's hiding something about the experience-- well, whatever, not her business. ]

Did you get hurt? You'll probably get better at it the more you practice... I've been flying a lot since I changed!!

sobs

[riproduzione]

[ Head moving from side to side, he makes a non-committal sound. ]

Not exactly. You ever do exercise for the first time in a while, and your muscles ache afterwards? It feels kind of like that.

[ He scratches at his jaw lightly, aching muscles from lack of exercise are another thing he's familiar with in general. A lot of his old routines have fallen by the wayside since he arrived in December — it's hard to really keep up with some of them when your body literally isn't made for them. ]

So, you're right, practice will definitely help. As long as it's done with adequate breaks, proper warm-ups and cool-downs.

[waitingforplayer2]

Oh, of course! That makes sense, I guess. You just gotta exercise them!!

[ The faerie finally flits to his shoulder to settle down, sitting on it as they enter the store. They're immediately bombarded with noise and color - a bit overwhelming to the little faerie, but having Abba as a grounding point underneath her is already helpful. ]

Um, what should we look for first?

[riproduzione]

Mm.

[ The topic is effectively dropped as they enter, and Abbacchio scans around the aisles and racks that have all been laid out and organised neatly. ]

Everyday essentials, firstly, would probably be best, though we should keep an eye out for anything that looks particularly warm. Good quality coats that keep the wind out, too.

[ He thinks, at least. Ryslig's weather is wholly unfamiliar to him, he arrived in the worst of it last year and barely coped. It only seems worse, now. ]

[waitingforplayer2]

[ They approach the first rack, and Nanami takes off again, hovering just above his shoulder. ]

Hats!! They need hats. You look for coats, I'll be right back.

[ Off she zooms!! ]

[riproduzione]

[ Nanami gets an approving nod, calling over to her as she flutters off. ]

Hats, or ear muffs, scarves too! They can be wrapped up around ears if needed and might cover possible changes in ways the others might not.

[ In the meantime, he does as instructed, picking his way through a rack of coats and jackets, other assorted kinds of outerwear. Pulling one off the rack, he holds it up — it looks like it might fit Emporio, it's a navy blue in colour and has a fleece lined hood. It gets draped over his arm as he continues to push hangers around the rack, glancing around now and then to keep an eye on Nanami. ]

[waitingforplayer2]

[ Some poor shopper is startled enough to drop their bags when Nanami suddenly seems to materialize out of thin air, reaching for a hat. It takes the bug girl longer than she meant to take, to help the wary human gather their bags, and then to grab two big and fluffy hats off the shelf.

Then she jogs back over to Abbacchio, still at full height. ] I found some-- oh, SCARVES!! [ In her confusion, she forgot to look for them. Around she turns, peering out of big compound eyes to figure out where the scarves are. ]

[riproduzione]

Ah, sorry, scusa.

[ He's following after her, careful as he goes so as not to knock the shoppers over with his wings, else they'll be joining the contents of their bag on the floor. Her enthusiasm nonetheless brings a quiet smile to his mouth as he plucks the hats from her grasp before she runs off in search of scarves. ]

We should look for ones that aren't too short… [ Fingers glide over some of the scarves on display; testing the texture to see if they're the itchy kind of wool or not. ] What colour do you think we should pick?

[waitingforplayer2]

[ It's a good thing her wings are folded away right now - delicate as they are, they'd be more liable to get hurt than really inconvenience someone else. ]

Rainbow! That way whatever their favorite color is, it'll be there. [ And she picks out several - two for each of them. ]

[riproduzione]

Might be hard-pressed trying to find rainbow scarves…

[ He looks, but there doesn't seem to be any in a full spectrum, not unless they want to buy a handful of different coloured scarves and stitch them together to make one — and he doesn't say that, because he imagines Nanami would want to — what he does do, is pull up a couple of simple patterned ones, though, holding them up for Nanami to inspect. One in dark vertical stripes, and the other is a brighter plaid. They're sort of in colours that might suit their intended owners. There's an extra in his hands though, this one has a hat attached, and he holds it towards Nanami. ]

This would suit you.

[ Whatever she has planned next is a mystery to him, but she should be warm, too. ]

[waitingforplayer2]

Oh...!!

[ She drops what she's doing and puts it on to try it out. ]

It's beautiful... thank you! [ She's definitely walking out with this one. ]

Have you tried anything on yet?... [ They're not shopping for themselves, but... it's worth asking! ]