Downtown Cinnabar - Afternoon - Light Drizzle
Cyrilla Niav
Cyrilla chewed the bottom of her lip as she stared at the clothes rack. She and Mel had gone into town for a bit of light shopping. Diva had torn one of Cyrilla's shirts by accident; she'd been in the middle of cleaning her room when she'd thrown the shirt over her shoulder, and Diva thought Cyrilla was playing. She grinned a little to herself as she rolled her eyes before glancing over in Mel's direction.
“Hey, Mel, what do you think? Should I get this for Kas?" she asked, pulling out a tie dye muscle shirt. It had, from the looks of it, been misplaced in the women's section. She snickered softly as she held it in Mel's general direction. “I think it'd flatter him since he likes loud colors," not to mention he looked really nice in some of them. She wouldn't say that out loud, of course. She liked Kas well-enough, but she had to keep a certain distance from what that like meant. She couldn't get too friendly with him, after all, even if she wanted to.
Not even Mel.
The other girl's head popped up from over a rack of clothes; she eyed the shirt and sighed theatrically. "Oh god. He'd probably even wear it." Rolling her eyes, she shook her head a little. "Like... I swear he knows style really well, but you wouldn't know it half the time because he dresses like a beach bum."
She was at the moment rifling through a rack of casual, summery dresses, the majority of which were either simple sundresses or the t-shirt kind. Her perusal seemed to be mostly perfunctory; occasionally she'd pause and consider something for an extra moment before moving along.
Cyrilla laughed a little as she contemplated actually getting it for him. He would wear it, even if it was a little ridiculous. “You're not wrong. You should have seen him in his yukata," she replied casually. He had looked especially handsome in it, but she hadn't told him that. She'd stated they all looked good, but there was just something different in telling an individual they looked particularly charming.
"Ah, that'd be the green one with the bamboo pattern, right? That's a good one. Honestly I think he likes to wear obnoxious clothes sometimes because it throws people off. If he turns on the charm he can actually be really—" She caught herself, apparently cutting short something she'd been about to say. She didn't try to hide the fact that she had, turning the hitch into a shrug. "Well, that's beside the point. Point being, he likes to be ridiculous."
Abandoning the first rack, she shifted to another, humming a little as she made her way through the clothes there. "Okay so if you had to pick a lucky outfit for your biggest gym battle to date, what would you wear?" She arched an eyebrow in Cyrilla's direction. "I want to project confidence, but I'm not sure if I should go for all-business ladyboss confidence or flirty hot-chick confidence. I kind of like both for different reasons."
“Well," Cyrilla began, giving Mel her full attention, “I'd say do something more towards the flirty hot-chick confidence and save the all-business ladyboss confidence for your later challenges. Drake's the, what, fifth gym leader in line, right? After you destroy him, I'd say start moving that confidence up from the flirty hot-chick, to the hot-chick, to the I'm a fucking badass type." Mel had a certain air about her that made Cyrilla believe that she could pull off just about anything.
Mel was very pretty, already had the sort of confidence one could only dream of having, and she seemed to be really good at what she did. Cyrilla didn't doubt that Mel had what it took to make it all the way to the Elite Four.
"Seventh, actually," Mel said with clear amusement. "Once I have this badge I only need to grab the one from Viridian, and that's the Kanto set." She huffed a little, bypassing a few more blouses. "By your logic I guess that means I should be trying for just plain hot?"
“Confident hot," Cyrilla nodded as she glanced back at the rack. “And I guess I need to brush up on my gym leaders," she murmured. A thought occured to her as she glanced back at Mel. “If you only need one more after Drake, that means you challenged Jasmine in Fuchsia, right? Please tell me you utterly destroyed her," she asked. Jasmine was a member of Cyrilla and Eryk's family, but the woman was just unbearable.
She thought she was a gift from Arceus.
"Obliterated," Mel confirmed. "Wasn't even hard, after Sabrina. For a grandma, that lady slays. I hope I'm that badass when I'm eighty-whatever." She moved away from the rack and put her hands on her hips, turning a slow circle in place. "Confident hot, huh? I think that calls for some legs. Help me find a pair of shorts that'll make my ass look awesome?" She tilted her head. "Maybe a pair for you, too? You're living on an island now, after all."
She grinned, her smile bright white against the golden-brown of her skin.
Cyrilla couldn't help herself; she laughed so hard that she doubled over to hold her stomach. “Oh my Arceus, I really do like you," she stated once she was able to catch her breath. “Well if that's the case, then you need something that's going to accentuate your curves. Hm," she glanced over towards a shelf that had denim shorts, but those wouldn't do at all. Denim was nice, but they were on an island, and they wouldn't really sit properly on Mel's body.
“Oh," she stated as she picked up a pair of shorts. “These, definitely these," she stated, handing Mel a pair of biker shorts that were a neon coral color. “They'll make your ass pop, and the color will look really good on you," she grinned at Mel.
It was apparently Mel's turn to laugh, because she did, still smiling broadly even after it faded. "Okay, okay, I think I can work these. And let's see... for a shirt I think... this one, and this under." The bike shorts would almost go to the knees, and she'd picked a thin, loose white t-shirt with a bright graphic print to go with. Normally it might be too long and loose, but there was enough fabric there to tie higher, too. The tank top she'd selected to go underneath it was an ocean blue, just a little bit of teal in it. The bright color would likely show through the white shirt easily.
"I like it. It's still definitely casual enough to train in, but cute too." Nodding, she draped the garments over one arm and turned to Cyrilla.
"Okay, so what about you, lady? What makes you feel awesome and hot?"
Cyrilla snorted softly. “That's easy," she stated, grabbing a pair of black shorts in the style of Mel's. Biker shorts were always comfortable and easy to move in. Not to mention they were breatheable which was ideal in this kind of weather. She glanced at the shirts next, though, and pursed her lips. “Ah, and this," she stated, pulling out a green tank top. The back was mostly non-existent, but it would sit well on Cyrilla's hips.
Of all the things Cyrilla actually liked about her body, it was her back. Her hair was her favorite asset, but it was her back that she liked showing off the most. “These are what I'm getting," she stated, turning in Mel's direction.
"Nice," Mel said, clearly approving. "I love stuff with cool patterns on the back and all that. I can't really do midriffs so that and the legs are where it's at." She offered no particular reason for this; perhaps it was simply a preference.
"By the way, like... stop me if this is weird but do you have like... the island girl's kit yet? Couple of swimsuits, a good hat, sunglasses, that kind of thing?"
“I have a swimsuit, yes. As for a good hat and sunglasses, not really. I've never stayed on an island long enough to need any of that. Cinnabar's the first one, actually," she replied with a light shrug of her shoulders. They'd been on Cinnabar for a few months, now, and Cyrilla thought it'd be at least a few more months before they were going to move on. And that was all dependent on Ana and whether or not they found out she was a psychic.
“Why do you ask?" Cyrilla stated, tilting her head curiously at Mel.
"Just wondering if we should find somewhere to get you those things," she said with a shrug. "Well, and wondering if my useless brother's been helpful or not. I should've known he wouldn't be. He's at least tolerable to live with, right? Not giving you trouble?" Mel headed towards the shop counter to pay for her purchases, though she kept most of her attention on Cyrilla even as she fished a wallet out of the back pocket of her denim capris.
“He's been helpful in some ways, I suppose. We did the get drunk on an island backbeach, thing," she stated, smiling just a bit as she remembered the evening. It had been nice that night, and again during the Camellia Festival. The latter, though, was so that he didn't have to accidentally run into Rosanna. She'd understood the necessity of keeping a lie, she supposed, and she'd been more than happy to help him out. More-so than she should have been, really.
“And are you kidding? Kas and I were talking about installing a bounce castle inside the spare bedroom before you started staying with us. Which, in all honesty, was probably a good thing you did," she stated, huffing lightly as she shook her head. “But really, he's very easy to get along with and living with him is a dream. We switch cooking days and what not but I do most of it. I don't mind, really. I like cooking."
"Oh lady, don't let him get away with less than half the chores. If you're cooking more often make him do your laundry or something. He won't mind." Mel paused a moment, seemingly considering this. "Unless you'd find it too weird. Which is probably why he hasn't offered. He's better with personal space than he makes himself out to be."
She shrugged a little bit, though, her expression morphing into something a little slyer. "At least you've gotten drunk on the backisland, I guess. That's an important one. I already knew, though. We talk like once a week. He uh... mentions you. A fair bit, actually." She arched an eyebrow, studying Cyrilla's face as though trying to gauge her reaction to this bit of information.
Cyrilla was a little surprised by that. He mentioned her to his sister? Why? She was his coworker, sure, a friend even, but Cyrilla didn't think herself so important as to be mentioned to a family member. At least she didn't think so. She blinked slowly, though, trying to digest the information. That wasn't a good thing, though. Maybe she should put a little more distance between them? As much as she wanted to be friends with Kas, it just wasn't something she could afford.
She had no doubt that he could take care of himself, and he'd likely be fine even if it was just for work, but Cyrilla knew her family. The fact that she was living with him without Ryk was likely to land her in hot water, but they didn't need to know that. And it wasn't like members of their family often came to visit. She pushed the thoughts from her mind, though, and huffed a little.
“I suppose I'm a little flattered. I hope it's all good things he says about me," she joked, rolling her eyes a bit in a humorous way. “But your brother is a good guy, and I'm not saying that just because you're his sister," she clarified. Kas really had a good heart, even if most of the time he was as silly as Cyrilla was.
“He's... how should I put this," she paused, tapping her chin in a thoughtful manner, “he's a sweetheart, really, and I like him. He's a good friend."
"I'm glad," Mel said, oddly quiet. Accepting her bag of purchases from the cashier, she waited for Cyrilla to pay for her items as well, then stepped back out into the main covered hallway of the strip mall, blending easily with the crowd. The light rain had chased a lot of people inside, and unsurprisingly the shopping center was a popular destination for them.
It took another minute or so for Mel to speak again. When she did, though, her tone was thoughtful, and a little cautious. "He doesn't... he doesn't really let himself have a lot of friends. Acquaintances, sure—he's got that part down, but he—" she pursed her lips and shook her head. "Anyway, I'm glad he has you and the others. I worry about him."
Though the smile was on her face, Cyrilla didn't quite feel it. Something clenched painfully in her chest at Mel's words. They stung more than they should have, but Cyrilla kept the feeling off of her face. “I suppose he and I are a lot more alike than I thought," she stated absentmindedly. “He's... well, don't tell him I said this, but he is my first real friend. I didn't have any growing up," mostly because everyone in her family hated her. Even her parents. She wasn't... she banished the thought.
“I'm glad I have him, too. So don't worry too much about him. I'll do my best to make sure he thoroughly enjoys himself and is well-taken care of, deal?" she stated, arching a brow in Mel's direction. It was a lot to promise, but... it was something Cyrilla felt she could do. It wasn't as if her family had to know, after all.
Mel's face brightened at that, and she shook her head a little ruefully. "Don't be too nice to him or he'll never leave you alone," she joked. "He's basically a giant skitty."
“Me? Too nice?" Cyrilla blinked dramatically, placing a hand over her heart before a grin spread across her face. “Never," she stated, huffing lightly at the joke. “And I mean, I don't know. Skitty happen to be very cute and adorable. I wouldn't mind if I had one that never left me alone," she added, chuckling lightly.
"Is that so?" Mel replied, a strange little smile curling one corner of her mouth. "I guess we'll see, then."
“Hey, Mel, what do you think? Should I get this for Kas?" she asked, pulling out a tie dye muscle shirt. It had, from the looks of it, been misplaced in the women's section. She snickered softly as she held it in Mel's general direction. “I think it'd flatter him since he likes loud colors," not to mention he looked really nice in some of them. She wouldn't say that out loud, of course. She liked Kas well-enough, but she had to keep a certain distance from what that like meant. She couldn't get too friendly with him, after all, even if she wanted to.
Not even Mel.
The other girl's head popped up from over a rack of clothes; she eyed the shirt and sighed theatrically. "Oh god. He'd probably even wear it." Rolling her eyes, she shook her head a little. "Like... I swear he knows style really well, but you wouldn't know it half the time because he dresses like a beach bum."
She was at the moment rifling through a rack of casual, summery dresses, the majority of which were either simple sundresses or the t-shirt kind. Her perusal seemed to be mostly perfunctory; occasionally she'd pause and consider something for an extra moment before moving along.
Cyrilla laughed a little as she contemplated actually getting it for him. He would wear it, even if it was a little ridiculous. “You're not wrong. You should have seen him in his yukata," she replied casually. He had looked especially handsome in it, but she hadn't told him that. She'd stated they all looked good, but there was just something different in telling an individual they looked particularly charming.
"Ah, that'd be the green one with the bamboo pattern, right? That's a good one. Honestly I think he likes to wear obnoxious clothes sometimes because it throws people off. If he turns on the charm he can actually be really—" She caught herself, apparently cutting short something she'd been about to say. She didn't try to hide the fact that she had, turning the hitch into a shrug. "Well, that's beside the point. Point being, he likes to be ridiculous."
Abandoning the first rack, she shifted to another, humming a little as she made her way through the clothes there. "Okay so if you had to pick a lucky outfit for your biggest gym battle to date, what would you wear?" She arched an eyebrow in Cyrilla's direction. "I want to project confidence, but I'm not sure if I should go for all-business ladyboss confidence or flirty hot-chick confidence. I kind of like both for different reasons."
“Well," Cyrilla began, giving Mel her full attention, “I'd say do something more towards the flirty hot-chick confidence and save the all-business ladyboss confidence for your later challenges. Drake's the, what, fifth gym leader in line, right? After you destroy him, I'd say start moving that confidence up from the flirty hot-chick, to the hot-chick, to the I'm a fucking badass type." Mel had a certain air about her that made Cyrilla believe that she could pull off just about anything.
Mel was very pretty, already had the sort of confidence one could only dream of having, and she seemed to be really good at what she did. Cyrilla didn't doubt that Mel had what it took to make it all the way to the Elite Four.
"Seventh, actually," Mel said with clear amusement. "Once I have this badge I only need to grab the one from Viridian, and that's the Kanto set." She huffed a little, bypassing a few more blouses. "By your logic I guess that means I should be trying for just plain hot?"
“Confident hot," Cyrilla nodded as she glanced back at the rack. “And I guess I need to brush up on my gym leaders," she murmured. A thought occured to her as she glanced back at Mel. “If you only need one more after Drake, that means you challenged Jasmine in Fuchsia, right? Please tell me you utterly destroyed her," she asked. Jasmine was a member of Cyrilla and Eryk's family, but the woman was just unbearable.
She thought she was a gift from Arceus.
"Obliterated," Mel confirmed. "Wasn't even hard, after Sabrina. For a grandma, that lady slays. I hope I'm that badass when I'm eighty-whatever." She moved away from the rack and put her hands on her hips, turning a slow circle in place. "Confident hot, huh? I think that calls for some legs. Help me find a pair of shorts that'll make my ass look awesome?" She tilted her head. "Maybe a pair for you, too? You're living on an island now, after all."
She grinned, her smile bright white against the golden-brown of her skin.
Cyrilla couldn't help herself; she laughed so hard that she doubled over to hold her stomach. “Oh my Arceus, I really do like you," she stated once she was able to catch her breath. “Well if that's the case, then you need something that's going to accentuate your curves. Hm," she glanced over towards a shelf that had denim shorts, but those wouldn't do at all. Denim was nice, but they were on an island, and they wouldn't really sit properly on Mel's body.
“Oh," she stated as she picked up a pair of shorts. “These, definitely these," she stated, handing Mel a pair of biker shorts that were a neon coral color. “They'll make your ass pop, and the color will look really good on you," she grinned at Mel.
It was apparently Mel's turn to laugh, because she did, still smiling broadly even after it faded. "Okay, okay, I think I can work these. And let's see... for a shirt I think... this one, and this under." The bike shorts would almost go to the knees, and she'd picked a thin, loose white t-shirt with a bright graphic print to go with. Normally it might be too long and loose, but there was enough fabric there to tie higher, too. The tank top she'd selected to go underneath it was an ocean blue, just a little bit of teal in it. The bright color would likely show through the white shirt easily.
"I like it. It's still definitely casual enough to train in, but cute too." Nodding, she draped the garments over one arm and turned to Cyrilla.
"Okay, so what about you, lady? What makes you feel awesome and hot?"
Cyrilla snorted softly. “That's easy," she stated, grabbing a pair of black shorts in the style of Mel's. Biker shorts were always comfortable and easy to move in. Not to mention they were breatheable which was ideal in this kind of weather. She glanced at the shirts next, though, and pursed her lips. “Ah, and this," she stated, pulling out a green tank top. The back was mostly non-existent, but it would sit well on Cyrilla's hips.
Of all the things Cyrilla actually liked about her body, it was her back. Her hair was her favorite asset, but it was her back that she liked showing off the most. “These are what I'm getting," she stated, turning in Mel's direction.
"Nice," Mel said, clearly approving. "I love stuff with cool patterns on the back and all that. I can't really do midriffs so that and the legs are where it's at." She offered no particular reason for this; perhaps it was simply a preference.
"By the way, like... stop me if this is weird but do you have like... the island girl's kit yet? Couple of swimsuits, a good hat, sunglasses, that kind of thing?"
“I have a swimsuit, yes. As for a good hat and sunglasses, not really. I've never stayed on an island long enough to need any of that. Cinnabar's the first one, actually," she replied with a light shrug of her shoulders. They'd been on Cinnabar for a few months, now, and Cyrilla thought it'd be at least a few more months before they were going to move on. And that was all dependent on Ana and whether or not they found out she was a psychic.
“Why do you ask?" Cyrilla stated, tilting her head curiously at Mel.
"Just wondering if we should find somewhere to get you those things," she said with a shrug. "Well, and wondering if my useless brother's been helpful or not. I should've known he wouldn't be. He's at least tolerable to live with, right? Not giving you trouble?" Mel headed towards the shop counter to pay for her purchases, though she kept most of her attention on Cyrilla even as she fished a wallet out of the back pocket of her denim capris.
“He's been helpful in some ways, I suppose. We did the get drunk on an island backbeach, thing," she stated, smiling just a bit as she remembered the evening. It had been nice that night, and again during the Camellia Festival. The latter, though, was so that he didn't have to accidentally run into Rosanna. She'd understood the necessity of keeping a lie, she supposed, and she'd been more than happy to help him out. More-so than she should have been, really.
“And are you kidding? Kas and I were talking about installing a bounce castle inside the spare bedroom before you started staying with us. Which, in all honesty, was probably a good thing you did," she stated, huffing lightly as she shook her head. “But really, he's very easy to get along with and living with him is a dream. We switch cooking days and what not but I do most of it. I don't mind, really. I like cooking."
"Oh lady, don't let him get away with less than half the chores. If you're cooking more often make him do your laundry or something. He won't mind." Mel paused a moment, seemingly considering this. "Unless you'd find it too weird. Which is probably why he hasn't offered. He's better with personal space than he makes himself out to be."
She shrugged a little bit, though, her expression morphing into something a little slyer. "At least you've gotten drunk on the backisland, I guess. That's an important one. I already knew, though. We talk like once a week. He uh... mentions you. A fair bit, actually." She arched an eyebrow, studying Cyrilla's face as though trying to gauge her reaction to this bit of information.
Cyrilla was a little surprised by that. He mentioned her to his sister? Why? She was his coworker, sure, a friend even, but Cyrilla didn't think herself so important as to be mentioned to a family member. At least she didn't think so. She blinked slowly, though, trying to digest the information. That wasn't a good thing, though. Maybe she should put a little more distance between them? As much as she wanted to be friends with Kas, it just wasn't something she could afford.
She had no doubt that he could take care of himself, and he'd likely be fine even if it was just for work, but Cyrilla knew her family. The fact that she was living with him without Ryk was likely to land her in hot water, but they didn't need to know that. And it wasn't like members of their family often came to visit. She pushed the thoughts from her mind, though, and huffed a little.
“I suppose I'm a little flattered. I hope it's all good things he says about me," she joked, rolling her eyes a bit in a humorous way. “But your brother is a good guy, and I'm not saying that just because you're his sister," she clarified. Kas really had a good heart, even if most of the time he was as silly as Cyrilla was.
“He's... how should I put this," she paused, tapping her chin in a thoughtful manner, “he's a sweetheart, really, and I like him. He's a good friend."
"I'm glad," Mel said, oddly quiet. Accepting her bag of purchases from the cashier, she waited for Cyrilla to pay for her items as well, then stepped back out into the main covered hallway of the strip mall, blending easily with the crowd. The light rain had chased a lot of people inside, and unsurprisingly the shopping center was a popular destination for them.
It took another minute or so for Mel to speak again. When she did, though, her tone was thoughtful, and a little cautious. "He doesn't... he doesn't really let himself have a lot of friends. Acquaintances, sure—he's got that part down, but he—" she pursed her lips and shook her head. "Anyway, I'm glad he has you and the others. I worry about him."
Though the smile was on her face, Cyrilla didn't quite feel it. Something clenched painfully in her chest at Mel's words. They stung more than they should have, but Cyrilla kept the feeling off of her face. “I suppose he and I are a lot more alike than I thought," she stated absentmindedly. “He's... well, don't tell him I said this, but he is my first real friend. I didn't have any growing up," mostly because everyone in her family hated her. Even her parents. She wasn't... she banished the thought.
“I'm glad I have him, too. So don't worry too much about him. I'll do my best to make sure he thoroughly enjoys himself and is well-taken care of, deal?" she stated, arching a brow in Mel's direction. It was a lot to promise, but... it was something Cyrilla felt she could do. It wasn't as if her family had to know, after all.
Mel's face brightened at that, and she shook her head a little ruefully. "Don't be too nice to him or he'll never leave you alone," she joked. "He's basically a giant skitty."
“Me? Too nice?" Cyrilla blinked dramatically, placing a hand over her heart before a grin spread across her face. “Never," she stated, huffing lightly at the joke. “And I mean, I don't know. Skitty happen to be very cute and adorable. I wouldn't mind if I had one that never left me alone," she added, chuckling lightly.
"Is that so?" Mel replied, a strange little smile curling one corner of her mouth. "I guess we'll see, then."