It came to Shiori's attention as well just how different her own attire was to that of Devone's choice. It did not shake Shiori's confidence, she chose the clothes she did because they made her feel good, but she had to admit that the outfit the other girl was wearing complimented her body quite well. Devone, despite having a similar, if not much worse, reputation than her, was undeniably a beauty. Shiori wasn't equipped to give a seamless compliment however, she was much too awkward for it. It made her nervous, and when she grew nervous she oft said hurtful things. This was not something she intended to let happen. She needed the company, female energy, and there was none to be found at home. Kazuhiko would not make the situation better. He would either be amused or want to fight Kazuki, neither of which would lift Shiori's spirits. Running her knuckle over her lips, the petite girl let out a soft sigh. She was a bit out of breath, rattled, and admittedly nervous.
They had gone to school together long enough for Shiori to know that Devone had a sharp tongue of her own that she wasn't afraid to unleash if someone was bothering her. Still, something about Devone made her want to try, she couldn't place her finger on it, but she felt something she didn't feel with the other girls at school. It was hard to describe, but she was drawn to the equally dark-haired female. Maybe her soul sensed something that she couldn't? Regardless of her reasoning, Shiori felt compelled to reach out. If friendship was possible for the two of them, she wanted to try. It wasn't often that Shiori went out of her own way, to stick her neck out, but there was a first time for everything.
"Kitogawa-san, funny seeing you here."
It was a pretty big coincidence, Shiori did not leave the house often. Kazuhiko did the bulk of the shopping, she only left when she had a specific errand, and in this case it was the Kris Kringle event. Kazuki had been an intentional meet-up, but this was the first time she had ran into a classmate outside of school by chance. She didn't spend enough time outside of the Kitogawa estate prior to moving out, but now she was slowly being drawn out for this or that, "It certainly isn't an ideal place to be, in my humble opinion. Malls are certainly noisy, but I'm here for... Shiori's eyes averted for a second, darting as she tried to settle on what to call it. It wasn't personal, she had no personal connections with Kazuki, Business, I suppose you could call it.
"More or less. So you find it ridiculous as well?"
This earned an exhausted sigh, "I was given the task of finding something for one Miyamoto, Kazuki. It couldn't be any more ridiculous than that. Though the notion of giving a random classmate a gift is strange in itself. It's not like we are all friends because we share a class." Shiori stated bluntly, but in more of a matter-of-fact manner than a rude one. To Shiori, this was fact, it made no sense to give gifts to someone that you had no meaningful relationship. Hell, if it was business-related at least, she would understand, but she never once interacted with Kazuki before the gift exchange results were delivered. It was nonsense that brought her nothing but drama and a bad taste in her mouth.
"Email is preferable. I do like to look over things before submission and I'm sure it would be easier for someone in your position. Save paper while we're at it."
Nodding her head, Shiori retrieved her phone from a small purse she held, "I prefer email as well, documents can be lost or ruined in a number of ways, email is more reliable. I don't blame you for checking one's work, my partner was useless." It didn't insult Shiori to know that Devone would look over it, she would be more concerned if the girl simply turned in the work without any suspicion. People...were cruel. Her own mother made sure that she understood that from a very young age.
"Since we're both here and shopping, allow me to show my gratitude for your efforts. Starting with those shoes, perhaps?"
So Devone's offer to reward her in some way earned a quirk of her brow. It wasn't necessary, but she wasn't going to turn down the offer to accompany her. A gift on the other hand... Shiori did not plan to accept. The heiress still had access to her family's money despite moving out of the family home. I don't need a gift, I was just trying to be nice... was that unclear? I mean I'm not exactly the best at saying what I mean, so perhaps something was lost in translation. Besides, who knows, perhaps she would find something for the people she had in mind other than Kazuki. She was making friends, as such, she had some gifts to buy for those individuals as well, even if they couldn't get her anything in return. In fact, receiving nothing in return was favored, she felt more comfortable giving gifts than receiving them.
"There's a really cute and popular brand here. I'm sure you'll find something to go with your current outfit. I know we aren't here to shop for ourselves but we can't go far like that. We'll walk around and browse as much as we want after. "
There was no way for Shiori to deduce that she was being tested, but it kind of benefited the Kitogawa heiress to be the way that she was, at least where Devone was concerned. Shiori did not feel comfortable accepting gifts, so her classmate was not going to be pleased with the outcome of their trip for shoes. While Shiori did not possess money that she had earned with her own two hands, she preferred not to take from others. Her parents instilled within her from early childhood that being greedy while having so much already was not becoming.
"Let's go, I know the way."
With that in mind, Shiori followed along, she did need to change her shoes after all. She chose them with not having a lot of walking in mind, she never planned to still be at the mall. In Shiori's gameplan, she would have been there no longer than it would take to walk to a shop Kazuki liked, checkout, and then she could be home. It did not go as planned, that was evident by her throbbing feet. Running in heels was never a good idea, but walking barefoot in the store was disgusting. The floors were surely not adequately cleaned given the daily foot traffic. She was above it,and thus she accepted the discomfort. Looking around the store, she deduced that she and Devone at least had very similar taste in footwear. While she had no intention of letting her classmate buy her anything, she genuinely gave the sandals a look.
"How about this pair? It's violet, comfortable, and goes well with a sundress."
She had to agree. Sandals were very comfortable, and they were a cute, simple alternative to her pinchy heels. Writing off the fact that no one interrupted the two of them to the expensive brands they already wore, or that they were recognized by the ladies working there, Shiori didn't feel uncomfortable that Devone plucked up one of the displays, as she was doing the same. The heiress was not accustomed to the word 'no' or others questioning her during her shopping. Either they knew who she was or they could at least sense she was an elite of Japan by how she held herself, how she dressed.
"What do you think? We could keep looking.."
This was favorable, her mother often advised to look at three items before purchasing to ensure you aren't being too hasty and do not overspend. After looking, Shiori waved over one of the women working the floor, asking fo the first pair that Devone had pointed out, and a pair of simple suede flats. It wasn't very sensible giving the weather was growing colder, but it wasn't like she spent much time outdoors. She would hail another taxi, she seldom walked anywhere. Retrieving her card tied to her trust fund, Shiori paid for her own shoes, "No offense intended toward your genorosity, Kim-san. I prefer to buy my own things, it's nothing personal. Your gratitude is enough." she explained. Switching into the sandals to honor Devone's suggestion, she stood, "Now shall we get the dreadful responsibility the school has given us over with?" Shiori inquired, smiling a bit. A gold digger Devone would not find here. I've...never gone shopping like this with another girl before... It's kind of fun.
Popularity: +1 to Devone