Sorry about the roof.
Hanging precariously by one hand from the snapped edge of a suspension bridge wasn't how Axel had envisioned the moments before his death.
It was of no surprise that his ill-thought-out actions --well, causing an explosion on a bridge wasn't exactly a fantastic plan, was it?-- had lead to the present scenario. With a veritable inferno roaring in ( Read more... )
It was of no surprise that his ill-thought-out actions --well, causing an explosion on a bridge wasn't exactly a fantastic plan, was it?-- had lead to the present scenario. With a veritable inferno roaring in ( Read more... )
She ducked into the back, leaving Axel on his own for a couple of minutes before she returned, a hairbrush in one hand, and some ribbons and elastic in the other. The ribbons were thick, silky, and white.
Probably an ominous sign, really, with the way things had gone so far.
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It was all terribly surreal. Nothing had really been what he expected or had felt normal since he dropped out of the sky within spitting distance of an empty city, but being dressed up like a girl to escape some insane government-run mafia with a penchant for shooting people who ran from them with a magic-inhibiting substance was really far out.
As such, he sat there and awaited his fate. The ribbons made him goggle, but he didn't say anything. Well, almost.
"I'm not sure white is really my colour," he commented with a bit of a smile.
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Then she tilted her head, looking at Timcanpy a little more thoughtfully, and asked, "What are you, anyway?" Though she wasn't expecting Timcanpy to answer.
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"The tank I broke him out of called him a 'golem'. It was written on the label -- his name was down as 'Timcanpy'." He explained, not able to tell her much more than that.
Well, he thought that was his name. He still wasn't great at reading this kooky Spiran language, but the similarities and a few months exposure to it had certainly helped.
"I thought he was an animal until he chewed a hole through the metal locker I had to get my license out of," he said, still looking and feeling disturbed by this fact.
He didn't know what a Golem was, but he hoped it might mean something to a native. Of course, he wasn't to know that the term was only generally used in history books as a word to describe a thousand-plus year old construct that tended to be used as a weapon. What powered them is a mystery by modern Spiran standards, but it's suffice to say that it wasn't magic given Tim's happy consumption of his Orbo covered gloves.
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She pointed at Timcanpy with her finger, smiling even as she scolded him, gently, "But no chewing my flowers in future."
She placed him on her own shoulder before she started to draw the brush carefully through Axel's hair. It was easier than it looked like it should be, but at the same time, his hair definitely didn't want to behave.
"How did you end up in the labs?" She asked, quietly, after a few brush strokes.
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Oddly, he didn't appear to have changed in shape or size at all, despite eating them and leaving no trace of their existence. He was a weird one, if he even was a 'him'. He hadn't studied him closely enough to check, but he didn't remember seeing any obvious signs of gender.
Timcanpy himself fluttered into her hair and nestled there quite happily, as he had done to Axel on the way from the church.
"I got sold to them." He said, his words sounding hollow, even to himself. "For rather a lot of gil, if I remember correctly."
He had no idea whether slavery was big or banned on this world, or whether people-trafficking was commonplace or not. The groups he'd been passed between or run into had obviously been operating either above or below the law, so it made him think that it wasn't too common, but he could never tell for sure.
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When her attempts to tame Axel's hair were obviously failing, she huffed, putting one hand on her hip and swiftly changing the subject; "I'm going to get some water." And she did, disappearing into the back of the shop for a few minutes. When she came back out she was carrying a jug of water, and had a bright smile on her face. "Now it'll behave," she said, confidently.
At least she didn't just pour it over Axel's head. Instead she wet the hairbrush and combed it through Axel's hair that way.
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"Hopefully!" He replied, sitting up straighter. "It's just not used to being flat."
Well, it wasn't, but it would have to learn if he wanted to look girly enough to pass for a lady.
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With the help of the water, it wasn't long before Aerith had Axel's hair held neatly in her hand. At which point she divided it into two sections before she took the first piece of elastic, and then ribbon, tying a sweet and floppy bow around the fastening.
Then she did the same with the other side before walking around to inspect her handiwork. She looked pleased, tilting her head as she commented, "You have a really pretty face. It's harder to tell with your hair in all those spikes."
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He kind of hoped it was a long one, and then slapped himself internally for even thinking it. He shouldn't have dress preferences, but... then again. Leg waxing wasn't something he really wanted to go through and a pretty disguise could easily be ruined by red leg hair.
"So you think I pass?" He asked with a lopsided grin that was all too boyish for his hairstyle.
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A bow and a flower. He was never going to live this one down. Or, at least, that's what he would be thinking if he had anybody to be embarrassed about seeing him like that. As it was, he didn't. Except Timcanpy, who he almost wanted to glue pigtails to to make him look as silly.
On the upside, he was used to ankle-length black clothing, but he hadn't envisioned having to get back into it in this way, if at all.
"Black's just fine," he said, looking at the dress, then at himself. "I'm going to look stupid, aren't I?"
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At least Axel wasn't asking in the present tense.
Aerith swept around Axel, taking his arm in hers and all but dragging him out of the chair and pushing him towards the changing room. "Try it on! I want to see!"
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"I can't believe I'm doing this."
And he changed. With some degree of difficulty. Well, he'd never put a dress on before, had he? They seemed like simple, one-piece garments but they weren't that easy, with their hidden zips and silly length. After a few moments he stepped out, looking a lot more girly than he'd like.
"... ta da." He said flatly, spreading his hands with an extremely awkward expression on his face.
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