Mallside 10

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"They do look stylish, but I think there's a chance of them falling off," Wenomir says honestly. This is far too serious a concern to sugarcoat things. "I don't exactly have a lot of experience with glasses, but something could knock them off her head."

[Earl of Purple]

Erin's

"If you can do magic of any kind, you're already better at magic than many people out there. I'm not from your world, but where I'm from, there's lots of types of magic but it only ever lets you learn one type. If you can't excel in one area, you should focus on where you do excel." Natalie doesn't realise she's encouraging blood magic, but then there's nothing wrong with blood magic- so long as you're using your own blood, anyway.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Shanti gives Wenomir a flat look. But in truth she was thankful that he was there to play the bad guy as she ultimately agreed with him. "So what glasses would you suggest then, Wenomir?" She inquires. "You have any ideas how to handle that?"

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"I don't wanna wear a blindfold anymore. I wanna wear these." Natharia puts her hands on her hips and glares at Wenomir.

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Wenomir suppresses a sigh. Shanti's ploy doesn't seem to be entirely lost on him. Well, he can play the bad cop here for a bit...

"I suggest simply asking one of the staff about ways to make sunglasses stay on firmly. We can't be the first people with this kind of problem, if not for those exact reasons."

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Shanti seems to consider Wenomir's words for a moment before turning to her daughter. "Would that be alright, you think? We can just ask. No blindfold anymore though, those are yours either way." She gestures at the glasses.

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Hmmm... okay. Let's ask." natharia's expression softens and she smiles. The girl turns around to see who's around to ask.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

I believe that part can be handwaved as Natharia will be suggested the accessories that will keep her new glasses securely fitted to her ears.
"Perfect. Now what else would you like, sweetie? Or perhaps we can go and find those warmer clothes I mentioned before?" Shanti suggests if Natharia don't have anything else she can think of.

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Hmm, I think that's enough." The girl decides. Once they've paid for the new clothes, Natharia will get the tags cut off the outfit she last tried on and wear it out of the store. She can't help but grin as they go.

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Where to now?" Wenomir asks as they leave. It is good to see Natharia smile, he supposes. It'll get her mind off the entire encounter with demons.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"As I said, she needs warmer clothing. So that's what we're going to get." This time Shanti will lead. Though she won't be going so fast that Natharia don't have a chance to look around.
She is going to arcane threads. An all-purpose clothing store that simply has to have the kind of clothes that she's looking for. Sure enough, Shanti has soon picked out five pair of socks, two jackets, two pairs of warmer trousers, and a knitted cap and gloves for her daughter.
But she isn't done yet. "Do your snakes need clothes as well?" She suddenly inqures. "I can't tell."

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Natharia follows along, not as interested in some aspects of this part, though she does have some feedback, Like, "Oh no no, put that one back!" But otherwise it goes pretty smoothly.

That question throws her for a loop, though. "Uh... How'd I know? It's warm now?"

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Snakes normally hibernate in winter, don't they?" Wenomir asks. He is still a farmboy in some measure. "But I doubt Natharia's will. I can't think of what we'd put on them, though."

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"I was thinking something like arm socks, but made for them." A beat. "Perhaps cute little hats too. What do you think of that, sweetie? This store has pretty much everything so I wouldn't be surprised if they had that too." They have seen eye-stalk socks and centaur shorts in here (both versions you're imagining) so it isn't unthinkable.

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Pfft!" Natharia scoffs. That's silly. "How'd they stay on?" She challenges.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Erin's]

Iknika's ears dip slightly. She's all too familiar with stifling expectations being placed on her, so she's quick to empathize with Yasril here.

"What do your teachers want, exactly?"

Erin's

"If you can do magic of any kind, you're already better at magic than many people out there. I'm not from your world, but where I'm from, there's lots of types of magic but it only ever lets you learn one type. If you can't excel in one area, you should focus on where you do excel." Natalie doesn't realise she's encouraging blood magic, but then there's nothing wrong with blood magic- so long as you're using your own blood, anyway.

[Erin's]

Yasril shakes her head. "...nevermind." She says. She's not keen on revealing more than she already has - which is too much. "I just need to work harder at doing things the... correct way."

[Morty]

[Erin's]

"Maybe, but it's no use trying to force yourself to fit what people expect of you," Iknika says. "My father's not a fan of my learning to be a knight. Or dating a human."

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Sounds like they'd take a while to put on." Wenomir's out of his element here, so he'll just make random observations.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"They're socks, I assume they're just made to do that." She gestures to the right. "Let's go and see what they look like at least."

What they find look more like crotchets than socks. They seem to be made to cover most of the snakes body however. There is also "gorgon-wear" which are knitted caps that are so large that the intent seems to be to keep all the snakes inside of them. They come in versions that appear like long stocking caps or round ones that would have all the snakes curled up in a ball inside of them. There are also knitted caps with "stalks" which are numbered by the amount of eye-stalks, snakes, etc. the wearer have.
There are of course caps for the snakes themselves too.

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"These are so silly." Natharia laughs as she picks up one the last hats, shaking around it's 'sleeves'. "You think anyone actually wears them?" She drops it where she found it and grabs one of the larger hats. Her snakes ball up and she pulls it over. She immediately wrinkles her nose. "Ugh, no. I can't see right. It's like wearing my blindfold again."

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Wenomir only "hmmms" quietly at that. Does that mean Natharia can see through her snakes? That's useful, he imagines.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"What about the one with the stalks? It has openings for them so you can see." Shanti suggests as she holds one up that matches Natharia's number of snakes. "I think you're just supposed to pull it over your head like that one, and then the snakes find the openings themselves. Then when you take it off there is a zipper that undoes the whole cap which makes it pretty easy." She tries to show Natharia how it works.

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"But that's the goofy one!" Natharia protests. She just got done making fun of one of those! "It looks like some kinda weird creature."

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Shanti nods slowly. "Very well then, maybe just pick a normal knitted cap then? You have to have something on your head at least. It can get very cold during winter,"

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Okay." Natharia smiles, glad to have gotten her way. She grabs a random toque, not bothering to try it on. "Are we done?" She's still not taking the need for cold weather clothing very seriously.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Shanti picks out another toque and then nods. "For now. You better put it on right now though as our next stop will be the mountains, sweetie." She eyes Wenomir. "It's for a little ritual. Why don't you try out the clothes in the changing room? I want to see how you look in them."

[Gullara]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Uh, okay I guess." Natharia gives Shanti a confused look, but she can pepper her with questions after. The girl disappears into the changeroom.

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Wenomir's eyes narrow just slightly. He waits until Natharia is in the changing room before speaking quietly.

"A ritual in the mountains?"

Quietly and briefly, as it turns out.

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"Indeed, at another moon well specifically." Shanti replies with a suddenly lowered voice as she draws closer to Wenomir. "It's not like I don't trust VIGIL. You've saved me before after all. But I have a child now and she can't be trapped inside your base all the time since I fear some monsters might carry her away. What I intend to do is exactly what I already promised her. I will enable her father to guard over her. Not like in the physical sense, but to be able to intervene if danger occurs. That way Natharia can, like any other child, go around and find friends and live her life without having me watching over her like a hawk since I fear some kind of demons or something else might threaten her." She raises her palm as if to stop him. "And before you ask, this is not one of those rituals fiction fills your head with. There won't be any blood or dark forces at play. The snake god is her father and will grant her protection without demanding some toll in exchange."

[Morty]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

Rituals that fiction fills his head with? As if he hadn't seen plenty of rituals with his own two eyes.

"I cannot blame you for wanting to protect your child. And you're right that she can't be cooped up on our island forever. But I do not trust her father. I don't trust gods, as a rule. And his motives are far too unclear for my tastes."

[Shadowcaller]

[Hanging Out - NXS]

"This motive is a simple one, Wenomir. The snake god wish to protect their child and I think you both can agree with that goal. You can question everything else he do but don't let Natharia suffer for it. Neither you nor I can protect her every second, but he can. I don't have any other solution, rituals is what I do and he helped made her come into being. Simply let a father protect his child, unless of course you think Natharia is the nefarious component here?" Shanti argues, giving Wenomir a sharp look.