***
Friday took forever to come, from Alices point of view. Even dealing with Crey operatives in the RWZ wasn't enough to keep her mind off the topic, as she
found herself imagining a thousand and one different dates, some of which she wouldn't even tell Neko about.
Eventually though, the night came, and Alice found herself waiting nervously. Nene was pulling apart a cell phone for parts, with Neko sitting on her shoulder
watching, when the doorbell rang. Ifrit went to answer the door, insistent that she do it (What was with her this week anyway?), leaving Alice trying not to
pace in front of Neko and Nene as Ifrit.
The Lady of the Peace was greeted by an Inyme that'd obviously taken a slight, if inept, attempt to spruce herself up. Her hair was different, and
obviously recently cut at a local barbershop. She looked up. "Is Alice in?
She smiled in response. "Waiting for you," she said, moving aside.
Inyme looked nervous, but schooled her expression tightly as she stepped inside. Nene, who'd not seen Inyme's new look yet, resisted the urge to
whistle. She nudged Alice. "Face it, tiger. You've just hit the jackpot."
Neko smiled, noting that Alice had stopped paying attention to her. "Hi," she managed.
"Hey," Inyme responded. "Ready to go?"
"Yeah... you look nice."
"...thanks," she said, as Nene restrained the urge to giggle at the awkwardness. Taking the initiative, she stood up, motioning Alice forward.
"Go on...you'll miss your movie otherwise," she grinned, scratching Neko's ears.
Alice made a surprised noise as she was pushed up close to Inyme
Inyme seemed to be fine enough with it, turning slightly to let her past towards the door. That, or she was just quicker to recover than Alice.
Alice let a smile form on her face as she stepped outside, staying alongside Inyme as she listened to the emotions and stray thoughts coming from the other
woman. Inyme's surface thoughts weren't half as secure as she looked on the outside, and the fact Alice could detect them at all, compared to her
friend's...her girlfriend's? training showed that Inyme didn't feel the need for shields around her.
That brought a smile to her face as she dropped her own shields. Sure, Inyme could probably pass them without noticing... but she felt it was important to
invite her in. Inyme looked over at her, the dark skinned woman somewhat surprised by the sudden action. Alice merely smiled, radiating simple satisfaction,
and more then a bit of nervousness still.
As they reached the lift, she reached out, taking Inymes hand, her slight nervousness still visible on her face. It was an instinctive reaction really, and
neither of them noticed they'd intertwined their fingers until it had happened.
The telepathic link seemed to intensify, Alice closing her eyes for a moment and letting the delight flow though her. There was no way she could explain how
right this felt, both the physical contact and the greater bond.
I was thinking about the movie, she said, neither of them noticing her mouth wasn't moving, even as the glow in
her eyes dropped to near invisible levels. Images of trailers and ads flickered between them, all remembered from when Alice was watching television.
Oh? Which one?
Well, there's all the hero ones, but we get enough of that during the day... Nene mentioned Wall-E, she said, as
Inyme got a glimpse of an oddly adorable little robot.
...that one sounds good.
It shifted into a comfortable silence, the only thoughts really passing through Alices mind being wonder at the sensation of Inymes thoughts and the physical
contact, a soft purring starting to develop in her chest.
As they walked, an odd conversation began to form, Inyme asking questions of the movie while Alice answered, never noticing she wasn't actually talking. It
was wonderfully calming, leaving the both of them rather relaxed as they arrived at the cinema. To Alices mild surprise, it was rather quiet for a Friday, and
they got right up to the counter without waiting.
Two for Wall-E please, she said, reluctantly letting go of Inymes hand to open her purse and fetch some money. The
person at the entryway blinked in surprise, but nodded, taking their money and handing them the tickets. Alice smiled, even as her hand sought out Inymes
again.
You'd think he'd never seen a catgirl before, she chuckled
Mmm... Inyme nodded.
We're hardly a rare breed in this city, she joked. Inyme could almost taste the comfort that passed through Alice
at that. Where once, her changing body had left her uncertain and nervous, there was now a sense of pride in the body she now saw as herself. It brought a
smile to her face as they got snacks.
***
Friday took forever to come, from Alices point of view. Even dealing with Crey operatives in the RWZ wasn't enough to keep her mind off the topic, as she
found herself imagining a thousand and one different dates, some of which she wouldn't even tell Neko about.
Eventually though, the night came, and Alice found herself waiting nervously. Nene was pulling apart a cell phone for parts, with Neko sitting on her shoulder
watching, when the doorbell rang. Ifrit went to answer the door, insistent that she do it (What was with her this week anyway?), leaving Alice trying not to
pace in front of Neko and Nene as Ifrit.
The Lady of the Peace was greeted by an Inyme that'd obviously taken a slight, if inept, attempt to spruce herself up. Her hair was different, and
obviously recently cut at a local barbershop. She looked up. "Is Alice in?
She smiled in response. "Waiting for you," she said, moving aside.
Inyme looked nervous, but schooled her expression tightly as she stepped inside. Nene, who'd not seen Inyme's new look yet, resisted the urge to
whistle. She nudged Alice. "Face it, tiger. You've just hit the jackpot."
Neko smiled, noting that Alice had stopped paying attention to her. "Hi," she managed.
"Hey," Inyme responded. "Ready to go?"
"Yeah... you look nice."
"...thanks," she said, as Nene restrained the urge to giggle at the awkwardness. Taking the initiative, she stood up, motioning Alice forward.
"Go on...you'll miss your movie otherwise," she grinned, scratching Neko's ears.
Alice made a surprised noise as she was pushed up close to Inyme
Inyme seemed to be fine enough with it, turning slightly to let her past towards the door. That, or she was just quicker to recover than Alice.
Alice let a smile form on her face as she stepped outside, staying alongside Inyme as she listened to the emotions and stray thoughts coming from the other
woman. Inyme's surface thoughts weren't half as secure as she looked on the outside, and the fact Alice could detect them at all, compared to her
friend's...her girlfriend's? training showed that Inyme didn't feel the need for shields around her.
That brought a smile to her face as she dropped her own shields. Sure, Inyme could probably pass them without noticing... but she felt it was important to
invite her in. Inyme looked over at her, the dark skinned woman somewhat surprised by the sudden action. Alice merely smiled, radiating simple satisfaction,
and more then a bit of nervousness still.
As they reached the lift, she reached out, taking Inymes hand, her slight nervousness still visible on her face. It was an instinctive reaction really, and
neither of them noticed they'd intertwined their fingers until it had happened.
The telepathic link seemed to intensify, Alice closing her eyes for a moment and letting the delight flow though her. There was no way she could explain how
right this felt, both the physical contact and the greater bond.
I was thinking about the movie, she said, neither of them noticing her mouth wasn't moving, even as the glow in
her eyes dropped to near invisible levels. Images of trailers and ads flickered between them, all remembered from when Alice was watching television.
Oh? Which one?
Well, there's all the hero ones, but we get enough of that during the day... Nene mentioned Wall-E, she said, as
Inyme got a glimpse of an oddly adorable little robot.
...that one sounds good.
It shifted into a comfortable silence, the only thoughts really passing through Alices mind being wonder at the sensation of Inymes thoughts and the physical
contact, a soft purring starting to develop in her chest.
As they walked, an odd conversation began to form, Inyme asking questions of the movie while Alice answered, never noticing she wasn't actually talking. It
was wonderfully calming, leaving the both of them rather relaxed as they arrived at the cinema. To Alices mild surprise, it was rather quiet for a Friday, and
they got right up to the counter without waiting.
Two for Wall-E please, she said, reluctantly letting go of Inymes hand to open her purse and fetch some money. The
person at the entryway blinked in surprise, but nodded, taking their money and handing them the tickets. Alice smiled, even as her hand sought out Inymes
again.
You'd think he'd never seen a catgirl before, she chuckled
Mmm... Inyme nodded.
We're hardly a rare breed in this city, she joked. Inyme could almost taste the comfort that passed through Alice
at that. Where once, her changing body had left her uncertain and nervous, there was now a sense of pride in the body she now saw as herself. It brought a
smile to her face as they got snacks.
***