[closed] move, groove, prove you can handle me

[galactically]

Who: Sheryl (galactically) and Slaine (adept)
What: Slaine gets to see Sheryl's panties — by accident
When: March 16th
Where: Town
Warnings: hideousness

[Dealing with yesterday's unwarranted fiasco has left Sheryl with memories of the sudden sickness deep within her thoughts, monsters of varying degrees of ugly and horrifying notwithstanding. Since then, she's more or less upset with "the most incompetent and irresponsible group of gods ever" — her words, naturally — and she plans to make her complaints heard loud and clear to every god like herself and shinki.

But first, she needs to clear her head... by shopping. Although her budget is very low for an intergalactic pop star, she manages to emerge from a nearby store carrying a tiny bag of clothes tucked in the crook of her arm. This could've otherwise been an uneventful day in town, if Sheryl paid any attention to the lacy black panties hanging just outside her bag.

Or if a nearby dog didn't just snatch the underwear with its teeth. Or if it didn't have that piece of cloth stuck around its muzzle.]

Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

[Did you hear that? It's the sound of Sheryl's horrified shrills echoing through the town as she starts chasing after that furry panty thief.]

My panties! Give them back to me, you pervert! COME BACK!

Comments

[galactically]

[She looks at Slaine with mild confusion on her face before she shakes her head and giggles a little, a hand hovering over her mouth.]

You're making it sound like I kept it as a pet. Well, it wasn't too bad...

[There's a momentary pause as she considers her next words. It's not too often that Sheryl brings up a subject from her home fleet.]

All animals in Galaxy have implants, even cats, so I've never had any interest. [A beat.] Until I got myself a pet at Frontier.

[ex_adept179]

...What was it, if not a pet?

[He feels the need to inquire after that first]

I'm not sure I follow, regarding implants.

[It sounds like something out of a story rather than the world they inhabit]

[galactically]

Just a random stray from the streets! That's all. It's nothing like little sea monkeys.

[She wouldn't have been able to keep the cat anyway, not when she once dealt with her own problems.]

Cybernetic devices that are attached to the brain. They're commonplace in Galaxy, where I lived, but illegal in other space fleets.

[ex_adept179]

You're saying that animals have those?

[He's not quite sure how to feel about that idea.

What do they do to pets, if they have something like that?]

[galactically]

Every living being in Galaxy has them, including the people who live there. My home's government makes these implants strictly mandatory to have.

[Something that Sheryl can't say she's fond of, as the apprehensive tone seeps through in her voice. Of course, she makes sure to add one more thing, proudly at that:]

I don't have implants, by the way. Everything about me is all natural.

[ex_adept179]

[She seems quite proud of that, but it leaves Slaine to wonder...]

What are the implants for though?

[galactically]

Many things. For example, they can record images through a person's eyes, or learn names directly from their minds. They can even hack into computers! The possibilities are endless...

[She pauses, pursing her lips a little in thought.]

My ex-manager has implants.

[ex_adept179]

That kind of advancement...

[It doesn't sound familiar at all to him]

As convenient as that might be, it also sounds unsettling.

[galactically]

It's unnatural, having a gadget inserted into you like it's supposed to be part of your body.

[And this only reminds Sheryl of Grace even more...]

Well, that's not to say it's so bad, but I can see why people would be unsettled by them.

[ex_adept179]

It just seems a little invasive in its application...

[Somehow people having implants doesn't seem that foreign, there were less sophisticated versions and prosthetics even here.

But the sheer volume of functions those devices were capable of was concerning]

[galactically]

When you come from a place known for cyborgs and chemical plants like I do... that's normal.

[But Slaine isn't wrong there. She can't disagree with his words.

There's a small pause as Sheryl gives a small, casual shrug.]

That's why when I tell people I don't have implants, they're honestly surprised. You see... [She leans forward, a light smirk tugging at her lips.] It's one of my highest selling points.

[ex_adept179]

...Because it's unusual?

[He's just going to take a guess, because he isn't sure what else that would connote. At least insofar as "selling points" were concerned.

There'd doubtless be an appeal to being an unusual case]

[galactically]

Because it's appealing!

[She says with a proud lilt to her voice, resting a hand on her hip like she expects Slaine to be impressed.]

There's no one in Galaxy quite like me, which helps me stand out in the music industry.

[ex_adept179]

[He listens to this carefully, takes in her posture, and...]

So it is because it's unusual.

[Totally taking what she said as confirmation]

[galactically]

Slaine!

[She's just... going to move her hand off her hip and poke him on the cheek with a finger, all the while pouting at him.]

I'm much more than just my visual appeal, I'll have you know!

[ex_adept179]

[She's not the first god to pout at him, actually.

Rather than brush her hand away, he just waits for her to move it herself]

...I hadn't assumed that implants were visible to start with.

[This is still what they're talking about, isn't it?]

[galactically]

I know that!

[Luckily Slaine doesn't have to wait too long for Sheryl to move her finger away, as her hand eventually drops to her side. Still rather pouty, though.]

I just meant that my being natural works wonders.

[ex_adept179]

It seems that rarity has an appeal, at least from what I've seen so far.

[Things that were scarce were regarded as precious and thus sought after. Diamonds were a ready example, simply from seeing advertisements.

Not that she's actually asking for theories, but...well]

[galactically]

It does. What is valuable and sought after must be treasured at all costs. You'll never know when you see it again.

[Nevermind that she thinks highly of herself to begin, but this time she's not just referring to people like her.]

[ex_adept179]

I suppose that would be why people react the way they do.

[He can't say he entirely relates to that yet, coveting something in that way. But then, he remembers only his name, and only bits and pieces of the world around him are familiar]

[galactically]

Will you do the same, Slaine? If you find something you value the most.

[A curious expression settles across her face as she looks at Slaine, wondering if he's the type she guesses he is.]

[ex_adept179]

[Slaine weighs that thought with a soft hum]

I think I would have to find it first, to know for sure.

[What would he value most...?]

[galactically]

I hope you can find it. Everyone has at least one thing they desire.

[She looks up to the sky, a longing expression over her features.]

A person, a goal, a dream...

[ex_adept179]

Perhaps I had one and simply don't remember anymore.

[It's the best that he can surmise, right about now.

There might have been something lost with the rest of his memories]

But what do you pursue?

[galactically]

Don't you think you should search for it?

[Sheryl surmises that it won't be easy for someone like Slaine, but he strikes her as a stubborn man. Surely he might reach for it if he tries...

She knits her brows, humming in thought as she stretches an arm out to the sky.]

For now, I want to be reunited with the people of Frontier.