thenearshore | (no subject)

I was here the other day.

[ Trying to find some new sunglasses. Do you like them, by the way? He's go them on now, even as they're inside the mall. ]

But there's a lot more people here than I remember last time.

[ No wonder a child got lost. ]

Edited 2017-06-02 15:26 (UTC)

[Celestia doesn't understand his taste in sunglasses, but she accepts it as part of who he is and makes no judgment.]

We must find the child that looks scared and alone, first of all. She surely cannot be too far.

[With a confidence she doesn't entirely feel, Celestia strides into the crowd.]

[ Bandou's caught up looking around when he finally notices Celestia is no longer beside him. Shit, is he lost, too now? Thankfully his goddess has undeniably unique hair so he's able to pick her out of the crowd easily enough. He jogs up to her, having to nudge past a few shoppers, who end up rather surprised when they look to see who bumped them and no one's there. ]

Hey, wait up!

[ But he stops abruptly, gaze quickly moving to their left. ]

Do you hear that?

[She's also six feet tall in her human form -- all in all, very difficult to lose entirely. But when Bandou calls out, she stops too, turning back to face him.]

What do you hear?

[Human hearing is much less keen than equine, she has realized, and moreover the placement and lack of rotation in human ears are all quite different than what she expects. If Bandou says he hears something, she believes him.]

A kid crying.

[ Though, that could be any kid, really. There's a lot of people here, and kids cry all the time, even when they aren't separated from their family. But it's worth a shot, right? ]

We should investigate. [One way or the other. It isn't something she can ignore, and so she looks to Bandou for guidance, even as she focuses to try to hear it herself.]

Come on.

[ Without really thinking about it, Bandou reaches to take his goddess' hand as he leads them towards the sound. Maybe to keep them from being separated in the crowds of shoppers, or maybe as a way to reassure her, since he knows she's still awkward about being in her human form. ]

It was a little girl, right?

[The only thing she finds strange about Bandou taking her hand is that she has a hand to take. Humans never cease to amaze her in how they find ways to use their hands!]

Yes. [She's already on the lookout.] Ah, I hear it now too -- that way?

I think so, yeah.

[ You'll get used to it eventually, Celestia. And Bandou will help you out!

He pauses a moment, before looking towards the long hallway leading off from the food court. Maybe they were so scared the went and hid by themselves. Bandou pulls Celestia along behind him, squeezing past the lines of people who are trying to get some food as they break from their shopping. ]

[Celestia kind of feels like maybe she should be the one leading the way.]

[--Oh! She gently tugs on Bandou's hand, the better to call his attention to the shadows behind a freestanding ad.] Bandou. Over there. I think I see her.

Yeah?

[ Maybe his hearing isn't as good as he thought. Or maybe the other was just some child fussing as their parent brought them to the restroom. Either way, Bandou let's Celestia take control and follows her. ]

I hope she doesn't get scared by us.

[ What would look like a random couple suddenly coming up and talking to her. Hopefully she realizes the two of them are there to answer her call for help. ]

[More than likely, it was an echo effect thanks to the advertisement. Celestia would never have noticed if not for him drawing her this way.]

[But as for his fears? He has little to worry about. When Celestia kneels down, she brings with her the majesty and wonder that comes from being an alicorn goddess. A child can recognize such things; a child can believe in wonder and magic still.]

Hello. Are you lost?

[ The little girl pauses her crying as Celestia kneels before her. And his goddess was right, her crying ceases and she looks up to Celestia with a sense of wonder in her eyes. She nods her head quickly, calmer but still a bit nervous to speak. ]

Hey, it's okay. We're here to help you.

[ Bandou tries to be reassuring as he squats down beside Celestia. He certainly isn't as majestic as his goddess - and in fact, would appear far more suspicious than he actually is with his usual attire - but his voice is calm enough and his words sound sincere. ]

Can you tell us what your parents look like? [The first and easiest step, that will keep them from needing to use magic or other tricks to accomplish this whole mission.]

[ The young girl nods before giving them some...sort of helpful information. Apparently her mom has long hair and has a pretty dress on. And her dad's tall and should get rid of his mustache cause it tickles when he kisses her.

Bandou can't help but smile at that last part. Dammit, kids can be adorable sometimes. ]

[Even Celestia can't help but giggle just a little, though she manages to seem very dignified in doing so.]

Bandou, do you think that is enough to go on? [On the one hoof, she would like to stay with the child, thinking herself more suited to keeping her calm and happy. On the other, she isn't quite as good at telling humans apart as one born to the species is, yet... to her embarrassment.]

Eh. It might be.

[ Though he scratches at the back of his head as he stands back up. Damn, there's a lot of people here. But, maybe they can rule out any of the other long haired, dress-wearing women and tall mustached men who don't look distressed over losing a child. He's already looking around, trying to use that logic to help him spot someone. ]

She probably would have seen or heard them if they were around this area, though.

I will trust you with this, then. If you can't find them, come back, and we'll think of another way.

[She can accept that he might not succeed in looking, but this is the best place to start. Offering him a reassuring smile, she turns back to the girl, the better to ask a few gentle question to keep her mind off her missing parents.]

[Celestia has never been and will never be a mother, but she has so much experience to draw on nonetheless, this is something she can do very easily.]

[ Bandou gives the tiny girl a supportive pat on the head before walking off to see if he can locate her parents. The fact that most of the people in the mall can't see him helps. It'd be a little odd to see a hooded, sunglassed man wandering around, looking he's lost as he checks out nearly everyone.

But suddenly he has a thought. Not that he has any experience with having a child, but these places usually have some kind of security station, right? If he'd been missing someone, he'd definitely head there.

Issue with that is, the security guys don't really seem to notice Bandou, either. So he's standing there at the counter, waving his arms and yelling to try and get them to pay attention. It's not working to well. ]

Dammit. How come those stupid vendors can always see me and these guys can't?

[Meanwhile, Celestia is delighting the girl with little acts of magic -- sparkles passing in the wake of her hands, for example. Nothing major, but enough to keep a child believing in wonder for that much longer.]

[If Bandou doesn't find the parents, she reasons, then perhaps they will find him -- even if by accident, for they must have noticed their missing girl by now. And she keeps her eyes on the walkway, looking for sad and troubled parents herself.]

[ Beyond irritated that nothing he's trying is working, Bandou slumps against the side of the security booth - arms crossed and muttering to himself. What the hell else is he supposed to do?

He's just about to accept that this idea was a flop when two people rush up to the booth, obviously in distress. He leans in slightly trying to get a good look at them and hear what they're saying. Well, the lady is wearing a dress, and her hair's kinda long. And the guy with her's got a mustache. It's hard to tell what they're saying as it's all rushed and interrupted by the lady's tears, but that's gotta be them, right?

Trouble is...how does he lead them to their kid if they can't see him? ]

[This is starting to take a long time indeed, isn't it. Celestia glances back down the hall, looking for her wayward shinki. She could call him back, but if he's in the middle of something that would be bad...]

Say, I have an idea. Why don't you write a letter while we're waiting? You can tell your parents about the fascinating adventure you had while they were away.

[From a pouch tucked under one wing, she tugs out a quill pen and a rolled up sheet of paper for the girl.]

[ Even though he isn't with his goddess right now, a similar idea pops into Bandou's head. Write something! Perhaps Celestia's rubbing off on him.

But unlike her, he doesn't keep a stash of paper and quills with him, so instead, he hops over the counter of the security booth, not caring at this point if they suddenly notice him. There's a note pad and some pens conveniently laid out on the desk and he quickly scrawls out a note to the parents: ]

we have her at the food court!

[ He's about to slide it over when he realizes that kinda sounds creepy and like she's being held hostage or something. ]

and shes safe!!
i promise
just hurry up and go there!

[ He pushes the note pad in front of the mother, who looks down, confused. But she quickly grabs it, shows her husband and the two thank the officers before rushing towards the food court. ]

[The girl has just long enough to get drawn into scribbling on the paper when the sound of hurried footsteps catches Celestia's attention. She has just enough time to get out of the way before the parents descend to scoop up their child and shower her with relieved affection.]

[She isn't calling attention to herself now, so their notice slides straight off her as she gets to her feet, glancing around for her shinki.]

[ And here he comes, running up behind the parents. He got a bit caught up in the flow of customers, but he makes it in time to see their reunion with their daughter. He can't help but smile. ]

That took longer than I thought.

At the end of the day, the result is all that matters, not the path we took to get to it. Thank you, Bandou. [She smiles at him as she steps away, turning to watch the reunion from a more respectful distance.]

[ Yes, exactly. That's why his clan had no issues busting in on mobsters to get the info they needed.

But that 'thank you' means a whole lot more to Bandou than most people would probably feel. He brightens, smiling. ]

Yeah? I did good then?

Very good. And now that filly will have quite a story to tell.

I think we've earned a reward. Shall we get some ice cream? They sell that here, don't they?

[ Pretty much beaming right now. He looks around at all the stalls in the court before finally spotting a self serve ice cream place. ]

Yeah, there's a place over there. Come on.

Wonderful! [And Celestia leads the way, practically radiating satisfaction and delight.]