The Other Goods

[Electra]

Something had apparently gone wrong in Erin's game, since she was picking a knot out of the string loop when Alex made her appearance. Erin studied her friend for a minute, motioning her to turn around. "I really like that one," she finally said. "It's sort of your style, but all the colors match. And it's really flattering. If you put a necklace with it and some low heels, it'll probably look perfect. Do you like it?"

[alderwitch]

"I do. A lot. But I've learned that doesn't mean its a fashionable choice, " Her laugh confirmed it wasn't anything she minded but she was relieved this would pass and was something she liked.

Alex reappeared back in her regular clothes, the dress hung over one arm carefully and she eyed the string curiously, "Can you show me how to do that sometime?"

[Electra]

"Cat's cradle?" Erin shrugged. "Sure, it's easy. I learned it at summer camp when I was twelve or something. You can do more designs if you have two people. I'll show you next time we're sitting around for a few minutes." She shoved the string into her pocket and rose from her chair. "Do you want to get anything else while we're here? You got shoes, nylons, jewelry, makeup, good razor, all that stuff already?"

[alderwitch]

"Mmhmm, think so. Tho I dunno about nylons. Its too hot to be encased from waist down," she opinioned as they went to pay and Alex handed over cash for the dress and double checked the remainder in her wallet. "We can check the perfume people. I don't own any of that stuff but I don't want to smell like obsession or desperation or anything."

[Electra]

"You don't have to wear them, but they make your legs look more tan," Erin said with a shrug. Since her skin was nearly as fair as Alex's, she could understand some of the associated problems. "The museum will probably be cool inside." She led the way back into the cosmetics department, walking with the somewhat intimidating air of someone who did not want to be squirted by anyone with a perfume bottle.

The attitude, or the fact that Alex already had a store shopping bag, or some combination of both kept them unmolested as they made their way to a large tray of samples. Erin started picking up bottles and sniffing them in no particular order. "Some of these are for older women," she decided, setting aside a couple. "My mom likes that one," she said, pointing to a fluted bottle with fake jewels on it. "I used to like this one in the rainbow bottle, but not really anymore. And that one has really annoying commercials." She shrugged. "I guess you just pick the one that smells best to you."

[alderwitch]

She picked up one bottle at random and tested it carefully before wrinkling her nose, "Pungent. When I was little my mom used to let me play with the empty bottles. Perfume bottles are always so pretty. I used to play mad scientist with them and food dye. Mike always got to be the test subject for my concotions. Usually some horrible combination of kool-aids."

Normal had never been on the offing in the Albright household clearly, but Alex was grinning at the memory, "He always made the best faces. I like this one! Is it okay?"

It was a soft scent, faintly citrusy.

[Electra]

Erin sniffed the tester strip. "It's better than Kool-aid," she decided with a small smile. "It seems fine, not too strong. Sort of fruity, I guess, so that's good for summer. You nervous?" she asked suddenly. "I know you were thinking about whether or not to go out with him at all."

[alderwitch]

"I am nervous," Alex agreed, pausing in her selection of perfume bottle. She leaned her hip against the counter and gestured with her free hand, "Not so much with, like, the long term. I mean, you're right about planning decades out, but all the little stuff."

She waved her hand at the mall and all the people by way of explanation,"This is all new to me. I mean, I know I'm well grounded but we weren't allowed to interact with the normal population except for pretty monitored outings. I have lots of intellectual understanding of human interaction, not so much practical, but I like Mark. He's nice. I don't think he'll laugh at me if I make some real terrible faux paus. So worse case, I get a trip to the museum with a friend. That's what I tell myself everytime I feel like I might pass out."

She grinned and picked the smallest bottle. "It works about half the time."

[Electra]

"He's good practice," Erin said again. She took the fluted bottle with the jewels and sprayed some onto a tester strip, then folded the strip into her pocket. "I don't think he's going to laugh at you if you do something wrong, and he's got an easy way with people. It can't hurt to get some more experience with guys, and with being out in public. And the dress is great."

[alderwitch]

She couldn't help but laugh at that, shaking her head slightly as she selected her bottle and paid for it. She made a mental note of the bottle that Erin was looking at and tagged the thought for when Erin had a birthday or maybe for Christmas. Alex was slowly gathering a list of things her friends would want for their special days, but Erin was one of the hardest to shop for.

"I'm not so sure he'd be flattered by that description. I'm kinda relieved we're going to a museum, actually." Alex smiled and tucked the purfume in her bag, "I'll be way less nervous doing that than going dancing or something like that. A movie would be fun but its not something you really get to know each other doing, you know?"

[Electra]

"You see him every day," Erin pointed out with a short laugh. "You can get to know him any time. "Half the point of going out is just to go out and do something, whatever it is. But you'll probably like the museum better, because you can memorize all the displays. And you won't be just sitting in the dark, so all this shopping won't go to waste." She had half her attention on the conversation and half on the store and the crowd around them. The dinner-hour crowd was pretty thick, and it was more difficult to keep an eye on everything going on in the immediate area. "Is there anything else you need to get?"

[alderwitch]

"Nope, I'm good. You need anything while we're here?" Alex asked, holding the bag at her side as they left the department store, "We should grab dinner but we can get sandwiches to go and eat at home or on the top of some roof on the way back if you want."

She swung the bag lightly, a spring in her step and her mood cheery. It was a good day. Things were back to normal with Erin, she had a new dress and her very first date tonight and for once she was just going to enjoy the moments and not plan ahead. It was entirely a weekend of indulgence, but in a healthy way.

[Electra]

Erin opted just to shrug at the first question, figuring anything she had to say would sound self-pitying or worse. She concentrated on maneuvering them out the door to the relative peace outside the mall, reflexively pushing the electric door open instead of waiting for it. The door whined, but complied. "Let's go to McDonalds," she suggested. "They bake the french fries at school, and it's really not the same." She was very glad to escape the mall, but also a little proud of herself. She'd helped out a friend and braved a normal activity that she'd once really enjoyed. It had been a pretty good day.