[... It is a much smoother description than she was managing, at least. And flattering enough sounding for a warrior, so. Let it be that. At first, she almost protests against having the door opened for her, but... Fine, it made sense. She has... been stuck in a door like this before, when it decided to try and close on her equine half. So she ducks her head in both a bow and the practical motion required to get through the more human-friendly entranceway, only straightening back up once she is inside and has the space.
Well. Some space. She can't really do any turning around, so Yuri is going to have to catch up be either sidling real close past her or cutting around different aisles.]
Do you have anything to recommend? Nothing immodest, preferably.
[ Yuri opts for the more circuitous route of circling an aisle and returning to her. It hardly delays them, spares Hayame some crowding, and allows him a brief survey of wares on display. A few prospects catch his eye immediately, but he doesn't comment upon them just yet. ]
I'd never assume someone wants to bare their skin unless they say as much. You've seen the way Byleth and I dress.
[ Damn near every inch covered, save their heads. Not to mention, even during that vacation, they'd hunted down dark clothing that covered enough for their comfort. The both of them have their reasons and it sets something of a bar for what Yuri would pick out. ]
Besides, based on the purpose, exposing less is preferable. Cover anything distinctive that someone might use for identification later, yeah?
[ With that having been said, he backtracks to collect a couple of garments which may fit the bill. One is a long, hooded overcoat with loose sleeves, the thickness of which suggests some level of protection. Its cut shouldn't restrict movement and he pairs it with trousers made from a flexible material. ]
The hood on this is fairly deep, though I'd still suggest covering the bottom half of the face. A mask or veil, possibly.
[Look, she has seen the way he and Byleth dress. That is part of why she had selected Yuri to assist her in choosing clothing today, and not one of her female... "friends". Sure, there are not as many female shard-bearers to begin with, but she had gone and ended up with the one who dressed the most provocatively of any person Hayame had ever seen in her life. Not. Shopping partner material, maybe.]
The face, I think, is most important to obscure. Somehow, without negatively impacting vision, if possible...
[Did such a fashion exist... ? He brings back a coat with the suggestion of a veil, but... First, her attention is caught by. Trousers. Which she reaches out to feel, pulling on the material.]
Is this not... tight? On the hips?
[... She is trying to say crotch, but. She didn't get how women fought with fabric up between their legs like that, surely it's distracting... ?]
[ Yuri isn't concerned over the fact that Hayame is questioning pants. It's necessarily different from the apparel she wears, given the nature of her anatomy, so he doesn't think all too much of it. Doubtless, it's difficult to envision or anticipate how it would fit. ]
They should fit closely against the skin without constricting. This material, especially, is both durable and flexible.
[ The elasticity isn't something with which he'd been familiar upon arrival, but he'd quickly found it useful. He wouldn't wear it on a battlefield by any means, but that's what the overcoat and a good set of boots would be for. ]
Much easier to move about in than skirts, as well. No loose fabric to get tangled or twisted at an inopportune moment.
[It is very different from the apparel she can wear on her equine half, and it is very different from the garb humans wore in her world. Some did wear a sort of trousers, but most people still primarily clad themselves in kimono, both men and women. She had automatically pictured herself in the same, but...
Perhaps it would serve to identify her too well, if her opponents were aware of her origins. It could be wise to get as far away from the familiar as possible. And knowing that... well, it makes her lips purse, but.]
... And. Does it require undergarments?
[Asking a man that may be obscene, but. She knows what Akua's look like, and surely Yuri would not hand her something tiny and barely crafted out of anything but lace.]
That'd be best, especially if she's going to be moving about a lot. Kicks, jumps, that sort of thing.
[ At first, Yuri responds to this question as purely hypothetical. After a moment to reflect, however, it seems to him that this may suggest a particular need where apparel is concerned. ]
Does the lady in question need undergarments as well?
[ He phrases this as politely as he can, simply because he can tell Hayame doesn't particularly want to discuss smallclothes. From what he knows of her culture, it's likely that this crosses certain lines of modesty she isn't at all comfortable with, so he'll do his best not to make it more difficult for her than it has to be. ]
[The lady in question... is blushing ever-so-slightly despite herself. She does not mean to, truly, hoping to maintain the illusion a bit longer, but... She had assumed Yuri would suss it out, so she planned to be clear eventually. Maybe... once they picked out a few more garments...
In this world, you often were given the chance to try things on before purchasing, so...]
[ Yuri clearly observes the warm tint to her cheeks, but he doesn't remark upon it. Instead, he turns on his heel and starts strolling toward a display table with a variety of women's undergarments arrayed upon its surface in a variety of colors and materials. ]
In that case, let's opt for something practical, shall we? Some of this is more for show than wear.
[ He doubts he needs to point out which ones are which, veering away from the more lacy offerings and toward underwear that will be better for its intended purpose. ]
[Normally, someone might follow a man leading his way over to that section of the store, but. Hayame... does not! In fact, she becomes very interested in looking through the clothing options on the racks in front of her.]
[ Yuri doesn't question her or call her over, seeing as it's clear she wants nothing to do with the underwear. Instead, he busies himself with selecting a few options he thinks will be easy to move in and moves on to what he recalls Xanadu's mall selling as a "sports bra". A brassiere would require knowing a woman's size, but not so with these garments.
After he collects these, he moves on to collecting other clothing both easy to move and conceal one's identity in before he reconvenes with Hayame. ]
[She has come up with some things as well, at least not willing to shirk this part of her duty even if she shies away from the parts she judges to be "immodest". (Was it not so to have a man touching women's underthings? Not as much as her having to be seen handling them, apparently!) So she has two things in her arms when he returns, and with everything...
Oh. She might have to ask to go to his home, if the staff had already seen--
No, thankfully, there is a little sign on the counter that says "will return in 15 minutes", and of those letters... Hayame does not even quite realize that she is doing it. She read it, "15", "minute", and "return"...]
Then let us swiftly appraise them.
[Before the shopkeeper came back. - Wait, why is Hayame the one going to the dressing room area, cordoned off with a curtain? ... If. Yuri had not surely figured out the gist by now.]
[ Yuri had his suspicions, but he hasn't seen someone change shape before. Yet here they are, with Hayame having stepped into the dressing room. He imagines he'll find out how this is going to work, pulling a nearby chair up close to the curtain and depositing the clothing he'd gathered there.
From that position, Hayame will be able to grab the clothing without exposing anything more than her arm. ]
[She probably should just explain it. She is pretty sure she is going to explain it. But to begin with... she finds the transformation unsettling, still, and nerve-wracking, and so she is focused first on just... doing it. Once she has done it... Well, he seems to understand decently enough.]
Thank you.
[There is no fanfare or notable sound, beyond the soft thump of what might be a heavier garment (her deer hide pelt wrap?) hitting the floor. And after that... the arm that reaches through the curtain is coming from a much lower angle than one would expect from a centaur over seven feet tall. Within, there is more rustling, the sound of grumbling, fumbling-
But eventually, a human woman just over five feet tall wearing Hayame's face and some of the clothing Yuri had picked out pulls the curtain back.]
- Is this being worn correctly?
[It... is a little off, in the fit. But she's decent.]
[ What manner of sorcery could alter Hayame in such a way? The question springs to the forefront of Yuri's mind, but he doesn't voice it in the moment. Instead, he takes in the sight of her apparel with a soft hum, bringing a hand to his chin. ]
Just about right, but we can get a better size for you. A moment.
[ With that, Yuri hurries off to grab another of the same garment. Seeing Hayame's present form makes it much simpler to choose clothing that will settle on her correctly, and he returns with it after shifting through the racks to find what they need. ]
This should be better.
[ He returns to offer her the clothes, expecting they'll give her the fit she needs. Even for spacious apparel, size matters. ]
[She... waits. As she does, Hayame shifts her weight awkwardly from foot to foot, toes curling in the carpets laid upon the dressing room floor. No matter how many times she did this, (and alright, she had only done it twice now), it felt so...
When Yuri comes back, she tries to straighten up and look collected, taking the clothing and disappearing back behind the drawn curtain. But while she is changing, finally, the offer comes though. That,]
[ So Hayame is willing to talk about it. Yuri weighs the thought with a muted hum. He certainly has questions and he is curious, especially because Hayame is so different from them in terms of physique on a normal day. And that's important to her, her identity, so surely she must have a purpose in blending in...
[Her tone says a bit obviously that she finds the differences between phrases such as "magic", "spell", "enchantment", and the rest a bit ridiculous, but at the same time... because she differentiates between the specifics of her own, more martial skills, she must respect them.
The fabric rustles, before,]
- In a bracelet.
[She was not the jewelry sort of woman. But she had been wearing one on her left wrist.]
It is not permanent by any means.
[She had been sure to check, because... She wasn't a human, she was a jinba, she couldn't just... just be something else, and-]
Enchantment, huh... Such a thing would be a cradle tale in my world.
[ Something fit for the fanciful sorts of tales children could better envision than adults. Still, the results are undeniable when it comes to Hayame. He can plainly see that she's taken on a human shape, and it can't be an illusion when she can touch and put on the clothes. ]
Must be a novel experience, taking on a different form.
[ He can only imagine what that would be like. Sure, he'd wound up riddled with scales and had a fish tail some months prior, but this strikes him as more dramatic. Despite how it impacted his mobility and breathing, he'd been essentially the same size. ]
[Shape-shifting kitsune, or manipulative ghosts... that was not supposed to be real. But none of this was. None of it.]
"Novel" is not what I would call it.
[More rustling, fabric shifting. Slow, because she is busy thinking instead of-]
It is... not comfortable.
[She almost called it painful, but that would be something of a lie. She had felt like she was suffocating at first, to lack four lungs and only rely on two. Having only one heart had made her feel so empty. But it was not "painful", it was just...]
[ He huffs out a vaguely amused breath. With Byleth having once suddenly awoken in dragon form and all, Yuri has some experience with wild changes in shape under his belt, but the two are different in more ways than one. For starters, past initial shock (and then disappointment that he'd done it in his sleep), Byleth had been eager to test the abilities of his new form.
It was strange, the mercenary had told him, but not unpleasant. In Hayame's case, it seems to be decidedly unpleasant indeed. ]
I won't deny that we can be fragile. But we've got other strengths, so it's just a matter of taking advantage of those when you need them.
[ He wants to say that she'll acclimate, but he doesn't know, and he suspects she wouldn't like the sound of it. So he focuses instead on practicality. ]
Stealth, for instance, seems to be something you've already considered.
[For all that she complained, Hayame knew well the strengths that humans had. They were not the same as jinba, though, and that is what threw her. Humans were more... more innovative, they had more numbers... and they could be more stealthy. That is what she is counting on.]
Everyone in Zenith, now in Highstorm too, after that Harbinger Oracle... They know of me as a "centaur". I stand out wherever I go.
[She pulls the curtain back, finally, revealing her form now clad in a much better fit, most of her swathed in cloth but for a single exposed eye, her dark hair and potentially identifiable face hidden with the way she has wrapped the headdress.]
[ Hayame raises a good point. Among Shardbearers, Hayame is unique. In that respect, it's difficult to evade notice, regardless of how little one may want attention. It would be potentially limiting in her pursuits.
Seeing how devoted she is to Meridian's cause, as well, that could have grown troublesome for her. But as she steps out, Yuri takes a few moments to thoughtfully assess her apparel. ]
...Worn like you do so every day.
[ With properly fitted garments, she doesn't stand out at all, save the fact that she's a fetching woman. ]
Anyone who doesn't know any better surely wouldn't suspect a thing.
Edited (not me mixing up details no siree) 2024-04-06 01:05 (UTC)
[If Hayame were the trusting type, then perhaps she would not have forced herself into this- to this scenario that she obviously finds uncomfortable and unfamiliar. She would trust that other Meridians would handle the things she could not, go where she could not go...
But she has always struggled with that. And the Oracles... what happened in the Iconoclast trial, the Harbinger trial... It only cemented for her, for better or for worse... that she needed to do more to make up for the weak amongst them.]
You surely exaggerate...
["Like she did every day"... she flusters just slightly and tugs at the garments, unused to having anything on her "hips" or legs.]
As long as it can fool the average eye I will make do with it...
[ It doesn't benefit her or their cause if he humors her. The original set of clothing was too large and it was clear Hayame had difficultied with those garments. These, though, make it evident that it was the fit itself rather than the lack of familiarity.
No doubt observing those around her and her own experience made it a simple task, even if it's an uncomfortable one. ]
I think the ensemble will suit your needs. Have you had much practice moving around in this form?
[... She will trust in that. He makes a decent point. As well-mannered as she found Yuri to be, there was a difference between being polite and actually failing to mention something tactically unsound. He knew why she was doing this- and it was. It was definitely the only reason she was doing this, so. That was just her... nerves.
And her discomfort with the very new and strange sensation of so many clothes beneath her waist. To test them more, she begins to circle in the dressing room, slow and somewhat awkward, the way she holds herself a bit... odd. Sort of like someone... used to having a nearly half ton equine lower half "behind" her.]
... A little.
[Liem had helped her practice walking, sitting, getting up and down, but...]
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[... It is a much smoother description than she was managing, at least. And flattering enough sounding for a warrior, so. Let it be that. At first, she almost protests against having the door opened for her, but... Fine, it made sense. She has... been stuck in a door like this before, when it decided to try and close on her equine half. So she ducks her head in both a bow and the practical motion required to get through the more human-friendly entranceway, only straightening back up once she is inside and has the space.
Well. Some space. She can't really do any turning around, so Yuri is going to have to catch up be either sidling real close past her or cutting around different aisles.]
Do you have anything to recommend? Nothing immodest, preferably.
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I'd never assume someone wants to bare their skin unless they say as much. You've seen the way Byleth and I dress.
[ Damn near every inch covered, save their heads. Not to mention, even during that vacation, they'd hunted down dark clothing that covered enough for their comfort. The both of them have their reasons and it sets something of a bar for what Yuri would pick out. ]
Besides, based on the purpose, exposing less is preferable. Cover anything distinctive that someone might use for identification later, yeah?
[ With that having been said, he backtracks to collect a couple of garments which may fit the bill. One is a long, hooded overcoat with loose sleeves, the thickness of which suggests some level of protection. Its cut shouldn't restrict movement and he pairs it with trousers made from a flexible material. ]
The hood on this is fairly deep, though I'd still suggest covering the bottom half of the face. A mask or veil, possibly.
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The face, I think, is most important to obscure. Somehow, without negatively impacting vision, if possible...
[Did such a fashion exist... ? He brings back a coat with the suggestion of a veil, but... First, her attention is caught by. Trousers. Which she reaches out to feel, pulling on the material.]
Is this not... tight? On the hips?
[... She is trying to say crotch, but. She didn't get how women fought with fabric up between their legs like that, surely it's distracting... ?]
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They should fit closely against the skin without constricting. This material, especially, is both durable and flexible.
[ The elasticity isn't something with which he'd been familiar upon arrival, but he'd quickly found it useful. He wouldn't wear it on a battlefield by any means, but that's what the overcoat and a good set of boots would be for. ]
Much easier to move about in than skirts, as well. No loose fabric to get tangled or twisted at an inopportune moment.
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Perhaps it would serve to identify her too well, if her opponents were aware of her origins. It could be wise to get as far away from the familiar as possible. And knowing that... well, it makes her lips purse, but.]
... And. Does it require undergarments?
[Asking a man that may be obscene, but. She knows what Akua's look like, and surely Yuri would not hand her something tiny and barely crafted out of anything but lace.]
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[ At first, Yuri responds to this question as purely hypothetical. After a moment to reflect, however, it seems to him that this may suggest a particular need where apparel is concerned. ]
Does the lady in question need undergarments as well?
[ He phrases this as politely as he can, simply because he can tell Hayame doesn't particularly want to discuss smallclothes. From what he knows of her culture, it's likely that this crosses certain lines of modesty she isn't at all comfortable with, so he'll do his best not to make it more difficult for her than it has to be. ]
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In this world, you often were given the chance to try things on before purchasing, so...]
Yes. She likely does.
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In that case, let's opt for something practical, shall we? Some of this is more for show than wear.
[ He doubts he needs to point out which ones are which, veering away from the more lacy offerings and toward underwear that will be better for its intended purpose. ]
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[Normally, someone might follow a man leading his way over to that section of the store, but. Hayame... does not! In fact, she becomes very interested in looking through the clothing options on the racks in front of her.]
I will look for more robes.
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After he collects these, he moves on to collecting other clothing both easy to move and conceal one's identity in before he reconvenes with Hayame. ]
I think this ought to be a decent selection.
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Oh. She might have to ask to go to his home, if the staff had already seen--
No, thankfully, there is a little sign on the counter that says "will return in 15 minutes", and of those letters... Hayame does not even quite realize that she is doing it. She read it, "15", "minute", and "return"...]
Then let us swiftly appraise them.
[Before the shopkeeper came back. - Wait, why is Hayame the one going to the dressing room area, cordoned off with a curtain? ... If. Yuri had not surely figured out the gist by now.]
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From that position, Hayame will be able to grab the clothing without exposing anything more than her arm. ]
Got the clothes in easy reach for you.
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Thank you.
[There is no fanfare or notable sound, beyond the soft thump of what might be a heavier garment (her deer hide pelt wrap?) hitting the floor. And after that... the arm that reaches through the curtain is coming from a much lower angle than one would expect from a centaur over seven feet tall. Within, there is more rustling, the sound of grumbling, fumbling-
But eventually, a human woman just over five feet tall wearing Hayame's face and some of the clothing Yuri had picked out pulls the curtain back.]
- Is this being worn correctly?
[It... is a little off, in the fit. But she's decent.]
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Just about right, but we can get a better size for you. A moment.
[ With that, Yuri hurries off to grab another of the same garment. Seeing Hayame's present form makes it much simpler to choose clothing that will settle on her correctly, and he returns with it after shifting through the racks to find what they need. ]
This should be better.
[ He returns to offer her the clothes, expecting they'll give her the fit she needs. Even for spacious apparel, size matters. ]
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When Yuri comes back, she tries to straighten up and look collected, taking the clothing and disappearing back behind the drawn curtain. But while she is changing, finally, the offer comes though. That,]
If you have questions, you may ask them.
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But he doesn't ask about that right away. ]
Is it some manner of spell?
[ He starts with that, deeming it easiest. ]
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[Her tone says a bit obviously that she finds the differences between phrases such as "magic", "spell", "enchantment", and the rest a bit ridiculous, but at the same time... because she differentiates between the specifics of her own, more martial skills, she must respect them.
The fabric rustles, before,]
- In a bracelet.
[She was not the jewelry sort of woman. But she had been wearing one on her left wrist.]
It is not permanent by any means.
[She had been sure to check, because... She wasn't a human, she was a jinba, she couldn't just... just be something else, and-]
It only lasts a day at longest.
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[ Something fit for the fanciful sorts of tales children could better envision than adults. Still, the results are undeniable when it comes to Hayame. He can plainly see that she's taken on a human shape, and it can't be an illusion when she can touch and put on the clothes. ]
Must be a novel experience, taking on a different form.
[ He can only imagine what that would be like. Sure, he'd wound up riddled with scales and had a fish tail some months prior, but this strikes him as more dramatic. Despite how it impacted his mobility and breathing, he'd been essentially the same size. ]
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[Shape-shifting kitsune, or manipulative ghosts... that was not supposed to be real. But none of this was. None of it.]
"Novel" is not what I would call it.
[More rustling, fabric shifting. Slow, because she is busy thinking instead of-]
It is... not comfortable.
[She almost called it painful, but that would be something of a lie. She had felt like she was suffocating at first, to lack four lungs and only rely on two. Having only one heart had made her feel so empty. But it was not "painful", it was just...]
To be this small. And weak.
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It was strange, the mercenary had told him, but not unpleasant. In Hayame's case, it seems to be decidedly unpleasant indeed. ]
I won't deny that we can be fragile. But we've got other strengths, so it's just a matter of taking advantage of those when you need them.
[ He wants to say that she'll acclimate, but he doesn't know, and he suspects she wouldn't like the sound of it. So he focuses instead on practicality. ]
Stealth, for instance, seems to be something you've already considered.
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Everyone in Zenith, now in Highstorm too, after that Harbinger Oracle... They know of me as a "centaur". I stand out wherever I go.
[She pulls the curtain back, finally, revealing her form now clad in a much better fit, most of her swathed in cloth but for a single exposed eye, her dark hair and potentially identifiable face hidden with the way she has wrapped the headdress.]
- But how about now?
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Seeing how devoted she is to Meridian's cause, as well, that could have grown troublesome for her. But as she steps out, Yuri takes a few moments to thoughtfully assess her apparel. ]
...Worn like you do so every day.
[ With properly fitted garments, she doesn't stand out at all, save the fact that she's a fetching woman. ]
Anyone who doesn't know any better surely wouldn't suspect a thing.
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But she has always struggled with that. And the Oracles... what happened in the Iconoclast trial, the Harbinger trial... It only cemented for her, for better or for worse... that she needed to do more to make up for the weak amongst them.]
You surely exaggerate...
["Like she did every day"... she flusters just slightly and tugs at the garments, unused to having anything on her "hips" or legs.]
As long as it can fool the average eye I will make do with it...
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[ It doesn't benefit her or their cause if he humors her. The original set of clothing was too large and it was clear Hayame had difficultied with those garments. These, though, make it evident that it was the fit itself rather than the lack of familiarity.
No doubt observing those around her and her own experience made it a simple task, even if it's an uncomfortable one. ]
I think the ensemble will suit your needs. Have you had much practice moving around in this form?
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And her discomfort with the very new and strange sensation of so many clothes beneath her waist. To test them more, she begins to circle in the dressing room, slow and somewhat awkward, the way she holds herself a bit... odd. Sort of like someone... used to having a nearly half ton equine lower half "behind" her.]
... A little.
[Liem had helped her practice walking, sitting, getting up and down, but...]
I am aware I could use more.
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omg comes to wrap this a million years later im sorry