1 x 1 with RubyRocket

[Boomer]

Alessa walked downstairs and soon found the hamper. She set the towels in it, then looked around for a moment. Although she had been given a tour, she wanted to investigate the house on her own. The girl wandered around until she found herself in the same room Pound Cake was in. She held onto Scarlett as she noticed him with her file. Alessa timidly approached him. "I um... I didn't have a change of clothes." she said softly, gesturing to the same dress she came to the house wearing. The pup moved a lock of hair out of her eyes, then looked down at Scarlett for a moment. "W-what do you normally do d-during the day?" she asked.

[rubyrocketboots13]

Pound Cake looked up as Alessa as she walked into the kitchen. He smiled, closing the thick folder and pushing it aside. "That's fine, we can get you some new clothes" Pound Cake said, " How about we go shopping later? We can get you some dresses and nice things". He had noticed how big and worn the dress looked on her.

Pound Cake spread his wings out a little to stretch them a bit. " What do I do?" He repeated, " Well... I run a flower shop downtown. So, most weekdays I work there. But, on weekends I like exploring " He said thoughtfully. Pound Cake smiled a bit, " How about you? What do you like to do?" He asked

[Boomer]

Alessa flicked her ear as Pound Cake mentioned shopping. "Shopping...?" she asked softly, "A-are you sure you won't be embarrassed of me?" Alessa didn't often get to go out with her mother; she was left home alone fairly often. The girl listened to him as he explained his job and hobbies. "I-I like reading... and drawing." she said, "A-and pinning insects. Those are my favorites things to do." The girl hoped her hobbies weren't too differing from Pound Cake's ideas of fun. She batted another lock out of her face, then sighed quietly.

[rubyrocketboots13]

" Embarrassed of you?" Pound Cake said, surprised, " Of course not! I'm not embarrassed of you.I'd be glad to take you shopping" He said honestly. Pound cake stood, ruffling his wings a bit. " Come on, I'm afraid I don't have a car, so we'll have to walk to the shops." He said, motioning for her to follow him out, " And you can bring Scarlett."

He smiled as she talked about her hobbies. Pound Cake liked to read as well, so he had a good bit of books in the house. " Pinning insects, huh? That's a cool hobby" He said, impressed. He didn't know much about pinning insects besides the ones he had seen at the local science museum.

[Boomer]

Alessa seemed surprised that Pound Cake wanted to go now. "O-oh, okay." she said softly. The girl followed him outside as she clung to Scarlett. Alessa didn't mind walking; her mother didn't have a car and they'd walk to town if they needed stuff. She looked around the neighborhood and would slightly shiver at the sound of kids playing outside. She wasn't too social and never really had any friends in school. Alessa was off in her own thoughts until Pound Cake said her hobby was "cool". She looked up at him. "T-thank you..." she whispered, "N-not a lot of people understand the beauty of insects. E-especially butterflies."

[rubyrocketboots13]

" No problem" Pound Cake said thoughtfully, " I think a lot of people miss the beauty in things like insects. Most people just think they're gross or scary so they don't see them as anything else. " He shrugged. Pound Cake smiled down at her, " What's your favorite butterfly? I like most of them, but the octauis swordtails are my favorites. They have clear and blue wings, with a red spot on the back. I just think they are beautiful" He said cheerfully.

Noticing that she was a bit uncomfortable, Pound Cake instinctively opened his wings a bit more so that they shielded her. He didn't want her to feel unsafe. It seemed to him that she was a bit nervous about meeting the other kids in the neighborhood. Pound Cake understood and he wasn't going to force her to talk to them if she didn't want to. He guessed that she was a more than a little shy around new kids. Pound Cake walked with Alessa past the kids' houses, barely casting them a glance because he was so lost in his own thoughts.

[Boomer]

"It sounds cliche, but I really like monarchs." said Alessa softly, "I love their colors and spots. Although I like cabbage whites too. They're plain, but I can relate to them." She looked to Pound Cake's wings as he used them to shield her. Alessa felt a bit safe as she didn't have to speak with any of the kids. She clung to Scarlett and took a few deep breaths. "I've never r-really been shopping before." she said quietly, "I-I'm not sure how to find clothes or anything like that." Alessa hoped it wouldn't be extremely stressful to find her some dresses and pajamas.

[rubyrocketboots13]

He smiled, " Oh yeah, monarchs are very pretty! Have you ever seen the pictures of them migrating? Thousands and thousands of them will migrate at one time and it's pretty cool to see." Pound Cake said cheerily. He smiled to notice that she didn't stutter as badly when she talked about the butterflies she liked. He was glad that she didn't seem to be as nervous as before.

Pound cake nodded, thinking over how to answer her, " Well... Shopping's not too hard. We'll find your size and all you have to do is pick out what you like." He said thoughtfully, " Let's see... you'll need some pajamas, some play clothes, and a few dresses. " Pound Cake decided. He didn't know what else she might need, but he figured that would be enough for now. Pound Cake wasn't poor, but he wasn't exactly very rich either.

As they came to a department store, Pound Cake lowered his wings a bit so he didn't bump into anyone accidentally. " Let's try here, they'll have little girl clothes" He said, opening the door for Alessa. Truthfully, he had never considered which shops would have little girl clothes and which ones wouldn't, at least before now.

[Boomer]

"No, I haven't..." admitted Alessa, "I-I'd like to sometime." Alessa could just imagine the mass of orange, white, and black in the sky. Thousands of butterflies fluttering in the sky without a care in the world. She smiled a little at the thought. The girl tilted her head a little as Pound Cake mentioned the play clothes. "W-what are play clothes?" she whispered, "Like the clothes you wear in movies?" Alessa didn't quite understand what he meant. As they neared the store, Alessa tensed up as she saw a crowd of people shopping. She barely moved inside of the store; Alessa felt herself begin to hyperventilate. It took everything she had to not use her telekinesis. 'No, you can't use your power here... you'll get in trouble...' she mentally told herself.

[rubyrocketboots13]

" I think I have a book about monarch butterflies at the house, if you'd like to see the pictures? " Pound Cake said, smiling a bit more. He shook his head at her question, " No, play clothes are clothes you well... play in. You can get those dirty so that your nice clothes won't get ruined." He explained, hoping it all made sense.

Noticing that Alessa looked frighted, he knelt down by here. His wings spread out a bit in a protective way; shielding her from the other shoppers a bit. " Are you alright, Alessa? What's wrong?" He asked gently. Pound Cake didn't know what had made her look so scared. " We can leave if something's bothering you" He assured her. Part of him was panicking, though his voice was calm. He hated to see Alessa frighted.