Shop till you drop

[attractedtodarkness]

WHO: Violet Harmon and Light Yagami
WHERE: Heropa Shopping district
WHEN: Morning of 1st of July
WHAT: All the shopping!
WARNINGS: None, really.

[After a few weeks out of the slammer, things are starting to feel more normal for Violet. With her ability to have income back to normal, she's doing the one thing some teenage girls do - shop. But first, she's looking for one particular roommate in residence #21.]

Hey, Light. What do you feel about clothes shopping?

[Light's been a great support for her since the beginning and even more so during her brief incarceration. This is just one way of showing her appreciation, really]

Comments

[godly]

[He shakes his head.]

No, I want to. I think it's about time for new clothes for me anyway.

[More summer clothes for this weather would be preferable. She may be surprised when she sees his eye for clothes.]

Besides, the distraction is nice.

[attractedtodarkness]

Good.

[She keeps walking with a slight smile on her face. She picked the long way so it's going to be a few more minutes before they get to the nice looking store at the shopping district]

I found the place a few weeks ago. They have some nice summer styles in.

[godly]

[Light follows along at a brisk pace.]

Oh? Did you have something in mind you wanted to pick up?

[attractedtodarkness]

Yep. I want a new cardigan and a couple of tops. I'm getting tired of the ones I picked out before.

[when she was still on a tighter budget]

Maybe a dress if I have enough money left over.

[godly]

All right. I need a few more short-sleeve shirts for the summer heat, anyway.

And, ah -- thanks for listening, by the way.

[attractedtodarkness]

What are friends for? [says the teenager who's not good with friends. Her own words give her pause and she finds herself huffing in amusement]

You know, it's funny. I made more friends here than I ever did back home.

[godly]

You did mention that you were a... a ghost. Was it lonely? Or do you mean even before that?

[attractedtodarkness]

Even before that. I'm different from the other kids so they prefer to bully me. [she shrugs] I get into fights sometimes.

[godly]

Different how?

[Light can imagine, but he can't relate. He had always been pretty popular in school, but only because he carefully cultivated it. To be honest, most of the people around him bored him; he kept friends, but he never seemed to keep them close.]

[attractedtodarkness]

If I knew, I wouldn't be different. I just don't get along with others and I don't care enough to bother.

[godly]

...I can understand that.

To be honest with you, I got along well enough with my classmates. I'd like to think everyone liked my company; but I didn't feel close to any of them, either.

[attractedtodarkness]

You do feel like the popular type. [she's mostly teasing] I do have some friends but I lost touch with them when my family moved... and, well, when I died.

[godly]

Thanks, I guess? [He gives a little laugh at that. But it fades away at her last statement.] Do you like it better here than your world?

[attractedtodarkness]

[oops. she doesn't mean to somber the mood but it's rare for her to be able to talk about her ghost problems around here]

I don't know. On one hand, I made a lot of new friends here. On the other hand, the security around here is terrible.

[godly]

[Light doesn't particularly mind it. He asked, after all.]

You mean the police force?

[attractedtodarkness]

In general. No matter how many heroes they bring in, they can't save everyone when no one knows who the real enemies are.

You saw the attacks in Nonah and Miami.

[godly]

...Yes, I did. [They all saw it, one way or another. None of it sits well with him, but he imagines that's a universal feeling with all imPorts.] The best they can do is take as many precautions as possible. I'd like to think they're doing their best with that much, at the very least.

[attractedtodarkness]

I don't buy it. [then again her opinion isn't exactly rare either]

One of these days, they're going to get us all killed.

[godly]

[He tries his best to keep positive, but a part of him is just as cynical as Violet.]

I hope it doesn't come to that. But thus far, their track record isn't exactly spotless, is it?

[attractedtodarkness]

Especially considering they've brought imPorts in before. [she doesn't know about the video history since she's started to avoid government sponsored events if she can help it]

They're unprepared and needlessly secretive.

[godly]

I agree. But what do we imPorts do? What's the alternative for now, other than forcibly live in this society, uncertain of the foundation it's built upon?

If we can't trust the government, we have to at the very least trust each other. Otherwise we have nothing to fall back on.

[attractedtodarkness]

I don't think we have anything to fall back on. We're not organized. I mean, we have the network and people talk on them but I don't think everyone's on the same page.

[she has a few people she trusts to look into things but that's about it]

[godly]

[Again, he can't disagree. For once, he wishes he legitimately could.]

...What do you think it would take? For all of us imPorts to feel a sense of solidarity?

[attractedtodarkness]

If someone targeted imPorts and put all of us in danger. [Violet answers without hesitation. From what she's seen, people only grouped together for common causes] Other than that, I don't know.

[godly]

I'd hope that it would never come to that, however. Solidarity is well and good but at what price?

[a sigh.] Nothing can be simple.