Shopping for Pleasure (Ended)

It’d been a while since he’d been to the campus. He’d been a way on a mission. Figuring he’d actually miss his roommate as well as pet Anitian, and is own bed. Instead, as soon as he returned home, he took a shower and got dressed, putting on a black women’s Kimono. He was going to go shopping, and needed to look good for the occasion. His long pink hair was pulled back into a ponytail, pins strapped in the front for a design. He didn’t wear make up, it wasn’t really his thing. He was merely a cross dresser.

The Mall was his absolute favorite place in the world, aside from the Clubs he usually trolled around in during the nights. He loved dancing with anyone, unless it was a man that dressed better than him. It was something he hated the most. He liked looking the best, and ironically as a assassins he loved having all the attention on him when he entered a room. People would mistake him for a actual woman, but he had his moments where he’d dress as a male. And even then it’s breathtaking.

“Shin-Chan!” A girl waved over to him, pointing at a dress. It was pure beauty. Light lavender color with ruffles at the bottom and around the arms. It was a short dress, meant for someone to wear tights under, or could be used as just a mini dress. “My legs would look amazing in those.” Shindo smirked, as the two looked at the dress. Shindo could sense the three approaching them, even though his full attention was on the dress in front of him. “Hey” A guy said, causing the two to turn around. “See, I told you it was a guy. No tits at all.” The man looked disappointed. Shindo looked down at his chest. “Seems I don’t have them.” He shrugged.

“Why do you dress as a girl Shin-Chan?” The girl asked as the guys walked away. “Because it’s easy for me to dress like a man and look amazing. But it’s always a challenge to dress in the opposite sex and still look sexy. But I’ve mastered such art.” Shindo stated, pulling out money and counting. Debating if he should buy the dress or not. “I don’t understand.” The girl stated. “You’ll learn one day. Now excuse me. I promised my dog I’d buy him a new collar.” He figured it would be a gift to give to Anitan, plus flea spray or powder.

Near enough to have heard the exchange, Azumi stiffled a giggle. Man's got courage, I'll give him that. Most are far too timid to even consider cross-dressing... She sighed, glancing down at the faded jeans and blue turtleneck she wore. Since she had only gotten out of prison a week ago, she had yet to get a chance to replace her old wardrobe. "Why does everything have to be so expensive..." Her words were soft and, she hoped, unheard by the two standing only feet away.

She went back to browsing, placing the dress she'd been looking at back on the rack, mentally tallying what was left of her finances. The trials had taken almost all she'd owned, but she had manage to save a small amount for when she got out. Glancing over at the man in women's clothing, she arched an eyebrow. "Not bad, actually..." She blushed and looked away. Talking out loud when I mean to be thinking. How does seclusion toy with the mind... She bit her bottom lip and picked up a plain black dress. Still too expensive. At this rate, she would never have anything else to wear.

How embarassing...

Shindo glanced over his shoulder at the woman behind him, speaking to herself but loud enough for them to hear. What she spoke was true. But money was never a issue for him. His missions paid in the thousands per kill. He could buy anything he wanted, but he still held his restrictions. Mostly because Anitan was starting to complain about the new pile of cloths forming in the big closet. “Life is Expensive. Always have been.” He gave a sweet smile as he followed her.

His eye’s were drawn to the dress she was holding in her hand. Plain black. “No.” He said shaking his head. “That won’t do.” He took a closer look at the dress before putting it back in it’s proper place. "You don't want a plain dress. It just takes all the value and volume from your body." He picked up another dress. It was red.

Spoiler:

“Now this dress will fit you amazingly. It was made for your body structure. And props on having the chest to hold it up.” He held out the dress to her and pointed to the dressing room. “Go try it.”

Everyone always figured that Shindo was gay, due to the show he put on with the way he dressed and acted. But truly, he adored and loved women. He could dress them any way he wanted, they could be the perfect arm candy and even match what he was wearing. And he loved the idea. Women were more open to things then men, that was another reason he loved them.

When she suddenly found the man's attention on her, Azumi blushed and watched him pick out a strapless, short dress. Hardly the sort of thing she could wear at work...but gorgeous. He had a good eye on him. "Ah...It's very nice but...it doesn't suit my personality." She smiled kindly at him. This is so awkward...having a stranger telling me what I should try on...But damned if I don't like the dress...

She looked away for a moment, thinking. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the gesture. It was more that she hadn't seen enough of his attitude to know what he was after. "Besides, I'm looking for work clothes, not a party dress." Glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, she squinted at him. He was giving off almost all the hints of a gay man, but she wasn't one to judge a book by its cover. Looking back at the dress, she sighed. "Shame though. You've got a good eye."

She turned away from him. The dress was tempting, but she knew she couldn't afford it. Smiling calmly, she glanced through the dresses on the rack without picking anything. It was all either ugly or too expensive. What a waste of time. There's nothing here that will do for someone on a tight budget.

Shindos face frowned a bit. “Oh come on Hajiri-Chan.” He crossed his arms. “Don’t worry about the cost. I’ll buy it for you.” He said, turning his eyes to another dress, grabbing it to examine. Though it was really something he would try on form himself and buy of course. “It must sound weird with me knowing you. But I’m the Nurse at the Academy. I know everyone, even if they don’t know me.” He placed the dress in his cart and turned to some shirts. Flipping through them.

“It’s hard to find people to go shopping with. I tried Tosen, but he didn’t like the idea of putting on a dress. My roommate is a shifter. You probably know him, Anitan Alculard. White Wolf, runs around the school acting like a idiot.” He stated. “Oh!” He nearly squealed when he saw a shirt he adored, throwing it in his basket. “Anyway. My name is Shindo Kou.” He held out his hand to shake with hers. “It’s nice to finally and formally meet you.” He gave another smile.

Azumi's eyes widened when he said her name, but she quickly calmed down as he explained. Blushing again, she looked away, then giggled as he continued talking. He had tried to force the new Headmaster into a dress? Some people would pay money to see that. "You're too kind, Kou-san." She smiled warmly at him, shaking his hand. "I'm afraid I haven't met Anitan, actually."

She ran her fingers through her hair, thinking. "I wasn't joking about needing work clothes, though...Currently, the clothes I'm wearing are all I own." She blushed at the confession, offering him a sheepish smile. "An awkward predicament, yes?" And to think, most girls who say they have nothing to wear are just being picky...

Azumi sighed and shook her head. Pants, shirts, and two or three dresses. That's all you really Need to have a complete wardrobe. Still, she sort of wished she had the money to spend pampering herself once in a while. All her life, she'd been on the very edge of survival. Alculard was the only place she'd thrived, instead of barely getting by.

“Please, Just call me Shindo. Whenever someone calls me by my last name, it makes me think their addressing my father.” He shivered a little. “We did not get along. I mean, I grew up looking at such horrible cloths, I could have died. But luckily I don‘t have to see his wardrobe. It was very frightening.” To those who were curious of who Shindo was. He was a man that grew up with a homophobic father. But in reality, Shindo grew up with a father that trained and made him into a killer. A clan of Assassins and Shindo was the best. It was easy to put off a idiotic act to throw off suspicion if ever shown, but his love and passion for cloths were real. And he did hate his fathers wardrobe to boot.

“How about I help you with your wardrobe. And to pay me back, you come with me shopping whenever I need someone with me. Sometimes it’s hard shopping alone. Cant decide on what to get.” He looked down in his basket, pulling up the last shirt he threw in. “If you don’t feel comfortable with me buying you cloths, you could always come look at my wardrobe and barrow some cloths. I buy cloths almost every week so I probably have most of this stuff there anyway.”

He did shop a lot, but it helped with his disguise. He was working on a long term mission, gather information on the Mall owner. A man who was set to be assassinated soon enough. Being present in the mall for so long he knew almost every person that worked there. He knew their hobbies, their traits, he had a strong sense of reading the normal human. Reading Non-humans was the challenge.

"My apologies, Shindo-san." Her expression was gentle as she listened to his explanation about his father. Half-truths, no doubt, but she wouldn't pry. Just being told they didn't get along was satisfactory enough. "I can respect a certain degree of dislike for those who raise you." She did not expand on it. Her past was not something she liked to dwell on.

"Hmn..an interesting bargain...Tell you what, if you can manage to leave your shopping to Sundays, you've got yourself a deal." She chuckled, watching him out of the corner of her eye. He was certainly the most entertaining person she had met in a while. She supposed it couldn't hurt to agree. But, then...there was the fact that he was still holding the red dress. The lioness has bitten off more than she can chew again, it would seem... She giggled at her own thoughts.

“Deal. But, the rule still applies that if I like it, that I can borrow what you get too.” Shindo loved cloths. It was like his release from stress that didn’t involve some way of killing or inflicting pain on someone. He could go shopping at any time off the day, be it morning or night. Snowing or Raining. Maybe even during a flood. No, not a flood. He wouldn’t risk messing up any technical play.

His hand drew to his stomach. So busy with shopping he'd forgotten to eat. "I'm famished. Would you like to join me for lunch?" The mall held alot of places to grab food from. And he could smell it, even taste the smells that lingered to his nose. All the running around from floor to floor, store to store, he needed to get a bit more energy from some food.

Azumi giggled again. Oh, yes, this one was definitely fun. "Only if it fits, of course." She winked at him, smirking. It occurred to her to wonder again if he really was gay, but, really, it didn't even matter. To her, at least, people were people, regardless of anything...save for personality, anyhow.

"Hmn...food would be good..." She smiled calmly, inwardly flinching at the thought of eating food prepared by others. Sure, she could, generally, trust restaurant chefs...but she'd been in such an environment that she had become wary of such things. She chuckled softly at her own discomfort, setting aside her thoughts and reminding herself that she was safe here.

Shindo smilled. He was thrilled she was exciting so he jumped up and down clapping his hands to show it. “So, what would you like to eat? I can pretty much eat anything.” It was true. It was mostly party of his training. Food was something he came to enjoy. Eating to move on. To have the strength to fight when he needed. But there was one food he wouldn’t eat. Although it was one of his favorite, which was strawberries.

He could eat them, he loved them. But there was an emotional sense tied to whenever he was near such a fruit. Such a flavor. Her scent was always strawberry. Mostly because she always ate it in his company. He could cast her from his mind in a matter of seconds, but with that scent came the pain from those times. He’s easily pass it off to people stating he was allergic to the fruit. But it was more than that. Way more.

Azumi giggled at his enthusiasm, watching him in amusement. "I'll eat just about anything. Way I see it, it's all better than prison food." She shrugged, not really too worried about her reputation. It wasn't like she expected her past to be some dark secret nobody was allowed to talk about, after all. "So, then, the question falls to you. What do you feel like eating?"

A moment of nostalgia overtook her as she remembered having this conversation with her best friends back in middle and high school time and again, as there had really been no leader in their group. She giggled, remembering the one time they'd actually decided on the place beforehand, and how they had bickered over it anyway because it had felt so strange to already have it planned out.

“I believe prison food is extremely gross.” Shindo he with a shrug. He raised a hand to his mouth and patted it with one finger. Then he pushed pink strands of hair from his eyes. “Well, I think I’m in the mood for Pizza and a Beer.” He gave a small smile. Even in some moments he didn’t like to show his masculine side, but sometimes his eating habits allowed for it to show. He did eat like a guy, sloppy and sometimes fast. He’d even sometimes mess up his cloths, which is why he resorted to wearing a bib. Manly or Feminine, he couldn’t mess up a new top.

“It is not good for Staff or Student’s to have Alcohol on campus, even though I do have a stash. But, there’s a bar on the top floor of the Mall. And a Pizza Parlor down from it. We can grab a box or two and a 6-pack and have a feast.” Shindo smiled once more. With out giving her time to answer or comment, he grabbed her hand and dragged her along. He was ready for some food. And when he didn’t get food, he was like a woman on her monthly. Very cranky and irritable.

She laughed heartily at the mention of a traditionally male meal. "Gods! Pizza sounds incredible right now." Giggling, she followed him without complaint. "Are you always this enthusiastic, Shindo-san? How would anyone be able to keep up with you?" Of course, the implication was anyone human, but certain things should not be said in public.

The beer...well, the only good thing she could say about beer was that it came in sealed containers, so she didn't have to worry that it had been tampered with. Although she would, in all honesty, prefer something without alcohol. Then again, she wasn't the one who was paying, so why complain?

On a whim, she glanced at him. "What sort of music do you listen to?" It was a simple enough question and, since she was the music instructor, not exactly chosen at random. She was curious about him.

“Yes, I am always enthusiastic. Life is short, so many things can happen so you have to live it to the fullest.” He said with a smirk as they walked. Life and Death was a situation he dealt with almost every day. He could take a life in a matter of seconds. Not really caring that the man he’d killed was a son of a mother. A father to a child, a husband to a wife. A life was a life and when it came to killing, he was emotionless.

“I’ve never really listened to music much in my life.” Shindo replied. “My mother use to listen to Opra, but my father tried to make ‘a man’ out of me so I was prohibited from listening. Now that I’m away I still haven’t truly turned on a radio. But I do own every Album from the good old days of Oz when Tosen was their lead. I bought a Ipod and have them all there. It's the only music i actually listen to. The man can truely Sing.” He looked ahead as he saw other people walking around, talking, laughing and enjoying themselves.

"That's a good way of looking at things." She smiled appreciatively. The theory of living for the moment was one she was very familiar with. It was also very similar to the reasoning behind her forgiving nature: life was too short to carry hatred towards another, and that hatred could only slow you down and hurt you in the end. Simple enough, but most people got so caught up in everyday dramas and prejudices that they never once stopped to consider how much better off they would be if they just dropped their hate.

"Gods, have I been living under a rock?" She laughed softly, clasping her hands behind her back and pulling them backwards to stretch her muscles a bit. "I had absolutely no idea the Headmaster was in a band." It was sad, but true, nonetheless. She now wondered if maybe she could get Tosen to sing something for her someday, just so she could know what she had been missing out on.

“Yep. Oz was the best when Tosen was with them. Since he left their music isn’t all the best. But it’s bearable.” Shindo replied. “Tosen’s voice is very amazing. When he sings it makes you listen, even if you don’t want to or not. It’s like his voice places you under a spell you can’t get out of.” He stated with a nod. “The Alculard family is very talented. Kousei-Sama sings as well, and he plays the guitar. He’s really good.”

They’d reached the pizza parlor and Shindo looked at the menu from a distance. “Their a close family. It’s a honor for me to work under them. And the benefits, money, the good apartments and supplies is always a bonus.” He gave her another smile. “So, what’s your favorite type of pizza?” He questioned her, debating if he should get pepperoni or regular cheese pizza.

"Sounds like I'm going to have to invite them to my class, if they ever have some spare time." She giggled at the thought. She would love to hear the talents this younger Alculard generation had to offer, and she was certain the students would enjoy it just as much, maybe more. Blushing, she glanced at the ground, remembering her teen years at Alculard, how the family had been toward each other and those around them. She had truly grown to love them, almost as if they were her own blood. Sadly, she had always had the sense of being an outsider, despite their kindness. "You aren't the only one who is honoured to work for them...though humbled would be a better term, in my case."

Glancing up at the menu herself, she frowned. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she'd had pizza, let alone which kind she'd liked best. Closing her eyes for a moment, she sifted through the memories--she'd been blessed with photographic memory. Smiling, she giggled and looked at him. "Ever tried Hawaiian? It's one of my favorites, and I think something sweet would be good right about now."

"No, i've never tried Hawwian." His face frowned a bit. But then he smiled. "But it's always good to try something new" He smiled as he approached the clerk. "Yes, May i have a Large Hawaiian?" Shindo asked as the man looked at him blinking. "Hello in there? Hawaiian pizza." Shindo stated still giving a smile. The clerk nodded. "Y-yes Mam." The man replied as he turned around to give the order to his co-workers.

Shindo smiled as he returned to Azumi. "Children these days, so clueless about fashion." Shindo replied. "I hope it's good. It sounds good. It has pineapples on it right?" Shindo loved fruit, and if he had a pizza with fruit on it, it would be amazing. His stomach gave a small grumble at the scent of food. He was more hungry than he thought.

"And I'm sure you can persuade them to doing what you want. I get Tosen to do alot for me all the time. Though sometimes i have to black mail him." Shindo was good at getting what he wanted from the Headmaster. He had strong powers for persuasion, or truly the fact that the headmaster knows he is a assassin could be the key to it all.

Giggling, Azumi listened to his brief exchange with the clerk. "Don't give up hope, though. Some of them can appreciate beauty." Her eyes laughed at him gently as the order was passed on to the ones making the pizza. "Yes, it has pineapples on it." It had been so long since she'd eaten a decent meal that she couldn't help feeling oddly cheerful at the thought of the pizza.

She stiffled another giggle when his stomach growled, but turned her mind to his next words. "Ah, I just don't want to distract them from their work, is all..." She arched an eyebrow at him at the mention of blackmail. "Besides, it's better to get business done first, then playtime."

Just then, her watch started beeping. Glancing at the time as she turned off the alarm, she flinched. "Oh, no...I completely forgot. I'm really sorry, Shindo-san. My son should have arrived at the school last night, and I was meaning to surprise him. I have to go now. I'm so sorry." Shaking her head, she sighed. "Some other time. Goodbye!" She left quickly, empty-handed.

[Azumi has left the Mall and is headed to Academy Grounds: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].]

"You have a very cute giggle. But don't worry I don't give up that easily I just wish some were more appreciative of it that's all. It's like a class needs to be formulated in order to really show people how to appreciate anything in their lives." He sighed as he waited on his cheesy pizza. "Such a shame if you have to have a class to teach people how to smile. But oh well I would love to meet these appreciative individuals one day." His stomach growled more when he heard pineapples. Gods he could almost taste them combined with the cheese. He was almost in heaven. "You are going to make my mouth water at this rate." he chuckled as he waited with Azumi.

He saw the eyebrow and he tilted his head in thought. "Trust me you wouldn't be a bother at all. They crave for the distraction." he laughed as he looked back at her. "Trust me them seeing anyone but themselves is a highlight of their day" He smiled at her encouraging her to at least make an attempt to see them.

Her watch went off and she left in such a rush he didn't even get a chance to get a word out. He sighed as he watched her leave. "She is so fast. I didn't even get a chance to say anything." he said a bit sadly as the clerk handed Shindo their finished pizza. "And before she ate. Oh dear maybe I can save her some at least." He stated as he turned to leave with the pizza.

[Shindo has left the mall and headed to the park: Wasting time]