Another chance - Ranna and Kappei

[Nan-Yo]

Ranna really was remarkable. She had just found out that she had been completely wrong to accuse him of thinking of something lewd, but instead of feeling embarrassed and apologetic, she just jumped to the next bad thing she could think of. Even if she didn't have any trust in him, was it even normal to always think the worst? Was it normal to think the worst of people you didn't know? How could you even function like that?

"I was thinking a bracelet would probably be the best option here." He told Reiko, completely ignoring Ranna's attempt to argue with him. If she was so curious about what he intended to buy for her, maybe she would have had a better result if she had acted more like a human being and not like an angry cat. "You still use a locket yourself, right?"

These were magical items, so the shape wasn't always all that important for the function. What was important was that it would be something that the user would have no problem carrying with them wherever they went. Reiko had chosen a small locket with a picture of her sister inside of it. It was her magical phone, imbued with magic. Whenever she wanted to make a call, she simply opened the locket and thought of the person she wanted to contact. If that person had a phone of their own, she would call them.

This was why he had suggested a bracelet for Ranna. A locket might have been more logical since it wouldn't look weird on her whether she was a boy or a girl, but he figured that a locket might feel feminine to her.

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Ranna considered that jump in logic perfectly reasonable, it wasn’t her fault someone else had been pushing the idea of the marriage on her rather hard and consistently, especially towards someone he only just met.  If anything that had been more understandable than her first assumption.  It certainly did not come out of nowhere.  Even Reiko was not completely surprised Ranna jumped to that conclusion under the circumstances, but found it more amusing than anything.  What else was she supposed to think of a place like this, without an explanation?

“That one was just a little justified, to be fair.”  Reiko commented on Ranna’s previous statement with an amused smile.  She might have thought the same thing in those circumstances, though she would have been more nervous and/or excited than annoyed and suspicious like Ranna was.

“Ido still use the locket.”  She then quieted down, so Ranna could not hear, as she gave her sisterly advice.  “Don’t overspend, but the fancier it is the harder it will be for her to reject.  Back home neither of us could afford much, but she is in denial over how feminine she already is.  She will wear anything you buy her…other than a ring of the sort she just mentioned.”  There was perhaps some concern over getting something she would wear in her boy body, but just about anything he bought would be worn as a girl, and probably kept in a pocket as a boy.  “A bracelet would be fine, but don’t hesitate to pick something else if you want to.”  It was not that Ranna was especially materialistic, it was more not knowing how to feel about someone buying her something like that, and just to be happy to  have something that wasn’t particularly cheap to wear.

[Nan-Yo]

Kappei understood what Reiko was saying; you really did go here if you wanted to get a wedding or an engagement ring. But she was wrong; the problem was the intent. Ranna wasn't making the assumption because you could buy magical jewelry here, she was coming to the conclusion because she didn't like the idea. There was nothing to be gained from saying any of this, though.

"Hey Ranna-chan, do you see anything you like?" Kappei asked, casually using the diminutive suffix together with her name. It just came normally to him, most likely because he had been thinking about how small she was only a minute earlier. Reiko's idea of getting Ranna something really expensive wasn't that bad, but what drove up prices wasn't really the material or the looks, but rather the magic imbued in the items or how much magic could be imbued into them. Also, depending on the magic itself, the cost could vary greatly.

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Reiko supposed that was one way to deal with it.  Though she thought Kappei had missed an opportunity to see something.  If he had followed her advice and picked something reasonably fancy, he would have likely seen an equally embarrassed/impressed Ranna, wrestling over whether or not to accept it before ultimately doing so.  At least temporarily seeing another side of her.  This strategy was not really bad, but less likely to get a reaction like that out of her.  At best she would likely only act slightly different.  Also while she would accept a gift that was more feminine, she was much less likely to pick something like that for herself, especially here and now.

While Ranna would not have admitted that if she had heard it, would not consider it possible, it was probably actually true.  While she had experience being annoyed with Reiko buying clothes for her, this circumstance could have played out differently.  Not being that self-aware though, she supposed it was nice that he wanted her to choose.  Though 'Ranna-chan' kept her somewhat irritated.

Of course she was still unaware of the real reason they were there.  Assuming he just wanted to buy jewelry for his 'fiance', which was also going to impact what she might have chose.  She looked around a little, more focused on the looks of the objects and their prices.  "Some of this seems way overpriced.  Do they just overcharge due to the fact we are locked on campus?"  If there was any signage justifying the actual price, she was not paying much attention, and might not believe it either.

[Nan-Yo]

Ranna was cute, but that wasn't why Kappei was doing this. He honestly just wanted to help her. He wasn't just some sucker that helped people out of the goodness of his heart, nor was he a hero that just did the right thing. But he did keep his promises. Reiko was probably his only real friend, and she loved her little sister above all else, so it was only natural to help out here. He didn't want to see Reiko cry again, nor did he want to see her precious little sister have to experience the same thing she had gone through.

"I guess you can say it is more expensive because it is here on campus." Kappei told her. But it wasn't because the store was overcharging the items sold here; it was because this was a high-end store. Because the school was for the elite, it was only natural that any shops set up here would cater to their needs and wishes. So the quality of the products being sold was something you only found in the most expensive stores.

"What about something like this?" Kappei said, gesturing towards a small glass cabinet where several bracelets made of pink gold were displayed. They all had a rather organic look to them, with ornate flowers worked into the design.

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Ranna silently stared at the bracelets.  Less feminine than some things here, though the flower design shifted it more in that direction.  It was certainly nicer than anything she had ever worn.  This was not quite the reaction Reiko gave him the opportunity to see, but Ranna was still wrestling with whether or not to agree to it.  What would she be saying if she agreed, if she wore it?  While she said nothing, there was a look in her eyes.  It was all a little (sometimes a lot) too fancy and often rather feminine, to appear too eager.  But perhaps she did want something from this place.  Something much less cheap than the stuff she infrequently wore back home, stuff she had no desire to bring with her.

Reiko, not sure whether or not he recognized the signals, gave Kappei a nod.  It would not get quite the reaction as impulsively buying something fancy and giving it to Ranna might, but she would not reject it.  Probably not say anything sarcastic either, unless Kappei made some sort of comment to provoke it.  It was something she would generally wear too.  He could either buy that, or use her look as an inspiration to get something else.

[Nan-Yo]

"Well, let's bring it out so you can try it." Kappei offered diplomatically. Ringing a small bell, he called one of the three clerks over and waited for her to open the glass case for them. These items were not yet imbued with the magical enchantments needed for them to work properly, but they still had magical energy within them. Because of this, they could be pretty dangerous to handle carelessly.

"Hold out your arm, and she will clip it onto your wrist." He told Ranna as he pointed at the bracelet that he had seen Ranna stare at the longest. The middle-aged lady gave Ranna a smile and carefully removed the bracelet from the display case as she waited for the young girl to do as she had been instructed.

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Was this woman under the wrong impression of why she was doing this?  Well, it was probably an impression neither of them would agree with, that she was Kappei's girl of the moment, buying something for her just because he could.  These sorts of thoughts ran through Ranna's head, but it was too late to back out.  She just nodded and held her arm out, best to just get the awkward part of the process out of the way quickly and hope the woman did not try to make conversation, which would more likely than not be rather awkward.  Her attitude for most of the past few days was completely subdued, if not temporarily calmed.  At least until the purchase was over and they left the store, how much longer it would last after that was hard to say.

[Nan-Yo]

The woman didn't care what type of relationship her customers had; she was just there to do her job. The interactions she had seen between everyone so far suggested to her that it was going to be the young man that would pay and this young girl that they were shopping for. Gently placing the bracelet around the young girl's slim wrist, she clipped it on. As she did, Ranna could feel a pleasant warmth emanating from the jewelry for a few seconds, resonating with her.

"There you go, sweetie. Does it feel okay on your arm?" she asked the girl, sounding more like a favorite aunt than a saleslady. She had never married or had any children herself, but despite how people acted at this school, she still thought of them as just young kids. "Tell me if anything is uncomfortable, and I will adjust it for you."

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

The woman's personality relaxed Ranna a little, though she was still cautious.  The warmth from the bracelet was reassuring too, and strange at the same time.  She was not really sure what it meant, other than that it was not a purely normal piece of metal.  She moved her arm around then stopped it to just look at her arm, with it on.  "Hmm yes, it feels fine and seems to fit well."  She softly replied, a little self-conscious of how shy was being, more so about acting like that around two other, currently silent, witnesses.  She pushed any concerns about there impressions to the back of her head for now.  Better to focus on finishing things here first.

[Nan-Yo]

A part of Kappei was a little bit upset that Ranna was able to look so relaxed in front of the woman but not when she was dealing with him, but that was mostly drowned out by the atmosphere around her. Reiko might have wanted Kappei to show off how cute her sister was when she was in awe or simply embarrassed, but this relaxed but shy Ranna was also super cute. Kappei couldn't help but smile as he watched the beautiful young girl get dotted over by the middle-aged lady.

The woman briefly glanced at Reiko and smiled at her too, recognizing her as a somewhat regular customer. She had made it a point to remember the names so that she could greet people properly if they visited again.

"If you are fine with it, then it is good." Kappei nodded, not really all that interested in jewelry himself. It did look good on Ranna's slim wrist, but he was pretty sure pretty much anything would have looked good on her. "Your sister has a locket, but I figured you would be happier with a bracelet instead."

 

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Reiko had some understanding of why Ranna treated the woman differently.  While she did want Kappei to succeed, she also understood it would take time.  It had always been a long term process for her as well.  He was asking Ranna to do the things she was most reluctant to do, and to admit things about herself that she was not ready to yet.  That was another reason to get her on the team, and that she would have been happy to know about the recent change in her class.  Female friends, especially ones who started living the full academy lifestyle and gaining sexual experience of their own, were likely to be more effective than either of them at pushing Ranna to experiment with crossing new lines.  Even then it was hard to say how long it would take.  She was not going to say anything about it for now, not going to risk shaking Ranna out of her current state.  Just smiling and nodding back at the woman.

Ranna quietly turned and walked back to them.  She was somewhat embarrassed showing this side to them.  She had some guess of what was going through Reiko's head, but was happy her sister was not saying anything this time.  With Kappei she just did not want him to take this as a sign of warming up to his idea.  If she was in her earlier mood she would made some observation about him buying jewelry more multiple women, but that mood had been restrained for now, she was going to remain quiet, shy to an extent.

Would she have been happier with something else?  She was not likely to admit to it if she was, she was not sure how she would have reacted to something like that.  "Yeah, I guess..." she mumbled noncommittally.  "Did you have anything else you wanted to do while we were here, or should I take Ranna to meet the team?"  Reiko asked, they still had sometime before the scheduled meeting but they had to be careful not to get carried away with stops out here.

 

[Nan-Yo]

Kappei wasn't actually trying to change Ranna or make her experiment and get new experiences. He just wished she didn't always jump to the conclusion that he had some sort of nefarious reasons for doing what he did. He had explained it countless times; the whole engagement and marriage plan was so that Ranna wouldn't have to change or get forced into doing things in the future. The only thing she had to learn was how to pretend that she was in a relationship with him. As bad as dressing in female clothes might have seemed to her, if the alternative was that she would get used and abused and passed around like a bag of popcorn, then wasn't dressing up a much better alternative? Her choices were limited, so he had hoped that she would admit to herself that, out of all the bad alternatives she had, the one he was offering her was the best one. 

"We'll take this one then and make it into a magic communicator." Kappei told the saleslady. Reiko seemed a bit antsy about getting out of the store, so he was forced to hurry things along. Maybe she was just worried that Ranna would get cold feet if they spent too much time in the store, or that her little sister would try to stall for time or something?

"Just hold up your arm and show it to the saleslady again." He told Ranna, wondering why she had walked up to them before they had even paid. He supposed she must have been frazzled or something, but she should still be more aware of her situation and not so caught up in her own thoughts.

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Ranna was past the point of caring about wearing girls’ clothes, though she preferred not to over do it, preferring stuff that was at least close to boys clothes.  She did not even wears skirts that often, other than her uniform.  Crossing sexual or romantic lines with guys was the biggest line she was uncomfortable getting close to.  Naturally alternatives were as bad, or worse, but it was hard to even consider playing along with that.  Especially the marriage part.  The other issue was, as she repeatedly told him, she was not nearly as confident it would work even if she tried to play along.

Communicator?  That’s what this was all about?  The prices made some more sense now, though she had no idea why the place looked like it went out of its way to look like they sold a very different sort of thing.  She walked up to them because she assumed it was just a regular piece of jewelry, one she was not paying for either, so it had not made sense to wait over there.  Still keeping all that to herself, she walked back and held her arm out, with the bracelet.

[Nan-Yo]

The saleslady didn't seem to mind the honest mistake and just guided Ranna's arm over what could only be described as a large crystal ball. There was a reaction, and the orb lit up in a warm white light. The small magical reaction Ranna had felt before returned, more intense this time. The warm feeling now seemed to wash and very her body, bathing her in a soft tingling glow. And then, as soon as it had started, it was over. The flowers decorating the bracelet looked almost like they were alive now, and if held close, you could even notice that they gave off a nice, pleasant odor.

Holding his own hand over the crystal ball and allowing it to recognize him, Kappei paid for the expensive magical product and purchased it.

Edited January 23 by Nan-Yo

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Ranna should have been able to say she had never really felt anything like this before.  But there was vaguely familiar feeling to this.  This was much warmer, gentler?, but it vaguely reminded her of how it felt when she was originally cursed.  Much less pleasant, more twisted and invasive, but she felt it in her body.  Even before she knew what it meant, she felt that power change her somehow.  As cautious as she was about trusting people, she was even more cautious of magic/the supernatural and had mixed feelings about getting tangled up in it more than she already was.  She was not going to say anything about that while the woman could hear though.  She had no idea how deeply involved the woman was in this sort of thing, but she was not going to blame her for the demon's work.

Once it was over, she took her hand away from the ball, she gave Reiko a look, before walking away, studying the bracelet and the flowers on it as she walked.  "You will have to excuse my sister."  Reiko said to the woman.  "She has some complicated history in this area.  She will be fine a little while."  She was sure Ranna just slightly confused for the moment, and it would pass after she was outside a bit.

[Nan-Yo]

"Don't fret deary, no harm done. She is just a little shy." The saleslady whispered to Reiko in a hushed tone so that only she could hear. An older sister taking her little sister shopping was so wholesome!

"I guess you already know how this thing works, but I'll explain anyway." Kappei told Ranna, figuring she actually didn't know. Reiko had already told him that she and Ranna had been born and raised in a small town. While magic theory was a subject all schools taught, magical items were mostly just common in the mega cities where most people lived.

"If you want to reach a person, simply bring the bracelet close to your mouth and say call, and then their name." The bracelet had synchronized with Ranna when the communicator magic was added to it, so as long as she followed these simple instructions, the magic tool would handle the rest. "When you want to end the conversation, simply say 'end call'."

You could customize it in various ways, of course, and change how it operated, but that was pretty much the gist of it. "Of course, you can only contact people who have their own magical communicator."

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

"She's just that age, unsure of herself in many ways.  When she is a little confident I may bring her back."  Reiko softly replied, she was convinced Ranna would have been more open than she realized to something more blatantly feminine, as long as someone else bought it for her.  She would test that later.  She waited to see if the woman had more to say, before catching up to Ranna and Kappei.

 

Ranna was half listening, at least enough to remember what she needed to know, as it had been simple enough.  "I just love having weird mysterious energies run through my body, you know?"  She was just venting now, not particularly mad at him or Reiko, but unable to completely shake off the idea this would change her in a new way, especially while she still felt a lingering warmth from it.  "Maybe next time I'll turn into something that isn't human rather than a boy.  Or maybe coughing will change me this time."  She did not care that much about the communicating, sure it was a nice looking bracelet, but she did not see herself using to talk all that much.

 

[Nan-Yo]

"Don't worry, I will still marry you even if you start growing tentacles." Kappei told Ranna in a rather serious tone. It wasn't really a joke either. The idea that she would transform into something inhuman was just silly, but he knew that he wasn't somebody that would abandon somebody in need. But what was this about all this talk about mysterious energies? It was just normal, everyday magic. Ranna and Reiko hadn't seen much of it when growing up, but that didn't make it any more of a mystery than anything else in life. Even magical ailments weren't mysterious; they were all designed constructs or created naturally. 

 

"Anyway, if you girls are ready, let's check out the club." Kappei told the two sisters, feeling sorry for Ranna. He understood why she reacted the way she did, but he wished she didn't always focus on the negative aspects. It wasn't healthy and just made her miserable.

 

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Ranna just blankly stared at him in response to that.  As annoying as all the previous talk of marriage had been, that was different.  Mostly that it was so serious.  She did not really know how to respond to it.  Not that she actually believed it would happen either, the curse just made her paranoid about such things.  If she somehow reached that point, would she even care about things like that?  She was still confused when Reiko caught up, standing there with the blank look, not even being called a girl shook her out of that.

Noticing Ranna's momentary confusion Reiko put her hand on Ranna's shoulder and began guiding her away.  She had not heard what Kappei said, but she was sure Ranna would come back to her senses in a moment.  "Yes, let's do that.  Try not to be nervous about meeting the girls, Ranna."  She was not sure if Ranna was really listening, but she was also rather confident this was a step that would give Ranna some healthy interaction that would ease some of her social issues, whether she realized it tonight or not.

[Nan-Yo]

The saleslady smiled and waved the three of them good bye, silently wishing the two sisters a bright future. Nice kids like them deserved to be happy.

Leaving the store, Kappei and the Rangorn sisters headed towards the trolley station again. According to Reiko, they still had some time before the meetup, but there wasn't any harm in them arriving early.

Getting onto the train, since they were a group of three people, it was easier for them to keep to themselves and avoid interactions with the other passengers. The wagon they had boarded wasn't exactly full, but there were still quite a lot of people fondling each other and kissing. Not too far away from them, they could even spot a boy that was having his penis sucked and licked by three girls at the same time.

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

After getting on the train, Reiko watched Ranna, curious to see how she would react to such things around them.  It had at least shaken her out of her earlier confusion.  She was clearly watching, without staring.  It was perfectly understandable she would have an interest in it one way or another, though she was curious to know what side she was interested.  As an 'older' woman compared to most of the passengers, she would not be surprised if one or more of the unoccupied boys came up to her.  She would not have minded either, but there was not time for that right now, she would have to arrange something later if that came up.  That or Kappei would have to put on an act or more with her, which just had its own issues.  "Ah, memories."  she said quietly, having been in similar situations a number of times.

Ranna was in fact getting somewhat aroused by it, finding it hard to completely ignore.  Though unlike when she was drunk, her mind was not focused on it from the girls' perspective this time.  It was the acts in general that were drawing her attention and not really thinking about experiencing it from either side.

[Nan-Yo]

Kappei gave the two sisters a sideways glance. Ranna might have just been fourteen years old, a kid really, but Reiko was only nineteen years old herself. Making comments about her memories made Kappei, who was twenty-one years old himself, feel old. He wasn't old! It was just that he was hanging out with people younger than himself!

"Feh, I'll never understand why some girls go for pretty boys like that one." Kappei commented, feeling a bit annoyed. Not with the other guy, of course, but more with Reiko's comment. "His tiny prick isn't even half my size."

[SataiRolePlayingGuy]

Reiko kind of guessed what the issue there was.  Sure, he was older than her, but it did not change the fact they were both slightly out of place here.  Though she chose to focus what he actually complained about.  "Now now, size doesn't matter, Kappei.  Or at least, other things can make up for it."  Reiko would not say it was something she did not care about at all, but she did think some guys could be oversensitive about that and it was rare for it to be an actual issue by itself.  "As for being 'pretty', its not my first choice, but there is can be something attractive about it when a guy does it right.  It's one of those things you need the right look, personality and approach to pull off well.  Not everyone can do it."

 

Ranna quietly groaned, hoping she could have escaped.  These were the last two people, other than her parents, she wanted to hear this sort of talk from.  She had no idea how much more detail they planned to go into before they reached their destination.  But she was worried if she complained, they would just double on it.  She could even see Reiko trying her to listen to it as advice.

[Nan-Yo]

Considering Reiko's history, Kappei wasn't surprised that she would think that way. If the guy you were with was a piece of trash, then his big dick would not be enough to make a girl happy. But even if there were other things that could make up for it, claiming that the size of a man's dick didn't matter was just ridiculous. "No, a girl can have much more fun with a big dick than she can with a small one."