The bookstore does not have anything new or interesting and the board games store does not have anything new or interesting and the video games store does not have anything new or interesting either, and so we arrive at the food court, which at least is not expected to provide novelty or interest.
"Well for starters I'm apparently a superhero," says April, ignoring the mysterious voice because she wants to find that college boy and boop him. She does leave the shovel with the pizza people, because it would seem unfair to just walk off with it.
The mall cop has enough people to question and/or check for injuries that he's not going to try to stop the person who's least covered in condiments from leaving.
A black cat trots up to her on the way out. <You're a Celestial Guardian! Not too different from being a superhero, I suppose, though the scope is larger. If you're looking for the other victim, he's this way.> The cat darts to a place where another corridor branches off from this one.
"You're a cat," April observes, but she follows the cat regardless, because at this point why the fuck not.
<It's convenient for some things. And technically we're both reincarnated space aliens. Anyway, he's in here.> She points a paw at a door labeled "Security"; angry voices are coming from the other side.
Angry voices! Her favourite! Actually the opposite of that, but fuck it! Into the Security office she goes.
Boop "moonlightclarity" aaaand time to skedaddle immediately without answering any questions.
"Can you find any more I missed?" she asks the cat.
<I can look for the older woman, and there might have been more before I showed up. With the source disabled, it's likely to wear off soon, but if we find them sooner we can prevent some damage. Hmm . . . this way.> She takes off again, briskly but not so fast that April can't keep up. (She's wearing high heels, but somehow they're as easy to move in as sneakers.)
She goes that way. "Did I disable the source in, like, a significant sense beyond just trashing the pizza stand badly enough that they can't sell any more mind control pizza?"
<You removed the enemy's influence from his minions. All the pizza they make from now on will be safe. Assuming they keep making pizza, as opposed to having been mind-controlled into starting the place at all.>
"If trashing the pizza place turns out to have been totally useless I will maybe feel a little bad about that, but whatever, I didn't know I was a superhero at the time."
<You didn't know you could remove the mind control; stopping them from making any more pizza was a reasonable fallback. If we go somewhere with more privacy I can give you that full explanation I promised. My name is Minerva, by the way.>
"Nice to meet you. In an incredibly surreal kind of way. I'm assuming you know my name already because you know a lot of things. Sure, let's go talk; do you have somewhere in mind?"
<I don't actually know your human name, just that you're the Lunar Guardian. And unfortunately acquiring real estate is not one of the things being a cat is convenient for. If you'd prefer somewhere other than your house we could go to the library.>
"—are you, like, okay? As a cat? Do you need like... food and a place to sleep...? Like I have to assume you've been getting by all right so far because here you are, but... anyway my place works if you have a way to, like, get there. Also how do I... stop... being all Lunar-Guardian-y, I don't super want to take the subway in this outfit."
<I can hunt alright, but a place to stay out of the weather would be appreciated. To detransform you can just say "mundane form".>
<Oh, yes, you won't change forms on accident if you don't mean it as an incantation.> Minerva seems to know these streets very well, judging from how she's walking towards the subway station a pace ahead of April with her head turned back over her shoulder.
"Good! That's good. Uh, mundane form...?"
And the transformation reverses and she's back in her normal clothes.
"I am maybe going to have to pretend I don't know you on the subway because I don't know if bringing cats on the subway is even allowed and if I talk to you out loud everyone will think I'm insane—oh, uh, does telepathying back at you even work, it kind of wasn't clear."
<It works fine. You have to intend that I hear the words, but you don't need to say them out loud. As for being allowed on the subway, most people's reaction to something out of the ordinary is to do nothing.>
<In that case I apologize for threatening to hit you in the face with a pizza shovel.>
<You were under the influence of hostile magic and experiencing telepathy for the first time. Just don't actually attempt it.>
<I'm afraid a great many such things are likely to happen.> Minerva says, walking under the subway turnstile and waiting for April to traverse it. <Celestial Guardians are universally danger magnets. But I intend to ensure you're ready for everything.>
<"Universally danger magnets" is not the most heartening phrase I've ever heard, gotta say.>