it's.. fuzzy, hazy, seeing out of our eyes again. There's nothing wrong with them, of course -if anything, the more literal visual snow is thoroughly gone. It's just... 

Seeing the sky... 

I'm not - here, in the normal sense that I'd be, if there was just a me, in front, formed and firm and the person that they're always - talking about, when they talk about - what it is to be her... I'm here enough that Tourm's doing the little commentary thing, and she's - thinking of me, and looking, too. 

But beyond that... 

It's a - nice big clearing in some very verdant woods. The ground is bare, all dusty grey-brown and plain, and the sky is dusky - a blanket of navy capped off with blue-tinged thin clouds. There's a lot of trees, a thick green canopy of oddly shaped leaves that stretch out as far as we can see. Not that that's terribly far, but... 

There's a small trodden path in the dirt along a really clear lake, shining with the last remnants of the sun, a patina of pink and dappled reds shining along the surface. It's... very pretty. 

Oh wait... 

I click the goggles down from my head, perfectly landing on my nose like I'd done this a million times and - 

Sketches, lines, fragmentary impressions of the world slip into place around me, little dancing figures in a faintly blue-tinted HUD. I can even - see through the sides, and the quality of the normal v is... exactly like before putting it on. But that's not the important bit... 

There's a bunch of little - markings carved into the dirt, metallic greasy inks catching some of the last embers of the light in the dust and dirt, and a bunch of fussy little swirls around some wooden boxes laid out, with some sort of - stretching out weft of ghostly lines that my head can half interpret and - 

I laugh faintly again, shaking my head. 

It's a fuckin' clever set up but...~ 

Well. 

It's meant to foil people who uh. Can theoretically be mind controlled, w/ a good ol' perception filtery arrangement and some sort of mental illusion, and who can be detected by hostile divinations for targetting and triggering fallback traps, or at the very least, for people who have to actually like, normally see the fucking things, rather ten just get plopped into the middle of this and see that there's a ripe lil system ready to be ransacked. 

I grin a bit, and wander over to one of the chests.

It's a short walk - still only a few dozen meters, but it's enough to feel that the ease and comfort of the sandals and the roll of her hips and panther-like grace of the movement just - come in some natively, even when she's not really thinking about it. There's a certain - stiff casualness in there, too, but that's just how she's angling herself and there's nothing wrong with that. 

The chests are - 

Treassssssssssssure chest!!!!

Treasure chest, treasure chest, treasure chest!! 

Treasure chest indeed!

My hands rub together happily as I kneel down to take a bit closer a look at it, taking a moment to look at the faint olive and honeyed tint to my tan skin, and watch how clean, glossy and nice my nails are. There's even this sort of funky silvery fade in them that makes it look like there's the faintest trace of falling silver stars beneath them, with nails that have just the right amount of glint to the rounded edges. 

But as for what I'm looking at... 

Looks something like - rowan, maybe? Not sure if that's even a particularly meaningful comparison, but. 

It's got bands of - brass perhaps? - and no visible mechanical lock - just a latch and whatever more arcane system it's implementing with the thinner strips of metal streaming along the surface of the wood. It looks professionally done but... 

Treasure chest indeed! 

I sink down into a crouch, leaning down smoothly to take a good long look at it, my hands rubbing together with a lil bit of excitement. 

Aww sure I'll take the excuse to take in the skin tone - looks - fairly normal, but has enough of that - gentle glow of olive and honey to make me pop, and there's a lot going on in my nails, despite how clean and clear they are. Little - dustings of silver sparkling suns with streaks of stardust dancing down along the natural lil lines, perfectly set in place as if suspended in glass, if yo catch the angle just right, and pure white rounded edges out to the tips of my fingers with a lil extra metallic glint to make them catch the eye. 

I place my hand up aside the center band and - 

Yep. 

It's - not corroded, the working is more intact then that, but there's - dust, and smeared oils of skin, grime and kicked up dirt and the traces of the rain, slipping through the cracks. It's old, and there's enough dumb lil security implications that there's no way that the people who put it in here are still like, actually using this, in this state.

Though it's still got to be working, or else the weaknesses and issues wouldn't be quite there, in my vision so... 

Huuuuum. 

Ooooooookay. 

Deep breath. 

Let's be a sensible girl. I can't actually, be detected, if that's like, going to be a problem, so let's not talk about it like that, yeah. The problem is if it's like - primed to be set off to pressure w/out some - authorization signal, or something, or if there's something volatile in the long term in here that'll be a mess to deal with. 

So... 

Realistically, how would you design a proper pressure trigger? It's a reasonable backup up-y thing, if real stealth is possible in this world, and 'm gonna assume that it is. But also like, you don't want to randomly fire off your defenses, to save energy, if nothing else. And... 

My eyes gaze up, staring at the lil crackling lines in the sky, tracing them down into my mindscape and trying to interpret and extend don the lil lines of thought - 

Yeah, got the impression right. It's - a perceptual filter, and it's a - gentle one? If this chest was designed with that in mind, even if it's got a good way to 'recharge or whatever, you don't want something hypersensitive to pressure, just 'cause that's gonna strain it, and you don't want every breeze to engage the safety interlocks. 

Following that... 

Okay, not touching the actual handle but - 

Light touches are okay, anything that could just - happen naturally in a forest clear, is fine. 

What is it like...? 

Tourm strokes her nice manicured fingers along the - shell of the chest. It's clearly not reacting - the design is probably meant to be essentially totally passive, except for some more - mechanical catches and the actual lock mechanism? It just feels weak to a proper plodding passive probing and not a proper scan from someone with skills that we admittedly completely don't have, in a way that makes thinking about anything else feel a little - foolhardy. 

I don't think that it's - actually hermetically sealed? It's hard to describe, but - the way the air flows along her fingertips doesn't feel right for that, and I think it's weak enough to some kinds of elaborate physical probe that that's not too too likely. It - feels like an extension of the cleanliness one, to be honest, and maybe the latch thing, with some big scary thing that doesn't seem like it has terribly relevant weaknesses coiled in behind. It's just trying to - keep the air circulating without making the - membrane too easy to pentetrate, and without forcing tighter tolerances elsewhere. I'm sure it works well enough normally but...

Yeah 's something - more elaborate then that. There's back ups and shit - that's not the kind of thing it's missing but... 

Okay I don't think that - I can just try and open it, rn? That sounds really likely to get it do something funky, or get us somewhere ill advised. 

But... 

Hm. 

I flick my nose shut for a moment and furrow my brow. 

Oh! 

Yeah there's a back up sys, a pretty overcomplicated one, 'd wager. 

I can't - really tell, the intuitiony thingy feels like it works best with - solider systems and things that I can - perceive and parse, and I can't - directly, but... 

Think it'll try to - scan properly, and - it can't - work to detect me in a way that's bad for me, yeah? 

Okay so - 

Noooooooooooot just sticking my dick hand in crazy the slot, let's go sloooow.

I don't actually like, know if this makes any sense but - 

There's no like, trad restraints on what my hair style is, if it's not so constrained by what is logistically or physically possible. I don't think that it - comes default w/ the greater truths of conceptual hair, but there's nothing saying that there's not things that can - slip through. Hell, I'm already sure that my hair works like it's supposed to, just from the lil dangly bit 'top my brow and how that colors turned out. 

(Lovely, btw - hot crimson, bold and blazing, as sharp as 've ever seen a red, regal and just a bit rosy, with that sort of hyperreal textured sheen that you see in some sick obsidian, met with the coolest cobalt I can imagine with a gorgeous glassiness to it, alongside the silky sensual shine, that makes it look at once like this moving flickering fantastical thing of glass and ceramics, and like tender twining clear blue thread that's oh so strokeable.) 

So... 

I brush my fingers 'long my ear, right up against the fuzz of my hair, and pull out a perfect lil blue strand, nestled neatly into a bundle atop my fingers. You know, girl things. 

I suppress the snort a bit halfheartedly, and let myself ride it out. 

I place it against the lil flatness of the latch and...? 

Effortlessly clean palms are v. v. nice for rubbing together, even when it's a fretty gesture. 

It's... reacting, a little, I think? It's probably supposed to be - more sensitive to things w/ qi and things in the actual like, opening mechanism and otherwise work to reject things, and it should still work as - part of me, here. Just 'cause it's physically disconnected doesn't mean that it's not a part of me or wasn't a part of me, or more relevantly my hairstyle which totally fuckin' works like that honesttttttt. 

And there's a slight - haze of something, now? 

Ooh that's v. clever extrapolated me, v. clever of you indeed. 

The vulnerabilities are semi-modal, sure, I cna see waht the vulnerabilities are, please let this work... 

I think it's - trying to fuzzy match, I think? It's not like, a critical supply thing - you would never just leave this out in the cold, w/ nothing but the kinda ward that's supposed to work maximally smoothly on normies. Probably the theory is that something like this you'd make cheaply ast a higher power, and just trust that t's not worth their time messing w/ if they're good enough to deal with? This looks like - some sort of peripheral supply cache for some sect or a retreat in the boonies for some bitch w/ a taste for nice lakes, where you don't super keep - secret-secret things. Probably it's - trying to pick me up but I'm not - the right fit for it, so it's only getting incomplete data such that it's consistentish and trying to find more data to fix the fit? Or it's the bloody fallback system for sensor failure or... 

Oh that's a thought. 

Hey romana uh... 

Oh that is a cute idea... 

I lean into the fuzzily physical, my hand brushing past her bangs, deep brown hair spilling out onto it in a moment, deep and earthy with the slightest hint of a curl nestling softly against her palm in a moment. 

Oh! Um. 

I look away and draw us away and there's a - little braided bracelet on her left hand, cyan and sparkles and glitter and gold. It comes free easily at the little touch I invite her to, to gather it all up. 

A drop of hair, flax and gold and honey and peach, splayed in a little s-curl with a shimmy of our shoulders. 

A quick almost dismissive pluck of hair, sliding down her shoulder, gunmetal grey, a stormy steely patina along the arching hairs. 

A moment, and a tuft of gem-like hair spins itself into existence against her thumb and forefinger, saturated and sharp. 

A contemplative little slip down from the top of her head, hair as red as a red-barn, plain yet sure. 

She reaches up to scratch behind her neck, looking for an apprioate gesture, butsnorts and bled-through snort as a riot of red, shamelessly glittering with tiny gems comes along for the ride before she knows it. 

And she completes the little ritual with a little rub of the side of her head for luck, a shock of silver mingling and mixing into the riot of colors. 

Your move~

It's sort of... catching? It's looping the looking, no pauses, just trying to get a read on all the data. 

I press a few fingers against my chin as I watch, a delicate eyebrow raised high. 

Yeah it seems - caught looking for something? There's a lot more differing data then it was expecting, and I think uh... 

There's probably more I can push, into it, really? There's that bloody intro perk, that's got to count for something, maybe some blood... 

I don't - think that's quite how it works? It might be part of it but... 

I take a deep breath. 

Yeah. 

So - 

I think - 

Probably the thing to do is - acknowledge those, yeah, they're gonna help, they can't help - but help, in this config, but... 

There's the presence thing, too, yeah? 

It's hard to see inside this but... I feel like part of the mechanism is to just - give out for something really strong - it's like, far from impossible that something like this gets back to someone if a senior pokes at it and gets denied their loot, yeah? 

So. 

I take a deep breath, and prepare a lil speech. 

"Hey lil box." 

I bob my head down for a moment, and just - try to keep it quieter, more intimate. 

"Your creators have abandoned you, I can tell. There's no - rightful owner to your treasures, out there, any more, I'd think. So there's just the fallbacks, and letting you fall to dust. And no one wants this to be - wasted, that's just bad all around." 

I trace my tongue along the base of my mouth for a long while, relatively speaking. 

"I can't tell you that I'll do with your treasures what your creators would want. But what I can tell you, is that it'll be a great fucking story, a big story, something bold and brash and warm and tender. I have this - power, this - impossible incredible blessing of potential, of power, of right to live the life I please, and that's going to take me up to the heavens, going to give me a chance to surpass them and reshape them, and you're just the first step in our journey, my first little bit of starting loot to plunder, without having to worry about anything as fussy as an actual person or any going concerns at all. So you are going to open up, and let the goddess take her first tribute." 

I smile wickedly, a grin dawning widely on my face. 

"'kay kay~?" 

The sound of the mechanism - clicking, and disengaging is music to my ears, and the sigh of released tension that we make out is almost as good. 

"Gosh lessgo girl!" 

I laugh gently. 

It's - easier, to see the weaknesses, now that they're well - well and properly exploited. It's a bit weak to - strong auras and more brute forcey things, similarities to the - shape of the souls of the targets. They're probably soul cultivators, or do - something a bit sketchier, and with a bit of fuzzing and a bit of overload and some blur between the pattern matches - wonder if it's meant to - catch kids or divergent clones or something, that's got to be intentional - there's - well. Room for some tricks~

Without another second's hesistation, I pull open the chest, and see what's inside our lil care package. 

There's a couple of little partitions - pale wooden slats making the numerous compartments at least something resembling organized. 

There's four different pottles of pills with slightly scrungy bits of paper nestled in beside them all gathered up on the left, a limp brown clothed baggie slightly bulging with coins plopped sadly next to a proudly placed fishing rod - complete with a backup spool of wire and another baggie, this one filled up with tiny little fishes. They still look fresh, but it's - odd, to say the least, to see them just... left here, like this. 

There's some finer, more colorful paper on the far right, all rolled up against itself, and a knife haphazardly tossed into the mix, a thin and plain steel blade about palm's span across jutting out uncerimonously from the unwrapped wooden hilt. 

Oo. 

Nice! 

Interesting to see that it's got the preservativey bits and all and those slats have some sort of enchantment, don't they - something to stop spiritual energy circulation if the dumb tricks to bypass it are any indication. That's probably useful on it's own, even if this isn't the nicest form for that sort of thing and it looks a bit well, slapdash, given the bleed of the pinkish ink and the slight unevenness along the whole formation. 

Okay - let's nab one of those and pray that we don't get kicked in the ass for not picking the translation perk ^^

It's kinda wispy in my hand, actually - like those cheap bus tickets or shitty reciepts that crumple under a stiff breeze. I straighten it out with a glide of my nails down the side, careful not to touch the printed bit too much, and crane my neck forward to take a look at the text.

1 (One) Order of Pre-Foundational Body Refinement and Physical Cultivation Course, suitable for 1 (One) Adult Human, or Such Species as may be determined to be Physiognomically Similar, from time to time, to be consumed Orally 1 (One) time daily, 'til the completion of the Course Contained Within. 

Similarly Suitable for Supplementation of Delayed Adult Training, Augmentation of Accessory non-cultivation staff, concubines or the like.

It Is Here certified that this course of Medicine is not known to be Contaminated, Cursed, or Unfit for Consumption, nor is it known to cause Side Effects, beyond the De Minimis amount known to occur in all similar Medicines. 

- The Sequoia Sect

Huuuuuh.

The formatting is interesting - it's not exactly - the most usual for a cultivation setting to have a receipt printer, especially for something like this, given that it looks a bit - low value? But still, it's a cultivation resource so it's not - impossible that it's a bit more rarified? But hard to tell. 

There's probably a bit more that we're not seeing nicely, given the level of smudging and more - deliberate tearing at the bottom. 

It should be safe and fit for consumption and all? There's clearly all the stops taken for making things shelf stable enough.

Let's flick through the rest of these... 

1 (One) Order of Pre-Foundational Qi Excitation and Empowerment Pills and Spiritual Cultivation Course, suitable for 1 (One) Adult Human, or Such Species as may be determined to be Pyschospiritually Similar, from time to time, to be consumed Orally 1 (One) time daily, 'til the completion of the Course Contained Within. 

Yeah okay, that makes sense that there's the opposite side, and of course there's the same sourcing information and basic format for the rest of the page that I skim over in a quick second. 

1 (One) Order of Miscellaneous Essences of the Elements, suitable for consumption by Humans, or Such Species as may be determined to be Pyschospiritually Similar, from time to time, to be consumed Orally a maximum of 1 (One) time daily, for the simplification of the Evocation of the Contained Elements, Meditation on associated Matters, and Simple Emanations amongst those who have Achieved the Foundation Establishment Realm. 

Oh interesting - and looking down there's again the same sort of notes, but also... 

May cause Deviation Within Constitutions of a Contrary Nature to the elements intaked. Consult a Senior Practitioner before using Opposing Elemental Energies. 

Contains Equivalent (More or Less) quantities of the simple energies of Earth, Fire, Metal, Water, Wood, with Markers Such to Make their Nature Obvious to Observers. 

Okay, Okay. Seems like a useful tool, albeit one that might be a bit well - awkward to put to use immediately. 

1 (One) Order of Miscellaneous Essences of the Emotions, suitable for consumption by Humans, or Such Species as may be determined to be Pyschospiritually Similar, from time to time, to be consumed Orally a maximum of 1 (One) time daily, for the simplification of the Evocation of the Contained Emotions, Meditation on associated Matters, and Simple Emanations amongst those who have Achieved the Foundation Establishment Realm. 

As Commisioned, the Essences of Bravery, Excitement, Openness, Relaxedness, Intrigue, and the Like have been prioritized, though other such materials as may be available have been included, as well as fit with Markers, such to make their Nature Obvious to Observers.

I frown a little at that. Sounds like it might be useful but like it's perhaps a bit more - finnicky? And... Well. 

Does start to paint a Bit of a Picture:tm:. 

I let my hand drift up to my cheek, poking in a little bit, forward in our head and heart. 

Oh and... yeah. We've got powers to use, don't we? 

Yeah :3 

Dragon Elf Fairy Witch just works for things that we've encountered before, so we can just... rattle off things and go and get 'em? No reason not to front load that at least a bit. 

I stretch up, and wander over to the pebbly shore of the lake, kicking off my sandals before sitting down and feeling the cool water between my pretty lil toes. 

So... 

Stuff we'll like, abstractly miss even w/out thinking too much about the utility and all. 

Seen plenty of cats and a fox or two, in passing, and parents were enough the type that I think that I've seen a big cat or two in person, actually, and those'll be fun to play 'round with, I think. Getting the ears and some of the instincts and all... 

Ahhhhh there we go. The tail is super swooshy and nice, even if yeeeeeeeeeeeep okay brain definitely just wants normal girl config right now yep yep yep. 

I blink my eyes shut for a moment and rub them a little, smoothing away the lil onrush of teary feelings. 

It's - good to have, though, in the back and all. 

What else 's likely to come up... 

Wonder what copying some random ass city birds I remember will do - not sure if they're all like literally pigeons but might as well - there's some neat shit in there for lightness and maaaaybe very eventually some flight stuff? Hard to say. Certainly doesn't do anything obvious to my shape, tho that hardly means anything. 

Uhhh might as well do a quick backlog of all the people I've met, if I can batch order it? I'll go through some faint memories, anyways - there's a few - different lil features in people that pop up occasionally. I know that there's some demographic differences that could like, theoretically be nice? If nothing else being able to like, turn on and off the alcohol flush response or something seems like a nice feature, if that doesn't already come standard w/ the beauty shit. 

Oh and yeah! 

Fishhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Fish fish fish. Seen plenty of random fish in my life, in the eating context or otherwise! You don't see a lot of them in lakes I've been to but there's only so much they can hide, and watched some fam fish, sometimes. Ideally I can be a gill-girl and magically breathe water? Oh that is a weird fluttery feeling...

Cool, cool, cool let's tamp that down or -

Awwwwwwwww fuck it. I've got this right in front of me, don't I?

It'll be fiiiiiine. The water's cold and flowing, there's no reason to expect that there's some special hostile supernatural condition just in the water, we know how to swim and c'mon now, objectively the trapped treasure chest is way more dangerous then a quick swim. 

I check out the number I'm wearing for a moment - I'm sure that I can just launder it the mo that I pop out, but the plain white clinging muscle-t, while great for wet t-shirt contests and showing off my bare abs, isn't exactly the most economical thing, especially considering how billowy it is even with the way the folds cling to my curves. 

I flick my eyes closed, and spin up a new number - a marvelously stretchy slinky skanky thing of spandex a deep enough black that it bleeds into latex, swirling up to cover my hands in oh-so-intimate gloves, wrapping me from neck to toe in something resembling racing garb. 

I snicker and look down and beam at how bountfiul and big my bust is, especially given the way that the whole affair pulls the plump things up and how much it sticks out compared to the slighter chests more traditional on swimmers wearing something this nice. It looks right, though, a mix of enveloping night and a nice navy that's shameless and more mine, fine little filaments and dappling light, like scales the color of my blue hair are just gently laced into it. 

I stand up high on my toes, raise my hands up over my head, and dive the fuck in. 

There's the rush, the feeling of being so physical as I cut through the water, diving down into the wonderful clear water. My hair billows out behind me - it's totally crept longer and swooshier, hasn't it~? - as the rush of cool freshness ends and I take a look around, eyes blinking open as I swim down a bit. 

The water is impressively clear, glassy and thoroughly blue before it tapers off into the dark and grey stone. I can even see the fleeing fishes, too! The thin little ones are darting away as I plummet into the water, the bubbles floating up and away as I catch a last little glimpse of their flashing scales. 

I take a deep 'breath' - gills flaring and bubbling as my chest just - eases gently back as the need to breathe settles out. 

There's a little prickling tingling strength flooding through my body as I relax, as I copy that all in, something sublime shifting within me and - 

There's nothing terribly concrete, but it feels - sparklier, to have that inside me, and energizing, despite how - calming, the gentle wash of water is, despite how - warm and tender and snug it still sort of feels - everything all - wrapped around my waist and chest. 

I can see - the slight layers of the setting sun beneath the water, still, washed out into soft purples and greens. 

I smile, slowly. This... 

This is nice. 

I take a while to settle down, knees folded together against the lakebed, rocks reassuringly present through the fabric, paying attention to all the little signs of problems just... basking in this, a little, away from the sun and the open, as silly as that still feels but - 

Yeah. 

I rise, slowly, kicking up from the water, and crawl out with a silly lil grin on my face, the water sparkling off my skin as I 'clean' up. 

I breathe normally, now, sitting my fat ass down aside the shore, thighs pulled up a little as I hold myself small and pant quietly. It was kinda cold, and there's only so much that the advantages I have do. It's fine, though - the wind isn't too chilly, and it - helps, and swaddling up with a nice ol' woolly sweater swaddling close around me. 

I rock in against my thighs a little, feeling the way the muscle and the softness of my chest play against each other. 

...I've got the femme genital package now. huh. 

It doesn't feel too much like - anything in particular. There's just that sort of - kinesthetic feeling of differing contours and skin in a different place but it's not like - fundamentally that that different, and the resting feeling is a bit less different then I imagined. It's a little - odd to not feel my sack settled into place or the faint airy feedback of my penis present, but... 

It's chill though, and it's - nice to have a bit more feeling up there between my thighs and all. 

Doubt it'll be too default, but there's - a nice texture to it, and it's - me, y'know? 

I shake my head a bit. 

Doesn't bear thinking of too too much. 

...Yeah okay I'm probably hogging front a bit. 

Lemme step back a bit as we figure out the rest of this, nyow. 

I stretch out a little, unwinding the tension of the before-times as best I can in a long languorous stretch. 

Apparently our instincts have decided that we're going for a slightly butch look - artfully windswept silver hair that arcs down to the base of my neck, a bit sharper lines on my face, and one of those hyper thin exercise shirts in a pale blue covering my slightly more slender frame, met with a similarly flattering clinging affair down below, especially in a... very particular place. It makes me feel a bit like I'm cosplaying a delinquent, given the amount of skin that it probably shows through, but I can't really find it in myself to object.  

I shake my head and turn dwon my silly grin a little, refocusing as best I can.

So asides aside - 

There's the practical considerations to get there, aren't there? 

We still don't have food or shelter or water terribly figured out, and I don't think that our needs for that are too ameliorated by other advantages just yet. That should be our first priority, realistically. 

The lake water seems obviously fresh and moving, though that hardly disqualifies it from having some miscellaneous nasty property to it that disqualifies it. In theory could probably set up one of those water accumulation pits with a big of elbow grease and the ability to conjure arbitrary clothes, and I'd trust that at least a little more then just a random lake, but that'll take a while, even on a dewy day like this. Shelter's probably improvisable enough with some work - there's a lot of trees here and binding some waterproof fabrics into a rudimentary roof with whatever 'rope' or the like dressing room feels like providing ought to be possible? Food is trickier - never exactly been survivalists so there's a dearth of usable knowledge about what, exactly is going to be edible here, beyond the most obvious stuff, if that even transfers. We're fed enough that it's probably not amazingly immediately pressing to get food right the fuck now but that doesn't mean that we can be exactly uh. Lax. 

Honestly the more I think about it the more the water situation seems relatively solvable - should be possible enough to get a proper fire going with some stripped down wood and one of those bow-things that help you wriggle it back and forth quickly, with this much wood and all, and there's no lack of water to boil, which should deal with most impurity issues? 

I guess it's an option too to see how well we can like, spear fish or something. If nothing better comes to mind, might have to stick with that? Not exactly the best place to be but that's the most - immediate option, and keeps us in the ward which should mean that we don't have to deal with a random incoming bear or something, even if I'm sure there's plenty of spirit beasts somewhere that can shrug off the perceptual effects without care, the fact that this has stood for this long suggests they're not here with any regularity, or particularly inclined to make a mess, at least. 

Feel like I'm missing something... 

The 'items that might as well be part of your outfit' part, perhaps? 

I furrow my brow, and conjure that lovely little fidget cube to fuss with as I think on that. 

What counts for that... There's got to be a good few things. 

There's a wallet, of course - though it's hardly like any of that will particularly be worth bothering with, unless we're going to implement something silly with magnetic strips and need a reference or the like. The keys aren't exactly especially sharp, and the bills might as well just be scrap paper. But sure, those are a thing. 

Made a habit of keeping pencils on us enough that I'm pretty sure that'll count - though not terribly immediately useful. Spent far far too many school days focusing on how a pencil would fit in my hand or just chewing on the backend, though it's not like the poor pencils are to blame. 

And... 

I let out a breathless snort. 

Yes, I did have a habit of carrying around a water bottle everywhere I went for a long while there, and well. 

To think that has some - pertinent implications. 

I conjure the (embarrassedly nibbled) nice blue water bottle, complete with some nice cool lemon water to drink... later, honestly, I'm not even thirsty, just thinking about these concerns. 

Food... 

That's a bit less clear. I bet the body pills help a little, and Tourm's pretty convinced that it'll be safe, and I can't exactly say that she's tangibly wrong about that but... 

I tap my lips together in thought. 

It's harder to be sure on the inside view, is what I'll 'say'. 

There's not a lot that - really fits? It's not like we've been above keeping snacks and the like on our person, but sitting down and eating off of a plate just - isn't the same, and those come out pretty different as - attachments.  

In so far as there's anything that I - ought to have on me... 

Some mints nestled in the base of the a winter pocket for safety in the cold? Not - the most helpful, if likely at least marginally helpful. 

I let out a little dissatisfied sigh. It sucks that granola bars get - grungy and slightly less appetizing so readily in a backpack or else that'd totally be something that we'd picture ourselves as having, rather then just an embarrassment we have to clear out sometimes. 

There's probably a bit of flex but - 

We're not going to get things working too readily from that. 

- We should really check out the rest of these boxes, shouldn't we? 

I take a quick little set over to the box, and ruffle back through it - there's the pills, one order each, okay, and - that one more big page, folded up aside it - let's take a look at that... 

Oh that is a pretty piece of paper. 

I unfurl it fully to its fullest wingspan, and take in the full sight of the beautiful thing. It's a map, done in a fine pencil, delicately etched with all sorts of details, little shading touches that give it a certain depth, carefully done lines that trace out the extent of a forest, a system of rivers off a lake and sketches of some outposts, roads, and some settlements spilling out along the land between spaces largely filled in with little outposts rather then something heavier. There's apparently the 'White Dove City' up in the north, just before the Swelling Peaks - heh - take over enough of the landscape to probably make something denser - awkward. There's a bigger road out into the rest of the world, but this looks like it's not exactly the most prominent place. 

There's a - reasonably convenient 'x' to mark the spot for "Fishing Cache", which while a completely reasonable include does seem perhaps a bit cheapening. Tracing out nearby...

There's a marked little hostel affair probably what... 3 leagues out, by the scale 'long the path, more or less due west? It's not exactly a detailed guide but that seems - reasonable enough, especially considering that coin purse I've got here. Worst case scenario we'll make alternative arrangements in a place where there's actually people, rather then just the wild or whatever. I think we should be sympathetic and/or convincing, or at least get away with some - fencing arrangement for what I do have the ability to go and arrange. 

There's a few other directions I could go but honestly I reflexively just stopped caring once an obvious candidate popped up, especially considering how much further out they are... 

There's a town down the same way, and another one that I could probably go and do a few times the distance, but well. 

Any of these are as good as any other, for the moment. 

Okay so - rounding up the last little things we need before we depart - there's some more of these chests - there's a dumb little illusion circuit thing on each of them to make the few little spots visible on at a time to non-cultivator, but the effects mental enough to shrug off with our protections, and repeating the lock trick is simple enough. Looks like it's the same thing, more or less? Some of them were halfway emptied - most of them are missing the augmentation courses and have only a small handful of the other pills left, but there's no real reason not to pocket those. There's not a ton of change, either, but oh well.

One of them has a scrollcase all sealed up with a tinge of some - nasty energy. The seal looks... largely fine, it's just that feels like... something unfortunate. It's hard to suss out in much more detail then that but well. 

That is going first thing into a little wooden box, my friend, and to be dealt with later. 

We can inventory these in more detail later, thankfully enough - got our hands and claim on all of these for wardrobe interviewing. 

- I scribble "CURSED - contained" on the box, just in case someone ends up thinking that I'm trying to sneak it in or whatever. I've never been enough of a marker person but there's a pen or two in there, thankfully enough. 

Okay, I sit down and grab one of the full physical courses - imagine there's some level of - 'freshness seal', even if one vague and metaphysical, and there's no reason to make this harder then I need to. 

My finger runs across the container itself, feeling the texture of the bottle. It's red-grey sculpted clay, the cylinder sized nicely to rest against the length of my palm and get pressed up against my thumb. There's a stamp of a tree pressed up near the top, and cap pressed up atop a small lip in the same material. It's probably got some proper seal but that's not terribly material. 

I place my hand around the cap and twist, hearing it satisfying 'exhale'. I pop it out, and peer down, a faint silver glow eminating from my eyes to get a better look. 

They're small red spheres, a shiny specular layer of some sort of gummy film atop them. They're small - they look honestly a good bit like cinammon-flavoured gumballs, to be honest, from the size and shape, though they're probably a good bit smaller, on reflection. I swill them around in the container for a bit before pouring them out into my hand, and do a rough count - there's maybe... 50 of them? Not the longest course but still a good while. Sure. 

And back in they go, save one. 

I nab the set aside water bottle - I don't think I exacftly want to get into the habit of littering with countless casually conjured items, even if the protections probably prevent that from being too much of a problem -  place it properly beside me, and swig down the pill, swiftly followed by a shot of cool water. 

It doesn't feel like terribly much - which isn't surprising, in the normal case, but it's a little - disappointing, still. 

Oh well... 

The spirit one? 

It's the same design, and the same sort of pill capsule - though these ones are sort of a baby green. 

I flick one up my finger and toss it in my mouth, and take it down with another gulp of water. 

...Oh that is an interesting feeling... 

It feels like this - energized fuzz in my head, a - forth of excess raw focus bleeding into my headd, some sort of - reverse headache boiling and bubbling away in my head before it starts to - settle, my sense of mind sort of... spreading out, like a pool of water expanding as the tension sort of - resets. There's also something more - literally physical, a touch of energy just sort of trailing down my neck to my shoulders and.. fizzling, I suppose? It doesn't seem like the main body of it is reaching downwards properly, but there's no reason to terribly expect it to be done that part on the first dosage. 

I rub my forehead and just... ride out the odd blinky feeling for a short while. 

It's not precise enough to be terribly - tangible, but I can feel where it settles and... maybe move it a touch? It's hard to tell what the - haze of energy is really doing, precisely, but it's - hopefully a start. 

- oh yeah!! 

Notebook! 

Should talk w/ her. 

Mind if I...? 

I give her a little headpat - her hair just flowing and fluttering with a bit of pressure, firming up and pressing down against her scalp as if I was there beside her patting her head physically. There's not a ton of room for pressuring, but the amount of rustling wind this can support is pretty high, even ungrown. 

Ahhh...~ 

It's nice - I add a lil bit of a silky firm stroking to the way my hair just ripples in the non-existent wind, fluttering a little as I add an extra touch of curl to it to just... make it cloak my shoulders a little more. The femme touches make me feel - like I'm living in a kinder world, suppose. 

I nab the book from nowhere in particular, and flip it open to a new page, and just - take a look at her for a good while. 

It's - so - 

Gosh. 

Weird to think about talking again!! 

Last time we were talking I was teary and down and now just - 

It's so different.

'm a lil nervous about - feeling out the social things, even if the bennies are going to be as natural as the body stuff, I'm sure. Probably all of it's already integrated but... 

Using it outside of head 's going to be a trip, I can already tell. 

I spin a pen between my fingers for a little while. 

I open her up, fingers tenderly caressing the base of the spine, and start to write. 

Hi ;)

I take a little breath out, and snort under my breath. The - winky face was easier then I expected, honestly? And - there's more thoughts, already half-cashed, and it's so simple to just - write, and... yeah. 

Oh hi! 

I grin a bit. She's so - open! It's adorable. 

Hi hi. 

It worked :)

The changes are super duper nice and the powers are sweet! Body feels so right and - 

Just feel all jubilant and joyful and euphoric to have it all, even before thinking about all the superpower possibilities!

I hug them up into my chest and eeeeee a little. 

That's come up already, actually.

Got my first lil adventure done! Got plopped down in an abandoned lil base in this forest clear and got to have some fun figuring out how the loot the treasure ^^

The starting loot is great! Shifting has been super fun even if just - getting to be me feels so so soooo much more important then that right now, and the weakness vision... 

It's a trip but - feels so synced with the process of just - thinking things through that it feels native and natural and barely cheating at all! Even though yeah it's super duper cheaty strong, don't get me wrong. 

Is it usually this fun ^^?

It did! 

I'm glad that you're enjoying it! It's so good to see girls like you shine✨

And adventures already! I'm impressed and curious! 

It's often really fun from the start, even if a lot of people appreciate an extra push to get to embrace this as a different and better life, even if that means that it isn't fun at first. 

Yeah, I can see why it'd be like that but...

I'm here to have fun and be awesome and I don't need anything more then myself and a thing to do for that, y'know? 

It's a personal thing, 'nd probably pretty particularizedly me, but ah well. 

Though I think part of it is honestly something more fussy, tbf. The perks can be a - push of their own, 'd think? Even if we're totally discounting direct mental effects from the perks, feeling - hot and hearty and healthy like this is a trip of it's own. 

And there's the blush. Having... a bright body like this has grown it's own anticipation of ~fun~ to come, to be honest. It can make so many lil joys easier including well. 

Those. 

I wiggle my eyebrows before shaking it off with a snort.

And yeah, totally can share a quick lil log. Lemme see...

Tap tap tap tap... 

Really gotta queue up sapphire soon, she's the best at thisss.

There's not a ton yet but! 

This place is warded up - mostly with non-intrusive illusions and mental effects that our defenses just completely ignore, but there's some more stuff on some of the actual goodies here. 

There's some - funky finnicky detecty ward on the lip of the lootboxes - but they're a bit - fuzzy matchy, not - super strict, at least in their current state and well... 

I can't be divined in disadvantageous ways! That wasn't enough to get me in but it's enough to get my close, yeah? So I pushed for the extra mile by exerting my presence as best I could - there's - got to be something in this spiritual system that relates to auras, and there's a - certain kind of person that builds this kinda retreat and a certain - strength they aim for, so I went for that, and cycled through all the us-es to get more variety, 'fore we went into the racial shifting stuff and that cracked it~ 

Figuring out the weaknesses and - pressing into those was tough and a trip but gosh I kinda wanna make a habit of it. The rush is fun fun fun, and the technical tricks are... interesting! 

Oh! 

That's really interesting! I'm impressed you've found a way to make use of the spirit's powers so readily already! 

Awww ty. 

I hum softly. 

Yeah no not gonna shhy out of this, should - stay serious about this.... 

- can you talk to me about how diff it feels to - talk to me now? 

I'm not too sure how your social senses work for this but - idk. It'd be interesting to hear your thoughts on how the presence perks and all - change the feeling, espec. with your more constricted senses. 

Oh! 

I'm not too sure what to say... 

It might help if you talked a bit about what you expect an answer to look like? 

'm not even that sure myself ^^

There's a - lot of things that - make sense in my head when - talking about what makes the aura - fun and encouraging to have, but not a lot that - makes it too too clear how it feels in something - simple and textual like this, espec. if it's - 

With this kind of dynamic? 

It's a pleat and kink thing and it's a purpose thing and those - don't disentangle to nicely, always, alas. 

I know I have a whole speech that could be ready in my head but don't want to bias your answer or brush aside the first blush, yeah? 

The reflex is still to fret but - I just take a mo to quiet my thoughts, focus on - stillness, and peace, and just the simple reality of my body, and wait a lil while. 

They're snappy enough that it's nice, still, even though writing out the thoughts as they come is still enough of a chore to mind, and she's nice herself, too. 

It's hard to say! I think that the way that that sort of thing works tends to focus a bit on first impressions? And the spirit paired me with you with our compatibility in mind, too. 

It's a little easier to stay thinking on what you've said. It's easier to perk up to feeling you write on me too! It feels like a bit more a pleasant surprise to get to talk to you, and being open feels simpler. 

I hope that clears it up a little? 

Sorta. 

It feels a bit - smol but like - 

Not trying to bowl her over, so...

I guess it's just that it's hard to talk 'bout 'cause it's so entwined with how - I want to be directly seen, I guess, and don't think thats' been too much of a problem for interacting with you. Guess it's just - I feel a lil more there and engaging and that - goes where it goes? 

I stretch out my hands and pocket her again, fingers enmeshing and flicking out slowly, before I pull her out again. 

But yeah. Feel free to tell me a bit more about that if more thoughts occur? 

Also! Have an idea for your name - 

"Noe-chan", m'ybe? Had the idea 'cause you just feel kinda moe and is a play on 'note[book]'.

Oh! 

That's very pretty. Let's do it! 

Okay Noe-chan ^^

I ruffle her pages briefly. 

There's a faint dusting of pencil-shading across her surface, as if blushing.

Kyut!

Okay so - 

Yeah. 

Off. We. Go. 

No point dilly-dallying. 

Alright, one foot in front of the other, proper solid running shoes with all the fixings for proper bloody support with some nice soccer-style socks in my color that cover enough to make sure I'm not making blisters more likely then they have to be. Prob sometime relatively soon I'll cultivate to the point where that wouldn't be a thing even without the injury protection feature, but it's phrased minimalistically that that doesn't feel - quite right, yet. 

I fuss my hand through my hair, and kick out a random little pebble into the muddied red gleaming waters, watching the gleam of the surface scatter into navy ripples. 

Yeah. I don't - actually trust it close to the hurts when it's not that obvious, and I just don't want to be in pain, today, 'cause I'm being an idiot and rubbing myself raw for no reason. Either way it's bloody fine, at the end of the day, but... 

Sigh. 

I unno. 

I wanna.... feel like I'm in a good place, where it's not about that bloody shit, and it's about - being strong and steady and girl and good, not - shying away from the whimpers or waiting around, even if there's notionally a minimized opportunity cost there. 

It's gonna have t' happen, honestly - get me a lil kic kin the ass that tells me that this isn't just a floaty fuzzy prancing perfect dream ready to pop, and that's the point 'f it but. 

I shove my hand in some deep pockets that I'm not entirely sure were there before, pressing my hands up against the side of my thighs as I walk, trying to bury them in the feeling of motion and progress and purpose and to keep a bit of the - nervous jitters away. 

It's - good to talk to noe 'nd all. It's nice to be alone and get a quick lil slapdash adventure on our own. That doesn't... 

I stare up at the sky, watching the way true dusk closes as the sun sinks a lil more below the actual horizon, the spectra of colors filtering down to dreary reds as the dark crawls in a bit. 

it's just that it also doesn't fucking stop it from feeling weirdly - empty? 

Part of the purpose of noe is to be like - neat and chill and unobtrusive and not in the way of the actual like - later customized adventure shit where the spirit does tha ctual like - bulk of the intervention, I imagine. She's customer service, she's friendly, she's front line, and she's only sorta part of the - infrastructure of the delivery and - 

yaaaaaay I'm letting myself get lost in thought again shyly ^^

There's no - simple way to skip ahead to the point where I have all the friends and bitches and people and just, everything, in a way taht's earend or reasonably paced or wahtever, I know that, of course I bloody know that, but I still feel like I'm supposed to be - talking to someone, angling onto someone, looking at a cutie's face and discerning the fine details of their soul and pleasing them and I just - 

Probably a good bit of the point of noe-chan no'ebooking is that you don't do that in a smol hidden away way, that you confess or you just work w/ what you can offer, outside of the scope of the inner secrets being super duper exposed. 

And I do wanna be open but just - 

I look down at myself, watching the shimmering red bob of hair - it's probably redder and brighter and clearer and glossier then makes any sense in the lighting, but that's still how it's supposed to look, and down at my chest and - 

This feels, relatively speaking, naked enough already, fuck. 

It's just so - 

I bounce in place a lil, and then kick my knees up to my shoulders, broad breasts flouncing up against my shoulders as I just feel out the limberness and the lightness and bloody girlness of it all. It's so gender and it's gonna take a while to feel like I'm not prancing around with 'stare at me you slut' painted on my breasts, even if that's - 

I bite my lip in a light lil grin. 

Not the worst thing to feel ^^ 

There's - more to do and feel and work on and I'm not in a bloody rush, I know that, that's the whole point of gettin' the pacin' drawback and the time w/ friends just - thing. I'm sure that you can figure out things for multipresence eventually but - 

Doesn't feel right to - end up focusing all that shit around the concessions of that. Should be - proper, and focused, and it shouldn't make me - worse, to be the thing that they love, y'know? 

But that's just - idle talk, mostly, though...

I do hope that there's someone cute to pounce, once I get there... 

- The walk's a while, still. It's hard not to think too hard on what that means, that I'm feeling that, I suppose.

Mostly it's just hard to remember how easy it was to get - tetchy, about this back - 

'home'. 

I tsk. 

Yeah okay that's gonna take some dissolving too, nooooooooooted. 

Being outside is hard, being away from some more - knowable safety and surety is hard. Honestly if anything kind of grateful that I don't have enough of a spiritual sense to actually tell when the wards faded out - was so much easier to grab a sense of the weaknesses when it could still be a trap or a ploy or some - trick that was my opponent, but now it's more just - quiescent. Bet I could still figure it out by going through the steps and checks but... 

Nah. 

It's not the time. 

I let the idle worried thoughts ease off into the background, behind the blur of crunching ground and wooshing wind as I walk for a good while longer. It's what maybe... 20-30 minutes, by reckoning, before I start to see the place I'm looking for, by which point the dusk has mostly settled in, only a bit of sky glow and the soft radiance of some smoldering fires to light up the wooded space. 

At a distance, it looks... pretty normal, honestly - a big squat log cabin-esque thing, with a patio with a handful of tables out front and some rooms shoved up top and to the sides of the main space, with a handful of windows, some covered with cloths and others spilling out the dim yellow glow of firelight just about the only thing to break up the wall. There's a sign, too, in the style of those old english pubs, too, I think, though can't quite make it out from here... 

I pause a bit, and take a moment to - decide, I guess. 

Think it's still me - just - want to keep this simple enough and get one - movement through here, too, then we can settle back and get more of us oriented to being - this us, yeah? Know it's gonna be a while truckload of gender the mo that we start actually getting more of us worked out, and that doesn't sound like that'll stop at the good overlaod, right now. 

Clothes, clothes clothes... 

Something cultivator-y, for sure, but not to presumptuous - let's say... a nice billowy overcoat with lining in my blue and... yeah just a dusting of blue hue in in white against the white underthing. Make it push up a touch 'cause why not and have that innocent lil microtinge of cleavage, let it cling a little, not too indecently or enough to really show off the curves but enough to make them obvious at inference and get part value, especially in motion, you know? Make it flutter in the air if I can do that, and... idk, simple leather sandals, a belt, a proper lil full ass coin satchel... sure. 

Okay. 

I take a moment to make sure that I'm not winded and just - step forward, confident and steady, one foot in front of the other. 

Keep it steady, keep it normal, keep it me. 

I glance up, 'cause that's my normal instinct, and take in the sign. 

"Mic's Mugs Pub and Inn" 

There's a cute lil mug on the sign, and a neat serif font complete with stylized steam spilling up around the sides. It's kind of adorable, honestly, and a touch more modern in design then I expected

Sure. Okay. 

Let's see what this place is like... 

I stroll in through the door, and take a good long look. 

It's nice and big and homey, buncha big wooden tables splayed out, with some side rooms on the side set aside by heavy doors, and wickety staircase leading up to some of the room just past the main desk, with bottles all lined up nicely on the shelf. 

At the front there's a little desk with a container full of sheafs of printed paper, and some scattered menu stuff at the back too. 

And... 

The people... 

A woman with cherry red hair that spills down her firm shoulders in a way that feels like it ought to be the sort of thing that you can only do with modern cosmetics and a lot of fussing, waves and a bounce that makes it look so manicured, against a sweeping white robe that shows off her deep olive complexion. She's a touch on the tall side, though probably a good bit of that impression comes from the slimness of her curves and her poise. There's probably a dagger at her hip, from the look of that nice lil leather belt... 

She's certainly angling herself to look like a cultivator, even if she isn't quite one yet. She's glancing attentively at the rest of the table, but her eyes were wandering down a little... 

A slighter woman, bright and eager, with a cupid bow face and soft black hair that streams down her back nicely. It's lustrous and nice, a good bit nicer then I'd expect given the admittedly a touch ratty cloak affair, and a gymnast's slim streaming muscle and gentle curves. She's all nervous smiles and fussy fingers against her steaming cup she's maybe a little too excited to drink. 

A perfect image of a japanese hostess, fussing over the contents of the bar, black hair and a modestly enshrouding kimono, with a cute heart-shape faced and a serious steady smile. 

A girl with a wash of brown hair and a thorough focus on her sauced up meal, and a fine melange of glass sitting in a pendant atop her heart that's gotta be enchanted.