bills, bills, bills...

[itsgunnabe_mei]

Sender: Meilin "Mei" Lee
To: All
Subject: $$$ For Warm Fuzzies

So, sending out a quick question to all my homies and newbies.

How much would you pay to hug a gigantic red panda? Use whatever currency you feel comfortable with, just tell me if it's high or low.

I may have a business opportunity in the works.

Comments

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ f... frog leg...?! Ewwww! ... Maybe it was a french thing. ]

You sound really experienced. Maybe instead of cooking FOR me, you TEACH me how to make them!

[ectoherbology]

I can also teach you how to trap and butcher animals, too, if you're interested. There are a lot of things I had to learn for survival.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ ... wh. why did this conversation go this way. it started with hugs. ]

just the cooking lessons are fine! really! just that and nothing else!

[ectoherbology]

[Sorry, Mei... she is just a strange, strange kid]

Alright. Let me know what kind of recipe you're interested in. I'll go into town for ingredients whenever you want to try this.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

I can move my schedule around whenever! School's not too much of a thing here, and we don't have to work, so there's plenty of free time.

[ectoherbology]

Whenever you want then. I'm not working on anything time-sensitive.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

You know what? Let's meet up now! I'm kinda curious about your sister now.

[ectoherbology]

I'm at the library, I can meet you nearby. Abigail is with me.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

I'll be there in two shakes of a red panda's tail!

→ Action

[ectoherbology]

[Packing up and putting away the books she had been reading, Wendy went out to the front of the library. Caressing a red flower, a comically cartoonishly-shaped ghost appeared, floating around Wendy as the two waited to meet Mei.

The ghost seems excited, at least, 'bouncing' and floating in circles around Wendy, who's idly chatting with her.]

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ Mei probably should have asked for a description of the girls... As she heads to the library, she keeps hoping the ghost isn't scary. She's suddenly picturing the girl from The Ring...

Nothing's gunna happen in seven days, right?!

So when she sees an adorable Bedsheet Ghost, Mei stops in her tracks and shouts the first thing that comes to mind. ]

Oh thank goodness, she's adorable!

[ectoherbology]

[Abigail stops idly twirling, bouncing in some surprise at Mei's voice, but quickly floats over to investigate the other girl. She's a little spooky... she can't talk, not really, there's just the sound of faint giggling as if it were a voice down a distant hallway. And the air gets very, very cold.]

Hello. Are you Meilin?

[Wendy does her best, but she mispronounces the name as "my-lin".]

I'm Wendy, and this is Abigail. She says hello, too.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ Okay, the ghost is a little creepy... still, it's miles above what she was actually expecting! ]

Oh, you guys can call me Mei! It's nice to meet you both!

[ She beams positivity! This is going to be a good day! Hands on her hips! ]

Now, who's ready for some really warm, fluffy hugs!

[ectoherbology]

[Though Wendy was pretty chronically gloomy, Abigail's excited giggling and twirling brightened her spirits, too.]

We've only seen illustrations of red pandas in books before... Abigail is very, very excited.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

Okay! Prepare yourselves!

[ She takes a step back, puts her hands together, takes a deep breath...

POOF!

... And there's a small explosion of red smoke and sparkles that quickly dissipates. Now there stands a giant red panda! ]

... Ta-daaaah~!

[ With the same voice as the little girl. ]

[ectoherbology]

[Though the 'volume' didn't increase at all with Abigail, the distant giggling got more boisterous and jubilant, and her ghostly eyes practically twinkled. She didn't waste a moment floating up to the giant red panda and getting close. Abigail was regretfully not solid, but her specter wasn't completely untouchable either - a strange chilly feeling was probably all that Mei could feel as Abigail 'leaned' into the fluffy red fur.

Wendy herself was being polite and patient, though she did have a little smile on her face.]

Abigail says you feel very soft.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ Brrr! Some of Mei's fur stands on edge due to the cold, but she manages. A warm ghost would probably be odd anyway.

Mei shakes her head, and tries her best to actually hug Wendy... and can't. Just keeps going through. Oops. ]

... Um. Hm. I'm... glad she's enjoying it, but I kinda feel bad for... not entirely holding my end of the bargain.

[ Is it really a hug if she can't hold them? ]

[ectoherbology]

[Wendy's smile sank a bit, but at least not into her usual frown. That part couldn't be helped, but...

Wendy took out, from her skirt pocket, a pretty red carnation. It floated, just like Abigail did.]

She's also in this flower... you can hold that, if you're comfortable.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ Don't think she doesn't see that expression slightly change! That flower must be very important! ]

... I don't have any siblings myself, but I can bet you two care about each other a lot. I'm not gunna do anything that would make either of you worry! And since I'm giving hugs anyway...

[ If she can't do a wrap-around for one girl, she can for the other! She gently reaches over to try and draw Wendy into the hug. ]

[ectoherbology]

[Oh! Wendy is a bit surprised - if Mei hadn't been a giant cute panda, she might have avoided it, truthfully. But she was curious enough to feel the warm fur for herself, so she took the few steps forward to meet that hug and pet at Mei's fluff.]

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ Aw, yeah. This is nice. Mei's tail wags slowly, just happy to do this for them. ]

Heh heh! It's really soft, isn't it?

[ectoherbology]

...It is. You're a lot softer than when mister Woodie turns into a beaver or a moose.

[Fluffy! And warm...]

And definitely less bristly than a beefalo. It reminds me of a catcoon.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

[ ... buh? ]

Wait, you know other people who can turn into animals?!

[ectoherbology]

I don't think it's quite the same... you seem to have your wits about you. Mister Woody is cursed with being a were-beaver. And a were-moose. And a were-goose. On full moons he turns into one of those randomly.

[itsgunnabe_mei]

Oooh. Yeah, that's totally different. I'm not cursed... I mean, I sometimes see it as a curse... but technically, it was a blessing by the gods for my ancestor.