It took soem amount of guts for Kyouko to turn to Homura for help. But the thing is, she wasn't ready to turn back to Mami yet. Mami had annoyed her, and in many ways, that's so much worse than trying to kill her repeatedly. At least she and Homura had had /fun/ together, even if that fun was attempted mutual annihilation.
And so on the appointed time, some afternoon when she doesn't have to work in the run-up to her 'date' with Sayaka (which in reality is no such thing, but which Kyouko can't help but think of that way), Kyouko is waiting somewhat nervously by the station downtown. She's in her totally normal clothes, because her wardrobe can still best be described as 'utilitiarian', which means suitable for wearing and not much else.
She does have the fruits of her labor in her pocket though- several thousand yen with which to buy something pretty to (hopefully) make a good impression at the concert in a few days.
Homura Akemi has been waiting for a time like this. There has often been some point in previous timelines at which Kyouko chooses to cooperate with Homura, as uneasy allies if nothing else, but there's also never been a timeline like this one. Now things between her and Kyouko have calmed down, out of necessity, but Homura finds herself wondering how long it'll last.
She arrives at the station, walking up to Kyouko. She's dressed in a suit, again, after having gotten off work from the WPS building. She actually does look like a professional... or a corporate sellout, depending on your point of view.
"Hey, Kyouko," she says as she gets close enough to speak comfortably. "So... did you decide whether you wanted to rent a dress or buy it?" She pulls out her smartphone, and starts digging through a list she's made. "I've found a few options, either way."
If Kyouko were aware of the existence of other timelines, and how many of them Homura has seen, she might wonder if any of those times of cooperation had involved shopping for dresses. An unusual timeline, indeed. Her eyes find Homura as the other girl approaches.. a faint frown coming to her lips at the sight of the dark-haired girl in a suit. Bad associations, maybe.
But beggers really can't be choosers; Kyouko had asked for this help after all, and she's not about to seem ungrateful by complaining about what Homura chose to wear. "Hi." She says, offering a small, somewhat unsure smile. "Um.. thanks again for helping me out. It uh.. means a lot."
She blinks at the question, then says, "Probably buy, I think.. I.. tend to destroy my clothes, and I'd rather destroy something I own than something I'm going to have to pay somebody back for later.."
"Don't mention it," says Homura, oblivious to Kyouko's feelings about seeing her in a suit. She's not oblivious to the frown on her face, but Homura doesn't know the meaning.
Tends to destroy clothes, huh? For some reason, Homura isn't surprised. "Sure. Alright. Well..." Homura flicks her fingers across her phone's screen a few more times, bringing up a map. "Looks like there's a few places within walking distance. There's one place that I keep wanting to take Madoka to."
Either Homura has never gone clothes shopping with Kyouko in a previous timeline, or she just doesn't remember it among all the other things they've done. She doesn't really know what kinds of dresses Kyouko would like. She's made a few guesses, though.
She looks up from her phone to Kyouko, "Ready to go?"
"Yeah, sure. Let's go." Kyouko says, turning to follow Homura as the better-equipped Puella leads the way towards the shop. Wanting to take Madoka, huh? Is Kyouko a stand-in, then? She can't help but smirk slightly at the thought, although she doesn't voice it in the interest of maintaining peace.
As they proceed though, Homura can likely detect a bit of a change in the redhead. She actually seems to be a bit nervous, and not because of Homura's presence. Kyouko is fiddling with the drawstrings of her hoodie, biting her lip as she glances into the window of nearby shops, and generally acting like she's actually a bit worried about something.
It's likely not an attitude Homura is used to picking up from Kyouko in any timeline- but then again, it's also the first time Kyouko has been without magic for a significant stretch. And possibly the first time she has a 'date'.
Homura glances at Kyouko as the two of them head towards the shop. She's nervous for some reason? Is it because of Homura? "I'm not gonna make fun of you." She says. "Or take embarassing pictures."
Homura is trying to be reassuring, but the way she says it is probably a bit too blunt to actually be reassuring. Homura figures Kyouko's used to being the biggest fish in the pond. She always thought if she wasn't then someone would take advantage of her or kill her. Homura thinks that's why she's nervous now.
Homura's eyes go towards the sidewalk, looking downwards as she walks. Looking at people's feet, and look where she's stepping. "How are things going, aside from dress shopping?"
Kyouko blinks as Homura speaks.. darting a glance sideways at the other girl. "What? I.. I didn't think you were." She says, and it seems like that's true, if the genuinely surprised expression which passes over her face is any indication.
As Homura looks away from her and asks after things in general, Kyouko is silent for a long moment.. and then she blurts out, in a slightly rushed-sounding way, "What if she thinks I look silly?"
She then turns red, blushing, realizing that that in no way answered Homura's question and she had instead just inserted what she herself had /actually/ been nervous about. But there's no going back now, so she continues, looking away, "I mean.. I don't really do.. dresses. They might look dumb on me. I'm worried Saya-chan will think I look.. dumb."
She darts a glance back at Homura, perhaps seeking some reassurance.
Homura's blank stare is all that meets Kyouko's search for reassurance. After a moment, Homura says, "Sometimes people think it's strange when a girl who is tomboyish suddenly dresses very ladylike. I get that sometimes. It's no big deal, and usually the only people who comment are friends of mine anyways."
After a pause, Homura adds, "Plus... I don't really think that Sayaka is the kind who would hold that against you. Whatever else you could say about her, she's a very principled person." Even when her life depends upon it, though Homura doesn't mention that part.
Homura flips her hair and adds, "Besides, we'll just have to pick out a dress that doesn't look dumb."
Homura starts to see the shop in the distance. There are a number of dresses in the window, some simple and others frilly. The dresses don't look very expensive, and the displayed prices seem to back that up, but they do manage to look nice.
Kyouko doesn't need an expensive dress- well, perhaps its more accurate to say that she couldn't have a fancy dress whether she needed one or not, because she's shopping on a conbenie salary, after all. But as long as it fits her and it's dress-like, it'll probably due the trick.
Homura's reassurance, which isn't terribly reassuring, only causes Kyouko to fidget some more. "I know she wouldn't hold it against me," She says, "But that's not the same as impressing her. I want to impress her.. show her I'm more than just some dumb chick who can get in a fight." Is she more than that? Maybe she herself doesn't even know, and that makes it all the more important.
As they approach the shop, Kyouko glances at the dresses in the window, and then back to Homura. "Alright.. well, I'm counting on you." She says, and the scary thing is she pretty much means it.
"You want to impress her?" says Homura. Not just show up in an acceptable dress, but actually impress her? Well, if any old dress would work, Kyouko probably wouldn't need much help.
"Well, if you're trying to really look nice, we'll need the makeup we talked about earlier. I'd normally suggest heels, but I think in this case I think you'd look better without... well... tripping on them." Homura hesitates as she says that last bit, trying not to bring up a sensitive subject. "We'll also have to make sure your hair is well taken care of. Fortunately..." Homura flips her hair once again as she enters the store. "... that last part I can help you with."
A little bell rings as they enter the store, and Homura immediately walks over to the wall of dresses. There's a variety of colors here; pinks, greens, blues, and of course reds. Some of the dresses are frilly, others are a bit more plain, and still others are silky. There's also a mirror nearby, and a changing room in the back.
"So what's your favorite color? Red?" asks Homura, as she turns towards Kyouko and starts looking her over. "How do you feel about bows?"
All that hair-flipping would be getting on Kyouko's nerves if she didn't have enough to be nervous about anyway. "Yeah, I want to impress her." Kyouko repeats, sounding surprisingly earnest, altough a moment later she blushes again slightly.. and then passes it off as a flush of anger as Homura brings up high heels. "Har har. I didn't invite you here because I needed a comedian." She mutters.
She trails after Homura towards the wall of dresses, looking around, seeming just a bit lost- gosh, when was the last time she shopped for clothes anywhere but a thrift store? She can't even remember. "I think I look best in red.." she begins, glancing down at herself.. "It brings out my eyes." Her red eyes, totally a natural shade for eyes to be.
"No bows." She makes a face, walking along the wall, looking at the various dresses, reaching out now and again to feel them, check out the textures. She pauses in front of a rather ruffly one, looking contemplative. "Ruffles are okay, though.."
"So bows are out," says Homura. "Hats are probably out too, considering the occasion." Homura places her chin on her hand while considering this, trying to get a mental image. She starts looking through a different rack of dresses, pulling out the occasional red one to look at it.
Most of the dresses are made of cotton or something cotton-like, with the occasional silk dress. Homura pauses when she sees a purple or black one, but she reminds herself that she isn't shopping for her own dress and moves on.
When Homura turns around, Kyouko has paused in front of a dress. Red, ruffly. It doesn't look terrible. Homura comes up behind her and says, "Do you want to try it on?"
Kyouko jumps when Homura walks up behind her. The girl can move as quietly as a cat sometimes, it's downright frightening. "W-what? Ah.. yeah, I guess." She looks a bit nervous about actuallytaking the dress down, as if somebody might think she was trying to steal it, or something.
Nonetheless, after a few moments, perhaps realizing its getting a bit awkward with her standing there looking at the thing and not actually taking it, she reaches out and pulls it off the rack.. glancing down at it again, then holding it up to herself and turning to face Homura. "So uh.. does it like.. suit me?" She asks, tilting her head to one side.
Homura watches as Kyouko jumps. She is nervous. If Kyouko weren't depowered right now, Homura might actually worry about her doing something. Granted, knowing Kyouko, she still might.
She looks over Kyouko as she holds the dress up to herself, standing back to get a full picture. After a moment of thinking it over, she says, "It works." She leans forward and reaches out, touching the dress and spreading it out a bit further, looking at it from several angles. "Yeah, I think it'll look nice. I have make up that can go with this, too."
"Still," she says, leaning back. "We ought to be sure it fits. If we need adjustments we can get those, too."
Kyouko actually shies back a little bit as Homura leans towards her and reached out, as if she expects the other girl to suddenly try and stab her or something. Well hey, old habits die hard. She relaxes after a few moments though, letting Homura examine the dress as she holds it up to herself, perhaps realizing that violence of the physical kind of unlikely to be on the agenda this late in the game.
"Alright.. that's probably a good idea." She admits, glancing around until she spots the changing room again. Let me go see if I can figure it out.." Girl outta be okay, there aren't any complicated buttons or cinches on this one, at least at first glance. She again looks around, as if she's afraid she's going to be accused of stealing, and then heads towards the dressing room.