Finally, finally, finally!
For the past two days, since school started, Usagi kept forgetting Naru's Paris Gift at home. It's hard readjusting to early wake ups, especially when one is finally able to sleep more than four hours at a stretch!
And now it's lunchtime, still her favorite subject.
She's glad Naru still likes her. Usagi feels like she's been a Bad Friend since starting up her...extra curricular activities. (No, not detention. The Moon thing.) After all, Naru had more embarrassing stories on Usagi than her own parents, and vice versa. Those kind of friendships are hard to kill!
"Come on, Naru-chan! Come on, come on, come on!" Usagi giggles as she pulls Naru along. Normally, since it's winter, indoors is usually her preferred place for lunch. But, "I remembered it, come on!"
School. The glorious reassuring routine of school. Of getting up early, of seeing people, of learning and reading and best of all, of seeing Usagi! There's not a lot about school that she doesn't actually enjoy, even math.
Lunchtime finds Naru quickly trying to finish writing out the homework for the day as Usagi attempts to drag her bodily out of the classroom. "You remembered it, but not your science paper?" She giggles as she tucks her book away and surrenders to the dragging, hurrying along with her.
Usagi pauses her tugs to bodily roll her eyes. "Naru-chan. If I start the semester like I ended the last, they'll expect me to improve even more." She waves her hand. "Besides, who assigns homework the first week of classes? It's inhumane, Naru-chan! Inhumane!"
It's obvious that the blonde's recent dour mood has lifted, even if there are still bags under her eyes.
With determination, she thrusts the door to the roof open, shrieks, and pulls it closed again. "C-cold...hey, wanna have lunch on the stairs?"
"It's called /review/." Naru starts to explain, patiently, and then gives an indulgent smile and a little giggle. "It wasn't that bad!" She has to add in, for the record.
She watches Usagi a moment, the blonde girl's smile bring a brighter smile to Naru's face before she squeals at the blast of cold that disrupts her brief pensive moment.
"EEE!" She gestures towards the door to close it again. "Stairs! Stairs it is! Wow, I think it's /colder/ than this morning. How is that even possible!?" She turns to head back down the stairs to find a good spot to plunk down with lunch.
Usagi scoffs again. "More like 'this is a reminder of how your life now belongs to us ahahahaha!" She sighs. "Farewell, innocence! Farewell, youth! Next thing you know, we'll be working all the time!"
After the door is firmly closed once more, Usagi shivers and sits, huddling close to Naru. A body heat vampire! "Good idea. Yes. Very good idea. Brrr. Why does winter even have to happen, Naru-chan? Don't they know we need to wear cute skirts to survive?!"
Part of her wants to give Naru the gift right now, but the other part, lunch! "Thanks for the food!" Omnomnom!
But that doesn't mean she can't give hints! "Okay, it's not your usual color, but when I saw it, it basically threw itself at me! 'If you don't buy me for Naru-chan, your dearest, oldest friend, the world will end! So I had to get it for the safety of the world."
Naru giggles softly as she huddles close with 'her' Usagi and passes her lunch. Best subject of the day, at least according to one of them. "Cute skirts with even /cuter/ stockings! You can't wear amazing stockings in the heat of summer, so ther'es winter so you get to enjoy them." So obvious, leggings are the only reason for the winter season.
Naru nibbles at her own lunch, what she's kept from Usagi at least and then giggles again. "Shopping for the safety of the world? We should write a movie about that or something. You didn't /need/ to buy me anything! I'm just happy you're home, and happy again. I like it when you're happy."
Her eyes widen at Naru's wisdom. "You're right! Cute stockings are why winter exists! Because wearing stockings in summer makes your legs sweat, which makes you feel very much Not Cute!"
She finishes her own lunch and slows down considerably while eating what Naru gave her. She pauses for a moment, fingers briefly touching a small locket. "I'm trying to be." And then, cheerful again! "Or at the very least, a story! A book! Or oooo, a manga! But, wait, if that happened, I shouldn't draw for it."
She nudges against Naru. "And of course I did. Shopping for others is the best part! And shopping for my Naru-chan? The best of the best!"
She reaches down and rattles the handle of the bag. Yes, she included the bag she got it in, because it's a Paris Bag!
"I'll draw. You write the story." Naru nods confidently on the notion of a shopping saving based manga. There's no way that this can't go wrong at all. She slides her tangerine over towards Usagi, confident that the other will want just a wee bit more lunch.
"Did you get the locket in Paris too?" Naru asks, leaning in a bit more to peek at the new bit of jewelry with the curiosity borne out of a lifetime of jewelry and then grins again. "Awww. Shopping for others really /is/ the best. Giving presents is so much fun." She leans over to peek at the bag and then ees softly, trying to be patient.
That's a great idea! "Yeah! And...then maybe have you actually write the words in the story, because my handwriting stinks!" A giggle from Usagi! And she breathes in the scent of the tangerine as she peals it. Ohhh, so pretty! And tasty!
A mild jolt runs through her. Right. The locket. Okay, can't say Homura found it while moving Mamo-chan's stuff... Right! He has Mono. Okay, work with that. And while her explanation is somewhat false, or at least misleading, her sad sigh isn't. "No. Mamo-chan left it out for me. There was a note and everything, so I know it was for me!"
And of course, Naru's soft 'eee' sets Usagi into impatient, giddy wiggles. "Okay, okay, okay! Yay!" She picks up the bag and all but thrusts it at Naru. "I hope you like it!"
"If you /practiced/ you know.." Naru starts down the same path of reminders that have been repeated since they both worked in crayon exclusively and then she grins. "You make up the words, I'll put them in the pictures. Your handwriting doesn't get to muck up my pictures."
She reaches over to claim a single segement of the tangerine before Usagi noms it all and there's a suitable 'D'awww' at the notion of the locket being left for her. "That's so CUTE!" She declares with a grin, leaning in to give her friend a quick hug to banish the sad sigh.
The impatient wriggling cuts the hug short, even as giddy impatience is contageous. She carefully wipes her fingers off on a napkin, rather than her skirt, and then reaches for the bag. "Of COURSE I'll like it, silly! You are good at presents!" She sets the bag in her lap, admiring it as she does, because /Paris/ bag. Really.
Another scoff from Usagi! "But if I practice writing, I'd have less time for reading the manga!" This, of course, is the rebuttal she has had for the past decade or so.
And the hug helps cheer her up. She even has a small, happy blush! "I think it said it was his mother's." Giddy, giddy, giddy!
She's still wiggling as Naru takes the bag, and the wiggling only intensifies as her friend looks at it. And she's preening, too, because yes, she likes to think she's good at gift picking! But oh, the suspense! But one cannot rush this!
That revelation about the locket only serves to make Naru 'awwwww' all the more. "That's almost terminally cute. He's so sweet!" She beams in delight as she carefully opens the bag to peek in.
There are those who tear into presents, and then there are those who carefully extract each piece of tissue to be able to fold them and keep them. Usagi is of the first camp, and Naru is of the second. She draws out a piece of lightly scented tissue paper that cushions her present and gives it an admiring sniff. "It even smells as elegant as Paris is!" She declares, giving it a quick fold to set next to her and continue her hunt into the bag. She sniffs a few more times, appreciating as she goes before the tenor of her delight changes to a higher pitched squeal.
"Oooh! It's so SOFT! And lacy! And EEEE!" She draws out the blouse first, all slinky pretty elegant.
Usagi sighs, happy and dreamy. "He is. I reeeeeaaaaallllllllyyyyy want you to meet him one day. When he isn't, you know, sleeping all the time." Hyberbole? Nope. A lie? Not if one takes it as...allegorical? Maybe? And besides, she has to lie more than she likes to Naru. So when she can, she goes for half-truths instead of bold faced lying.
Usagi expected the careful unwrapping. She expected the close inspection and appreciation. This does not, however, stop her from practically flopping around like a fish in the near torturous anticipation.
But then! That squeal! It makes all the lead up worth it! "I'm so glad you like it!" She giggles and hugs against Naru's side, stamping her feet in sheer giddy. "I don't know if the other thing will match, but it's sooooo pretty. I thought they'd both look just too adorable on you!"
"I can't wait to meet him! When he's up to company, of course. New people can be so tiring, and if he's sick.." Naru trails that off as she draws the blouse up to brush against her cheek, savouring the softness of the fabric. "Ooooh!" She nuzzles it with utter affection a moment before holding it out in front of both of them, to admire it as a whole.
"It's perfect! You're right.. not usually my colour, but oh so elegant! Eee!" She gives it a little shake, watching the fabric shimmy as she does and then blinks at Usagi. "Other thing?"
The notion of there being MORE clearly had never occured to Naru and she passes the blouse to Usagi to hold as she goes back into the bag, digging out more tissue to fold and another piece. "Oooh!"
Usagi bounces a bit. Another thing to look forward to! But wait... "Oh my gosh. Please don't tell him about the Pasta Incident!" Oh no!
But phew, Naru's nuzzling and admiring the shirt, and Usagi is so happy! "I'm so glad you like it! And yes! It's...grown up? But not flashy grown up?"
"I think they mean it to be worn with a bold shirt, at least that's what the mannequin showed. But I think it would look nice with something simple, too!" She hums and thinks. "Not too sure they go together, though! Or do they? Hmmmm."
"I'm not very good at flashy." Naru agrees wholeheartedly and gives the skirt a little shake to admire it. "Oh its just so cute! I think it's bold enough to be bold all by itself with a plain top, so you can admire the skirt more." She decides with a little nod and a further little shimmy shake of the skirt to watch it move.
Another squeal of delight is the result. "Oh THANK YOU!" Naru crushes clothes and bag and tangerine peels and even the poor tissue paper between them as she wraps Usagi up in a tight hug. "You pick just the most perfect things!"
"Flashy doesn't work for either of us!" Says the girl who likes lime green and bright pink. And she's bouncing in place as Naru examines and considers her new skirt, becoming happier with each bounce because victory!
And of course, hugs! She hugs back just as tight, a giggle in her voice. "I'm so glad you like them!" When the hug ends, she tries to flip her hair like she's seen Homura do. She fails, gloriously. "I am a regular fashion type person!"
There is just a skeptical little sound out of Naru at the mention of a lack of flashy from Usagi but no comment as she's too busy hugging. She settles back, and starts to giggle at the failed hairflip. "I think you need less hair to manage that." She points out with another giggle.
Naru reaches for the blouse to hold up with the skirt. "I think they go together just /fine/." She muses quietly, quirking her head to give them full consideration.
A bell echos though the stairway, warning that lunch is coming to an end shortly.
Usagi steadfastly avoids the sound! Pink and green look amazing together! She gives Naru a grin. "I know a girl who does it flawlessly, and her hair's only about a foot shorter than mine!"
She leans against Naru and studies the blouse and skirt with her. "Oh, you may be right! Could it be? Am I more awesome than even I realized?"
She wants to giggle, but the bell chimes and instead she groans, and the lean against Naru turns heavy. "UUuuuuuuuug! Why does it have to sound out my impending doom? Why can't our breaks be longer?"
Still, though, she starts to pack things up. This does not, of course, mean she's not giving heavily burdened sighs every ten seconds.
"Sometime when you're all recovered from your trip, you should come over and we should totally go though my closet and work out what goes with what for each of these!" Naru suggests with a grin and an invitation.
Bell or no bell, she isn't going to /not/ carefully wrap both pieces back up in their pretty tissue paper, no matter that she's quite capable of doing it fairly quickly. "If your breaks were any longer, you'd forget even more of what you learned this morning. Just think..the day's already half over, and then we'll be done!" She giggles. "At least until tomorrow."
"Oh, yes! That sounds good! And I can bring over some of the stuff I brought?" Eee, fashion show!
With the slow rise of one heading to face the guillotine, Usagi finally stands, shoulders slumping. "But Naru-chan." A slight whine. "If the break isn't long enough, my brain won't recover!" And then her shoulders slump even more and she groans. "Uuuuuug tomorrow?!"
Oh well. At least she has a nice, uneventful evening to look forward to.
Naru cant' help but giggle and leans over to give her a quick hug. "You don't give your brain enough credit." She declares, no matter how highly optimistic that might be.
"Fashion show and makeovers!" Naru eees in girlish delight at the prospect. "Come over tomorrow night? And then you'll have /that/ to look forward to all through school tomorrow?"
Another sigh. "But my brain wants to study other things." Like manga! And a boy! Even if he's...sort of evil!
However, Naru's invitation sends Usagi into her own squeal. "Oh, yes! Yay! That sounds like an excellent idea!"
Then, things gathered, Usagi hooks her arm through Naru's as they head back to class. And of course, Usagi is now chatting about fashion shows!