Simple Saiyan Russ

Zuqetta would wander nearer to the Sparkbucks, peering through the glass at the frequenters that sat at tables and on couches enjoying their beverages and snacks. The glass itself felt incredibly cold, but within looked like it was rightly warm and inviting. While it hadn't yet begun to snow, autumn chill was no less biting; as a couple exited the building, laughing together to their own personal conversation as they enjoyed a drink, a twinge of jealousy came to Zuqetta's face. Not so much for the fact that she was looking upon a couple, but because the two were lucky enough to have delicious drinks in hand!

"I wonder if they'll take credits..." Zuqetta would remark, glancing back through the glass, "Neeeeeghh, I shoulda listened to Maitake and gotten zeni-!!" she'd exclaim in an annoyed tone, before suddenly being startled by Russ' sudden voice, letting out a small squeak in response.

So distracted as she was from both the cold and her desire for snacks, she hadn't taken notice of the man's power as it made its way to her. He was like a ninja as far as she was concerned, though the truth lied in the fact that her training without her magic was rather lacking. She'd never noticed how much temperature could affect her when she didn't use magic to mitigate its effects, though she'd disagree greatly with Russ' remark on catching a cold. At least... under normal circumstanced she would have, but despite the meticulous planning of what to do and say upon visiting him, everything she'd come up with had suddenly been forgotten.

"Ah! R-Russ!" She'd call out, unsure if she should address him as a friend, stranger, or acquaintance, "H-Hey there, yeah, very long time no see!" She'd say, returning a smile before an awkward silence fell between the two.

Zuqetta's thoughts were somewhat plagued as she recalled the last interaction they had, and her less than flattering reactions. Would he think she was in yet another disguise? Was he worried about what to say so as to not set her off again?? He seemed kind of down... was he worried she was just here to start trouble again!? She hadn't put into perspective all the problems she'd caused for him the last time she was here, all of it completely slipping her mind during her planning. The silence couldn't last forever though, one o them would have to break the ice, and seeing as she was the one at fault, Zuqetta decided to take it upon herself to do so!

"I'm sorry!" She'd shout, quickly leaning over to bow her head to the man, "I made a huge mess of things in the past and probably freaked you out, and so I'm sorry about all that!" She'd continue, apologizing once more before slowly lifting her head, her face reddened both from the cold and the shame she felt, "It's... the third time, no, fourth time now?" She'd say somewhat quietly as would glance up towards Russ' eyes before just as quickly averting her gaze, "Well, heh, hi again. It's definitely me this time, this is my real self." she'd introduce with a slight laugh, feeling a bit embarrassed, "Sorry I'm not actually big and buff."

Zuqetta was able to breathe a sigh of relief as Russ shrugged off the issues of the past, laughing a bit even as the man chose to delegate it all as merely a petty trick. "Assuming a false identity, threatening terrorism, and of course illegally invading-" she'd list off on her fingers teasingly, "And lest we forget, while Regalia might have been registered with the accords, I certainly am not!" she'd finishing with a laugh, straightening up properly as she shot a smile towards Russ, "But hey, if you're not bothered by it, then I won't worry 'bout it neither!"

Zuqetta's power would begin to swiftly recede as she took to shrouding herself in her invisible mana veil once again, completely hiding her energy in mere seconds. While her mana veil normally helped to keep her body temperature regulated, it wasn't something that produced either heat nor cold; it merely acted as a magical resistance to temperature, and as such it'd still be a good while before Zuqetta would begin to warm up properly. With her target directly before her though, she hardly needed to keep her power on such full display.

She was happy to see Russ, and was even happier to know that he wasn't bothered by the past events between them. The swaying of her tail behind her, pushing her jacket with each motion, was something that gave away any emotion she'd otherwise intend to hide. It wasn't as though she was intending to hide much right now, but even Zuqetta had become aware of the subconscious ticks she'd occasionally have, causing her to blush slightly as she realized the swaying of her tail. Rather than become completely distracted by her own actions however, something had caught her attention as Russ spoke further. She tilted her head in curiosity as she listened, leaning forward slightly as she tried to make out his expression. She couldn't quite place it herself, but compared to what she remembered, Russ seemed much less... enthusiastic?

"Heheh, barely~!" Zuqetta would remark with a sharp grin, before leaning in closer to Russ with her arms crossed behind her back, "Seems like someones been hittin' the gym pretty hard themselves, eh~?" she'd say with a waggle of her eyebrows as she tried to cheer the literal blue guy up.

Zuqetta had no idea what was keeping Russ down if anything at all, her certainly seemed down, but while she might have been unaware of what bothered him she knew it had to be something rather significant to get someone as energetic as he was down. She'd mostly come to apologize and keep her promise of visiting again, which was now successfully completely; now that it was thought, Zuqetta found herself completely unsure of what to do next. Before there could be another awkward silence however, Russ would interject with a question that quickly made Zuqetta spring back up with a brightened expression.

"You mean this place here?" She'd question, pointing at the window she'd been peeking through prior, her legs suddenly giving a quick visible shiver as the reminder of the warmth she felt before came to mind, "I'd love too!" she'd say happily, before just as quickly deflating with a sigh, "But I didn't exchange my credits for zeni at the spaceport like I was told too, so I'm kinda... sorta, maybe broke right now." she'd say with a bit of shame and embarrassment, having never been in a situation in which she was lacking money before. She'd glance back towards the Sparkbucks window listfully, swallowing as she thought curiously about what treats the shop had while she internally cursed her own impatience.

It had become even clearer that something was wrong with the big blue lug, he hadn't engaged in the joke compliment she'd done in the least! It was true that she didn't know much about the man, but considering the first thing he'd done when she first met him was respond to the potential destruction of the earth with a quip, this guy before her was a far cry from who she remembered. Zuqetta tried to hold back her concerned expression, not wanting to make assumptions just yet; he was acting kind enough after all, so perhaps he was just a bit tired.

"Hehe, I ain't gonna pass on gettin' somethin' for free!" Zuqetta would reply, happily accepting the man's offer as the two went inside, "A gentleman Saiyan? Impossible!" she would tease as Russ held the door open for her, before slipping inside.

There was a relaxing change in atmosphere moving from the outdoors to inside the building; it was designed almost like the dining room of someones house. Luckily there didn't seem to be too many people within, perhaps due to the time of day or weather outside, whatever the case may have been, it made thing even more relaxing since there wouldn't be too much chatter in the background. Russ had taken to ordering the drinks, though Zuqetta had no idea what mocha was, she instantly recognized the word cookie, and brightened up with a bit of excitement. Before she could react to the drink however, something else caught her eye, and that was the employee himself.

"R-R-R-R-RUSS!!!" Zuqetta would stammer out excitedly, taking hold of Russ' sleeve with one hand, covering her gaping mouth with the other, "Cat! He's a cat!!" she'd continued, her tail swishing back and forth in her excitement as she nearly jumped in place before she'd lean forward, placing both hands on the counter, "Kitty cat! Can I pet your head?" she'd request in a higher pitched tone to the employee.

The anthro would pull back a bit, laughing nervously as he responded. "I- duhhh, I'd rather you didn't?" he'd say, almost confused, his voice cracking as his own tail began to wave a bit, "I g-gotta work, soooo..." he'd explain, attempting to finish the transaction with Russ. Was he blushing? It was hard to tell, he was a cat after all so his fur made it difficult to see such things. He was certainly caught off guard in some manner, though it was only at the mention of the work he had to do that Zuqetta would properly come to her senses.

"Gah! I'm sorry, you're right!!" Zuqetta would exclaim, becoming a bit sheepish as she hid slightly behind Russ with embarrassment. Once paid, the two would move to the hand-off counter to await their order, "Ruuuuuussss-" she'd whine quietly, "-that was stupid of me, I'm sorry. Hope I didn't embarrass you." she'd apologize, hanging her head as she gave a sigh.

The animal people of Earth were still an incredibly new concept for her, so she couldn't help but to get excited when she saw one. Her love for animals went too far however, she could only hope that she'd become desensitized over time, though is her time spent with Xiaolan was any indication then that wasn't likely to happen. Soon enough, the drinks were ready, delivered to the hand-off counter by someone other than the cat of course.

"You keep sayin' mocha, the heck is that?" She'd question curiously, accepting the drink form Russ as the two made their way to a table, "I heard cookie earlier, but this doesn't look like a cookie." she'd say with a slight grumble, seemingly pouting as she stared intently at the drink. She recognized the whipped cream on the top and bottom, and quickly realized that it was adorned with chocolate syrup of some kinda and a power. "Oh?" she'd react, giving the drink a sniff, brightening up quickly as she caught the chocolatey scent, "This crunchy powder, it's the cookie!?" she'd question rhetorically, excited to have realized the powder was in fact the crushed cookie crumble of said drink. She wasted no more time with hesitation, thanking Russ for the drink before taking a deep sip.

The flavors were delectable, but in a rather sudden motion, Zuqetta's tail would pull back, winding up, and slamming once into the floor with a powerful THWOMP. Zuqetta hesitated for a few moments, her expression a mix of excitement and surprise; straw still in her mouth as she stared blankly. Finally, she'd calm, doing her best to contain her excitement as she released the straw and took a deep breath. "This is good!" She'd tell Russ with a bright smile, "Is there coffee in this!? I love coffee!! Madame Maitake says I'm not allowed to have it!"

Zuqetta would shake her head at Russ' mention of Plant, quickly giving him a proper answer. "Mnmn, you actually." She'd say bluntly as she took another wonderfully long sip of her drink, her expression a show of utter bliss and enjoyment. Her sip finished with a smack of her lips and satisfied sigh before she'd continue speaking, her tail waving playfully behind her from the experience. "Honestly, since we last met I've been through a lot." she'd admit, feeling a bit of shame but keeping a smile upon her face, "There were a ton of things I didn't know about myself... a ton of things I had to confront, I wanna say I've come out of it all a better person, but that remains to be seen." she'd say calmly, giving a small sigh before laughing a bit, "I'm not threatening people or places though, that's somethin' I think!"

It was always hard for someone to judge their own character, this was especially true for Zuqetta. She'd constantly found herself stuck between worlds, between opposing wants and needs; those she'd accepted as mentors as she grew certainly didn't help, which each pushing their own values onto her, values that typically countered one another. It wasn't something she wanted to dwell on further, a year of self reflection had been more than enough for her, and considering she'd recently made up with her sister she wanted to believe she was in a better place.

"Well, that's why I came to this city at least. I told ya I'd be back after all! Hehe, thanks for not bein' too surprised!" she'd say with a wide grin, "Ughhh, thinking about how I acted when we last met though is so.... ugh, I can't even think of a word, but it was bad!" she'd continue, grimacing at the memory while she slumped over onto the table, doing well not to knock over her drink, "I read an earth book recently, I think the guy in the store called it a "comic". It had a pretty relatable line, something about not misusing your power, using it responsibly or somethin'-" she'd explain, recalling every word in the comic but attempting to seem nonchalant about it, "I tell ya, I wish I'd had these kinda books on Plant when I was growin' up, I had... have, a ton of power, and I hecka misused it for too long." she'd continue with a heavy sigh, tilting her head to lean her cheek on the table.

Glancing off at other patrons in the store, she took notice of the clothing they each seemed to be garbed in. While she'd found her own clothes pretty cool, that was unfortunately a literal thing as well, wearing shorts and sleeveless upper garments in autumn to winter weather was a terrible idea. She'd sit up, glancing around further, before taking notice of Russ' attire as well; it seemed everyone had a similar idea in terms of what to wear, making Zuqetta to odd one out. Her eyes focused keenly on Russ, perhaps a bit too keenly as she may have looked like she was trying to burn through him with her gaze. His outfit was simple enough, hoodie, jeans, boots, easy!

With a smile, Zuqetta would scoot her seat just a smidge away from the table before lifting her hand for dramatic effect. Snapping her fingers, a shimmer of light would streak down her form, quickly replacing the garb she wore with a similar outfit to Russ. Brown wasn't really a color she preferred however, and so would change up the colors just a bit, instead cladding herself in a pink hoodie, black denim jeans, and long fluffy looking boots she saw another girl at a different table wearing.

"Heheheh, check it out, we match now kinda!" she'd laugh, already feeling the warmth of being covered properly. She quickly flinch however, hesitating slightly before another small shimmer of light would flash briefly from within her hoodie. Her face would redden slightly, but she'd pretend the second magical shimmer hadn't occurred, instead returning to taking a sip of her drink, her tail once more swaying about from the enjoyment of the beverage. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhh, so good! Do you drink things like this al the time??"

To her surprise, Russ had reacted rather excitedly at her casual mention of Arachno-Man. Admittedly, she'd intended to play coy about it, acting as if she'd only stumbled upon it by chance; Russ' excitement brought a fluster to her face however, feeling a bit excited herself at the fact that she'd met another who enjoyed comics possibly even more than her. She giggled a bit, though tried to contain herself, "Oh really? Hehe, maybe we can read somethin' together sometime." she'd say casually, twirling a bit of her hair as she went back to continue enjoying her drink. If Russ asked about her blush, she'd merely blame it on drinking the frap a bit too quickly.

Russ found curiosity in her use of magic next, something she wasn't too surprised about honestly. Considering how many she'd come across on her journeys that took an interest in it, it was actually more surprising that magic wasn't commonplace at this point.

"Hmm, that's a bit difficult to explain-" she'd answer initially, doubling back quickly, "I mean, it's easy to explain, but also difficult 'cause like... I understand it the way I describe it, but the way I describe it is also a bit, ehhh-" she considered where her initial understanding of it all come from, and how she improved from there. Explaining it as she'd done with Nasu may have worked, but Nasu had a bit of experience already. "Showing is better than telling, if you're fine with it... I could show you." she'd say, continuing to twirl her hair as she glanced away from Russ and towards the shops window.

Zuqetta would give a wide smile as Russ began to ramble, her cheeks rosy, her tail swaying behind her happily. Such moments like these, moments where she could just hang out and be a normal girl were fun. No fighting or training, no disaster to avert, scheme to hatch, or drama to endure. She was more than happy to listen longer, but Russ had chosen to cut himself short, expressing an interest in Zuqetta's magical prowess. Just as well, she was equally excited to show him if he was interested, and he'd given such an interest!

"Hmhmh, okay!" she'd exclaim, jumping from her seat and finishing off her frapp excitedly, "I'll show ya, but we can't do it here! C'mon, let's head outside the city!" she'd remark, tugging on Russ' sleeve to lead him out the door, tossing her empty cup into the trash, "Bye kitty cat!" she'd yell back to the cashier before departing with Russ.

It would be a short flight out of the city, and much more tolerable one now that she was in proper attire for it. As they flew, rather than allow an awkward silence to fall between them, Zuqetta would decide to take advantage of the situation.

"Honestly Russ, I'm glad I was able to find you!" She'd begin, speaking loud enough for her voice to break through the winds, "Truth is... after all the lies, I was worried no one would wanna speak to me again. Or worse, even if they did, I didn't think they'd believe I was truly being myself." she'd explain, "Flying towards the outskirts of the city like this? It reminds me of when we caught those bank robbers... heh, using that stupid human disguise and pretendin' ta be all smart, there was no way I was gonna keep that up!" she'd laugh, before becoming a bit more somber, "Then... taking on that other form, I-" She'd cut herself off, clearly holding something back; the two were nearly upon the grassy hills outside the city however, so there was no need to continue.

Zuqetta would land on the grass, there seemed to be a crispness to it as though it could frost over at any moment. She'd take a deep breath, she loved the fresh air of Earth, it was certainly better than the air back on Plant. It made her wonder if she should even go through with her plans, or if she should just settle on Earth; such was a thought for another time however. For now, she'd turn back to Russ, sporting a wide and confident smile; hands on her hips, her tail moving quickly back and forth, she'd begin to blush just a tad before speaking.

"Now then, strip!" she'd exclaim, her face reddening further at the instant realization of her demand, "J-J-J-Just your shirt! GAHH, I mean your jacket!! Like, it'll be easier if I can touch your skin-! WAIT!! I mean, like, it'll feel better!!" she stopped, a small whine of a cry much like a pterodactyl would be the only sound she'd make, her attempts as amending her statement only serving to make things sound worse.

She'd pause, taking a deep breath to calm, before speaking again with a clear voice, "I need direct contact with you so I can circle mana through your body, it'll be easier to do by touching your back directly." her face was still entirely red, her face as straight as could be as she seemed to push through the intense embarrassment she felt in this moment.