Enchanté PV Castor Alarie Closed

WC: 307 Hex: #433867

Date: August 14, 2021 Outfit: X

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Gemima cheerfully strolled into the busy fray that was the children's section. Other kids their age chattered happily around the shelves, and tugged at their parents' coats. The smell of plastic and shiny new books was in the air.

Gem flitted from display, to display, inspecting the toys, books, and other knick-knacks with a barely contained eagerness. She was sure she was being a shameless tourist right now, but it was summer! In Paris! She sighed contentedly, and reassured herself that her excitement was for sure justified. Castor was following close behind. She didn't seem all that interested in the store. Maybe that was just her face, but Gem gathered that the enthusiasm she felt wasn't mutual. Castor probably frequented big fancy department stores like these all the time.

She allowed herself a quick scan of the French girl's outfit of choice. A quick twinge of envy ran through her--it was obvious who had a better grasp on fashion. Definitely a regular shopper...

An awkward silence was beginning to take form between the two of them. Gemima cleared her throat and cautiously walked over, a stuffed tiger clutched in her arms. She felt like she needed to fill that silence, and she was really curious to learn more about her (hopefully) new friend.
"So, do you live in Paris?" she asked. "Or where are you from if not? The only other place in France I've been is Giverny, which was also really gorgeous."

Gem smiled at the memories: a rolling green countryside, famous artists' cottages, and a dreamy water lily garden. She rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet, and nervously rested her chin on the tiger's head. Should probably say a bit about myself while I'm at it.

"Me, personally, I'm from Brighton, which is a city by the sea. Have you ever been?"

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Roleplaying as Castor Alarie Beauxbatons

French English

The store was impressive, though nothing Castor hadn't seen before. Ornate decor that opened to rows and rows of toys and such of the sort, the perfect attraction for kids of her age group. Still, it was nice to see what they had stocked up on since Castor had last stopped by years ago.

Gemima seemed ecstatic, moving here and there and all over the shop. Castor had to admire the joy of being a tourist, the new smell of the shops and the excitement of fresh sights. Unfortunately, she didn't always get the luxury of such.

"I was born here, and I live in a mansion... over there." she motioned to the left of her plainly, not sure what the word would be for the direction she searched for. "It is not far from here."

The mansion in question was a dark place just a bit to the East, known for its elaborate Victorian exterior design and modestly yet richly decorated interior. Castor only really went to the gardens in the backyard if not staying in her room, an equally dark yet slightly more comforting area.

"I have not been. I don't usually travel much yet." she replied, eyes trailing away to gaze at the tantalizing decor. She was about to turn back to the other girl when a stuffed butterfly caught her eye, a green torso with two light pink wings. It had a pair of black antennas on its head, all of it stuffed. Two little button eyes stared back at her longingly, practically begging her to step over and take a closer look.

WC: 281

WC: 239 Hex: #433867

Date: August 14, 2021 Outfit: X

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Castor gestured vaguely towards the east as she spoke. She seemed a bit distracted, but Gemima didn't mind all that much.

A mansion! she thought giddily. How grand! She'd never seen a mansion in person before, but it would be amazing to go and explore one. Well, she would be living in something quite similar to a mansion next month: An actual castle! It was going to be great. And it was extremely old, as well. Who knew what secrets its walls held?

Gemima shook her head. Better to save those thoughts for another time.
"You should really travel when you get the opportunity. Seeing the world is a lovely thing to do." she mused. There were so many places that she personally wanted to visit, and the world was so large, and waiting to be discovered.

Gem watched as Castor gazed around the store. The French girl seemed more awestruck by the trove of toys than she had first thought. She followed her gaze to a stuffed butterfly with pink wings. It was flanked by two large flower pillows, one purple, one blue. Castor's eyes lit up.
Gemima smiled and walked over to inspect the toy. It wasn't quite her style, but it was surprising that Castor would be drawn to it. You can't rely too much on appearances, I suppose.

"You should get it if you want it." she advised. "I think it would suit you brilliantly."

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Roleplaying as Castor Alarie Beauxbatons

French English

Gemima seemed surprised at the last mention of a mansion. Castor often forgot that her life wasn't universal, and many weren't living every day in a cold and dark place of residence with silk armchairs and tall windows.

"I do want to." Castor replied to the statement regarding travel. If it were up to her, she'd pack up her room and take a carriage to see every place that stood on the ground. But she had come to realize that you couldn't just take the rainbow to wonderland.

She couldn't help but be a bit embarrassed to be so drawn to the foolish thing, a strange compelling love for something she had yet to even truly posses long enough to really find value in. But it was just so pretty. It was as though the butterfly had landed on her and taken her heart of pollen and pulled it from her chest. Who was she to not follow that wordless pull?

She hurried after Gemima as the other girl got closer to the stuffed creature, looking around as though one of her siblings would come through the door and scold her for "not acting like her money." But again, it was so pretty.

"You think?" she asked softly, grabbing it in her hands. It was so soft. "Well, because you said something, I may as well." she tried to act cool about it, but still she held the butterfly with utmost care. Her hand brushed to her pocket and grabbed out a small, rectangular wallet. It was technically emergency money, but she decided to ignore that.

WC: 280

WC: 292 Hex: #433867

Date: August 14, 2021 Outfit: X

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

Gemima watched Castor pull out her wallet. The other girl was wide eyed, and she reached carefully for the butterfly with poorly concealed excitement. Gem beamed.
"I think I'll buy the tiger too," she proclaimed. "It's because my birthday is really close with the start of the year of the tiger, even though I was born in the year of the ox. (you know, for Chinese New Year?) And tigers are really cool, too." She wondered idly what Castor's animal would be.

Gemima could spout animal facts for ages, but she felt that now wasn't exactly the right time do to so. Maybe another time, she could regale Castor with all the interesting information she'd absorbed over the years. Her eyes flicked to the cute butterfly again. She decided to settle with something simpler.
"Did you know that there are more than seventeen-thousand species of butterflies in the whole world?" It was fascinating how much nature had to offer. "I've probably only seen about five of those in person, but hey, that's part of what traveling's for!"

She looked around the store again, and grabbed a book off one of the tables as a second thought. Gem couldn't quite understand the words written on the front, but a quick flip through the beautifully illustrated pages told her that it was a treasury of fairy tales. She grinned and tucked it under her arm, then rummaged around in her skirt pocket for the little coin purse her mum had given her earlier that morning. She held that up along with the tiger.

"I'm going to go and pay for these." she said happily. She skipped over in the direction of the registers, and called over her shoulder-- "You should choose the next place!"

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

@Edme Achillian

Roleplaying as Castor Alarie Beauxbatons

French English

Castor still held the little thing with great care as she continued on listening to Gemima. "I have heard of that. That is Chinese, no?" She had only heard of the new years traditions vaguely every here and there, but she still didn't fully understand the concept of animals and new years. She made a mental note to research a bit about it in her free time.

The facts weren't quite new to Castor, as butterflies came up a lot in her flower research. Once she had broken off to do about two hours of research just about different butterfly facts and species. She wasn't obsessed, she just loved that bit of time where she could disconnect from the social bits of life and indulge herself in what she loved.

"Butterflies are nice. They are very interesting, and pretty." Castor said in her thick French accent. She would have said more if she knew the right English words to describe the beautiful things, but pretty was a nice and short word for it. "My family has a garden, and there are butterflies there."

Castor held the butterfly protectively, though carefully as though it were a true butterfly that she could squash between her fingers. Feeling around her coat pocket for her wallet, her hand emerged with a black leather wallet. Fingering through a few pockets inside, she grabbed out a few tens. The stuffed animal was a bit pricey at 20 euro, but it wasn't like she didn't have that money.

After Gemima paid, Castor handed the money to the cashier and smiled politely, grabbing the butterfly back quickly. Now it was hers. Permanently.

She considered Gemima's offer of picking the next shop, her mind flipping through the different shops that this place had set out. At first she thought about the bookstore, a common stop for most who wanted to find something new. But then she thought of the clothing store she would often find herself rounding back to, a nice place for modern fashion or original style.

"The clothing store is nice. There next?" she asked as they began their way out of the shop.

WC: 372

WC: 274 Hex: #433867

Date: August 14, 2021 Outfit: X

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

The tiger had velcro on its paws! Gemima beamed and fastened the tiger around her neck, and patted it affectionately on the head. There! Now she could come along for the ride. She pushed her hair over her shoulder so that the poor thing wouldn't be smothered. However, she hadn't quite thought of a name for her new furry friend. Maybe Castor could help her think of one.

Gem scurried after the other girl, who was already way out of the shop.
"Clothing store?" she asked, finally catching up. "Sure! You'll have to lead me on this one though. I'm not too wise with fashion."
That was ironic, coming from the daughter of a successful model, but styling and clothes just never really clicked with her. Gem usually wore what her mum picked out for her. She felt like she owed it to her mum though, since she was always taking her along to her photoshoots and fittings. Perhaps today would be the day she finally took the plunge!

"Which store did you mean, exactly?" she wondered.
There were so many! The clothing, makeup, and accessories section probably took up at least fifty percent of the massive complex. And the stuff they carried looked staggeringly expensive. She paused to gape up at the fantastical ceiling again--how crazy was it that she was actually here??
Gem hurried after the other girl again, grinning stupidly to herself. She let out a puff of air as they walked, their shoes clicking in unison on the polished floor. She would leave it up to Castor, then. She seemed to know her way around much better than Gem did.

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

@Edme Achillian

Roleplaying as Castor Alarie Beauxbatons

French English

Peering over at the other girl, Castor cracked a smile at the tiger that now sat happily around Gemima's neck. It was a true and genuine smile, maybe of fondness or of laughter.

"That is not a problem." Castor replied simply, holding the butterfly stuffed animal with two hands stretched towards her waist. The French girl enjoyed fashion, viewing it as what spoke your character. One could learn quite a bit about another by the color of their jeans.

Turning to a lightly colored shop, she looked up at the sign she had read too many times before. A label near the window display read "vêtements". They had arrived.

"This is the place." she turned around to motion Gemima in, two long doors with silver handles meeting at the middle left and right of both doors. A window display presented colorful summer clothes, floral crop-tops and denim shorts. The French were known for their fashion.

Castor peered back, trying to assure herself that her siblings weren't near to see her clutching protectively onto a butterfly stuffed animal while standing outside of a bright clothing shop. Luckily, the three must still have been exploring the other branches of the store. She turned back, making sure Gemima was ready to go in.

WC: 225

WC: 296 Hex: #433867

Date: August 14, 2021 Outfit: X

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

"This is the place." Castor said.

They had stopped in front of a flamboyant, fancy storefront, complete with grand glass doors. Gemima couldn't help but gawk. She was a bit surprised at Castor's choice, since the fun, summery styles clashed with her more polished, wealthy image. But there was no time to dwell on the logistics of fashion preferences! Her whole body was itching to bolt inside the store.

She skittered over to grab one of the shiny handles, and after looking back to see if her new friend was ready, she pulled at the door. The first thing Gem noticed as they stepped over the welcome mat, was the color. Swatches upon swatches of fabrics, and none two were the same hue.

Gemima was more hesitant looking around here, than in the toystore. A book store would have been easier to navigate, because at least then she would know what she was looking for. And one glance at the price tags around the place made her even more nervous. It wasn't as if she couldn't afford any of the outfits in the store, (she was wearing a Burberry piece, unbeknownst to her) but she only had so much pocket money on her person. Her grip tightened around the strap of her purse and she found herself lingering behind Castor. Maybe it was her turn to take the lead.

"I'm honestly not sure what to look at first." she said, laughing breathlessly. There, now she'd finally voiced her concerns.
Then a vague idea floated into her head. She started muttering to herself, trying to make sense of what she meant to do."Hmm, I do like blues and purples, though. Maybe a new dress? But nothing too tight, or too frilly. Something I could run in, perhaps?"

【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】★【☆】

@Edme Achillian

Roleplaying as Castor Alarie Beauxbatons

French English

Castor appeared visibly unbothered by the flare of color that overwhelmed the room aggressively. She had seen this sight about a million times, and every time it became less and less stressful as when she first went in to get a winter coat for her sister. It was often surprising to find herself visiting this place more and more, especially considering her and her family's trend of having dark and serious clothing. But the French girl couldn't help her small admiration for those pretty little floral skirts that swished around your ankles. Not that she would wear them in public.

Castor looked over expecting the other girl to be similar to how the French girl had been on her first day in here. The expression of worry was not too far off. You had to go in the place knowing exactly what you wanted, or at the very least having an idea.

At Gemima's words, the French girl worried slightly that the other was too uncomfortable. She didn't want to have any worries at this time, especially not after the fun adventures the two had already endured. But at Gemima's worded ideas, Castor spoke up.

Looking to a blonde woman wearing a name badge, she said in smooth French, "Excuse me miss, we're looking for flexible dresses in blues and purple." After the woman responded in French, Castor turned back to Gemima."Would you prefer a pattern? Of a type?"

The store was admittedly a bit drafty, and the French girl shivered at its cool air. Buttoning the front of her jacket, she continued to wait for Gemima's response.

WC: 282