"I have a concern about this."

Kalos stood in one of the largest buildings she'd ever seen, which was full of the most stores she'd ever seen, which had more things and clothes than she'd ever seen. Her eyes were wide and her mind was open to learning about this new world which made her feel so small.

There was one problem, however, that she couldn't move past without asking about. Almost all of the people (who were fake!) that stood in the windows... they had no heads. Kalos looked for a long moment through the glass at the simulacrum children who looked to be playing with a ball with her eyebrows drawn. It was difficult to focus on deciding if she liked a color or a shape of cloth when they had no heads.

"Are the heads mounted somewhere as a warning?"

It also made Kalos feel small. She had gone from a sheltered, albeit horrible, life to a world that was so much bigger than she ever imagined. Every time she thought she knew how big it was, she got to see something that made her realize the folly of that assumption. Kalos scooted out of the way of a passing group of people who stared just as steadily at Kalso as she stared at them.

At least this place had a roof.

((TAG: Mirror Grey-Morris)

"There is nothing here to be worried about."

As they walked in, Maya questioned her decision to take the coral girl into the mall. She had chosen a time early in the day (less people), and a mall that was smaller than some others they could have visited (less overwhelming), but still, from the look on Kalos' face, it might have been a big step outside of the Mansion's bubble of a comfort zone. Maya held Kalos' hand, and stared down the few people that were actually insensitive enough to stare at a mutant kid.

>>"Are the heads mounted somewhere as a warning?"

"Wh..." Maya blinked, once again taking a moment and a half to catch up to Kalos' winding train of thought, and then shake the implications out of her head "Oh God, Kalos, no, it's just... it's just dolls. To put the clothes on. They don't have heads... because they don't really need to have any? They are just fancy coat hangers."

Well, this was definitely gonna be a trip.

"Um... let's walk around, and you let me know if you see anything you like."

Hero Maya seemed offended or maybe shocked. "I know they are pretend people, but I want them to have heads." She found them incredibly disturbing. So disturbing that she had to stare a lot and her head turned to follow them whenever the headless ones were around. So creepy. She didn't trust them.

But that wasn't why they were here. Maya encouraged Kalos to look at the clothes so she did her best to keep one eye on the mannequins and one on the clothes.

For the most part, they looked really much the same to Kalos. Very fitting and covering and not at all flowing like what she was used to. And also... "These are very boring. Oh!" She spied an offensively orange shirt and hat in a store that also sold pretend animals and clothing made to look like plants. Why the bright orange was in there, Kalos couldn't say, but she did love how eye-catching it was.

"I like the bright one?" She asked as the pointed to the hunting gear through the glass store window, almost as if she was wanting permission to have her own opinion.

>> "I know they are pretend people, but I want them to have heads."

"Yeah, they do look weird." Maya allowed. Fashing stores were weird in general on a good day, even when one was raised in the States and not on some Ancient Greek tropical island. And the headless mannequins were disturbing, especially when they had scarfes or little hats on their neck stumps. Ugh. Some marketing people needed to get fired.
So far, New York's fresh fall collection did not seem to impress the coral girl at all.

>>"These are very boring. Oh! I like the bright one?"

"Umm..." Maya blinked, looking at the shop window "Those are... not everyday clothes. It's a hunting store. The orange's supposed to, dunno, make you visible in the woods?" Maya never hunted for sport, but she got the general idea about the outfits. She needed to find another track for this shopping trip, and soon. "So... you'd like bright colors?"

Hunting store. Store for clothes to wear while hunting? But there was no armor. And why would you WANT to be seen while hunting? Did that make it more difficult?

"Y-yes." Kalos answered in a distracted way as she puzzled out the reasons why this store existed. "I want colors that aren't mud or plain. I want to shine bright like the sunshine." She broke her curiosity about the hunting away and looked around. "Are there things like this and with spots for coral?"

Freedom of expression or not, Maya knew she had to put her foot down about her newfound little sister wanting to walk around in a hunting vest (and possibly not much else). But within reasonable limits, they could definitely try to match her dreams. Colors, for example, even bright colors, were doable. Not like she as going to stick out at the Mansion, regardless of her fashion choices.

>>"Y-yes. I want colors that aren't mud or plain. I want to shine bright like the sunshine."

Maya smiled, and patted Kalos on the head. The girl had a bad start, but she had dreams.

>>"Are there things like this and with spots for coral?"

"Um, not sure about the coral" Maya admitted, looking around "But we can definitely do color."

The shop was one of the fancy ones. It was where women shopped before going to Europe on vacation or something, but it was the most colorful thing Maya could think of, so she steered Kalos that way. It was not for everyday wear, really, but they were known for being open-minded at least. And Kalos deserved to treat herself.

"What do you think?"

Maya kept hold of Kalos' hand and that made Kalos give up on her dream of a vibrant orange. It was tainted by the flavor of hunting anyway, but it had been plenty eye-catching. Wonderfully noticeable. The next place they went was mostly for adults, but it did have bright colors. More than anything else, it had a lot of patterns and flowing fabric. Kalos was having a hard time imagining any of those things on her body, but it was much closer than anything else she'd seen so far.

> "What do you think?"

"Is this for looking only?" All of the fabrics seemed very soft. What if she ripped one? Her fingers were rough, her skin was worse since the coral of her fingers had been worn down from use.

And then, of course, Kalos saw the most magnificent thing. She tugged Maya by the hand right past a beautiful strapless shirt that swirled orange and yellow, all the way past the front door of Maya's store and over to a different window where a mannequin with a head was wearing a sari. It was woooooonderful. Bright. It had so many details! And so many places that looked like there would be space for her coral.

"I like this?"

Kalos looked a little overwhelmed by the fancy dress shop, and Maya could not blame her. She always got uncomfortable in places where the rich shopped, even if she technically had the money to do the same. She was really hoping they would find something colorful and comfortable enough for Kalos to wear, something that was her own and made her feel pretty.

>>"Is this for looking only?"

"Nah, it's for wearing. For those that can buy it." Maya chuckled, and then was distracted as Kalos walked past, and found something else to make excited, shiny puppy eyes at.

>>"I like this?"

Maya looked at the sari. It was quite beautiful, and bright, and probably easier to wear than what Kalos had on right now. Go figure, the kid spotted exactly what she wanted. The mirrorwalked smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I can see you in this. Do you want to go in and try some on?"

Did Kalos want to go in and try it on? "Yea-! Noooo." What had started as an immediate bout of excitement slowed to cautiousness. Kalos went to find her sister Maya's hand again.

"This thing looks like it has a lot of cost. It might be closer to what Atlanteans wear, but is this what people wear here?" She hadn't seen anything like it in all her years. The longing was clear on Kalos' face, but so was the fear. Would it just make her more weird? She needed to learn to blend in and behave as the landies did.

"Do they even have a size for a child?" Yeah. She was already talking herself out of it.

>> "Yea-! Noooo."

Kalos was holding her hand again, and Maya was not sure where she had been lost by the train of thought. The sari was pretty, and probably a good choice, but Kalos had to have something else on her mind if she was hesitating about trying it on. Was she afraid of walking into the shop?...

>>"This thing looks like it has a lot of cost. It might be closer to what Atlanteans wear, but is this what people wear here?"

"Some people." Maya admitted "It is what people wear in some countries, and people who come from those countries wear them here. Also, people who seem to like them wear them too."

Was it too early to talk to a kid about cultural assimilation and appropriation? Probably. Even without the extra added layers of her being a refugee from Atlantis with special wardrobe needs.

"And don't worry about how much it costs. You need some decent clothes."

>>"Do they even have a size for a child?"

"We can ask." Maya said, for lack of a better answer. Did they? She spied the nice-looking lady inside the shop, giving them some curious glances as she organized the clothes racks. She was wearing a sari too. "Hi, excuse me... do you happen to have... anything in her size?"

Looking at things and judging them from afar was one thing. It was another thing entirely to walk into a store and ask directly. Kalos tugged at hero Maya's hand to hang back, but the deed was done. And hiding behind hero Maya didn't work because the store attendant walked around to see her size.

"Oh yes. Many in children's sizing. The beauty of our pre-stitched sari is in the adjustability."

Kalos squeaked, something that should have been words but came out a bit strangled instead.

"I'm sorry." The attendant looked between Kalos and hero Maya. "I didn't understand that."

"Shiny parts?"

A moment of processing transformed the clerk woman's face from confusion to kind understanding. "I even have golden shoes that I think may fit you. Let's go to the back of the store and see, hmm?"

Gold shoes...! Land people were crazy! And while Kalos never realized she'd wanted golden shoes before, now she knew it to be a thing that was entirely true. Kalos wanted golden shoes.

The back of the store did not disappoint. There were smaller cloth automatons in the back with just as colorful and ostentatiously decorated clothes. At first, Kalos thought green would be nice, but once she realized it was a bit like seaweed, she discarded the green in favor of a blue much like her eyes and a very shiny bit of brassy color. The poofy blue hair clip wouldn't fit in the close crop of Kalos' hair, but she felt as if it drew too much attention to her. Kalos took little steps, unfamiliar with how the shoes made her toes feel as she modeled the outfit for her sister hero Maya. It was a good fit up top. The wide shoulders and shorter sleeves left room for coral growths without being immodest. The issue was the growths of coral on her knees kept scratching the back of the skirt. With every step she took it sounded fwipp, fwipp.

Maya was worried for a moment that Kalos would bolt. She hid behind her as the woman who ran the store walked closer; Maya kept holding Kalos' hand to make sure she did not scurry away and disappear. She was also wary of how the woman would react to the sight of the coral child... but she was not only friendly, but also completely natural, and very helpful. There were still some good people in the world.

>>"Oh yes. Many in children's sizing. The beauty of our pre-stitched sari is in the adjustability."

"Oh good. Because she wants something shiny."

>>"Shiny parts?"

>>"I even have golden shoes that I think may fit you. Let's go to the back of the store and see, hmm?"

If it took saris to make Kalos happy, then Maya was all for saris. The coral girl picked one that fit her eyes and shimmered nicely, and then emerged to model it a few minutes later, with sheer excitement on her face. Maya grinned as she watched her walk in the shimmery outfit, but noticed that her legs were not quite comfortable in it.

"You look lovely, Kalos. Is there something we can do... to help her walk easier in it?" she asked, glancing at the lady.

"It is a wrap skirt so there is some-" The woman reached toward Kalos' skirt and Kalos took a quick step out of reach. "There is some amount we can loosen it."

She reached again and again Kalos moved and gave her the judgiest of looks.

"Short?" She started to hike the length upward and the woman reached out to gently tug the fabric free of Kalos' fingers.

"Oh no. We do not sell short sari. Short is signifying the lowest of the low."

Kalos again moved out of the way, this time by climbing up on a settee, but the shoes were so slippery and the skirt was so long, she ended up stepping on something in her haste and they all heard a soft rrriiiiip. The woman blanched beneath her blusher. That was silk and embroidery and a hundred other things that were costly, delicate, and could have gone wrong. Kalos didn't want to be low. She'd done low. But she also didn't like the skirt keeping her legs all gummed up. How was she supposed to climb on things? Or reach the refrigerator?

"I am sorry, but I feel that this may not be a good fit for your needs."

Kalos gulped. She felt sorry, but also very much not at all sorry. She was sorry enough to start moving back toward the dressing area so that she could put her clothes back on. And sorry enough for tears to pool up in her eyes, but not sorry enough to fight for a short skirt. Not if it meant she was of a lower caste.

"Shoe?" They were golden for goodness sakes! She would never see their like again!

Okay, so the skirt was definitely too long for Kalos to move around freely. She was quite active, wandering and exploring, and something that did not allow her to walk normally was clearly out of the question. She tugged it up and the lady tugged it down, and Kalos clearly did not want to be tugged at at all.

>>"It is a wrap skirt so there is some- There is some amount we can loosen it."

>>"Short?"

>>"Oh no. We do not sell short sari. Short is signifying the lowest of the low."

Maya winced. Wrong choice of words. Kalos was climbing out of the way, and something made a ripping sound. Uh-oh. Maya could see that they were beginning to overstay their welcome, but she also understood what the lady did not, that Kalos did not want to look like the lowest of the low ever again, by any culture's standard.

>>"I am sorry, but I feel that this may not be a good fit for your needs."

>>"Shoe?"

"Alright" Maya sighed, lifting Kalos off her perch gently "We'll take the shoes, and I'll pay for... that." she pointed at the dress that was probably torn in some place. That was about all they were going to get. "Let's go, Kalos, you need to put your other clothes back on." she said, ushering the coral girl into the changing room. While she waited, she gave the woman an awkward look.

"She's... not from around here."

Like the wayward child she was, Kalos went to peel herself out of the pretty dress. Why were clothes needed to tell who was low? DId that mean that even in this world of beautiful people that they still made some into Gorgon? 'The lowest of the low' kept rattling around in her head. No one should be low, she decided. No one.

So once the coral girl had shimmied back into her overalls, she was determined to tell the store owner everything that was in her head.

"Clothes should not be make people low!" She'd meant to be forceful, but in the heat of the confrontation she lost most of her nerve and her voice became high and reedy. "People are... they should be..." What had she been saying? The woman who was now behind the counter looked a bit gobsmacked and what if she was mad now?
Kalos dove to stand behind Maya and scrunched her eyes closed because there was no better way to hide. "I'm sorry. I'm very, very sorry."

"I am sorry too." The woman admitted as she rang up the shoes and damages Kalos had left behind. "It is a culture thing and difficult for those that are free to understand. We don't sell short sari. Only long, you see? No one is low who leaves my shop."

Kalos continued to hide. It just shouldn't be that way. "Clothes are difficult."

The shop attendant caught Maya's eye and sparked a moment of woman-to-woman understanding. Clothes were difficult. No matter the culture, gender, or age. It always said something about the person wearing them. It was a difficult lesson to learn from someone not from around here.