Fashion expert estraordinaire. Juka liked the ring of that and, since he was still trying to come up with a proper super hero name (Amazing Bubble Boy just wasn't cutting it), wondered if he could somehow use that title. Then again, fashion expert might be amazing but it didn't really sound all that heroic so maybe on second thought it wouldn't work. How very disappointing but he didn't let his disapointment last. After all, he had to put his fashion expertise to good use and ensure that Andrea looked posatively glorious, wiggly hair and all.

Juka noted Andrea's hesitation both at taking his arm and at the prospect of being and individual. In a way he could relate; after all, it took a lot of confidence to walk the streets knowing that you were different than everyone else and be proud of that fact. Many years ago when Juka was still in Tokyo he had had problems with confidence too until he met his former bandmates in Ukime who had changed his life. W ell, perhaps it was his destiny to change this stranger's life for the better too. Being a super hero was more about helping people than it was about putting your life in danger anyway, its just that sometimes helping people required putting your life in danger.

"Now, we are going to go see my good personal friend not too far from here," Juka stated, taking a bold step into the street. He continued walking, beaming at anyone who had the tenacity to stare at the pair of them. Their looks could only hurt if you let them. "She's a truly darling woman and I know you'll take to each other instantly. If she can't find you a truly fabulous shawl than I would bet money that no one can!"

>>"Now, we are going to go see my good personal friend not too far from here,"-"She's a truly darling woman and I know you'll take to each other instantly. If she can't find you a truly fabulous shawl than I would bet money that no one can!"

Andrea nodded, trying to hold herself as high as her companion was. It was hard for her to sport herself as anything other than what she looked like... She was frail, much thinner than she liked, and her clothes nearly hung from her. On top of that, she heavily resembled something one would find in a graveyard or a horror movie. With her free hand, she absently picked at the front of her coat, staring from behind the safety of her glasses at those they passed. Hopefully his ‘good personal friend’ did indeed have solution to her problem- because if she had to wander her way back to the mansion looking like a demented troll doll, she would cry- just a little...

“This is...” She paused, letting her eyes trail to the sky, “unusual for me... I must admit.” Her eyebrows met, bending upwards as she reflected back some more. She had honestly never been shopping for clothing, of any sort. Her mother had always just brought home things that met her father’s high standards- which usually ended up being unflattering clothing many sized to big for her. The few articles of ‘girly’ clothing she had owned had come from her mother; flowery t-shirts and pastel patterned sweaters.... Things she had neglected to bring with her on her trip over. “I have never been one to... um... shop, I guess you can say.” An embarrassed semi smile lifted her lips, and she looked up at him. “I hope your friend is as good as you say, because I am quite hopeless on my own...”

Juka felt terrible for what may or may not have been his fault. He might never know for sure if it was something he had mistakenly done or if his bubble had somehow interacted with Andrea's mutation to unexpected consequence. What he did know was that he wasn't going to be experimenting on anyone other than himself anytime soon because he just couldnt' take the stress of having horrible things happen to good people especially when those horrible things were, in all likelihood, at least partially his fault. He couldn't go back in time to fix Andrea's hair, but he could help her to make the best of it.

"Don't worry, we'll get something fabulous for you," Juka assured her as they walked, with purpose, through the streets. The shop he had in mind was luckily not too far from where they were currently. The letters on the sign above the door said Kali's Boutique and Kali, a rather exuberant middle aged woman of rather colourful tastes was waiting at the door to greet them.

"Juka, its been too long, darling," she gushed.

"I'm so sorry, my gorgeous Kali, things have been busy, I'm sure you understand." The words were met with a disapproving shake of the head and a tsking noise but a moment later she grinned, all sins forgotten. After all, delayed or not, he was here now wasn't he? "I'm not here for myself today, darling, I'm here for my friend Andrea. She seems to have a bit of a problem with wiggly hair." Juka gestured towards the other woman with him, wiggly hair and all.

Kali, to her credit, barely gave Andrea a second glance. She had dealt with mutants before, quite often actually, so the blue skin wasn't much of a shock. The hair was something new but she was polite enough to mostly hide her surprise. "Of course I'll help her," Kali agreed, gesturing Andrea closer.

>>"Juka, its been too long, darling,"

Andrea watched the interaction between the two silently, quite unsure as to what she was supposed to say or do in such a situation. Should she introduce herself, mutter a polite ‘My name is Andrea, It is very nice to meet you’ and then lapse back into quietness until spoken to? She doubted it. Her eyes shifted from the woman, to Juka and back. They were both so colorful- so well dress. A glance down at her own clothing forced to glare quickly at her coat, before she returned her curious eyes to the conversation going on around her- and just in time, so it seemed.

>>"I'm not here for myself today, darling, I'm here for my friend Andrea. She seems to have a bit of a problem with wiggly hair."

Her wiggly hair. Orange eyes peeked skyward, into the black mass withering about on top of her head. An adequate description... if a little blunt. She shifted nervously on her feet, having been already introduced, she was left with very little to say- much less do. So, in spite of herself, she lifted a hand and waved casually. “..Hi...”

>>"Of course I'll help her,"

The woman beckoned, and for a moment Andrea faltered. Meeting new people was one of her biggest problems so far- but she didn’t want to seem rude to Juka, or the woman- who was to do her best in order to make Andrea less of an oddity. She straightened her back, reigning in her fears, and stepped forwards to the woman could do what she needed to do....

Kali looked at Andrea with a most critical eye, not phased in the slightest at the woman's obvious hesitance. It was her job to help make people beautiful and sometimes it was her job to help people look a little more normal. Well, it might be difficult for her to make the customer look normal, per say, but it might just be possible, with a little creativity, for her oddities to be displayed in a way that looked intentional rather than something to be ashamed of.

"You are very beautiful, we just need to bring that beauty to the surface," Kali informed Andrea, rummaging around her store as if she owned the place and, of course she did. Juka coudlnt' agree more with the sentiment, now if only he could allow Andrea to see that of herself. So what if she looked a little unusual, it was the differences in people that made them interesting and interesting was often also beautiful. Her skin was colourful and thus a lovely curiosity. If only she could learn to embrace her differences then she would be so much happier.

Kali went from one piece of fabric to another, trying to come up with the perfect veil and Juka, mostly, just stood there beaming and sometimes offering his opinion. "Do you want something bright or neutral? Maybe something to compliment your skin tone?"

>>"You are very beautiful, we just need to bring that beauty to the surface,"

Beautiful... Again with that rare word. Her cheeks darkened a few shades and she scratched at the back of her neck- much to embarrassed to reply with anything other than a meek, "Thank you, Ma'am..." Her eyes followed Kali about as she shifted through various pieces of cloth- inspecting each- in order to find something she found suitable. The bright orange irises stayed fixed on the woman, before she turned them to Juka- who had his own questions to input...

>>"Do you want something bright or neutral? Maybe something to compliment your skin tone?"

She let her eyes linger on his smile, which forced her own lips to curl slightly at the corners, before she turned her gaze back to Kali. Colorful or neutral... Something to match her skin, or something that stood out? Well, she didn't like standing out... Obviously. So personally she wanted to jump on the neutral wagon... But- She also understood that both of the people in the room with her were trying to make her feel better. Dropping the B(eautiful) word and complimenting her skin tone and what not... She would be a horrid person to ignore such kindness and slink back into her old ways like a dog with its tail between its legs... She glanced down, at her coat, and picked at its hem some more.

"Do you think... something red would suit me?..." Her eyes rose, pleading for brutal honesty from behidn her glasses, and her smile grew just a little bit larger. Hopefully, the answer would be yes. If not- then she had spent the last fifteen or so years of her life wearing entirely the wrong color for her skin.

"Red would be perfect for you, my dear," Kali agreed with Andrea's question immediately and went on a quest to find a red shawl. She came back a couple minutes later with a dark red piece of fabric in a material that looked suspiciously like silk though but a little sturdier. There were black lined patterns along the edges of the shawl, just enough to make it interesting. The piece was unique and looked good, but not so much that people would give it a second glance. It was a work of quality, but Kali knew her customers and knew which ones wanted to stand out and which ones would rather not be stared at. For Juka she would have chosen differently, but Andrea wasn't Juka and she felt certain this would be perfect for her.

"Kali, you are a genius of fashion as usual," Juka gushed upon seeing the piece that had been chosen for Andrea. "Andrea, my darling one, you simply must have that and since this is all my fault anyway you simply must allow me to buy it for you. I won't take no for an answer." Money wasn't something that Juka normally concerned himself with anyway. His estranged parents gave him all he needed and he had never worked a day in his life. His parents might not talk to him and might have completely disowned him, but they still gave him enough so that he could get by in relative comfort. They weren't monsters, after all, just really prejudiced and unaccepting of their cross-dressing son.

Whew. What a weight off of her shoulders. Apparently she had chosen the right color for herself after all. Andrea continued blushing and scratching at the back of her head in an embarrassed manner, and muttered another soft, "Thank you... Again." Then, it was Juka's turn. She turned to her companion, who had been most helpful. He dropped another 'Darling' which only spurred on her face engulfing flush, and pretty much banned her from even considering paying. The twenty two year old paused, considering flinging her own proposal back, before she decided against it. Sure, she could have waggled her finger at the younger Juka, and told him that since it was her hair that caused the problem, she be the one to buy the problem solving solution...

But, that would be rather rude. He was extending it as a gift and as an apology. So, "Thank you, Juka." Her grin widened and she felt the strong urge to hug him. Thankfully, for both Juka's sake and her own, Andrea managed to stay rooted to the spot. Hugging to show appreciation was all fine and dandy, but some people didn't like their personal bubbles popped. She didn't know if Juka was that type of person yet, though the arm looping was pointing towards a more positive answer. "Really, thank you. You took a day that wasn't all that great, and turned it topsy turvy." As Kali Handed her the shawl, she reflected back. Indeed, the day had been one of her worst.

Waking up with a splitting headache was never a good start to the day- but as soon as Juka had appeared he had changed it all around. The Greek turned, taking herself and the length of red and black fabric over to a mirror to fix herself up. She eyed herself in the mirror, smoothed her hair out of her face, and slipped the shawl on. With a bit of minor adjusting, she looped the fabric around her neck- like an old silent movie actress, and settled her hands at her side to stare at herself. Well, more of study, actually.

"Thank you my wonderful fashion saviour Kali," Juka gushed, handing over his visa card for swiping. He had never had a great appreciation for the value of money, having been one of those hated spoiled rich kids growing up. He pretty much got whatever he wanted whenever he wanted it and never had to even consider such things as finances. Since being disowned by his parents he had a little more appreciation though they still financed them from a distance, making sure that his visa card was payed off every months and giving him a monthly allowance to live on. He was still reasonably well to do, especially when one considered he didn't work at all, but he wasn't nearly as wealthy as he once was and he was started to appreciate money's vallue a little more. Still, this was a gift of apology and he couldnt' do anything else but to pay for it.

"Really, thank you. You took a day that wasn't all that great, and turned it topsy turvy."

Juka wanted to step over and hug Andrea but wasn't certain that she would appreciate it. Personal bounderies was another thing he was learning about that he hadn't previously had much of an awareness of or interest in. Instead he settled for grinning broadly. "It was my pleasure to help in any way I can and the shawl looks lovely on you, don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise."

Juka waved at Kali as he exited the store. "I promise to be back soon, my faerie queen," he promised, blowing a kiss back at her. Kali laughed as she watched him leave. "So, where to now? We can go anywhere you desire to go." And he did mean anywhere. After all, anywhere had a different meaning for a man with a floating bubble than it did for most.

Tucking her bangs up and under the edges of the Shawl, she grinned at Juka and finally managed to get her feverish blushing under control. Normally is wasn't her choice of clothing people commented on, rather, it was her features. She found that she would much rather have her shorts of her nice new shawl be the focal point of rude remarks, instead of something she couldn't change. Sighing happily, she turned from her reflection and beamed at him. "You have my solemn oath that no harm, verbal or physical, shall ever come to this beloved gift." With a nod, she rejoined him, waving happily to Kali before she exited the store with him.

Then, he took her by surprise. Where would she like to go next?... Anywhere? Determined to make the most of her hunger and headache-less time, she pursed her lips and drew a hand to her chin as she thought. What was in interesting place to go? First off of the top of her list was an Art museum... she knew of two in the area that she hadn't been able to visit yet. The second was a play she had heard about heard about, something called 'Wicked'. It was a regular and well loved musical according to the internet.... A story about a witch or something...

"Well... I do have two places in mind..." She muttered, turning her eyes heavenwards. "There is a musical playing tonight that I was interested... and the Art museum is a place I haven't been to yet..." She paused, turning to him on the sidewalk and waggled her finger at him. "But! I refuse to let you pay for my ticket. You've been so caring already that I would feel like I was taking advantage of your kindness."

Juka could tell that the shawl made Andrea happy (even after the horrible thing he had accidentally done to her hair) and that in turn made him happy. There really wasn't anything more to want out of life aside from making pretty ladies smile and mean that smile. Although Andrea was a bit on the unusual side, Juka did find her pretty in her own unique way. He was coming to realize that he, perhaps, had a thing for visible mutants. First there was his red Prince Venus, the only one he had actual experience with, but as time went on he found he was more and more drawn to those who didnt' look like your average every day human. The hair was something to get used to of course, but even that was oddly compelling in a lightly creepy sort of way.

"Well... I do have two places in mind. There is a musical playing tonight that I was interested... and the Art museum is a place I haven't been to yet... But! I refuse to let you pay for my ticket. You've been so caring already that I would feel like I was taking advantage of your kindness."

"Art museum it is," Juka agreed, beaming. "And if you must insist on payin for your own ticket then I suppose I will have to allow you to do so, much to the chagrin of my naturally chivalrous nature." He winked to let her know that he wasn't really being serious, although he had a suspicioun that money probebly meant less to him than it did to her.

"Only, this time I really think you ought to take the lead. You see, as someone who generally floats above the city when travelling, I get lost easily when I'm not floating." Juka smiled sheepishly. Maybe he ought to learn more about navigating from the ground level rather than from the air.

She flashed another grin Juka's way. She was too lead? How exciting! (and possibly dissasterous...) Her eyebrows furrowed in anticipation and she brought a finger to her lips while her other hand toyed with the dangling end of her new shawl. where was that art museum again? she had looked it up online...so she kind of, sort of new the directions... but... when you were actually standing on the street it was a lot different from the little map online. After a few moments of himming and humming, a light bulb clicked on overhead and she had an 'Aha!' moment. lead she would, but first thing was first... they needed a bus. "This way!" Adopting the pirate confidence her roommate had instilled in her, she marched off with Juka right alongside her. They would need to catch the buss up the street, take it four or five stops, and then walk a couple of blocks and wala- Art museum. She turned while walking, glancing around to spot if the bus was on its way or not. She spotted one off in the distance and quickened her steps... busses for some reason had a habit of passing stops completely if you weren't already there by the time the arrived. she had even seen some just drive on past no matter what- many a passenger seemed used to it though, so she never complained.

"Ahh... I think that is the bus we need..." Squinting, she stopped alongside a few other bus riders near the sign and turned to face juka. "This should take us pretty much to right where we need to be." With another smile, she tucked her hands in her pockets and rocked back and forth on her heels. It was nice too feel like her old self again. Without the headaches and the 'I'm hungry feed me!' constantly coming from her tummy, it was a lot easier to interact with people and be in general, happy.... and she had Juka to thank for all of it. Some loose hair that had escaped from her shawl caressed her cheek slowly. she blew it away quickly. Her eyes caught sight of the other people sending her curious looks, and the Greek fought back the sudden urge to shrink back and move around to the other side of Juka. She shot the colorful fashionista a quick look and sniffled, wrinkling her nose to pushed her glasses up further into place.

Andrea held her head higher than she ever had before... which, as she found out, was quite uncomfortable if you weren't used to it, and pointedly ignored the stares. she was pretty sure that was what she was supposed to do, right? Hold one's head high and act like whatever's bothering you isn't? She could feel confusion set in, and decided to ponder the subject later... The bus pulled up in front of them, and after the other people boarded it, she stepped on as well. she inserted enough change for both her and juka, and grabbed to transfers for the both of them, before thanking the driver and maneuvering herself over to a few empty seats alongside each other. "...It is rather empty today, it seems..." Plopping down, she turned a smile Juka's way to see how her friend was doing.

The prospect of riding in a bus was oddly exciting for Juka. Growing up his family had been rich so he never had to take public tranist at all, it was almost always limos or bentlys complete with hired drivers. He never learned how to drive as a teenager because there had never been a need for it and he still hadn't learn to drive now because there still wasn't a need for it, though the reasons were a little different at this time. Now days he simply floated wherever he needed to go; why take a bus when a bubble would be so much better (and more fun besides)? Even in Tokyo while with his band during the greatest strain between him and his family he had his fans to drive him wherever it was he needed to go. So a bus was a new experience for him.

"Well if this isn't the right bus we'll just go on an adventure right?" Juka grinned at Andrea. It didn't really matter to him what they ended up doing with the remainder of the day, so long as he got to spend it with his newfound friend not only to make up for the whole wiggly hair incident but also because he was enjoying himself and he was pretty sure that she was as well. It was a good feeling simply being with friends with no responsibilities and nothing to really worry about. Except that nagging little feeling of guilt, but there wasn't too much he could do about that just then.

As Juka stepped onto the bus behind Andrea he noticed the stares the pair of them were getting and her look of discomfort, though she was doing brilliantly at hiding it. Silently he congradulated her and encouraged her to keep doing exactly what she was doing. That was the way to deal with the stares, after all. By way of example he turned his gaze directly to one old lady with a rather foul expression on her face and grinned at her. Uncomfortable, she turned her head away from them. Sometimes that was all that it took to deal with such rude individuals; give them back whatever they gave you and they gave way. Most of them were cowards, so insecure in their own self identity that they felt they had to judge others. Well, Juka for one was not going to be judged and he hoped Andrea would learn to take it in stride as well.

Andrea sent a smile back in exchange for her new friends grin, and dropped her eyes to her feet, which were kicking under her slowly. "Riding a bus in itself can be an adventure, even if it is the right one." Her gaze rose and she wrinkled her nose in thought, absentmindedly toying with the new red fabric that was bunched just under her chin. "I have been riding them since I came here, oh, quite a few months ago." memories of her rides flashed behind her eyes. She could recall times in which people had been kicked off for various reasons, and times when the buses had nearly collided with people who went through red lights (a few times it seemed like it had been the bus drivers fault as well) and even pedestrians who refused to wait for walk signs at crossing points. There was also the ever present use of rather colorful language... she could never seem to go a day without hearing familiar ear scorching words, and even a few that she didn't fully know the definitions of yet...

"Make sure you hold onto something though... the third time I ever rode a bus, the driver had to slam on the brakes and I slid all the way from the back up to the drivers seat." She paused, turning her head to glance towards the back of the bus as a small group of teens burst into laughter. "It was quite fun after the fact, actually..." Her eyebrows knitted together as she watched the teens, wondering what had had been so funny. With six of them all together sitting across each other with legs strewn about in the very back, she felt a little spike of worry creep up the back of her neck. They were young, most looking in their late teens and just a few in their earlier twenties... but, they were dressed rather oddly. Ripped jeans, leather, and lots of rainbows and colorfully dyed clothing seemed to be their fashion of choice... not to mention very unusual hairstyles. The two females in the odd group had shaved heads with different lengths of hair in different patches... while the boys had their hair up in spiked and green and red mo hawks.

While she knew that her and her new friend Juka weren't exactly normal in appearance as well, she couldn't help but feel that the group was trouble. It seemed that when ever she met people of their appearance, bad things happened soon after. She could clearly recall her walk in the park with Kyle, when men wearing similar clothing had happened upon them and started a fight. "Perhaps... we should get off at the next stop." She was nervous, and it was visibly obvious. Her feet had ceased their childlike kicking and she was actively glancing about in order to get a bearing of her surroundings. The laughter had quieted, and for a moment she felt herself calm down- until the sound of many feet heading their way reached her ears.

"Hey! You guys look wicked cool... are you a mutant?... or did you come from a convention or something?" Her eyes flitted to Juka first, before rising to lock eyes with one of the other males of the group. The people in the seats across from her appearance shared her agitated nerves, seeing as they up and evacuated themselves to the back of the bus rather quickly. The group of teens too their seats, and conversed with themselves while the man who had spoken listened on with a few of the others. Andrea gulped, fiddling with her scarf again. "I am... a Mutant that is. What convention do you speak of?" The mans eyes lit up, a huge grin over took his face and he elbowed the kid next to him. "I told you they were real muties! This is so cool..."

Juka took Andra's warning to heart and grabbed hold of a bar in order to ensure there was no chance of falling. Not only would such an act be entirely ungraceful (and a future rock star like himself could certainly not appear ungraceful) but it could also be potentially painful and injury inducing. Pain was something that he had never had much of an attraction to in fact, quite the contrary, he openly opposed it. Sure there were some people who thought it was all part of a good night of entertainment and he had no issue with such people; he just wasn't one of them. Let those who liked pain experience it, that's what he always said, and let those who don't avoid it. Everyone won that way.

Juka was about to inquire about whether busses were really that dangerous (in which case he would prefer to stick to his bubble in the future) when a group of colourful punks walked up to them. They weren't really the sort to be a part of his usual fan base, who were normally more artsy in appearance and less confrontational than punks tended to be, but the essence of the statement came from a very similar place: Self expression regardless of cultural approvals. As such he had quite a bit of respect for the subculture and he liked to think that most of them, at least, had a certain respect for his own little niche group of people as well. After all, punks and visual kei Jrockers, especially in the US, both had to deal with the uneducated reactions of others.

"Hey! You guys look wicked cool... are you a mutant?... or did you come from a convention or something?" " I am... a Mutant that is. What convention do you speak of?" "I told you they were real muties! This is so cool..."

Juka beamed, always happy to get the attention and just as happy to share the attention with his new friend Andrea. He might be an occasionally selfish egoist, but never let it be said that he wasn't willing to share with a friend. He dug into one of his pockets and took out a handful of the ever present cards promoting his band, handing one to each member of the group currently surrounding them. "My lovely, colourful, rainbow punks, if you are interested in a good time involving mutants, please come see my band Light in Darkness. We're an all mutant band and I like to think we can perform with the best of them." Rule number one of the struggling musician was never pass up an opportunity for promotion.