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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 20, 2009 19:50:40 GMT -5
“Yeah, um, I think my idea of ‘light reading’ and yours are two very different things.” Makoto winked at Ami, choosing not to tease her too much. The poor girl had suffered more than her fair share of friendly ribbing and jokes over the years since her secret had been outed… She figured she’d let this slide for once.
She nodded at Ami’s suggestion of just browsing. “As long as we wind up somewhere near the cooking and gardening section, I’ll browse with you all afternoon.”
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 20, 2009 20:08:53 GMT -5
Ami glanced at Makoto, relieved that her sister had not chosen to tease her or to comment on her tendency to over think things. She grinned, "I promise. We'll get to those sections. I wouldn't dare bring you to a book store otherwise."
She led her over to the classics, grinning as she looked at familiar friends, sometimes with new and different covers, but always with the same words on the inside. She ran her fingers over their spines, knowing that these were what most people expected her "light reading" to be, and she did enjoy them.
This bookstore carried a variety. Some were Japanese classics, but there were world classics - in both Japanese and English. She grinned as her fingers came to the spine for Pride and Prejudice. She had read some of the other Austen books, and found that they could satisfy both her desire for good classical literature and romance. She picked up the book, reading the summary on the back.
"Mmm... this sounds like it could be enjoyable." She grinned over to Makoto, "See anything interesting?"
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 20, 2009 20:46:00 GMT -5
Makoto followed Ami over to a section filled with books that were a bit ‘out of her league.’ She’d read her share of classics, but that was just the required reading for her schooling. Once she’d passed her classes, she hadn’t touched a picture-less book since.
She smiled, though, at Ami’s pleasure over these sorts of books. Glancing down over Ami’s shoulder, she read a portion of the summary and chuckled. “Yeah, you just go ahead and enjoy that one. I’ll be over in the ‘Home & Garden’ section.”
Leaving Ami to enjoy her ‘wordy’ books, Makoto headed over to check out the gardening books. She wanted to get a head start on her spring gardening and needed to get a few pointers on what to plant and when. She sighed happily when she pulled a book off the shelf with several varieties of lily on the cover. “Ahhh, this is more like it.”
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 20, 2009 21:14:42 GMT -5
Ami smiled over to Makoto when she said she was going to go over to the other section. "Sorry." She did feel badly when she bored her friends, but she knew that Makoto would be in her element, so to speak, in the "Home & Garden" section. "Have fun." She grinned and winked to her sister, before turning back to browsing the titles.
She wound up selecting one other book as well, a Japanese classic that she had not read since college and wanted her own copy of. For Ami bookstores often meant becoming reacquainted with old friends as much as it did meeting new ones. She looked through the other titles, but decided that these two would do for now.
Ami's next area was the art books. She smiled, feeling a bitter-sweet feeling, as she saw a couple of art books that she recognized as her father's. Of course, she already had those and a couple of the originals that were featured. Shaking her head, she tore herself away from the rather forlorn thoughts and glanced through the other offerings. After some deliberation, she chose a book of water colors by an artist she was unfamiliar with, but whose style struck a chord with her.
Content with her finds to that point, Ami found herself wandering over to the romance novels. She blushed as she found herself looking at the covers with various levels of compromising scenes depicted. It was always hard to figure out which ones would be enjoyable and which would present depictions of men and women that were both unbelievable and offensive. She picked one with a sweet, rather than racy, picture on the cover, and read the back of the cover before flipping through the pages to see if it could be added to her more guilty pleasure library.
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 20, 2009 22:17:35 GMT -5
Makoto decided to keep the book on lilies, and also picked up a small book on herbs. She was far from being finished with ‘browsing’ though. Of course she had to stop by the cooking section to see if there were any new recipe books worth taking home.
Before she realized what she’d done, she had two new very thick books in her arms…both of them based on American-style cuisine. She blushed slightly and quickly placed her gardening books on top, hoping to hide her own little embarrassing secret.
She made her way back over to the classics section, but found that Ami had moved on. Makoto raised herself up on her tip-toes to look over the shelves for that familiar head of blue hair, but didn’t see her. She walked past each aisle that she thought Ami would be on; Art, history, biographies, non-fiction…
And then she found her. It was all she could do to hold back the giggles. “I should have known you couldn’t resist!” She pulled her books close to her chest and looked over Ami’s shoulder at the book she held in her hand and couldn’t help the few giggles that slipped. “I don’t know how you can read this stuff. It’s so…corny!” She lowered her voice and gave her sister a little nudge and a wink. “And you know as well as I do that these are nothing like real romance.”
While Ami kept browsing, Makoto couldn’t help but take in her surroundings. The covers of these books were just so outrageous. Half dressed men clinging busty women with flowing hair, or some other similar ridiculous combination... She turned around to put her back to Ami, trying to keep her jokes to herself, when she saw it.
Her books hit the floor with a loud *THUD*. She stepped backwards and into Ami, her mouth agape. She had no words. Small squeaks and gasps for air were all that she could get to come out, so she just pointed.
It was Nathaniel.
Half dressed.
Clinging to a busty woman.
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 20, 2009 22:34:25 GMT -5
Ami blushed scarlet at Makoto's words. She had explained multiple times that she found the escape into something that she did not herself have refreshing, so there was no real answer to Makoto's words, and she knew that her sister did not expect one. She had never admitted that it had also become about trying to capture a feeling she could only remember, though she suspected that after the afternoon's conversation Makoto might already realize that.
She heard the thud and turned just in time for Makoto to back into her. She gently caught her sister's arms, trying to steady her some. "Breath, Mako-chan..."
Ami followed Makoto's finger and then blinked. "Oh..." Ami blushed realizing that she actually owned a copy of that particular book, though she had not paid that close attention to the cover - sure he was attractive, but not really her type.
"Um... are you all right, Mako-chan?" She considered reaching around her and turning the book around so that it would not be staring them in the face, but was not sure that would help at the moment.
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 20, 2009 23:23:33 GMT -5
She nodded to Ami, though it looked more like a nervous twitch. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m ok.”
Makoto’s focus, however, remained trained on the book. Her hand shook as she stepped forward and removed it from the shelf, further inspecting the cover. “It’s… he...” She sucked in air, over and over, trying to get her breathing back to normal. “I think I need some fresh air.”
She promptly put the book back on the shelf, with the cover facing inward and bent to pick up the other books she’d dropped. Not even checking to see if Ami was behind her, she started marching for the checkout counter.
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 20, 2009 23:42:09 GMT -5
Ami followed Makoto, concerned about her. "Mako-chan, he just met you. That... that book's been out for a while." She really hoped that she would not ask her why she knows that. She was also not sure that that would make her feel much better. She decided it would be better to just let Makoto feel how she felt.
When they reached the counter, Ami stayed focused on Makoto. At least she was breathing more normally now.
She had not realized that in her haste to follow Makoto, she had apparently decided to go ahead and buy the book that she had been looking at. She bit her lip, watching her friend as she tried to decipher Makoto's distress - would she want the book?
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 20, 2009 23:48:37 GMT -5
Makoto nervously laughed as she handed her card to the cashier. “It’s not like I’m jealous or anything!” Ok, so maybe she was a little jealous.
“I just…” she sighed. “I get it. He’s a model. It’s just a paycheck. But why the hell does he keep popping up everywhere I go???” She signed the receipt and took her bag off the counter.
It did not escape her notice what book Ami had on top of her stack to buy. While she waited for Ami to pay, the gears continued to turn in her head. Finally, the light came on.
“How the hell do you know that book’s been out for a while?”
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 20, 2009 23:57:35 GMT -5
Ami grimaced as she paid for her books. "I have that book at home. I didn't realize it was Nate on it until you pointed it out. I've not looked at that book for a while."
She glanced over at her, hoping that she wasn't upset. "You can have it if you want. I've read it a couple of times."
As she counted her change and put it in her wallet she chuckled, "I think the reason you keep seeing him is that he is a model, and apparently quite a popular one." She grinned a bit as she closed her purse and grabbed her bag. "Everyone will wind up being jealous of you, you know. You'll be the woman he's holding because he wants to be."
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 21, 2009 11:55:53 GMT -5
“You… You have it?” Makoto blinked a few times, trying to register what Ami had just told her.
And then she promptly burst into laughter. “Oh gods Ami! You just better hope nobody else finds out about that!” She wiped a small tear from her eye. “Maybe I should take it off your hands, for your own safety!”
She sobered up at the thought of others being jealous of her for being with Nathaniel. She liked him, he was a nice guy. But with her newfound memories of both his and her past, she wasn’t so sure how quickly she’d be restoring that relationship. Still, Makoto grinned back at her friend. “I suppose only time will tell.”
Noting that Ami was finished with her purchase, as she had her bag in hand, Makoto was the first to start heading for the exit. She walked past a rack of ‘current events’ style celebrity magazines and noticed yet another familiar face on the cover.
She stopped and pointed it out to Ami. “Ooooh, I met him the other day with Minako. I think he’s going to be in that movie with her. Nice guy…”
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 21, 2009 12:09:27 GMT -5
Ami blushed. "It's not like what I read for enjoyment is a secret anymore. But yes, you can have it." She winked a bit, well used to the teasing by now. "I do appreciate you protecting me." She giggled.
She nodded, at the mention that it would require time. She knew that, and very much agreed with it.
Her head snapped up when Makoto mentioned a guy in the movie with Minako. Seeing what she was pointing to, it was Ami's turn to gasp. "Za... Zacharie Babineaux..." Her stomach gave a flip flop, and Ami could not tear her eyes off of the picture.
After a few deep breaths, still not turning her attention from the picture she half whispered, "Did... did you... did you feel anything odd around him?" While her feeling of familiarity with Nathaniel Bernhardt had not been as severe as Makoto's, she had thought he felt familiar as well. If Makoto had noticed anything around Zacharie, then that would confirm Mamoru's suspicion.
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 21, 2009 12:22:01 GMT -5
Makoto crooked an eyebrow at Ami’s reaction to the magazine. Zacharie Babineaux… Did she feel anything odd around him?
“Why would I feel odd? I mean, he is a movie star, so of course he seemed familiar. But that doe-“ A feeling of realization hit her. She picked up one of the copies and looked at it a little more closely. The hair was a bit different, but the eyes and that sly smile…
“Ami, is this who I think it is?”
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Post by Mizuno Ami on Mar 21, 2009 12:34:21 GMT -5
She nodded, "Mamoru thinks so... and... he... he looks like him... except his hair is too short. I always liked his hair..." She was rambling slightly, and she knew it.
Shaking her head, as if to clear it, she looked to her sister. Her eyes pleading, though she was not entirely sure what it was she was asking of her. "You... you met him. Do... do you think that is him?" She was not entirely sure what she wanted the answer to be. He was a star and probably had a whole following of starlets and fabulous women to chose from.
She licked her lips and looked down slightly, "How close were he and Minako... she's probably more his type... I..." She sighed as she trailed off, her eyes moving back to the rack of magazines and his picture.
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Post by Kino Makoto on Mar 21, 2009 13:15:08 GMT -5
Makoto placed a hand on Ami’s shoulder. She knew this had to be just as hard for Ami as it was for her when it came to Nathaniel.
She frowned slightly, knowing she couldn’t offer much information. “I really didn’t even talk to him. I really only was able to introduce myself before I was stuck in the kitchen to cook their lunch.”
She thought back, recalling the things she’d seen at the table and her conversation with Minako. “I think he and Minako are just good friends, coworkers. She pulled me aside because she was feeling uncomfortable over someone else at their table. Khalid something.” Her eyes went wide as the name rolled off her lips. It was the same Khalid that Usagi had mentioned in their meeting the day before. “Oh god, I met two Shitennou and didn’t even realize it! I wonder if Minako even knows.”
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