The Scarlet Crossing (DeliciousLust & darjeeling)

“Ah, well, don’t be apprehensive then.” She said nonchalantly about Aurelia’s approach about her like it was something that she could turn off. While Mariko did know that it may have come off abrasive to any anti-social behaviours or emotional plight the poor girl was going through, she thought that she might have deserved a shove at one point in time. Mariko didn’t hang around circles where coddling was exactly commonplace. In fact, Aurelia could scarcely stay afloat. The girl had to become a little more rigid at some point in time, or risk evaporating away from any future pressures that were placed on her. She wasn’t trying to scare the girl away, but perhaps some tough love had given so that she could grow a thicker skin. If she wasn’t too offended by seeing the bakemono engage in her shameless pleasures or her blatant flirtations, Mariko assumed she could take the blatant piece of advice without too much issue. She brushed some sleek black strands of hair behind her ear and straightened those nerd-chic glasses she wore, looking at her directly. “It’s doubt you’ll ever meet anyone else like me, my dear. You just have to accept that I’m that special. You'll have to learn to step up to be on my level.” She said on a rather pompous note.

Mariko unfortunately didn’t know that she wasn’t coaxing the girl to hurt herself, in a way. She thought the girl was at least clever enough to avoid better burnt by her coffee, coffee that she thought wasn’t exactly too hot to given with. Then again, her blood wasn’t exactly at hot as humans and she appreciated the comforts heat whenever close to it, whether by engineering it or through circumstance. She took a few more sips of coffee, though wasn’t quick to consume all of it as her companion seemed intent on doing, for reasons that were still unknown to her. When Aurelia gave enough hint to her that there were indeed a lingerie store in the mall, that was perhaps more than enough excuse to leave the dull surroundings of the food court. She imagined that they could continue their conversation at the lingerie store and they could be doing more than just sitting in the food court. She grinned widely, with all of her sharp teeth showing at that idea. “Well, that works for me! There’s only one way to be sure, let’s go!” She called out, wanting to take initiative for the charge. Rising in a hurry, the chair was practically lifted by her scaly tail in tow before it was quickly shaken off and the chair’s legs found ground again unceremoniously with a small clatter.

With the coffee in one hand, she neared close to Aurelia again and her arm wrapped around her companion's. She didn’t want to risk losing the girl or risk her drifting elsewhere, which were all possible things from what she gathered from her demeanour, so she was notably closer than before. Her arms snaked tightly around hers and her hand clasped in a sure hold, with her claws taken into consideration so that she didn’t risk scratching the girl with their sharp edges She made her way up the escalator at a brisk enough pace, though not so quickly that the girl had no chance of catching up. There were only a few glances given to the two from the visitors of the mall before the girls soon disappeared down another avenue. It was noticeably growing quieter in the mall, as it seemed it was one of those small downtown complexes that cater to the employees of the surrounding offices and lunchtime was about over, diving the mall in a routine afternoon lull. There was a good chance that this mall didn’t even open on the weekends. Mariko was a keen hunter, at least by what was gifted to her through her primal nature. She would survey the sights around them quickly, though soon found the map directory to where they could be taken to the lingerie in store. Mariko knew that every mall had to have one, whether a small one that was run independently or a chain. It seem it was the latter in the case and her reptilian eyes lit up once she found the location, which was thankfully a short walk so that Aurelia didn’t have to be dragger more than she have to, if her pace was slower than the monster. “Ah! Here we are! It looks like you were right after all.”

Mariko brought them to a little boutique called ‘Masquerade’, which was a small chain that specialized in a mix of lingerie without any specialized direction. It seemed the store was still trying to find its customers so that meant that it carried a variety of sexy outfits, swimwear and sleeping wear. She was a fan of the chain, as she bought enough variety of things here to collect points on her membership card, though she hadn’t been to this one in particular before. Admittedly, she even passed off those said sexy outfits as clothes before, much to the delight or chagrin of those around her. Aurelia must have recalled seeing her in a few of them, streamlined with her feudal whore motif. This shop was sort of located in path that led toward the underground parking garage. Needless to say, it wasn’t exactly a place that saw a lot of traffic and the store was fair quiet because of it. The store was neat and tidy, each of its specialties and categories organized and put up for display on its soft pink walls. There were white wooden cabinets and shelves that stacked products of various sizes. As far as they are concerned, they seemed to be the only customers in the store at the moment. There were two sales clerks however, one was a middle-aged woman with notably frizzy hair and the strange choice to draw in eyebrows upwards to make her look like a comic villainess. She didn’t exactly look too pleased by the bakemono stepping in, making her appearance look more severe than it was already. Nothing was said however, she merely crossed her arms and kept a passive watch on the two. The other store clerk seem much younger than that, a girl with bleached blonde hair, cut short and swept aside with a clip. Her gaze brightened at the usual green-skinned bakemono. Mariko didn’t seem too concerned about their opinions, her hold on Aurelia loosen so that she could free up her hands together and her coffee cup was nonchalantly placed on the closest flat surface without much thought. She fished through the racks for various sets to try on. “So, what lingerie do you usually wear...and do you have any suggestions about that I should try on?”

What Mariko said held more than just a couple grains of truth in it, but an entire beach and then some. Still, it made Aurelia feel equal parts silly and bashful which most certainly went against what the bakemono was trying to tell her. She knew that there would be no harm in being a little more friendly, or a little less shy or even a little more bold or cheeky. But that was simply a trait she had long since abandoned after being met with less than stellar results. Aurelia also doubted that she would ever "step up" as Mariko put it so bluntly, considering she had put the other female on so high a pedestal already. It was a wonder that she could still see her. In the end, she nodded, and simply said "Okay." It was not something she could hope to remedy in a day, or even a week, but it had always been a nagging voice at the back of her head. Seize the day, be a little more intuitive! The difference was that Mariko had become that voice and for all it was worth, it made Aurelia a little more determined to put more effort into withdrawing some courage from the bank.

At the very lease, Mariko didn't seem to be too insulted by Aurelia's hermit-like status nor did she completely give up on the redhead which was a relief. Most of her fears had been replaced by the numbness of her burnt tongue, however she did not shy away when the bakemono approached her with burning intent. A warmth that was quickly becoming familiar and also dampening the strange sensation in her mouth made her smile quietly to herself though she was somewhat startled by the sudden hand-claw holding. Aurelia glanced down, noting the sharp tips of the other's fingers and the careful placement of them. She shifted her palm against the touch, settling into a more comfortable position as she followed Mariko's lead. They passed a couple of stores she was familiar with, and many more she was not. Businesses came and went and she curiously turned her head to observe the signs and their products - there were many clothing stores showcasing the current fashions, along with more retro styled attire. There were a couple of drink and snack stands here and there but Aurelia could not recall if they had been there the last time. No doubt due to the distraction currently pressed by her side. They stopped at a diagram outlining the general layout of the mall, but before she could point out the store they were searching for, Mariko had already found it and they were on there way once more. Either her companion had some sort of honing instinct for lingerie or her eyesight was poorer than she'd initially thought. Nevertheless, there was no time to dwell on that depressing possibility as they halted in front of a tell-tale cursive name 'Masquerade' in light pink. Typical.

The inside was also pink. Pink walls, pink dressing rooms, pink curtains. Even the mannequins had pink hair. Pink. Aurelia knew that the color was maybe a shade or five lighter than her own hair, but that didn't stop her from making a face at a salmon-colored pleated skirt. Of course even by her unimpressive track record when it came to sexy clothing, she'd heard of this brand before. It was a luxury logo, something to be ooh'd and aah'd over if the label just so happened to be shown. The chain was known to be new and 'hip' as the youngsters call it. Even if their target audience seemed to be all over the place, with their products ranging from tight fitted blouses to blown out ones for their older customers. The place sort of looked like a dollhouse, or the interior at least. The shelves and varying wardrobes were something she'd find in a cutesy store selling sleepwear... judging by the bunny eared onesies, they sold those too. The employees manning the Masquerade front desk eyed them, one with interest and the other with repressed disdain as they ventured in. Aurelia offered nothing but a sheepish smile before turning her attention to the rows upon rows of revealing and very silky clothing. Even if she didn't wear it herself, there was something pleasant about running one's hands over such fine material.

At Mariko's inquiry however, Aurelia couldn't help but chuckle nervously. "There's your first mistake. Assuming that I wear lingerie." It was not something one would admit on what was essentially the first date, but she certainly did not want to risk being caught out after picking out mismatching lace and ribbons. From what she did know, and her own personal tastes, she preferred designs that were less flashy and more subtle in their allure. Recalling the bow topped stockings Mariko wore when she first met her, she pursed her lips. "White suits you." Aurelia said as she sifted through varying outfits and brassieres timidly. Colors weren't really her forte and she was having a very hard time picturing Mariko in anything but grey-scale shades. She pulled out a floral printed silk... gown of sorts, though it was so transparent she could see everything clearly through the light purple shade. It looked like a nightgown, but the convenient cuts and sequins had Aurelia second guessing the fact."What about this?"

“Assuming you wear lingerie? Of course, I am.” She said with a straight statement, as if it was the way of things in the cosmic order and Aurelia had to follow through. Not that she had much idea with the girl, but she assumed that inside the introverted exterior of the girl, there had to be some sort of wild side to her. Or at least she might have experimented once with something that involved intimacy. She didn’t get much from Hunter in terms of information, or didn’t bother asking the right question, as she assumed that Hunter might have been her lover. Or sibling. Or both. It’s not like Mariko could exactly judge others on their deviant or intimate tastes. She found pleasure in a rather shameless activity herself and judging others was a slippery slope to having fingers pointed at her in return. Not that she wasn’t used to have that done to her already, as she was a bakemono and considered an outsider by a percentage of the outside world. From the gaze she sensed from the manager here, she knew that wasn’t an exception right now either. That other clerk looked cute though, maybe she could offer something for a discount...Before her mind drifted far in her plans, she merely added. “You should get some lingerie then, you might see some more excitement in your life!”

At the offering, Mariko pushed up her glasses and took a closer look at the excuse of a gown that was presented before her. Her gaze was inquisitive at first, but her lips slowly formed a smile as it seemed like Aurelia might have found a winner among everything that was gathered there. Maybe the girl had daring imagination after all. She had half a mind to think she would have reached for something prude or old fashioned. “That’s a nice find, I knew you were good for something.” She smirked as she hooked the selection under two fingers for safe keeping. “That’s a definite try on. Let’s see if we could find other things to go with this particular outfit. And any other ones we could try on with it!” Her gaze was already at work to use her keen sense for hunting, even if she was merely hunting outfits. There was a moment where her muse brought her to a good selection of wedding lingerie, featuring a good among of whites and the odd pinks. That might have fallen into something of Aurelia’s imagination incidentally. Mariko always liked the bridal lingerie, as it was obviously meant for first time sex in the true spirit of consummation, in a romantic marriage. Given the day and age, and the exciting designs, there was obvious a scandalous undertone that rebelled from that perception. Not that she was getting married or anytime soon, she still took some selections, merely on the fancy that it amused her to no end.

With her selection finalized, she made her way to the change room to try some of delicious outfits on. “Come on, let’s go.” She took Aurelia’s hand in her's and dragged her toward her destination. It seemed that they were truly the few customers in the boutique at the moment, as all of the change room doors were slightly open to show their vacancy. Each door was lined up with a mirror, with the end of the hallway hosting a set of mirrors to catch all the flattering sides of the person in question. Mariko took a quick look around the place and seemed to carelessly ignore her choices of change rooms and opted to change right out in the open of the hallway! She seemed to be rather nonchalant about it, as she wasn’t shy about showing off her sensuous body and it gave her an opportunity to embarrass Aurelia further, that much was obvious about her already. The two clerks of the shop seemed rather preoccupied to care about Mariko claiming the whole place as her own. “It’s not like there’s much people around to get a show anyway.” She said with a wink at Aurelia.

Pushing off those suspenders that did a fine job of accentuating her breasts and focusing much attention to them, she undid her shirt with ease, revealing the white lace bra she wore underneath. She didn’t need the support, though it did a good job of framing her amble breasts and packing them in. Unhooking with a quick gesture, she freed them and took in a breath as she escaped their confines. Her breasts bounced free, those dark nipples, one of the pieced with that familiar crown piercing. Without waiting for Aurelia’s reaction or checking if the coast was clear, she unbuckled her jeans and slid it down slowly from her round hips. As she did so, she may have spotted that small glistening patch of wetness on her white panties, sticking to her moist slit for only a moment. It seemed at some point in time, she might have gotten excited or aroused. Maybe she was always that way?

She took some stockings that went well with the gown, slipping them on slowly on her toned legs, slowly one by one in small incremental tugs that made it seem teasing. The stockings decorated her green legs with a deeper purple shade. The gown came on next, which didn’t seem like it would cover much. This was true for both material and function, as it was clear that there was no real way to close the gown together, perhaps a mere tie around the waist that was more superficial than anything. The material clung to her breasts, opening them for a delicious cleavage in between and dipped down to exposed everything in between, the sheer silk showing every bit of her nude body. There was at least a slight tint of purple with lace trimmings about her made her gown worthwhile as a lingerie piece at least, as opposed to merely going in the nude.

“So...how do I look?” She asked expectantly with a grin, placing her clawed hands on her hips.

Aurelia blinked in surprise. Not at Mariko's reply, or at least not the contents of it. Rather the way it was delivered had the redhead somewhat tongue-tied and at a loss. As usual, her thoughts went through the motions of thinking far too much into it. Mariko might have meant it as a casual statement; like how one might assume one would breathe or eat, lingerie was just that one thing every girl, or guy if they were so inclined, needed in their lives. On the other hand, this could be the bakemono's way of flirting yet again and by assuming, there might also be picturing in the, well, picture. The latter made sense because that was exactly what Aurelia had been doing and so the idea was not completely farfetched. Yet on the other hand of that, in what universe would she be wearing lingerie? It would be like asking Mariko if she'd ever consider wearing a chastity belt, or something equally medieval. Aurelia thought herself more likely to wear one of those than be caught out in public wearing something horrifically lacy and ribbon-y. “I’ve gotten plenty of excitement in my life without,” she ended up replying, hopefully managing to also dispel the offensive tones that came with it. “But,” the human girl could not help but add upon further thought, mostly imagining Mariko’s disappointed expression. “I will… consider.”

Her satisfaction was almost palpable when the bakemono did not simply brush off her suggestion. Though the compliment sounded just a little bit demeaning, Aurelia shrugged it off and smiled instead. “Thanks.” She relinquished the excuse of clothing without much of a fight even if she could not help but ponder over her companion’s choice of words. Implying that she was not of much use for anything but picking out skanky clothing was a little… well, insulting, even if the hidden praise would’ve made her beam if she was a little more desperate for that sort of attention. But hell would take her before Aurelia would even vocalise such a thought so she simply pressed her lips together and looked back at the rack, rummaging through the lingerie even if she’s already done that a total of three times already. Thankfully Mariko had the same idea, and despite not being able to find anything else that might’ve captured the bakemono’s attention – or maybe even unwilling to find it just in case the other might offer yet another thought-provoking comment – it appeared that the green-skinned monster girl was nonplussed. Aurelia was busying scraping past a couple of ribbon adorned brassieres before her hand was taken a hold of and she was summarily pulled away from her place of business.

“Done already?” Aurelia asked, even as she noted the amount of fabric hanging over the other woman’s arm. The store clerk at the desk gave them a look she was wholly familiar with as they made their way to the dressing rooms; a spectacularly decorated place, if truths were to be told. Aurelia glanced at the multitude of empty rooms, taking her eyes off Mariko for just a split second to glance into one of them before – “Ah, what are you--! There are plenty of free…” Her throat decided just then to make its best impression of the driest desert in the world as the bakemono offered a wink as her clothes were removed without a second thought. In Aurelia’s case, she was finding it difficult to have a second thought, and even more difficult was doing the right thing and removing her eyes from Mariko’s person. She wasn’t quite sure how to go about doing that.

Aurelia shot a habitual glare around the place, wondering why no one was coming by to check on them or maybe even stop this outlandish display in which the redhead didn’t even know if she minded all that much. Although it was obvious by the way her eyes darted back to the other’s body then at the wall and the lavender curtains behind Mariko then back again. Somehow the fact that it was bright and in public made the show all the more indecent and the fact that someone could walk in on them… well, even if Aurelia was not necessarily a part of this show, she certainly felt that way. Finally all the clothes were off and another was being slipped on which seemed to break the spell just a little.

Even with the lingerie fully on, there really wasn’t much to show for it. Mariko still looked half unclothed, which was probably the point of the entire thing, but Aurelia was somewhat surprised at how little was being covered. “Buh…” Was the human’s intelligent reply; it went without saying that her face was bright red and she was feeling a little… well, squirmy. Aurelia dug her hands deep into her pockets, clenching her grip around the inner fabric tightly as she glanced up at the ceiling. “Yes, ahem…” She cleared her throat loudly. “… very nice, yes… it suits you. A lot.” The sudden realization that her antics might have come off as rude, she quickly lowered her gaze and almost regretted it. But the sight was a little too alluring for her to feel that way. So she offered a smile. “You should consider wearing… getting that, I think. In my opinion.” Aurelia bit her lip and stalked over to scoop up some of the lingerie Mariko had picked out herself. “You should try the rest on too.” Purple was quickly becoming her favourite color.

Mariko thought it was a good sign that Aurelia considered delving into the world of lingerie, so that she wasn’t an entirely wet towel when it came to her ideas of fun. She was thinking about countering her statement about getting excitement in her life without lingerie, as it seems like she is doing a number of thinking that are already exciting beyond her regular life of collecting mere candy wrappers. Spending more time around Mariko, for one. It wasn’t that she thought of herself so high and great that she was responsible for excitement in anyone’s life, even though she did from time to time. But how many could say that they ventured down to a seedy part of the city to watch a monster fornicate with random strangers and the whole night doing so? Given that Aurelia herself didn’t actually participate, the point still stands that Aurelia spending time with Mariko didn’t allow her the excuse that she only was only content with doing mundane and boring things in her life. At least, that’s what Mariko would expect in return if Aurelia continued to spend time with her.

When Mariko took off her clothes to stand in the nude, only to change into clothes that left her practically in the same state, it was perhaps with some luck that there weren’t other customers around at the store. That might have served as further risk to Aurelia, as would have suffered more from the embarrassment at the time. The mall was fairly quiet already at the time. However, in the situation there were people around, Mariko might have been seen as somebody who impractically disregarded the rules or was putting on a lewd show. Seeing as there was some obvious wetness glistening her nethers, it may be likely taken as the latter. The disapproving clerk was none the wiser at what transpired at what was going on at the time, busy at the front counter. The young clerk was making her way to the change room to check up on things, only to catch the nude form of the bakemon in her scandalous form. She quickly ducked aside to watch from a comfortable distance. It wasn’t quick enough for Mariko as the glanced off to the direction with a smirk, wondering if Aurelia had noticed this too.

Her tail wagged contently at the compliments paid by Aurelia, pleased that it had earned her approval, despite her dumbfounded reaction at first. It was surprising in a way, considering as it wasn’t exactly the first time that Aurelia would have caught her in such a state, and this was without her usual companions to further make the situation any more erotic or salacious. “Hm, this would make a good addition to my wardrobe...” She said in a low sensual tone as she ran her clawed hands on the sides of her body, pressing the sheer silks on her body and accentuating further her smooth hourglass former. Her hands went up to her chest and brushing against the tops of her breasts, the fabric easily melding to the apparently hard nipples and piercings. “...there’s a good amount of open access too...” she murmured as she pulled the front of the gown forward, revealing more of her hips and her obvious arousal found in between. “Oh! I think it’s a keeper then!” She eventually brushed off the seductive undertones with a perky smile of triumph.

Seeing that settled, she moved on to her next piece of interest to her. She couldn’t live with only one purchase today, or one opportunity to tease her audience further. She nonchalantly slipped out of her current outfit, which didn’t take very long, revealing the nude form of the bakemono again. Her tail swished triumphantly when she peeled the gown and stockings off. Her next outfit of choice was the bridal lingerie that she had an eye on earlier, white and very lacy in design. She packed her ample breasts into the confines of a white bridal strapless bustier, sheer lace material hugging tightly against her waist below her elevated breasts, it had a slight ruffled trim to it. There were matching fingerless gloves and stockings as well. Her stocking tops were decorated with intricate lace detail, with short miniature strings of pearls that dangled from the trims, which created a subtle sound of rustling. She slipped the panties that went with the set, the tight and flattering fabric shamelessly pressed against her moist entry without any regard.

She posed similarly as she did with her earlier outfit, her hand feeling the expensive lace material at her sides. “Mmm, I could see myself consummating in this outfit. What do you think?”

Had Aurelia been in the possession of magical abilities, such as telekinesis and was also privy to Mariko's thoughts, she might have been slightly slighted by the other's thoughts on her current hobbies and interests. On the other hand, she would have perhaps also admitted that she hadn't scavenged or pressed out a single wrapper or foil of any kind since the night of her... well, eye-opening revelations. In fact, her last entry into her thickly packed sleeved folder was rather lacking in the candy-wrapper department and while it was too soon to say that Aurelia had lost interest completely in it, there was perhaps, a lack of motivation to rummage through department stores for new labels. After all, that time slot had been undoubtedly occupied by the bakemono currently standing in very outrageous outfits before her, as were her large golden-hued eyes and very confused attention span. She was trying so very hard to scold herself every time her gaze dropped lower than the other woman's collar and while it was working, it wasn't successfully deterring her from doing as much.

A part of her desperately wished that a clerk might sweep by and demand Mariko put on a layer or five back on. Another stronger, brutish part of her aggressively stomped away the smaller part and demanded the sight by only for her... technically and in-the-moment speaking. So it was perhaps the safest outcome that the redhead had missed the younger clerk taking more than a couple of sneaking peeks. Then again, Aurelia really had no way to police just what Mariko might do with these outfits upon purchase but at the very least she could savor this moment to its fullest. Such troublesome thoughts were not at the forefront of her mind currently, distracted as she was by the telling state of Mariko's lower region (bad, bad!), swiftly reallocating her eyes to the strange sight of the other's tail reappearing from side to side. It was an action Aurelia had not seen before and she found herself almost smiling at it if not for the fact that the bakemono looked to be very interested in her reactions.

Or perhaps it was the fact that she found her jaw loosen then tighten as Mariko's palms, claws, hands, brush against the soft fabric like it wasn't even there (which was likely the point) as the material simply melted like smooth chocolate against the other's skin. Difficult as it was to forget that her companion had piercings everywhere, Aurelia was definitely reminded of them at their tell-tale outlines. She wondered briefly if Mariko was talking to her with her soft murmurs, then decided that it mattered not. Her throat was a wasteland, dry and sand papery and she was finding she was having a difficult time even swallowing, let alone pour out any words with a smidgen of coherency. When the delicacies were laid to bare, a small albeit quite audible squeak finally emerged from the redhead's lips, breaking her unconscious vow of silence handily. The single word made a dent in the dam as Aurelia nodded. "I think so," she said quietly, painfully pulling her gaze away and upwards - although overshooting and looking past Mariko's mane of dark hair and towards the mirror behind her. "It's a good choice."

But fate deigned that her sweet suffering was not to end so soon. The lingerie slithered off the woman's form like water, again a likely feature of the thing and for some odd reason, Aurelia felt relieved that the nudity was again apparent. Being teased was far, far worse than leaving everything out in the open, which was what she thought until she found her eyes being glued to the space between Mariko and the dressing room just beyond her voluptuous frame. Again the tail wavered, and again Aurelia hid a smile. Yet for want of simply being polite (or so she told herself), she looked once more as Mariko 'dressed' herself up once more. This next piece was... well, it was certainly different. It looked to be a modified take of a wedding dress, if wedding dresses came in ten sizes too short and had been hacked and slashed at by a pervert. The lingerie looked to be too tight and really, really lacy. The last part of the show was topped off by the thin fabric sliding up the woman's legs and sealing away the sight - except not really.

Aurelia pursed her lips and folded her arms tightly, almost as tightly as the outfit was embracing the bakemono's hips. That question was definitely directed at her, so the redhead did her best to appraise without focusing on any one thing (breasts) in particular (legs), of course (stomach). "If by that you mean consummating a marriage... sure." The poor human was trying her best, truly. "But if you mean just... you know, not a marriage... also sure." It was difficult, truthfully, to imagine the monstergirl on any kind of marriage bed and the sound of tin cans and wedding bells annoyed her. "I liked the other one better."

It was rather fair to say that Mariko was a rather vain creature in many regards and she was indeed trying to tease Aurelia at every opportunity she got. The fact that she managed to get the attention of the store clerk in store was only a bonus as to what she was trying to do during her in the lingerie store. She did expertly tease her as well, taking a few subtle steps forward from the entryway to the changing hallway so that only a part of her body was hinted at. It was perhaps timed for the best, as the sterner clerk turned over to look and only saw a wavering tail, then went back to do some counting that she had done earlier. The attention and the danger of being caught in the open did excite her and the results were rather obvious to poor Aurelia the longer she stood about, either changing or in the nude. Her nipples had hardened beautifully into her pert points on her breasts and her entry was noticeably wet, parted slightly to reveal the tender flesh in between. She was getting a small kick from it and all the more happier that the meek and timid Aurelia had chosen to join her today. Then again, did she have much of a choice when she dragged the girl with her?

It was perhaps only when Aurelia stated that she didn’t like this set very much that Mariko got a little disappointed. Her eyes sank into narrowed slights at the girl, as if she crossed her and didn’t allow her to have her fun. That was far from the case, though Mariko illogically saw it that was for a moment in her impassioned mind. However, she soon reasoned that it was perhaps best that the girl showed some semblance of opinion and independent thought than not. She grew a little more reasonable and nodded twice in acceptance of those words. “Ah, that’s fine then my dear. This one is pretty expensive. I don’t think I’m going to be paying for it anyway.” She said with a nonchalant shrug, as she tried to put it past her. The price tag was somewhere in the three digits range.

That was perhaps far from the case, as a bit of regret set into her. She looked down at the item that she was currently wearing and looked at it with some appreciation, perhaps with some fancy of her personal fantasy earlier on. Without even realizing it, her hands roamed her body as she felt the material on her hands and how it felt on her body. Her hands cupped her breasts that filled the bustier rather well, generously, but without going over to make it look like it was a few sizes too small. It was a snug fit, but just right. Her fingers trailed across the decorated stocking tops, playing with the string of pearls that were attached to it. They were real pearls, not plastic ones that were tacked on for appearance sake, though it would have made it a more reasonable price point. Finally, that finger went up to the panties that hugged her hips at the moment, trailing upward down the front where her moist slit pressed against at the moment. There was a bit of plastic taped on the interior, though some dampness hinted through the expensive silk fabric. Alas, she won’t be taking this one to the check out.

“Ah well, I think one outfit is more than enough today. I could probably spend all day here. One set is probably enough for an impulse buy today and I should be halfway up to my next bonus gift too!” She said with optimistic reasoning, smiling at that prospect. Making her way over to where her clothes were found, puddle unceremoniously on a bench when she did her little tease and show, she began putting her clothes on again. That was, she began putting on her clothes with the bridal lingerie still on her person. This wasn’t some forgetful slip of the mind, it seemed that she was doing this intentionally with the purposes of stealing the extremely expensive linger item. She was rather nonchalant about this, without even casting a glance at Aurelia, letting out a small playful whistle as she did so.

If there was perhaps some rabbit hole large enough for a grown woman to sink into, she prayed that it open up beneath her feet and open up quickly. She feared for the bakemono's capture as every prance and twirl about the narrow hall and every moment a clerk's footsteps would near them had her heart pounding three times as fast. It was not so much that she feared being caught with the monster girl, no. She had, after all, visited Mariko in her den surrounded by many, many people and she'd never given them a second glance. Aurelia was more concerned about how her companion might react, or if they might be thrown out or if Mariko might be arrested for indecent displays in public. That thought almost made her laugh, had the green-skinned female not skipped past the brightly glowing 'EXIT' sign and toeing the dangerous line between being completely exposed and remaining hidden in the safety of the changing rooms.

There was no way Aurelia could stop her from doing so anyway, and if she tried to say that she disliked the view, she would certainly be lying straight through her teeth. Every small detail, from the pearls shifting against smooth skin to the ruffles and tight wrinkles of bunched up lace, was taken in and filed away into her memories for further perusal when the woman wasn't hellbent on giving her a heart-attack with her antics. Thus, it was difficult not to notice Mariko's fleeting frown which had her reconsidering her opinion though she remained relatively firm on it. White just wasn't her thing and thematic weddings never revved her engine all that much.

"Ah, yeah." Aurelia blinked in surprise as Mariko at last accepted her words without a fuss or asking exactly why the human disliked the dress. For that she was grateful, for she had no idea how she might've gone about it without sounding like a complete idiot. There was no reason for her to think too deeply into Mariko's own sentence either, as she fully believed that the bakemono would collect the lingerie and give it to the clerk to wash (for certainly it would need a bit of a scrub in certain areas) and hang up for further consumers. Aurelia moved to assist in helping Mariko with the other pieces of skimpy wear, including the one she assumed her companion would be purchasing. It was only when she turned around did she realize that the other woman had made no move to peel off any of that bridal lingerie and if anything, looked quite nonchalant about it. Alarms beeped softly in her head. Mariko's previous words came back to her like how it might do in movies, which would have also been cause to make her laugh, but all it did was purse her lips as she found herself all of a sudden very, very stuck.

Aurelia wasn't quite sure what the protocol was. Attempting to stop the woman from clearly trying to spirit that piece of lingerie away seemed like the most honorable thing to do. On the other hand, maybe the bakemono was entitled to some sort of perk in this shop and she was allowed to, even if that fact seemed to be the least obvious. As more and more items of her own clothing was piled upon her curvaceous frame, the red haired human decided that it would simply be more prudent if she asked. There was nothing worst she could think of than potentially insulting her companion just because it had slipped her mind. Despite Aurelia's propensity to ignore the world at large, she still held some sympathy for these workers stuck behind their boorish desks all day. She slunk up towards the dark-haired woman and tapped her lightly on her shoulder. "'scuse," she said, softly as to not create a huge fuss out of this molehill. "Are you sure you're allowed to take that without paying at the front?"

She turned to look at Aurelia with a curious look on her face, an inquisitive brow quirk over the rectangular frames of the glasses she wore. It seemed like an odd question and she thought she was rather obvious with what she was doing, despite being rather nonchalant about the whole thing in general. For a girl who spent her time in dark clubs and scandalous basement sex dens, she was still rather naive, wasn’t she? Perhaps Aurelia had only thought that Mariko was only capable of naughtiness with sexual acts? She would be almost flattered to have Aurelia think that of her, it would have been almost enough to have her reconsider the crime she was about to commit. Almost. The intent was already there and she may as well follow through with the intent. She didn’t need the lingerie, but it would be rather nice to have to add to her collection. With how she was wearing it already and practically owning it, in her mind, there was little point of return. It wasn’t going to be taken back to the store and hung there for another to try, it was practically hers! She paused in her redressing and nodded once, as if it was a clear fact. “I’m rather sure, dear. Don’t you worry too much about it!” She said with a slight purr at the end of her tone, then returned to redressing.

The rather expensive lingerie set was rather easily to wear under her clothes, considering how tightly it was fitting against her form. The decorated white bridal bustier hugged against her upper body, pushing up her already enticing breasts up to a delicious level for display and while packing her tone stomach further with its corset-like waist. It seemed to framed that particular tattoo on her chest, supposedly noting her scandalous profession and part time. It soon became hidden away once she buttoned up her pinstripe dress shirt with ease as her clawed fingers fastened on the buttons with surprising deftness. Admittedly, she probably had to add a few more buttons to her shirt to hide away the ruffled cups in the bustier. None would be the wiser if they weren’t actively looking for the mysterious disappearing lingerie set. Without giving much thought to the discarded white bra she came in with, which wasn’t exactly a cheap item to begin with, being from one of their notable line of intimates from the same store. They were swept under one of the change room doors with her tail and the panties joined the bra too.

The stockings and the panties were perhaps harder to hide, considering all the little lace, pearls and other frills that were adorned to both items. There was going to be some minor discomforts with this little operation, which was an acceptable sacrifice to walking away with a new set of lingerie. She pulled her tight jeans over her lower form, snugly fitting over her stocking clad legs. When the jeans reached her waist, that was perhaps that she started reaching some difficulties, requiring her to give her hips a good wiggle and roll as she tries to manage the denim to squeeze more material that she didn’t wear under to begin with. There was a few quite clicks of the pearls as they slid against the metal zipper of the jeans. Through some dexterity and flexibility, she manage to squeeze the prize in the confines of her pants. The lace and pearls pressed against her thigh in a strange, but not entirely uncomfortable, sensation. She smoothed down her shirt over her jean to adjust herself to a normal appearance, much like how she entered in the first place.

Despite having little to do with sex, the act of stealing of getting her rather hot and bothered, which was something she was a little to begin with. The sensation of the hidden fabric pressed against her and the added layers had risen her body temperature, though the effects were more subtle than anything. She certainly felt the plastic film on the panties pressed against her moist entry, almost as if it was some sort of contraceptive. And there were always her audience to consider in this crime as well, the clerks and the adorable Aurelia. She could almost take a moment longer to savour the sensation, but there wasn’t much time to waste, lest the clerks get a little suspicious with her dillydallying around. Putting her friendliest smile, she looked to her companion. “Hm, where were we? Oh right, lets pay for some clothes...”

Had all worries of the world been fixed by a simple cry of don't worry, the world certainly would be devoid of any, well, worries. As it was currently, the reassurance only made Aurelia worry even more. She didn't want to be known to the underground community as the snitch that locked away their favorite girl, and even more importantly, she didn't want to be the person that Mariko would grow to hate. So really, it was simply the matter of waiting for the war between her morals and her attraction to die out and figure out which would win out. It was the age-old conflict between heart and brain, and her brain wasn't the strongest muscle to begin with, given that she folded like wet paper whenever the bakemono even looked at her. She was almost grateful that her companion was starting to pull on the rest of her clothing, tight as they were it was a definite 'improvement', at least as far as affecting her concentration went. The redhead raised a dubious eyebrow as the woman continued on her merry way, noting how she either seemed not to know the severity of her situation or care at all. If anything, she seemed to revel in this kind of rebellion. She bit her lip lightly, still uncertain, always uncertain. Aurelia pushed her brain to come up with a way past this dilemma, finding her problem solving skills to be inadequate for this kind of pressure.

In the end, all she could do was watch as the bakemono resumed dressing herself over the stolen lingerie. They acted a little bit like bread crumbs, pulling her gaze to wherever a bit of lace might peak out or when the material would shift and pull downwards taut over the silk. Intricate designs gave way to horizontal stripes, and Mariko's poor undergarments were pushed under the rug, out of sight and out of mind. Aurelia had half a thought to retrieve them, but that might have made her look like a dirty little pervert. After careful consideration, she decided that it wasn't worth it, and if Mariko so wished to discard her underwear - out with the old, in with the new - then that was her decision. Sadly, if she forced the bakemono (forced?) to return the lingerie set, retrieval of old undergarments might be necessary. The whole situation was actually sort of convoluted and Aurelia almost regretted even thinking of going along with it. Almost because she still hadn't decided what she wanted to do exactly. She shoved her hands into her pockets, rolling a tiny ball of lint between her fingers as she continued to chew at her lip silently, watching the mirrors, the clerks, then Mariko as the last piece of normal clothing was being pulled on.

As if watching a chipmunk, albeit sexy chipmunk, stuff more acorns into its mouth, the lower half of the lingerie was being shoved and stuffed, pearl lining choked into the monster girl's jeans as the tight fitting pants were pulled up over slender legs. Aurelia heard herself swallow lightly as her gaze honed in, quite helpless when faced with the object of her unreasonable affections and her squirming and otherwise incredibly erotic struggling. When all was said and done and the zipper was pulled up to hide away the last remnants of her plot, she had to admit that it looked as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Maybe the slight bulges of the crotch area would have given it away, given the thickness of the plastic plus the extra ornaments but the redhead highly doubted that any clerks would give that area much attention, considering the swell of large breasts currently pushing against further restrictions. She felt as if she had just witnessed the greatest crime known to humanity and the dressing room was merely a figment of her imagination and the underwear was a euphemism for cold hard cash. Technically, it was. The bakemono certainly wasn't going to pay for it.

"Mm..." Aurelia hummed uncertainly as she was beckoned by her companion to leave, with the underwear just beneath. The time bomb had been set and it was ticking away. With every step, she could hear it growing louder and louder. Soon she wouldn't have the chance to reason with Mariko and soon, they would be sweeping out the door and heaven forbid there be an alarm that might trigger. She didn't even notice the other woman pull off the tag or if there even was one. The store would be foolish to stock such expensive clothing without at least that bit of security, but judging by the attentiveness of the clerks, or a lack thereof, maybe it wasn't so strange in the end. They passed mirror after mirror and Aurelia swore she would break through the skin of her lip if she chewed any harder. Finally, she caught Mariko's wrist in her grip and not out of any real reason, but in her body's own decision. "Wait, I don't think..." She corrected herself. "It's not right, you know. To take something like this." Had her face not been lit up like a tomato at the contact, she might have looked a little more fierce with her mane of fire.

Unlike Aurelia, Mariko was rather carefree when it came to her particular crime. As mentioned before, she wasn’t only capable of performing and enacting sexual transgressions. Theft was one of the things she was experienced with from time to time when the mood struck and the situation was open for opportunity. It wouldn’t be the first time she store from a store of this chain, nor would it be the first time she stole from a store of any kind. It’s not like she didn’t have the money for it, though she would have much less of it if she spent it of the item she was planning on stealing. At the point, she didn’t see the item valuable enough to actually spend her dubiously-earned currency on. It was a cute novelty in many ways, something she had a shred of endearment for, though it didn’t win her companions approval nor was it something that would be fit for legitimate use. Plus it was extremely expensive. The lower appreciation of it, though some attachment to own it, equated that theft was the right course of action. Honestly, she might have stolen things for less reason.

She was just about to make her way to the counter to pay for the article she thought worthy of paying for, until she felt a bit of resistance. It was strange, as it wasn’t something that factored neither in her thoughts nor reasoning when it happened. From what it felt like, she was being caught for something, though she was sure that the clerks were preoccupied in the front during her cover up. Since it wasn’t her first time stealing, it wouldn’t the first time she would be caught either. There were times where she was younger and even more foolish where she was caught in robberies that were less insignificant than this one, which caused a bigger rift from the normal world that she had. However, over the years, she had gotten better and tuned her extraordinary monstrous traits to her advantage. She knew of the terrain of her hunt and could sense whenever someone approached. Her tail did an unconscious sweep on the floor, tapping lightly when it stopped on Aurelia’s ankle to see if there was actually a culprit there.

Mariko slowly turned and looked with great surprise when she saw it was Aurelia who was the one that decided to stop her on her caper. She was rather shocked to say the least, thinking the girl was going to be a willing assistant and accomplice to her little crime. Even if she wasn’t going to participate actively, she wasn’t going to hold her back from doing what she wanted to do at least. Nor did she think the girl was even capable of it. Seeing as she was the one who dragged her all the way to the lingerie store to the first place and did all the things she did without objection. But, to receive it now? It was surprising and offensive in many ways. Surprise gave way to annoyance as she felt some resistance, resistance she didn’t appreciate very much, regardless of how adorable the person was.

The bakemono adopted a small scowl when she was told to turn back from her plan, especially when she went through so much trouble to hide way the evidence already! All of the expensive bridal lingerie was crammed uncomfortably in her clothes and her worn set was swept away in a change room she couldn’t remember. With a flick of her arm, she loosened herself from the grip imposed by the human. The lack of animation in her tail showed she was hardly amused at all at the moment and it was quite obvious by her expression. She narrowed her eyes on the girl and regarded her questionably by the order, trying to process the audacity that she laid before her at the moment. Strange that she questioned her so many times on her sexual behaviour, choosing to reject her advances...but preventing her from doing what she wanted? That might have crossed the line. Mariko placed her hands on her hips and huffed. “And can you give me a good reason why not? I’ve done this before and I can do it again! It’s not something exactly worthy to be paid for, which I’m sure you’ll agree with me. So I’m taking it, that way I could have it and I don’t have to bemoan the lost dollars.”