the art of the dress

[ginger_firebird]

Of the many stores that cater to the crafting minded, Mantis visited the fabric stores more and more. Winter was almost there and he needed better clothing to keep off the chill and welcome the scant bit of warmth he and his pets would need. There wouldn’t be much to get, only a bit of wool for the little ones. It’s always been his own proportions that have been difficult to manage.

With a few rolls of fabric loaded already in the shopping cart, he leaves Yaga and Francour in the kid seat while he stared hard at his own reflection in a mirror. He’s always been a bit tall, a bit too thin, but he thought at least this could be a point in his unusual life where he’d gain a pound or two. He turned one way, then the other, always checking his figure. At least clothing didn’t require him to be painfully aware of his face.

That said, the measuring tape in his hands made several rounds at different points on his body. It snuck around his chest, his hips, traced along the length of his arms and legs. He sighed loudly and rolled up the measuring tape around his hand before handing it over to Francour for safe keeping. His little espurr took the tape measure reverently and squeaked when Yaga moved closer to lick his head. The catwing pinned the pokemon down more and groomed him with a great deal of care.

“Is it me?” Francour trilled loudly and was allowed up by Yaga. “I thought I was cooking more than I was before.”

Yaga licked his jaws and meowed. “I know I kept feeding Ben. You both got a chance to meet him. You know he can’t cook.”

Mantis walked over to the cart and pulled out a slip of paper from a pants pocket. Yaga rubbed his head against Mantis’s arm while Francour was more content to hold on to the sleeve of his shirt.

“I gained a little bit, but it still needs a lot of work. How am I supposed to safely gain weight if nothing sticks?”

Comments

[chiaro_oscuro]

"Well, the good news is that once I move in with the Decepticons you won't have to worry about that as much. It wasn't an easy choice, but one day Morrigan will be too big for the apartment." The Corvisquire on his shoulder is noticeably bigger and more streamlined than she was as a Rookidee. "She'll be more than seven feet tall. I'm only about six-foot-three." Tall by human standards, but not so much by Nexus standards.

When he approaches Mantis, Ben looks at his middle a little guiltily, aware of exactly where a lot of that food his friend made ended up. He lives an active lifestyle, even in the Nexus - it's a matter of personal pride for him that he keep in practice and not allow his skills to get rusty. Still, he could stand to gain some weight now that he's enjoying a more relaxed environment.

"Maybe you could come to visit us one day. Ravage and Soundwave know what humans like to eat."

[death_calling]

Nexus shopping is becoming a sort of good way for Olivia to kill time in her off-hours. She's found her way into the same shop at Mantis, after being convinced in by a salesman for the shop. Thankfully able to shake off anyone trying to pawn off a quick sale on her, she's left alone to examine the different fabrics at a leisurely pace.

"Interesting...this material would make for a good tie." Aptly fitting for her current attire of a suit, as she runs one hand against a stack of black fabric. She turns around, catching sight of the Espurr from the corner of her eye. Wait. Is that...?

It's so awkward to stare, but she can't help but pay attention to the Pokemon curiously. Thankfully, Mantis' question pries her gaze to the mask-wearing man. His appearance doesn't bother her, but the type of question asked certainly hits home.

"Apologies for overhearing your inquiry, sir, but I've spent some time researching human anatomy. If you'd like, I can offer a few suggestions."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

Ziggy was rather aimless the past week in the space between album parties and tour start. Without Hiroki keeping him grounded he slipped into his old pattern of constantly being out and partying, though even that was getting old.

He's glad to see someone he knows or rather someone Hiroki knows well. He frowns at the conversation he hears while approaching. Sometimes heightened hearing is good or bad. In this case Ziggy isn't quite sure.

"Whose's harassing you about your weight?" Ziggy asks with a smile as bright as the body hugging suit he is wearing. "People say things about me needing to gain weight all the time. It's a drag."

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis jumps slightly hearing Ben's voice, but he's quick to try and calm himself. "You are improving, but at the beginning you- You...' His voice trails off and he holds his hands up, making a small circle and then a larger one. "How did she grow that fast?"

He looks quickly at Francour, who is staring at Morrigan with utter awe. The little espurr waves at the bird. "She's bigger than you now."

The guilty look does make Mantis feel bad for complaining the way he did. "I'll keep feeding you. Morrigan looks large enough she can carry back a meal and a recipe with it, and I'll make every excuse to visit between checking in on you and seeing those two."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"It's a...quirk Pokemon have. This is Morrigan, but she evolved from Rookidee into a Corvisquire. She has one form left, Corviknight. I read a little about the kind of Pokemon she is - Corviknight are used as a taxi service in the world that they come from."

Ben assumes that it's because he's been taking care of her and giving her opportunities to fly and learn on her own. She's a scrappy little bird, even if she's not so little anymore.

"You're welcome to visit at any time. I'm sure Ravage, Soundwave, and the others will enjoy seeing you. And I'm training Morrigan to carry mail, so I'll let you know how we're doing. But yes, I'd appreciate recipes by mail very much. How is Francour?"

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis needs no convincing to enter a shop equipped to help him gain the materials he needs for making some fresh clothes. He doesn't trust clothing stores to properly shape the dimensions he has between height and weight, especially now that he's trying to increase his waistline.

The woman's presence doens't even register as he looks over his measurements. Three heads look in her direction when she speaks.

"That's an interesting way to phrase it. I don't care if you prefer to study humans alive or dead, but if you have some insight, I'm bodering on research anyway."

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis has been known to forgo eating, among other bag habits, when in a mood of several kinds, so he understands that kind of mentality. Sometimes a binge is the only thing that keeps you from thinking too much.

He stands a touch straighter when approached by Ziggy. The wild child of that family was always incredible just to view from a distance, so seeing him all sunshine smile and bright clothes up close starts a burst of energy. A smile grows on his face listening to the shared complaint.

"No one is harassing me but my internal grandmother. I'm medically underweight, even now, so it's strange knowing I'm eating more than ever and still not gaining much."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

"Lucky. I get harassed." Ziggy shrugs it off. "My mother's species has a high metabolism. People yell at me to eat and then when I do they think I eat too much."

Ziggy sighs sympathetically. "Hiroki says you're a telepath. I know that's part of the reason our species has a high metabolism. The mind takes a lot to maintain but we've also got the ability to go quiet and use almost nothing."

[death_calling]

Ah, not just the attention of Mantis is gathered, but his two companions as well. She'll hopefully not disappoint with whatever information is provided, however his words do get a small nod of her head. "Both. In order to understand life, we must comprehend death and vice versa."

She simply continues on, rather stoically and with an emphasis on accurate details. "Assuming you've ruled out any serious illnesses, your first start should be to figure out how many calories you're burning per day. From there, you can establish how many extra calories need to be incorporated into your diet, typically between 300 and 1,000 calories to compensate for the burn amount, but you can also double your calorie intake equal to your burn count."

Taking a moment to pause, she carries on seamlessly. "Next, look at the kind of foods you eat on a daily basis. While sugar and soda can quickly build weight, it's unhealthy and inconsistent. Finding a good protein is most important, then you can also add carbohydrates and higher-fat content foods to help with the gain."

Hopefully, she hasn't bored this young man with her tangent, but there's an obvious sense of pride in Olivia's work when dealing with science and anatomy.

[ginger_firebird]

"I was told that would be a problem for me my whole life." Ziggy, you get it. "Every scientist that poked around my anatomy told me that my powers were the reason I burn through so many calories so fast. I used to make myself sick trying to eat enough to maintain what I thought was a healthy weight. I'm not made to eat like a bird."

[ginger_firebird]

"It's impressive. She's going to be as tall and drenched in black as you are." He steps a little closer to Ben and Morrigan, tilting his head to admire the new plumage. "No wonder Ben can't stay in the apartment. It sounds like you'll be taller than both of us."

Yaga has many perches to allow for stimulation in his own apartment, and little Francour has become something of a second chef in the kitchen. Now he's wondering what will set off Francour's evolution if the change is this dramatic between forms.

"Francour likes to watch me in the kitchen and use his own powers to hand me things." He makes a pulling motion with his hand, making the cart come closer. Francour stands up in the kid seat of the shopping cart and trills when Mantis picks him up. His fuzzy head nuzzles up under Mantis's chin. "Yaga is teaching him to show affection."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

Ziggy considers. "Do you want to put on weight?" He can't be sure since it seems most humans are always trying to lose weight. That could be the skew of who he meets thought too. "We have something that can help."

[ginger_firebird]

His animal companions are just as nosy as he is, but in their own kind of way. There's a strong taking of cues from the smallest up to the largest. Manits finds himself smiling just a little at her initial response. Definitely someone with a very medically inclined job or a very mad scientist. It's enough to tempt him into prying.

"Calorie rich foods will have to be my best bet. I know how to make them, but then that also brings into question getting used to eating that much to make all that food worth the effort. Not being used to eating a lot is probably part of why I weighed so little in the first place."

He looks back at Francour and Yaga. "You two aren't going to be eating like that. This is strictly for my diet."

[ginger_firebird]

"I do. Not a lot, but enough that my stomach is flat instead of concave." He perks up more at this new notion. "What do you have? I'll try it."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

Ziggy shrugs. "Most Anthean food is safe for humans and we use a lot more calories than a human."

He almost laughs remembering when he first arrived on Earth and his dad complaining that he couldn't afford to feed him.

"Dad says a lot of the food is sour, bland or hot but it might help since it keeps our species the weight we're supposed to be."

[death_calling]

Having the extra audience is nice, cute creatures always being welcome over the company of people, in her opinion. Later, perhaps, she'll get to ask Mantis about his friends.

As for her mind, if Mantis decides to take a peek, it's certainly an interesting one for an average human. Almost like watching an old 1950's episode of The Twilight Zone, steeped shades of black, white, and gray, her mind is controlled yet chaotic. There's a reoccurring feeling of death at every turn, no murderous intent present, but she's someone who respects the process dearly. A mortician has to do that, balancing life and death in both hands, living by the long repeated phrase: Memento Mori.

She wouldn't even have a clue that this man in front of her possesses psychic powers."Well, getting your body used to portion sizes will take a bit of effort. The first thing to change would be not drinking any sort of liquids prior to eating, as it fills the stomach faster. You should still eat until full, but try to incorporate smaller meals an hour or two afterward." She slips a hand under her chin thoughtfully. "It would be best to establish a set time per day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The partial meals in between those can consist of smaller foods, like nuts, grains, or lean meats. I'm a fan of a midday peanut butter protein shake when needing energy."

She can't help but laugh at the two cute creatures. "Alas, my knowledge is limited to humans. Your two companions are certainly adorable though." It would be rude to randomly touch one, but she'll try to extend a gentle hand to the Espurr. "This one is a psychic Pokemon correct? Espurr, as I recall..."

[ginger_firebird]

"That sounds incredibly efficient. I'll admit that I have never been one to put much effort into eating unless I had to, which is part of why I'm in this predicament." He laughs a little with Ziggy. No wonder Hiroki likes this man! "Who would I have to ask to try it? That kind of flavor combination doesn't sound all that bad."

[ziggyplayedguitar]

"I like food but I've got to be careful. There's a lot of human food that's toxic." Ziggy tells him. "We could drop in on my mother. She's growing the remaining plants from Anthean in her greenhouse."

[chiaro_oscuro]

"The apartment won't have space for her. We'll have to move out, that's true. The Decepticon embassy will have space for her, though she'll go out to the Wilds to stretch her wings some." Morrigan, as if to underscore the point, shows her full wingspan. "The other animals will be coming too, obviously."

The others, granted, aren't as outdoorsy as Morrigan is. The Corvisquire likes going outside, while both porg and catwing are scared of the world outside the apartment. But unlike them Morrigan is from the Wilds.

"So, he gets along with Yaga? That's sweet."

[ginger_firebird]

"If she's in a mood to be bothered. My understanding is that she's presently taking care of your baby sister." He presumes it would at least be in poor form to interrupt a woman in the midsts of caring for an infant, family or otherwise.

[ziggyplayedguitar]

"She's always in the mood for visitors." Ziggy pats Mantis' shoulder to encourage him to come with Ziggy. "She's also eating for two. I think she's been eating for the past two weeks straight. We don't sleep."

[tielle_mortevus]

She smiled at him as he was looking himself over, sighing slightly in reply.

"I've always struggled with the same thing. Then again, a pasty complexion and being a bit more on the thin side just come with the territory of being a vampire. Not much I can do to change that."

She pondered for a moment, looking him over a bit more.

"Though, sometimes it's not a matter so much of how much you eat, but what you eat. It could also be genetics, I read something about 'metabolism' in the library a while back. It was quite fascinating."

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis laughs a little and watches as Francour reaches up to try and touch Morrigan's wings. "As long as she's not bringing home presents. I sometimes get a little mouse or bug from when Yaga finds something."

Yaga is the hunter of the little pack, but Francour has his moments of commanding the kitchen snacks. It's a balance of skills between the two of them.

"Yaga seems to think he's a very large kitten and I don't think Francour has it in him to convince Yaga otherwise." He holds up Francour a little higher. "I know he's an espurr now and he'll turn into something called a mewostic when he's strong enough."

[ginger_firebird]

Between a pokemon and a catwing, Mantis is collecting a small gathering of animals who all have something very unique about them. Francour is hugging his arm at this point, and he lifts his arm, pokemon and all.

The glance he takes into her mind doesn't tell him too much, but it's been a while since he's met someone who is in the business of death that wasn't a warlord. She had possibly one of the most respectable professions involving humans, at least in his mind. Anyone can make a body, but only specific kinds of people can carefully prepare the dead for a proper burial.

"Limit fluids to things like keeping the mouth from drying out... I suspected it would take planning out meals. I do that already for those two, so it can be an act of solidarity." He does sigh at the thought, though. "The grey one is an espurr, yes. I'm still learning about pokemon as a type of animal, but he's easy to care for as a specific kind."

[ginger_firebird]

The mutual struggles are charming Mantis. He can see why Hiroki went for Ziggy if this is the usual way he interacts with others. "I'll get the fabric cut and we can go see her. This has me wondering if it's a kind of food I could make on my own. Assuming I like it, I would want to try my hand at creating it so I don't have to pester her too much for her cooking."