Free City, Truce - Fountain
A tiered fountain marks the center of Truce, water gushing from its
summit and trickling into a deep, wide basin, wrapped by a ring of benches.
Roads flow like rivers away from the fountain, and houses sprout like weeds
all around them. Not far to the east, the ocean roars in the harbor.
You push the Drop button. Effective?

Truce fountain looks the same as it always does, with the exception of a small metal frame standing up off to one side, with a window fitted in the middle. Behind this window sits Mollianne, on what appears to be a cushioned stool, arms folded happily as she leans on the counter of the metal frame. A giant red Plus Sign is grafted into the top portion of this frame, along with a cute etching of a girl's face accompanied by a two fingers held up in a peace sign. Off to one side, Kyuubey is sitting on the end of the counter, watching people pass by Mollianne's setup wordlessly.

Mollianne scratches the side of her head idly, brushing off a spot on the countertop. "Things are a little slow today, huh? Maybe Truce is just too full of healthy people."

Kyuubey flicks his tail, glancing back and forth. "Maybe. But I think people feel your presentation is likely similar to a child at a lemonade stand. Amateurish, perhaps."

Crossroads had kind of snuck into the area and taken a spot at the edge of the fountain, "Or it could be because there is already a clinic just a little north of here." She grinned.

Mollianne furrows her brow. "It is supposed to feel more down-to-earth this way! Friendlier, even! No looming hospitals or big corporate drugstores! But I guess you could be right." She looks down at herself, then at her presentation. She certainly fit the bill, at least. She was going to defend herself further, but gave a little 'eep!' at Crossroads' voice, thoroughly surprised. "Hey! Were you here the whole time?"

Crossroads giggled, "I don't think I would call the healer here a looming hospital or corporate drug store or whatever you call it considering it is a little round hut with a lady and her cat." Her eyes flick between Mollianne and Kyuubey with mild amusement. "And no, I just got here."

Mollianne huffs. "Still. I bet she makes people pay for it. Maybe I am just stepping on other peoples' toes here." She pets Kyuubey's backside, absently. "This is still kind of a new place for me. Learning the locals is a bit harder when you cannot get them to come see you, though."

Kyuubey says 'You could always take up your other interest. That tends to guarantee a crowd.'

Crossroads leans over, laying on her stomach while looking up at Mollianne with her head resting on her arms, "Of course she charges. She does this full time and it is her job. She has to get enough money to keep herself and her clinic going, doesn't she? There is no shame in that." Crossroads couldn't really understand what was wrong with a healer trying to make a living. It seemed weird to her that Mollianne would be so agitated by it.

Mollianne ignored Kyuubey's remark; they didn't have anything like that here anyway, outside of Crossroads' cafe theatre. And she didn't see it being utilized for -that- purpose. She frowns softly, looking back at Crossroads from behind her window. "No, that is true. And you are right, she should. I guess..." She glances westward. "Just not looking forward to going back. Even though I have to."

Kyuubey settles down on the counter, placing his head on his front paws, though he doesn't close his eyes at all.

"You are welcome to stay here as long as you need to Mollianne." Crossroads said frowning lightly in sympathy. "You could always ask the twins to help you and stay with you for a bit. I am sure they would understand how you feel. And they might even appriciate having someone else there as well."

"Yeah. Actually, they are taking care of Phoebe for me while I am away here. I let the club know what was going on, so my job is safe, at least. But no, I need to go back and deal with it. Part of me needs to get on with it, and the other part worries for the Twins' sakes." Mollianne sighs, wings drooping somewhat. "The place is just going to be... so empty. You know?"

You say 'Thank you for letting me enjoy the party, though. Lora and I had a great time, and I am sure lots of other people did, too.'

"Maybe you can move in with the twins? Or perhapes they could move in with you? You don't have to be alone. You do have people back home who love and support you and will be there for you when you need them. Its okay to take advantage of that every once in a while." Crossroads offered, resting her head to one side and dipping her finger into the water, swirling it about gently and making small circles and ripples upon its surface.

Mollianne is quiet for a moment, letting this idea sink in. She'd had notions of doing something like that, but it was a tossup depending on who would give. The Twins liked the open air and being outside, and she didn't know how well she could adjust to living in a large box in a tree, especially with two other people already there. But maybe she could convince them... "Maybe. I guess maybe I should just take it one step at a time. Kyrk left a lot of things behind, some of it probably very important. He was researching the corruption very heavily in his Laboratory, so there is likely a lot of stuff down there." Mollianne bit her lower lip in thought, exposing one of her tiny fangs in the process.

"Have the twins go down there with you?" Crossroads said, feeling somewhat like a broken record now. She didn't really understand how sticking with the people you love and were close to was such a hard concept for so many to grasp. Sure she had dissapeared for a while herself, but things got much easier when she returned and stayed around Tyrranis after the incident. So much easier. He had lifted away much of the pain and guilt she had been feeling so effortlessly... Crossroads could understand wanting to be alone, but none of them were alone in their grief.

"I probably will. I bet I could probably fix up some of the other rooms into something a bit more suitable, maybe so that it does not feel so militaristic everywhere. Change is just difficult, sometimes, even with as many times as I have gone through it." Mollianne nods to herself, straightening on her stool. "Really, everything will probably work itself out, right? I will make sure nothing happens to them. Even if it potentially means having to live in a tree." She grinning in spite of herself, attempting to be humorous.

"I would have thought that a tree would be fairly suitable for you given your wings. And who knows. Maybe something will come along that both you and the twins prefer. I am certain things will work out, but if you are not sure I could always take a look for you. You ARE in the presence of Truces best fortune teller after all." Crossroads giggled, sitting up again. "Just don't make me put on that skimpy gypsy get-up."

Mollianne laughs lightly. "I know enough about work attire, at least. I would not ask you to dress in anything you were not comfortable with. But no, we will have to figure it out. And we will, in time." Mollianne pauses, then adds. "But hey, you know. I will never understand why 'skimpy' is only acceptable in some work places. I should get someone to sit me down sometime and actually explain these things to me."

Mollianne pondered the thought, in actuality. Would a future reading be beneficial for her and the Twins? She was tempted, but at the same time... no, the future was probably better off engaged at its own pace.

Crossroads shrugged, "Sex appeal. Guys like it for some odd reason. I didn't even realize the skirts for the cafe were so short until they were finished. And I was going to send them back for ones with a little bit more length but..." Crossroads blushed a little, feeling a little awkward for admitting this, "I've been getting pretty good tips. I am kind of torn now."

Mollianne taps her chin thoughtfully. "Well, I knew about the sex appeal. Considering my career at the Nightclub, this has been more or less hammered into my brain. But I guess I just do not understand some... hm." She shakes her head. "I am not really of the scientific mind, sadly. Landwalker traits just confuse me, sometimes. But! There is nothing wrong with doing what makes people, and yourself, happy. I will be the first to admit that I am rarely hurting for money, and it why I can provide a free clinic on a monthly basis."

Mollianne smiles, unashamedly. "But for me, it is more. The dancing, the music. For them, maybe it is the physical appeal. It is just not something that registers to me when I am on stage. Beyond this, though, if you can make people happy and make a living doing so, what is not to like? Everyone wins."

You say '... It kind of makes me happy with who I am, in a way, because I know I am not as human as most everyone else. I get self-conscious of what I am, sometimes. But they see past it. They don't care that I have feathers on my legs. Or big feet, sharp claws. So this makes me very happy, in turn, that they look past it and are happy with what I provide for them, regardless of who or what I am.'

Crossroads stood up and stretched, glancing northward. Thinking of the Cafe reminded her that she was only on lunch break and she would have to go back to waiting tables soon. Still, it was a nice break to get out of her high heels. "I don't get things myself sometimes. It was different where I came from."She paused, feeling slightly comfortable about mentioning her world, "The dancing I did was more ceremonial than for entertainment and I was usually naked at the time save for having bells strapped to my wrist and ankles. Never really liked it much."

Mollianne gets a strange look on her face at Crossroads' mention of her last statement. ONLY bells? That sounded... spectacular! She would have to note that down at some point, see if it had potential or not. She knew about ceremonies herself, being of shamanic ancestry, but little had to do with dancing. Just the sea, and/or its inhabitants. She nodded. "I understand that lots of different worlds come together here. Everybody is both different and the same, if you put it that way." She couldn't keep the goofy grin off her face, though. If Cross had great ideas like this all the time, she'd have to hit her up for more in the future! Mollianne allowed herself a glance around, though, watching a few passersby as Cross likely prepared to depart. Slow, slow day... but at least she tried.

"Yeah. There was a lot I had to get used to. And I am still finding new things." She glances nercously north, how long had she been gone? She hoped she hadn't spent her whole hour already. "I need to get back to work. Good luck with your stand." Crossroads smiled at you and gave her a small wave, before starting off towards the north.

Mollianne waves happily back to Crossroads, not left alone at her stand with only Kyuubey, who was staring straight ahead at both everything and nothing in his usual way. She sighed, but not in a depressed way. Crossroads was right, everything would be fine. The three of them would figure something out. Still, that empty house...

Mollianne glanced at Kyuubey. She smiled faintly, shaking her head. Nevermind.

Floating in from the sky, a wreath of flowers draped lazily over his dome, Metroid bobs slowly down toward the fountain area; burbling, chittering, and ticking quite happily.

Mollianne nods to herself, and gets to her feet. "Well kitty, people in Truce seem to be a bit better off than I intended. But this is not a bad thing, I suppose. There just seem to be a lot less needy people here than in Viorar." She scampers around the side of her stand, and presses a small button located on the underside, which elicits a soft whirring sound to begin.

Kyuubey gets to his feet as the stand begins to whir, and hops down to the ground below, taking up another seat. In a matter of a minute's time, the stand proceeds to shutter up and collapse upon itself, folding in and under until it has become a small metal box, easy enough to carry under a person's arm. Of which Molly does, bending over and scooping it up to do just that. She turns to Kyuubey, with a nod. "Need to go get what few things I brought back with me, then 'face the music' as they say."

Kyuubey stretches idly, wrapping its poofy tail about itself. "It must be done. With Kyrk gone, you three are the only real hope of keeping Fa'Diel under scrutiny from the corruption. Everyone is depending on you."

Mollianne looks toward the southwest, then north. "Right. We will not let his death be in vain. I promised them. I promised everyone."

With this vow reiterated, the siren headed down the north avenue, carrying her Clinic-in-a-Box rather tightly under one arm.

Metroid burbles as it notices the catlike thing, wondering curiously how it tastes as it floats its way cheerfully over, bobbing slightly side to side.

Kyuubey gets up as Mollianne departs, springing up and over to land elegantly on her small shoulder, but perches there comfortably enough as he is carried along toward Crossroads' residence; Mollianne herself seems to not have noticed the strange bubbling creature nearby, her thoughts apparently elsewhere.