Kellan watched the gesture with curiosity and mirrored it experimentally, curling lilac digits into a first with her thumb stuck out and angling it towards herself, eyes still on Mabel. “Shy- like nervous, but of people.” That made sense- she was learning to kerb herself, albeit slowly- Earthlings didn’t tend to share as much as Orols did. “Lie?” She blinked, and a wave of green washed briefly through her face before she remembered. “Oh, yes. Orols don’t- didn’t- really lie. We lived inside each other’s heads. No-one really had any need for secrets. If someone felt something about you, even if it was negative, they just sort of told you.” She laughed, “I got told a lot. But it was good. I- It’s difficult sometimes, not knowing what people are thinking. That probably seems very strange.”
She was distracted from her train of thought by the clothing in the window- in particular, the loose, floating vests with floral colours exploding across them. “Those aren’t unlike common Absedian clothes!” she said, “It’s warm where we live, and the big sleeves would be comfortable with your wings!” Hers were currently folded back against her arms and tied down, which made them stiff, but they got in the way in most Earth clothes. She turned to answer Mabel’s question, “Ah, well, about- hmm, maybe one earth year? Maybe more. BB will know, I’ll ask him when I see him next.” She held the door open for Mabel- a gesture of courtesy she’d learned recently- and wandered into the shop, cooing over the summer dresses.
“I think it’s a little harder when you do know what people are thinking of you.” Mabel commented quietly. Even with Kellan’s explanation, Mabel didn’t think she’d like wearing her feelings for all to see. She imagined it felt very vulnerable. “So, you’re psychic?”
Mabel’s attention turned to the dress. She always loved a good floral print. “Wait!” she spun on her heel to look at Kellan once they were in the store.“Can you fly?” Mabel’s interest hadn’t just been caught, it’d been placed in a birdcage and given to the alien. “I wish I could do that. I can only levitate a little. but that’s not the same.” It was now Mabel’s turn to chatter on. “Who’s BB? Is he your friend? or flight attendant or something? Flight attendants are for planes though. What are they called on rocket ships?” The questions kept coming as the teen lead the other towards the racks of sunglasses.
“Psychic, in a way,” she mused, “Not in the same way as your Earth psychics. Orols- it’s hard to explain. We come from technology- we’re partly organic but we’re artificial as well. That- we never lost connection to the system that spawned us. It lets us network, constantly. We’re always sharing thoughts, ideas, discoveries. Even when we’re- what you would call sleeping- there’s always someone there. It’s-” she turned a shade of teal. “It was-”
She was cut short by Mabel’s sudden stop, and nearly walked straight into the back of her. Steadying herself on a nearby rail of clothes, she nodded, pulling her sleeves down to show the girl her pearlescent wings. “It’s harder on Earth- your gravity is stronger than ours was. I’ve had to work quite hard, but I can manage a little now, and I’m getting stronger. It’s a good way to adjust to Earth’s environment, actually.” She was delighted by Mabel’s stream of questions, not least because it distracted her a little.
“BB- he’s called Fexer, but he goes by BB these days. He’s a friend- I’ve only known him very briefly. He’s an android, we met up shortly before we came here.” She paused in front of a range of Sun Glasses, turning lilac again. “There are so many types!” she said, sliding her helmet off and wincing. She slid a flower patterned pair on and blinked. They did a great deal to shield her eyes! “How are they?” she asked Mabel, peering at her through them.
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