"She used to grant mortals fast-travel powers. Before they stopped believing in and worshiping us. She might do it again- it's not perfect teleportation, but it's faster." Irae noted. "And almost all demigod children of hers have similar powers. They also sometimes help with travel."
“Well… maybe if you guys visited every once in a while, we’d know that you exist.” Clarissa pointed out cautiously. She wasn't blaming anyone for the lack of contact between mortals and Irae’s “family”, but it certainly would have simplified things, in her opinion.
"We aren't allowed to! Belief makes us more powerful, but it had to be belief without proof. Without belief, we can't influence your world as much, making it so we couldn't visit anyway." Irae tried to explain
“Okay.” Clarissa nodded thoughtfully. “If that's how it works… It's just, most mortals like to have proof. Some need it otherwise they can’t accept something. It's part of the reason why science is such a big thing.” she pointed out.
“Then again… you are here now.” she mused almost to herself.
(I should not be awake. It is late)
"I'm here now, and required to show the least amount of people possible to avoid ruining the possibility of their belief. And we can appear to those who do believe without effecting the way their belief works, but that is very rare now. And the needing proof is why so many don't believe, and we are not able to influence the world as much. The days of the Greeks and Romans were the best- they might not have known our names, but they gave us their own names and believed in us so strongly…" Irae mused
Clarissa furrowed her brow at the “rules”, sort of understanding them. “Well… you could still influence people. Maybe pass yourself off as an expert in the field of this specific mythology,” she suggested. “Plant seeds. Get people curious… let them figure out things about you and the others and… Ya know?”
Irae nodded. "Yeah. But then they might think that banishing me was the right move and do it to others… Honestly I'm not sure what to do. I'm still having a hard time telling justice from revenge…"
"That's a fair point." Clarissa admitted as she turned into the shopping center parking lot. "Don't want to give them an excuse to keep banishing members. But not knowing what to do is a pretty normal thing for us too, especially when we've had something life changing happen." she added, trying to be encouraging.
Irae sighed. "That's not as encouraging as you would like.." she muttered. "But thank you." She said, then fell quiet, thinking.
Clarissa sighed, finally pulling into an empty parking spot. “Well, I’m trying.” she shrugged. “You ready to go shopping?”
Irae nodded, trying hard not to emote with her tail. She felt better with it up in a defensive position, but she had to keep it still and hidden.
Clarissa barely noticed the action and led Irae into the store. “Just try to relax and let me know if you see anything you like that we can use to help you blend in.” she smiled softly.
Irae nodded, looking around. She looked for loose, baggy or flowing clothes, hats to cover her ears, and a cheap pair of shoes and socks- she wore sandals, and they were not the most comfortable, and impractical for daily wear.
Clarissa stayed pretty close to Irae, but not too close as to give her enough space, as she also looked for clothes for her. She wasn't much of a mall rat but just because they needed to hide some of Irae’s unique features didn't mean that she couldn't look good.
“You know, for someone who hasn't been here for a while, you seem to know what to look for.” she smirked.
"I would like to think that I can catch on quick. Loose flowy clothes helps hide weird shapes, hads hide ears, and these sandals are getting uncomfortable, but I'm not seeing anyone wear shoes without socks." She explained her reasoning. "I hate skirts though- they'll probably be the best for the purpose, but skirts are so.. unintimidating.."
"I mean, you're not wrong." Clarissa nodded. "As for the shoes… I'm sure there are some you can wear without socks but never wear socks with sandals." she chuckled before shrugging. "I guess skirts aren't intimidating… I don't get why they’d have to be. Then again I've never thought of clothes that way. Do you want to look intimidating?”
(SKIRTS FUCK)
(Oops! Lol)
(fixed it)
Irae shrugged. "Better to look threatening. Less interaction with people you don't want to talk to. Being underestimated could be useful in a tactical sense, but I don't like it nearly as much." She said.
“Ah! Well, if you want to look threatening… honestly, I don't think what you wear is always important for that.” Clarissa explained. “I think it's more to do with how you carry yourself. The vibe you give off. I’ve seen plenty of people look intimidating in skirts before. Granted those were business suit skirts with a matching jacket and blouse… and I’m not sure that's the look you want to go for while you're here.”
Irae smiled and agreed. "Alright. What do you think?" She asked.
Clarissa shrugged with a soft chuckle. “If you’re asking my opinion on what to wear, I'm not really a fashion expert,” she warned. “And I don't know enough about you to try to imagine a wardrobe. But you’re the goddess of justice and wrath… so, if we weren't trying to hide you, I think you could pull off the tough girl look.”
Irae sighed. "I never really had to worry about what to wear before.." She noted, grabbing a couple long black skirts, a couple tops, and a few other things. She was conscious of the prices, picking the fewest amount of the lowest priced clothes that would help her. "I think this is good?"
“Just another one of your many abilities, huh?” Clarissa teased, briefly wondering what it would be like to not have to worry about the everyday things.
She glanced at Irae’s selection of clothes and nodded. “Yeah, those look good. You think that’ll be enough for now?”
Irae shrugged. "Nah, we just couldn't stay dirty. Godly clothes are self cleaning, and we have them when we're born. They fluctuate in size as we do, so there's not really ever any reason to wear anything else." She said. "I don't know-? I don't know how many clothes people need. Does it look like enough for now?"
“I bet they changed style and color too, depending on your mood and the occasion.” Clarissa prodded with a slight smirk. “And just cause it's not a you specific ability doesn't mean that it doesn't count as one.”
“It really depends. Some people can never have enough clothes and others just make due.” she admitted. “But, I guess, worst-case scenario, we can come back and get more if you need more.”
Irae nodded. Then hesitated. "No.. they didn't change based on mood. But there were a couple gods who could change them for us if we wanted." She said tentatively.
Clarissa chuckled a little. “Ok, so god or goddess of fashion?” she quipped, though she was genuinely curious.