"This has to be the dumbest fucking idea we've ever had, and between the lot of us there's been a fair amount of dumb ideas," Shigaraki griped as he walked through the outdoor market behind Himiko, Dabi, and Magne.
"I do believe that those were the most consecutive words I've heard you string together in an entire fortnight."
"Oh shut the hell up, you walking overgrown skin graft."
Dabi placed his hand over his chest in mock offense. "Such nasty words from a sea captain to his beloved beau!"
"Nasty words indeed, and in front of our youngest crew member no less."
Himiko simply rolled her eyes amusedly at Magne's comment. While she was the youngest, that didn't mean that she had never heard a curse word before. Both Dabi and Shigaraki use more than enough expletives, so it would be nigh impossible for Himiko to not have heard one before.
"Oh hush, the lot of you," she whispered, and ducked down behind one of the various crates that littered the open-air market. She couldn't quite hide herself the way she wanted on account of her size and the amount of space there was, but she made it work. "And duck down would you? At this rate she's going to see us and then my mission will fail."
"Your spontaneous, on the spot mission, you mean? The one that is not planned out at all and you sprung on us the minute you saw a pretty girl?" Dabi jibed. There was no malice behind it, as he phrased it as a joke, but the slight annoyance could still be seen behind his eyes.
"That's the one," Himiko replied sarcastically.
"You know I don't like unplanned missions," came Shigaraki's complaint. "As the captain of this crew -"
"You're not the captain of this mission, though, Tomura, so kindly shut your trap, and do as I say," Himiko paused, and then added, "sir," as an afterthought.
Dabi and Magne both sniggered while Shigaraki's mouth hung open like a fish. Dabi, still laughing, grabbed hold of one of the captain's jacket lapels and pulled him down with the rest of them.
The four of them had originally intended to stop and restock on supplies, but once Himiko had spotted her Shore Girl, the original plan had flown out of the window, so to speak. How could Himiko - a simple selkie lass - resist following along behind such a breathtaking maiden? That's what Himiko had said when the other three had started asking questions, anyway.
The breathtaking maiden in question was several dozen paces ahead of the quartet, a wicker basket lined in flannel strung over her arm. She had to have been shopping for quite some time, because her basket had been very nearly full by the time Himiko had spotted her, and the four of them had been following her for nigh on three quarters of an hour.
Himiko only knew that because Shigaraki kept prudently reminding them every couple of minutes.
Something brushed up against her ankle, drawing Himiko's attention away from her Shore Girl and startling her. Looking down, she saw a tiny orange kitten rubbing its small face against her pant leg.
"Awwww! Little kitty!" Himiko reached down and picked up the kitten by the scruff to cradle it close to her face. Turning around to face Magne, Dabi, and Shigaraki, she said, "Look guys, it's a little kitten!"
A violent sneeze ripped itself from Magne. It seemed as if the entire market went silent, though Himiko knew that couldn't be. Still clutching at the kitten, Himiko fell quickly to the ground to conceal herself and the others followed suit. She slowly peeked out around the crate and saw that her Shore Girl had turned around to find the source of the noise. Not seeing anything, she shrugged her shoulders, turned back around, and continued shopping. The four of them sighed in relief and stood back up.
Himiko fixed Magne with a glare, and started to pet the kitten.
"First of all, don't give me that look. Sneezing is a basic human function," Magne started. Himiko raised her eyebrow. She wanted to point out that Magne wasn't human, but it would only turn into an argument. "Second of all, I'm allergic to cats. You can't be mad at me for sneezing around a cat when I'm allergic to cats."
"Whatever. Mittens and I don't want to hear such negativity."
"Don't fucking name it! We're not keeping it!"
"Actually - " Shigaraki began.He was immediately fixed with a glare from Magne that was not unlike the one she had just received from Himiko. "What? I'm just saying that it would be helpful to have a cat on board to keep rodents under control!"
Magne huffed and crossed her arms. "Since you are the captain I'll allow it."
"Why thank - hey. What do you mean you'll allow it."
Shigaraki was about to go on a tangent, but none of the other three were paying attention anymore. Himiko had stood up to follow after the girl (she was really going to have to learn her name at some point), and both Magne and Dabi had stood to follow after Himiko. Disgruntled, Shigaraki followed suit.
Up ahead, the Shore Girl had stopped to look at a booth. From where Himiko was, she couldn't see what the booth sold but she could see the longing in the Shore Girls eyes as she looked at the wares. She could also see the sadness as the girl forced herself to walk away.
"We have to buy the thing that she was looking at," Himiko said, and briskly walked toward the stall. She could hear Shigaraki and Dabi doing as they normally did, which was complaining. Himiko ignored it.
The man that was running the stall was middle aged and slightly balding. These weren't pertinent facts, but they were an interesting combination for a jewelry seller. The stall he was running had necklaces dangling from the awning like sun-catchers and rings of all shapes and sizes. The seller perked up when he saw her approach.
"Why hello there, young miss."
Himiko tried to refrain from wrinkling her nose in disdain. The man's smile was as smarmy as she had ever seen, and she was thankful that she wasn't alone.
"The girl that was just here, the one with the shirt brown hair? What was she looking at?"
"Well, that's not a question I get everyday." The man got even smarmier, which Himiko didn't think was possible, as he drawled his response.
"Can you just answer the question? We don't have all day." The irritated foot stomp from Shigaraki could practically be heard in his voice. It didn't surprise Himiko, as he was prone to whining anyway.
It was almost as if the man hadn't noticed the other three in the group until Shigaraki had said something. Himiko heard a jacket rustling behind her, but she didn't turn to look. Strong eye contact was key here.
The man turned as white as a ghost, and stammered the reply, "Uh - she weren't lookin' at anything special, per say, j-just uh, just this silver chain here."
The chain in question was indeed silver and dainty enough that it looked like a string of thread. It was a fine piece for if a lady needed a replacement or if she had been gifted a pendant, but alone it was quite plain. Still, it was what her Shore Girl wanted, and therefore it was what her Shore Girl would receive.
Himiko smiled wide, showing off her sharp canines. "I'll take it."
Later, once everyone was back aboard Death's Inferno, curiosity got the better of Himiko.
"What exactly did you do to cause the salesman to lose his color?" Mittens chirped after Himiko asked, almost as if he were just as curious.
Dabi shrugged and smirked a little. "I flashed him the pistol at my hip."