2021-11-21: YRPL+M
- Log: YRPL+M
- Cast: Magilou, Lulu, Rikku, Paine, Yuna
- Where:
- Date: November 21, 2021
- Summary: Magilou introduces herself to the pilgrimage party.
<Pose Tracker> Magilou has posed.
Lastonbell has a long history. It's survived the ravages of time and change to become a city, hundreds and hundreds of years old. There's a bell, in the main street, the pride of the place -- where it rings, there are inns, shops, curiosities. Venture west, though, and the city's feel changes: commercialism shifts to abidance, as homes replace inns, and the crowd around its streets shifts in character, too.
This is the way to the church, old like spirits are old, simple as a hymn.
But then, Lastonbell has a long history, and throughout that history, there has been one woman, again and again, appearing in the streets... to perform...
... stand-up comedy.
Here, in the approach to the church, a crowd has gathered. A crowd is here, and in the middle, all stood on a crate, is --
A jester???
She seems for all the world to fit the bill; sure, there's a ruff of black feathers about her neck, but her detached sleeves are of opposing colours, just like her hat all split in two, her jaunty shoes, her tights. The strangest thing about it, perhaps, is the skirt: it's made out of books. She is wearing a loop of books as a skirt. Incidentally, it's a good thing she does have a crate to stand on -- at 5'2", she wouldn't be terribly visible in a crowd without it.
"I have no clue how you non-witches get through the morning," Magilou is up there, pattering, as if she belongs on the stage so much that she can make a stage wherever she stands. "You'll be sitting there saying, boy! Where's my hat? Where are my keys? But me," Magilou hangs her glorious hat on the residential fence behind her, at a jaunty angle. She turns --
-- and a normin - that is, a cute little Seraph not much larger than a plush toy, with his very own very fine tophat - hops up to take it, fluttering it over to present to her as she makes a theatrical showing of looking about. To most onlookers, who can't see that little feline fellow with his fine bat wings and devil's tail, it's as if her hat simply levitated into her waiting hands. "Ta-da!" She declares, as she pops her jester's hat back upon her head. "Just like magic, it appears!" She waits, for a beat, before she gasps, delicate fingers pressing to her chest. "Wait a second... it IS magic!"
Here, Bienfu turns to the crowd, with a broad shrug, shaking his head, silently commenting on his part in the 'magic'. This is, itself, part of the show, if a part most of their audience won't appreciate.
"And if I happen to be late to send a letter after getting ready, well -- I'll tell you how witches handle that," Magilou asides to the crowd, as if letting them in on an arcane secret. "We would simply... bring our own doves! Magikazam!" Magilou spins on a heel, and points her finger-guns above the crowd, with a flourish. From nowhere, a flock of doves, shining white, burst forth and flutter over the crowd. Each holds a scroll of paper in its claws, and in a flurry of feathers and delightful sparkles, they are delivered to the audience.
The messages glint and glimmer, as, unrolled, they declare: Show's over! Conjured like those doves, the messages disappear after the reading -- and so do the doves they were attached to.
But there's one message, delivered in a low and deliberate flutter to one Summoner and her Guardians, whether they've joined the crowd or happen to simply be in the area...
Show's starting~
Looking back at the centre of the crowd, Magilou -- and her mysterious assistant, for those who can see him -- has disappeared.
In a place like this, there isn't much of a 'backstage' to speak of; she was speaking in front of a house, but no one seems to be home. No, rather, slipping through that murmuring crowd, through the backyard of a house on the other side of the street entirely...
Did that jester just wave them into a side-alley???
(The real question is: is this trap better than explaining the casual witchcraft to Althena's Guard, who are bound to show up any moment now.)
<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.
Lastonbell--one could even forget that it was ravaged by a terrible dragon some years ago... or just fail to know it in the first place. Lulu doesn't know the history of Lastonbell, but she knows it is a city of history, and there might be something useful to them in that story. She walks with the others of her party, and was not going to pay much attention to the matter of the comedy. She has been scouring ruins, exploring cities, and generally searching quite a bit. It has been... interesting. But here, and now, she hears her talking about being a witch, and then--
Then a dove comes through. Lulu recognizes that Bienfu is not a doll, but she is somewhat surprised to see the message coming to them.
"Show's starting...?" Lulu lifts an eyebrow. It would appear that she does not approve. Then she looks around and hears the rumblings.
"...We may not want to be here," she says, looking at the crowd. "For much longer."
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.
The 'magic show' has Rikku watching peering at it. She's not wild about Churches in general, which means that this kind of show on one's footsteps that is like to be considered sacriligeous draws her eye, as she clambers up to it, watching, at times whispering to the others. "Hey! Is this really a comedy show right in front of a Church? Gotta admit - I give her points for bravado!" The bit starts though and Rikku balks, "What can they not see that little guy right there-?"
She had been told it wasn't like that in Spira, but she's still not sure what Resonance is, much less determined that she has it. Where's the proof that there's something intrinsic about people that can see things that others can't?! And yet... how else can she explain this.
"He is prettttty adorable though! Lulu you're the expert - Would you use a doll that looks like that?"
Still, Rikku only grins at the comedy, more looking to see if Yuna is laughing, or Paine has cracked a smile. Soon enough though, the show is over and...
They get a different message, and... Rikku leans over to it
Rikku squints at it.
From a distance as Magilou waves them to the alleyway, Rikku points at the alleyway with the same gesture Magilou did her 'Magikazam' did, pointing at the alleyway as if to RSVP for whatever the secret rendezvous is, all smiles like she has ever intention.
"Right Lulu-! Doubt the authorities are gonna take kindly to the show." Before turning to Paine and remarking, "So! What do you think? Obvious scam? Obvious trap? Both at the same time? Think we should just grab lunch... or do we play the odds that you might shoot someone dressed pretty colorfully today?" She sounds so optimistic about the idea that right now someone has that kind of ill intent towards them, like she's not worried at all. "Because given our luck, those odds seem pretty good!"
<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.
Paine keeps her hood up as a matter of habit, but she seems at ease in the crowd, perhaps because it is a crowd. Anonymity is easier to borrow than earn.
"It's covert comedy," Paine explains to Rikku. "The Church is none the wiser, because it's not funny." Apparently there will be no smile for Rikku to find just yet. Paine does pause to watch with the others, though, her arms folded.
"That how it's supposed to work?" she asks Lulu's doll, without looking at Lulu herself, as Magilou's normin brings her a hat. "Mog, you need to try a little harder and bring Dame Lulu some hats."
She gets a sour look when the note arrives. "Damn right I'd shoot her, but I'll waste a lot of ammo shooting books if I do. Come on. Let's leave some other way, Yuna."
She gives her Summoner a frank look, worried she'll trust the humorous harlequin.
<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.
Yuna is quiet.
She has been, ever since Zanarkand.
Those who don't know her very well might think that she's depressed, and they'd be right, but not completely right.
Those who do know her well might think that she's deep in thought, and they'd be partially but not totally right too.
One thing is true: the Yuna who smiles the more that she's worried is as dead as the Final Summoning. It's probably healthy that she's letting the others see how profoundly disturbed she is by recent events, but it isn't particularly easy to watch, either.
And one thing hasn't changed: her terrible earnestness. As they travel from city to city and sight to sight, she is in some ways more credulous than ever. It's as though she's willing to accept ANY lead, no matter how tenuous, as a possibility in, as Tidus has said, "winning through to the goal."
So it is that she watches the magic show with the wide eyes of a child -- in the body of someone who is no longer, by any metric, a child at all, or will be ever again.
She watches quietly, of course. No smiles for Rikku. No trust for Paine either, for what it's worth; she meets her newest Guardian's frank look with a gentle nod.
"If you think so," she agrees.
But as they turn away, she looks back, over her shoulder; and then again, a few steps later.
And any of her Guardians, no matter how old or how new, know exactly what that means.
<Pose Tracker> Magilou has posed.
o` Trap, trap, trap! o`
How are those alarm bells COLOURED..?
It just so happens that a woman by Magilou's description is wanted in Lunar, for a long assortment of crimes, including, but not limited to:
Drunkenness!
Dancing!
Singing, aggravated charge: ABOUT ALTHENA'S THIGHS?
Unauthorised witchcraft!
Disturbing the peace!
Arson!
Vandalism!
Theft!
Blasphemy! (Didn't we cover that one already..?)
And there's a charge about gambling on here, which doesn't seem right, because gambling isn't outlawed. Maybe she was gambling in a particularly egregious way..? It's a pretty old entry.
Actually, half these entries are so old they don't even make sense. Some of them are so old, they're illegible, so they don't make it onto the wanted posters of today. One of those posters is clutched in the hands of a Guardsman, who enters the scene, to look for...
... Magilou, not Yuna or her friends. For once, they're not the outlaws in danger. Isn't coming to a new continent nice?
Anyway, since they're looking for someone with much worse colour coordination, the Guardians (and their charge) aren't going to be stopped on their way away from the scene. Rikku suggested lunch, and lunch, as it turns out, is back east, closer to the merchant's district. This takes them further away from the church, and...
Closer to...
Hey, is that the little stuffed animal again? What's he doing hurrying along behind them? Running up, closer, closer...
"Biennnnn...!!"
With the voice of a veritable pipsqueak, Bienfu flails his arms. "Run away, run away...!!!"
And suddenly, to the side--!!
A brass instrument sounds--!
And it sounds just like: Magilou's theme. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWD_sScdetc
Upon a brick wall, built to give a townhouse privacy from the street, all a sudden a jester perches. She tootles the next few bars of a song on her horn, before she tosses it down, to the group. "HEY!" She yells, hands coming down on her hips like a steel press to a car, the most impressive pout on the moon on her lips. "I was doing a bit! You can't just walk away! How dare you insult the subtle artistry of Lunar's wisest sorceress, the great, the powerful, the beautiful -- Magilou!"
She points, finger an arrow, right down to the Yuna who isn't forcing a smile. "Keep walking at your peril, Yuna! Yes... I have such acclaim, I even know your name!! And if you spite me, it's your own shame!"
Bienfu, here, adjusts his hat, and says, much less bombastically: "Miss Magilou, everyone knows the Summoner..."
"I will come down there, Bienfu," Magilou grumps to him, in turn.
"-- biennn!!!" Bienfu biens, hurrying to hide behind Yuna's skirts, as if he knows precisely where he's safest.
Magilou folds her arms, with a great huff. "An-Y-WAY! We! Have things to talk about!" Who decided that???
<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.
Obvious scam, obvious trap. Obvious something. Lulu of course is well aware of Yuna's moods and demeanor, and watches her whether it's easy or not. ...But then, she's been focused on even thin leads herself; they have to keep up their energy, find everything they can...
"Hmmmm. I might," Lulu adds to Rikku.
She does not laugh at Paine's joke. But she does that thing where she glances her way with a small smile. And then she says, "Don't give Mog too many ideas." But...
Yep. Lulu knows what that means, Yuna.
However, she is surprised by Bienfu rushing up behind them--she almost missed him. Almost. "What?" she starts, turning, debating whether she's going to have to incinerate an adorable little Seraph, before--
Magilou speaks up and Lulu turns toward her, eyes narrowing. She would be more suspicious of someone knowing Yuna's name, except... well...
He has a point.
"Then talk about them quickly," Lulu says, and turns back towards Yuna and Bienfu. She peers down at him.
Mog, in her arms, looks on cutely.
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.
"I mean... there were probably people in the crowd who found it funny..." A beat, "... theoretically?" She offers to Paine with a lofty shrug. Before grinning at Paine's joke towards Mog, and Lulu's acquiescence that she 'might' use a doll like that.
Yuna's silence is telling, and Rikku hasn't yet figured... out how to deal with it, other than hoping it runs its course. It's not the best theorem but, what else can she do? Other than keep trying to include her, keep trying to make her smile or laugh anyway.
And yet, as she keeps an eye out, she notices Yuna looking back. Again, and again. She's just about to say... 'Maybe we should' when...
Biennn...!! Run away, run away...!!
"What!? What is it little guy!? Is it the Church? A stampede? Both?"
What does she think is happening!? A stampede of choirboys!? I mean, that might be threatening given Bienfu's size.
However then, Magilou takes the stage, or the wall!
"Uhhh... pretty sure we just did? Look do you think we were born yesterday or something? Also-! Weren't you a witch, not a sorceress? Do you just change professions like you do motley?"
Rikku sees Bienfu hiding behind Yuna, and instead picks him up by the bow on top of his tophat to hold him aloft mid-air, "Hey there little guy! I understand you look really scared of her but mind keeping those hands where I can see them which means not on Yunie? Thank~you~!" Says Rikku, who's ever on alert for pickpocket duty, smiling broadly at Bienfu. "I'll keep you safe instead. Promise! I'm a professional at that."
And indeed, she doesn't hang onto Bienfu any longer but she doesn't allow Bienfu to cling behind someone either with those pawsies.
"Anyhow! Now that that's cleared up-! I'm all ears!"
Or at least, she's all ears for as long as Lulu and Paine allow Magilou to keep talking, which as Lulu indicates, might not be long.
<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.
Paine blinks once back at Yuna, having expected worse from the young lady who once abandoned the already dubious saftey of a giant hand for the sake of one whose crime was a bit worse than standup comedy. But then, the great Magilou is not in any danger.
Is that all that's changed? Of course it is not. But it is not something Paine has felt she has the competence to discuss.
"Yuna," Paine says. It's not hesitant or sad or any of those things; it's a professional sort of echo. But a nod would almost always seem good enough to Paine at a moment like that. She wanted the excuse to say the name, to give the Summoner the equivalent of a brief verbal touch on the outside of the arm as she passed.
It is a little disarming how Magilou simply walks after them yelling. A malefactor would rarely be so stupid. Thus, when Paine turns back around, it is with a raised eyebrow, not a raised arm, and she follows the colorful speech and gestures of the great Magilou with a look of impatient skepticism. She tilts her head towards Lulu, adding her vote to the black mage's, then cocks an eyebrow to prod.
"Behave with her," she warns Bienfu. "Or I'll watch you instead."
Rikku: blonde, nice to Bienfu so far, eyes like the tropical sea, scampy clothing, smile as easy as it is pretty
Paine: monochrome, looks at Bienfu like he was a discarded drinking cup, eyes require the invention of some sort of blood sea to maintain maritime metaphor, dresses like an executioner commuting across the desert, smile as AWOL from her face as Paine is from the Crusaders
<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.
Yuna stops when called. She stops when called by children; she stops when called by men. She stops when called by soldiers; she stops, and she attends. This makes her a poor fugitive, and their now-extensive time on the run has not quite broken her of the habit -- of, at least, the momentary hesitation.
But the others are stopping too, so at least she isn't stopping EMBARRASSINGLY. That's something. Though she is, in fairness, well past being embarrassed by her own actions in general. Slaughtering the false hope of a nation, even in self-defense, is a real 'kill or cure' for that. A kill AND cure, in fact.
She glances down at the being taking refuge behind her before Rikku snatches him up. "Hello, little one," she says, with all the softness and sweetness she's ever had. That, too, has not changed.
Then she faces Magilou head on. Her arms fall straight downwards, clasping palm to palm at waist-height. A casual way to stand. Unguarded, but then she has three amazing women for that right now. And unafraid.
She lifts her chin to meet the other woman's eyes.
"I'm listening," says Yuna calmly.
<Pose Tracker> Magilou has posed.
Magilou sniffs, at Lulu hurrying them along. "You can't rush genius, cutie!" She wags a finger, and adds, entirely sly: "Love your choice in accessories, though." Is she talking about Mog..?
Meanwhile, Bienfu looks up to Lulu, too. And Bienfu looks at Mog. And Bienfu looks back to Lulu. And Bienfu says, to himself, "... this was a bad-bad plan..." He's deeply nervous! He doesn't want to be a doll!!
"Inconceivable! I haven't known this kind of disrespect for over two hundred years!" Meanwhile, Magilou lies to Rikku, deeply offended. (Well, pretty offended. (Well, a little offended. (Well, wouldn't you be offended?))) "A sorceress is a type of witch, dummy! It's not like being a magician! Besides," she says, crossing her legs on the wall, "I'm qualified for all professions." She doesn't... SOUND like she's lying, but...
Bienfu, meanwhile, gets yoinked up away from Yuna -- he comes with his hat, as if the two are glued together, which may even literally be true, Bienfu really likes his hat -- and flails, uselessly, in the air. "Biennn!" He drops down as soon as he's allowed, pulling his hat down further over his eyes. He gets stars in his eyes, though, when Yuna addresses him, too. "Wooow... hi, Madam Yuna..!!" Not quite 'Lady Yuna', but then, they only just visited Spira recently. Referring to Ex-- uh-- the faithful, now, that's old hat.
Tragically, any dreams he might have of making a move are cut short by -- "Weh!" Bienfu exclaims, when he turns to see Paine staring at me. "Scary... are you gonna eat me?!" Why would he jump to that conclusion?!
"And then you wouldn't be watching me," Magilou asides, to Paine, "which is the real travesty, here." What was that saying? When someone tells you who they are, believe them..? Why is Magilou telling her she's a problem to be watched???
She doesn't spend too much time watching the Guardians, though, because Magilou has her eyes on...
Yuna meets her eyes, and Magilou grins. She grins like a shark, or a wolf, or an angler-fish -- like a predator; all teeth and torrid intent, spread from ear to ear, eyes half-lidded as if there's not enough space on her face once the Cheshire's tax is accounted for. Her ears are elfen-pointed, if not that much longer than a human's; her eyes seem green, at first glance. It's only when she opens them a little more fully that it becomes clear Yuna isn't the only heterochromatic person on the street today -- but Magilou's eyes fade in gradient, each purple above, and green below.
... and for all her toothiness, she doesn't look away.
"You've been stirring up a lot of trouble," Magilou says, entirely amused. "Saving Spira, dooming Spira... I hear you've even been grinding a certain woman's gears. Ha!" Magilou, for one, seems to find this hilarious; she cackles, and very almost unbalances off the wall in the process. "Buu--uuUT!" Arms windmilling, she reclaims her position, only to lean all the way forward, arms to her knees. "You uncovered where someone terribly old got brushed off to, and that's handy-dandy for little ol' me. So!"
Here, Magilou bends the rest of the way forward, and topple-tumbles down the wall, tumbling a few more circles when she hits the ground, before she sproings up, complete with springing sound-effect. Where did she get the sound effect? She's a witch, that's how. "I hear you're all out of options!" Magilou forms a little heart, with her hands. "I love hopelessness! It's basically my favourite thing!" Let us note, here, that Magilou has zero sense of Malevolence about her. It might be the obvious conclusion in Lunar, but whatever is wrong with Magilou, it... is not that.
And so, Magilou swans...
... past Yuna...
... and sashays up to Lulu, hands clutching at her waist in some vain mirror of Yuna's own posture.
"Heeeeey," she says, too sugar-sweet. "I've heard a few things about Yuna's Guardians, too. Is it really really true there's a sorceress amongst you who commands any element she pleases...?"
<Pose Tracker> Lulu has posed.
Rikku spares Bienfu a lot of potential danger by picking him up. Lulu was not really inclined to give him access to Yuna's back after being so terribly suspicious. So Lulu focuses on Magilou for now, since Rikku has it handled. It is fine. Paine also has this partially covered. And Yuna... Well. Yuna answers when people address her. Lulu is neither bothered nor surprised that Yuna is soft as regards this little doll figure.
She is neither bothered nor surprised that Yuna is unafraid of the danger this woman presents.
Lulu notices the predatory look Magilou has as she speaks. She notices the amusement. And she notices... power.
"I could show you," Lulu says, almost pleasantly. "If you like."
It is clear to those who know her that Lulu has very little patience for this particular approach in a person.
"By all means, keep bothering us, and I will."
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.
Rikku just looks Lulu's way during that tirade to confirm whether it's true that a Sorceress and a Witch is the same thing to the magic expert. "Well you do seem multi-talented-!" She says with a small laugh, complimentary but at a loss, at the same time, what does she think Magilou's talents actually are.
Yet when it comes to Bienfu asking if Paine would eat her, "I wouldn't rule it out!" She leans to Bienfu, cupping a hand by her face as if sharing a secret, "We were on our way to lunch when you interrupted us after all... and she gets extra grumpy when she's hungry." Before she straightens up, "But it's fine! So long as you stick by me and do what she says, noone gets eaten!"
However, despite it all, Rikku's eyes are honestly on Magilou. Sure it could be a two person pickpocket team, but...
Rikku cants her head in this odd little way as Magilou talks about their situation, their desperation, their hopelessness, "What? Is this your new comedy routine? Because I gotta say, it's pretty mean to just pop out of nowhere and make us your punchline."
Rikku holds up a finger, "And you just said a Sorceress was a type of witch. So aren't you basically calling Lulu a witch?" Rikku gives Lulu a sidelong look and mouths, 'Is that okay?' as if to make sure that is in fact okay with Lulu, even given her irritation with Magilou right now.
<Pose Tracker> Paine has posed.
Paine does not smirk at or disagree with anything Rikku has to say about her cannibalistic hungers. "I could eat," she agrees, eyeing Bienfu.
Whether it's moving behind Yuna or right up in Lulu's face, no part of Magilou's next motion is acceptable to Paine, who takes a territorial step forward.
Still. If there is ill will in this girl, as opposed to ill-ness (of the mental variety), it is hidden. All this provocation without direct threat is a confusing stimulus for a Guardian, but Paine does not attack people for the crime of confusing her. Nor does she attack people for getting up in Lulu's personal space and business at the same time, or for making mock of all the suffering Yuna's been through lately, though that's a slightly closer call. But she does send the message of having her shoulder overlap just slightly with Magilou's--nowhere near touching her, but on an x-axis--such that if she were to continue further still, she would gently brush Paine.
"We get it," she tells Magilou curtly. "We know some things that could be useful to you. But unless the reverse is true, you'd have a better chance of learning them by flipping through that library-skirt of yours at random than you do by asking us. So spill, or leave while you still have all your teeth."
<Pose Tracker> Yuna has posed.
Yuna attends Magilou and Bienfu with the same solemnity that she would anyone -- which, as we've established, is a lot. To the latter, a tiny bob. To the former, blue and green to violet and green...
...she shakes her head instead. That beaded earring, which has come all this way from the Isle of Besaid, clatters lightly against her neck, as winsomely pale and long as any could imagine, long not with pride but with grace. With the dignity of one who finds Sin no laughing matter. None at all.
Her lips part in the beginnings of 'I'm sorry', but that is one habit that she's finally kicking, and she corrects before the sound is even made. "No. We're not... out of options. Only... false hope."
And there's the tiniest emphasis on 'false' which makes the word 'hope', though small and soft, ring stunningly true.
But honestly what happens next is way better than talking about Sin, and Yuna looks a little relieved when Magilou hones in on Dame Lulu, who is well able to endure such attentions. Rikku and Paine help, too. Yuna stays strong, and stays where she is.
<Pose Tracker> Magilou has posed.
"Ahhh, you want to destroy me as soon as we've met?!" Magilou claps her hands over her bright-red cheeks, shaking her head. Rattling herself like that, she very almost brushes up against the interposed Paine, but somehow, she never actually does. "No way, no way! It's way too soon!!" Just what is Magilou thinking..?!
(Magilou is thinking: is she a worthy successor to Tetra Detonator, or will it be another three hundred years before the next chance comes...? Oh wait, crap, spoilers. Spoilers!!)
She sways back, waving a finger in the air. "Ut-tut-tut!" She chastises Rikku, still in good cheer. "Anyone would be glad to be the punchline of the great and mighty Magilou! And being a witch is an honour, I'll have you know! We don't just let anyone in. Half the candidates flunk the wickedness test once they finish up school!" JUST WHAT IS SHE ACCUSING LULU OF--?!
Wait, is there really a licensure examination for witches...?
Meanwhile, Bienfu... looks extra nervous about Rikku's warning and Paine's hunger. And... a little sad..? It's hard to tell just how one pulls off being anxious and sad at once, but Bienfu, with his big watery eyes and full-body trembling, somehow manages. Maybe he's nervous about the way Paine is getting into Magilou's space, but...
"You would mistake me for some transactional..?!" Magilou gasps, at Paine's curtness. "I'm hurt! Wounded! I am in shock! And as for your frankly insensitive comments on my fashion --"
'A nickname needs to have charm. It needs to leave a lasting impression.'
'Sure then, 'Hatty'.'
'Now you're just saying what you see!'
Book-Skirt'.'
'That's not any better, either.'
Ms. Creepy Eyes'.'
'That's just an insult! Look, no nicknames based on what you see, and ESPECIALLY no slandering!'
Lil-Miss-Witch-Who-Smiles-Around-You-But-Stabs-You-In-The-Back-When-You're-Not-Looking'.'
'HEY! That's personal information!'
Whatever Paine's fashion crimes (those are crimes against fashion, Magilou, not crimes related to your fashion), they actually seem to quiet her down, for a moment. She gives her a long, quiet look. She sees what Bienfu sees, too.
Magilou sighs, a finger to her temple, as her head cocks merrily to the side. "Okay, okay, I guess all my careful estimations don't matter a whit against a pretty face."
Wait, why would Paine be the deciding factor in... whatever... decision Magilou is coming to, here?
She looks -- past Paine, and past Lulu, and frankly also probably past Rikku, because Magilou is, if not a threat, at least confusing enough to not be an obvious ally -- around to Yuna, who's stood strong this whole time. "Out of false hope, huh? Good," she points her fingers to her, loaded like a gun, "I like you. Let's see if you can salvage half that sentence." The emphasis in her words isn't nearly as soft; very little about her is.
All a sudden, Magilou snaps her fingers, as if she's come to a decision. "Listen to your grand friend Magilou~ I'll tell you a funny joke!" She singsongs, arms streeeetching up above her head, looping in behind her hat. She grins over to Rikku, entirely sly. "Did you hear the one about the vermillion ore? I heard that machina ran HOT!" Pause for applause.
Wait, what do you mean that wasn't a joke?
Well if it wasn't a joke, what was it, genius???
(Magilou, who is a genius, doesn't explain.)
Here, she sighs, and looks back to Lulu. "Aaanyway... the Drifters are going to be all abuzz about 'Trial Shrines' in a while. All sorts of interesting places are going to come up. If you visit all the ones which matter to you, Lululululu, something good might happen..!"
Magilou takes a step away, only to lean back, elbow wiggle-wagging in a gesture as noncommittal as her loose grin. "But only if you can tie it all together. It's not enough to understand a polyelemental approach... you need to be able to synthesise it. And please don't melt down like the last fellow did. That was just an embarrassment for all of us." Wait, metaphorically, or...
She lifts a hand, and waves, as she turns and starts walking back off towards the nearest inn. "... if you can do that, feel free to 'show me' as much as you like. But not until then, okay? Come along, Bienfu!"
Bienfu yelps, and scrambles off, cutting a wide berth around Yuna as his tiny legs try to keep up. "I'm not dinner, biennnn..!!"
... what on earth was that about?
Welcome to Lastonbell, apparently.