Let's Play Pretend

Involuntary Cosplay

Jenna was bone-tired, and sorely in need of a shower. And maybe clothes. It had been five hours since their arrival at the haven, but there had apparently still been no time at all to let her get dressed. Her suitcase was still in the trunk of Cherry, wherever she might be.

Jenna wasn't really sure where she and Aiden were either, to be honest, as everything around number one (please, Jenna, call me Coral) seemed to happen at lightening speed. The old lady had more or less pulled the pair by their elbows through the city while quickly answering questions none of them had asked.

"Yes, Aiden, they're waiting. We all hurried here as soon as you and I hung up." "No, Jenna... I know you want to bathe, but that will simply have to wait. Despite what you believe, you do not stink. Just wait until you have met a couple of trolls, and you will realize this." "I am glad you have done the casework, kid! There just might be hope for you after all."

At some point that Jenna was unable to recall, they had entered an elevator. They were probably in one of the towers as the little box seemed to move up, up, up forever. "No, young lady. It does stop eventually. I promise you." This was eerie and unsettling, it was almost as though the old lady... "Yes, Jenna. I read minds. Helps with the efficiency... And this is where we get off."

And so, she was still in her underwear. Cartoon character underwear. She had developed a new appreciation for her mother's admonishing "always wear clean panties", as she clearly was right in that you never knew who would be seeing you in them.

Right now "who might be seeing you in them" included about twenty people, all dressed in business attire. Everyone were seated around a table, in a room that seemed slightly too small for everyone and everything shoved into it. If someone opened the door, she was afraid it was going to have half of them tumbling out into the hall. Like the closet of a child that had just cleaned their room by putting everything they owned into it.

She had long ago given up on the thought of just wearing Aiden's coat until she got something else. The temperature of the room was hot enough anyway, and there seemed to be a very real chance of heat stroke if she chose modesty. She still found it hard to follow the conversation. Between the sweat dripping off of her and the embarrassment over her almost bare ass, concentration seemed like a near-impossible feat.

She couldn't tell what species everyone belonged to, nobody wore badges that read "hello, I am a ...". And with a mind reader sitting right next to her, she barely dared thinking at all, much less speculating on what everyone were. She had to revise her previous assessment of magical creatures, that much she did know. Doll, Aiden and a couple of the others were stunning, sure. But most of the people around the table just looked like... people. They wouldn't be out of place on the bus or at the office. She was quite sure she had bumped into the chubby, balding man sitting across from her earlier the same week, at the corner store. She understood Doll's comment about passing now, as she herself was probably the weirdest looking one of the bunch. Nobody commented on her attire, but once in a while someone's eyes lingered on her for a little longer than absolutely necessary.

She was happy to be flanked by Aiden and Coral, who both seemed to have taken on some sort of extra protective duty, in addition to leading the meeting. Aiden downright snarled at a dark haired, handsome man who had quite openly stared at her. Coral had simply glared over the rims of her glasses, in a way that absolutely discouraged any attempt at interacting with Jenna about anything except the topic at hand.

She couldn't blame them for staring though, as she sat there looking more like a superhero cosplayer on a budget than anything else. A thought Coral seemed to have caught as the lady quickly leaned in, whispering "go with that one! Actually, just get rid of the cosplay bit, be a super hero. People love those, and they enjoy showing off their underwear so much, they wear it outside their clothes."