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Gwen had made sure to pack lightly today, leaving behind her math book, her science book, and, regrettably, her sketchpad, and while she was made to suffer for it in class, she knew that the pay off would be worth it. Despite the onset of a rather killer flu, Gwen went to school for one reason, and one reason only, and that was to go see Pippin.

Destiny City was a strange, strange place. In this city, there were monsters called youma running around, warriors called Sailor Senshi (and as luck would have it, Gwen's one of them) that fought against a group called the Negaverse, and apparently Jedi and talking cats.

Classes let out at the usual time, but Gwen wasn't the first one out today. She was missing her usual vigor thanks to the cold, but she was also waiting for someone. She looked around the rose bush near the steps, checking to make sure there was no one else there before whispering into it. "Pippin? Piiiiiippin? Come out, come out, wherever you are..."

Despite knowing that Pippin was a sentient feline with not only the ability to speak but to awaken Senshi from their 'slumber', Gwen was still surprised to hear actual words coming out of his mouth, and she accepted his excitement and affection as she felt the urge to scoop him up and shower him with some affection of her own. There were few things that Gwen enjoyed more than animals, though Pippin himself might have found a way to trump all of those things, and she could no longer resist the urge. She bent down and picked up him, making sure to place an arm under his legs to give him the proper support, and she kept her embrace loose enough for him to breathe.

"I'm just as excited to see you too! Do you know how hard it was to not just skip classes?" Gwen asked, scratching behind his ears as she made her way towards her apartment. "I would have, really, but the teachers were at the top of their game today and wouldn't even let me go to the restroom! But, it was well worth the wait!"

Once they got closer to her apartment, she'd clear out her booksack and allow him to slip in, but for now, she enjoyed the walk home with Pippin. "Since you've been waiting all day, I bet you're hungry. Maddy doesn't get home for a few hours so I can cook something really nice for you and have it cleaned up before she suspects a thing!"

Gwen may not have been that great of a chef, but she was certain that she could work some culinary magic for her friend.

Gwen poked her tongue out to show her displeasure at his advice; her, not skip classes? Did he have no idea who he was dealing with? Asking Gwen to not skip class, or at least consider it a million times a day would be like asking a fish to breathe out of water, or a cat not to scratch a chair or couch! Gwen fired back, waiting eagerly for the cross walk to signal her to go. Home wasn't too far away, which is probably what made skipping class so ridiculously easy... "You don't know what it's like, Pippin. To be stuck in a place like that for hours on end, the only relief being the final bell and the walk home. It's so boring and the sisters give you dirty looks all the time, like they're judging you or something!"

She could go on for hours, but she didn't want to. Not today. All she wanted to do was get home with her friend and guardian cat, get some food in that belly of his, as well as hers, and then spend the next few hours soaking in as much information as she could about her identity as a Senshi. If only that stinking light would change!

At the mention of cupcakes, Gwen answered truthfully. "We don't have any prebaked, but I can get that started for you when we get home. I never cooked cupcakes before but I'm sure it's not THAT hard."

Finally, the lights changed and Gwen only took a quick glance from left to right to make sure all of the cars had stopped before stepping onto the street and crossing the road. It wouldn't have been the first time someone didn't stop, and she was damn lucky to avoid the car that one time. Trying to dodge traffic with a cat in her hands? That would have been a challenge.

"We're just around the block once we cross the street, so I'm going to have to hide you in my booksack before we turn the corner. As adorable as you are, I doubt the landlord will allow me to take you inside if she saw you."

School was a touchy subject for Gwen, and she was never afraid to hide it. It would figure that her adorable guardian cat would sound exactly like her own sister, who was more or less her legal guardian, and she gave a pout of her own at his scolding. "It's boring. Sure I learn some interesting things every now and then, but it's not like it really matters. I don't even know what I want to do when I grow up, you know? Can't I just be a Senshi and focus completely on that?"

It was a stupid question and a way out of the conversation, Gwen realized, but it was what was on her mind. Ever since becoming a Senshi, she seemed more inclined to think that she was more of Sailor Tsui, Senshi of Tigers, and her Gwendolyn Caspian identity was merely a ruse that she wore until it was her time to be awakened. She couldn't explain the feeling, but it just felt right to her. Natural. And of course she wasn't lying when she said she had no idea what she wanted to do as far as a career or job went. She was 15 years old... how the hell was she suppose to make that decision so early?

"I could be a professional crime fighter, like Batman, except without all the money and gadgets. Though, colorful super villains I seem to have plenty of." Gwen said with a grin, and before they got too close, she shifted him around so that she could open the backpack for him. It would be time to hide him soon, but that didn't mean that she cared if people thought she was crazy and talking into her backpack. Given how often Gwen brought Micah to school, she'd figured the apartment tenants would be used to it by now... so long as they never told the landlord of it. "And most of the teachers there are nuns. They're suppose to judge. But don't worry about them; they're not worthy of your kicks to the shin. Ready for the stealth and infiltration, Pippin?"

Gwen had to admit that the thought of being a masked crime fighter had pleased her a little too much, even if it was just her imagination going wild and crazy on her. She could likely never compare to Batman, or even Aquaman, but that didn;t mean that she couldn't dream about it. She'd simply have to dream about it later, as he was quick to obey her command and jumped into her booksack. She pulled at the zipper but didn't close it completely, giving him some fresh air as she fastened it onto her back and made her way through the building's entrance.

She roamed the halls with a bit more awareness to her surroundings than she usually did. Sneaking in Micah was relatively easy since he was a rat and, for the most part, docile and hardly moved about his surroundings, and she hoped that no one would notice the extra weight or movements that Pippin might have given to her backpack. With the way she snuck into her apartment, she felt like Solid Snake sneaking through the halls, and it took everything within her willpower to not want to whistle the 'Metal Gear Solid' theme, as she made it into her apartment and, gingerly, set the booksack down on the coffee table and unzipped the top to allow Pippin to leap out.

"Tada! Welcome to Casa de Caspian!"

Gwen never really had anyone compliment her apartment, so she was unprepared for the compliment that she received. Gwen didn't blush often, but now seemed like it'd be an acceptable response to such a statement, and she hide her face behind her booksack momentarily before taking pride in the comment. Yes, that seemed more like Gwen! Though she did pretend to be humble about it, as she moved towards the kitchen. "It's a nice place to stay, alright. My sister's usually the one keeping up with it and decorating it, though, so you'll have to thank her when you see her."

She thought about it and then corrected herself, "Um, without actually SAYING thank you. I don't think she'll be ready for a talking cat. But she seemed perfectly okay with me keeping a cat, despite the rules, so, give her leg a good rubbing when you see her."

Rulebreaking apparently ran in the family, so long as neither one got caught. She shifted about the kitchen and gathered the ingredients that she'd need, calling to the cat as she did so. "Upstairs is my room, if you want to go see it, and Maddy lives down the hall on the first floor. Micah's upstairs, but he might be sleeping. Give is cage a little shake and he'll come out to greet you, I'm sure. I'll get the cupcakes started!"

She never baked cupcakes before, but there was a first time for everything.

"Micah is a lazy one, as I'm sure you'll find out the more you stay here. So lazy, in fact, that I seriously doubt he could work up the sweat to be afraid of you," Gwen said, grabbing all of the necessary ingredients and giving the instruction box a look over. She didn't want Pippin to think her incapable of a simple task, such as baking cupcakes, but she was no chef. Most of the things she made could either be nuked in the microwave or came out burnt, but surely cupcakes could be obtained this evening! She cracked the eggs and poured everything she needed into the bowl, and while they didn't have a mechanical mixer, she'd simply have to do it manually, and that was something Gwen DEFINITELY knew how to do. "But I got this. Just make yourself comfortable. Get all the talking done and out of the way before Maddy comes home."

Speaking of talk, Gwen felt that now was as good a time as any to bombard him with all the questions she had building up in her mind, and she set the over to preheat as she threw the first set of questions at him. "So, I'm a Senshi of the White Moon Court. Is that our moon, or another moon entirely? Did I really come from space? Does that make me an alien invader?"

Gwen didn't want to admit that she might have missed a few words here and there because of her efforts to mix the batter, but she kept eye contact with the adorable little cat and did her best to appear to be paying attention. It wasn't that she wasn't interested in what he had to say; it was simply a lot for her to take in. Especially from a talking cat. That STILL blew her mind, to this very day. It would take a lot of getting used to, that was for sure.

"Right, so, there's some alien bonded with me... here's hoping she doesn't pop out of my chest and starts singing Hello My Baby like in that movie I saw a few years back... good movie, though, but still, terrible way to go." She finished mixing the bowl and handed the ladle to Pippin, offering him something to tide him over as she poured the mix into the cups and put the tray in oven. All the while, she continued with her barrage of questions, setting the timer for twenty minutes. That should have been enough time for the cupcakes, right? "And my job as a Sailor Senshi is to protect the Earth, right? Who am I protecting the Earth from, and why hasn't the government stepped in?"