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There was no use in living in denial or ignorant bliss any longer, Gwendolyn Caspian thought bitterly to herself, but at least her sister had allowed her to go school shopping on her own, though it was no easy feat in convincing her to allow it. And after everything that Gwen, or rather her true identity as Super Sailor Tsui, had been through and the various injuries that she had suffered ever since achieving her new rank, she was surprised that Maddy would allow her to go to the BATHROOM by herself.

'Maybe Maddy isn't as over protective as I thought? Or maybe she's just stopped caring?' Gwen thought to herself, dragging her feet as she moved about the ValueMart shopping center, shifting from one aisle to the other with a already full basket in one hand and a list of supplies with her bandaged hand. As trivial as this was, she would have much rather take on another Negaverse general than go back to school. Maybe not the General-King himself again, but just a general. Or anyone from Chaos, to be honest.

'I bet Chaos is the one running the show in schools... they have to be.' It was a silly and naive thought, but it was there, nonetheless, and it cheered her up a little. Now she needed paperclips... but they were a few aisle back! Curse her luck!

It wasn't completely unlikely that someone would address her, ask where certain items were in case they overlooked them and needed a keener eyes, and most of the time Gwen was always willing to help out. Even now she was willing to help out, though the question caught her completely off guard, so much so that she almost broke into laughter. Almost.

And a damn good thing she didn't, as she was certain that the motion of it would have sent spasms of pain in her bad wrist, as she explained. "Sorry, I don't work here. I doubt they'd hire me anyway, as they think my birthmark is a tattoo and those aren't allowed, supposedly."

She never applied for a job here, per say, but she had been turned down before, despite how she explained that it was a birthmark and not, in fact, a tattoo, but she was certain that there had to be a deeper reason for that. She didn't take the rejection to heart; just meant less money to spend, which is what brought her here. She looked at the item she was holding out and made a face, before motioning with her bandaged arm to the next aisle over. "Paperclips? I think I saw a few of them on the next aisle; probably in the wrong place because someone was too lazy to put it back."

Gwen tried not to judge, but what would someone want with so many paperclips? Was she a teacher? She looked too young for that. And she couldn't help but think back to the encounter with the Negaverse lieutenant that had the nerve to throw a paperclip at her face, though it felt like such a long time ago. 'Man, I think I have hate issues... I can't remember anything important, but I remember THAT clear as day.'

Gwen was willing to admit to the occasional mistake; they did happen all the time, after all. But to be implied that she was lazy, by a complete stranger, no less, that was enough to straighten out her polite smile and make her eyebrow twitch. However, this stranger at least seemed to be aware of her the insult and was apologetic, so Gwen was willing to let bygones be bygones. It wasn't as though she'd see this person again once she left the store, right?

No point in holding a grudge over it. She was far too young and had much more things to worry about that holding a grudge over that.

Then she started her complaining about paperclips, and Gwen could immediately sympathize. She needed some as well, and she figured that this girl would likely need all the supervision she could get and maybe an extra set of eyes as well. 'What's with the paperclip fetish? Oh well, maybe she's a collector... or has a LOT of papers she needs to turn in?'

"Maybe make a hat with it? Or a lasso? OH, or a purse!" Gwen figured that'd be a good use for paperclips, though she'd personally make chainmail armor with paperclips, assuming she ever had the money, time, or patience. She motioned for her to follow, as she ducked out of the aisle and moved towards where she saw them again. "I need some as well. Maybe they're at the highest rack? I could climb up there and get them if you give me a lift."

Gwen was willing to help anyone, for anything. Even if that person might have unintentionally insulted her... Gwen was a very helpful and forgiving person when she wanted to be.

Gwen was as foolhardy and confident as they came, and she scoffed at the very notion of being dropped. She was a gymnast, trained to maintain her balance at any given situation, and, outside of that and more secretly, she was a Sailor Senshi, and given her sphere being that of a tiger, she figured she had everything worked out when it came to falling and recovering. "I'm sure you'll do just fine. Besides, it may be a little fun."

She backed away a few steps, looking up at the highest shelf and judging just how much speed she'd need and how high she'd have to jump, in case her cohort either backed out or wouldn't provide enough lift. She had every faith in her, however, and she ran forward at her prompt, carefully placing a single foot in her cupped hands using that, and the floor, to propel herself upwards. It was a quick and fluid motion, worthy of that of any gymnast, and she grabbed onto the shelves with little effort, landing her feet on the shelves below and getting a clear shot of the top.

"Woah, there's a lot of dust up here... you'd think they would stack things so high, given it's the school section and there's a lot of kids running around." Gwen called down to Marybeth, looking this away and that for any sign of paperclips. She was no germaphobe, not by any stretch of the word, but even she felt the need to grab a swiffer. "Unless kids nowadays are giants. Hey, I think I've found something..."

She scooted over to reach it, looking like a monkey scaling a tree, and by the time she reached the box, she was fighting the urge to sneeze. No, sneezing at this position would have been bad, very bad, and she was certain that she was going to catch some employee's attention if she brought the entire aisle crashing down. Serves them right, to stacking things so high!

"I... I got it..." Gwen said, her nose wriggling and grabbing the box, and when she pulled it close to her eyes to see what it was, she could no longer hold it in anymore. She gaze a loud, almost ear busting sneeze, and the jerking motion caused her foot to slip from the shelf. She, and the box of paperclips, went tumbling backwards and down. "YIKES!"

Gwen was more than prepared for her a** to hit the ground at full speed and probably break her hip, back, or tail bone, but she was equally surprised when Marybeth made the save and gave her slightly more comfortable landing. It still hurt, of course, but it certainly spared the young girl from a trip to the hospital, and she could only hope that she didn't hurt her savior too much.

She looked back at her, immediately scuttling off of her and giving her room to breathe as she bobbed her head up and down. "I'm okay! I usually take nastier falls then that, but then again, the floors are padded and soft. Are you okay? I didn't hurt you too bad, did I?"

In response to her other question, Gwen looked at the device that got her into this mess, and she was surprised that it didn't break open during the fall. No explosions of brightly colored paperclips, at least, and she hoped that would have been a suitable replacement for landing on her as she handed it over to her. "Yup, all intact. Are these the right ones?"

She hoped so. She wasn't sure if Marybeth or her luck would allow for a second mess up in one evening.

Gwen wasn't startled easily, and while she was certain that she was going to have a few bruises in the morning, she wasn't really going to pay them any mind. She was just happy to be of use, whether it be as a Senshi, or a boring old civilian, so what were a few bumps and bruises to her at the end of the day so long as she made someone's day easier?

"Maybe one of the employees was saving it for themselves and they thought that'd be the best place to hide it?" Gwen suggested, not sure how close she was to the truth. When Marybeth introduced herself, she returned the favor in kind, offering her a hand to shake. "Gwendolyn, but everyone just calls me Gwen. Nice to meet you, Marybeth... anything else I can get for you while I'm here?"