#im not sure how old mikotos little sister is but i like to think muu reminds him or her on occasion

[good-beanswrites]

Drabble for anon -- Fashion with Mikoto and Muu! It took a bit to think what sort of relationship/interactions they'd have, but I think Muu would keep things pretty straightforward if they had common ground.

If, several months ago, someone had told Mikoto he’d be sitting side by side with two murderers who’d killed children in broad daylight, he would have laughed at them. If they told him he’d be the guilty one and they’d be the innocent ones, he would have replied that they were crazy. If they told him they’d all be discussing fashion tips, he would’ve walked away from the conversation altogether. 

Yet there he sat with Muu and Haruka, as she chatted about the shoes she’d requested for the boy. The two didn’t seem to think there was anything bizarre about the situation. Mikoto, meanwhile, hadn’t been able to feel any sense of normalcy for a while now. 

“He insists on wearing those ugly pants, but I figured with the right accessories I can dress it up a bit, you know?” She fluttered her hand, flashing perfect nails. Haruka didn’t mind the comment about his pants.

“Yeah…” Mikoto was trying his best to follow the conversation. He watched the wearily, unsure why they’d come to sit with him in the first place. Most of the prisoners had been pretty forthcoming about their fear of him these days. Even now, Haruka stayed completely silent, his eyes flicking nervously to Mikoto every now and then. Not that he blamed them. He was just as frightened of himself.

Mikoto had removed himself from the sessions with the smoking group. He spent more time in his cell than in the common area. He never missed a meal, though. He had to keep his strength up, he would tell himself, though he was never sure what for. 

Well… part of him did know what it was for. That’s exactly what scared him.

“What about you?” Muu asked, cutting off his rapidly spiraling thoughts.

He looked up quickly. “What about me?”

“Are you going to try to style that uniform at all? I thought you were a designer.” She said it with a hint of disgust toward its current state: nearly torn to shreds, featuring patches absolutely filthy from prison grime. But Mikoto felt himself perk up at the words. At least someone remembered who he was. Just a simple designer from the city. A normal guy who was good at normal things, like fashion. 

“I hadn’t put much thought into it, to be honest.” He looked down at himself with a weak smile. “I don’t really know if any sort of outfit is salvageable now, anyway…”

“Of course it is!” Muu looked at him like he was crazy, but not in the way he’d grown used to recently. “You’ll need to go for a specific aesthetic, obviously. Like grunge, or something you could play off of the whole distressed look. But you can definitely do it.”

Though he knew she meant it differently, he certainly did think his appearance was rather ‘distressed’ these days. “I appreciate it, but I don’t know if I’m in the mood for all that.” He couldn’t imagine dedicating any attention to his appearance with everything going on. “I haven’t really… I haven’t felt myself lately.”

“That’s the exact reason to do it.” Muu rolled her eyes. “I thought you went to school for this.”

“Eh? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The surest way to feel better about yourself is to dress your best. There’s a reason depressed people never change their clothes.” 

Mikoto’s face scrunched up. He opened his mouth, but she continued, “I mean, look at Haruka! He’s really come into himself now that he’s wearing something more flattering. I’m sure you’ll feel more yourself once you get something that suits you.”

Growing bored with the topic, Muu returned to talking about her own outfits. 

Mikoto smiled. She may have had a few things backwards, but the suggestion wasn’t a bad one.

“So I was thinking about some lavender earrings --”

“Nah,” Mikoto spoke up, “your hair is such a unique color, sticking with the gold is a good idea.”

“You think?”

“Yeah, and then it’ll coordinate with your uniform, too.”

“Oh my god, you’re right!”

“But I do like the shoes you chose, it’ll be flattering with the whole look.”

“Thank you! Now, what do you think about this skirt…”