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Léan shrugged, absently. He wasn't so sure it was a good thing, since he was so used to having his guard up. But, he felt fine, for now, so he had no problem with it. He laid there for a moment more, and then his stomach grumbled. He stared at it, unamused.
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Glory couldn't help but grin.
"Want me to go see what I can find in the kitchen?" she asked. |
Léan's tail flicked back and forth eagerly. "I would like that, yes. But, if you don't want to, you don't have to," he added, taking her opinion into account.
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"I don't mind," Glory said, getting up. "I can go and get the wheelchair, if you want to come with me."
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"I will go with you. That way, I can help pick out food," Léan replied, contently. He seemed happy that he could actually be involved in things on land now, no matter how small they were.
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"Alright," Glory said, getting up and stretching. "I'll be right back with the chair." Going out into the living room, she grabbed the chair from where it was folded up and propped against the empty tank in the corner. As she turned to go back to her room, she saw a pair of envelopes on the counter with her name on them. Grabbing them as well, she went back into her room.
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Léan's curiosity made itself apparent once again when she returned, since he saw the envelopes in her hand. He began to shift himself on the bed so it would be easier to hop into the chair.
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Glory sat back down on the bed and looked at the envelopes. They were obviously cards, probably for her birthday. She recognized Nana's handwriting immediately, but it took her a few moments to realize that the other one was from her mother.
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Léan's tail flicked back and forth, with interest. Cards were not given as gifts for any occasion in his world, so he didn't quite understand this little custom. It confused him a bit.
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Opening the envelopes, Glory grinned when each card had a gift card to her favorite store in it. She figured Nana must have told her mother what store she liked.
"Well, that's nice..." she said. "Looks like I get to go shopping." |
"I see." The hype about shopping went totally over Léan's head. He didn't seem to have any precious belongings, actually, at all. It was so...strange, when compared to a normal human male about his age.
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Glory grinned.
"I like to read," she said. "Used to be that when I had free time, I would read a lot. I can get through a book in a day, depending on how big it is. Both Nana and my mom gave me gift cards to my favorite book store. The gift cards are like money, except it's already been paid, so I just choose what I want and use the card to buy it." |
"The way your society works confuses me," Léan sighed, rolling his eyes. "Using plastic to represent precious metals...even using paper and common metals to represent precious metals...why not just use the precious metals to pay for things?"
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"Humans used to use the gold-standard, and the silver-standard," Glory replied as she put the cards into her wallet. "The metals got harder to find, though, and they were too expensive to work into coins. I think that's why we got into using paper money, and cheaper metals. Then the plastic cards were made because it's easier to carry around one card than it is to carry around hundreds or thousands of dollars, and you're less likely to have one card stolen than you are so much cash."
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Léan rubbed at his temples, idly. "Gah. Far too confusing for me. We just trade goods and precious metals and stones in my world...we don't bother with silly things like that. That is how deficits are formed in government, and cities do not want or need that. They are only as 'rich' as what they have."
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"I used a card to get our movie tickets the other day," Glory pointed out. "I have money in an account that I have linked to the card, so I can draw off of it when I need to. My paychecks from work are deposited directly into the account so I don't have to worry about it myself."
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"It's paper and plastic, not precious metals or gems, or anything..." Léan trailed off, grinning and dropping his face into his hands. "Haha, never mind. I will probably never comprehend it."
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"Precious metals and gems are obscenely expensive," Glory pointed out. "At least, they are up here. I might have one pair of sapphire earrings to my name, maybe a tiny pendant. They're really expensive."
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"Ah, but that's just it. What do you mean by 'expensive?'" Léan pushed. "Expensive according to who? Whoever made your 'money' system was not right in the head." He shook his head a few times. "Ah...I suppose I can't understand, or get my point across. If you ever come with me to visit a city underwater, I can try to show you."
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"Obscenely expensive as in I'd probably have to work for a month to save up for a nice pair of earrings," Glory said. Getting up, she went to her jewelry box and sifted around in it before pulling out a pair of earrings. "These were a gift, so I didn't have to buy them myself, but still, I only wear them for special occasions."
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"See...if I wanted to own something like that..." Léan paused, to think of how to word his explanation. "I would have to find something to trade it for. Basically, we are a society based on trading and nothing more."
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"Yeah, I WISH our system still worked like that," Glory said, putting the earrings away again. Absently, she twisted her ring around her finger. The only time she'd taken it off since he gave it to her was so she could shower. She didn't want it ruined by her shampoo or anything like that.
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"It makes living much easier. Especially for nomadics, such as myself, who do not stay in one place. Then again, we usually don't have many belongings to begin with..." Léan mused. He noticed the ring on her finger and gave an involuntary swishing of his tail as a sign that he was happy she was wearing it.
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"That makes sense, though," Glory said. "I never said our system made sense." Setting the cards on her dresser, she stood up. "Come on, let's go see what's in the kitchen."
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Léan nodded and took a few seconds to ease himself into the wheelchair and pull his tail up around himself. Once he was settled, he placed his hands on the wheels and smiled, ready to go.
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