Welcome to Gaia! ::

Their last patrol had ended with them finding pretty much nothing. Not a bad thing, right? Not necessarily. Finding nothing was good! It meant the Chaos wasn't... well... causing chaos. But that didn't mean they couldn't just not patrol. Besides, Andromeda had learned that having someone patrolling alongside you was actually nice. And Totoro was a good kid. Part of her also felt a strong desire to make sure he stayed safe, if not for himself then for his mother at home.

That, and she'd made snacks tonight. "I felt inspired," Andromeda explained as she handed Totoro a small bag tied off with a ribbon while they walked. It was a soft lavender cloth with painted stars and a bright pink ribbon. Inside were pastel yellow macarons, but instead of being shaped into circles they were shaped into little stars. "I had someone order a Twinkle Little Star-themed cake for their baby shower, and they wanted these cute little cartoony stars on it. And after piping them I was like 'but what if I made them as cookies', and then cookies became macarons. The cookie itself is just vanilla, and the filling is blueberry. Thought a snack might be nice while we're out and about. Also, why not?"

"Thank you! The flavor's pretty simple because I wasn't even sure how they'd turn out. Usually when I experiment with a new shape or design I don't use complex flavors the first time so I don't have to worry about it. What do you think?" She watched him as he took a bite, looking both curious and proud.

At the question of a bakery she shook her head. "I don't, I'm an at-home baker. Best I've got is a tiktok, instagram, and youtube. Started doing it in college when I was in a 'I need a new hobby' phase, and then was like 'oh but I also need a little extra money this month for rent', and it just kind of took off when my subscribers loved watching me learn a new skill." Andromeda took a careful bite of a star macaron from a bag she produced for herself. Yeah, she'd have to get more creative with the flavor next time. It wasn't bad at least. Just not exciting or inventive. "How's your mom?"

His answer had her grinning widely. Listen, kids weren't usually the kind to lie about if they liked something. She was going to call this a w in itself. "Bread? Ugh, I love a fresh loaf of bread. Hopefully I can visit her bakery sometime, I'd love to see what she's got on offer."

Andromeda plucked another cookie from her bag, popping it whole into her mouth right before something had her attention. An energy signature, and it didn't seem friendly. She chewed quietly and stopped walking, looking around in search of the right direction for the source. She didn't see the source yet, but it wasn't far off. "You catch that?" She asked Totoro as she tucked the bag away, stepping closer to Totoro as if subconsciously putting herself between him and whoever was nearby.