Multi-Dimensional Merchant System

Lily's eyes were wide with wonder as Oliver led her into what he called an 'electronics retailer'. While she was unfamiliar with the phrase itself, she remembered that he had referred to things like his laptop and TV as electronics- which led her to the natural conclusion that this was a place that sold such items...

But the reality before her was much more than she expected- even after her experience clothes shopping just a few days before.

Entire walls filled with TVs of all sizes, rows of shelves, each lined with laptop after laptop, cell phones of all sorts- even things she had never seen or imagined. Book sized things that looked like cell phones but were labeled as 'tablets', an entire section for the video games that Oliver had mentioned but that she had never seen, and so much more...

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" Oliver said with a soft smile.

Before she could respond, the pair were approached by a man in tan pants and a dark blue shirt- just one of several people in the store dressed similarly, which Lily quickly caught on to be some sort of uniform.

"How are you folks doing today?" The man said with a friendly smile. "My name is Mike; Anything I can help you with today?"

Oliver nodded, a bit impressed by Mike- Lily's height, and beauty, had attracted more than a few looks already, yet Mike didn't so much as blink at the appearance of the statuesque woman.

"Actually, a little bit of help would be good." He said slowly, deciding to test Mike just a bit. "I'm looking to get a gaming PC, and I wouldn't mind a few suggestions."

"I can definitely help with that." Mike said simply, waving for them to follow as he headed for the computer section. "We've got plenty of options on that front: top end models, budget picks, some middle ground..."

"Don't let my words fool you, though. When I say budget picks, I just mean they're easy on the wallet- it's not a comment on the quality." He said, gesturing to a few options. "Pretty much any of them you see can run whatever game you've got in mind, just probably not on max settings."

"If you have a few games in mind already, I can help narrow down the options a bit more." Mike paused next to a particular PC, laying his hand on it. "This is my personal recommendation. Maybe not the newest model, or the most expensive, but it's got what it takes to run just about any game: video card, processor, hard drive space- everything is solid."

"This is pretty much the setup that I have." He said, before lowering his voice to take on a 'just between us' tone. "And, unlike some of the more expensive options, it doesn't have as many problems with over heating. Fair warning, though, the fan can get pretty loud during an intense gaming session- but it does the job it's supposed to do."

A small smile flitted across Oliver's face at Mike's pitch; while the PC wasn't the most expensive in the store, it was almost exactly what he was looking for- and the fact that the guy wasn't just pushing the shiniest and most expensive stuff at him was a point in his favor. "Yeah, this is just about perfect."

"But... let's go ahead an upgrade it to a dual monitor setup. I'm also thinking about getting a joystick, since my daughter is really interested in flight sims..."

"We've actually got some great kits for flight sims that come with a joystick, throttle, and rudder pedals..." Mike threw out, clearly pleased that his recommendation was being taken seriously.

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"Yeah, that would be great." Oliver nodded, before stepping around to the nearby laptops and pointing at a particular model- similar to his, though a bit newer. "And three of these, plus a mouse for each..."

He could already see Mike's eyes shining with excitement- it wasn't uncommon for manager's at stores like this to track employee's sales, and Oliver was definitely boosting the guy's numbers today.

"You mind getting all of that pulled together for us, Mike? We're going to check out the tablets real quick."

"No problem; I'll have it all pulled in no time!"

While Mike bustled off to get their order together, Lily leaned close to Oliver and dropped her voice so she wouldn't be overheard. "These 'tablets'... They look similar to a cell phone..."

"Yeah, they do a lot of the same things." Oliver nodded as he glanced through what was available. "But, then again, there is a lot of overlap between phones and computers nowadays. It basically comes down to screen size and the convenience of a keyboard: You can do most of the same things on a phone that you can on a computer, it's just easier on the computer. Of course, there are some exceptions..."

Lily considered his words as he picked out tablets- four of them, she noticed. As he moved on to another section of the store, she couldn't help but ask. "You are buying a laptop and a tablet for each of us? If they do similar things, is that not a bit excessive?"

"Yeah, maybe." Oliver shrugged, indifferent to the expense. "But having them will make things easier for you and Jal in a lot of ways, and sometimes its just more convenient to use a tablet than a laptop..."

"After this, we're also going to get a phone for each of you; Once you know how to use it, it will make things even easier. You'll be able to call us whenever you need, look things up on the go if you don't know something- even order food if you're hungry and everyone is busy!"

"Actually..." Oliver paused, deep in thought. "That reminds me, we need to swing by my lawyers office. And the bank..."

"A lawyer is a legal professional, yes? Is there some problem-" Lily asked with some concern.

"Oh, no. Nothing like that." Oliver waved it off before taking her hand. "He's just working on the paperwork we need for you and Jal. There shouldn't be any problems; I just need to sign off on some stuff."

Dropping his voice to a whisper, he leaned close to reassure her. "It's mostly the adoption paperwork. I used the Bounty System to get some of the stuff covered, but I wanted him to go over everything to make sure it's legit and that there aren't any problems- that sort of legal paperwork is kinda beyond me..."

"Oh..." Lily said softly, head lowered. "I do not mean to be a burden-"

"You're not, I promise." He cut her off gently, squeezing her hand. "I started planning all of this stuff the moment it looked like you and Jal would be coming with us. Honestly, it was surprisingly easy; I think that there is someone within the government that takes Bounties to do paperwork for the supernatural community or something..."

"It kind of makes sense, thinking about it. I mean, how else could someone like Eve get a new identity if they can't even go out in the sun?" He muttered to himself, before shaking off his musing. "Anyway... Hopefully, he'll have made enough progress on it, and we can hit the bank after."

"Why are we going to a bank?" Lily asked curiously. "I thought you just used that card thing to pay for everything?"

A small chuckle slipped from Oliver's lips as he nodded. "Well, yeah. Kind of. I'll explain debit cards better later, but my plan is to set you up with your own bank account and debit card- with money in it already, of course. That way you'll be able to buy things without asking me or Poli first- within reason, though. My friend's may joke that I'm rich, but we do have limits..."

"Oh, I understand budgeting!" Lily let out a small laugh. "I may not have been expected to rule, but I was still taught about our finances- and I promise to consult with you before I buy things..."

"Truthfully, I know so little about what is available that I wouldn't even know where to start..."

"Don't worry. I'm sure you'll have things figured out in no time." Oliver said, pulling her into a one armed hug. "And, until you do, we'll help."