Closed A Study in Fashion [Cisel]

[Rosela]

Timestamp: 3rd of Summer, 513AV

Rolling her shoulders, Rosela continued to run backstitches along yet another pair of men’s shorts. She was giving each pair a seam of double-backstitching for extra stability, part of her overall plan for the men’s fashion but taking inordinately long to put into effect. The cotton she used was extra thick, for additional sturdiness, but it was an enormous pain to sew. She had to nearly screw the needle into the fabric to get it to go quickly, and the process was slowly wearing down her patience. Pull the thread through, screw the needle back through, pull the thread again. Double back a space, screw the needle, pull through again.

Stopping once again to crack the fingers on her dominant hand, she glanced at the door. It had been a slow day so far, and she’d taken the opportunity to catch up on the more mundane pieces going off the shelves. It felt like forever since she’d worked on the women’s wear, something she desperately needed to do now that summer had arrived.

An Akontak arrived partway into the morning, and Rosela was happy to put down her work for a few moments. She only wanted a dress off the shelf – she’d been in the day before to browse – and as Rosela was folding the dress for her to take, she saw in her peripheral the door swing open again. Four hands folded the dress evenly, and another waved absently towards the door.

”Welcome to Red Diamond Fashions, I’ll be with you in just a moment…” She called out in a practice speech and turned her attention back to the Akontak. ”If it ends up stretching out after a couple washes, you just come right back and I’ll hem it up for you, okay? Wonderful, have a nice day.” She followed the Akontak to the door to greet her newest customer, a tall redhead. ”Hi there, I’m Rosela. What can I help you find today?” Two hands folded calmly in front of her and another rested on the shelf next to them.

[Cisel]

~ Cisel ~ * Cisel’s sheepskin coat, the good old katinu, was so not the right thing to wear in the summer heat of Riverfall. So why was the tall red haired inarta wearing it ? Why didn’t she take if off, why had she not left it in the inn, and why was it buttoned ? The riverans seemed to never have seen a bare midriff before, was the answer to the questions. She had kept to the traditional clothes of her own people, the inarta, during her journeys to other places in the world. The traiditional clothing was a link to her origins, a sign of who she was, that was how it felt. Beneath the katinu she wore brown bryda, wide flowing pants, nearly looking like a long wide skirt. And to the bryda she of course wore a deep burgundy vinati, generously decorated with embroideries and glass beads, a sleeveless top that emphasized her bust and left her midriff bare. Both garments had been used for a long time, and had seen better days, but albeit they might be a bit worn, they looked worn with style, if you asked Cisel. She too was a wee bit worn, but with style, according to mirrors she happened to see herself in now and then. By now Cisel was 32 years old. Her long hair was as red as it ever had been, and she wasn’t looking old exactly, but you could say she matched the slightly faded colours of her clothes. The exception was the multicoloured scarf braided into her hair. She had bought the scarf this year, to replace an older one. Now she had found a shop : Red Diamond Fashions. Red sounded good. Diamonds sounded good too. Red Diamond Fashion. She opened the door, walked in and waited until the dark six armed beauty working in the shop was ready to speak with her. “I’m looking to buy summer clothes” she said *

[Rosela]

"I'm looking for a particular shirt, I saw it here the other day..."

Recollection stirring, Rosela nodded and clapped a pair of hands. "The green cotton, I remember! I'm so glad you decided to get it; it'll look just lovely with your hair." Gesturing for the woman to follow, they moved to the shirt section. Another patron, a heavily pregnant Konti, walked in as they were moving. Turning back as she moved, Rosela called out warmly, "Welcome to Red Diamond Fashions! Have a look around and let me know if you need any help!" They arrived at the shirts, and Rosela pulled off the green cotton one that she remembered the redhead admiring a few days earlier. Handing it over, she sighed dramatically. "You redheads can get away with all these lovely jewel tones... 1sm, is that okay? Did you want anything else today?"

"Ah, yes. I mean no, I mean... 1gm is good; no, I don't need anything else." The redhead blushed, an odd look against her flaming red hair.

Rosela laughed lightly to brush away the awkwardness. "Ok then, let me just ring you up over here."

As they passed near the Konti, she waddled around to hold up a shirt towards them. "Can I get this taken out a bit?"

"Certainly," Rosela replied without breaking stride. "Just about anything in the shop can." They made it to the back desk and Rosela smiled at the redhead as she fumbled out a silver miza. "Thank you very much, you come on back if you decide you want that matching belt." Bidding farewell with a wide smile, she spent an extra moment at the till, flexing her feet inside her sandals.

[Rosela]

It had been a shockingly busy day thus far, with people coming and going every few minutes. Carefully maintaining her happy demeanor, she chatted aimlessly with the pregnant Konti while measuring her enormous waist.

"I suppose I've become pretty devout since I found out...Twins! Can you imagine?"

"It certainly sounds lucky...The city should name a holiday for you."

The woman laughed heartily, before suddenly stopping and grabbing Rosela's measuring hand. "Did you feel that? Here." She pressed their hands against her belly. There was a moment of silence before they both felt a thump under the firm skin. The Konti broke into a grin that Rosela attempted to mirror. Disquieted goosebumps broke out over her arms and she wondered how long it was polite to hold her hand there before she was allowed to pull back.

"He kicked! Did you feel?"

"Yea, he, uh...strong legs."

"Just like his father."

Rosela offered only a hum of interest in response, marking down the woman's measurements in Arumenic on her sheet. "Well then, that's the last of the measurements, I'll get to work on your alterations today. Come back in..." She glanced over at the pile of clothing folded on her work desk. "Say two days. Just don't pop by then!"

Laughing hysterically, the Konti abruptly pulled her in for a tight hug. Uncomfortable once again, Rosela hugged back vaguely with two arms. "Thank you so much." The woman whispered. "You've been such a huge help."

Stuck in a hug where she was stretching awkwardly over the massive stomach, Rosela could only pat her shoulder softly. "No problem. Come back any time."

[Rosela]

Yawning widely, Rosela struggled to stay awake as she perched at her desk, sewing backstitches slowly. Bolts of cloth were strewn messily about the table, corresponding to the patterns on the shirts she was working on.

In, pull, loop. In, pull, loop... Slowly, painstakingly, she pushed the needle through the fabric, pulled the thread tight, and looped it back around for the next stitch. In her exhaustion, she wasn't nearly coordinated enough to work with two hands, and just threading the needle had taken a concerted effort. The shadow under the desk seemed to be leaving her alone for the most part, and she considered it to be relatively friendlier to her as of late.

"Don't prick yourself."

"Ouch!"

Putting the injured finger in her mouth, she glared at the dark space under her desk. She couldn't hear it, but she had a feeling it was laughing at her.

In, pull, loop.

"Do shadows have children?"

"We're shadows." The reply was curt, and once again, as so often happened, it made her feel slightly stupid.

Rosela pursed her lips and jabbed the needle through the pinned cloth again. "I know that. I mean, how do you reproduce."

"We don't."

"But...hmm." Deciding to give up, Rosela fell into silence, the only sound in the room the slip of the thread against the fabric.

[Elysium]

Rosela

Experience
Sewing +2
Business/Retail +3
Socialization +2
Fashion Design +1

Lore
Sewing: Backstitch
Fashion: Redheads and Jewel Tones
How to Deal With a Pregnant Customer
Do Shadows Have Children?

Notes
You handled this rather well, considering you only got one post in before they vanished! I love how poor Rosela deals with the touchy-feely Konti as well. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message!