Closed Of Pretty Things And Necessity (Rosela)

[Rinya]

Day63 , Season Summer, 513 AV Rinya couldn’t remember if Sylira ever got this hot. Granted she spent most of her time as a bird in a tree when the weather got too hot, but Rinya had grown bored of fishing the bay. It also meant she had a lot of time to think on her hands. And as reluctant as she was to think about clothing, there really was no way to avoid it any longer. Rinya knew well enough that she needed new clothing. Working at the Warren may not be terribly difficult, but it was starting to leave her simple white shirt nearly impossible to clean. She had plenty of Mizas left over from her trip from Sylira, but it was hard to part with… it was the most she had ever held at one time. But it also meant for once, she may actually get to dress like a female. The idea appealed to her more than she would care to admit, after all she always considered herself a bowman first, then a lady. Pushing through the doors to the Red Diamond Fashions, Rinya almost hoped for a respite from the heat today, but being indoors really didn’t help the matter much. Sighing slightly, she pushed her long braid over her shoulders and let her golden eyes take in the shop. It was beautiful, at least to her. Her father never let her dress like a girl, so she really had no idea where to start. The left side of the story certainly looked more like woman’s wear, but she was almost tempted to look at the men’s side too. Glancing down at her... nearly white shirt and black trousers she figured that it might be wise to at least start with the female clothing. Stepping towards the nearest rack of dresses, Rinya let her fingers run gently over the fabrics. They were so soft, she could almost imagine what it might be like to actually wear one of these. Tilting her head a little, she wondered if she might actually have enough to buy more than one. It suddenly seemed like a very good idea, regardless of the costs. She was so distracted by the colors and feel of things, she hadn’t even thought to find someone—anyone—to actually help her out. ”Beautiful…”

[Rosela]

OOCSo, so late, sorry!!

Fanning herself with a discarded design page, Rosela smiled at the Konti fumbling in her purse. A shirt - her purchase - was folded on the desk between them. Rosela was vaguely aware of the front door opening, but before she could call out her usual welcome, the Konti in front of her finally produced a gold miza.

"Aha! Here you go. Thanks for being so patient with me."

"No problem at all. Stay cool out there." Rosela smiled kindly, but had a niggling hope the woman would burst into flames. She had been kind, no mistake about that, but it had been a full bell of switching belts for scarves, back to belts, critiquing the leather quality, and finally haggling on a price that Rosela kept resolutely fixed, if only on principle.

Putting down her makeshift fan, Rosela pushed a few stray hairs from the slick skin of her forehead, and moved onto the woman who had come in. She stopped to lean casually on the corner of the shelf in front of her. She was a brunette human, and Rosela was always glad to have women other than fair-haired Kontis to recommend colors to. Colors...this woman was distinctly lacking, as well as any real femininity. Rosela felt a surge of pity - she'd look just precious in a nice ruffled skirt.

"Hi, welcome to Red Diamond Fashions. I'm Rosela; is there anything I can help you with today?"

[Rinya]

OOCNo worries!

Day 63, Season Summer, 513 AV

Rinya grinned to herself as she sorted through a rack of dresses. Despite being here for the specific purpose of finding alternate clothing, she could hardly imagine herself actually wearing one. But the way the entire store was set up, Rinya felt at ease despite how badly she stood out. Rinya was so busy toying with a beautiful blue dress, she hadn’t realize she had attracted the attention of the owner.

"Hi, welcome to Red Diamond Fashions. I'm Rosela; is there anything I can help you with today?"

Rinya started and whipped around to face the voice behind her. It took tremendous amount of effort not to let her jaw drop. She had never seen an Eypharian before. Rosela was truly beautiful at that. Rinya shifted uncomfortably for a moment before she glanced back the clothing.

”Well… I am new to Riverfall, and for once I’d actually like to wear something—well pretty.” Wincing inwardly, Rinya did not enjoy how timid she sounded. But she was completely out of her element at the moment and it showed. Clearing her throat a little she turned to face the Rosela and gave her a small smile, shrugging her shoulders.

”I do believe you may have your work cut out for you. I’m afraid I am completely lost when it comes to fashion—much less dressing like a woman.” She dearly hoped Rosela wouldn’t be too irked with this point. But really what better woman to learn from?

[Rosela]

As seemed to happen a lot in Rosela's shop, the poor girl seemed to not know what she was doing. Not bothered in the slightest, Rosela waved one of her hands. "Don't you worry about that, that's what I'm here for! Trust me, you're not nearly as bad as some people we've had in here." Several faces, and outfits, immediately came to mind, but she didn't mention them; the girl seemed nervous enough. Rosela really wasn't looking forward to another lengthy sale, but customers who needed a lot of help made the best repeat customers. They also seemed to take easier to upsold items, but that part of course depended on the looseness of their purse.

"So, you're looking for a dress then. If you're not really sure where to start, there's two areas that'll help a lot: figuring out color and cut. In terms of color, you look..." Stepping back and putting a hand to her chin, she ran her eyes up and down Rinya's form. It was an easy assumption that the girl didn't know her best colors, and it was usually where she started anyway.

"You look like a solid-color person. Maybe some simple patterns, some animal prints if you're feeling adventurous, but nothing that'll overpower your face. Something like this," She paused to indicate a dress to her left, a loud, flouncy affair of jewel-toned swirls. "Would be too much for you. Big, powerful patterns are best for say, redheads - someone who naturally has a strong color palette and needs clothes that work with that." Her hands moved animatedly as she spoke, alternatively clasping in front of her and gesturing.

"For you? I'm thinking browns and pastels. Nothing too overpowering, and it'll give your skin a nice glow. Now, what kind of a dress were you looking for? Formal, casual? Something for a nice dinner, or..." She gestured vaguely, searching for an appropriate activity. "Playing with horses? We have a very wide variety, so it's really up to you. Formal wear is more towards the center aisle," she moved to the side to indicate the area. "And casual wear is nearer to the wall."

[Rinya]

Day 63, Season Summer, 513 AV

Rosela would never guess how much Rinya loved her the moment she pointed to a dress that was far to flashy for her taste, and explained that it would not be much of a choice for her. While she could certainly appreciate the work that probably went into the dress, Rinya could never imagine wearing something to that extent. The simple colors sounded very good to her at the moment.

Cocking her head slightly, Rinya glanced between the formal and the casual for a moment. She was probably going to need both in the future, but really this wasn’t a hard choice. Rinya motioned towards the casual wear with easy.

”For now, I don’t really need anything too formal. I was thinking maybe more of a nice cool dress for summer, maybe even wearable into the fall. Nice enough for the festivals coming up, but I don’t really want to attract too much attention either.” Frowning slightly, Rinya wondered if she was asking a little too much. ”Something feminine of course, but very simple too. I’ll build up my boldness as I go.” Rinya made her way over to the more casual clothing and glanced back at Rosela.

”Though if I may ask when helping with colors… please nothing brown,” Rinya tugged at the now off white shirt slightly. ”I end up in the mud often enough, I’m not terribly fond of the color unless it’s just right. But any pastel colors sound just fine to me.”

[Rosela]

"Hmmm..." Rosela hummed thoughtfully as she followed Rinya towards the casual clothes. "So nice, but casual and simple, and no brown." She gave an involuntary glance down at Rinya's current clothing, finding them luckily clean. She'd had mud tracked into her shop on more than one occasion, and few things infuriated her more than the lowly act of cleaning.

There was a creak from behind them and Rosela half-turned to give her standard greeting to the newcomer.

"Welcome to Red Diamond Fashions!"

It was a grizzled Akalak, looking uncomfortably around the shop. "Hey, I'm looking for, uh, oh!" He pointed suddenly towards the men's belt rack. "A belt."

"Great, let me know if you need any help or when you're ready to check out." Rosela turned back to Rinya, a practiced apologetic smile on her face. "Sorry, so... Here we go." She moved closer and picked up a dress near Rinya. "You might like this one. Nice and casual, and linen, so a little more stain resistant than cotton." The dress was pale baby blue, and knee-length. Paler blue panels ran along the v-neck, with slight ruffling at the edges, and the bottom hem of the dress graduated into ruffles, tapering down to a lower right side. "We also have this in a nice lavender, oh, and peach..." She looked down curiously at the stack, one hand flipping through the folded fabric.

The Akalak who'd come in moved to hover anxiously in her peripheral and Rosela looked up. "Ready to check out? Good." She briefly moved her attention back to Rinya. "There's a couple different styles of dressed here; why don't you pick out a couple and try them on, okay?" She moved one hand to indicate the trio of dressing rooms at the back.

Setting the dress back down on the shelf, she moved swiftly to her desk at the back wall, in front of the dressing rooms, the Akalak following in her wake. "That'll be all today?" She addressed the Akalak, who looked as ready to be out of the store as she was to move him along.

"Yea. Just this. Old one broke."

"Oh that's a shame. All my belts are double-stitched for durability, so this one should last you a good long time. 4 silver mizas, please."

He handed the mizas over, and Rosela looked for Rinya immediately after he turned away from the desk, hoping the poor girl hadn't been too intimidated by being left alone with good fashion.

[Rinya]

Day 63, Season Summer, 513 AV

Rinya gently waved off the interruption. If anything, she could certainly understand the need to keep more than one customer happy at a time. Especially since Rinya realized she was more hopeless than she would have thought. Rosela must have nearly unending patience to handle this kind of job. As Rosela held up a beautiful blue dress that Rinya swore it would actually fit her perfectly. The mention of peach however perked Rinya’s taste however. As Rosela flitted off to take care of the Akalak, Rinya took her advice and snagged the dress Rosela had showed her in peach off the rack.

Before Rinya made her way into the back, she noticed an aqua blue high low dress. It was a much fancier than what she was looking for, but it was stunning to her. And probably out of her price range by the look of her fabric. But she snagged off the rack as well. It couldn’t hurt to try it on and ask the price. If anything else it gave her something to work towards. She quickly changed into the peach dress, running her fingers over the material. It was odd, not being in breeches, but interestingly enough she could grow to enjoy this.

The second dress was something Rinya would want Rosela’s opinion on. Brushing the dress gently into place she realized the fabric would indeed cost her if she chose to buy the dress. Stepping out from the changing room, Rinya shyly glanced around the shop, glad to see the Akalak must have finished paying. The front of the dress showed far more leg than she was used to. Tugging on the ends of her hair, Rinya twitched her nose slightly.

”Not sure if this would be a good example of over doing it?”

[Rosela]

There was a moment before Rosela realized Rinya was in the changing room, but when she came out, Rosela clapped happily. It was much less casual than the one she'd shown, but she looked much better in it. Waving her over to the mirror on the back wall, Rosela stood behind her to get the full effect. "It might be fancier than you're used to, but it really isn't that outrageous. Strapless is wonderful for showing off your neck and collar..." With a discreet flick that didn't touch skin, she slipped a few locks of Rinya's hair in front of her shoulders. "And just a little framing of the face will pull it all together." One hand swept back through her own hair to settle a flyaway she noticed in the mirror.

"Now," She moved to Rinya's front, leaning on the wall next to the mirror. "Blues and whites are a very cooling look. Fresh; breezy, you know. Some people," She leaned into whisper 'Kontis' behind a hand. "Get very concerned about looking too pale. I don't think you have anything to worry about, but if you are, we can always try a peach or a pink for a warmer kind of glow."

As if on cue, a young, nervous looking Akalak walked in, holding the hand of a waddling, very pregnant Konti. Her shirt was similar in style to some in the shop, though she seemed to have grown too wide for it. Rosela smiled gave her a friendly wave. "Back again, Liana?"

"I told you I'd be bursting out of this thing by fall. Mind altering a couple shirts? I think I'm going to get a few new ones too."

"Sure thing." The Konti tugged the Akalak into the women's section and Rosela turned back to Rinya with a smile. "Well, what do you think?"

[Rinya]

Day 63, Season Summer, 513 AV

Rinya took a deep breath before following Rosela to the mirrors. The small things Rosela pointed out, the neckline and the color, left Rinya feeling a little stunned. In reality she couldn’t imagine the need to for such a dress, but as Rosela moved her hair across her shoulder she decided it really didn’t matter did it? She liked how she looked.

”I like the blue actually. It’s… not usually something I’d wear, but I’m sure I can find a use for it.” Rinya nodded to herself before Rosela had more customers. Rinya went back to looking at the mirrors, running her fingers over her collarbone before smoothing out the dress again. While she did love the dress, Rinya had only one issue she could think of that could cause trouble for her.

”I love the dress, but uhh… how much is it?” Rinya asked as Rosela turned back to face her. Her eyes however followed the Konti dragging the uncomfortable Akalak around the shop. A Nakivak if she had to guess, but honestly—it was the first time she had seen one. Rhys was always pestering her about accepting such a position but Rinya could never see herself dragging Rhys around for clothing… much less being that large during a pregnancy. Of course, Rhys was not generally someone she wanted to be so... figuratively attached to.

Blinking a few times, Rinya snapped herself out the odd daze and looked back at Rosela, another blushing forming across her face. If Rosela had answered, she completely missed it. Rinya decided to add bad manners to her list of things to improve upon while staying in Riverfall.

”I’m so sorry. I just… I’ve never seen…” Shaking her head a little, Rinya sighed. ”I’ve had an Akalak chasing after me… but it’s the first I’ve seen anyone pregnant with an Akalak child before. How much again?” Rinya smiled sheepishly.

[Rosela]

"That shirt I got last time-" Liana called out over the shop. "Was that cotton or linen?"

"That was linen," Rosela called back. "Linen is better with stains, remember? You were going to get it taken back in after the baby came."

"Oh yea.. See, I told you..." She returned to pestering the Akalak at her side.

Returning to Rinya, she smiled at the often-heard objection. "Oh, everyone needs a fancy dress or two. You never know when you might need to look nice for that special someone..." The girl was cute, but in that kind of innocent way that made Rosela suspect she either didn't know or didn't think about it much. Such a shame; the world would be a prettier place if people were more concerned with how they looked.

The inquiry into price was expected, as well as the small note of trepidation. "All cotton dresses," She waved her hand to indicate most of the ladies' section. "Are 1 gm. How does that sound?" The gesture included where Liana was standing, holding up a baby blue blouse and muttering to the wary-looking Akalak.

"Oo, chasing after you, hm? Is he cute?" A single eyebrow arched upwards and Rosela grinned secretively, always eager for a tidbit of knowledge about her customers. "Just one gold miza, honey." Glancing discreetly back at the pair, Rosela leaned forward towards Rinya, lowering her voice. "That's actually her son; her husband was even more miserable to be in here, if you can believe it. They run the Hall of Stones; have you ever been?"