Reading the Signs

[Lani Stranger]

30th of Fall, 518AV

When she reached Market Day, it was already alive and thriving. Red-haired Inarta wove in between one another in the fluid dance of commerce. Even in such a communal city, wealth was to be used. The Inarta liked their pretty trinkets and any sparkly thing that caught they eyes, similar to the birds. Of course they would take advantage of that, but Lani found herself drawn to the nice little trinkets too. She held her basket in her hand, ready to fill it with the day’s goods, but paused at a glassworker’s booth, eyeballing the little chimes that sung in the wind and glimmered in the sun in the courtyard. She had no need for it, her room had neither windows for sunlight nor wind, but for some reason the mixed blood paused and admired it, as if she was going to purchase it.

In a few ticks, the mixed blood had to drag herself along, looking for a fabrics vendor that could make her clothes. She was generally taller than most Inarta, especially the women, and so she required a little bit of tailoring to get it right. She had also come with a fair amount of southern clothes, which lasted her this long. But she didn’t like feeling out of place in Wind Reach, she was a curious object enough as it was, any clothes that would help her blend in could be a benefit. Lani knew the Wind Reach clothing had special names, she had heard them mentioned every once in a while, however she could not recall what they were. So as she approached the vendor, she slowed, unsure of how to approach asking for the clothes.

Lani paused before entering the proximity of the booth. She recognized it as a clothing and fabric shop, but stood back, squinting at the sign to read the Nari words and see what it said. Felicity's… Fabrics. She thought she knew how the mashup of letters would sound, but she knew she had to sound it out to be sure. Val had made it clear that practice was key, especially when encountering new words. The half-Chaktawe glanced to her immediate surroundings, deciding that she was not too close to anyone for them to overhear, and then she looked back up at the sign, sounding it out loud, testing the words and making sure they sounded somewhat correct, as far as she could tell. ”Felicity's… Fabrics. Felicity's Fabrics.”

Lani was about to repeat the title once more, when someone interrupted her. ”That is the name, but does my lovely shop look very bare to you, dear?” The green eyed woman piped up not too far from Lani, settling the foreigner’s ebony eyes with her own, making it clear she was talking to her.

”…No,” Lani answered slowly, not sure if she understood all of the Nari that was spoken to her, but not trying to offend the woman. She stepped closer, as the Inarta didn’t seem to want to drop her gaze. She wanted clothes anyway, might as well participate in a bit of conversation.

”That’s right. Well dear, my name is Felicity, are you looking for clothing?” The quick and shrill Nari was too quick for Lani, and she raised a single eyebrow in confusion.

[Lani Stranger]

”Slowly, please.” She asked the woman, and watched as the Avora swung around the counter . Lithe pale fingers grasped a silk ruler, and she found her way over to Lani. With a confident touch, Felicity grabbed Lani’s hand pulling her into the shop and away from the crowd. Other than satisfying Narth’s hunger for a lay, touch was not something she had been used to of late, and it set her skin on fire where the Inarta tugged at it. Lani followed willingly, departing from the bustle of the crowd into the clothe sanctuary of the large stall.

”I said,” Felicity leaned in a little bit, smoothing her hand up Lani’s arm to rest on her shoulder, and then spoke slower. ”Would you like me to make you something to wear?” The rate with which she spoke did not feel like being talked down to like Lani was used to, but there was a smokey tone to Felicity’s words which made Lani’s cheeks began to redden. Was Felicity hitting on her?

No, surely not.

”Yes please.” Lani swallowed, surprised that her voice came out more confident than she felt, although she supposed the mask of Nari tended to help her terrible acting.

”Wonderful, let’s get you measured.” The seductive ginger was talking faster again, but she waited for no answer, so Lani figured it wasn’t imperative that she understood what Felicity had said. Before she could do anything, however, Felicity leaned in close to Lani’s face. Immediately the half-Eypharian took a sharp breath in and held it, but did not lean back and away from the Inarta. If Narth was any representation of his people, they were wild folk with little need or ability to hold back. If Felicity was genuinely flirting with her, she would know.

But the Inartan woman made no move, instead Lani felt a flitting across her hips and then a pressure on the small of her back, and Felicity leaned back again, a smug smirk forming on the edges of her light pink lips. A single dimple appeared where the corner of her lips turned up, and Lani let the breath slowly out as she realized that Felicity was measuring her waist with the silk ruler.

”What is your name dear?” Felicity asked, in slower Nari, which Lani understood. She let her shoulder’s drop from their anticipated tenseness, and spoke up to the reply to the woman.

”Lani Stranger.” She answered, a little more breathy than she intended. Felicity was quickly working, pulling the silk ruler from around her waist and straightening it to measure from Lani’s ankle to her hip. She could see the Inarta did not bend her knees as she bent over, and Lani immediately let her eyes wander down the Inarta’s back, past the bit of flesh that showed beneath her cropped top, where the strain of bending over highlighted her spine. The weird flowy pants that the Inarta wore accented Felicity’s behind nicely, and Lani began feeling the burn in her cheeks as she realized this. Attempting to not get caught perving on the seamstress, Lani let her eyes wander up to the ceiling sucking her bottom lip under her teeth and pressing down slightly as if it would stop the blushing.

[Lani Stranger]

Felicity as back up again, grabbing Lani’s arm and guiding it up, so that she could measure from her hip to her shoulder. The Inartan woman was saying something, but since Lani was busy trying to distract herself, she didn’t hear or understand the words, until she recognized her name.

”Hmmm?” The half-Eypharian looked back down at the woman, and Felicity raised a single eyebrow, the mischievous smirk back on her lips.

”I asked,” Felicity spoke slowly, watching Lani’s gaze with intention, managing to look the half-Chaktawe directly in her pupil. ”Where you got these strange clothes from, Lani.” The tone was less of a question, and more of a playful accusation, and Lani stopped biting her lip, releasing a shaky breath into a chuckle and grinning.

”Alvadas.” She answered, feeling Felicity’s nimble fingers draw behind her rib cage, wrapping the silk across her chest and binding it close to her breasts. Again the Inarta was speaking, but Lani wasn’t paying attention, trying to focus on the mossy green gaze of the Avora instead of what her hands were doing.

”Lani?” Felicity repeated, and Lani raised an eyebrow, releasing her bottom lip again, as she had managed to start chewing on it once more.

”Hmmm?”

”Are you paying attention?” No.

”I do not speak Nari well,” She repeated the phrase she knew, trying to show some excuse for her terrible behavior.

”Would you allow me to borrow these so that I can assess their styles, next market day of course.” Felicity asked in slow Nari, and while Lani didn’t understand the words completely, she understood the gist of what the woman was saying. Unwilling to speak and let her voice betray her. She nodded to the woman, who only then released her chest from her binding grasp.

”Good, now do tell me, are you on the typical Chiet budget? Or am I allowed to spoil you, Stranger?” Felicity stepped back, turning to retreat to a hard surface in the shop. Her flowy Inartan pants hugged her hips tightly, and she spun then, pressing her hand to a parchment that rested on the flat surface. Felicity then scribbled Lani’s measurements on a paper with charcoal. The Nari was fast, and it took the foreigner a tick to digest it, but she understood the gist of what was being asked of her.

Lani had never been very good at hiding herself when she wanted something. Acting was not yet a strong point of hers, and at the moment, the Chiet lusted after the competent Avora, who had a way with words… and fingers.

”Spoil me.” She flipped the Inartan words, hoping that she was saying what she intended, because she said it in a slightly husky tone, focusing her black gaze on the woman, and daring her to misunderstand. The hint of a smirk that had lit Felicity’s face all night exploded into a full on grin. Lani took it as encouragement, and took her own few steps further into the shop, leaning on the counter that Felicity rested on, letting her face fall close to the woman’s. Lani was in control of her own breathe now, and leaned in close enough so that she could smell Felicity’s whose seemed a little deeper than it had been ticks ago.

[Lani Stranger]

Mossy green eyes followed her actions, and Lani felt the encouragement of the lack of denial of her actions. She had no words to form what she wanted to say to the woman. If you show me what your fingers can do, I’ll share mine with you. The cheesy pick up line popped through her head. Or the simpler: If those clothes look that well on you, I’m sure they accent the floor beautifully. Or even: If you want to study the design of my clothes, you’ll have to take them off me yourself. But her Nari was not strong enough to communicate any of them, which was likely a positive as it saved her some guaranteed embarrassment. Instead the Chiet settled on her shoulders, far too close to the Avora, and she reached a single hand up to push a curly red lock behind her ear.

”Can I spoil you?” She settled on the simple Nari phrase, throwing Felicities words back at her, although the connotation was clear as day in her words. The language barrier did not hide the other signs that she was giving this woman, hoping that her own daring nature was to be rewarded. The smug smirk that had grown into a wide grin exploded into laughter.

Lani’s heart sank immediately as Felicity leaned back and threw her head back, howling in high pitched amusement. Lani straightened up immediately, her cheeks burning up, and her throat closing with embarrassment. She crossed her arms over her chest, fearful of why the Inarta was reacting this way. ”You, hahaha, you didn’t think,” The Inarta wheezed between giggles, leaning forward now, trying to fan herself to calm down. ”You didn’t think I was hitting on you?” She pointed at Lani, who took two steps back as if the finger was warding her off. ”You?” The last Nari word was accusation, and Lani took two more steps back. She had made a mistake; she had made a huge mistake. The half-Eypharian did not give Felicity a chance to sober up.

Lani was no longer worried about clothing or getting anything at all on this Market day, and immediately spun on her heels, and sped out of the stall. Embarrassments clung to her throat, making it difficult to breath and pricking her eyes until they leaked salty tears. Once she was far enough away, the half-Chaktawe began to run, trying not to look any Inarta directly in the eye, as they watched the emotional retreat of the foreigner from the market place. It was a mistake, Felicity was a saleswoman, not interested in the likes of her, and she had just embarrassed herself beyond belief, to a point that she would have to find another clothing vendor if there was one, or remain in these southern clothes until she left Wind Reach, unable to ever return to Felicity’s shop.

Word Count: 2,115

[Ssezzkero]

Observation +4, Socialization +4, Seducation +2, Wind Reach: Market Day, Market Day: Usually held in the Courtyard of the Sky, Location: Courtyard of the Sk, Using clothing to help blend in, Location: Felicity’s Fabrics, Felicity: Flirtatious, Seduction: Women, Daydreaming about Felicity, Seduction: Don’t use the cheesy pick-up lines, Seduction in another language, Felicity: Not at all interested