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Tweak says, "Do you know the muffin man?"

Vedette Niveue-Uthral (in_the_service) wrote in caeleste,
@ 2011-04-12 13:17:00

Entry tags:

onainat sjorl, vedette uthral

stolen hours (onainat)
There were wide open markets in Faustben, with every ware a man could have on open display. Stalls of all assorted colors lined the streets, with smells of warm food and warm ales. With chilled wines piled in long troughs meant for horses water, but instead filled with ice and snow from the mountains, where the wines were set in beautiful glass bottles of all sizes and shapes. Vedette stayed a few paces behind Onainat and watched the woman carefully. Her new friend had what Vedette liked to call fast hands. She'd turn something over and have it up her sleeve before someone could bat an eyelash, and there would be an ugly coin or a rock of somesort in the thing's place. Vedette had enough money with her to pay for more than dresses, but she certainly didn't have enough to buy everything Onainat would have an eye for.

The other dragon seemed to have an eye for shiny things.

Shiny things which cost money, which Vedette did not have the money for. At least Onainat seemed happier out in the market with all the smells and sounds of the county. Vedette had one eye on her and the other eye on the three guards who were keeping an eye on them. Patiently staying behind them a good ten paces at any given time, still, they were there. Which made Vedette think that Ithacles had kept his promise thus far. He had not told anyone what she was, which meant he had to send guards with her and Onainat just in case someone tried to murder them out here away from the castle. Good, and annoying. She could take care of anyone who tried to harm her or her friend here in Faustben. Vedette knew every narrow alley, every shadowed corner stall. She knew the mountains like she knew the back of her hand. Faustben was such a small part of that, and she knew it all. But here they were.

Looking for dresses.

"What color dress were you thinking of getting?" Vedette asked politely. Vedette already knew what she wanted her dress to look like. Or what she'd need it to look like, if she wanted to be anywhere near Ithacles at this party. It'd have to be something, considering she did not have her job back. And damn him for inviting her to this ball, but not inviting her to go question the prisoners. She wanted it to be normal. Anything normal. She was sick of abnormal, and sick of this hollow feeling in her chest. It had yet to fill with anything, but would it, so soon? She had never really let Koe go and now she had to, had to. If she wanted to function normally.

What was stranger, and maybe Koe had been right all along, that this Prince meant something more to her than she said, but when Ithacles was in the room and speaking to her she forgot all about that hollow feeling in her chest. But was that fair to Koe's memory? To how much she loved him? To simply forget that he was dead when Ithacles was alive and looking her in the eye? With his silly hair, and serious face? With his drinking problems and the memories of how sweet his kisses could taste after he'd been smoking a pipe?

It was wrong. Especially with Onainat right there.

"I'm thinking white, for me. But then I normally wear white dresses. Maybe I should pick another color."

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gatheringsongs
2011-04-13 12:28 am UTC (link)

Onainat rolled a grape along her gloved fingers before popping it into her mouth. Twelve silvers for a bag of grapes was a bit high, but this was the mountains and if she was going to pay for anything it might as well have been good fruit. Besides it did not take much to get free samples from the food stands. She'd already tasted boar, lamb and pheasant at least twice each. When she paused by one of the wine stands, more to inspect the pretty bottles than the actual wine, the vendor offered her tastings almost immediately.

Faustben wasn't so bad for being so cold. And even the cold had served her well. She had quite a collection of shinies underneath her long coat from the shops she and Vedette had already visited. She had plenty more room for souvenirs. The thought made her wonder if Skandra ever got around to buying her a shiny shirt or if Aeotha was still eating candy or if Leironuoth was still as invincible as he believed...which made her think of why she'd gone to Agethlea to begin with and...

Well, clearly thinking was bad. She placed her bag of grapes in the ice with the wine bottles for a moment and collected the various tasting cups, downing each different kind in a steady line.

"They all taste great!" she chirped to the astonished vendor. She picked up her grapes. "Thanks!"

She turned back to Vedette and laughed, but her blond friend seemed far away. Onainat wondered if her mind was stuck back in the castle, in the dungeons with the traitors and the black circled questions that would hang from the ceilings like iron. Oh, Onainat remembered interrogations. She'd watched plenty of people interrogate other people. More often than not, it was the snakes that got the best answers. Not the soldiers. Not the man with the hot iron. She didn't want to be there. She wondered why Vedette did.

"I don't know what color I want, I haven't been thinking about dresses at all really. I will know when I try them on," Onainat admitted breezily. "Maybe you should go with white, if you look best in it. There's nothing wrong with having a favorite color. A princess once told me that colors bended to her beauty and not the other way around. But she looked terribly ugly in red. Not that I could say that, you know, because I didn't want to be wearing red afterward."

She looked over Vedette's shoulder and waved at the guards who had been following them. She held up her bag of grapes and pointed to them, seeing if they wanted any. Their stone faces said 'no'. Too bad.

"So where do we go for fancy threads in this place?"

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in_the_service
2011-04-14 05:38 am UTC (link)

Vedette opened her mouth to object to Onainat's swift drinking of the samples, but it was too late. She drank them all and then moved on as if the man were simply offering her the drinks because she was pretty. Vedette really had no real idea where Onainat was from, or if this was Koe's rearing that taught her such things, and it wasn't her place to argue for or against such things. Her new friend was just different. Ithacles could have gotten away with such a thing, and it was only because Onainat was pretty and there were soldiers following them that the man did not call after them as thieves or worse. Vedette let out a sigh and decided that she might need a drink or three before the day was over in order to keep up.

"White is just a color I'm used to. That or silver, given.. certain aspects of myself." She kept her voice low. "But I did always like dark blue, too. I wouldn't really know what I look best in because I've never asked anyone. I simply wore what was required or ordered of me since.. since a long time ago." Vedette kept moving.

There were many more stalls and things to look at, but where Vedette was heading was not exactly a stall. It was a store that she knew of and a tailor she visited when she needed to over her long years. To make her uniform lighter. Her dresses were normally bought through this particular shop because.. well, they always had been. She thought because the tailor was quick and didn't ask questions. Or maybe he didn't ask questions because of how much she, or the King had paid for such things.

"I know a shop. A tailor. He has many examples and with a fitting can make sure the dresses fit us in time for this party. Given that we didn't really have that much notice we need someone who can tailor such things fast. I mean, here, there aren't exactly hundreds of dresses made of fine silks at our beck and call. We're too far away from places that supply such things. For the right price, however, I think we'll get something nice enough.. I mean, not that I'm trying to impress anyone. I was rather set on leaving." Vedette grumped.

"Can I have a grape?"

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gatheringsongs
2011-04-15 03:16 am UTC (link)

The bag of grapes was offered to Vedette after Onainat stuffed a handful of them in her mouth. Listening to her friend ramble on about dresses was fun, but not because she was picturing what color would look best. Vedette had a lot of honesty inside of her snow-loving soul, but she was always denying what she admitted not moments before. She wasn't trying to impress anyone? She was set on leaving? Onainat nearly choked on the grapes in her mouth when she laughed.

"Sthure 'ou are," she managed to say, rolling the fruit around in her mouth so she wouldn't die.

A few children on the street had started walking alongside them. Onainat figured this was more because of her than anything else. Children felt a strong kinship with people who acted like them. Onainat was not ashamed to bring a little life to Faustben's streets. Vedette was too reserved, too worried. Maybe Onainat should have been more like her?

Nah.

She tossed a grape to one of the girls who caught it with quick hands. Maybe they were little pickpockets. The thought brought a smile to Onainat's face and she gave them more grapes. Maybe she'd manage to keep them along, as company. It wasn't often she collected children. And if nothing else could save the world, perhaps it would be fruit.

Onainat swallowed. "We don't need hundreds of dresses. I just want something that flows about, holds the light prettily and has shinies embroidered somewhere... it also has to stand the spin test. Any good wearer of dresses knows this. We'll probably find the dress that makes the Prince fall in love with you this way!"

She looked at the children and winked.

"You'll like the spin test."

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in_the_service
2011-04-18 07:56 pm UTC (link)

Vedette popped a handful of grapes into her mouth at once, which was entirely greedy, but Vedette was starving. Onainat kept eating everything they were offered and drinking everything they were offered. She was also stealing things and leaving less valuable baubles for the people who needed the money desperately. Oh she paid for the grapes. Vedette wanted nothing more than to pick a poor dress, let Onainat have fun, and return to the castle to sulk. Instead here they were. Walking about Faustben with children on their heels. Probably trying to steal from them. Vedette had no problem with children, she didn't even have a problem with them robbing her blind. of course they couldn't right here and now, they couldn't reach where she put her money. And they were distracted by Onainat giving out food.

Vedette had done that before. Many times.

She'd seen Ithacles do the same.

Augh.

"Stop saying that so loudly. I don't want that, don't say that so loudly. I loved.." She couldn't finish the sentence. She loved Koe. She loved Ithacles. It was so complicated.

"He's a prince, I'm not even a Captain any longer, anyway. He's meant to fall in love with a Princess or at least some kind of nobility. We're just going to find dresses for this party because we've been asked to do so."

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gatheringsongs
2011-04-19 12:38 am UTC (link)

Onainat slowed down when Vedette latched on to the word love and ran with it. She felt bad suddenly, as she remembered the way the younger dragon looked at her father and how hollow Vedette had been when they were carrying his corpse to what-was-Clhen. Onainat remembered the way her father had looked at Vedette too. Those were brief and happy moments, but they were also gone. The images were quick and did not linger because Onainat did not want to linger on them. This guilt was a foreign thing...because she had learned too much. Because it was wrong to feel guilt now, after everything.

"There's no reason to get all defensive and make this all dull and boring," Onainat said. She passed more grapes to the children and frowned lightly when she noticed there wouldn't be enough to go on another gobbling spree. "You weigh yourself down with so many things that sometimes I think you'll sink through the ground and drown."

Onainat could see the tailor's shop they were walking toward. She had already decided to be extravagant and beautiful, to roll through Faustben like a spring storm and have no regrets about anything. Not about her behavior or who she helped. She was alive! And her father was dead. Sometimes, the idea of Edrac and his shop that contained the stars interrupted Onainat's determined streak of irresponsibility...

"Love's not a big fan of logic," she said, interrupting her own thoughts. "I don't think it likes fate either, but I've never asked it personally. But you don't want to talk about Love any more?"

A glint came to Onainat's eye. She shrugged.

"Following orders. Okay." Onainat gave a brief salute that was mimicked by the children who giggled. "Well, I could do worse than to be a lady for a night and play nicely in metered dances. It's been a long time since I was a guest instead of the hired help."

Onainat didn't know how well she would behave as a guest. She'd pretended to be nobility before. It wasn't difficult. She knew this would not be like a celebration at a caravan, but she wished it was.

"But I won't give up on the idea of stealing gazes and spoons. If there is to be finery, then there must be fun. How many people would love to go to a ball?"

The children with their grape stained hands raised their arms up in the air. Onainat laughed.

"See? Perhaps we should all have dresses."

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in_the_service
2011-05-05 01:58 am UTC (link)

"All of them?" Vedette asked in a quiet disbelieving sort of voice. How was she ever supposed to pay for all of them to get dresses? there was a lot of little girls there.

Vedette opened the door for all of them regardless and immediately there was a handful of waiting attendants. Vedette looked at Onainat for a moment. "It's just easier." She shrugged and continued inside after them all.

She gave a look around.

"Well you are the dress expert, aren't you, Lady Onainat?"

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gatheringsongs
2011-06-08 09:29 pm UTC (link)

ady? Dress expert? Onainat giggled. She rarely wore dresses, but she watched plenty of other people who did. Walking into the shop with a bunch of poor children was not the way things were usually done, but she ignored the worry in Vedette and the concealed irritation of the attendants. She liked having the children around, they lightened her mood, and as far as Onainat was concerned she could do what she liked. Charity was wrapped around her spirit today.

The racks were sparse but filled with fine examples made by the shop's master. She ran her fingers idly along a work of dark green silk. The air smelled sweet with white tea flowers that sat on the center table. Their large bulb vase only barely kept the flowers contained -- their long stems slightly bent outward to shower over the mahogany. The lighting of the shop was bright and harsh in contrast, as if to suggest the tailor did not want to hide even one detail of his work.

Onainat kept walking down the row of dress and glanced back at her little guests, who had lined themselves up in front of Vedette. The children wore their respect for the ex-Captain mockingly, occasionally making faces when her eyes wandered away from them and their quick hands.

"I think you should stay away from white. There's enough white in Faustben for the next thousand years -- maybe something with a rich color," she said. "The whole point of buying a gown is to show off right? White doesn't seem like a flashy enough color. Sometimes I think nobility is like a bunch of birds who trade their feathers out for fame."

"Pink!" said one of the children with a toothy grin.

Onainat giggled again.

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in_the_service
2011-06-09 03:50 am UTC (link)

Vedette made a noise in her throat of disgust. Pink and her did not get along very well. She hated the idea of wearing a color which was not already a part of her. White, Silver, or Blue. But if Onainat really wanted to see her make a fool of herself in some other color she would do it. Anything to make her happy. She knew that Onainat had to be feeling worse than Vedette herself felt.

Had to be.

But not pink.

"What about blue? I don't have a problem with blue. No pinks or reds. No bronze." Vedette didn't want to be reminded of some other things.

"I've worn yellow before, and black, Faustben's colors, but then I'm no longer in the army so I think we can skip those colors." Vedette pressed her hands together behind her back and tried to keep herself very still. The children seemed to be amused either way.

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gatheringsongs
2011-06-20 02:25 pm UTC (link)

Blue wasn't as descriptive as it should have been in the host of silks, so Onainat narrowed down the choices herself. She was no noblewoman. She did not often go to anything but gypsy parties and taverns as a guest. Still, she was likely the closest thing the country had to a bard at the moment. Onainat had to be able to give advice and she was glad that Vedette played along. There were already several opportunities where she could have ruined Onainat's fun and didn't.

It was with a sense of ease that her fingers found Vedette's dress. The fabric was without the stiffness of taffeta, but held more backbone than silk. The color reminded Onainat of where the sea touched the northern coasts, the deep turnbull blue that was cast as far as the horizon when the sun lowered itself to the moon. The skirt was a layering of textured fabrics, which seemed transparent until one realized the color in them was too endless to see through. The skirt seemed like many skirts and shifted like waves. The bodice was embroidered with silver and bits of lapis lazuli and rose from the waist as the tail of a beautiful bird; the dressmaker dyed silver pheasant feathers and had sewn them to give the neckline no definable line. The sleeves skated off the shoulder in the same way the skirts might move across the legs, being daring enough to further expose the neck while covering the arm to the wrist.

Onainat liked the dress because of the memories she had of the sea. But she was not possessed of Vedette's fair hair or the truer blue of her eyes. Vedette had the sort of spirit that could hold a darker sense of the sea. The sort that glimpsed beneath the surface, where less light fell.

"What do you think? It's not pink, but..."

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