Who: Thalia/Joanna and Aphrodite/Carmen What: Thalia is going to check out Erato's work Where: Aphrodesia When: September 28th - afternoon Warnings: None
Thalia had not been able to check out Erato's window before, she knew she had promised her and also Polyhymnia but she just had been a bit more busy then she had expected to be. Not that she minded being busy, she actually loved it but it usually meant that she had to use to do lists to not forget a single thing.
She almost bounced up to the window that she knew her sister had made and smiled a very big and very proud smile. Of course it was more then perfect, it was made by a muse after all!
Every day saw more of the shop filled. Now, instead of looking like an empty warehouse, there were colors of lacy fabrics hanging on racks, slipped over mannequins, and placed on small racks by displays. Most of the work had been done by the hires, scheduled to come in later that evening for talks of the big opening night party, which happened to be the one thing that Aphrodite was actually doing herself. At the moment, she was searching for the perfect caterer in Miami but finding someone willing to serve in a lingerie boutique was proving a difficult task.
With a sigh, she backed away from the counter quickly. The moment of unhappiness was going to have to fixed quickly and she had started to head into the dressing room when she noticed the woman outside her shop. Apparently people in Miami did little more than stare. Walking over to the front door, she propped it open by leaning against it with a pleasant smile. "Something catch your eye?"
"I was just looking at your very nice window display." Thalia returned the smile with one worthy of the Muse of Comedy. "I know the artist and she told me to check it out." She looked back at the window, it was so very Erato that she couldn't help but smile at it. She loved her sisters so very much and it was nice to see things they created.
"Is Val a friend of yours?" she asked politely, though by the way her eyes went up to the sky, she was obviously posing the question to be polite.
For a moment she wondered if she should be honest and tell this nice lady that Val was her sister but she didn't know if that would make life difficult for her fellow muse, "Yes, we are really close." She looked back at the beautiful lady, "are you the owner of this shop?"
The slow smile that spread when attention was brought back to her was the only sign she was drawn back into the conversation. "Yes, it is," she said, beckoning her towards the door. "You're free to come in if you're interested." Pushing off the door, she headed inside, expecting the other woman to follow.
"I would love too." Which woman would not want to see inside a lingerie store that isn't even officially open yet? She followed the lady inside, "My name is Joanna." She introduced herself as she looked around the store wondering if she could find something fun and quirky, she loved quirky!
"Carmen Summers," she said, standing in the middle of the shop before she was focused on the new face once more. It intrigued her to see the woman looking so interested in the clothing. "What's your fancy, Joanna? I have it all."
Thalia turned to face Carmen. "It is very nice to meet you Carmen." She smiled again unable to keep her power to drift out on the air around her. "I like silly and quirky things." She looked around the store once more.
"I would hardly consider lingerie silly or quirky," she said, moving over to a mannequin. The pose she held was very similar to the slim, pale body of the plastic display. Her hand was loose on her hip, head turned up to admire the magenta basque. "Unless you have a use for it that I was not aware of," she added with a smile.
Thalia smiled in an apologetic fashion, "I don't want to suggest that lingerie is silly or quirky but I meant that I prefer fun things." It wasn't easy to explain without telling the lady that she was the muse of comedy, not that she thought the woman would understand or even believe her. "I just like fun."
"Fun I do very well," she said, much more interested than before. "Have a look around the shop, tell me if anything interests you."
"Are you sure? I can wait until you are officially open." Thalia tried to make that sound believable but was failing to hide the excitement she felt at checking out all the nice lacy lingerie.
"Oh please, I don't have to be open to make a sale. Go ahead, enjoy. The dressing rooms are in the back," she motioned to the area where one of the small stages was located. "And if you need a second opinion, I can offer my expertise," she said with a pleased smile. "Go, look around," she shooed her towards the closest rack.
Thalia was not going to let this chance slip to her fingers, this was going to be so much fun too bad she would not be able to share this with Mel. Maybe she would take her sister here next time, she was sure Nick would not mind. She started to look through the racks with beautiful fabrics and lace. "These are so nice." She said to the world as a whole.
Returning to her computer, Aphrodite gave the woman time to look on her own while she tried again to find a caterer. Sighing as every search she tried came up empty, she decided to ask discretely for help. "What do you know about caterers in Miami?"
"I don't know very much about it, but I know someone who might." Thalia thought about Hades first and then realized that her father might know too. "I actually know two people who could help, do you want me to check it out for you?" Yes, Thalia was a very helpful muse.
"Could you? That would be wonderful!" Her mood changed drastically, elated by the offer. "Tell them I'll pay for anything and everything they need and if they do a good enough job, I'll throw in a bonus," she added, knowing the money was a good way to get a deal.
"I will." Thalia was sure that her father or uncle would know the perfect caterers, maybe even more then one so that Carmen would be able to chose. "Is it for anything special?" A caterer for a party would be different then a caterer for a lady's luncheon, or at least she thought it would be.
"Opening night party," she said simply, turning away from the computer. "For the shop. Just enough food for three hundred, maybe four? I don't know," she said, tapping her chin gently. "Well, here, give them my card so they can call me," she said, setting down a few cards on the counter for her to take before she decided to leave.
While checking out a very nice and very red lingerie set Thalia got out her card too. "How much do you ask for this set." She took it off the rack and held it up to see if she could afford something this extravagant on an ordinary day.
"Tell you what, try it on and make sure it fits. If it looks nice enough on you, you can keep it," she said with a wink. "As payment for saving me from a lot of work."
Thalia would have said no if it had been just a gift but because Carmen said it was a payment she thought there was no harm in taking a gift. "I'll try it on right away." She put her card on the counter near the other woman before going to the changing rooms. She changed into the lingerie quickly and stepped out into the main store without feeling any shame, she was a Greek Goddess after all and the Greeks were no known for being prudes or at least most of them were not.
Coming around the counter, she leaned back and watched the woman. Another surprise guest just traipsing out in the lace, perhaps the women of Miami were different than she expected. "It looks nice," she said, motioning for her to spin around. "Red is a good color on you."
Thalia spun around as directed, "I like red." She turned and smiled openly at Carmen not even thinking about needing to be ashamed of her body in front of a total stranger. She should have thought about it of course, she had been living with mortals for a long time and she knew that not many showed their bodies off easily.
"Well, you can keep it," she said simply. "Since it suits you well. And if anyone asks you where you got it from, make sure to send them here, after we open," she said, reaching out to take the card from the counter and check Joanna's information.
"I will!" Thalia returned to the changing room and changed back. "You have really nice lingerie and I'll tell all the girls about it." When she said the girls she meant her sisters, not that she needed to tell them because Erato and Polyhymnia had been talking about this shop already. She would make sure to take Mel here one time soon though. She moved to the counter and took the cards that Carmen had put there for her. "I will get on finding you a caterer as soon as possible."
"I hope so, I've only got a couple of weeks," she said, shrugging. If anything, she would just have to invest heavily in a bartender for the night instead of offering food. "I hope you can put that," she motioned to the lingerie, "To good use."
"Leave it too me." Thalia wasn't a muse for nothing, she would find a way to get Carmen the prefect caterer. "I will find a way to have fun with your gift. Thank you!" She beamed another very Thalia-ish smile at the woman before turning to leave.
Summary: Thalia comes by the shop to see Val's work and offers to try and find Aphrodite a caterer. Free lingerie for another Muse!