Justice for the Forest-Beasts

Chapter Two - In Which Rain is Made Prettier

Verity's Tailor Shop was a small brick building that stood right up against the cobblestone street. Yellow and orange wildflowers grew in the small patches of dirt between the building's foundation and the street, peeking through the powdery snow. The old wooden sign propped up in the shop's front window read open, so Estelle happily led Lucian and Rain inside. One of Verity's workers, Halima, was running the front desk. She'd been reading a book until Estelle and the others came in.

"Hello, welcome to Verity's Tailor Shop," Halima greeted them with a cold demeanor, putting the book down on the counter in front of her. She looked up at the group and an expression of fear briefly took over her expression, before she managed to turn it solemn again. Even Halima was shocked to see a forest-beast in Castle City, never mind accompanying Estelle and Lucian.

"Hello," Estelle said cheerfully, not wanting to acknowledge Halima's reaction, "Is Verity working today?"

Halima sighed, "Miyeon and I are allowed to take orders, sire."

"Of course, my apologies. Could you please have two tunics made for our friend here?" Estelle gestured towards Rain, who was standing all stiff and awkward. "Standard fabric, pink and yellow. Do you think that'd look good on xem? Also, we'll need to have xem measured, of course. I don't think xe's ever worn a properly tailored tunic before."

Halima hastily scribbled something down on her notepad before nodding, "Easy enough." She hopped down from her stool and walked out from behind the counter, "Rain, are you wearing anything under your tunic?"

"Underpants," xe answered simply, shifting nervously.

"Excellent. So that I can get accurate measurements, I will ask you to undress. If you're comfortable with that, of course. And for privacy reasons, we're going to be measuring you in this room, here." She unlocked the door on the wall covered completely in shelves, full of fabrics in a rainbow of different colors. Even colors that weren't often found in Kirakutlia could be found on that wall, though those colors were usually more muddy and faded-looking. "Unless you want someone to accompany you, of course," Halima added. As she opened the door, it creaked dramatically.

Rain glanced over at Estelle and Lucian for a moment, while they both hoped that xe wouldn't ask either of them to come in. After only a moment of hesitation, Rain decided against it and entered the room silently, followed by Halima, who quickly said to the twins, "It'll only be a moment, please wait patiently," before she closed the door and it clicked as it locked.

The twins stood against the cold, brick wall, waiting patiently. When the twins listened very closely, they could hear the hum of a sewing machine in the other room. Occasionally, Halima's voice could be heard as well, as she told Rain how to stand so that she could measure xem properly. When the twins looked around the little room, they could see the particles of dust that danced around in the air, only where the light was shining in from the shop's large windows, far brighter than the dim light that hung from one of the ceiling's dingy support beams.

After a few dull minutes, the door unlocked and Halima and Rain both came out. Halima immediately took her place behind the front desk once again, quickly scribbling down another note before she said, "Okay, thank you very much. That is all I need from you, so your tunics should be ready tomorrow at around ten in the morning. We'll have to modify the tunics to accommodate xyr wings, and I think we'll make the tunics a bit shorter than normal to accommodate xyr legs. I've never sewn clothes for winged folk, so I do apologize in advance if there is anything that must be mended tomorrow morning, when you try the tunics on. Anyhow, you can return at ten tomorrow morning to try them on and give us your payment. Does that sound alright?"

"That's perfect, thank you," Estelle said, "We'll be back at that time. Enjoy the rest of the festival, and may Skaizened continue to bless you with wisdom and beauty."

Halima scoffed at that, as Estelle led the group out of the tailor shop. How rude, to scoff at the princess, Estelle thought to herself as she stepped out onto the cobblestone street.

"Who is Skaizened?" Rain asked.

"You don't know?" Lucian signed, purposely raising his eyebrows to show that he felt surprised.

Rain shook xyr head, seeming confused.

"Skaizened is one of the gods that the people of Branalum worship," Estelle explained, "There's five gods, but the Zaliow Festival is meant to worship one of the gods, whose name is Skaizened. She's a magnificent god, who allows us to have things like beauty, love, wisdom, and war."

"Bramble say. . . gods bad. Gods ignore and uhm. . . discriminate." Xe had trouble saying such a large word, but xe managed.

"Some people think that, but the gods truly are amazing," Estelle said, "They crafted this world themselves, and they're who allow us to have everything that we do. Without the gods, we wouldn't have happiness, food, shelter, or anything. Without them, we wouldn't be breathing."

Rain didn't look convinced, but xe shrugged nonchalantly and said, "Okay."

"Anyhow, we should hurry back to the castle; I think we're running low on time," Estelle said. She turned to Rain, "We'll meet up here tomorrow, at ten in the morning, okay? We should get lunch or something afterwards."

"Well. . . umm. . ." Rain hesitated.

"What is it?" Estelle asked.

"I. . . can stay? Live with you, yeah?" Rain said timidly, "If not okay, I leave. Find okay place. I do not know."

"You came here without knowing where you'd stay?" Lucian signed. He raised his eyebrows again.

Rain nodded timidly.

Lucian shook his head in disapproval. "Lost cause," he signed.

Estelle shot a playful glare at Lucian. "Excuse me, sire, do not be rude." She reached into her pocket and pulled out 16,000 narams. The coins were of a few different colors and sizes, their worth carved into both sides. "This should be more than enough to cover the cost of a room and food for the next two days. You should go find a nice inn to rent a room, and I recommend the Drunken Bard for food. You might want to look for people who are willing to pay for labor or errands, too."

"Rent a room," Rain repeated quietly. Xe took the coins, examining them curiously, before nodding and smiling softly, "Okay. Thank you, Estelle and Lucian. You are kind."

"Of course, it's no problem at all. If you get lost, or confused, or anything, go to one of the people wearing white outfits with a hat like mine and Lucian's. They're there to help people, and they'll be willing to point you in the right direction," Estelle told xem. Lucian nodded in confirmation.

The twins watched as Rain turned away, off to handle xemself.

"You okay?" Lucian signed to Estelle when she finally looked away.

She nodded, "Yeah, of course."