"What about here?" Rianta-chira says to me as we come to a stop in front of another shop. However, unlike what has come before, this place is not the product, but the means to make. A fabric shop!

Exploding with excitement, my heart comes alive with old passions that I've not been able to work on. If I can just get the tools I need, possible with this money, even... Then I can simply make my own clothes. A wardrobe full of togas, kimonos and other forms of flowing robes, just like I used to wear back home!

"YES!" I scream, speeding up towards the glass so I can glance in towards the treasure trove. My hands come close to my chest and clench up against each other. With wonderful sparkles in my eyes, my fingers dance to the inexplicit tune on my lips. Unable to hold it in, I giggle and skip inside, my fingers quickly dancing amongst all the soft fabrics.

Luxurious native silks. The fluffiest of cottons. Shiny and durable muscles of sail ships made from flax. Traditional linens and alike. Fuzzy-topped velvets and satins...

I love it all!

O-Oh!?

There's even a section entirely dedicated to the tools one might need to work with such materials. Everything I need is here, everything I need is here...! I just need a metal worker and everything is set. Everything I need is here!

"Hehehehe!" I giggle out as my arms fill at speeds quicker than my lightning form can travel. My arms grow heavy with hundreds of sheets with my arms drooping with their unfolded length. Rushing about all the sections, I juggle the items about, filling my arms up even further. I catch a glimpse of Rianta-chira tapping inside of the building.

She becomes the focus of my desires.

"Can you help me carry some of this!?" I ask her as nicely as I can while also still being too full of energy to stay still. My companion immediately reacts with a scowl.

"I am no root..." she mutters loud enough for me to hear, her glare burning hot. Her hip snaps out into the open, her hand settling down on it while one leg moves out. Thigh exposed and its surprisingly developed muscle tensing up. The air cracks at the whip of her tail.

"I never said... I'm not trying to imply you are...? I would just like some help carrying this so I can get more. Then I can make us both outfits with it!" I explain, trying to keep my confusion as that alone. Whatever offence might be brewing simmers itself out of my mind. Her posture shifts and she approaches, her body still tightened-up with a fighting spirit.

"Outfit making? What kind...?" she asks, her face coming in close so that her breath washes over me. My face flushes up with its heat and my nervousness does little to prevent confrontation. Her curiosity-filled eyes demand answers.

"Ones you'd find back in my homeland... You know... T-To-Togas... Kimono..." I mumble, trying my best to perform my usual antics when I am uncomfortable. Though, with all this fabric on my forearms, I can't quite get the right position to do it properly. Rianta-chira takes a single piece of fabric and folds it about without the slightest bit of difficulty.

"What's a kimono?" she asks, her head tilting as she checks the way the fabric shines in the daylight. She steps away to get a better look. I follow after her as best I can.

"It's..." I begin to let out, quickly finding myself stumped with how to explain it, "It's a type of long, flowing robe. It can be worn on special occasions or more casually if you are part of the nobility or senatorial class."

"That sounds like something that covers a lot... Not fitting for petals." she eughs out, her face contorting with disgust.

"It doesn't have to be covering! Some like to have the front be completely open and it to push on their chests a lot like this. Priestesses of Aahtha tend to wear it like that. Tight-fitting but revealing." I explain, doing my best to move my hands about to get to my breasts. Forcing my palms onto the cups of my top, I push and squeeze to aid with her visualisation. A stranger's eyes meet mine and my stop burns my body to ash.

What I am doing is clear to me, very clear... But, I'm doing it in full view of other customers.

"So it can be done in a way to have an open view of one's panties?" Rianta-chira asks without a care, her boldness driving out a sharp cough from someone out of view.

My face turns an even deeper crimson, "Y-Yes..."

"I see," she acknowledges, her body shifting about as she slides a finger over a general shape she seems to like. Next, she surprises me and my load lightens. Blinking at the loss of burden, I try not to overthink at how seemingly simple it just was to get her to help me.

I guess it must be really normal for her to be wearing anything that would be explicitly erotic for me. Pure bedroom stuff in the open public without a care in the world for who sees. Well... Unless Nin-kischu is there, then all who see are to know she has an owner. A lover.

S-Should I even make something like that!? All the kimonos me and Mother wore were always fine things. Comfortable, all-covering but not oppressively overheating or restricting to movement. What Rianta-chira wants is practically for a comforting woman or the special, private night you have when you get married! Nowhere near casual wear as she thinks of it!

Shaking my burning head full of cool air, I empty my thoughts. Diving back into my supplies, I grab more fabric, measuring it out in my head to keep it occupied. Guesses and similar fill up my lapses in thought. My pondering comes to an end and I linger on the concept of patterns and pictures.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Am I going to want to be mindful of that? My old outfits used to have birds, flowers and even countryside inspirations. I guess I can paint them on myself at some point in the future. But, with a professional likely on hand here, I should probably take it to them.

"Einervaene, are you perhaps going to be wanting any patterns on these sheets?" Rianta-chira asks, the question bringing a sudden breakdown of my thought process. How... How is she reading my mind...?

"Maybe, why?" I finally manage to answer.

"This shop offers a printing service." she informs me, a sample cloth in her hands from somewhere. Though, I must admit, I am loving this sample in particular. It's invoking the same kind of imagery found on a temple wall. Almost tapestry-esque with how it means to tell a story.

Finding a way, I barely get it into my hands for a closer inspection of the print. Doing my best to test my primary two concerns, I manage to pinch it with a finger and a thumb. Rubbing them together, the fabric keeping them separate; I smile. It's neither coming off easily, and the cloth is maintaining its feel in spite of the dyes and paints. Almost like it was sewn in with it.

Marvellous, just... Marvellous!

With this kind of detail on even a simple sample piece, I am quite hopeful I'd be able to replicate something from my homeland. Native animals of all kinds, if I can describe them right. Maybe even meadow of thunderclap blooms! I always loved sneaking out to watch them flinch at the sounds of a storm. Beautiful flowers, they really are.

Though, with the image in my head not likely being what will end up in theirs... I am happy to settle for an artistic interpretation of such blossoms!

"Di-Did they explain how they do it?" I ask my companion, wanting to know if it's a separate service. If I need to buy my sheets first, then do it or if I can get away with doing it in the same transaction. I guess I can only hope it's not a long process as I really want to get to curing my homesickness. I didn't think it was this bad, but to suddenly end up with the means to resolve so much of it...

The quicker the better, that is how it will work out.

"No, they just told me about it when I wandered near and I went to tell you." she explains, her shoulders slightly rising.

"Right, I see. Are... Are there any colours you might want? I imagine you'll be wanting a rose red like your hair. I can make something a lot better with more colours to work with, however." I explain to her and her ears flex with what I want to imagine is excitement.

"A petal making me clothes that my precious love might like...!? Hmmm..." she lets out, squirming away with the sound of a tune in her throat. The light of her things guides her back and a new assortment of greens, reds and pinks decorates her. The same colours most of her observed clothes have, in fact. I suppose I was smart in thinking she'd want a rose red. Most of her stuff has it. Is she that vain with her hair, then?

I mean, it's certainly pretty and well-kept, with such a fascinating style to it. But wouldn't going too hard on the red in her clothes draw eyes away from her hair? Though, admittedly, even now she is pretty explicit with how she prefers eyes going to her chest or rear. She's even taking the moment to tease a young man going by, by using her tail to flick away her scarce rear coverings.

A little surprising to see admittedly given her obsession with Nin-kischu. I suppose that is the point, though? Tempt someone to chase after her, only to fall into the arms of her lover. The chaser sees what it is up against and runs away. Or maybe she was in her head?

"Anything else?" I ask with a thought-resetting shake of my head.

"No." Rianta-chira answers instantly, walking off with much the same speed. Following after her, we arrive at a thankfully empty counter and I unload what I can. A shop worker comes out to meet us and his eyes widen at the scale.

"Making anything interesting?" he chuckles, getting to the counting part with surprising skill and depth perception given the task. He moves onto adding on the various tools I grabbed and putting them onto the tally. Prices rattle out of his mouth, the total growing exponentially. Gripping my money bag tight, I wonder if I might need to dig into the value of the medallion thing.

The register clocks a final number.

"And will you be wanting to use our printing service on top of it all?" he asks, already bagging everything up with much the same skill. He's really been at this a while, hasn't he? And at such a young age, with little magic flowing from him to indicate a visual deception.

I hold up my now free fingers, my brain flicking on so I can count how many sheets I'll likely have printed. How many I want to keep plain remains at the back of my head. I'm going to have a full wardrobe from this shop alone. Perhaps I will need to make a bag, actually? One like Rianta-chira's-

Oh, of course.

"Yes, please. I would like to use the printing service."

"I'll be sure to get the owner, then. They can take you through the steps and then we can charge you the final total once you are done," he explains, his eyes catching the presence of the Founding-Lord's mark. Left alone with a not so chatty Rianta-chira, I look around and smile at the customer coming in behind us. She has a much smaller supply of material to work with compared to me.

Returning my attention to Rianta-chira, "So, what are you planning to put on yours?"

She hears me with the twitch of an ear, yet her attention is elsewhere. Her hands draw shapes on the sheets and I can barely make them out. A sharp-tipped oval? A gemstone?

Rianta-chira suddenly shakes, her eyes blinking without end.

She turns my way, her interrupted thoughts forcing themselves back together, "Oh...? Oh, symbols of good luck and love, I guess."

Her fingers return to shaping out symbols in a slow, ponderous manner. I can make out what seems to be honouring's for the Goddess of Mothers and the Goddess of Pleasure. Everything that is likely to wish her good luck for her relationship with Nin-kischu... I guess I should pass on that luck in turn, then.

"I will probably just have some animals or plants on mine. As that is what is normally done at home." I say, shrugging a little as I try to prevent an awkward silence from falling between us. However, she seems all too interested in losing herself in how she wants her kimono to turn out. Something is on her mind... A little too much, I'm imagining...

"Have you ever worn anything long and flowing before, Rianta-chira?" I ask, bringing my fingers together and squeezing them. She blinks, her eyes suddenly taking on a sullen aspect.

"I... I... I used to wear a red dress. One covered in metal decoration. But... But I was not allowed to keep it as it was the outfit for something I am no longer. I gave up the right to wear it so I could be with..." she explains, her sadness barely choked back as memories flood the eyes that I cannot see.

"What was the dress like?" I ask, gesturing about my body as to what its shape might be. She shakes her head at my actions and starts to aid my imagination herself. In only a few strokes, I get many details about this important, meaningful piece of clothing.

"It started here... And, went about this far down... Ending at the distance before the tips of my points," her fingers gesture about her neck and shoulders, going down, "It had some openings along here and here..."

She stops rubbing areas around her chest and back. She reaches out and clutches for something that is not actually there. Some kind of stupor breaks and she lets out not one more noise. She sniffles, her eyes clearly rimmed with water.

Her head turns away, and she leaves the building, vanishing out of sight.