A Dress For Success

Job Details:

Job Sign-Up: Page 22, Post Number 543

-Capital Crocus outskirts, midday-

Landing on the Capital Crocus outskirts just she had like a few days ago, Leona dismounted her Winged Lion and dispelled it, then smoothed out her skirt. She wore her usual green, white, and gold outfit, but today she carried no weapons or armor, not even the knife that was almost always concealed in her right boot. She had opted to go without weapons because she was paying a visit to a clothing store called The Elegant Dress and she did not want to frighten people any more than she already did. The Wizard Saint had even left her Argent Gloves back at Silver Wolf Guild Hall, a loss she keenly felt because she wore them everywhere she went and the ability to block magic at a moment's notice was always useful for a mage who was frequently in harm's way.

Leona took off her backpack and fished out the paper catalog with the shop's address on it. Clutching it in her right hand, she waited a few minutes in case there was another bandit gang she needed to stop. After waiting ten minutes she concluded that there was no trouble, so she proceeded to enter Capital Crocus to search for The Elegant Dress.

-Capital Crocus-

Walking through the bustling streets of Fiore's capital, Leona began searching for The Elegant Dress so that she could get an appropriate dress for the auction in two days. While it seemed foolish to spend tens of thousands of Jewels for something that she might wear only once, Leona had money to spare and she wanted to prove to the world that there was more to the Wizard Saint of Courage than being a fighter and explorer.

Making her way through the crowd to a large map of the city posted for the benefit of tourists, Leona began to study it. She consulted the key to the left and learned that different sections of the city were marked in different colors, each color representing a particular service that the city's shops had to offer. Restaurants were marked in yellow, grocery stores in green, and clothing stores in purple. Leona then began to locate her position in relation to the clothing district and found it, then traced her position back to the clothing district. She would be in for a walk of at least 600 kilometers, but that distance was nothing that her travels across Earthland had not prepared her for.

With a rough idea of where she was supposed to go, Leona put the clothing catalog into her backpack and waited for a chance to merge with the crowd before setting out for her destination. Once an opportunity presented itself she seamlessly merged with the crowd and began a slow but steady walk towards the clothing district. Once she reached The Elegant Dress the real challenge would begin. Leona would have to find a dress that was both acceptable to her and acceptable to the Capital Crocus elite who she would be mingling with at the auction. Her definition of acceptable and the elite's definition of acceptable would almost certainly clash due to differences in taste and upbringing.

[Post Word Count: 528]
[Total Word Count: 528/1,500]

-Capital Crocus, twenty minutes later-

After at least twenty minutes spent walking among the bustling foot traffic of Capital Crocus and experiencing eight "accidental" brushes of a hand against her backside by teenage males and an outright squeeze from a particularly brave (or foolish) dark-haired youth in a white Steel Matron t-shirt and blue jeans who wisely walked away before she could, Leona stood in the middle of the road of the clothing district. While she had reached the district that housed The Elegant Dress, she still had to find the shop before she could begin the search for a proper dress. A whole block of shops lay before her and were filled with a steady procession of people streaming in with empty hands and coming out with at least one shopping bag in hand. Leona would be among their number as soon as she could find The Elegant Dress.

It did not take long to locate it. It was the sixth shop to the right of her current position and had a sign with golden letters that spelled out its name. Leona did not expect finding it to be this easy, but she appreciated the lucky break because now she did not have to spend most of the day trying to find it and risk it being closed by the time she finally reached her destination. Merging with the crowd moving down the sidewalk to patronize the shops to her right, Leona walked until she reached the front of The Elegant Dress, then gently pushed open the single glass door that led into the shop.

-Inside The Elegant Dress-

A single bell dinged to announce Leona's entry into the dress shop, which was a small and simple shop as befitting its specialty nature as opposed to a chain retail store. The left wall of the shop was lined with dresses on mannequins and the right wall featured a wooden counter manned by a well-dressed young blonde woman wearing a closed black jacket and a white dress shirt with a long black skirt and black high heels. A small number of customers were perusing the wares on the mannequins and browsing larger catalogs and consulting with other employees to start the process of getting custom dresses made. The young woman looked at Leona and began to greet her when she stopped in mid-sentence once she realized who she was talking to.

"Welcome to The Elegan- wait! You're- you're Leona Jarnefeldt!" She stated in audible excitement.

"I was looking for a dress to wear to an auction in two days." Leona stated the reason for her visit. The young employee almost tripped over her own feet in an effort to help Leona, causing a small scene that made the Wizard Saint uncomfortable. The employee recovered and was soon at Leona's side to aid her in picking a dress. She ushered Leona over to an unoccupied wooden table with an open catalog sitting on it and pulled out a leather-backed metal chair for the Wizard Saint to sit in.

"Now, what kind of dress interests you, Miss Jarnefeldt?" The employee asked her. Leona obligingly sat down and began to peruse the catalog in front of her, looking for something that was modest and would at least be tolerated by, if not meet the approval of, Capital Crocus' elite. She did not want to show up in the wrong dress and be subject to their derision for the entire evening.

[Post Word Count: 577]
[Total Word Count: 1,105/1,500]

Leona looked at the thick catalog of names paired with pictures and had no idea of what she wanted other than a dress that was modest and not too costly. She was going to pay five figures no matter what dress she picked, but she did not want costs to get out of control and end up paying far more than she intended. Thankfully the employee was quick to come to the Wizard Saint's aid with some timely questions that would facilitate the process of picking a dress.

"You mentioned an auction earlier, Miss Jarnefeldt. If I may ask, what kind of auction will you be attending?" The employee asked.

"I'm attending an auction for a bottle of a rare wine called Maison D'Everett." Leona answered truthfully. It was no big secret that was to be kept at all costs. The employee hmmm'd to herself, then flipped the catalog to a section of the catalog with dresses that averaged 70,000 Jewels.

"These dresses are in fashion among the women of Capital Crocus' wealthiest families. They cost a lot, but you'll fit in at high-class events like the auction." The employee assured her. Leona was not terribly thrilled with the price tag, but this was one occasion that she could afford to spend some Jewels on a good dress that would be appropriate to wear to a high-class auction. Leona's eyes looked over the pictures and saw that a lot of the dresses had a low neckline, something that she wanted to avoid because she did not want to show off her chest. She was going to the event to bid on the Maison D'Everett, not attract suitors.

"I'd like something modest, if you know what I mean." Leona requested. The young woman took a quick glance at Leona's figure and quickly deduced the meaning of the request. She wordlessly placed a finger on a tab of the catalog page and flipped it to a section featuring dresses with the same price tag but with a more modest design. That pleased the Wizard Saint and she began to peruse the offerings.

"What color would you like the dress to be?" Came the next question.

"What color's typically worn at high-class events?" Leona asked in return.

"Black." Came the answer in a confident voice.

"I'll go with black then." Leona replied. She pointed to a picture of a black dress with half-sleeves that was modest and covered everything that needed to be covered.

"Very well then, Miss Jarnefeldt. If you'll follow me, I'll take your measurements for the dress and we'll begin making it within the day." The employee bade her. Leona was curious as to why she had to do that.

"Do you have anything pre-made that I could buy?" Leona inquired. The young woman shook her head.

"I am afraid not, Miss Jarnefeldt. You see, we don't have anything that can fit your... proportions." The employee answered diplomatically. Leona took a few moments to ponder the meaning and blushed when she finally understood. The Wizard Saint's chest and backside were both kind of big, meaning that she had to have a custom dress. Leona gave the young woman credit for being diplomatic about voicing the concern.

"OK then. I'll follow you." Leona voiced her consent. She stood up and followed the employee to the back, where the pair entered a fitting room for privacy.

-Inside the fitting room-

Leona stood in an austere beige-colored square room with only a six-foot tall mirror in front of her. Beside her was the same employee with a small notepad, a green golf pencil, and a cloth tape measure with which to take measurements. Even though the person taking her measurements was a female, Leona felt uncomfortable for some odd reason.

Leona blushed as she felt the cloth tape measure be wound around her chest. After a few awkward seconds of the measurement being scribbled on the notepad it was moved around her waist and held for a few seconds. Leona heard another measurement being scribbled onto paper and the tape measure moved yet again to her backside. After that was over it moved up to her head and was allowed to dangle on the floor. A final measurement was made and the employee at last took the tape measure back.

"OK Miss Jarnefeldt, I have your measurements. We'll begin making your dress within the day." Came the assurance.

"How long will it take to make?" Leona asked.

"About two days." Came the answer. Leona was not happy to hear that, but it was her fault for taking so long to come here and order a dress. She would just have to grin and bear it.

"OK." Leona replied laconically. Next time she needed an outfit she needed to go in and order it sooner instead of waiting until the last minute.

"Now if you'll follow me to the counter, we'll complete the order." The employee bade Leona. Leona wordlessly followed her back to the front of the shop and to the counter.

[Post Word Count: 839]
[Total Word Count: 1,944/1,500]

-At the counter-

Leona listened and struggled not to wince as the total came to 80,000 Jewels. It was 70,000 for the base price and 10,000 was tacked on for the custom order. Leona felt that she was being robbed, but she had no other choice but to grin and bear it. She fished out the appropriate sum of Jewels from her backpack and placed them in a small bag, which she then handed to the blonde woman who had helped her through the shopping experience. The employee handed Leona a receipt along with a white claim ticket featuring the shop's name printed in gold letters at the top.

"Your order will be ready in two days, Miss Jarnefeldt. Bring this claim ticket along with your receipt to claim your order. Thank you for your patronage of The Elegant Dress!" The young woman thanked the Wizard Saint for choosing this shop for her dress order.

"Is there anything else I need to do before I leave?" Leona asked. The young woman shook her head.

"Everything's been taken care of, Miss Jarnefeldt. Your measurements have been taken and your payment has been received. All you have to do is wait." Came the answer.

"All right then. Thanks for helping me order a dress!" Leona thanked the employee for her time and effort.

"Thank you for patronizing The Elegant Dress, Miss Jarnefeldt! Have a wonderful day!" The employee cheerfully replied. Leona then opened the glass door and left the store. She would wind her way through the shoppers and head back to the town outskirts, where she would summon her Winged Lion for the trip home. Now that the dress was taken care of, Leona would need to find an etiquette teacher for a crash course on high-class manners so that she would not act like a desert bumpkin at the auction and make an idiot of herself. Leona dreaded the etiquette class more than she did shopping for clothing, but she needed to learn how to move in high society circles for both the auction and for future events.

[Post Word Count: 348]
[Total Word Count: 2,292/1,500]