[PRP] Fashion Fix [Hemera x Athene]

[Gl!tch~]

Hemera goes to the bustling city to find a decent tailor

 

[Gl!tch~]

Hemera sighed as she wandered through NHC, frankly embarrassed. Living in the mountains was a risky venture. She knew that going into it. But, she hadn't expected that the casualties would be out of her depth. While it was difficult to kill her from sheer drops and stuff falling on her, her outfits could still get torn from her outside adventures.
A hole in her plans, and plenty more in a lot of her day clothes.

She walked through the streets, looking for a suitable shop to take in the articles of clothing she had in an old shopping bag. Hopefully someone would fix them up and make the repair...attractive. Or at least not terribly distracting.

As advanced as troll technology was, it was still difficult to find a good tailor without prior references. She was going to trust a stranger to be better at sewing than she was. Hemera was not exactly comfortable with that, but she had no other choice. Her how-to books frankly just weren't cutting it. Her home efforts just looked messy.

While she made her way down another street, Pagoni following after her at a distance where he wouldn't ruin her clothing further, she eventually noticed a place that obviously catered to clothing and related needs. It didn't look too dingy nor did the neighborhood seem unsavory. She would check this shop out, she supposed. Hemera approached the door, checked the hours, and opened it.

PeanutButterpies

:0

 

[grayseasons]

The shop, as always, was quiet but it was a quiet Athene was mostly accustomed to. Unlike before, it didn't sit quite as well with her, pricked at her skin just a bit. A side effect to spending so much time with her friends and the rebels she knew, now so used to the hustle and bustle of conversation and background noise that silence didn't offer her the comfort it used to.

In her hands sat some knitting, although it was half done and only halfheartedly being worked on. She needed to finish it, her stock on basic items getting low (shirts were next on her list), but it felt almost well... lonely sitting in the shop here. She wished one of her friends were here, but they had their own lives and jobs to go back to and she needed to run the shop regardless. She would see them again soon anyways, so it was really a silly wish. But she still wanted it.

Luckily for her she heard the gentle chime of the bell on her door notifying someone was coming in and she looked up from the yarn in her hands, taking a glance at the customer. It was a small child, which was a little unusual, but a tealblood and obviously not from around here. She pursed her lips for a second, then offered a simple "Hello." It wasn't the warmest welcome to her shop, but then again, no one got a warm welcome except her friends.

Gl!tch~

so i said she wouldn't maim the child but i might have been wrong

 

[Gl!tch~]

She looked around as she walked through the doorway. Hemera let the door close quietly behind her, already distracted by the only other troll in the building. Athene had an immediate presence, what with the hair accessories and the fluff wrapped around her neck. The poncho was very simple and almost a little too basic compared to what drew the eye first, but at the same time it wasn't boring. Upon first impression, this greenblood did seem to have an idea of fashion. The good, daring kind.

Mera perked up a little, and approached Athene. She chose to ignore the lack of a smile. "Hi! I'm looking for someone to mend some of my clothes. Does your shop provide that service? I know some tailors are specialized for only certain things not including repair, so I hope my question doesn't seem rude."

PeanutButterpies

 

[grayseasons]

The question Hemera asked got a raised eyebrow in reply from Athene, as she stood from her chair and laid the knitting on the counter. She obviously knew a bit more than the average troll, since she was far more accustomed to having clothing shoved at her with a muttered out request to fix it.

"It does, I primarily mend clothing along with selling and the usual tailoring. I offer classes too, although they aren't taken up very often. Do you have some items you'd like for me to repair?" Her tone remained even, but she managed to get out a small smile to her. It was nice to have someone actually talk to her for once for her services.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

This was everything Hemera wanted to hear! She was nearly bouncing with happiness. Her clothes would be seen to, and, by what she could see of the knitting thus far, it would certainly be handled by the hands of a professional. "I do, in fact. Ummm..." Hemera looked around for an empty counter to put her bag on. She didn't want to shove her things in the way where it could be rude. When she found a suitable space, she opened up the paper bag and started demonstrating what all she needed by pulling things out and showing the kinds of tears there were.

"I live in the mountains, and I go out a lot, so there have been some unfortunate results." She showed the torn knee on a pair of overalls. Some pieces of clothing had singular long tears, others had a few small piercings here and there in all sorts of places that could get caught either climbing trees or crawling over boulders or what have you. "I tried mending them myself, but it wasn't any good," Mera sighed. "Do you think something could be done for them?" Of course there would be payment, but surely it would be much less than buying a whole new wardrobe. It would be so impractical to throw entire shirts and pants for some rips, anyway.

PeanutButterpies

 

[grayseasons]

Picking up the clothing gently, Athene glanced at the damage. It did indeed seem like the damage was from mountains, which was a surprising difference from the normal things she saw. Notably, stuff done from weapons or well, troll claws since she had seen quite a few black relationships come into her shop.

"These can be mended, most of them are easy," She said, referring to the smaller holes and the long tears. "They're not in too terrible shape, unlike some other things I've seen. Definitely savable since they've been taken care of." There was a wry sort of smile at that but she let it go. There was some things she didn't disclose and anyways, she was starting to think about how to mend it. Most of it wasn't too elaborate and would be easily fixed, probably in a short amount of time.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

The greenblood had seen worse than this? Impressive! She must deal with trolls who are getting into all kinds of trouble, like trolls tend to do. Hemera wondered how far gone a piece of clothing had to be before this older troll could save it. "Oh, that's great!" Hemera said. "If it's not too much trouble, could I watch? There were pictures in my book, but it's not the same as watching someone do it." She paused. "If that counts as a lesson, I could pay for that, too."

Strutting around nearby, this whole time, was her lusus, who hadn't been forgotten! He couldn't be. Lusii were always with their kids. And he wasn't a bad handler anyhow. Pagoni was, admittedtly, left outside, though, so he wouldn't get any wax on Hemera's clothes or anything else in the store. He occasionally pecked at the glass, though, to make sure Hemera was okay.

However, attacking a shop's glass was embarrassing. She tried to shoo him away from doing that. "Sorry, he just...worries." Hemera's expression made it clear that she really wished he didn't. "What classes do you provide, anyway? Are there different levels?" She was curious.

PeanutButterpies

 

[grayseasons]

"You would like to watch?" Athene asked, thrown for a loop for a second. That had been a question she had gotten very rarely, most of the time she had just been asked to hurry. Quickly, she said, "It's not a trouble at all, I can explain as I go. Think of it as a um, free lesson. Introductory." She smiled, ducking down to find some matching fabric for the items that needed repair and thread.

She only popped back up to hear what she was saying, a soft expression on her face as she glanced at the lusus. "I understand, mine was the same way," She murmured, before turning back to the tealblood in front of her. "My classes are more, one on one really, so they suit whoever's level I'm teaching. Not a lot of trolls pick up on them, although I have had some groups before. I guess classes is a bit misleading then," Athene noted, ducking back down to look for the last bit of thread she needed in the basket she kept all her supplies in. The color was eluding her for some, odd reason.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

Hemera was elated to see a professional at work, and hoped the greenblood would be as good as she wanted to imagine the older troll was. "I'll make sure to be attentive and out of your hair, then." Being courteous was the way to get the best results. It was nice, too, that the other troll was so understanding about annoying lusii. This was going so well.

"I guess lessons would be a better word?" Hemera offered, dutifully waiting for Athene to prepare for her work. In the meantime, she cleaned her glasses. Putting them back on her face, Athene seemed to be having some trouble. "Is something wrong?"

PeanutButterpies

 

[grayseasons]

"Lessons? I suppose, yes," She realized, tapping her finger against her chin. She had paused in her search to come back up, taking a moment to consider the thought. "I'll get around to changing the information about it sometime." She smiled, moving back down. She had never really thought about it, with so much of her time going to other things, but it was probably a good idea to put it like that.

"Oh, well," She paused for a second, then brought the basket of supplies up. Might as well teach from the start. "Here, to just start, when you want to mend clothing you find matching fabric and thread so the holes are less obvious. I can't find one of the colors though, so I was digging for it- oh. Here it is," Athene pulled out the spool of thread, placing it onto the counter. "But, as I was saying, you want to get fabric that matches the material, if not the same, so it's not obvious. If it's a small hole, or in an obscure place, you can use fabric that's different, but it might feel odd. The thread is to blend, but you can also use clear thread if you can't find the color you need. I have enough colors though that I don't need to. Any questions so far?"

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

After everything was settled, Hemera nodded at Athene's explanation. "I understood that much. You'd think matching colors, or as close as it can come, would be common sense, but maybe some trolls don't realize that." Hemera paused, tilting her head as she considered something. "Though I have seen stitching that is quite colorful and pops on an otherwise gray outfit, but that is different from fixing things up, isn't it?"

Her attention then turned to the thread on the table. "I had not considered clear thread. That sounds so modern. I wonder...." Hemera let herself trail off, then shook her head as if it would clear the thought away. She looked back up at Athene. "I don't think I have anything I'm confused about at this point."

PeanutButterpies

 

[grayseasons]

"It is a surprise that many don't realize it," She said with a wry grin, but offered nothing more on the topic. The colored thread though, that was something she could expand on. "It depends," She started, her work paused, "Sometimes if the troll wants to emphasize something was fixed, they can used the colored stitching. It's unusual though, but it does sometimes add to a garment if the rip or hole was somewhere where it doesn't look bad, such as the hem."

"I'll continue then," Athene said, scanning over the clothing before her and finally picking up the overalls. "Since the hole on this is large and a little rough at the edges, first I have to trim it off so that way repair is easier. Not too much, just so that way the edges are clean." Picking up a pair of scissors, she started trimming the edges, going slowly as she trimmed off loose threads and rougher parts. Once it was done she brushed the scraps off the table, adding to the pile she'd have to sweep later. There was a pause there, obviously meant for questions or comments if wanted.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

"I-I see." Hemera said, hand on her chin, ever the student. She was obviously a little hesitant at her clothes being cut at, but she made no move to stop it. Her body grew a little colder, though. This was a professional, the tealblood reminded herself; there would be no slip-ups or unnecessary moves.

"I suppose that makes sense. Being uneven would not be attractive or comfortable, would it?" She pushed her glasses up her nose a little.

Hemera also considered the colored thread some more; clear thread was fascinating, and could potentially make something look really neat if it seemed to be held together by something transparent or even invisible. But colored thread? That could pop so well. Or just look cool.

I should not be thinking about this. She had more important things to care about, like paying attention to the lesson or storing information more relevant to what she should do instead of some fancy. But boy, could it be tough.

PeanutButterpies

 

[grayseasons]

If everyone was like this, Athene would have enjoyed teaching more. Obviously she was intent on learning from her and with luck, she could be a repeat customer. That would be lovely indeed. "You're right," Athene said, glad that she was catching on. The scissors went back into the basket and she found the fabric that matched the overalls, unrolling it.

"Since the hole isn't too large, I can just cut a length of fabric from it and sew it up easily from here," Athene showed as she worked, grabbing the scissors again and cutting a square out. "After this I'll sew it on and then trim the left over fabric, so that it looks natural." She explained, finally showing the stitches she did with slowness so that the other could watch. The last part she trimmed off, letting the scraps fall to the rest. The hole now was at least patched and she smiled.

Gl!tch~

s-sorry this isn't great