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 Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:09 pm
The reassurances fell on deaf ears. Yvette was the kind of person who tried to make people happy, even at the cost of her own comfort. "Are you sure? Because you don't have to be scared to tell me if I did something wrong. I-"
Yvette was talking again, so Tara stopped to listen. Talking at the same time would mean drowning her out. As she listened, her jaw slowly began to drop. A prom dress? For her? What had she gotten herself into? What was Yvette thinking?
"I... don't know what to say." That was an understatement. How could she gently discourage Yvette without seeming ungrateful or unfriendly? "I hadn't even thought about prom, not really." That was true as well. Things like saving the world kind of took priority. "And a dress... I'm not sure I can even picture myself in one, to be honest. It's been so long."
What Tara wasn't saying was that the last dress she wore was for her junior high graduation. It was a long, foofy light blue thing, and it had taken her mother nearly an hour to get Tara into it at all, making them late for the event. She hated dresses with a passion she usually reserved for history: both were full of unnecessary pomp and circumstance, and both fell apart easily.
Even knowing all that, however, the closest she came to a rejection was a handful of cautious dissuasions. Tara couldn't bring herself to flat out refuse. Hopefully Yvette would see reason on her own.
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Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 7:09 am
The girl's fingers began to squeeze the moment she began to receive any sort of negative response to the offer. Oh god, she knew this was going to happen, why oh why did she try to be so helpful when all it got her was rejection? At least Tara seemed to also know that flat out rejection would be mean. Even with her being as nice as possible, she was still trying to reject her.
...but she hasn't rejected you yet, you can still work some magic.
"...b-b-but... w-what if..." Her voice paused and she took in a tiny breath, as if trying to fix the way the words were coming out.
"W-what if... i-it didn't look like a dress? C-could ... you imagine yourself... d-dressed up l-like Master Obi-Wan?" It was a stupid idea, and Yvette once more was already waiting for the rejection. Her eyes hadn't even bothered to open still, but her hand which had been squeezing Tara's fingers into gentle-submission, now began trembling slightly.
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Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 12:49 pm
"... what?"
This was an option Tara had never considered. Her mother would probably screech in her ear if she saw Tara dressing for a formal event in anything other than a proper formal gown. It was one of many reasons her life was a lot simpler now that she was living in a different city. But even with her prim and proper mother out of the way, Tara had never thought of going beyond ditching the dress, and finding something that was really her.
"I... has anyone ever told you you're a genius, Yvette?" The possibilities were endless! "That's brilliant. Even if it's not like a Jedi Master- though that would be beyond cool- just anything drawing from the- oh man, that's amazing. My brain can't even process it all."
Tara put her free hand over her eyes, thinking. When she took it away, she was grinning like a maniac. It was not an entirely comforting sight.
"You have learned well the ways of the Force, young Padawan."
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Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 9:48 pm
Curiosity easily got the best of Yvette. Her friend's sudden shift in tone caused a single eye to peek open, and what she found was her friend covering her eyes. Not certain what to make of this gesture, she slowly allow her other eye to open.
Three seconds later, Tara's expression suddenly seemed to pop up from her hands. The shorter of the pair squeaked slightly in surprise like Tara's face had been the clown hiding in the Jack-in-the-box. It didn't help that Yvette had only seen 1 movie of the whole Star Wars set. So when her friend began speaking in such an odd way, she naively had to ask "W-what?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 11:11 am
Used to dealing with the uninitiated, Tara squeezed Yvette's hand reassuringly. "It's very simple, really. A Padawan is a Jedi Apprentice. If I'm a Jedi Knight, you're my Padawan. It's my responsibility to train you in the ways of the force." Who exactly gave her this responsibility, or what that training entailed, were details Tara didn't feel the need to go into. No need to overwhelm her friend more than she already was. "But sometimes, the student teaches the teacher."
Suddenly, the fabric store stopped being a terrifying madhouse waiting to entrap her with lace and bows. Now it was a pace full of possibilities, many of which were still terrifying, but some of which were positively entrancing. Tara wouldn't just go to prom, she'd do it in style.
"So, my Padawan, what exactly did you have in mind?" Tugging lightly at Yvette's hand, Tara began to stroll down the nearest aisle, wondering how the two of them would be able to make this work.
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Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2010 11:58 pm
The roles rather quickly got switched around. Where as Yvette had been the eager one initially, now it seemed that Tara was the eager one. It felt as if her tongue had swollen up like it would when she ate a strawberry, but she was lacking that tingling sensation that also came with her allergies. Her tongue only felt like it returned to normal size once they were already down an aisle.
"I... I am still confused..." At least the dark-haired girl was honest. "...b-but... I can try to learn..."
Since the smaller girl was more familiar with the store, she eventually tugged back on her friend's hand. "I... I was thinking of something long and draping... b-but... um..."
Her steps slowed for a moment and her eyes seemed to fall down to their feet. Apparently the girl had something she was going to say that wasn't so easy to say. "I... I really can't afford the cloth... I d-don't mind doing the sewing, but... um... c-can you pay for the cloth?" The girl was already mentally kicking herself for having to do something so ridiculous.
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Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 8:41 pm
"As long as you have an open mind," Tara said airily, "the rest will come. Although really, you're the one teaching me, here. I know next to nothing about making clothes, so I'm pretty comfortable letting you make most of the decisions here. You've definitely shown me that I can trust you to know what I like."
She winked, feeling far cheerier than she had when setting foot into the store. Without really looking, she picked up the end of the nearest bolt of cloth, a light cotton printed with brightly colored cakes, and rubbed it between her fingers. She had no real ideas beyond "something Jedi and awesome," but was confident that Yvette would come up with something amazing.
It seemed that she'd lost her audience again, though. Frowning, Tara stopped to listen. Her frown deepened. "Is that going to be enough? I've ordered custom-made things online before, and I know there's a lot that goes into it other than cloth. Not to mention for the work. I don't mind paying for whatever you think is right," not when it meant being able to tell her mom she was getting a prom dress truthfully, "so don't worry about that part."
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Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2010 8:42 pm
For a moment, perhaps a split second, Yvette relaxed. Tara had been kind enough to understand the shy girl's dilemma. Then, her friend managed to go too far.
The girl shook her hands out in front of her in what seemed like an apologetic manner. Had she done something wrong? In her mind, OF COURSE SHE HAD.
"I-i-i... I d-didn't mean that! Y-you can j-just pay for the m-m-materials..." In all honesty, she was slightly tempted by the offer of being compensated for her efforts. However, that had never been the point AND the short girl had no confidence in her skills with the sewing machine. She couldn't sell something that was sub-par at best.
In an effort to move along, she once more began to lead the way, though her steps seemed to shuffle much more than they had been earlier. They really were too far from a bolt of cloth that seemed to work perfectly for an Obi-Wan robe. She stopped in front of it and began to swivel her foot from side to side quietly, as if saying "we're here."
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Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2010 11:12 pm
Arguing with Yvette was difficult. Usually, Tara didn't mind voicing her opinions to anyone and everyone who would so much as looked at her. She was used to being ignored, getting funny looks, and occasionally having small children shielded from her. She was not used to being taken so seriously, and by someone who was so easily hurt. Thinking about what she said before she said it exercised parts of her brain that were rarely used.
"I'm not saying you were trying to get more than you needed, you know. Just that you're... well, you know how when you take a car to get fixed, sometimes the mechanics make up problems so they can pad the bill? You're doing the opposite." Tara paused to think about what she was saying. "Not to say that you don't know what you're doing, but a little extra never hurt anything, right?"
That had to cover all her bases. She was assuring Yvette that she wasn't doing anything wrong, reinforcing her trust in her abilities, and maintaining that cost was not a big deal. Prom dresses usually cost a bundle anyway, and if it saved Tara from having to shop for one with her mother, she'd kick in any extra herself. Having something she actually liked would be well worth any incidental costs.
Tara was so busy thinking about how to handle the situation that she didn't even notice the cloth. She simply followed Yvette, nearly walking into her when she suddenly stopped. "Eh? What'd I miss?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2010 7:57 am
Even after the full explanation, Yvette still somehow managed to look like a puppy who had been scolded. So, when Yvette rather submissively just uttered a simple "K-kay!" it was a bit of a surprise. Obviously Yvette wasn't doing something right if her friend was trying to throw money in her direction. She did need any extra money she could get, but this wasn't how she wanted to get it at all. It felt almost as if she was getting a donation.
And no matter how bad her family's situation got, the shy girl did not want to be labeled a charity case. No matter how true it was!
Eventually, she lifted her finger and pointed to the rich and rather thick brown cloth in front of her. It was almost earthy in tone. Yvette could have explained how it was one of the cloths she wanted to get for Tara, and she could have explained how she was awaiting approval from her friend before awkwardly picking up the bolt.
Instead, she just stood there stupidly with her finger pointing at the cloth.
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Posted: Mon Oct 18, 2010 10:20 pm
It was hard to be sure if her message had gotten through properly. In the end, Tara decided to simply go on as if nothing happened. If Yvette was still feeling uncomfortable, the only way to set things right was to act comfortable herself. Grinning- perhaps a bit too much- she followed Yvette's finger, her eyes finally landing on the bolt of cloth.
"Oh wow, that looks perfect!" With no real idea of how to behave in a fabric store, Tara grabbed the loose end of the bolt and tugged on it energetically until it unrolled a little. "I can just picture it- not to long from now, at a prom not so far away..." She frowned, letting the fabric droop. "That sounds so anticlimactic, doesn't it?"
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Posted: Tue Oct 19, 2010 7:30 am
Being as green as she was with the whole Star Wars thing, some of the humor was lost on her. "I-it doesn't sound that bad..." Since her friend seemed to keen on this cloth, Yvette managed to slide up next to the bolt, and began to pull the bolt out. Soon enough the small girl had the large bolt of fabric under her arm, and in all honesty, she looked as if she was about to fall over. As best as she could, without letting on that Tara had been acting silly in unrolling the cloth from the bolt in the first place, the shorter of the pair began trying to reroll the cloth back onto the bolt.
"I... I don't know if it would be what you'd want, but I did see a sort of burlap material here as well. I didn't know if you wanted the cloth underneath to be soft or scratchy." Yvette had only seen the movie one time, and she couldn't help but think the material looked a bit rough. She was probably wrong though.
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Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 6:50 pm
"Whoa, lemme give you a hand there," Tara said quickly, grabbing one end of the bolt. It was heavier than it looked, and almost as tall as Yvette was. "Sorry if I made a mess."
She didn't look particularly sorry, but that was Tara for you.
As they worked to roll the fabric back up, she considered the options. "I think comfort is going to win out over realism this time. I'm not sure what the real thing would be made of, but this is supposed to be kind of formal, I guess. And if I'm going to be stuck in it all night, I want to at least be able to move around."
After a moment, Tara realized the implications of what she said and frowned. "I didn't mean it like that," she said quickly. "I'm just so used to hating dresses that the idea of one that I'll actually like is hard to get used to. It's like tomatoes- when I was a kid, I hated them, but after I tried them with basil and mozzarella, they became one of my favorite snacks. I don't like dresses now, but I'm sure whatever you do will be so cool I can't not love it."
At least, Tara hoped so. Otherwise, she'd have one nightmare of a prom.
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Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 8:50 pm
Yvette wobbled slightly, but fortunately she didn't go down. The procedures of the fabric store were always so tedious to such a small person. She had to take the bolts to the cutting counter where a clerk could assist with getting the right amount of the desired cloth. Many women were able to do two or three bolts of cloth at one time. Yvette literally had to make lots of trips if she was buying a lot.
Rarely did the girl buy a lot though.
It was fortunate for Yvette that Tara was quick to notice her slip up. The dark haired girl hadn't even had the appropriate amount of time to react as her usual self before her friend was already fixing the problem. So instead of embarrassed frowns, Yvette shared a tidbit of information with her friend. "I don't think I've ever had tomatoes with basil and mozzarella..." However, the girl's cheeks still managed to gain a rosy color to them. Compliments were never really wasted on Yvette.
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Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 6:53 pm
Tara gasped, putting her hands to her mouth in an exaggerated, horrified expression. "You're kidding! Oh, you have no idea what you're missing! It's like pizza, except there's no crust and it's cold instead of hot and really, really fresh." Her mouth was watering just thinking about it. "Next time you come over, I'll make sure we have some in the house. It's getting to be tomato season, so it'll be perfect!"
Now Tara was hungry. "We should get a snack after this," she declared. "My treat- since you're the one who's doing all the work here." With that goal in mind, she wanted to get all of the fabric and such- the things she had no clue how to help with- settled as fast as she could. Her comment about Yvette doing all the work wasn't just an idle compliment; Tara really did admire her friend's ability to work in a way that boggled her mind, even if she had no desire to do it herself.
"Is this the only one we need? Or were you looking for something else?" Tara did her best to stabilize the bolt so that Yvette could have her hands free. "I'm kind of clueless here."
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