Force2reckon

  "Excuuuuse me? Miss?" The small, strange girl said waving one of the four spiderlike appendages in front of Toni.

  Toni remained frozen, too much information still being processed to process the new crazy in front of her. She'd seen all sorts of strange species since she'd arrived here. Short stony skinned men, giant elephant people, furry boar like humanoids, the reptilian satveak, even small groups of the fuzzy ghana traveling in their small herds. This... This was the strangest of them all.

  "I-is she alright?" The girl said, her bright, glowing green eyes turning to look at Mims.

  The motion was so elegant, so graceful, Toni forgot what she was looking at for a moment. A young girl looking no more than 14 or 15 years old with perfect, porcein smooth lime green skin. White hair fell down in a curtain of curls around her shoulders. She wore a bright green bonnet with a bck ribbon csped by two emerald studded brass csps to the sides of her head. Asimir hued green knee-length hoop dress, practically ripped from victorian era france, rested underneath a tight bck vest-like corset.

  And sure, the green skin, white hair, green and bck outfit, that was all pretty jarring. Pretty unique in and of it's own right. The monotone green eyes which literally glowed were also strange, but what really got Toni's jaw frozen open were her limbs. Two arms, with soft bck knitting gloves. Two legs with bck knee-highs and stilettos. And four spider's legs sticking out from her waist and resting atop her skirt.

  "Yes I think? She's from Rityni so she's probably not used to a Rakniss." Mims replied then directed the woman toward the dispy window. "I'm more worried about our big friend Mate."

  "AH! Daddy!" Toni snapped immediately out of her shock and bolted straight towards where Temate was still ying spread eagle on the floor. "Are you alright?" She said as she knelt beside him.

  "Yeah just... My pride." He said turning to look at her. "And also maybe some bones that I'm working on right now." He joked with a slight smirk.

  Toni ughed slightly and started helping Temate up. He groaned and put a hand to his head as the two stood to look around them.

  "Oh I'm sorry about that sweatpea, are you alright?" The rakniss said, her various appendages running along Temate's body.

  "I'm-" Temate put his hands on his back and leaned backwards to a loud cracking sound "-fine. Sorry about your dispys." He replied.

  "Oh it's alright, it's alright, my sisters can fix it right up! Come come over here and I'll help you while they get to-"

  "What in the barren fields happened?! Reci?!" A heavy, sharp womans voice cracked.

  "Uh oh..." The rakniss turned to look over her shoulder with a whince as she stopped leading their group off to the side.

  Toni stopped once again in the front door as she followed the other girls eyeline. There she saw someone not strange approaching hands spread wide in shock. Which the realization that the ghanaan woman standing there with the massive rack was not strange was, in and of itself, strange to Toni.

  "Who did this? You sir?!" The ghanaan woman practically flew across the floor so elegantly in her bck gothic ball gown.

  Her bright, snow white fuzz looked more like a lions mane then a sheeps ruffles. That with her twisted horns and the twisted deep gray skin of her face, made her look like a charging, strangely beautiful, ram. Crystal blue eyes fshed as she pressed herself straight up to Temate, barely having to look up to stare at him.

  "Do you know how much those dispys cost in materials alone! I'm going to-"

  "Aires rex! It wasn't his fault!" Reci said as she pced one of her spider limbs on the taller womans shoulder.

  Aires pnted her hands on her hips and tilted her nose up toward the damaged dispys.

  "We just opened Reci! We can't be taking damages like that lying down, even if your sisters do the work it still costs materials and it's damaged goods!" Aires growled.

  "Yes, yes we'll talk to the Avons ter, the crooks already left, you leave these nice customers alone okay?" Reci replied.

  "Customers?" Aires looked sharply at the three.

  "Yes! We saw this shop and thought to stop by, my name is Mims ward of the Are estate-" Mims stepped forward and bowed as he spoke. "-My fr-"

  "Are? As in... St-Are lights Are? That Are?" Aires said sliding right up to Mims who's back straightened in surprise.

  "A-ah yes bu-"

  "WEEEEEEEELLL Why didn't you say so! My name is Aires Tein, of the Tein Herd and this is Reciri Lassoh of Undermounts own Rakniss queendom and welcome to our shop Woven Wool! Where we combine the unique artistry of the Rakniss with the high quality products and techniques of Ghanaan herds! Come come let me show you around!"

  Aires grabbed Mims and Toni and immediately dragged them off to the back of the store. Behind her Toni heard Reciri sigh.

  "Sorry, she gets like this when she hears clinking pieces." Reciri said to Temate.

  Toni didn't hear Temate's response as she was rushed into the backrooms of the quaint little shop and felt yet another shock hit her. It felt like ever since she'd walked in here her brain had been paralyzed by one thing after the other as she was just overwhelmed. This time it was the modernity of what she saw.

  "Really miss Tein I should tell y- wooooah" Toni saw Mims eyes go wide at what he saw as well, so maybe this was just different.

  In the back of the shop was a huge open office space. Several desks were gathered together where ghanaan and rakniss were consulting over long sheets of paper. As they flew past one desk Toni saw five or six designs, some eborate, some complex. She even recognized notation for yering and padding that would create something far more durable then simple weaving.

  "Now now mister Mims, I must insist for the Are estate only our best should be provided! The front showroom is for the average townsfolk to seek something of quality and durability at river floor prices! Keppa!" Aires swept to a rge back table where several rakniss were busy going over small sheaths of example cloth.

  One of the rakniss, grey skinned with smooth luminescent grey-white eyes and a crisp dark tunic embroidered with eborate white web designs turned. They rested their four arachnid limbs in soft looking pockets on the front of their tunic above the dark, skintight jean like pants they wore.

  "Ma'am." Keppa bowed to Aires.

  "Quickly, bring us the top of the line dresses, we've got noble customers to attend to chop chop!" Aires barked, cpping her hands together twice.

  "Ah, miss Tein I must insist-" Mims started saying, hands rubbing together uncomfortably.

  "Oh don't worry about it, I assure you it's well within your estates budget, and even if it isn't just having the opportunity for your noble to examine our wares? I'm sure that's worth it's weight in pieces! Now you!" Aires stepped up to Toni. "Let's get a good look at you!"

  Suddenly hands were on her. Toni yelped as Rose was taken out of her arms and handed to Mims while Aires ran hands along every inch of her. Immediately Toni began to blush as the woman so casually used her hands length to measure her waist, height, bust and so on. The soft, appreciative humming noises the tall ghanaan woman made as she worked also twisted up Toni's stomach a bit.

  "Umm this visit isn't really for-"

  "Shoosh pet, let me do my work." Aires softly chided Mims who grew quiet stepping backwards.

  She also couldn't stop looking at Aires arms. Unlike Kea or other ghanaan Toni had met, Aires arms and neck had been shaved perfectly bare. She wore a dark bck choker with an amber shield charm hanging from it. In pce of her natural fur Aires wore sleeves of soft white fur with bck ce holding it daintily to her biceps as if they were the sleeves detached to her strapless gown.

  Most notable were the tattoos. Shimmering, shifting white imagery sprawled from shoulder to shoulder and down beneath the ce of her fur sleeves. Toni whimpered softly when Aires casually measured her thighs, her hands running over the soft, sensitive skin and dangerously close to her still uncovered nethers.

  "AH careful!" Toni whined.

  "Oh? Sensitive are we?" Aires said looking up at Toni with a grin that set her chest running a mile an hour.

  "I just- I'm- Nnnn-yes sensitive!" Toni whined, feeling for all the world like a young girl again.

  "Aww, sweety don't worry." Aires squeezed Toni's thigh dragging a whimper out of her, then stood abruptly. "I'm done!"

  As she said that she moved over to Keppa, pointing out three different dresses from an array of outfits. One blue that looked more like strips of cloth than an actual dress, one a green fluttery dress that looked practically see through, and one a tight golden yellow which caught Toni's eye. Not necessarily because it would be incredibly erotic to wear, but primarily due to it's shocking resembnce to a cheongsam.

  In fact it looked like an incredibly eborate, ornate version of what Toni would have worn to a summer police dinner back home. Her mother had always been strict about wearing and representing their culture, showing off it's beauty.

  "Hmmm, and what's this for?" Aires asked as she came over and began holding each of the outfits up to Toni, then handing them back to Keppa with instructions on how to refit them.

  "Lord Are is returning from an important trip and we're throwing a simple ga to celebrate and introduce Toni-" Mims gestured towards Toni. "-and the man Temate you saw outside. They're important guests." Mims said, with clear emphasis on the word important.

  "Reeeally? Well in that case not the blue one Keppa it's far too bawdy for this kind of atmosphere-" Aires looked Toni up and down, "-though it would be absolutely fitting for you. If you want to buy it too?"

  At the mention of money Toni finally unfroze "AH! No, sorry this is- we can't afford this ma'am." Toni said with a soft bow. "We're just guests we don't have much, that's why we came in here cause it looked in our price range. Apologies for taking up your time!" Toni let the words out in a rush.

  For a moment there was silence, then a loud, resonating ugh. Toni looked up to see Aires ughing like the viliness of a film. Back hand held over her mouth and one hand over her hip as she practically roared with ughter.

  "Oh-oh dear don't you worry, I could tell the moment you walked in you couldn't afford this. Here try this on, I think it's best for you, Keppa already made the adjustments." Aires said as she handed Toni the golden yellow dress.

  "I- you did?" Toni gawked at the woman towering over her.

  "Of cooooourse, [Power]s are handy that way, you can just change here, it's nothing anyone here hasn't seen or would care about." Aires said crossing her arms, one hand sticking up with palm out.

  "I-but-" Toni was blushing like mad now.

  She looked around to the gathered rakniss and ghana, none of which were actually gathering and looking at her. Any that were here had their focus on the outfits or blueprints. Toni took a deep breath and tried to remember who she said she was gonna be. Confident. Proud. She's a sexy bad ass who won a war...

  Even if it wasn't a proper war.

  Or really a victory.

  And Temate had almost-

  Toni spped her face with a hand and focused on the task at hand. Without hesitation now she stripped out of the green leafy dress she'd been wearing for... weeks now. She set that off to the side, ignoring Aires' eye as she examined the outfit, and began putting on the golden summer cheongsam she'd been handed.

  And it wasn't a cheongsam, it didn't go on like one for starters. It had a wide open back which allowed Toni to slide her arms into the long sleeves. Which was the second difference, this had sleeves, long and billowing at the end with tight wrist csps. Once she'd attached those she reached back to try and grab at the open space and pull it close.

  "No, not like that, have you never worn self-stitching clothing pet?" Aires tutted stepping forward. "You've got it on, now take your arms and stick them straight out like this." Aires grabbed both of Toni's arms and pulled them out straight in front of her. "Then back liiiike-"

  Aires pushed Fia's arms out, keeping them fully extended as she pushed her shoulder bdes together. She felt a strange sensation as her arms were released, the outfit held snug to her shoulders!

  "Woah!" Toni half-shouted as she reached over her shoulder. "It's completely sealed! That's amazing!"

  "Mmm yes, ghanaan technique that. We have so much fur and like such loose, piecemeal clothing to show it off, we had to learn that. Best part? Non-power based self-stitching!" Aires said with a grin.

  "That's really impressive, I didn't even think you could do something like that." Toni murmured.

  "Yes yes, I'm a magi with fabric, now tell me-" Aires pulled Toni along and stood her in front of a full body mirror. "-How do you feel?"

  Toni looked at herself in the mirror, her bright red hair flowing down across her chest and contrasting beautifully with the glimmering yellow. The left side of the outfit was embroidered with an eborate sepia toned pattern of winds and fmes. A thick brass csp held the tall neck firm at her throat.

  It felt good. Right. Like she was back home with her family. God she missed them. She felt tears coming to her eyes and immediately her hair began to lift. [Inner Confgration] ignited just a bit and burned the tears away, making her heart pump.

  "I feel at home." Toni said with a soft breath.

  "Really? Didn't realize this style got so popur in Rityni." Aires said and then spun the girl back around.

  She pulled fpped the hem of the dress against Toni's thighs, straightening it out. Then she did a quick once over of Toni as she eyeballed her form.

  "Mhmm, mhmm. Looks good, good work Keppa." Aires muttered.

  "Of course ma'am." Keppa said with a bow.

  "Well, I think it's good on you! I'll have Keppa bring you some undergarments to go with it unlike your st outfit." Aires said as she put a hand on Toni's head. "You look absolutely stunning darling, you're gonna shave their wool off!"

  "Uh, lord Are probably won't pay for this, and I certainly-" Toni began.

  "Nonsense, I'm certain he'll ask about it, you just mention our shops name the Woven Wool! Brand new hybrid of rakniss skills with ghanaan technique! First of it's kind! We'll call it even, deal?" Aires stated as she tossed Toni's previous dress back to her. "Now do you want to wear it out or do you want to change for me again?" Aires said with a big grin.

  Toni blushed. "I uh... I realize now I don't actually know how to get this off, could you?"

  "Ahahahaha! But of course pet! Here, let me help you."