Demonic Po*nstar System

Chapter 1026: Shopping Fabrics

Kaiden Grey followed Yunohana into the kimono house, where the proprietress welcomed his family with her attendants lined up behind her. Calypso smiled at the young women as she ducked beneath the entrance curtain.

One of the younger attendants made a tiny noise. The girl beside her caught her wrist, and both stood straighter as their employer glanced back.

"Hello~"

"Hello!" they answered together.

The demoness grinned. One of the girls covered her mouth, visibly struggling with having been greeted by her.

Yunohana spoke to the proprietress while the family removed their shoes. Soon bolts of fabric were coming off the shelves, and the attendants spread finished display garments across a long table.

"You may try these to see which colors and styles you like," their hostess explained, lifting a silk sleeve for Alexandra to feel. "The seamstresses will take your measurements and prepare drawings of your own designs."

"It’s so soft..." Alexandra ran her fingers over the fabric.

An attendant opened a book of embroidery samples beside her. Gold leaves spread across one page, with clouds and curling waves on the next.

"Could we have moonlight?" Aria asked, immediately interested.

"Of course." Yunohana drew a length of silver thread across a dark blue swatch. "A moon above the hem, perhaps, with its light reflected across water."

Aria pictured it, then looked at Kaiden with a smile that promised him a very pleasant evening once the garment arrived.

"I would love that."

"Then I want a storm," Luna put in. "A badass one. Lightning and everything."

The proprietress listened to Sonoda’s translation, smiled, and called for drawing paper.

The girl carrying the next stack stopped in front of the Storm Valkyrie. She took a breath, then tried her English.

"Lady Luna. I am... very big fan."

Luna looked up from the table.

"Oh. Hey. Thanks."

The attendant’s face brightened at having been understood. She glanced at her colleague, who gave her an encouraging nod, then looked back at Luna.

"You are very cute."

"Not badass? Epic? Cool?"

The attendant’s eyes widened. She hurriedly addressed Sonoda in Japanese. Sonoda listened, pressed her lips together, and translated.

"She would like to know whether she offended you, Lady Luna. She says she meant cute in a powerful way."

"I know, I know. I was just messing with you." Luna giggled, then added, "You’re a real cutie yourself."

"!!!!" The blush that followed could illuminate perfect darkness.

She needed to take three audible, lengthy breaths to steady herself. "Messing with me... Lady Luna!!"

"Heh~" Luna grinned. "No way~"

"..." The attendant pouted cutely and retrieved a dark purple display kimono from the stack, holding it up for Luna with considerably more confidence.

"This one? For you?"

Silver flowers climbed the sleeves. The attendant touched the embroidery before pointing to a sketch the proprietress was making beside them. Dark clouds gathered around the drawn hem, split by branching silver lightning.

"Like this. Storm."

"Oh, that’s cool as fu- I mean very cool." Luna leaned closer to the drawing before glancing at Kaiden. "What about the purple?"

"I’d like to see you in it."

"That’s a useless answer. You’d say that about all of them."

"We could test that."

"We’re not spending the whole night here, Kai."

She took the purple sample anyway, holding it against herself while Nyx selected a sash.

Nyx chose a midnight silk with a rosy sheen and asked the seamstress for stars curving around her waist. Luna leaned over to inspect the drawing, then insisted that her lightning needed to be bigger.

"It’s embroidery, bestie. You won’t be fighting in it."

"I might. You never know."

At the other end of the table, Bastet had discovered the embroidered pieces. An older attendant placed two fabrics side by side for her, pointing out the stitching along their edges.

Bastet’s fingertips followed a line of gold thread, the attendant turned the cloth to show its underside, and the felinid’s ears lifted with interest.

"Beautiful work."

The woman understood that much. She smiled, bowed to Bastet, and brought out another box.

"We’ve lost Choco Kitty," Calypso observed. "She’s in heaven."

Bastet ignored her and examined a cream-colored display robe with gold leaves trailing down one side. The attendant held a deep red sash against it for comparison.

"I would like the sun in this gold with the rays spreading upward from here."

She touched the hem and watched the attendant sketch the rising sun across the lower part of her proposed robe.

"Master?"

Kaiden stepped beside her, and Bastet guided his fingers over the gold stitching.

"Look how neatly they finished it. Even underneath."

The older attendant watched her showing him the work, smiling despite understanding very little of the exchange.

"I see why you like her," Kaiden murmured to Bastet. "You could spend all afternoon here."

"We could," she suggested hopefully.

Her tail curled against his leg. She leaned happily into him while the attendant brought the ornaments closer for them to examine together.

Calypso interrupted their inspection by holding a black silk sleeve against her red arm.

"What about me, Darling?"

Kaiden turned toward her, then reached over to fold the sleeve back a little.

"I like seeing your skin against it. I think black is perfect to highlight your red tone."

She turned her wrist beneath his fingers, admiring the contrast herself.

"Oh, yes. And we can have red flames climbing up. Darling, I’ll look gorgeous."

"You’re making it very difficult to wait for these."

"Poor you~"

Alexandra was still holding the blue floral kimono against herself when she found its price tag.

"Oh."

She read it again, then carefully lowered the garment onto the table.

Yunohana stopped beside her. "Does it no longer please you?"

"It’s beautiful. I just think I could choose something a little less..." Alexandra glanced at the tag. "Something simpler."

"May I?"

When Alexandra agreed, Yunohana lifted the robe and held its shoulders against hers. She adjusted the sleeve so the blonde could see the flowers beside her hand.

"I believe your first choice was excellent. We could keep these flowers and work a little of your gold through them."

Yunohana laid a strand of warm gold embroidery thread against the blue sleeve. Alexandra touched it, imagining her restoration light among the pale flowers.

"That would be beautiful," she admitted. "But you’ve already done so much for us."

"And you spent today healing our people. Please allow me the pleasure of buying you something that will highlight your beauty."

Alexandra’s eyes softened. She had been ready to put the garment back before anyone could make a fuss, but Yunohana was looking at her with such sincere fondness that refusing felt unkind.

"...Thank you. I would love it."

"Then let us find you a sash."

Kaiden watched his protector smile down at the flowers while Yunohana asked an attendant to bring several colors. He was very glad they had stopped here.

Alice approached with a folded ivory-and-gold swatch and a hair ribbon balanced on top. She had chosen golden rays spreading across ivory silk for her commission, and the attendant was preparing a drawing for her to approve.

"Big Brother, could you hold these? I want to look at the fans."

"Sure."

She added them to his hands and went to join Alexandra. An attendant opened a fan for her, revealing a painted rabbit, and Alice immediately called him over to see it.

By the time Aria found him, he was carrying the fan as well.