Disclaimer: I don't own Bravely Default, all rights to the owners.
I make reference to Agnès not knowing the local food in Florem, and then literally the next party chat I see after posting that chapter is about Florem's food… which Agnès knows all about. The game is mocking me.
And right back to the Yulyana Needleworks, this time in chapter 2 for the "finding clothes for Agnès" scene. Altered for fun, obviously.
"Very well!" The Sage proclaims with a wide smile and a dramatic point of his staff. "Consider any one dress in my collection, thousands strong, yours to take! You're bound to find at least one that works perfectly, and I can think of no better fate for my creations than flattering the lovely Vestal's form!"
"Our infinite thanks, Master." Ringabel says with a deep bow from the waist. "We are eternally in your debt!"
"Ooh, and you've got a stocked vanity too…" Edea notes, her eyes scanning the various products lying around. "Mind if we use that too? We'll need to test out some looks, after all, and makeup is part of that."
The Sage's smile gets wider, if that's even possible. "Please, please, be my guests!"
Off to the side, Tiz watches the exchange warily. "Are you sure about this Agnès? This seems like a little overkill."
"Let us defer to them this time, Tiz." Agnès says, though her own expression betrays some anxiety as well. "Besides, it can't be that bad… can it?"
As Tiz will find out, it can, because the Sage and their other companions are taking advantage of the situation to have an impromptu fashion show, and Agnès is the only model.
"This one might do you well if you're trying to win over Florem's crowd." The Sage says, handing Edea a dress that looks way, way too loud. "They do like their blues and greens."
"Gotcha." Edea says, taking the dress and pulling out the dress to see how it looks. "Hmm… I doubt this will be it, but let's give it a shot."
Ringabel and the Sage exchange giddy smiles while Edea walks into the changing room and Tiz stands behind them all with lips pursed and arms crossed. This doesn't seem right to him.
"Hmm, yeah, it drowns you out a bit." Edea's voice says from the room. "Still, we should get the boys' opinion."
"Wh-Why?" Agnès squawks.
"Well they're going to be a better judge of sexy than me." Edea says.
"I-I…"
Tiz clears his throat and raises his voice. "You don't have to if you don't want to Agnès. No one is forcing you."
Ringabel shoots him a squinty-eyed look, but doesn't comment. The room is quiet for a moment as Agnès thinks, and then responds in a firm, convinced voice "No, I should show you Tiz. A-All of you I mean. You will know better than me."
Tiz really doesn't think he will. He knows nothing about fashion, and he's fairly sure Ringabel and the Sage have ulterior motives.
Still, when the curtain to the changing room draws open, Tiz's eyes snap up and he instinctively stands straighter and uncrosses his arms.
The first thing Tiz notices is that Edea is correct, the dress does drown Agnès out a bit. That's not to say it doesn't look very, very pretty on her though. He feels vaguely uncomfortable as his eyes quickly flick over her sleeveless arms and exposed legs before fixing solidly on the dress and then her face.
Agnès looks distinctly uncomfortable, and has her hands clasped tightly in front of her down near the hem of her dress, likely very aware that it isn't all that long. Her eyes are on the floor and not the group.
"It doesn't seem to… fit." Tiz speaks, breaking the silence that had fallen over the group as everyone takes a look. Agnès' eyes spring up to meet his. "And I don't mean size. I mean I think it's too… loud… for Agnès."
"An astute observation, good shepherd." Ringabel nods. His gaze is decidedly not on the dress, nor even Agnès' face, and Tiz fights the irrational urge to swat the back of the man's head. "Sage?"
"Hmm, the boy does have a point. Perhaps the colours are a bit too intense for our vestal." The sage tuts. Despite his usually lecherous attitude, he is, in fact, looking at the dress. Regardless of how he usually acts, he is a tailor and has a sharp mind for fashion, and he takes pride in his work. "We can't go too subdued, you won't win the Festival that way, but perhaps we can go with something less flashy, eh?"
The sage shuffles back into the dress room with Edea and Ringabel in tow. Agnès glances nervously at their backs, and then again to Tiz, who tries to give her a reassuring smile.
That just seems to embarrass her and Agnès scurried to hide in the dressing room, and Tiz squeezes his eyes shut for a few seconds, praying he can remain focused, until he hears the others coming out of the dress room.
"One of my older works, but an elegant one!" The sage says with obvious pride. Edea has already disappeared into the changing room, so Tiz has no idea what's coming. The sage winks to Ringabel. "You should have seen the woman I had in mind when designing it. Oh ho ho…"
"I can only imagine." Ringabel says, tapping his chin in thought.
Edea and Agnès spend a long time inside the dressing room. Tiz can hear Edea muttering "sit still already" at one point, and he realizes that Edea must actually be applying makeup to Agnès.
"Edea is really going all the way if she's doing makeup." Ringabel notes, apparently coming to the same conclusion. "The dress must work nicely."
Tiz is slightly anxious now. If Ringabel thinks it must be nice, Tiz is pretty sure he has a good reason to be wary.
As it turns out, Tiz was totally right to be worried. The outfit is less outrageously bright and loud, but has far too many frills and far too little fabric on the upper body. The neckline is questionable, and that's if Tiz is being polite about it. At least he doesn't have to worry about dropping his gaze lower than the waist because she actually has a full skirt this time. He doesn't want to look at her face because with the eyeshadow and lipstick Edea applied Agnès looks almost unearthly, and Tiz doesn't want to be rude and stare.
"You look like a proper princess, Lady Vestal!" Ringabel proclaims. "A true beauty!"
"Indeed, indeed." The Sage says in agreement.
"Mmm, I dunno." Edea mutters. "It's good, but…"
Agnès' hands tightly grip her skirts, her cheeks tinged with a bit of red. "I-I feel overdressed."
"A valid point." The Sage nods. "Perhaps this dress is also a bit much, albeit in a different sense than before."
Tiz nods mutely in agreement, not trusting himself to talk.
"Alright, alright, let's try another." The Sage hums. "Ringabel, perhaps it is your turn to choose. You know the Vestal better than I."
"I shall bring all my intelligence to bear in choosing something stunning!" Ringabel proclaims. "Fear not, Lady Vestal!"
"Oh dear." Agnès mumbles, clearing fearing. "Oh no…"
"It'll be fine." Edea says. Her grin is just a bit too wide for Tiz to be convinced. "Don't worry Agnès. We'll find you something fabulous."
"That's not really our goal." Agnès says weakly, but Edea isn't listening.
"Ooh, this one is good…" Ringabel's voice carries out of the dress room.
"Veto. Too much leg." Edea responds.
"But would that not be a boon?" Ringabel counters. "We are going for maximum appeal, are we not?"
"True…" Edea mutters.
Agnès bites her lip, and Tiz scratches the back of his head, and they both share a mildly concerned look only for both of them to quickly look away in mutual embarrassment a moment later.
(Tiz doesn't want to admit he's imagining what outfit Ringabel and Edea are looking at, and what 'too much leg' could possibly look like on Agnès.)
"Ooh, this one is perfect!" Ringabel gasps.
"Yes!" Edea says, for once in total agreement. "There's no way this won't be incredible!"
"Oh ho ho! Hit the jackpot, have we?" The Sage cackles. "Well, hurry along, get Agnès dressed up."
Edea eagerly pushes Agnès into the changing room, and the dress in her hand swings so much Tiz can't see it properly. Ringabel bounces from leg to leg as the two girls are in the changing room, unable to contain his excitement, and even the Sage eagerly taps his staff with his eyes fixed on the curtain.
Tiz is just worried.
It takes a long, long time for Edea to finish with Agnès, and the anticipation of the room outside only grows in that intervening time. Ringabel even brandishes his notebook, ready to sketch if Agnès really is going to be as stunning as they expect she will be.
"A-Are you sure about this Edea?" Agnès whispers from inside the changing room.
"Yes! Yes!" Edea giggles. Tiz has never heard Edea giggle. "Go! Strut your stuff!"
Agnès tries to protest further, but Edea marches out of the changing room and waits next to Ringabel, not listening to any more excuses. There's a small period of quiet, about ten seconds, where Tiz isn't sure Agnès is even going to come out, but eventually her fingers grab the curtain and she slowly pulls it aside.
Tiz's breath hitches in his throat, and he's actually thankful for Ringabel's whistle and applause so Agnès isn't looking at him.
Agnès… the dress… crystals, it's all too much for him. The dress must be magic, there's no other explanation.
Apparently Edea softened on her "too much leg" stance, because what she's managed to stuff Agnès into is a tight-fitting, floor-length white cocktail dress with slits on either side all the way up to her hip that show a ridiculous amount of leg with every tiny movement Agnès makes, not to mention it exposes a generous amount of her thighs and hip. The neckline is just deep enough to hint at cleavage, and beyond the straps the dress doesn't cover any of her arms or collarbone.
"This!" Ringabel proclaims, tears sparkling in the corner of his eyes. "This. This is the epitome of sexy! You've done it Edea, Agnès!"
"My life's work has all led to this moment!" The Sage says, dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief.
"Calm down drama queens." Edea huffs, but she's smiling too. "Though you do look amazing Agnès. Don't you agree, Tiz?"
Almost immediately Agnès' eyes swing to him, and Tiz thinks he finally understands the point of makeup, because despite probably being anxious, the eyeshadow and the artificial red on her cheeks and lips make Agnès' gaze look smoldering rather than worried, and Tiz's heart jumps into his throat.
Tiz very much feels like the teenaged boy he technically is, trying not to gape at this woman who suddenly looks twenty-five, mature, and is making his body fire off all sorts of hormones he's not at all used to feeling.
"T-Tiz?" Agnès asks after a second, and Tiz realizes he completely forgot to respond. Everyone else is looking at him expectantly, and Edea has a shit-eating grin on her face as she leans against the wall, gesturing towards Agnès behind the girl's back. "I-Is it that bad?"
"N-No! You- uh- good." Tiz squeaks in a strangled voice. He wants to bring up his hands and hide his face, but he also doesn't want to embarrass himself further. His hands fidget anxiously in front of him as he tries not to let his gaze drop from Agnès' face. "You're- I-It's amazing, Agnès. Really. Beautiful."
"O-Oh! Thank you." Agnès mumbles, adding a genuine blush to the false one dusted on her cheeks.
"We have to take this one." Ringabel says. He's frantically sketching in his notebook, unabashedly raking his eyes over Agnès. "Edea, please."
"I have no complaints." Edea says. Her own eyes are wide with delight. "Even I can't pretend this isn't one of the best things I've ever seen. Poor Tiz looks like he's about to faint."
He's really trying not to, but at some point he grabbed the desk behind him for support and didn't even realize it.
"I-I'm sorry!" Agnès says, rushing to help Tiz stand up again, perhaps not realizing she's the cause. In fact, having her so close is not doing his pounding heart any favors, and he's very aware of her bare hands around one of his gloves, and a traitorous part of his brain wishes he'd taken it off. "Are you alright Tiz?"
He nods mutely, no longer trusting himself to speak.
"Your face is so red! Are you ill?"
He shakes his head.
"Agnès, Agnès, give him space." Edea says. Her voice is trembling, barely hiding a laugh. She puts a hand on the Vestal's shoulder and pulls her away. "He'll be fine."
"A-Alright…"
"Maybe you should go change out now. We're absolutely taking this dress." Edea says.
"If you're sure." Agnès says, shooting another glance at Tiz. "But our goal is merely to be heard by Olivia, this really feels like too much. I'm too… exposed."
"Th-Then you don't have to wear it." Tiz says, finally finding his voice.
"She can't just wear her normal dress." Ringabel protests. "She has to at least look like she's making an effort, or she'll be suspicious! Besides, the Vestal Garb is nearly as revealing and she had no problem with that!"
Something clicks in Tiz's brain. "Agnès."
"Yes?"
"Would you be fine wearing the Vestal Garb for the festival?"
Agnès' eyes widen as she considers it, then nods. "Yes… yes that would be fine. I'm perfectly comfortable in it, and only me, Olivia, the Sage, and all of you know the significance of the Vestal Garb."
"Tiz you killjoy." Ringabel moans. "How could you? Do you not want to see this incredible sight again?"
Tiz decides not to answer that. "Besides Agnès, you shouldn't be wearing something you don't want to just for a silly festival."
"Yes… Yes of course." Agnès smiles, and for a moment Tiz thinks he's going to have to grab the desk again. Agnès seems to notice, because she glances to the floor with her cheeks flaring scarlet. "I… I should change."
"Y-Yeah."
Agnès flees into the changing room while Ringabel and the Sage lean on each other, weeping dramatic tears. Edea, for her part, looks supremely smug.
Tiz staggers across the room, trying acutely aware of the fire raging across his face. "Sage!"
"My boy, how could you do this to us?" The Sage asks sorrowfully.
"Do you have a towel?"
"A… towel?"
"Yes."
"There's some in that drawer." He points to one with his staff.
"Thank you." Tiz says. He grabs a towel out of the drawer, marches outside, kneels next to the stream, and promptly dunks his head.
The shock of cold water is exactly what he needed to clear his mind. He keeps his head underwater for several seconds, only coming up when he starts to feel out of breath. He stares at his flushed face in the water's reflection, dunks his head again, and then grabs the towel and dries himself off.
He needed that.
When he returns, Agnès is back in her normal dress with the makeup all wiped off, and she looks nothing like the gripping beauty she was before… but that image still sticks in his mind, and Tiz knows he won't be forgetting it for a while.
"We're still taking the dress." Edea calls out to him as he steps back inside. "Who knows when it might be useful?"
"Tiz, you're wet." Agnès notes with a concerned frown. "Did you fall into the stream?"
"No, I just needed a drink." Tiz says.
"And your whole head got wet?"
"Yes." Tiz says, determined to not have to explain that he got too flustered and needed the cold shock to calm down. There's no way he could explain that to Agnès and ever be able to look her in the eye again. "It was a big drink."
"I… see." Agnès says, obviously confused. Edea and Ringabel are both giving Tiz knowing looks, and he refuses to look at them.
"Well, if that's all, you should probably be on your way." The Sage chuckles, and shoots Tiz a wink. "Unless, of course, one of you lovely girls would like to model some more of these outfits…?"
"Pass." Edea says immediately.
"I think I've had enough for today." Agnès mumbles, blushing.
"I wish you well on your mission then." The Sage says. "Use that dress with care, Agnès, for it possesses immense power!"
"I understand."
"Try not to kill any shepherds when you put it on." The Sage hums, turning away. "Unless, of course, that's your goal. Delicate things, shepherds are. They swoon easily."
Tiz blushes up to his ears again while Ringabel and Edea snicker unabashedly, and Agnès' stares determinedly at the ground, fighting her own embarrassment.
Mercifully, Edea and Ringabel don't tease too much as they leave the woods, choosing to focus on how amazing Agnès looked. Tiz is eternally grateful for their mercy.
I had fun in this chapter. Gotta love flustering the innocent shepherd boi. I could have used the Bravo Bikini, but I always found it a tad ridiculous (even if it is funny), so I went with something slightly more reasonable… but only slightly.