"Pink. I want pink." If Relena was sure of anything in her life, it was that her favorite color was pink. Even though this was a sham wedding, she'd be damned it it wasn't as pink as she could make it.
"Of course you want pink," Dorothy said, giving her a look that was both fond and judging all at the same time.
"What about pink and purple?" Catherine suggested. "Duo has this purple tie that really brings out his eyes, and it would be a nice accent with pink."
"I suppose…" Relena mused. Duo's eyes were stunning, and pink wouldn't really do anything for them. "Alright, pink and purple. Dorothy, did you say there was a formal wear store on the ship?"
"Yes, it's called 'Lucrezia's.' And there's a florist by the name of 'His Excellency's Flowers,' pretentious as that sounds. Where shall we go first?"
"Let's get the dresses first. Though I doubt they'll have anything that's both purple and pink…"
"Not to worry!" Catherine said. "I have a couple purple sashes as part of one of my costumes. We could tie them around like belts, as long as the cut of the dress is right. I'm sure we can find something."
"Excellent!" Dorothy exclaimed. "Shall we?"
Lucrezia's was bigger than Relena expected, given that this was a cruise ship. Most of what they had in stock looked to be summer wear and touristy clothing, naturally, but they had a sizable section devoted to formal wear as well. As luck would have it, the dress selection was respectable, with a fair few white dresses and a couple several different styles in various shades of pink.
"Welcome to Lucrezia's! Can I help you with anything?" The attendant who approached them was tall, with short blue-black hair and wearing a dark blue blouse with high-waisted beige slacks.
"I think we're fi–" Relena began, only to be interrupted by Catherine.
"Yes, thank you. We're shopping for a wedding dress, and bridesmaids dresses in pink. Do you do alterations?"
"Of course! May I ask who the bride is?"
"I am," Relena volunteered.
"Congratulations! I assume the wedding will be on the ship?"
Relena nodded.
"The wedding will be tomorrow," Dorothy said, making Relena wonder when that had been decided. "Can you have the alterations done by morning?"
"It'll cost extra, but sure I can. I'm Lucrezia, by the by."
The ladies responded with their names, and Lucrezia turned to Relena.
"I don't have any traditional wedding dresses, I'm afraid, but I do have some evening gowns in white. Will that be okay, Miss Relena?"
"That'll be fine. What do you have?"
Lucrezia showed them over to the dress section, and Relena was pleasantly surprised to have quite a few to choose from. Thank goodness that white was popular for summer wear. One in particular caught her eye immediately – it was floor length, with a V-neck and lace appliqué.
"Do you have this one in a size eight?"
"Let's see… sure do! Would you like to try it on?"
"Yes please." Relena took the dress that Lucrezia handed to her and made her way over to the changing rooms.
The fabric on the inside of the dress felt like silk against her skin, and it slid on with ease. She could feel it contouring to her body, showing off her waist and hips, not to mention her rear.
"Dorothy? A little hand with the zipper?"
Dorothy came into the changing room and zipped her up, then stood back and gave her an astute appraisal. "I must say, this is one sf the most flattering dresses I've seen you wear. And that's saying a lot."
"How does it look Relena?" Catherine called. Relena stepped out of the dressing room and over to the three standing mirrors arranged in a semicircle. Turning slowly, she had to admit that Dorothy was right. She couldn't help but feel wistful that she wouldn't be wearing this for a real wedding. It was perfect.
"This one. Definitely this one."
"It doesn't look like it needs any alterations," Lucrezia mused. "Although…"
"Although?" Relena prompted when she didn't immediately continue.
"See the deep V down the back? If you'd like, I can sew in some white lacing to make it look a little more elegant. It could tie at the bottom, with the tails of the bow hanging down a ways. What do you think?"
Relena hadn't thought the dress could get any more perfect, but she loved the idea. "Could you? That would be wonderful!"
"Consider it done. Now, does it matter what shade of pink for the bridesmaids dresses, Miss Relena? We have a couple to choose from."
"We'd like to get pocket squares for the groom and two groomsmen in as close to the same shade as possible, so that might be a deciding factor."
"Oh that won't be a problem. I have extra fabric for all of my pink dresses, as luck would have it, so I can make those myself while I'm doing the alterations."
"You make these dresses yourself?" Relena asked, surprised and a little impressed. She hadn't had a close look at anything just yet, but what she'd seen had been very high quality.
"Of course. Only the best for my customers!" Lucrezia said with a smile, and Relena noticed a dimple on her left cheek. Not only was the proprietor fashionable, but she was quite beautiful as well. "Let's get started then, shall we?"
There were three styles to choose from, as it turned out. One Relena rejected out of hand, because the pink was much too dark for her taste, though she saw Catherine looking at it wistfully.
"Catherine, Dorothy, why don't you try these two on and decide which one you both like better? Either would be fine by me, and I'd rather it be a dress you actually like."
"Hopefully we'll be able to agree!" Catherine said cheerfully before heading off to the changing rooms, followed by Dorothy.
"Oh this one, definitely," Catherine enthused, referring to a rose colored dress that was knee-length with an empire waist and sweetheart neckline.
"Yes, I agree," Dorothy concurred, much to Relena's relief. "I'll need to have it taken in at the waist, though.
"Let me take a look, ladies," Lucrezia said before moving to examine the fit more closely. "Yes, both of you will need to have be taken in at the waste, and it looks like in the bust for you as well, Dorothy. Now, aside from the pocket squares, will the men be needing anything else?"
"Yes, we'll need two purple ties for the groomsmen," Dorothy replied. When exactly did she figure that out? "A shade darker than amethyst, if possible. And a black suit for one of them." She turned to Catherine. "Trowa did say he didn't pack a suit, right?"
"Right."
"Well, the sooner they can come in, the better. The suit will probably need more alterations than your dresses, so the more time I have, the better the chance I'll have it finished in time."
"Any time before noon," Dorothy said. "The wedding won't be until sunset, so that leave us enough time to get ready."
Another thing Relena hadn't been informed of. But then, a sunset wedding would be beautiful. She could just imagine the sun's rays glinting off the sun-bleached highlights in Duo's hair, and sparkling in those beautiful eyes of his–
"Relena?"
"Oh, um, yes?" she replied, startled out of her daydream.
Dorothy smirked at her knowingly. "Can you text Duo and let him know to bring the guys in here ASAP?"
"Oh, yes, of course." A little thrill went through her at the thought of hearing from him. She hadn't seen him yet today, which she had to admit was a disappointment. They were planning to get together for dinner again, though. The thought of dinner made her stomach clench, remembering that they'd be breaking the news of just how soon the wedding would be to her parents. They'd taken the proposal very well, but she had a sneaky suspicion that they might not be so sanguine about such a short engagement given that they'd only known Duo for a couple of days.
Snapping herself out of her musings, she got out her cell phone and brought up Duo's number.
/Hey Duo. You and the guys need to get to Lucrezia's ASAP. Bring your tie so she can color match for Quatre and Trowa./
Her phone dinged almost immediately.
/Sure thing, babe! Will we be seeing you there?/
/No, we have to get to the flower shop so we can choose bouquets/
/Wait, they have a *flower shop* onboard?!/
Relena grinned.
/Of course they do. This ship has *everything*/
/Apparently! Hey, do you wanna hang out a little before dinner? Will you have time after the flowers?/
Relena's grin widened at the prospect of spending more time with him.
/I should! I'll text you when we're done/
/Can't wait!/
"What's got you smiling so much?" Dorothy asked.
"Oh, nothing," Relena replied, suddenly sheepish.
Dorothy rolled her eyes. "Nothing my ass. You like him."
"Of course I like him. He's charming, not to mention respectful." Relena said defensively.
"Not to mention handsome as all get out. What's not to like?" Dorothy mused, giving her that knowing look again.
"Shouldn't we be getting to the flower shop?" Catherine interjected.
"We should," said Dorothy. "Come along, ladies, there's much to be done." With that, she turned on her heel and walked out of the shop.
Catherine looked at Relena conspiratorially and rolled her eyes. Relena grinned at her antics, happy to be getting along so well with this near-stranger who was going to take part in her wedding. Catherine was a fire-brand, and she couldn't help but like her for it.
"Best we keep up, if I want any chance of picking out the flowers myself."
"Lead the way," Catherine replied, falling into step beside her.
