A/N: Here's a shopping-themed update to ring in the new year. Happy 2011 everyone!
Disclaimer: Better to be hated and despised for being yourself than adored for living a lie.
Passing the Torch
7. Material Girls
"Twas the week of the dance and before it's too late, all the girls rush out to buy dresses for the date." Ailani said as she and her suitemates exited the shuttle bus. It was indeed the week before the inter-school dance and all the last minute shoppers were rushing to find the perfect dress. Granted, she didn't need to buy a new dress; as princess of Solaria, she had dresses pre-designed for every formal dance and ball planned this school year. "Although just why you two feel the urge to buy something off the rack is beyond me." The brown-eyed fairy tsked at Lapis and Leilani. If Twila of all people could plan ahead and bring a designer gown, surely a pair of princesses could do one better and bring a closet full of them.
"There is nothing wrong with being a little frugal with your fashion choices." Lapis held her head high. Having a mother who was raised in exile for most of her life resulted in the three princesses of Endor lacking the compulsion of other nobles and royals their age to own the most expensive gowns money could buy.
"I still don't see what all of the hubbub is about." Leilani complained. She hadn't planned on going to any of the dances this year, and as such hadn't packed any dresses or fancy skirts in her luggage. However, despite her protests, Ailani and Twila had kidnapped her for the day and forced her into dress shopping with their suitemates and a handful of girls from Red Fountain. "It's a stupid social event full of people I have no interest in speaking to on a personal level."
"Yes, but as you should be well aware, it is a major tool in a royal's arsenal." The indigo-haired witch-turned-fairy pointed out. "Dances provide the opportunity to meet important people from other realms, form new trade relationships, and get down to some awesome music."
"Still, it is nice to get out of the school and have some girl time. Especially after that audition fiasco." Twila piped up. "Didn't you say your cousin was going with us today?" Lapis nodded.
"Yeah, Miri and her two suitemates. Should be interesting to say the least." The blue-haired teen said, smoothing the front of her black blouse. Despite protests from Twila and Ailani, the Dark Fire fairy refused to let some of her witchy-er habits go, namely her liking for dark-colored clothing.
"So long as that rude twin of your isn't there, I don't care who else shows up!" Ailia stuck her chin up and nose in the air. "Honestly, what is her problem? Yeah, we know she was spelled at the audition, but we also know that you and that Raven chick had nothing to do with it!"
"I think maybe grandpa Oritel dropped her on her head as a child." Lapis replied. "That or she inherited grandfather Athelstan's bossy/whiny gene. Not sure which."
"I've already picked out the dress I want to try on." Tatiana said, eyes fixed on the screen of her realmberry.
"Let me guess, you looked at the store's online registry?" Leilani asked in a bored tone.
"Don't be silly! They never have a complete database available to the public." The technology fairy snorted. "No, I hacked into their inventory list to see what they actually had in stock here in Magix."
"See? Fairy of Illegal Activities!" Lapis gestured to her roommate as two red-heads and an onyx-haired girl walked up.
"Could be worse. You could be stuck with Sean of Solaria and Rodney from Isis." Miriam waved. "Word is that they had a major fight in Professor Battaglia's class last week."
"Oh, so my brother finally found a prince as stuck up and pompous as he is?" Ailani asked. "Who won?"
"Technically neither, since they both got punished." Lucia stated. "But Sean did outsmart Rodney in the quiz-off."
"Great! Just what he needed, a boost to his already inflated ego!" The brunette princess exclaimed as the group entered the mall.
"So, where to first?" Twila asked, trying to detour the conversation to a happier topic."
"Hmm. Goth Topic." Lapis smirked, earning a repulsed shriek from Ailani.
"Eww! No! Peacock's Fashions!"
"Um. That's a bit expensive for some of us, Aili." Lori folded her arms. "Let's start off at Dresses By Debra, and go on from there."
"I like that plan." Lucia nodded.
"So do I, although I wouldn't be so opposed to hitting up Goth Topic later." Lorelei shrugged. "They have awesome t-shirts."
"Fine, after everyone else has found a dress, we can hit Goth Topic." Ailani sighed dramatically. It wasn't her idea of high fashion, but she could easily see that she and Twi were likely to be outvoted should they try to protest.
"Whatever." Leilani yawned. "Just get this over with as quickly as possible."
Dresses by Debra, owned by Popularian fashion trendsetter Debra Belluci, offered many stunningly unique gowns. Of course, the term 'stunningly unique' could mean anything from adorable to atrocious.
"Why would anyone want to wear something that looks like a giant steak?" Twila grumbled, holding the clothing article in question at arm's length.
"I certainly don't know." Ailani said, offering a similar wince upon seeing the dress. "Now, this number…" she held up a rather loudly-colored orange dress. For something 'off the rack', it was actually quite pretty.
"Makes you look like a carrot." Lapis quipped as Tatiana pulled a stunning lime green strapless dress off of one of the racks. It was made of chiffon and had large green-and-clear rhinestones in a pattern that almost looked like crawling vines reaching from the top left side of the bodice down to just below the ribcage-area. "Now that says class!" The Endorian Royal approved.
"Good to know her illegal activities came to some good." Leilani rolled her eyes, gazing disinterestedly at a lime green dress on the sale rack while Tatiana prepared to go make her purchase.
"What do you girls think?" Seven heads suddenly turned toward Lucia's soft voice. The young Earthling wore an embroidered burgundy strapless corset with a matching skirt. "Is it too much red? Is it too much period?" She certainly didn't know. Clothing hadn't ever been very important to her.
Ailani clasped her hands and squealed with delight. "No! No, no, no! You must keep that dress, darling! The whole red-heads-can't-wear-red myth is terribly inaccurate!"
"Your hair is dark enough to make it look pretty." Miriam said. "I'd look like a tomato or something."
"Then stay away from red and do yellow!" Twila proclaimed, shoving a buttery yellow dress into the red-headed royal's arms. Miriam failed to contain her puzzlement.
"Yellow?" She blinked as her cousin laughed.
"You never know. It might look good on you." The former witch smirked, stepping out of the changing area. She wore a gorgeous strapless dress with thousands of tiny rhinestones all over the bodice, tapering off into nothingness at her hips. Sheets of plain taffeta fabric were gathered just under her breasts to give the illusion of a sparkling heart. The only major flaw with this find was its color: black.
"Of all the bright, beautiful gowns in the shop, you had to pick a black one?" The fairy of the Sun and Moon asked in amazement.
"What? I like black." Lapis's blue eyes zeroed in on the Solarian princess. In case you hadn't noticed, my transformation outfit is also black. Besides, it has sparkles on it."
"It's still a really dark color for an Alfea student to choose willingly." Twila frowned. It was a very pretty dress, but it straddled the line between 'fairy' and 'witchy' a little too closely for her liking. What if those mean seniors decided to attack them for it?
"Stop picking apart my cousin's wardrobe choices." Miriam snipped at the pair of fashionista fairies. "She's a dark-fire-fairy princess and can wear whatever the hell she wants."
Lapis beamed at the blue-eyed redhead. "On that note, you, Miss Fire-Specialist-Princess, can put back the Beauty and the Beast dress if you so choose."
"Thanks. I believe I will."
"Don't mention it. Besides, I'm not sure that color really brings out your eyes…"
"She's right. Go with something with a little more blue in it." Lori smirked, folding a navy satin one-shoulder dress over her arm. She had somehow managed to try on her dress and change back out of it without anyone noticing. "But not this one. This is mine. Tell you what, let's move on to another store. Your friend looks bored." She glanced pointedly over at Leilani.
"Perfect!" Twi cooed. "We can hit more stores!"
"Dragon preserve me." The mocha-skinned fluids fairy groaned.
Twenty minutes and another store later, Leisha was still bored out of her mind, although Miriam did find herself a nice baby blue halter dress. Twila, alas, seemed to have made it her personal project to find Leilani an 'appropriate' dress, and dragged the reluctant Androsian around for the rest of the afternoon.
Eventually , the group left the mall and wandered into a consignment shop exclusively for formal wear (which Ailani had no clue even existed). While Twila's short attention span got the better of her, Leilani wandered a little ways away from the group to explore on her own. The Starlight fairy was fawning over a white gown that looked suspiciously like a wedding dress, and Ailani was pin-holing Miriam and Lucia over why anyone would want to sell such beautiful dresses in the first place. She had plenty of time to wander aimlessly.
That's when she saw it.
The turquoise silk dress in question had a tight, low-cut halter top with an asymmetrical loose skirt. Simple compared to what her suitemates were drifting toward, but still, she was thoroughly in love with the dress. Something she never thought she'd find herself admitting.
"You should at least try it on." The fluids fairy nearly jumped out of her skin when Lorelei whispered in her ear. Dang, that girl had silent movement mastered!
"Do you get some kind of kick out of sneaking up on people?"
"Sometimes." The specialist said, blue eyes twinkling. "But seriously, you should at least see if it fits. You seem to like it."
"I don't do dresses."
"Neither do I, but for some reason girls aren't allowed to wear pants to the dance." The onyx-haired girl pointed out. "If it's too big, you can have one of your more fashionably-minded friends alter it for you, but you won't know until you try."
Leilani sighed in defeat. The other girl did have a point. "Fine."
"That's the spirit." Lori beamed back. "Make it quick, though. I think the blonde is about done ooh-ing and aww-ing over old wedding gowns."
"Yikes. Fate worse than death." If she were going to ask for fashion advice from one of her suitemates, it wouldn't be Twila. Ailani wasn't much better, but at least the Solarian respected (or, at the very least, acknowledged) that she preferred loose, conservative clothes that could be moved around in. "Keep her distracted while I go change."
"No problem." Lori waved. "I've known her since we were both little. Distracting her is a piece of cake!"
At the end of the outing, the gown was in her possession.