Sale on New Experiences, Aisle 6
Pericles Station
About a day or so after landfall
Nika had come from Kiera's container a little while before, and she waited until Rina was back aboard the Gift before heading to find Joshua. As expected, he's in the Botany Bay, and she stands in the doorway watching him mutter and putter. "Joshua... since we both need to go to the same general area of the station, you wanna walk with me?" she asked mildly.
--
Joshua had been focused on his pepper plants, which had suffered greatly during Calico Jack's time on the Gift. Jack, not surprisingly, had not bothered to keep up Botany Bay. So when he heard Nika's voice, he startled a bit, straightening up from his stooping over the plants. "Sure," he said almost immediately. It wasn't until he had approached the doorway that his brain parsed her sentence. "Wait, why do I need to go to the same general area of the station?"
He looked at his captain and smiled disarmingly. "Not that I mind your company, Nika. It must have just slipped my mind."
--
"No, it probably hasn't slipped your mind -- we're going clothes shopping, my dear. You are wearing the same clothes you came on board in, I'm pretty gorram certain. And it's high time you had a few changes of clothes." Nika sounded determined. "So... I'm gonna go into town with you and make sure you spend some of what you made on yourself for a change." She smiled a bit. "And don't go complainin' too much, cuz I gotta go do the same thing. And I *really* hate clothes shopping, so you gotta come with me and save me from myself, okay? It's a necessary evil."
--
Arguing was a futile proposition, Joshua could see clearly. She was probably right too. Most of his clothes were what he had from the original Blue Sun mission or handed down by Rick. He had the one nice set from the time spent on von Braun's ship, but he was probably not presenting himself well as the steward of the ship in what he had now. Thinking about it, he realized he had never spent anything on himself in his life. Either Blue Sun provided or he never had any personal funds.
He shrugged slightly and threw up his hands in mock indignation. "Only because of the pleasure of your company, Nika, will I gracefully concede. I will need your help picking out something stylish though."
--
"Ffft. As if I'd know style if it bit me on the arse," Nika snorted. She grinned though. "Good. C'mon. I won't inflict unmentionable shopping on you -- Kiera already went with for that, so it's easy now. Pants, shirts, boots. You know, basics!"
It was definitely useless. For a woman who hated to shop, Nika was evidencing an evil glee at the idea of dragging Joshua there. And as he paused to politely gesture her ahead of him, he also caught the whiff of the very feminine scent of frangipani with a bare hint of musk to it as she turned to go. Apparently Kiera got to her.
--
Kiera would drag them all into decadence if she had to die trying to achieve it, Joshua thought as he walked with Nika out of the ship into Pericles Station. And perhaps that wasn't such a bad thing. The crew was an eminently practical group and a little decadence now and again probably wasn't a bad thing. Joshua hadn't used to be so practical...well, maybe not *as* practical, back in Blue Sun. But like a young child learning how to live in society, Joshua's personality had been shaped (or reshaped) by the crew on his emergence from his life at the Academy.
They entered the first place that sold clothing and he could see that they specialized in high end clothing. Beautiful silk dresses in reds and blacks, elegant suits in shades of grey and more accessories than you can shake a stick. You can almost smell the money in here, Joshua thought as he looked around. They could break their bank in here quite quickly and he communicated that thought to Nika. "I don't want to spend too much, Nika. I have to put some aside for Lourdes. But that red and gold number would look stunning on you." He pointed out a deep red silk dress with gold designs patterned around it.
--
That's what she got for not paying attention where they were walking in. It wasn't like part of the station was a better end of town or anything. Not really. But there were definitely some stores, usually close to the docking ring, that would be catering to the higher-end passengers and travelers. She glanced around and grimaced. "Yeah, this isn't quite what I was looking for." She turned to leave but paused as her attention was drawn by him to the deep red, nearly burgundy, gown. She lingered for a moment, fingertips brushing lightly against the fabric. The mandarin halter collar closed into a deep walnut opening across the cleavage, and the dress bare only a modest amount of the upper back. The slits in the skirt were quite daring and would bare almost the entire length of even her long legs. It was quite lovely.
"Nah, I don't go anywhere that would require a dress like this, Joshua," she said with a smile. "C'mon, the place I was thinkin' is a ways down the deck." She headed back out the door before he could object, a glance over her shoulder toward the dress perhaps indicating that she might in fact go back later when no one was looking. "I definitely need a new pair of boots."
--
Joshua followed behind Nika, only pausing briefly to pause and finger the material on a black silky dress. He didn't have to work very hard to imagine Rina in it...or out of it for that matter. Maybe he'd come back and pick it up for her. Much like Nika, he didn't think Rina would spend on something like that for herself. But he could. He'd rather spend on his money on other people anyway.
As they moved towards whatever store Nika seemed to have in mind, he walked up alongside her, voicing his immediate concern. "I have no idea what I'm supposed to be looking for, you know. What's the midpoint between practical shipboard outfits and serving the passenger clothing? Hard to look presentable and be able to tend Botany Bay." That led to a new thought about how he could spend his money. "Oooh, do you think I could get some new plants? A better variety of food is always good. If I could keep cows and chickens in a container, I would." The idea of a regular supply of eggs and milk almost made him drool right then and there.
--
"Joshua," Nika replied patiently, "You should do with your money whatever you want. If having more plants to tend makes you happy, then by all means. Rick used to tend mushrooms or whatever that was in there." She smiled slightly. "Your money is yours to spend on things *you* want and need -- the only thing I'll tell you that *I* think you should put on your list is a good pair of shoes or boots that are sturdy enough for constant wear, a couple of pairs of pants that you don't mind getting grungy, a couple pair that look nicer for passenger interaction, and maybe one or two *nice* pairs for other things. Shirts to go with that same set of ideas. If you want a nice pair of dress shoes, more power to you. And underthings and sundries." She was sort of treating him like she'd treat her younger brother before sending him out on a ship on his own.
"Christian used to have a clothing allowance, but his line of work required the highest fashion and such. That list would seem to me to encompass pretty much what I'd consider necessary for living. Whatever else you put on top of that seems to me to be up in the air. Rina'd buy tools. If you wanna buy plants, enjoy. No animals, though. We can't even keep track of a freakin' cat -- anything more dependent, we'd likely kill the first week outta port."
--
He nodded. "Animals are daydreaming, not reality." It was a little scary having some money, when he thought about it. Lack of money made it easy - no thought needed about what clothes to buy or whether he should spend his morning on gardening equipment or cooking equipment or something for Rina or something unknown. Maybe he'd just hold on to his for a while and see what developed. He continued to walk alongside her, doing his best not to stare into store windows, potentially tempting himself.
--
Nika rolled her eyes as she noticed his actions. "You're a nut," she commented as they walked. She gestured toward one of the halls. "That way." The store she'd noticed on their last visit, catering to the more 'working man' class of people, was just down that direction as she recalled. As she walked along, she glanced idly about the concourse automatically, just keeping an eye on their surroundings. "I guess we should really think about what we might need for the ship at this point, too. Since we're able. You've mentioned wanting to outfit us for certain things.... now'd be the time to consider it, if not really the *place* we'd want to do it. You got any thoughts?"
--
One thing immediately popped into Joshua's head and he blurted it out as soon as it did. "I'd like for us to get the pieces for a good disguise kit. Kiera probably has some of it in her various equipment, but it would be handy to have. Besides making it so I don't necessarily have to Borrow someone to be sneaky, times exist where it would be nice to disguise a member of the crew. None of you have my unique...talent," and he surrounded it with air quotes, "and a disguise kit might help."
--
Nika paused and eyed him thoughtfully. "I suppose that'd be simple enough to come by. Something like that might be easier to come by in the Core -- something an actor would use, yeah?" She shrugged. "I don't see why not, especially if it'll help."
As they reached the store Nika'd been looking for, Joshua can see why she would use this place over the last one. Stepping inside, it was a far more affordable place to shop for the basics. And apparently the woman was not much of a shopper, either. She pretty much beelined for the pants section and began pulling out sets very similar to what she always wore aboard the Gift. She shopped like a guy -- if they looked about the right size, she picked them up, checked them out at her waist, and nodded about them. When she had three sets, she seemed finished. It took less than 10 seconds.
"You want help?" she asked him, looking over her shoulder.
--
"Ummm, if that's how we're going to pick out clothes, I guess I can do that on my own. I know what sizes I wear. " Joshua picked out a couple pair of pants, one black, one brown and a couple of basic slip on collared shirts with no buttons, with no...anything, really. Functional and to the point. As he picked up the last shirt, a shirt hanging off to the right caught his eye. A dark red, almost burgundy in color, the shirt had a row of small gold buttons and a minimal collar. He took it off the rack and looked at the price. While it was twice the cost of the other shirts, it still wasn't in the realm of expensive and he added it to his collection.
"I just wonder if it wouldn't serve the ship if I could dress a little nicer when I'm serving my role as steward. Or maybe nobody really expects that." Except me.
--
Nika paused and then blushed, one of the few times he's ever seen that happen. "Sorry," she murmured with a bit of an abashed smile. "It's been so long since I could be bothered to shop for anything but the basics, I occasionally forget how to just browse," she admitted. "I never was much of a shopper to start with." She wandered among the shirts more slowly now, picking up a sleeve here or there and eying it.
"I think it couldn't hurt for you to have a more... professional or better dressed look. It's never a bad thing to look like you're not broke and your ship's not broke when you're looking to transport passengers. We're never going to be a luxury liner, but... we've got some comforts, and I think between your skills as a cook and your way with people, the passengers will get their money's worth out of us generally." Nika hesitated over an emerald sleeveless top, ultimately bypassing it with a lingering touch. Instead, she picked up several serviceable cream-colored tops that would go with anything at all and several long-sleeved cotton T-shirts with scooped necks in varying colors shading from chocolate brown to black to a soft peach and a light blue.
--
Joshua, encouraged by Nika's compliments, decided that if he was going to spend some credits, he should get some things that he really liked. And he browsed, getting himself a healthy variety of good quality shirts in darker colors - reds, blues, greens, blacks. Then he picked up a small pile of neutral colored pants to go with them. Finally, he saw two jackets he liked, one a shorter leather jacket in black and the other one a longer trenchcoat, also in black. He picked out a wide assortment of belts and even a couple of vests. His pile was large enough that he began to wonder if he'd have room for it all in his cabin. When he totaled all the prices in his head, it came out to about 25 credits. More than he had planned on spending when Nika dragged him out of the ship, but probably worth it in the end.
--
She'd forgotten what actual clothes shopping meant. Things like trying clothes on was just annoying. But all in all, she actually found a few more shirts and even a pair of boots that she liked the feel of. Nika was amused when Joshua asked her opinion of several things and she enthusiastically encouraged him to pick up whatever it was that he liked. Yes, it might be a bit more than he meant to spend, but he'd never spent a thing on himself. And she admitted as their purchases were handled and they were on their way out of the store, "It's usually a lot more of a chore."
Walking with him back toward the ship, realizing it was some couple of hours they'd spent in there, Nika hesitated at the door to the shop they'd first wandered into. There was an uncharacteristic nibble on the corner of her lip and she slanted a look at Joshua. "If I go back in there and buy something... you gotta keep your trap shut, okay?"
--
"Hey," he said, sounded a little offended, "you know I will, Nika. Are you going to get the red one?" He hoped she did - Nika deserved to get something extravagant for herself.
--
She still looked hesitant and her shrug was somewhat diffident. "It's a lot of money." Nika hadn't quite decided to spend it on herself -- much like Joshua, she always thought more about what the ship needed than what she wanted. But she flashed him one of those killer flirtatious grins and slipped inside to pick up the dress she'd been looking at earlier. Fingering the material of the dress, she hesitated only a moment before heading for the back of the store to try it on. It took far longer than he might have expected, and when she stepped out, she was still wearing it. "Joshua?"
Deep wine-colored silk emblazoned with the classic phoenix-and-flower pattern in gold, the dress had a mandarin collar halter top with a deep walnut opening that bared a tasteful expanse of cleavage. The dual slits in the form-fitting gown allowed for movement and flashed leg clear up to mid thigh as she turned, allowing him to see the bared shoulders and upper back. "Thoughts?"
--
"Gorram." And he let loose a low whistle of appreciation
Joshua wasn't normally attracted to Nika. She was beautiful, there was no denying that. But for whatever reason, she had never really pressed his buttons. But any male who wasn't attracted to her in that dress was a dead man or gay. And the gay guys might not be struggling to resist.
"What do I think?" he asked, shaking his head as he looked her up and down. "I think I'm chipping in for half the cost of that dress. That dress deserves to be worn by you and it'll be worth it to see the aftershock on the rest of the crew whenever they get to see you in it."
--
Nika laughed, she couldn't help it. The whistle just plain did it. For the first time in ages, she felt... seen. Not for her role in the crew or her skills, just for herself. "Thank you," she said with a cheeky smile. Yeah... she was buying it. He could see her make the decision. And even as she stepped back into the dressing room, her fingertips glided across another, shorter more casual dress that caught her eye. It too she took with her, just to see it for herself. She didn't come out in that one, calling around the curtain to Joshua, "I don't know where I'll ever wear the gorram thing, but... it's nice to have."
--
"Oh, don't worry, I'll arrange something." And he smirked a little out of her sight. It was nice to see and hear Nika happy. There hadn't been a lot of that since she had taken the role of Captain, and Joshua felt partially responsible for that. While he waited, he looked at the men's clothing . There were some really dapper suits (_did anyone actually use the word dapper?_), including one with a steel gray jacket and a dark red patterned vest that was really striking. But much like Nika, he couldn't imagine where he would wear it. If he had to spend his money, he'd rather spend it on some cooking gear. That way, everyone benefited, including himself.
--
"Don't go arranging something on my account, Joshua Drake," Nika asserted as she stepped out with both the long red gown and the shorter black dress that she'd picked up. Apparently she's going to buy both. Along with the pair of strappy black heels that she had been using to try the gown on. Between the pants, shirts, and boots she'd already purchased and the gowns now, Nika was definitely a bit lighter in the pocket. Perhaps as much as 35 credits, which was more money than she'd ever dropped on herself in her life. She'd have to check her funds when she got back to the ship to be sure how much she'd spent. But it also appeared she was done.
She took note of the packages he was carrying and laughed just a bit. "Well, now aren't we a pair?"
--
"We're family," he said quietly with a smile. "Thanks for dragging me out, Nika."
--
Nika looked a little abashed. "Thanks for coming with me, Joshua," she replied with a soft smile. It seemed that the Captain was gone and the blonde woman was just content with her friend's company.
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