Chapter 532

532 A Bit Different

Ryu Fang’s eyes bulged from her sockets as she turned, and faced Skye. The golden hair should’ve been a giveaway to who she was, but the young woman never thought that the Guardian of the Last Dragon would come into their dinky little shop. As all color drained from her face under Skye’s harsh gaze, the old woman stepped in front of her.

“I know that my daughter-in-law is rude and ignorant, but please show her mercy. Her mother was kicked out of their home by her father after he fell in love with a foreigner from Ruscovic. It’s no excuse for her to be a bigot, but she’s young, and her anger is misplaced.”

Skye looked to the old woman, and spoke in Sai’s language; “I sympathize with her situation, but she must be the one to apologize. Then she must help me pick out fabric, and a dress for this evening. And if it needs to be altered, then She has to do it. In front of me.”

With her tone brokering no arguments, the woman bowed in gratitude, then pulled her daughter-in-law off to the side. As the two not-so-quietly bickered back and forth, Kari walked over to Skye, and asked; “What the hell was all that about?! It sounded so intense! I didn’t know a word of it, but I wished that I had a snack while watching.”

Stifling a laugh, Skye replied; “Twas a misunderstandin’, dinna worry. The lass was rude, but she’s gonna be happy ta help us now..”

The pleased expression on Skye’s face was hilarious to Kari, but a touch scary to Mei. She’d never had a drop of pettiness in her before, but now she had put the shop girl on the spot. While Mei wondered if her so-called sister had changed for the worst, Hana knew better..

When the two shop owners came back, Ryu Fang bowed deeply, and begged ‘The Guardian’ for forgiveness. Skye wanted to straighten her back out so she could apologize while looking her in the eyes, but knew that it was custom to bow in Sai for most formal things. After accepting her words, Ryu began to show them a completely different side of herself.

Hana felt like she was mostly putting on an act, but the girl was excellent at her job. Ryu explained everything from the stitching, to the materials, to the proper way to wear each different style of dress. Her tone and speech were professional, although Hana caught her rolling her eyes during a few of Skye’s questions.

Even if she disliked Skye, she was respectful from that moment on. As they were comparing dye patterns of two types of indigo, Skye’s hand touched Ryu’s for a few moments. It was fleeting, but her Shaman trait had activated without her realizing it.

.....

Something felt off with Ryu, but it wasn’t like how it’d been with Ronnie and his sister. As they moved on to the dresses, Skye was trying to decide if she should just ask her if she has a medical issue..

‘But what if it offends her? What’s the protocol fer a person’s medical history here? Dammit.. I suppose that’s somethin’ I shoulda looked into before we got here..’

As Skye lamented her lack of preparedness, Ryu led her towards the back of the shop, where she and her mother-in-law had come from. Requesting she wait, Skye stood outside of the room for around five minutes before the lass had returned. When she came out, what she held in her hands made Skye’s jaw drop.

At first, it looked like a solid-black dress with gold trim, but when the light hit it a certain way, it shimmered a deep crimson red. As Ryu held out the dress for a better look, Skye realized that there was an intricate pattern of a dragon trailed down the right side’s full length. It didn’t look like Zazzy at all, but it was beautiful all the same.

Skye had seen depictions of long, sleek dragons in other traditional ancient cultures that resembled the one on the dress. But the level of detail on the dress was even better. As she felt the soft, smooth fabric with her rough hand, she asked how old it was.

For the first time, Ryu genuinely smiled at Skye as she replied; “You have a good eye. This dress is around four hundred years old, and was owned by the Tokuga clan when they were still known as the Guardians of Dragons. Most younger than myself didn’t believe that dragons were real, until you arrived, of course.”

Skye smiled back; “Really? Even with the enormous dragon skeleton surrounding the city?”

Ryu shrugged; “Seeing isn’t always believing, and my generation and younger were convinced that they were a natural formation. And that the government was trying to use the old legends to influence us. It all sounds so silly after seeing your dragon flying in the sky yesterday.”

“How could they influence you?” Skye asked, confused.

“Ryu sighed; “There have been several rallies for people trying to have the Tokuga clan reinstated as the royal family. Being the chosen family of dragons is always their main point to why the Tokuga should rule. But it is hard to convince thousands of people to follow you when they don’t believe in the mascot, so to speak.”

Skye chuckled lightly; “I understand your point.. How long have these rallies been going on?”

Ryu thought a moment; “Since last year, they have gotten quite the following. And with your dragon making an appearance, the followers are growing, although they are divided. Half believe that the Tokuga should be reinstated, and the others believe that the dragon will choose from the Tokuga, who should rule.”

“Zazzy would never pick a single person to rule. She’s smart enough to know that what Sai is currently doing is revolutionary, and should be adopted by all of the kingdoms. No single person or group of people should run an entire kingdom. The most advanced and prosperous ancient cultures got to choose their rulers from their people through elections, like Sai does now..”

“If the government was run by the people, then it would run For the people,” Skye finished with emphasis.

Ryu took on a contemplative expression; “I didn’t think of it like that..”

Skye nodded; “Perspective is in the eye of the beholder. How can you gain new ones if you don’t talk with people? All Kinds of people..”

Ryu stared at Skye for a few seconds before she bowed deeply while saying; “I truly apologize for my behavior earlier. I regret the number of people I’ve shunned, and prospectives that I have lost due to my ignorance and bigotry.”

Skye straightened her up as she said; “Enough of that, now. I’ve already accepted your apology.”

“But I was not sincere before. Now I am, and I thank you for taking the time to talk with me,” Ryu replied with a genuine smile.

“Thank you for being so good at your job, and for showing me this beautiful dress,” Skye replied with a grin back.

Ryu quirked an eyebrow at her; “Show you? No, the dress is For you. I cannot imagine anyone else wearing it, and it’s not going to last forever. It was given to me by my mother-in-law, so it is mine to do with as I please.”

“But this is a piece of history! I can’t take this!” Skye nearly yelled due to her level of shock.

Ryu smiled with a shrug; “Many of the Tokuga Clan’s family heirlooms and clothing are on display at the capital’s museum. This dress was something my husband’s family was given in lieu of payment from one of the branch family’s relatives. It has been gathering dust for years..”

“I was planning to put it on display to draw in customers, but apparently, my mother-in-law has already tried that. It is a beautiful dress with so much vibrancy left in it’s fibers. It would be a shame to let it sit here and continue to gather dust. As part of my apology, please accept it,” Ryu bowed deeply as she finished speaking.

Skye opened and closed her mouth several times, unsure of how to respond to the overly-kind gesture. As she went to gently refuse, Hana stepped forward, and asked if she wouldn’t mind putting the dress in a protective garment bag. As Ryu glanced back and forth between Skye and Hana, she waited with for the princess to reply..

Knowing that Hana was leading her to a reply, she nodded with a smile at Ryu, who immediately took off to wrap the dress. As soon as she was gone, Skye turned to Hana with daggers in her eyes as she inquired in an irate tone; “Why did ya do that?! How can I accept such a gift?!”

Hana stared right back at her with a flat expression; “Because it is a gift to reclaim her honor. If you refuse, then she will have been dishonored by you twice. And in case you didn’t know: you are Incredibly intimating in person.”

“Really? I think Ima delight,” she flashed a cheeky smile to accompany her response, but Hana didn’t seem amused.

Mei watched as she stood next to Kari with a sad look on her face, betraying her emotions. Noticing her distress, Kari asked what was troubling her. She sighed lightly, not really wanting to answer, but Skye and Hana were so enthralled with their discussion that she didn’t think that they would hear her..

While rubbing her hands together nervously, Mei spoke in a small voice as she stared at the ground; “I just...I just didn’t think that she would’ve changed so much in just a few years. Skye is so different now.. I wonder if she’ll see-if she sees me as a weakling..”

Kari quirked an eyebrow at her; “I dinna-I don’t see that being the case, my Lady. I don’t know you, but I feel like I do because Skye spoke of you so much on the way here. I believe that she truly missed you, and I don’t think your strength has even crossed her mind.”

Mei shook her head; “Not my body: my mind..”

Kari went to ask Mei what she meant, but Ryu came back with the loosely, but securely-wrapped dress. At the chance to escape, Mei fled to Hana’s side, and avoided eye contact with Kari until they went to leave the shop. It took a while since Skye was persistent in finding a way to repay Ryu’s kindness.

As they gathered up the materials to double-check the roll sizes and such, Peggy was looking at a beautiful green, gold, and pink kimono. Ryu’s mother-in-law came up to her side, and explained that they were rentals. The conversation sparked an idea for Skye..

Like an excited child, she grabbed Ryu’s sleeve and tugged on it as she practically yelled; “I ken! I ken what ta do!”

Recalling that she only spoke Sai’s language, Skye switched over as she excitedly explained; “How about this: you give me a discount on my purchase, and I will return the dress after I wear it to the Senator’s banquet?!”

As confusion covered Ryu’s face, Skye added; “I feel bad taking something so rich in history from your family, but I have no problem borrowing it. Many people will see me in the dress, and after I return it, you can put it on display then! I bet that your business will spike after everyone learns that the Guardian of the Last Dragon got her dresses from here!”