Wedding Dress Blues

Posted on Tue Jun 23rd, 2020 @ 12:29am by Captain Nycolas Temple & Lieutenant Kalin Brennan-Griffin PhD & Lieutenant JG Vecon Fick & Tisar Zemel & Eva Griffin & Ignatius & Raven Mattel
Edited on on Fri Jul 10th, 2020 @ 5:19pm

Mission: Death in Paradise
Location: various

A Mission Post by Lieutenant Kalin 'Shae' Brennan-Griffin PhD & Aoife Brennan & Captain Nycolas Temple & Lieutenant JG Vecon Fick & Tisar Zemel & Ignatius & Raven Mattel
Mission: Death in Paradise
Location: various
Timeline:
Sun Oct 28th, 2018 @ 6:13am

With Aoife hobbling along at her side, Shae wandered through the halls deep in thought. She had just come from the holodeck, terribly overwhelmed by the sheer abundance of choices in attire for her big day. Striking out, she made her way to go find help, but who to ask? She was fairly certain she wanted Ignatius' help; after all, he was a tailor and could provide advice in ways a laymen could not. But she also wanted a friend! Only problem was, who to call upon? She adored the Risian pilot Fick, but she was also quite fond of her fellow Scientist Eiri, but somehow she had a feeling that Fick would be better suited to this task. And she didn't want too many people watching her try on dresses, so Ignatius and Fick it was! She finally made her way to Fick's door and rang the chime.

"Come in! It's open!" Fick called from inside. K'Laus was on duty, but Fick had requested the day off to make things around their quarters a little less messy and he readily admitted that he was still a little bit tired and stressed from all of the bubble universe. He had pretty much cleaned the main living space and just had to tackle their bedroom.

The door swished open and Shae stepped in with Aoife toddling in with her. "Fick?" Shae asked as she looked around to find her friend, catching a glimpse of him in the bedroom. "Did I catch you at a bad time?" she asked.

Aoife finally saw Fick as well and reached out with her free hand to wave at the Risian. "Fick!" she greeted cheerfully.

Fick came out of the bedroom with an armload of clothing that he put in the hamper. "Nah... I was just picking up. It's been like a whirlwind hit these quarters. Hi tiny!" He waved at Aoife. "Wow... are you doing the walking thing now?" Fick was grinning.

"Hi!" Aoife replied with a grin.

"She's got the strength, just no balance yet, so if I let her go of her hand and she'll fall," Shae said, then looked down at Aoife. "But we're going to get that fixed real soon, right? The doctor's going to make it so you don't need help!" To which Aoife responded by raising her free hand to do a little cheer. "Yeah, she's ready for that... But onto other things, I was hoping you could help me with something today," Shae said, once again addressing Fick. "I am, well, trying to pick out a wedding dress, and I'm feeling rather lost... Would you be willing to help me?"

Fick's eyebrows shot up and his eyes widened. "You.... sure! That would be awesome! Why me? I'm sure there are people that are more fashionable than me on this ship..." he chuckled.

"I planned to go see Ignatius as well for a more professional opinion, but... I wanted a friend with me as well," Shae said shyly. "I was in a holodeck program for the better part of three hours, and the tailor in the program was just frustrating me, I couldn't find anything I liked, nothing that I felt looked good on me, so I thought maybe some real people might help make it a little easier to find something."

Fick nodded. "Oh... I see your point. Thanks for thinking of me. Are you going to wear a white dress? Not all cultures wear white."

"Well, that was the idea," Shae said with a shrug. "Although, I was toying with the idea of cream colored linen, but the tailor in the program said it would be awful, and Mum wants something 'traditional', you know, classic, and I don't really have any idea what I really want. So will you come with me to see Ignatius?"

"Sure! Uh..." He looked around as if he thought that he might need something and then shrugged. "You want to go now?" he asked with a grin.

"I was hoping so, but we can do it later if that's better for you," Shae replied. "I still have some time in the holodeck, but I really should have scheduled something with Ignatius... I hope he doesn't mind."

"I don't have anything else. I'm just cleaning our quarters and didn't have any other plans. So I'm free, right now and the rest of the day," Fick said, grabbing a pair of shoes and pulling them on. He grinned at Aoife as he put them on. "Maybe we can get you a treat for being so patient..." he said to her.

"She's been going bonkers in the holodeck, because to her all the dresses are so pretty," Shae said with a smile. "I don't think I tried on a single dress she didn't like! Okay, Aoife-kit, you ready to walk again?"

"Up," the little fox-child said, raising her free arm to Shae to be picked up.

"Yeah, I thought you might be getting tired of walking," Shae replied, then picked her daughter up. Once Fick had his shoes on, they were off to deck 5 to go see Ignatius!

Whereas Lieutenant Fick had been cleaning up a mess and picking up his clothes, Ignatius was doing the opposite. "No!" he cried as he threw a roll of red and black tartan fabric across the room. "Pastel?" he moaned, holding up a half-finished waistcoat in a soft blue. It wasn't until he reached the brass-gold loafers that the tailor truly lost his nerve. "LAST SEASON!" he shrieked and likewise sent the offending footwear hurtling across the room into his 'discard' pile.

"Wow... I had no idea last season was so offensive," Fick said casually, as they arrived just in time to witness the flying shoes. "I take it we won't be seeing any of those in the window."

Shae blinked in surprise at the commotion Ignatius was making. "Indeed..." she said uneasily; she definitely should have scheduled ahead for this... "E-excuse me, Ignatius? Do you have a moment to help me with something?"

"All of that pile - " Ignatius pointed his finger accusingly at the collection of fabrics and clothing on the ground. "Is free to a good home." He sighed and pulled down on his waistcoat. "Other than that, I am free."

Curiosity piqued, Shae looked over at the collection with bemusement, but she still looked, finding a role of shimmery fabric that seemed to have captivated Aoife's interest. "What do you think, my little love? New blanket for your new bed?" Shae said to her daughter when she found the deep blue fabric was actually quite soft despite its shimmery appearance, almost like velvet. Quite luxurious for a child's bed, but if it was free, then who was she to turn it down!

"Can you have this sent to my quarters later?" Shae asked, gesturing to the bolt of fabric. "And I came around to ask for your assistance... You see, I'm trying to pick out a wedding dress, and I'm on a very tight schedule since we don't want to wait, but I'm in a rather tight spot because I can't find anything I like."

Ignatius raised an eyebrow. "In a rush? Oh, I understand. Not everyone waits till the wedding night." He paused and looked to Fick, eyeing him up and down, before turning back to Shae. "Are you... sure?"

Was she sure? It took Shae a moment to connect those words with his discerning gaze, and then she blushed. "I'm marrying Cailus Griffin, Fick is here with me today to help me as a friend, moral support and all; though if I was marrying Fick, there wouldn't be anything wrong with that, so please mind your assumptions," she scolded gently. "Anyway, we haven't set a date yet, but we're aiming for sooner rather than later because Cailus and I were married in that dream state we were trapped in, and we'd rather not wait ages to make it official now that we're awake."

Fick laughed. "Yeah, I like men... I'm here serving in the "best friend" capacity. I think they call it a Maid of Honor..." he joked.

Ignatius blinked at the torrent of information. He put on a smile and indicated towards a large 3-panel mirror. “Well I usually do men’s clothing but I’ve also been known to dabble in other silhouettes. In fact, I designed a ritual garment for a Xyrillian female once. Had to wear gloves the entire time. Anyway, what were your ideas for the dress?”

Assuming by his gesture that he wanted her in front of the mirror, Shae found a chair and set Aoife down where she could watch her mum, then she stepped up to the mirror. "Well, your expertise is better than mine; my wardrobe is painfully simple in comparison to what you make, but I rather like simple. As to my ideas, I actually didn't have many; I was in a program in the holodeck and the dress designer built in to it trussed me up into so many garish gowns, half the time I felt like a layered cake or I was weighted down with so many shining baubles, it was horrible and I got so cross with the woman that I deleted her," she admitted sheepishly. And she had such a slight, willowy figure that she could be overtaken quite easily by such frippery. "I think... I think maybe I want something... well, not too showy; a subtle elegance, you know?"

"Just to interject my opinion here... she's so pale that I'm worried a white dress will wash her out so bad she's going to look like a ghost, but she says her mother wants something more traditional. Is there a compromise color?" Fick asked.

"Oof, hardly a thing a girl wants hear..." Shae remarked with a chuckle. "But it is my wedding, not my mother's, so ultimately I guess the decision is mine; I know there's different shades of white, so I could go with something white adjacent if it would be better for my complexion." And she had been considering cream colored linen, but she was somewhat afraid to bring it up after the way that dreadful holographic woman had told her how unfashionable it would be.

“We’d need to play with texture instead.” Ignatius mused, studying the officer up and down. “I agree a plain white would not work. But perhaps... lace? Ivory lace in a floral pattern,” He wiggled his fingers around Brennan’s top half, as if directing the flow of the fabric. “Over a chiffon bodice and dress. No frills or sleeves, that’ll drown you. Keep it light and airy, evoking the soft but whimsical. Maybe just a thin strap, or allowing the pattern to continue over one shoulder? I’m feeling non-structural and not overly cinched, the fabric should freely flow out from the bosom and down.” He ended with a flourishing hand wave across Brennan’s legs.

"Ohhh..." Shae said, her eye sparkling with interest. "Have you got any pictures for me to see what something like that might look like? Or perhaps... I still have some time in the holodeck, maybe you could help me find some dresses to try on that are as you describe?" she asked hopefully. Either way, his words sounded powerful and invoked a feeling she rather liked, but she would still like to see some these ideas, one way or another!

Fick stepped into the shop instead of continuing to lean in the doorway. "I dunno, Ignatius. She's got a really little waist.. if you don't pull it in a little she'll look like she's wearing a really pretty, lacy sack." FIck grinned at Shae. "Sorry, talking about you like you're not here." He stuck his tongue out playfully at her.

Shae simply responded by sticking her tongue out at him as well, causing Aoife to giggle.

"If you give me some time I can work something into a holodeck program." Ignatius nodded. "But if you wanted to do something very cinched in, we could also try a corset dress?"

"Well, I've got a program running. My mum sent it to me to help me pick a dress, and while I may have deleted the woman dressing me up, all the dresses are still there and I still have some time in the holodeck reserved," Shae offered.

“Yes, that might be best. At least then we can all see what we’re talking about,” Ignatius replied. “Shall we go now?”

Fick nodded. "Sure. I think the holodeck will make it a lot easier. I mean we could talk about it all day, but really until the dress is on her..." He grinned and shrugged. "Lead the way..."

"I agree, I would like to see some of these ideas!" Shae said with excitement. She stepped away from the mirror and retrieved Aoife, settling the child on her hip to carry her to the holodeck.

As the ever-growing procession exited Ignatius’ shop, they were greeted by the arrival of Tisar Zemel and Raven Mattel, who were deep in discussion over the upcoming Talent Show.

“Ah, my friends.” Ignatius beamed at them both. “Do you have a moment?”

Tisar smiled at the group as they approached. "Greetings!" He tipped his head to each of them. "Where are you all off to? It looks important."

"I'm off to try on some wedding dresses," Shae said with a soft blush and an almost giddy smile of excitement.

Fick was staring, open-mouthed at Raven. For a moment he seemed like he wanted to speak, but couldn't. He definitely felt that way. Raven Mattel was very well-known on Risa and Fick was a serious fan. He tried really hard not to be a fanboy, but it finally overtook him. "You're Raven Mattel!" he blurted, rather awkwardly for someone who was not usually awkward.

"That's me, honey," Raven replied, giving a long wink to the officer. She turned back to the others, "And you're all designing the dress together?"

"I've never done a wedding gown before but we're going to try." Ignatius said with a shrug. "We're heading to the Holodeck to look at some ideas."

Raven raised an eyebrow. "Three men, a child, and - no offence, honey - a Science officer are going to design a wedding dress? Girl, you're going to be walking down the aisle in a patchwork quilt. You need Mama Raven's advice."

Ignatius turned to the others, "The more the merrier?"

Fick was, once again, not able to speak. He was blushing furiously and looking at the ground. He nodded mutely.

Tisar was already on his feet. "This sounds like a lovely idea. I don't honestly know much about weddings, aside from the Cardassian sort. I'm sure it is done differently elsewhere. I would love to tag along, just to see. I'm not very good with fashion." Of course he was dressed just fine for someone claiming to not know fashion.

Shae blushed crimson; she had not intended to have extra people come along, but she couldn't deny that she probably could use the help. "Three men?" And add in two more, one of which was dressed in drag? Not that Shae had anything against the drag lifestyle, it was amusing despite her nervous apprehension about having extra people tagging along. "I suppose I could use some 'womanly' advice," Shae said, giving Ms Mattel a knowing wink. "We were just on our way to the holodeck now, so the more the merrier," she said in echo of Ignatius' assessment.

Not long after, the caravan of amateur designers arrived back in the Holodeck and Shae was standing on a round pedestal in front of three mirrors. Ignatius was nearby, his head buried in a PADD. He tapped a few buttons and the dress around Brennan shimmered for a moment, then pulling in tighter around the the waist.

"This is a little more cinched." He declared, looking up at her.

"It's very flowy." Raven nodded, giving the silky fabric a swish.

"It feels very nice," Shae said approvingly as she gazed at herself in the mirror. The dress was simple, a strapless A-line gown with a raised empire waist, and while she didn't usually like lace or the sparkling rhinestones that adorned some of the other dresses in the program, the lace on the bodice was subtle and soft and sparsely adorned with pearls and rhinestones, nothing too over the top. The skirt was carefully drawn in at the waist to accentuate her petite figure, then flared out in layers of flowy, wispy fabric, none of which was a pure white, which as Fick said would not do well with her complexion, but rather a soft eggshell color. A small glowing smile grew on her face as she imagined herself walking towards Cailus, ready to make her vows to him once again. "It's beautiful..." she said softly, the awe and amazement evident in her tone.

Fick was grinning when he wasn't staring at Raven. "See... you're too skinny for all that frumpy stuff. Makes you look like a marshmallow, but this is nice. I've always hated wedding dresses. They're either great! Or they're terrible."

Tisar looked at the small pilot. He knew that Fick was dating a Klingon male, he had seen them together on the entertainment deck. From his appearance, Tisar wondered just how many weddings Fick had been to at his age. He was smiling at Raven and Shae, but glancing sidelong at Fick. "How many weddings have you attended, Lieutenant?" the Cardassian finally asked.

Fick snorted. "You have no idea. I'm from Risa. Do you know how many people want to get married on Risa? Pretty much everyone. There's a wedding every like... 10 minutes there. I think I might have seen them all..."

“Oh gurl, Risa!” Raven exclaimed, realising the helmsman was from her adopted home town. “Once I married two Benzites in a mineral hot spring. There weren’t no dresses involved that day.”

Ignatius had remained focused on Shae, musing over the dress and the sophisticated fabric. “How do you feel about heels, Lieutenant Brennan? Do you wear them usually?”

"If it makes a difference, Risa never made it to the list of places I was considering," Shae chimed in, feeling quite uplifted by all the banter. She thought the extra people would add more pressure, but she was feeling quite at ease now. Then Ignatius suggested heels and Shae looked at him with bemused surprise. "Oh, well, I don't normally wear shoes..." she said, lifting the skirt of her dress to reveal dainty little paws instead of feet, but then she looked down at her paws and shrugged. "But I can give it a try," she offered, and her paws quickly shifted, morphing into a pair of dainty feet. "And yes, I'm a shapeshifter, let's not make a big deal out of it," she added playfully to try to staunch any surprised questioning.

Tisar blinked at Shae's feet. "Oh... well. A lady of many talents. So who is the lucky fellow?" he asked, seeming genuinely interested.

"The grouchest of grouchies..." Fick said with a chuckle.

Shae giggled. "He's my grouch!" she said possessively, smiling brightly. "Our Chief Tactical Officer, Cailus Griffin," she then named proudly.

"Isn't he a little... tall? Do you think you could you shape-shift yourself an extra half a metre in height?" Raven asked, tilting her head to the side. This was not a problem of course for the almost 6-foot tall man in woman's stilettos, but Raven was genuinely worried that Shae's stature could use some assistance.

"Hey! What's wrong with being short?" Fick asked. The Risian pilot only stood five foot and four inches, after all.

Ignatius however tutted at Mattel, shaking his head. "If you don't like heels," He spoke up over her, "Perhaps you'd like a dress that was a little more free-spirited?" He began musing over the gown, his discerning eye now looking critically at the design they had currently. "What about something with volume, like a layered skirt?"

"Oh, um, I have done that, kind of, from time to time..." Shae said Raven, blushing crimson. Of course, she wasn't going to tell them what else she had done with Cailus and her shapeshifting... But then Ignatius was suggesting another dress, and so she looked down at what she was wearing. "This isn't free-spirited enough?" she asked, giving the skirt a swish. Truly, Ignatius had a great eye because she did rather like this dress; it was soft and light and lovely, and not at all showy like the other dresses had been. "But Mum did warn me, I shouldn't settle for the first dress I like; if it's meant to be, then I'll keep coming back to it, so yes, let's try another one."

Tisar chuckled, grinning at Shae. "I'm sure with all this help you will find something you love. He's a very lucky man, your Tactical Chief. You're very lovely. Everything is going to be beautiful for your big day. Are you marrying on the ship? Or are you going somewhere else for the ceremony? What about the honeymoon?" the Cardassian asked curiously.

"At the moment, we're looking at the holodeck for both," Shae answered meekly. "What with the blockade and all, we don't have many options. Maybe later we might take some time away for a 'proper' honeymoon, but for now the wedding is mostly about reaffirming what we shared in the Bubble and allowing friends and family to be there as we formalize those vows.

Ignatius sighed loudly, all this chatter was cluttering his head when he was trying to focus on the dress. He tapped away at his PADD again, and Raven leaned over to look at his work. "Oooh!" She marvelled out-loud into his ear, though this only earned her a testy side-eye from the clothier for bothering him.

"Darling," Ignatius turned back to Shae. "How do you feel about corsets?"

"Just... don't make her look like a marshmallow..." Fick requested. "I mean, I like where you're going here, but if you cinch her in too tight with layers... she's gonna look like a dessert. Of course, maybe she wants to look like a dessert." He chuckled and wiggled his eyebrows at whoever was looking at him.

Tisar facepalmed.

"A corset?" Shae echoed, looking over to one of the corsetted dresses displayed on the showroom floor. The dress designer she had deleted earlier had her trussed up tightly in a similar dress, the corset was so stiff from all the bling and tightened uncomfortably, and the skirt had been so huge and fluffly that she felt like a walking cupcake, just as Fick said! But this was Ignatius, and he had already proven he had a good eye for what suited her figure and personality, so she took a deep breath and nodded. "Hit me with whatever you've got!" she said boldly.

Shae's dress shimmered to become a lovely corset dress in cream colored crepe. The corset itself was not adorned and was comfortably snug, pulled in just enough to accentuate her tiny waist, and all the drama was in the layered skirt which was loosely tucked and gathered in placed to add a sense of texture to the gown, but it was all subtly done and Shae stood in awe of it.

"Ohhh..." she said as she ran her fingers over the textured silk. "I love it," she said with a breathy softness, but there was something missing... "Um, do you think... uh, if it's not too much trouble..." She started to fidget uneasily. "Um, the lady that was in the program said linen was not a suitable fabric for a wedding dress, but, um, could we try it for this gown?" she asked meekly.

“I never took instructions from a walking lightbulb,” Ignatius replied and with a flourish of his fingers changed the fabric from silk to linen. He stood back and admired the view.

Shae loved it! The stiffer texture of the smooth linen and the natural sun-bleached cream color was the perfect compliment to the style of the gown, giving it an earthy feel that had Shae enraptured. And yet, her eyes kept drifting to the other gown, which was now on display on a dummy nearby; both gowns were beautiful and seemed to capture elements of her personality, she truly didn't know how she was going to chose between the two, they were both so perfect! Spying Aoife in the mirror, the little fox child had a look of awe one her face, and clapped happily when their eyes met.

"You like this one, my little love?" Shae asked with a smile. "I like it too. Oooh, but I do like the other one too... I don't know what to do, it's not like I can wear both of them to my wedding!"

"Well, if you would like the opinion of an observer," Tisar offered. "I prefer this one... I think it suits you." He smiled warmly.

Fick snorted. "I like the other one. It's shiny. It looked good on you... and the shiny might deter your mother from being upset that it's not white."

"I like the skirt on this one." Raven added, "It's very 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun', you know?"

Ignatius gave a shrug, "I could go either way."

"That's not what I hear." Raven muttered, nudging him with her pointy elbow. "But you know, darling," She turned back to Shae, "Who says you can't wear both? One for the ceremony, one for the reception?"

"Oh, I suppose I could..." Shae said with amazement, somewhat shocked that she hadn't thought of that herself. "But then which one would I wear to the ceremony, and which to the reception? And two dresses is an awful lot to ask of Ignatius, especially in such a short period of time! I wouldn't want to impose," she insisted.

"I might not be able to do everything by hand," Ignatius pondered, "But that would mostly mean designing the gowns with the industrial replicators and sewing it to fit properly. It's doable."

"I'll help." Raven added with a nod. "Were you planning on having bridesmaids?" She asked with a pearly white grin.

"Oh no, I don't want a ceremony that elaborate," Shae replied. "I might dress up Aoife to be the flower girl, but other than that I just want it to me and Cailus in front of my friends and family, which of course includes all of you. I don't plan to do any formal invitations, but consider yourselves invited!" she added merrily.

“Oh,” Raven said flatly. “I hope to at least get a piece of cake then.”

"Come on, girl, we've got a dress to make," Ignatius spoke up, prodding her in the arm. He thought that sometimes Raven could be empathetic and sweet, and other times she had all the emotional sensitivity of a Vulcan. Being friends with her was exhausting, especially when he was trying to impress his new client. "We'll make a start on the designs, Lieutenant. You will just need to decide which one you're wearing first."

"It's a big decision, but either way I know I can't go wrong; thank you all so much for your help," Shae said, stepping down from the pedestal to offer the tailor and then Raven a big hug each to show her appreciation; in fact, everyone would get a hug from the Chameloid woman before departing the holodeck, because she was so full of joy and excitement that she just had to share it!