"You are certainly not what I expected", Kay ventured cautiously to Dolo, trying to inquire without making it obvious. "This is a rather pleasant surprise ... I ... I hope that we can perhaps be friends". There was so much else that she wished she dare say.
Dolo realized that Kay couldn't catch the words she'd sent, simply the emotions, and quickly reinforced the reassurance and calm, adding a strong sense of warmth and a sense that they would have time to talk later. "I hope we can be friends as well", she replied.
Gwenn looked even more nervous at their words and blushed redder. Hadn't Kay told him that he could speak for her when he had asked her last night? He went over the encounter in his mind, paying close attention to the portion when they had discussed his meeting with Dolo. Yes, she had given him permission to mention her grandparents to Dolo, and had said that she might be willing, after meeting Dolo, to call Dolo sister for her own sake rather than his. Gwenn nodded reassuringly to himself. Perhaps the Terranan comment was for the Damisela Ridenow's ears. Gwenn would have to remember that only Dolo and he knew of Kay's Darkovan blood.
After all the introductions were finished, Dolo turned to pick up the dresses she and Melissa had laid over the back of a chair when they came in. "Come, we should hurry... we don't want Gwenn and Kay to be late."
Kay looked at the pile of dresses with some dismay. They were all so much fancier than her own new green velvet. "These dresses are all so fine ... will I not be under-dressed ? ... I have only two dresses". She reached down to the bundle and pulled out the new dress and cloak she had bought from MacDoevid's, and held them up for Dolo and Melissa's inspection.
Dolo looked at the dresses Kay held up, then exchanged glances with Melissa. Melissa looked at her newest sister with an expectant smile as Dolo held up the dresses they'd picked as possibilities. Noticing the look, Dolo sent her favorite Ridenow a quick image of a dress they'd admired but hadn't chosen because it didn't suit Dolo's coloring and didn't fit Melissa. It would look perfect on Kay, she thought.
Kay wondered at the glances the other two women were giving each other. Did they agree with Gwenn that the lighter-weight burgundy silk wasn't nearly modest enough for local standards, and that the green velvet was more of a day dress ?
"Kay, dear, if you really feel that your own dresses aren't appropriate-". Dolo began. Delicately, she didn't mention that the fabric was too heavy and the colors didn't suit her nearly as well as they could.
"...but they're the only two dresses I have --- on THIS planet, at least", Kay protested, then added quickly "... but pardon me for interrupting".
"There's a dress here you're more than welcome to borrow- and it would look wonderful on you, dear", Dolo continued, indicating a tawny silk gown. She accompanied this offer with a mental impression of sincerity and warmth, using this instance as both a way to assure Kay that it was quite all right to borrow the dress, would even be a good idea, and to show her that she used the mental skills they both possessed often, didn't treat them as wrong or freakish.
Kay looked at Dolo thoughtfully for a moment, before replying "I've never had a sister before ... but if what sisters do, is to borrow clothing from each other, then I'd be delighted to let you dress me. I know only about what's both pretty and practical in casual-dress fashion --- and almost nothing about formal dress among the nobility. I wouldn't want anyone to stare at me for not being appropriately-dressed (or for any other reason either)".
Noted the additional projection, Kay chose not to react this time. However, part of her envied her new sister's casually-bold use of a fey talent. Was Dolo so important that nobody dared to harrass her because of it ? She was quite an appealing (and intriguing) person. But to what degree was it safe to confide in her ? Kay decided to wait and see if Gwenn would choose to tell about the search for her Da's hillfolk kin -- and if so, how Dolo and Melissa would react to that.
Dolo was relieved when Kay accepted the offer. She'd been worried that the girl had assumed that Gwenn's oh-so-formal attitudes were the norm, and would be stilted and stiff trying to match them. "Excellent!" she said.
Melissa could feel the girl's edginess, like a skittish horse, and wondered why she was so agitated. It was not her business to pry however, and she sensed there was a lot more going on here than Dolo had explained. Well, there was plenty of time for the rest of the story later. She smiled warmly at Kay, doing her best to project nothing but warmth and welcome to the girl.
Another wave of emotion washed across Kay. At first she thought it was Dolo again. Then she realized that THIS touch had a slightly different *flavour* to it. Although she gave no outward sign of having noticed it (she KNEW that trick now, and wouldn't be caught by it again), her mind raced with thoughts. Either it was Gwenn (but not likely) ... or it was Melissa ... or she was imagining things. If it was true that Melissa was fey as well, THAT could explain why Melissa and Dolo were so close, and why Dolo had reacted so nonchalantly to discovering one of Kay's most-closely-held secrets. Goddess ha' mercy, was this talent perhaps CONTAGIOUS ? Or was it just coincidence to find TWO feyfolk in one place ? Abruptly, Kay chopped off that line of thought as she realized Melissa was saying something to her.
"Kay, your dresses are both beautiful - you did a lovely job choosing them. But I don't know if you are familiar with gatherings like we have here on Darkover - they are always very lively, and we dance until we can no longer stand! The heavy fabric of your green dress would be too warm after just a dance or two!", Melissa said with a grin. "And Dolo's right - this one that we found for you is not only a lighter fabric, but the color suits you almost as if it was made for you. There are sometimes, " she winked at Kay and Dolo with a giggle, "When being stared at is a good thing..."
"Surely ye jest ! 'Tis bad enough to be stared at by ordinary lads and men ... e'en if I dinnae encourage aught more than friendliness, it can gi' them such ideas as I dinnae care for ... nae ... not at all ... 'twas why me da taught me to defend meself, though I dinnae enjoy THAT either", Kay protested, shaking her head and not noticing that she'd lapsed into her gran's accent. Idly she wondered if they found if odd that someone who carried two knives should dislike the idea of actually having to use them on another person.
Melissa quirked an eyebrow at the response, wondering if perhaps the girl was not...interested in men's attentions...? That would explain a lot, but even so --- a woman's attention should be appreciated then... She said nothing though, as they busied themselves with getting dressed.
Noticing Melissa's obvious curiousity, Kay wondered if perhaps she had just mispoke herself. In order to avoid having to deal with any possible matchmaking ideas later, she should say something now. And so she explained in answer, "Excuse me for being somewhat indelicate, but I'm not entirely sure how better to explain this ...". She paused, feeling a fresh blush paint her face red again, then continued, hoping Melissa would understand.
"Perhaps it is considered ... odd or unusual here ...it certainly was thought very much so on Terra ... that ... though I ... ummm ...like ... many men and women well enough as friends ... I .... continue ... as always ... to ... choose ... not to ... you know ... ummm ... well ... where lustful thoughts lead to ...", Kay tried again. Her voice trailed off as she looking hopefully to see Melissa's reaction to such an intimate confidence. She hadn't been able to make herself just come right out and say it, but hopefully the other woman would be able to guess.
Melissa's eyes went wide in a moment of surprise, not at what Kay had said, but the fact that she was confiding in almost a perfect stranger... Such candid remarks were strangely enchanting though, and Melissa found her honesty refreshing. With a gentle smile, she nodded. "That's fine. Everyone has a right to their own wishes. I think however, that you will find Darkover quite a bit different from what you're used to. There is a lot more respect for people's" she hesitated, not sure how to phrase it delicately, "personal space, and wishes". That at least sounded somewhat promising. But Kay had heard that such a social rule was more theory than actual practice, and therefore wasn't certain that Melissa wasn't being overly-idealistic.