"No, it wasn't patronizing at all."  Rose responded, shaking her head.  "My own upbringing probably was wilder than yours, though I think in many ways, you'd have found it a lot less free.  The schooling...  Well, I guess I don't mean 'schooling' in the formal sense, but being taught how to live and survive...  The teachers were harsh and the discipline strict, but that was because even the slightest mistake could lead to death.  And even before that, when I was young enough that I didn't have anything to do, and could just run around and play...  Even then, during the middle of the day, I wasn't allowed to do anything but sit around in the shade with my family, because it was so hot that I'd get heatstroke.  It wasn't too bad, because we'd tell stories and play instruments during that time, but I never did like just sitting around like that and not doing anything."<br/><br/>Admittedly, the stories her mother told her during that time wound up coming in handy later on, when she got in touch with the rest of her family...  Aria was right in assuming that their upbringings had been wildly different, though.  Bedine tribes had very little in common with the descendants of pirate lords, and would likely have been proud of the fact, had they known what pirate lords even were.  Granted, the Luskans probably would have felt the same way, had they even known about the Bedine tribes...  Or perhaps they wouldn't have even given barbarian tribes in some distant desert a second thought?<br/><br/>Lunch was delicious, though that little talk about the past had had the shifter simply picking at her food, at first.  Apparently, she was in a bit of a reminiscing mood, though she quickly snapped out of it when she realized her soup was getting cold.  The taste more than made up for her Collar keeping her from having an appetite, and she was in a much happier mood as they made their way to the clothier afterwards.  Those cheongsams seemed like an excellent idea to Rose, and in keeping with her intentions for the evening, she wound up purchasing a slinky little black one with a silvery clouds-and-moon theme for herself, liking the way it contrasted nice with her hair and skin tone, and had it boxed up nice and neat for herself before they left the store, wanting to keep it well-preserved in her travels.  No doubt she'd find another use for it, some time later on down the line.<br/><br/>Before reaching the Avenue of Effulgent Light, Rose did make sure to stop in at that temple they passed while on the way to the ship earlier that day.  She had a donation to make, after all, and when she finally left the place, her pockets were about 3,000 pieces of gold lighter than they had been when she went in, her show of thanks for the luck they had been shown that day.  From there, on to the ship...<br/><br/>The revelation that some boy had been paid to go around distributing pamphlets advertising the vessel got a laugh out of the shifter, though she had to admit that the ship looked nice.  The sight was impressive enough that she didn't doubt they'd find a buyer, especially with the party that was about to be thrown.  When the sky above darkened and all the lights were turned on, the ship would probably even shine bright enough to attract revelers from several streets over...  Perhaps it'd pay to look into musical entertainment?<br/><br/><br/><br/>I'm glad you like it. ^^ I thought it would be a nice touch, myself, though I have to admit that you're the one who originally brought those Chronocharms to my attention.  She should wind up getting plenty of use out of them in the future.