They must have given her one of the Princess' outfits. Nobody else would have silks this smooth around, not even on a debauched party cruiser like this one with its panoply of lights in all these unfair colors and its primitive beach girl servitors. Not to mention, no one else out of anybody she heard Bella yelling about, or anybody she'd seen while she sang for that party, would have had the bravery required to put on a dress as uselessly diaphanous as this one. It covered [i]nothing,[/i] so that her complexion and each one of her muscles (or the softness that lived where they ought to be, had she lived a less pampered life) was on display as brazenly as the underwear that went with it. It was a pretty, dainty, delicate little number for somebody either absurdly proud of her body or waaaaay too into "certain types" of holos.

It's also, point of fact, the only way to explain why somebody would have had to hastily cut and restitch it just to make it fit her. 

"It's a joke. Honestly it's such a joke. Heir to the throne, daughter of [i]Zeus![/i] And she turns out the size of a puppy with a ratio even smaller than she is. Great taste in fabrics, though. Mmmf. I guess if we're still catching her I'll have to compliment her fashion sense."

That's why they knew they'd get away with the rush job, too. Not a damn thing close to a seamstress anywhere on this ship, not without the mice, but these silks were so [i]rich[/i] she could drown herself in the feeling of rubbing them against her arms, her legs, her tummy, and her hips. Delicious. The very best sort of indulgence: the kind that made her not care who saw her. 

It's so nice, Beljani almost passed right by the Kaeri and their broken Hermetic in a haze. What did she care? Let the bullies break the can. Depths, let them waste a year trying to pry secrets out of it. It'd be funny to watch them bounce off one of the empire's greatest secret keepers. Kaeri swearing was always hilarious. And they were useless without her talents, especially with somebody as mech'd up as this poor loser. And they knew it. And they still didn't ask with anything even bordering on respect. Feh. She'd watch later. She's got stuff to do, don't you cretins know, important stuff that...

"Hold on a minute."

Beljani pauses in front of the broken heap, her slinky dress shimmering in the wonderfully indulgent puddle of light around what probably used to be his feet. She furrows her brow. And then she frowns. Or she pouts. Artemis, she's asking nicely this time, please let her be frowning. 

"I thought you machine-heads just sort of came with the ship? You know, 'secrets of the engines~' and all that crap. Don't get me wrong, I'm as mad as anybody about how much these nitwits are busting up this perfectly pretty little boat, but you don't see me getting pulled apart like a butterfly over it, do you? No, this doesn't make any sense. What's your deal, old man? What's this ship hiding, or what the fffff... frig is it worth to you that you're alright getting dissected for it? Never even heard of a Hermetic loyal to a regime. Come on, geezer, spill."

She's asking, but she's not. Beljani's smile is just as friendly as it is full of predatory teeth. This is a lead. This is a lead, or she's dumber than Bella. This place has got secrets, or if not the ship then the busted up junk heap lying in front of her. Either way he's got the goods. Something tasty enough that Beautiful could turn it into a weapon faster than she could fry an egg. Something nasty enough that the Master would think it's worth activating a Diodekoi over it. Spill it. Spill it! Tell her now, don't you dare resist, don't you [i]dare[/i] make her push herself right now, don't you...

Beljani stiffens abruptly, and perks her ears. There's a weird pinching sensation on her toes. She bends down to pick up a tiny crab making its way across her dress and stares at it in befuddlement. There's no way this is normal, right? This place [i]has[/i] to be hiding something. She flicks the tiny thing away from her down the hall, and then? She smiles. Because she. Has had. The best. Idea.

"And while we're busy becoming such good friends," she sings, "[i]You[/i] can write my letter for me. It's for my sister, so it has to be perfect. Understand?"