28. Gotham: Selina
36.
The room was a little messy, different from what Aria had imagined, but not the kind of mess with piles of household garbage. There were only a few pieces of cloth and some small beads and materials used to decorate clothes. Not only was there no stink, but there was also a faint scent of perfume - the scent of tuberose mixed with vetiver filled the air, like crushed white flowers sprinkled on a burning sacred wood, which made people's minds calm down involuntarily.
The sound of four-legged creatures clattering down the wooden stairs came from the farmer, and he soon understood why the place always looked messy - the hostess kept cats here, and it sounded like there was more than one.
The cats soon noticed the outsider. They raised their tails high, bending them into an arc that looked like a question mark, and meowed around the farmer sitting on the sofa.
One of the long-haired white cats was particularly friendly. Not only did it walk around Aria twice, it also jumped onto the sofa and put its front paws on her knees.
The farmer leaned back slightly to make some space, and the cat proudly climbed onto the good spot and lay down amid the meows of the cats.
This cat must have never experienced the dangers of the human world! It had no idea the humans before it were already plotting to lure it home in a sack, and even then, its belly was exposed without a care in the world. Aria's heart was filled with shock, but she forced herself to remain calm. The lady had gone to make tea, and she didn't want her to come back and see her happily playing with the cat—that would be too rude.
The white long-haired cat had a pair of very beautiful two-toned eyes. It was quite comfortable in her arms, yawning slightly and stretching. Just when Aria finally couldn't help but touch it all over, starting from its back, it raised its claws and hit her like lightning, then jumped off the farmer's lap and blended into the cat group.
!
The farmer was happy to get a claw mark, the farmer lost a little blood, and the farmer became obedient.
Holly arrived as late as the GCPD police officers. She placed the tea set on a higher table and successfully avoided the cats' pursuit. Facing the white cat lying in Aria's arms, the woman looked a little worried.
"Don't pet it just because you think it's cute," Holly warned. "It just likes to rub against you, but it definitely doesn't like being petted. If you do, it will scratch you."
"...I already know." Aria silently extended her hand to show the scratches on it. After all, she had provoked the cat first, so she'd just take the hit. Luckily, the kitten wasn't as lethal as a slime or a fly. Besides the massive psychological damage it had inflicted, the physical damage was minimal, practically negligible.
Holly felt a little guilty about her cat scratching someone, even though the customer didn't say anything. She was determined to serve this customer well, and she almost took out a notebook to write down all of Aria's requests.
But the farmer's request is actually quite simple: "I just want clothes that are suitable for attending parties and are convenient for fighting. Other things don't matter." She is already wearing lucky purple shorts, so would she care about other people's eyes?
Holly thought carefully about her needs, ran to the warehouse and searched for a long time, finding several women's suits.
"How about this? You're quite tall, and you look great in a suit." She held up the white suit and gestured it in front of Aria. "Is there a special occasion?"
"As a bodyguard." Even if someone at that level was formally invited to attend Wayne's dinner, they wouldn't come here to try on clothes. Aria felt that there was nothing to hide: "It's just a temporary bodyguard." So all she needed was a set of clothes that were just enough to cope with the situation.
The farmer wasn't saying this to show off, but Holly's eyes lit up when she heard it. "You must be a good fighter!" She glanced at the stairs for some reason, and said with envy, "I wish I could fight too. That way I could protect myself!"
Aria felt that she must have some unknown story, but Holly seemed to just sigh and continued to choose clothes for her: "I'm so sorry that the cat scratched you this time. How about I pick out another set of clothes for you?"
The farmer's eyes lit up after hearing this, as if as long as Holly gave the order, she would immediately support Holly as the new Emily.
Holly picked out the clothes she had preselected and motioned for Aria to go to the fitting room. "You have to try them on to know if they're for you."
Aria put several white suits in the clothing column one by one and walked out to let Holly see the effect. Although she couldn't see any difference between the suits in the clothing column except for the color, Holly compared them again and again before finally deciding on the white one.
"It needs some more work." Holly smiled, her eyes curved, and her afro made her look particularly lively. "I'll call our designer to come out and make some adjustments so it fits your waistline better."
She looked up and called out to the upper floor of the duplex apartment: "Selina! Can you come down and help me?"
An impatient reply came from upstairs. Holly was not affected by the other party's mood at all. She continued to say to Aria with a smile: "It was my idea to open a clothing store, but Selena paid for it, so she is my boss."
"And her fashion sense and hand-crafting skills are beyond many people. She even does some very delicate handicrafts herself." Holly praised Selena profusely. "...Anyway, you're definitely going to like it!"
The lady named Selena was immune to Holly's compliments and seemed to regard them all as exaggerated compliments. She tinkered with the things upstairs for a long time before slowly coming downstairs to let Aria see her true appearance.
The farmer once heard a poet lament that cruelty was the nature, habit, and religion of beauty, and he didn't expect that procrastination was also one of them.
But when she actually saw Selina, her eyes were blank for a moment at the sight of that rebellious face.
She was not a beauty in the traditional sense. Miss Selina had her hair shaved very short, and her lips were plump and wild with a primitive savagery. Her eyes were the most wonderful part of her entire face - she must have experienced a lot to have so much cleverness and cunning in her eyes.
The cats rushed over to her when they saw her coming down. She wasn't at all flustered by the crowd. Thanks to her smooth leg muscles, she could take a step forward in any direction and the cats would automatically make way for her. Walking with the cats, she looked like the most agile one among them.
"What do you need me to do?" Selina sat on the sofa lazily as if she had no bones, but her eyes were fixed on Aria.
Holly chirped in her ear: "...I think just adjusting the waistline will be fine."
She found a tool kit for Selina, who took it, got up from the sofa, and walked over to the farmer. Aria now understood where the lingering fragrance came from—the woman had applied perfume.
Ms. Selina is somewhat similar to her cat, which makes Aria feel a sense of closeness in her heart - although she has been scratched by the cat, she will not give up the opportunity to touch the cat next time.
So the farmer praised Selena enthusiastically as she measured her waist and held Aria in a half-hug:
"Ms. Selina, I think you are really beautiful."
Selina Kyle was so tired of hearing such praise that she was about to laugh it off when the younger girl continued seriously, "Just like a cheetah! Elegant and powerful, it feels like one can beat ten!"
Selina pinched her with the tape measure in her hand, but the force was not strong, it was just a joke.
"Unfortunately, I'm a cat." Even though she said that, a red heart still appeared on Selina Kyle's head.
Catwoman smiled and glanced at Holly: "Tell me, how much money did you bring? If it's not enough, I'll make up for the rest."
…
Until Aria walked out of Selina's house with three sets of clothes and put on all the clothes in a hidden corner because of insufficient inventory, her mind was still not clear about what was going on.
I don’t know why, but it seems like I suddenly became a gigolo of this beautiful sister.
…
Wayne Manor was even bigger than Aria had imagined.
In fact, in her rich imagination, Prince Zuzucheng should live in a high tower or a penthouse. After taking a shower one day, he would casually pick up a glass of champagne and look down from the landscape window at this luxurious and decadent city - those flashing beautiful neon lights were reflected in his steel-blue eyes, like a mirage emerging from the sea, and more like the fatigue of having all desires satisfied.
It’s really not a healthy life at all!
The reality was much better. As a bodyguard, she accompanied Lewis into the Wayne Manor grounds. Even as dusk fell, Aria, as a farmer, could keenly see the lawns illuminated by the night lights.
Aria opened the window and sniffed the air—it was the scent of weeds after being weeded. Although she felt a little regretful that such a large area couldn't be used for farming, she still felt a little envious of the well-maintained lawn.
When she got out of the car, she obviously remembered her duties as a bodyguard and opened the car door before Lewis.
"Mayor, please."
Lewis was not used to the sudden courtesy he received from the farmer. He coughed twice and straightened the wrinkles on his suit before getting out of the car slowly.
"I suppose you are Mr. Pennyworth?" Lewis smiled. After having a heart-to-heart talk with Bruce Wayne, he now sees everyone as his own.
Bruce Wayne's butler is an old man with good spirits, who is a little thin due to his age. He wears a well-tailored tuxedo butler coat and stands by the fountain of the manor, where he is responsible for welcoming guests.
Faced with the mayor's approach, he appeared polite and behaved appropriately.
"Mr. Lewis, welcome to Wayne Manor."
————————
Catwoman shaved her hair very short because she would not be grabbed by the enemy during a fight (in Catwoman V1, Stan grabbed her hair and hit her like this).
*Cruelness is the nature, habit, and religion of beauty, by Rumi
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2024-07-17 20:59:40 and 2024-07-17 23:58:55~
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