Chapter 7: Lumi shopping and how "Inconspicuous" is not in Barney's Dictionary

The ride wasn't that smooth, seeing that the roads were filled with debris. Lumi fell asleep in her seat as Matthos avoided the roadblocks, wincing as the car jumped at each small stone. He will need to replace the wheels anyway, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

When they finally reached the supermarket, Matthos parked the car and woke Lumi, shaking her shoulder gently.

"Hey, we're here."

With a loud yawn, her hand hit his nose bridge, making him jump back. That stung a little, he noted. Lumi, on the other hand, looked irritated at the fact that she was woken up. When she finally caught on to her surroundings, she looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Math's, where are we?" she asked cautiously.

"Supermarket, a bigger grocery place," he said, opening both doors and releasing her from the seatbelt. She slowly stepped out of the vehicle as Matthos locked the doors. He offered his arm, to which she gladly accepted and cowered back.

It looked like they were late as the supermarket looked like a ghost town inside. There wasn't much left, and it looks like the storm also affected the ceilings as he observed the watermarks. It didn't matter that much. Matthos can just pass by a street vendor for organic foods. He did need to get some canned goods, maybe pasta, toiletries, and clothes for Lumi.

He walked to the end of the building, entering a large booth where he met the local designer and store owner, Mrs. Williams. Mainlanders knew the founders' descendants, one of which was Matthos.

Mrs. Williams was obviously a stunner in her younger years and can still catch people's eyes if she wanted to. The beautiful olive dress complemented her tan skin, and her greying hair was carefully combed in waves. Lumi was taken by her beauty.

"Hello, Mrs. Williams. I'd like to buy some clothes for this beautiful lady," Matthos did not beat around the bush. The island wasn't that small, but he did have some standing. He couldn't let the rumor mill be controlled by somebody else. "Lumi, this is Mrs. Williams. She is one of the many designers left on the island. She's just here because?" Matthos tilted his head, wondering why she was here when she could just have a regular clerk in her booth.

"Because I'm bored," she answered in a raspy voice, telling years of smoking tobacco, "Hello, little girl, I'm the local dresser here. What would you like to wear?" She ignored Matthos, seeing if he is the reason for Lumi's distress. When she saw that he wasn't, she focused her attention on the shaking lady.

"Well—," Lumi looked at Matthos, but he only rubbed her hand, comforting her, "Mayhap, I should leave it to Math's capable hands."

Mrs. Williams looked at him, skeptical at the girl's statement. Matthos, capable of women's fashion? Was this a joke?

She wasn't wrong. He knew nothing of women's fashion, not even his own gender's fashion. He was satisfied with his various colored shirts, cargo pants, and jeans, maybe some hoodies and jackets, and done. He'll live.

"I'll leave it to your capable hands, Mrs. Williams," he smiled brightly. The old woman only raised an eyebrow and proceeded to look at Lumi, who wanted to disappear from her sight.

"She can have some shirts, shorts, jeans, and leggings are in season too. But what's most important are dresses! She looks beautiful in sundresses! What else does she need?" Thinking of her as a blank canvass, Mrs. Williams started listing down the items

"Undergarments?" That got him a glare from Mrs. Williams, to which he made an excuse, "When she was traveling, her suitcase and its contents were lost."

"Oh," saying no more, she wrote it down and asked for permission.

Lumi felt guilt, as she didn't have money to pay. Before asking Mrs. Williams if she could work for her, Matthos handed his platinum card, "Give her a year's worth of clothes. And throw some clothes for me too." That brightened the woman's day, and they left her happily after getting Lumi's measurements. They also needed shoes, he noted.

That made him go to the other booth, where he didn't recognize the seller. The seller did recognize him. Who didn't know Physma Island's celebrity genius?

"Hi, I'm looking for shoes for her. She needs snow boots, leather boots, three rubber shoes, sandals, slippers, and maybe doll shoes. Anything else you can add?"

"Maybe some pumps and heels, Sir," the seller offered

"Perfect, charge it to this card."

The clerk's eyes widened at the platinum credit card. He showed the shoes, took Lumi's measurements, and told them they could come back for their orders.

"You didn't hand any coins or papers, only metal. What is that currency?" Lumi was baffled at Mrs. Williams and the shoe seller's reaction. What was so special about a card?

"They have access to money. I'll have someone explain it to you."

The duo walked in silence, taking a cart, and started grocery shopping. Lumi watched as Matthos took items from the shelves.

'If she's from 1845, with chances of being awake in other times, what are the kinds of food she ate?'

He decided to get the basics. When they passed the wine, Lumi smelled an irresistible scent and saw a large barrel of ale.

"Math's, Ale!" she said excitedly. The customer service representative looked at them weirdly. That barrel was exclusively for a restaurant that was wrecked by a storm. They'd have to repack it, and it was a headache.

Without thinking twice, Matthos said, "We'll get two barrels," and left the woman aghast.

They finally got to the counter, where the barrel and a confused packer watched. The calculated bill was high that the cashier was worried that the man wouldn't be able to pay. Matthos paid no heed and handed a simple credit card. The cashier and packer smiled when it came through. Giving clear instructions, Matthos pointed at the jeep and went back for the shoes. They passed by Mrs. Williams' booth, where they confirmed the multitude of clothes they'd get. Lumi tried on the clothes inside, not even stepping out, disappointing the woman. He, on the other hand, was relieved.

Seeing the mountain of clothes, Mrs. Williams said she'd deliver it in the afternoon. Matthos retrieved his card, and on the other store, they checked if Lumi liked the shoes. She meekly tried them on but didn't understand the style at all. 'Why was the heel of one sandal like a dagger? And why do the shoes show so much skin?'

She kept her thoughts to herself, but Matthos can read her like a book. He only smiled and ushered her out, leaving a happy seller.

Matthos's phone suddenly rang. It was Barney.

"5 minutes, DOCK," and dropped the call.

He only sighed and helped Lumi into the car. That fudge ball, he was already on his way after all.

"Lumi, we're going to the dock to pick up a friend of mine."

When they arrived, there was a small crowd gathered in front of a boat.

"That—" Matthos sighed while Lumi was startled. Around them were a bunch of fallen trees and debris, but there was a small band playing in the corner, and people were clapping.

Matthos slouched and let his head rest on the steering wheel, making the people jump at the loud beep.

The crown cleared, and a man appeared in loud clothes. He was wearing a red-printed summer shirt and cargo shorts. It looked like he was on vacation, and the people treated him like some sort of celebrity. Even Lumi knew a storm decimated the island. Why are people celebrating? Who is this man?

The man's skin was that of sepia in a painting, she marveled. She found it beautiful.

Matthos glared at the man. The man smiled back and opened the door to the car, smiling at Lumi.

"I thought you said one day," Matthos's teeth gritted in annoyance.

"No, I said one. It was supposed to be one hour. But the ship was delayed, so it became four. Anyways, what did you do? You came soon. I was expecting to wait for thirty minutes."

"Grocery and clothes shopping," he tilted his head at Lumi, who was curiously peeking at Barney.

Barney removed his sunglasses, showing his prominent, bead-like eyes. He freed his hair from his man-bun.

"Lumi, meet Barney."

"Pleased to meet you, mademoiselle," he flashed a grin which made Lumi's face contort in disgust. Matthos laughed at the exchange.

"She didn't like that one bit, dude."

"Okay, my name is Barney," he said dejectedly.

"That's better," Lumi nodded and turned around.

"Anyways, what have I gotten into, and who is this being?" Barney laid back. He felt the energy radiating off of the front seat. It was different from the other ones he'd encountered before.

"Something you won't believe, but first, why did you get a band?" Matthos demanded

"To lift the spirits of the people. Hey, it worked!" he defended

"Inconspicuous is not in Barney's dictionary," Matthos explained to Lumi

"Which is great because with how things are like now, I don't think you're going to get that peaceful vacation you wanted," then Barney's face became serious, "The department called. Something's up, and the curse is unearthed."

Though the curse wasn't specified, Lumi's heart felt as if it was about to pop out of her chest. Something's coming, and it may be coming for her.