lockers weren't already claimed so that she could unpack, collapse her luggage, and find someplace out of the way to store it. Rustin responded to Claire's unfastening of the top of her luggage by opening up empty compartments and then showing the ones she'd already filled and offering to switch if Claire would rather have the use of those.
There was an embarrassed deferral to Claire's earlier graduation date here, and Claire's smile must have slipped because Rustin switched to a wildly ranging discourse on how everyone knew that ships in the yards didn't grant midshipwomen as much opportunity for studying operating ship's systems and continued on from there to a side discussion again about Commander Greentree. The logic was difficult to follow, but it seemed that at least Rustin believed that Commander Greentree had asked the Office of Personnel to send another female officer to his ship.
The theory that women needed to be in groups featured prominently along with the commander's marital experiences. Apparently since Commander Greentree's first wife, Elsabeta was tremendously unhappy attempting to manage the social obligations of a rising officer. Greentree's marriage to a second wife, Annette Marie, had made a world of difference.
But, in what Claire was quickly coming to recognize as Rustin's habit of covering any possible misunderstanding with a pile of words, the other ensign insisted that of course the senior wife Elsabeta was due all proper dignity and social respect. Even though—this part was rather talked around—it certainly sounded to Claire as if Annette Marie had a flair for the social hobnobbing expected of a senior officer's wife while Elsabeta would just as soon stay home, possibly with a cat and a book. If anyone didn't like it, Elsabeta was perhaps more than willing to mix pulverized cat droppings into their tea should she be forced into hosting anything remotely like a ladies tea.
Claire managed a few diffident questions. The cat droppings had not been invented by Rustin and had been verified or at least repeated to Rustin by no less than three officer wives. Also, Rustin found all of the officers' wives with the exception of Elsabeta Greentree to be eminently avoidable and by varying degrees students of the social art of public evisceration.
Claire, having by this point fully cataloged the spontaneous blushes which warmed her roommate's creamy complexion and the tendency of bouncing blond curls to escape the hairstyle attempting to severely restrain them, felt confident she could accuse the Manasseh Wardroom Wives' Club of having selected one Ensign Cecelie Rustin as public enemy number one. The group had likely closed ranks against Rustin almost as soon they'd caught sight of her. Pure instinct to defend marriages strained by repeated separations would make them hate Rustin. These women had all the whores of all the worlds to worry about already, and, in her, they had a woman actually traveling with their men day in and day out. In retrospect, Claire was mildly annoyed that the Ephraim Wives' Club had been so accepting of her own presence.
As Claire put away the last of her uniforms, Rustin exclaimed in delight over the industrial tape she'd used to finish the hems of the uniform split skirts. Then the other young woman produced an elaborate sewing kit of the type Claire had seen in the hands of one of Steadholder Burdette's wives during her mandatory visits there.
These were the tools the idle rich could use to devote hours and hours to doing what a machine would do in seconds. True artisans would use them to create the one-of-a-kind creations worn by the most fashionable of steadholder wives. Now Rustin picked up the fabric shears, imprinted with the brand of Grayson's finest clothier, and transferred them from her left hand to her right to recut a mangled pair of split skirts.
Claire snatched the scissors out of her hands.
Those uniforms were too expensive. She could not watch a left-handed amateur seamstress using right-handed tools attempt to cut without even a pattern guide. Her new roommate took Claire's mutterings without rancor and readily admitted to destroying the last set. Rustin's moms had sent the sewing kit and two new uniforms for her to learn to do it properly.
Claire goggled at the idea that a family would have so much money as to be able to send two new uniforms but would still insist that Rustin do the hemming herself rather than just have them be professionally fitted.
Her roommate responded that it was important to learn to be independent,