Cabal looked down at the robes he'd worn the night before with disgust. This was only partially due to the wine stains on the rich blue fabric and bits of vomit on the sleeve. Maybe he'd overdone it last night...

Nah.

Cabal had scraped through life for years by not standing out, not catching anyone's attention except who he wanted to notice him. Always nondescript and plainly dressed, he'd actually stood out for that reason when with wizards, being mistaken for a servant or visitor by those who did not know him. This was changing, however. Cabal was discovering a flair for the dramatic; that image was important and helpful. When fighting, everything instantly knew he was a wizard, no matter what he wore, due to the subtle cues of shadows leaping from his fingertips or lightning dancing down his arms. But outside of battle, he just looked like another peasant. This had served him well in the past, but no longer. Cabal was a wizard - a powerful wizard. It was time to look the part.

After the long journey back to Longmaple, Cabal told Anne about his desire for new clothing, much to her delight. She certainly dressed the part of a noble, and thought Cabal should do the same even before Thunder Strike had become something of surrogate leaders of Longmaple. Cabal planned on, with Anne's help, making that a more permanent situation. Anne summoned her favorite seamstress, who, in a flurry of pins and cloth, set about making Cabal new accoutrement to fit his profession and station. Several hours later, a flustered and irritated Cabal - and a seamstress trembling after Cabal threatened to burn her eyes out with lightning after one too many accidental pricks with a needle - finally had found something he didn't hate.

The robes he had worn to the dinner in Abbeypine were far too bulky for traveling. Fine for important events, they just got in the way too much, particularly if Cabal wanted to be stealthy. Normal clothing - even of high quality - was too likely to give the impression of a tradesman, merchant or even noble. Cabal wanted to look like a wizard. What he settled on was a set of normal trousers and shirt, in dark blue with light yellow trim, a long, open coat belted about the middle and gray leather boots and gloves. It was the coat that gave him away as a wizard, along with the pouch-covered belt. The coat was long, hanging to his calves and with a high collar. It was a satin-like cloth of a deep red, with dark blue trim. The Thunderstrike emblem was emblazoned on the right arm. Cabal would have been fine with this, but Anne kept right on going, having the seamstress create varations on the outfit with different cuts and colors, full dress robes for formal occasions. Before long an armoire at Anne's estate contained more clothing for Cabal than he had owned in his entire life previously.

That wasn't all. Anne seemed to regard Cabal as a project and took his inability to escape while being fitted to drive all manner of information into his head. From court etiquette to his general behavior and language, Anne told Cabal exactly in which ways he was being a complete ass. Cabal's eyes nearly rolled out of his head, but he listened, since he didn't have much choice otherwise. How much of this Cabal would ever actually put to use remained to be seen.