Dragon in a Dream......."The Dress"........+Lady_Blaze+

I was more than halfway asleep before I stretched out on the bed and, for the second time that evening, closed my eyes.

I dreamt of immense dragon eyes, huge orbs that flickered from green to gold and back again. They would stare at me from out of a deep darkness and a voice would mutter under its breath, until the thing finally stepped into the light and revealed a harried Rhymester, tugging incessantly on his beard, looking more and more like Michelio, though with a greater amount of hair. The next morning I could only remember the eyes, large and all-encompassing, looming before me like great lanterns.

Mid-afternoon crept upon me among the shopping center of WestMarket, waiting for Maude to come out with my dress. Gerath had promised to meet me at the square in an hour’s time, and I hoped to try on the dress before taking it with me to the palace to finish dressing there. Under my arm was a box, which contained a pair of black gloves I had bought and a trim set of black boots, durable but fashionable, at least to the best of my knowledge. I hardly bothered attempting to keep up with the latest fads.

Maude leaned over the cloth-draped table and handed me a large grey box, a dimply smile adorning her face. “I truly hope you like it, dear,” she said cheerily. I thanked her for her time and proceeded to the nearest public resting room.

A beautiful advantage of the Gem was its public facilities. Its resting rooms, unlike most cities, were clean, well-maintained, and comfortable. Aside from a small lounge room and bathrooms, they occasionally housed small cafés. The room I entered was sparingly yet elegantly decorated in ivory and deep violet, with an area set aside for women only. I headed for the women’s room, surprised to see a dainty room with feminine furnishings, along with a full-length mirror, tables, and large, accommodating chairs.

Entering one of the bathrooms, I set my boxes down and opened the grey one. The dress was pooled in crushed tissue, seeming like some kind of liquid in the soft lamplight. I slowly lifted its length up, feeling suddenly like a child playing with her mother’s garments.

It looked nothing like the dress I had seen in the booth.

Long ribbons trailed off of the gauzy sleeves. There was no ruffle at all, only ribbons entwined in an intricately knotted pattern around the hem. It had a tie-front, with many ties in the back also. The neckline was something I knew I could not do justice. I did not know if I would be able to lace the thing up without assistance.

Hesitantly, I undressed and untied the back ribbons, slipping the dress over my head. I adjusted it to lay right and was just about to take it off - looking down at the expanse of flesh below my neck - when I felt a tightening in the small of my back, then another further up, and several more. A little wary of what was happening to the back of the thing, I rushed out of the bathroom and turned my back to the mirror in the ladies’ room, thoroughly surprised to see the lacing tied snugly and knotted in neat bows.

“Strange,” I muttered, craning my neck and tugging on the top bow. It resisted a little, then gave way. “Ordinary ribbon, hmm.” I knew better than to assume such.

Show all stories by   Author:  56840 ( Click here )