Koreena had spent most of the morning laying in her mother’s pallet bed. It still smelled like Leila which comforted her immensely. The three days had passed and later when the moon was full Prince Asaph’s party would be in full swing. Wrapped in the soft blankets that her mother once laid in made her wish to lay in it forever. Her mind wandered - thinking what Charon was doing, what Selena was doing. For two people she had just met she felt bonded to them. An urgent knock came at the door as she groaned.

She untangled herself from the blankets and walked out of the bedroom, across the living room, to the door. The knocking turned into pounding, quickly KC looked around for something to arm herself with. She grabbed a letter opener and slowly opened the door. Gabriel, the finest beledi dress maker burst into the room in a flurry of panic. Kora groaned as she closed the door behind him, walking over to the fireplace she stroked the fire back to life. Her hand slid across the mantel trying to ignore the man as he laid out fabric after fabric on her sofa.

“Dear Mother Goddess,” he cried, grabbing her arm and pulling her over to the middle of the living room.

“Gabriel,” she groaned in protest.

The man turned, his dark chocolate skin shone in the fire. He looked her up and down with his moss green colored orbs. “What are you wearing?” Koreena glanced down as she smiled slightly embarrassed. She had taken - stolen Charon’s tunic shirt and had been wearing it for the last two days. “Oh Gabe, what are you doing here?” She quickly changed the subject and also tried to remember if she had told him to come see her. She was almost certain that she hadn’t, few people even knew that she was in town.

“Prince Asaph sent me, he wanted you to have a new beledi dress of course,” Gabriel pushed a frustrated hand through his long white locks.

Koreena sucked in a breath, something between a gasp and a yelp. “What?” She hissed.

Gabriel nodded eagerly displaying the rainbow of elegant fabrics. KC knew no amount of moaning and groaning would deter this mad man from making her something to wear for this party. Her dark gaze ran over the beautiful fabrics before deciding to simply let him do what he does best. He started to measure her quickly and efficiently, when he was finished he waved her away. “Go, go wash up!” He demanded her and started working feverishly.

Koreena didn’t need any more encouragement, turning she left and headed down the long hallway to the bathing room. She pushed open the door, the white marble top glistened in the sunlight. She smiled fondly making her way over towards the large bar claw tub. Turning on the water Kora stuck her hand under the faucet letting the water warm before she placed the plug in. Water started to fill as she went over to the cupboard and took out a small jar. She popped the jar lid open and poured out dried rose petals, smiling a sad smile as her mother used to take this exact bath.

After Koreena soaked in the tub and washed herself, she wrapped a robe around her and headed to the living room where miraculously Gabriel had already made two dresses. “Wow, that is amazing I was only in the bathing room for maybe an hour.”

The dark skin dressmaker beamed proudly, nodding eagerly. “Try one on, hurry we don’t have much time!” He cawed like a bird.

Koreena grabbed the first dress, it was black and gold. Shimming into the first half of the beledi dress. It fit like a second skin. The skirt sat right on her delicately curved hips, gold coins hung around her waist like a belt. With each movement the coins swayed and collided together. The top was almost like a braclet, the straps crossing forming and X on her back. It came with a sarong scarf. She popped her hips from side to side, the metal colliding together sounded like raindrops. The memory of her and Charon dancing in the rain came to her. Her fingertips grazing over her plush lips remembering the way he kissed her.

Back in the living room Gabriel called her back to model his creation. She walked in, the skirt part of the dress, flowed fluidly. Gabe let out a low whistle as his drank in his work. “Prince Asaph is going to love you in that but I think the royal blue color of this one would make your skin color pop.” He pointed to the other beledi dress that was the same making as the one she wore but a different color.

Koreena nodded in agreement, the dresses were breathtaking but the reason for why she was getting them soured the mood. She sighed dreading what was going happen in the next few hours after the sun went down. She pursed her plush lips slightly feeling trapped in the beautiful beledi dress.