Dressmaking is Magic

The winged, doll-like girl sat on the branch of a tree made of pixels. Then, she bobbed her head side to side and kicked her legs, as if dancing.

“My first question is, are you some magical creature?” I asked.

“Yes, yes! I am a pixie… I can…”

“Okay, awesome. Secondly, can you possibly get me better clothes? This outfit is horrid,” I said.

“Wait a moment,” she said.

She floated down the tree, got a hold of the branch, and swung on, somersaulting. Just watching her made me dizzy.

"Whoa," she said, catapulting into the air and landed on the pixelated grass with a crash.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yes, oww. Change of dress, was it? Hmm, I thought you would ask something more important,” said the pixie.

I crossed my arms and pouted.

“This is important. The maid purposely left this ugly dress for me.”

“Hmm… I cannot do much while trapped on the other side of this screen. Oh, you should get your magic gem by signing up. Then, you can choose any talent of your wish… Ouch. Be easy with the screen!”

I tapped with my nails harshly and entered all my personal information. I was met with a long contract, which I began skimming through.

“Okay! Okay, I got this,” I said.

I traced my fingers to write “Dressmaking Magic.”

A clear, crystalline gem flew out of the screen and into my hands as it spun and formed a rose-gold wand.

Yes, finally! It’s my turn to shine.

I spun it around, and I entered a room I had never seen before. The walls were a teal green, and rose gold arches were in place of doors.  Inside, there were racks of hundreds of kinds of fabric, from quilting cotton to silk organza. I placed my staff on the floor and picked up a bolt of green linen fabric that had a Victorian print on it.

Sparks began to fly as a pair of scissors cut the fabric by themselves. Then, I stitched it with a sewing machine in mere seconds.

An emerald green nightdress and a pair of fuzzy slippers manifested themselves.

“Perfect for lounging in!” I said.

I put it on by simply jumping into it.  Returning to the current dimension, the wand stopped spinning, shrank, and was attached to my neck as a gem on a chain.

“Beautiful, beautiful. I wish I had something pretty to wear to sleep in,” said the pixie.

"Hehe, thank you."

I tossed myself onto the bed and said, “Now that it’s taken care of, what’s your name? Why are you trapped in the screen?”

The camera zoomed out, and the pink-haired girl stretched her arms and jumped up and down.

 She wore a frilly sweetheart top and a full black skirt. Her black wings shed glitter on the inside of her room.

She said nothing and stared into my eyes for quite some time.

“Sorry, no one ever asks me for my name. I am Comet and a sky pixie. We pixies are known for troublemaking, so the royals prefer to trap us in boxes.”

“Okay… It’s too bad. Yikes,” I said.

Comet nodded while grinning.

“Yeah, you get used to it. Next question!” said Comet.

“It’s about Prince Cassius… can he be trusted?" I asked.

“Ha! You are the millionth girl who has asked about him today! No, he is no longer available; he thinks God has granted his prayer. A random girl fell out of a tree, and he thinks she has some magic that will grant him the throne. He may be pretty, but he is pretty useless when it comes to magic… Oh! I forgot this is the palace network! Bye!” said Comet.

The screen shut off immediately.

“Hey! Come back. I’m not done with you!” I yelled.

“Haha!” said Comet.

The screen lit up and went back to darkness no matter how many times I tapped on it.

I went to bed and buried my face in the pillows.

Ugh! I should have known. The prince is a good-for-nothing! He can’t use magic. But I'm way less useless than he is! I can sew, paint on fabric, hammer down grommets correctly… He just wants someone to perform magic in his place. And here I thought that we were off to a start of a romance.

I slept for a few minutes. No matter how hard I tried to wake up, all my brain showed me was a black-and-white video of the first time I met Kevin.

I was singing karaoke at a con when he was the only one who wanted to listen. To be fair, I had been singing for twenty minutes straight when the limit was five. 

"Janessa, is it? You should try to become a singer and attend open mic sessions. Your voice is so alluring," he said.

Back then, I replied, "Hehe. No one wants to listen to me."

"I'll listen to you."

We exchanged phone numbers. A few random texts turned to voice calls, which then changed to meet-ups. Soon enough, we were on our first date.

"Janessa, do you still sing?" he asked.

"Yes, but not as often."

"You should. Since you're a cosplayer, why don't you sing and cosplay at the same time? It might be fun."

He would record my guitar videos in various costumes. Sure, I could barely hold a note… 

"Keep going, Janessa. You can do it, I know you can."

All of a sudden, I was unable to breathe. It fast-forwarded to the scene when water filled my lungs and I had no oxygen…

Coughing loudly, I woke up at once, crossed my arms, looked around, and then opened the curtains.

There was a stretch of lush trees in front of the stream, which reflected the bright sun. Cool winds brushed across my skin as a sparrow sat on my windowsill and chirped.

I don’t think I’ll ever sing again. I need something to distract me.

“Comet?” I asked.

I heard snoring all of a sudden.

“Hello, Comet?!” I said.

The monitor turned on with a chime, and Comet flew across the screen, rubbing her eyes.

“My apologies. What do you need?” said Comet, yawning.

“Where do you suppose I can grab a bite to eat?”

“You are in the castle, are you not? You may go to the common dining room during your stay,” said Comet, bouncing up and down the screen.

“Fantastic!” I said.

There was a knock at the door.

Opening it, an old lady in a linen dress and apron said, “Prince Cassius invites you to dine with his highness…”

“Oh. Alright. I’ll be ready in a moment,” I said.

She shut the door behind me as I locked it.

Surely, Prince Cassius won’t betray me, right?

I let out a deep sigh.

After I pressed on my gem locket, it transformed into the rose-gold wand. I dashed into the room at once and imagined how I would pick the navy blue fabric. Drawing the pattern from measurements, I cut the pattern, pinned it, and sewed it. The wand let out light and sparkles, coating my nightgown into a wrap dress with velvet and satin. My shoes were black pumps with a gem in their center.

I sprinkled some of the magic dust onto my forehead, which was soon adorned with a bejeweled headband.

Almost forgot the makeup!

I summoned a circle which brought setting powder, concealer, blue eyeshadow, and berry-shaded lipstick. I applied each with a click of my wand.

That should be enough. I don’t need a purse. I don’t have a phone or even spare change in this world.

I grabbed the key and put it in my pocket. The wand turned back into my locket.

“I’m ready,” I said.

After opening the door, I saw Cassius at the edge of the hallway, almost like a shadow.

“This way,” said the maid.

“But the Prince…”

“That is his soul. A pity, really,” she said.

It can’t be that bad if the soul is just hanging around in the same place as its owner.

We walked down the hallway until we reached the garden, decorated with lanterns. After walking a considerable distance down the stone path, I saw a grand gazebo with a chandelier. The light that shone out of it was golden, and right below it, there was Prince Cassius. He wore a white, frilly shirt, paired with black trousers. He tapped his fingers on the table.

“Pamela, is she not coming…?” asked Prince Cassius.

"She is here."

The maid stepped aside. My eyes locked with his at once, which widened. A small smile curved on his face as I grinned.

“Janessa?” he asked.

“Your Highness!” I said.

“Please, have a seat,” he said.

I grinned, and a waiter pulled out the chair for me to sit down. Cassius gestured for Pamela to leave, so she nodded and exited.

Cassius cleared his throat and said nothing. His face, however, was quite flushed, followed by another smile.

“I humbly wish to know more about you!” I said, in a high-pitched voice.

“Your tone does not imply humility.”

“Oh?”

Is that a roast?!

My grin turned to a frown.

“But I must thank you for not wallowing in pretentiousness.”

I wish I could say the same about him.

“You are most welcome," I said.

The waiter brought some rolls as an appetizer.

Woohoo, food!

“Please, Janessa, begin.”

I took a bread roll, slathered it in butter, and bit into it at once. On the other hand, I watched as Prince Cassius held the knife and paid attention to every angle that he covered with the butter.

The two of us seem so different from one another.

I devoured the bread roll in a few seconds by shoving it into my mouth.

After I was done, I softly spoke, “Prince Cassius, tell me honestly, why didn’t you simply marry a lady you knew from before? How would I ever be your wife?”

“It will be difficult for you to comprehend at this stage. I will explain soon.”

“But, Prince Cassius, I am not a powerful magic user.”

“Worry not, my sweet, it is not magic I am after. Besides, once you choose your talent, together we can simply…”

“I have already chosen my talent.”

He paused for quite some time with a blank stare.

“Well, what did you choose?” he said, gazing into my eyes. “If it is something powerful, then there is no point in our romance! How will my dream of us powering up together ever come true?”

He reached for my hand, and I gave it to him.

The prince is a hopeless romantic. I shouldn’t be shocked, but I am.

“Dressmaking magic.”

“Come again?”

“I said that it’s dressmaking…”

“What in the world is that? I have never heard of it,” he said, laughing.

“Well, it’s dressmaking and magic.”

“That does not even make any sense.”

He covered his mouth with his hand.

“Your Highness, lunch has been prepared.”

The prince faked a cough and said, “Bring it in.”

Phew, finally.

My dish had an array of vegetables, chicken, fish, beef, and pasta.

Luckily, I had watched plenty of royal animes in my previous life, so I knew which forks and spoons to use.

“Janessa, tell me about yourself. Where were you before I met you?”

“I was in a terrible place.”

I didn’t even need to exaggerate that; it was a fact. Why does it seem like it happened years ago? That so-called boyfriend of mine pushed me into the water and left me there to sink. My eyes burned while I drowned. I do wonder if he went to jail. He must have. There were so many witnesses.

I could barely breathe as I stared at my food.

“What is the matter, dear Janessa?” said Cassius.

“I’m fine," I lied.

“No, you are not.”

“I’m not, but there’s nothing you can do about it,” I said.

Exhaling loudly, my vision blurred, and my eyes welled with tears.

“Janessa. There must be something I can do. What does your heart wish for? A journey to a neighboring kingdom? An afternoon of painting? Training in archery and swordfighting? I am quite a progressive man, but the other men despise me for it. Or perhaps you simply want to marry and settle down with…”

“Ca… Prince Cassius, I just need you to be someone I can trust,” I said, in a whimpering voice.

I wiped my tears away with my napkin.

His face quickly turned to a frown as my eyes began to water a little yet again.

“It is true we do not know each other. However, I will be the one you can trust, provided that I can trust you in return.”

He handed me a handkerchief from his pocket. I wiped the one teardrop I had and smiled at him.

“Much better,” said Cassius.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

I gave it back, but he moved my hand aside.

“Keep it as a token,” he said.

“Alright, Your Highness.”

He has so much, but all he gave me was his used handkerchief. I suppose I can’t complain about that. We barely know each other.

“Your turn, dear Prince.”

“Whatever do you mean?”

“Where were you before I met you?” I asked.

“Ah, it is my history you ask of.”

“Yeah?”

I don’t expect him to reveal his when I haven’t even revealed mine.

“Well, you see… I saw a woman in my dreams.”

“Oh,” I said, grinning.

What kind of dreams are we talking about here? Hehe.

“Every night, I would dream of her, and every day I would pray for her to come to life. I never would have imagined her to fall out of the sky like that. Although the woman I dreamed of looked rather different. Her hair was as dark as midnight… Alright, never mind. That is the only difference.”

“Really? Are you sure?” I asked.

He scanned me from top to bottom and returned to my eyes.

“Yes, it is quite odd that everything else matches.”

I giggled. Maybe he saw my past self in his dream.

We finished our meal, and the Prince asked me to return to my room.  He stared into the distance, where the shadows of trees rested on the walls of the castle. His eyes narrowed toward a shadow that looked so much like his.

"Janessa, you look tired. You should rest," he said.

"I'm not tired."

"Alright, I am the tired one," he said.

"Good night," I mumbled.

He faced me and said, "Good night, Janessa."

Clutching the handkerchief in my palm, I thought I should embroider it before returning it. But before that, I would need to iron it out.

As soon as I entered, I locked the door behind me and said, “Comet!”

“Yes? Was it you the Prince was looking for all along?”

“Indeed.”

“Strange. I would think he would warrant something more impressive than dressmaking skills.”

“Ugh! How would you know? You’ve never made a dress in your life!”

“True. Rest, you look angry at the moment.”

Changing back into the nightgown, I could have sworn I had heard someone banging on my door. I opened it, but no one was there.