"A sun summoner, Shii, contrary to your belief, you are one. " I grimaced as he said my name. However I felt totally and utterly awake after he had touched me, I could still feel the outline of his touch on my skin. It prickled in the chill of the night as the warmth faded.

We stood in silence and The Darkling turned back to watch the reflection of the moon on the surface of the lake.

"I thought, don't summoners need a source to use their power? It's night right now, I shouldn't.... " I stuttered these words out my thoughts running. Mostly of how I could escape back to my room.

"The answer to that question is right above you, the moon. Sun-light, moon-light, they are fundamentally the same thing. " he paused. "Light. "

"Oh.." I murmured. "So maybe sun summoner is the wrong word for me. Cause I control light? "

He smirked as he responded.

"Yes, but the title is still all so impressive. You'll keep it, won't you? "

I felt my heart sink at that smile on his face.

"What do you think about Parties?" I nodded at his words while I tried to process what just happened.

~~~

I looked at the same sentence over and over again. Reading, though the concept was simple, was difficult for me. Did the letter "m" make the "n" or "m" sound?

That says harm. Not harn. Why don't I just read it for you?

If she doesn't learn then if we disappear she'll be helpless.

You guys disappear?

Silence.

I sighed and brushed a piece of hair behind my ear. It was a constantly curly mess. I wondered for a second what it would feel like to cut it all off.

My thoughts were interrupted by a loud knock on the door.

"Come in." I said hesitantly my mind briefly flashing back to the previous night.

Surely enough as I said it a woman dressed in Purple silk looking shirt, embroidered in grey and three servants dressed in grey carried in quite a few dresses. Dresses. Party. Celebration. People who would know who I was from what I wore.

I noted that most all of the dresses were white, or mostly white.

The woman she was a materialki, but I couldn't quite remember which kind. All the different colors still tended to confuse me. She looked around my room, sighed, and ordered each of the servants to spread the dresses out in different places and dismissed two. The other one stood next to the door quietly. After she was done order the servants around the Durast woman turned to me and looked me up and down.

I felt like I was naked with the way she looked at me.

"Stand and strip." The woman clipped in a directing tone.

"What?" I asked slightly stunned at her words.

"You heard me. I don't have all day and you will have to at least try on five of the gowns so I can see what material and color will go best with you." The woman spoke in a rushed tone. Then, slightly under her beath, "though I don't think I can help you much, the man had best get the poor girl a Tailor."

What was a tailor?

It's a person who can make you look better than you actually are.

They're awfully vain.

One of my best friends was a tailor. He killed her too.

Oh.

I slipped out of my pants and shirt feeling slightly exposed. Now the woman really was looking at me naked.

"Leya, bring me the smallest corset." The Durast spoke quickly again. "I am Lady Burness, and the leading seamstress to the court. The Darkling requests that you look your best for the public."

The servant walked towards me with something that looked like armored skin, and wrapped it around me. I relaxed as it covered me up some.

"I'm here to make sure that happens." She spoke as she walked behind me.

"Breathe out as much as you can." I did so, not wanting to be yelled at. However as soon as I did, the corset started to push even more air out, displacing what had been left. The corset was quickly secured as I struggled to take a deep breath.

Is she trying to kill me?

She walked around to the front of me again eyes raking over me.

"At least you have a small figure" I flinched at her words. Living with starvation for years of your life could do that to a person. And even though now I had more than I could eat, I usually lost my appetite while sitting in silence with Him or being to tired to eat.

"Give her the black dress."

I stood there for hours trying on dress after dress. Then when we I had on a floor length white gown with black accents that bled into many different colors, Lady Burness smiled. The dress was probably my favorite so far by now too, the design simple and the fabric didn't swallow me like some of the others had.

The dress clung tightly to the top half of my body, aided by the corset. The sleeves fell off my shoulders and I could feel the cool air of the evening on my collarbone. Even with my shoulders exposed though, the fur lining of the dress kept me warm as opposed to layers and layers of cloth.

The material itself was a matte black with silver and pearlescent white lining.

I glanced in the mirror and saw someone else. Though I still looked slightly malnurished, I could see in the places where, a few months of eating the palace food everyday, I could look mature, like someone raised in nobility.

I didn't look like my mother. I didn't look like someone who spent day after day growing up and having to raise my younger sister. I didn't look like someone who didn't eat for days just so someone else could.

I thought back to that moment so long ago. Natalia. Are you still hiding somewhere. Are you waiting for me to come find you and tell you everything was okay. That it everything was fine and that we could go get something to eat.

I thought back to the man who's head slid off of his own body. The angle of it leaving part of his jaw still attached to his body. A bloodless nightmare.

"You can take the dress off now. " Lady Burness said in a satisfied tone. "We've found your dress."

I quickly stripped from the dress and sighed in relief as the servant undid my corset.

I then slipped back into my bed clothing, wanting nothing more than to sleep.

~~~

Edited 12/21/17

I fixed some inconsistencies I missed in the writing of this chapter.

Happy Winter Solstice.