Savior (4 page)

              It was only one room, but in that one room hung more dresses than Alyssa had ever seen. A plump middle aged woman sat behind the counter reading a book. Alyssa walked up to her and cleared her throat softly. The woman didn’t respond. “Angie?” she tried again.

              “Look around, if you find something you like, let me know,” the woman replied impatiently without looking up.

              “May I have some help?”

              Angie raised her eyes to the angel and her mouth instantly fell open. “I…I…I,” she stuttered. The               woman gulped nervously. “Are you a real angel?”

              Alyssa giggled and nodded. “Would you like to touch them?”

              Angie nodded and Alyssa flexed a wing into Angie’s open hand. She touched the feather in awe.

              “Well I’ll be damned. A real live angel right here in my little shop. So what can I do for you dear?”

              Angie quickly stood and went to the door. She locked it quickly.

              “So no one will come in and interrupt us dear,” she explained in response to the girl’s puzzled expression.

              Alyssa nodded and smiled. “Thank you.”

              “So what are you looking for today?” Angie poured them both a cup of hot tea and led Alyssa over

              to an oversized chair. The angel curled up on the chair and brought her feet under her. The warm liquid was a welcome treat and she gave in to the simple pleasure.

              “My friend told me to buy some clothes,” she said as she blew ripples over the steaming tea to cool it.

              Angie began rifling through a row of dresses. “And who might your friend be darlin’?”

              “Marcus Lakyle,” Alyssa replied as she stirred the tea with the tip of her longest feather.

              Angie laughed loudly. “That old coot? We’ll that's mighty sweet of him. Oh, deary, what should I call you? Or haven’t you got a name?”

              The little angel smiled. “I do. It’s Alyssa. Do you have anything like the dress I have on right now?”

              Angie gave her a knowing smile. “Did Marcus give you that dress?” Alyssa blushed and looked away modestly. “And now you want to impress him. Well I can’t say I blame you. That man alone in that forest with only the creatures there to keep him company is just sad. He needs a woman’s touch, he does.

              Most of the women in town have been trying to bag him for years, but he will have none of that.”

              “Really?”

              “Yes. But perhaps he was just waiting for the right sort of woman to come along,” she added with a wink and a smile. “I’m afraid though that you might have made a few enemies of the women here. Many will be absolutely astounded and outraged that he finally chose some female company. Jealousy won’t even begin to describe their reactions. But then again who can compete with an angel as pretty as you?”

              Alyssa blushed and giggled. Angie’s words flattered her and she allowed herself to fantasize about a life with Marcus. It was ridiculous of course, but the dream made her heart flutter.

              Angie held up a short white dress with small blue flowers on it. It wasn’t as modest as the one Alyssa had on, but it was still very nice. “Do you like this one dear?”

              Alyssa nodded happily. “Will Marcus like it?”

              “Any man would love you in this darling. Would you like more dresses like this?”

              Alyssa nodded happily and soon her arms were filled with white dresses of all different types.

              “Do you need any new undergarments?” Angie asked quietly.

              Alyssa raised an eyebrow. “What?”

              Angie frowned. “You know, your under things. You wear them under your dress.” Alyssa looked at her blankly. “Oh dear,” Angie sighed and lifted up her skirt a bit so that Alyssa could see her petticoats.

              Alyssa giggled. “Oh, I don’t wear anything like that.”

              “No undergarments?”

              The angel shook her head no and smiled at the woman. “You’re joshing me,” Angie said as her mouth hung open.

              Alyssa pulled her own skirt up to expose her thigh. “See? No undergarments. I’ve actually never worn them.”

              “Land sakes.”

              The two women giggled and Alyssa put her skirt back down.

              “Do you need any shoes?” Angie asked.

              “One white pair please.”

              “Only one?”

              The angel paused in thought. She had never had shoes before and she really wasn’t sure how long one pair would last. “Two pairs please. Both white.” Angie nodded and soon the little angel had her first pair of shoes. The woman slipped one pair onto the girl’s feet and Alyssa giggled. They felt strange but comfortable. In human clothes, in a human shop, she no longer felt so much like an outsider. She looked outside at the women walking by the store. She looked just like them except for one small thing.

              “Is there something wrong dear?” Angie asked as she followed the girl’s gaze.

              She shrugged and looked away. “The people whisper and stare at me. I feel like an animal on display,” Alyssa whispered.

              “I have just the thing for that,” Angie said with a wide smile. Alyssa looked at her hopefully and watched as the woman went to an old black trunk behind the counter. She returned with a bundle tightly wrapped in brown paper with twine. “This should be just what you need,” said Angie as she handed the package to Alyssa.

              “What is it?” she asked as her fingers quickly untied the knot.

              “You’ll see.” The women smiled at each other.

              The twine came off easily and Alyssa pulled back the paper gently. Her breath caught in her throat and tears welled in her eyes. “Oh Angie, it’s beautiful,” she whispered as her fingers touched the soft lining of the cloak.

              “Come try it on. Let’s have a look at you.” Alyssa smiled at her and stood up. She pulled out the bright white cloak and wrapped it around herself. It went to her ankles and wrapped her in a warm blanket of snow and clouds. Angie led her to a mirror and Alyssa giggled at her reflection. The cloak fit her perfectly. “Try your wings,” Angie suggested. The angel did and smiled broadly. Even though her wings were moving slightly the cloak barely rippled. She looked almost human.

              “Thank you Angie,” she exclaimed as she threw her arms around the woman. Angie hugged the little angel tightly and kissed her forehead. She pulled Alyssa’s hair free from the cloak and helped the angel put her purchases in bags.

              Both women looked up as a white dove flew into the shop through an open window. It landed on a perch and began preening itself.

              “What a beautiful bird,” Alyssa said as she crept closer to it.

              Angie giggled. “You can pet her. She won’t bite. Her name’s Lily.”

              She smiled at the woman and walked toward the bird. Lily flexed her wings and smiled at the angel. Her wings were a beautiful white. “Why don’t you clip her wings?”

              “Hmm?”

              “Aren’t you afraid of her flying away?” Alyssa asked as her fingertips gently caressed the bird’s head.

              “Oh deary no, she isn’t a pet. Sometimes she leaves for weeks at a time. But she always returns to wherever she feels most welcome. Lucky for me she feels that it’s here,” Angie said with a smile.

              Alyssa looked away sadly. “I wish I could have. Marcus is great of course. But the place I was before here didn’t want me to leave.”

              Angie rested a gentle had on her shoulder. “Is that why your wings are so short?” She nodded and the woman went behind the counter and produced a small bottle of white cream. “This is what I use on birds’ wings when they choose people to live with that don’t understand a bird’s true nature. Use some of this and those feathers of yours will be back in no time. All winged creatures, whether they be doves, hawks, or even angles are free. That’s what wings are dear. They aren’t feathers and bone and skin.

              They are freedom- the ability to go wherever you want, whenever you want. Remember that.”

              Alyssa nodded and hugged the woman. She paid for her clothes and kissed both Angie and Lily on the cheek. After promising to come back very soon she left the store. Although the bags were awkward she loved walking with them. She had never had new things before and being able to go outside in the streets with them and with the people looking at her purchases and not her wings was a great relief.

              Alyssa walked through the streets of the small town. People were still talking about the angel but it was no longer focused around her. Her bags quickly became too heavy for her and she stumbled wearily into the closest shop. She set her bags in a corner and looked around at the shelves filled with books.

              A man was at her side in an instant and he smiled at her. “Hello miss, can I help you with anything?”

              She looked around at all the books. “I would like a book for a friend but I’m not sure what to get him.”

              The man nodded. “What sort of books does he like? We have everything from travel to cooking to lore and history.” She shrugged helplessly and frowned.

              “Maybe it would help if I knew who your friend was?”

              “Marcus Lakyle,” she replied.

              The man chuckled. “So you’re the girl everyone’s talking about. I could barely tell through the cloak.” Her eyes widened and she backed away from him slowly. “Oh no, it’s okay. Your secret is safe with me. May I see them?”

              She nodded hesitantly and untied her cloak. It fell from her shoulders and she held it in her arms as she allowed her wings to spread. The man smiled at her. “They are very beautiful, thank you.” She blushed and quickly scrambled to put her cloak back on.

              “So do you know what he likes?” she said quietly.

              The man nodded and went to the counter. He quickly returned with a small green book and handed it to her. “He’s wanted this book for weeks, it just came in yesterday. You can take it to him today and save me the trouble of getting a rider out there.” She smiled at him and ran her fingers over the softly engraved cover.

              “Do you have any more books like this?” she asked.

              “On Elvin lore? Sure, we have a lot of them on account of him buying so many.” He led her to a large case full of books. “He’s really the only one that reads these.”

              “Is there any way that you would know which ones he doesn’t already have?”

              The man nodded. “All the ones on the first four rows he doesn’t have. You can bet that he would like any of them if you bought him one.”

              She smiled at the man and quickly chose one of the books. “Thank you.”

              The man hurried back to the counter. “Do you have any children miss?”

              Alyssa was stunned and her hand instantly went to her stomach. “On account of our sale on all children’s books that teach how to read and write. Will you be needing any miss?” he asked.

              She nodded slowly and relaxed her racing heart. “One on reading and another on writing please,” she asked quietly. He nodded and went to a nearby shelf. The man returned with two books and she followed him to the counter. She paid for them and then loaded her bags back up onto her arms. The four books lay nestled between her dresses. “Thank you,” she called over her shoulder to the man as she left the store.

              “What's your name? I’m Carl,” the man called after her.

              “Alyssa,” she replied before shutting the door.

              She walked briskly through the streets. Marcus stood up ahead of her and she quickly went to him. “Have fun?” he asked as he peaked into her bags.

              She nodded happily.

              “Would you like any help carrying them?”

              Her eyes lit up. “Really?”

              He nodded. “Of course.” Marcus took all but two of the bags and began walking back to the cabin. Women whispered and pointed at the little angel but now instead of her wings they were focused on Marcus. Alyssa walked closer to him and looked over her shoulder at a woman in her thirties who had been watching Marcus closely. The woman was elegantly dressed and she was pretty. But she wasn’t the one walking home with the most handsome man in town. Alyssa stuck her tongue out at the woman who in turn gasped and turned her nose up at the girl. The angel giggled and turned her attention back to Marcus.

              “Alyssa?” he asked as they walked through the fields.

              “Yes?”

              “If it’s not too much trouble would you mind showing me what you bought when we get back? I’m interested in seeing what you found at Angie’s,” he said shyly.