It's been three months since Delilah "Del" Cross stumbled her way into the mysterious town of Whisper Valley. During that time she's grown to appreciate her new life amongst ghosts, vampires, mages, zombies, and werewolves. Yet, there's still so m...
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"So," said Irene with a clap of her hands and a giddy smile on her face, "where should we begin?"
"I don't know," I said with a sigh as I glanced over the numerous racks in Hearth Home's dress section. The town's department store wasn't nearly as large as the stores I remembered from my life in the suburbs, but with the Blood Moon Festival only a couple days away, they'd made room for an expanded inventory of formal wear.
"How are you not excited about this?" tittered my eager companion whose eyes twinkled with the reflections bouncing off the diamond encrusted necklace she was ogling in a nearby showcase. "I'm just excited I have enough money to buy myself something fun to wear to the fair. You on the other hand have several paychecks in the bank and multiple occasions to look fancy for. How many outfits do you think you'll get?"
"One," I groaned, stepping over towards a rack of slacks. "I don't want to be doing any costume changes during the night. My schedule is booked as it is."
"Look, I'm all for people wearing what makes them feel like their truest self, however, it's common curtesy to respect the dress code of an event that you're getting into for free with food and drink provided."
"That's a very well reasoned point," I said with a raise of my brow as I gazed at her from over top a clothing rack.
"Well, I clearly wasn't getting anywhere by playing to your emotions, so let's cut to the chase." Irene stepped out from around the cluster of pants and leaned against a nearby pillar. "You're going to have to do a dress change at some point. I mean, you could get away with a nice summer dress, maybe a pair of light slacks and a nice blouse, for Calista's wedding and then for stomping around the fairgrounds with me — you do still plan to check out the booths and games with me, right?"
"Of course," I answered without hesitation. I made sure to reserve some time between the wedding and Zelda's conversion ceremony, so I could roam the fairgrounds with Irene. It was the one aspect of my night that I was most looking forward to.
"Well," she continued her voice brightening with her smile, "I think that would be a perfectly doable outfit. However, Antonov's big masquerade for Zelda is a black tie affair. You can't outshine a bride at her wedding, so..."
"There's no way I could or would outshine Calista," I said with a roll of my eyes. "She's practically a supermodel."
"Yes, but," replied Irene with a stab of her finger, "if you even look like you're trying to outshine her with some fancy getup, the town is going to hear about it and the good graces you have built will be affected. If you want to do this whole make-it-as-a-human thing, you're going to have to be extra cautious about respecting traditions."
"That's very astute of you," I replied.
"Thank you," she said with a wink before continuing. "That being said, you will appall every vampire in town if you go to the masquerade in a summer dress. Well, every vampire except Antonov. You could walk in with a paper bag on and he'd still welcome you."
