The Truth About The Many Worlds Of Printed Pages

°•○•°Twelve°•○•°

Realising that she was quite unable to lace herself into the gown-- the laces being attached, for some mysterious and very impractical reason, at the back and so out of her reach-- Siena just resolved to call Monica to help her when she heard Alicia's voice reaching her from across the room.

Taking the first deep breath since she entered the house, Siena called to her instead. "Alicia, please, I need your help!"

"Of course, I'm here to help you. If I knew that Christopher would send Jake for you two instead of letting you come in your own time as he had promised, I'd have been here before. The man can be so stubborn sometimes... Oh, you two can go, I suppose, we can manage here."

Siena saw Alicia now talking to the two women as she stepped out from behind the screen.

"Perfect," Anne agreed, abandoning her place at the computer. "We haven't told her anything yet, we were waiting for her partner to be here as well, so they are on the same page. But all the information they need is here," she pointed at the computer screen, "and you and Albert have definitely more experience with the Travellers. Just don't forget anything. We'll see you downstairs in a few."

Anne looked at Siena as she said that, smiling, and Siena returned her smile a little hesitantly, not understanding much of what she had said, or rather what it was that she hadn't said yet, before she waved at Monica who greeted her in the same way from the door.

"Leave it ajar, please!" Siena called, remembering her and James' unspoken rule. It really felt reassuring, somehow, leaving the door half open when he was out of sight but close...

Alicia smiled at her contentedly as she walked towards her.

"Here's my girl. You look gorgeous. Now turn around so I can deal with this bodice and then we have to talk." She pushed Siena's loose hair over her left shoulder before she pulled at the laces resolutely, taking her breath away. "All right?" Alicia asked, spinning her around the moment she was done.

Siena nodded, watching Alicia's eyes scanning the gown.

"That's perfect, actually, and so is your hair; it will do just great left loose for this trip. You only need a pair of shoes... Let's hurry, the men will be here in a minute and there's quite a few things you need to know before you go. I don't expect you to want to wear make-up, you don't seem to use any normally?" she added as an afterthought, leading Siena towards the wardrobes.

Siena simply shook her head as they stopped by the segment of the wardrobe full of dresses and accessories similar in style to the fairytale-like gown she was wearing. "There's something I meant to ask you before we go, Alicia... How will we know when it's the time to come back? Before it's too late? Some stories are so very complex, I guess it will be easy to lose the grip on the passing of time and our own reality," she asked, while she observed the multitude of shoes.

Alicia replied without hesitation. "You'll perceive it. You'll start feeling less like, say, tourists in that world, and more like a part of it, like if you belonged there just like the characters. Your grandma told me once that she knew it was time to return when she only wanted to stay."

"You knew Grandma well..." Siena muttered. "I miss her so much sometimes. Right now it feels like I didn't know her well at all, I had no idea about this side of her," she whispered, her words underlined by a flourish of her hand encompassing the vast room.

"She loved you," Alicia said gently, pulling her in an embrace. "She simply couldn't tell you about this. It's a secret; she would get in trouble with Christopher and the whole Society if she had told you. We can talk about her whenever you want, but right now, you need to hurry. Go on, choose your shoes."