"Oh, good you look wonderful in that dress! Now all we need to do is pull your hair up, I put a pair of white platforms outside in the hallway, and when I am done with your hair you can put them on." Mrs. Dreamer then grabs me and walks me over to my bed and I sit down as she fixes my hair into a half up half down hairstyle. When she is done we walk out and I put on the white platforms and we head downstairs.
As I walk down the stairs I can't help but feel my sense of dread and unease growing worse. We walk outside and Mr. Dreamer is the first to greet us. He takes my hand and leads me to a group of people who are standing near a large bonfire. There must be at least twenty people here, all of them dressed in their finest clothes. I feel even more out of place as I look around and see that I am the only human-looking person here.
The rest of the guests are all strange looking just like Mr. and Mrs. Dreamer. They all have strange heads. None of them have human faces and some of their heads are objects. There seem to be some people around my age, but I could be wrong. There is music playing, people are dancing, and laughing.
After a while of Mr. Dreamer and Mrs. Dreamer talking between themselves in a language I don't understand, they excuse themselves and leave me to mingle with the other guests. I take a sip of the punch that Mr. Dreamer gave me and immediately regret it. It tastes strange, like how I had imagined TV static would taste. I look around and see a person with a flower-like head walking over to me. The person's head has pink flower petals surrounding its yellow face which has no nose. They do have two orangish yellow eyes and a red mouth, all of which are in the places a normal person's eyes and mouth would be though.
"Hello, my name is Daisy." They say in a sing-songy voice, holding out their hand which has white gloves on, for me to shake. I take it, feeling even more uncomfortable. Daisy has a strong grip and after two firm shakes they release my hand from theirs. "I just wanted to welcome you to our little community." They smile at me, revealing two sharp teeth in the place where a human's canine teeth would be. I nod, noticing that they have the whitest teeth I have ever seen.
"I'm Laryetta, but Mr. and Mrs. Dreamer call me Miss Dreamer. It's nice to meet you, Daisy, uh ah um, if you don't mind me asking how old are you?" I ask Daisy. "I'm sixteen and I just don't want to assume things." "Oh Laryetta, you don't need to be so formal. It's alright. I'm sixteen as well. " Daisy replies.
I nod "Also if you don't mind me asking what gender you are?" I say to them. "Well, that's an interesting question. Gender is a construct created by humans, so in our community, we don't have gender. We just are who we are." Daisy explains. I'm not quite sure how to respond to that so I just nod and take another sip of my strange-tasting punch.
"What are you?" I ask Daisy. "Oh, I'm a daisy! Well, half of me is. My head is a daisy, and my blood and skin have the same properties as that of a daisy. You see, in our community, we can have animal or plant parts, or even inanimate objects for body parts. It's just something that sets us apart from the humans." They explain. "So, gender and species don't matter here in the void?" I say to Daisy.
"That's right. In the void, we are free to be whoever or whatever we want. We don't have to conform to human standards or expectations. We can just be ourselves." Daisy says with a smile. "It's not all fun and games though. There are rules that we have to follow. For example, we can't harm another person or creature in the void, and we have to respect their boundaries." They add.
The music suddenly stops and everyone turns their attention to the center of the circle around the bonfire. Mr. and Mrs. Dreamer step forward, holding hands. "Alright everyone, we wanted to take a moment to thank you all for coming and celebrating with us tonight. This is a special night for us, as it marks the day that Miss Dreamer, our only child, has come home to us at last!" Mr. Dreamer then walks over to me.
"We couldn't be more proud of you, Miss Dreamer, and we can't wait to see what the future holds for you in this wonderful community." He hands me a small box and I open it, revealing a shiny key. "This is the key to our house. You are always welcome here, no matter what. We love you dearly." I take the box with the key from him, wondering why he gave me a strange black box.
On one hand, I'm happy that they seem to accept me and welcome me into their home. On the other hand, I can't help but feel anxious about the whole situation. "Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Dreamer, but this isn't my home, and as I've told you before I don't belong here." I say to them. Mr. Dreamer's outstretched hands twitch as I say that and I immediately hand the box back to him and back up, bumping into Daisy who puts their hands on my shoulders and pushes me closer to Mr. Dreamer, they don't let go.
"Miss Dreamer, we understand that this is all new to you and may take some time to get used to. But we want you to know that you are important to us and we will do whatever we can to help you adjust. This is your home now, and we want you to feel comfortable and loved." Mrs. Dreamer says, her voice gentle but firm. I shake my head and attempt to move away from Daisy but they only tighten their grip and both Mr. and Mrs. Dreamer move to be on either side of me.
"You can't go back, you will just have to come to terms that this is your home now whether you like it or not." Mrs. Dreamer says to me. "But, in the meantime, come meet the rest of our neighbors! I see you already met Daisy! Well, there are twenty-two more people for you to meet! Come on." She then takes my hand and leads me to a group of people with animal heads.
"Miss Dreamer, this is Turtle, Squirrel, Deer, Rabbit, and Sheep." Mrs. Dreamer rattles off their names as I'm introduced to the group of people. They all seem friendly enough and welcoming. "You'll make friends soon enough." Turtle assures me with a wink, something I didn't think was possible for a turtle. I nod, not sure what else to say. I take a sip of my punch, hoping it will help me relax.
(1203 Words)
YOU ARE READING
The Void by Vincess Alcat
FantasySucked into the void, Laryetta, must learn the ways to survive in it or become prey to the dark corners of a void that will consume her entirely.
