A Dream's Reality

For the first outfit, I put on the outfit with black jeans ripped at the knee, a white graphic tee, beige floral laced converse, and a light blue beanie. I checked myself out in the mirror before nodding and stepping out of the dressing room.Casual. Naida looked me over and smiled.

“Nice! You look cool Celeste! I mean, Queen Celeste!” I smiled, happy with her reaction and made my way over to the guys.

“Oh, Queen Celeste! That’s a cool outfit!” Braeden gave me a wide smile and I giggled. Karayan didn’t seem too interested in what I had to wear and Lyall just watched quietly.

“I mean if that’s what you like darlin’. But something cuter would look so nice on you.” Elion gave me a wink and Naida sighed behind me. I looked over at Cade and he didn’t say a word. His cat-like ears seemed to be perked up, contrary to his stoic face.

“You look nice…” He spoke so low I could barely hear him; I had to strain my ears. I could’ve sworn I saw a blush on his slightly tanned cheeks.

“T-thank you." I felt shy at his compliment. "Okay! Let’s move on to the next outfit.” Naida guided me back towards the dressing room where I started to switch into my second outfit. This time I put on a fairly simple outfit, which was medium-washed skinny jeans, coral flats, and a beige button-up blouse. Once again I checked myself in the mirror before walking out. This looks nice...

“Oh! You look so cute, Queen Celeste!” Naida seemed excited, pushing me out to see the guys.

“Hm. Much cuter, Celeste. But still not quite what I was thinking of.” Elion smiled at me knowingly.

“Well, well. So you can look pretty, Celeste.” Karayan was giving me a smirk, and my eyes widened. I shifted in place and decided to look at Braeden, Cade, and Lyall. Cade wasn’t paying much attention. Lyall just gave me a small smile, while Braeden was grinning and nodding his head.

“Round three!” Naida exclaimed, clearly more excited about this than I am. I mean of course I’m glad to get new clothes, but I want to just pick the ones I like and see more of the town.

I walked back into the dressing room and put on outfit number three. This time, it was a very comfortable outfit. Light grey joggers, a black crop top, and a pair of white vans. Ahh, comfortable. Once I got out, Naida looked over my outfit.

“Hm. I wonder if that might be too casual, Queen Celeste.” My shoulders dropped, I was enjoying the comfortable feelings. We stepped out any way to show the guys.

“It looks good on you, Queen Celeste,” Lyall said with a warm smile. Braeden nodded in agreement.

“Yes! You look so comfortable ad ready to relax.” Braeden just laughed. Elion sighed, I’m guessing still not completely satisfied with what I have found to wear.

Before anything else could be said, Naida quickly rushed me back to try on outfit number four. This one was a bit more ‘sexy’ and showed a lot of skin. It was a pair of black-leather high-waist shorts, a burgundy cut-out crop tank, and some black strappy heels. I felt a little bashful putting this on and having to go out to show the guys. But I went out.

“Woah, Queen Celeste. That’s a pretty bold outfit.” Naida’s eyes widened and I just nodded. We slowly walked towards the guys, and Elion was the first to respond with a whistle.

“Wow. Well, darlin’ that outfit most certainly suits you quite well. I vote you get a lot of outfits like this one, it shows off your body nicely.” Elion spoke huskily, stepping a bit closer to me. I felt the heat rush to my face and turned away to catch Braeden’s eyes wide open and face bright red. Ah geez. Cade and Lyall seemed to have similar reactions, with their eyes widened.

“Heh. Not half bad, Celeste.” Karayan said slyly, a grin showing on his pale face. The attention was a bit overwhelming, so I quickly got back to the fitting room to escape. Finally, I was on my last outfit. This one was more girly; a dark blue floral dress that just hit above my knees and white flats. Fairly simple, I like this one a lot. I felt a bit more at ease now that I’ve calmed down and made it to my last outfit. Once I made it to the guys, with Naida’s happy approval, Braeden blushed again.

“Q-queen Celeste. Um, you look very cute.” Braeden spoke shyly, not making any eye contact with me. Elion patted him on the back.

“Don’t be shy Braeden! Cute girls like Celeste in dresses are your weakness, huh?” Elion grinned, teasing Braeden while Braeden just blushed even more. “I agree!” Elion gave me a wink and to my surprise, Karayan gave a hint of a smile. Lyall nodded his approval and Cade just looked away, his cat-like ears hanging down.

“Alright! Now that you have tried on the displayed outfits, which one do you think you would like to center your wardrobe around? Of course, we will get little things from the other sections so you have variety, but what did you like the most?” Naida nodded at me, awaiting my choice.

“I like this one, the dress.”

“Alright! Great choice. Excuse me!” Naida ran off to find the store clerk to ask for the outfit I chose. Once I came back from the dressing room, we went through the section I chose and picked out various different outfits. Then we went along and got a few things from the other sections.

“Queen Celeste, I am so glad that you enjoy my store. Is there anything else I may get for you?” The kind old man gave me a warm smile.

“No, thank you so very much. I think we have gotten everything I need.” I bowed to him in appreciation.

“Queen Celeste, I also think it is important to get outfits for your training sessions. Ones that can get dirty and will be okay to move in.” Naida held up two outfits while the guys helped the clerk put all my clothes into bags.

“Oh, okay Naida. I totally understand. Do we also need formal wear like gowns and such?”

“Well, yes we will eventually. But we can worry about the gowns when we get to a time in which we would need one.” I nodded with a bit of relief that I didn’t have to also worry about formal attire right now. Naida paid for all the clothes, saying that it is all money from my ancestors that have built up over the centuries.

“Please come again, Queen Celeste!” The store clerk took my hand and squeezed it, a beaming smile on his face.

“Yes, of course. Thank you for everything!” I smiled back and waved as we walked out of the store. “Where to next?”

“Ah! You will need underwear as well, Celeste. I can help you with that, I truly have great taste in that area.” Elion’s crystal blue eyes were filled with mischief as he winked. I blushed a deep red.

“Hey! You can’t look at Queen Celeste’s undergarments!” Braeden usually boyish voice was stern so I felt a bit surprised.

“That’s right. Prince Elion, please don’t say inappropriate things to Queen Celeste.” Naida put her hands on her hips, glaring at Elion with her dark blue eyes. “Now, you boys can go walk among yourselves while Queen Celeste and I do some ‘lady’ shopping.” I sighed in relief at Naida’s suggestion as the guys nodded and began walking ahead. Not before Karayan came close to my ear and whispered.

“Celeste, don’t get anything too naughty…” I jumped at his closeness and squeaked at his words. Omg! I felt completely embarrassed as Karayan walked away with satisfaction and a deep laugh.

“Queen?” Naida turned to me with a questioning look and I shook myself out of my state of shock.

“Ah yes. Naida, let’s go!” I tried to act cheerfully, and push the embarrassment aside. We made our way into a store for women’s nightwear and undergarments. There was a fairly young woman with beautiful dark brown hair that was pulled back in a long ponytail and green eyes.

“Omg! Are you the Queen? I can’t believe you are coming into my store!” She ran up to me with excitement and bowed.

“Oh please, you don’t need to bow,” I told her, trying not to laugh at her reaction. I feel like a celebrity…haha

“Please. Come in, come in! Choose whatever you like.” She gestured to the whole store while Naida and I scanned the items. Like in the clothing store, we grabbed a few different styles of pajamas and underwear/bras for me to try on. But this time there was no fashion show. I grabbed my 5 sets of pajamas and undergarments and went into the dressing room to see what I liked.

The pajamas I liked the most was a simple white flowy tank and blue and white striped mini shorts. As for the underwear, I liked the black lace bra with plain black cheekies. After deciding on the one I liked best, Naida helped me pick out a bunch more so I have enough. We were pretty quick at finding what I needed and I was lucky that they had all the ones I liked in my size! Although, there were a few times where the store clerk went to the back to get my size even when I told her not to worry. People are so nice…

“Will, that be all Queen Celeste? Is there anything else I can help you with?” The brunette woman smiled while ringing up my items.

“No, thank you so much miss. You have been a great help.” I shook my head, smiling at the clerk.

Naida and I left the store to meet with the guys. Luckily, they were all pretty close by so we didn’t have to do much looking around. Once they spotted us, they all headed over in unison.

“So, was your shopping successful?” Lyall asked softly.

“Yes! We got what was needed.” I smiled sheepishly at him.

“Hm. I’m sure if I was there darlin’, you would have a nicer collection.” Elion said with a fake pout, I just shook my head while Naida gave him a stern look.

“Okay! Now we can do some wandering before we need to head back to the carriage and get to the palace for lunch.” Naida spoke to everyone and we all nodded in understanding. “So, Queen Celeste, while I go shopping for some groceries who would you like to join?”

I looked up at Naida in surprise. I have to choose one of the guys? Uhhh… I looked between all five of the princes before me and decided…

“Ah! Um…” I felt awkward being put on the spot and shifted around.

“Queen Celeste! Please join me.” Braeden spoke loudly, hold out his pale hand out to me. I nodded and shyly took his hand.

“Well, guess the kid beat me to it,” Elion said jokingly as he patted Braeden on the back.

“Okay, now that it’s settled. Everyone, please meet back at the carriage in 45 minutes because lunch will be prepared!” Naida gave us all stern looks and we agreed in unison.

“Okay! Let’s go, Queen Celeste!” Braeden tugged at my hand and I followed him with a smile. He’s so cute and boyish. “Oh! Please walk on the other side of me so you aren’t near the street that carriages and riders go through.” And a gentleman too… I nodded and maneuvered my way over. He grasped my hand one more time and I blushed. His hand is cool and big.

“So, where are we going Prince Braeden?” I looked at him, wondering what place we could go to.

“Hm. How about we go see what those kids in the playground are doing?” He gestured with his other hand towards a small playground with about 5 kids. They looked like they were playing tag.

“Ah yes! That would be fun.” I gave Braeden a smile and his hypnotizing golden eyes shined with excitement. He started sprinting towards the kids. Woah! We rushed to the kids and as we drew closer they all stopped playing.

“Hey, mister! Are you going to play with us?” A little girl, that looked to be around the age of 4, ran up to Braeden when we finally stopped. I was breathing heavily from the run.

“Of course! And what is your name?” Braeden bent down to the girls’ height, without letting go of my hand.

“Jae!” She smiled widely. The other three kids surrounded us in interest, two boys and one other girl. The other girl and boys seemed to be a bit older, maybe 6 years old.

“I’m Linnea!” The older girl spoke proudly, Braeden and I giggled.

“This is Asher, and I’m Bennett!” One of the boys stepped up, looking at the two of us intently.

“Well hello everyone! That’s Braeden and I am Celeste.” I gave them a warm smile. Linnea quickly grabbed my hand.

“Let’s go!” Linnea tagged Braeden as she pulled me from his grasp and started running. “You’re it!”

We ran and ran. Braeden slowed down his pace purposefully so that he could give the kids a chance. Cute! I couldn’t keep a smile off my face, as we played with the adorable kids. They were so energetic. Tag went on for what felt like forever, as we switched between the taggers. It was my turn now and I was ready to catch Braeden. I finally caught up to him, but of course, I ended up tripping along the way. Braeden tried to save me but it was to no avail as I ended up pulling him down with me.

“U-uh. Hi.” I said shyly, Braeden’s pale face was only inches away from mine. I felt awkward as Braeden quickly shifted off, lying next to me on the grass. I could tell he was blushing and ended up laughing hysterically.

“I’m tired!” Braeden said between laughs and deep breaths. I looked at him and smiled. The kids had joined us on the grass in laughter. This was fun. The kids suddenly got up, drawing our attention

“Mister Braeden. Miss Celeste. It’s time for us to go!” Jae spoke softly, feeling a bit sad that our fun was over. I sat up and smiled, putting my hand on her shoulder.

“Okay, let’s play again next time.” Jae’s eyes lit up at my words as she jumped up and down. She came in for a hug that I gladly took. Linnea, Asher, and Bennett joined in the hug all cheering. Braeden and I waved goodbye to the kids before laying back down in the grass. “Hey, Prince Braeden?” He turned to me, his golden eyes were soaking in the sun.

“What is it, Queen Celeste?” He spoke softly and I thought about how I wanted to word my question.

“Um. Naida told me a little bit about you. She said that your kingdom, Irkalla, is home to demons. Which makes you a demon, right?” He seemed surprised at first but quickly recovered.

“Yeah. You’re not scared of me, are you?” His eyes and voice were filled with worry, as he shook his shaggy black hair out of his face.

“N-no! Of course not! I mean, you don’t act like a demon. Ah, that’s not what I meant. Um. I mean-you’re not menacing or cruel. Demons are usually associated with that.” I was mumbling and couldn’t get the right words out. I didn’t want to offend him. He suddenly stood up and held his hand out to help me up

“Good. Well, the only thing all demons in Irkalla have in common is that we have a ‘demon’ form when we fight and we all have wings. Some demons are good, some are bad. Just like humans.” Braeden explained as we started walking back towards the carriage. It was time to go.

“Oh! Okay, well I would love to see your wings sometime.” Braeden’s golden eyes widened and he just nodded quietly. Is he surprised? As we continued our walk, this time not holding hands, we passed a jewelry booth.

It caught my eye, so I immediately stopped to admire the work of the middle-aged man that sat there. He just gave me a quiet smile as I glanced over each piece. They were all made with some sort of wiring; some with gems/beads and other just designs made by the wire. One bracelet in particular caught my attention. It wasn’t anything spectacular or extremely special, the quietness of it is what I admired. It was silver wiring molded into a swirled shape with purple crystal beads in between each swirl. Beautiful…

“Miss. Is this the one you like? Would you like to buy it?” The man looked at me kindly, holding up the bracelet for me to see even closer. I nodded vigorously, excited to have something from this new world I’m in. But then quickly realized, I don't have any money. Naida was carrying what she brought for me. 

"Oh um. Never mind, thank you, sir." I smiled awkwardly, feelings slightly ashamed I don't even have any money. 

“Queen Celeste? Do you like this one?” Braeden looked at me while holding the bracelet I was eyeing. I just nodded and the man smiled at the two of us.

"It's alright, Prince Braeden. Maybe I can come back for it another time." Braeden just shook his head and paid for the bracelet and thanked the man. My eyes widened in surprise.

"May I put this on you, Queen Celeste?"

“Ah. T-thank you Prince Braeden.” He gave me a soft smile before grasping my hand to put on the bracelet. Braeden gave my hand a squeeze when he finished with his cheeks tinted pink.

“You’re very welcome my Queen.” Braeden gave me a handsome smile. Charming… “We have to keep going so we can make it to the carriage in time.” He continued to hold my hand as we walked side by side to our destination. I turned to the man that had the bracelet and mouthed a thank you. He just smiled and waved. The rest of the walk was quick and silent as I kept smiling and admiring my new gift.