"Amber, I have to go back to the shop," Penny said after watching me for a little bit. "Take the dress off and you can wear it tomorrow to the studio."

"Thanks for your help, Penny," I said, returning with the dress after I had taken it off.

"Sure, I'll be back at about six. Seaweed's not in town right now, so I don't have to plan much of the wedding." She grabbed her purse, and I led her to the front door. I remembered that I had some champagne, and I turned on the turntable and listened to some soft music.

By dusk I had finished the entire bottle of champagne, but I wasn't drunk. Every other alcoholic drink had made me drunk, even from a sip. But champagne never made me drunk.

Penny rang the doorbell just as I had put all of the glasses and the bottle away. I opened it and she was standing there in almost what would be considered a party girl dress. The bodice and skirt were as red as the lollipop in her mouth, and it was trimmed with black and the straps were the same black material as the trim.

"Come on in," I said, stepping to the side to let her in.

"Thanks," Penny said, emerging into the dimly lit room, considering it was only natural light filling the foyer.

"So, what are we going to do now?" I asked, sitting on the couch, not bothering to turn off the turntable.

"We are going to go shopping for accessories. I saw that you only had a few of them in your room." Penny was still standing up, and she was smiling.

"Would you like something to eat, Penny?" I asked, standing up and motioning the kitchen.

"I thought that we could go out," Penny muttered.

"That's fine with me. Let me just get some money."

I returned shortly to find Penny turning off the turntable and turned around.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Yes. Penny, where are we going?"

"Several different places. First, we'll go to an accessory shop to find some accessories. After that, probably a shoe shop to find some more shoes for you."

"Thanks for doing this, Penny. It really means a lot to me that you care."

"I don't really care. I just want to help everybody that I can. Come on, Amber. Most of the stores will close soon and I want to get to them first."

I grabbed my own small, rather ordinary purse that now held the money in it. I walked out to an iron gray sky threatening to rain. Penny indicated her car, which I walked over to and slid into the passenger's seat. In the middle, was a bag of lollipops, obviously for when she was in the car.

The ride was smooth and short and we soon arrived at an accessory store full of purses, necklaces, bracelets and much, much more. Penny picked up a basket and handed it to me. She silently started to take things off the shelf and handed them to me to put in the basket.

This went on for thirty minutes to an hour when she finally decided that we got enough accessories. We bought all the items in the basket and returned to the car.

"Penny, why are you always sucking on lollipops?" I asked, noticing she had put another in her mouth.

"Nervous habit, I guess," she answered quietly.

"Still, you never stop."

"True, but I love them just as much as I love Seaweed. I can't help putting one in my mouth when I feel nervous."

"You have seemed pretty happy at times, and you still have it in your mouth."

"Amber, I don't know why I suck on them all the time. I just do."

"Alright. I was just wondering, though." I concentrated on the road ahead of me, waiting for the car to slow.

Penny finally did stop the car, and we exited. I had been by her shop before, but I had never been inside it.

"Is this your shop?" I asked.

"Yes. I plan on making some dresses for you. With the war it's hard to find clients, but I manage. You'll get a discount," she assured me. "We need to get some measurements. While I get set up, feel free to look around the store."

I wandered the store while waiting for her to come back. The assistants had left, and I heard sobbing from the back. I found my way to the dressing rooms where I saw one with the curtain drawn. I ambled toward it, opening it to find Penny clutching a letter, face streaming with tears. I sat on the bench next to her and pulled her close. She did not try to push me away.

After several minutes when her sobs had subsided a little, she picked her head up and wiped the tears from her face and eyes. She looked at me and spoke quietly.

"S-Seaweed w-w-was d-drafted."

"What?" I asked, forgetting to be calm.

"He's going to war. We're scheduling it for when he returns."

"You poor thing." I sat uncomfortably rubbing her arm.

"Worse, Tracy and Link are in California. I don't have any friends or family nice enough here in Baltimore."

"What about me?" I wondered aloud, trying so hard not to say it but failing.

"What about you? You were always hurting me."

"I'm sorry about that. I want to help you now."

"I don't need your help." She tried to stand up, but collapsing all over again. I held out my arms to catch her.

"I think you will need help getting up stairs."

"No, I want to go to dinner."

"Where?"

"Any Italian restaurant you want to go, Amber."

"I know a good restaurant, but it might take a while to get there."