THE DRESSING ROOM

A Spooky Little Girl Like You, Part IX

By Christine

A Halloween Tale

DISCLAIMER: Scarecrow and Mrs. King is owned by Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. My use of these characters is intended purely for fun.

Briannon had been working on Amanda for a little over two hours, and the transformation from suburban Mom to beguiling witch was quite remarkable. Amanda's hair had been pinned up on the sides with a few stray tendrils brushing her cheeks. Her make-up had been applied carefully to accentuate her natural beauty. The eye shadow and lipstick were a little darker than Amanda usually wore, but Briannon reminded her that this was a Halloween party, and all rules were off. Briannon's friend had come in to manicure Amanda's nails: opalescent white with a tiny black rose hand-painted on each nail. Amanda was sure they'd be ruined the next time she had to wash dishes. But for now, she just sipped her herbal tea and enjoyed the pampering. Briannon was a lovely person, and Amanda was beginning to relax under her ministrations. Amanda had almost forgotten how completely miserable she was.

Next came the jewelry, and once again, Briannon had chosen with care. An intricate Baroque-style bracelet was fastened to her left arm, and a black velvet choker with a large simulated ruby was placed around her neck. Amanda would have never picked them for herself, they weren't her style, but still they were very pretty. Briannon let Amanda keep her own rings, the signet ring she always wore, and the blood-red ruby in the antique setting that had belonged to Great-Grandmother West. Amanda had found it mysteriously lying on her dresser and had impulsively decided to wear it. Great-Grandmother West had married her childhood sweetheart at the age of 15 and went on to spend the next 58 years by his side. Amanda couldn't think of a woman who was luckier in love. So she slipped the ring on her finger hoping the luck would rub off. Later she would have to remind the boys to stay out of her jewelry box.

Amanda was startled out of her musings by a large Siamese cat that leapt up and landed on the dressing table in front of her. Liquid blue eyes stared up at her, and he meowed pitifully, begging to be petted. "Don't you do it," said Briannon as if she'd heard Amanda's thoughts, "your nails aren't dry yet. And as for you, Merlin," she said to the cat, "you can either curl up and go to sleep, or get lost. We're busy right now." The cat was obviously offended at his less-than-royal treatment. He turned his back to them and began to groom his paws.

"You keep a cat in the theater?" Amanda asked, surprised.

"Only when I'm here. Merlin goes with me everywhere I go. He's my eyes and ears, my attack cat. He looks after me while I work alone." In response to Amanda's doubtful expression, Briannon replied, "He told me you and Daniel were here, even before you tripped over that rock in the parking lot." Amanda's eyes widened as she wondered just how Briannon had known about that. They hadn't mentioned it, and Briannon certainly couldn't see the parking lot from this far away. There must be a security monitor in this building, Amanda rationalized, but she didn't remember seeing any cameras or monitors anywhere. "Things are getting pretty darned weird around here," Amanda thought to herself.

Briannon continued chatting, purposefully ignoring Amanda's puzzled and then suspicious expression. "Merlin is really all I have. My parents are dead, I was an only child, and my distant relatives are scattered across Europe. And my true love, my soul mate, hasn't put in his appearance yet. Oh, I have my friends, and I love them dearly. But I would have to say that Merlin is closer to me than anyone else."

"How about you, Amanda?" Briannon held Amanda's gaze in the mirror, "Where's your true love?"

"Well," began Amanda awkwardly, "Daniel is a very nice man, but I'm not in love with him or anything. This is just our first date. And it's not really even a date."

"No, not Daniel. Amanda, where's your true love?" Briannon repeated again. Amanda was speechless, and met Briannon's eyes with a startled expression.

Just then a veil was pulled back, and Briannon was allowed to see much more. She saw a handsome man with a hard face, jaws and fists clenched as he cursed the Powers That Be. Bitter. Enraged. Vengeful. Abandoned. Cold. Ice cold. Dead cold. Amanda had been everything good and right to him. She was the flame that dispelled the gloom in his soul, and he had spent more nights than he cared to admit trying to thaw his frozen heart by the light that shone through her kitchen window.

And suddenly, everything was crystal clear to Briannon. "Oh, I see," said Briannon quietly. She had been awestruck by what had just been revealed to her.

"No, no, I'm afraid you don't see," began Amanda again. She was afraid of what she saw in Briannon's eyes, afraid that somehow Briannon had seen into her very being and knew all her secrets. "I'm divorced. I date occasionally, but there's no special man in my life right now."

Amanda heard Lee's voice hiss harshly in her brain, "LIAR!" And once again, for about the hundredth time that day, she felt herself close to the breaking point.

"Well, I would give anything to meet MY true love. How about you, Amanda?" Briannon pretended to chatter aimlessly, but was carefully watching Amanda's every move.

"Um?" Amanda wasn't really listening. She was entangled in the web of her thoughts, reliving the nightmare that was last night.

"What would you give to be with your true love and just know that you loved him and he loved you and everything was going to be all right forever?"

"Oh, I'd give anything," answered Amanda softly, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"Anything? You'd better think about that one. Anything includes, well, everything. Are you sure you'd want to put everything on the line?" Briannon coached her gently.

"Well, not everything," said Amanda as she thought about Mother and the boys and her own life. "Almost everything," she amended.

"That's better," Briannon brightened. "Well, you're done," she said as she swiveled the chair around so they were face to face. "So be it," Briannon said as she looked deep into Amanda's eyes. It seemed to Amanda that Briannon was sealing a contract between them, and felt a little shudder work its way up her spine. "What's all this about?" Amanda wondered. Amanda had liked Briannon, but now she was beginning to give her the creeps. Then Briannon reached for a flask and lightly sprayed Amanda with the most wonderful perfume she had ever smelled. It was light, not too sweet, and had a sort-of woodsy undertone to it that she couldn't place. "Oh, gosh, that smells so good! What is it?" asked Amanda.

"It's my own potion distilled from some of the plants around my home," smiled Briannon secretly. "I call it Magic. Now, you're ready for your dress. This way, please, Miss," Briannon teased formally.

But before Amanda could rise from the chair. Merlin the cat hopped off the dressing table and onto her lap. As Amanda reached out to pet him, Merlin nuzzled his cheek against her ruby ring, purring loudly. Then, he jumped down and sauntered off into the shadows.

"Hmm." said Briannon as she watched Merlin disappear behind a large dresser.

"What?" Amanda asked.

"Merlin wants your ring," Briannon said simply as she lead Amanda to a tiny dressing room. She ushered Amanda in and stood in the doorway handing her articles of clothing.

"OK, here's the dress. And here's some black velvet pumps. Oh, and you can't wear your bra with this dress. I might need your underwear, too, depending on the way they're cut."

"What!?!" Amanda asked for the second time in as many minutes. "What kind of dress is this anyway?"

"Trust me, Amanda. You're gonna be fabulous! It's Halloween, and you're gonna cast a spell on every man you meet. Maybe even your true love."

"Oh, please!" Amanda said, rolling her eyes.

Five minutes later, Amanda was dressed and standing in front of the full-length mirror. Briannon was right. She couldn't wear her underwear. Any of it. She had nothing on but the dress and a pair of silk stockings. But as she examined herself in the mirror, she began to like what she saw. She was in pretty good shape for 30-something, especially after having two babies. Most women she knew hadn't held up half as well. "Maybe I will steal all the men's hearts. What has being a good girl done for me lately?" She didn't know if she was reacting to her own incredible loneliness, her fight with Lee, or that gosh-darned perfume Briannon had sprayed on her. But she began to feel more than OK with this dress and the way she looked in it. Black was always a good color for her. And it was cut down to there and split up to here and backless almost down to her tailbone. It was the type of dress that promised to end up on the floor in the corner before morning. And she had to admit it looked great on her.

" Amanda, hurry up! Daniel just pulled up in the parking lot! Wow!" said Briannon, and wolf-whistled playfully at her as she stepped out of the dressing room.

Amanda turned shyly from her reflection in the mirror. "Do you think it's too much?" she asked nervously as she smoothed her hands over her sides. "I mean, I've never worn anything this revealing in all my life. My sexy nightie that I had when I was married covered more than this! How am I gonna act in this thing without looking foolish?"

"Amanda, honey," Briannon said soothingly, "it's Halloween. You can act and look any way you want too, and come Monday morning you can go back to being normal again." Briannon came up behind Amanda, and they both studied Amanda's reflection in the glass, "But for tonight, you're Amanda the witch. Your ancestors were highly respected healers in their communities before male domination made them into something sinister. And now, here you are, centuries later coming forth to claim your heritage. You are a witch, a healer. You are an earth goddess, fertile and completely sexual. Your domain is the heart, and you are a spiritual guide to many. Don't be ashamed of your body, your femininity, your legacy. Go tonight and claim what is yours."

"Would she still say that if she knew that I couldn't even cure my nausea from crying so much?" Amanda thought wryly.

"Yes, I would," replied Briannon aloud with a mischievous grin as she watched Amanda's jaw fall in realization of what just happened between them.

Just then Daniel strode in the room, stopping the conversation. Catching sight of Amana, he screeched to a halt. He just stood and stared at her, totally speechless. "Oh, man, this is gonna be a wonderful night!" Daniel exclaimed aloud, a self-satisfied smirk on his face. "The sexiest, most beautiful woman there is going to be with me! As a witch and her vampire escort, we will be the hit of the party!"

Briannon watched Daniel and Amanda sadly. Daniel would be so hurt. But she couldn't help that. Much of this was not under her direct control. And that was a good thing. She could only handle so much, and just had to trust that those who were higher up knew what they were doing. And Briannon was worried about Amanda. She rolled the dice with "almost everything" in the pot. That was still an awful lot, maybe more than Amanda really intended. But things were already set in motion, and Briannon would just have to sit back and watch.