May 20, 1997

Elisa stared at her closet full of casual clothing and dreaded the fact that she had nothing to wear to her brother's wedding, which meant that she would have to shop for a dress. Although she was a t-shirt and jeans kind of gal, she didn't mind getting dressed up, it was just that the last time she'd bought a new dress for a special occasion, it had been utterly destroyed, and she didn't feel like that was the kind of karma she wanted to perpetuate.

Derek and Maggie had suggested they postpone their wedding, due to the recent upheaval in their family regarding the discovery that Carmen Maza, Peter's mother, had been murdered by her brother-in-law, Joseph, but Peter and Diane had insisted they continue with their plans.

Elisa dug further into her closet and stumbled upon a few items she had forgotten about. One was a light cotton kimono from Japan, and the other was a beautiful silk chuba dress from what was likely Tibet. She hadn't known the origin of the dress at first, but after some research that's what she settled on.

It was a beautiful sapphire blue silk wrap dress with cream colored sleeves and some kind of pattern that looked like golden medallions. She had no idea how she had obtained it though, and as far as she knew, she had never worn it.

She pulled it out of her closet and held it in her hands, feeling the buttery fabric with her fingers, and willing herself to remember how it came to be amongst her possessions.

She hadn't noticed she had it until she got back home to Manhattan and unpacked the small backpack she kept on the skiff to carry essentials: a first aid kit, a change of clothes, toiletries, feminine supplies, as well as the kimono she was gifted in Japan…and this dress.

She untied the sash at the front and as she opened the dress to try it on, she noticed embroidery on the inside that looked like sanskrit or some form of Chinese, but she didn't think it was either. She ran her fingers over it. Someone had gone to the trouble of hand stitching writing on the inside.

She set that puzzle aside for the time being and slipped into the dress, retying the side ties and the sash.

It fit her like it had been tailored exactly to her body.

But she had no idea how she acquired it.

Maybe the writing on the inside offered a clue?

She decided to swing by the castle before her shift to see if Angela could interpret it. She had a knack for languages. Whatever magic that temporarily allowed them to understand different languages around the world during their Avalon World Tour had worn off on her and Goliath, but Angela still retained that ability. If she left now, she might catch her before she left on patrol for the night.

She hesitated about her decision momentarily. She worried about running into Goliath, who she hadn't seen in several days. She blamed the longer days and shorter nights for their mixed connections, but truthfully...she was avoiding him.

She didn't know yet how to handle what happened to Cagney. There were so many implications about what happened, that her mind spun every time she thought about it.

She couldn't avoid him forever, though. They were mates, and she had to confront the situation before it caused irreparable harm to their relationship.

She swung by the castle and found Broadway in the kitchen kneading a ball of what looked like pizza dough, but no one else was around.

"Hey, Broadway. I'm looking for your other half, do you know where I could find her?" Elisa asked.

Broadway paused as though she had caught his hand in the cookie jar.

"Hey, Elisa…uh…she's…out," he hedged.

"Okay," she replied, thrown off by his caginess. "Do you know if Coldfire and Coldstone are around then? I need someone who can translate something for me."

"Last I saw them, they were on the battlements talking with Goliath."

"Thanks, Broadway," Elisa said gratefully.

She turned to leave the kitchen and ran right into Brooklyn who was coming through the door at the same time.

She dropped her bundle in her effort not to collide with him.

"Woah! Elisa! Sorry!" Brooklyn said as he reached out and steadied her before he knocked her down.

Katana walked in behind him with Nashville. She noticed the bundle on the ground and picked it up.

"Sugoi! What a beautiful dress, Elisa," she said appreciatively as she held up the silk garment.

"Thanks. It was something I acquired at some point while Avalon was giving us the go around, but I don't remember at all how I came to possess it."

"Curious…" Brooklyn said, and he peered at the design. "Wait…the pattern on the dress...I've seen those mandalas before."

"Mandalas?" Elisa asked.

"A mandala is a design with significance in several eastern civilizations who practice Buddhism. This one," Brooklyn tapped the design with a talon, "is unique to Shambahla."

"Shambahla?" Elisa said, her interest piqued. "You know, Goliath mentioned something about Shambahla once. It was when Demona cast that spell and magic no longer affected him. He told Angela something important had happened there, but he wouldn't tell her what, and then when he could speak English again, he couldn't remember."

Brooklyn looked pensively at her.

"You've clearly been to Shambahla," he said.

"Then why don't I remember it?" Elisa said frustratedly.

"Because what happens in Shambahla, stays in Shambahla. It's like Vegas on steroids," Brooklyn explained wryly, and there was a touch of acidity in his voice, like he and the place had personal history.

Elisa furrowed her brow.

"Hey, there's writing on the inside!" Nashville piped up.

"Yeah, I was hoping Angela could translate it," Elisa replied.

"No need. I can read it," Brooklyn said as he looked over the embroidery. His brow furrowed and then lifted in surprise.

"What does it say?" Elisa asked, barely able to contain her curiosity.

"Elisa...you're gonna want to sit down," he said.

"Why?" she asked anxiously, but she took a seat in a chair anyway.

Brooklyn spoke to her calmly. What he was about to say, wouldn't be easy to hear.

"Because if this writing is correct...this is your wedding dress."