The coat laid several feet from the girl in the landfill. Laid flat on its belly, the coat would soon abandon its terrified owner, who glanced back at it every twelve seconds, curious to no end of its capebilities. Brave enough to rob a Magistrate engineer, sure, but not put on a magical coat of unknown manifestation that supposedly fulfills all her deepest, darkest desires? Desires? As the tailor said, could this coat surely satisfy all her desires? Searchlights began to invade the landfill, hunting looters and the homeless looking for some form of hospitality in the darkest, filthiest place in the district. Tonight, the landfill would be the home of thousands upon thousands of tons of trash for a mile in length, and the home of a temperate yet panicked little girl.

A tear streamed down her cheek. She sat back-facing the coat, knees tucked tightly into her body, and only her eyes were exposed, staring at the ground as she rocked back and forth, crushed by the weight of choice and descision. It was a bone-chilling night; the plains of the landfill allowed a violent breeze to pierce her skin, unsettling her. No one in an entire mile with the exception of the automated search lights would accompany her. The girl disproportionately considered the vast and unquantifiable potential for an item like this, and what dangers it may keep. Her options were scarce, and, for a long time, fear guided her life, keeping her safe in the alley hidden in the often bombastic and unpredictable nature of the Realm and its inhabitants. If the coat knew what she wanted, subconsciously, she decided that she needed to find out. She slowly turned her head back again, only this time she turned her body around and crawled to the coat. On her knees, she picked it up and opened its center, its blossoming glow welcoming her, reminded again of a luxury item far beyond her current commodities. She rose to her feet and made her choice.

One sleeve in each arm, the girl put on the longcoat.

The coat ravaged her body of integrity almost instantly. She clinched her heart as it beat faster and faster as the coat's faint glow strengthened, attracting the searchlights nearer. Pink particles that orbited the coat violently flew into her, encasing her body in a bright pink glow before disengaging and dissipating. Her face clenched in apparent pain; the girl's hair crystallized its dirty brown shade away and within the roots emerged rigid bright pink locks, which flowed evenly to its ends.

Faintly recovering, the girl rose from her stumbled stance and assessed her newfound aesthetic, reacting dumbfoundedly, staring at her arms and her hair as she began to stroke its curls. A surge of energy overwhelmed her, and she felt as if her deepest, darkest desires truly have been fulfilled. Engaging searchlights pressed against her pale pink silhouette, and the chase began. Followed by an undaunting automated searchlight, her newfound strength flowed through her as she fearfully sprinted gracefully from the autonomous dictator. As she dashed away from the landfill, the particles left a pink wavy tracer behind her, including her eyes which emitted a unique bold blue to coincide. Her speed matched a bicycle's, and for the first time since she was fed in the alley, the girl let out a genuine grin of contemptment, experiencing utter jubilation as she outran the motorized searchlight system.

. . .

"Maaaaaeeeeeeevveeeeeeee…" The syllables forged behind her ears from an unknown source, faintly disappearing into the cloak of darkness. Now far from the searchlight's reach, she steadily slowed to a halt. While she was less tired than she should have been, she couldn't help it but feel deprived of breath. Tilting her head back and forth, she yearned for the source of the mysterious, distorted and almost incomprehensible disembodied voice, but to no avail, and the girl stood there, catching her breath in the clearing of the landfill's entrance with no nearby light in sight besides the faint indication of her newfound motives.