b Lila's dress-up /b

i"I know. " he said smiling an amused and serene smile. "I'll take you to Flare. Follow me."/i

…

Lila followed the golden ethereal creature –frankly Solar looked to her much more magnificent than Sophia, maybe because he was actually nice- to the east wing of the house. The house actually had the size of a small village. It took them almost ten minutes to get to the part where the vestiaries were. Lila was actually somewhat excited. This house was like a mystery waiting to be explored. As a child, exploration and adventure had always excited her. Perhaps it was the confinement, imposed by her parents, something that she could actually understand now given her nature, but still it caused her to yearn for exploration. She took a long look at the carpets and the decoration making landmarks. She was good at that, always running away from home and finding her way back.

Solar lead her to the entrance of a huge corridor, rather amused with her bedazzled look.

"Wooow… there's more?" The corridor seemed to go rather far. This house was indeed huge. Solar released a soft chuckle.

"Indeed. The house is larger than it appears on the outside. Come on, we're almost there" he said gently nudging her to walk forward. Lila looked around amazed at the beautiful art on the wall. There were several paintings with beautiful creatures, most of them resembling humans but having rather strange characteristics, like, differently colored eyes, or strange-colored hair –well, who was she to talk anyway, white hair with bluish highlights is not exactly normal- or even a man with strange limbs. His hands looked more like pointy bats and he didn't seem to have fingers… Lila stared at his picture for a while.

"That's Cross." Solar said with a hint of disapproval in his voice. "You'll meet him… eventually." He said as he nudged her again and after a while they finally reached their destination. It was an array of big doors, heavily decorated with burgundy velvet and golden embroideries on it. "Here we are. The Vestiaries. There's a whole treasure of clothing and accessories in there and Flare knows it like the back of her hand. And as you will have noticed her elegance is unmatchable, so I'm sure she'll find the right things for you." He said smiling. Lila looked at him a little reluctant. Suddenly she felt a little anxious. "Come on, go on…" Solar mused.

"Aren't you coming?" she said shyly. Solar smiled and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry Lila. You're in good hands." He smiled reassuringly and tapped on the door which opened automatically. "By the way, that's a nice little trinket you have there… I wouldn't let Sophia see it. I'll see you in lunch". He mused again before he started walking back where they came from. Lila blushed a little remembering that somewhere between her breasts hang Genie and she blushed even more realising that Solar had seen the lamp on her neck… But he thought it was a trinket right? Nothing to worry about right? Lila walked through the door oblivious -or at least trying to convince herself he wasn't suspicious- that Solar had felt the magic coming from her "pendant" and he also recognized it as the same one he had felt the other night in her room and as a force stranger to the divine world. He didn't sense it as a disturbance but it was unknown, therefore he'd have to keep a closer eye on the daughter of God.

"Ah here you are" Flare said smiling charmingly. Lila looked around even more bedazzled than before. This place was huge. It was like a house within the house and this one was even more impressive than the other rooms –well it was probably the whole wing on its own- because it was filled with all sorts of dresses, garments, mannequins and all sorts of clothing accessories. Lila's eyes almost took the shape of little stars as she registered the image before her. She wasn't really the kind of girl that would bother much with fancy clothes and accessories. In fact she usually wore that simple blue dress that Genie had so efficiently cleaned the previous night. However she was still a girl and the sight of so much girly gear and some of it looking so very elegant and pretty made her somewhat excited. Plus she had the feeling that she'd get to try some of those –based on Genie's etymologic research of a "makeover"- and that somehow took away some of the awkwardness and anxiety and replaced it with enthusiasm of some sort.

Flare was standing in front of one of the mannequins and seemed like she was fixing the dress on it. It was a beautiful light blue dress with whitish embroideries on it. Lila made a small bow.

"Hello" she greeted the older woman smiling. Flare returned the courtesy and made a bow to the fellow goddess as well. Lila already admired Flare for her beauty and elegance and somehow got the idea that maybe she had made all those dresses. "Are you a tailor?" she asked with a silly but cute, puzzled look that still betrayed her admiration for the person standing in front of her. Flare chuckled in a rather charming, still amused way.

"Oh no no. I'm not a tailor. I'm what you might call… a stylist. I don't create these clothes, I just like to make some touch-ups. Every woman has a different personality and that should be reflected in the clothes she wears. That's why I'm changing the details a little. " she smiled again pulling some hair behind her ears. "But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Please make yourself comfortable until I finish here hm?~" she said and nodded to a large armchair right next to her before she turned back to what she was doing.

"Thank you" Lila obeyed and sat on it. It was fluffy and comfortable. She focused all her attention on Flare who was pining a few glittering gemstones on a very impressive deep blue dress. Lila loved it. She hope it was for her, but she didn't ask. She didn't want to be rude. Flare had some pins between her teeth so she didn't speak for a few minutes before she used even the last of them. Then she stepped back from the dress, examined it from different angles and smiled content.

"This will look great on you" she declared as she sat on the armchair opposite from the one Lila was sitting. The young girl's face lit up with a bright smile as she looked at the gown again. It was an off shoulder ball gown made of blue satin with a belt of sparkling embroideries and the several glittering stones Flare had added on the corset. It was dreamy.

"Th… this is for me? It's so beautiful…" she said stunned. Lila had grown up in a quite rich human family but they were low key people and she had only attended a few occasions where something like this could be worn so she wasn't used to it. Flare smiled softly at the girl's reaction.

"Yes it is for you. You'll need to have a full wardrobe as a goddess and that's what we'll be doing today. This is going to be one of your ball gowns."

"One of them?... There's more?" Flare chuckled softly again. This child was amusing in such a sweet way. Well not exactly a child. She was a beautiful young woman, already quite impressive even in the simple appearance she had but with Flare's help she'd become stunning. The Marsian goddess could not wait for the next formal event to take place so she could see everyone staring at Lila's beauty the way she'd pronounce it. And it wouldn't be long now.

"Of course there is. This is the one you'll wear on your formal announcement in the next Divine Gathering." Flare announced. Lila blinked.

"The what?" Flare blinked puzzled as well. She had thought Sophia would have already informed Lila on the event before she sent her to choose dresses. Oh well, she'd do it. She took on her charming expression again.

"The Divine Gathering. It's an event that happens every now and then when the Divine Council believes there's a reason for all the gods of our solar system to gather in one place. There's a Gathering in two weeks' time, so this is what you'll be wearing there"

"Ah… And what's the occasion this time?" Lila asked with her sweet blue eyes blinking curiously.

"You." Flare simply answered. "Your father is Head of the Council so the introduction of his daughter is quite the big thing" Lila blushed and smiled.

"Oh.. Me?... A whole event just for me?"

"Well other conversations take place in Gatherings as well but yes you are the main event." This somehow made Lila a little anxious. All those gods gathering in one place just to see her… This was kind of uncomfortable. Lila wasn't use to big crowds, nor being the center of attention. Flare sensed her discomfort. "Don't worry Lila, Solar and myself will be there to help you and so will your father. There's nothing to fear." She said as she gently touched Lila's shoulder. Of course Flare knew that there were many things to be worried about but this was not the time for Lila to be informed of them and hopefully there wouldn't be any reason at all. As long as Solar was by her side she'd be safe. But once she got exposed she'd have many eyes on her and not all of them would be benevolent. The woman's touch made Lila feel a little more secure. Besides it was two weeks from now, she'd be more used to all this by now. Plus she'd get to wear this epic dress so it couldn't be that bad right? Lila's smile became brighter.

"Thank you Flare. I'm sorry if I seem a little awkward… It's all so new to me.." she said with a maturity that pleasantly surprised Flare.

"It's ok. I'm sure you'll do great. Sophia will brief you in on some basics and Skylar will be here next week to brief you on history and organizational matters" she said as she got on her feet and nodded for Lila to do so.

"Skylar?" the girl asked, following the woman's nod and getting on her feet as well.

"Yes. She's the youngest of the gods and she's the eyes and the ears of the council in the system. She rides the Comets and explores our system reporting every event she comes across. She's a history enthusiast and what humans would call a 'bookworm'" Flare answered softly chuckling as she starts tugging the dress off the mannequin carefully. "I think you and her are going to be good friends. She's close to your age… Well in divine years that is, she's a teenager, about 17 years of human age. She's very nice. She's somewhat shy but if you get her talking about history she'll definitely open up. Anyway, she's going to be giving you some lessons on how the Divine system works and on the history of the planets and the gods".

"Ah that sounds really interesting! I can't wait". Strangely enough Lila, while being the adventurous type, she was also very keen on studying. She loved learning new things and history excited her quite much. Plus the idea of someone her age to hang out with seemed soothing to a degree. She liked Solar and Flare but she couldn't share her fears, thoughts and feelings with them. Someone her age might make this whole detachment from her old life somewhat easier… Suddenly Lila's eyes became a little sad. She remembered all the friends she was leaving behind and her heart was clenched a little. Would she ever get to see them again?

"What is it dear?" Flare asked a little concerned.

"Nothing.. It's just… my friends… Will I ever get to see them again?" Flare looked at her with a sympathetic look. After all this was a young lady that had been suddenly taken away from what she had called family since the beginning of her life.

"Don't worry Lila. I'm sure your father will let you visit them after everything is settled." In fact Flare only said that to soothe the girl. Indeed God might consider that but with the situation being as it was in the divine world and the danger such a move could put his daughter into, it was doubtful. After her exposure to the divine world, Lila would probably never be able to see her human friends and family again. For her own good. That hadn't been the initial plan of God, and that's why he had decided she should be raised among the ones she was bound to protect, but things had changed since then. But now was not the time for this. Now it was time for dressing Lila up. "Come on now. How about you try this baby on hm?~" Flare said softly, changing the subject completely and hoping Lila will follow. Her prayers were answered as the girl's focus went back to the beautiful dress. Not that the previous thoughts had escaped her mind completely, but at least for the moment she could focus on something less depressing.

"Ok…" she said reluctantly as Flare handed her the dress. The red-haired woman looked at the girl somewhat puzzled as she waited for her to put it on. Lila's face was painted with a pink tint and she looked away.

"Oh my… Of course. I'm sorry dear. I'll step outside while you get changed" Flare said smiling. She realised Lila wasn't comfortable with changing in front of her despite the fact that they were both female. She was shy and she still didn't know her. The Marsian goddess internally scolded herself for not realising that before making the child uncomfortable. "I'll be next door. You can come in when you're ready. It's vestiaries area there too and there are mirrors where you can see yourself from several angles normal mirrors don't allow you to." She said softly and bowed her head at Lila who did the same.

"Th...thank you…" the blue-eyed girl said with a shy smile. Of course she wasn't comfortable with being naked in front of a stranger even if she was a woman and even of by now she felt generally comfortable around her. Flare walked to the other side if the room and opened one of the huge, heavily decorated doors.

"Call me if you need any help putting it on ok?" she said waiting for Lila to nod positively before she closed the door behind her. Lila sighed and looked at the dress. It really was beautiful and unlike anything she'd worn before so she was more than happy to try it on. Slowly she started removing her own dress. The lamp got caught in her top as she was taking it off so she took it off her neck and left it on the armchair, covering it with her top before she started removing her skirt, praying she won't forget it.

Inside the lamp, Genie had felt a disturbance. He had heard most of the conversation between the two women because let's face it, he was nosy and curious but not all of it. However he did hear the door closing and sensed the third magical presence leave the room. He also felt the breach of contact with Lila and he was already worried about her when he actually felt she was sad – worried? Why was he worried about this stranger girl really?- so he decided to come out. It wasn't as easy since he had made the lamp tiny so he first came out as a mini version of himself and noticed he was covered in light blue fabric.

"Well this is annoying. Lila" he grumbled as he fought with the fabric to get himself exposed to the fresh air. Lila heard the rustling and her name and turned around terrified only to see his head popping out from underneath her top, causing her face to become as red as a ripe tomato and her eyes to go wide open and googly.

"Genie!" she yelped in terror. Genie's eyes opened wide too and he blushed madly as he bloated back to his normal size. In front of him there was a half-naked Lila, in her rather see-through undergarments trying to find something to cover herself, with the expression of someone who is having a heart-attack.