Helena's Dream Chapter 2

Dresses, Pie, and a Little Drama

I am propped in front of an exquisite standing mirror, such a harsh life I know. I am at the tailors and standing on a small stool in the green dress I had planned to dazzle my audience last night. My hope is to save it from a life sentence in my wardrobe.

Maria Santiago, my preferred dressmaker, warps her measuring tape around my breasts, waist, and hips. She jots down the numbers as she goes. “Helen my dear. You never cease to amaze me. I would have wagered you had your last growth spurt in the bust last month. Your hips have widen as well, and yet, your waist is the same. Generally woman of your quality tend to have a figure closer to their eleven heritage especially if it is the mother’s side.” She said in a casual tone, the same conversation we have every time I come in as it seems.

I wouldn’t mind if I had the shape of mother…well maybe a little more definition in the chest and hips wouldn’t be so bad. It would be a lot easier to move about those tables. I would be less clumsy from being so top heavy. Since mother is so petite and five inches shorter than me, visiting merchants have mistaken me for mother and her to be my daughter. She then gives me that smile that’s part bemused and part mad like the merchants should know better. Though I get the feeling her bringing me along is to distract the men at the meet and greets so it is easier to learn about them.

Maria pushes up on my breasts and one escapes like it was scared of her hand and dove for freedom. “I told you this was cut too low for you.” She has that trail in her tone that is almost nagging. She has the motherly look in her eye though she never gave birth to one of her own.

“Well, someone persuaded me to go that low.” I eye Alyssa who is being measured by Maria’s niece, Mindy, a cutie with beautiful blonde hair that’s tied back in an adorable pink bow. She has just reached the age of showing interest in boys and is asking Alyssa twenty questions. Alyssa’s doing her best to answer them without actually answering them. She’s being fitter for the burgundy dress with the gold floral design from my wardrobe. She’s been eyeing for the past few month.

I know it’s odd to give the Help one of my dresses that’s worth at least half a years of wages for her. Wages that she hardly see. She’s the oldest of eight to a single mother. Most her money goes to helping them out, and this is my way of rewarding her for her loyalty to both her family and my own. Plus, as it is, it fits her curvy yet more proportional figure than it ever did on me. It also brings out her beautiful auburn hair that men seem to go wild for. It’s better for her to wear it that it sitting in my closet for another year.

“What, the dress?” Alyssa said, being snapped out of her conversation. “All I said was that George would enjoy it.”

The mention of George sends me into a world of inner conflict. I remember those sloppy kisses and his hand moving freely without care or respect. I wasn’t a woman being given flowers and showered with gifts or serenaded with poems of affection, a woman of courtly love. I was someone who was merely there to sate his carnal desires. His passion wasn’t for me but for my body. The same feeling I get from the tavern drunks at the Popping Corn. My heart is trying its best to persuade me that he got drunk because I played with his feelings, making him jealous. I challenged a champion where victory is attained with brawn and aggression as much with calm and cunning. In his drunken state, he felt he needed to claim me. I was not ready to be claimed, though my action may have suggested otherwise. I keep rallying myself to that rhyme and reason but in the back of my mind I wonder, is that the true persona of my champion.

I push that thought out of my mind. He’s my noble champion. I did not meet him in some tavern. It was at a dinner party a fortnight ago. He was so charming that night. There was no way he would have done that if he was sober. He will apologizes when I meet him this afternoon. I will tease him a bit before I forgive him and maybe he will take me for a walk. My thoughts of encouragement soon deflates. If he will even talk to me. I pretty much mentally forced him to get off me. Mentally forced is a nice way of putting it, I altered his state of mind to make him more pliable to my persuasions. I charmed him.

“My word, I find it hard for any man to resist you. You have no need to resort to such lewd methods to curry favor with a good man, it’s only the deviant ones you will attract.” Maria said in that trailing tone again. Then I noticed her grey eyes veer toward Alyssa. “The deviant ones are a fun time, I’m sure. Though one day they will not be enough, but by then the good ones have moved on to those who appreciate what they have to offer.” Her tone this time resonates with feelings like an understanding than just words of wisdom. There is a long going rumor that she was once a mistress to the late Charlton Christoph, a wealthy merchant that owned a quarter of the town. If the rumors are to be believed, he was just one of many. Alyssa just continues to look at the mirror, like she can’t bring herself to bear the tailor’s face.

“Are deviant ones like bad people who will hurt you?” Mindy said in a wide eyed tone.

“In a way, yes dear. They could hurt you if you are not careful.” Maria said back to her mothering tone.

“So how do you tell the deviant ones from the good one?” Mindy said in a sweet tone that makes me want to hug her.

Instead I see the cool grey eyes of Maria focusing on mine. “It takes patients my dear, patients.” She said with a smile. I nod, understanding her wisdom. If there is one thing I inherited from mother is to be prudent with men. It took almost a hundred years for her to give into father.

“Well that’s not how the stories goes. It’s always true love at first sight. Like the songs you always sing Helena.” Mindy said in her precious tone. She really knows how to butter me up. She makes me want to hug her all the more.

“I like to believe in love at first sight as well.” I said remembering the first time I saw George. He was wearing his UFC championship sash over a satin blue blazer. His smile cool, confident, and charming. He made harmless small talk to the Anderson sisters, but his eyes…his dreamy blue eyes were looking at me and only me. Then a fortnight later he takes me into a dark alley to try and do me. It take all my composure to keep from twisting my face at the souring memory. “But there are multiple types of love. I think that’s what your Aunt is trying to get at. It’s important to know which one it is.” I looked to the tailor for approval.

“It seems like some of your mother’s intelligence has rubbed off.” Maria said in an exonerating tone. “Ah, I think this dress it not suited for your figure. I tell you what. Since you haven’t worn this out yet, I will take it back and make you a new one. I have a beautiful Lentian silk in a nice violet color that would look perfect on you. We will go with bigger straps for better support.”

I am excited by the Lentian silk, I love how it feels against my skin, it always gives me goose bumps, but the idea of getting an expensive dress made out of it for free is disheartening. “Come on now, you know I wasn’t going to leave here without being fitted for another dress, money is not an issue. It was my fault for the dress not fitting.”

“Nonsense. You’ve been such a loyal customer all these years. Besides, I know a few people who might be interested in buying this dress. If I hint that it was designed for you might season their eagerness.” Maria said in a confident tone, helping me out of the dress.

I look at her in disbelief. “I’ve only been preforming for six months. There is no way my name is that well known.” I said, being on the modest side though the idea of my name having weight is kind of exhilarating. I slip on an underskirt and Maria laces me up in my corset that’s been altered by Lana, Maria’s other niece. She popped out to drop it off and take Alyssa’s dress out back while we were talking. She’s shy and hardworking, preferring the solitude out back than socializing out front. She does pop her head out whenever I breakout with a fun little tune or an elven verse.

“To the common folk maybe, but to the merchant class, the beautiful daughter of Elestriana Windchamer who lives up to her family name will entrance you with a tune of your choosing at a drop of a hat. You wouldn’t believe how many requests I get to make a dress in a similar fashion to the one you wore at the latest gathering. Young maidens wishing to be like you while the older ones scoff at you in bitter jealousy.” Maria said in a grand tone.

I can’t help but blush at her praise. Even though it’s my desire for everyone to hear my songs, hearing how much they enjoy them is quite humbling. “You’re the only one I know who gives the greatest sales pitch for me accepting a free dress.”

I search through my vast selection of dresses and settle on a deep red dress with a cape like orange silk shawl. It’s a copy of the elven dress father brought home for me on his last visit. It was five years since he last saw me, and I had filled out since then. He brought it thinking I wasn’t due to hit puberty for another decade like elven children or that I would have the same figure as mother, only slightly wider. It was quite a shock when he saw me. He felt bad bringing me the dress though it was upon my request. I had this one made in its likeness. It’s been altered to fit my curves as the original was designed to allude to the subtle curves of elven women. It would only have served to make me look fat if it was an exact copy. I always wanted an elven dress, but it looks like I will never fit into one.

It takes both Mindy and Maria to help me slip on the dress I want altered for tonight’s dinner party. And by slip on, I mean yank it over my breast without ripping it. Even with the adjusted corset, it’s relentless in its struggle to stay over my head. Mindy can’t help but giggle when it’s on and my breast are puffed up threating to burst out.

After getting back in her uniform, Alyssa returns to being my family’s maid. She helps with the torrid time of getting my dresses on me and locating were the altercation needed to be made. I quite literally have to hold my breath while they quickly prod me with pins. The others find it a grand time and tease me a bit when I make funny faces. It doesn’t help that I break out in funny show tunes between dresses with Mindy joining in on the parts she knows. Even Maria breaks in and laughs here and there, cursing me for turning her shop into a circus. Lana pops her head out to some of the tunes, but shies away when I try to usher her over to join us.

When all it’s over, I take off my corset, and my breasts are red all over. They’ve been pinched, pressed, pricked, and pancaked to the point that they are sore to the touch. I slip on the dress that still fits me and check the time. It’s quarter to noon. I look to Alyssa. “I have to meet up with George, are you staying here or heading back to the estate.” I said in a worried tone.

Alyssa gives me a puzzled looked. “Are you sure you want to talk to him now. Would it not be a good idea to let him mull it over for a few days? Let him realized how much he screwed up. Besides I was told to bring you home soon after we were done here.” She said with a tone that suggest there is more to it.

“She did not say anything to me?”

“She did too, you just weren’t paying attention. You were already halfway out the door.” Alyssa’s all business when it comes to matters concerning mother.

“Okay, so you head back and tell her I had a few more errands to run. I will come back here and pick up the dress and be back there in a few hours at most, I promise.” I pleaded.

“It’s not my butt on the line, your mother’s kind enough not to hold me accountable to your punctuality, only mine.” Alyssa said and then she bears a half smile. “You’re lucky you’re her daughter, I would have been fired already with a quarter to what you get away with on a regular bases.”

“And to that, I’d say: like mother like daughter.”

Alyssa and I part ways. I make my way through the streets and on to Pickens Street where Ann’s bakery fits snug between a laundry house and a small paper supply store. I look around for George, who is nowhere in sight. I’m figuring I’m a few minutes late which is early for me so I shouldn’t have missed him. Then I get a whiff of the wondrous aroma of baking breads, apple pies, and lemon cakes that’s tempting enough to almost make me forget about him. My tummy rumbles from a light breakfast and many hours of standing in front of the mirror. I’m not taking anything away from the hardworking folks, but standing on the stool for hours does take a lot out of you. So me having a slice of apple pie won’t be so bad. Besides, I haven’t celebrated my performance last night. Mother has everyone on the elven diet at home so I don’t have this all too often. It’s not like I planned to meet up with George here so I could have an excuse to have a slice or anything. No I wouldn’t do that.

I walk up to the bakery. Behind the counter is a fair woman with long black hair and is thick with child. She spots my approach and has a charming smile of her own. “I hear Barney had to restock his cellar because of ya performance last night. He’s gonna need a bigger tavern if ya keep it up.” Said Ann the proprietor of the establishment. She opened this place under humble means, and who stayed humble by marring the papermaker next door instead of the wealth merchants who’ve been courting her for years. Jeffery has a big waist but even a bigger smile who knew how to bring a smile to everyone’s face including Ann. Judging by Ann’s smile right now, that hasn’t change.

“All I did was perform the best to my abilities… in a way that might have encourage them to fill their tankards a few more times. Who would have known that tavern songs and consuming ale go hand and hand?”

The door to the paper supply store swings open. “Helena!” Yelled boy voices. Two snot nose brats step outside, smiles wide. There’re nothing but trouble, both of them, but I hug each one just the same. I see the big man himself is the window. He waves, and I wave back.

“How ya do’n big tits?” The older of the two boys said. I look at him in shock.

Why is everything about my Breasts all of a saddened. I know they’ve gotten bigger, but come on, give me a BREAK ALREADY!

“Jeffrey Junior! That’s no way to talk to Helena or any womun for that matter!” Ann reprimanded from behind the counter.

“Well Rodga’s fatha calls her big tits all the time and says how much he’d wants to plow her.” Jeffery said in a naïve tone.

“Well I’m gonna hava talk with Rodger’s fatha the next time I seen him. Teach’n me son such indecencies. I’ll teach him a thing or two. Me bet his wife would like that as well.” Ann said, going off on a rant like any good mother would. “Apologize to Helena.”

“But?”

“Apologize!”

Jeffrey looks at me stiff lipped for being yelled and not sure why. I find it good that he doesn’t know why. He’ll learn soon enough. “Ya don’t hava big tits Helena.”

“Yah she does, theya like mom’s but only bigga.” The younger boy, Don, said. He’s the clever one of the two and the one to watch out for.

Jeffrey has that wide-eyed look when a child who doesn’t actually know what he’s talking about and then all of the sudden realizing what that word means. “Theya not that big.” He said embarrassed, but doing his best to cover it up.

“Nuaa, thea huge!” Don said, not letting his older brother get out of it even if he’s unware that his brother is trying to save face.

“Theya not bigga than the orc lady’s.” Jeffrey said.

“Everyth’n huga on hea. Hea leg is bigga than me.” Don spread his arms out wide to express how big she is. He’s so precious.

“If ya keep it up, Helena won’t sing ya a song.” Ann said, cutting to the chase of the matter.

“Oh, ya pomise me ya sing the Dwawan Builda.” Don said with eyes that are hard to say on to.

“Well…” I said being playful and trying to draw them into the right spot.

“We soay Helena, ya hava nice tits and we pomise not to talk about them again, honest.” Don said, being as sincere as a child who wants something can be. He elbows his big brother. “Apololies.” His tone is so adorable, it’s hard to be mad at a face like that.

“Right, we promise not to talk about ya tits wea sorry.” Jeffery said, in a begrudging tone as he’s still not exactly sure at what he has done wrong.

I turn my back like I’m still not convinced of their sincerity, which I’m not. They want something out of me, them snot nose brats, but unfortunately what their request is my weakness. George still hasn’t shown himself so I at least I have some time to kill. Besides I really want them to stop talking about me chest. It’s starting to make me feel that’s all that I am to men. “There once was a bridge builder, thick and strong and made of a certain wit.” I sang, while I turn around and tap Don on the nose, avoiding the snot of course.

I find three gleaming smiles glaring back at me, Ann says it’s for the children, but her productivity seems to slow to a crawl whenever I sing. Even Jeffery Senior again pops his head in the window. A few of the passerby’s stop and are just as enthralled by my musical lyrics. When I sing the first chorus, “He works from dawn to dusk, rain or shine. Even in snow as high as the sky.” Only Don and Jeffery Jr sings the first time, but by the second time the crowd doubles in size and half of them join in, including Ann.

When I finish, I get a round of applause and I give a gracious curtsy. A few compliment me on my performance and some of them I know by names, it’s a good size city so it’s hard to know everyone. The two boys close in for hugs. As I said before, I love a good hug. “Youa the best Helena.” Don said. I always love hearing the word best when someone describes my actions. It fills me with such warmth and happiness that my heart feels like it could burst with joy at any moment. “Now sing The Girl Who Walks on Fire.” Don continued without skipping a beat.

“Now Don, We can’t be tak’n up all of Helena’s time, I need ya bozs to help me out. We got customas.” Ann said while taking a fresh batch of bread out of the oven. On top of the pleasant tune, the smell of hot bread and apple pie proved too much for some of the crowd and they lined up.

The boys dash behind the counter to give their mom a hand while I admire my handy work. I should be modest and say I just happened to sing during the lunch time rush, what Barney calls it. But after the amount of ale flowing last night and the large line in front of Ann’s bakery, it’s hard to say that I haven’t influenced the situation. How can someone blame me if I think I make everything better?

“So it looks like you’ll sing to anyone.” George said from behind me in a half friendly monotone voice.

He snaps me out of my delusion and right away I get the impression he’s really mad about the whole being charmed thing. It should have been, ‘Oh that’s cute you’re sing for the children. You’re so sweet.’ No it’s more like, ‘you’d sing to anyone who’d give you attention, whore.’

His hard eyes are staring a mine, and now I know I have an uphill battle at this point to keep the man of my dreams. Even with his hard eyes, they are a beautiful airy blue that almost looks like the sky. They are strong and fierce, a warrior’s spirit, what maiden wouldn’t want the eyes staring deep into them while in a warm embrace. I would be lying if I said the lustful part of me has regretted not letting him take me last night. I got little sleep. The more I thought about it, the less I started to blame him for putting me in that situation. At times I romanticized the encounter, telling myself when he found his way in, he would look into my eyes and say, “Now we are one like it will be from now on.” Oh how romantic it would have been, isn’t that something that would just melt yourself down into a pool of butter… and oh, how unrealistic it all would have been. I receive enough juicy tidbits from Alyssa to know that men are generally occupied by other things for such words, especially when ale is involved.

In the end, my pride won out along with one of the lessons mother gave me of all people, ‘Live the life you want to live without compromising your self-worth or you will regret it. And that goes double for men.’ I’ve taken it to heart and that’s the armor I’ve chosen to wear.

“Hello George, did you receive a goodnight’s sleep?” I said in a play full tone, hiding my fear and worry.

“Are you going to influence my mind again if I told you I didn’t?” George said in a cold tone, stabbing right for my heart without mercy like a real champion would.

It takes all my will to keep a straight face as I feel a wave of tears ready to break free from my eyes. I didn’t want to do that, but you left me no choice. You do not know how much I hate myself right now. I thought. I can’t show weakness, you will not respect me it I do. “You were not listening, so I had to make you listen.” I said with aggression. It might have been too much as I get a cold long stare and the right side of his lip rises with anger.

“Helena, mommy told me to give ya ‘iss.” Don said, appearing before George can let out his frustration. The boy is holding something wrapped in a napkin, and judging from the shape and smell, it’s a slice of apple pie. Normally she gives my slice after I sing the boys a song… and draw in a few customers, along with a cup of goat’s milk and we chat for a while when business slows. The fact that she’s handing it in a napkin suggests that I should take off before George and I really go at it. She’s not naïve to a lover’s quarrel as I am sure she had many herself.

“George why don’t we take a walk somewhere else, a little less busy?” I said in the butter tone with my silver eyes to match.

My champion takes a look at the bakery that has a decent line still and eyes Ann who has a friendly smile while talking to a customer. It goes away when she catches George looking at her. He gives her a bemused smile. “Sure.” He said and starts to walk away.

I’m hesitant at first, remembering the last time I walked off with him. I ended up against the wall in the dark alley. It was the ale talking. We had walked many time and he’s been courtly every other time. I thought to myself. I still take a deep breath anyways and follow.