We had entered into the house through some grand looking doors in the staircase room I hadn't noticed before.
Lanterns mounted to the walls and a silver crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling all had a small uniform flame lit behind flutes of glass burning dimly. We walked up the sweeping staircase and stopped on the landing in front of the door I must have emerged from this morning.
“I must leave you here. You should revive yourself before we attend the dining room. I'll retrieve you in a bit, darling.” With that he took my hand and gently released it in the direction of the open doorway as he bowed slightly.
When I was finally able to walk away from the beautiful angel in the hallway, I reentered what I guessed was my room. The door clicked softly behind me, disappearing into the wallpaper seamlessly once more.
The stillness that accompanied my solitary room was disturbed by a sort of bubbling, trickling sound that barely slid into my ears. I followed my ears to a door on the right of the bed. It was the same deep red as the vanity table and on the edge sat an ornately decorated silver knob.
This room was also lit by candles to ward off the coming evening threatening to seep in through the glass sitting on the ceiling. The warm vanilla cream candles stretched along the length of the grayish blue counter tops, which lined 2 opposite walls of the long room. On a third wall, opposite me, the candles were supported by small shelves arranged in an irregular diamond shape. Below that shape was a big off-white porcelain tub. Filling this tub was the source of the sound.
I crossed the pale rugs laying on the blue flooring to the running water. It was comfortably warm between my fingers. I turned the water off. Before I got in the bath I folded my clothes on the near side of the counter, and left my slippers on the floor.
The water's floral smell mixed with the scent of the candles was very appealing. It felt slippery on my skin, as if there was silk in it. I could see the soap swirling on the surface in the candle light reflecting off the water. I used a cloth draped over the side of the tub to wash myself. My hair became soft when dipped into the water and seemed to lather as I rubbed my scalp.
Getting out, I pulled the plug in the drain and began to dry myself with a towel from the counter. I felt no residue from the bath, but the towel seemed to have a slight sheen to it where it had touched my skin. I wrapped myself in the towel and returned to my room.
It would have been pretty dark in the room, if groups of candles hadn't been placed among the many surfaces around the room. I looked to the bed and found another a pair of shoes and a dress much more elaborate than this mornings laying over the side. After I put these on, I proceeded to the vanity, as I had this morning. On the table next to the brush, was a pair of gloves. I brushed my slightly damp, but very soft hair, and pulled the gloves over my fingers to my elbows. In one final self inspection before I found the next thing to do, I looked in the mirror and noticed my skin had a sheen to it. It was hardly noticeable, but the glow was visibly apparent.
The sparkle on my skin would have occupied me for a while longer if I hadn't heard a throat clearing, and saw the hidden door sitting open past my face in the mirrors reflection.
The flames behind the glass mounted to the walls and resting in the chandelier seemed to have gotten brighter since I left. There was no hint of evening in the stairway. Every surface brilliantly glittered with candlelight. I descended the staircase to the angel waiting at the bottom of the stairs. He wore a metal corsage in the lapel of his black formal suit. Impossibly more formal than the one he wore earlier in the day. When I finally reached the bottom of the long staircase, he received me by taking my gloved hand. Without a moment lost I was spun around so I was no longer facing him and his quick fingers went to work pulling up my hair, piece by piece. When all of it seemed to be up in one spot, centered on the crown of my head, I felt a pin of some sort gently scrape across my scalp. When I was turned back around, and facing him once more, not a hair shifted on my head. He seemed content as he looked me over, and gave a smile of sorts.
He led me in the opposite direction of the hall were we ate breakfast, towards a set of the biggest doors I had seen yet. We stopped once more before the doors. I stood silently as he looked me over again, his hands gently pulling at seams, and sides. Finally he looked in my eyes, satisfied.
“Now, I believe, we are ready for dinner.” With that, he took my hand in one of his and opened the door easily with his other.