Authors: Gloria Harchar
"
Glissando
!
"
Her dream state shattered, her shout causing her to jerk to a sitting position. The suddenness of her move made her dizzy.
"
What
'
s the matter with me?
"
she asked, rubbing her temple. Then she remembered.
Her wedding day had arrived.
"
You
need me, lass?
"
Glissando
whispered in her ear, startling her.
"
You
'
re jumpy, but not to worry now that Uncle
Glissando
is with
you
.
"
"
So you
'
ve been here all along,
"
she said. The
relief flowing over her
was surprising.
With a start,
she realized she had missed the pixies
these past few days
.
Now here was Glissando. He puttered nearby. Hi
s balloon
floated behind him, hovering
idly over her chest of drawers. She held out her hand as a perch for him.
He plopped down on her palm with a sigh.
"
Not until you
called me across the nether regions.
"
"
You expect me to believe
that you could hear me clear from Astley's
?
"
She didn
'
t like the implication she could see events occurring
a two-
days
'
ride away. The notion, truth be told, scared her.
With a sigh, he shook his head.
"
Lass, lass. I thought by now
you
would believe in
you
r extraordinary sense.
"
"
I obviously don
'
t have any of the common ones.
"
"
You
have plenty. That
'
s why
you
are able to communicate so well with us. And I know why
you
need me.
"
He patted her thumb.
"
Of course you do. So? What about the letter? Is Mr. Hamilton coming?
"
"
I didn
'
t deliver it,
"
he replied, his wings drooping, his shoulders hunched
. Then he
straightened and
bit into a scone that had suddenly appeared from his s
leeve. H
is e
ye
s
closed
with such sheer delight, she wondered if she had imagined the regret.
She stared at him, incredulous.
"
What? Why?
And how can you eat at a time like this? I'll be forced to marry in about four hours.
"
"'Tis my comfort food
."
"It's a wonder you aren't fat," she muttered. "So
why
didn't you deliver the letter?"
Glissando
stopped chewing. A shadow darkened his wings. Then he shook his vapor-like
feathers, causing them to return to their natural shades of pastels. He
munched and the scent of cinnamon filled the room.
"
Because that tutor of
you
rs is a complete chaw bacon. Did
you
know he eats boiled mutton for all his meals? He doesn
'
t season it at all, no salt, nothing. It ain
'
t natural.
"
He licked his fingers, savoring each one.
"
And he never drinks any spirits. The man
'
s a dull fellow, and I couldn
'
t force Ramsey into that slow death.
"
She dropped her chin to her chest, despondent.
"
Oh,
Glissando
, how could you do this? I was depending on you.
"
"
Lass? Please, don
'
t be sad! I know I didn
'
t postpone the wedding, and I
'
m sorry for it. But don
'
t worry
you
r pretty little head. Dear Uncle
Glissando
has taken care of everything.
You
r husband will not be able to abandon
you
now.
"
"
What?
" Still cupping her hand while Glissando stood on her palm, she took him to the chest of drawers. He hopped onto the wooden surface without hesitation.
"
Why would you think I wouldn't want Falcon to abandon me? I will enjoy being able to do what I want at the estate, right here in Nottingham, without Falcon to interfere." Even as she said it, a hollow darkness filled her soul.
Nettles prickled under her skin, making her want to pace.
"Lass," Glissando replied, shaking his head. "You might fool yourself, but you don't fool me."
She stopped and gripped the edge of the chest of drawers to look Glissando in the eyes.
"
Can
'
t you make me disappear or something?
"
"
No, nothing so dramatic, but something infinitely more exciting.
"
He put on a bright smile.
"
What do you mean?
"
"
Everything will be marvelous. I
'
ve fixed what Allegro messed up
by making your skirts flare up at the ball
.
You
r new husband may get angry with
you
at first, but then he
'
ll come to appreciate
you
.
"
A sliver of dread pricked her.
"
What have you done?
"
He cocked his green head, his e
ye
s focused on something far away.
"
Farewell, lass. If I go now, I can catch the last act at Astley
'
s.
"
With a lumbering run, he lifted off her hand and flew to his balloon, landing in the suspended basket.
"
You can
'
t leave!
"
She watched in dismay as the small balloon sparkled, then blinked into nothingness.
Glissando
had been her last hope. She had thought he
had changed and
was fighting for her cause, but the fickle
pixie
was gone and now her fate was sealed.
After a knock on the door, Betsy, her
Abigail
, peeped around the comer.
"
Miss
Nicola
? May I be of service?
"
"
Come in,
"
Nicola
said with a sigh.
A ghost of a smile flitted across Betsy
'
s thin lips.
"
I
'
ve come to prepare you for your special day.
"
Nicola
tried to reassure the maid
with a smile
, but she knew it wasn
'
t heartfelt. In a stupor, she sat at her vanity feeling strange—a feeling magnified by the normal activities of the maid who carefully laid out underclothing as she did every day. She waited in a haze of despair, barely aware of Betsy
'
s furtive glances. Mindlessly, she stared out the window as the maid scooped up her hair and threaded delicate,
pale yellow
ribbons through it. Soon she was dressed in her wedding gown. The creamy-colored gauze flowed around her and she thought of the fable
Cinderella.
Perhaps the clock would strike twelve—then she could run away and hide in her rags
and Falcon would never find her.
"
You look beautiful, Miss
Nicola
,
"
Betsy said, her brown
eyes bright
with adoration and anxiety mixed.
"
What a nice thing to say,
"
Nicola
murmured, wishing it were so.
With a heavy heart, she turned toward the mirror and stilled, shocked at the image there. Stepping closer, she studied the reflection. She still wasn
'
t exactly beautiful, but she looked delicate, almost ethereal. Her
straw-colored,
blonde hair curled around her face like a cloud. She could still see the
unsightly
freckles on the bridge of her nose, but the glow to her skin seemed to fade them into nothing but magical
pixie
dust. How ironic. She wasn
'
t in love with Falcon and
yet
there seemed to be something about a wedding that transformed a woman into an object of beauty, no matter what was in store for her afterward.