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7: Dancing in a Dream

Taylor's eyes opened when her bare feet flinched against rough cobblestone.

Light percussion tapped against her ears, horns and vocals harmonized in sweet music upon a pleasant wind. And about her were people. Not fully formed by any means, just enough for them to be perceived as people. Dancing and laughing in bright-colored clothes. Looking down at herself Taylor marveled to see a chiton of green, with a tawny sinch and beads about her neck. Her hair was put up and held back by a thick golden band. When she reached up to touch the band, only to have her hands pulled away in a giggling dance, Taylor was hardly surprised.

Her hands almost felt warm. Angel's dancing entranced Taylor. It was a wide stance at first. A light grip of her hands as they spun without care to the unreal crowd about them. As the music picked up Angel jerked Taylor closer, wrapping her arms around her neck as Taylor lifted her in a swirling motion. Angel's skirt splayed about her like pale waves against an excited wind. When she was set down again she pulled away, running her hand down Taylor's outstretched arm. As she came to the end she gripped Taylor's palm. Giving a grinning wink as she fell once more into Taylor's embrace.

The two continued their dance in this never-ending sunset. Moving in and out of the stark contrasts of shadow and light. Angel's midnight waves caught the colors of oncoming night, as if the dawn was in her locks to cover her smile behind them when the wind saw fit to shift. The bracelets about her wrists tinged together with her beckoning wave, taunting Taylor to a chase. Taylor rose a brow, smirking as Angel turned on her heel. Quickly the spirit set off, with Taylor struggling to stay at her heels.

Though it was only a dream, Taylor saw need to continue the illusion. Pretending, for a moment, that this was real. That she was presently bobbing under exchanges through the marketplace. Dodging faceless women as they passed with baskets held at their waists. Sliding to a stop as children of memory ran past in playful screeches. She laughed, and caught her breath, as if she were awake. But her pause left her even further behind. Ahead, Taylor saw Angel turn a corner. Her peplos disappeared around a stone shop, down a dim alleyway. Startled, Taylor followed, pushing against the faded walls to aid her sharp turns. When she left the alley Taylor was greeted with a more residential area. With homes spread about a bit more than a suburb. Angel's head start, and Taylor's pause gave the spirit an advantage. She skipped casually in the distance, calling for Taylor in her voice of brass chimes. Refusal was the furthest thing from Taylor's mind, so she began the chase once more.

It was not much of a race then. Truly, Angel let Taylor find her. For, when she caught up with Angel, Taylor noticed that her spirit companion was no longer running. Angel smiled and stopped in waiting for Taylor in front of a home. It was small, held together with mud bricks, sparing columns served as an entryway but it gave no indication that the inside was very grand. Spread about the yard were plants, brightly colored and given free rein to grow and climb. Ivy clung to the entryway, Angel took Taylor's hand to lead her through it. It was no longer warm. Only a pressure. And just like that the illusion was broken and Taylor was no longer out of breath.

Angel motioned for Taylor to sit on a wooden chair. And across a small square table, Angel sat in an identical seat. They were in a dining area, or a living room, Taylor couldn't tell. It wasn't really set up like a modern home. She hadn't been given a full tour though, so she wasn't sure. It was quiet, but a town sort of quiet. Taylor could hear distant sounds of market, signs of people on a cool breeze. It was evening after all. Taylor wasn't sure what season Angel was showing her at the moment though. The twisted trees dotting the streets below gave no indication of color change, Taylor wasn't sure if those kinds of trees did change colors. But they held leaves. Green and abundant, shushing against one another in the wind. Outside was so much more interesting than in. It's wooden shutters banged softly against the walls there, and gates that held climbing weeds were worn where hands had held them open. Inside felt warmer, certainly, but almost suffocating. The ground was bare, the walls held fraying tapestries. But Taylor was pulled from her examination by blue eyes. Angel hadn't looked away from Taylor, and seemed to find her wonderment amusing. Taylor straightened herself, and coughed.