I wasn’t quite finished with the story I was telling by the time 2025 ended and so decided to continue it until it reached an ending point. Then I will start a new one. Besides, I kind of want to see where Penelope ends up. And so we have…
Day 219: Penelope nodded.
Penelope nodded. She promised to spend her time reading and healing. She also promised to call one or both of them if anything changed. She walked them downstairs to the door. They were almost gone when Lenore turned.
“I almost forgot,” she said. Michaelson was at the door, hand on the knob. He turned as though curious. Penelope wondered if he thought Lenore was going to tell her something that he shouldn’t hear.
“You should be getting an invitation soon. It should be arriving in a day or so,” Lenore said.
“An invitation?” Penelope asked.
“Yes, I am hosting this year’s gala. By the time it arrives you should be well and truly healed. In a week or so when you are feeling better give me a call and we can discuss appropriate attire. I can even take you to my dressmaker so you will have the appropriate gown. Given the time frame we may have to pick up something and then have it modified instead of commissioning a gown to be created. But you will be dressed appropriately.”
“Okay,” Penelope said slowly.
Lenore smiled. “Emperor Galas himself is going to be in attendance. Isn’t that exciting? I can’t wait to introduce you.”
“Very exciting,” Penelope said. With that last bombshell dropped, both Agent Michaelson and Lenore left. Penelope locked the door and returned to the kitchen. At no point in her life had she ever believed she would be at an event where the Emperor arriving would be a possibility.
“Let alone be introduced to him.”
While Penelope thought she was usually good at picking the outfit for the occasion, now that she didn’t have to rely on Jeanette or worry about Trinity’s thievery or sabotage, she was glad Lenore would be willing to help her out.
“A gown for an event with the emperor is a bit beyond my norm.” Penelope decided it was a thought for another day and poured out the mostly untouched coffee from the cups Lenore handed around. She wasn’t in the mood for coffee, so she poured the rest of it out and made certain everything was tidied up.
Her arm twinged a bit, and she hurried through her tidying, wanting it done so she didn’t have to think about it. Once she was done, Penelope took herself up to the roof top garden. The sun was shining and the sky was clear. It was a warm day, and she could feel the moisture in the air. Penelope suspected there might be rain later despite the sky.
She made a beeline for the box Michaelson brought up. She took out the seed packets and set them to the side. While she found them useful for later practice, it was the plants she wanted at the moment. Her thoughts were on healing more than anything else, the lessons learned from Emily circling in her mind. Emily’s companions told her the healing was impossible.
While that was a dream, Lenore echoed it in real life.
‘Although I’m not sure that was really a dream,’ she thought as she looked over the plants. There was something about the dream that felt more like the dream with the lake than a regular dream.
Ten til Midnight 