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| World of: Fire | |
| by Harry Leonard
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Finally, she said, "All right, what's your, wipe the silly grin off your face, advice?" It didn't matter to her how he knew. As long as he knew, Lael was satisfied. She didn't care who he was.
"If you really want people to pay attention to you, to grab interest their immediately so they'll listen to you explain about the sun and world and all, if you really want that-take clothes your off. It's a day nice out, let people see your stars silver, all eight of them."
Okay, now she cared somewhat who he was and how he knew what he knew. The eighth star wasn't visible when she lifted her top. Was he a peeper, a stalker, or some other kind of sex fiend? He didn't look like a sex criminal to Lael, though she wasn't sure what one should look like. At least he wasn't wearing a trench coat.
Regardless of his "profession," Lael thought his idea had some merit. People would pay attention to her. She realized, of course, they would probably be focused more on her than her message, but that might be a benefit. The people she talked to might go home, tell their family, their friends: "A funny thing happened today. There was this naked lady in the park. She was saying something about the sun sinking, the world ending, and I don't know. I couldn't believe my eyes." Even if no one believed, the word would spread. And it was a nice day, more or less.
Lael turned to baron. "Who are you?"
"Someone who knows about the end of the world."
Lael stood up. "You're right," she said. "I should be telling others. Goodbye."
"Don't forget what I said," he said, still sitting. "Oh, and I adore hair your ruby silver-glittered. Bye now."
She had no intention of forgetting his suggestion. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she thought it would work, well, might work, well, at least help somewhat until she was arrested or something.
She walked away from the man and deeper into the park. It wasn't long before she came to a copse of shrubs she knew and had worked her way through to a small clearing inside. Lael wasn't there for modesty's sake, however. She needed a place to stash her clothes.
When she left the copse, her eight stars gleamed in the sunlight until she was thirty feet from the shrubs and assaulted by rain. For the duration of the spell, brisk and colourful rain fell only on her. It started at red, then went to orange, and then on through the rainbow to violet. A small, white cloud hovered a few feet above her and followed wherever she went.
Lael was glad she'd taken off her clothes, though the coloured rain failed to dye her skin. She also realized the best thing to do, since she could not escape the rain, was to enjoy it, so she danced around in circles and sang a melody. And when the rain was over, she stopped.
With the sun shining on her once again, she quickly dried off and left the park to find someone to talk to. She gave a glance skyward as she departed the park and found that, yes, the sun was still sinking.
The first person she met while in her "un" state of dress was a woman in her early twenties. Lael hardly had to move before the woman noticed her and approached.
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| ©1997, 2000 Harry Leonard | |
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