ENCHANTED ESSENCE

FOUR – AVERY

The address from the ad led her to a part of town Avery had never been to before.

The streets were quiet, lined with old brick buildings that seemed almost forgotten by time.

The salon was tucked between an antique shop and a bakery. Its windows glowed softly in the evening light, the golden script on the glass reading:

Eterna Beauty Salon.

Avery hesitated at the door.

It didn't look like any salon she'd ever seen. The glass shimmered faintly, as if it wasn't entirely… real.

The door opened with a soft chime before she could knock.

"Come in, darling," a woman's voice purred.

Inside, the air smelled faintly of roses and something richer—something warm and heady that Avery couldn't place.

The salon was luxurious but strange. Velvet chairs lined the room, mirrors framed in gold, but none of the mirrors reflected Avery properly. Her image seemed faint, blurred, as if she didn't quite exist there.

A woman stepped forward, and Avery's breath caught.

She was breathtaking—tall, with raven-black hair that flowed like ink and flawless skin that glowed as though lit from within. Her eyes were an unnatural shade of violet, sharp and knowing.

"You must be Avery," the woman said smoothly, her smile just shy of too perfect. "I've been expecting you."

Avery blinked. "You… know my name?"

The woman's smile deepened. "Of course I do. I know beauty when I see it. Especially those eyes."

Avery instinctively looked down. "They're just eyes."

The woman tilted Avery's chin up with one cool, elegant finger. "No, darling. They're the kind of eyes people remember long after they've forgotten everything else about you. But the rest of you?"

She gave a small, pitying shake of her head.

"Wasted. But I can change that."

Avery's pulse quickened. "What do you mean?"

The woman gestured to the opulent chair at the center of the room. "Sit. Let me show you what you were meant to be."

Avery sank into the chair, heart hammering.

The woman circled her slowly, like an artist studying a blank canvas.

"Such potential," she murmured. "Under all this… heaviness, there is someone divine. Would you like to see her?"

"Yes," Avery whispered, her voice breaking. "More than anything."

The woman's violet eyes gleamed. "Beauty comes at a price, my dear. Are you willing to give what I ask?"

Avery hesitated. "What… what do you want?"

The woman leaned close, her voice smooth as silk. "Nothing you'll miss. Just a touch of your essence. Think of it as… a piece of your soul. You'll sleep for a while, but when you wake…"

Her smile was both comforting and terrifying.

"You'll be everything you've ever dreamed of."

Avery's heart pounded. Every memory of mockery, of being overlooked, of feeling like nothing—flashed through her mind.

"All you have to say," the woman said softly, "is yes."

Avery looked up into those violet eyes.

"Yes," she breathed.

The woman's grin widened.

"Good girl."