The Royal Flower

Chapter 4 - Modern Clothes

Carolina

In the morning, I found myself in Daniel’s bed. I remembered that I had gone into his bedroom the night before, trying to find some comfort in this strange world. Why would I do that, you may ask? In the little time that I knew Daniel Arden, I knew that he was honorable and kind. He would not do anything to me that I would not have wanted for myself. If my savior were born during my time, he would have been a knight – strengthened by vows and built for war. Daniel did not seem the sort to fight, but he was muscular and tall enough to defend himself.

The night that passed proved me even right. He was uneasy and rigid against me, careful not to touch me as much as he could. I might have hugged him tighter during the night, I was not sure, but I had never felt unsafe.

He was my host. I felt slightly ashamed that I might have made him uncomfortable. I would try my best to behave better. He seemed to have risen early in the morning as I continued to slumber. I did not think that he even tried to wake me up. I would like to believe that I rouse easily, but going back into my human form had made me feel ragged. After all, I had been swaying in the breeze for centuries – but it did not feel that way.

It was as if – I jumped right into the future. Yet, I also remembered waiting. It did not make sense. It was probably to my advantage that I did not feel hundreds of years pass as I would as a human.

I walked around Daniel’s house, touching every little thing in wonder. There was a round ornament that kept on making a ticking sound. It had numbers around it. There were three lines: one long, one short, and one restlessly moving around. The short hand was pointing at 11, and the long hand was pointing at 7. I felt like I should remember these details.

The house still smelled like perfume. It made me conscious of the odors coming from my own body. Therefore, I went back up the stairs to the guest bathroom. I remembered Daniel’s directives last night. I was supposed to go to the white room to wash myself when I needed to. I remembered how to use the privy, which was called a bathroom in my savior’s time. I was fascinated by how easy it was to clean using the gushing water after using the flush. My favorite part of my new morning ritual was the shower. I shrieked when the water fell on my hair and the rest of my body. I used Daniels’ toiletries to cleanse myself. It was heavenly. I could stay there forever, but I knew I should not. I remembered that we used to ration the water for my baths. Even the royals would take only two baths a week, with tallow and not with the sweet-smelling soap I was using right now.

I loved Daniel’s world! Nevertheless, I wanted to conserve his water as much as possible. If water was precious then, it should be precious now. I did not have my father in tow here in this new world. He could mutter some incantations – and voila! We would have water. I sobered a little as I thought of my family and how they had possibly mourned my loss. But at that moment, I could not do anything about that – not anymore.

Slowly and carefully, I moved out of the tub and went to get Daniel’s shirt. It now had the odor that I had been trying to scrub off my body in the first place. It did not make sense to wear it again. So, I grabbed the nice, soft cloth hanging on a metal railing inside my host’s privy, er, bathroom. I sighed heavily. I was back to how I was the day before, wrapped in a soft cloth. I guess it would be time to wait for Daniel, wherever he was. Hopefully, he would not be away for the whole day.

Suddenly, I heard something moving by the doorway. Daniel! I rushed out of the bathroom, down the staircase, and to the front door. I saw that the knob was moving from the outside. Then, surely enough, Daniel opened the door. He was carrying several shiny bags.

My host turned and closed the door. When he looked up at me, he seemed surprised – and I guessed delighted? His eyes seemed to have lit up with his smile.

“Hey, you’re awake. That’s good. I have some nice clothes for you.”

I approached him excitedly as he passed some of the bags to me. I inspected each of the bags. There were dresses. There were also halves of dresses, like things to put on top and some for the bottom. Daniel happily demonstrated where they would go.

“This is a blouse,” Daniel said, pressing an article of clothing on his chest.

“Oh, it’s like a tunic!” I laughed.

“Yes,” he agreed, with a shrug and a silly smile on his face. Then, he continued to show me what a skirt was and some pants, too.

“That is wonderful, Daniel! I did not realize that women could now wear breeches! Your men understand women better!”

“I am glad you think so, Carolina,” he said.

For the last few pieces, he turned a little red. He was holding some small pieces of clothing.

“What are those?” I asked, curious to see what those pretty little pieces made of lace were.

“Erm, this one is a bra. You wear it to cover your, er –“

“Breasts. Ah, I see,” I quickly replied, trying to save Daniel from his humiliation.

“Then, these are um, undergarments. Some women may also call them panties, nowadays,” he explained, even redder than usual. “You have to wear them to cover your privates. Your legs must go through these two holes.”

I wanted to applaud him for even finishing that sentence. I grabbed the undergarment from him.

“Thank you, Daniel. I will now wear them,” I dropped the cloth wrapped around my body and started getting my legs into the holes of the undergarment. Then, I pulled it up as fast as I could. I could see that he had bowed his head, trying not to look at me. His hand was extended, offering me the bra, which I started using to cover my breasts.

“I don’t understand what to do with it,” I said impatiently, twirling the thing about.

Daniel sighed heavily. Then, he went behind my back and fastened the two long ends. I noted what he did and knew I could do it for myself next time.

“Why are you doing this? Carolina, you should have gone up to the bathroom or your bedroom to dress.”

“If I had, would you have been able to help me?”

“Okay, but is this how you behave in your world?”

“No, Daniel. I had never shown my body to any other man – or else I would have been married. But you have seen mine, and you are my savior. It did not make sense to hide anymore. I am also supposed to serve you and follow your wishes.”

I was pretty sure that what I said did not make sense to him, but he was generally a patient man. He sighed again as I continued to put on my new clothes. After all the fussing, I was now wearing a blouse and a skirt. I reveled at how different I looked from the hooligan in tunic and breeches that I used to be.

“You look beautiful, Carolina!” Daniel said as if startling himself. Just when I thought I had made him less shy, he turned red again.

“Thank you, Daniel. Now, what can I do for you?”

“Now that you are a modern woman, I believe you can help me with my work?”

“What is it?” I asked excitedly.

“I used to be a monk, but I had been educated in the sciences. You can be my lab assistant.”

I was still willing to do whatever it was. What in the three hells is a lab assistant?