"Merlyn you have to help me."
Alyss sat across from her sister in a cafe. Merlyn was no longer welcome in their Grand Mother's home, but she lived outside of the city in a dusty farmhouse where Alyss couldn't walk without getting mud on her shoes.
"Alyss, if you ever needed my help, I hope you know you can come to me."
"I'm coming to you now." Alyss was welcome in Merlyn's home but she took advantage of her sister's stop in to the city.
Merlyn shook her head. "This isn't for you, Alyss. This bill, this fight, has nothing to do with you. This is Grand Mother's and Mother's battle, not yours."
Merlyn sat up straight in the low back chair, as was her breeding. She sipped simple black tea in a plain white teacup while wearing a dull, gray sheath. But there was a brightness about her now. Her brown cheeks held a red tint, as though she'd been thoroughly kissed by the sun for many days. Her hair, which had always been pulled in a tight bun since she was a little girl, sat loose at the base of her skull, a few curly tendrils caressed her neck. Unlike the pinched look of Lady Milysa, marriage appeared to suite Merlyn quite well.
Well, it suited her well physically, but those males of hers were making her stupid in the head. What did she mean this wasn't her battle? Advancing the science of breeding was how the two of them were brought into this world. Obviously, their Mother hadn't engaged in the act of bed sport for the pleasure of it. The conception of both of her daughters had been about advancing her reproductive theorems.
Merlyn had uncovered the proof of their family's hypothesis: it was the male sperm that determined the gender of a fetus. In truth, it had been Merlyn's lab assistant and now bondmate, Liam, who had done the math to prove the thesis. After Merlyn learned that her Mother planned to use their scientific find to begin insemination trials, where the cultured specimen of a man's sperm would be injected directly into a woman's womb to produce a female offspring, both Merlyn and Liam denounced the endeavor and ran off to the outskirts of town with the former groundskeeper turned gigolo. Alyss still wasn't sure how Jaspir fit into the picture? But it didn't matter. Merlyn's help in presenting the science was all that mattered to Alyss.
"This is what you've worked for your whole life," Alyss continued. "It's what Mother and Grand Mother have worked for their whole lives, and you're the one who figured it out. Why don't you want to see it passed? If only to flaunt it in their faces that you did in your twenties what they spent years failing at."
"When I did this research I did it to further the science," Merlyn fingered the bond band on her left hand. "I've no desire to take away men's rights."
"What rights are we taking away? Over the last century we've restored many of men's rights. This bill will simply allow families to have the choice of genders for their unborn children."
"Alyss you know all families will choose to have girls."
"I don't see why that's so bad?"
"If we hold men's sperm captive, what need will we have of men?"
"Exactly."
Merlyn sighed in that way when Alyss didn't understand a math problem. "I won't be apart of objectifying man-kind any more than they already are. They've suffered enough for their sins."
Alyss spent the better part of an hour arguing with her sister. She batted her eyelashes. She pouted her lips. She even tried using logic and reasoning with her science-minded sister. Finally, Alyss threw a hail-Goddess and tried for a jab at Merlyn's ego.
"You'd rather your scientific find be unknown, lost to history and later rediscovered by someone else?"
Merlyn hesitated, but then her back straightened even more. "With this find...maybe it's for the best. Unless you can find a way to make it fair for all."
Fair for all? Bringing more girls into the world; evening out the gender disparity; wouldn't that make it fair for all?
Merlyn reached a tentative hand out to her sister. Though the two were close in age, they were not close in the way Alyss witnessed with other sisters. Affection was not the norm in their family.
Merlyn's hands were warm and tender as they rested lightly on top of Alyss'. "I spent my whole life letting them define who I was, letting them dictate the course of my life. Don't let them do the same to you." Merlyn gave Alyss’ hand a squeeze and then rose to take her leave.
Alyss shook her head as she watched her sister exit the shop. Her Grand Mother had always told them both that sex addled the brain. Alyss knew Merlyn was having lots of it with her two bondmates. Her sister would be of no help to her. She would have to do this on her own and she had no clue how that would happen? She left the coffee shop and got into her conveyance.
She'd never lobbied a bill on her own before. She usually created the graphics for the other apprentices in the chamber. Alyss knew the basics of lobbying. It was arguing, and she was great at swaying people to her way of thinking. Where she got distracted was in the facts. All those numbers and boring findings. Alyss had no patience for it. But then she remembered that she was up against a man, not a woman. Men had no mind for facts or logic. They were creatures of desire and instinct, not systems and principles. She'd just smile, string together words, perhaps add an inflated compliment at the end, and viola.
She'd been desired by every male she'd ever encountered. No man's base instinct could resist her smile. She could smile at the Male Voice and get him wrapped around her finger. He’d drop his opposition and the bill would pass. It would be easy.
Alyss had been so wrapped up in her new plan that she'd taken a wrong turn down the street. She wasn't sure where she was. She was about to turn around when something beautiful caught her eye. It was a dress in a shop window. The dress was a simple, unremarkable color: beige. But the detail was stunning, and the fabric was...what exactly was the fabric?
Alyss pulled up to the shop and got out of her conveyance.
Adom's Leaf, the sign above the shop read. Alyss smirked at the reference to the mythological tale of a male god crafting man first, then pulling woman from the man's ribs. The two were left naked on Earth with only tree leaves to cover themselves. It appeared this proprietress had a sense of humor. Alyss couldn't wait to met her.
She went inside. A bell rang over top the door, but the shop appeared deserted. Alyss stepped up to the dress. Upon closer examination she saw that the intricate detail work was a mass of woven pieces of cloth.
No. Not cloth. Rope.
From the bodice to the skirts, the garment was made of knotted rope. It was an odd choice for material. At the same time, it was a brilliant choice for material. Alyss had to have it. But first she needed to find the genius woman who made it.
The sound of footsteps came from behind her. Alyss turned from the dress in the window and nearly screamed. Standing before her, looking as shocked as she was certain she looked, was her mystery artist; the male she'd seen at her cousin Chanyn's home. The male who'd gifted Chanyn with the painting Alyss couldn't get out of her mind.
"You," she whispered.
"You," he said simultaneously. His voice a soft cushion that beckoned Alyss closer.
They stared at each other a moment longer. His skin showed a healthy tan. His features were dark; dark eyes, dark curly hair. Even his curls, with thick swoops that fell around his face, had an artful sway about them.
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
"Did you do this?" she said.
He followed the line of her finger to the dress. If she'd blinked, she would've missed the flare that caught at the edge of his dark eyes as they roamed over the fabric of the garment. Then his eyes came back to hers. "Its my work, yes."
The way he said 'my work', as though it were a possession, made Alyss want the dress even more.
"Is it for sale?" she asked.
"For sale?"
"Yes, I want to purchase it."
His eyes drew in confusion. "Because...you want to wear it?"
Alyss wondered about his mental acuity. Many geniuses were actually impaired souls. Their skewed visions and understanding of the world attracted sane eyes only because of the different interpretations of reality.
His eyes roamed over her. Men did this to her constantly. But the way he did it, his assessment, it felt...different. He appeared to be taking the measure of her, not trying to unclothe her with his eyes.
Of their own accord, Alyss unfolded her arms and allowed him his perusal. "Do you need to take my measurements?"
His eyes flashed to hers, wide open, allowing her to see into him. There was no mental impairment in those dark eyes. Alyss saw intelligence, passion and something else. Something she didn't know but struck a curious ember inside her. He turned his back on her, shutting her out of the windows into his soul, and walked away.
Alyss reached out to the counter to steady herself. She scanned the shop's walls. They were filled with art work. "These are all yours too, aren't they?"
He came back to her, tape measure in hand. A slight tremor overtook his fingers as he stretched the tape out towards her. "Raise your arms," he said.
His voice was a silky command. Of their own accord, Alyss' arms floated up. She caught herself before they reached her breast, and she frowned. How dare this male give her -a high born lady- an order.
"Please."
Alyss obeyed him without another thought.
He swallowed, surveying her proffered figure before he approached her. She'd been measured many times for clothing, most of her wardrobe was tailored. Some of the best seamstresses were men, but she didn't know of any male clothing designers who designed from scratch for women's bodies.
He wrapped the thin strip around her, making care not to touch her skin. He was close enough that she smelled his sweet cologne. Beneath the sweet smell was another, more tart, more pungent, the smell of oil-based paints.
Alyss inhaled.
Slowly he tightened the tape at her waist.
"You didn't answer my question," she said. Her voice didn't sound like her own. It was throaty, breathless, even after the deep breath she'd taken. She let lose the shaky breath.
"Hold still...please." He pulled the measure tighter.
The tape couldn't have been more than an inch in width, but Alyss felt the impact of the tiny strip spread the expanse of her torso. She inhaled again, under the pretense of sucking in her waist line. She welcomed more of his scent as it traveled down her throat.
The tape slipped lower, to her hips. "The dress is my design,” he said.
Alyss felt the tape on her rear. He moved it back and forth. The swish of the dress from the sawing action, coupled with her shallow breathing, were the only sounds in the shop. Her voice left her throat on a heavy whisper. "I've never seen anything like it."
"No," his voice was a quiet whisper too, as though they were in a school library and didn't want to be found out. "It's one of a kind."
Having never glanced down at the measurements of her waist or hips, he pulled the tape around her breasts. Again, careful not to let his fingers touch any part of her skin, only the fabric of her dress. The tape tightened at her nipples.
Alyss swallowed.
He watched the undulation of her throat as though cataloging every movement.
It felt improper, like he was taking liberties. But he stood a respectable distance. Only the tape touched her. His dark eyes continued to trace the contours of her face instead of minding the tape measurements. Alyss felt trapped under the intense gaze, ensnared in the heady smell of the remnant of oils on his fingertips.
She wondered if he smelled the same scent on her? But it was unlikely. It had been so long for her.
She dipped her head, looking straight down at his long fingers. There was paint under his nails. She wanted to ask what brand of oils he preferred: latex, acrylic, a blend? She opened her mouth to speak, but he was gone.
He walked away to the counter and made notations on a piece of parchment. Alyss wobbled on her legs for a moment before following him.
"I don't have to make many alterations," he said.
Alyss blinked in response.
A small smile played at his lips. "For the dress," he clarified. "I can have the dress ready for you tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?"
"Yes. Will you come back to me?"
Alyss watched his lips move. They were plump and full, like a cherry hanging from a tree. She watched them move and make sound, but her brain fogged because the sounds and the words and their meanings didn't seem to match.
He stared at her. Too late, she realized it was because he'd asked her a question and she hadn't yet answered.
Alyss shook the fog from her head and then straightened her back. She took a deep breath of clean air. "Yes. I can come back to you. Tomorrow."