The Orange Gown
Ellie Morris
(Coventry)
A sudden clank woke me up. That’s how I found out about the room. I should probably tell you about me first, so, my name is Charlotte Rose Skyler. I am 29 and I have my own house which I inherited from my mother. I was in my bed fast asleep just before the clank, clanked outside my room.
“Hey is anyone there?” I shouted, “I could have sworn I locked the front door, I must have forgotten.”
Another thwack clanked on the dusty wooden floor-boards. This time it was ever so slightly louder. I yanked on my dressing gown, its silky orange material trailing behind me and opened my bedroom door then looked right, then left. A dark grey figure disappeared around the corner.
“Hey, wait!”
“Where are you going?” I shouted as I dashed towards the corner and around it.
Again, the figure ran ahead of me like I wasn’t there. How rude! I followed it around the maze of the house. Around the corner, up a few stairs, slip sliding across the floor and up a massive flight of stairs. I nearly caught up with the figure but it sped ahead leaving me lost for breath on a massive flight of stairs. I clambered up them, step by step, and there stood a tall, black, cob-web covered wooden door, with a surprisingly clean door-knob. Now if you’re a smart person you will know what that means but for the not so smart people who haven’t a clue what I’m saying:
When you open a door you usually hold a door-knob, which cleans the dust or cob-webs off, but, if you did that about an hour ago it’s most likely that your door-knob will be covered in dust or cob-webs (or both) when you return.
Anyway, someone (or something) had been there not long ago so that dark figure must have gone in there. I opened the door. It creaked… and squeaked… and it took a mighty heave to budge it open.
“Hello? It’s ok I live here so… ” my voice trailed away slowly.
I couldn’t believe my eyes… but I might as well skip to the best part; a beautiful gown hung on a coat-hanger laced with gold ribbon and sewn with shimmering thread. It hung solemnly on its hanger as if it was actually begging me to try it on. However since I’m the nicest person I know, I let myself wear it. I looked in the tall mirror beside it and the gown beamed at me and I could have sworn it said “Beautiful!”
Suddenly, I heard another clank and creek and still in my dress I turned around. For the second time I couldn’t believe my eyes, however, this wasn’t good. This was bad. Really bad. The wooden floor was breaking into oblivion and heading towards me! The figure was on the other side of the hole and whispered to me “ Charlotta Rosa Sky, do not forget this or doom won’t be far away.”
I fell down and landed bolt upright in my bed. What just happened? Was that real? What am I supposed to do now? Will I ever know who that figure was? Was it real or just a dream? At the corner of my eye a glimpse of orange just caught my eye. I think it wasn’t just a dream.