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You Have No Such Ability
Miss Speke sat calmly in the witness stand, one hand resting lightly on the multi-strand pearls around her neck. The courtroom was packed, and everyone seemed eager to hear what she had to say. Mr. Weston, the prosecutor, stood in the center of the courtroom with an expression of profound skepticism. "So, let me understand this," he said. "You claim that you can alter reality simply by clenching those pearls and wishing for something?" "That is correct," Miss Speke replied. Mr. Weston gave a disbelieving laugh. "Nobody can alter reality with a necklace." Miss Speke leaned back in her chair. She gently closed her fingers around the pearls. *Everyone in the courtroom is wearing pretty outfits and heels.* Reality changed. There was no flash of light. No thunderclap. No magical sound whatsoever. One moment, Mr. Weston was wearing his ordinary courtroom suit. The next, he was wearing a high-gloss purple-magenta latex-style A-line dress. It had a square neckline edged with black ruffled trim, short puff sleeves with black cuffs, silver clasps running down the bodice, and a full knee-length skirt. On his feet were black high-heeled pumps. The defense lawyer standing to the left had become a man in a light-blue tea-length gown with a lace overlay, sweetheart neckline, wide satin bow belt, and matching blue pointed-toe pumps. A white faux-fur shawl rested elegantly across his shoulders. At the far-left desk, the court recorder now wore a pastel-pink tea-length dress covered in lace, complete with sheer lace puff sleeves, a pink waist belt, a matching hair bow, and pink heels. The defense lawyer's assistant at the back wore a shiny mint-green dress with a turquoise cast, short puff sleeves, and a square neckline. Even the judge had changed. She now sat behind the bench in a white one-shoulder dress, cascading ruffles flowing dramatically along the neckline and strap. Only Miss Speke remained exactly as she had been: composed in her elegant sleeveless cream dress, matching shawl, and pearl necklace. Nobody noticed. Nobody gasped. Nobody looked down at themselves. Reality had simply rewritten their understanding of what had always been true. Miss Speke smiled. |