the week passed. the store was closed at the end of the week, letting the displays have a time to get some change from standing stiff all the time. penelo was surprised to realise she didn't feel stiff at all. it was like she had only been standing still for a few seconds.

the other two display items were turned back as well. madame lufaine had done them first, and they had been sent to change out of the items they had been displaying. penelo was sent to do the same in a changing room, finding her normal clothes there.

'how did you find it?' lufaine asked when penelo left the changing room.

'a little boring.'

'yes, the window always is, you'd be surprised to know.'

rals and kulin were both sitting in the store after changing out of their own display. penelo realised that this was the first time she'd seen them in the flesh. as she had suspected, kulin was every bit as pretty not petrified as she was standing as a display for a wedding dress, whilst penelo thought rals looked a little more handsome than he had petrified.

'you've technically met rals and kulin, but they haven't really met you, penelo.' lufaine said to introduce them.

'bored stiff by the window job?' kulin asked.

'it's always dull. more intresting to be inside.' rals said.

'i'd have throught it was the other way around.' penelo said.

'everyone does. but inside, you can hear what the customers are saying. most of them don't know what the displays really are so you get to stand around and eavesdrop.' kulin said.

'oh right. you can't hear anything clearly in the window unless there's a loud noise from somewhere.' penelo noted

'yes, and you can't hear much inside the store because the ambience outside drowns out everyone in the store. that and the fact your hearing isn't very good in the first place when you're petrified.'

penelo hadn't actually noticed that, but now she thought about it, things had sounded muffled, like her ears were stuffed with wool.

'it's not a bad job though. long hours but not too tiring.' rals said.

'not being tiring's the big problem though, isn't it. you have to try and sleep before you get the next week done.' kulin said.

'why is that?' penelo asked.

'easy. if you don't sleep now, you'll feel fine for the next week. but the second you turn back you'll be out like a light. or worse, you'll fall asleep petrified. do that, you'll be out for a good while, not just overnight.' kulin explained.

'oh.' penelo said.

'and of course you need to be awake to turn back. if you're asleep you really are a statue for the duration until you wake back up.' rals said.

'so going to sleep before we go back on display...'

'is probably a good idea, yes. best to stay in the store i find, because otherwise you start feeling a little reluctant about going back. especially when it's a window job.'

***

penelo had followed that advice, and was soon back in the window. the dress had been made to be able to go back on her after she was petrified again, the two assistants carefully dressing the statue with it and then putting her back out in the window, where boredom awaited. madame lufaine explained that she would be moved inside next week. though penelo had never doubted that the window had been boring before, it seemed a lot more boring now there was the prospect of a more interesting time around the corner for some reason.

she only started to notice the differences in being petrified now they had been brought to her attention. the muffled hearing was the first, but penelo also noticed that things seemed a little darker and duller outside. she was sure a red signpost outside was normally a lot brighter.

most surprisingly was when a cart spilled a box outside, breaking a few bottles of what probably had to be perfume. the smell of it managed to waft in the window and penelo was too pleased to have something out of the ordinary happen to consider that being petrified she couldn't inhale and so shouldn't have been able to smell anything at all. it never actually occurred to her until long after the prefume and glass had been swept up and only the lingering scent hung in the air.

at least it wasn't manure or something. she thought when she had pondered how she could have smelled the perfume in the first place

***
meanwhile, in lowtown, kytes was finding that his friends were helping his prank out better than he had hoped. filo and three of his friends had found kytes with looks of worry on their faces. to them, penelo had been missing nearly two weeks

'kytes, where is penelo? migelo and vaan won't tell me anything!' filo said.

'i don't know. they won't tell me either. they say she's away working somewhere but it's been too long for that.' kytes lied

'she must have been kidnapped.' nellie, the only other girl of the five, said

'why do you think that?' kytes asked her.

'well, if she's not away working she must have been kidnapped or something.'

'maybe she ran off with a sky pirate?' brutus, one of the other boys said.

kytes struggled to not smile. they were sure to beleive whatever he told them.

'well, i think we should look for her. try and find what happened.' filo said.

'how?' kytes asked. he knew what she planned.

'we look around the town and ask about her of course.'

that was perfect. if someone else found her, even better, but since he knew where she was he could pretend to "find" her soon.

***

penelo's second week ended like the last, relief that the boredom was over for now and relief at being able to move again. she found herself alone in the store for now, and for some reason, felt tired despite having slept before going back in.

'the good news is you'll be going in the store next week. rals and kulin have finished their shift this month so there's someone else going in the window.' madam lufaine explained

penelo tried to thank her, but it came out as a yawn.

'i see you're tired. it's probably best you have good rest.'

penelo could only nod. when she woke up, lufaine was there waiting for the other two workers who would go on display. penelo learned the other woman would be standing across from her whilst the man coming in would replace her in the window. they wouldn't arrive for another hour or so though.

'you've been quite the good luck charm. three customers ordered the same kind of dress you were wearing last week and two more before.' lufaine explained.

'is that unusual?'

'for the window display, yes. usually anyone wanting a dress comes in to see the other displays.'

other than the two who would stand inside, there were a number of more mundane mannequins, wooden dolls with dresses and suits on them. lufaine obviously regarded what the workers-turned-displays wore to be the better items she showcased.

penelo waited on the other workers arriving, seeing a brunette woman a little taller than her come in, along with a black-haired man. they both vanished out of her darkened stone sight into the back for a short time, but returned, the male first, being put in the window wearing a suit. the woman came back in a slightly more casual dress than penelo wore, a long red skirt with a pink upper body, with lace collars and cuffs. it occurred to penelo she didn't know their names, and the other two might not know hers.

***

being inside meant that penelo was eavesdropping on conversations that happened. mostly it was just customer and clerk talking about a dress or suit, but sometimes customers spoke with each other. currently, two arcadian women were standing in front of her. both had brown hair, but one had some grey in her hair. the other was younger, probably both secretaries for the imperial army. they didn't trust dalmascans with things like that.

'the consul won't last long i don't think.' the older one said.

'why?' the younger one asked.

'the emperor is less than pleased with his performance. he's not done well in establishing good links with the local populace.'

well, of course he hasn't. how would arcadians like a rozzarian occupation? penelo thought.

'oh. so who will replace him?' the younger one said.

'it's likely the emperor will send his eldest son. it's a high-profile task and it will please everyone else, but carries just enough risk for vayne to not have a smooth ride to inherit the throne.'

'but surely he wants his son to take over?'

the older woman smiled.

'not quite. vayne is ambitious and good at lying and pretendning. he's made himself popular with the rest of the government...' she said as the two left the shop.

penelo had never found politics interesting but was a little dissapointed. most people regarded the consul as a heavy handed buffoon, and if the empire was sending someone else she'd want to know more. after all, the current consul had been lax on pickpockets and petty crime so his soldiers could watch out for the rebellion he was sure existed. a new one might have been a little more level headed, especially an ambitious one.

***

'i found her!' kytes said, pretending as best he could.

'what? where is she?' filo asked. everyone had met up after searching for most of three days for any clue or sign of penelo.

'you're not going to believe me.' he said. he'd found that usually got anyone to believe it no matter how silly it was.

'well?' nellie asked.

'you remember those stories about that dressmaker who kidnaps people?' he began. they were hooked and bought whatever he said after that.

***

back with the ''kidnapped'' penelo, there was another conversation in front of her, a man and a woman. they were looking more at the display opposite, but penelo could hear them.

'there seem to be more pickpockets around at the market just now.' the woman said.

'yes, and more bandits out in the country. the imperials are too busy with this rebellion nonsense that the consul is convinced about. while they worry about some lowtown orphans scrawling graffiti on walls, the theives and bandits are sucking the merchants dry.' the man said.

'well, the rumour is that he's not got long.'

aw, i thought i'd found out something intresting penelo thought.

***

since she was not in the window, she did not see two familar faces hiding behind a real statue's plinth outside.

'so where is she?' filo asked.

she had tried to convince the others to sneak up here with her and kytes, but most of them had chickened out after she had told them something she had heard about the shopowner. the story had went that once someone's big brother was kidnapped and put in the window, and he had tried to rescue him. he'd tried to break into the shop and he'd never been seen again, him or his brother because the window display was changed the next day, but they said that both of them had been sold as statues to the palace and the rumour was one of the fountains had a figure of a very scared boy on top spitting water out of his mouth. even kytes had been convinced by it for a second, even though he knew the truth. but come to think of it there was something kind of odd about the statue he was hiding behind. was it his imagination or was the horse really detailed...

'uh, she was inside.' kytes said.

'so that means the guy there is someone else who was kidnapped. and the store is probably full of other victims.' filo said. kytes thought she was enjoying this a little too much.

'well, i only saw her and another one.' he said. he'd hung around and looked in the door to see penelo and someone else who must have worked there full time just in case they asked.

'then they're all hidden or a lot of them get sold after they're not displayed any more. i bet she only turns people she doesn't like into fountains.'

'like theives or people who break in?' kytes said.

'yeah.' filo said, not a trace of fear.

'like us?'

'don't be silly, it's not like anyone even knows we're here. the shop's empty, and if it's not we run.' filo said. then a hand landed on their shoulders.

'aaaaaaaaaaagh!' both of them cried out. vaan jumped back in surprise at their response.

'vaan?!' kytes said. filo was running away and stopped in the middle of the square when she heard kytes speak.

'it's just vaan?' she said, annoyed she'd been surprised like that.

'yeah, it's just me. what are you two doing up here?'

'we found penelo!' filo said. vaan sighed and kytes realised he might have been in trouble.

'yeah, she's been working in that store. what did kytes tell you?'

a few moments later, filo was a little annoyed at being tricked.

'so, she volunteered? and she's getting paid?' filo asked after vaan convinced the two of them to come back with him and leave penelo to work. pickpocketing was one thing but anyone breaking and entering was in trouble, imperials more worried about rebels or not.

'yes.'

'how much?'

'i'm not sure. a thousand gil?'

'just to stand around as a statue? i could do that.' filo said.

'i wouldn't advise it. i think we'd have to pay them to keep you as one for longer.' vaan noted.

'i could stand around for a year for a thousand gil...' filo said.

'sounds good to me, how much would we need to pay you for fifty years?'

***

penelo finished her month without any other events, listening to a few more conversations and finding she was almost asleep when she was turned back for her break at the end of the third week. oddly though, she was wide awake and alert at the end of her shift.

'5000 gil and the dress are your payment. but of course, if we ever need someone else again you're welcome to return if you're available.' madam lufaine said.

'thank you. i'd be glad to.' penelo said. she accepted the dress because it was rude not to, and it wasn't going to affect the real money even though she couldn't see herself wearing a dress any time soon. she returned back to migelos, expecting people to be a bit confused about where she had been. some were, but she was a little surprised when filo asked if maybe the dressmaker could give her a job.

'what did you tell her?' she asked vaan.

'nothing. but kytes apparently told everyone the whole dressmaker-statue legend and something about people breaking in to save people getting turned into fountains when they were caught.' vaan said. kytes was in the store and heard everything, but penelo hadn't spotted him

his little prank had failed. he had hoped to tell filo the truth and get her in on it and scare everyone else, but filo had decided to tell them the actual truth, which had been bad for kytes. and since penelo was probably going to be annoyed, he had a feeling it was going to get a lot worse.

'okay. well, madame lufaine might have a job, you'd need to ask migelo, he knows her. but kytes might have a job as well. i hear that they want a new fountain in the square. have you seen him anywhere?'

it was kytes who then seemed to have went missing, hiding from penelo for the next month just in case she hadn't been joking...