TRANSFORMATION

MIA

The devil cosplayer left me screaming like a crazy person which I absolutely looked like, but that wasn’t the point.

I began to pace as I struggled to find the silver lining. It felt like it wasn’t forthcoming, until I caught a hint of my reflection on the large mirror in the room.

Stopping dead in my tracks, my eyes widened as my brain, which was always in survival mode, registered what the devil cosplayer had said.

He wanted to sell me to men. That was horrible. The worst thing that could happen to me. Yet I had to pretend it was fine because the first rule of survival was never to reveal one's fear. And my biggest fear was–

The door opened, and from the mirror I saw two people who couldn't be more in contrast if they tried, walk into the room.

The woman, late forties at best, dressed in a cardigan with an inner shirt buttoned all the way to the top. Her hair was packed into a bun so tight, it dragged her forehead behind. But the man beside her was completely opposite.

He dressed like a peacock. It was the only way I could describe his horrendous mismatch of colours which somehow happened to be quite flattering on him.

“Oh my!” his hands flew to his chest on seeing me.

The stern looking woman didn't say a word. She only circled me with her glasses shifted down to her nose as if she was observing a newly discovered specimen.

“Hello?” I decided to break the ice.

They both looked at me with pity in their eyes, as Mr Peacock came to join Ms bird cager, who had stopped in front of me.

“No wonder the boss wants her to never cross his path,” he whispered to her loud enough for someone two houses away to hear.

“Uhmm, what are you talking about?” I asked.

The woman's deep frown began to loosen into mere displeased glare.

“Wait Gerald. We might have stumbled upon a goldmine,’’ she said, sounding like she was speaking through her nose.

My greedy tongue watered at the thought of a gold mine, and it even made me remember the gold watch I had stolen.

My eyes lit up as my head snapped. "Yes it belongs to me. The gold wristwatch is mine. I earned it fairly."

They exchanged worrying glances before dragging their gazes back to me.

“I don't see it,” Mr Peacock said, shaking his head vigorously.

The woman closed the gap between me and her, and yanked my wig off my head.

I screamed out as if my heart had been plucked out of my chest.

“What did you do that for?” I raised my voice in horror as my golden tresses cascaded the length of my back, resting on my butt.

Mr Peacock gasped. “Is that hair all yours?” he asked with eyes widened in astonishment.

"Uhmm are you one of those weirdos who lure young girls to a corner and cut their hair?" My eyes squinted suspiciously at him.

He laughed out loud with his head thrown back.

‘’She is hilarious and has hair like Rapunzel? What else is she hiding?” he cried out dramatically.

“Coloured teeth done very amateurly, coat obviously rubbed in vileness, skin dressed in coal. All in a disguise.’’ Ms bird cager began to list out like a robot.

My eyes bulged even more with every right guess she made. When she was done speaking, my mouth was agape. “How do you know?!”

“Then it's true? Is all of this a disguise? You're telling me there could be diamonds underneath the rough?”

“No, Gerald. I am telling you we have found the next Passion.”

They turned to me at the same time with a glint in their eyes that rang the alarm bells in my head. I swiftly took a protective step back.

“Sorry, who is Passion and why am I the next her?”

“If you let us transform you, then we promise to tell you all about Passion. Deal?” Mr. Peacock asked.

“Deal,” I replied in a heart beat, as my curiosity got the better of me.

Before I could make any move, Ms bird cager pushed me towards the bathroom.

“I'll handle scrubbing her. Go bring the makeover item.’’ Ms bird cager ordered Mr Peacock who hurried away immediately.

“So, about the legendary Passion–” she began, turning on the shower first.

By the time I came up for breath, I had learnt who Passion was.

The bait who helped the devil lure the most powerful men into his trap. She was dead and I was going to be her replacement.

Of course I didn't think twice about accepting the role. Especially after I was told all I needed to do was relax and be displayed like an exhibit that couldn't be touched.

The most I could do was have dinner with certain men. It was far better than sleeping with men for money.

“Oh my God! Who are you?” Mr Peacock covered his mouth in shock when they were done, snatching, pulling and applying different things on my body.

Ms bird cager turned me to the mirror, and I jolted on seeing my reflection.

“No way!” I wheezed in shock.

“Why have you been hiding all of this beauty, child? Look at you.” Ms bird cager forced me to look at the mirror again.

I saw the girl from seven years ago who ran to LA with dreams of becoming a Hollywood star. The girl who quickly learned that glitz and glamour world was a sharp knife that cut deep. That girl had been cut so deep she went from a dreamer to a thief. A petty thief.

'’What if I can't be Passion?’’ my lips quivered as reality set in.

“Oh darling, you're not Passion. Not by any stretch.’’

Bumps of inadequacy began to rise on my skin, even though I usually could take harsh words thrown at me.

“You’re something different. Something unique. The kind of beauty that is once and forever. You have no idea the inferno your rise is about to cause. Chin up girl. You’re not Passion. You are–”

She paused and I realized it was because she didn't know my name, seeing as I hadn't been asked yet.

“Mia,” I said, looking at my reflection in the mirror. “My name is Mia Nova.”