The bedroom scenery crept in through my hazy and still-tired eyes as I blinked them into focus. A gold-framed landscape painting of a tiny flame sitting beneath a starry night sky stared back at me. Behind the ornate golden frame, sunlight set the swirling red, orange, and yellow gemstone ablaze, sending a comforting warmth emanating from the walls and casting a gentle red light across the room. It was almost, I thought, like a sunset. Shining golden specks of various sizes were embedded in the walls and stone floor as if sparks from ruby flames surrounded me. My fingers tangled in the soft yellow sheets as I pushed myself over onto my back, soaking in the rest of the room.
The ceiling above me was a mixture of deep purples and blues with the faintest tint of orange. Starburst-patterned flakes of gold were inlaid into the ceiling, glinting like stars in the night sky. Similarly shaped lanterns were strung with nearly invisible strands from the ceiling, giving it a strong impression of the night sky.
Surrounded by the fire-like jewels and the golden stars, I realized that the room was meant to mimic the painting I'd seen when I'd woken up. Something went thud outside the gold-paneled door, and abruptly, I sat up and slid onto the soft carpet next to the bed.
Catching sight of another set of fire-inspired clothes hanging beside the door, I slipped out of the Agarthian clothes I'd fallen asleep in and into the new ones before stepping out into the main room.
A white blur darted past my feet, shadowed by Ani. Cove, who hadn't noticed me yet, lunged for Ranch, letting out a hissed command, "Ranch, drop it!"
She slinked in behind a plant, barely dodging a swipe from a hyper Ani.
Cove waited for her on the other side of the plant while Ani boxed her in. "Ranch!"
His faithful familiar jumped out from behind the plant at his call, dodging his hands midair to use his shoulder as a springboard, landing on a plant shelf above his head. Cove stretched on his toes, swiping at her. "Get down!"
Ranch flicked her tail, her eyes darting around the room until they landed on me. She looked down at Cove, back at me, then down at Cove again, the tie he'd used on his tunic sticking out of her mouth. She crept forward to the edge of the shelf. Ani lunged up at her, missing the shelf by a good couple of feet.
Cove's hand grazed her paw, and she watched, taunting. Just as he thought his hand would wrap around her paw, she lifted it out of his reach, batting lightly at his hand.
Defeated, Cove turned, snatching up a beautifully embroidered chair next to him as a makeshift ladder. While his back was turned, Ranch jumped down, her claws skidding across the hard floor as she careened away, the tie bumping against her side as she ran. Ani sprinted underneath the chair after her. The chair clattered to the floor as Cove whirled around, on the hunt again for his wayward cat.
Personally, I was relieved that my cat wasn't the one causing trouble this time. Ranch circled around a couch, heading in my direction and meeting my eyes again with a playful jerk of her chin that made the tie flap in her wake. I kept my body loose as she drew closer, watching her out of the corner of my eye. Once she was within arms reach, I bent over, catching her between my hands. Ranch squirmed. Ani leaped up at the flailing tie, snatching it in his mouth. I dropped Ranch to pick up the tie, and the cats ran off into another playful chase.
From across the room, Cove watched me in shock with a twinge of embarrassment. "H-Hayden! You're up!"
I raised an eyebrow and lifted the tie.
Cove rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. "Thanks. I was a-frayed I would knot catch her."
I wrapped my hand around the rope, pulling it back. Cove's eyes widened. "Wait! I need that!"
I paused. He caught my meaning and sighed, stepping closer. "Sorry, that was a bad joke." I let him pluck the silver rope out of my hands. He tied it around his waist as he added, "I thought I was going to have to skip the rope," tugging on the cord tied around his waist and flashing me a toothy smile as he did so.
Ignoring his terrible follow-up joke, I took another look around the room, noting how the color stretched seamlessly around the room, even along the walls, I knew to be red on the other side. I slid back into the doorway, hoping to catch the transition. Unfortunately for me, molding was hung along the inside and the outside of the door, making it impossible to see where the green stopped and the red began.
"Impressive, isn't it? The architecture is the crown jewel of the Agarthians," Cove said, stepping up behind me to take a peek at the room I'd used. "It's star-nning."
Unable to bear the barrage of puns, I abandoned him, heading to inspect his room. Blue light cast a shifting, watery pattern on the floor as I pushed open the silver door plunging into an oceanic room. The walls and floor were a gradient, going from light, aquamarine blue to a blue so deep it was nearly black along the floor. A plush black and silver carpet lined the floor, the same dark blue as the sheets. As the sunlight shifted through the walls and along the floor, the facets scattered the light and the colors like the ocean current swirling beneath the surface.
On the left wall was a silver-bordered painting of a deep ocean, looking up at the starry sky just beyond the ocean's reach.
I glanced upward, catching sight of a near replica of the starry sky in my borrowed room, with one major difference. A rippling second layer of glass or some nearly transparent gem stretched below, like waves cresting overhead, acting as a barrier between sea and sky.
I had the vague feeling I was being swallowed up by the vast ocean, with air just out of reach. Slightly uncomfortable, I stepped out of the room, closing the door firmly behind me.