He'd agreed. Of course he had agreed, why wouldn't he have? He was merely helping her with a simple task. That was all that was running through Mabel's mind as she stepped forward and watch him kneel in front of her to start on her request. Though she could only feel his touch through the leather of her shoes, she couldn't help but feel something else start to buzz in the air. Chalking it up to her nervousness over this highly improper situation, she quickly lifted her feet out of the shoes. With her socks being so wet, they slid clean off as well, and hung limply over the sides of the shoes. Once she had her wand back in hand, she would place them near the fireplace.
If possible, she felt even more vulnerable, and she wiggled her toes, shuffling her feet closer together as if that would make her smaller and less discernible. Standing there with him near was as if someone had taken a quarter of the oxygen out of the room, and Mabel found it hard to draw breath. It did occur to her that removing her corset would be a resolution to such an issue. And though she was capable of taking her corset off under normal circumstances, the potion had only done so much in it's results. She no longer felt weak and dizzy, but the cold air that still hung in the apartment still made her fingers feel brittle and stiff. Tugging at strings and metal hooks would not go over well. Good God. If her brother walked in on the both of them now, there would be no place for Dory to hide.
But Algae wasn't here at the moment. It was just her and Dory. And Dory was among the few people in her life that she would trust. He'd just pulled her from the Black Lake and flown her back here. That had to be proof enough that he wouldn't think of taking advantage. "Alright." She relented, her voice small as she accepted his help once again. "Careful, I was in a hurry this morning and tied the knot a bit tight."
She was referring to the laces on her corset, of course, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to form the request Dory, if you would please help me out of my corset, I should be ever so grateful. Swallowing any urge to dart out of the room, Mabel turned so her back was to him. Her hand came up and gathered her hair, tangled and still waterlogged, and pulled it to the side so he could see properly.
If possible, she felt even more vulnerable, and she wiggled her toes, shuffling her feet closer together as if that would make her smaller and less discernible. Standing there with him near was as if someone had taken a quarter of the oxygen out of the room, and Mabel found it hard to draw breath. It did occur to her that removing her corset would be a resolution to such an issue. And though she was capable of taking her corset off under normal circumstances, the potion had only done so much in it's results. She no longer felt weak and dizzy, but the cold air that still hung in the apartment still made her fingers feel brittle and stiff. Tugging at strings and metal hooks would not go over well. Good God. If her brother walked in on the both of them now, there would be no place for Dory to hide.
But Algae wasn't here at the moment. It was just her and Dory. And Dory was among the few people in her life that she would trust. He'd just pulled her from the Black Lake and flown her back here. That had to be proof enough that he wouldn't think of taking advantage. "Alright." She relented, her voice small as she accepted his help once again. "Careful, I was in a hurry this morning and tied the knot a bit tight."
She was referring to the laces on her corset, of course, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to form the request Dory, if you would please help me out of my corset, I should be ever so grateful. Swallowing any urge to dart out of the room, Mabel turned so her back was to him. Her hand came up and gathered her hair, tangled and still waterlogged, and pulled it to the side so he could see properly.
![[Image: QFB5GZw.jpeg]](https://i.imgur.com/QFB5GZw.jpeg)