Inviting Prosperity

The festival had a welcoming roar of customers and tenders talking about the Lunar Festival, the crackling of firecrackers seeped through the chatter around me. Bright lights glowed through the red lanterns, they glistened above my head like a sea of warmth. Too excited to notice my friend has tried to pull away from me.

“Mira, please wait, you are going to dislocate my wrist at this point,” Alicia said, she pulled me towards her, then placed her hands on my shoulders. “We should enjoy this together; this is your first time at a Lunar New Year festival.”

“I’m sorry, Alicia, but it is mesmerizing. Thank you, for inviting me to China.”

“Of course, you would not shut up about it ever since I told you I was coming, I had to invite you.” Alicia pointed to a stand with an older woman, working tirelessly over steam pots. The woman takes a white handkerchief and quickly wipes off her brow. “Are you hungry, Mira? Those dumplings are to die for over there.”

“Of course, I have no doubt when it’s something recommended by you.”

We made our way to the dumpling stand and took a seat; Alicia ordered the food from the older woman in Mandarin. The sun had long set, red and purple hues painted the sky. Cool spring breeze fanned the savory scent of dumplings through my nose.

“If one thing is universally known, it’s good food,” I said, I bowed my head to the older woman as she set the dumplings in front of us. Bringing the chopsticks to my mouth, the chives and well-seasoned pork tantalized my taste buds. “I wonder if water dragons would have the same affinity for food…”

The older woman looked at me, she said something. My mandarin was poor, but I swore I understood ‘to be one with’ and ‘water dragon’.

“Excuse me? I didn’t understand that.” I leaned a bit closer to the woman, eager to know what she said.

“My dear, you will know soon what it means to become one with the water dragons,” she placed a blue stone in my hands, then she walked off to another customer. I looked around; thoughts crowed my head on how I was able to understand her.

***

We made our way throughout the festival, seeing many performances, one was underwater. The performers danced with a man-made water dragon; the movements of the paper dragon became enticing. My head swayed with the fluid gestures.

That night I dreamt a mighty dragon emerged from the river, whisper of knowledge blessed me, yet not one word was spoken.

***

“Alicia, you need to see this,” I ran into her room, lifted my shirt; purplish silver thick markings glistened under sunlight. The thick skin felt like a corset wrapping tightly on my skin. As she approached and touched the marks, Alicia’s eyes grew wide.

“Mira, why did you put scales on your body?” her voice trailed off and broke into laughter. Scared, I pulled my shirt down. “You’re too silly sometimes, Mira, I take it you enjoyed the festival?”

“Something is happening to me and you’re making it a joke,” the memory of the older woman flashed into my mind. “The old woman, at the dumpling stand. She did this to me, I know it.”

“Mira, you don’t even know that for sure.” I pulled at her wrist and showed her the blue stone that was given to me. Panic flashes on Alicia’s face, she looked down.

After a thorough conversation of ancient Chinese history, and the legends of the dragons’ disciples. I plopped myself on Alicia’s bed, covered my face in disbelief.

“That’s absolutely insane, do you even hear yourself?”

“No sane person would ever think it would actually happen, Mira.”

“Well, no shit, I’m turning into a dragon!”

Dry, my throat is dry, breathing felt like sandpaper rubbed together in a desperate attempt to shave away at my lungs. Water dragons never spent much time out of the water, that’s it; I needed water. I ran to the bathroom, turned the sink on full blast, I drank from the tap.

“We have to find her, Mira, what will happen if you stay like this?”

I looked to Alicia, and in a raspy voice I said, “Oh I don’t know, be used for prosperity for all of China,” the realization that I could be stuck as a water dragon settled bitterly in my chest.

***

Gone. Like it never existed, the stand, the woman. All traces of her ever being here, vanished last night. There was pain on my forehead, I clasped my hands around my head.

“Damn it.”

“Holy cow,” said Alicia, her face pale with a hand on her mouth. I ran to the nearest window and screamed; horns, there were bluish black horns peeking through my skin.

“You have been chosen to bear the burden of the noble Coiling Dragon, this gift would be difficult, even impossible to remove,” the older man poured tea into a jade teacup, his voice soft yet influential, “If this tea does not help remove the blessing, you will be the reincarnation of self-sacrificing dragon. Drink.”

I sipped the tea, lavender and lemon trickled into my mouth. The pain in my forehead, the tightness around my body begins to evaporate. Alicia sighed in relief, handed me a mirror; they were truly gone. Had it worked, was I free from the responsibility? I peered into my blue eyes- blue eyes that peered back at me.

I became vacant, the world blurring; I saw the water. The dragon emerged from the water, excess water slid off its body, sounding like waterfalls were next to my ear.

“Invite in the prosperity, my child, let the world be blessed by your presence.” the whisper filling my ears once more. I nodded unwillingly, my reality slowly returning into my view.

“Mira, can you hear me?” Alicia’s eyebrows are knitted together, her voice wavered.

“Yes, my child, I can hear you,”