James worked through the rest of the day. He'd taken the legs off of the small table in his living room to fill it with the remainder of Aurora's sand. Some combing and a few larger rocks from his back yard had it looking like a passable zen garden. Sally helped by cleaning out the tub and scouring any trace of sand she could find, along with the tiny exfoliated scales. Aurora stood in the bathroom watching, flickering through just about every color in the rainbow.
Then, early the next morning, came the hard part. The incredibly reckless idea that was her way of hiding. Sally brought out her makeup, sighing heavily. This was going to be...a lot. Aurora squirmed at first, until James pulled up a blue screen and had Sally touch Aurora's palm. While Sally set to work, James picked out a wig and some costume pieces from a nearby store. Fake ears, a fake nose, a bald cap to glue the wig onto. It was incredibly expensive, but justifiable considering the possible consequences of not having them. By the time he got back she was ready for them.
Sally was grinning with pride at her handiwork. "It took all of my foundation, every pad I had to cover up those lights of hers, and most of my contour."
James stared, impressed. She definitely had the color to be human, now. "You did under the clothing too?"
"Enough to not tell. As long as she doesn't take any of it off, it'll be alright. Got the rest?"
James held up the bag. "Yep. I picked smaller parts...figured it would look more proportional."
Sally gawked a moment at the wig. "Real hair? That's overdoing it, isn't it?"
James shook his head. "I don't think so. We have to avoid any chance at her being recognized."
Sally nodded, and set about gluing on the remaining parts. When she finished, Aurora looked like a brown haired beauty...with incredibly alien eyes. For good measure, she ruffled the wig, spilled a little bit of vodka on her jeans, and sat her on James's bed. It took a little while for her to understand to pretend to sleep, but once she did Sally finished the makeup on her eyelids. A quick glass of water and some tylenol by the bed finished the look.
James bit his lip, his nerves felt like fire and his heart was trying to jump out of his chest. Then they heard the knock. Aurora perked up, too. James pulled up an orange screen, and mimed falling asleep after pointing at her. She was visibly panicked, but followed his lead. Another knock. Fuck.
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