Episode One Hundred and Thirty-Eight: Consequences
A blast of warmth from the floor made me relax. Betty had moved that other box, so it must not have anything to be too worried about. The next box contained bundles of dried herbs and flowers, each tied with twine and labeled with various properties.
“That’s for restocking,” said the Cat, sounding like his normal self. “It’s cheaper from the supplier here. We’ll be selling that later to a recurring customer.”
He sniffed at the bundles, then sneezed.
“Don’t sneeze on the merchandise,” I said, closing the box and picking it up to take to the storeroom. For once, the storeroom had other boxes sitting on the shelves, making me pause. Most of the boxes weren’t cardboard and instead were some sort of clear plastic, letting me see inside. Tall wooden spears rested against the far wall, while another shelf held a bunch of velvet pouches. A third had a stack of wooden wands from a children’s story.
It exited slowly, tilting my head to the side.
“Hey, Cat, the storage room had stuff in it.”
The Cat blinked up at me next to the last box, which now rested on the counter. He lowered his head and spoke slowly, “The storage room has always had stuff in it. Merchandise, ingredients, that sort of thing.”
I headed directly to the box and my box cutter.
“Not for me. I always put the stuff away on empty shelves, or things appear that we need when we need them.”
Again, the Cat glanced at me like I was weird.
“Never mind.” This box was books, like Adam had said, but books I recognized. Various fantasy paperbacks, along with a few hardcovers. All stuff from my world that I read in my free time. “Is this merchandise, or for me?”
The Cat jumped up and landed on a book.
“Merchandise. Books like this sell well on other worlds, but we normally ship them out in large lots once or twice a year,” said the Cat.
“Urban fantasy books?” I asked just to confirm.
“Yes. I don’t get the appeal, but if the stories are like the show, they might be interesting.”
It came to me that he was talking about the Elven show, with the rings. It was a good one, but I didn’t know how much of it he had seen. Hopefully, that meant he would like his gift.
“So, this can go into the storeroom? Or should I put them on that one bookshelf?” There was one bookshelf that sometimes came out full of these. That plant person had really enjoyed them. She’d been nice, though I couldn’t remember her name for some reason.
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“The shop can take care of them,” he said before nodding at me. “You need to practice your magic before the Professor comes back.”
He stared pointedly at the citrine resting on top of Betty before jumping off the counter and heading for the kitchen.
My stomach grumbled, letting me know it had to be close to lunchtime.
“How about I make some grilled cheese sandwiches first, then I can practice and get back to studying?”
The Cat didn’t say anything, just kept marching away from me with his tail in the air.
The box sunk into the counter, and I patted Betty on the top. It gave me an excuse to check and see the rock, plus the two oak leaves that remained. I hadn’t imagined one of them fading into gold sparks.
“What are you for?” I whispered to myself, poking one of them. Then I snagged the yellow crystal and stuck it in my pocket. Off to the kitchen I went to make some lunch.
###
I didn’t escape Sable until she rested on one of those ridiculously long chairs on the roof in the sun. She at least had her books on magic that the Professor had assigned, along with the stone that had appeared.
The grilled cheese sandwich was tasty, though it sat in my stomach like a rock. I stared out the window as she used golden energy shaped like shields to shove a small ball around that was floating on the surface of the water in the hot tub.
Even now, her progress amazed me. It’d taken me years to learn to use my innate abilities, yet she took to the stone magic with ease. Then again, she should have been able to use it since she was young, if it was innate.
I turned away from the smile on her face to peek at the tree. It still sat there, one single yellow leaf with a few other green ones. It felt small and weak. Using the dust to fertilize it would have filled the tree with energy, maybe even enough to break free of its cage.
Yet, I’d let her destroy it.
Destroy lost magics and give them back to the source.
I didn’t regret it, but I worried about my own decisions. I couldn’t ask those who knew if I’d made the right call. That left Sable, and maybe I trusted her. She’d asked me to. But she didn’t know what that meant. The ramifications of that.
Could I trust her to figure this out and free me?
###
I knew he stared at me through the glass, yet I didn’t look in his direction. Hopefully, whatever was bothering him he’d figure out. Though, today had been a weird one, even on the scale of the shop. Those jars.
I shivered and missed bouncing the ball with the shield. This couldn’t be what the Cat had meant when he mentioned practicing magic, but it was fun. I wondered if I could play ping pong like this, and maybe beat my brothers for once. I was the worst player in our family.
The box of solstice gifts sat in the living room. I’d noticed them as I walked by, but I hadn’t stopped in yet to figure out how I wanted them to go under the tree.
I missed my family, but felt okay with staying here. Not that I really had a choice, besides breaking the contract, but I couldn’t do that to the Cat or to Indigo. Both needed me.
That’s really what it came down to.
I felt like I needed to be here. Like the shop was the place to be. Especially once Indigo came home, things would fall back into place. Plus, I’d get to hear all about the dragon lands and how cool they were.
I just needed her to come back. We had one more day. One more workday, then the Solstice would be here.
“She’ll come back, right Betty?” Warmth blazed from under me, making me chuckle. The citrine sparkled in the sunlight, and I pulled the book closer. “Let’s see what I can do with you.”