Rumerra - The Journey Begins

Chapter 2 - A dream come true (part II)

The next few days went by in a breeze and Velvet experienced things she never had the luxury to enjoy before. Penelope took her to a bunch of places where they ate food so good that her mouth was watering just looking at it, always insisting on paying for it all. She took her around the market to pick out clothes and bought her everything the young witch so much as glanced at.

"You really don't need to do this," Velvet said when she took out her money pouch and tossed a few silver coins on the table before a merchant once again.

"I know I don't," the rich girl responded. "But I want to. Here." She handed her the neatly folded silk shirt she had just bought. "Ditch that old shirt and try this one. I bet you will look great in it! Now we need to find you a jacket that matches your shorts. And maybe some gloves..." she scratched her chin looking up and thinking.

Despite feeling kind of bad that her new friend was paying for all of this, she could not deny the girl's sense of fashion. She really knew how to create a matching outfit from seemingly random pieces of clothing. When Velvet came home that day and looked at herself in the mirror, she really liked what she saw.

Her long, baggy shorts were replaced with tighter ones that ended above her knees, instead of going over them. They were a lighter brown color with a black belt and a silver buckle holding them up. She wore a white silk shirt tucked into her shorts and with the sleeves rolled up to around her elbows. The top button was left undone for the collar to not rub her neck. Her old and battered shoes were replaced with fine brown leather boots which went up to about half her calf, two belts with silver buckles on each to make them fit tightly. Black socks peeked out just a little above them. Over her shoulders, a brown leather jacket was sitting unworn, its sleeves hanging down on each side. And her hands were covered in brown fingerless gloves.

Running to her room, she picked up her pointy witch hat which her father had sewed together from many different colored pieces of leather. This was the only piece of clothing she absolutely refused to upgrade. Penelope had shown her a plethora of completely new hats but she didn't want to hear about it. She liked this one because it was unique and handmade by the person who loved her most and encouraged her all the way. Placing it on her head, she went back to the mirror.

Wow. I kind of look like someone from the books I've read, ready to go on an adventure! she thought to herself as she was observing her new outfit. Her father walked in and saw her marveling at herself.

"Where's my favorite little witch?" He smiled. "You look great, my dear! Did you buy those clothes with Penelope?"

The girl nodded. "She didn't let me pay for any, though." Saying that, she produced a small pouch from her pocket. "I still have all of the money you gave me!"

The man cocked his eyebrow at hearing this. Those Corwells are really spoiling us, aren't they? I feel kind of bad accepting their charity like this. But at least Velvet looks happy with the things they bought her... 

He took his coat off the hanger and threw it over his shoulders. "Let's go out for a bit, what do you say?"

His daughter looked at him weirdly. It was hot outside and the coat was not necessary at all. "Why do you need the coat?"

"This way we'll match!" He laughed and made his way to the front door. "Come."

"Where are we going?" She was curious.

"It's a surprise!" her dad told her as they left the house. They walked the streets through the main square and went to the outskirts of the town, where lots of strange shops started to pop up, selling everything from animal furs and herbs to weapons and armor. Velvet almost never went into this part of the town, as it was in the complete opposite direction of her school. She looked around at the estranged surroundings and tried to figure out where her father was taking her. Nothing really useful popped up in her head though.

"Here we are!" he said when they finally arrived at their intended destination. It was an old shop that looked nearly abandoned. One of the windows was broken and the owner seemed to have no intention of fixing it as there were thick spider webs hanging from the gaping hole. The confused girl looked up to where an old wooden board said in bold black letters, "Zeke's Staves." Her eyes immediately lit up once she read it.

"Really?!" she exclaimed happily.

"A proper witch should have a proper staff, right?" He smiled at her, glad to see his surprise was received so well.

"You are the best, Dad!" The girl was overjoyed.

He reached for the handle and they stepped inside. They found themselves in a dimly lit room with lots of different staves of all shapes and sizes hanging on the walls and in the corners. Whoever ran this shop couldn't care less about keeping it tidy. There were spider webs everywhere and dust was sitting thick on most of the items on display.

"Hello?" Her father's voice echoed through the empty room. "Is anybody here?" His question was met with a deafening silence.

"Hello?" he tried again. Nothing. The thought that the shop was abandoned and that they would need to turn around and go home empty-handed had just crossed his mind when some rustling behind a curtain in the back was heard. Moments later, a man wearing a black apron and light blue shirt stepped from behind it.

"Oh, hello there!" he called out, seemingly surprised that a customer somehow found his way into his humble abode.