Beauty and the Magician (Tales of the Red Witch Book 1)

Chapter 2 - A kiss on the hand

The pair reached the village of Wohnort just before dusk on the next day. It was a place right out of a fairy tale with a pleasant cobblestone main street lined with a few dozen shops and various side streets with rows of neat little townhouses. As expected of such a quaint little village, there were even flower boxes in the windows. There were plenty of folks walking in groups and carousing down the street, but the road was wide enough to accommodate the people and horses alike. It was apparent that everyone in the village knew everyone else by the many friendly greetings that could be heard over the general bustle of the village sounds.

The shops had been built from wood beams and stucco and were painted a rainbow of pastel colors. Neatly decorated wooden signs advertising the shops' wares swung out over the street enticing local and foreign customers alike. Wohnort was, in fact, a popular stopping point for travelers making their way along the eastern road through Landet Gress and it was where the men intended to stop for the night before continuing on their mad adventure.

The smell of fresh baked pastries wafted by them from somewhere nearby. Stefan breathed in the scent deeply and felt his stomach grumble loudly at it's emptiness. Where was that inn again? He found himself wondering what would be on the menu. His mouth watered at the thought.

They were trotting down the main street toward the inn when Stefan caught Andri performing a double-take, craning his neck hard to look at a flower shop of all things. He had pulled his horse to a sudden stop, forcing Stefan to ask his stubborn mare in a rather firm manner to turn around.

"What is it?" Stefan turned his head to follow his friend's gaze. It was but a moment when he saw it, or rather her.

"I suddenly find that I'm in need of some... flowers, Stefan." The roguish gleam in his eyes was apparent. Andri was about to enter a battle of the opposite sexes, and Stefan had no choice but to follow. Andri dismounted with his usual flourish taking the reins of his stallion and leading it over to a post to tie it up before puffing up his chest and strolling over to the shop's entrance with all the confidence of a prize fighter facing an opponent half his size. He clearly expected victory.

Though in truth he had no reason to expect otherwise, he was a prince after all.

Stefan rolled his eyes. He was tired and hungry and had no desire to accompany his friend on such a conquest. He surveyed the street and spotted a bookshop next door. Why couldn't the pretty girl work in the bookshop instead? At least then he could browse while Andri made his plans with the girl.

He dismounted with far less flourish, surprised that he managed to get his feet under him before crashing to the cobblestones. He tied his mare up and followed Andri into the shop.

The girl was really quite pretty and made a perfect picture in the quaint little shop. The smell of flowers and damp earth hung pleasantly in the air and the late afternoon sun muted all the colors to shades of gold giving the whole scene an otherworldly feel. It was like they had just stepped into an enchanted forest and the girl was a faery queen.

The girl was tall and quite pleasantly rounded in certain places. Her softly curling blonde-ish hair was pulled back neatly framing her heart-shaped face with it's small upturned nose and sharp green eyes.

She had moved from the front window where they had first spotted her and was now standing at the back of the shop behind a counter arranging a bouquet. She looked up when the bell hanging above the shop door tinkled announcing their entrance. Her back was as straight as a fence post and her face though slightly quizzical was cold and hard.

Because he wore no hat, Andri's golden brown hair had acquired a wind-blown wave over the course of their long ride. He smiled, tugging on his dusty coat straightening out the wrinkles. Stefan had always admired the fit of his friend's coat. Even though they went to the same tailor, clothes always seemed to fit Andri better.