Soul Searching

Chapter 3

"Can I have some help?"

I look up from picking my nails and give the boy standing in front of me a sunny, sugary smile. He looks slightly repulsed as he stands amongst the herbs, stones, and little medicinal jars. Straightening, I push off to the side and step out from behind the counter.

The boy has dark blonde hair and doesn't look like he'll be out of puberty for several more years. He's shorter, gangly, but has a very beautiful set of eyes that remind me of warm, tangy clove. He fidgets slightly and I watch him as he grimaces at a display of anti-faery mist. He may be grimacing now, but no one ends up complaining when one of those nasty little buggers starts pulling at their hair and setting their curtains on fire.

He's practically blaring his judgment as he fidgets uncomfortably in the middle of my shop.

"How can I help you?"

Clove eyes inhales sharply, like it pains him to admit. "My girlfriend's birthday is tomorrow –"

My mouth twitches. "And you forgot?"

He glares at me. I hold my hands up in surrender, lips fighting the urge to tip into a grin.

"She's into this creepy Wiccan stuff," he grits out and I can't fight the Cheshire smile that erupts.

"Well," I say, already moving past him and making for the display cases that are magically protected from housing different assortments of jewelry. "This isn't technically Wiccan. Wiccan would suggest something other than witchcraft. If you're looking for Wiccan products, there's quite the credible shop in the town over."

His slightly dumbfounded voice follows close behind. "What?"

I roll my eyes and stop in front of the case. "What stones does she wear?"

"Uh... I don't know?"

"So helpful," I sigh, pressing my thumb to the lock embedded in the glass. The metal gleams brightly for a split second in greeting, but I hide it from the boy's view by slipping my shoulder down. Some witches prefer the regular lock and key system to maintain an air of normalcy, but I've had my fair share of run-ins with the local gremlins and dwarves. Anything shiny has the potential to tickle a gremlin's fancy. They have much faster fingers than I do.

With barely a sigh, the glass door opens and I step to the side so the kid can glimpse some of the precious stones that I have inside. He sidles up beside me and immediately reaches in for a turquoise ring.

"Turquoise is supposed to help with connecting to the spirit world," I tell him as he picks it up and turns it in his hands. It's a pretty ring, something a mundane woman would like. Perhaps, if his girlfriend was really into witchy things, she would prefer something with more meaning, more power.

"She has a lot of this," he mumbles and puts it back.

"Does she like hematite?" I try again, reaching to pick up a black stone that hangs from a chain. It isn't necessarily a necklace, more like a rosary to thumb around as a method for spiritual protection. "It's good for –"

"I don't really know," he interrupts, leaning forward slightly.

I put it back. If the stone doesn't tickle his fancy, it isn't the right one. It doesn't stop me from teasing him, however. "You certainly pay a lot of attention to this girlfriend of yours..." I ignore the nasty glare he sends my way and start to hum. "How about..." I run my hand over the first shelf, feeling for the one thing that makes my fingers stick. Barely a second later and my fingers descend and pluck up a necklace. I grin down at it, bringing it out for clove eyes to see. It's very dainty, with small silver links and a clawed pendant that cradles a stark forget-me-not colored crystal.