The Scar of the Dragon (Youtubers AU)

Chapter 3

"And how am I supposed to be sure that this potion works?"

The old man gives a steely blue eyed squint to the young man standing in front of him, as he held up a small bottle of red liquid in the palm of his wrinkled hand. Matt smiles as confidently as he can, but his hazel eyes are shifting back and forth looking for his Master.

The elderly man clears his throat loudly, with his large bushy mustache bristling at having to wait.

"The potion does promise to grow as much hair on the top of your head as you want it to, sir. Money back guarantee from one of the most powerful Mages in the world."

With a gruff sound in his throat some gold coins are dropped into the apprentice's hand and the elderly man shuffles off with the potion. Matt sighs in relief as he begins to talk to the next customer. This one a lovely younger woman with a desire to be a little taller. She is a lot easier to talk to than the old man from before, and it helps that Matt's bright smile and good looks are working their own magic today.

Nate is moving quickly through the back of the crowd, tossing up brightly colored fireworks in the air and bowing as gracefully as he always does. The smile sly and cunning on his full lips and the dark brown gaze causing each woman that catches sight of them to giggle and blush. The Mage is born for this type of performance, though his dark eyebrow lifts up slightly at the look on his apprentice's face.

"Excuse me, my dear ladies," he says, taking a hold of the closest one's hand and kissing it. The woman nearly faints at all of the attention, and it is only with extreme effort that Nate is able to continue moving towards the front of the stage.

"What the devil are you looking like that for," Nate mutters as he keeps his smile as natural as he can make it as he gives a cheery wave to the crowd.

"The elixirs are starting to smoke," Matt mutters back, tilting his head back towards the back of their cart of goods, and it is only then that the billowing amount of dark green smoke is seen by Nate's dark eyes.

"What in the fuck did you do?" he hisses as Matt shuffles his feet. "You are supposed to be watching how hot they are getting. Most of them are ruined at this point!"

"What do we do now, master?"

Nate grumbles as he moves to look at the crowd once again, with all of them full of money to spend on wares that they no longer have.

"We'll just have to find another way to get a hold of their gold today," the Mage mutters out of the side of his mouth. Move the cart behind the trees over there and we'll work up the crowd with some tricks. The knife trick should be a good staring point."

The apprentice gives nod that he understands and begins to push the cart away, and the crowd already is getting riled up. They have been waiting for weeks for an elixir cart to be available in their little town, and the fact that only a few had gotten their bottles paid for and questions answered is just too much to bare.

"Everyone, please relax," Nate calls over the large group. "There has been a small issue with the potions for today, but please don't worry at all. We will make up some more and be back tomorrow with an even better supply. In the meantime, please stay and enjoy a magical performance from yours truly as an apology for today's follies."

The crowd seems to be muttering their interests in staying for magic, with only a few people here and there walking away in a huff. Matt is back in a few moments with a large set of knives, and Nate steps away from the apprentice about ten feet on the stage.

"Just to reiterate," Nate says loudly, as a hush falls over the large gathering. "This is incredibly dangerous. Only the crazy and the incredibly charming ever should attempt it."

He gives a winning smile, and the audience laughs and claps. Turning towards where Matt is supposed to be, Nate nods and Matt throws the first large knife towards him. With a wave of his hand the knife turns into a rose and Nate catches it nimbly in his right hand. The crowd gasps and claps at the feat of magic, and both Nate and Matt give a short bow.

"Now, would someone in the crowd tell us what you would like the next knife to turn into," Matt calls out, pointing out various hands as they wave at him, wanting their suggestion to be the one that is picked.

The next knife thrown is turned into a burst of fireworks by popular suggestion, and the next one a large amount of brightly colored birds who flew up and away once they had been conjured. The audience at this point was throwing any money they had along with money that they really couldn't afford to give directly at the stage. Nate bows at each of the cheers as Matt scoops up money into leather pouch, his hazel eyes looking up in something close to revelry at how talented his master truly is.

"One more! Give us one more trick!" the crowd shouts and the Mage smiles and waves that of course they will do a final trick.

"Let's make this one interesting," Nate mentions as he pulls a purple handkerchief from his back pocket and places it around his eyes. The crowd gasps at the additional danger.

With hands raised in the air again, Matt points to a small boy near the side of the stage.

"Make a rainbow appear!"

The gathering awws at the suggestion, and Nate gives a small nod.

"On the count of three," Matt calls out, and Nate raises his hands in preparation.

"One...two..."

It is then that the feeling of pain hits Nate's chest, and he realizes that the knife was thrown before he was ready, and he falls to the ground clutching to the right part of his front, just above his heart to take out the blade. He grasps onto nothing though as the crowd screams fill his ears. Matt is the one who pulls off the blindfold and looks at him, with confusion and fear.

"Master, what's happened? Are you having a heart attack?"

Nate can only groan as he pulls at his shirt his apprentice, catching on to what's wrong and unbuttons his master's shirt to see how to best assist him. The dragon scar is still forming over the skin above his heart, black and deeply cut with the smell of newly burning flesh making both of the men feel sick to their stomachs.

"G-get me out of here," Nate stammers, his teeth gritted as he writhes on the stage. "I need to find a out who did this to me before it's too late, and before I meet any of the others who have it too."