A Twist of Fate

Chapter Three

"Ahh..." The old man said suddenly, breaking the young man's concentration on the crystal ball. "Your here a little sooner than I expected, lad, please wait a moment and I'll get something started for you." He slid out of his chair and moved over to the coals, the young man at the table looked at him confused.

"I thought the caravan was still a ways off, lad. Did you run that far ahead of them again?" The old man mutters, as he pulls a pot and ingredients from a shelf.

Just as the young man begins to speak, the old man faces him. "No, I'm not talking to you. I'm talking to the lad that is standing behind you; he is here to help me get ready. I have arranged for a caravan to come and collect me, the lad has often come to give me a hand."

Turning, he saw a small boy standing just behind him. He didn't have as many layers as the young man, just a thin travelers robe over rags. How had a child managed those winds? It had taken him months to find this sage, yet this boy didn't look to be exhausted like the young man had been.

"Tiny lad, why don't you come over here an mind the stew for me. I have much left to tell this young man, before the caravan comes." The old man said, moving back to the table. "Let's see, where were we again? Perhaps you would like me to answer a few questions now, or would you prefer I just continue?" The old man asked, as he poured three cups of tea. The little boy bumped the young man's leg as he went to the table to get a cup, and then plopped by the coals as he mended the pot that was left.

The child, Tiny, sipped his tea after a few turns of the pot. He make a series of grunts and growls, and then sets the cup aside. Moving about he adds chunks of meat and things into the pot.
"Yes, yes. That will be fine, enough for the three of us." The old man said. "Do let me know if you need hand, an please keep the seasonings mild."

Tiny just turned his head an growled at the old man, growled like a savage animal would. The young man sat up straight, watching the boy for any sudden movements. The old man sighed after a few moments, then Tiny went back to minding the pot.

"I believe you will answer many of my questions, Grate Sage." said the young man, keeping a wary eye on the small boy. "Whether or not they are at this meeting or another, only you could say. As you have said, my journey is long from being complete."

"Yes, very well said, Young Lord. I shall tell you what I can, much is needed to be learned before any action can be taken." The images began to move in the crystal ball again.

***

It was still early morning when Michael had arrived where he needed to be. He wasn't at the place that his mom or the school knew of, the 'office' as it was, is just a store room of unneeded documents. He may have been there a dozen of times over the unofficial years he has worked for his employers.

Definitely an odd bunch of people, his employers. Always misplacing items and trinkets around town, or requesting deliveries from various shops around town. Often times he has found the odd items shortly before they requested that he find it, always being delighted when presented with the return of their misplaced property.

Michael was just finishing a four mile jog that ended in front of an old eight foot tall wall that surrounded a property out on the edge of town, the wall itself ensuring privacy from the road. Walking through a gap of the wall, a Victorian manner became visible beyond the wall. How the massive building went completely unnoticed had often crossed Michael's mind, if only from the time he passed the wall onto the property.

The Victorian style manor looked pristine in the morning sun, with a white stone path curving up to the door. The lawn and bushes were always trimmed, all giving a look and feel of not being much bigger than what the wall appeared to be. As he walked up to the front of the house, the building seemed to grow two to three times in size, yet none of the rest of the yard appeared to change. Even after all the years he had come here, it left a lingering question about how that could happen.