Touch of Flame

Ares looked at Joel and now he could see in the man's eyes that he wasn't very excited about the situation they found themselves in. Maybe some kind of trouble is exactly what they needed for the man's true nature to appear.

And this witch... why did he look amused?

"What do we have here?" He spoke with a rusty voice.

"Dragon. Human." Joel pointed at himself and then Ares. Could the witch tell him what the man was?

The witch studied both of them. "I ssseeee...." he hissed as he stepped closer. His grey eyes were surrounded by wrinkles and he had a few silver strands on his bald head. He was half his size in length and width.

Suddenly, he pulled a mirror out of nowhere and placed it in front of his face. Joel knew he had to be careful with everything and probably not look into the mirror but he still did. It was just his reflection.

He walked with the mirror to stand in front of Ares. Ares hesitantly looked at his reflection as well. The old man then looked at the mirror and smiled. "You have many questions." He told Ares. "And you..." he turned to Joel. "Need something."

"Follow me," he told them turning around. He walked with small steps and began to climb the stairs.

Joel and Ares looked at each other before following him.

The old man took them into a room mostly containing plants and he liked mirrors. They covered every empty spot on the wall. In the middle, there was a small short table and the old man went to sit behind it.

"Sit," he motioned for them to sit across from him. Again there were hand mirrors on the table.

Ares and Joel sat next to each other and Joel could feel the man's heavy coat making contact with the floor. How did humans bother to carry these suffocating clothes?

"Who wants to start?"

Joel looked over at Ares and the old man followed his gaze. "What do you wish to know?"

Ares became thoughtful for a moment, his eyes looking over hesitantly. Joel became curious. What would he ask?

"My... my parents.." he said.

Parents?

"Always the loved ones," the old man smiled. "Let's see." He scanned though the mirrors on the table and picked one with a white frame. He almost shoved it into Ares' face.

Shocked Ares leaned back. "Look into it!" The old witch demanded.

Ares hesitantly looked into the mirror. Joel studied him carefully, watching him relax, getting curious, leaning closer with a frown as his eyes narrowed. Was he seeing something else?

He could hear the change in his heartbeat, thrumming with fear or nervousness.

The old man removed the mirror from his face. "Wait!" Ares tried to desperately reach for it but the witch put it down. "How much will you pay?" He asked.

Ares took a deep breath and Joel could see whatever he had seen had affected him. "Payment won't be a problem. I will pay you as much as you want."

The old man chuckled. "Very well then, but I shall warn you that there is another price you will pay for looking into this mirror. A debt will be collected by the spirits. It is often called bad luck."

"I don't care."

Of course. Humans didn't believe in the power of spirits but bad luck was not to be underestimated. It could come at the least favored moment and be fatal.

"Alright then..." the old man said and showed him the mirror again. Ares took it from his hand, staring into it desperately.

The quiet room echoed with his heartbeat. It became irregular, his breathing changed and his knuckles turned white from holding the mirror tightly. Not good news, Joel thought.

His green eyes glistened and trembled and then he shook his head. "What does this mean?" He demanded from the old man.

"It means exactly what you think it means."

Ares dropped his hand looking defeated. Tears wet his eyes as he smiled. He put the mirror away on the table. "It is no surprise." He breathed.

"Hope can be painful," the old man said. "At least now you won't have to hold onto it."

Were His parents dead? Abandoned him?

Whatever he had seen changed his aura completely. His shoulders dropped and it looked like he wanted to leave. Disappear.

"And what do you need?" The old man turned to Joel.

"A talisman."

The old man tilted his head.

"Something to protect me and my family from the influence of magic."

"I ssseeee...." he hissed again, with an amused smile. Joel knew what he was thinking. Why would he give him such a thing that would put his people at a disadvantage?

"I am sure you can customize them in a way that will benefit us both," Joel said.

"Hmm... how many do you need?"

"Seven."

"It might take me a few days to make them."

Joel nodded. "I will also pay you generously if you could come with me to meet my brother. You sold his human breedmate one of your mirrors."

"Why did your brother not come here?" The old man asked.

"It is a matter of safety," he said trying not to lie.

"I ssseeee..." he stood up. "I shall get ready then. Wait for me."

He walked around the table and left the room. Ares sat lost in thought and Joel was almost disappointed that this was going so well. That was only until the door behind them shut with a bang.

They both turned to the door and Joel was quick on his feet and went to see if he could open it but as if someone gave him a push on the back he stumbled right through it. Confused he turned back. The door was still there. He reached for the handle to open it, but it didn't work.

"I will keep your friend," the old man's voice came from behind.

Joel turned around. Was this for his own safety?

"He is the breedmate of..."

"I know. Nazneen. You will tell her, he left her. That is the payment I require for a talisman."

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