Trickster Trink
He watched me for three straight days
After a few more steps, he paused in front of a shop slammed between apartment buildings. The shop sign read or was supposed to read Tricksters Trinkets in big white letters, but the et of the Trinkets were missing leaving the clean outlines of the letters behind. Three wood steps lead to an old yellow paint-chipped door that just had a single open and closed sign hanging on it.
"This is it, the Trickster Trinkets everything magical you desire inside, but once you enter, there will be nothing to hide..." The creepy little slogan aside, I couldn't help but be in awe a little. This run-down shack on the outside held all my magical desire within. I couldn't hide my skepticism from Salem, who couldn't help but laugh at my expression.
" I know, I know it doesn't seem like much, but once you're inside, you'll understand." I looked over the peeling door, its yellow hue weathered by time. Something whispered from behind, tugging at the corners of my psyche.
"Ask me, and you shall know." Echoed in my mind before I realized I had ascended the three steps, weariness gripped my chest as I shot a look at Salem, who watched intently.
"Did you hear that?" Salem shook his head no, his brow furrowing in curiosity. I look back at the door feeling the same tugging, before quickly looking away.
"Are you going to come with me?" I asked Salem while my face turned beet red from embarrassment.
"If that is what you wish..." He ascends two steps so that he is right behind me.
"But you have to open the door and enter..." The worry in my chest dropped to my gut. I swallowed hard and took another step toward the door.
"Trust yourself and trust in me." A familiar voice again echoed in my head, freezing my pace. The sound of Salem taking another step up charged my confidence to do the same.
"A gift for courage, a returning of strength." The voice grew louder, and my body seemed to move independently. Instantly I was at the door. The brass handle was dull and uninviting. I gripped it, expecting it to be cold but found it warm, almost hot enough to sear. Still, I turned it, pushing against the surprising heaviness of the thin wooden door. Behind the door was a small lobby dimly lit with an impossibly high ceiling. Across the room, a standing desk sat in front of a doorway with no door but black drapes to replace one. Salem and I enter and make it to the center of the lobby. The further we went, we could hear an argument unfurling behind the black drape door.
"I don't have the resources, nor the time to find that good-for-nothing louse, and I advise you to adopt the same perspective." A voice spits spitefully.
"I have the time. All I need from you is the resources, and I would think at the very least, you of all people would help me find your good-for-nothing, son." Anger and disdain twisted through the new voices' response.
"It appears Kairo and Joker are at it again.". Salem commented, making his way past me to the standing desk. He finds a reception bell to ring, trying to gain the attention of the men in the back. Over the bell ringing, the whisper I heard from the door came from my left. Looking to find the source, I could only see a full-body mirror with a velvet blanket covering its reflective surface.
"Your gift is near. I am here." My body moved on its own again. I approached the mirror, hand extended to grasp the red cloak. I felt the fabric in the palm of my hand, and electricity-like needles coursed through my arm, provoking me to toss it across the floor and examine my hand. The skin was unfazed, but I still rubbed the palm of my hand with my thumb.
"Finally, we meet." The voice was now precise in my head, less than a whisper as if the person was standing in front of me. I searched the immediate area to see if anyone had entered the room with us. I then looked to Salem to see if he had noticed the voice. He hadn't and continuously pressed the bell that I couldn't hear anymore. What was happening?
"A gift for courage, a strength returned." I turn my attention to the source and find the mirror's reflective surface. In its reflection was me but wasn't me. Instead of the clothing I wore from my grandmother, I now wore a red velvet robe. My normal black hair was now crimson, and my eyes seemed to glow with a pearlescence. The image entranced me. She smiled at me softly, and her lips moved once more, sharing something that I missed and summoning a torrent of wind that flung the yellow door open with such strength it threatened its hinges. Sound returned as I heard Salem exclaim several curses while bracing himself against the wind. He watched as I stood unfazed, staring blankly into my reflection.
"Willow!!!" He yelled over the wind, but I could not reply. I stared at my counterpart's lips as they murmured. Salem tried fighting the gale force to reach me, but it proved useless as the wind held him against the desk. Electricity started at my toes and worked its way up my body. The wind grew more forceful as the energy built into my body.
Something was coming...
A snap of fingers from behind the desk brought the spectacle to an end, and I regained control of my body. I crumple to my knees. Salem rushes to my side, incredibly concerned with what took place.
"What happened?" I asked while Salem helped me back to my feet. Once he did, he backed away from me, slowly glancing at the stranger.
"What? Did I grow horns or something?" I said quickly, touching my forehead and not finding new horns.
"Willow, you're speaking..." The stranger cocked his head at me as I finally comprehended. I looked towards the mirror that now reflected jet-black darkness.
"I'm speaking. I can speak..." I said as the tears rolled down my cheeks. The words, a gift for courage and strength returned, entered my mind. Salem, less hesitant, crossed the room and held me as I wept.
~End of Chapter 2