Of Wolves and Potions: A Short Story

THREE: Festival and waltz

We arrived shortly after and scouted the outskirts of the Whaler village as we intended. There were a few guards patrolling the forest nearby, some control towers kept an eye from above, and there were 4 exits. So after deciding on an emergency plan if escaping was needed, we put on our amulets and walked through the gates.

I was nervous, how couldn't I be?

'What if I wasn't channeling my energy correctly, what if I used the wrong herb by mistake, the wrong color string... I double checked, but-', Lewis noticed my anxious stare towards the guards ahead. Nudging me on the arm he brought me back to reality, giving me a reassuring smile and prompting me to go through the security check first.

"What is your name, and reason for entering the village?", the guard said without even looking up from the paper stack above his desk. He wore a basic white shirt, blue jacket and blue pants, all of which had the symbol of a whale and an oil lantern embroidered. The village was known to hunt whales and trade their meat, oil and other byproducts to other villages and cities. Its population was primarily fishermen, ship owners and such, and everyone had a hardened look to them, no doubt caused by the salty sea air. They were excellent engineers as well, fabricating and building the best weaponry, ships and gadgets for everyday life.

Above all else though, they were incredibly judgemental against non-humans.

"Hannah, I'm here for the festival, sir", I said quickly and keeping my anxiousness at bay.

"Anything to declare before entering the city?", he glanced over at me with piercing brown eyes.

"No, sir"

"Right. Please remember to abide by the Whaler village rules, no non-humans are allowed past those doors ahead and any contraband will be confiscated. Perpetrators will face jail time or the death sentence. Enjoy your stay and happy Whaler festival.", he finished with the most monotone voice I've ever heard, prompting me to move along.

I didn't give him a chance to change his mind, I turned and went right up ahead. Keeping my head down, I crossed the threshold of the city, reaching a storefront with fruits and vegetables.

I took the chance to gawk at all the different products in front of me while my wolf passed through the doors. There were herbs, flowers, different types of plants in their pots and many many stores where you could shop for lucious fabrics, exotic animals and much more.

"You're drooling", a deep, low voice I recognized whispered in my ear as I looked at a particularly interesting café with many different cakes and desserts.

"Have you ever been to a place like this before?", I said, not caring to contain my amazement. I had been to other villages, but none as big and incredibly beautiful as this one.

"I have," he said smiling while grabbing my hand, "come on, let's find an Inn before all the rooms are sold out."

We moved through crowded streets, looking everywhere for an Inn, until we found a small one on a quiet street. We had walked for a while and we were no longer near the fancy shops we had seen earlier, but I preferred it this way. The fewer people, the less chances of getting the wrong attention from the humans.

We were holding hands as we entered the Inn, a few patrons looked over at us when we opened the door, but promptly went back to their conversations once they saw we were just "regular" people. The inside of the Inn was somewhat cozy, with wooden furniture and a fireplace. The bartender was serving a couple of pints to the people sitting at the bar, but overall it was mostly empty with only a couple other tables occupied.

"How much for a room, sir?" Lewis asked, approaching the Innkeeper.

"One room with one bed and breakfast for two would be 15G", he said while cleaning an empty cup.