The Magician’s Workshop

Grail emerged into a light brighter than day. It surprised him, as the way had become sinuous, and he must have gaped at the sudden expanse of cavernous interior that lay before him because a bemused voice smoke up from amongst the bright,

“Well, hello there.” It spoke with a staccato rhythm that made Grail’s head spin.

“Did you really just come from down there?” Questioning and then answering itself,

“Yes of course you did.” Grail could still see nothing, and he felt himself swaying on his feet, as if made of grass.

“Well that smell must still be quite a shock. Let me help, take a wiff of this.”

An odor strong enough to put colorful spots in front of his eyes hit Grail’s nostrils. He blinked, and suddenly saw owlish eyes and a long, thin beard. They seemed to float above a stormy sky, which rippled and danced with the beard.

“Good, Good, your resistant to that sort of spell”

Grail snapped his eyes in surprise at that, and sputtered, “You’re a Magician?”

“Indeed I am.” The wiry man then took a long bow,

“Horatio Oriculture, King’s Magician.”

With that the Man stood straight, looking down at Grail blinkingly and still bemused. The younger, unsure of his safety, and still worried about the king’s guards, looked around with haphazard movements of his head.

Horatio Oriculture, picked up on this, and said, with as much grace as he could muster, “So, ah, what is a young gentleman of your stature doing, coming from the passageway that leads to the King’s apartments?”

A look of pure terror stole over Grail’s features, and he moved backwards two steps, as if about to run.

“Stand where you are and do not move.” The Magician spoke mildly, but Grail was frozen, rooted to his spot.

The panic on the boys face was naked, and, blubbering down at his feet he said, “Oh lord, oh lord, oh please Mr. Magician Please don’t…Just don’t.”

This rose the bushy eyebrow of the spell-caster into twin arches, “Just don’t what?”

“Uh.” The boy was at a loss at first, and then said questioningly, “Um, just don’t turn me into a frog.”

Infallible, the Magician acted unsurprised as he said, “Ok. But what did you do?”