Page 19 of Witch's Dawn
The young girl with large sunglasses and headphones in her ears carried no tension at all, and a sparkling halo swirled around her with dashes of pink andpurple.
I must have looked like the most shameless tourist possible with my head swiveling back and forth, openly gawking at people. For the first few hours of my outing, it was completelyoverwhelming.
I could taste the labor of love and authenticity in my breakfast burrito. I saw sound vibrating through the air, everything from the musician on the street to freeway traffic, in a range ofcolors.
By early afternoon, I felt more acclimated to my newly discovered surroundings. Nothing was dulled or tuned out, but I seemed better focused and able to get my errandsdone.
After dropping off payments for various bills and ordering more supplies needed for the tea shop, I decided it was a good time to grab adrink.
As if led by instinct, I turned a corner to a quiet street and approached a building I never saw before. Classical red brick, crawling ivy, a heavy wooden door, and a patio with a wrought-iron gate gave it a timelesslook.
In this neighborhood,Triple Moon Publooked unassuming, like it had always been there and always belonged in that spot. I had a feeling however, that before Diana's visit last night, I would have never known itexisted.
The air hummed and practically crackled with the strongest concentration of magic I felt yet as I pulled open the frontdoor.
I blinked a few times to adjust to the dim, flickering light. After a moment I realized candles were the only light source. A massive chandelier the size of a small car hung from the ceiling, but rather than light bulbs, small flames flickered from each point and cast shiftingshadows.
A long wooden bar stretched toward the back of the room on my right side, painted dark and polished to a high shine. Candles sat atop the bar spaced about six inchesapart.
Despite the entire place being bathed in soft, flickering candlelight, not a single drop of wax covered the floor orbar.
On the left side of the room were seating areas with plush, red couches and low tables. A few groups of patrons sat around them, talking and drinking, and their auras took my breathaway.
So much energy crackled around them like sparks of lightning. The colors were much deeper and vibrant than any of the non-magical humans I saw walking down thestreet.
And even more, I felt an unspoken comfort by being around these people. A kinship ofsorts.
These are my people. Witches,Irealized.
I strode up to the bar, which was mostly empty except for a few patrons. The bartender, a handsome middle-aged man with a salt and pepper goatee, eyed mecuriously.
"Welcome, cradle witch," he greeted. "What'll youhave?"
I blinked. "What did you callme?"
He smirked and let out a huff oflaughter.
"You've just come into your powers. Your aura is brimming with excitement and wonder, like a baby experiencing the world for the firsttime."
"That's accurate," I allowed, checking out the liquor selection behind him. Most of it looked pretty standard-- the expected brands of vodkas, whiskeys, gins, tequilas, and so on one would see in any bar. But on a separate shelf, candles flickered densely around an assortment of dark glass bottles. They had no labels except for rough symbols that appeared to be drawn inchalk.
I drummed my fingers on the bar, my curiosity piqued about trying some magical mixology but much like a child in a very adult world, it would probably be best to do so under trustedsupervision.
"Gin and tonic, please," Irequested.
The bartender nodded and proceeded to scoop my ice and pour my Tanqueray into a mixing glass with his hands. No magic involved that I couldsee.
Just as I opened my mouth to ask why, the mixer levitated into midair and shook itself violently. The ice clanged against the metal mixing cup faster than my eye could see and then it stoppedabruptly.
As if it was the most normal thing in the world, the bartender grabbed the levitating mixer and proceeded to pour mydrink.
"Thanks," I said a little uneasily. "I'm still not used to seeingthat."
"You'll become desensitized," he said with a chuckle. "Lots of folks don't grow into their magic until adulthood. I was twenty-onemyself."
"Well that makes me feel better," I mused with the straw between my teeth. In two more years I'd bethirty.
At that moment, something in the airchanged.
