Facing Destiny

"Again, my apologies for keeping you from your bed," Darkniciad said.

"This isn't all you," Ferron replied. "I called in a couple of those favors last night."

"I'm pleased to hear you are proceeding. To those ends, I have a selection of glassware which I am able to offer at a discount."

"Discount, huh? Well, let's see what you have."

"If I may make a few suggestions," Darkni said, and then selected a specific jar from the top crate. He picked out several bottles and jars, pointing out specific wares already in stock to which he believed each item of glassware was suited. He paused several times, allowing the proprietor to conduct business with his customers.

When he finished, Ferron said, "Ain't no doubt you've done this before. That's a hell of a pitch."

"Simply my informed opinion, I assure you. Of course, some of these suggestions are contingent upon you completing your move."

"The more I think on it, the more that's a certainty. So, how much for that lot?"

Darkni already had a price in mind which would recoup the cost of producing the glass and nothing more. Having observed Ferron's enjoyment of the art of haggling, he quoted a price somewhat higher. Thus began several minutes of back and forth, occasionally interrupted by patrons of the shop. As had happened the night before, they settled on a price that pleased them both, and was a few coppers more than Darkniciad had originally set out to obtain.

"Done, then?" Ferron asked, extending his hand.

"Done," Darkni agreed as he took the proprietor's hand to seal the deal.

"I'll get your coin." He paused for a moment as he turned and chuckled. "It actually is your coin, come to think of it."

"Far from all of it, but I do believe you are correct."

Ernest looked down into the crates and said, "Well, that lightened the load quite a bit."

"Unfortunately, I need to be rid of the rest before evening and I have no further leads."

The shopkeeper put the coins down on the counter and said, "Well, since I'm keeping a secret for you, I don't suppose it's much of an ask for you to keep one for me. If you want to get rid of those little etched bottles at a decent price, I know where you could sell them."

"That would be of great assistance, but what is this matter of a secret?"

Ferron took a look around the shop, though it had been empty since the most recent customer had left. "The two cathouses on the brickway. I do a little trading with them on the sly. Looks bad for me to take my wares there or have them come in, so can't do that. Nobody looks twice at an unmarried man stopping in for a woman, though. I just wear something with deep pockets."

"I'm afraid I'm in rather the same position as you are, save your deception will not work for me."

Ernest said, "I could go. Your father doesn't worry over how I spend my time when he doesn't have something for me to do. Just tell me what you want me to tell them, and how much you actually want for them when they try to barter."

"First thing they'll try to do is barter their services," Ferron warned.

"Heh," Ernest chuckled. "They can stick their tits in my face the whole time and I'll still be asking for coin. Milli would be right put out if I wasn't ready for her tonight."

Darkniciad scratched his chin. "Hmm... Still, we have been seen together. It wouldn't do for you to be seen pushing a cart into a brothel."

"Guessing deep pockets will work for me too. Those little bottles don't take up much room."

Ferron said, "I'm thinking you'll get close to what you'd normally sell them for. The local glassmaker won't sell them a damn thing, and they like having fancy things for their rose water and talc. They have to send their guards down the road to other towns to spend most of their coin, and they've got a fair amount of it. Part of why I can keep a lot of the wares I do is selling to them."

"That could indeed be worth the risk," Darkni said. "Moving those at a higher price would make the profit on the remainder irrelevant."

"If that's the case, then you could scratch up some good will for yourself and your father." Ferron tapped his finger on the counter. "Sell what's left to Talia the healer cheap on account of her good works. The high and mighty come to her, and if she's singing your praises, it could go a long way."

Seeing something in Ferron's expression, Darkni asked, "Might I be so bold as to suggest you've taken advantage of that advice yourself?"

"That I have, and it's served me well."

"Then I shall be guided by you."

"And I'll start stuffing my pockets," Ernest said.

****

Darkniciad was in good spirits a couple of hours later as he stepped onto a trail revealed to him by Talia the healer. His father had been impressed by the speed at which he had dispensed with the glassware. Ernest had come close to obtaining the full market value of all the bottles and jars at the brothels. Conversation with the healer had even revealed that there were several plants growing within the local wood that were useful to his study of magic.

Only a few steps along the trail through the woodland, he found an abundance of dwarf beard moss clinging to the trees. In a scant few minutes, he had more than he was likely to use in a year. A shrub provided berries that were useful in healing and he was certain had magical uses as well.

Here a sprig of leaves. There a root. In less than an hour, he had gathered enough useful flora to push the limits of what his knapsack would hold. Though most assuredly a city-dweller, Darkni found the walk through the wood pleasant and continued on as much for the peaceful surroundings as for locating further tools of his chosen trade.

The birds were chirping and a gentle breeze stirred the leaves of the trees as he followed the well-worn path. He had no idea who regularly trod it, but for the moment, he had it to himself and little worry of becoming lost.

Golden sunlight indicated a break in the trees, though the trail turned to run parallel to it. Not being familiar with the area, Darkniciad chose to remain on the trail for a while longer before reversing course to return to the city. As he passed by the gap in the foliage, the hair on the back of his neck stood up.

The sensation brought him to a halt because it was both familiar and alien at the same time. It felt like the touch of magic, but was somehow different. Made curious, he stepped off the trail. The feeling grew stronger with every step through the underbrush toward the sunlight.

When he reached the edge of the trees, he saw nothing more than a field of grass and golden seed stalks. There was nothing he could see to account for the aura of magic he could still feel swirling around him.

But there was more than one way to see.

Darkni concentrated and let his vision slip into the second sight — a wizard's way of seeing the magic in the world. The motes of magic surrounding him resembled a bank of fog, occluding his normal vision. As he stared into the mystical miasma, it dawned on him that this was the purpose of the magic. It was an illusion.

Knowing that, the spell had no power over him, and he could see the instrument of that magic. His eyes widened and his mouth dropped open as he beheld a stunning — and very nude — young woman cavorting amidst the waving blades of grass.

Blonde hair fluttered in the wind and whipped with her movements. It was long enough to reach below her waist and tickle the swell of her bottom, which he got a very good look at when she spun to face away from him.

She turned again, and his eyes focused of their own accord on her breasts. The perfect teardrops jiggled only slightly despite her dance, looking large on her petite frame. The rosy pink tips were surrounded by only slightly larger ovals. Though they were in fact the only breasts he had ever seen, the thought passed through Darkniciad's head that they surely had to be the most beautiful in all the world.

The firm globes were only further accentuated when she lifted both her hands and her face toward the sky above. She wore a dazzling smile, and her eyes glimmered with joy above a perfectly proportioned, dainty nose.

The woman turned and leapt, letting him see one long, shapely leg. It also drew his attention to the light blonde curls between those legs. He had no idea how long he was watching her before the awe faded and his face began to burn.

Embarrassed, he turned away and returned with purpose to the trail. Despite his determination, he could still see her in his mind's eye as plainly as if she were still standing before him. He stopped, blew out a sharp breath, and lifted a hand to massage his temples, trying to compose himself.

"You have magic."

Darkni started and spun on his heel upon hearing the voice. There was no mistaking the woman from the field, even though she had donned a light shift. It barely reached mid thigh — covering her, but in such a way as to make her all the more enticing.

"I beg your pardon?" he said, trying to keep his voice measured as he stalled for time and a better response.

"You have magic. You couldn't have seen me otherwise," she said as she approached.

"My apologies," he said. "I was unaware of your presence and did not mean to intrude."

She laughed and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't mind. I just didn't expect to meet someone else here who has magic. People here are afraid of it."

Years of his father's relentless instruction allowed Darkni to push down his shock and embarrassment. Once it was safely locked away, he said, "Quite true. Again, my apologies, both for the intrusion and for not introducing myself." He nearly recited his full name, as he would during a business venture, but something told him to use the familiar name his friends called him by. "My name is Darkni."

"I'm Destiny."

Darkni's mind raced, searching for what to say. Such a name virtually screamed for comment, but every idea that occurred to him felt as if it could be interpreted as rude.

Destiny saved him the worry by walking closer and saying, "Yes, it's a name that's hard to live up to, and I didn't quite live up to it the way my parents expected."

"I know something of that myself," Darkni said. He was, after all, gathering up the material components of his magical studies, which his father had all but forbidden.

"They don't approve of you using magic?" she guessed.

"To say the least."

She smiled, and the sight nearly took his breath away. His heart pounded in his chest, and the blood it was pumping found its way to natural — as well as potentially embarrassing — locations. He focused on maintaining strict eye contact, though it was a hard-fought battle.

"You're a wizard, aren't you? That's what your magic feels like."

"I am a student of the Art, yes. Though I hardly qualify for that particular honorific, I'm afraid."

Destiny rolled her eyes, though she was still smiling. "If you use wizard magic, you're a wizard. I call upon the magic of the earth, so I'm a druid."

That explained the odd feeling of her magic. "It's a bit more complicated than that in my case, I'm led to believe."

"Wizards are usually so full of themselves. You don't seem like the rest I've met. You're not acting all mysterious, wearing a robe, and sprouting a beard." She stepped even closer.

There was an enticing scent arising from her — flowers and spices. With the first breath of it, Darkni felt his skin prickling with gooseflesh. There seemed to be magic involved, but somehow he knew it wasn't malevolent. Quite the opposite, in fact. He felt oddly at ease.

"Well, I'm little more than a rudimentary student of the Art. Perhaps one day I'll earn my beard and robe."

She laughed, and the sound filled him with the same joy she was apparently feeling. "I like what you're wearing."

It was all he could do not to look down at the swell of her breasts beneath the shift and the long expanses of gorgeous leg it exposed. "Thank you. I'm finding my current wardrobe not particularly well suited to a walk in the woods, however. Have you met many wizards, then? I must admit you are the first druid I've encountered."

"Only a few, but I know some of your magic."

That set his heart to racing for a completely different reason than her beauty and proximity. "What spells have you learned?" he asked before he could think better of it and broach the subject in a more diplomatic manner.

Her nose scrunched up in the most endearing way, and she said, "I'll show you one."

With that, she began to gesture and speak words that Darkni knew with certainty were in the language of magic. It was a spell that he wasn't familiar with, and most of the words were ones he had never learned before, which made him slightly wary. Still, he found himself watching and listening carefully.

Destiny finished by bringing a hand down over her lower abdomen, only a few inches above where her shift ended. A blue glow emanated from beneath her hand. It was certainly magic, but its purpose escaped him.

"You don't know it, then?" she asked.

He shook his head to indicate he didn't.

"The blue light means I'm in a part of my cycle where I can't conceive. It turns red when I can become pregnant, and shades of purple as that time draws near. It's a useful magic I teach to other women. I don't need it, because I know my cycle. It's nature, and that is my calling."

Darkni's cheeks burned as she explained the purpose of the spell. The blood didn't all rush into his face, however. There was plenty to cause his manhood to throb as well.

Destiny let her hand drop and the magic lapse. She shivered, and then shook her hands. "It always gives me chills when I cast wizard's magic."

He barely heard her. In looking down to see the results of the magic, he'd broken eye contact. Her movements caused her breasts to quiver, and his eyes snapped to the stunning globes.

It took him only a moment to focus and tear his eyes away, but she noticed.

"It's okay. I told you I don't mind," she said. "You don't have to apologize. I'm not ashamed of my body. Do you think I'm pretty?"

"Beyond compare," he quietly answered as soon as the thought formed in his head, and then he winced at the implication of the words.

Somehow, her smile grew even wider. "I think you're very handsome," she said. A final step brought her to him, and she reached up to slide a finger over the ornate buttons on his shirt. "I like this, but I'd like to see more."

Darkni's eyes widened when her tone, her touch, and the passion in her eyes left no doubt as to her intentions. He'd been approached by women more times than he could count because he was wealthy and reasonably attractive, but never so bluntly. His father's watchful eye, the double life he led, and dire warnings of women using their charms to acquire his wealth had conspired to keep him from engaging in any such liaisons. He was of two minds about that state of affairs on the best of days.

This was not one of them.

"Are you okay?" she asked, concerned because he was standing as stock still as a statue.

So many times before, he'd escaped such situations with a few careful words. The potential of his father's wrath motivated him, certainly, but equally strong was the fear of embarrassing himself with a lackluster performance. That fear had only increased as he had grown older, to an age where virtually every man had at least some degree of sexual experience, where he had none.

She must have been able to see it in his eyes. "You've never been with a woman?" she asked, sounding both surprised and amused.

It was that bit of mirth in her voice that focused his whirling thoughts. He took a step back and said, "I fear a relationship between us is quite out of the question. I will only be in the area for a brief period."

"Relationship?" she said, and then giggled, stinging him yet again. "I just want to follow nature's course. You call to me and awaken my desire. I know I'm calling to you."

She closed the distance between them once more, and before he could react, her hand slipped between his legs. Her eyes widened and she gasped as she caressed his hardness through his pants. Darkni couldn't hold back the groan that escaped him from her touch.

Destiny moaned and stepped back, but only far enough to give her room to reach down and grasp the hem of her shift. In the blink of an eye, she was nude once more, and this time, she was only inches away. A breeze stirred their hair, smelling of lilacs and carrying the touch of magic.

"No one can see us, or hear us. Be with me," she said as she let her garment drift down to the leaf-littered ground. "Be with me," she repeated as she cupped his cheek in her hand and leaned in.

Darkniciad melted into the kiss, lost in the feeling of her soft lips. She pressed her body against his, and he subconsciously followed her lead when her other hand slipped behind his back. Even as he marveled at the feeling of her tongue slipping into the kiss to tickle his lips, one of his hands curled around her back, and the other settled on the swell of her taut bottom.

Destiny moaned, pulling herself even tighter against him. Then, as suddenly as she'd moved in for the kiss, she pulled away. As she leaned back, her hands moved to his shirt and jerked the tail free of his pants. A tug on the shoulder strap of his satchel prompted him to shrug it off, and it landed with an unceremonious plop at his feet.

"So many buttons. Help me," she said while going to work on the lowest one.

He was caught, as surely as a fly in a spider's web. No amount of his father's wrath or his own misgivings could have stopped him from popping loose the top button of his shirt. They worked their way toward each other, until Destiny loosed the final button.

She moaned as she stroked her fingers over his chest. While far from muscled, he was no stranger to hauling crates, blowing glass, and working wood. The work had given him hints of definition that she apparently found quite pleasing. One hand pushed on his shirt where it draped over his shoulders, and he quickly shrugged it off, letting it fall to the ground. She looked up, caught his eye, and flashed one of her brilliant smiles.

He was only beginning to fall into the emerald pools of her eyes when she deftly loosed the first button on his pants, causing him to stiffen.

"Be at ease," she said, and then leaned in to kiss his chest, causing him to shiver. Meanwhile, her fingers continued their work, unhooking the two remaining buttons, and then pushing down on his pants.

She gasped and he groaned as her fingers curled around his hardness.

"Ohh my," she said in a long, drawn out breath as she caressed him. "So very nice."

Darkni breathed heavily, amazed at how soft her hand felt compared to his own. It was like silk stroking the turgid flesh. She moved in for another kiss, her hand continuing its ministrations.

When their lips parted, she said, "Lie down."

He sank to his knees, and she followed him in perfect harmony, never releasing his manhood. It was only when his back came to rest on the forest floor that her fingers uncurled from around him. Some small part of his consciousness not reeling in awe and arousal was curious as to why he didn't feel sticks, stones, and pine cones poking his back and behind, but those thoughts quickly sank deep down.

Destiny pulled off his shoes and stockings, placing them carefully off to the side, in sharp contrast to the way he'd neglected his shirt and satchel. Her smile took on a crooked, somewhat wanton cast when she grabbed his pants and pulled them the rest of the way down his legs. These she quickly folded — but not too haphazardly — and placed atop his shoes.

Darkniciad drew in a long, deep breath when she dropped down onto her hands and crawled over him. She lowered herself to his lips for a quick kiss, twitched her eyebrows, and then popped up to sit on his chest.