Wandering Wizard

That statement made Bob feel nostalgic. He remembered always hitting his grandmother up for ice cream or a malt two or three times a day. It was the best and he still missed it to this day. Finally, he sighed and said, "Sure, knock yourself out. I don't care. I'm not planning to use it for anything."

The siblings worked the rest of that day and two more cleaning and getting the room ready to act as their store. They even managed to get one of the old coolers operating so they could keep some of the vegetables in it. The little store was a hit from the first day they opened.

A couple of weeks after they began selling their vegetables in the store Bob was working nearby and smelled something good coming from inside. When he went in, he found they had gotten the griddle working and Tara was frying hamburgers on it. They had a little sign up offering to sell burgers, sandwiches and even some soft drinks, coffee and ice tea.

Bob said, "Tara, I thought you just wanted to sell your vegetables in here. Have you gotten a license to open a cafe? There's a lot of health regulations you have to meet to serve food."

"Well, uh, no, not really. We did some research and if we don't advertise and don't set a price for the meals we think we can sell simple meals. The web site for the county health department says if we operate sort of a community meeting place and just accept donations for the meals we're not subject to the same regulations. We can even set out a sign with a suggested donation for our items. I just thought we'd try it since Maude's going to close the cafe downtown. We have all these chairs and tables we aren't using for anything else. Please?"

"Fine, but I want to see this place squeaky clean and I think you should try to get a license just to be safe."

Bob agreed to help clean the space even better than it was and help them get the license. They spent the next several evenings using their magic as well as doing physical work until the little space glowed. Surprisingly, the county health inspector passed it on his first inspection and a few days later, the license came in the mail. They were now legal to operate a little cafe. It was an almost instant success and, to top it off, they could sell their eggs and many of their vegetables as part of the food they served thus increasing their profits from the agricultural operation.

Cleaning was a breeze also. Tara could just magic the dirt and grease away but, to keep the county happy, she did use some soapy water to wash down the surfaces and dishes and the appropriate disinfectants as well. She just didn't have to work as hard cleaning. She even figured out how to make the rags wash the dishes by themselves if there wasn't anyone around to see it (it was a small enough operation they didn't have a dishwasher).

Bob found himself more and more pulled to young Tara. He was unsettled when she wasn't around and content when she was near him. He found himself doing everything he could think of to find work near her or to help her with her work. He began to notice she was doing the same thing. Finally, one morning they were working near each other and he bit the bullet. He said, "Tara, if I'm out of line let me know. I know I'm nine years older than you but I find myself drawn to you. I miss you like crazy if I don't see you often and spend time with you daily. Would you like to go out Friday evening so we can see where we might end up?"

Tara smiled and almost ran to him. She wrapped him in a hug and said, "Yes, I'd like that a lot. I'd almost given up hoping you'd ask me out. I decided you thought I was beneath you after you saw how we were living."

"Great, and no, I never thought you were beneath me. I just wasn't sure it would be proper and I wasn't sure you'd go because of the age difference."

Their little business grew along with their love for each other over the course of the next few months. By the end of Bob's third year in his new home, they had all the open area of the little piece of ground planted in various types of crops. The cafe was busy enough they had to hire help and the egg operation was going strong. They were getting about 10 dozen eggs a day from their 150 laying hens and planned to expand that part of the operation.

Bob and Tara's romance went well also. During the fall of the second year she and Slim lived in Bob's house they decided to make it official and married. Soon thereafter, Bob, Jr appeared on the scene, followed a year later by a daughter. Tara and Slim used their magic in the business and were highly successful because of it and their hard work. Bob continued as the supervisor of the business and used his magic by becoming a "fixit" man. The laws prevented him and Slim from using their magic to treat injuries and heal people but he did get his EMT license so he could practice emergency medicine as a first responder. He had quite a reputation among the medical practitioners in the area because the people he helped on the way to the hospital invariably had much better recoveries than those other EMT's treated. When questioned about it, he merely said it must have been because of his extensive military training.

WANDERING WIZARD

CHAPTER 2

Bob was driving his old truck home from Demming where he had purchased a load of supplies. Most of the supplies were for their little farm but he also had a few items, mostly coffee, salt, sugar and some new pans and cooking utensils for the cafe. He had 500 baby chickens, feed and the years garden seed in the truck as well. He was driving under the new interstate highway bypass, slowing for a stoplight in front of him for the entrance and exit ramps, when there was a fleeting glimpse of the dark underside of a large truck in front of him. He just had time to feel fear in the pit of his stomach and hit the brakes when there was a huge jolt, a bright flash of light and instant silence. Darkness descended on Bob's mind before he could see more.

After an indeterminate time, Bob opened his eyes. He quickly closed them again and rubbed them before opening them slowly in the bright light of the sun shining in his face. He had a splitting headache as if he'd been straining his magical faculties on a super heavy task. He looked around and was confused, very confused. His old truck was sitting with the front bumper against a large, large hell, an effing HUGE fucking oak tree. He looked around in the bright sunlight in confusion. Where the HELL was the road? He was in the middle of a first growth forest by the looks of things, right on the edge of a small meadow or clearing.

He could hear a large number of birds singing and see them flitting around in the trees. There were also several squirrels in sight but no road, no sight of civilization at all. He got out of the truck and staggered slightly when his head began throbbing once again.

Bob wandered around the small clearing but found nothing that would give him an indication of where he was or how he got there. Well, that wasn't quite true. He was pretty sure he'd teleported to wherever he was much the same way he assumed he moved away from the burning vehicle in Afghanistan. The question was why he did it, or more accurately, why he ended up here and, of course, where the hell he was. He had faint memories of the image of a semi truck in front of him in the air as if it was falling from the overpass and an afterimage of a bright flash of light much like the IED explosion so he assumed he'd been in danger again and removed himself from it.

*****

FRONT PAGE HEADLINE FROM THE DEMMING DAILY NEWS (Excerpt):

Semi truck carrying explosives runs off Interstate and explodes. Local man missing and presumed dead. Robert (Bob) Throckmorton (SFC, US Army, Retired) was returning home to Strickland from a shopping trip in Demming when the accident occurred near the intersection of Interstate 49 and US 60. The semi ran off the road just before the overpass and landed just in front of Throckmorton's truck before exploding. Neither the driver of the truck nor SFC Throckmorton's body were found in the wreckage. Only the rear bumper with license plate attached from Throckmorton's truck was found amid the wreckage. It is assumed the violent explosion vaporized the remainder of the vehicle and Throckmorton. There was a crater nearly 50 feet in depth at the site of the accident resulting in an indefinite closure of I-49 and US 60.

*****

Bob spent almost 30 minutes by his watch checking out his surroundings but found nothing of interest. As far as he could tell, he was completely alone in the middle of the forest. He stopped at a fairly large brook and washed his face with the cool water then took a deep, satisfying drink of the best tasting water he'd found in years.

When he got back to his truck, he checked on the young chickens. They were loudly peeping and most of them seemed to be alive and well. He had no idea what he was going to do with them now but he needed to decide quickly. They needed feed and water badly. Thankfully he had some chicken wire in the load of supplies in the truck because they were going to need to expand the pen for this new batch of birds.

Well, first things first. Bob unloaded the bed of the truck, piling his supplies either in the cab or beside the truck. He then released the young chickens in the bed of the truck and put out feed and water for them in the boxes and pans he had. He covered the bed with some of the wire to keep possible predators away from the young birds then set out to find something for himself to eat. Thankfully, he always carried a pistol for defense. He wasn't sure just how much ammunition he had but thought he had most of a case of pistol rounds. He liked to keep his hand in and he ALWAYS carried for protection so he kept a large inventory on hand in the truck and his home.

Bob was about a half mile from his truck when he came across something out of a history book. He came upon a small log cabin. There was a woman in a long dress trying to get a mule to pull a plow in a small cleared spot near the front of the cabin.

Bob was walking toward her when she heard him and turned to face him. She seemed scared and looked toward the cabin, then started to move toward it before her body seemed to slump and she just stood watching him as he approached. Bob said, "Hello. I had a little accident back in the woods and I'm afraid I'm lost. Can you tell me where we are? Oh, I'm sorry, I'm Bob Throckmorton."

"Molly Kilpatrickk be my name sir. And we be just outside of Norton about a days travel."

"OOOOOKAAAAAAY. And just where is Norton if I may ask?"

"Why 'tis in the Colony of Georgia sirrah. My, you speak as strangely as you dress if I may say so. And just where did you come from that thou knowest not that simple fact?"

"Uh, oh, hell, there's no way you'd know that. Let's just say I come from a great distance and leave it at that."

"If you insist. Now, if there's nothing further I must get back to my task. I promised my man I would have this field plowed ere he returns from his trip."

"I'm sorry I bothered you ma'am. If you could please direct me toward the nearest town I'll leave you to your labors."

"My you are lost are you not? "Tis almost directly east of here my good sir. As I said, a fair day's travel it is."

"Thank you for your time," Bob said as he turned to return to his truck. He still didn't know much more than he did before but he decided he wouldn't get much more from the woman. He didn't know if she was mentally slow or uneducated or if she was even representative of the population as a whole. He did know it appeared he was far in the past of both his previous time frames. This time, at least, he had some idea how he came to be here and, thankfully, he wasn't injured like last time he "world walked".

On his way back to the truck, Bob shot a half grown deer to eat. He quickly field dressed it and made his way back to the truck where he built a fire and began cooking the meat. While the deer cooked, Bob sorted through his possessions trying to decide what to take with him and what could be left in the truck. He had no idea what to do about the chickens. There was no way he wanted to just walk off and leave them to starve in the truck and he hated to release them for the wild animals to kill. Finally, he decided to ask the woman if she and her husband would care for them if he gave them half the birds to do so.

After he made that decision, he made up a pack of items he thought he would need for his trip to Norton. Early the next morning, Bob shouldered his pack and headed back to Molly's farm. He hoped to find her husband with her so he could make his deal for the care of the birds.

Bob walked into the farmyard just as dawn was breaking. A pair of large dogs immediately began barking. A rough looking man came out of the house carrying what appeared to be an old flintlock musket. He glared at Bob and said, "That be far enough stranger. What do ye here?"

Bob was about to speak when Molly came up behind her husband and said, "This be the man I told you about Zeke. He claims he be from far away and knows not about things hereabouts."

Zeke mouthed something then spit what appeared to be tobacco juice before he said, "That be so stranger? What are ye doing hereabouts?"

"Yes Mr. Kilpatrick. I've recently came to these parts from some distance away. I've camped off that way about a half mile until I decide where I want to put down roots. I've come this morning to offer you a business proposition if I may."

"Humm. And that be?"

"Well sir, I have my belongings all at my camp and I'm afraid my, uh, my wagon can go no farther. I must go to Norton for a while and I have no way to care for my livestock while I'm gone. I have about 500 young chickens that need care. I wondered if you and your missus would consent to care for them in exchange for half the flock?"

"You have 500 chickens? And just how, pray tell, did you get 500 young chickens all in one spot?"

"Well, I, uh, I brought them with me from my other home. It took a lot of work to gather them as you might imagine and I do not want to lose the whole flock. I see this, sir, as a winning situation for all of us if you would do me this favor."

"Well, let us go see this large flock of chickens you say you have." He looked at Molly and said, "We'll be off to see just what this feller has. You keep on with the work we have laid out."

When they approached his truck, Zeke stopped and said, "Glory be! What in tarnation is that thing?"

Bob, ready for a question of this type said, "That, Mr. Kilpatrick, is my inoperable chariot. The chickens are in the back of it if you care to approach and see."

"Well, I sure never seen nothin' like that afore." They were close enough to hear the chickens peeping. When they got to where they could see into the truck bed, Zeke said, "Glory be. I ain't never seed that many young chickens to onct afore. We shore 'nuff will take care of them for half. Ye got a deal there friend."

They talked for a moment about how they were to care for the birds and move them to the Kilpatrick farmstead. Zeke was preparing to leave when a bobcat came slinking into the clearing, heading for the truck. Without thinking, Bob turned and walked toward it while Zeke backed away trying to get a clear shot at it.

Bob held his hands out and said "Stop," as he projected the request to the 'cat with his mind. The cat stopped and looked at Bob, then at Zeke. It sat and licked its chops as it continued to stare at Bob. Bob opened his pack and walked up to the cat slowly. He handed it a couple pieces of the venison from the night before.

The cat ate the offering and moved to lay in the sun near the truck. It began bathing while while Bob returned to Zeke's side. Zeke said, "You just told that cat to stop and it did, then you fed it like it was some kind of pet. I never seen the like." He stopped talking, his face turned white and he began to shake in fear as he looked sharply at Bob before continuing, "You're a Wizard are you not? That explains your strange dress, the chariot, and way of speaking also. Oh, woe is me. What have I done? I have allowed a Wizard to seduce me into a deal."

"Zeke, Mr. Kilpatrick, I'm just a man, a man much like you, just with a limited ability and some skills many don't have. I didn't seduce you into anything. We made a bargain that should be good for both of us, nothing more. You keep your word and I'll keep mine. We may be neighbors, we may not, but we can be friends and business associates no matter what."

Zeke looked at Bob with apprehension and, turning to leave, said, "That remains to be seen Sir Wizard. We made a deal and only a fool would welsh on a deal with a wizard, but I worry, sir, about unseen consequences. I go now to prepare a place to safeguard your flock. Until the morrow, Sir Wizard."

Bob and his guest, the bobcat, finished the small deer he had cooked then spent a comfortable night beside his old truck. The cat showed no desire to leave. Bob was somewhat apprehensive about having it around on one hand but, on another, he welcomed it. Not only was it nice to have a companion but he was pretty sure nothing or no one could sneak up on him with it around.

The next morning Bob was having a lot of trouble trying to catch the chickens and put them back in the shipping boxes. The cat, who Bob decided to call Roberta after he discovered it was a female, lay on the cab of the truck watching and, Bob swore, laughing at him. Finally, he had a brilliant idea. He used his magic to gather and pick up several chickens at a time before depositing them back in their shipping boxes.

Finally, he'd caught all the little peepers and was preparing to leave for the Kilpatrick's. The boxes were too bulky to carry but Bob hit on the perfect way to transport them. He lifted them with his magic and merely told them to follow him as he walked off. The cat jumped back and watched for a moment then moved off into the underbrush. From time to time, Bob saw the cat as it moved along with him.

When they got to the Kilpatrick's farm, Bob found them working diligently preparing a small room in their lean to barn for use as a chicken coop. Bob gently lowered the chickens to the ground and dropped a roll of the chicken wire he carried beside them. He explained the wire to Zeke and told him to use it for a fence around the run for the birds.

After a short discussion about the birds Bob left, headed for Norton. He walked rapidly all day, stopping a time or two for a short rest and once, a little longer for his lunch. Roberta showed up with a rabbit she'd caught and dined with him.

Late in the evening they found and entered the town of Norton. It had a half dozen business buildings of one type or another, one pub, and an inn with a common room and pub. There were maybe 30 small houses and a few shacks and lean to's also.

Bob was just inside the town, near the pub when three men staggered out of it. They each had a knife in a belt sheath. The one in the lead had a staff and the other two carried cudgels. The one in the lead said, "Well, well, what have we here? What do you have in the pack stranger?"

"I don't believe that's any of your business my good man. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm tired and need to find a room for the night."

The man laughed and said, "My, my, he's a prissy one is he not boys?" He stepped closer to Bob and said, "Well, we're making it our business. Now, hand it over and we'll leave you be. We have need of a good pack and some new belongings."

Bob was tired, hungry and out of sorts. Without thinking, when the man raised his staff into a guard position, he gestured with his right hand. The man flew backward and landed in the dusty street. His two companions looked scared and shifted, looking away, then back toward Bob.