Drasna twirled around on the ball of her foot, taking in all the noise and scents of the town square. The sun was starting to set which meant the night life would soon begin, there were already plenty of people searching for food. She made haste in locating the food district, she wanted to avoid lines. Food vendors and merchants lined the streets, sending the aroma of smoked meat and fresh baked goods into the air. She looked over at Isobella who’d begun to waft the smells to her nose.

  “I don’t know what to pick! I wanna try everything, but I also don't wanna stuff myself like a boar.” Drasna declared.

  Isobella spoke her mind, “I would like something sweet, because I know you’ll want something spicy.”

  “Sure thing, Izzy, now what I can find that’s spicy…oh! Right there.”

  Drasna took Isobella’s hand and led her down the street, passing several stalls, pan handlers, and other hungry adventurers. They stopped and stood in front of a shabby wooden stall. There was a large lizard man with black scales in a farming hat grilling cobs of corn. A pile had already been moved to the side to stay warm but not cook any further. The man smiled as the two ladies approached his stall.

  “Hello there pretty ladies, can I interest you in some elven style street corn?”

  Isobella cocked her head, “I am familiar with elven cooking, it's often heavy with vegetables and hunted meat.”

  “Right you are! Now, I have a variety of toppings and spice blends for you to choose from.”

  Drasna looked at a chalk board leaning against the stall, there were plenty of options to heat things up. More importantly there were plenty of non spicy toppings for Isobella to enjoy.

  Drasna grinned, “I’ll take one red habanero, and one green ‘n’ zesty!”

  Isobella dug through her pocket to retrieve a few coins before placing her own order, “Butter, salt, and chives please.”

  The lizard man chuckled and counted the coins with a smile, before quickly dressing up the food. He handed over isobella’s first, followed by the two specialty blends for Drasna. Once the girls had their food, he politely tipped his hat to them. Drasna and Isobella stepped away to find a bench.

  Once they’d sat down, Drasna immediately took a large bite of her spicy cob. The corn was charred perfectly and coated in a fine layer of mayonnaise. The spicy blend hit her lips first, a searing pain that would make any normal person cry. Drasna only smiled and took the heat as a challenge, jubilantly taking another large bite. Once her first cob had been devoured she attacked the second. The flavor was much different, a mix of garlic, parsley, and lime came together for a fantastic coup-de-gras. Drasna could hardly slow down and consumed every kernel, before looking over to see if Isobella was enjoying her own.

  “Wow! This stuff is incredible, how is yours?”

  Isobella was only half way finished with her own when she answered. “As far as peasant food goes this is really quite pleasant. I attribute it to elven cooking being slightly more refined and regal, then most other forms.”

  Drasna sighed, “In common speech please?”

  Isobella giggled, “I like it very much, but I would very much like something sweet still.”

  Drasna nodded, “Alright, let's go see what else we can find.”

  Isobella took her favorite pose and hugged Drasna’s arm as they both looked for something else tasty to eat. After several minutes, Drasna could tell her noble girlfriend was getting grumpy. They had managed to find some tasty honey roasted chicken skewers, but it wasn’t the sweet she craved. Drasna began to sweat until the perfect aroma made its way to her nose. She tugged Isobella towards the smell, making her yelp in surprise. The moment Drasna saw it she knew it would be perfect. A freckled ginger woman with curls was handing out crude clay bowls of apple crisp, each steaming hot.

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  Isobella’s eyes widened, “We absolutely must get a bowl!”

  Drasna sighed with relief, “Yes ma’am!”

  The monk ran up to the vendor and ordered an extra large bowl with two spoons. She pouted at the craftsmanship of the bowl, even she had made better bowls back home. The sight of the mass produced ceramic did give her a future gift idea however.She gave Isobella a sly smile when she presented it to her. The noble turned pink in the face and shook her head.

  “Two spoons? How romantic, but it's very bold of you to assume I wish to share my dessert.” Isobella sassed, grabbing one of the spoons.

  Drasna raised an eyebrow, “Like you could stop me from taking it?”

  Isobella’s eyes began to glow purple, “Try it, peasant!”

  Drasna’s eyes narrowed in acceptance of the challenge, “Tristan said I’m your bodyguard, that means I need to check for poison!”

  She quickly snatched the bowl from the noble's hands. The theft was so sudden and abrupt that Isobella was unable to process it, allowing Drasna to take a generous bite of the dessert. The warm apples were soft and covered in sweet crispy cinnamon chunks and oats. She savored the flavor, but ultimately decided it was a touch too sweet for her to eat too much. After a second spoonful she handed it back to Isobella with a wink.

  “It’s safe, you can have the rest of it now.”

  “You had two bites and half of it’s gone you boar!”

  With both girls full and happy, they made their way to the home of Isobella’s wizard associate. His tower was located on the edge of town, it was shabby and looked like an abandoned rice mill. Despite the outward appearance a nearby garden was growing out of season crops inside a strange transparent shed. Isobella reached out for the door knocker, but the door opened before she could use it. An older man in red robes stood in the doorway, for a wizard he looked quite young. His beard was well trimmed and void of any graying.

  “Ah Isobella, I’ve been anticipating your arrival all day, and what's this? You didn’t tell me that your friend was so prepossessing.”

  Isobella clasped her hand behind her back, “I apologize for the wait, Christof, we had difficulty deciding what to eat after our journey here.”

  Christof gestured for the girls to enter, “It matters not, now please come in, my domicile is open to the two of you.”

  Drasna frowned, “How do you know this guy again?”

  Isobella answered curtly as she stepped inside, “I provide him with rare spell components on occasion.”

  Christof mused, “How a lovely debutante, such as Isobella is able to acquire such vast quantities of pixie dust, eludes me to this day. With such superlative quality as well.”

  Drasna crossed her arms and cocked her head, “...uh…what?”

  Isobella turned to Drasna, “Don’t mind him, Christof fails to realize knowing and using extensive vocabulary is not the same as knowing ‘when’ to use it.”

  Christof pouted, “Charming as ever, miss Isobella, why don’t I just show you to the magic circle."

  Isobella followed, unamused by the wizard’s antics. Drasna took the opportunity to look around, she’d never been to a wizards tower before. Contrary to the outside, the inside was homey and strange. There were countless shelves containing a variety of books, trinkets, and potion bottles. Drasna swore she saw at least three skulls lying around and did her best to pretend she didn’t.

  Christof led them into a room with a large circle drawn on the floor. Drasna recognized it as the same or at least similar to the one Isobella created earlier. She was always fascinated by magic, even if she understood none of it.

  Christof cleared his throat, “I have another magic circle set up at a friend's house in Vulcarose, you can’t stay there, but it’ll get you to the city. When you’re ready to go home, just return to Margot’s house, understand?”

  Drasna was stunned, “Really that’s all there is to it?”

  Isobella shook her head, “There is a little more to it than that, but as the travelers, we need not worry about it, ready?”

  Drasna nodded and stepped into the circle with Isobella. The Circle hummed to live and glowed with a bright scarlet light. There was a bright flash and once the spots faded from her eyes, she was in a new place. The walls were made of polished sandstone, the shelves were now loaded with scrolls, leather sacks, and artifacts. She looked around and spotted a woman wearing a witch hat, cotton trousers, and her bra. She was reading a book and sitting in a comfy chair.

  The witch looked up at her visitors and curtly pointed to the exit, “Doors that way, have fun, try not to annoy me, and we won't have a problem.”