CHAPTER 101 Welcome to the Pixie Prim

CHAPTER 101

Welcome to the Pixie Prim

Rufus

The next morning dawned miserable and raining, today marking the last day of the foretold magical storm. Hair tickled my nose, waking me. I smiled, gently unwrapping myself from the half giantess and sitting up.

Conveniently, I was in folk form and could use the soft pad of my fingers to gently tuck the lock of hair behind Bronwynn’s ear. She mumbled a complaint as I placed a kiss on her forehead and got up, letting in the cold air under our blankets.

With a stretch, I transformed into my usual self and set to putting on my outfit for the day: a thick long sleeve undershirt, knit sweater, and heavy cotton pants. No socks or shoes were required in this form, but I slipped on a pair of awkward ankle-high boots that were custom fit to my canine feet. Better to be uncomfortable than covered in mud.

I slipped downstairs to order breakfast, a hot bowl of water, and a pot of black tea with cream to be sent up to our room before ducking outside by way of the stables. The wagon was parked outside in the rain, but Donna and all of her tack were inside. The mare eyed me as I walked up to the edge of the shelter, water cascading off the hanging roof and puddling on the ground. There wasn’t much to view.

“Well, wish me luck,” I said. Wrapping myself in my cloak, I pulled the hood up and took a step out into the deluge. There was a faint whinny behind me. I guessed it was the mare calling me all sorts of a fool for going out into the rain, but this was important. I had something I needed to do before we left.

The streets were bare, and only a handful of cloaked figures hurried about. Lights from inside the houses and shops shone as a haze of yellow against the gray storm .

“Welcome to the Pixie Prim,” a cheerful voice sounded as I pushed open the door to my intended destination. “Please stand still while we assist you.”

The efficacy of [Life Magic] practiced by the Prim was renowned. Not to be confused with necromancy and the ability to control life and death, [Life Magic] opened up an entire skill tree with powers useful to everyday life . Other practicing mages might acquire a few [Cantrips], but the Pixie Prim racial trait gave them hundreds.

“[Cleanse], [Quick Dry],” the pixie who flew up to greet me cast, waving a tiny finger at me.

“Thank you,” I said, greatly appreciating the spells. My cloak and boots were granted the same treatment, so I didn’t bother storing them, instead leaving them in the entry.

They were safe with the Pixie Prim.

The shop was fit for one giant to squish in awkwardly between the door and the counter, but tall enough to accommodate me just fine. The wares behind the counter covered many different shelves. There was an elaborate collection of bottles, drying herbs, potions, stills, and about twenty or so pixies flying around the shop checking on the wares and carrying bottles, or fetching things for the crafters in the back.

There were more pixies sorting through swathes of trays containing everything from paints, dyes, soaps, and medicine. I was led through a door into the work room beyond, where a veritable warehouse of finished products sat waiting for delivery on the left side, and the Pixie Prim worked on the right.

Any form of compounding imaginable took place in pixie-sized designated workrooms that climbed to the tall ceiling twice my height in a honeycomb pattern. Hundreds of pixies worked in their respective areas, magicking ingredients. Drapes covered what I knew to be a glass skylight; there was no view of the thundering sky above today. Instead, the place was illuminated by floating magic lights, enchanted string lights woven through the branches of ivy that ran along parts of the shop and bioluminescent mushrooms.

“Commander General!” A pink pixie with long green hair fluttered up to my face. “Welcome! How can we be of help to you today?”

“Hello, Mateo. I’m here on two pieces of business.” I tilted my head in respect to the high-level creature. Mateo was the grandson of the head of the Pixie Prim, and in charge of their major storefront. He was also just shy of level fifty, but he used it for crafting instead of combat.

Mateo flew over to land on my shoulder, sitting in much the same way that Ross did. Now that I was comparing them, the two had similar coloring as well … but I didn’t know if it was rude to assume that coloring was a distinguishing feature among the pixie.

Curiosity won the better of me. “Do you know a pixie named Ross? ”

Mateo looked very taken aback. “How do you know my da?”

The silence stretched between us as the pixie on my shoulder squinted up at me, suspicious of my hesitation. I finally said, “I met him in Peldeep.”

Mateo nodded, as if that explained it. Which technically it did, since I had just had dinner with Ross a few days ago. In Peldeep. He didn’t look old enough to be the father of a fully grown pixie. Then again, Mateo also looked surprisingly young for as long as I had known him.

“I’m actually here to ask if you are supplying poison ingredients to someone in the Hollow?” I changed the subject, leading back to the reason I was here at opening hour.

Mateo tapped his chin. “Lucee.”

“You called?” A pink pixie with purple wings and purple hair flew up to us, a small notepad in her hand and a quill in the other.

“A list of long-standing buyers in the Hollow, please,” Mateo requested.

Lucee nodded, sticking her quill behind her pointy ear and using both hands to open her notepad. She flipped through more pages than I thought could possibly fit inside, and I accepted the magic without question. “Isla Fens; carol white paint, hulid nectar, and treant marrow, every blue moon. Tilly Lilly; three jars ratha root and one floofpoof hen jaw, quarterly. Duke Briarthorn one gold-grade floral bouquet, quarterly. The duke’s staff all order through the chatelaine; I will include a list of the last four quarters here. And the Hollow Glade, the household of the saintess, also has a long-standing order which I will include.”

The pixie waved her hand over her notebook, and a copy of everything she listed appeared above it, floating between us and growing in size until each page was as big as she was.

“Thank you,” I replied, catching the pile and slipping it into my storage ring for review later. “You’ve been an incredible help.”

“Thank you .” The pixie bowed lower than was required, and when she straightened, there was a fierceness in her gaze. “You helped my cousin a few years back, when he was in a very dark place. He’s decided to be a blacksmith now, and is loving life. The Marrowgrove family owes you a great debt.”

I accepted her bow with grace. I remembered her cousin. I remembered all of my patients, and it was good to hear that Lex Marrowgrove was doing well.

“It was my pleasure … and speaking of pleasure, there’s actually one more thing I need.”