A/N:

Here is my attempt at some one-shots for the Balthy 100. Maybe I'll get to all 100, probably not, and I am going to try to do them in order but I might end up skipping around. Different prompts will be based on different characters but mostly Balthazar and Veronica, because there just aren't enough of them. There will be spoilers. This is the first thing that I have posted in about a year so I hope that it's decent.

Here is my idea for prompt one, it's pretty sappy. Enjoy and please review if you like it.

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Just love it.

Arcana Cabana

If Balthazar had learned anything in his life is was that anything could change over time. Even as little as ten years could make a great difference, especially in this century. The Arcana Cabana would be no exception. He walked down the familiar street stopping in front of the place where he had lived for several years. All traces of his store were gone, leaving only the empty shell of a building behind. It seemed almost lonely now, abandoned, but he didn't linger on the thought for to long. He was on a mission, and he knew he had to be quick. There was no telling what kind of trouble Dave would get himself into while he was gone.

Getting in was easier than he had ever expected. He didn't even have to use any magic. Whoever was currently renting the building had left the door unlocked. They obviously hadn't been in New York very long.

The place was completely vacant but for a few bare shelves and racks, and one long, unoccupied counter. Balthazar assumed that it had at a point been some sort of clothing store. The magical artifacts that had been once gathered here were gone, and if the urn was any evidence, they were probably spread throughout the city, possibly causing trouble for their new owners. He didn't really care. Most of the things that he had collected were completely useless to him, and he could make due without the rest. Anything of any real importance had been locked away from all eyes but his own.

He climbed down the stairs that led into the basement. The small room had once served as his living space. He had eaten here, slept here, studied here and dreamed about the future, as it could be if he managed to find the Prime Merlinian and destroyed Morgana. His bed and other personal items had been replaced with boxes of unused merchandise and signs that boasted "Big Sizes, Small Prices", and " A Hefty Girl's Heaven".

He couldn't help scoff and shake his head at the last one. No wonder this place had gone out of business, he thought.

He walked towards a bare patch of brick wall and crouched down in front of it. He used his power to open a hidden door and retrieved a small object wrapped in cloth. He pulled away the cloth and stared at the necklace that it had been hiding. It was perfectly intact just like he had left it. It was a relief to see it in one piece, after all it was over a thousand years old, and he had decided long ago that he wouldn't alter it with magic. She wouldn't have wanted that. He wanted it to stay just like this until the day that he could finally give it to her. He hoped that day would be soon.

He put the wall back and made his way back up the stairs. As he left the building, he took one last look at the old place. It was a bit sad letting go, it had been comfortable and familiar, but it hadn't really been home. No matter how long he spent in one place, it never felt like home. No place ever could be without her. She was all he wanted, all he needed, and he would give up the Arcana Cabana a hundred times over just to see her face again.

He placed the necklace in his pocket as started back the way he came, leaving behind one more piece of his past. He was one step closer to the day he would have her back in his arms again. One step closer to truly being home.