Author's Note: Um, I'm bored, even though I should be studying. I am completely obessed with this movie and it's characters and so I figured the only cure for these problems is to give 'The Balthy 100' Challenge a go. I'm not completely sure how I'll go with is, but I'm giving it a shot and writing for these characters is SO much FUN!
Most of the themes will most likely be set in Merlin's time with the three apprentices because I am absolutely fascinated by them.
Disclaimer: You probably all know I don't own the movie or any of the characters or anything along those lines. All I can say is mine are the ficlets that I write for the themes and the characters and so on.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the first installment to 'A 100 Pages From Balthazar's Incantatus'.
1. Arcana Cabana
"Searching for Master's heir? How exactly are we planning on doing that?" Maxim Horvath asked, rather out of the blue one afternoon, when the three apprentices were sitting out in the last of the summer's sun.
"How do you mean?" Balthazar asked. To anyone who happen to walk by them they would have appeared that he was fast asleep, lying flat on his back, his arms under his head, his body relaxed, when really his mind was a mess. Confusing emotions were running wild within him and he didn't quite know how to deal with them. They were so confusing and strange to him.
"Exactly how I mean. How are we going to do it?" Maxim replied rather tersely. Veronica felt her shoulders stiffen. Oh please, not now. Don't start fighting. It is such a lovely day; let us at least have this afternoon fight free.
She snuck a glance between the two, from where they sat on either side of her. When they had been younger they had sat like this so as to stop the boys from fighting over their food, now as men, it was to stop them from fighting over, well everything.
She couldn't understand it. Why couldn't they just get along any more? Not that Balthazar wasn't trying to get along with Maxim, but Maxim was always angry whenever Balthazar or Merlin or even herself tried to speak to him. Nothing seemed to please him or make him smile anymore.
"I guess we just travel around." Balthazar replied cautiously. Obviously he was as eager as she for a fight not to break out between them. Maxim on the other hand…
"Oh what an excellent idea, Balthazar. How on earth did you ever think of that? Of course, we'll have to travel around! Do you think the heir will just come waltzing up to us?" he spat back. Balthazar shoulders immediately hunched and his fingers twitched by his side as if he were trying to fight them against turning into a fist.
"Maybe." Veronica put in, as she noticed this too and the annoyed, hurt flair in Balthazar usually calm blue-grey gaze. Both men looked at her, slightly startled, as if they had forgotten she was there.
"What do you mean?" they asked as one, before glaring around her at each other. She sighed and moved a little forward, to try and keep the peace for a little longer. She didn't think she could deal with another headache from one of these two fights.
"What I mean is, look at us." She gesture to all three of them. "Did Master come looking for us?" the two men open their mouths but she waved them silent. "No, he did not; we came to him, did we not?"
"Yes, but he was in the area that we were in when he found us." Maxim pointed out hotly.
"Yes that is true, but he wasn't necessary in the area for us, was he? No, he was in the area that we were in for a number of months, years in your case Maxim before any of us stumbled across his path" it is like talking to children, but at least they aren't at each other throats, she thought before continuing. "So my idea is that we travel the world, but we stop, for say ten years in different countries. Settle down with a job or shop or something and wait for the heir to come to us."
She waited, almost nervously for their responses.
"I suppose that is a fairly solid plan. But it hasn't got anything to do with you just wanting to own your shop, has it?" Maxim asked, raised eyebrows. Her cheeks grew flushed.
"I would like to own my own shop…"
"I think it's a good idea." Balthazar muttered.
"Yes. Of course, you would." Maxim shot back and the two started glaring at each other again. Veronica sighed heavily.
"I just think that by having a shop would be a smart idea. If we were travelling and did so happen to find the heir, we'd have to go and find a place to settle them down, to train them and keep them safe from harm and so on. But if we have a shop, then the place to train them is already set up, we don't have to leave and - and I just think we'll be more likely to find the heir if we were settled down somewhere, rather than roaming the world wide." She shrugged her shoulders. Neither replied and she fought back an irritated sigh. They were both being so ridiculous and she was thoroughly fed up with the pair of them.
"Well, if you have any better ideas let me know will you please." She snapped rather tartly, as she rose to her feet, surprising both men, both whom open their mouths to protest and apologize but for once, she really did not what listen to either of them.
She was sick and tired of how they were acting with each other and with her. She wished with all her heart that they could return to how they once had been as children.
She ignored their calls for her to come back and that they were sorry as she stormed back to Merlin's tower.
Merlin eyed her almost sadly as she stormed past him, patting her arm gently before returning to his huge Incantatus.
A few hours later, she heard a soft, almost hesitant tap on her door and for a few moments she contemplated just ignoring. She knew perfectly well who it was, she just didn't know if it would be entirely safe to let him in when she was still fighting down the desire to throw something hard and heavy at his stupid head.
"Veronica." Oh no, don't use that voice, she groaned inwardly. How could his voice spoken so softly and gently turn her anger into warm and gentle, not to mention, much stronger feelings? But she wasn't about to let him know that she wasn't still angry with him.
"What?" She called coldly back to him.
"Please let me."
"And why, pray tell, should I?"
"Because I would much rather apologize to your face than to your lovely door."
"My lovely door that still has scorch marks on it because of the time you and Maxim were a little too enthusiastic with your fire magic." She called back, trying to fight back a grin as she heard an exasperated sigh from outside her room.
"Dear Door, I am deeply sorry for grievance offense that I and my fellow male apprentice have inflicted upon you. Would you please forgive us?"
To his slight surprise he suddenly found himself talking to not, and he had to admit to himself it was a rather badly scorched marked door, but to Veronica herself. He gulped nervously.
"Apology accepted. Let us move on before I change my mind and turn both you and Maxim into pigs."
"Why pigs?" Balthazar asked bewildered, though a small relieved smile was now playing on his lips.
"Because you two still eat like one." She replied calmly as she learnt against her doorframe, arms crossed, waiting.
She's still mad; Balthazar groaned mentally as he looked into her deep soulful brown eyes and saw the hurt and confusion that was in them.
He tried to lighten the mood.
"What would you call it?" he asked rather randomly. Veronica's eyebrow shot to her hair line.
"Call what?"
"Your shop, if you ever got it. What would you call it? What would it sell?" now that he had started questioning the idea of the shop, he found himself genuinely interested in the idea of having one.
"Um, I suppose I would sell artefacts. Things that we have found on our travels, because we're going to need money, lots of it with the way you two eat," he stuck his tongue out at her childishly. She ignored him and continued," and with all the countries that we are most likely going to visit, we're going to pick up things, knowing us. So I thought, let's have a shop, sell the artefacts that we have collected and keep you two both happy by having you bellies full." She ended rather bitterly, glaring briefly up at him before turning and glaring in the direction of Horvath's room.
"And you'd call it what?" Balthazar asked hurriedly. He didn't want her to get mad all over again at them. She looked back up at him surprised.
"Do you really care to know?"
"Yes."
"I don't exactly know but maybe because of the artefacts we're going to collect from all over world, maybe the word 'arcane' should be in the title." She shrugged.
"For secret and mystery?" he asked and she smiled up at him.
"It is just an idea. Maxim doesn't seem so keen on it."
"Probably because he can't stay still for more than a few minutes. Always on the move."
"Neither can you." She pointed out.
"But I am patient." He replied. She nodded in agreement, grinning.
"Patient almost to a fault." The two stiffen and glanced cautiously behind them to where Maxim stood. He looked rather guilty and ashamed of himself.
"I apologize for my earlier behaviour." Maxim said, looking more than a little uncomfortable as he said it, but he's eyes were pleading with them for their forgiveness. Veronica and Balthazar looked at each other than back to him.
"Veronica he just apologized."
"Yes, I know, heard it too, but my ears might be deceiving me."
"Or he might possessed."
"Or a shape shifter."
"Exactly." Balthazar nodded seriously at her before turning back to an exasperated Maxim. "Who are you and what have you done with Maxim Horvath?"
"I am the person who is going to beating you to a bleeding pulp with my sword if the two of you don't knock it off." Maxim growled, his cheeks turning slightly red. Balthazar and Veronica looked back at each other and grinned.
"Oh yes, that is most certainly is him."
"No doubt about, but you know he still might be possessed. He did just apologize and that is most certainly not normal Maxim Horvath behaviour."
"That is very true."
"Maybe we should test if it really is him. You know, test if he can create a Plasma bolt." Balthazar beamed wickedly at Maxim, who just glared at him for once again poking fun at his weakest attack spell.
"Or maybe I really should just start beating you to a pulp with my sword." Maxim replied.
"I can run faster than you."
"Then I'll cast Persian rug spell."
"And I'll just stick you in a mirror in return."
"Not if I do it to you first."
"Like to see you try!"
"Is that a dare…" mad giggling suddenly erupted in the corridor causing both men to stop their little argument to stare in bewilderment at their fellow apprentice, who was almost doubled over by the strength of her laughter.
"You two are arguing again." She giggled in delight. Both men looked at each other completely confused.
"Oh yes, um, you wanted us to stop that, didn't you." Balthazar said weakly.
"No, I want you two to stop fighting with each other, but this, this is completely fine." She laughed.
"Right and that makes perfect sense." Maxim muttered, shaking his head at Balthazar.
"Oh, but it does." She gasped out between her giggles, straightening up once more and positively beaming at the pair of them, leaving them both somewhat dumbstruck.
"So um about this shop." Maxim started awkwardly. He wanted to stop her laughing at them and figured talking about her beloved shop was one way to get her to stop.
"Hmmm?"
"What is it going to be called?"
"Something with Arcane in it apparently."
"I rather like 'Arcana'."
"Just to make it complicated and to involve those silly cards in too."
"Of course. And they are not silly." She beamed at them and the two simply grinned back at her.
Almost a Thousand Years Later
He didn't exactly know why he was remembering that particular day now, after almost a thousand years since it had happen, but he remembered it as clearing as if it had just happen yesterday.
He swallowed thickly as he continued to stare up at the two story empty shop in front of him.
She had always wanted a shop.
And he was sick of travelling, he just wanted to settle down for a little while, maybe ten years and wait for the Prime Merlinian to come to him, as she suggested that they should do and only now was he actually thinking of trying it.
For the last thousand years (give or take a few decades) it had hurt too much to settle down in one place for too long. The time that he stood still made him remember too clearly of the times that had passed and that he would never get back. Continually moving around made the pain more bearable. Until now. He was tired now, and all he wanted to do was rest and he felt… drawn to this little place like he never had before.
He didn't know why, but it had almost felt like it had been calling to him, waiting for him to arrive and it make this place his home for a couple of years as he waited for the Prime Merlinian to come and find him.
"Are you interested in renting this shop sir?" a man had just come out of the shop's front door and seemed more than a little startled to see him just standing there, but he was used to that, he startled most people on a good day and this wasn't a good day. He was remembering her and that always put him in a foul mood, though at the moment he suddenly felt filled with good humour and cheer. Odd feelings for him, but he accepted them with good grace. He could already feel a change in the air. Maybe, very soon, they would all be free.
"Yes, Yes I am."
Arcana Cabana. He'd call it that. She would like that, it would make her laugh. He smiled for the first time in over a decade as the man let him into the shop and started to show him around.
Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed and reviews are deeply appreciated.
Thanks for reading.
Arcane, adjective, means: Secret or Mystery
Arcana/ The Major Arcana or trumps are a suit of twenty-two cards in the tarot deck
Cabana, noun, means: a small permanent shelter erected near a swimming pool