A continuation of Spice and Magic :)

In which there is fall too many tails and tales

Waking up was the hardest thing. Only to find that I wanted to wake up again. Would the nightmare ever end? Or was the nightmare just beginning...

It was a hard time for Howl Jenkins, a wizard with so little experience, to wake up. His eyes open only to see texts and rustic-type drawings on heavy hardbacks. The smell of dust was all up in his nose. Sunlight, which was he thought was quite foreign in a town such as Porthaven where he only saw rain more then sunshine was beaming through dusty little window in the corner.

He remembered little of what was going on, and frankly wanted to not remember anything that was going on at all.

"Good morning, sleepyhead." The sound of the voice was muffled.

"Calcifer..." He drew his hand over his face.
It was all a dream. Bless my magic!

Peering out the window he say that it was going to be one of those rare sunny days in Porthaven. He lifted his head off the cluttered stack of open books and look over to see Calcifer staring at him intently. That was quite the usual there. Then noticing the small bundle on the carpet below the hearth was where the unusual came in.

"You weren't dreaming..." Calcifer pointed out in a long steady tone of disappointed. For there on the rug was a little wolf girl curled up in a ball with her long bushy tail bundled up in her arms. It was sleeping. He watch as the bundle steadily raise and fall between each breath.

"Oh hell's teeth." Howl swore under his tongue even though it was against his better judgement to do so. If it was one thing he learned through all his years of magical training it was that Mrs. Pentstemmon hated a foul mouth more then anything.

"So what do we do?" Calcifer asked. They were both getting to wits end on this. But Howl had an idea and Calcifer seemed to be on the same wavelength as him.

"I hated this rug anyways." He said as he gripped firmly on to the edge of the ragged carpet.
"So do I." Calcifer said as he watched Howl pulled the carpet with the dead weight on it. For something so tiny, it was sure heavy! How much did this girl weigh? She was cute, but not that cute.

"Almost there." Howl gleamed as he almost reached the finished mark. The door blew open for him magically.
"Let me get that door..." Calcifer blazed up in excited anticipation.
'Thanks, old chap." It was a nice sunny day too. At least he won't feel terribly bad for kicking her to the crub. This relief was short lived though.

Just when he was about to make the final pull over the doorstep, a slight flicker of the ears told him to step back.
Damn, she's awake.
Somehow this is not going to look good when she realizes what just happened. But wait, what can she do about it? Besides magically following him home and harassing him, there was little to show of this Holo's true nature or power.
To him, she was really just a girl with abnormalities.

"What happen? Why you stop?" Calcifer was trying to raise himself out of the hearth to see.
"Nothing...I thought it was awake." Howl said after observing the fact that Holo had not stirred for more then a minute. He preceded to pull her the rest of the way out when his hand was only met with excruciating pain. Calcifer's question was quickly answered when he felt the sharp teeth that was laid in to Howl.

"She has fangs!" Howl was able to quickly shake her off after hearing Calcifer announced something he already figured out.
"I know!"

"Hohohoho." The wolf laughed with a girlish charm. "You're trying to throw me out, are you?"

Tried was an understatement. He walked away to wash his hand in the sink. Who knew what contaminates the beast was carrying.

Holo watched amusingly at him like he was her prey. Everything that the wizard did interested her. And to think that a human would have tried...no dare!...to throw her out? But she had to bargain with herself. This man was no ordinary man.

He saw things. He saw her!
It was what she needed to release her from her solitude.

Howl watched as the wolf sat lazily on the rug. Realizing it was wrong to try to toss her out, he came to his senses quickly.
"I was wrong to do that. I'm deeply sorry," he apologized. She seemed pleased with that as a smile graced her lips.

"Okay." She stood there in the open hallway. Waiting...
Sure she had won the battle, but she was anything but welcomed in his house.

Those wolf eyes pierced him all morning. To the table, to the door, to the workbench, back to the table. It was bad enough that the day started off busy. All the early shoppers were off doing their morning routines.

"Do you always do that with your customers?"

Her eyes met his as he spun around to met them. Those deep brown vacuous of hers.

"Do what?" It was an honest reply.
"You undercut them."

"And how would you know?" He witness Calcifer curiously peering out of the hearth behind her.
Her smiled grew wider. His insides shuddered as he caught a glimpse of those fangs.
"You also overprice some of them."

He turned around to continue his work. Yet she went on. "It seems that some customers at your door get charge almost double then others for the same items."

The observation was true. Though the shadiness of the business was clear and the truth exposed, Howl kept his cool.
"Is that so?"
"What I don't know is why. Even when I add it up, the difference between them are the same. So you are not losing or gaining any profit."
"Making money is not really a priority for me. As long as I have enough for living expenses I do get by."

When he saw that Horo was taking interest he continued.

"I understand what is it to some of those people. To try to scrap by for every little thing. That's why I can charge barely nothing to those who can't afford it."

"So you charge the folk that do have money so you can make up the difference?"
"Yes, otherwise I would go horribly in to debt and won't be able to live." He chuckled lightly to himself.
She's pretty perceptive...

"Hmm...don't you think if you moved your shop elsewhere you would make a better business?"
"I bet I would be able to live quite comfortably. But my teacher wanted me to come and bless my kind gentle heart that I would."
Calcifer sufficed a snicker at those last couple of words. The flicker of one of Horo's ears indicated she did not miss a beat.

"Hmm..." she looked up at the ceiling boards thinking deeply.
"So what is your story then?" Howl was starting to feel a bit famish. After this morning's escapade he realize he forgot to eat a decent meal. While he waited for an answer he went over to his food cabinet to pull out some bread and cheese.

"I was born in the north."
North? The waste is not far off in that direction.
"Actually I quite miss it."
"Why don't you go home then?" He started to slice the bread and cheese. He remember he had a guest and it would be quite rude to eat in their presence so he portioned her a size. Would she even eat it though?

"Well, you see...a very unfriendly neighbor moved in awhile ago." His knife fell short on the cutting board. "And ever since then...my home was never the same."

Thanks for the support! It seems I have snag some people. I hope that story turns out great ^_^
Stay tune for the next part.