"Repeat it, Sable. He doesn't know what I said."

I opened my mouth quickly repeating what the cat said. The troll nodded his head and turned back to the others. I tightened my grip on my coffee mug and took a sip. At least I had a little bit of coffee left and it was still warm. Hopefully, the cat realized he had royally screwed up by not warning me. The more I watched them admiring the various pieces of wood the more I related. They were here to buy things just like anyone else. They were just green and tall. Why was everyone so tall?

"So, is this their first spear or something?" I asked quietly to the cat.

"It is the one they will take into their great hunt. Vulug visits each year with the ones who are now old enough and have passed whatever rites or rituals there are among his people. It is an honor to be involved. He is a great elder for the Trolls." I assumed the large one was Vulug.

That made sense. In a way. "They can't do the magic themselves?"

The cat lay down on the counter, his head resting on his paws, almost like a dog. "Their shaman used to, but he died without a successor. They pray another will be born who has the power. Maybe one of these warriors will be able to. Until then, we provide the magic so that their people's rites can continue."

This had to mean something big to these people but they couldn't do it themselves anymore. That had to be rough on them. Warmth filled me as well. Since we were here, we could help them. My shoulders relaxed a bit more, and I studied everyone in the shop. Every time one of them picked up a length of wood they looked at it every which way. They would run their green hands along the length and hold it up to their shoulders as if they would throw it. It mesmerized me. Vulug approached the counter with a smaller troll by his side. It was then I realized that the ones looking at the wood were shorter and less muscular. They had to be the new hunters or warriors.

"Does this shaft match this warrior?" asked Vulug. The cat sat up as they approached. He motioned for the younger one to hold it out to the cat. The cat leaned forward and touched his nose to the wood. Then he sniffed the troll before nodding.

"Good, good," Vulug motioned to the troll. "Go carve your point." The potential warrior then headed out of the shop. The door was propped open. My eyes went to the cat. He said nothing about it.

"You asked questions about us," said Vulug. "You are new, this is the first time I see you."

“Yes,” I hesitated then continued, “I was wondering about how we help your people.”

He nodded, and his eyebrows pulled together. "A new shaman will be born when the time is right. His son, Durz, and daughter, Horza, are both the correct age. We will see if either has the power during the hunt.” Vulug smiled at both of us. “Then you and the cat can be guests at the ceremony." The cat froze at the words, then shook his head no.

"It will be so, old friend. You have helped for many years.” The troll’s hand hovered above the counter before he set it down with force. “Someday you will visit and meet the rest of our people." His dark eyes stared at the cat for a moment before he turned back to the others in his party.

The cat seemed to sulk, and he turned around on the counter before curling into a bit of a ball. I didn't know what to do to break the mood he seemed to be in. He was strange, even for a cat, but not normally, well, sad. The smell of wood smoke drifted into the shop, but it was pleasant and cheered me up. I loved a good campfire and marshmallows to roast over it. Outside the windows, I could see a small fire with trolls surrounding it. Usually, I couldn’t see far outside the windows but today the glass was clear.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

The cat was still curled up, and I carefully reached out and petted him. He slowly relaxed and curled out of the ball. As time went on one by one the rest of the trolls approached the counter. Each time the cat would touch the wood with his nose then nod or shake his head no. If it was a no, the troll would go back to find a different piece of wood that spoke to them. With the first rejected troll, I worried about what the troll would do instead, but the youngling nodded at the cat with a smile.

The elder commented on my confused face, “They would rather it be right for the hunt. It is important.”

“That makes sense. So they take these spears and you go on a big hunt?” I know I could ask the cat but he seemed to still be in a bad mood.

“Yes, we will all go into the plains and hunt great enormous beasts. It takes several spears to take them down. They have a thick fur and large tusks. This is the chance to prove they are warriors to the clan,” said Vulug.

Finally, it was down to one person who wasn't outside already carving a tip and hardening the point in the fire. Or at least it looked that way from the windows. I wasn't sure. Spear-making was not on my resume. Though, if I could, I totally would make one. Heck, if the elder offered to help make me one, I would take him up on it in an instant.

The only troll left was the woman, Horza. She was going shelf by shelf looking for something that called to her and the cat approved. She came up to the counter by herself, as the leader was outside helping with the next step.

"Hello, hold it out for the cat." Horza looked to me then to the cat who was napping. "Yo cat. It is time to do your thing." He glared at me and climbed to his feet. She held out the wood, and he sniffed it before nodding. "Great, you are good to go!" The female orc was dressed like the others in some sort of cloth. Bracelets of wooden beads covered each of her wrists with each painted different colors. "I like your brackets, they are pretty."

"They are potent magic, my father made them before he passed. I have added to them,” she paused, “but I don't have magic. At least not yet."

"You might though, your leader said something about it."

Horza frowned then nodded. "Yes, they hope my brother's magic comes out after the hunt."

"Yours too, right?" I asked, but she shrugged. A mask came over her features covering any emotion.

Vulug came in and smiled when he saw her at the counter. "Ah, good. One spoke to you. Time for carving and then magic." She gave me a tight smile and then headed to the door after Vulug.

She hadn't answered my question about the magic. "Doesn't she want magic?" I asked softly.

To my surprise, the cat answered. "She might not. Women warriors are highly respected for the trolls. They usually become great leaders for their people. If she has proven herself enough for the hunt, becoming a shaman might not be what she wants."

I haven’t even thought about the downsides of having magic. I thought magic was awesome most of the time, but it would not change what I had to do for the next year. No matter what, I would be here in this shop. Yet for her, if she had it, everything would change.

"So, does the magic happen after the hunt?"

The cat nodded. "It usually shows itself during the hunt. The trolls’ magic is potent during the first hunt and that can ignite other magics as well.”

“Are shamans the only ones who use magic? Can she become a magic warrior or whatnot?” Learning about the trolls’ culture was interesting, much better than any of the classes I took in college.

The cat hesitated. “It hasn’t been done, I don’t think.”

“Ah, so you don’t know everything.” The cat didn’t respond to that. Instead, he jumped down from the counter and padded over to the chair that was still in the window. He jumped up and peered outside.

I finished my coffee and then headed to the open door. I did not cross the threshold but leaned against the door frame. The trolls who had picked out new spears were scattered about, plus several who had not come in the store. Some were still carving points and waving them over the wood smoke. Words were spoken, but they were far enough away I couldn’t figure them out.

The woman caught me watching her, and she gave me a genuine smile. She held up her spear with glee, and I smiled in return. They weren’t as frightening as all that. Just people.