The next few days went by in a breeze and Velvet experienced things she never had the luxury to enjoy before. Penelope took her to a bunch of places where they ate food so good that her mouth was watering just looking at it, always insisting on paying for it all. She took her around the market to pick out clothes and bought her everything the young witch so much as glanced at.

"You really don't need to do this," Velvet said when she took out her money pouch and tossed a few silver coins on the table before a merchant once again.

"I know I don't," the rich girl responded. "But I want to. Here." She handed her the neatly folded silk shirt she had just bought. "Ditch that old shirt and try this one. I bet you will look great in it! Now we need to find you a jacket that matches your shorts. And maybe some gloves..." she scratched her chin looking up and thinking.

Despite feeling kind of bad that her new friend was paying for all of this, she could not deny the girl's sense of fashion. She really knew how to create a matching outfit from seemingly random pieces of clothing. When Velvet came home that day and looked at herself in the mirror, she really liked what she saw.

Her long, baggy shorts were replaced with tighter ones that ended above her knees, instead of going over them. They were a lighter brown color with a black belt and a silver buckle holding them up. She wore a white silk shirt tucked into her shorts and with the sleeves rolled up to around her elbows. The top button was left undone for the collar to not rub her neck. Her old and battered shoes were replaced with fine brown leather boots which went up to about half her calf, two belts with silver buckles on each to make them fit tightly. Black socks peeked out just a little above them. Over her shoulders, a brown leather jacket was sitting unworn, its sleeves hanging down on each side. And her hands were covered in brown fingerless gloves.

Running to her room, she picked up her pointy witch hat which her father had sewed together from many different colored pieces of leather. This was the only piece of clothing she absolutely refused to upgrade. Penelope had shown her a plethora of completely new hats but she didn't want to hear about it. She liked this one because it was unique and handmade by the person who loved her most and encouraged her all the way. Placing it on her head, she went back to the mirror.

Wow. I kind of look like someone from the books I've read, ready to go on an adventure! she thought to herself as she was observing her new outfit. Her father walked in and saw her marveling at herself.

"Where's my favorite little witch?" He smiled. "You look great, my dear! Did you buy those clothes with Penelope?"

The girl nodded. "She didn't let me pay for any, though." Saying that, she produced a small pouch from her pocket. "I still have all of the money you gave me!"

The man cocked his eyebrow at hearing this. Those Corwells are really spoiling us, aren't they? I feel kind of bad accepting their charity like this. But at least Velvet looks happy with the things they bought her...

He took his coat off the hanger and threw it over his shoulders. "Let's go out for a bit, what do you say?"

His daughter looked at him weirdly. It was hot outside and the coat was not necessary at all. "Why do you need the coat?"

"This way we'll match!" He laughed and made his way to the front door. "Come."

"Where are we going?" She was curious.

"It's a surprise!" her dad told her as they left the house. They walked the streets through the main square and went to the outskirts of the town, where lots of strange shops started to pop up, selling everything from animal furs and herbs to weapons and armor. Velvet almost never went into this part of the town, as it was in the complete opposite direction of her school. She looked around at the estranged surroundings and tried to figure out where her father was taking her. Nothing really useful popped up in her head though.

"Here we are!" he said when they finally arrived at their intended destination. It was an old shop that looked nearly abandoned. One of the windows was broken and the owner seemed to have no intention of fixing it as there were thick spider webs hanging from the gaping hole. The confused girl looked up to where an old wooden board said in bold black letters, "Zeke's Staves." Her eyes immediately lit up once she read it.

"Really?!" she exclaimed happily.

"A proper witch should have a proper staff, right?" He smiled at her, glad to see his surprise was received so well.

"You are the best, Dad!" The girl was overjoyed.

He reached for the handle and they stepped inside. They found themselves in a dimly lit room with lots of different staves of all shapes and sizes hanging on the walls and in the corners. Whoever ran this shop couldn't care less about keeping it tidy. There were spider webs everywhere and dust was sitting thick on most of the items on display.

"Hello?" Her father's voice echoed through the empty room. "Is anybody here?" His question was met with a deafening silence.

"Hello?" he tried again. Nothing. The thought that the shop was abandoned and that they would need to turn around and go home empty-handed had just crossed his mind when some rustling behind a curtain in the back was heard. Moments later, a man wearing a black apron and light blue shirt stepped from behind it.

"Oh, hello there!" he called out, seemingly surprised that a customer somehow found his way into his humble abode.

"Sorry, but is this shop open?" her father asked, looking around with a tint of concern in his eyes. It looked like the place was falling apart.

"It is and it isn't," the shopkeeper answered cryptically. "I don't get a lot of business these days, you see. Hunters and adventurers passing by to go to the Kamatayan forest are about the only ones that still buy something here and there, but it's not really enough to make a living. Long gone are the ages when this town was brimming with witches and wizards happy to take a look at my extensive collection. My father has been collecting staves his whole life only for his son to go bankrupt it seems."

"Sorry to hear that," Mister Crow said, feeling the man's struggle. He knew all too well himself how it is to barely make ends meet. "Can we take a look?"

"We?" the other man was surprised. Then he looked down to the counter and saw a patched-up pointy hat sticking from behind it on the other side. He leaned over and glanced at the girl.

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"Well, I'll be damned!" he exclaimed. "I don't think I ever had a customer this young before! How old are you, my dear?"

"I'm going to be nine in a month," Velvet replied, never stopping to look around at all the different staffs on the walls. It was like a dream come true for her.

"I take it you're looking to buy her a staff preemptively, so it helps her develop her magic?" the shopkeeper looked back up at the child's guardian.

"Oh, she already has magic," her father replied casually.

"What?!" he yelled and jumped from behind his counter, startling both of them. "Can you show me your mark?!" he asked, but with a tone that practically demanded it. The frightened girl hesitantly raised her right arm. He gently grabbed it, his hands trembling slightly as he did so.

"It can't be...but it is..." his lips quivered as he spoke in disbelief. "How did you do it?" he asked, looking up at her. "How did you defy everything I thought I knew about magic and got your mark at such a young age?"

"I-I don't know," she stammered. "It just sort of...happened."

The man straightened himself up and let go of her hand. "It just happened, she says! Unbelievable!" He crouched down a bit so they were at eye level and spoke slowly. "Do you realize you are the youngest witch in the recorded history of Rumerra, right after the dark prince himself?"

"Who's the dark prince?" Velvet asked. She's never heard that name before.

"I'll tell you..." he started. "The dark prince was an elf who lived a long time ago. They called him this because he was born a son to the then ruling elven king. He got his first mark and with it, his magic at the age of only seven years old. The mark of darkness."

Pausing for a bit, the man walked around the room a bit before continuing. "His power was so great he could not control it! The darkness consumed him and he killed his own mother, the elven queen, shortly after first receiving his mark. After this incident, his father locked him away in the dungeon so he could do no further harm. But the boy's magic grew exponentially. He escaped his prison and disappeared for more than a decade. When he returned, however, he wore the marks of five different elements already!"

"Linus Cromberg," the girl said under her breath. "I didn't know he was the dark prince."

"So you do know who he was!" The shopkeeper paused his story and eyed her. "How do you know his name, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I read this name in a book," she answered. "He was one of the four tier five wizards, right?"

"Precisely!" he exclaimed. "Then you should also know that upon his return he unleashed his revenge on the father who had imprisoned him and decimated the elven capital of Eldar! He was only stopped and killed by one other tier five witch who also happened to live at that time. Merlinda Ashdale, the fairy witch, who took on a human form!"

"I didn't know that," Velvet said quietly, engrossed in his story. She has read many fairytales and books on Rumerran history but has never heard about any of this.

"Merlinda killed him and after that, mysteriously disappeared herself. With her, all of the fairies have disappeared from this world, never to be seen again. They say they are still hiding somewhere in the Kamatayan forest, but no one has ever found them to this day."

"This is a great story and all..." Velvet's father who was patiently listening to him until now, interrupted "...but can we take a look at the staffs now?"

The man was still pondering and walking up and down his store, thinking out loud. "His first mark was that of darkness and yours is light. That's very interesting indeed. Is it merely a coincidence? Or could this mean something?"

"Uhm, hello?" the other man grew restless. "Can we buy a staff from you or not?"

"Certainly!" he snapped out of his trance and jumped up. "Oh, I am so glad you came to me! I haven't been this excited in ages! Wait right here!"

Saying this, he started running around the store, inspecting a bunch of different staffs hanging on his walls, taking them down, and dusting them off. Most of them he looked at and simply returned back to their original position, mumbling to himself all the while.

"Not this one. No. Too weak. Too big. Not yew. Ew, pinewood!"

Both the father and the daughter watched him frantically picking them out. When he found a suitable one, he threw it to the floor. Soon, a pile of one or two dozen was lying at Velvet's feet. She looked at them with piqued interest, picking one up and trying to hold it, then replacing it with another one. There were bigger and smaller ones, ones she had to hold with both hands because they were heavy and ones she could swing around with only one hand like a wand.

Something caught the corner of her eye when she looked up, however. Right above the curtain at the back of the shop, a wooden display case with a glass lid was hanging on the wall. In it, a symmetrical white staff with gold and silver ornaments and a black gem on each end of it was neatly placed inside on a red cushion.

"Ho! What's that one?" The girl pointed up upon witnessing it. The shopkeeper stopped his frantic searching and looked up to where the girl's gaze was set.

"You have a keen eye, I see!" the man grinned. "That is a very special staff. The crowning jewel of my father's collection. Unfortunately, it is not for sale, but I can let you hold it if you wish."

"Yes, please!" she exclaimed gleefully. He brought a ladder from the back and set it against the wall, climbing up to get the case down and setting it on the counter before him.

"It's been a while since this one has been in anyone's hand," he commented upon opening it and taking it out, caressing it gently like it was a living being. Velvet was already reaching out her small hands for him to give it to her, but he waved his finger.

Thank you for reading this part of the story!

Thank you for reading this part of the story! [https://img.wattpad.com/6da31d8645c720696fb641cd794daa56f825a1cd/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f42524358666e336a505454546c513d3d2d313235343737373232382e313730383161613639386431396164353832383839393631333637362e6a7067?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]

What will happen when Velvet holds the staff?