If Ben had been told that he would feel empathy for Spidena getting annoyed by his questions four hours ago, he would’ve scoffed.

However, with Spidena in a deliriously happy state singing nonsense in the back of the caravan, that meant Paulav had only Ben to direct his countless well-meaning questions to.

“So Spidena is a witch?”

“Yes.”

“Was she in a family of witches, or was she one of the ones that discovered her skill for it with seeb or dodder parents?”

“Her mother was a witch.”

“Fascinating! What is her specialty magic?”

“She has three specialties. Incantations, spells, and potions.”

“Three? She is absolutely amazing!”

“Mm.”

“So you are not a warlock?

“No.”

“How did you two meet?”

“I bought an incantation from her.”

“Oh my! Why is there big magic involved? I heard her mention it during the pixie attack! Is it because she casts incantations?”

“Kind of.”

“Am I bothering you with my questions?”

“Kind of.”

When he eventually registered what he had just said, Ben’s attention snapped back to Paulav who was chuckling good-naturedly.

“Apologies, lad. Aside from my friend, I haven’t gotten to meet many witches. Though there are going to be several witches and other magic folk at the wedding! So that will be fun. Does Spidena belong to a coven?”

“Not that I’m aware.” Ben stretched his legs out in front of himself and crossed his feet at the ankles.

Paulav fell into a thoughtful quiet. “How many people or magical beings are after you do you suppose?”

Ben opened his mouth to answer, but was interrupted when Filif sprung up beside the driver’s bench, and landed right beside Ben on the fraction of space available.

The little mushroom sprite had numerous bite and claw marks from the pixies, but he didn’t seem to be all that bothered by them as he swung his legs to and fro on the bench.

“Absolutely remarkable,” Paulav said with great admiration of the sprite.

Filif leaned over and waved at Paulav, who blushed and waved back happily.

“It’s strange for me too,” Ben admitted.

“Really? You seem so calm and capable!”

Ben floundered on how to respond. Was Paulav being sincere? Or just nice?

It’s Paulav. It’s both.

He cleared his throat. “Thank you. I think it’s more just that I’m tired and we’ve seen and done a lot of really weird stuff lately.”

Paulav tilted his head as though considering his next long litany of questions, when a frown suddenly drove down his brows.

Ben was going to see if there was something bothering him, but Filif had suddenly leapt back off the cart and darted into the woods.

Looking ahead, Ben discovered what was causing the alarm.

There was a group milling about the side of the road… And they were all wearing matching red coats.

The army.

“Shit.” Ben moved his right hand into his pocket.

“Now, lad, it certainly has sounded like you’ve had quite the adventure with the magical beings, but are you by chance a wanted man as well?”

“A little. But they shouldn’t recognize me. The people who are looking for me are either in the south near the border, or Indivor.”

Miraculously, Paulav didn’t press for details. “Alright. We can’t stop and have you get in the back or they will be suspicious.” A particularly shrill note in the song Spidena was singing echoed from the caravan, briefly interrupting Paulav, but once they two men were certain she wasn’t in any pain, he continued. “Here’s what we should do.”

*

“Halt!”

The horses stomped to a stand still.

“What business do you have!” The officer was a man in his late twenties, with short auburn hair and a square jaw. His face was already pink from being in the sun, and his forehead was dappled with sweat. Behind him were seven other soldiers. Three women and the rest men, were all wearing their red coats. Some were sitting having a drink from their waterskins, others were conversing with papers in hand.

“I’m a merchant on my way to a friend’s wedding!” Paulav called back to the soldier with his usual level of cheer.

“And who are you?” the soldier turned with narrowed eyes toward Ben.

He gave a weary breath, his elbows braced against his knees he dropped his head momentarily before replying.

“I’m hitching a ride. My wife got too deep into the cups and is in no shape to travel on foot today.”

Paulav shot Ben a conspiratorial wink that he wholly ignored.

“Where are you and your wife heading?” the soldier asked while one of the women drifted closer.

“We are going to visit my brother in Ocor.”

“Wouldn’t it have been faster traveling through the woods?” It was the woman who brought up this question. Her long sandy brown hair was tied up in a ponytail, and her hands were on her hips as she stared up at Paulav and Ben.

“My wife doesn’t do well in the woods, and we weren’t sure where Lord Earhav’s boundaries were.”

The two soldiers stared at each other briefly. “Have either of you heard or seen anything strange?”

“Well…” Paulav glanced at Ben. “There was a swarm of pixies—”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“Pixies?” The man burst out in alarm, cutting off Paulav. His exclamation brought three other soldiers to join them.

“Yes. A swarm. About four hours south on the road.”

“Gods!”

Ben held up his left hand, displaying some of the bites and scratches.

“How did you get away?” the woman’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“My wife drunkenly chucked a music box into the woods,” Ben retorted bluntly.

Everytime he said the words ‘my wife’ they felt wooden and awkward. Ideally to everyone else he just sounded annoyed.

The soldiers looked dubious, and Ben could tell by the fact that they were allowing the growing stream of traffic coming from the north go by unbothered that they weren’t going to leave them be just yet.

Luckily the back of the caravan suddenly exploded open.

“Are we taking a breaaaak?” A musical holler carrying the words.

Ben didn’t even have to pretend to be exhausted as he pressed his hand to his eyes.

Judging by the faint bounce of the caravan, Ben could tell Spidena had jumped off.

“Beeeen? I’m huuungry! My hands smell like pepper—Oh! Hello!” Spidena had skipped up the side of the caravan, but stopped when she noticed the soldiers, who stared at her skeptically.

“You have very loud coats!” She bobbed her head with a smile.

“Spidena?”

“Yes, Ben?”

“We’ll make food when it’s dinner time, can you get back in the caravan?”

“But it’s boring in there! We should do something fun! Those guys are wearing fun coats! Maybe we should see if we can buy any!”

“We have no money. And they’re with the army.”

Spidena tilted her head at the group that was still watching her.

“Huh. What part of the army?”

Ben looked at the auburn-haired man pleadingly.

He pointedly voided Ben’s gaze.

“We are with a Wolf unit, Madam. Are you being kidnapped? Are you in danger?”

Spidena gave a very long, unladylike snort.

“Me? In danger from him? Or him?” She gestured with her thumb first at Ben, then Paulav. “I’ve seen chipmunks that are more intimidating!”

One of the older soldiers gave a suspicious cough that could’ve been a laugh.

“Now, about this Wolf unit. What do you do? I have a pet named Wolf! He’s lovely.”

“Spidena—”

“We track down and apprehend criminals, Madam,” it was the woman soldier who responded, eyeing Spidena disapprovingly.

“Oh. But what if someone in the Wolf unit is a criminal? Is it like a dog chasing its tail then?”

“Hey!” Ben leapt down off the bench in front of Spidena who beamed at him. “How about you go inside the caravan and think of your favorite… uh… Your favorite color!”

“Blue! That was easy. Now, can we play hide and seek?”

“No, no! Please—”

Spidena darted off into the trees and Ben dropped his head back, his right hand still stowed safely in his pocket curling into a fist.

He turned around to look at the soldiers. He wondered if they could tell how irked he was with them for existing right at that moment.

“Good luck to you, sir,” was all the auburn-haired soldier said before waving forward the cart that had pulled up behind Paulav.

Ben grit his teeth then looked at Paulav.

The merchant shrugged helplessly.

Their plan had worked for the most part, but there was only so much they could do to combat a

witch in the throes of paying a magic fee that happened to be her sanity.

*

By the time Ben was stomping back to the road with Spidena’s elbow firmly in his grasp, dusk was settling over the world.

Luckily, Paulav had found a private spot to pull off to the side and wait for them away from where the soldiers had been stationed, though he was having trouble finding his tinder box when they arrived.

When Paulav explained how odd it was that he couldn’t find any means of starting a fire, Ben rounded on the most likely suspect.

“Spidena.” Ben eyed the witch who was quickly becoming mesmerized by the fireflies irritably. “Did you hide the tinderboxes and flints?”

“Hm? Oh! Yes!”

“Why?”

“Look at that!” In the dim light Spidena pointed to something in the distance, and pranced off back into the foliage.

Ben made a loud noise of fury and frustration, prompting Paulav to rest a hand on Ben’s shoulder.

“I’m beginning to see what you meant about having to get used to all sorts of things.”

Ben looked at the man in the darkness. He wanted to snap at him and swear.

He wanted to say to hells with the entire journey and just walk through the night on the road alone.

Spidena could sort herself out! So what if she had cast an incantation to save them from pixies! She could have figured out something else that didn’t make her a brainless twit!

He was just about to even say as much aloud, when a glimmer of something through the trees caught his eye.

At first Ben’s reaction was to think, Now what?

But then he noticed a familiar shape in the darkness.

Relief filled him.

“Thank. Every. Bloody God and Goddess that exists!”

Ben also bounded off into the woods, leaving a flummoxed Paulav behind…

Blinking, the merchant slowly edged toward the strange sight in the distance that he only noticed when Ben had bolted for it.

Eventually, the three traveling companions all found themselves standing shoulder-to-shoulder before a building…

One with brightly lit windows, a smoking chimney, and a sign that read:

The Fey Way