Back in the Glimmer Grotto, Benjamin, Eris, and their reunited familiars headed to a secret garden. They relaxed under a white gazebo next to a small dome house, eating cookies with pixie sprinkle dust and drinking berry tea. The clouds in the sky formed together and turned darker, but showed no signs of rain.
Eris bit on her sweet, already aware that her familiar was a sprite. On the other hand, Benjamin couldn’t contain his excitement as he struggled to keep his drink in balance. His two familiars were powerful shape-shifting sprites. The possibilities for their new team-up seemed endless. Chiara and Harris could enhance his magic, make disguises, morph into powerful beings, etc.
Benjamin exchanged glances between his drink and his familiars, carefully keeping a close watch on their every moment; he wanted to learn more about their abilities, and how they previously ended up in their animal forms.
“Sorry for the trouble,” Scarlet told the group. “Hope you guys feel relaxed after coming all this way.”
“Naturally.” Eris replied. “Don’t do something like that again, alright?”
While talking about pleasantries, Harris and Chiara couldn’t help but notice Benjamin’s hands shaking. His eyes darted around the area.
“Uh, are you ok?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Benjamin replied with a big smile. “Do you know where the bathroom is?”
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“Why yes,” Scarlet replied.
“I told you not to drink so much,” Eris warned him.
“I didn’t keep track...” Benjamin muttered under his breath.
“It’s fine.” Scarlet waved it off. She pointed and told him the directions on where he needed to go.
Benjamin nodded and excused himself, running as fast as he could without tripping or bumping into anyone on the way. He wanted to ask them a lot of questions, but didn’t know where to start. Benjamin looked down at his hands, finding himself trembling. But why? The Dark Magician, shaken? And over his familiars, Harris and Chiara? He never thought he’d find something about them intriguing, rather than the other way around.
Once he finished his business, Benjamin headed back to the gazebo. He tried to retrace his steps on which path he took to get here. From the corner of his eyes, Benjamin spotted a light shimmering from behind one door. As if drawn by the light, his body moved towards the door and pushed his hand against it.
.-.-.-.
Curiosity grew as Benjamin stepped inside the velvety purple room. The candlelit vibrantly around the area; the aroma and smell lingered through his nostrils. He looked down at the pool of water resting near the fountain. He stared at the reflection, coming across a vision on the other side. It displayed a memory from a sprite's past life.
Benjamin blinked, his curiosity grew as he continued walking down the hallway. Each entry had a poolside and a set of candles. He kept walking until he found the door that piqued his interest: the one that had Harris and Chiara’s names.
Perfect.
Benjamin entered the orange room and stepped closer to the pool. The vision on the other side appeared to be blurry. He glanced both ways to make sure nobody was around, then closed the door behind him. Benjamin trudged closer and dipped his body inside the waters. As he closed his eyes, he emptied his mind as the visions enveloped around him.