The interior of Wither’s Oddities’ was a mess. Shelves lay overturned with strange liquids seeping into the carpet; glass everywhere. It looked as though some kind of a natural disaster had been localized within her shop.

“Sorry about the clutter. I haven’t had a chance to clean up.”

“Did they do this?” Vak said. He could feel his anger rising.

“What? The mob? No… no.” She said fidgeting with her round ear. “No this was our constabulary, my fine taxes put to good use,” she said sarcastically. “They were looking for someone. An outlander, and so, of course, they assume I must be harboring him.”

“What did they want with him?”

“Not sure entirely. Seems he’s been going around town wrecking up the place. Got into a knife fight at a tavern, attacked two guards outside of the bakery. They’ve been searching for him all morning.” As Wither spoke she gave an obvious glance toward Vak. He knew she knew exactly who he was.

“I am sorry if you suffered on my behalf.”

She sighed a long exaggerated breath. “No. It’s not your fault, hun. If it wasn’t you, they would have found some other reason to wreck up my shop. I don’t know if you can tell but the people here don’t exactly love me.”

“Then you and I have that much in common,” Vak said trying to lighten her mood a bit.

“Well, what do you expect?” She said scurrying over to him. “You’re covered in blood and like ten feet tall.”

“Seven.” Vak corrected her looking down at his clothing and noticing the amount of blood that stained them.

“It’s the same thing to a lady of my size.” She said straightening her red cloak. “Anyways, why are you still wearing that shirt?”

“This shirt?” He said tugging at the uncomfortable orange fabric. “They told me I had to after I was detained entering the town.”

“Oh, you sweet, naive man.”

“What?”

She shook her head at some inside joke. “So, what’s your story, seven feet and bloody? Why are you here?”

“My name is Vakdragnar and I am trying to find a lost waitress.” He explained.

“Now that sounds like an interesting tale.” She said.

“Very well, I arrived at the gate of the city yesterday afternoon.” Vak began telling her of his time in the city so far. He explained how Captain Lance interrogated him for hours before he let him in the city. He told her about the missing waitress, the knife in the alley, his evasion of the guards, how he worked for Mr. Flame, and then his search for Nina. He told her of the bakery and Anka Cotton in the Temple chapel. Through the entire thing, Wither merely listened. Then she sat for a moment and digested it. Then she burst out laughing.

“What?”

“Oh, it’s just, they really do hate you more than me.” She said giggling. “At least I'm not being chased by the city guard.”

“I suppose it is a bit humorous.” Vak conceded.

“Sorry, its impolite of me to laugh. My people are said to find a lot of humor in life. I just like laughing, it makes me feel better, ya know?” She looked up at him trying to determine if she’d offended.

“It is alright, I am not bothered,” Vak said letting her get the laughter out. When she had finished he continued. “So, Mr. Flame told me Nina bought something from your shop. It made her hair change colors?”

“Oh! The Protection Poultice. Depending on what dye pack you combine it with, it can protect you from heat, or extreme cold, even lightning storms; very useful. I’ve been selling a lot lately because a lot of the younger people like that it changes your hair pretty colors.”

“What does it mean if her hair is brunette fading into blonde?”

“That she didn't follow the instructions,” Wither said flatly flicking her whisker.

“Could it have caused her harm.”

“Probably not. I mean, it's never great to ignore instructions on magic.”

“So these things you make, they are actual magic?”

“Oh, yes. I’m certified if that’s what you’re wondering. I had two hells of a time getting registered through the Zoftwiten Institute.”

“I am not familiar.”

“They think they have the right to control Vili’s gift. They’re a bureaucracy, an organization the king charged with keeping strict tabs on anyone practicing magic within the Kingdom of Abrune. They will even teach you if you sign your life away to them.”

“But you learned independently.”

“Yup,” Wither said proudly.

“Is that… I’m sorry if this is out of line, but you’re my first uh…”

“Brisker?”

“Is that what you prefer to be called.”

“It’s what we are. Briskers. No, I'm not offended, and I’m not surprised I’m your first. Most Briskers have good sense enough to stay clear of human settlements.”

“Not you?”

“No,” She said with a laugh. “I suppose not. Things are changing in the world. Places man once refused to tread upon, now… well, they tread all over them.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s the way things are. It doesn’t help to dwell in the past, and it certainly doesn’t help to be sorry about them. You have to change with the world, Vakdragnar, or the world will leave you behind.”

“There is much wisdom in your words.”

“Eh, stick around long enough, you’ll find I’m just good at repeating things I’ve read.”

“Is that how you learned to do magic?”

“Oh, that I taught myself.”

“Really?”

“Yup, mostly. I worked with another alchemist for a time, and the rest I sort of figured out the hard way.”

“What’s the hard way?”

Wither made a gesture with her hands in a ball and then expanding outward. “Boom”

“Oh!”

“Yeah, I suppose ALL the city’s gripes aren’t baseless. But it's not like I'm doing experimentation within city limits. I keep things controlled and safe.”

“That seems smart.”

“I told you, give it some time, you’ll see I'm nothing special.”

“Well, at this moment the only thing I see is the first kind person in this city who didn’t treat kindness as a commodity to be bartered.”

Wither stopped what she was doing and looked at him, really looked at him. “Thank you.” She said simply. “I don’t know why Vakdragnar, but I like you. Maybe I just have a soft spot for big, generous, and dumb. I’m not really sure... Alright, take off that shirt.”

“I… excuse me? I think perhaps you misunderstood. I’m just… I’ve never.. .you see I…”

Wither looked at him and laughed again. “Oh don’t be so full of yourself. I’m not going to sleep with you. Honestly, I’m not even sure how that would work… Look, the point is that the shirt’s bad. It’s one the city guard gives to people they’ve detained. Kind of a way to let the local population know that this big dumb brute is trouble and to steer clear.”

“They… they said that they had decency laws.”

“Well, they do, but mostly they wanted to profile you. They only give these to people who have done something wrong, thieves, people who have broken legal contracts, adulterers, outsiders, that kind of thing. Then everyone in the city can make your life miserable. They’re dicks.” She said with a shrug.

“Absolutely.”

“Not to mention the blood is giving off a ‘murderer’ vibe and the rest of you… kind of screaming hobo.”

“Hobo!”

“No offense,” she said with a little shrug. “Anyway, I can help. Come on, shirt off.”

“Very well,” Vak said removing his uncomfortable garment.

Wither had a small piece of cloth she dipped in some clear solution. Then he looked at him and stopped.

“Is something the matter?” Vak asked.

“I just… with all those holes in the shirt and the blood… I assumed you were running around with mortal wounds. I was expecting stitches and a sad talk by a bedside where I explained that I did all I could, but your wounds were too severe.”

“Wait, in this scenario... I was dying?”

“There was a LOT of blood!”

“I..” Vak stopped himself. “Heal quickly.”

“I’ll say! There is barely a scratch on you. How is that possible?”

“It is part of my curse.”

“Whhhhaaaaat? You didn’t say anything about a curse!” She said jumping away and thumbing through a book that had fallen to the floor. Her tail tapped nervously as she rifled through the pages.

“I grew up in a remote village on the islands of Huak. When I was seven years aged, I was fulfilling one of the nine rites of manhood. It is a test of resolution. You are taken into the jungles and told to survive.”

“That sounds harsh.”

“It is expected of all my people.”

“So all of your people have this curse?”

“No, my rite was anomalous. My third night out in the jungle, the stars began to rain from the heavens. The sky looked like it was on fire.”

“You’re talking about the Godsend,” Wither said with a hushed tone, almost reverent.

Vak nodded slowly, watching Wither’s reaction. She was pacing.

“The night Vili went against the Hierarchies, stole magic, and offered it to the mortals to protect ourselves.” She was mostly speaking to herself organizing her thoughts. “That was fifteen years ago, and you saw it? What happened?”

“A brilliant light came streaking through the sky and struck me. I was found days later, lying in the jungle. They thought I had died. When I awoke from my coma the entire village did not know what to make of it. Some thought it was a miracle I was alive, others assumed I was tainted in some way, cursed.”

“I’m not sure it was a curse...”

Vak shook his head. “Believe me it was.” He said angrily. “I was no different from the other people in my village. But every accomplishment, everything I worked for, was attributed to this curse.”

“I’m sorry, that sounds hard.”

“I was entirely unremarkable until a few weeks ago when it finally manifested.”

“What does it do?”

“This. He said pointing to the scars on his chest. It gives me unnatural healing, but it also turns my anger into a magical force. I become stronger, and a red wind surrounds me like an aura of destructive power.”

“That… doesn’t sound so bad, as far as curses go.”

“It IS!” Vak said with a sudden urgency. When he saw Wither leap back he softened. “I’m sorry. This thing, it is difficult to control. That’s why I was banished from my village. Given a boat and told to find a cure or never return.”

“That’s cruel,” she said, her ears lowering a bit and her eyes softened.

“What else can they do?” Vak said shrugging. “I am dangerous. One bad day and my rage could level my village.”

“So you came to a densely populated city?” Wither asked with a smirk.

“Throughout my life, I’ve lived in a small secluded village. A place of sun and the sea. My father always insisted on my sisters and I had an education despite our remoteness. He would barter for books with passing ships. I found companionship with the books that I never really had from the other kids on the island.”

“My favorite stories were the ones with heroes who overcome their flaws and save the day. I grew up wanting to be just like that.” I came to this city because I thought I could help. I thought I could be like those heroes.” Vak said realizing he’d never been this open and honest with someone before. Not even his own family. He felt a little self-conscious putting himself out there this much. Vulnerable. A great shame came over him when Wither began to laugh louder than the previous times.

“I know. It’s naive.” He said quietly standing back up.

“No, no! Wait, sorry!” She said in between giggles. “It’s not that. You’re very noble. It’s just you picked this kingdom to try to do good. The only one that would stab you for trying to help it. Twice!”

“And this is funny?”

“Yeah!” She said laughing harder. Vak could not help himself, a wide smile spread across his face. Her laughter was quite infectious. They sat in that mess of a shop and laughed.

“Alright,” Wither said wiping the tears from her eyes with her tail. “So you don’t need bandaging, but you are going to need something if you’re going to be roaming through the city... Hmm…” She began rummaging through a pile of what looked like garbage. “Ah, here it is!” She said holding up a small glowing worm.

“What is that?”

“It’s a Grue Worm. Perfect for you.” She took the small creature and handed it to Vak.

“What am I supposed to do with it?” The small glowing worm left a shiny translucent trail on his hands. It was very sticky.

“Oh… well, so the Grue Worm is a rare worm to come by, they only live in a couple of forests, so we’re incredibly lucky the guards didn’t kill this little fellow.” She said scratching it affectionately. “So, the magic of the Grue worm will make you disappear! You’ll be entirely invisible, so long as you don’t say a word.”

“That is… a strange condition. Why are not these more popular?”

“Well, as I mentioned they’re extraordinarily difficult to find, and not everyone is okay with sticking a worm up their nose.”

“My… what?”

“Your nose.” She said trying to calm him. “It burrows up there and then you become invisible for a few hours. If you speak however the Grue Worm becomes agitated and leaves the body. Then it turns a dull pink color that’s pretty indistinguishable from a regular worm. It can take months or even years before it regains its natural glow again.”

“So, you want me to stick this up my nose.”

“Basically.”

“How did anyone discover such an... odd use of this thing?”

“That… is not a question you want to be answered, trust me.”

“Very well,” Vak said believing her.

“So?” Wither said expectedly, then pointed to her nose with her tail.

“Before I go,” Vak said stalling. “I feel bad your shop is in the state it is.”

“Oh, this? Don’t worry, like I said I don't’ blame you. The guards are dicks.”

“Still, I would like to help clean it, as thanks for your help.”

“Very well. Thank you, Vakdragnar.” Wither said mimicking the way Vak said his name with a wide smile. “Just try not to touch any liquids that are moving on their own.”