Chương 22

There was a wizard Lemon didn't recognize waiting with Hogarth when they got back to the room. The two of them were both seated in chairs they'd conjured up, though Hogarth's looked identical to the plain wooden chairs that sat in their kitchen back home. The other wizard had something that looked more like a throne, high-backed and seemingly made out of gold with enormous red cushions.

The wizard herself had that familiar tinge of magic that all wizards had, but also smelled like damp, musty corners in cold, dark basements. It was nothing like Hogarth's wizard smells of dried herbs and the sharp acidic stink of burnt potions. Lemon didn't want to say she smelled bad, but she was certainly among the more interesting wizards that had crossed Lemon's nose.

"Lemon, this is Latressa, the wizard who will be taking Bon on as an apprentice," Hogarth said, gesturing to the other wizard.

"Latressa, this is my alchemy assistant, Lemon. She's the one who came across Bon in the city and took note of his magical aptitude."

"Is this the same Lemon who accidentally set that patch of Muldingfer fungus I sent you on fire?" Latressa asked, her eyes twinkling.

"Very much so," Midnight said dryly.

"Also those Abram's caps last year."

"That was an accident!" Lemon said.

"I used the same temperature we use for everything else. Nobody told me they had to be air-dried."

"I told you," Hogarth said.

"Twice, actually."

"You did?"

"You were distracted because the butcher was dropping off a shipment at the time," Midnight explained.

"Well, you can't hold it against me if I don't remember you trying to tell me something while I was focused on sausages. That's not fair." Latressa laughed and said, "I appreciate you, my dear Lemon, and all the extra business you bring me."

"Oh, thanks! And you're welcome! Happy to help." Hogarth buried his face in his hands and tried not to laugh, though Lemon wasn't really sure what was so funny. Oh well. As long as he was happy, she was happy, too. Midnight's happiness was somewhat less of a concern for her, plus Midnight never seemed to be happy anyway.

"What are we doing?" Lemon asked, looking from person to person.

"I just wanted to make sure everyone knows our schedule," Hogarth said.

"We've got about three hours to enjoy the conference tonight before everything starts shutting down. Our portal slot is at eleven in the morning tomorrow, so I want to get everything packed up tonight before bed. We'll be leaving for home, and Bon will be heading home with Wizard Latressa to formalize their agreement to become master and apprentice after speaking with his parents."

Hogarth looked around at the group and said, "Before all of that though, I thought we might have a nice dinner together, at a real restaurant. Not that there's anything wrong with conference food, but I've rented us a private dining room at a high-end place down in the city. So everyone get cleaned up, and we'll get going. Our reservation is in half an hour."

"Come on, Bon," Latressa said, standing up and dismissing her chair as she did.

"You can get cleaned up in my room while Wizard Hogarth takes care of…" She trailed off as she eyed Lemon's dirt-covered paws.

"Well, let's just say that I'm sure he has plenty of work to do."

"See you soon," Bon said to Lemon as he followed his new master out of the room. Once the door closed, Hogarth pointed towards the bathroom and said, "In with you. You're covered in dirt, somehow, and I want it all gone before we go out."

"I was digging holes!" Lemon told him. Digging holes was one of her favorite things.

"Ah, yes, I remember seeing that exhibit yesterday. You would find that one immediately, wouldn't you?"

"Wake me up when it's time to go. I'm going to catch a quick nap," Midnight said as she hopped up onto the bed. Lemon generally wasn't against baths, but they were a bit short of time, and there was a lot of dirt. Things got a bit hectic, the water got very dirty, and Hogarth got upset after it was all over after Lemon accidentally sprayed him with water drops before he could get a magic water barrier up. Since he was already wet, and she wasn't dry yet, she went ahead and shook again to get some more water out.

At that point, with a great sigh, he ordered her out so he could clean himself up. Eventually, everyone was ready to go, and they departed their room to meet Bon and Latressa at the rune-circle that would let them take the pillar of light down into the city. * If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it. The deeper they got into the city, the more nervous Bon got.

He fidgeted with the tie on his robe the whole way and kept giving shifty eyes to every guard they passed. It got so bad that at one point, Latressa pulled him to the side and gave him a whispered lecture that everyone else pretended not to notice.

"Everything okay?" Lemon asked him when they started walking again.

"I'm good. It's just… you know, the people who live in my part of the city don't really come to this side. We can't. The guards won't let us. Every time we see one, I keep expecting to feel a hand come down on the back of my neck and pull me off my feet. Being out in the open, just casually strolling down the street, I just feel really exposed."

"Nobody is going to do anything to you," Hogarth said absently while he scanned the street signs.

"Now where is this restaurant at? I could have sworn it was around here somewhere."

"Is this the same one we went to last year, with the columns shaped like trees and the weird foil leaf patterns on the walls?" Midnight asked.

"That's the one."

"You're on the wrong street. Take a left up here and go another four blocks that way."

"Hmm? Oh, I see. Thanks, Midnight. I'd be lost without you." Latressa laughed.

"Quite literally. I confess I don't spend much time in this part of the city. It's… a bit too quaint for my tastes." Bon's eyes widened as he looked up at her.

"This is one of the richest merchant districts in Kapsulon!" Latressa looked around and shrugged.

"Try not to look so overwhelmed the first time we go into the noble districts. You'll embarrass me." With Midnight directing them towards the restaurant, they quickly found their destination and trouped into the private dining room Hogarth had rented. It took a bit of explaining to get Lemon across the open floor, but they were able to convince the staff that she wasn't just some normal dog. Everyone got seated, with a bench brought in for Lemon and Midnight, not that she used it.

She opted instead to sit on the table near Hogarth, and the server took their orders. Lemon couldn't really figure out why Midnight preferred fish when she had options like steak or sausage, but she didn't worry about it. Midnight made lots of weird choices; this was just one more.

"So," Hogarth said to Bon while they waited for their food.

"Are you excited or nervous about your apprenticeship."

"Both, sir. Definitely both."

"Hah! That's about how I remember mine going too. My old master was a slave driver. I must have scrubbed out five hundred cauldrons in the first year alone. I think I spent half my waking hours just cleaning them."

"Why so many?" Latressa asked.

"I apprenticed under Maginath for three years," Hogarth said.

"Ah! The Magic Chef. Yes, that explains it. But then, why are we eating here if you learned how to cook from Maginath?" Hogarth's face flushed.

"Er, well, you see, I didn't finish my apprenticeship. It wasn't the magic part that was the problem."

"Oh! You can't cook, huh?"

"I'm afraid not. I actually hired a local from the village near my tower to cook everything for me. Lemon used to do it, but…"

"But she's just about as bad as he is," Midnight said.

"Which is honestly to be expected."

"If anything, the surprising part is that Lemon is actually a better cook than me," Hogarth admitted.

"Why is that surprising?" Lemon asked, confused when everyone started laughing.

"A dog of many talents," Latressa murmured.

"Fascinating. And she's not a familiar either?"

"She is not," Midnight said firmly.

"I am Hogarth's familiar, his only familiar."

"Of course. I didn't mean to give offense." Before any tension could build up, the server knocked on the door, then wheeled in a cart with all their food. They took a break in their conversation to eat, an action which took some of them longer than others. Lemon finished her steak in record time, followed closely by Bon. The humans took their time, and eventually the only one left still eating was Midnight.

The server brought them in drinks, including wine for Latressa, juice for Bon, milk for Midnight, and beer for Hogarth and Lemon. Hers came in a fancy silver bowl, which Bon stared at incredulously.

"Are… are you allowed to drink beer? Is that even good for dogs?"

"I don't know. Tastes good though," Lemon said, lapping it up.

"So, Lemon, I am curious. You are a magical being, but not a familiar. How did you awaken?"

"I've always been magical," Lemon told her. Latress glanced over at Hogarth, who nodded.

"Always," he said.

"I got a most unusual call out to a local farm one day. Their dog had birthed a litter of puppies, and one of them had started glowing."

"Worst day of my life," Midnight muttered.

"You'll never guess what Hogarth brought home with him."

"Well, not right away. By the time I got there, Lemon was nowhere to be found. She had wandered off the farm and into the forest."

"Accidentally," Lemon said.

"Of course, I needed to see a magical glowing puppy dog. You don't get that kind of opportunity every day, so I went in looking for her," Hogarth said.

"And it was a good thing I did, too. Little Lemon had run afoul of a powerful fey, perhaps attracted to her magic. I got there just in time to keep the fey from taking Lemon off to Faerie. I think something the fey did made her smarter, but maybe she was always like that. I guess we'll never know. Either way, she came home with me and has been part of the family ever since."

"That is a fascinating story," Latressa said.

"I would love to hear all the details when time permits, but it is getting late. We should probably get back to the conference soon." Their meal ended soon after, and they headed back across town to the pillar of light.

"That's kind of bright down here in the dark," Lemon said.

"Yeah, lots of people hate the conference because of the light," Bon said.

"Uh, not that I'm one of them, of course. Just something I've heard people say."

"It was much worse originally," Latressa told them.

"About five years ago, they dimmed the glow on a schedule to keep it from keeping people up at night. They had to as a concession to the city in order to keep hosting the conference here."

"Why here though?" Bon asked.

"It's a flying island. Couldn't thy put it anywhere they wanted?"

"Of course, but the staff wanted access to Kapsulon's amenities. Not every wizard attending books a room up there, and honestly, there are many higher quality accommodations available in the city itself."

"If you still want some time to see the conference and enjoy it, you should hurry," Midnight said.

"You've only got an hour or so left to wander around."

"Better hurry," Latressa added.

"When the conference closes down for the night, you'll be heading to bed early, then we have to go talk to your parents in the morning. You'll only get a few hours tomorrow, so enjoy them." Bon didn't need any more encouragement than that. Together with Lemon, they ran down the street.