Page 31 of Princess of Air

“That would be wonderful. Thank you very much.”

She prepares me a large mug, and I wrap both hands around it as I take a seat. Steam wafts toward my face in aromatic tendrils. This place with its quaint warmth and charm could be an advertisement for a simpler life. To think, I could blow through towns like this without being fussed over… It would be delightful.

A small boy comes out from the kitchen and sits by the unlit hearth with some wooden figurines. He plays with them until my breakfast comes out, perking up and eyeing me then.

“Good morning, young sir. You know, there is far too much bacon here for me. Do you think anyone could help me with that?”

He lights up and scurries to my table. “I could help you.” He rests his chin on the table, putting the toys down.

“Could you? That is so very lucky for me.” I hold out a crispy slice, and he takes it happily. “What’s your name?”

“Richard,” he says, crunching on the bacon.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Richard. Is that your mother who works here?” A spoonful of steaming porridge tastes like comfort and warm spices.

“Yes. I have to come with her now that Grandfather is gone.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear he’s gone.”

“It’s all right.” He licks his greasy fingertips. “I think he went somewhere more fun.”

“I’m sure you’re right.”

“Mummy doesn’t think so.” Dead gods, what did she say about her father in front of the boy? “That’s why she told you not to be about alone. She thinks something bad happened to the people who disappeared.”

Oh! He didn’t die; he’s the old man who vanished. “Well, perhaps we’ll find out where they went soon. In the meantime, it’s quite all right for me to be alone. Would you like to know why?”

He nods fervently. The boy won’t keep a secret long, I’m sure, but it’ll be long enough for me to move on.

I put a thin sound shield around us before saying, “I have magic.”

“Are you a witch?” Richard’s eyes widen.

“No, witches aren’t real.”

“Yes they are,” the boy says matter-of-factly. “People say that’s who took my grandfather and the others.”

“You just told me he went somewhere fun.”

“I think witches could be fun.”

Well, that’s one spin on it. “If they existed, I quite like the idea of witches being fun. But the only magic is natural magic, and it’s all kept in my family.”

His face scrunches up. “Not your family. Only the princes and princesses have natural magic.”

I lean in close to whisper to him. “I am a princess.”

He looks me up and down. “Where is your crown?”

“I never wear it to breakfast.”

One eye narrows in a skeptical look. This kind of fun is exactly what I wanted out of an anonymous visit to town.

“I can prove it to you. Would you like to see what I can do with your toys?”

“Not if you’re the one who controls fire!”

My hand covers a less-than-ladylike laugh. There is no doubt of this being the best breakfast in town, regardless of the food. With a flick of my fingers for effect, I blow the toys off the table, catch them in a net of air, and float them before him.

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