Chapter 21

The Apprentice

"Gwen, I-I just don't know, ever since '_That night'_all the petty concerns I'd lived most of my life with have fallen away, and there isn't a whole lot left there now. I've become aware of just how much people do for me, that I'd taken for granted, but no more..." Kel sighed.

"Can I get you two lovely ladies anything?" They turned to find Mike beaming at them from behind the bar. I was down at the far end setting up a row of shot glasses for a 'shoot out' where two furs trade shots until one of them can't take another shot. Each fur put up $50 to cover costs.

"Hey Mike, So how's life?" Gwen asked the grinning ferret.

"Oh my God Gwen, You were so right." He paused to watch his beloved honey bunny wait tables. "I love her so much, did you know she moved in with me! We are so insanely happy, and it's all because you pushed us together, for which I am in your debt, what would you two like?" The ferret asked

"Some ginger ale if you please," Gwen smiled at how happy Mike and Cassy were. "Oh, me too, please Mike!" Kel nodded.

"Say, do you two like real 'gingery' ginger ale?" They both nodded.

"Okay, well we just got this little import from England, 'Cock and Bull' ginger beer, it's pretty peppy stuff, wanna give it a try?" seeing the gleam in the girls eyes and grins on their muzzles, he popped the tops on two bottles. "On the rocks?" Gwen nodded.

"If you please..." The spicy aroma even now was tickling her nose. It effervesced wonderfully as it was poured over ice, slightly cloudy, its dark amber color enticing as Mike set the glasses topped off with two long red straws in front of the girls.

"Enjoy." Mike nodded, turning to watch Cassy.

After taking a tentative sip, Gwen's eyes widened in pleasant surprise, it tingled just right in the back of her throat "Oh my, I like this," she purred. "Thanks Mike."

"Wow, now that's what I call ginger!" Kel exclaimed. Mike gave them a wink and was off. "Shall we take this to a table?" Gwen nodded toward the tables along the wall lining the lounge area. Taking their seats, Gwen smiled at Kel sitting across the table. The band started their next set with "I Ran (So Far Away)." by A Flock of Seagulls. "Gods, I _love_that song!" Kel grinned swaying in her seat to the beat of the song. Gwen grinned--they were pretty good, she thought. As she scanned the crowd she spotted their manager, Guido Scalearoni. He was not hard to spot, being half reptile. He looked like a cross between a fox and a velociraptor. But the pinstriped zoot suit had to go, Gwen thought. The band moved on to a medley of 80's hits.

"Okay,Talk Ta Me...."She said in a slightly nasally voice mimicking a New Jersey accent. Kel giggled, that was what Rick always said when they would hash out her troubles. The vixen's ears drooped. "I guess I never realized how shallow and superficial my life was..."

"Kel, it's not an uncommon for someone to re-evaluate their life after surviving a near death experience." Gwen placed her paw over Kel's. "I know--I was there. If there is any way I can help, I will. I'm there for you hon." Kel was silent a few moments before responding, "Gwen, that night, with you and Rick, was one of the most sacred nights of my life..." she paused to sip her soda. "Wah, that's gingery. I've Never done anything like that before, it was so beautiful, it was so profound, it was magical. And I just don't know how to thank you two for that. It was..." She stopped, shaking her head as she was unable to articulate how she was feeling.

"It_was_very sacred; and healing, yes?" Gwen asked. Kel nodded mutely, as a string of tears slid down the vixens cheeks from her closed eyes. Gwen squeezed her paw. "...Oh, Gwen..." Kel whispered hoarsely. "I-I'm so scared...I'm so _ alone _," that last word uttered with soul wrenching despair. She wept silently for a few minutes on Gwen's shoulder. "Sssh, shush now, everything's going to be all right." Gwen purred into the sobbing vixen's ear.

"I-I-I have no family Gwen, I'm all alone in the world. A-a-and it just hit me, I almost died; alone...unloved and un-mourned. Everything I thought gave my life meaning has crumbled to dust, and I just don't know what to do. . ."

After a few moments, Gwen passed her a linen hankie. "Here, dry your tears hon. So what you're telling me is you have no focus in your life, no goal, No purpose?" Kel contemplated what she had said, nodding. "Yeah, I guess. I kinda feel adrift, like my whole life is just...waste of space..." That last part was issued in a voice barely above a whisper.

Gwen frowned. "Hold on a moment." She waved her paws in a circular motion, and the raucous music of the club decreased to a pleasant background noise. Kel's eyes widened in surprise. "What the hell did you just do?" Gwen locked her eyes on the vixen's, capturing her full attention. "It's a Spell. A sphere of calm, I couldn't hear you very well over all this racket, so I wove a ball of energy around us so we could talk without the need to shout to be heard." Gwen smiled demurely, her green eyes flashing.

"B-b-but h-how? A s-spell? . . I don't? Huh?" Poor Kel was completely lost. Gwen just smiled. "It's magic, Kel. Real_magic. Not _'Pull-the-rabbit-out-of-the-hat'_illusion, but real _magic. It's part of who and what I am, Kel."

Looking around, Kel couldn't 'see' anything, but it _was_quieter at their table.

"What a_re_you, Gwen?" Kel asked, a hint of panic in her voice.

"Well, for one thing, I'm your friend._It's how I got that premonition, I'm a sorceress...does that frighten you, Kel?" Gwen asked, her voice even, studying the vixen. "Um, ah...I-I- don't know, I mean, um..._Really? " Gwen nodded slowly.

"Oh-my-God..." Her eyes widened as she processed this revelation. "D-Does _Rick_know?" she whispered with a furtive glance at the bar.

Gwen nodded with a grin. "Of course," arching her eyebrows.

"Oh...whoa. " Kel just blinked at Gwen a moment. "I, I owe you my life..." A slow wondrous smile of dawning realization blossomed across her muzzle.

"I_knew_there was something different about you! A sorceress, really!" The look of awestruck wonder on the vixen's face made Gwen chuckle to herself, nodding. "Yup, really. I was taught by my Gran, it goes back in my family at least a hundred generations, it's part of what brought Rick and I together."

"That's...so...cool! C-can you teach _me_t-to be a sorceress?" Kel asked with bated breath, eyes aglow. Gwen was silent a moment, as if weighing the possibilities.

"...Possibly, but the path of magic is not something to enter into lightly. It is a lifetime long commitment. It means assimilating huge amounts of knowledge. It's not 'Just snap your fingers, and poof it's done'...well, not always. I just want you to understand just how serious a decision this truly is..."

Kel nodded slowly, " I know. All my life, people have always been telling me that there is no such thing as magic. But deep down in my heart, I always knew that magic _was_real. I couldn't for the life of me tell you w_hy_I feel this way, but I do. There were just times when things worked out far better than I ever expected. Then there was that premonition I got... It was the last guy I was with, Leon. I don't know, but Rick was always telling me to trust my instincts on stuff like this. Anyway, this guy would look at me funny, like he was planning something, and one night I got the feeling he wanted to fuck me to death and bury me out in the woods somewhere just for kicks, ya know. So I beat feet outta there."

Gwen nodded satisfied, lifting her glass in a toast.

"Well then my friend, we have a lot to discuss before you start."

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