#marcus the apprentice

The shout sounded like it was coming from outside, but also getting closer. Because of the heat, Kipling often left the door open. So when she peered outside, she saw a bundle of fluff barrelling at full speed and a person chasing them with their bag and clothes flapping in the breeze.

Kip gasped and froze on the spot as the fluffy mass (which turned out to be a butterscotch colored dog) slid into her shop and skated right into the rows of succulents.

She could only watch as the dog collided with everything in what felt like slow motion. So many pots got upturned and many more ended up broken or cracked. 

The dog looked guilty enough when Kip approached and knelt before the unsalvageable wreckage. But even after what he had done, the butterscotch dog looked absolutely adorable covered in dirt clumps and broken clay.

The owner knelt beside Kipling and huffed, “No, no! I’m too late. Benji, why?”

Kipling turned to take in the newcomer. Even under all the worry and guilt in his expression, he was probably the cutest customer Kip had seen all day. She tore her eyes away before he caught on that she was staring.

The dog owner must have mistaken her shyness for something else because he started to flap his hands and his eyes smarted with tears.

“This is all my fault. What have I done?”

Kipling took hold of his hands before he got too worked up. The worried stranger fell silent as Kip gently squeezed and said, “Hey, it’s okay. Really, it’s not that bad.” 

He looked around at the broken pots and upturned dirt. “But–”

“What’s your name?”

The stranger blinked his kind brown eyes. “It’s… Marcus.”

Kip glanced at the happy butterscotch dog. “And I’m guessing that’s Benji?” She smiled to show that she wasn’t upset. Finally, Marcus relaxed his hands around hers and brought them to rest in his lap. 

“Yes, and I know he doesn’t look it, but he’s sorry.”

Kipling giggled, “I believe you.”

Marcus looked around again and sighed. “Is there any way we can help?”

Kip let go of his hands and tapped her chin. “I think so. Can you start by handing me that broom over there?”

Half an hour later, Kip and Marcus had all of the soil swept in one pile and the broken pots in another. While they worked, Kip did her best to explain how she might be able to use magic to get the pots back to their original state. But her method was risky. There was always a chance that after going through one of her portals, the pots could come back changed on some very fundamental levels. Still it was worth a shot.

Kip, Marcus and Benji sat on the floor before the pile of broken clay. Marcus watched on in awe as Kipling opened her hand with her palm facing down and wiped in a circular motion until a portal materialized right there above the floor. Dark, salty water sloshed around inside, as if Kipling had opened a door to the sea.

The gardener encouraged Marcus to help her collect and drop all of the pieces of clay in the portal. Then she sealed it off with her right hand and opened a second portal with her left – this time with her palm facing up. 

Saltwater rushed out onto the floor of the shop, along with several solid objects that landed without breaking. When the portal closed and the water stopped spilling out, both Kipling and Marcus gave the transformed pots a long, hard look. 

“Oh, no,” Kipling groaned. “This isn’t right.”

She picked up one of the new pots. It was nothing more than an empty turtle shell. The patterns on the back created a gorgeous bronze and teal geometry. And despite them being aquatic, the interior of the shells were deep enough to hold a fist.

“My customer will be here to pick up this arrangement any minute. What am I going to do?” Kipling sighed.

Marcus understood her frustration. As pretty as these shells were, they would tip right over if you tried to make a flower pot out of them. But… Marcus took a shell into his hands and studied it a bit more. He glanced around the shop at the different tools that were lying around.

Kipling sat folded over with her face in her hands. Benji was at her side, trying to lick some hope into her ear.

Marcus wanted to comfort her, but he chose to stay silent and work as fast as he could. After he was done, he tapped Kip on the head.

“Will this work?”

Kipling looked up from her hands with exhausted teary eyes. It took a moment for her to register what she saw.

“Marcus, you…”

She stared at the modified turtle shell that hung before her. Marcus had carved three holes in the lip of the shell, fashioned some rope through them and tied them into a clean knot so the shell hung from his fingers. He had also packed it with soil and a succulent from the pile.

Kipling couldn’t stop staring at the hanging plant. Grinning, she said, “It’s not what the customer ordered, but I think it’s so much better. Come on! Let’s get the rest done before they get here.”

Kipling was right, when the customer arrived, they were taken aback by what had happened to their arrangement. Still, they were very pleased and ended up giving Kipling a big fat tip on top of the normal price.

When Kipling tried to split the tip with Marcus, he shook his head and started flapping his hands again.

“Oh, no. Please. I’m the one who ruined the arrangement in the first place. I can’t.”

Kip shrugged, “But it all worked out. Are you sure? You were the one who came up with the idea to turn them into hanging plants.”

Marcus gave another firm shake of his head as he folded his hand over Kip’s and gently guided it against her abdomen. “I’m sure. It’s yours.”

They held each other’s brown gazes until Benji promptly barked at them. Then they both jumped and let go of each other.

“I better walk Benji home. He gets grumpy when he doesn’t eat,” Marcus said with a nervous chuckle.

Kip’s own belly rumbled at the mention of food. She quickly guided Marcus and Benji to the door of the shop before the embarrassing sound could get any louder. But it appeared that Marcus heard her stomach’s cry for help because he chuckled and said, “Would you like a snack?”

Kip felt her face heat up. “Oh. I – um.”

Marcus reached for her wrist, drew it towards him, and dropped something small and oval in her palm before letting go.

Kip chuckled, “What’s this?” She looked down to see a dark, plump grape.

When she looked back up, she noticed that Marcus had gotten very close. She caught a glimpse of his shuttered gaze before he trapped her cheeks between his hands and ducked his head.

“Mmpf!”

Kip was met with lips as fresh and firm as the grape sliding around in her palm. There was no denying that Marcus’s eager affection felt rather nice after such a long day.