Spells of the Elf

When she was younger, she had voraciously swallowed every word visiting and local story-tellers had to offer on the subject. Now, bridging the flow of time, those words began to ring again in her mind as memory after memory drifted to the surface, floating there for her to collect.

Slender arms encircled her waist, startling her slightly and drawing her back from her contemplation.

"Why'd you wander off?" Elisa inquired, resting her chin on the shoulder of her best friend.

Ashlyn gave a partial shrug in response.

"Do you remember the stories of the Sunless Isle?" she questioned.

"Are you kidding?" Elisa replied. "How could I forget? We used to pretend we were adventurers; I can't remember how many nights we snuck out, how many storms we went out in, imagining we would be among the island's rare visitors. Why?"

"Well, I was talking to this guy, and he mentioned the Sunless Isle, but he called it Lunaria, and -" she paused.

Something seemed amiss. Tuning into her surroundings, she became aware that the bard had ceased to perform, and what crowd there was had begun to disperse.

"Never mind," Ashlyn said after a few moments. "You know how I am about talking with merchants; how we both are. Where'd Conner disappear to?"

"Looking for you, silly," Elisa teased, tousling her best friend's hair. "Let's find the boy together before he gets too distracted and we lose him for the rest of the day; shall we?"