Winston awakens to a knock at his door. Veronica lays naked in his arms. Her pale skin is highlighted by the contrast of her crimson red hair, which is draped everywhere in a tangled mess. He slowly slides away, attempting to not wake this beauty as he rustles around looking for his pants in the dim light. Another knock on the door gets him moving faster, as he hops around sliding his feet into the pants. He finally reaches the door and opens it as he sees a slim hand reaching out for another knock. Before him, standing in the darkness is Emma. The odor of stale ale drifts into his nostrils masked by a strong perfume imitating the scent of flowers. Her tall slender silhouette stands out against the darkness of the hallway behind her.
"Get dressed and hurry. You and I are expected at the tower before dawn." He can hear her foot tapping beneath her long slim legs.
He grumbles to himself as she turns and walks away down the hallway. He stumbles around until he finds his shirt and boots, and then loses his balance, nearly falling out the door as he attempts to move about, quietly. He again awkwardly stumbles at the top of the stairs as he feels for his footing. The steep steps slide around the back of the tavern which sits in near darkness except for the pale moonlight filtering through the windows. Emma is standing at the door waving for him to follow.
Winston rubs his eyes, as he is jolted awake by the cool morning air. He looks around at the surrounding shops as he sees her quickly striding ahead. He stumbles forward trying to catch up. Yesterday, he, Emma, and Veronica, arrived in the city of Griffonmere as part of a gypsy caravan. Several weeks before that, he and Veronica was somehow, mysteriously, transported to this world from their modern day location. Since then, they have both been struggling to fit in.
He rounds a bend and approaches a guard post. Several soldiers stand in armor. Winston observes the metal plates connected by strips of leather, layering their bodies. The appearance is even more imposing as they hold long pikes at their sides. He quickly spots Emma speaking to them. He thinks back to how he met her by chance, his first day in this world. Since then, she has begun to teach him magic but the meaning of this morning's trip is unknown to him..
Her blue eyes look at him in the lamp light as he approaches. She pulls back her hood exposing her coal black hair and smooth, light, skin. A cloak hides her figure of which Winston is well aware. She is tall and slim with a nice round ass, but her most striking feature is her huge breasts. She nods to the guards and then begins to walk away again at another brisk pace. The guards stare at her and comment to each other as Winston races again to catch up.
His legs are shorter and less muscled, although the muscle is quickly changing as he thinks about how many miles he has walked since arriving here. He almost loses sight of Emma as she ducks into a dark alleyway. He follows a dark shadow that he hopes is her and arrives on the other side in a large courtyard. He catches up long enough to take a big gasp of air and then she moves forward towards a door. She quickly gives it a rap, as Winston again catches up.
"Where are we?" He gasps again searching for air, and leaning on the wall for support.
She looks at the sky, noting they have arrived on time. "This is the Tower of the Wizard's Academy. Where else would I bring you?" Again she looks at him as if he just asked another dumb questions of which, he should have already known the answer.
He is about to ask another question as the door opens. A short grizzled old man waves them inside and guides them to a chamber containing several chairs. Emma has a seat and looks at Winston expectantly. Realizing he should follow along, Winston sits down beside her.
Within minutes another man, who appears even older than the first, enters the room. "Ah, Princess, it's so nice to see you again."
Emma frowns at the comment, but proceeds. "Gavin, I have taken on a student and I would like permission from the guild to continue his training."
Gavin nods while closely inspecting Winston as if he is a rare vase and not a living person. "An apprentice you say? Don't you think he is a little old?" Winston can smell the strong smell of tobacco on his breath. Gavin then walks over to a shelf and begins to write in a book with a long quill.
"Yes, Uhm..." Emma stammers, which takes Winston off guard. She is always far more confident than this "Yes he is older than we like, but he is far smarter than he looks and he has shown quick progression in his learning."
Gavin doesn't even look up from his book as he asks, "boy, what have you learned to do so far?"
