It was early in the morning but the Cathedral Park Farmer’s Market was already open and bustling with people from the local area. People she had seen a few times before from a distance but also those that she hadn’t even seen once. It was a relatively safe place for her considering there were so many eyes watching nearly every angle. It was a bright sky clear of clouds and the smell of fresh-cut grass still in the air. She even knew of a handful of people at the farmer’s market were safe for those who were magically inclined like herself. Stalls that she knew were on ‘her side’. 

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‘Whittle Creatures’ was one of the stalls. It sold wooden carvings of animals that were whittled from wood and painted with natural paints. Those same paints were also sold and the ingredients were listed some were made with plants but also minerals dug from the earth. She knew some of her classmates had bought some carvings to serve as a conduit for a totem, guiding, or spirit animal. Different magic casters practiced their craft differently but from what she learned, all magic really came through the same source.

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The second stall was called ‘Rock and Rumble‘ and it sold semi-precious handmade jewelry. This is where she had gotten that blue lace agate that she had given the mechanic the other day. Of course, she had cleansed the crystal and put her own magic into it to make it a bit more personal. 

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Then there was ‘Jimmothy and Me Aromatherapy Pharmacy’, this stall sold resins and essential oils on their own and in mixes for different things such as aromatherapy or perfume. They also carried incense made with those oils. The essential oils were often bought by oddball moms who believed they were cures in their own right but they were also bought by witches who could use premixed spells that only needed to be charged to work. She was the second kind. This stall smelled of sweet fine smoke from a few of the incense cones that were burning. It was burning for people to sample the scent and to see the quality of how it burned.

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Rori had purchased many cones from the man who owned the stall before. Since she had in the past also bought a little figure of a howling wolf that was meant to be placed over a cone. The smoke would then come out through its mouth as if it were its foggy breath on a cold winter night. Today she considered it was time to buy a small bag of her favorite scent. She looked over the carefully positioned baskets and picked out the yellowy-orange color that she knew well.

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“You are picking The Disciples again? A wonderful choice.” Jimmothy smiled and pulled out a waxed paper bag from under his stall. In it, he placed 5 cones inside. They were a bright yellow-orange with a vertical white stripe. “Is one set of five enough?”

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“You know I love this one, Jimmothy. The scent of rose, vanilla, sandalwood, and orange blossom, Who wouldn’t?” Rori watched him bag the incense cones for her and when he asked her about the quantity, she raised three fingers. As a student, she used a cone of The Disciples to connect to her fellow classmates for lending power to them or vice versa for spells.

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Jimmothy packaged up two more bags of The Disciples cones for a total of 15 cones. “I have a new release today which I believe you’ll like. It shares a scent note with The Disciples which you like. It is a limited edition offer for this season. I call it The Sun Rising. It has three ambers with the brilliant glow of orange blossom, Italian yellow bergamot, saffron, and mandarin. When you want to all forth the golden sun into your incantations, this is it. Powerful and majestic” Jimmothy smiled and held out a cone that was white but it had stamped on it in a glittery black symbol of a sun rising over a line, representative of land.

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The description of the cone’s scent alone was enticing but as he picked it out of a basked and brought one up toward her. She could smell the thrumming power it held. It truly was like a ray plucked from the sun as it rose. A spell cone perfect for making mornings a little more favorable. Such as casting the rain away just long enough for her to get to work or bringing more positivity into her day. Rori hadn’t noticed until now a strange pulling sensation. The same one from the coffee shop. The same one from when her bike broke down. It wasn’t on her person either, nor a pulling on her clothes, but at her very spirit. “Hold on.” 

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As she turned around, she spotted Joe in the distance. He truly was unbelievable and unmissable. She rolled her eyes. It was possible that he hadn’t seen her and yet the man was clearly looking for her. He was wearing yet another cowboy shirt but the rest of his clothes looked more casual. Was that even possible? She inspected him from afar some more and noticed his jeans seemed to be a pair that was well worn but not used for work. There were no oil, dirt, or grease stains on those jeans. She assumed he was dressed casually for comfort rather than to blend in. Though, if it were- then why did he wear a leather jacket in this blazing weather? Wasn’t it hot? He almost looked like he was beginning to wilt. The leaned over posture, the way his neck was craned. The hands in his pockets, not even the same pockets, one was in his jeans’ and the other in his jacket’s. She glanced up at the sky, there were a few fluffy clouds but the sun was definitely up there and beaming down rather hard. She pushed her cats eye shades up higher on her nose. She would let him suffer looking for her. At least for a few more moments.

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She turned to Jimothy once more and smiled, “I think I will take some of those, just one set of 5 will be enough. If I like them, then I can always visit your personal store. As you know, I’m still a student. I might like them for the scent alone though once I have one burning.” She pulled out a small coin purse from her book bag and paid for the cones. As she said her goodbyes to Jimothy, she turned once more to look for the mechanic.

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Where did he go?

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The pulling she had felt was gone and for a moment she believed that he must have left but then she heard his voice.