Dad did, in fact, have something great cooking up. The Darkedge siblings, Raza, and I ate around the table, while Dad washed dishes. Mom was at the Cauldron. Maya dug in hungrily to the plate of mac and cheese, but Chaiyn still gingerly ate his food as if it would be poisoned. “Do you guys want a tour of the town today?” I asked, twirling a piece of cheesy pasta around my fork. Maya nodded enthusiastically. “Yes! Raza was telling me all about Ezra and Epifano and Mr. Smith! I want to meet them!” Chaiyn laughed. “Always an extrovert, this one,” he remarked, ruffling Maya’s hair. She swatted at his hand and ducked away. “Yeah, we can go into town. If that’s no trouble.” Raza grinned. “We just offered to take you, why would there be any trouble?” A few minutes later, the four of us finished lunch, thanked Dad, and walked down the path into town. Raza and Maya raced ahead, though Raza always won the short distances they plotted out. Chaiyn and I walked behind them. Chaiyn occasionally would cast a wistful glance in our little siblings’ direction. Eventually, the town came into view. “You’ll like town,” I told Chaiyn, trying to get his spirits up. “Everyone’s really nice, and once you’ve had Epifano’s candy, everything else tastes terrible.” He smiled lightly. “You clearly haven’t been to an elven bakery.” I grinned. “Challenge accepted.” He laughed - mission accomplished. Raza and Maya stopped at the crossroads where the path down to our little neighborhood intersected with the main village road. The four of us walked together to Sweets Galore. The small bell at the top of the door chimed as we walked in. It was the middle of the week, so the candy shop was pretty empty. Epifano was at the counter, while Ezra waved to us as he wiped down tables. “Good afternoon, Wolf, Raza,” Epifano said. “I see you’ve brought some new friends.” I nodded as we walked up to the counter. “This one here-” I elbowed Chaiyn lightly, “-thinks that elven bakeries have the best deserts in the universe.” I grinned. “Care to prove him wrong?” Epifano returned my grin. “I believe we can do something like that. And what would the rest of you like?” “Whatever has the most sugar,” Maya said, staring longingly at the display treats behind the glass. Epifano laughed. “Alright, one bag of Seaside Walnuts coming up. What else?” “One bag of-” Raza squinted at the label, “-Starshine Trinkets, please.” I smiled. “Make that two.” Epifano nodded. “So, two bags of Starshine Trinkets and one of Seaside Walnuts. Plus the special order for you,” he added with a wink at Chaiyn. “That all?” We nodded. “Eight gold, please,” Epifano declared. I passed him the coins and he stepped back to prepare our order. It only took around five minutes for our four bags to be ready. Maya claimed a stool at one of the higher tables, and the four of us sat there to eat it. I ate my candy slowly, watching to see how Chaiyn’s experience would go. He got a bag of chocolate bark with pistachios inside, and the top inlaid with a design of honey. He took his first bite and his eyes widened. Within a few seconds the piece was gone. He looked up and met my eyes, smiling. “I stand corrected.” All four of us died of laughter. “Would you mind sharing?” I asked. I got a piece of his chocolate and he got one of my Starshine Trinkets. We ate all that we wanted and left Sweets Galore. Raza took Maya to go meet all the shop owners, while I gave Chaiyn a small tour of all the stalls and shopfronts in the main square. The two of us waited at the fountain for Raza and Maya around sundown. “This was amazing, Wolf,” Chaiyn said quietly, so soft no one else would have heard. I smiled. “It’s my pleasure, Chaiyn. Glad you enjoyed.”
Notes/Credits: If you're reading this, you probably know I wrote The Wolf Boy. Well, here's the sequel: The Monster's Curse. This is Chapter 35. Previous Chapter(s): Chapter 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/652476202/ Chapter 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/652950608/ Chapter 3: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/655177024/ Chapter 4: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/655177565/ Chapter 5: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/655621072/ Chapter 6: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/656955201/ Chapter 7: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/657580423/ Chapter 8: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/657583863/ Chapter 9: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/657586191/ Chapter 10: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/657668860/ Chapter 11: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/658404211/ Chapter 12: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/659115920/ Chapter 13: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/659116659/ Chapter 14: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/659117186/ Chapter 15: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/659420154/ Chapter 16: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/661425573/ Chapter 17: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/661428771/ Chapter 18: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/661974554/ Chapter 19: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/662108449/ Chpt 20 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/663144219/ Chpt 20 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/663156194/ Chapter 21: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/663760516/ Chpt 22 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/674644356/ Chpt 22 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/674648505/ Chpt 22 Pt 3: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/674658226/ Chpt 23 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/683757147/ Chpt 23 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/683765009/ Chpt 24 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/685766546/ Chpt 24 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/686198230/ Chapter 25: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/700792854/ Chpt 26 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/700796432/ Chpt 26 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/700878172/ Chapter 27: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/708908365/ Chapter 28: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/708908899/ Chapter 28.5: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/708910102 Chapter 29: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/715701804 Chapter 30: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/722542292/ Chpt 31 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/728333697/ Chpt 31 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/728334516/ Chpt 32 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/730396954/ Chpt 32 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/730397968/ Chapter 33: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/730608161/ Chpt 34 Pt 1: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/733945483/ Chpt 34 Pt 2: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/734093397/ Chpt 34 Pt 3: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/734094744/ Credits: Me, for being the author Shannon Messenger, JK Rowling, Eoin Colfer, and many other authors for inspo @aqua_di_angelo, @AL600AWESOME, @Lanze_cupcake_face11, and @Yayabinks for inspo and supporting the story! QOTC: If you could make any candy in Sweets Galore, what would it be?
