Style Quest: Flowering Spirits

Varick hadn’t registered on time to get a market stall all to himself for the Wildflower Festival on Casitmeria. As a result, he had to share a booth with another dealer. It wouldn’t have been bad if it wasn’t for the brown and white rabbit Myrna McCleary selling hats from her dad’s shop. On most days, the two were civil enough towards each other, but when it came to competing with the other, it turned vicious. The two would do whatever it took to beat the other before the flames of competition inevitably turned to temporary attraction.

 

“You want to explain any of this,” Myrna asked as Varick unpacked his wares. The Clydesdale wore a flowing dress that he carefully crafted to resemble hundreds of different kinds and colors of flowers that changed types and colors every few seconds to give the illusion of a wildflower field in the wind. Varick had his mane and tail braided with flowers to complete the look.

 

“I was feeling pretty today, and this dress felt like the perfect thing to wear for the festival,” Varick casually answered as he filled his half of the stall. “Besides, if I can get orders for three of these as custom jobs, I can finally afford to open a shop.” Myrna noted how the horse’s backside looked in the dress when he bent over. 

 

“Good luck selling anything,” the rabbit laughed as she finished putting out hats. “Everyone will be here for the hats and not a pretty boy in a dress.” 

 

“So you think I’m pretty,” Varick laughed as he stood behind the stall modeling his dress. They shot each other a death glare before breaking the look as customers for the market started showing up. Despite Myrna’s assertions, neither of them did much business as flowers and jewelry stands seemed to be gulping up the bulk of the sales. Around midday, a crowd had gathered at the food stalls across the way. An idea struck Varick as he leaped up and pulled threads off his talisman sewing kit strapped to his left arm.

 

“If yee be giving up to madness, kindly take it elsewhere,” Myrna sighed, not bothering to hide her accent like usual. The Clydesdale in the dress ignored her as he made four small loops and several larger ones. He slipped a blue one on his right wrist and a red one around his right ankle.

 

“I have an idea, but we’re going to have to work together,” Varick explained to the brown and white rabbit girl. “Do you remember the story of the Fayrie Queen and the Flower Seller,” he asked as he threw several of the larger loops of thread around various hats Myrna had on display. After she nodded, the horse tailor explained,” Put on the flower crown and stay on beat with me. As you change characters, the glamour illusion will switch out the hats and put these on.” Varick handed her a blue and a red band of thread before showing Myrna how to wear them.

 

“This better not be some sort of trick,” the rabbit threatened as she slipped on the bands before stepping out in front of the stall. Varick started playing a slow melody on his violin that sounded like fog rolling across the moors. “Gather round all yee gentlefolk, and I’ll tell ye the tale of the Fayrie Queen and her fateful encounter one summer day,” Myrna started in the tale as Varick’s playing became warmer and brighter. Crowds gathered quickly to listen to the music and story, amazed by Myrna’s seemingly rapid switching of hats and the magical way the flowers on Varick’s dress changed as he moved around playing. As the rabbit got to the part of the story where the flower seller became trapped in a wildfire, Varick started using his magic to build up blue and purple flames around himself and Myrna. “Thus fearing her lover had met his fate in flames, the Fayrie Queen cried out in rage.” As the line left the rabbit’s throat, a brilliant flash of flames briefly obscured the duo from sight. “But from the fires came the flower seller reborn as a Fayrie.” The wall of blue and purple flames faded to reveal Myrna in the dress Varick was previously wearing and the Clydesdale now in a light green suit with a matching top hat. A massive cheer rose from the crowd, and the two barely had time to get back into the stall before people started rushing to buy from them.

 

“Yes, I do have clothes that’ll fit Castimerians,” Varick answered a customer, trying to help as many as possible. He sold out of most of the premade clothes he brought and took several orders for the flower dresses. Myrna was also almost out of hats by the time the rush died.

 

“Did ye switch my orders out with the dress,” the rabbit demanded from Varick in a hushed tone. She wasn’t happy to be in the dress but was too busy with sales to change.

 

“I wasn’t going to wear lace with a suit,” the blonde Clydesdale smirked as he finally got a chance to sit back down. “Don’t worry. The spell will wear off and switch everything back in about an hour.” Myrna started to grumble a bit but stopped when a customer approached. 

 

“Drinks on me tonight at the guild hall,” Myrna offered as she packed her wares for the day. She was back in brown pants with an off-white button-up, while Varick was back in the flower dress. The clothe switch glamor had worn off a while ago, and the rabbit was happy to be back in her correct britches. Varick nodded, not being one to turn down a free drink. “Whiskey for me and beer for the horse,” the rabbit shouted to the bartender as the two walked into the guild hall. Varick corrected his order to an apple daiquiri and glanced at the rabbit annoyedly.

 

Varick woke the following day with the brown and white rabbit on top of him. As was tradition, the two were enemies in the daylight but lovers in the dark. Slightly sore, Varick dressed enough to get to his room at the guild hall and prepare appropriately. Today he dressed in his usual blue vest, shirt, and pants. From his window, he could see people waiting at the market stall, so he didn’t need to wear the dress to advertise it. Around midday, Varick and Myrna had sold out of their wares, so they closed the stall. The brown Clydesdale left a note about contacting him with custom order requests. Varick and Myrna went separate ways as they had no desire to hang out.

 

As he aimlessly wandered around the festival, Varick spotted the flower maze and decided to try it. Flowering hedged ten feet high from the maze’s walls, giving off beautiful fragrances. If he got lost in this maze for hours, the Clydesdale decided there would be worse fates than being trapped amongst the blooms. He wasn’t sure if he was making progress solving the maze as children and adults alike ran through the flower maze. A dead end had a white castiron table and chair with a pitcher and cups. Varick decided this was the sign he needed to take a short break. The pitcher had water infused with different fruits native to Castimeria to give the drink flavor. It was rather delicious as the horse finished a cup quickly and slowly worked on a second when someone else rounded the corner into the dead end.

 

“Is that seat taken, or can anyone join,” a familiar voice inquired as Varick looked up to see who was there. Seeing an otter in Jacquard pants, a white puffy shirt, and a long black leather jacket greeted the horse tailor.

 

“Garret,” Varick cried out in surprise as he leaped up to hug his friend. “What are you doing here?” 

 

“There aren’t any races for the next month, so I decided to take in the festival,” the otter explained as he hugged the horseback, taking a quick whiff of his scent. “What have you been up to? Tell me everything.” The two friends sat at the table for a while, catching each other up on what they’d been up to. Luckily, the pitcher was enchanted never to run dry as the pair enjoyed several glasses before deciding to find their way out of the maze. It took some time, as neither of them was good at figuring out mazes, but eventually, they made their way out. 

 

“There you the fuck are,” a voice yelled as Varick and Garrett strolled through the market arm in arm. Without turning, the horse knew it was Myrna but still decided to turn to see what she wanted. “We’ve officially requested to the main stage for a show,” the rabbit explained as she caught up with the otter and horse. “Unless he’s willing to wear a dress, your friend must wait. They offered to pay us a substantial performance fee as the original performers dropped out.”

 

“I’m more of a smart power suit otter, but I’ve improvised before,” Garrett remarked with a wink to Varick. A twinge of jealous possessiveness hit Myrna as she clocked the look. She knew the horse probably had other flings but didn’t like to see it in front of her. At the same time, the rabbit didn’t want to own Varick. It was a bunch of complicated feelings that would need to wait till later.

 

“Well then, I’ll go grab my violin and some wardrobe,” Varick told them as he ran towards the guild hall. An hour later, Myra, in a flower dress with a matching flower crown, Garret, in a light green suit, and Varick, with his regular clothes with his violin, took the stage. This time they told the full unabridged story of the Fayrie Queen and the Flower seller with much more illusionary costume changes and special effects. Varick stayed off to the side of the stage so he could focus on the music and magical effects while Myrna and Garrett took center stage. It took the otter a little bit to correctly fall into step, but as he caught onto the rhythm of the music and storytelling, he fell into step. Once again, the finale called for a wall of blue and purple flame that fell to reveal the final costume change had both the Lutrinae and the hare in flower dresses. The crowd erupted in applause as the curtain fell on the stage.

 

“Are you going to be able to fulfill all those orders,” Garrett asked Varick later in the guild bar as Myrna separated the take from the performance. A stack of papers sat before the Clydesdale, which he would scribble notes on before sliding into a large envelope.

 

“It shouldn’t take me too long as honestly working out the glamour is the hard part, and since I’ve got that down, all I’ve got to do is sew,” the Clydesdale answered as he slid the last of the papers into the envelope. He then took a small runestone from his pocket and broke it in half. Moments later, a small portal opened up overhead from which a raven flew out. As the corvid landed on the table, Varick held up a silver button and the envelope. “Please deliver to this address and leave it on the table. The side window is open.” The raven plucked up the silver button in its beak and the envelope in its talons before flying off. “Although I think I’m going to need to ditch the last day of the festival to get a jump start on the dresses,” Varick told Garrett as he turned his attention back to the otter.

 

“Here’s your shares,” Myrna cut in as she pushed two piles of coins toward the horse and otter. “I’ll leave you two to be with yourselves.” The rabbit started to get up from the table, trying to hide her jealous annoyance.

 

“Where are you going? Stay and celebrate with us,” Varick invited the rabbit back with a hand on her shoulder. She looked at the hand on her shoulder and had to suppress a growl.

 

“Sorry, I don’t think there’s room at this table for me anymore,” Myrna claimed coldly, as she was not dealing well with her emotions. Garrett took that as his cue to get a round of drinks for the table.

 

“What is wrong with you all of a sudden? Did Garrett say something to you,” Varick asked as he tried to figure out why the rabbit was acting strange. The questions broke the dam of Myrna’s held-back feeling as she began to cry.

 

“I was having fun with you and me for once, but now he’s here. You’re going to ditch me anyways because we aren’t a couple,” the rabbit sobbed as the rabbit tried to explain herself. “He seems nice, and you deserve someone nice.”

 

“Please stop crying; I had no plans to ditch you,” Varick tried to comfort Myrna while pulling a handkerchief from his pocket. “Garrett and I are only sometimes friends like you and I. Yes, he is nice, but I enjoy our little competitive dynamic. It keeps things interesting. However, I’m sure Garrett will understand if you want me all to yourself. I’d rather not have you upset because you feel excluded.”

 

“No, it’s ok,” Myrna sniffled one last as she dried her tears. “Wouldn’t want to be rude to the otter.”

 

“That’s good because ‘the otter’ has a suite at the Sunflower Estates Inn with a jacuzzi and a bed more than big enough for three,” Garrett declared as he brought the drinks back to the table. Sunflower Estates was the fanciest hotel on this side of Castimeria. The fact that Garrett had a during a Wildflower Festival was nothing less than a miracle. It probably cost brown otter what Varick made in two months if he worked extra hard. “I heard you’re a bit competitive with long ears. Wanna have a little competition of our own,” Garrett deviously smirked as he put a hand on Varick’s left leg and leaned across the horse.

 

“Don’t start a contest, yee, can’t finish the race, boy,” Myrna shot back as she put her hand on Varick’s other leg and leaned. Garrett and the rabbit stared at each other so intently that sparks almost ignited between their eyes.

 

“Do I get any say in this,” Varick asked, a little nervous about whatever these two had planned.

 

“No,” Myrna and Garrett answered in unison. That round of drinks was gone quickly as they practically dragged the Clydesdale off to the Sunflower Estates suite. By the time the sun rose, everyone was well acquainted and thoroughly satisfied. Varick was too drained to declare any winner in the contest between Garrett and Myrna. Varick was practically a zombie on the last day of the festival, but he managed to find his sister Kaytlyn a necklace of small metal flower petals with a large flower in the center that was enchanted to smell like the flowers. The small fennec would surely love that.