Art Imitates Life

Agnes awoke to the sounds of a bustilng morning below the second-story window of their room at the inn. Like many mornings on this journey, she found herself up before Hektor and Chloe which always offered her a moment of peace before the day's events. Not that Agnes minded the chaos of her journey, but those youths were hard to keep up with even if she would never let them hear her say as much.

This morning, Agnes was content to stand by the window and look out upon the city below. She knew it was just a smal fraction of the population, but this one square by the gate barely past dawn had more people milling about than River's Bend would see during a major festival. Each one of them with their own complex, fully realized inner life. Their own worries, triumphs, struggles, and dirty little secrets. Agnes amused herself by making up stories for them. Playing matchmaker in her mind or deciding what each of these little people below should do to turn their lives around. Eventually the other two awoke and along with Agnes they had a pleasant breakfast in the common room of the inn. Hektor took his leave to head to the shipyard and the girls took off up a high street into town.

“So, what would you like to do today Granny Agnes?” Chloe asked, looking around suspiciously like she was expecting some kind of danger.

Agnes noticed Chloe's apprehension but decided it was best not to ask. Instead inquiring “Do the Foolhardy Friends still put on shows?”

Chloe was taken aback by the suggestion. “Huh? I mean, I guess...but you know that's mostly for kids right? We could take in a proper play if you want.”

“Not a bad idea,” Agnes said with a light chuckle. “But I do have my reasons. If it's for kids I bet they would have a show in the morning, right?”

“Okay...” Chloe started with a hint of skepticism. “If I remember right their stage is this way.”

The pair made their way through town complete with Agnes peppering Chloe with questions. One thing that struck the former was how...small many of these businesses seemed to be compared to what she was used to and how much more specific they could be. Back home she might go to a butcher in River's Bend. This would be a rather large building where she could buy meat and much of that meat was raised on the same property. That property would also have an area set up for one member of the family to tan the hides and make leather that was also fashioned into things like boots or belt pouches. She could also get bone sewing needles or tallow candles at the same spot.

Here? Those were all separate shops in separate districts. There might be several people doing the same trade. Or maybe they had their own niche within it. One store only sold boots, and they were fine boots of a quality Agnes admired. The sewing shop might carry needles made of all sorts of materials. Chloe even mentioned some of these industries being large enough they were managed by guilds of merchants from just one area of commerce. Agreeing to certain practices or standards for pricing. It all made sense enough to Agnes, but the scale and scope of city life left her with a lot to process as they made their way to the ampitheater.

Along the way the pair stumbled across another show. A street magician performing for an assorted crowd. He'd wave his hands, mumble a few words, and summon fantastical illusions of animals, mythical creatures, even a swordfight between two men. Agnes found herself transfixed by how lifelike the illusions seemed. How this man was able to make them move. So much so she didn't notice the types of things Chloe did after spending so much time with the “Forest Witch” she was even hearing about here in Trelle. How much the magician was struggling to maintain such a simple trick. How long it took him to go from one to the other. The reality he probably couldn't adjust these scenes on the fly or maintain them if he had even the slightest distraction.

“I guess someone who properly studied would be that much more impressive.” Agnes said as they continued up the avenue, more to herself than to Chloe. Who noticed Agnes reflexively making a small flame flicker and dance from finger to finger absentmindedly.

At that point Chloe stopped and turned to her companion. Looking down at her with a puzzled expression. “Granny Agnes...do you really not get it?”

“Get what, dear?” Agnes responded, equally puzzled. “Its just obvious isn't it? I picked up a few tricks, sure but what he was doing was real magic.”

“Maybe I don't have the knack for it myself” Chloe sighed, “But seems to me like that performer is the one who knows a few tricks. I get you stick to the fundamentals...but have you really not noticed how good you are at them?”

Agnes smiled and patted the girl's hand, “It's very sweet of you to say that, little cat burgular. Let's go see the show.”

Chloe rolled her eyes as the two continued up the avenue towards the ampitheater. “Was that really her secret?” She thought about Agnes as they made their way through town. It made enough sense to someone like Chloe who didn't gave the knack for magic herself, that a lifetime of casually applying basic concepts to all kinds of little tasks on a village farm could end up leaving someone like Agnes far more effective than the types of mages she was used to. Though Chloe wondered if Agnes also had a particualarly well-suited personality to the study of magic as well. How different would her life had been were she born in a city like Trelle? How many of the finest artisans in any craft perfected it in obscurity?

What Chloe did know and Agnes didn't is that most mages tended to specialize in one element or type of magic and typically they had a lot of difficulty switching between them. There were some schools, like the illusionist street performer, that blended elements or were an odd application of one of the major four. But Agnes? Chloe did her best to recall. She'd seen fire, wind, earth...Tumlin mentioned a rain cloud once. And that he saw her swap between three of those in a matter of seconds. Maybe it was for the best Agnes never really realized how impressive that was. If she learned all that in a humble village in the hills...maybe being a mage under the patronage of a noble house in Trelle would have stifled her.

If Chloe hadn't been so fixated on this mystery, her usual vigilance might have noticed the two men who began to follow her and Agnes. But she didn't notice them slinking just out of sight at a safe distance from the two women. They took seats in the back row of the ampitheater just in time for the first show of the morning. Despite her earlier skepticism, Chloe found herself charmed by the nostalgia of taking in a show from the Foolhardy Friends and wondered which of their usual repitoire today's fare would be. The benefit of performing for mostly children meant they rarely changed up the shows. It may not be glamorous, but it was probably pretty steady and easy work for an actor.

Agnes found herself transfixed by the show. It was a production on a level she had never seen anything like before. This one wasn't about her progeny, but it was about a noble party of heroes who set out to take on the wicked Giant King after his forces pillaged the countryside. The ability of the performers playing as the giants to move and “fight” on huge stilts was truly impressive. The former Prince of Trelle, Castor, led his men in a great battle to repel the giant army and a dashing pirate named Pollux slipped past their defenses to meet the Giant King in his fortress. Agnes quite admired the beautiful cerulean banner the stagehands rolled out to act as the water for the scenes at sea.

The crowd sure seemed to love it too, though Agnes didn't really consider why most of them were children. They were a great audience, cheering for the heroes and screaming at the villains. They (and Agnes) reacted with surprise for the big twist, Castor and Pollux were long-lost brothers! Then the big finale where the hero met his end prompted a wave of grief throughout the crowd. Even Agnes found herself getting a little misty eyed as she turned to say “Well that was quite the show” to Chloe.

But when she turned...Chloe wasn't there.