Do You Believe?

Quatre

"Nous avons pris un prince! Oh mon dieu, nous avons pris un prince!"

The woman was pacing, her hands on her head and fear in her eyes as she rambled.

I do not understand when you talk so fast. Abraham spoke setting down the squirming Indian prince on the rooftop they had landed on.

Basha turned and snarled. "You lumbering oaf! WE. TOOK. A. PRINCE!"

At that, prince Soma gasped and poked his head out of the folds of his own cloak.

"Vile woman!" He spat. "Just wait until Agni gets here!"

But he was ignored as the magician continued to pace.

Why did you take him?

"I don't know! I just panicked!"

Soma looked between the two with an eyebrow raised.

The large man was staring at the woman who was frantically having a conversation with herself in both French and English.

The woman suddenly stopped pacing and collapsed to her hands and knees in a horrible coughing fit. The large man lumbered to her side but she pushed his outstretched hand away. Three disappearing acts in one day was pushing it for her.

When the fit finally stopped a few minutes later, the woman inhaled deeply and sat back in a way that Soma could see dark splotches of crimson blood staining the rooftop as well the white costume she wore.

His golden eyes widened. "You need a doctor."

The woman turned her head and gave him a glare, wiping the blood off her chin with the back of her hand.

"I don't need you to tell me that. It's the reason I was trying to steal from you in the first place. I could not dislodge you of your jewelry in time and I panicked, alright? It was not my intention to take you completely."

The woman groaned and ran her fingers through her wig again. "This is just my luck. Today has been terrible."

Basha closed her eyes, expecting the worst from the prince, only to hear the light clinking of money being thrown in her direction.

She looked up with wide eyes as a silver piece rolled past her foot.

Prince Soma stood with his hands on his hips, having successfully 'escaped' his cloak.

"You are a magician, yes?"

Basha nodded and the Indian man puffed his chest out further. "Well, I'm paying you to do magic! So go on, entertain me!"

Before she could even speak, Abraham lunged at Basha and scooped her up into his embrace, just as a bandaged hand struck the roof where she had been sitting only heartbeats earlier, cracking the stone.

"Agni, stop!" Prince Soma shouted as his butler once more lunged for Basha.

"Abraham!" The magician screamed, shielding her head. The golem thrusted his arm out to block an attack on his master for the second time that day, though when he looked at this new man the golem could tell that he was not a predator.

Agni tried to stop his attack, but it was too late. The Indian butler's hand sunk deep into Abraham's arm, penetrating the soft clay interior easily.

Agni's grey eyes widened as he tried and failed to pull his hand out of Abraham's forearm. The clay had already hardened around the Indian man's hand.

Basha groaned and Prince Soma watched with shocked golden eyes as the woman pressed her hand on Abraham's arm. She spoke a hushed word and her palm glowed white for a brief moment before she grabbed Agni's wrist and pulled him free from Abraham's arm.

The hole left behind oozed clay for a brief moment before hardening to stone once again.

"You say you want me as your magician." Basha began, turning back to face the shocked prince with a glare. "But I warn you, monsieur, I am not all parlor tricks and shams. My magic is very real and can be very dangerous. After what you have just witnessed are you still willing to pay to keep us around?"

At her low tone, Prince Soma shook himself out of his stupor and matched her blue gaze fiercely.

"Yes. I am." He nodded.

Basha stared at him for a moment longer before a grin spread across her face and she leaned against Abraham casually.

"Then it is a pleasure to be in your service, mon prince."