Andora entered the shop, and she was instantly pleased with the atmosphere.

The talisman shop had what seemed like hundreds of shelves, all ordained with wooden trinkets of all sorts. Opportunity screamed from each of them, just waiting to be useful to one of the witches to walk past them.

She made her way towards the register, taking secretive looks at each and every object. To be there almost felt wrong to her; the elders had been telling her of this day ever since she was old enough to wield magic, yet the thrill of it still rung through her.

One of these talismans would be hers by the time she exited the shop.

It could be the deep-stained bird figure. It could be the bangle with roses carved delicately inside. Hell, it could even be the moon-shaped earring. Though, considering Andora's light personality, and her bright magic, that seemed unlikely.

The broad-shouldered woman at the register greeted Andora with a kind wave. The woman's palms were battered, with miniscule cuts baked into the pads of her fingers, and dirt resting inside every place her hands creased.

This must be the woman who fabricated the talismans.

Andora smiled at the woman, hoping that she didn't notice how Andora's hand is quaking as she brought it up to return her wave.

The woman, which Andora could now see is named Halcyon, based on the whittled nametag pinned to her flannel, said, "Hey! What can I do for ya?"

"I--I'm here for a talisman?" Andora's voice quavered, oddly intimidated by Halcyon, despite the woman's warm nature and the fact that the two were likely the same age.

Fortunately, Halcyon moved past the awkwardness, and dove straight into assistance. "In a talisman shop, I dear hope you are! Now, I'll walk you around the shop, and just let me know when something speaks to you. We'll test it out with your magic, see if it does anything funky, and if not, it's yours! After you pay, of course."

Halcyon began on the right side of the shop, giving Andora a tour of everything on the shelves, tables, and even the objects hanging from the ceiling. Halcyon showed her watches, hair sticks, even staffs.

Andora picked out a few items, the ones that bring her the most joy, such as the little bird she saw earlier, or a fun pair of glasses with bead chains on either side. However, when she tried them all with her magic, the light from her palms stuttered out.

Soon enough, Andora's tried far too many talismans in the shop. And somehow, none of them worked.

Even Halcyon seemed concerned, and she'd probably seen loads of weird instances, even with her younger age. Her concern did nothing to calm Andora's anxiety, and she was starting to get worried. What if her magic was never supposed to be stronger? What she was just supposed to remain a simple village girl, and this was a sign from the universe to avoid leaving?

Despite the trouble, Halcyon was determined to help Andora find a talisman. So, as a last resort, she went into the back room to pull out one final talisman: a black-stained wooden journal.

When Halcyon presented the journal to Andora, she was incredibly hesitant. She was positive it wasn't going to work; the pale skull depicted on the front felt so unbelievably distant from herself that she was sure this couldn't be her talisman.

Yet, when Andora tested it with her magic... the light erupted from her hand with such strength that for a moment she was sure she had blinded herself.

Halcyon shouted beside her, "Yes! It worked!"

It had worked.

Andora just didn't know how.

Halcyon plucked the journal from her hands and brought it to the register. She threw it in a bag, and said, "Well, I've rung it up for you. Now all you have to do is pay, and you're set!"

Andora walked numbly to the register, her hands clenching the handles of the bag to clutch it close to her chest. She pulled a bundle of coins from her pocket and let it clink on the counter.

She turned to leave, forgetting to thank Halcyon for her services. She couldn't stop thinking about what this meant. How did she end up with the darkest, most evil looking talisman? Wasn't a talisman supposed to reflect your magic, your destiny?

Is that what Andora was destined for?

Before the door closed, Andora heard Halcyon shout, "Refer a friend! Good luck!"

If the journal meant anything, Andora was sure she was going to need as much luck as she could get.