Knight of the Black Rose (3 page)

"If you don't mind...it's awfully damp and the cold...well...we'll just be inside then," The elder told him and then turned around directing the other man in first.

Domnus stood at the bottom of the steps, the three men looked at him and then at the space he had left for their escape; he pulled down his umbrella as he heard the sirens getting closer and fastened it up again.

"You should stay where you are, or you'll just end up in even more trouble," Domnus warned them.

"Please, I can take you any time," The man on the bottom step told him standing up. "It was only because you took us by surprise,"

"Yeah...you stupid or something...nobody does what you did...only in the movies..." The younger man said at the top of the steps.

"I don't watch movies, so I wouldn't know what you're talking about; but where I come from we don't just watch as someone commits a crime," Domnus told them.

"Then you're not from anywhere that normal people are from then," The man said looking up the road as the police car came around the corner and he made to move but Domnus already had hold of him and pulled him back down onto the wet steps.

The police car pulled up and two officers stepped out, the driver walked around the car eyeing up the screen before him; they were both nearly ten years older then Domnus and looked as though they had been in the force for sometime but they actually looked quite surprised by what they saw before them, as though this sort of thing truly didn't often happen.

"Well then, what seems to be the problem?" The officer on the left asked running his hand through his short dark hair.

"These men had broken into this restaurant and was attempting to escape with the money when I stopped them, the owners informed me that they had already rang for you when they came out of the building; but by that time I had already accosted these three." Domnus told them. "The driver on the other hand was able to escape, but I did get his license plate number; MK12 7HG."

"Thank you...you really got them all on your own?" The policeman asked him surprise, and fumbling to take his notebook out of his pocket to write the details down with.

"Are you in the army or something?" The other policeman asked him. "I mean to be able to take down all three of them on your own?"

"Not really, but you could say that I was a kind of police officer," Domnus answered.

"Really, ever thought about actually joining the real police force; we could defiantly use someone like you?" The policeman asked him excitedly.

"What the hell is with this?" The man mumbled from the steps as he was pulled to his feet by the nearest officer. "He attacked us...shouldn't you be doing something about that?"

"You were the ones that were committing a crime," Domnus told them calmly. "You now have to contemplate your wrong doings."

"You mean how to do it right next time," The man shouted as he was pulled away into the police car.

"That isn't going to help your case, if you're telling us that you're going to try again as soon as you're let out," The police man told him shutting the door.

"I've never really understood people like them," Domnus said talking as if he was a grown man full of life experiences, yet to any on lookers he wasn't even in his twenties yet.

Music blared out from the upstairs behind Domnus who was actually getting used to the pounding of his ear drums from the past couple of nights, he was stood on the threshold wearing his white shirt and dark nervy trousers and actually looking as though he fitted in finally, in normal clothes; but that didn't actually mean that he felt as though he fitted in. There were several dim lights set above on the ceiling just bright enough to see in front of you so that you wouldn't fall up the steps, though that was still possible of course if you've had a few too many to drink, or as he had learnt depending on what sort of footwear the women were wearing.

There were three dozen people queuing up waiting to be let inside, but Domnus weren't letting many in because no one had come out in a while and of course there are restrictions to how many are actually allowed inside at any one time.

"Come on man, don't be like that, we're brothers," The man said at the front of the queue with his arm around his girl friend, she had on a low cut neck short dress and was shaking slightly because it was actually quite cold.

Domnus didn't really think it was something that she should have been wearing to go clubbing in but something for afterwards perhaps, considering it was more like lingerie than a dress, but who was he to judge the fashion of this time, now if Luxis was with him she would have been able to tell him; he did miss her.

"I am not your brother," Domnus told him calmly. "I'm just waiting to confirm that I can let more inside, if you'll just wait quietly."

"Quietly? This is a club isn't it?" The man asked him.

"Indeed it is," Domnus answered. "It won't be long,"

"He talks funny...I don't think he's from around here," The woman tried to whisper to her boy friend, but it was still loud enough so that she was heard by others.

Domnus checked the computer screen on the side bar that was set around the wall, the message that he had been waiting for flashed up onto the screen ‘ADMIT HALF A DOZEN!’.

"Right then you can come inside now," Domnus told them stepping aside and holding out his hand as the man handed over his entrance fee, Domnus quickly scanned it making sure that it was all there and to see if it was real considering the owners had informed him that a lot of fake notes have been circulating; when he was completely satisfied he let them upstairs before he quickly turned back to the next couple. "Thank you,"

They handed him the right money and then the next couple came up the steps but they were dressed quite oddly compared to everyone else he had seen tonight, even though to him everyone was dressed oddly except perhaps really these two. The man had a blue cloak which was edged with torques, brown trousers with a white slightly ruffled shirt; the woman had a full length cream coat, hooded, with green pin striped trousers and a two tone green tunic.

"I've been thinking about getting a new cloak, but I'm new to the area hence the job here; I was wondering if there was anywhere around here that I'd be able to get one?" Domnus asked, hoping against hope that they knew what he was talking about because the people behind them just looked at him as though he was mad.

"Really, what school did you go to then?" The guy asked him seemingly interested.

"Burnaby Advanced," Domnus answered without thinking, and then hoping that he hadn't blown it; but it seemed as though he had in fact impressed them both, the man stepped nearer to him so that they wouldn't be over heard.

"Well considering that you went there you must be good, though I'm a little surprised that you don't know," the man said.

"I didn't grow up here, but in the magical world and I ran out of money while I was visiting," Domnus told them trying to sound somewhat humble and grateful for any help that they could give him.

"I know what you mean, everything here is so expensive isn't?" the woman agreed. "How am I supposed to buy clothes if they're so darn expensive not that they have many nice things to wear to begin with, but if they want us to blend in...you know what I mean?"

"Yes, yes I do," Domnus answered.

The man stepped closer and whispered, not wanting anyone to overhear him. "Well, if you go down here and take your first right onto the narrow alleyway it's just at the end there. Wave your wand commanding to enter, but make sure that there's no one around of course...we don't want any uninvited guests,"

"Of course, thank you," Domnus said, quite pleased by his stroke of luck, perhaps things were starting to look up for him. "It was nice talking to you, I'm sure that we'll meet again,"

"I'm Duff and this is Zara," Duff told him.

"Domnus, Ordin Domnus," he told them.

"It was nice meeting you," Zara said smiling at him.

Domnus let them inside feeling an awful lot better now that he had had some contact with others of his kind and hopefully tomorrow he'll have found the entrance and can really begin his search; he had known that there was one around here somewhere but he hadn't been able to locate it, which he had thought was strange considering that he had never had any problems in that area before.

The ground was still wet with puddles from the rain during the night but it had finally eased up as Domnus walked down the street past the club where he now worked, he was actually looking forward to tomorrow because he was going to be paid; they had agreed to pay him cash in hand because he had explained that he didn't have a bank account. He had also been pleased that they had believed him and he hadn't had to use more magic on them, especially if he would have to stick around for a while.

He walked further on looking around making sure that there wasn't anyone else as he turned down the small narrow ally which was bricked up on all three sides and on the side door on his left were overflowing bins, he walked to the end reaching for his side but there was no need because the wall began to move on its own accord.

Domnus watched as the wall before him began to dissolve slowly becoming more and more transparent until finally the wall was gone and instead was a bustling square lined with shops, the people were dressed in cloaks, suits, dresses and hats that the world behind him wouldn't have seen for at less a hundred years, though perhaps in more modern colours and styles, yet here they belonged and actually suited their surroundings and the people that was wearing them. He stepped into this world relief washing over him from the normality, it wasn't what he had left behind but it was as close as he was going to get here, which was good enough for him for now.

In the centre of the square was a sign post ‘WELCOME TO WITCH CHESTER SQUARE’, but there were also smaller signs below pointing in different directions; pointing to where he was stood ‘NONE MAGICAL WORLD’, to the left ‘WEAVE STREET AND MAGE VOLT BANK’, to the right ‘ACHER ALLY’.

Domnus had no idea where he should go and just decided to look around for now and to listen to what the people were talking about, perhaps they knew something about how he had gotten here, it was more their type of thing after all, so word must have reached them about what had happened.

There were a group of women stood outside ‘CAULDRON STACKS’, which had stacks of cauldrons, pots and pans of all different size's; some small enough to put inside of your pocket and some big enough to fit a fully grown man. Domnus had no idea what you would need different size's for, considering he had only ever used one size which was big enough to make what ever you needed but was also easy enough to carry if you needed to, not that you did very often.

"I can't believe that I have to buy a complete new set," the woman in the mild said sounding quite annoyed. "Melted...he melted them all while I was out yesterday; really. I can't leave him alone without him breaking something."

"It can't be that bad," the woman to her right said trying to sound encouraging.

"Yes, it is..." the woman said shacking her head. "I didn't tell you at the time, but last week in the paper...the attic mishap, well that was my..."

"Oh...well...no one knows..." the woman reassured her encouraging the other women to agree with her, which they nodded encouragingly.

Domnus moved on slowly, well at least now he knew that there was a paper and by the sounds of that they'll put near enough anything into it, which meant that his cyclone had probably been put in it and all he had to do was get his hands on one. The shop next door didn't have anyone outside of it but Domnus still looked in through the windows which were thick with dirt, he could hardly see through them and then there was hardly any light inside of the shop, so he still couldn't figure out what it sold. He looked up at the sign above the shop considering that he couldn't make out what it sold ‘INGRID'S INGRENTS’, that didn't help completely but he had an idea so he carried onto the next shop which had two men stood outside of.

The man holding the paper bag didn't look at all happy about the bag that he was carrying, where as the other man seemed to be trying his hardest not to laugh at his friend.

"Do you believe that...I never ordered these...who in their right mind would?" The man shouted at his friend.

There were manikins in the window with suits and dresses on them in beautiful colours and fabric's and fabric draped across the windows, and above read ‘LADY HEATHER PALES DESIGNS’. Though what was in the windows wasn’t drawing attention to the shop, but the man outside of the window seemed to be doing a very good job on his own, but perhaps not how they would have liked.

"She said that was what was ordered," his friend told him trying not to smirk, but wasn't doing a very good job.

"Have I ever worn anything like this...ever?" the man shouted waving the bag at him furiously snapping the handles and the contents flew out, finally revealing the contents, it was an orange and purple suit; people turned around laughing as he tried to grab it and stuff it back inside of the bag that he was ripping even more because he was forcing it in trying to hide it from view.