Happily Ever After: Raven's Hollow, #1

By Sarah WaterRaven and Kit Daven

In this feel-good fantasy anthology, join the young adventurer Opal, the cunning thief Benna, the goblin warrior Zurt, and others as they each set out to fulfill their respective dreams. Along the way, they embark on thrilling adventures and encounter colorful characters that challenge their beliefs and test their resolve. Happily Ever After will captivate readers with its heartwarming stories of perseverance, determination, and the never-ending pursuit for true happiness.

Stories by: Curt Brown, Hades Knightshade, JF Garrard, Kit Daven, Ryan Nixon, Ryan Toxopeus, Sarah WaterRaven, Tenaya Anue.
 

 

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sarah WaterRaven
• Release date: Apr 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215658369

Book preview

Forenote

Sarah WaterRaven

What is Happily Ever After?

While some of us may think of a maiden and knight riding off into the sunset, toward a magnificent castle in the mountains with magical roses and unicorns, there are, I suspect, many variations of a fairy tale ending for everyone.

Many people hold close to their heart a vision of their happiness—a picture they return to, again and again—to get them through hardships and the darkest of times in their lives. Whether it's to go to school, get your dream job, find love, or to simply get vengeance against the evildoer who burned down your childhood home and got your Starbucks order wrong, there’s a dream of a Happily Ever After out there for everyone.

Sarah WaterRaven

Raven’s Hollow

Dedicated to those

in need of a Happily Ever After.

Mirror, Mirror

Tenaya Anue

Part I

The baker pulled out the compact mirror. It was second-hand, but it had only cost her three croissants and a birthday cake to be delivered to Argent’s Magical Trinkets and Knick Knacks.

She opened it and took a deep breath. Mirror, mirror, in my hand, who’s the most dateable in the land?

The compact lit up and a melodious voice issued from it. Good morning! You have three mirror matches. Tap once to view your first true-love-to-be.

Windrose

Hades Knightshade

A nervous sigh escaped the silhouette of a young maiden gazing out her bedroom window. She sat on a bench, quill in hand, with an open scroll atop a book in her lap. Returning her attention back to the scroll, she began to read.

Application Form

Thank you for your interest in the Magic Guild of the Kingdom of Windrose. We are situated amid lush forests, plentiful farmlands, majestic mountains, and swift crystalline rivers. Our fine establishment boasts a faculty of the finest magic users in all the realm.

Windrose is a place of great elemental magic. Legends say that during the ancient war of the Elders, a battle so gargantuan, it forever imbued the land with the magic of all that fought and fell here. Since then, what was once a barren wasteland has slowly turned into a flourishing land full of resources, including magic.

Our Majestic Guild, situated to the West of Windrose Castle in the fair city of Bramble, boasts spacious grounds housing apprentices in the hundreds. Our main building consists of dozens of lecture rooms, six alchemy labs, three dueling arenas, three lecture halls, a realm renowned library, and a climate-charmed greenhouse.

Another sigh. She absentmindedly tapped the nib of her quill on the application, marking the parchment with small dots. She gazed out into the distance where the Magic Guild was illuminated by the morning sun, spurring a longing in her heart and motivating her to refocus on the application. Returning her attention to the application form, she impatiently scanned through it, mumbling to herself. Dormitories are great, blah, blah, blah…amazing food, blah, blah, blah…code of conduct… Ah! Here we are.

Name: Opal Galeblaze

Place of Birth: Thistle Creek, Kingdom of Windrose

Current Residence: Floor 3, Leaky Tankard Tavern, East Bramble, Kingdom of Windrose

Are you 18 years of age?

She smirked excitedly and chuckled as she scribbled Yes!!! As of yesterday, in fact. Finally!

Why do you want to attend the Magic Guild?

Oof, good question. Let’s see… She swished her quill back and forth in the air, then enthusiastically scrawled her answer down.

I have always wished to learn to better harness my magic, but no matter how hard I try, I just can’t do it on my own. So, I need the apprenticeship before I can head out into the world. I want to be a Mage like my mother. Ever since we discovered I had fire magic, I knew I could never be anything else, and that excited me. I long to set out and see the world, to battle dragons and orcs, and save those too weak to save themselves.

Pleased with her answer, she moved onto the next question—Name of Parents?—and stumbled over the word parents with a sharp inhale. Sadness crept into her eyes. She slowly scribed the word Deceased and lost herself in memories of her childhood—those final moments where she hugged her parents and the gruff Master Stoneheart, their grumpy dwarven companion, before the adventurers headed out on their quest.

Opal couldn’t remember much about her parents’ adventures. She was only five years old at the time, but they never came home after that last quest. She’d been spirited away to the first of many orphanages, overwhelmed by fear and sadness. Amid nightmare filled nights, her fire magic manifested. What should have been celebrated as a gift quickly became her curse. One by one, incident after incident, each orphanage ushered her to the next until there were no more that wanted her. At seven years old, Opal found herself wandering the streets terrified and confused.

One fateful rainy night, as she sat on the steps of the local church shivering from the cold and crying, she heard a familiar man’s voice.

By the Ancestors! Opal? Lass, is that you?

She almost didn’t hear him through the pounding raindrops. When she turned, she saw a man whose face was scarred. The hair at his temples had started to turn white, his big bushy beard was soaked, and two thick braids with metal clasps hung from either side of his jaw. Recognition shone in Opal’s eyes. She remembered the familiar face of Master Stoneheart—the man known to her as Uncle Lloyd.

Uncle Lloyd’s stern expression softened, clouding with concern and relief. He limped towards her, inhaling sharply as he sank to his knees and pulled her into his chest.

I’m so sorry, lass. I am so sorry it took me so long to get to ye, he rasped as he held her tight.

The weight of those words washed over her as she realized he survived. He survived and came back for her. Tears pooled in her eyes, as hiccups racked her body. She buried her face in his chest, her small hands clutching his cape as hard as they could. Wails of relief and desperation escaped her mouth.

Lloyd’s voice strained, as if his heart were breaking. Shh, it’s alright, lass. You’re safe now. I won’t leave ye ever again. He lifted her up into his arms and clumsily shielded her from the rain with his cape. He carried her to what would become her new home, where she cried herself to sleep.

Opal pulled her thoughts back to the present. A lone tear rolled down her cheek. She would never forget that night and could never express her gratitude to her uncle for all he had done for her over the years. As she wiped the tear from her chin with the back of her hand, she resumed filling out the application form.

If no parents, who is your legal guardian? Master Stoneheart, former Marauder of Windrose.

She smirked as she scribed her uncle’s family name. As far as she had experienced, the old dwarf was grumpy and gruff, but certainly not a stone heart. Taking a deep breath, Opal proceeded to complete the rest of the application form, halting at the very bottom with a groan. Letting her head fall back, she struck the window frame with a hollow thud and closed her eyes.

Frog snacks! I didn’t think the tuition would be that high. She sighed, feeling a little defeated. How on earth am I going to save a thousand silver?

Letting her head roll to the side, she opened her eyes to look at the small chest sitting atop her wardrobe. I've maybe got four hundred silver, and that took me two years in tips to save up. If only I wasn’t such a klutz.

She counted on her hand all the times she had given her tips to her uncle to pay for the damage she had caused to the tavern when trying to use her fire magic and things went, well, sideways. The fires had to have cost at least another four hundred silver there. I really need to get control over my fire magic or I’ll never be able to afford the entrance fee to the Magic Guild.

Red! Hurry up, lass. The tavern isn't going to prepare itself for the lunch rush!

Uncle Lloyd’s bellow yanked Opal out of her thoughts. She rolled up the scroll, hopped down from the window bench, and placed her book, scroll, and quill on the desk.

Coming! she hollered back.

As she straightened her dress, she did a last check in the mirror before heading down to start her nightly duties. She smiled at the young maiden staring back at her with fair freckled skin, inquisitive, brilliant green eyes, and fiery red hair twisted into a messy bun at the back of her head. With a nod at her reflection and a last glance at her journal, she hurried out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Uncle Lloyd burst through the kitchen in a puff of black smoke, coughing and snarling. "Red, Dagnabbit, lass! Are you trying to burn me tavern down again?" he snapped while smothering a small flame at the end of his mustache. Soot marks marred his normally impeccably clean apron and, as he dusted soot from himself, the stout dwarf paced about the kitchen.

I'm so sorry. I thought it would be faster to start the hearth using my magic. I was falling behind and the firewood was damp and… I didn't think it would get out of control. The last words were almost a whisper as she followed her uncle into the kitchen, wiping soot from her pale skin, eyes downcast.

Aye, lass, you always think using your magic will be a good idea, he lectured, turning toward her. Taking in a deep breath, his expression softened, but his sternness remained.

She recognized the look in his eyes. It was the same one he had when he found her on the streets. Underneath the soot marks, she must remind her uncle of her parents. Surely, he still must miss them the way she did.

"If I told ye once, I told ye a thousand times, Magic inna the easy way out. Ye must be of firm body and mind. If not, bad things happen, lass. Things ye canna take back."

The sadness in his eyes made Opal think he intended to say more, but he didn’t, and she didn’t press him for more. She feared what he might say, but also what it might cost him to remember.

Lloyd sighed as he frustratingly rubbed his face. I also know ye are wanting to start yer own life, not be stuck here in this old run-down tavern with the likes o’ me.

Opal glared in annoyance at her uncle. It was brief and she quickly closed the space between them, hugging him tight.

I love you, Uncle Lloyd. I love this tavern. I grew up amongst all the adventures in it, hearing everyone’s stories in the hustle and bustle every night. And as happy as I am here, I feel I am missing a part of me. I can't help but wish to find that something.

Aye, lass, I understand. And, well, I’m not surprised since it’s in ye blood. He chuckled as he kissed her forehead, then pulled out of her hug. And that’s why I sent in an application as yer sponsor to the Magic Guild of Windrose yesterday.

Dumbfounded at first, Opal finally blurted, What!? How? Why? while waving her hands wildly in the air.

A laugh bubbled out of her uncle as he wiped soot from his face and arms with a damp cloth. Ye want to go there, don’t ye, lass?

Opal nodded furiously, making him chuckle even more.

Well, I may be but a lowly tavern owner now, but I still hold the title of Marauder of Windrose, and if that helps ye get in—

Before he could finish, she had jumped back into his arms. So many emotions swirled in her heart. Kissing his cheek and hugging his neck, she descended into a verbal tornado. "Oh, my