Allan Steel - Name of an Action Hero, life of a wageslave

The thought strikes you, that the attendant behind the counter might object if he notices the Chosen One just handed the magic stone to essentially a random NPC. So you leave the shop as quick as you can, fighting the urge to bolt away like a thief.

When you reach the end of the block without anyone running after you, shouting to give the stone back you can finally relax. Maybe the sorcerer(?) running the shop really didn’t notice. Orrrr…. maybe the stone has a will of it’s own and wanted to fall into your hands. Probably not. Because if that were the case why not reveal itself when you were looking at that shelf?

Anyways… before you start worrying how you got a powerful magic stone, you first need to find out if it actually is a ..well … powerful magical object. Maybe the guy was right and the clerk behind the counter just has a strange sense of humor.

Speaking of… you look around to see if you can spot the guy who gave you the stone. To no avail. A pity. The least you could have done was reward him for giving you the stone. Which, coincidentally, would have been a good opportunity to see if the stone actually works.

But it seems you need to find another test-subject *cough* person to help. And as fate would have it you know just the guy. The original reason you were poking around random shops in the city is that -thanks to the local bus schedule – you had half an hour to kill before meeting up with your friend Adam.

That guy could definitely use some help of the reality-bending variety. Everyone was allowed to be a bit mopey after an unpleasant breakup, of course. So you didn’t hold it against him at first. But after more than a year the complaints about his single status were starting to grate. Even more so, because complaining was the only thing Adam was doing about his love life- or rather lack thereof.

So you are going to do it for him.

You got a bit distracted by all the curious stuff that magic shop had on display, so you text Adam that you are going to be a few minutes late and that he might as well get in line for the tickets.

“Just in time.” an impatient Adam greets you when you finally arrive “We can probably make it in time for the previews.” and holds out your ticket.

“Sorry man. I need to hit the bathroom first.” You don’t; but it is all part of the plan.

Your friend let’s out an annoyed sigh “Of course.”

“Look, it’s not like I need you to hold my hand.” you say with a small chuckle and use the pretense of putting your ticket away to slip your hand around the stone in your jacket-pocket “So go ahead. By the time I get back, you’ll be hitting it off with the attractive girl that reserved the seat next to ours. ”

He gives you a slightly **** smile “As if.” but he still goes.

You give the magic about five minutes before you can no longer contain your curiosity and head towards the theater to see if that actually worked.

And lo and behold! Adam and an extremely cute brunette are making fun of the trailer to some sappy chick-flick.

According to the ticket the seat beside her is actually yours, but who cares. The last thing you’ll do is ruin this for Adam. So you settle down, smile politely when Adam introduces you to his new friend Rachel and enjoy the show. Meaning you stare at the screen while you listen to the two of them exchanging whispered quips and enjoying each others company.

The odds that Adam just happened to meet this girl right after you tested the stone are way to low to be mere coincidence.

Adam seems to think so too. “How the hell did you know!?” he whispers when Rachel slips out for a quick bathroom break of her own. “Did you set this up?”

“Pfft.” you scoff “I’ve been telling you you’re going to hit it off every time I drag you out of your apartment. Just a matter of statistics. ” you give him a grin “She is just a girl here to enjoy the movie, not some hooker I hired if that’s what you are worried about. ” you touch the stone again, to help things along “And she’d obviously love to do more than just talk to you tonight, if you don’t mess up too badly.”

When Rachel returns her behavior has shifted subtly. there is an obvious flirty edge to her comments now, that gets less subtle as the evening progresses.

After the movie, the three of you decide to take things to a bench near the cinema, overlooking a small river. You were planning to stay just long enough to avoid the impression you were eager to get rid of them and see if you’d need to nudge things along with the stone.

As it turns out you stay just long enough to have serious second thought about setting the two of them up together. Rachel, it turns out, is just your type. Which makes sense if she’s supposed to hit it of with Adam, since you and him share a lot of interests. On top of that, even if her flirtations aren’t aimed at you, the girl sure knows how to get a guys hopes up – amongst other things.

Still, what kind of friend would you be if you snatched his shot at love away from the poor guy?