Dorian tossed a pile of posters on the table where his two closest friends were seated, sipping at cups of steaming hot tea. "I've been poking around the city. The Shanachie already has Shakespeare covered," he told them both before claiming a seat and a cuppa for himself.
"Nothing wrong with a little friendly competition," Kit replied with his naturally smug grin, before sipping at his tea. He was the eldest of the three and the undisputed leader of the traveling theater troupe.
"No, but we need to do something else. Something original. Something no one else is doing," Dorian pointed out, spreading his hands wide.
"Like what?" Delilah asked curiously, tucking a strand of dark hair behind an ear. "It's too late to learn something new. We've only got a month before we start performing."
"Not something new," Dorian replied, a smile forming on his face. "Something different. Something that will appeal to everyone."
"We've never had any problem with Shakespeare before," Kit pointed out stubbornly.
"Kit, this is Rhy'Din. We're not only competing with the Shanachie. There are other theaters here, too, and with summer coming, there will be other troupes in town. There has to be room for all of us, and we need to offer something unique that no one else is doing," Dorian reasoned, tapping a finger against the table to make his point.
"He's right," Delilah interjected, in support of Dorian. "And we want to bring in families, if we can. I'm not saying we should focus solely on children's performances, but we want to draw as wide an audience as we can, and we don't want to repeat anything the Shanachie has done recently," she reasoned.
"Okay, so what do you have in mind?" Kit asked, turning expectantly to Dorian.
Dorian smiled that disarming smile of his and placed a gold-painted bottle on the table he knew would wordlessly explain what it was he was thinking.
Delilah immediately understood where he was going with it and laughed, clapping her hands in delight. "Oh, I love that one!"
Kit rolled his eyes but couldn't help chuckling a little. "We haven't done that one in a while," he said, though that was of little consequence.
"It's got everything," Dorian pointed out with a dimpled grin. "Adventure, romance, tragedy, triumph ..."
"Okay, okay ..." Kit chuckled, holding up a hand. "You made your point. We'll ask the others and see what they think. If everyone is in agreement, Arabian Nights it is. Happy now?"
Delilah swept up from her chair to kiss Dorian on the cheek. "You're a genius!" she said, before tossing a saucy wink at Kit. "And you're not so bad either."
"Can't take the credit for this one, Princess. It's all Dorian," Kit said, jerking a thumb at his friend and chuckling with amusement, as the woman flounced away, most likely to fill the others in on the change in plans.
"She likes you," Dorian told his friend, once Delilah was out of sight and earshot, a warm smile on his face.
"She likes you, too," Kit replied with a smile that spoke of his feelings for the dark-haired woman without saying a word.
"Yeah," Dorian chuckled, "and it's like kissing my sister, believe me. She's all yours!"
"Thanks, I think," Kit replied, moving to his feet. "I'd better go break the news. Billy was really looking forward to playing Puck."
"He'll get his chance. Just not this run," Dorian assured him, as his friend departed. It was more than could be said for himself, though no one knew that but him.
Left alone with his cup of tea and the pile of posters, he reached for the gold-painted lamp, picking at a fleck of paint with a thumbnail. It wasn't real, of course. He'd bought it for a couple of coppers in a second-hand shop. It was just a theater prop, nothing more, but for the first time in his life, he wished it was real.
What if he really did have three wishes" What then would he wish for?
It was an easy question to answer, but there wasn't much point in considering it. Even here in Rhy'Din, where magic was commonplace, he knew it wasn't as simple as all that. These days all he wanted was one thing - to find his brother before it was too late.
"Nothing wrong with a little friendly competition," Kit replied with his naturally smug grin, before sipping at his tea. He was the eldest of the three and the undisputed leader of the traveling theater troupe.
"No, but we need to do something else. Something original. Something no one else is doing," Dorian pointed out, spreading his hands wide.
"Like what?" Delilah asked curiously, tucking a strand of dark hair behind an ear. "It's too late to learn something new. We've only got a month before we start performing."
"Not something new," Dorian replied, a smile forming on his face. "Something different. Something that will appeal to everyone."
"We've never had any problem with Shakespeare before," Kit pointed out stubbornly.
"Kit, this is Rhy'Din. We're not only competing with the Shanachie. There are other theaters here, too, and with summer coming, there will be other troupes in town. There has to be room for all of us, and we need to offer something unique that no one else is doing," Dorian reasoned, tapping a finger against the table to make his point.
"He's right," Delilah interjected, in support of Dorian. "And we want to bring in families, if we can. I'm not saying we should focus solely on children's performances, but we want to draw as wide an audience as we can, and we don't want to repeat anything the Shanachie has done recently," she reasoned.
"Okay, so what do you have in mind?" Kit asked, turning expectantly to Dorian.
Dorian smiled that disarming smile of his and placed a gold-painted bottle on the table he knew would wordlessly explain what it was he was thinking.
Delilah immediately understood where he was going with it and laughed, clapping her hands in delight. "Oh, I love that one!"
Kit rolled his eyes but couldn't help chuckling a little. "We haven't done that one in a while," he said, though that was of little consequence.
"It's got everything," Dorian pointed out with a dimpled grin. "Adventure, romance, tragedy, triumph ..."
"Okay, okay ..." Kit chuckled, holding up a hand. "You made your point. We'll ask the others and see what they think. If everyone is in agreement, Arabian Nights it is. Happy now?"
Delilah swept up from her chair to kiss Dorian on the cheek. "You're a genius!" she said, before tossing a saucy wink at Kit. "And you're not so bad either."
"Can't take the credit for this one, Princess. It's all Dorian," Kit said, jerking a thumb at his friend and chuckling with amusement, as the woman flounced away, most likely to fill the others in on the change in plans.
"She likes you," Dorian told his friend, once Delilah was out of sight and earshot, a warm smile on his face.
"She likes you, too," Kit replied with a smile that spoke of his feelings for the dark-haired woman without saying a word.
"Yeah," Dorian chuckled, "and it's like kissing my sister, believe me. She's all yours!"
"Thanks, I think," Kit replied, moving to his feet. "I'd better go break the news. Billy was really looking forward to playing Puck."
"He'll get his chance. Just not this run," Dorian assured him, as his friend departed. It was more than could be said for himself, though no one knew that but him.
Left alone with his cup of tea and the pile of posters, he reached for the gold-painted lamp, picking at a fleck of paint with a thumbnail. It wasn't real, of course. He'd bought it for a couple of coppers in a second-hand shop. It was just a theater prop, nothing more, but for the first time in his life, he wished it was real.
What if he really did have three wishes" What then would he wish for?
It was an easy question to answer, but there wasn't much point in considering it. Even here in Rhy'Din, where magic was commonplace, he knew it wasn't as simple as all that. These days all he wanted was one thing - to find his brother before it was too late.