“Is it Easter already?” he asked, but the bunny only blinked a couple of times and continued to watch him.
Shrugging he struggled into his dressing gown and sat himself down at the desk, the coaster was one step ahead of him, with coffee already steaming from his favourite mug. He closed his eyes and took a sip. When he opened them again the bunny was sitting quietly in front of him on the blotter.
“Want to tell me what this is all about?” Thrumps asked.
The bunny shook its head, the bell playing out a little melody all its own.
“Any ideas?” he asked running his finger across the ornate gold lettering of The Book of Un-Reality. It arched its spine to the touch, much like a cat would and then, wriggling free fanned the pages. The one it stopped on didn’t seem to be of much help. It was a recipe for chocolate, an old one.
Thrumps read it. There was nothing really unusual except for the last ingredient.
One pinch of magic dust.
Why on earth would anyone put magic dust in chocolate, Thrumps mused. Most have enough caffeine to get you high, with energy that is, it releases endorphins in the brain so makes you happy and most important it tastes so good that you crave more, and more chocolate is never going to be classed as a bad thing.
“Hey, I think like an encyclopaedia.” He laughed and made the bunny jump.
“Sorry little-one,” he said automatically stroking its nose with one finger. It squirmed and wriggled in circles.
Thumps sipped his coffee. The book turned the page.
THE PROPERTIES OF CHOCOLATE was written in bold capital letters right across the top with a list below.
Gender – feminine (receptive) To what thrumps wondered.
Elements and Planets
White – water (Venus)
Milk – water and earth (Earth)
Dark – earth and fire (The moon)
Magickality
White – Friendship, self-love and fun
Milk chocolate - nurturing, love, balance and raising emotional energy
Dark chocolate - love, romance and turning enemies into friends
“Any more info?” he asked the book.
It shook a little and refused to let the next page be turned.
“I’ll take that as a no then,” Thrumps chuckled.
He watched the bunny.
The bunny watched him.
“Am I supposed to eat you?” he asked.
The bunny almost seductively peeled back the corner of its gold wrapper exposing its bum.
“Well I’m not starting at that end.”
The bunny shook as if with laughter as three chocolate coins, each marked with a different symbol cascaded from its rear end before the shiny paper refolded back to pristine perfection.
As Thrumps picked them up the next page flipped open in the book.
Animal Tokens of Love
- The Dolphin – Aphrodite (the goddess of love and the woman of the sea)
- The Penguin – monogamy, devotion and faithfulness
- The Lion – happy, strong and noble
“Interesting,” he said out loud to no one in particular. “But what has all this to do with me?”
The book dutifully flipped to the next page.
Instructions
What qualities do you look for in love?
He wasn’t sure he was looking for love, but read on.
Take a nibble of the chosen coin. The magick dust in the chocolate will help you find the one you desire, happiness and so much more.
He still wasn’t sure he actually wanted any of this, but what the heck. He read the token details all again carefully, if this did indeed put a romantic twist to his life in The Emporium, he knew he’d better choose very carefully. Did he want a trophy on his arm, elegant and enchanting or maybe a little wife-about-the-place to tend to his every need.
No definitely not that, he thought. After all, the resident magic already took care of him.
So, a soulmate it was then. As he picked up the milk chocolate lion coin, the others disappeared.
Here goes he thought and took a tiny bite. Nothing instantly happened, but the chocolate was so morish that before he knew what he was doing he’d eaten the lot.
The Book of Un-Reality turned to the final page.
And now you wait.
Thumps was sure that the little bunny winked at him.
Ohh, my good-night, he thought … what have I got myself into this time?