A Magical Costum E-Book

Karin Wolf

• Herausgeber: tredition
• Kategorie: Fantasy und Science-Fiction
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 157

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

It is a story between reality and fantasy, between magic and dreams, between comedy and seriousness, between romance and tragedy. It blurs the boundaries between the real world and mystical fantasy. The inhabitants of a small town have maintained a very old and imaginative tradition for centuries. The highlight of every year is a big festival. This year everything is a little different. A few new residents and business people are very nice and friendly, but somehow they don't really fit in here. Most of the residents are curiously attracted to what the "newcomers" have to offer, while others give them a wide berth. So it happens that this year's festival is one of the biggest attractions far and wide since people here can remember. After this festival, everything seems to be back to normal, as always.But is it really?

Leseprobe

A Magical Costume

Vampires don't have it easy either

Novel

by Karin Wolf

The glitter stone

The morning sun was just setting over the horizon and its fiery red shone through the last dark storm clouds of the night.

Bee and her mother were sitting at the breakfast table and the first bright rays of sunlight fell on them through the window. The little girl was playing with her glittering stone, which she always carried with her. She kept taking it in her little hands and holding it in the sunlight, sometimes very close, sometimes a little further away, and each time she tried to see through this sparkling stone.

„Mom, just look through it, there are lots of beautiful colors to see and they're always different. How did the diamond get on your face? Where did it come from?”

The little girl thought the stone was a real Diamond. Her mother smiled and looked at her sweet little daughter. She was still tired herself, looked pale and had slept badly. Holding the warm tea in both hands, she answered in agony:

„I don’t know.” And she sighed deeply.

Of course, this answer wasn't enough for the Little Bee, but she was already a thousand questions ahead. At some point she would ask the same question again, or in fact, over and over again, until she got the right answer.

„You know, Mom, Uncle Oleander and Aunt Xelora wore a nice vampire costume yesterday. It was much nicer than the one we got. Can we exchange it? I would also like to have one like the two of them had yesterday. Now we can because we won and besides...” she paused, „Mom, can I continue for once?”

She looked up at her mother in a powerful, irresistible way, with her head bowed, because she knew that she was forbidden to speak about this subject again.

„Keep talking, Bee,” she said tiredly, not having the strength to enforce a ban at the moment.

„Now we could...” and immediately she started chattering, „give Uncle Dracula a little money for his castle so that he can repair it. Don't you think we could give something there? You know, Mum, he was so nice to me and he wants to show me the whole castle where he and all the funny and cheeky ghosts live, and he also promised me that I can come back because I haven't seen everything yet. We just have to go back to the store and...“

„Little Bee, my Little Bee, please, please, forget this crazy fairy tale! Because it doesn't really exist!”

She brusquely interrupted her daughter's chatter.

„But mom, even if you and no one in the whole world believes me, it was really true, because I saw the eyes of the demons and Count Dracula changed me again and put my clothes on and really promised me and...”

„Quiet now, please, Little Bee, right now!”

Her mother almost begged her.

„Stop it now! I can't hear it anymore. Please be quiet now and never, ever speak of it again. Do you understand?”

The girl fell silent and lowered her head, while her mother had tears in her eyes and her pain was visible, which went far beyond Bee's annoying imagination. And deep down her mother knew that unfortunately this was not just fantasy.

Bee looked at her mother and was not at all offended that she was not allowed to talk about it anymore. She got up from her chair, walked around the table to her mother and sat down snuggly on her lap. She put her arms around her neck and said very importantly:

„Don’t be sad, Mommy. One day I’ll grow up and I’ll help you, for sure.”

After a short pause, she held the glitter stone in front of her mother’s eyes:

„It looks like a drop of water, but much, much nicer. Just take a look through it.”

And she gave it to her mother.

„You have to hold it in the sun,” she added importantly. Bee’s mother swallowed the lump in her throat as best she could, stroked her daughter's hair tenderly and looked through the glitter stone. Many rainbow colors created a magical play of light in it that was constantly changing. And she thought that this was exactly the right toy for her little daughter.

For a split second she saw two large black birds with huge wings flying away and her heart felt a painful pang. She quickly gave the stone back to her little daughter and confirmed to her how enchantingly beautiful these sparkling colors are. Little Bee took her glitter stone and asked if she could go outside to play. Her mother was happy to let her go out into the sunshine, into the little garden with lots of flowers.

With moist eyes, she looked out the window, still dreaming.

It was such a beautiful summer morning, like something out of a picture book, and she took a deep breath to regain her strength.

'What is really true and what is not?' She thought about it constantly, but she couldn't find an answer.

The small town and its inhabitants

The small town named “Rumorforest” is geographically located somewhere and could be anywhere. On one side of the outskirts of the city the forest and the mountains begin, on the other side you can see vast farmland as far as the horizon and even a small lake with black-blue water that has a glittering cover in the sunlight. It is an idyllic little town with about, well, maybe about, let's say, around 11 thousand inhabitants. Pretty old half-timbered houses, neatly decorated, line the old market square, in the center of which there is a very, very old fountain. The residents affectionately call it the "ghost fountain." It is round and in the middle is the clear, clean water that constantly flows into the fountain from an old rusty metal tap. The edge, which is carved entirely from light stone, is surrounded by countless small and large very old stone figures. They are mythical creatures and fairy tale figures. They inevitably captivate every viewer. No two figures are alike and each one seems to tell its own story. The longer you look at them or sit on one of the many park benches opposite and linger in their presence for a while; you get the impression that they are moving. Some say they are talking to each other. But that is just people's imagination.

Rumorforest has a lot of flair and has numerous alleys around the old town center. Otherwise, it is a town like any other. There are inns, many shops and shopping opportunities and everything else that the residents like. There is also a textile company on the outskirts, where many of residents work. The market square is the daily center of the residents and offers comfort, especially in the warm season. Here you can find everything that invites you to linger, such as a children's carousel, a shooting booth and various stalls that provide culinary delights for body and soul, including an ice cream stand. In winter, there are also colorful, glittering and richly decorated Christmas stalls, where the pretty works of art of the creative residents. Or they offer delicious Advent delicacies from their own oven. People know each other and it is always the same people who contribute this or that to the hustle and bustle on the market square. This small, tranquil centre is always well visited by young and old alike. And yet, you can't help but feel that something seems to be different here than anywhere else. But what?

The people here are actually no different from those in other small towns. They live and work, have their worries or not, celebrate, have children, are happy or unhappy, argue or love each other, just like everywhere else in the world.

Of course, there are residential areas that are older than the rest of the city. Here, everyone knows everyone and good neighborliness is well maintained. The latest news is not in the daily newspaper, but is told from neighbor to neighbor. The truth content sometimes plays a subordinate role, the main thing is that it hits like a bomb and quickly makes its rounds in the city. So many "headlines" become stories and ultimately they usually end up as fairy tales. But it is one of the most beautiful Activities and, even more importantly, everyone was able to give their "two cents". Therefore, everyone gets his or her money's worth, sometimes unfortunately at the expense of one or the other. However, so far, every story, no matter how controversial, has been forgotten and has always served as wonderful entertainment later on.

Since time immemorial, no one really knows since when, all festivities in Rumorforest have been celebrated in a particularly way, which can be traced back to an ancient custom that has become a tradition. That is the big difference to other cities. Every birthday, every wedding, every anniversary, whether private or public, even Christmas and Easter, really every occasion involves dressing up in some way and traditionally, great importance is attached to a chic, eye-catching, great costume. Outside of the carnival season, dressing up is a very aesthetic matter and not a foolish thing.

Everyone wants to look as beautiful as possible, to represent something specific and there is real competition in this. The carnival season itself is of course completely separate from this and the masquerade is then very exuberant, often with very memorable events that will go down in the history of Rumorforest. Perhaps people were once Venetians. Nobody knows and nobody cares, nobody asks about it anymore. It is what it is and everyone lives and loves this tradition. Most people enjoy it too. In the small town dressing up is as normal as drinking beer in a pub. It's just part of it. It is no surprise that the only large fashion house sells costumes and props all year round. However, there are always problems with the production and customers' tastes cannot always be met. When it comes to a very special personal request, creativity has always been required. This has worked quite well up to now. Yes, many a tailor in Rumorforest has made a pretty good living up to now. However, not everyone can afford it, as there are many occasions throughout the year that require a costume. And wearing a cowboy hat every time is not particularly appropriate and is often criticized. There is no one who would really avoid this custom, even if they are not comfortable with it. Excluding yourself would be tantamount to stoning in the town. Then there are always some costume freaks who like to use dressing up as a means to an end or simply to portray something "bigger" than they actually are.

Of course, something like that always has potential material for discussion in the coming weeks. The "headline distributors" wait for such an explosive event like a dry sponge waits for water. That is just how they are, the residents.

A new store

It was a full moon night when the moon rose in the sky like a huge, bright balloon. The many stars of this clear summer night were literally outshone by the silver moonlight. The moon rose over the old well and illuminated almost all of the small stone figures of the fountain at the same time. The little figures seemed to be having a great time. They were chatting happily and giggling wildly. Yes, they were actually moving. Some of them were stretching and bending and were visibly happy to finally be able to move. However, they quickly returned to their positions.

All of a sudden, two of the figures detached themselves from the edge of the fountain and disappeared as quickly as a flash as small dark shadows in the moonlight into the dark, dimly lit side streets of Rumorforest . The gaps that had formed closed in a mysterious way, so that the fountain remained intact.

At that moment the beautiful big moon got a veil, very fast Clouds gathered and a violent thunderstorm covered the small town with bright flashes of lightning and immediate roars of thunder. The downpour caused the drains on the market square to overflow and washed everything away. But the residents slept quite soundly and the storm did not bother anyone. After all, it was Friday night, the workweek was over and everyone slept peacefully into the weekend.

Saturday morning was like a wonderful refreshment. It smelled of flowers, of fresh greenery and of fertile wet earth. The sun flashed brightly on the horizon and with its strong warm rays drove away the remnants of the night's rain clouds, while the moisture of the earth dissolved into mist. The last clouds now had to make way for the turquoise blue of the early summer morning sky without any "ifs" or "buts".

Rumorforest woke up and the market square, alleys and streets quickly filled with many residents. On Saturday morning, a colourful crowd of all ages did what they enjoyed or had missed all week. You could actually hear a sigh of relief in the wonderful morning air.The tranquil town centre has many narrow little streets and a main street, which however does not lead through the pretty old town centre. The town is very well-kept and tidy. Of course, there are shopping opportunities here that are very chic and also appear to be lucrative. But the variety of shops changes frequently. The people of Rumorforest have got used to this. In most cases, the reasons for the opening and closing of a shop are quickly known. There are also shops that have stood the test of time for decades and have a permanent existence thanks to many local regular customers. But sometimes a shop is simply closed or sold and something new opens in its place, which is always extremely interesting for the residents.

Adele and Gertrude, friends for years, were strolling along one of the pretty side streets not far from the market square, chatting comfortably. Both were already in their mid-50s, very well groomed and meticulous about their appearance, they had known each other since their school days in Rumorforest. They have shared almost every part of their lives very verbosely and in detail since childhood. On this beautiful Saturday morning, a long stroll through the town was the order of the day. The two curious and adventurous ladies always found something extremely interesting.

„Oh, what kind of shop is this, Gertrude? I've never seen it here before. And you? Has it been here long?”

„I don't know. I've never seen it before, but it doesn't look new either,” said Adele.

The two know “their” town almost inside out and always know what is going on, usually the first when there is something new in the town. They have excellent journalistic skills, but more with the spoken word than with the written word. Now there was suddenly a new shop and it seemed as if no one in Rumorforest knew anything about it. That was outrageous! It was suddenly there and from the outside it looked as if it had been there for centuries. It blended harmoniously into the old row of half-timbered houses. A large, not very cleanly shining shop window would have allowed a generous view into the shop's interior if there hadn't been such a thick blackout film to keep out the sunlight. There were no decorations to be seen at all. Strange for a new shop. There was no big advertising or announcement of the opening, as is usual.

Next to the shop window, two very old, worn sandstone steps led to the narrow entrance door, which was made of very old and weathered wood. This door had apparently never been painted in its entire life. You could compare it to an ancient piece of oak in the forest. And yet, there was something very special about it. There was an artistic wood carving right in the middle. It was a lavishly decorated mask with a friendly, almost malicious grin. You could practically hear it laughing when you looked at it. The door handle was a wrought iron masterpiece and literally invited you to touch it and open it. High above the shop window was what appeared to be the only modern-looking piece: a huge neon sign that made the word “Costume Rental” glow and sparkle in every color imaginable.

The two friends from Rumorforest were actually speechless for a few seconds, something that has probably never happened before.They looked questioningly at each other and both placed their hands almost simultaneously to the left and right of their eyes, their noses pressed close to the window, so that they could take a look inside the shop. Unfortunately, they didn't get to see much, which increased their curiosity considerably. It looked as if the inside was completely dark. Only a small glimmer of light suggested that someone must be inside. They also looked in vain for a sign with the opening times. It was a monstrous thing that suddenly there was something here that the two highly qualified journalists had apparently missed. They were aware of their town's rich traditions, especially the costume tradition here. Could it be that no one knows about this shop? No, Adele and Gertrude would be the first to know, that's for sure. Adele says:

„Whenever a new store opens, there is a huge spectacle. Sometimes there is even a brass band playing, there is free beer, and small inviting gifts to say loudly to the passersby, the potential customers: You can buy everything here! You can only get it here! Come in, come in!”

In addition, Gertrude finishes:

„And this shop here is suddenly there out of nowhere, waiting patiently for it to be found and for someone to accidentally wander into it. They don't seem to need advertising, do you think?”

Curiosity was working within Adele.

„So what do we do, Gertrude? Let's go inside? Just have a look, it doesn't cost anything. Come on Gertrude, don't be a frog!”

Gertrude struggled with herself a little.

„You know, I don’t know, it doesn’t look very inviting.”

„But, apparently there are costumes to rent and maybe we'll find something nice, something new that no one has seen before.”

„Come on, Gertrude, go on! If we don't go in, we won't find out and others will know the news before us.”

Gertrude looked skeptical and tried to find a sufficient justification to be able to bravely enter the shop with Adele.

„Yes, I think a new costume would be great for both of us at the fountain festival next week look good. Our collection could use a breath of fresh air.”

She now agreed with Adele.