Logan insisted they stop at The Purple Hammer. Patton came in with him and looked around with wide eyes. Logan caught Virgil’s eye and smiled at him. Virgil nodded but didn’t move to greet them, still dealing with molten metal.
The two princes looked around at the wares, at the intricate metal work that was sitting right beside the finely shaped but simple wares. There were horseshoes beside swords and pitchers beside cages. A separate table was laid out for specifically requested pieces such as a hairpiece for a noble lady, a set of horseshoes for the tanner down the road, a glass vial for the court chemist, and many more. Logan didn’t see the bookend like statue he’d commissioned there just yet so assumed it wasn’t finished.
Patton’s eye kept being drawn back to the hairpiece sitting on the second table.
Soon enough, Virgil was pulling his gloves off and walking over to them. He bowed at the neck, giving them a deeper nod than he would most customers but not something many would notice. “What brings your highnesses to my humble smithy today?”
Patton smiled, still looking around. “I wouldn’t exactly call this wonderland ‘humble’, Master Smith.”
Virgil smiled at the compliment. “My thanks, Prince Patton.”
Logan nodded. “Yes, this smithy is magnificent. However, I do have business to attend to today. I have two invitations for you.” He pulled the envelopes, sealed with the royal crest, from his coat pocket and presented them.
Virgil carefully took them, making sure his grimy hands didn’t touch Logan’s gloves. “Are you wishing that I open them now or wait until I’m in private?”
Patton clasped his hands together with an excited gasp. “Oh, please open them now! I have no idea what they are and am dreadfully curious.”
Virgil chuckled and carefully broke the seals, opening the envelopes. The first invitation was a meeting with the king for the day after the ball. The second was an invitation to said ball. As Patton had said he didn’t know what they were, Virgil read them aloud before responding.
“I’m afraid I have nothing to wear that would suit such a grand occasion but I will try to find something. As for having a meeting with the king, I happily accept. Please tell him I look forward to it.”
Logan nodded. “May I speak to you in private for a moment?”
Virgil raised an eyebrow but nodded, leading Logan into a backroom that the customers never saw. “Is there something wrong, your highness?”
Logan handed him a small, stiff piece of paper with a shop name written on it. “If you still need something suitable to wear by the night of the ball, go visit this tailor. She’ll help you free of charge if you tell her I sent you.”
Virgil took the paper, slipping it into a pocket. “Many thanks.”
“I also have another commission for you that can be discussed in detail at a later time.”
“I’d like you to make a hairpiece for my brother. Again, the details can be discussed at a later time, even if that means at the ball.” Logan really didn’t want to discuss it during the ball, preferring to save it for another excuse to see the smith again.
Virgil nodded. “I can do that quite easily. Simply name a date and place and we can discuss this further.”
Logan agreed and they rejoined Patton. The royals went on their way and Virgil made a note of the conversation before going back to his work, vowing to have the bookend statue finished and to have finished reading the book by the ball.
