Golden

Golden by Taylor Vincent The ranger and the priest stood at the edge of the fountain. While RangerCaptain Dawnblade peered into the water with a smile on her face, Champion Dawnblade was staring daggers at a draenei that was staring daggers back from the Alliance-dominated western end of the city. The priest’s gaze turned to one of inquisition and taunting before the glint of something metal out of the corner of his eye turned him back toward his wife. “A coin? For me?” he said, quickly snatching the gold piece from between her outstretched fingers and dropping it into a sack on his belt. The hand, now flat broke, retaliated the way so many of the penniless and desperate do: with violence. “Ow!” Varendil exclaimed as he rubbed the shoulder the ranger had punched. “What was that for?” “You brat, you’re supposed to throw it into the fountain and make a wish,” Lanuria said, smirking at him and looking back out at the fountain. Varendil slumped and pouted. “I don’ wanna.” “Varendil Amanare Dawnblade, you throw that coin in the fountain this instant.” The priest humphed, folding his arms and shaking his head quickly. “Fine. Mom.” Lanuria chuckled, then smiled warmly when her husband pulled a gold coin from his coin pouch. The priest examined it closely, lifting it to his eyes and rotating it between his fingers, a look of concentration on his face. “It’s not a special coin, is it?” “No, just a gold coin. What do you mean?”

“Well, for all I know this was your dad’s lucky coin or something. Hate to not live up to its reputation or something.” The ranger rolled her eyes. “Gonna wish for some nice robes? Or an unfortunate accident for that boy your daughter likes?” she asked, still grinning at the priest. “Don’t remind me of that,” Varendil said, slowly and thoughtfully, eyes never leaving the coin. “The question is how to get the most out of this piece of currency.” The ranger sidled up to her husband, leaning in for a closer look at the coin in question, but Varendil quickly palmed it and pulled it up and away, giving a chastising look at his wife, who giggled. “Fine,” she said, separating from her husband. “Just let me think,” he said, smiling back before examining the bauble once again. A few moments later, his eyes flashed. “Yep, I think so,” he said quietly, before sliding his thumb in and flicking the coin in a long, lazy arc into the fountain. Lanuria smiled and stretched up to kiss him on the cheek, and Varendil wrapped an arm around her. Her eyes tracked the coin as it fell into the fountain and was buffeted by the movements of the water. As the couple turned to walk away, the ranger began poking his side. “So. What’dya wish for? Tell me,” she said. “Not happening,” he calmly replied, trying not to smile too much. “I tell you, it doesn’t come true.” “Oh, come oooonnnnn…” she whined, still poking his side, her insistences and his refusals trailing off as the two departed from the fountain, where the coin continued to be tossed around by the currents until it finally made its way to the surface of the water, floating lazily against the edge of the pool.

It would be several minutes before the water and the motion had their effects, and the foil on the coin gave way, the chocolate within beginning to flow out into the water. The coin that Lanuria had presented Varendil with minutes before lay safely in the coin pouch of a Dalaran street vendor, having been exchanged for the cupcakes that lit up Ranger-Captain Dawnblade’s face the moment Champion Dawnblade presented her with them. And as the bits of foil and chocolate coin fell apart and sank into the fountain, the ranger sat in bed with the priest, both grinning and eating cupcakes; she poked him, leaving a spot of frosting on his nose, and he began to laugh.