It is a damp, dark, and gay night. Laughter of drunken adults fills the main street from the nearby street fair and bars. A few sleepy children jabber on with their parents. The streetlights dimly fill the streets along with the fairy lights of the vendors and game stalls. Oh, how the celebration lingers on for Halloween! The Fright Night Fair is drawing to an end. All the happy people dozily walk on about their ways. All of them go on in the autumn fog, which licks at the windows of the shop. The neon sign above the shop merrily flickers in and out with an image of lush green leaves and the words: "Green Men Flowers." A tiny image of imps playing among lush neon flowers sits under the words. Written in cursive is a notice: "Halloween Special, Come Look At Our Enchanting Plants and Flowers!"

The cheery lights remain faithfully on in the midnight hour. Floral arrangements line the front window. Each one put together with tenderness and attention. The bouquets emphasis the hues of brilliant and soft sunshine yellows. Tiny pumpkins are framing the lines of the windows. Beyond the main window is a display of plants and flowers of all kind and colors. All lush and pump with life. Plants and vines hang tastefully from the ceiling in violet and brown pots.

Bobbing between the posies and the sunflowers is Nadir V. Nilson, age thirty-one. His headphones pump him up with vigor and heart. His mp3 plays his favorite jam at full volume as he air guitars over his watering tin. Ah, how Viking metal speaks to his soul! He flips his brunette locks with force as he smirks to himself. His leather headband jingles with bells as he rocks out. Nadir bares light scars on his arms. Nadir hides them under his crisp white shirt as he pulls down his selves. He straightens up his leather vest with his name tag pinned on it. His leather boots tap along with the music as he makes his way across the shop. His pays no real mind to the hidden wand in his boot.

His timer on his phone vibrates with a beep and Nadir takes off his headphones and chuckles. With a swipe of his rough fingers he dismisses the timer. Soon his boyfriend, Benet, should be back from the professor's house. Nadir sets down his watering tin and drifts over to the back counter. He leaves a note for all visitors and guests to ring the bell for service. Nadir places his half apron on a hook and checks his blue jeans for stains. No need to be messy on a night like tonight. Benet and Nadir had been looking forward to today for a long time. Nadir walks over to the back door and taps the handle three times. The handle shimmers with an otherworldly glow. Nadir smirks, walks through the door, and he closes it carefully.

In the back, his tea pot floated with freshly brewed tea still steaming. Two teacups rest in the air and a potion still bubbles from Benet's experiments earlier that morning. Nadir is sure Benet had been working on something for their expected honored guest tonight. The bean bag chairs rest cozily together with a pile of discarded books on them. A small library of spell books rest near the old school poster for the Enchanted Schoolhouse. The banner for the mighty Fire Horses is a little faded, but Nadir and Benet don't mind. Plants line the backroom with richness and joy. The Halloween decorations are spread about here and there with bats and jack-o-lanterns.

A wall is filled of framed pictures of family and friends. Nadir really loved the photo of Benet's godfathers Woofie and Joseph. They were rich in their sense of humor and love. Another photo had Benet and Professor Plum on the first day of school. Other photos were of Musette and Curtis, Benet's best friends from school. Nadir was not big on family photos, but he had a couple of his sisters and grandparents. Of course, there was one of Benet and Nadir at Benet's dragon racing.

A digital frame reveals headlines from newspaper clippings about the past adventures Benet and Nadir had done. Things like: "Miracle Child, Benet C.V. Soledad, intellect and resourceful witch, Musette Van Carmen, and talented wizards Nadir Nilson and Curtis Graymare save the Witch's Way from Deadly Dragon Attack" and "Miracle Child Sets New Dragon Racing Record." Nadir's favorite was "Heroic Children Put An End to Dark Lord." The professor had it framed Benet for a birthday gift five years ago. It seemed weird to Benet, but Nadir thought it was sweet and offered to keep it in the back room. The excitement over such deeds has since died down.

Nadir nears the portal circle, a drawing of a heart with five different locations surround it. It reads: Home, Professor's Home, Wofie's Traven, Green Men, and Witch's Way. In smaller letters it had Nadir's name at the shop. Benet read under Professor's Home. Nadir sat in the bean bag chair away from the circle. He knows better than to rush Benet through a visit with Professor Plum. The professor usually had a million things she wanted to tell her adopted son. It was pointless to rush Benet on his home visits. Benet, however, usually could figure a way to slip back home in a timely fashion, especially on a night as special as tonight. Benet and Nadir had been working hard for today. It was not an easy task the two had accomplished.

Nadir yawns and lifts up his tea from the air. Two purple reptile eyes blink at Nadir from atop of the bookshelf and down flutters the dragon-cat on leathery wings. Sleek and fuzzy with gray fur, the long strange creature purrs as it lands next to Nadir. Absentmindedly, Nadir pets at the tiny dragon-cat soft gray fur. Benet would go on about the details about how the dragon cat, Eugene, was a pure breed Russian Lung dragon-cat.. Nadir could care less about the details; he wasn't into dragons or dragon-cats like Benet. He just likes how cute they look.

Eugene rubs her fluffy head against Nadir's palm. The man pulls out his wand from his boot and fiddles with it from a second. The well-worn wand had several gems tied to it with green ribbon. Nadir recalls where he placed the oracle board and flicks his wrist. It comes zooming across the floor from a pile of books. The wooden board spins around in the air as Nadir taps it with his wand. A planchette pops out of thin air and starts hovering over the board. He commands, "Show me the latest news from the Oracle Times."

Nadir waits as the planchette circles around the board spelling out the headlines. Headlines popup one line after another, "Newest Shop on Witch's Way Leaves Buyers Spellbound," "Japanese Dragon Racers Take on World Cup," and "Department of Mundane Relationships Has Ordered National Search for Hexed Mundane Items." The last one to come up catches Nadir's eye. It spells out, "Reformed Dark Wizard Sees the Light." Nadir motions the planchette over 'yes' to read. The planchette vanishes and shows two detailed images of Dark Lord Susan Baines. One is of the Dark Lord in flowing violet robes and wild black hair. The Dark Lord's face was a timeless face of twisted madness and pale skin like a corpse. Zher eyes glowed with wickedness as zhe holds up zher wand. Behind the Dark Lord are the hordes of zher minions. The next picture reveals a fragile soul in neat brown suit serving soup at a homeless shelter.

Nadir takes a deep breath. It had been twenty years since the surrender of Dark Lord Susan. He could still remember the battle for the Witch's Way. He could still taste the ash in his mouth from the dragon attack. Then there was the takeover the Enchanted School into another realm of reality; which the whole affair took over a week to resolve. Plus, all the deadly traps and puzzles Benet, their friends, and Nadir had to solve. Nor could Nadir forget how his parents were still hexed with madness. They are over at the Serene House for Magic Kin. Their recovery from the hex had made some progress with Nadir's research. (Not to mention, Dark Lord Susan conducting zher own research for a cure, while in prison.) The damage from the Dark Lord had been far and wide. But when everyone came to understand the Dark Lord as Benet had, then everything changed. Nadir himself loved how Benet was so compassionate towards zher. After all, Benet's family was not hexed like Nadir's family. No Benet's family was gone by the hand of Dark Lord Susan.

Nadir read through the highlights of Dark Lord Susan's reform efforts. The article went on about how the wizards at the Redeeming Sanctuary had worked with Susan to show zher the light. Zhe saw the light of White Magic, repented, and changes zher ways. Susan had been doing charity work to fund the rebuilding of places, zhe damaged. Countless photos were of zhe reading at orphanages to needy children. There were even detailed accounts of zher efforts to create new methods to defend against Dark Magic with the Department of Magic Harmony. Apparently, the Dark Lord had even started writing to political figures in the Magical Community to support better relationships with Mundane humans. Environmental agencies advocated for zher and her contributions to cleaning up parks and shorelines. Nadir tried not to laugh at the images of Dark Lord Susan helping an elderly woman cross the street. Nadir and Benet had been keeping tabs on Susan, during zher sentence. It was Benet who started to secretly sponsor Susan on the path to probation.

Nadir put his hands behind his head as Eugene climbed into his lap. The wizard dwells on how he wishes to trust fully in Benet's support of Susan. But Nadir feels uneasy with allowing the Dark Lord off with probation. Dark Lord Susan had been a terror to the Magic Community since the time of Merlin. The Dark Lord had been haunting generations of witches and wizard with zher Black Magic and zher wicked desire. It is just Benet came to understand that Susan no longer cared for zher dark way. Nadir closes his eyes. Giving Susan a second chance had not easy for Nadir, his family and friends suffered by Susan's hands. Still Benet had lost his whole family through battle with the Dark Lord. Benet had been the main target for Susan as the famed Miracle Child that survived the curses of Susan. If Benet could forgive Susan for ruining his family and then his school aged years, Nadir could do so, too. (Quietly, Nadir wishes for Dark Lord Susan to return to the lunar prison for Unforgiveable Doers. Oh, how Nadir would like to send the problem sent to the moon! To the moon!)

. The wizard waves his wand and the board floats down and the article disappears. Nadir gently pets Eugene's head and peers down at his phone. It read ten minutes after twelve. Soon Benet should be on his way. Nadir pops back in his headphones listens to the soft melody. Nadir sinks back into his bean bag in thought. He remembers he must review his notes and submit them to Cesleste about mundane plants cross breed with magical herbs for healing brain damage. The research had become a side project over the last twenty years. The majority of his passion was and is the care of plants.

The portal circle sparks to life. Eugene jumps from Nadir's lap and flaps over to the drawing. She roars and mews with her tiny voice. The portal illuminates Benet's name moving from the professor's home towards Green Men. The portal circle beams up a fiery emerald and swirls of blue. With a step forward, two high top sneakers well-worn and covered in soot come through. Benet wears a dusty leather cloak with patches from burn marks, all loving earned from caring from the dragons and dragon-cats at work. With his hood hiding his face, Benet's fogged up goggles cover over his dark cobalt glasses. A crimson bandanna wraps with a thick layer of ash rests around Benet's neck. It just hides Benet's protective birth charm from his parents. The tip of the phoenix's wing is just visible over the top. Benet holds several boxes in hands marked, "Dragon Chow," "New Racing Gear," and "For Eugene." Benet beams at Nadir as he puts down the boxes from Professor Plum. Nadir leaps up, hugs, and kisses Benet. Laughing, Benet pulls down his hood and reveals his dusty face. Nadir runs his hands through Benet freshly burnt violet locks.

Benet smiles, "Come on, darling, give me a second to take this all off! Misty had a new litter and they are burping up fire everywhere. Ma Plum was so proud of the lot of them."

"Leave it to the professor to be pleased at such things. You are all dusty, Benet. I could clean you right off," Nadir holds up his wand.

"Best be quick. We have a guest we are expecting tonight. I cannot wait to tell them the good news. We have been wanted so long for their visit," Benet laughs as Eugene jumps around. He scoops up the cat-dragon and pets her head.

Nadir flicks his wand on top of Benet's head. The dust vanishes off of Benet's person and away into the air. A jolly laugh escapes from Benet as he pets Eugene. Benet kisses Nadir's cheek and places Eugene on a bean bag chair. He drops his cloak on the other bean bag chair as Eugene starts to purr against the boxes, having jumped down from the chair immediately after being placed upon it. Benet's shirt of tiny clouds and birds was wrinkled and a patchwork. The needle work on the sewing was poor, but Benet loved the shirt as it was Nadir's first sewing project. He dusts off his jeans as Eugene rubs against his legs. Benet says, "How is business tonight? Anyone coming by?"

"Some drunk mudanies to ask for a bathroom and a group of school kids came in for candies. They had the cutest little outfits. Then I got more business from the witches' coven on Second Street, the Wizard Gay Bar on Folsom Drive, and the Enchanted School. The big order for bewitched pumpkins from Woofie is not due until the second of November. You know that whole Day of the Dead celebration," Nadir plays with Benet's hair, "I got us some hot tea for us. Oh by the way, the invite is over at the counter in the shop. I think they will find it shocking. Do you think we will we have enough tea for them?"

Benet goes closer to Nadir, "Oh darling, I am sure we will be fine. I have been looking forward to telling them along with everyone else about the engagement. But they need to be among the first. Ma Plum is thrilled at the news! She cannot wait to tell my godfathers!"

Nadir blushes with excitement but the joy is short lived as Nadir recalls his grandmother's reaction. He despairs, "My grandmother was not very pleased not the news... But my parents seemed to understand what I was telling them... I ... Just..."

"Come, come, darling. She has not been pleased with our relationship when we first came out sixteen years ago. She will come around. How could she possibly say no to someone as sweet and brilliant as you, Nadir?" Benet beams. Nadir flushes a bit as Benet hugs him. Pushing his goggles on top of his head, Benet continues, "Tomorrow we can finally tell Curtis and Musette! They will make the best groom's maid and best man!"

Nadir looks at his phone for the time. They have a few more moments until their guests are to arrive. Nadir looks at Benet, "Are you sure both of them will come on time? You are super sure this is a good idea?"