Never a coward, she pried open one eyelid. "Okay, there's the house." She managed to raise the other lid, but when she did, she snapped them closed again.

"Something's definitely not right." She opened both eyes and looked around. From flat on her back with a restricted view, she could ease her way into whatever was going on. She rolled to one elbow.

"That's my house." She cocked her head to one side, in confusion. "But it's not." The house looked newer than the one she lived in. Fighting another wave of illness, she stood but leaned against a tree so she wouldn't topple over. "Where's the street? The cars?" Nothing looked the same as a few minutes earlier.

* * * * 

When Sunny almost fell out of her chair, Doc caught her then swung her up in his arms. With no encouragement whatsoever, her arms went around his neck. Then, because it seemed the thing to do, she kissed him. Turned her body in his arms until she lay chest-to-chest against him. Her hand filled with his silken hair, cupped the back of his heard and pulled him closer. No matter how cold or snowy it was outside, inside Doc's office, the temperature suddenly blazed hotter than the sun.

* * * *

"This town has been here for who-knows-how-long. Most folks who live in Spellfire can do magic, are magic, are lots of things ordinary people aren't. You'd be surprised how old some of them are. And not everyone you've seen is what he or she appears to be Like your three friends."

"Wait a minute. That's a pretty tall tale. You expect me to believe this town is magic, and the folks here can do magic and are...What? Magic?" Maybe if she said it enough times, she might believe what he said. Sunny shook her head so hard, her hair whipped out like strands of fire.

Doc took a deep breath. "Someone might be nothing more than a scarecrow, or a tin cup or a kitty cat." He caught her gaze and held it. "For instance, I'm an elf."