Le magasin de Nich a assez bien fait pour lui de gagner sa vie, mais le magasin a rarement eu cela occupé. Le pauvre rat savait à peine gérer tous les clients. -- Excuse-moi un instant, mon père. Bonjour, bonjour! Bienvenue! Je serai avec vous deux momentanément. J'ai juste besoin de finir quelques affaires avec le père et-- Oi! Pas si dur à la porte! Si tu le casses alors... Un feu!? Je ferais mieux de te laisser partir, père. Je serai là à ton retour. Ne t'inquiète pas, je ne vais pas disparaître comme cet horloger. Alors...
Le prêtre s'est précipité hors de la boutique pour s'occuper de l'église, et Nich a pu tourner son attention vers les deux autres... Il a fermé les yeux avec la créature assise sur son comptoir. C'était une petite chose délicate, et la plupart des gens auraient trouvé la façon dont il a cueilli au sandwich au fromage d'Anzo adorable. Mais, Nich a vu des griffes pointues du rasoir et des crocs voraces déchirer sa proie. Le rat s'éloigna de la bête alors qu'il essayait désespérément de maintenir son agréable masque de vendeur. C'est juste un chat de maison. On est prêts pour ça... "Je suis désolé... Si vous deux m'excusez pour un m-moment... » Chaque mot, il se rapprocha de l'arrière du magasin, et finit par glisser dans sa chambre arrière.
Il y avait un peu de bruissement, de grognement étouffé, et un crash, mais quelques instants plus tard Nich est sorti embrayant ce qui ressemblait à un filet de pêche. Il s'accroupit bas et s'approcha de son comptoir avec des pas silencieux, apparemment ignorant du fait qu'il était clairement visible pour le chat. Il se tenait à quelques pieds, espérant que le sandwich garderait la bête distrait et soulevait le filet. Sa main tremblait, mais il prit une profonde respiration et poussa un bouton sur la poignée du filet. Soudain, la poignée s'étendit, mettant le chat à la portée. Dans un mouvement rapide, il a fait descendre le filet, criant: "Bête vandaleuse! "
art by Geoffrey Renault

Characters
Mayor Rune Thistlecatch
art by Lena Richards

The Thistlecatches have passed down the title of Mayor of Winding for generations. They are a proud and well-respected family whose ancestry reaches back to the the kings and queens of the time of giants. There is a legend that the Thistlecatches of old had been dragon-tamers, and so their family crest is a dragon wound around a thistle flower.
Rune Thistlecatch has occupied the role of Mayor of Winding since her father, Ambrose Thistlecatch, disappeared in the marsh six months ago. She takes her position very seriously, and is known to be a firm and honest voice among the village council.
At fourteen, she is the second-youngest Mayor of Winding (the first being her great-great-grandfather, Thimble Thistlecatch, who became mayor at the age of eight) and one of the most competent.

The Pooths
art by Robert Kondo

The Pooth siblings are known throughout the village as a collective; they are very rarely seen apart from one another, and so are usually only referred to as the Pooths. Their names are Roo, Loo, Moo, Soo, Boo and Woo Pooth.
The Pooths are very small and easily stepped on, so they carry little bells on their heads that tinkle when they walk. Roo, Loo, Moo, Soo and Woo don't speak much except for small jabberings that seem unintelligible to most folks, but they let Boo speak articulately on their behalf. His is the loudest voice, after all.
They live in a tree outside the watchmaker's shop, where they are employed with watching for thieves and tricky business.

Miss Agatha
art by Vyacheslav Safronov

Miss Agatha is a warm and constant presence in Winding. She is quick with a story and is a fantastic listener -- so much so that many in the village will come to her with their troubles, eager for her guidance. She is an avid reader and the most frequent patron of the village library, but she is most known for her shop, her magic, and her tea.
The Curiosity Shop is the ground floor of Miss Agatha's home, and it is filled with antiques and trinkets and otherworldly novelties brought to the village from faraway lands or dug up out of the bottomless Dragon Marsh. Each item has a unique story, which she will tell upon request. Miss Agatha's personal knowledge on matters of history, magic and cultures is known as the finest in the village, her fortune telling as hauntingly accurate, and her tea as the most exquisite ever tasted.
Of all the stories she has told, not one has ever been about herself. She arrived in Winding with a trade caravan six years ago, and that is all anyone knows.