Finding a hobby

There were many kinds of beasts and creatures which roamed this world. But one of the most hated kind was witches. Born from sorrow and hate, witches rose and brought destruction upon the world. Their existence was believed to be an anti-thesis to life. For they could not create and nurture but could only hurt and kill. It was an old warning tale that many had repeated, even in this age of peace.

Valerie, the Witch of Frost, sat still as she stared the paint dried. The white canvas had been brutally attacked with messy colors. It was meant to be a painting of a tree yet at the moment it looked like a sad wilting celery. Her silvery hair was dirtied with crusting paint. Her usually clean black dress also received generous drops of paint.

Valerie sighed and put down the brush. She had tried painting out of boredom. Although she didn't expect much, it was still rather discouraging to see how it turned out. The painting supplies were gifts from Aaron. He shoved those supplies to her while saying that she needed a hobby.

She looked at her sad attempt. "I should just send this to him."

She cleaned herself up and walked out of her house. Piles of snow greeted her outside. Stars twinkled on the night sky. A distant hoot of an owl carried by the wind. With the moon as her source of light, she made her way toward the location of the intruder. She had noticed the moment someone stepped into her territory. Her ever present winter and cold was usually more than enough to deter unwelcomed visitors. She had thought to wait for the intruder to come to her. But even after she finished her painting, the intruder didn't come closer.

She raised an eyebrow when she saw the figure lying on the ground. It was not a human but a werewolf. Looking at the snow piling up on its fur, it seemed to be have been unconscious for a while. Blood still flowed slowly out of the wounds on its body. Staining the white snow with red.

Valerie crouched besides the werewolf and poked at it. "Well well this is the first time someone run to me after getting hurt instead of running away."

The werewolf didn't respond.

"Are you expecting me to help you?" Valerie weighed her options. She could left the werewolf here but she didn't want its corpse to dirty her home. She could help it but… "Hmmm…"

Then Aaron's beaming face flashed in her mind. 'You should get a hobby,' he said.

"I suppose raising a dog is considered a hobby?" Valerie said.

***

Noah woke up full of pain. Several seconds passed before he could see clearly. He found himself lying on a soft bed. A shelf full of books filled on side of the wall. A pot of tea and small snacks were available on a small round table.

The memory of the night before was blurry in his mind. All he could think of were the pain of betrayal and the desperate need to survive. He had ran and ran until he couldn't anymore. The last thing he saw was… a field of snow. No, there shouldn't be snow in this season. The only place it could be found all year was in the Witch of Frost's territory.

Did that mean… Noah scrambled out of the bed. His wounded body screamed and refused to cooperate causing him to flop to the ground like a wet blanket.

"Ow!" Noah groaned as he squirmed on the ground, trying to get up.

"Ah, the dog is awake."

Noah looked up. In front of him was a woman with silver hair and golden eyes. Although she looked strange, he felt that she was a mortal human. The woman put down a bowl of steaming stew and asked, "Hungry?"

Noah's nose moved as he smelled the mouth watering meal. His stomach rumbled in response.

The woman took a seat and stared at him.

"What?" Noah asked, feeling uncomfortable under her unyielding gaze. "Who are you anyway?"

"I thought dogs should be loyal and loving toward their owner," the woman said.

Noah bared his teeth. "I'm not a dog! I'm a werewolf!"

"You both have furs and barked. I don't see the difference."

"You-you!" Noah couldn't believe what he was hearing. This was the first time he had to bear such humiliation! He struggled trying to find the correct way to respond. He should demand for a duel after that kind of provocation, but considering she might be his savior he should hold back. After taking several deep breaths, he said, "State your name, woman!"

"Valerie."

"Well Valerie, are you the one who saved this honored one?"

"Yes, you're lucky that I didn't want to deal with your corpse so I took you in."

Noah was starting to think that he was saved by a mad person. "So you didn't usually save people who are hurt?"

"No, but I need a hobby."

Noah couldn't see the connection between the two topics. "Are you sick?"

"I haven't been sick for years."

"I doubt it," Noah mumbled. "Anyway, I thank you for your help but I shouldn't tarry for too long. It will be dangerous if my pursuers find me with you here."

"Can you even walk?" Valerie asked.

"Of course!" Noah did his best to stand but his feet shook like twigs on the wind. He struggled for several seconds before collapsing on the bed. It seemed he had used up all of his energy to escape.

"Be a good dog and rest," Valerie said.

"I'm not a dog!"

"No you're not. A dog is smarter than you."

Noah gave up responding to this crazy woman. He would leave as soon as he could stand. There was no need to bicker with this lunatic.

"Here." Valerie offered him the bowl of stew. "Do you need me to feed you?"

"No thanks." Noah sat up and took the bowl. He wolfed down the food within seconds while Valerie kept doing her crazy stare. "Why do you keep looking at me like that? Do you think I look handsome?"

"No, you look like in need of a bath. You probably have fleas."

"Excuse you, I regularly clean myself."

"Hmm…"

"Where is this place anyway?" Noah asked while giving the empty bowl to Valerie.

"Starfall Cliff." Valerie put the bowl back on the table.

"Isn't that the territory of Witch of Frost?" Noah frowned.

"Yes."

"Are you crazy? Why do you live in this place? What if the Witch of Frost found you?"

"That's impossible, I can't find myself."

"Eh?"

"I'm the Witch of Frost."

"… Eh?"