Witch Of The West

"Everyone in the village dreaded the magic of the witch in the woods. However, when she lost her child, they were the first ones to come running to her aid. No longer was she a vexing folk tale; now, she was simply a grieving mother. They took care of her when she needed them most. Over the years, grateful, she became a healer to those in the village, no longer seen as a monster in the woods as the inquisition claimed. Helping others helped fill the hole in her heart, but for a mother, there will always be a hole left by the loss of a child. So was life for a few long years.

The villagers hid the witch from the inquisition as she was one of them now. But one day, she was serving as a midwife for a dear friend. Even with all her knowledge and magic, while giving birth to a lovely baby girl, her friend slipped away. The baby's father became a soldier to provide for his family, but before the birth of his daughter, the lord sent him to war, and no one had heard from him since. So, the witch of the wood took the babe as her own, and every day after that, they both lived with nothing but happiness."

The woman telling the story looked up at the child with long golden hair and icy blue eyes, meeting her own piercing smoky crimson eyes. She slowly closed her eyes and quietly whispered as she leaned in, "And they lived happily ever after." As the crimson-eyed woman's voice drifted slowly away, the child slipped into sleep.

The child's eyes slowly opened, her vision gradually adjusting until she could clearly see her golden hair running down her arms. Suddenly snapping awake, she realized she was in a chair, floating in a vast void. All around her was illuminated only by a black candle just out of reach. Her body slumped in the chair as she held on for dear life, panicking about falling out of the chair. She stared down into the abyss for a long while but, in a quick glance, she suddenly saw the candle sitting upon a table across from her.

At the table, she stared at what seemed to be her reflection, but when she waved her hand, her imposter simply stared at her with those ice-cold eyes. She tried to speak, but no words escaped her. But as if reacting to her attempt at speaking, her reflection reached out and set its hand on a deck of cards on the table and methodically dealt three cards in front of her face-down, then returned to its doll-like state.

She examined the gold trim of the cards that clawed to the center of the card like wiry strands of hair forming a sun in the center. Hesitantly, she reached out and grabbed the leftmost card. It was unexpectedly heavy and smooth as felt. Slowly, she turned it over. DEATH, the card in bold golden letters with a simple golden skull in the center with eyes darker than the surrounding abyss.

Confused, she quickly glanced up at her imposter, still unwavering. Confused, she reached for the middle card and quickly turned it over. THE DEVIL. The card depicted a horned figure upon a throne. The lining of the card gave off a slight red glow. Glancing up again, even more confused, her imposter suddenly jumped up, reaching across the table to flip the last card.

Startled, she jolted awake in her bed, her heart still racing from the vividness of her dream. Sitting up, she looked around the tiny room, the soft sunlight streaming in through the window providing a comforting reassurance. Taking a moment to collect herself, she carefully crawled out of bed, her mind still swirling with the remnants of the unsettling dream. She made her way to the living room, each step grounding her in the reality of her surroundings.

As she entered the living room, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, her reflection momentarily causing a flicker of fear. But upon closer inspection, she noticed slight curls in her bangs, a subtle change that intrigued and delighted her. Unable to control her excitement, she pressed her face to the mirror, fiddling with the curls and reveling in the newfound beauty of her hair. Energized by this discovery, she skipped into the center of the room and looked around at the herbs hanging from the walls and the warmth emanating from the burning fireplace, creating a cozy and enchanting atmosphere.

Stumbling to the counter nestled in the corner by the wood stove, she clamored up the step stool and peered onto the counter. Upon it sat a large leather tome, surrounded by sprinklings of different-colored crystals, a bowl of colorful misshapen fruits and a captivating bouquet of Edelweiss flowers exudes alpine elegance. The star-shaped blossoms, with their soft white petals and silvery-white hairs, create a harmonious composition. Their delicate allure and subtle fragrance enchant all who behold them.. She grabbed a purple star fruit from the bowl and, as she nibbled away at it, flipped open the heavy cover of the tome.

Though enamored by the book, she recognized few of the runes and symbols scrawled across its weathered pages. While she haphazardly flipped through the pages. Just as she was engrossed in the book the front door swung open, and the cold air rushed in, causing goosebumps to run across her skin.

Mother quickly scrambled in, dressed in a black puffy coat with her hair tucked into her hood. She hurriedly closed the door and, upon seeing the child, she excitedly exclaimed, "Oh! Look who's up early. Did you sleep well, sweetheart?"

Excitedly, the girl spurted out, "Momma, I had a dream where I played cards with myself!"

"Oh, really? What game did you play?" Mother asked.

"I dunno. I haven't seen those cards before, Mama," the child said, motioning towards the tome. Impatiently, she spouted, "Mama, when are you gonna teach me to do magic like you? I wanna help people like you, Mama!"

Mother hurries over and while picking up the child and putting her on her hip says "Well dear as iv told you before as soon as your able to draw in magic we can get started darling."

"But, Mama, look!" the child said while excitedly holding up the curls in her golden hair for her mother to see.

Mother's eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped as she exclaimed, "Oh wow, already?! You're certainly an early bloomer, but I'd expect nothing less from my daughter!" She reached out and, while playing with the curls in her daughter's hair, flipped to a blank page in the book near the front. "Now that you have some mana in you, we can see what you're best at, darling!"

She reaches out and, while playing with the curls in her daughter's hair, flips to a blank page in the book near the front. "Now that you have some mana in you, we can see what you're best at, darling!" she says, holding the tome up to her daughter. "Just close your eyes, focus your attention on your fingertips, and how your heart feels right now, in this moment." As she instructs the child, she guides her hand to the blank page. With her mind racing and her heart beating out of her chest, the girl spreads her hand out across the page and focuses on her fingertips for what seems like forever.

"Calm down, just breathe," Mother says reassuringly. The girl takes a few deep breaths and feels a wave pulse from her head that ripples across her skin towards her fingertips, and suddenly the page pushes back. Strange sensations drag across her hand—it's cool and slightly ticklish. It's like feeling a plush carpet made of tiny, delicate strands. They're smooth and slender, with a slight texture that resembles fine threads. Running her fingers through them is like caressing fine silk, with a delicate resistance and a subtle, feathery touch. Nervously, she slowly opens her eyes to see lush grass reaching every which way out of the page. Excitedly, she giggles and begins to feel it with both hands.

"Look, Mama, just like you! Does this mean I can heal people like you can?" Through laughter, Mother says, "Well, yes, but now I can say that one day you're probably going to be better at it than me! After all..." As her voice trails off, she softly brushes the child's hands away and places her own hand on the page before it bursts into blue flames, bathing the room in a blue hue. The fire dances brazenly across the page for a few moments before slowly dying out.

"Whoooah!" The girl jumps.

"You, love, are naturally inclined towards earth magic, though any mage can use any of the elements. However, the further away from your natural inclination, the more difficult it becomes. Though with enough study, almost anything is possible. Some try to spread their wings and learn a bit of everything. On the other hand, some focus on what they're good at and most of the time are unrivaled in their field. Think hard about what you want your future to look like, Dabria."

With sparkles in her eyes, Dabria stutters, "If Mama's so good with earth magic and it's not even what you're best at, I wonder how amazing Mama's fire magic is!"

Mother's smile softens, and after a short pause, her smile once again widens, and she exclaims, "Well, I've gotten plenty of compliments on it!" Mother clears her throat, and as she explains, she runs her hands through her daughter's now straight bangs. "Emotions play a pivotal role. You will need to learn to control how you feel, and depending on the emotion and how strong it is, it decides how much raw energy you can summon up. Will you make a splash of water or a tidal wave?"

As she finishes her starfruit, Dabria, lost in thought, doesn't even notice Mother flipping to a new page filled with runes. "Well, that's your first lesson. Before we can get started with more, you, darling, need to learn how to read these runes in the book. This page will explain how you can translate them." Upon hearing Mother, Dabria snaps out of her thoughts and notices her now straight bangs. In horror, she stammers, "Momma, where did they go?"

Laughing, Mother says, "Well, you used all of your magic to make the grass grow, darling. Don't worry, they will come back in due time, and eventually, your hair might just look like mine!" Mother removes her cap and waves her bright blue waist-length wildly curled hair around while running her fingers through it out of habit. Dabria also begins to run her hands through Mother's hair.

"Now, my love, we have to leave soon to get the stall ready. Go get your coat and bag. You can bring the tome with us today." As soon as Mother puts her down Dabria hits the ground running to her room hastily grabbing her puff pearl colored coat and patchwork backpack which appears to have been haphazardly fixed multiple times with different fabrics, embroidered with random imaginative creatures all over the pack. Mother Lifts the countertop which swings open revealing a staff carved from the ancient branches of an oak tree, its weathered and worn wood intertwined with delicate vines and leaves that cascade along its length. At the top rests a crystal orb, emanating an ethereal glow and swirling with magical energy. Embedded within the staff are gemstones representing the elements.

Mother swiftly wraps the staff in a bolt of cloth and collects various herbs from the wall, as soon as Dabria runs out of the room dressed in her outfit pack in hand. Mother slides the tome into her pack and takes her hand as they leave home once again for the town square.