The Keeper

"I smell a rat." Seraphina said, tossing her hair to the side, and pulling on her glasses. "I hate rats." She said, purring softly as her assistant touched her reverently across her hip. "Someone is coming." Seraphina said glancing behind her at Luther who grinned, his eyes on Seraphina's scantily clad body.

"Someone bad?" He asked. "You say that as if there's someone worse than me." Seraphina said with a laugh, getting off the bed in a fluid movement and putting on her silk wrap. She walked through the steel and glass structure that served as a home of sorts, she glanced at the window where she could see the moors of an ancient land, and on the other side the concrete buildings of the London landscape.

She knew who was coming. She had felt her coming for ages. Her gift was foresight, after all. The Queen that never was, had joined the human world. And there would be hell to pay for everyone who had failed to help her in the past. Her awakening would summon the darkest forces into the mortal world. All clambering for a chance to take her place in the modern world. It was Seraphina's role, to show Freya how to break and fight the forces of evil that were searching to make her theirs.

XXXX

Seraphina walked into the room that served as her library and waved her hands around, books moving from the shelves to circle around her as she read passages from each gathering the spells she would need to get through this meeting unscathed. She heard a knock on one of her apartments and frowned. She waved her hands, and the books returned to the shelves except for one gilded tome that she plucked out of the air. She snapped her fingers, and she was clad in a two-piece suit. She tied her hair and walked into her apartment (One of them anyway). She flicked her fingers and watched The Never Queen Freya walk in. Behind her was the last remaining descendant of Wilhelm following close behind. He frowned at seeing Seraphina.

"Don't I know you?" he asked curiously.

"I occasionally run the library Café on Downing street," Seraphina said with a smile. "I believe you're a Cinnamon Spice Latte, no foam, if I remember correctly," Seraphina said trying not to laugh at his suddenly flushed face.

"Jess was right. That is a girly order." He muttered darkly. Freya glanced between Seraphina and Victor suspicion in her eyes. "Girly order?" She asked her voice oddly serious. Seraphina smiled, "A coffee Order." She explained.

"You haven't had to deal with the modern ways, have you?" Seraphina said curiously. "She recently returned to being," Victor said cutting himself off and glancing at Freya uncertainly. Seraphina watched the action a thought coming to her. "Human," Freya said. "It's only recently I've become human," Freya said quietly.

Victor looked abashed at her words. Freya frowned. "Do you know why we're here?" She asked looking at Seraphina sharply. "Seeing as you apparently already know who we both are?" Freya asked.

Seraphina smiled. "It is my job to know who comes to me. I'm the keeper of Grimoires a job of distinction. Of importance, compared to the mortal witches who have sent you to me." Seraphina said her voice taken a dangerous tone. "How can they be mortal, if Freya knew them in her time?" Victor asked curiously.

"How indeed?" Seraphina said with a smile. "Witches are mortal beings that can be killed. They are caretakers of the natural order, but their lives are not natural. As long as they don't abuse the magic given to them they can live a life longer than most. Especially if they are given special accommodations by other magical beings." Seraphina said thinking of the twins.

Freya frowned, crossing her arms. "Does that mean Evanora the Vile, still lives?" Freya asked. "No," Seraphina said softly. "Evanora, abused the spirits of nature when she turned them against you. Curses aren't meant to change your complete biochemistry the only one that has that power to change one thing to another is the enchantress." Seraphina said.

"Aline said we needed to see you, to know how to completely break the curse," Victor said. Seraphina turned to look at him. "Yes. Every curse has a way to be broken. I knew that the curse would lift when someone with the warrior heart of Wilhelm would touch your werewolf form with no fear. I even knew when Victor was both that he would be the one." Seraphina said.

"Why does it seem that there's a but somewhere in that sentence?" Freya asked. "In order to find out the rest of the steps to undo this curse, we need to see how it was enacted," Seraphina said, looking at Freya.

Victor frowned. "What does that mean?" He asked.

Seraphina smiled. "It means going back to that day," Seraphina said, snapping both fingers and suddenly they were all in the middle of a lush forest. A castle looming in the distance.

"What did you do?" Victor asked his eyes wide. Freya closed her eyes inhaling deeply. "We're at my home in my time," Freya said looking at Seraphina in wonder. "I told you, we need to see how the curse was enacted," Seraphina said, walking forward, her clothes transforming into a long green dress more suited to the time. Victor followed, suddenly clad in a white shirt, leather trousers, and a sword, hanging on a belt on his hip.

Freya was dressed similarly. Except with a corset, and two bands over her waist with a collection of throwing stars embedded in them. "Most everyone won't see us until we get to the village," Seraphina said. "My camp is nearby," Freya said. "So it is," Seraphina said. As they walked, they heard the clash of swords. Freya moved closer to Victor as they walked. The forest disappeared as they entered a clearing, and Freya heard Victor's soft gasp as he saw Freya herself sitting on a trunk sharpening her blade on a stone. Freya's eyes weren't on the sharpening, but her gaze was on the two men fighting in front of her.

Although it wasn't fair to call it a fight with the way they were laughing and joking as they exchanged blows. Victor recognized Xander and knew with the way the person he fought moved that Xander was fighting his ancestor, Wilhelm.

The paintings and sketches that were all that remained of Wilhelm did not do him justice. He was all golden skin, his hair falling just above his eyes, his form strong, the smile that he gave Xander as he fought was familiar to Victor, as it was the gentle smile, Jess always gave him.

Freya looked around her eyes going back to herself, teasing the two swordsmen every so often. Then she looked upwards at the pale blue sky. No sign of a cloud in sight. She turned to look at Seraphina. "The curse is going to be performed today?" She asked. Seraphina nodded.

"I thought you might want one more time in the tavern. No one will recognize you." Seraphina said her eyes glancing at Victor. There's something I need to check." Seraphina said before she vanished.

"Does every witch do that?" Victor asked.

"Only the more powerful ones," Freya said. She glanced back at herself one more time before she walked out of the campsite. Victor followed her, oddly at ease in the forest. Of course, he had always felt more at ease in the forest. He often went on hikes similar to the one where he had first come across Freya.

Victor looked at Freya, who, he noticed, seemed uncomfortably quiet. "Did you wish to warn yourself?" Victor asked quietly. Freya turned slightly, glancing at him, her eyes remarkably stormy. "Even if I had, it wouldn't have changed anything. I never thought about what it would be to be human. When I was a wolf. That was what I was. All I cared about was survival. To get from one day to the next." She said thoughtfully.

"If I really were to think about it. It wasn't much different from how I was as a runaway Queen." She said. "Being a runaway queen was never your choice," Victor said quietly.

"Except that it was. I chose to spend so many years of freedom away from the Kingdom, while they suffered. My Kingdom. I should have claimed my throne, but I didn't. I kept finding other things to do. And it was that indecision that caused me to lose everything."