Summoned

by Irate Italian

Witchcraft is sweeping across the Province of Massachusetts, neighbours turn on one another and suspicion is high. Alfred, alone in his house away from the mass hysteria has so far managed to avoid the village's eye but how long will his peace last when a young man drawn across the ocean turns up in his back yard?

1. Chapter 1

"Witchcraft? Are you certain?"

This kind of talk started up a week ago after whispers that the devil was walking in the Province of Massachusetts and had already started his work in Salem, reached their tiny outcropping of houses. Salem was a number of miles down the road but word travels quickly on horseback and is aided in its spread by men and women alike as gossip given the mask of news.

At this point Alfred did his best to ignore it all unless he heard mention of any names. His family lived on the outskirts of their admittedly tiny village, a few meters into the woods that lead to the wild lands beyond where savages and beasts roamed free. This all seemed rather conspicuous (and indeed Alfred's family used to get many fearful looks from the young children and a few of the more judgemental adults about town who believed them to conspire with spirits in the dark secrecy of the woods) until you learn that the family occupation is tree felling. Or rather was; Alfred was now the only one left living there after the early but not surprising passing of his parents years before. A dreadful illness had swept the land and Alfred's parents were neither the first nor the last to pass on. Still it left Alfred alone and on the fringes of the small community, the only benefit being that a wish to support a young man (and perhaps nose in his business) had led to a decrease in suspicious looks whenever he came to town. Now the children even approached him when they saw him coming with his wares for trade.

Witchcraft indeed. Alfred may possess a healthy fear of ghosts and spirits and of course the devil himself but never in his life had he given a moment's consideration to the possibility of actual witches who signed away their name in the devils book. It just couldn't be true. So now, with talk of witchcraft close to home Alfred listened for names of the people hung for this unthinkable crime; Women, men, children, and he sent up a private prayer that they find peace after death.

Now, on his way home after a more successful day's trade than he had had in weeks, Alfred tried to bite back a retort to the claims that the devil was making his way up the road. That he was drawing ever closer. If the devil was on his way there would be no help in idle gossip, he thinks as he waves and grins at the children who run beside him as far as their mothers permit down the track leading home.

Further up the road, in the opposite direction from the epicentre of the panic, a young man made his way carefully along the edge of the treeline. Of course he had heard the news so perhaps this was incredibly foolish of him given his specific skill set but there was no denying the pull he had felt dragging him down this way. The same pull that had dragged him across the ocean and forced him from his ship. Something was pulling him towards Salem and, if he wasn't careful, his death.

Hello! :) So this is a really short introduction for something that's been on my mind for over a year (literally), please let me know if anyone finds this remotely interesting :S it's a human AU and witchcraft is involved ;)