I had the excellent luck this Reverb to be partnered with butterflydragons, who had so many amazing ideas and who I really enjoyed working with. The art that inspired this fic can be found at my tumblr (whowouldevenreadthis) at /post/162986326438/butterflydragons-witchs-woods-jacqueline, so go lavish it with all the praise it deserves.
I hope you enjoy!
Jacqueline had learned at an early age that the best way to get by in life was to keep her head down and do as she was told. It was an important lesson for everyone in her town: stay at home, or travel to another town if you like, but never go into the woods. That's where the witch lives. If you step out of bounds, she'll catch you, and you'll learn too late why it's better not to ask questions.
Jacqueline was particularly good at following orders. She was well aware that her grandparents were being generous just to take her in and take care of her. She didn't need to make them regret it by being rude and disobedient, not like her father was. It had to be hard for them as it was, having a reminder of their troublesome son living in their house.
Besides, it wasn't like they were cruel and unreasonable. They just wanted to make sure she presented a proper image to the town. The family was wealthy and well-established, and they couldn't let some child ruin that. She didn't begrudge them that, any more than she minded spending her days studying music or literature or poise. It seemed a small price to pay for living in luxury as she did.
She might have liked to have more opportunities to leave the mansion, or even the town, but it was fine. She was perfectly content with the status quo. It was familiar and safe.
She probably would have stayed where she was, going through the motions of proper behavior, if she wasn't woken up in the middle of the night with a knife at her throat.
She spent what felt like an eternity frozen before she could draw breath to scream. When she finally managed it, a hand clamped over her mouth. "Don't get any ideas," a rough voice whispered. "We're just going to take you something quiet until your folks give us what we're due. A good girl like you, they'll give it up in no time, and then you can go back to playing with your dolls or whatever you do while us normal people are actually working for a living."
Jacqueline could barely process what was being said. Her brain was screaming at her to do something, anything, to keep herself from getting killed. She looked around wildly for something to free herself with. Not that she knew how she'd get to it without slicing her own throat in the process. She let out an involuntary whine. It was hard to breath, and the room seemed to be growing warmer. The air pressed in on her, suffocating and scalding until she couldn't form any coherent thoughts.
Acting on instinct, she thrust her hands out in front of her, willing everything to just go away and leave her alone. The room grew even warmer as a gout of flame flew from her outstretched palms. In the light it gave off, she could see her would-be captor, a man in grubby workman's clothes. His eyes were wide.
Jacqueline couldn't quite understand what was happening. As she watched, the fire shrank and died, leaving her staring at her hands in horror and confusion. She almost didn't notice when the pressure at her throat vanished.
"No one told me you were uncanny," the intruder mumbled. "My luck's bad enough, I don't need to associate with your kind. But rest assured, by tomorrow morning everyone will know that you Dupres are a bunch of freaks."
He spat on the floor and climbed out the window, disappearing into the night. Jacqueline didn't even think to ty and stop him. She was too busy trying not to burst into tears.
There was no way that she was actually Fey. Her grandparents were the most mundane humans she could think of. If there was a chance that she was anything but normal, they would have told her before now and given her a chance to adjust. Wouldn't they?
Wrapped up in her own thoughts, she barely noticed when the sun rose. She wouldn't have been able to sleep if she'd tried. She was dimly aware that she was exhausted, but she was too busy trying to adjust to the fact that her entire life was built on a lie.
She spent the rest of that day locked in her room. She couldn't bring herself to face the world after what had happened. A servant came to check on her at one point, bringing food and her grandparents' concern, but she just mumbled something about feeling a little sick. She didn't need their worry on top of her own.
Her fatigue won out sometime in the late afternoon, and she slipped into a restless doze. She was thus extremely disoriented when she was shaken awake. A glance at her windows showed that it was still nighttime. She swallowed, noticing that one of the windows was still open and swaying in the breeze.
"The master and mistress wish to see you." Jacqueline jumped at the voice, but it was just the maid who'd woken her. "You have twenty minutes to prepare, after which I will escort you to them."
Jacqueline nodded blearily. She wasn't sure why they had to have this conversation in the middle of night, but she did owe her grandparents an explanation. She pulled herself to her feet and threw on some clothes. She was likely to be scolded for her disheveled appearance, but her brain was moving slowly enough that putting on a shirt took half her allotted time.
Once she was halfway presentable, she stepped into the hallway. She saw the maid standing a respectful distance from her bedroom door. When she saw Jacqueline, she began walking without a word. Jacqueline fell in behind her. She didn't often have the occasion to visit her grandparents' rooms, and in her current state she could see herself getting lost in the mansion's maze of hallways. She'd kept them waiting long enough already.
She almost didn't notice when they arrived. She'd been staring into space, mind blank, and almost walked into the maid. She received a disapproving frown before the maid opened the door and announced her presence. "Your granddaughter, ma'am."
"Come in," Jacqueline's grandmother said.
Jacqueline stepped into the room, preparing her apologies. Her grandparents were impeccably attired as always, despite the hour, and she was even more aware of how shabby she looked in comparison. She had opened her mouth to speak when she registered their grave expressions.
"Jacqueline," her grandfather said. "Tell us about last night."
"Yes sir," Jacqueline said. She took a deep breath and made sure her voice would be level. "I was awoken in the middle of the night to find a knife at my throat. The man holding it… he threatened to kidnap me. He intended to hold me ransom." She squeezed her eyes shut as if that would block out the memory. "Then he became scared and left."
Her grandmother sighed. "I believe you're leaving out a key detail, dear. What was he afraid of?"
Jacqueline opened her eyes, but couldn't bring herself to look at her grandparents. "Me, ma'am. I was afraid, and I somehow… Fire flew from my hands and scared him. I didn't know what I was doing. It wasn't planned, and I don't even know if it was actually me who caused it."
Her grandmother tsked softly. Jacqueline risked glancing at them and saw her grandfather shaking his head in disappointment. "I was afraid of that," he said. We had so hoped our influence would be enough to prevent this sort of ugliness, but it seems your father's indiscretion has once again created a mess which we are left to deal with."
Her father? Jacqueline had no idea what her father had to do with anything, but she knew better than to question her grandfather. She waited for him to continue.
"I'm afraid we're going to have to ask you to leave." Jacqueline's mouth flew open. He held up a hand and continued, "We are not cruel. You may gather your belongings, or as many as you are able to carry. But you must leave by the morning, so that no one sees you go."
"What? Why?" Jacqueline covered her mouth with her hands, but it was too late to stop the words that had slipped out. And she did want to know the answers. She couldn't believe she would be kicked out of the only home she'd ever known, just because she had suffered the misfortune to almost be kidnapped.
"If this family is to maintain its status, we must maintain the goodwill of the townspeople," her grandmother said. "Now that someone knows that you're… well. The whole town will know soon enough, if they don't already. We can't afford to be seen fraternizing with that sort."
"We don't wish to see you harmed, of course. That's why you need to leave now, while the news is still spreading." Her grandfather smiled. "If you go quietly, people will soon forget you were ever here. This is the safest way for us all."
Jacqueline nodded numbly. His words made a disturbing amount of sense. She wasn't human, apparently, or at least not in the eyes of the townspeople. Leaving would make them feel safer. Besides, she had always imagined what it would be like to leave the town. Admittedly, she'd imagined having a plan and the support of her family, but she could figure something out. Maybe she could be a traveling musician. She'd met one, once, and it seemed like it might be fun. Not that a cello was the easiest instrument to travel with.
"I'm glad you understand," her grandmother said. "In that case, it is time for us to say farewell. Try not to be too upset. We're doing this because we love you."
"And for what it's worth, we will miss you." Jacqueline's grandfather stood and shook her hand briskly. "I wish you the best of luck."
Jacqueline stared blankly into his face, not quite able to process the dismissal. It was only when the maid came in to escort her out that she shook herself back to the present. "Goodbye," she said belatedly. "I love you both."
She was entirely unaware of the trip back to her room. She seemed to blink, and suddenly she was staring at all of her belongings, trying to figure out what was worth packing. What would be useful to have with her? She stared into her wardrobe as if it held the answer.
Eventually she unearthed a bag from the bottom of one of her drawers and set to work filling it. She began by grabbing clothing at random, then moved on to assorted books and trinkets from her dresser. Would they be too heavy? Would they mold? She didn't know what she was doing. She still couldn't seem to convince herself that this was the last time she would ever see this room.
Finally, she gathered all the money she had lying around. It wasn't a large amount. She'd always relied on her grandparents to give her money as she needed it. But she had some spare change from past shopping expeditions and birthdays, and she gathered that under a purse that she hid under her clothes. She didn't think it was likely to matter, but she'd read enough adventure stories to half-expect to be ambushed by brigands as soon as she set foot outside of town. She didn't want to make things easy for hypothetical thieves.
She was making one last sweep of the room when she remembered the earrings hidden in her jewelry box. They'd been a birthday gift from her grandparents, small things rather fancifully shaped like pumpkins. She'd cherished them all the more for their uncharacteristic whimsy.
She stared down at the earrings for a long moment before hiding them in her purse. She had to be able to come back sooner or later, and until then it would be nice to have a reminder of what she was looking forward to.
She looked around for one more last time, but couldn't find any more excuses to linger. She took a deep breath, picked up her bag, and walked out of the room.
The halls of the manor were empty. It made sense, given the hour, but Jacqueline couldn't help but feel that it was some sort of omen. It wasn't any harder to believe than fire suddenly erupting from her hands.
She got to the front door and stopped once again. She'd spent so much of her life inside this building, and now she was leaving with no idea of when she'd return.
Thoughts like that were only making it harder for her. She pushed the front door open with perhaps more force than she'd intended, and stepped out into the world.
She'd expected the street to be even darker than the building she'd left, but the windows of the nearby houses were all lit. The street itself was bright enough that Jacqueline could see a group of people standing around, apparently waiting for something.
She narrowed her eyes, trying to figure out what was going on. She was about to ask when one of the figures pointed to her. "There she is!" they cried. "She's the Uncanny I was talking about!"
Jacqueline realized with a jolt of fear that the person speaking was the one who'd broken into her room the previous night.
She scanned the crowd, finally fully awake but still not quite comprehending what she saw. She could make out enough faces to recognize some of them. She'd never been close to anyone in the town, but she passed them while she was out, smiled at her and asked him about his children. Now they looked at her like she'd set fire to their houses and eaten their children.
All at once, they surged forward. Jacqueline stared at them for what felt like an eternity, unable to move. As they crept forward, she began to pick out faces. There was the woman who baked the best bread in town. The man in the back had bragged about his dog's puppies for weeks.
She didn't know when she made the decision to run. She was just suddenly in motion, with no idea where she was going or why. It didn't seem to matter. She knew deep in her bones that if she stopped, if she so much as slowed down, she would be torn to shreds.
Buildings flashed past as she ran blindly. She didn't notice the person appear in her path until it was almost too late. She swerved to avoid them, but wasn't fast enough. She felt her sleeve tear. The sound of it ripping was enough to spur her to run even faster.
The fire in her lungs scared her almost as much as the mob. She didn't know how long she could keep running. The mob was right behind her, grabbing at her hair, her clothes. She'd lost her bag somewhere in the chaos. The loss of its weight wasn't enough to make up for the increasing heaviness of her legs.
She realized that she was almost to the edge of the forest. Her last shreds of rationality screamed at her to stop, but she was being driven by something far deeper. She could worry about the dangers in the woods later. If she got a chance.
The ground was less even under the trees. She had to pay attention to each step. It took time that she didn't have, but she couldn't afford to fall. She couldn't tell if she was still being followed. All she could hear was her own labored breathing.
She didn't know how long she'd been running when her legs gave out under her. It felt like a betrayal. She couldn't even rely on her own body anymore. She was struggling to pull herself up when a shadow fell over her. She curled up into a ball, as if she could make herself invisible by making herself small enough.
There was a sigh. "Ugh, really?" a voice muttered. "Did you have to end up on my doorstep? And in the middle of the night, too."
Jacqueline couldn't catch her breath quickly enough to reply. She barely managed a faint moan before slipping into unconsciousness.
She came back to consciousness in spurts. The first thing she registered was that she was exhausted, and that her body hurt all over. She squeezed her eyes shut tighter. She just wanted to go back to sleep and not have to deal with it for a little longer.
Then she remembered just why she was so tired. Her eyes flew open.
Instead of her nice comfy bed at the manor, she was lying on a couch in the middle of an unfamiliar room. She felt a burst of panic. She didn't think her grandparents would be willing to pay a ransom for her anymore, so it was up to her to escape. At least her captor probably thought she was still asleep. She sat up, intending to stand up and run, but just sitting up made her head swim. She tested her legs tentatively. They wouldn't hold her weight. She wouldn't be able to just walk out, then.
She lay back down reluctantly. She'd just have to focus on conserving her strength for now. With any luck, she'd get a chance to overpower whoever had taken her prisoner. After that…
She'd probably just run away again. It wasn't like she had a better plan, especially now that she'd lost most of her supplies. She'd have to hope she got lucky and stumbled upon someplace safe.
She heard footsteps and closed her eyes. She tried to breathe evenly, to act like she was still asleep. The footsteps got closer. Soon the person making them would be standing right above Jacqueline. Should she make her move now?
She was working up the nerve to lunge when her captor spoke. "I can tell you're awake. Most sleeping people don't tense up as soon as someone walks into the room."
Jacqueline sighed. She wasn't cut out for rescuing herself. She pushed herself back upright, though she was still leaning heavily on the arm of the couch.
Now that she had a chance to look around for more than five seconds, she could see that she was in someone's living room. It was a simple room, the kind of place that was charitably described as cozy. There was a bookshelf on the opposite wall. The fireplace was unlit but showed clear signs of use. There were windows that looked out onto the woods, but from this angle it seemed almost welcoming rather than intimidating.
Jacqueline realized she was letting herself get distracted. She looked her captor in the face, trying to figure out why she was being held prisoner.
The girl standing over her couldn't have been much older than Jacqueline herself. She had short pink hair and an amused expression. Her face was unfamiliar, which didn't necessarily mean anything, given Jacqueline's limited experiences outside her grandparents' mansion. "What are you going to do to me?" Jacqueline asked. "I'll warn you, my grandparents won't be happy if they hear that I've been hurt."
She thought that much was true. She didn't expect them to do anything about it, but they would at least be upset.
The other girl snorted, clearly less than impressed. "Uh-huh. That's why you were running for your life in a creepy forest in the middle of the night."
Jacqueline winced at the reminder. It didn't help that this stranger was apparently aware of the fact that Jacqueline's life was in shambles.
The girl's expression softened fractionally. "Look, I get it. People find out that you're Fey, and no matter how nice they were before suddenly they're out for your blood."
Jacqueline looked away. "How can you tell?" Was her nonhuman status really that obvious? Had everyone just been taking pity on her until she turned out to be a monster?"
"I have a sense for these things." The girl smirked. "That, and your ears are pointed. It's a dead giveaway."
Jacqueline's hands flew to her ears. As the girl had said, they were distinctly pointed. She'd never really thought about her ears before, but she was pretty sure that she would have noticed if they'd been pointed before the last few days. Just another sign that she couldn't go back.
The girl saw Jacqueline's dismay and continued loudly. "Hey, at least it's just your ears. Those are pretty easy to hide. I mean, look at my hair. Yeah, it looks great on me, but it also screams Fey."
Jacqueline found that less than reassuring. The idea that she could change further was more than a little terrifying. Was she going to become completely unrecognizable, even to herself?
She chose to focus on the other implication of the girl's words. "So, then… if you're Fey, what are you?"
The girl rolled her eyes. "I know you're new to this, but for future reference, that's a really rude question."
"I'm sorry."
"Eh, whatever." She waved a hand dismissively. "You're looking at the famous witch of the Witch's Woods."
Jacqueline blinked. "Really?" She realized as soon as the word was out of her mouth that it was a stupid thing to ask. "No, I believe you, it's just – you're much younger than I expected."
em/em
And prettier
, she almost said, before realizing that suddenly complimenting a stranger like that was weird and creepy. Apparently she was still more out of it than she'd thought.
"Hey, it's not like age has anything to do with magical power." The girl crossed her arms defensively. "Anyway, you're not one to talk. You can't be much older than me."
"But these have been the Witch's Woods for as long as I can remember. How long have you been her?"
The girl shrugged. "A few years, maybe? There was a witch here before me, but she got bored of living in the middle of nowhere and moved to some city. I just found this place when I needed a place to stay, so I moved in."
Jacqueline decided that was a story she was best off not hearing. She didn't want to think about why someone her age had been living alone for years. Besides, she didn't even know the other girl's name yet, she didn't need to ask probing personal questions.
She should introduce herself, though. "Anyway, um, nice to meet you. I'm Jacqueline Dupre." She stuck her hand out and tried to ignore the thought that she didn't have much of a claim to the name Dupre anymore.
"Kim Diehl." Kim's handshake was firm, and Jacqueline was painfully aware that her own was still as weak as the rest of her body. "Nice to meet you, Jackie."
Jacqueline was surprised by the nickname, but she found she rather liked it. It was also a good sign for her chances of escape. Someone who cared enough to give her a nickname hopefully wasn't going to try to hold her hostage. Really, Kim wasn't acting much like a kidnapper at all.
Jacqueline decided to push her luck and keep asking questions. This decision was helped along by her stomach, which chose that moment to growl loudly. She bit her lip. "So, uh, you've already been really generous to me, but…" She trailed off, not sure how to phrase her request in a way that didn't have the specter of her grandmother chiding her for greediness.
Kim nodded. "I get it. You probably haven't eaten since yesterday, right? I'll go get you something. I can just put it on your tab." She winked and walked out of the room.
Jacqueline took the chance to sort through all the information that had been dumped on her. The town had formed an angry mob against her, and she'd only escaped because of the witch that had terrified everyone for years. And now that witch, who was barely Jacqueline's age, was getting food for her. She seemed to be sincere about wanting to help. Her house was remarkably mundane, too, or at least the parts that Jacqueline could see.
No, laying it all out like that wasn't really helping make the situation less strange. She tried to focus on the minor details instead. Maybe they'd make more sense.
Now that she was thinking about it, the ache in her stomach wasn't entirely from the events of last night. Kim had been right that she hadn't eaten in at least a day. For that matter, she'd have to find a bathroom in the relatively near future. That was going to be a fun conversation. She couldn't even stand on her own. Was she going to have to ask Kim to carry her to a toilet?
Just thinking about it made her blush. She shook her head and tried to focus on her plans for the future. She was going to need time to recover. With any luck, Kim would be willing to let her stay for a little while, so she wouldn't have to worry about that at least. But what would she do when she was well enough to leave? She could still feel her purse by her side, but the only clothes she had left were the ones she was wearing, and those were ragged from her escape. The mob had also taken her books, and most of her jewelry, and pretty much everything else she'd owned. The things she hadn't had to leave behind at the manor, anyway.
Jacqueline sniffled. She knew it was stupid to get this worked up over a few lost objects. But she was tired, and she'd been kicked out of her home, and apparently she wasn't even who she'd thought she was, and she thought she deserved a moment to be selfish.
Then Kim walked back in, and Jacqueline went from feeling vindictively sad to just feeling silly. She scrubbed at her face hastily. Since she hadn't quite stopped crying, this was less than effective.
Kim's eyes were wide. "I have food!" she said. "I didn't know what you'd like, so I just made you a sandwich. That work for you?"
Jacqueline nodded. "Thanks," she managed.
"Uh-huh." Kim handed her the plate, not making eye contact.
Jacqueline ate in silence for a bit. She wasn't expecting Kim to start talking again, so when she did she almost choked on her food. "So, uh, I know that things must kinda suck for you right now," Kim said. "But if it helps, I'm willing to let you stay with me for a while. I mean, you still need to recover, and in the meantime I can help you with Fey stuff. If you want, anyway."
Jacqueline took another bite to give herself time to think. Her immediate reaction was to say no, that she didn't want or need help with anything Fey, that she wanted to ignore it and let it go away. Her ears were a painful reminder that that wasn't an option. And now that she knew she had some sort of ability to create fire, she should learn how to use it. She didn't want to risk hurting anyone.
"Thank you," she said again.
"It's nothing. I mean, you looked so pathetic when I found you that I couldn't just ignore you." Kim pretended to be fascinated by something outside the cottage. "So, uh, while we're having an awkward conversation anyway, would you be okay with me putting you in a healing sleep? I know you just woke up, but sitting there doing nothing will get boring really quickly. And when you wake up this time, you should be strong enough to stand up."
Jacqueline frowned. She was still coming to grips with the idea that she herself could do magic. Having a stranger put some sort magic on her, even for Jacqueline's own sake, seemed a bit sketchy. But the idea of not having to deal with things for a while longer was appealing. She also found that she wanted to trust Kim.
"Okay," she said. "But, um…" Now it was her turn to steadfastly avoid eye contact. "Before you do, could you help me to the bathroom?"
Kim blushed. "Oh! Of course."
The process was exactly as awkward as Jacqueline had feared, but somehow they managed to get her to the bathroom and back with minimal embarrassment. Doing so seemed to take all the energy Jacqueline had left. She collapsed back onto the couch, feeling like she could fall asleep even without magic.
Not that the thought of having magic performed on her was particularly relaxing. She tried not to show her discomfort. It seemed rude, since Kim was doing her a favor. "So, is there anything in particular I should be doing, or…?"
Kim shook her head. "Nah, healing spells are a specialty of mine. Just lie down and try not to fight it."
That didn't exactly help Jacqueline's nerves. She did as she was told, though she kept an eye on Kim, half expecting her to pull out a vial of pig's blood or something. Instead she just started murmuring softly. Jacqueline couldn't make out the words, but their cadence was soothing. She had no trouble letting them lull her into unconsciousness.