It began with a simple curse. One commonly used among witches and warlocks alike. One feared by the peasants it affected.
It's not our fault we created infertile. They have the gods to thank for that. So we are obligated to capture a child if we sought to take on an apprentice before we died if we were to continue our knowledge. I found one at a young age, a peasant about the same age as I would be in human years who wanted to marry a higher class lady wished to make a deal. Love is a weakness that makes you reckless and after the countless hearts I have seen broken I quickly vowed to myself to never let it get to me.
That all changed a year after I made that deal though, because as I stepped into the surprisingly well put together hut to see the new mother already crying and clutching her child to her chest, with another woman dressed in a stunning black outfit standing over her, I knew my heart was doomed.
"Who the hell are you," I snapped, causing two of the heads to focus on me, while the third, the one I had made the deal with, bowed his head in despair.
"The new mother of this child," she responded cooly, turning her whole body towards me as she spoke. My stomach did a little flip as her body came fully into my view. Her hair, which had appeared messy and unkempt from the back now framed her face in tight curls, held together with a large hat perched on the top of her head. Then there was her outfit, it was obvious she had put it together with magic, the detailing was to fine for a needle and thread, and the fabric- on the top half anyway- appeared to be cut directly from the night sky. Her pale skin beneath the sheer fabric and speckled with swirls of silver, and covered with a simple yet elegant riding jacket made me wonder if I would ever look at the stars the same way again. Underneath that she wore leather pants which, every time she moved, would glisten and show the subtle shine they held too.
"Ah, I believe it is actually mine," I corrected, trying to focus more on what the woman was saying and less on her.
"And why would you believe that," her velvety smooth voice was beginning to hold an edge of annoyance. I simply waved at the cowering figure in annoyance. "Well it seems we do have a problem then," she smiled, and I couldn't tell if I should be scared or turned on. A second later I found myself enveloped in purple smoke and the ground beneath me seemed to shift.
"What the hell," I exclaimed, nearly falling over from the unexpected transportation. As I regained my balance I looked around, trying to figure out where the other witch had brought me. Us, I corrected in my mind as I saw her cradling the baby in her arms. "What the hell," I repeated, stomping towards her.
"I did not feel like dealing with the sobbing peasants anymore," she stated simply, rocking the whimpering child back and forth slightly.
"Yes, well, thank you for that, but I think I be taking my child and going now." I reached for the baby, only to have my hand slapped away by long manicured fingers.
"Not so fast," the other woman cooed. "If I'm not mistaken, you made a deal with the father for his first born?" I nodded, my eyes shifting between her and the now sleeping baby. "Well the stupid mother did the same, so it appears we both have claim over this child. Though I'm tempted to call you on it because quite frankly dear you do not look like a witch." I looked down at my clothes, simple forest wear, not much different than many of the wealthier pesants wore.
"I was never a fan of dresses," I stated with a shrug, "but I assure you, I am a child of the elements."
"If you say so," she grumbled, bending slightly as she placed the child in a pre-made cot before making her way out of the small room.
"Hey, where are you going, we are not done with this," I called after her.
"Hush, I don't want to deal with a crying child right now," she scolded, making her way through another door into what appeared to be her own bed chambers. I paused for a second, not really wanting to intrude, sensing she was not the type of witch you wanted to anger.
"Screw it," I muttered under my breath, pushing open the half closed door as the other woman hung up her jacket below her hat on and already overfilled rack.
"So how do you want to do this?" she asked, sitting down in the chair in front of her vanity so that she could untie the knee high riding boots she wore.
"Do what?" I asked foolishly, focused more on the way she slid her feet out of the tight boots than on what she was saying.
"Raise the child. Or am I wrong in assuming that you cast a claiming spell on the father?" She raised a well trimmed eyebrow at me as she threw her boot at the wall before starting on the next one.
"Yeah. I mean, yeah I did, but is it possible to share a claim. I mean, who's he going to learn from?" She tossed the other boot next to the first one as she stood. I half expected her to pull her shirt off next, well, more wished she would.
"Both, that is kind of the point of why I have not killed you yet. The way I figure it, he learns from both of us. Two different techniques to make a new one of a kind one."
"You don't seem like the sharing type," I blurted out, not really able to think of anything else.
"I'm not, but you seem like some one who could make this worth my while." She smiled, brilliant white against her supple red lips, and held out her hand. "I'm Regina by the way."
"Emma," I responded, taking her manicured hand in mine and giving it a skeptical shake.
"Hmm, a not very witchy name to go with a not very witchy personality," Regina mumbled, turning towards her closet and pulling open the heavy wooden door.
"It's a nickname," I shot back, crossing my arms over my chest in self defense.
"Well Emma, I suppose we should begin sorting things out if we are to be raising this child together. I have an extra room you ca-"
"Hang on," I interrupted, causing her to pause in her exploration of the contents of her very extensive wardrobe and look at me. "Who says we're staying here? How do you know I don't live in some palace?"
"Do you?" Her eyebrows reached towards her raven hair again.
"Well, no, but-"
"But nothing, and it will be much easier if we both stay in one place together Now, you're room is just down the hall if you want to make yourself acquainted. We can go and gather you things tomorrow," Regina explained, turning back towards her closet and pulling down a simple dressing gown.
"Why can't I just go right now?" I asked as she waved her hand, enveloping herself in purple smoke as she magically changed her clothes.
"Well you're more than welcome, but you'll never be able to find your way back here. Cloaking spell," she finished at my confused look. "To anyone without the proper spell the door appears to be a tree. It's quiet amusing actually when the occasional creature or something passes through it." She gave a small, almost evil chuckle as she hung up the outfit she had just been wearing.
"Where are we anyway?" the thought suddenly popping into my head that we might not be in the same region of the worlds anymore. Some witches do that, claim a child from another region so that the peasants could have no way of tracking them down. And the witch that stood before me now, all wavy hair and mysteriousness, did not appear to be one to take any chances.
"The Enchanted Forest," she answered matter of factly, making her way across the spacious room to the over-sized bed. "Just outside of Capperson to be exact. Now, unless you plan on sleeping on the floor, I suggest you get a move on." She sat gracefully on the bed before gathering her hair and tying it back in a loose ponytail.
"Really?"
"I would prefer if you didn't, but if that is how your kind sleep then be my guest- as long as you don't snore," Regina said with a bit of an air of annoyance.
"What? no, I mean, we're really in Capperson?" I asked with a shake of my head.
"About half a day's walk away, yes."
"Which way?" I continued with earnest.
"North..." she answered skeptically, pulling one leg up onto the bed so she was facing more towards me.
"Damn, that means were going to have to go through the town," I mumbled.
"What on earth are you talking about dear?"
"I live- lived- to the South of Capperson." I was practically vibrating, though why I wasn't quiet sure. What I wanted to know though was how on earth had I lived so close to this beautiful woman and not known about it until now.
"What?"
"What?"
"What."
Fuck. I was not staring at your boobs.
"We're going to have to go through the town to get to my cabin," I repeated, louder so Regina could hear.
"Cabin?"
"Well, yeah. I chose to hide in plain sight rather than with charms that could be broken."
"Hmm," was all Regina said as she maneuvered herself to pull the covers of her bed down and then back over her legs.
"What's that supposed to mean?" my voice rose slightly, still wary of the child in the next room but also wanting to get my point across. I didn't want to be seen as some fake to a woman I was most likely going to be spending a lot of time with. Yes, I understood that the way I dressed and the way I sometimes acted weren't in the most 'witch-like' manner. "My master trained me well, my powers are not to be taken lightly."
"That's very nice dear," her voice was disinterested as she pulled at a knot in her hair. "Good night." The last thing I saw was a snide grin cross her lips as I was enveloped in the same purple smoke as earlier.
"Damn it," I muttered, resisting the urge to stomp my foot and instead falling back onto the small bed. My bed. "Fuck."