A/N: Hey everyone, I'm sorry it took so long to release a new chapter. I had to do a lot packing for the move. But I'm finally at my new place which mean I can continue the story. Also during the last months I have been working the the new couple of chapters just so you know, so at I got some work done during my hiatus. And to make up for the long wait I'll upload the next chapter in the next few days, it almost finish so I hope you guys can look forward to it. Now enough of me babbling and on with the story! Enjoy!

Chapter 4

Discussion

Antheia welcomed Mabaa the Grand Witch in her home, and gestured her to the living room as the two witches sat on the huge green couch patterned with flower decor.

"It's good to see you again Antheia," said the Grand Witch.

"Same to you m'ame," Antheia said with a bright smile. "It's been years since we've last seen each other."

"Indeed it has been." Mabba nodded.

She took the time to notice the surroundings in the Nature Witch's house, there were vases filled with beautiful flowers of all kinds. The aroma from the plants smelled quite nice, it was obvious that all of these flowers were natural. Not like the ugly fake ones that the humans buy for decoration.

"I see you still have your love for flowers," Mabaa addressed. "Even as an adult you're still the sweet old flower child."

"Well they don't call me the Nature Witch for nothing, right?" Antheia said while flipping a piece of her front hair aside.

Mabaa begin to chuckled lightly at Antheia's statement. Yep, she hasn't changed at all. She remembered the first time she met her as a child. She had a likeness towards nature of all kind. Flowers, trees, bushes, etc. She truly was dedicated to the earth.

Mabaa face turned from happy to a more sincere expression.

"There's something that needs to be discussed Antheia," Mabaa said sternly. "You realise that's the reason I came all this way."

Antheia lowered her head in defeat. "Yes, that's right."

"As you may be aware, Lord Death has made four more death scythes to this day," Mabaa informed. "A couple of witches have already lost their souls to the students of the DWMA."

The last bit of info gave Antheia a tingling shock in her chest. Her heart nearly skipped a beat, she knew that witches were becoming endangered due to the Grim Reaper creating more death scythes. Of course, it wasn't personal, but it still didn't change the fact that Mabaa was displeased by her kind getting wiped out just to create an ultimate weapon.

"I know that your grace," The pink haired woman said in a disappointing tone. "That's why I've kept myself hidden over the past years."

"I'm glad you still recalled my warning," The grand witch said with honor. "It's very dangerous for witches to be out at curfew when the students are on their hunting spree."

Anthiea nodded in agreement. "Yes, of course. That's why I moved to the farest area from Death City and build my house here. So I could be in safe condition, since it's nearly impossible to sense a witch soul from a long distance."

"Smart thinking," Mabaa said intrigued. "Not many witches have the capacity of moving from one location to another. You should consider yourself lucky Antheia."

"Don't worry ma'am," Antheia said holding a clenched fist to her chest. "I will create a potion that can shield a witch soul from being scanned by the soul projection technique."

"Your still working on it?" Mabba asked as she raised a brow.

It wasn't the first time Antheia been working on the potion. She been trying to create it since she was 16, no luck came since then, but she still hasn't given up over the past years.

"Yes I have," Anthiea said with conviction. "And I won't stop til it becomes a success, I'll spend eternity working on it if I have to."

The Grand Witch took her words to heart. This woman was truly dedicated to accomplished her goals, she wanted to do what was right for everyone, she cared deeply for others and always put them first before her. That's why she wanted to finish her potion so her kind would be freed from this haunt of witch souls. Especially Crona.

"Crona..." The young witch jolt her head up as the name popped into her head.

She just remembered Crona was a witch as well, meaning he could be a target too. She put her shaking hands on her mouth, just the thought of her poor baby being slaughtered by a student and his soul being devoured to create another Death Scythe made her spine shiver in horror. She began to bit her lip until she tasted blood, and almost shed a tear from grieve.

Mabaa notice Antheia's behavior and placed a hand on her lap. Though she was often firm with others, she still had a heart.

"Are you alright dear?" she asked.

Antheia came back to her senses when she heard Mabaa's voice, she was too lost in thought that she didn't even felt the hand on her upper thigh.

"O-Oh yes," Antheia stuttered. "I apologize, that was very rude of me ma'am."

The Nature Witch bowed her head in loyal respect, she never meant to do anything disgraceful towards the mistress of all witches. It was a very uncalled for action.

"No it's alright," Mabba stated. "There's no need to apologize."

Antheia chuckled lightly in embarrassment. But at the same time it was nice that Mabaa still had her motherly side. It's been so long since someone gave her affection, she hasn't felt this comforting feeling since she was a child.

"Antheia," Mabaa began to spoke in a more concern tone. "Is there something that's troubling you?."

Antheia knew that in order to answer that question, she would have to tell Mabaa what has happened the past couple of years. She had to informed her that she is now a mother. It wasn't gonna be easy, but the Grand Witch needed to know truth.

"Ms. Mabaa," Antheia said as she folded her hands and rest them on her lap. "There's been a lot of changes since we last met."

Mabaa raised a brow puzzled at what the young witch before her was trying to say.

"What I mean is that...well…" Antheia cleared her throat before she could continue. "Let's start from the beginning. I was off one night getting some essentials to make potions. However, I forgot to bring my cloak and realised there was a high chance that I might run into a student from the DWMA."

There was an utter silence over the living room with nothing to hear but the birds chirping from windows. Antheia knew that deep inside Mabaa had felt a spark of shock. Even though she didn't seem like it, her stall face was a only a facade.

Antheia look up to Mabaa to make sure she still listening.

"Go on." she said.

Antheia nodded and continued her story.

"So, I figured that I would have to find a place to hide. In the nick of time, I found an alleyway near by and hid behind a trash can hoping no child would find me there. However, someone came crossed the alleyway carrying a box. I took a slight peek to see who it could've been and hopefully not a student. Luckily it wasn't but rather another witch."

"Another witch?" Mabaa asked as she grew curiosity.

"Yes, it was none other than the snake witch Medusa Gorgon."

Mabba jolted as the name itself was deadly to hear. She knew who this person was.

"Medusa?!" she said with great fear. "You crossed paths with her?!"

"No it wasn't like that," Antheia said as she shook her hands. "She didn't saw me, I kept myself hidden so she was unaware of my presence."

Mabba placed a hand over her heart as if it was gonna jump out of her chest.

"Thank goodness," she said relieved. "Even though you were lucky, it was still very risky. You should know that woman is dangerous."

"Yes," Antheia nodded. "I know that, but that's not all."

"What do you mean?" asked the Grand Witch.

"Medusa left the box on the alleyway, out of my curiosity I went to see what it was. It turned out to be a newborn baby, I couldn't stand to leave him all alone so I took him in as my own. Now I'm his mother and I'm doing my best to take care of him."

"You mean your taking care of Medusa's child?" Mabba asked dumbfounded.

"It's not like that," Antheia confirmed. "She abandoned the child herself, and was gonna leave it to die. I couldn't just leave the poor thing on his own, otherwise he would've end up dead."

"I see," Mabaa said as she understood Antheia's words. "What's the child's name?"

"Crona"

"Crona," Mabaa repeated. "That sounds like a devine name."

"It is," Antheia agreed. "And he's very beautiful too. He has the cutest smile and pretty pink hair."

Mabaa could tell that Antheia has bonded with Crona. A child that's not even hers, and yet she cares deeply for him. The Grand Witch never would of thought it was possible for a witch to take great responsibility over a child. It was all new to her.

"I take it you've grown attached to this child, have you?" Mabaa stated.

"No it's not just that" Antheia shooked her. "Ever since I first met him, I felt a strong connection with him as if I was destined to be his mother. The moment I look into his eyes I knew that I had to protect him, not Medusa. Even though he may not of came from me, he didn't had to in order to be an actual part of me, cause our souls seem to be resonating in sync. At least that's what I feel with him."

"That must mean you grown a actual bond with Crona," Mabaa stated. "They say that when a parent gives eye contact to a baby at first glance they start building a connection, and it will continue to grow stronger as the child grows."

Antheia thought about Mabaa's statement for a minute. She took in every word she just spoke. A connection between a parent and a child grows stronger during the child's development. It was like a grown flower and a bud's strong connection helps the bud blossom into a beautiful flower. Her beloved Crona is one day gonna bloom into a delicate flower no doubt. It warmed her heart just imagining that.

"I guess that means I'm meant to be his mother after all." Antheia said with a warm smile. "I've given all the love and care he deserves, and I will continue to do so for the rest his life, so he'll never have to fear humanity, not while I'm there by his side."

"That's not possible," Mabaa said firmly.

Antheia felt as if her heart was stab deep with a sharp knife when she heard Mabaa say such harsh words.

"What do mean?" she asked in fear.

"I understand that you want to keep the child in safe hands Antheia," Mabaa said. "But you must understand that this world will not allow you to sustain that. There's gonna be a time where Crona will have to fend for himself when trouble strikes. What will he do if a kishin or witch comes for his soul and he can't defend himself?"

Antheia never thought about that. In fact, she was hoping she would never have to thought of that at all. She's aware of how dangerous the world is and wanted to prevent Crona from experiencing the horrors of it. But then again, even though she hated to admit it, it's true that Crona was gonna need to learn how to fight and defend.

She clenched her fists on her lap and grinded her teeth. She didn't wanna do this to him, but deep down her counscous was telling her that Mabaa was right.

"I knew that one day I was gonna be reminded of that," Antheia said with her voice cracked. "But at the same time, I was in denial of it. Hoping that it wouldn't come back to me again."

The young woman started to let stream of tears roll out her cheeks. She felt her hands trembling, as if they were cold from hyperthermia.

"I just wanted to keep my precious Crona safe,"

"Antheia," Mabaa spoke in grief from the site of her underling being broken. "I know it's hard, but if you truly love Crona you would showed him how to be independent for what's to come in the future. You can't just shunned him from the world that we live in. You need to give him guidance in life as a parent. He's gonna grow up one day and your not gonna always be there by his side. He needs to learn how to protect himself rather than having you do the protection."

Antheia took in her mistress' words for a moment. It's true, he's not gonna be little forever. On day he'll get older and he will eventually experience the world on his own. He will discovered these horrific creatures that feast on human souls and would have to strike against them. But he doesn't have a weapon. Maybe she could teach him how to use magic. Of course, every witch must learn how to manipulate their own magical powers.

If she could teach him the arts of witchcraft, then maybe he'll be fit for combat and self defense. It will would take a while but it will all pay off in the end. She lifted up her head so that she was looking at Mabaa right in the eyes again.

"Alright Ms. Mabaa," Antheia spoke with a tone of courage. "I will teach Crona how to defend himself by showing him the arts of magic. He will learn how to have great control of his powers. Even if he's not aware of his own abilities, I will show him how to properly use them. So if anything were to come to him, he'll know what to do."

Mabaa nodded with agreement and smiled a little. But then, something crucial popped into her head. The two witches were unaware of Crona's abilities. It was unclear what kind of magic he possessed. Medusa was known for inheriting dark magic, which can be very dangerous if the user doesn't manipulate it properly. This was something that Antheia needed to figure out while training the child.

"Antheia," The young witch look up at her mistress when she heard her said her name. "Do you might think it's possible for Crona to possess dark magic?"

That question struck Antheia once again like a lighting bolt. Of course she had to forget about the possibility of Crona having dark magic. She knew damn well that Medusa would always use her vector arrows to attack her foes with, which was a technique that came from the arts of dark magic. Not to say that dark magic is bad, it's the wielder themselves and how they use it. It's not like they always use it for negative intentions, however if not use accuracy it can lead to unexpected results. Dark magic can be very dangerous to handle if the user doesn't have the experience.

But Antheia remembered when she was little there that there was a book she read about dark magic. It was when she learn about the ancient sorcerers and witches that used to possesed the arts of Dark Magic. Some were evil while others were actually good, there were actually heroes that used dark magic to protect people rather than those who used it to cause utter chaos to the innocence. She never would've expected that there was once good - willed people who used the Dark Arts for the better.

Of course the reason why dark sorcery had a bad reputation was because nowaday it's been used to cause harm than to protect. Even those who inherited dark magic refuse to use their powers, afraid that others would think their associated with evil. But of course Crona would never crossed the path of evil, he's too pure to go through that route.

It's decided then.

"I may not know if he does possess dark magic," Antheia said with conviction in her voice. "However, regardless of his abilities I swore as a witch and as a mother that I will train my child the arts of witchcraft. If it will be for the greater good, for self defense, than I'll do it. For Crona's sake."

The Nature Witch placed her clenched fist on her chest as a sign of pride. From her posture Mabaa can tell that she meant every word she said. She never expected this from her underling. She really has grown hasn't she?

"A wise decision Antheia," the Grand Witch said with approval. "To think you would go through the process from a child prodigy to a confident mother."

Anthea took Mabaa's words to heart as a sense of 'I'm proud of you.' It meant a lot coming from the Grand Witch, it felt like earning a reward.

"Mama?"

A young voice came entering the living room. She turn to see who the voice belong to, it was none other than her sweet little Crona. She made contact with his small blue eyes that had innocence in them. She noticed that he had a fearsome expression on his face when he saw Mabaa and ran straight to her side holding on to her dress.

"It's alright baby," Antheia said in a soothing tone while stroking Crona's pink locks. "She won't hurt you."

Mabaa took a good look at the young child that was hiding behind Antheia. She could tell that he was Medusa's child just by the style of his hair. Other than that, the rest of his features were unique of his own. He was already attached to Antheia just from the way he held on to her as if she was gonna disappear. This was all new to her as she's never seen a mother and child bond before, and now it's right in front of her. She could tell Crona was scared of her based on her outlandish appearance. Of course it wouldn't be the first time someone showed fear upon her. She was used to humans fearing her, so it was nothing new.

"A-re you s-sure s-she's not g-gonna cast a s-spell on m-me?" Crona stuttered as tears began to stream down his face and rub his snot against his mother dress.

"Of course not," Antheia confirmed. "Mabaa's a good witch, she wouldn't harm anyone."

Despite his mother's convincing words, Crona still had trouble believing her. Not that he didn't trust his mother, but from the looks of Mabaa she looked too scary to be harmless. She remind him of the evil witches from the fairytale stories his mother would read to him before bed, the ones that would cast spells on people, turn them into toads or put them to sleep for eternity. Just looking at Mabaa gave him the impression that she was one of them.

"I-I don't k-know," the pink-haired child said shaking. "I c-can't trust h-her."

Antheia tried to convince Crona to give Mabaa a chance until the Grand Witch herself spoke up.

"It's alright Crona," she said. "I don't blame you for feeling that way of me. But just remember that not every witch you come across of is considered evil. Most of them are just misguided women who are taking the wrong path. They've been through a lot of hardship during their youths, which is why they're the dangerous beings you see now."

Crona couldn't get what Mabaa meant by her statement, and instead just tighten his grip on his mother's skirt while baring his face so he wouldn't have to see the scary witch. Mabaa could tell that the young child didn't understand a single word that came from her mouth. It didn't bother her the slightest, it's not like she would expect a child to understand the origin of witches.

"You'll understand when your older," she said with a smile.

Antheia bend down to Crona and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Sweetheart, why don't you go play in your room while me and Ms. Mabaa finish catching up ok?"

Crona nodded in response, Antheia kissed his forehead before he left the living room. She couldn't help but let a small giggle escape her mouth as she watched her child run off. It was so cute.

"Adorable, isn't he?" Antheia said to the Grand Witch.

"He sure is," Mabaa nodded her head in agreement.

She could tell that Antheia was doing a great job with raising Crona. Even though he wasn't so found of her presence, it was still good to know that the Nature Witch was informing him about the existence of evil witches. That way he is aware of the dangers of the evil ones. When the time comes he'll be ready to face off whatever threat comes at him. That is if Antheia starts training him soon.

A couple hours passed as Antheia and Mabaa continued to chat and had some laugh here and there, while having some tea that Antheia made with the herbs from her garden. Almost everything that she cooks came from nature she planted herself. Except for meats and dairy products of course, for those she'd go to the market.

The Elderly woman looked out the window to see that the sun was beginning to set. It was already sleeping with drool coming out of its mouth. It was a sign that her time here was done.

"It's was nice to have a little reunion with you dear," Mabaa said with a kind smile. "I'm glad that you've taken good care of yourself and the child."

"Same with you your grace," Antheia bowed her head in honored of her elder. "It was a pleasure having you here after so many years."

"Well now that I know you're in good shape I don't have that much to worry about," The Grand Witch stated, which made Anthiea feel even more honored than before.

"However," Mabaa tone imdeiatly changed from motherly to sincere, which caught Anthiea off guard. "I want you to keep in mind with what I said, whether you choose to take my advice or not is up to you. I will respect your decision either way, but at least considered putting more thought into your final choice. All I suggest is that you do what's best for Crona."

Antheia took a minute to take in what her elder just said before nodding.

The Grand Witch open the door before her as waved goodbye to her underling.

"Farewell," she said before leaving Antheia's vicinity in total silence.

It was at that point, the young witch was at a conflict situation. Part of her wanted to take Mabaa's words and teach Crona how to fend for himself, while the other part doesn't want to put her dear child into mortal danger by becoming a warrior. She already made up her mind that she was gonna teach him the arts of witchcraft, but when it came to learning how to fight was a whole other level. He didn't have a weapon so it's not like he can actually learn the methods of combat.

Then again he didn't need a destructive tool if he had magic on his side. Witches often use their magic to fight other than just a defense mechanism. Antheia remembered the times she had to use her magic to defend herself from despicable humans that tried to assault her. She hated using the power of nature as a destructive force. It just didn't felt right to her. The earth was meant to be loved not to destroy, which was why she avoided fighting as much as she could.

For Crona on the other hand it was different, his magic could be actually capable for fighting. Even if it's dark magic that he posses, he can still use it for the greater good. He just need to learn how to use it probably. Speaking of Crona, Antheia went to go went to go check on her little pumpkin. She went to his room that was opposite to hers and saw him asleep on his teatime table with his little stuffed bunny sitting opposed to him. Anthiea swooped up her sleeping child and gently placed him on his bed and pull the covers over him once it reach the tip of his hair.

She grab the napkin from the pink box on top of his black dresser, and wiped off the drool oozing from his mouth. Then she grab his bunny which he named Snowbelle, and placed it right next to him so he won't feel lonely. She kneed down on the edge of the bed and shifted his bangs to the side, she pressed her lips against his forehead.

"Sweet dreams my baby pumpkin," Antheia whispered in her soft motherly voice.

She turned on his little flower night light before turning off the lights in his room, knowing that he had a phobia for darkness and left.

It wasn't gonna easy. In fact it was gonna harder than she thought. She really didn't wanna do this her precious child, but she didn't wanna deny Mabaa's words either. Why did it had to come to this? But it was for the best. It was her job as a parent to do the right for her child. Sooner or later he's gonna find out what the world is really like out there. He'll learn that reality is not like his fairy tail books.

Starting tomorrow she'll begin his training. From this point onward, he'll be taught the mastery of witchcraft.