Who Mary-Lynnette assumed to be the witch Ash had been looking for was standing in the door looking very unhappy. She stood with her arms crossed over her sleek black dress that hugged all of her curves. She could've been as old as Mary-Lynnette but it was hard to tell with her dark make up. Her red lips were currently pulled down in a frown and she looked at Mary-Lynnette distastefully.

"Ash, what do you think you're doing? A human? Really?" she hissed gesturing to Mary-Lynnette. She suddenly looked down the alley way with her black hair swaying both ways, then pulled them inside seeing it was empty.

Mary-Lynnette glared at her, but was too distracted by the place she was in to really put effort in the expression. The place was dimly lit with strange scented candles stacked every shelf - and there were many. And all the shelves were covered in some herbs and jars of unrecognizable objects. There was a counter against the far wall with a clunky looking register on one side. A circle table was set more off the side with more fat candles spread on it.

"I'm really sorry Leah, but-"

"Sorry?" she fumed. Mary-Lynnette noticed the candles flare brighter. "A human, Ash, vermin," she said slowly like she couldn't believe Ash could be so dense, while not understanding in the least what his motives were. "It's in my shop! I swear Ash, if I wasn't sure nobody was coming today-"

"Leah, just listen," Ash said lowly, his eyes taking on a dangerous silver color. Mary-Lynnette hadn't see him move, but he was standing in front of her protectively. Leah, the witch, took his warning and effectively shut up.

"I know she's a human, and I know how dangerous this is, but that's why I'm here, before any of this gets any worse," Ash continued in his low tone of voice.

Leah studied him, then her eyes shifted to Mary-Lynnette regarding her with dark eyes clouded by incredibly long lashes. Her dark red lips pulled into an ugly sneer as she said , "What do you want me to do about it? Since when do you care for vermin?"

Mary-Lynnette hands clenched at the last word and she saw Ash's back tense. "Leah, if there was anyone else I could ask, I would, but I don't know what's going on between us. I'm asking as a favor if you can do what you can to figure this out. Can I ask for you to keep this confidential?"

Leah's eyes widened in anger, but she leaned back on the table and smiled with her teeth. "Yes if I can help," she emphasized. She laughed throwing her hair back. "Oh Ash, what happened to your silver tongue? This is hardly how you come asking for favors." She walked around the table with her hips swaying quickly grabbing a strange looking stone from a near by shelf and played with it.

Ash sighed and Mary-Lynnette couldn't help but feel a stab of jealousy before she waved it away quickly - it wasn't the time to be considering exactly what her feelings for Ash were - and whatever favors he'd done for the witch in the past. Besides she'd just met the guy...

"So... is that a yes?"

"What exactly are you expecting me to do?"

Ash took a few steps towards the table and Mary-Lynnette followed him warily. She was wondering the answer too.

"I want to see if there's some sort of... block on our minds; if someone made us forget something."

Leah raised an eyebrow inspecting the both of them before she turned her dark eyes back to the stone she was turning over in her fingers. "So you and a human think you've forgotten something?" she said a little boredly, but something told Mary-Lynnette she was much more interested in the matter than she let on. She absolutely didn't trust her. "You're suggesting something that took as much power as the Cup of Leathe," she droned on flicking the stone over and across her fingers. "There are similar things that can be cast on the mind to make you forget," her eyes strayed to Ash, "but only temporarily."

Ash shook his head. "Then it would've worn off already."

Leah shrugged. "Oh alright, I'm interested. I'll do anything to get you and her out of my shop for good." She smirked a little, but her eyes were cold. "I'll do this for you Ash as a last favor, but then you're out of here for good. And if anyone asks about this I'll turn you over to your vampire Elders without a second thought."

Ash's eyes looked wary but without missing a beat he said, "Of course."

Mary-Lynnette didn't like the sound of the 'vampire Elders'. She shuddered at the completely horrid image she got of a stabbed goat with toothpicks even though that made completely no rational sense. She'd turn them over to the Elders who...

Why was Ash agreeing? Why was this Leah allowing them to go through with this? What was in it for her?

A last favor she had said. Mary-Lynnette frowned thinking how their previous 'favors' couldn't have been as business like.

"Mary-Lynnette?" She blinked realizing she had been too wrapped up in her own thoughts to hear him the first time.

Ash looked at her with slightly worried brown eyes that were already turning hazel. He frowned but motioned her forward towards Leah.

Leah smiled devilshly and muttered, "Never knew humans were that stupid." Mary-Lynnette was about to retort when Leah waved her hand and said, "Look you just need to inhale this to relax, and I'll...probe your mind I suppose, to look for whatever you think is missing. Okay?" she asked patronizingly with that stupid smirk. Mary-Lynnette stared at the small brown sack in Leah's delicate fingers that she was suppose to inhale and glared into her dark brown eyes.

"I'm not into breathing in drugs or trusting people to just 'probe' my mind," Mary-Lynnette said sacastically. She didn't even care as the candles in the shop seemed to flare brighter as Leah's nostrils flared.

"Mary-Lynnette," Ash intervened, seeing the situation about to end badly. "I'm not happy about this either, but once we can get rid of whatever this connection is we can get on with our lives." Mary-Lynnette forced herself to calm down a little.

Leah's eyes flashed as she looked back to Ash. "A connection?" Ash nodded his head nonchalantly although Mary-Lynnette could see his shoulders tense. So I guess I'm not the only who doesn't trust her, Mary-Lynnette thought.

"You didn't mention this," Leah said holding the stone in her hand still. Her eyes glinted under her lashes.

"I didn't think it was necessary, I mean I'd thought you'd realize when two people - a vampire and a human forgetting something - it'd be obvious there was some kind of connection between us. A connection someone could've put" Ash raised an eyebrow at her as if asking her to argue his logic.

"Right... of course," she said. "Well Ash," she sighed, "before I regret this, tell your pet to smell this, or nothing I do is going to work."

Mary-Lynnette bristled at yet another stupid name this witch came up for her. Ash seemed to notice this and immediately told her, "Hey just inhale it, and once Leah's done you'll have forgotten about all this." Ash's light green eyes seemed a little sad as he said the last part, but Mary-Lynnette could've just imagined it.

Leah smirked as she handed Mary-Lynnette the small sack and Mary-Lynnette shot her a glare as she reluctantly took hold of it. Looking inside she noticed it was filled with ordinary looking twigs and leaves and some sort of brownish powder. Unknowingly with her face so close she had already smelled some of it leaving her feeling faint and relaxed with a sweet smell wafting around her.

She distinctly felt gentle hands grab her before she drooped to the floor. She didn't quite pass out - but she wasn't in control of her limbs because she was so relaxed, so languid, her eyelids fell shut.

The feeling was indescribable as she floated in between consciousness, but it could be best explained as a cleansing of her brain. Or rather a wave gently shifting through her mind. Like someone who went through a house picking things up and setting them back down. This went on for a little while until she felt the feeling ebb away but then stopped. It settled in one spot and it hurt a little bit, but then it was probed further making Mary-Lynnette breathe harder with pain.

When she couldn't take it anymore she was sitting straight up gasping and groaning wide awake. Mary-Lynnette's eyes settled on the two figures in front of her. Leah was staring at her with wide surprised eyes, and Ash was kneeling in front of her looking between her and Leah with knitted brows.

Mary-Lynnette asked, "What was that?" she slightly winced since the pain in her head hadn't fully left. At least now it was a dull ache.

Ash answered, looking at her with concern. "Leah went through your mind like she said."

Figures she was the one that caused that stupid pain, Mary-Lynnette thought.

Ash turned to the witch. "What was that?"

Leah still had her mouth opened in surprise and she shook her head. "Ash, whatever it is I can't help you."

"You don't know what it was?"

"No. I recommend seeing a strong telepath to get rid of that... Along with her memory."

Ash narrowed his eyes at Leah. "That's it?"

Leah finally found herself again and smirked, though it wasn't like her previous ones. "What are you expecting Ash? I did what you asked, and actually I'm kind of tired after that, so there's nothing else for you here."

They all stood up and Ash looked like he was about to argue, but he left with a final thanks with Mary-Lynnette following behind him. She stared after Ash who looked deep in thought with a scowl. The exited the small shop feeling more confused than ever.

xxx

Leah watched Ash and the human girl leave and laughed a little as the door shut.

Oh this was just rich. Leah had heard rumors of a Redfern being involved with that insane stray witch Dasiy Clara - but never had she guessed it was Ash Redfern. Leah remembered how Daisy had went on and on about that ridiculous soulmate principle and how she had 'found a way'.

But with Ash - he had less respect for vermin than she did! So Leah had been extremely suspicious since Ash had first appeared with the human, but she let him tell her why he was there. Any information was useful. She saw the way he looked at the human, and when he had mentioned a connection, she knew something was wrong. She went through the human's mind for confirmation and there it was - the spell on her mind with the distinct feel of Daisy's spell, like Daisy's signature was left to show it was her handiwork. There was no questioning it now. Ash Redfern had been the one of Daisy's experiments, along with the human.

Leah grabbed her old telephone next to the register and paused a moment before cranking the dial. She didn't even really like the crazy woman - but then again Ash had just thought she'd be okay with him turning up with some girl - vermin even.

A woman answered in a chirpy voice, "Hello?"

Leah drew her lips in a smile. "Daisy Clara? I think I've found your Redfern, along with his human."

A/N: Ahh, so finally this story starts...

Welp, thanks for reading :)