Sunlight streaming in through plastic blinds interrupts the potion queen's slumber. She physically separates herself from the pillow beneath her head that is adhered to her cheek with drool. Her body feels stiff from sleeping on a hard mattress in a confined space all night. As she sits up in the twin sized bed she realizes that she is utterly alone. She shifts into a sitting position, and stretches. She rises to her feet, and exits the room.
The source of noise leads her to the dining room table. Izzy sits at the table with ear buds in. Believing herself to be alone in the room she belts out the lyrics. Hecate quietly takes a seat next to her, and allows the time to pass. In an instant the singing ceases, and Izzy pulls the earbuds out of her ears. She turns towards HB and offers a smile as her wild hair desperately attempts to escape her braid.
"Good morning," Izzy greets her.
"Do you have permission to ambulate?"
"I have permission to advance my activity, and my diet as they are tolerated. I came in here because I was hungry."
"Where is your father?"
"He's at the market this morning he won't be back for another hour. I assume he believed I would be safe in your care until he returned."
"I feel capable of keeping you amongst the living until his return."
"I have two questions. Would you prefer the easy one or the hard one first?"
Hecate gazes into the young girl's hazel eyes. She exhales, and places her hand on her shoulder as their chair face each other. "Whichever is a priority to you will suffice."
"I have seen you demonstrate fierce loyalty in the time that I've known you. I can't seem to understand what would prompt you to choose to willingly pass off sole custody of me to my goofball of a dad. Can you explain?"
Hecate's lips draw into a line. Her heart, and her mind war with each other.
"I was experiencing post-partum depression whilst in the midst of an existential crisis. My world was upside down, and I couldn't reconcile a way to keep you safe in my care at the time. I regret believing that a well-crafted potion laced with the right proportion of forgetting powder, and an eloquently written chant would sever anything other than the hands of time. You see it isn't as if I failed to remember that you existed. I always knew that somewhere in the world I had a daughter. The details were fuzzy. The decision is utterly regrettable. I allowed fear to convince me that because at one point I was not fully capable of the task of single-handedly providing you with the life I believed you deserved I would never be capable. Days turned into months, and soon years passed. My concrete, and quite frankly, dysfunctional belief system cost the both of us time together that will never be returned."
"Have you considered the possibility that neither of us would be who we currently are, or are meant to be if such time hadn't elapsed?"
Hecate leans back in the dining room chair. Her posture relaxes as she contemplates such a theory.
"You're suggesting my mistake served a purpose?"
"Yes. Maybe I would have been an utter nightmare had you not hindered my magic in infancy."
"Who said anything about such a concept?"
"You just did."
"Was there an easier question?"
"It seems simple, but I am not familiar with your qualification, or skill for the job."
Hecate's lips tick upward into a smile, "Now you're just toying with me."
"Can you make me breakfast?" Izzy squints at Hecate "Do you even know how to cook?"
"How often have you seen me eat the meals Miss Tapioca puts in front of us?"
Izzy combs her memory bank as she sits in the dining room chair clad in a lavender nightgown, "Never. I thought maybe you had an eating disorder, or something. You're trying to say you cook your own food?"
"Precisely."
"I've eaten my body weight in jell-o. My dad typically makes me French toast."
By the time Dave returns he finds Hecate standing in his kitchen in bare feet with wrist deep in soapy dishwater. Izzy stands by her side with a towel meticulously drying breakfast dishes. He leans against the doorway for a moment hoping to go unnoticed.
"The rumblings of your truck prevent your presence from going unnoticed Mister Jones," Hecate announces without shifting her glance in his direction. She hands Izzy a freshly washed whisk, and diligently proceeds with ridding the dishes of grime. Izzy secures the whisk in its resting place. Her face tips upwards towards her father. He gently squeezes her to his side as she attempts to vacate the room.
Hecate has drained the sink by the time Izzy has disappeared from sight. Spike wears a t-shirt, baseball cap, and a pair of blue jeans. His lips curl into a smile as he watches the best witch dry her hands on a dish towel.
"How is your fish out of water experience going? I know that we offer far less prestige here on the farm."
Hecate leans against the sink in yesterday's clothes. She neatly folds the dish towel as she considers her response. "It has been a refreshing change of pace."
"Are you eager to return to Cackles?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Izzy will require decreased levels of activity for several more days. I find it challenging to complete all of the farm related chores and tend to all of her necessary activities of daily living. This is a busy time of year for me."
The stoic deputy headmistress furrows her brow, "I do not require any excuse to lend assistance. If you feel… our daughter would benefit from my presence all you need to do is ask. I will have to return to the academy for some personal items if my stay is to be extended."
"In all honesty it has been quite lovely to have you here. Not just for Izzy, but me as well. If I am being upfront I must admit I always wondered what this might look like. I can see that you would grow restless in this setting quite quickly, though."
"It is nice to be reminded from time to time that not everything requires the remedy of magic."
"When I was at the market a pregnant woman pass by, and I couldn't help but flashback to when you told me that you were expecting Izzy. I was caught off guard by the entire situation, but most of all how calm you were about the fact that your entire life plan had been disrupted."
A quick grin morphs into raucous laughter. Spike scratches his head.
"Obviously I am missing the joke."
"It took me months to find the first ounce of stillness about the matter."