A season passed. Sebastian was released from the hospital, though he was still weak and thin. Abigail and Rasmodius settled into a comfortable, if lonely, routine. At night, Abigail would be transformed into a small black cat. She would sleep in her box, curled up by the fire heating the cauldron. In the morning, when Rasmodius woke up, he would undo the hex.
The wizard and his apprentice would then go to the table and study languages or potions over breakfast. After a couple hours, they would put their books away and practice spells. If there was a knock on the door, usually the farmer dropping off a Void Essence or some gems, the wizard would turn Abigail into a cat and she'd hide in the basement.
Pierre, Caroline, and Sebastian were warned not to visit. As Abigail's loved ones, they were in danger; the witch had promised to retaliate at the tribunal. Still, every few days, the farmer would bring a blackberry cobbler or a plate of Spicy Eel or a pumpkin to the tower. The wizard would react with indifference or scorn, and the farmer would wonder why Sebastian or Caroline bothered sending them over with such crappy gifts.
The Wizard would tell Abigail to make lunch, requesting dishes that would enhance their magical powers: Pufferfish with quartz garnish, molten iridium soup, salmon with emerald, and so on. This was Abigail's least favorite part of the day. She hated cooking. But, as a witch, she would need to know how to make food that combined organic and mineral sources to increase power. The Wizard insisted that she would cook lunch, every single day. Over lunch, they would go through the recipe and he would explain exactly how and why it worked.
After a few more hours of spells, it was free time. Abigail often used this time to write letters or draw pictures, though occasionally she'd ask to be turned into a cat. In cat form, she would climb the curtains and play with the trinkets on the shelves. She would run wild around the tower. The Wizard encouraged this; he knew that she was not getting regular exercise as a human, and wanted to keep her physical strength up. This was also when they would eat dinner, prepared magically by the Wizard. They would socialize rather than study.
Late in the evening, the Wizard and Abigail would set the nightly locking charms. The tower would be locked, of course. The stairs would be protected by a Hex of Repulsion. The Wizard's bedroom would be locked. The basement would be locked. Every large spellbook would be locked, and the Hex of Repulsion would be applied to the bookshelves. This annoyed Abigail, as she'd discovered how comfortable they were as a cat, but the Wizard stood firm. If the Witch somehow accessed the books, she could do great damage, even with light magic. After the locking charms and repulsion hexes were applied, the Wizard would turn Abigail into a cat. She would once again curl up in her box and go to sleep.