Days went by and the King and Queen continued their pursuit for a child. As the end of the month approached, the King began to gather all the information he could about the Witch. He followed all stories of her good deeds and especially the tales of her deception. His Queen and kingdom had to be safe before he would go to the Witch for help. Rumors circulated of how high her prices could be. But indeed, the Witch was fickle. Sometimes she would ask for nothing, a spare coin or two, and at other times it could be outrageous. The King was understandably wary about going to her.
But one month had passed and still the Queen was not with child. True to his word, the King agreed to go to the Witch. Under the cover of night, the couple traveled to the secluded cabin hiding in the woods. They slowed as they approached the door and exchanged a glance. The Queen nervously pulled her dark cloak tighter around her shoulders. The King took hold of her hand and the Queen nodded to confirm their decision. Silently, the King raised his hand to knock on the wooden barrier. Before his hand could connect with the door, it opened inward causing them to jump involuntarily.
The Witch's dark eyes stared at them from beneath a mass of matching black hair. "I was wondering when you would arrive," she said with a vulpine grin. She stepped away from the door, pulling a ribbon loose from her skirts. Tying back her hair with it, she turned back to where the royals still stood. "Well, come in."
The King and Queen entered the cabin together. Three dogs with huge eyes, one with golden fur, one with silver gray and the last with russet brown, watched them disconcertingly from a worn couch in the corner as the royals moved through the cabin. The Queen tried not to stare at the strange odds and ends within the small, strange home. The King kept his eyes locked on the Witch, convinced she was planning something. How else would she know they were coming? The Witch sat down at a small table by the fire. She motioned to two roughly made chairs. "Please."
The King and Queen glanced at each other before taking the offered seats. The Witch put her elbows on the table with her hands underneath her chin, fingers laced. She matched the King's stare with her eyebrow cocked. The staring match went on for some time before the Queen interrupted.
"Stop it, you two," she said, halting their unspoken challenges.
"Shh. I'm enjoying this," the Witch, quieting her.
The King's eyebrows furrowed into a deeper glare. He did not trust this woman at all. "You know why we are here."
"I do. And I'm waiting."
The King slammed his fist on the table. The Queen grabbed his arm to keep him from standing, knowing he resorted to anger too quickly. The royal woman gave the Witch a scolding look.
"Fine!" The Witch left the table and went into one the back rooms. The royal couple heard her rummage around for a few minutes, humming to herself. While they waited for her to return, the dog with the copper fur came and sat beside the Queen, wanting to be petted. The golden one appeared beside the King and just stared at him with his huge dark eyes. The King quickly became self-conscious under their gaze.
Looking anywhere but those eyes, he noted how everything in her home was worn and seemed like a collection of antiques pushed far beyond their breaking point. There was nothing to show she had money of any kind. To his wife he murmured "How can she afford to feed all these dogs?"
"They feed themselves," the Witch answered, emerging from the back room holding a large bowl with various herbs in jars waiting to be measured. Taking a bone still red with meat from the bowl, she threw it toward the King. The golden dog snapped his jaws just in front of the King, catching the bone. The Witch moved to kneel in front of the fire and stoked the flames. The golden dog padded eagerly to her side to show off his catch. The Witch rubbed her familiar's head saying "Very good catch, Oro. Very good." The hound wagged his tail happily and returned to the gray dog that remained laying on the ratted couch. The Witch continued to hum her nonsense song and laid out her meadowsweet. She began measuring out materials a mixed them in the bowl. The gaze of the golden dog had finally gotten to the King and he began to pace.
The Witch hung the bowl over the fire to let the herbs simmer. She took up some pieces of pine wood and formed them into a little poppet. With steady fingers, she weaved in strands of dill into the doll.
"What's that for?" the Queen asked, curious.
"Dill is known to provide protection. For children specifically."
"So, you admit there are dangers," the King said, frustrated.
"It's just a precaution. Don't you want the child to be protected?"
"Please, ignore him. He's just anxious," the Queen defended the King's words.
"No," the Witch hissed sarcastically.