2: In Which Maka Flies Towards Her New Home

Once they were out of reach of the village, Maka pulled the broom level. It still resisted her slightly, but it didn't try to throw her off this time. The young witch pulled out her compass and held it out. She rerouted herself to point south-southeast before urging the broom forward. It shuddered before shooting off. Maka grit her teeth and leaned into the broom. Blair's claws were digging into her shoulders painfully.

"Maka!" Blair called above the wind. Seriously, how on earth that human thought it was okay to fly at such a neck-breaking speed so late at night was beyond the cat. "Where are you headed?"

"Dödenstad!" the girl replied.

"Where?"

She turned her head and repeated it. "Dödenstad! It's a big city by the ocean south of here."

"Do you know which way you're going?"

"Of course. I've done my research. I decided on it six months ago!"

"Why?"

As they left the city limits of their home village of Litenby Maka finally slowed her pace. Blair unhooked her claws from her witch's dress and sat at the end of the broom, watching and waiting for a response.

Maka asked her, "Do you remember my old friend, Tsubaki?"

"Was she the Japanese one who moved out of town last year?"

Maka nodded. "We've been writing each other letters since her family settled down. Apparently they moved to a pretty big city a few days south of here. And she even asked around and found out there are no witches!

"Tsubaki already talked to her parents and they said it's okay if I use the spare room until I can find a place of my own. I figured having a roof over my head would make things easier to plan."

"I think it would've been better if you had more of a plan before leaving," Blair mused.

Maka chose to ignore her.

"Does Tsubaki know we're coming?"

"I mentioned it in the last letter. She should've gotten it by now. Give me a second, I need to make sure we're still on track."

She gripped the broom with her legs. It took a few moments to find her balance, but Maka was used to flying. It was one of her favorite things to do. Once she was stable Maka pulled the map out from under her dress to show Blair.

"See this dot here? This is Litenby. I drew a route we can follow to Dödenstad. According to my calculations it'll take us about six days to get there as long as the weather isn't too bad. I hope it'll hold. It's been a really rainy summer so far."

"Are you saying we'll be sleeping outside every night?"

"Not every night. I have a lot more money than I expected, so we may be able to stop at a few hotels on the way there. That's good because I didn't have enough room for a tent. But we will for these two days." Maka waved her hand over the forest the red line was drawn through. "There's a huge gap between the city and the countryside that's split by Häxorskog. The only thing that runs through it are a few roads and this railway here. It'll probably be a bit rough, but I heard there isn't anything dangerous living there so we'll be oka—"

Blair suddenly interrupted, "Maka, look!"

Maka glanced up to where Blair was pointing. About thirty feet above them, flying on her very own broomstick, was a fellow witch. Blair glanced back at Maka; the young girl looked more excited than she'd ever seen her. It was no wonder considering the blonde had never met another witch in her life.

Maka leaned her broom up towards the other witch. The broom shuddered as it rose slowly up. Maka was able to get a good look at the other witch as she rose. This witch had long silver hair. She was wearing a black dress like Maka, except she had accessorized with an orange hat, white boots, and a polka-dotted sash around her waist.

Maka pulled up beside the witch. "Hello!"

The other witch turned, a bit surprised. But she too smiled.

"Hello yourself." She noticed the bag hanging from Maka's shoulder. "I take it this is your first time leaving home?"

Maka nodded. "Yep! I just turned thirteen today."

"Today?!" When she nodded in confirmation, the other witch whistled lowly. "I see. That's pretty unusual. Are you two heading south?"

"Yes, to Dödenstad!"

"Geko, so far too! I'm impressed. Feel free to fly with me a bit. I'm heading in that general direction."

"Thank you...?"

"Eruka Groda."

"My name's Maka Albarn. This is my familiar, Blair."

"Nice to meet you both. Like I said, I'm Eruka, and this little demon is named Free." Her one-eyed cat gave the two a grin that could only be described as wolfish. Blair flinched. Eruka laughed a bit.

"He chose that name himself," she explained to Maka. "Don't really know why."

"He seems…nice."

"Like I said, he's a little demon."

The cat purred as if he'd been complimented. Eruka scoffed a bit at whatever he'd said.

"Oh hush you! We're almost home now, no need to show off."

"Um…" Maka interrupted. "Is it hard, finding work?"

Eruka took a moment to think through the question.

"It can be. I was lucky to know some elemental magic, especially pyromancy."

"Pyromancy?"

"Flame element magic." Eruka held out her hand palm up. A glowing ball of fire appeared in the middle, causing both Maka and Blair to gasp.

"I've been able to conjure flames all my life. Pyromancy's destructive and has a bad rep, but it's part of my ability as a witch. I was able to get a job working as a theater technician in special effects. The company directors said they may try to get me a job on the big screens, but I wouldn't want that. I like the simple life. I happen to be pretty good at fortune telling, and I know showbiz is one path I shouldn't be taking."

The two girls were flying over a town with blinking lights. Eruka nodded at it. "That's where I've been living these last three years. It's a smaller town, but I love its charm.

"I'm going straight to bed tonight. Good luck with your training, Maka."

"Thank you."

With that, Eruka flew fluidly over Maka and down towards the little city below. Maka watched her descend with awe. Even she wasn't that good at flying yet, and it was the only skill she'd ever actually acquired.

Will that be enough? she couldn't help but wonder.

It seemed that Blair had other things on her mind.

"That cat's barely got two lives left, I tell you! It's a miracle that witch even has her familiar still!" Blair scoffed.

Maka ruffled the cat's fur playfully. "The only reason you've still got nine because you're so pampered. You sure you ready for city life?"

Blair just huffed and turned away.

They flew in silence for another hour. The clouds in the distance were slowly getting closer. Maka paused for a second, taking out her new looking glass and staring towards the ominous mass.

Blair tugged on Maka's dress. "I think it's going to storm. I can feel the static in my whiskers!"

"I think you're right," Maka agreed, putting away her looking glass. "See that sheet in the distance? I think that's rain. We'll have to find a place to stay for the night."

"Do we want to ask that Eruka girl?"

Maka shook her head. "It's a small town. I don't want people thinking I'm there to challenge their witch's spot. We're still not too far out in the country. I'm sure we'll see another one soon."

She wasn't wrong. Within thirty minutes a second, much smaller village appeared. Maka landed a bit outside of it and walked to the inn right as the rain started coming down. It was a cozy place with more traveling artisans crammed into the bar area than there were stools. Thankfully the barmaid noticed Maka immediately and fetched the innkeeper (her husband). He gave Maka the key to the smallest attic room and a dinner of fish, bread, and watered ale in the back.

"It'll probably rain most of the night, dearie," said the innkeeper. "We've not had a good summer storm in a while. Best you stay inside tomorrow for fear of lightning."

Maka thanked him and retired for the night, listening to the rain pounding against the roof and the thunder roiling in the distance. She turned on the radio for a bit, noting the weather wouldn't be any better, before rolling over and going to sleep.

マカの宅急便

The second day was rough. The constant rain meant the two didn't make much headway. After forcing her way through almost zero visibility for two hours Maka was convinced by Blair to stop in a small industrial town by a winding river. There was no hotel or inn, but the local wives took her in. Maka spent the rest of the day flying the workers lunch from their wives in return for housing her. She spent that night eating a communal dinner of creamy potato soup and sleeping on a spare cot in a basement.

The next morning was much easier for the traveling party. After getting breakfast bright and early in a local tavern Maka and Blair set off south-southeast again. It seemed as though the old broom was getting more used to Maka's flaring personality. It flew straighter and with much more confidence than before. The fact that the terrible weather had finally passed brightened the mood as well. It was all warm sun and gentle breezes as they flew farther and father from Litenby.

They were also getting further away from civilization. Maka and Blair flew over wild forests for a couple of hours before stopping in a clearing to eat a simple snack of crackers and jam and salted meats. After the humble meal the two continued to fly over the never-ending expanse of trees.

"Is this around where Häxorskod begins?" Blair asked.

"I think so. Which is good. That means we're only a bit behind schedule." Maka looked down at her familiar. "Why do you ask?"

Blair shook her head. "I can sense and old magic here. This is definitely the Witches Wood. The trees seem to be speaking. I wouldn't be surprised if the Old Council would have meetings in this forest."

Wow, thought Maka. I wish I could hear the trees too.

Blair pawed at Maka's arm, snapping the girl out of her thoughts.

"Nya Maka, when are we stopping for a real meal at any point?"

"Soon. I'm getting pretty hungry also. If we see another small clearing we'll take a break, okay?"

The next clearing appeared less than an hour later. Maka landed and turned on the radio to listen to some music, but the signal was too weak and she wasn't able to get any reception. Shrugging, the witch took out a can of soup. She dug around in her bag until she found the fire starters and a couple of flat tin bowls the wives from the mining town had given her. Maka put the fire starters away and poured the soup out into the two bowls. As they ate, Maka couldn't help but stare at Blair a bit.

It was common knowledge that a witch's familiar was born with an innate knowledge of magic whereas a witch would normally have to train for years to have those skills. This practice dated back to oral traditions (now considered nothing but old wives' tales). Witches and their familiars both had equal parts of a witch's magic. This was to ensure the partnership would last a lifetime. This meant Blair wouldn't die until Maka herself passed away.

When she finished, Maka closed her eyes and tried to hear what Blair had been talking about. To her the forest seemed like any other forest. Quiet, yet filled with life. Maybe this was just something she wasn't ready to learn? Every witch had things she was naturally attuned to. Maka's mama had been an excellent potion-brewer. Maybe Maka would find her cause soon.

Maka grabbed the now-empty bowls. "I'm going to wash these."

"Don't go too far," Blair warned.

The two took a nap in the warm afternoon sun that was filtering through the overgrowth. Maka woke up much later to do some business. She stretched, yawned, and gathered her things. Blair, who had been sleeping on Maka's stomach, was forced awake. She seemed a lot less pleased than the witch when they were leaving.

They took off again and stopped closer to the evening. Maka wanted to fly a bit farther to find a clearing, but Blair was once again the voice of reason.

"It'll be too cold, and we don't want you getting sick. Besides, it's dark."

The two ended up spending a somewhat uneasy night in a very small patch of grass under a canopy of green. Maka was able to start a fire after several minutes of struggling with damp twigs.

If only I had pyromancy, like Eruka, Maka mused. She didn't say anything though, choosing instead to read a bit of her mother's old tome until she drifted off to sleep.

マカの宅急便

The fourth morning began at sunrise. Both witch and cat woke up with nature, covered in dew. Maka was infinitely grateful for the second dress her papa had gotten her as she ate a bag of peanuts, feeding Blair a can of tuna she'd brought for the trip.

Maka went to find a stream where she could wash up, taking the clean dress, a bar of soap, and a towel with her. The forest seemed to swallow her up as she followed the sound of running water. The trees somehow seemed thicker here. Untouched by civilization, they grew in silence.

The stream she'd heard was up ahead. It was cool and clean. Maka quickly bent down to scrub her face with some water. She took a sip of it as well. Shivering, Maka pulled off her clothes and dipped her feet in them to wash off the travel exhaustion. It took a minute before she could brave the plunge into the icy water.

A movement out of the corner of her eye made Maka sit up. There, on the other side of the stream, was a small blue light. It flickered in and out of view. Maka stared hard. It looked like a soul, but without a body to possess.

A will-o'-the-wisp?

The small blue light bobbed towards Maka. She felt the sudden urge to hold it close to her and soothe it. Instead, the witch backed away a little. When the wisp didn't follow her Maka turned and walked as quickly as she could back to the campsite. She pulled the dress over her head as she did so.

Will-o'-the-wisps were only thought to exist in the deepest, darkest parts of ancient forests. They were often the souls of travelers who'd lost their way. Nature changed them into something that wasn't quite human or ghost. Most people were wary of them, except for a select few who had the ability to free them from their prison on earth. Those who failed would often be enchanted into a will-o'-the-wisp themselves, left to roam the world in search of freedom.

Maka wasn't about to test her luck. She turned and walked back as quickly to the campsite as she could.

"Ready?" Maka asked as Blair polished off her breakfast.

"You seem anxious to leave."

Maka shrugged. "Not really. I just want to get to Dödenstad as soon as possible."

Blair didn't seem fully convinced, but she accepted the story. "Make sure you get a cup of water to put out the fire with. Maka wouldn't want to burn this place down by accident."

That was true. Maka grabbed her canteen and went to fill it. When she went back to the stream there was no sign of the wisp. Maka took one last glance around the woods before leaving to continue on her journey.

Maka tied her damp dress to the end of her broomstick. It could air out as they flew. Blair, who grimaced the moment her paws made contact with the knotted sleeves, decided to settle on Maka's head instead.

"Don't fly too fast," she warned.

Maka laughed and promised, "I won't! Besides, if I'm where I think we are we should reach Dödenstad in another three days. We'll hit the shore by nightfall. From there there should be a bunch of smaller fishing towns we can stop and get supplies in until we get there."

"Okay." Blair yawned. "I'm taking a nap, so don't drop me."

"I don't plan on it," Maka insisted.

After a few minutes Blair's easy breathing signaled Maka that the cat was asleep. The witch sighed and focused on the road ahead. Hopefully she would break the trees by nightfall. Somehow Maka wasn't too keen on staying in Häxorskod for too long.

They ended up not passing the forest that night. Maka and Blair settled down for another night outside. The ground was cold beneath them, but the sleeping bag was warm. It was the first night Maka considered using it and she was glad she brought it.

It took a while for the witch to sleep, but Blair insisted there was nothing out there that would harm them. Feeling slightly more relaxed Maka tossed and turned until she passed out.

マカの宅急便

The fifth day was exhausting.

It seemed the toll of extensive travel had caught up with Maka. She was flying a lot lower than before. The broom bobbed up and down, occasionally shuddering. The bag would have probably fallen off of Maka's cramping back if it hadn't been for the fact that it was clipped around her waist. The witch was taking more frequent breaks to ease up on her sore shoulders. Blair seemed perfectly happy to stretch out as well.

"I think I've realized how much I hate sitting on a broom," she commented at their next break. It had been less than an hour since the last one.

"Don't say it," Maka groaned, flopping onto her stomach. "I think my shoulders are going to bend in soon. And the bag's only been getting lighter since we've left."

"Where are we?"

Maka pulled out the map. She stared at it for a long time, frowning.

"I'm…not sure?"

"Are we still on track?"

Maka nodded. "Unless the compass broke. Which I doubt. But I think we're about half a day behind from what I expected. So we should be out of the forest really soon. After that, nothing but countryside. We'll probably see the shoreline too. It'll take us straight to the city."

Thankfully the two ended up being on track. After getting out of the forest there was countryside where Maka was able to rest frequently. It didn't take much longer after that to reach the shore. Maka flew a few kilometers off of it where the towns were.

They were fortunate enough to find a medium-sized city to stop in for lunch. Almost all the people in the restaurant gave Maka weird looks as she ate her sandwich. Blair hopped onto the table and ate the food she was given. They left as soon as they could. Maka dumped their trash into the nearest trash can before taking off. With some of the excess weight off of her back she relaxed a bit.

Filled with a newfound determination Maka flew a little truer. She decided to leave the bland shoreline and chose a more direct path to Dödenstad. All she had to do was follow a railroad track all the way south. They were very visible, glinting silver against the green of the country.

It seemed like they would make it within two days. When Maka told Blair the good news her familiar purred.

"Good," she said. "I miss beds."

"And I miss hot baths," sighed Maka.

"And sitting on not a broom."

"And doing laundry."

"And fresh food."

"And toilets."

"You humans and your toilets," Blair scoffed.

Maka laughed a bit. "I guess we've got good reason to get there as fast as possible. I'll fly a bit faster for a few hours. That should help."

She was able to pick up the pace until nightfall. When it became too dark to see Maka finally took a break on top of a parked train, groaning. Using her magic for such an extended time was proving to be quite an ordeal. On top of it all, there was the distant roil of thunder.

Blair flinched. "Please tell me there's a town nearby."

"I haven't seen a town in miles." Maka sat down on the tracks with a sigh. "Looks like we'll have to camp out here for the night."

"On top of the train?"

"On top of the train."

The boom of thunder caused both the witch and cat to jump. Blair glared a bit at the sky before walking off down the train. Maka stood and followed her curiously.

"Blair, where are you going?"

"Somewhere where she's not getting wet!" She pointed at a train car with the roof door open. "Like in there."

"Blair! We'll get in trouble if we're caught!"

"Do you really want to spend a night sleeping outside in the rain?" Blair asked. "Because I don't. No thank you! Bu-tan's sleeping inside and Maka can't stop me!"

"Ugh, Blair!"

The cat hopped down into the train car. Maka groaned and debated what to do before sliding in after her familiar. There was a slight jolt of falling before Maka's back it a pile of something soft. She closed the opening behind her. It took a moment before Maka's eyes adjusted to the darkness. Once she could see she crawled away from the entrance to where Blair's dim outline was grooming.

"Hay?"

"Seems like it. And it smells awful, like cows."

"This train's probably for livestock," said Maka. "That's why there are slots for air on the sides. They're probably underneath us. Just don't burrow into it and we won't hit anything."

There was another crack of thunder followed by the drumming of rain on the metal above them.

Blair, done grooming, stretched. "Told you inside was a good idea."

"Hush you."

The hay wasn't the most comfortable so Maka pulled out her sleeping bag. She wanted to eat, but exhaustion hit her harder than she'd expected. Maka had enough sense to open the bag wide enough for Blair to crawl in with her before she passed out.

Neither witch or cat woke up as the train started, its wheels groaning against the tracks. They didn't stir as the train began rolling south, picking up speed into the rhythmic clacking. Instead they slept through the stormy night.

マカの宅急便

Maka woke up disoriented yet well rested. She wiggled out of the sleeping bag and stretched. It took her a minute before the panic set in.

"Oh no!"

"What is it?" groaned Blair, obviously still mostly asleep.

Maka began rolling up her bag hurriedly. She shoved it into her bag.

"Blair, we fell asleep!"

"Yes Maka. We slept. Every living thing sleeps. Your point being?"

"What's different about the train now?"

"Um, it's moving?"

"Exactly!" Maka gathered her bag and broom and began to crawl towards the door. "That means that we aren't where we were. For all we know this train could be heading towards the middle of nowhere. Or worse, back north. We came so far! I don't know if I can navigate us back towards Dödenstad!"

Blair trailed her. "Maka, don't panic. Even if we're a bit off course, we can find someone to talk to. I'm sure there's something. More people live in the south than where we came from further north. You're the one who told me that."

"Still!"

Maka wrenched the roof door open and stuck her head out. The wind whipped her hair around. She peered out. One her right was countryside. And there, on her left—

"It's the ocean!" The witch sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. No matter which way we went we can just follow the coast."

The cat crawled up out of the train, rubbing her eyes and yawning. "Oh. It's just a big lake, isn't it?"

Maka took a deep breath in, relishing the smell. "It's salty! That's how I can tell. I'm sure you can smell it too. And the ocean's a lot bigger than a lake, Blair!"

"It's all water to me. The only good thing that comes out of it is fish."

Maka was distracted, however, by a street sign the train happened to be passing. She pointed at it excitedly. "Blair, did you see that?"

"See what?"

"That sign just now. It said Dödenstad's just a few kilometers away!"

"Really?" Even the cat looked excited as she clambered up Maka's shoulder. "Which way?"

"I'm not sure. Give me a minute."

Maka scanned the horizon with her spyglass. "There! Blair, look!"

The cat closed one eye and looked through the lens offered to her. It took her a few moments of squinting before she was able to focus on the thing that had gotten her witch's attention.

"It looks like a big town to me."

"That's right! But it's bigger than any town we've seen before." Maka took back her looking glass and tucked it safely around her neck. "I bet you that's Dödenstad. We should fly there at once!"

Maka ducked back into the train to retrieve her bag and broom. She straightened her hair, clipped on her bag, patted the loose hay from her dress, and climbed out completely. She mounted her broom.

"Ready Blair?"

The black cat hopped up and settled onto the end of the broom. "All good."

Maka hopped off the train and flew straight towards the peninsula where the city was situated. To her right was the last bit of sprawling green countryside. To her left was open ocean, blue waves rolling peacefully. And directly ahead was Dödenstad.

Please note I know absolutely no Swedish so I put "Death City" into Google Translate then tweaked it so it looked aesthetically pleasing.

Next chapter: Maka and Blair arrive in Dödenstad.