Chapter 6 Cabin Where the Witch Lives

My mind was having difficulty digesting the events of the day. And because I was too embarrassed to show my face in class after all of the uproars, I opted to skip class for the day.

I don't want to be the center of attention any longer. It's harmful to both myself and my panther.

Out of habit, my hands rushed to my necklace as I was about to board the bus back home. That's when I remembered I needed to run to my godmother and have the gem's spell renewed, or I'd be discovered.

I sigh frustratedly into the air. This is the worst day of my life. 

Since last night, it appears that I have been cursed with misfortune. I simply want this day to be over with.

I guess I’ll have to make a quick detour and head to my godmother’s place. 

I begin to head into the woods because it is the quickest way towards her place. My godmother, being the residential witch and healer, lives isolated from the town. I heard that the witch’s magic is more effective when exposed to nature, though I have no idea how that works.

I guess that it has something to do with the herbs that she uses to make potions and medicines. 

When I reach the forest, I can feel my panther filing up with excitement at the smell of the moist soil and dense leaves. I could tell that she was dying to come out and play. Unfortunately, I had to push her back because the sun was up. With our black fur, we would easily be spotted even if she stuck to the trees.

I began to look around in the forest until I spotted a familiar path that I usually follow to get there. Over the years, I have continuously used this path to have her recast her spell on my necklace every three months.

Well, that used to be the duration of my appointment with her. But this year, the spell seemed to weaken at a quicker pace than usual; it only lasted for a month before I began to emit a distinctive smell.

It’s not even a bad smell. It’s just different from the scent that wolves usually omit.

I reach the stoned path that was headed to Sylphy’s place. And it wasn’t long until I finally arrived at her place. As usual, she is still living in a tiny wooden cabin. I heard that the Alpha offered to upgrade her home and make it modern style like the rest of the pack. She refused him, saying it would only weaken her magic with all the concrete and steel bar reinforcements polluting the soil.

I pass through her array of well-planted gardens full of herbs and vegetables. The aroma of them mixing in the air made my nerves feel so at ease that I even pause just to enjoy the smell of the air. I felt all the tension in my body was starting to loosen up with every inhale I took. 

“Enjoying the smell?” A chuckle behind me makes me jump back a few paces and crouch on the ground in instinct. Since I am in the forest, my cat instinct seemed to win over my human side.

When I see Sylphy in front of me, laughing at my reaction, I finally relax. “Godmother, it’s just you.” I breathed out a sigh of relief.

Sylphy was a woman in her 40’s. Her hair was still in a beautiful shade of brown with no speck of white in it. Her face barely has any wrinkles. If you look at her physically, you might even mistake her for being barely 30.

“Lunaris,” She smiles and opens up her arms for me in a hug.

I approach and hug her while laughing. As we parted, I went about my usual business.

To check her face for any signs of wrinkles. 

“Damn, Godmother. You really are you witch. You still don’t have any wrinkles despite being almost 50.” 

Sylphy reaches up and pulls at my ear, making me wince in pain. “Ow!”

“And you’re still a rude brat as ever. When will you ever learn your manners?!” She gives me a mocking glare before her eyes shifts to my pendant. Her gaze softens in concern. “Not again.” She says. “It’s becoming too frequent.”

I nod. “Yeah. The most that it lasts me is just a month. Godmother, can’t you do something about this?”

She places her hand on her chin as if trying to gather her thoughts. “I think I can change the spell into a stronger one. But I am not sure that it might work in your case. I’ll have to do some testing. Leave some strand of your hair for me before you leave.” She says and gives me an assuring smile. She moves to the side and gestures for me to head inside her home. “But before we do that, let’s get inside.” 

I smile and follow her back to her cabin. I have been here countless times already and am familiar with its interior.

Well, not like there was much to see anyway.

The cabin only has two rooms and a basement that leads to her workshop. The Kitchen, living room, and bedroom can be seen the moment that you enter her cabin. The other room is her bathroom, while the stairs lead down to her basement.

We head downstairs towards her workshop, where she usually does her spells and potion. And it is also the room that I was first dragged into and stayed to hide my scent while she first made me that pendant.

Sylphy turnsto me with her palms open. “It’s safe here. Give me the pendant, and I’ll begin to replace the spell.”

I take off the necklace from my neck and hand it to her. I immediately felt naked the moment that I lost contact with the cold chains missing from my neck. 

Godmother carefully places my necklace on a piece of cloth on top of a wooden table before grabbing a pair of scissors just beside it. Amidst the dim light illuminated by the candles, I saw her handing them to me. “Cut a few strands of your hair and leave it in that bowl.” She pointed at the empty clay bowl that lay on the table. “For me to make a stronger spell, I need your scent to see if it works. Obviously, you can’t stay here, so I’ll just have your hair instead.”

I grab the scissors as I see her move away from me and focus on the necklace. She places her fingers carefully on the center of the gem and begins to utter words that I couldn’t understand. I move and head to the closest mirror that I could find. I watched my reflection and began to brush my hair to locate the strand that wouldn’t be noticed when I cut it. I settle on cutting the back ones and snip just a few before placing them on the bowl.

As my left hand settles on the rim of the bowl, the fire’s illumination casts a weird shadow over my hand, looking like a scar that made me blink. I placed the scissors back on the table and carefully examined my hand to search for the scar but saw nothing. 

“Done,” Syphy says, breaking off my gaze from my hands. She was smiling at me while handing the pendant back. “What’s wrong?”

I shake my head dismissively, taking the pendant from her. “Nothing,” I respond with a tiny smile as I clasp the chain back around my neck. 

Maybe I just imagined things.

“This is a good amount,” Sylphy says while looking at the hair that I left. “I’m surprised that you haven’t gone bald.” She jokes.

I chuckle. “It’s not like anyone will notice anyway.” My nose sniffs the air and felt satisfied when I hadn’t caught the occasional unique scent that distinguishes me from the others. “It seems to work, Godmother. Thank you!” I joyfully beamed at her.

She places her hands on her hips. “What? Don’t tell me that you had any doubts about my abilities?” 

“If I didn’t, then why would I be here?” I joke. “You and my mom are the only ones that I trust, and you know why,” I told her with a smile.

“I don’t know if you are trying to flatter me or not, but I guess that it’s true. I mean, you would have long been dead if it weren’t for me.” She says and gives me a dismissive wave of her hand. “I assume that you can find your way out, right? Now, hurry up and get lost. I have books to read in order to help a poor girl hide her secrets.”

I move to her side and engulf her in an embrace. “Thanks again,” I say before heading upstairs. I see the light of the candlelight on her face just in time as she winks at me. I smile and make my way to the door.

After visiting my grandmother and having my pendant fixed, I figured that I would just take the path of the woods to reach my home. It was too late anyway because my legs were already carrying me deeper into the forest before I could even think about it.

I guess it was part of my animal instincts to become more comfortable with nature. My panther seems to be at ease as I continue to trudge the moist and rocky soil of the forest. My leg muscles worked perfectly as I went up on slopes and jumped from one place to another.

And then I stopped as I heard and smelled a presence getting closer before me. I waited and held my breath. The leaves rustled as an incoming figure appeared before me.

When I saw who it was, I relaxed. “What are you doing here?” I ask before I could even stop myself.

Atticus began to approach me with an equally confused expression that mirrored mine. He rubbed the back of his head and stared at me with a hesitant gaze. “I should be asking you the same thing. What are you doing in the Strigon mansion?”