Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
O pening my eyes, I glanced around, shocked to see several pairs of eyes. I blinked. There, a few feet away, stood several villagers, all standing in various stages of shock.
I looked around, and was appalled at the sight before me. Where once there had been a small cobbled street between two buildings, now there was a single, bloodthirsty plant growing from the middle of Arne’s chest. It seemed to reach from the ground at his back and through his chest, blooming a blood red, spiky blossom.
Stunned, I looked at the devastation beyond Arne’s body, at the street now covered with ferns and mushrooms and moss. Bricks lay scattered among them as if a giant had come and knocked over the nearby walls, some beyond the end of the street.
The murmuring of the villagers became louder, and my ears picked up the words “magic” and “whore” before I shut them out.
I didn’t have the mental space to focus on the rest of the villagers, my eyes kept dragging back to the macabre tableau before me. I’d never seen my magic do anything beyond healing and the occasional illusion, yet since the Black Forest it’s been - different. Almost sentient.
I rubbed my chest absently, trying to rub away the ghost of the pain. I couldn’t find it in myself to be sorry for what happened to Arne. He deserved what he got.
“Did she do this?”
“Witchcraft!”
“She should be imprisoned for this!”
The strengthening murmurs of the crowd began to invade my consciousness, and the overall tone made my skin prickle. Yet, had I not used magic, I shuddered to think what might have happened. Magic saved my life, and I doubt anyone here could honestly say the world wasn’t better without Arne in it. Magic, the very thing that has so far cursed my life with struggle and uncertainty, was there for me when everyone else simply shut their ears and ignored what was going on under their very noses.
No.
No, I would not allow them to dictate my story any longer. I stood, albeit on slightly shaky legs and brushed off my skirts. The eyes of every villager nearby focused solely on me. “You know the kind of man Arne is, you know what - almost happened here.” I swallowed the ugly word, not yet able to give voice to it. “It seems magic saved me when no one else would.”
I let the weight of my words settle on the crowd. A perverse satisfaction filled me as I watched the cutting words land on their conscience. Good, I was done holding back.
“I have no desire to live in a place where wickedness like this is allowed to grow, and no one is willing to stand up to it. I will be leaving in the morning.”
I looked over the flora covering the streets and winced. There was no way that King Almains doesn’t hear about this exorbitant display of magic and come hunting for me, but I should at least be safe for the night. The weariness weighing down my bones wouldn’t allow for me to leave tonight, as much as I might wish to. But as the king lives several days' drive from Bur?l, that should give me ample time to relocate before he can catch up to me. I’d successfully avoided him for ten years, I’d like to keep on avoiding his attention if at all possible.
But, that now left me with no immediate plan for the foreseeable future. I sought out Afflerbac’s eyes from the crowd, and was instantly dissuaded from begging a bed of her when I saw her disgusted expression as she surveyed my surroundings.
Not going to even try my luck.
Just as I was about to turn around and wander aimlessly for a bed, Mila, the village baker, motioned for me to follow her. Hesitantly, I walked around the corner after her, body tense and ready for the unexpected.
“I was just wondering… I hope you don’t think I’m rude for asking, but,” she stumbled over her words, “But I can hide you for the night, if you need someplace to sleep.”
I blinked. That was… not what I was expecting. “Is Marzell okay with this, too?”
She wrung her hands. “I - I haven't asked him. I don’t know that he would… but I can make sure he don’t see you!” She rushed to finish, and then hastened to add. “It’s not that I think you’re a bad person, mind, it’s just that, well, Marzell is… He’s…”
“I understand,” I assured her, reaching out to rub her arm. And, I did. It was easy to ignore and pretend that the men in this village weren’t sexist pigs when I was able to mostly avoid them by living on the outskirts, but maybe I had kept my head in the sand too much.
Maybe I was just as much to blame for the current state of ignoring evil as I just blamed the villagers for. I hadn’t closed my ears to someone else's cry, but I haven’t been as vocal as I should be. I’ve kept quiet far too often, when I should have taken a stand.
“I just couldn’t bear the thought of you with no place to sleep, what with your house burned down and all,” she added with a wince, interrupting my train of thought. “And you were so kind last summer when I was sick with the flu and couldn’t do nothing. I haven’t forgotten your kindness,” she added with a whisper.
Touched, I nodded. “A bed tonight would be lovely.”
“Meet me behind my house in half an hour, then.”
Before I could say anything further, Mila turned and fled towards her house. Looks like I have a plan for the night at least. I’ll wait until tomorrow to decide the rest of my fate.
Flipping my hood over my head, I attempted to blend into the crowd, keeping my head down. I just had one last errand before I left.
“Katharina, what in Perun’s name are you doing here?” Ida whispered furiously as I readied to throw another pebble at her window. I lowered my arm and she continued on without pause. “What if Dahle hears you?”
“I came to say goodbye.”
Ida pursed her lips and gave me a look that seemed to look right through me, then turned to throw her legs over the window. “Help me down.”
The window was only a few feet from the ground, but I dutifully reached out to help steady her. Her nightgown looked thin and flimsy as she rubbed her arms, but at least it wasn’t still damp, I thought ruefully. My own clothes were still decidedly damp and catching every little breeze. I’m not sure I could ever get fully warm, at this point.
“You leaving because of what happened in the square?”
Trust Ida to always get to the point. “I thought it wise, considering the amount of magic I’ve expelled.” I didn’t mention the magic I used in the woods, either. Either time. Probably shouldn’t even be thinking about that.
“Watch out for that Dark Fae fellow. He was seen again today out by your house. Well, your old house, I guess.”
My blood joined my bones as ice traveled through my veins at the mention of his name. Did he come to gloat over his recent kill? Did he, like so many others in the village, think my Waren ‘lesser than’ because of his heritage? My hands flexed, wishing he were near so I could show him the same mercy he extended to Waren. My magic rose to the surface of my skin, responding to my heightened emotions. The smell of gingerbread grew strong in the air, and I struggled to contain it, to not let it take over me once again.
I couldn’t mess up - not again.
Once I was fairly certain I was still in control, I looked up at Ida and noticed her studying me. The peculiar look in her eyes gave me pause. “What?” I barked. “You’ve seen me use my magic before.”
“Not like this, I haven’t.” She cocked her head, “Something’s different.”
“Yeah, well. You try having the day I just did and see if you are the same after.”
“What’s changed?”
I barely resisted rolling my eyes. Ida was like a dog with a bone, she wouldn’t let up until I gave in. “I think I let my magic go too far earlier. It’s… changed since then.” Honestly, it felt a little bit like relief to tell her about this, oddly enough. She’s one of the few people still in my life that I could talk to about my magic. Well, my only one now, I guess. Fiach wasn’t human, so he didn’t quite count. Plus, he’d hidden that he could talk - talk! - so he was in the bird house for a while.
“You’re not going to turn evil on us now, are you?” Ida’s eyes grew wary, and she drew back half a step.
I started. “Why would you even think that? Of course not! That’s not who I am, Ida, you know that. You, more than anyone else, should know that!” I was screeching by the end.
Gingerbread again perfumed the air, and I stopped myself from saying more. I desperately wanted to give her the tongue lashing she deserved, but I was bone weary, and if truth be told, half afraid my magic would actually take over and do something I wasn’t comfortable with. Still, a little faith in me and my magic was warranted after all the good she’d seen me do with my magic. So instead, I simply turned on my heel and walked away without a backward glance.
I didn’t owe this town another moment.