The Witch of Vera Wood: Chapter 2

The Witch of Vera Wood

Chapter 2

            Tarja woke the next morning with a headache. As she sat up, she remembered everything that happened the day before.

            “Stupid boy,” She thought. She swung her legs off the bed and onto the wooden floor of her bedroom. She got up and took one step forward, stepping on an object that caused her to topple over. Cursing, she turned her head to see what she stepped on. It was a large bone that was separated from its skeleton a few feet away against the wall.

“Damn it Peter!” she said out loud. She muttered to herself about her familiar, Peter. He never cleaned up after himself. Never. She got up again and went into the cabin’s main room.

That was some thunderstorm you caused last night, she heard Peters voice say in her head.

“Can’t you ever clean up after yourself?” said Tarja sternly to her familiar. “I nearly broke my neck tripping on your mess. One more time and I swear I’ll…”

You’ll do what? You can’t kill me, you need me. She heard his barky laugh in her head. It was true, she did need him. Every witch needed a familiar. If it wasn’t for Peter, her supply of virginity would be nonexistent by now. Stupid kids having sex earlier and earlier all the time. Not as much fresh meat out there nowadays. It’s only thanks to Peter’s shape-shifting abilities that she could acquire more of the main ingredients for her most valuable and important potions.

“I’ll think of something,” she said, frustrated. “You know, you need me too! If I die without somebody killing me, then you’ll have no purpose in life. You’ll die too. So clean up after yourself!”

Fine! By the way, I found this on the doorstep this morning. Thought you might like to read it. Peter picked up a folded piece of paper in his mouth and brought it to Tarja.

“What is it?” she asked. She took the paper from his mouth and unfolded it. It was a letter.

Dear Tarja,

I’ve noticed that you have yet to train a witch of your own. You know it’s your duty to do so, and you have certainly taken your time. I suggest that you do so soon, or the witch’s council will have to take action. I believe you know the consequences of not doing your duty. Your sister did deserve what she got, as much as it broke my heart to inflict such a punishment on my own former pupil. I would hate to do the same to you. I know it takes time to find a good candidate for a pupil, so I will give you three months to find a pupil, though I hope you don’t need to use all that time. Inform me when you find a pupil. I myself will come to examine him or her when the time comes for them to prove their devotion to our lifestyle. I wish you all the best in finding a student. Good luck!

                                                                        Sincerely,

                                                                        Freda

                                                                        Head Witch

“Crap!” though Tarja. The last thing she wanted to do now was to train some brat in the art of witchcraft. She completely forgot about her duty as a witch until now. She hated that rule. Stupid Witch’s Council.

What is it? said Peter, seeing the expression on Tarja’s face.

“Stupid Witch’s Council,” she replied. “Want me to train a witch. Won’t that be fun?” she said sarcastically. Why couldn’t they just let her live her life in peace?  No, she had to do her “duty”, or else she’d end up like poor Luna, her sister who had to face exile when she spat on the council’s rules and married that mortal. Now she was stuck on some little island in the middle of the arctic sea with all the other exiled witches. Tarja would rather train a brat for a few years than spend a lifetime in a frozen wasteland.

Where are you going to find a student? The locals seem a bit stupid, and you’re unlikely to find one willing enough, with your track record.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Well, last night for one. And remember those poor souls still buried in the cliff? And…

“Yeah, yeah, I get it!” said Tarja. Peter was right. How was she ever supposed to find a student among this crowd? They were all either horny teenagers or completely terrified of her.

“This is hopeless,” she sighed, sitting down at the kitchen table. She read the letter again and this time took not of the name signed on the bottom. Freda. Freda was the one who took Tarja on as her pupil, along with her sister, Luna. Freda held the title of “Head Witch” for as long as Tarja could remember.

“Such a bitch, but she did her job well I suppose,” Tarja thought. Of the few hundred witches on this side of the world, Tarja was by far the most skilled. She learned almost everything she knew about magic from Freda, with the exception of the magical properties of so-called “new world flora”. That she learned from three hundred years of observation.

“Guess I’m off to find a pupil then,” she said to Peter.

Good luck!

*          *          *

“Breakfast!” Kathy called while holding a pan of sizzling bacon in her hand. Her little sister Nikki came running down the stairs with her stuff for school, followed by the slow, heavy steps of her dad, still in his nightclothes, rubbing his eyes. As they sat down, Kathy dished out the bacon and poured them both some orange juice out of a carton.

“Thank you!” said Nikki in her usually perky tone. Kathy smiled.

“You’re welcome,” she replied. “I packed your lunch and everything. It’s on the table over there. Don’t forget to take it when you leave.”

“Okay,” said Nikki, after gulping down her first piece of bacon. As she attacked the second piece, Kathy’s father spoke.

“I’ll be home late today Kathy. It’s a full moon tonight, so after work I have to gather the coven and start the ritual. Just tuck Nikki in, don’t wait up.”

“Sure, sure,” said Kathy. She knew the speech. Her father often came late after leading the Coven through some random rituals or whatever. She was used to it.  Kathy’s father got up, gulped down the last of his OJ, and put the glass back down on the table.

“I’m off then. Come on Nikki, I’ll drive you to school,” He said.  Nikki hopped off her chair, took her lunch, and followed her father out the door. Kathy found herself alone, as usual. Ever since she finished school and her mother died, Kathy sort of became the housewife. Cooking, cleaning, looking after Nikki, it was all part of her day. Her father was always either at work or practicing Wicca. He was the leader of the Coven that met in the woods, and he often tried to convince Kathy to join them, but she didn’t want any part in that nonsense. She was just like her late mother, and merely accepted the fact that her dad was a Wiccan. She knew that what they did wasn’t real magic, but she never mentioned this to her father. She saw it all as very silly.

She also hated being alone. It often made her very sad, because until a year ago, she was almost never alone. During the day, she was at school, and when she came home, her mother was always there. Now, there was nobody here but her until four o’clock when Nikki’s bus dropped her off.

She had had some jobs before, but she was more needed at home. Who else was going to do the cleaning and prepare dinner? Sometimes she really did wish that she could do magic, like the witches they showed on TV. Just zap dinner onto the table and have the whole house cleaned with the wave of her finger. But it was not to be. The “magic” her father did is nothing like what was on TV, and she doubted the witch that lived in the woods would teach her anything, not after seeing the large scar she gave her father just for knocking on her door.

Kathy looked around the room. She could clean later, it wouldn’t take too long. She slipped on some shoes and went out the door. A walk would be nice. It was a nice day, and there was barely a cloud in the sky, surprising considering the thunderstorm last night. Her house was just outside the woods and she walked straight into it and along the narrow path that wound around the trees. After about half a mile, she plopped herself down underneath a large beech tree. She always loved being in the woods, and when she was a little girl, her mother would always take her for walks in it. She got teary eyed, remembering the good old days. Soon the tears became accompanied by sobs as the dark, sad thoughts descended upon her. For what seemed like an eternity, she sat there, weeping and hugging her knees. She looked up only when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a figure. She looked up to see a woman in all black, with jet black hair and fair skin. It was the witch.