Never Ending Youth {Queen Ravenna / Reader}

12:

There was one spell I downright refused to teach those kids; the immortality spell. Thank fucking god I did. Had I tought them it, they would've gone against all I said and used it. This is torture. Irreversible torture.

It's been one hundred and something years since I left Tabor; since I left Ravenna. I always knew keeping myself away from her was going to be hard. I didn't expect it to living hell.

There was only one person I'd gotten attached too after Ravenna; Maeve. She was like a daughter to me. She was like me in many ways; motivated, opinionated, driven. The deaths of her family were all hard, but hers was exceptionally worse. Poor Zander was first to go. Drowing accident, I believe. Next was Sebby. Old age, natural causes, whatever you'd call it. Then was Jamie. Now, Jamie lived life like no other. He was the family risk-taker. Even with a house full of kids and a lovely wife, he was always chasing an adrenaline rush. He was killed in a riding accident. Fucked his family up majorly.

Finally, Maeve. Her death was odd. Not I, nor anyone else, had ever seen a death so different. Intriguing as it was, it was equally as shocking. Her heart would stop, then start again, then stop again. It continued that same pattern for hours, until it stopped and didn't start again. I had an idea on what happened at the time, but now I know for certain what caused it.

I'd been told just days after her passing that she had seeked out the help of another witch. I spoke to the witch. "She wanted to learn the gift of immortality." she said. Of course she did. "I didn't teach her though." she told me. Turns out Maeve had stolen one of the witches Grimoires while she wasn't looking. She took it upon herself to learn the spell. Obviously, she didn't succeed. Something went wrong, no one knows what though.

After Maeve, I never got too close to others emotionally. It's been hard not to let myself love the way I want to. Everyone from the Village is gone, everyone apart from Hugh.

"Finally, some bloody sun." Hugh says as we trek through the farmland near the Village. "It's lovely, isn't it?" I say. He nods in agreement. "How do you handle not being able to die?" I ask as I stop walking. Hugh stops a few steps ahead of me and turns. "I just do. I've been immortal for over two centuries. You get used to it." he tells me. "I've been immortal for over a century, Hugh. How long did it take you because I'm still struggling." I tell him.

He sighs. We continue walking. "I tend to ignore it." he says. I look to him. "You handle it by ignoring it?" I ask. He nods. "That's not very healthy." I tell him He laughs. "What else can I do?" he asks. I don't reply. "That's right. There's nothing I can do. There's nothing we can do." he adds. I sigh.

Hugh's the only person I have. The only person I can trust. I love him as one would love a brother. That's what he is to me; a brother. "Did you here Mary had her twins last night?" he asks as we approach the village. "Yes, I was there assisting the birth." I tell him. He frowns. "Since when were you a midwife?" he questions. "Since they needed extra help. Her birth was a complicated one." I explain. He nods with a hum.

We enter the village. Kids run around just as the ones did when I first arrived. I'd continued teaching magic for a while, but stopped when the population of witches within the village decreased. It's mostly humans now. Boring, regular humans. It's not like I'm not one myself, but having the gift of magic is far from boring. Other than Hugh and I there's probably around six or seven other witches in an population of around sixty.

"The yearly bonfire is tonight." I overhear a teenager say to his mates. "Fuck yeah. We going?" another asks. "Of course we are." yet another says. I smile as I walk alongside Hugh. These poor kids will never get to taste Miranda's gorgrous lamb. "I miss Miranda's lamb." I tell Hugh. "Mhm, me too. It was gorgeous." he says. I nod. "It was, I agree." I say.

"Thank god the sun came out in time for tonight." I say as I kick a small stone. Hugh sighs, but says nothing. "What?" I ask. "Look." he tells me. He points towards the centre of the village. Rose, one of the remaining witches, stands with a bunch of children around her. "Oh my god, Hugh, stop being a pussy and go talk to her." I tell him. He shakes his head. "I'd rather watch from afar." he says. I roll my eyes. "She might be immortable." I say with a shrug. His eyes rip away from Rose and they land on me. "She might be." I repeat.

He shakes his head. "No way. She's too youthful for that." he says. "Uh, rude. Do I not look youthful?" I joke. He shakes his head with a breathy laugh. "You know what I mean." he says. "What if I talked to her for you? I can see if she's going to the bonfire tonight." I suggest. He hesitates. "I'm going to." Is ay as I quicken my pace. "But-" he tries. "I'll see you later." I call over my shoulder.

I walk up to Rose, the children still around her. "Hey, Rose." I say with a smile. "Hey, Y/n. How're you?" she asks. "I'm well. Are you attending the bonfire tonight?" I question. She nods with a smile. "I am, yes." she tells me. "Great." I say enthusiastically. "Why's that?" she questions. "I have someone I feel you'd like to chat with." I say. "Is it Hugh?" she questions. I wink as I turn on my heels. She blushes. "Until tonight." I say.

I walk away, smirking a little. I walk into Hugh's cottage. "She likes you." I say as the door closes behind me. "What do you mean?" Hugh asks. "I told her I had someone she'd like to talk to. She asked if it was you. I winked. She blushed. She likes you." I explain. "How do you know she didn't blush because you winked at her?" he asks. "Intuition, my friend. Intuition."

That evening, a crowd starts to gather around the bonfire. Teenagers poke sticks into the flames while younger children watch the sparks fly into the night sky. I notice Hugh and Rose mid converation on my right. I give Hugh a sneaky thumbs up as I pass behind Rose. He smiles at me. Rose turns and looks at me then laughs.

I chat with a few groups of parents, then eventually get dragged into a game of football with some preteens.

"Alright, can everyong gather around the fire please?" Hugh calls. I round the kids up and we all hurry towards the fire. Hugh gives a speech. The speech he gives is different each year, but I've heard that many that I can just about predict what he's going to say.

As everyone is sharing around breads, and wines, and meat, I get a feeling of uncertainty in my stomach. I look around me. I don't see anything of concern. Suddenly the sound of distressed horses echoes from the woods. Hugh looks at me. "Come on." I say. He stands with me. No one else seems to worry. He doesn't even seem worried. It's just me.

We walk through the woods, scanning around us. My heartrace increases and I suddenly feel lightheaded. I stop. Hugh stops next to me. "What is it? Are you okay?" he questions. I squeeze me eyes closed and shake me head. "Yeah, just dizzy I think. Too much wine." I tell him. He chuckles. "Drunk." he mutters. I smile, fighting away the lingering feeling of uncertainty. We continue looking around. Nothing.

As we're walking back, I hear a twig snap nearby. "Was that you?" I question. Hugh turns to me. "What?" he asks. "Did you snap a twig?" I ask. He gestures to the ground. "Y/n, we're on grass." he tells me. "A twig snapped. I heard it." I tell him. "It was probably nothing." he tells me. I shake my head. "Something is wrong. I can feel it." I say. "Do you want to keep looking?" he asks. I hesitate then nod. "Yeah, I do." I say. He nods. "Okay."

We continue walking through the woods. "Can you feel the presense of someone else?" I ask. Hugh doesn't reply. "You can, can't you?" I ask. He nods. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I see a figure. I turn to look at it. My stomach drops. "Come forward." I say, my voice stern. The figure slowly starts walking closer. "Who are you?" I question. They say nothing.

The closer they come the more I recognize their shape. I refuse to believe it. I don't want to believe it.

The moon light illuminates their face. I inhale deeply, which is instantly followed by an exhale. Hugh looks at me. "Hello, Y/n." the voice says. "Ravenna."

A.N: BOOM, done. Hope yall enjoyed the ending. Be glad Y/n didn't fall in love with a man. That was the original plan.