The Forest Witch's Home for Magical Creatures

Chapter 4 : Massie

Massie dug through her pack. She pulled out her picnic blanket and spread it on the group. Maybe today wasn't going exactly as she planned. She hadn't anticipated her intruder to be quite so violent. She didn't think she'd be thrown clear across the glade. The bruises and concussion were an inconvenience at best.

She pulled out the food and arranged it out on the blanket. Wren watched her every move. She tried not to feel unsettled under his watchful gaze. She rather felt like a pinned bug framed behind glass. She would learn to deal with it. She was used to animals watching her, she didn't see how a dragon would be any different. Her heart broke when he showed her the damage his body had sustained. She felt angry, which was unusual for her. She was angry at everyone who had ever hurt Wren. How could they see how magnificent he is and only want to rip him apart for their own gain?

It was disgusting. Magic should be freely given and shared. It was a blessing the Earth gave us. She didn't understand how witches could taint it with blood lust and violence. Massie looked up at Wren. His tall body was leaning up against a tree. His wings were tightly pressed against his back. His arms were loosely crossed across his chest in a move that made him look relaxed. The power flowing through his body was a stark contrast to his laid-back posture. His storm-blown eyes effortlessly tracked every move she made. It would take him a second to leap over to her. Killing her would be easy.

Massie had experience with predators. Her familiar was a grizzly bear. She ran with the wolves and stalked with the mountain lions. She knew that Wren was a predator. She could see it in the sleek muscle that made up his body. She could see it in the narrowing of his eyes and the glint of his fangs or claws.

He was dangerous. But she wasn't afraid. She had won over Ursa, she could win over the little bird. She drank one of the tonics she had packed. Her magic encouraged the medicine to work. Her body loosened when the pain dramatically lessened. This whole ordeal had her incredibly tense. She cleaned her hands and face with a wet wipe from her bag.

"I packed some food if you're hungry." She told him, making a point not the look over at him. She laid some food out for Ursa. She had packed a container of berries and nuts for the bear. Ursa licked her hand in thanks before rooting around through the box.

Massie took a sandwich for herself and sat the other one on the farthest part of the blanket from her. She split up the rest of the food that way. Some for her, some for Wren. She took a big bite of her sandwich and tilted her head back toward the sun while she chewed.

She was almost startled when Wren nosily rifled through his part of the food. She didn't hear him walk over or sit down. Ursa was giving him a strong side-eyed from where she was munching on her lunch. Massie watched him unwrap and try different food. She pointed to the collection of tonics and ointments she brought. "You can use some for your injuries." She suggested.

He snarled at her, clanking his fangs.

Massie was unimpressed. She took a small bite of her sandwich. "No need to be dramatic."

He wrinkled his nose as he bit into his food. " I don't want anything to do with your magic."

She pouted. " I just want to help you."

"It will heal on its own. I just need a place to rest. " He said with a mouth full. He didn't seem to care for the sandwich, but he liked the chips. He noisily ate biting into them with his sharp teeth.

"You can stay at my house." She told him. It would be awesome to have someone else in the house.

"I'm good."

"What do you mean you're good?"

"It means I don't want to stay at your house." He explained in slow words like he was explaining to a child how gravity worked.

"Why not?" She was definitely not pouting.

He rolled his eye hard enough that it had to hurt. "Because I don't trust you, witch."

She definitely was pouting now. "I swore I wasn't going to hurt you."

He raised a thick eyebrow at her and said nothing. The look on his face said it all. He still was expecting her to hurt him. She was going to prove to him that she could be trusted.

They ate the rest of the food in a tense silence. He watched her heavily under his eyes. She tried her hardest to eat in the most unsuspicious manner possible.She was overly aware of every move she made. When he was done eating, he leaned back on his hands with his wings out, seeming to enjoy the sunshine filtering into the glade. He still tracked her movements. Ursa was rolling around in the grass. Massie slowly repacked the backpack. She didn't want to leave the glade. She wanted to stay with Wren, she wanted to convince him to come home with her.

Finally, she had wasted enough time without looking too odd. She shouldered her backpack. " I can give you a safe place to heal. I have the extra rooms, lots of food and internet. " She said, trying one last time to get him to leave with her.

He narrowed his eyes at her but said nothing. She slowly walked backward out of the glade. "I lived four hours north if you change your mind. I promise I will keep my magic to myself this time." He continued to watch her back out of the glade without saying a word. She watched him until the trees became too thick to walk backward. Dejectedly, she climbed up on Ursa's back.

"Let's go home girl."

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Massie was witch enough to admit that she had been pouting ever since she came home from meeting Wren. She had promised not to check on him with her magic, and she planned to keep that promise. It had been three days and she was still expecting him to show up. She dragged her feet through every one of her tasks. She yearned to see Wren again. Her magic was restless and was urging her to reach out and find him, but she reined it in. She could totally be patient.

She could.

Probably.

There was a chance.

She was doomed. She was absolutely not patient, it was one of her many personality flaws. She wandered the forest looking for glimpses of him. She came back disappointed every time. She cooked dinner wondering what he was eating. She worked on her stock of ointments, potions, and beauty products she planned to sell at the farmer's market. She did her laundry and thought about how his shirt fit around his wings. She soaked in the tub thinking about when the last time he got a warm shower.

Wren.

Wren.

Wren.

She was obsessed. She knew it wasn't healthy but she couldn't get him out of her mind.