Witches Don't Burn, Silly

Tea, the Most Dangerous Weapon

I sit in the forest. I had located the prison the kids had been kept at. I made various tonics and pastes. A tea pot made out of glass sits in my lap. I had figured out how to make glass a couple days ago and started using it for my vials.

The tea inside was kept warm by the small fire my magic held in there. I held the tea. I closed my eyes as I thought hard. I wanted this tea to put the drinker asleep. I knew when it worked. I could feel it in my bones. I took out my journal and wrote down my success. I got up and formed several tea cups.

I fed my horse and placed Sally on the saddle. I made sure Hazel was tied just enough. I placed my basket on the hook. I let go of the fire inside of the tea pot. I could feel my magic buzzing in the tea pot even though I wasn't using magic on it anymore. I need to explore the extent of enchantments.

I pulled the cloak over my head and started to make my way through the town, quickly, silently, effectively. I found the prison with ease. "Good night, sirs." I smiled up at the guards, guarding the entrance as I lowered my hood. "I'm here to give the guards, like yourself, some tea that improves alertness."

The guards soften immediately. "Well, isn't that sweet of you?" The older one smiles so gently it makes me feel guilty for what I am about to do. I handed them each a cup and poured the steamy tea into it.

"If you can, could you open the doors so I can serve the others?" I ask sweetly.

"Of course. We don't want to delay you. Your husband must be worried sick with you being out so late. We shouldn't add to his troubles." The younger one smiles. His keys jangle as he unlocks the door. He holds it open for me and they both take a sip of the tea. I start walking down the torchlit hall when I hear both of their bodies fall to the ground.

So, there's a delayed reaction to the tea. That's good. It gives them both time to drink the tea. I form two more tea cups and then wait for my eyes to fade to normal before I continue walking.

"Who goes there?" A guard says half heartedly.

"Good night, sir." I smile at the single guard. "I am here to bring tea that helps with alertness to all the guards tonight."

"Oh, aren't you just a delight." I pour him a cup of tea and he unlocks the next door for me. He drops to the ground, asleep. He snores softly as I work down stone stairs. I made another tea cup. There were four cells down here. Only one was occupied.

"Who's there?" There are three guards down here. I only have two tea cups. One of the guards is Seth.

"What are you doing down here, Mariposa?" He approaches me. My heart was pounding with nerves as I looked at him. My anxiety tripled.

"I brought tea for all the guards that will help with alertness." I smile but his face looks disbelieving.

"Seth, you know this girl?" One of the other guards asks. 

"Yeah, I met her earlier today in town." Seth responds, bored.

"Wow, Seth spoke to a girl!?" The third man joins in. The other two block his view of me as they bug him for details. I take the distraction to quickly make a third cup. Their conversation ends and my eyes fade back to normal right on time.

"Well, let's taste this tea." Seth smiles at me carefully, not the same crooked smile I saw earlier. This one was guarded and nervous. I handed them each a cup and poured tea into the cups carefully. My hands were shaking. I wasn't this nervous this whole time.

"Cheers to Seth finally talking to a girl!" One says and they all take a big swig of the tea. I smile at them and the other two hit the ground. Seth stares at me as his eyes start to get cloudy. My heart hammers in my chest. Why wasn't the tea having the same effect?

"You poisoned the tea?" He asks as he starts to wobble. "Why?"

"Imprisoning children and burning women at the stake is wrong." I state. I rush over to the cell he pulls at my arm in a feeble attempt to stop me.

"She's a witch, Mariposa."

"So am I!" The metal bars bend and twist and open completely.

"No... you can't be." He says as he falls to his knees. "How have you not burned at the stake?" He asks. I rush over to the two bundles on the floor. They weren't overly thin. They must have just been imprisoned.

"Who are you?" The little boy grumbled as I broke their chains and picked them up. I rubbed their backs.

"It's ok, I am here to save you." I whispered to the children. They couldn't be more than five years old. "And, Seth." I turned back to him. He was looking up at me from the ground. "They did burn me at the stake. It doesn't work on a real witch." I stooped low. "That means, all of those girls and women you have burned at the stake were innocent."

"You are wrong." He hisses from the ground.

"I'm not wrong. You are just in denial." Then he falls asleep. I wrap the two kids in my cloak and carry them up the stairs and out of the prison. I raced over to my horse. I placed the two kids on the floor. If I healed them right now the light would attract people. I forced different liquids down their throats and put pastes on their bodies.

The little girl's eyes finally opened and she looked up at me. Her brother mirrored her. One eye was brown and the other was blue. They had blonde hair and round faces. "You are a witch." She whispers and reaches toward my face.

"That I am." I lean into her small hand. "You are going to have to ride out with me, ok?" She nods and her brother stares at me drowsily. "What are your names?"

"He is Joseph, I am Josephine." Her eyes held a strong amount of intelligence. "What is your name?"

"Mariposa." She smiled. She had dimples and her eyes glittered with a smile. "Do you trust me, Josephine?" She nods. I lift her and her brother onto my horse. She squeals when she sees Sally. "Don't worry, Sally won't hurt you. She's a friend." The girl nods. I untied the horse and the town's bell started to blare.

"What's that?" She asks, afraid.

"That's the warning bell. That means the guards woke up and tattled on us." I informed her as I hopped on to the horse behind them.

"Will they find us?" Fear conquers her face and a spark flies out of her hand. Her blue eye turns pink.

"Hey, hey, hey." I shushed. I held her hand. "Your magic will trigger uncontrollably. You need to stay calm, ok?" She nods with tears in her eyes as the pink fades back to blue. She took deep breaths and clung to me. I rubbed her back and grabbed the reins of my horse. I kicked my heel into Hazel's side and we were off.

I held on to the kids and made sure none of the items fell off. I gave the two of them food. I looked into Joseph's eyes. They were so fuzzy.

"Josephine?" She looks up at me. "What did they give your brother?" I asked. My stomach rolled as I waited for an answer.

"I don't know but it smelled like death." She says weakly.

"Alright. Did they give you anything?" We were yelling to be heard over my horse's pounding hooves.

"Yes, the food had a drug that made us sleep." She started crying and I held the two kids close to me. The people that allowed this to happen were monsters. Horrible monsters. It doesn't matter that this girl is a witch. She is a child. A scared child just trying to get by.