The Familiars of the Lost Witch (ONC 2024)

11. Asha

The further they went the darker it got. Darkness wasn't a problem for Asha, but she could feel the boy's unease. If they had traveled further at night, there would have only been the moon and the stars to guide them, but the faint light wouldn't have reached them when even the sunlight struggled to touch the earth.

Asha now walked again on her own, guiding her companions deeper into the forest. They didn't come across any living beings, although she knew they were there, hiding in the shadows.

The boy stumbled a few times over roots that protruded from the ground, but he would get his balance back very quickly and didn't fall down.

They all walked in silence, even Kyrell had stopped with his croaking. There was no wind here, only sometimes they would hear a rustling in the trees, but except for that silence hung around them.

After some time they saw a light in front of them, the trees thinned revealing a clearing. Asha quickened her steps, the boy with Kyrell on his shoulder stumbled behind her.

She remembered, they were in the right place, they really made it! Just a few steps and they would see Cybele, she hoped.

Just as they entered the clearing, a loud voice echoed over them. "What does a human want here? You are not welcome in this part of the forest!"

The boy flinched and took a step backward, ready to flee, but Asha just purred. She remembered this voice too.

"He's with us!", she meowed loudly, gesturing the boy to not be scared and follow her. He didn't seem entirely convinced, but he still followed her slowly.

The clearing was bright, but not because of the sunlight. It was a white light, a magical light. As they approached they could see some small huts at the far end and a fireplace surrounded by tree logs.

An old woman dressed in long white clothes stood in the middle, waiting for them.

"Are you Asha?", she asked in a soft voice and as Asha nodded in response, a smile appeared on her face, "the last time I saw you, you were still small. It's good to see you."

Then she said, looking at Kyrell: "Then you must be Kyrell, Cybele has told me a lot about you." Her expression changed from a heartwarming to a worried look: "But why are you here?"

"Could we speak to Cybele? Is she here?", Asha contered with another question. 

The hope in her crashed down as she saw the answer in the witch's face before she even answered. "No, she left a few days ago. Did you come all the way here to look for her?"

She had already left. Did they miss each other on their way here? Maybe they had slept when Cybele had flown above them. "When exactly had she left?"

The old witch had to think awhile, then she said: "Six days ago, today is the sixth day to be precise."

Then Cybele would have arrived home before they started their journey. Something must have happened, Asha was sure. At least they now knew that Cybele had been here and safely left the meeting. But what had happened afterwards?

"Oh, I'm sorry. Who are you, human?", the witch asked the boy. "How impolite of me, I should introduce myself first. I'm Dhana, a white witch. It's a pleasure to meet you. You are the first human to enter this place, my home, in centuries."

"He doesn't have a name", Kyrell answered for him, "and Cybele tasked him to take care of her house in her absence, but we needed him so we took him along." That wasn't entirely true, but it wasn't wrong either, so Asha didn't correct him.

"Oh, a nameless one. A cursed one too, very interesting", Dhana said after looking very intently at the boy.

The look he have the witch whe she said that was one of pure shock.

___

Wordcount:
chapter: 663 words
in total: 12.243 words

Another pretty short chapter, I know, but the following ones will be longer. ^^

So, Cybele's not there, but where is she then?

What's your first impression of Dhana? You'll get to know her a little better later on too. ^^