Wee Halfling

A young, wee little girl was huddled in her bed, blonde hair and olive green eyes peering past the faded pink blanket at her mother, sitting beside her with a warm, gentle smile. "Good night sweetie, do you want me to sing a lullaby to you? " She asked the child, as a hint of moonlight shined through the nearby window and lighting up her tired, but happy smile. "Yes please momma. " She answered, following with a soft yawn. The mother nodded, adjusting to get comfortable, deciding to pick something a little scary, a warning to her child. For last night, before bed she had wandered off from home and it made the mother worry. "Alright sweetie, now listen close. " She said in a gentle tone, before she began.

"Wolves asleep amidst the trees

Bats all a swaying in the breeze"

The little one blinked, thinking she might have heard this one before but it's been awhile and forgot which it was.

"But one soul lies anxious wide awake

Fearing all manner of ghouls, hags and wraiths

For your dolly Polly sleep has flown

Don't dare let her tremble alone

For the Witcher, heartless, cold

Paid in coin of gold

He comes, he'll go

Leave naught behind

But heartache and woe

Deep, deep woe."

The child tensed up now, knowing the song, the one that tended to frighten her the most. Monsters were scary enough to the child, but a Witcher was worse, since they were not so easily picked out in a crowd and people brought them around with their coin. The child and her mother were halflings, it was not entirely unheard of that humans wanted them gone sometimes, why not pay a Witcher to do the deed?

"Birds are silent for the night

Cows turned in as daylight dies

But one soul lies anxious wide awake

Fearing all manner of ghouls, hags and wraiths

My dear dolly Polly shut your eyes

Lie still, lie silent, utter no cries

As the Witcher, brave and bold

Paid in coin of gold."

The wee girl knew the next part, but everytime it was sung, it made her afraid. While most human children were afraid of being eaten up by the big bad wolf, this little halfling had a different fear...

"He'll chop and slice you

Cut and dice you

Eat you up whole

Eat you whole."

She ducked her nose under the covers, only allowing her eyes to poke out. Now frankly, the final part was very likely just a metaphor or meant to be figurative, but the little one took it very literally. One could not blame her, being a halfling child made her fairly small, a wee foot and a half tall at the age of 7, compared to a 6 foot tall Witcher, it was no wonder the little halfling took being devoured by one whole very literally.

The mother gave a soft smile after the lullaby was over, leaning to give a soft kiss to her child's forehead. "Sleep well my little Junebug and remember, don't wander off or the rich humans will hire a Witcher to gobble you up. " She told her, having known it was the final part that scared the little one the most. Though the mother was sure Witchers didn't actually eat children, if it kept her daughter from wandering off then that was good in her eyes. Typically, humans scared their children about Witchers stealing children to make more of their own, though that was a practice they stopped some time ago, it was still something humans used.