A Witch's Curse

Chapter 4

           "Wait, before you try to kill me, which I'm sure you can't, listen. I can heal Lyssa's arm. I know you've heard the stories, I am indeed the witch leader of them," she said gesturing to the wolves. And the way she said it made Rosalin want to through things. She said it so calmly when Lyssa could be dying—Wait, how did she know Lyssa's name? As she opened her mouth the witch cut her off, "You're probably wondering how I know her name. I am somewhat skilled in that matter. You are Rosalin Seranin, sister of Keila who saved you when you were thirteen. She is Lyssa Telora, you met when she tried to steal your broom and you knocked her out of the sky then saved her from the townspeople. Do I need to go on?" Rosalin was a little lightheaded. She shook her head no. 

             "I can heal her arm fine enough. But can we stay here, at least for the night then we can leave in the morning?" 

             "Fine." She came over and being careful of her arm they lifted Lyssa up and they brought her inside the doors of the tower. The wolves followed in behind them. Honestly, they were kind of cute when they weren't growling and snarling. The tower was made of old stone, it was kept nice and clean though. Sconces hung on the wall leaving no darkness in any corner. 

              "Do they have names?" she asked trying to stop the silence. 

               "Yes. I learned a couple of tricks once. I had them tell me their names," she said with a hint of a smile, the most emotion she had shown. 

               "You made them talk?" She cut Rosalin a sharp glance. 

              "They are not capable of speaking as we do. It's called telepathy when you speak through your mind. The other can hear you say something in your mind and then respond back," she explained. 

              "So what is this one's name?" she said petting one on the smaller side that had walked beside her. She seemed pretty happy for a wolf. 

               "Farrah. Watch out for her, if you feed her she'll never leave your side."  The giant wolf that had nearly killed Lyssa walked behind the witch. The witch saw her stare. "Her name is Nerian. She's mine." They walked into a small room with a bed, a nightstand with a lamp on it, a dresser, and a fireplace with a small couch. They walked over to the bed and laid Lyssa down on it. Her blood stained the white sheets. The wound had started leaking again. "Third door on the left, second floor. On the desk there's a bag, grab it. Now." Rosalin turned and ran. Farrah ran next to her not missing a beat. She ran up the staircase and looked at the doors. Which one? Farrah ran into the room on her left. She ran in after her. There on the desk was a bag just like she said. Rosalin grabbed it and hurtled back down the stairs into the room where Lyssa was bleeding out. The witch dug through it pulling out a vial of clear liquid. "It's a healing medicine that numbs the area," she said pouring some on the wound. "Now come help me, it will go faster if both of us do it."

          For six hours they worked on repairing Lyssa's arm. After five she finally told Rosalin her name. Vera Ren. Lyssa woke screaming when there was a more painful part they were working on. And with a wave of Vera's hand, she was asleep. "Do you know if your family originally came from the witch kingdom?" Vera asked as they lounged on the couches in front of the fire. She shrugged. 

            "Our mother never told us anything from our line," Rosalin responded carefully. "Why?" Vera shrugged. 

            "Just wondering, mine did." They were silent for a moment before she continued on. "Did you know what people said about Queen Avril's daughter? They say no one ever found her body, that she escaped in the night. That the line lived on and soon our Queen will come to save us." Rosalin stood up. 

             "I'm going to check on Lyssa." She walked down a flight of stairs and into the room where Lyssa was clutching a mug of tea on the couch next to the fire. "How are you?" Lyssa turned to her. 

             "You fixed my arm," she said looking at the moon-white scar in its place. Rosalin sat down next to her. "Do you think Queen Avril's daughter survived, that the bloodline is alive and she will save us?" She must have heard them talking upstairs. 

            "I don't know. What could she do though? Would anyone follow her, or would they call her a coward for hiding all these years?"  The witch was a coward for hiding. For not saving her people. "I would follow her. So she could save us all, even if she is a coward," Lyssa said quietly. "Why don't you come officially meet Vera," she suggested. "Who is Vera?" She hadn't seen her before she fell unconscious. "You'll see."

         They walked up the flight of stairs then into the room where Vera was waiting. "You," Lyssa hissed. Lyssa turned to Rosalin, "You are friends with her now? She held a blade to your throat! But now we're stuck with her," Lyssa said in outrage but muttering that last part. 

           "What do you mean we're stuck with her?" she asked Lyssa. Throughout this argument, Vera had stayed silent. 

             "Are you really that ignorant? Is it not obvious that I am apart of your coven? That she will be too. You find all coven members within months," she finished near yelling. 

              "Lyssa, stop. I was not being ignorant, I just didn't want to hope, to be like that again," she said, the anger swallowing the sadness lining her words. 

                "Again?" Lyssa asked. 

               "The last time I hoped, my sister died," she said walking out the doors and into a room Vera had said was hers for the time being. She kicked off her shoes and laid down on the enormous bed that took up most of the room. She was asleep in seconds.

        The banging sounded on the house's door. A pair of violet eyes met her own. "Rosalin you are to run right after I do through the window, head to the forest. I'll lead them away then meet you at our tree. Understood?" She nodded. "I love you from the stars and back, I'll see you soon." 

            "I love you too Keila," Rosalin said before Keila opened the door and ran through the crowd of people. Rosalin jumped onto the chair placed by the window and climbed through it. She took off at a sprint towards the forest. When she was in the blanket of trees and brush she looked to see an arrow flying towards her sister. Her magic couldn't reach it, but her voice could. "KEILA, LOOK OUT," she yelled as loud as she could. The arrow was incinerated the second Keila saw it. Her and Keila would live, she knew it. Four of the men stopped and turned towards her. She could hide, but she couldn't outrun them. Rosalin ran to their tree. It was always their little hideout spot. She climbed up the low branches covered in vines. The vines would shield and hide her. She sat tucked away in the branches. A couple of seconds later the men came crashing through running right past the tree. A female scream sounded. Keila. She begged and pleaded to anyone that might hear, that her sister would live. More screams, full of pain. They were hurting her. The men were gone, she knew that. Carefully she climbed down through the vines and branches. She ran to the edge of the forest. There she saw her sister hanging in a giant bonfire. She was still screaming. Her clothes were burned and so was she. If she could get close enough she could heal the burns and put out the fire. But hundreds of people stood around her. She couldn't save her. Keila had led them away knowing only Rosalin would be safe. Keila looked to the edge of the forest, it almost seemed like she saw her sister there in the brush. She watched Keila's body go limp and she stopped screaming. Dead, her sister was dead. 

           Rosalin woke up screaming, covered in sweat. Lyssa ran into her room. "What happened?" She saw Rosalin's pale face and the beads of sweat on her brow. 

            "A dream. The night when..." She couldn't finish the rest but she knew Lyssa understood. Vera came running her wolves at her side. "I'm fine, it was just a dream. You can go back to bed," she said half hoping they wouldn't. Vera looked relieved but Lyssa still looked concerned. Vera turned and headed back to her room. 

            "Are you sure you're going to be fine?" She chewed on her lip a bit. 

            "I will be," she said quietly. Lyssa nodded and turned away. Revealing Farrah standing in the doorway. She walked over and jumped onto the bed. The wolf just curled up next to her and when she woke for the second time but not waking everyone up, the wolf had stayed by her.