Fantasy Witches of the Road

[Hygswitch]

Tilda was taken aback by Ravyns openness but did not think much of Raya misspeaking. She, immediately felt a strong urge to help Ravyn. To protect her. To invite her on her trip. She was quite uncertain if that was a wise Idea though. But...it made her open up more. She ended up sighing and taking another sip before saying: "That is not a great Situation you are in." She looked at her and smiled with a slight pain in her eyes. "I am in a similar Situation. I had to flee my coven, due to a ... medical reason. Though saying it even was my coven is kind of a stretch." She left this remark hanging, a slight blush to her ears. She was certain that by now she was quite hard to clock, she had put a lot of work into her transition over the last three years and was lucky to have started pretty young. Should she...open up? Would every Witch react to her like her Family had? She was a bit afraid. But she had a strong need for connection. Having a Witch with a similar Situation as a guest made her giddy.

 

[Scavenger]

Raya sat quietly, hands wrapped around her cup, she felt like this conversation was enlightening. Afterall Ravyn's statement made it obvious that it is unusual for covens to kick individuals out. The second part of her statement made Raya curious though, her grandparent's books made extensive mention of curses as a type of magic with a long lasting effect, but she had never dug into the topic, long term magic wasn't normally useful for her missions and as far a she knew she'd never been cursed back. Maybe the books would have something that could help Ravyn, if Raya decided to stick with her. It seemed like her condition was a horrific curse to lay on someone though. Her quiet musing on what she must have done to deserve the curse was interrupted by Matilda's response.

Raya barely managed to contain a scoff but still had to hide a small smirk behind a sip of tea at Tilda's understated response, being outside of a coven made you an easy target for people like the Knights and if you were like Ravyn and would struggle to fight back then only death awaited. As the other witch finished talking Raya's eyes were wide in surprise, how had she somehow managed to run into 2 witches both without a coven on the same bridge, on the same night. After a moment of introspection Raya decided that if she was going to trust anyone to help her learn about the witch world these two would make good choices. From that decision she asked the question that had recently started running about her head "This may be a slightly odd question but how many witches make up a coven?" she asked quietly. Her father had always painted covens as huge decadent witch families that kept human as chattel but as she was quickly finding her father lied about a lot.

 

[BloodLightning27]

It was a pretty bad situation to be in. Unfortunately, she only learned about the curse about two weeks ago when she was forty-two weeks pregnant, two full weeks passed her due date. So it really wasn't a great situation. To be permanently pregnant and not knowing when the curse will end, finally allowing her to welcome her baby into the world. However, she was expecting it to end at the worst time possible. It did bring her some comfort that Matilda had a common ground, but for a different reason, differnet circumstances. Resting her hand on her belly, Ravyn took a bite out of another cookie, but had to take it slow since they were a little more crunchy then usual. The thought of putting them into a microwave sounded appealing, but also sounded kinda gross...

But looks like Raya was a little surprised. Both Witches she met tonight were having Coven troubles. While she couldn't speak for Matilda, Ravyn was kicked out of her coven not too long ago. Raya then proceeded to ask how many witches made up a coven. "Most Covens have thirteen Witches. Some have less, some have more, but the latter is rare since a large number of witches in one place isn't a good look. My Coven had eight. I was to be the nineth until I was exiled and cursed. It's only been me and my baby since...Well, until today." She said, giving a bit of a detailed answer for Raya.

 

[Hygswitch]

Matilda looked at Raya for a moment and was a bit surprised at Ravyns answer. "Funny you should say that. Mother was always very firm on having an auspicious number of witches in a coven. Like to her there where only three good sizes. 3 Witches, 7 Witches or 13 Witches. My Aunt always said that any prime would do so 2, 3, 5, 7, 11 or 13 Witches. If you ask me that isn't too important, nearly any number is auspicious in one culture or another. I'd always have thought that 3 was kind of the natural size. If not for a Coven, then at least for a circle." She thoughtfully scratched her head a bit. They where three, sitting here, in her ... no not her aunts, ... in her RV. One was covenless like herself. Wanted to travel and by the looks of it could use all the help she could get. She couldn't help but wonder...

Tilda looked at Raya over the rim of her cup as she sipped it. "You know for those that follow her, the Goddess has three forms after all." Tilda wasn't a devout practicioner of the old Faith, but it was good to keep those traditions in mind. Even if she had been an outside looking in all her life, growing up with witches as a boy, or a girl that thought she was a boy had taught her a lot.

 

[Scavenger]

Raya contemplated the other two's responses. Trying to compare what they were talking about to anything that she had read in her family's books. It sounded like perhaps Ravyn had come from a more formal, or at least more traditional, coven than the younger witch. Raya looked puzzled at Matilda's mention of a circle but tried to keep it as a mental note rather than interrupting the other witch's train of thought.

She did, however, let her natural tendency to quirk her head take over at the mention of a goddess. Her books refereed to several different higher spiritual beings, but most of the texts she had seen focused around how a witches' ability comes from within. Her father maintained that all of the beings in the books were fake stories anyway, all that Raya knew is that none of them answered when she had prayed as a young girl. "Goddess?" Raya asked while shaking off the thoughts of the past, "I didn't realise....." she trailed off a slight look of understanding taking over her face as if she just thought better than to say her previous sentence.

 

[BloodLightning27]

Ravyn was a little surprised to hear about the Goddess. While not a devout follower as her former coven had changed a lot from what she remembered to keep up with the constantly changing world, she did remember her Mother and Grandmother telling her about the deity. She couldn't remember how many Witches were in her own, but she was to be at least the thirteenth addition before she was exiled for being pregnant. And cursed with eternal pregnancy, which she only learned about recently. Ravyn made a mental note to ask about the Old Faith later, mainly because a refresher would be nice. "I'd be inclined to hear more about her later." She said. "Mmm, it's getting rather late. If we don't go to the market now, we'll probably have to wait till a little after dawn."

Slowly, she stood up and straightened out her dress before taking a deep breath and then putting her hat on. "Let's go, shall we?"

 

[Hygswitch]

Matilda smiled a bit. She had not really been brought up in the old faith, and highly doubted that her Mother and Aunts had been strong believers, but she still grew up with those stories and a lot of the Traditions where observed at her old Home. "Yeah, I guess you are right, Ravyn." she said softly, as she quickly collected all the cups and stowed them in the Sink for now. "I mainly need a way to harvest Mana to be honest. Maybe an oldfashioned Water Mirror Bowl will do, so I can get some from the Moonlight." She was looking forward to the market, but was really hesitant to enter it. She knew it was one of the smaller ones on the eastcoast, but one could still find vendors for nearly everything and anything. She remembered beeing tricked into nearly selling her Soul when her Aunt took her there as a Kid, and so she knew that one needed to be cautious when dealing with some of the people there.

Richborough had quite a big Troll and Goblin population so both peoples where well represented there. A Human First Nations Shaman from way back maybe had the oldest Booth. There also was an Elven Smiths Workshop, specializing in modifying Modern Tech with Magical Metals and Workmanship. In the last years they mainly specialized in Motorcycles. If she could afford it she would have loved to have the RVs Engine overhauled with a Manacharger so it could run without Gas. But she neither had the funds, nor the time. Elves with their Centuries to Millenia of Lifespans tended to be incredibly slow at times as they had differing views on what doing anything quickly ment.

 

[Scavenger]

Raya relaxed a little as it appeared her conversational blip slipped under the radar, her focus returning to the other two as she went back to following the conversation. As Ravyn moved the conversation back to the topic of the market the relaxation drained from her muscles, tension bleeding back in. Raya quickly downed the remainder of her tea, suppressing the grimace of the burn as it hit her stomach, to allow Mathilda to take the mug. Once she had, Raya sprung quickly to her feet and darted out the door, making sure to reach it before Ravyn just in case anyone else had noticed the van while they had been relaxing inside.

She took a position just next to the door and surveyed the outside, trying to keep an ear on the goings inside of the van at the same time. Once she was sure the coast was clear she stepped forward and turned back to face the door. Despite her position she made no effort to help Ravyn down the step, instead she focused on Matilda "Don't you use a spell to harvest existing mana?" Confusion was evident in her voice, her families books were fairly clear that they considered it a basic spell to rip the background mana from an area for either immediate use or to store in a crystal. The book considered mana harvesting devices to mostly be a crutch or a device of last resort, so she found it curious that a witch with such a well crafted van would need one.

 

[Hygswitch]

Matilda contemplated this for some time as she locked the Van after they all had stepped out. "Just Taking Mana from Nature and the Living Things around us should always only be a last resort. It is a lot more gentle to just skim off what nature provides passively. I mean if everyone just took the local Force all the time the Leylines would start shifting again and we would be back to devastating Mana Storms." She looked a bit stricken after this. Was her position too influenced by having grown up in one of the great Houses, that held one of the Leyline Nodes and thus always had Natural Mana galore? Wasn't it a naturally elitist stance? Most Witches did not Belong to the Houses, and did not have a deep Mana Well to call their own. She had been agonizing about how to have enougth of the Juice from now on, she had to admit herself. "I am sorry, I know not everyone has the Luxury of...I am coming off as spoiled and elitist. This is not who I am I swear. Beeing gentle and considerate is still important to me though." She was visibly downcast after saying this.

 

[BloodLightning27]

Ravyn had been the last to disembark the RV. From here, it was off to the market to grab supplies for the road. As soon as Matilda locked the door, it was time to go. There was a brief discussion about Mana along the way. Matilda mentioned needing a means to harvast it, while Raya asked about spells to do so. Ravyn just cradled her belly while they walked, or in her case, waddled. Though Matilda wasn't wrong, taking Mana from their surroundings should be last resort. And the thought of Mana Storms made her grimace a little bit. After that last sentence, Ravyn frowned when she saw that Matilda looked a little downcast. Whilst holding her own back, Ravyn put her arm around Matilda to hopefully bring a semblance of comfort. "No dear. You're not. You're far from it. Sure, you know a lot more then I could have expected, but that's not something to feel bad about." She said. "No crying, okay? You're gonna make me cry too."

Once they reached their destination, Ravyn took a quick look around, scanning the area. "I'll be grabbing some herbs and ingredients for potions, and perhaps some ingredients for meals so I can cook for us during our travels. Let's meet back at the entrance, when we're finished."

 

[Scavenger]

Raya moved with the other two witches towards the Troll Market. As they walked she made sure to walk slightly at the back of the group despite talking with Matilda, at the front. As they walked she took time to consider Matilda's commentary on mana harvesting, her thoughts paused slightly as Matilda derailed her own thoughts onto topics of privilege. Was she coming off as privileged? Raya didn't know. Why would a different opinion on mana harvesting make her seem privileged, she had met many humans who would refuse to eat animals on a similar premise of gentleness, surely this was the same thing for mana harvesting?

Her thoughts lasted a while so Raya mostly missed Ravyn comforting Mathilda but quickly refocussed as Ravyn addressed the both of them. In front of the group stood what appeared to be a brick wall, though to the gifted, was obviously an Illusion. Troll Markets contained such a concentration of mana that their signature was unmistakeable. Raya quirked her head again at Ravyn's comment, the other witch seemed to have already decided that the three of them should continue together after visiting the market. Raya wasn't opposed to the idea but it worried her. She knew that trouble was currently looking for her. Was it ok to involve these two witches she had barely met? Despite this, she contained her turmoil, the only outward sign was a worried expression spreading over her face. She still nodded along with Ravyn's talk of looking for herbs and ingredients.

"I can meet at the other side of the boundary once I'm done, all I need are some new crystals." She conveniently left off the fact that she wasn't sure she had enough money for them.

Raya reached into her bag and thumbed the lighter for a moment before deciding what was one more thing to trust these two with. "Before we go in there's just one thing that I need to do" That said she brought the old zippo near her chin and flipped the embossed lid with a quick move of her thumb.

This close to the market she could feel the excess mana roiling around like waves, there was so much, that not even a spell was needed to access the small amount needed for this work. She took a deep breath and as she breathed she tasted the mana, the taste of greed and desire by far the strongest but small hints of companionship and laughter tinted the flavour. Carefully monitoring the amount she took in she waited until just the right amount was pooling inside her before she brought her thumb down on the striking wheel.

The flame flicked up from the wick neatly catching the bottom of her chin but not stopping. As if her skin was made of tissue paper, it ignited, the flame travelling up over her face and down her hair, moving like a wave. As the wave passed over it left new skin in its place tanned instead of pale and black hair replacing and extending her normal blonde. Once the fire faded completely Raya stood now bearing a new face, one still with the plump cheeks of youth, tanned skin, chocolate brown eyes and long raven dark hair.

"Well we best get going then" Raya's voice carefully modulated to be unlike her previous, a distinct twang now present in her words. As soon as she finished speaking, Raya pushed her way through the glamour that guards the market.

 

[Hygswitch]

Matilda, smiled weakly when Ravyn cheered her up. Maybe the evenfull evening had worn her down a bit. She should try to be less melodramatic, but sometimes she just couldn't help herself. She also really felt on edge because she knew her Mom and Aunts would likely be on her trail soon. It might have been a Mistake yet, to dawdle with the other two.

It wasn't far to the Entrance at the Bridge's Foundation, but they still needed a moment to get there.
Standing under the Bridge the air was more than a bit drafty. Tilda shuddered lightly when Ravyn announced her shopping plans. She consideres Protesting that she had not invited any of the other two along, even though she would have gladly invited them, but just as she had opened her mouth the thought struck her:
This was probably ment to be. Witches do not meet up by coincidence, especially not just like this. The Universe tended to restructure itself around Magic users in sometimes benefitial ways, or so she always thought. This was just one more Instance of this.

She was amazed out of her thoughts by Raya's flashy way of disguise. Matildas mouth hung open, then she remembered a niftly old magical trick her aunt had showed her once. "Raya, what the hell, you enchanted a lighter instead of matches to make Face Matches? This has to be the greatest Idea ever!" She was right in magic nerd mode, full of questions. "Can...can you do me too? Does the Spell need to be redone sometimes? Does it hold as well as traditional Face Matches?"

 

[BloodLightning27]

When Matilda smiled, it made Ravyn very happy. And after this, they would all get to have a relaxing night. The downside for Ravyn was that she was going to feel like she needed it every night until this curse was broken. Now that they were at their destination though, Ravyn got ready to separate from Matilda. Before she could though, Raya proceeded to change her hair, skin and eyes, taking on a completely different appearance. Was this really necessary, she wondered. But looks like Matilda was impressed by the mystic trick. Face matches was not something that Ravyn really used, though the idea was rather enticing after seeing Raya use it. "Alright ladies, once you have what you need, we'll regroup. See you soon." She said before waddling away, into the brightly lit market to go find the herbs and ingredients.

Perhaps buying some new vials would help too. After this though, Ravyn was defintely going to relax the rest of the night, hopefully in a comfortable spot, and discuss travel plans.

 

[Scavenger]

Raya heard Matilda's barrage of questions even as they became muffled when she passed through the glamour. She smiled and spun with a childlike flourish. "Not now, sis, I'll talk magic with you later!", her voice filled with a joviality that matched her smile but was at odds with her earlier behavior. As she finished her spin, she darted off into the market, moving away from both the entrance and Ravyn with a skip in her step. Raya felt slightly guilty for not answering the other witch but knew she needed to act consistent with the persona she planned to use in the market.

Adopting her well-used persona felt like wearing a well-loved but itchy blanket; it was comforting and familiar, but there was always an underlying discomfort reminding her that this was wrong no matter how well she performed. Despite the discomfort, Raya moved around the market, keeping her eyes wide with wonder as if she were dazzled by the stalls. To sell the performance, she occasionally bumped into other shoppers, as if distracted by the sights around her, all the while avoiding anyone who looked dangerous.

Raya searched the market for some time before finally finding what she needed. Most of the stalls seemed geared toward peaceful ways of gathering and storing mana, offering small or artificial crystals that, from her experience, would shatter under the rapid convergence of spellbinding. Near the back of the market, away from the dazzling lights, she found a small stall hosting the perfect type of crystal for her work.

She slowly meandered over, her eyes still wide, and took in as much of the stall as she could. It was relatively small and cloaked in shadow compared to the rest of the market, but the proprietor was still visible. Behind the table sat a figure rendered genderless by baggy, slightly torn clothes. Their face bore signs of age, but with magic users, appearance could mean almost anything. Raya knew she needed to proceed carefully. While she hadn't been to this market before, she recognized the type of stall—one frequented by those seemingly disillusioned, from whom she often gleaned targets.

Theft had never been a significant part of her skill set, though she knew the basics, so she followed her instincts and approached the stall. She picked up one of the crystals and studied it with amazement, as though she was amazed to see it. The crystal was expertly cut, its facets gleaming and reflecting light. It was about the length of her hand, completely clear but with a faint blue tint.

"A beautiful piece, but outside of your price, I think, child," the figure said, their voice gravelly, with undertones like stone grating against stone. Raya jumped slightly, as if startled by their presence. "Oh. Hello. Is it? It's so beautiful. It looks like one of the ones Mama had," she replied, her voice tinged with sadness, gradually sinking toward despondency.

The figure paused their task of unraveling layers of fabric to squint at Raya’s meek form. Raya dug through her memories to sufficiently motivate her tear ducts, all the while hoping this particular cryptid couldn’t see through her illusion.

"Had, you say, child?" the voice asked, shaking off some of the gravel but retaining the odd undertones. Raya nodded solemnly. "We were..." she paused, wiping her eyes. "We were just coming into New Richborough when we got robbed. They refused to believe her when she said she’d given them everything, so they..." She trailed off and took a shaky breath. "So they..." Again, she trailed off.

Throughout the conversation, Raya paid carful attention to the whispers on the wind. She felt the figure lean in despite keeping her own eyes on her feet. She sensed their breathing quicken as her story drew them in. "It’s alright, child. You managed to escape. Where are you staying?" the voice asked, possibly kind, though it was hard to tell.

Raya felt her dicomfort intensify as she pushed the story further but gritted her teeth and shook her head. "Mama said I shouldn’t tell strangers," she sniffled.

"But we’re not strangers now, are we? You’re safe here." Raya felt a strange vibration in the air as the words approached her ears. Instinctively, her magic sprung to life, creating small storms that pressurized her ears and reduced the words to barely a whisper. She didn’t wait to find out whether the figure’s intent was kind or nefarious. Taking the excuse they had inadvertently provided, she broke towards the crowd, clutching the crystal tightly in her hand.

She heard shouting behind her but kept running, grabbing the old crystal in her pocket as she moved. A small circle sprung to life around her clenched fist. Using her height to weave through the first few shoppers, she bent the light around herself and vanished.

Raya reappeared behind a stall a safe distance from the shadowed merchant. Her breathing was surprisingly light, given her rapid exit. She glanced around to ensure she was hidden from prying eyes before pulling her hand out of her pocket. The old quartz crystal was now entirely opaque, its ability to recharge spent from her earlier spell. Tutting softly, she wrapped both the new and old crystals in her jacket before stuffing the bundle into her satchel.

She pulled out her lighter, struck it, and brought the flame to her chin once more. This time, the fire consumed her face even faster, feeding on the mana used to maintain her disguise. As the flames died away, her regular features and dirty blonde hair were revealed. Despite missing the warmth of her jacket, she shouldered her satchel and ducked into the narrow alley between two stalls, emerging back onto the main path.

She wove her way toward the entrance, showing only passing interest in the activity and gossip stirred up by her flight. As soon as she reached the entrance, she slipped through the phantasm, eager to add its obfuscation magic to her own in case anyone had thought to send a tracking spell after her. Once free from the market, she leaned against the wall under a nearby bridge, ignoring the damp and cold seeping through her tank top. She wasn’t too worried about being tracked—most tracking spells were clunky and ineffective unless there was a significant attachment to an object. Still, to be safe, she recalled a misknowing spell from memory and slowly let the circle form in the hidden space between her back and the wall.