She lit 100 candles with a wave of her hand, there in her sacred place. The old abandon house had surprised her, it looked run down, ready to cave in on the outside, but as she entered, it was oddly only a little dusty.
The old hardwood floor barely creaked as she walked across it, her robe dragging in the thin layer of dust on the floor behind her.
It was a cold October night, the full moon streaming through the open windows, the old yellowed sheers that hung from their dusty rods floating gracefully, lifting high..then floating softly back down each time the cool breath of the wind would calm.
Autumn had happened on this place walking in the woods, she doubted anyone even knew it existed anymore. But to her, it was inviting, it welcomed her inside. Old paintings hung on the walls, people she never knew smiled down on her.
The old staircase was dusty, some of it's posts, she had no doubt, would crumble,even under her gentle touch. The stair case was all open, winding slowly upward to the four rooms that lay just beyond them.
She had investigated them only once, making sure that their were no surprise guests that might interrupt her ritual. They were large rooms, more old paintings adorning the aged walls, dust covered down comforters lay across the old four poster beds.
One room in particular, she had spent more than a little time in, the old vanity catching her eye, she had even sat on the old dust covered bench in front of it once, picking up the antique comb and running it through her long strawberry blonde hair.
She looked in the mirror, she had never thought she was anything to look at, but she guessed, at 30 something years old, she didn't look real bad, she didn't have any wrinkles, and her hazel eyes would still shine brightly at times.
Her skin had always been pale, but it was smooth, and soft. She was a little bigger than average, but people didn't seem to notice, , and pretty much everyone she met, or passed by, always returned the smile she gave them ,children in particular, and that was what counted most.
Their honest ,genuine smiles and open , honest acceptance had always been her strength, filling her with hope and courage.
That unconditional love that only a child, in her opinion, could give. She made a vow, that when it was her time to leave this plane , she would do whatever she could, to make sure she could always be close enough to watch over them.
Autumn brought herself back to her senses, and looked around her. The small tea lite candles cast a wonderful glow, their shadows, looking almost like ghosts as the danced on the old decaying walls , making the old stained glass windows at the very top sparkle brilliantly. She knew she was flirting with danger, but she couldn't resist the urge anymore.
She had heard him, in her mind, since she was 16, though the details of what happened that lead to his coming to her had always been very hazy.She had realized what she truly was only a few nights before he had come to her, she had smiled to herself, a spoke the words aloud, softly.
"I am a Witch." Autumn wasn't sure exactly how this would turn out, but her curiosity, which had never diminished, still burned brightly. She knew her inner self, that "child like" part of her, the young girl who was always amazed at the world around her, the beauty of the night time, the sounds and chill of the air.
And she had to find out, once and for all, if he had just been her imagination all these years, or if there were something actually to him. She had dealt with restless spirits, helping them, or at least trying to assist them, allowing them to finally rest in peace. She wasn't scared of much, least of all anything "supernatural."
He watched her closely, unseen, just has he had since she was young, the tender age of 16. That night, so long ago, something terrible had happened to her, something that should not happen to anyone. But the young girl that she was then, never said a word to anyone, but when her soul screamed, and her gentle mind was about to shatter into a million tiny shards, he heard it, and came quickly to her side.
There was nothing he could do physically, not without causing her even more pain by the questions she would no doubt get for the mess he would have gladly made of her attacker, but he had held her mind, gently, took her away from the horrible experience.
He should have left her shortly after, he could have. After all, to her, he was just a figment of her imagination , a way of easing the pain, of escaping whatever it was that was hurting her at the time. He could have kept that memory at bay, locking it so deep inside her mind, it may have never again come into her conscious mind, but instead, he chose to stay with her, and make sure.
She would whisper softly, gazing into the flame of a candle, and he would be there, talking to her mind, making her feel his presence by wrapping the shadows themselves around her, cloaking her in his dark embrace, all the while wishing, he could do it himself.
He wondered now, if he could even count the times he wanted nothing more than to just actually touch her softness. It had been easy enough when she was young, he felt towards her, as a guardian, for the longest time..but as she grew into the women she was now, things changed, he couldn't seem to get enough of her, the way she smelled, her fearless attitude, her smile.
She was fiery, he liked that. When she reached her late twenties, it started, holding even her mind, became difficult, not that he didn't enjoy the feeling of her, but he wanted more, he craved the smell, the touch, the very blood that ran through her fragile veins.
Autumn was definitely different, she was a light, for sure, but she was one of the few that seemed to be able to walk that fine line, that line that allowed her to stay in the light, doing her good for whom she could, but still being able to communicate, and almost seduce those from the darker side of that light. She was dangerous, though she didn't realize it.
