With a slight smirk on her face, this odd looking stranger spoke again. "That babe," she pointed around the mother, "She has no father." It was a statement, not a question, which left no room for an answer. "You thought your God could save her from damnation. Well, congratulations my dear" she said, almost sadly, "You've made a darling witch" And with a final flick of her wrist, the small babe lay safely in the stranger's arms. Looking panicked, the mother clawed desperately at the spot her baby once lay.
"Please! Don't hurt her!" She begged, pleading at this devilish woman's feet.
The dark Witch slapped down the bumbling young woman. "I would never harm this young witch like your people would, you fool."
"Sh...she's not a witch! She's just a babe, please!" The young blonde tried to reach for her daughter, but was struck down by some unseen force.
Watching this young girl quiver in fear, the powerful witch spoke steadily. "Any babe, born out of wedlock, is damned by the powers that be." With a small laugh, she looked at the baby, then back at the small young girl. "You defied your God, taking to bed with a man before marriage. Now, you are paying your price. Maybe it is your God that causes this to happen, but I believe, the fate of this child is far beyond what your God can control." Instantly, without further a word, the mysterious witch disappeared, the bastard babe still in her arms. Furious and scared, the blonde mother searched the small clearing for any sign of the mystic woman. There was nothing, no woman, now sound, and no baby.
---
"Geneiva, we're ready." A familiar stern voice broke my recollection of the story I'd been told so many times. I picked myself up, dusting off the sand that clung to my thighs. I stared out at the water for a moment longer, wondering what my life would have been if I wasn't saved from those woods. "Geneiva, come now. We haven't much more time." I quickly turned, forgetting my imaginary life. Celia held her hand out for me, and I took it, relishing in the warmth of her snow white skin. As we turned to walk back to the cottage where the rest of our coven was ready for me, I watched her midnight black braid sway, almost like a cats tail. The only noise to be heard was the sudden slew of powerful waves crashing into the previously calm waters. Each wave hit on the same pattern as the beat of my heart, which I knew, was not a coincidence. Every part of me was in tune with nature right now, in this moment. I was exactly where I needed to be, and soon, I'd help to change my sister's lives, by changing mine own, forever.
