Page 64 of WitchBorn

“I’ve always been into bears,” Wesley’s thought murmured as I glared at my reflection knowing it wouldscare the townspeople and trying to decide if I wanted to do that or not.

“Not sure this type of bear is what you mean,” I muttered through our connection, but as I glared into the water, my form changed, the disheveled man fading and shifting into more of a young man, not all that unlike what I recalled seeing in the mirror most of my life.

“Glamour,” Wesley said.

I’d done it without thinking. Or the memory version of me had. I could walk through the town unnoticed, perhaps, but touched my face anyway, surprised that it felt the way it looked. “I thought glamour was an illusion?”

“Only for the lowest of fae. You are a king.”

I didn’t feel like one. But I let the bucket go and stepped away from the well, turning to head toward town and met the gaze of a small boy. We both froze. I’d never seen a human with skin painted as dark as mine could be when I let the rage overwhelm me, but this boy was exactly that. Any other time I’d have launched myself at him to silence what he saw, not caring that he was a child, but I hesitated, curiosity getting the best of me.

The boy turned and ran off. I watched him go, thoughts filled with questions about where he’d come from and if he were like me. I followed the trail into town, the bluster of the day dying down as night took over. The scent of food drawing me as I caught the wafting draw of cooked bird. One of the rare treats of human creation, cooked food. Raw would do in a pinch, but I’d ravaged many a camp in my day, eating up whatever they left behind after I sent them back to the earth.

A handful of scents drifted through the town. Humans, the worst, but a sweet fragrance led me toward the far hillside. It tickled a memory of something from before my mother had passed. What was it?

“Sweet bread,” Wesley said.

The scent gave rise to a half dozen memories, though the dream vision continued. I had a pouch full of coin taken from many long dead humans as they valued these strange bits of metal for trade rather than items. The smell wafted from a rowdy building illuminated with torches on the exterior, and human males staggering out stinking of alcohol. I hesitated, but decided the idea of tasting that sweet warmth of a treat I’d recalled from my early childhood was worth the trouble of humans.

Inside the building, packed tables and a long dark counter stretched with men, all drinking. It wasn’t the booze I wanted. As I entered, I felt eyes on me and headed to the counter. It was only then I realized I hadn’t spoken out loud in years. What language would they speak? Could I form the words?

The man at the bar raised a brow in my direction, something dark wavering through his aura, which I found strange and fascinating all at once. “What can I get you?”

Whatever language he spoke translated in my mind and I simply said, “Bread?”

The man chuckled and gave me a half smile. “Draws everyone, my Sari’s cooking. Stew too, or only the bread?”

“Both?” I laid coins on the counter, the man studying them, accepting a few and sliding the rest back.

“That’s a lot of money, best not flaunt it around here,” the man said. He turned and headed to the back where the delicious smell came from, and I glanced around to find another dozen pairs of eyes on me. Their auras shifted with something strange and unfamiliar, too. Had something happened among the humans?

The man returned with a big bowl of stew and an even bigger basket of bread wrapped in a cloth. He waved at an empty chair, and I sat, taking the food, and devouring it before I could even contemplate what I was eating. As I sopped up the last dregs of soup with my bread,I contemplated eating more. Hector would like the sweet bread, the hint of honey beneath the willowy warmth that melted on my tongue had been unlike anything I could recall ever experiencing.

“Bread?” I asked the man as he passed again. I waved at the door.

“To take with you? Alright.”

I held out my coins again, he took a few, and vanished into the back again to retrieve a wrapped bundle of bread. Once he passed the bundle, I bowed my head and took it, turning to leave. Again, everyone’s eyes followed me. Did I look strange? I felt like I’d copied their style easily enough. But I wandered out of the building and followed the trail out of town, wanting to be away from the humans, clutching the bundle of delicious bread.

The moon overhead glowed bright and nearly full, illuminating the forest with a familiar glow. The late eve and distance from town quieted my anxiety as the sounds of human life faded away. I found a stream and followed it north, wondering if Hector would catch the scent of bread and follow it. I bent to drink the water, but froze as the birds and bugs went silent. Not Hector.

I glanced back, expecting a predator of some kind, but finding the young dark-skinned boy. He hid along the tree line, nearly blending into the bushes. Had he followed me the whole way? How had I missed it? He met my gaze, but ducked behind a tree. His stomach grumbled. I opened the pouch of bread and broke off a piece, tossing it in his direction. He hesitated only a few seconds before snapping it up and gobbling it down as if he hadn’t eaten in years. I broke off a few more pieces of it, tossing it out as though he were a baby bird to be lured close.

I held a piece out for him, and he lingered a few steps away, face gaunt and eyes focused, studying me for signs of danger. He touched his face. Had I kept the glamour up? Icouldn’t recall, but tossed the piece to him. He caught it and took a few steps back, watching for indication I’d chase, but I remained crouched beside the creek. He turned and ran, vanishing into the woods, and I sighed, mourning the loss of half of my bread, though still hopeful to share a bite with Hector.

Forty-Two

FINN

“I wonder,” Wesley’s thought drifted through my mind.

“What?” I asked.

“Nothing yet,” he said as we wandered along the creek deeper into the woods. Exhaustion led me to find a place to nap beneath the canopy of trees. The scent of the bread made my stomach growl to eat more, but I was determined to save some for Hector. The vision version of me closed his eyes and seconds later we reopened them to find the sun rising and Hector nibbling at my hair.

I laughed, the sound strange coming from my lips as I couldn’t recall the last time I’d let Hector’s silliness bring me joy. He tugged at my hair and nuzzled my cheek, his thoughts charging through my head in a confusing array of images. He’d met a few does, but had yet to catch their attention and wondered if he were strong enough to actually be of interest to them.

“You are,” I told him as I sat up and unwrapped the remaining bread to tear off a piece.