The Witch, Months of Ice - Year Two

Compared to the snow in the prior months, ice was more pliant, if dangerous. Sure, she didn't want to have roll on over it; but Mildred grew more and more accomodating the lower the temperature got. Not out of courtesy, the witch was very quick to remind them – but out of necessity.

And even if that was true, Lorelei had decided that she liked the season all the same. For the sky was always open ahead; stars glistening like tiny points of ice, themselves. They didn't always seem to stay rooted in place, of course; nor was there time to watch them as freely, for they were constantly moving and remaning cautious.

Mildred – when she was around – seemed constantly under the impression that the mysterious demonologist who called himself Leopold would appear and confront them at any time; her muttering, sulphurous and forceful, seemed no longer directed at either herself or the Darklord, but perhaps something more.

What worried her mentor should have worried her, Lorelei felt – but at the same time, an almost serene sense of wonder had been following her, every day.

“Sometimes, I think if we weren't trying to prevent whatever bad time might be coming our way – maybe, people would like to see a chart of the stars?”

It was the the third time she'd tried to get Dennis to talk back to her that day; not even the Darklord's usual ill-humor had been forthcoming. Indeed, his wings clutched around his back, and his posture (which was even worse then normal) had been deeply unnerving in their lack of spite, or even energy.

“Uh. Go chart your stars, loseoid. If you had any, that is.”

Rolling up to Dennis and moving next to him, Lorelei watched his face; trying her best to read it.

She looked for a way to positively describe the scrunched-up and broad jaw where fun went to die, but upon finding nothing good to say about the sour expression on his face, Lorelei gave up and instead focused on the light from his pocket – indicating, among other things, missed messages.

“So, uh, looks like you've been avoiding people? Maybe some of your kith n' kin are worried about you!”

To her surprise, Dennis shook his head.

“It's not that. I think I kinda – I've been getting these messages. I'll tell you about them later.”

The light came on from his pocket once more, and the Darklord winced.

“... Not really interested in checking my phone, right now.”

Well – that was that then. Lorelei left the (hyperbolically) sighing Darklord to his own devices, knowing that when he was in a mood there was only so much she could do. Dennis wasn't an easy person to get along with – but then again, her determination to help was greater then his to be pessimistic.

She'd check back in on him in a bit, Lorelei decided.

Not that it'd be long before they stopped – even with ghostly lights helping mark the land when ice flats destroyed any sense of direction and obscured any possible landmark, even with the ghostly fire that warmed them up even when Mildred was no longer around, and even with the days and nights blending into one another all but seamlessly –

Moving too fast and too quickly caught the attention of the creatures that played at the edge of their vision. They reminded Lorelei of the kind of once-loved, underfed animals that had first sought kindness from others in the Yards – and then sought something more concrete. Something more edible.

Fortunately, they also didn't seem to be especially eager to get into a fight with either herself or Dennis, and when Mildred was around they outright fled – the hateful looks the witch cast in their directions more then enough to make the cold-coated beasts realize they had no chance, here.

“Kindling. You should not get so lost in thought – it does not do you well to stare into the darkness. How else do you think that one lost his eyes..?”

The sudden and cruel laughter of Mildred brought her back from the shadowy recessses around them. Just because there wasn't vegetation or much visible life anywhere didn't mean that there weren't things to see, and it wasn't the first time Lorelei had been caught wondering what the pillars of ice that seemed to grow from the ground as naturally as any tree were for;

Or what the odd flashes of blue-bronze that sometimes lit up the sky came from, or the names of the whispering tune that the wind seemed to hum to itself, mournfully, as she and Dennis traveled for what must have been hours without a word between them.

“I didn't lose my eyes. Just got tired of looking at you. Heyoooooo!”

Mildred returning seemed to have at least shaken Dennis out of his depression, if that's what it had been; much to Lorelei's good cheer.

“Honestly, I think that sunglasses at night are cool! They make you look like the fashionable kind of demon, very image conscious!”

Confident enough that the demon would probably spend the rest of the day debating whether she was serious and jealous of his amazingly cool sunglasses or serious and trying to flatter him (because he was so cool), the Darklord gave an approving snort that nearly crystallized in the cold air.

Lorelei glanced at Mildred – who was floating at her side, expression neutral.

“This path we have embarked on will put you both in grave danger, kindling. I began to regret my association with it – for I fear that no matter what happens, the outcome shall be...”

Cackling, Mildred shook her hat, flicking off tiny flecks of icy condensation – or possibly ice-mites, it was hard for Lorelei to say.

“Have you been to this shrine already?”

Lorelei wasn't sure why she asked, but the pause before Mildred answered said much.

“No – though I have been quite tempted to go. The idea of coming back and warning you from a most dangerous and fatal course is tempting – though not as tempting as your innevitable misfortune, of course.”

It was strange to so easily see through the witch and her smile, but Lorelei had gotten good at it. When it was as wide as it could get, Mildred was thinking about things – serious things, magickal things, or things beyond her ken.

Sometimes, Lorelei wondered if they might sit down and simply discuss those things one day. If not as equals – perhaps as friends.
True friends.

“Now, now, kindling. You need not worry about me, for I can see the worry against your young and all-too-fair face. I shall not put myself or our group in any unnecessary danger; though I shall continue my rambles, and my gambling, at least until my suspicions are confirmed.”

“Thank you, Mildred.”

Lorelei began – but almost immediately the words were absorbed by the sudden gloaming vegetation around her. Where ice had subsumed and consumed the entirety of the visible world they had been traveling through as of late, here was a place that not only seemed to have triumphed over the cold but broken it and stoppered it, and light, and even sound!

For the dark vastness of the forest canopy had somehow crept around them, towering over them in a way that made Lorelei whistle without thinking – both at the beauty of the ice-darkened wood pockmarked with heavy crystal formations, and at the fright that Dennis was showing.

“All right, I think this is my limit. Trees are a bit too much, you know?”

“Really, Dennis?”

The Darklord – shuddering, she noted – gave a curt nod, one hand already reaching into his pocket; upon finding now comforting and delicious cheesy snacks (and still apparently feuding with his demonic device), he gave the two witches a pleading look.

“Soon you'll be saying...”

He paused, and they all paused – Mildred bumping into her with a look of confusion as the Darklord affected what was easily the worst 'girl voice' she'd ever heard in her life.

“heeeeeey let's spliiiiit uppppppp! OH NO WE DON'T NERDS, I'LL KEEP YOU TWO SAFE! no, tee-hee i'm just gonna look at starrrrrss!”

“Dennis, it's a forest. There's nothing in forests we haven't seen before.”

Lorelei tried to gently reassure him, but the Darklord's cool(?) facade had already began to crack under the heavy shadows of the boughs above.

“Okay, let me put it like this, okay. Okay. Demons don't like the cold, I personally don't like horror because sometimes Li- my sister'd watch them if they weren't, you know, too violent or gory or lewd, but they were still scary and – “

Now, he was openly sobbing – tears rolling from beneath his sunglasses before vanishing int othe rich, loamy and iceless soil below.

Lorelei paused – the ground here was warmer. Not warm enough that it should keep the ice that engulfed the island off, however – something wasn't right. Her eyebrows furrowed for a moment, and then she shook the sense of unease off.

It wouldn't do for both her and Dennis to be panicking, right now.

“Hey, Dennis. I promise it'll be okay. You've got two witches of penultimate power to protect you!”

She threw him a confident smile that didn't seem to help, possibly because when the Darklord wiped away the first of his tears and ventured a stare back at her, Mildred had once again retreated into the aether. At least he didn't keep crying, and instead just gave a long (and long-suffering) sigh.

“... Hey, Lorelei. Can I ask you a question?”

Around them, the trees seemed to pull in closer, and suddenly Lorelei felt as if their branches were maudlin faces huddled around them to facilitate a quick trial; their ghoulish expressions neither slowed by ice nor held back by anything but a desire to see them here, for as long as they might yet live...

Both she and the Darklord whirled as the pathway drew shut behind them. It was possible that the foliage had retreated of it's own volition... Or that someone had moved it, and she wasn't sure which scared her more.

“Sure, Dennis. Ask away!”

Lorelei tried to hide the sudden stammer, but it carried too well. Her fingers sunk into the rubber of her chair's wheels, glad once again for Mildred's warming magic.

“Is it okay to be scared of ghost and stuff because I am really scared right now.”

The way he phrased it, it wasn't even in a question – Dennis shook and rolled in place as if he might suddenly fall to the ground, place his hands over his head, and start begging the trees for his life – and because it was Dennis, she couldn't place the possibility entirely out of question.

No, more then that...

Her eyes narrowed, and Lorelei tried to focus. What had the stars felt like, when they were first being formed? What had their names been, when they had none to name them..?

What if that man, Leopold... What if he had known they were following him, even as convolutedly as this..?

Then, Dennis screamed and fell to the ground, but did not beg for his life – instead flailing wildly and decapitating the figure that appeared all-too-suddenly from behind a barren tree with one blow from his grease-encrusted hand.

Admitedly, she'd gasped as well, though less at the skeleton itself then the pleasant, grandfatherly voice that managed a brief –

“Oh, hello! Welcome!”

Before his skull clattered to the ground.

“O-oh, dear..! That was rather uncalled for, just a minute...”

Now headless, the skeleton's torso continued to struggle for something to hold onto, and then upon finding Dennis (who had stopped screaming and was now simply rocking back and forth in terror), began to pat down the ground in front of himself as his head beckoned, encouragingly.

“Quick, body! To me, please, before consciousness fades - I would hate for... Oh! Thank you!”

With speed that surprised even herself, Lorelei rolled over to the skeleton's skull, took it under the crook of her arm, and wheeled over to the very confused-seeming body. To her surprise, it clicked into place easily; for whatever reason, she had the distinct impression that this wasn't an entirely uncommon occurance.

“Thank you, miss! You are truly kind. I – did not mean to cause any distress by my appearance, only the two of you seemed to be lost and scared, so I thought I'd help...!”

The skeleton was quite clearly fretting, and Lorelei started to feel worse and worse about what had just happened – all the more so by the fact that Dennis was still shaking and crawling away – and possibly looking for rocks to hurl, judging by the darting glances he constantly cast to and fro.

“No, please -  I should apologize, I hope you're not hurt..! Do you live here? I'm – I am the Witch, Lorelei, and this is my assistant, Dennis.”

Something about the sentence made her feel more then a little better, even though the insult of being called a mere assistant seemed to rile Dennis up just enough for him to stop cowering and start glowering at the skeleton and herself. Smiling at this minor victory, Lorelei brushed a strand of hair from her eyes.

“Oh – not at all! If I'd lost consciousness, I would've had to regenerate, which would have taken too much time – and there's never enough of that. But, o' witch, I am known as Bones; and it is a pleasure to meet you two! Even if this greasy substance is rather unpleasant about the skull...”

Without a word, Lorelei began buffing the skull with her sweater, pleased that the Crunchitz stains didn't look too noticable.

“Thank you once more – you are quite kind! Er, as I was saying... What was I saying?”

“We two seemed pretty lost – and we were very scared. My mentor was supposed to meet us here, but she can be quite capricious.”

Lorelei was certain that she could make out the distant, unmistakeable sound of Mildred's laughter – but then again, it was hard to know where distant sounds came from, or if they even existed amongst the sea of trees, here.

Bones mumbled to himself thoughtfully, a skeletal finger raised to equally long-dead teeth.

“Is that so? How unfortunate. Well – my friends are not far from here. Perhaps you would care to follow an old man and rest for awhile?”

“EVERYTHING YOU SAY IS PRACTICALLY A THREAT Aghhhhhhh”

“Please pay my assistant no mind. He tends to lose his cool around friendly people, but he's really not all that bad. We've also been relying on magic to keep warm this entire time – I'm afraid if your friends are like you, and don't need heat, we might not be able to visit long...”

Lorelei fiddled with her fingertips, wishing there were a more delicate way to say it. Fortunately, the skeleton practically lit up – more then pleased with her answer.

“Oh, no! My friends are quite alive, as alive as you two! I cannot say it's the warmest, but you should be more then comfortable, I would fathom!”

Unable to find any further reason to decline (and somewhat curious) Lorelei began to wheel after Bones, who stopped patiently whenever he got too far ahead; Dennis following at a presumably safe distance and murmuring a constant stream of epithets, none that she felt deserved a response.

As it turned out, the skeleton's cave wasn't the warmest – but it was surprisingly warm, with a constant fire that felt much more comforting then the distant magical lights that kept their path traversibile even in the ice flats. And the walls...!

What at first had seemed to be just a cave revealed secret after secret, when Bones wasn't himself. This place was a real settlement – as much as any cavern could be called as such, with buildings! Replete with furnishings! Lorelei wasn't certain, but some even looked like they had beds inside! Actual, fluffy, feathery beds!

Naturally of course, the Darklord had completely forgotten his fear from before and settled into one without asking permission nor announcing his intent. Both she and Bones went silent, awaiting some outburst, but after nearly a minute passed...

“This... Is really nice. You mind if I stay here?”

“Dweebs?”

This was added as an afterthought, because even the Darklord ends up appreciating a proper place to sleep, once in a great while.

“Knock yourself, Dennis! Er, if that's okay with you, Bones?”

The skeleton's only response was a soft, warm and above-all friendly chuckle that made her think of mom at her best – suddenly, Lorelei felt a little odd, inside.

Homesick.

Perhaps it was an extension of the figure loping towards them – her pace oddly slow and reserved for someone who looked as if she had a great deal of natural grace... For a plant, er, person, Lorelei decided.

“Hey, Bones – bro. I'm not sure he's going to be okay. I mean... I think this is – “

The utterly dejected tone that came out of her voice instantly lifted as she beheld Lorelei, and the plant woman spun towards them, somehow only tripping twice on the smooth cavern floor.

“Didja find help? Is everything going to be all right?!”

“I did, Zambi. I think – serendipity might have smiled upon us, once again. You see – “

Suddenly, Lorelei found her previous joy melting away as an unfamiliar worry began to settle along her spine – driven by expectation, and the hopeful glances that both skeleton and plant were giving to her.

“This kind lady is a witch.”