The run away witch

The world is not what it seems. I know that as I have lived in the shadows for a while now, living off the land, speaking to only my woodland friends, and living in a tent at the edge of a well-off town. I lived there with my only friend who cared about me as much as I did him. And yes my friend is a fox named Jonah.

I was getting hungry one day, as I and Jonah planned on where to go next when I suggested to go and get us some food, giving him the leftovers of course. He loved the idea.

I paused as I waved to him and walked about a mile to this old diner. I waved to the hostess saying I needed to use the restroom and walked in without another care about it.

~*^*^*~

 I was in the bathroom, a cracked mirror with ocean blue eyes staring back at me. The bathroom stall to my right was barely on its hinges. The figure that stared back at me had long golden hair, curly with dark roses adorned as a headband. I was as pale as the moon and wore clothes faded by time, and mostly stripped of its color. I am pale but of mixed race, my mother was Malaysian, a beautiful woman that came to America for a better life and my father was white as well as a wizard. He was the head of his Wiccan family before he met my mother.

I was a witch you see and had run away from my home a little after their deaths. My families (except for my parents) were hateful beings that would hurt me daily. It tore me up to leave with just a sack of food, some clothes, and withered shoes but that is how my family responded to me, they saw me as a maid, a cook, or even a slave and not a person. I was the only witch in my family, no one knew of this except for my grandmother, who tormented me with it every single day. My parents passed on in a car accident when I was young so I have been with my grandmother, aunts, uncles, and cousins for some time.

I was a thorn on their backsides, wishing that someday I could be free and now I was.

~*^*^*~        

I slowly freshened up in the sink and muttered a spell underneath my breath. It changed my appearance from a homeless child into some modern clothes. It was a plain green tee-shirt, flannel, and blue skinny jeans with plain sneakers.

I walked out and sat at a lone booth in the back of the run-of-the-mill diner. I sat down as the lady came stampeding over to me with callous hazel eyes. She was huffing and puffing like she was going to blow the house down with one more breath.

“We don’t allow your kind in here;” She mocked as I raised an eyebrow at her.

“And what kind is that, I am a paying customer, have money, and will even leave a good tip,” I spoke bluntly eyeing her back.

I was floored by this. Just because I was partially Malaysian, a woman minds you, a witch, and had magic, and was being treated as second class. Wizards and witches have been living in harmony in our state for as long as I can remember. There was even an act to stop discrimination of people and allow people to be who they are or who they want to be.

I stared at this waitress with gap-toothed, chunky clothes, and a rude atmosphere to her. She was saying just because I was who I was; I shouldn’t be here.

“Why, why am I not allowed here?” I asked slowly grabbing my wand and placing it in my sleeve.

“It is because you are a witch. Witches are not allowed in my diner or our town, now get.” She said pointing to the door. I laughed at that.

This lady was afraid of a child who yes happens to be a witch. But how did she know? Was she stalking me in the restroom or just had that 6th sense to her. I rolled my eyes staring at her with the emotional validity that I had mustered up. If I wasn’t so hungry I would have sent her to oblivion.

If you are wondering why I don’t use ‘my magic on her’ or never used it on my family; a) I am not that person and b) I am very much an untrained witch. But I am on my way with Jonah to go to a professor in California that can help me become an experienced witch so that is where we were headed.

“How do you know I am a witch? I pointed to the restroom when I came in and I had a bag with me. I changed my clothes in the restroom, sure, but that was it, or are we done here, or is there any chance can I be allowed to order?

“You is a witch.” She muttered incoherently.

I stood up, towering a bit over her as I held my wand at her. Her eyes narrowing at the metal scepter in my hands pointed at her as she looked in shock and fear at me. There was no one else in the diner except for me and her. The chef was locked away behind the stove making eggs and grits, probably a to-go order.

“So you’re going to discriminate against someone just because they are different. What if I was Gay? Would that make a difference from ordering my meal, paying, and going on my merrily way, or is it just the Hickle of the pickle for you? It should not matter, what so ever what I am or what I am not. Sure, you might be right but you do know that me being a witch doesn’t make me less of a customer. I am a witch and I think you need a lesson in manners. I am taking my business elsewhere.” I said lowering my wand and keeping it at arm’s length.

I slung my bag over my shoulder and huffed as I stormed out. She of course seemed like the person to have the last word.

“Good riddance.” She spat as I rolled my eyes slamming the door behind me.

I walked out with class as I used my wand, creating a sign in front of the diner that was petty than it was not. I started to walk away seeing if there were any burger shacks that I could get two burgers for me and Jonah. I did just that, using my money that I had saved up from my parent's death and the once-in-a-while gifts I would get from my arduous family.

~*^*^*~

I came out to the back road and started to walk, putting my wand back up my sleeve. I looked and smiled, finally, springtime and my friend who waited for me at the edge of town was a big spring nut. He has been waiting to prance on little mice, jump in the flower beds and meet the other foxes.

Jonah is a fox, as established. I met him when I was younger when I first ran away the first time from my grandmother’s cottage. That was a long time ago. At the time I knew nothing about being a witch but found that I could talk to animals. He took me to the little river and we splashed all day catching tadpoles and making friends with some of the others in the neighborhood.

I slowly walked onto him as he waited by my set-up tent.

“What did you get? What did you get? Siti, what did you get?” He asked ecstatically as he walked around me waiting for his meal.

Siti Jana Warren was my name my mother and father gave me at my birth. But I usually went by Siti in secret as my family had renamed me to Calamity Rose Longfellow, a disgrace of a name if you ask me.

Jonah was happy to see me. He always perked up when I woke up and would be my little guard fox, he helped me escape and I repay him every single day that I can. He is more than a friend to me he is my family.

~*^*^*~

We both were pretty week and we're running low on rations again. That seemed to be our lives, mine, and Jonah. But he didn’t seem to mind that fact. I smiled as I slowly went into the tent, a light rain pounded against the tent and the trees outside. He slowly curled up next to me as I put my wand next to me and got the burger out of the bag for him.

I unfurled one from the wrapper and set it next to him. He stared at it too much, but accepting it but with a glimmer of a question in his eyes. I bit into mine, it wasn’t that greasy as I got a quinoa burger but the bun was a bit soggy. I didn’t care.

“What happened to the diner meal?” He asked licking his chops.

“Lady kicked me out because I was a witch,” I said as he stood up and hissed at the entrance.

“How did she know?” He asked slowly curling up on top of my lap.

“Probably saw my wand or the little spell I did in the restroom. Well, it sounds like the rain has stopped. Would you like to go to the flower bed by the river upstream?” I said as Jonah stood up immediately and started screeching with want and need to play in the flowers. I could only chuckle as I leaned down and grabbed my wand, it was my father's.

“Yes. Yes. Yes. We can even go to practice your magic.” He said already running out of the tent-like lightning.

“Sounds like a plan,” I said as I locked the tent behind me with magic and illusion.

I have been practicing as Jonah ran down the rocky hills towards the forget-me-nots, daisies, and peonies that were in floods and waves of flowers. Jonah seemed ecstatic as he pounced on them, hopping and jumping on them like a chew toy. I smiled as I practiced one spell that seemed to give me the most trouble. I thankfully was smart enough to have taken all of my father’s Wiccan belongings.

Jonah frolicked in the flower bed as the world warmed up a bit. I tried to master that one spell but to no avail. 

        “Lavender dreams,” I said with all my might as the dandelion I held in my hand turned into a rose, not a lavender plant.

I was mystified by it but kept looking at the page trying to say it right. I wish my dad was here, he was the best wizard I bet, well to me. His mother, my grandmother knew about the Wiccan side of him, he was born one, which you can only be born as one, not turned, changed, or transformed into one. And she denied his birthright till my mom met him and he could live as he truly was.

“Still having trouble with that spell, Siti?” Jonah asked as I nodded staring at the clouds slowly rolling in.

“Yeah, but I will master it eventually, ready to go home, the rain about to come back in,” I said as the clouds came in slowly.

“How do you always know these things, I can barely even know when it is about to rain.” He said rubbing against my leg as we started to walk in the direction of the tent.

“Oh Jonah, so……” My blood ran cold.

We both stopped as the figure in the distance came closer and closer. It was my aunt, Patricia who looked angry and was adorned in rain boots. We stood our ground as Jonah growled at her, which made her stop.

“Calamity Rose, you dishonored your family and dishonored your grandmother, she gave you shelter, and this ish ow you cat, living in the woods, playing house with a cat.” She spat stopping a few feet from us.

“I am a fox, you uncultured swine.” He barked at her which made me smirk.

“He is a fox but how in the world did you find me?” I asked bleakly.

I felt like that kid again, afraid, confused, and hungry. Nothing has changed but I was free with Jonah, there I was a slave, I wasn’t going back.

“Stop with your card tricks and come on.” She said stepping towards me, thinking I would willingly go with her.

“I am not going back, now you can leave and get the heck out of my life. I am contempt on living here with this fox.” I spoke, Jonah nodded to me.

“Let me at her, let me at her,” Jonah said barking at her, she couldn’t understand him.

“Cool it, Jonah, she isn’t worth our time,” I whispered to him turning on my heels.

She grabbed for my arm, I whipped my wand out and pointed at her nose. I kept my ground as she tried to grab for it. I smirked muttering something under my breath as she bounced back fifty feet. I started running, the other direction, and the direction of our tent. Jonah barked at her one last time as we ran towards our tent. I could still hear her, she was close. I put a finger to my mouth as I magically packed the tent. We started to run towards a train noise. That was the only plan I had to get officially out of this place and go to California to meet the professor.

I saw her narrowing on us; Jonah didn’t dare to bark as we made it to a fence that had blocked us from the train. It was going by fast. I pushed Jonah over who ran into an empty car. I hopped the fence, but I felt her stuck on my leg. I whispered words that I didn’t even know as she let go of me shrieking. I didn’t look back as I made it onto the car, safely with Jonah who cuddled into me as I caught my breath.

Jonah and I slept hoping this train would take us to California.