The Wizard and The Witch

trigger warning ⚠️ applied violence

Her master had summoned her about three minutes ago.

 A man had come to summon her, she didn’t know the man. He could be another servant, a favored one perhaps.

He was tall and towered over her, probably being twice her size.

The man had one of his hands on her back, gently guiding her to…wherever he was taking her. He was probably taking her to her masters study.

She hasn't been in his study before. When one of the other servants showed her around they just walked past it, telling her it was his study and she should never go inside unless told to.

Her master had only directly talked to her twice. Once to ask for a drink and once to welcome her. 

It’s not like she wanted him to have a reason to privately talk with her. 

Another servant had told her that he was cruel. That he would get servants whipped for a mistake or slip up, the servant had said sometimes he would whip slaves himself just to hear them scream. What a horrible man.

Her master had bought her two months ago and had her shipped across the sea from Tera. Her home. That was where she had lived with her brother.

Her parents had died a year ago, leaving her with her twenty two year old brother. 

One of the upper class men requested she be taken away from her brother. 

He claimed a twenty two year old couldn’t properly take care of her.

Then she was taken into the hands of the upper class man who had decided she wasn’t worth the trouble. Then sold her.

Her master wasn’t that much older than her brother. Twenty three she thought, making him ten years older than her and one year older than her brother.

She couldn’t wrap her head around why he wanted to talk with her now? 

She hadn't stepped out of line recently. Actually she had not stepped out of line at all!

 She supposed she was still getting used to a new environment with new rules.

She practiced naming the rooms she walked by to distract the icy fear gripping her. 

They walked past the music room next, the music room had a piano and cello. She had never heard them being played.

How sad that they never got played, it was such a waste.

The man grabbed her arm, a warning to stop here. She halted in front of the extravagant door to her masters study. It was carved with an owl towards the top of the door.

The man knocked one in the door. “Come in Oteor,” her master said.

He opened the door for her, dropping her arm. I stepped into the study crammed with books. 

“Oteor, you can leave. Close the door behind you,” her master said.

However she was not dismissed. The study was lavishly decorated with not a single item out of place, except for the iron tipped whip propped against her masters desk.

“Sit child,” he said pointing to one of the chairs in front of his desk.

He kept his eyes trained on the paper in front of him not sparing a glance for her.

She nodded and hurried to sit before him.

She wondered if he really didn’t know her name or he did and he just wanted to make her feel..small.

“What’s your name girl?”

Then he looked at her, waiting for her answer.

“Uhm Tourmaline sir,” 

She didn’t know how to address him, nobody had taught her how to address upper class men.

A muscle in his chin feathered and his eyes narrowed slightly.

“That’s Master to you” he snapped.

She had made a mistake.

“My apologies Master,” 

She wanted to try and stay in his good graces. Maybe if she did he would someday let her go.

A fool's hope some would say.

“That’s better, now I summoned you because I want you to entertain me,”

Such a curious thing to say, how would she do that?

“How would you like me to entertain you master?”

She had no clue how to do what he asked of her.

“Hmm, tell me a story”

A story? What kind of story would she tell? She didn’t know many stories. Only one.

One her brother had told her, a place of dragons and fairies and magic.

“What kind of story would you like, Master?”

Talking that long seemed dangerous. She might say something out of line.

“Whatever you know of Tourmaline, perhaps something from your kingdom.”

“Yes Master”

How should she start a story? It just seems so childish for this place. Too joyful for this wretched place.

“Get on with it”

She did get on with it.

Once upon a time in a faraway land..

There lived a young man with no physical strength of much. 

His word was his sword. He slayed none with his sword. Because he was young and not trained. He told prophecies, from peasants to nobles. Some didn’t believe him and took his word for salt.

Some followed what he said and those became kings and rulers. 

That man, young as he was, grew in fame as he grew in age. 

As the man grew in fame he grew in wealth.

While he grew in wealth….

This part is dangerous to talk about in front of a lord. Should she change it? Or just skip it? What was the smart thing to do here?

“Continue Tourmaline”

She guessed she would just continue it.

While he grew in wealth he grew in greed. Going from modest peasant boy to a highly requested wizard.

Eventually the boy learned how to defend himself because his own predictions told him to. 

He would be a hypocrite to not listen to his own prophecies. 

People would get mad at the wizard when he told of an unfortunate future.

Learning how to defend himself might not be a bad idea he though.

And so the wizard became strong and popular.

Although the wizard stopped caring about helping with his gift of words. He began caring about the money and not the people.

He began telling people whatever they wished to hear for then he would get twice the money.

He would not get angry customers anymore.

What a great day.

For him, not for everyone. 

One day a young woman came to him claiming her baby sister was sick. She asked for assistance and said she didn’t have any money.

The once kind wizard turned her away.

He told the young woman that since she didn’t have any money he refused to help her.

The woman left, her head hung low.

Her baby sister died the next day because no one knew what was wrong with her.

The wizard knew of this death, he dismissed it like he dismissed the girl.

Putting it into the back of his mind.

Years later the wizard retired and got married to a lovely woman and had two children.

One of his children was a 6 year old girl and the other was a 4 year old boy. 

One fateful day the boy got sick. It was sudden. 

The wizard and his wife went to a witch doctor to heal their child.

When they got there the witch turned them away, saying I am doing to you what you did to me.

Then the wizard recognized her, for she was the woman whose baby sister had died.

“That's all I know Master”

“Where did you hear that story?”

Why would he ask such a thing? Did she say something wrong?

“My brother, Master”

“Interesting, you served your purpose. You are dismissed”

It was a hurry to get out the door. It was such a big relief that nothing bad happened.

She had never thought much about the plot of the story.

She had never thought much of the karma that had come back to the wizard.

She vowed to remember that, that last gift from her brother.