Affinity Witch

Chapter 30: The Argument

The days passed swiftly...too swiftly for Sabrina. Every day that came and went brought her one step closer to her birthday, making her feel as if she was trapped in a room where the walls were slowly closing in around her, the available space shrinking smaller and smaller.

If she couldn't find a way to escape, she would inevitably be crushed

She spent every moment she could in her workroom, reading, writing, and studying slides with her microscope. The Winter Solstice came and went, and Sabrina was forced to spend additional time in the forge completing extra metallurgy work while Tante Olga and Bettina helped with the seasonal Affinity Testing. They invited her to participate, as well, but she declined; while completing mundane repair tasks was boring, at least her mind was free to think about her own research while her hands sped through the familiar motions.

Sabrina was initially surprised her mother didn't mention anything about the increased amount of time she was spending in her workroom, but she decided the Sprechen was most likely simply counting down to the day her daughter turned eighteen...at that point, decisions would have to be made, and while Sabrina knew her mother believed she would ultimately give in and accept a seat on the High Council, she was determined to have another option for herself.

The only thing her mother insisted she do was sit to have her picture painted, something all witchlings did in honor of their eighteenth birthday. While such an undertaking usually lasted the better part of an afternoon, Sabrina informed the Hexen artist she'd been paired with she had exactly one hour.

"Start with my face," instructed Sabrina, settling onto a tall stool in the light-filled studio, "as I'm going to spend most of our time together reading."

The artist, a relatively young witch named Tante Alice, offered an indulgent smile, clearly believing Sabrina was teasing, which was annoying. Rather than argue, though, Sabrina simply reached into her bag and withdrew a book, which she set on her lap before gazing directly at the other witch.

Tante Alice cleared her throat and began working in earnest, occasionally asking Sabrina to look in a certain direction or raise her chin higher.

After what felt like a suitable amount of time for the artist to capture her facial features, Sabrina picked up the book and started reading about the pollination process of plants and flowers, refusing to waste a moment of her far too-limited time.

"I fear this won't live up to your mother's expectations," worried Tante Alice as Sabrina gathered up her things exactly one hour later. "I'm certain I could do better if we only had more time together."

Sabrina glanced at the portrait, which appeared perfectly fine to her, as it captured all of the major features she associated with herself—sapphire blue eyes, fair skin, and an oval-shaped face framed by long, dark brown hair. Thankfully, Tante Alice had left out the book she'd been reading.

"It's wonderful," she assured the other witch. "In fact, I think you've significantly improved what you had to work with."

She suggested the artist send the painting to her mother via Helferin once the paint dried, then quickly made her way back to the forge, where she would work a few more hours before finally having the chance to escape to her workshop.

As the days passed, Sabrina became increasingly anxious, feeling as if she couldn't breathe at times, and like she might burst into tears at any given moment as she walked through the castle or studied images from her books. The three futures Heloise had seen for her were so close, she could feel them waiting impatiently at the edges of her mind.

While she'd hoped to discover something so ground-breaking her mother would be forced to admit she ought to continue with her metallurgy, it seemed no such thing was destined to happen before her eighteenth birthday. She was making progress, yes, but it was gradual, and she needed more time. Although there was always the possibility of a miracle, with each passing day, Sabrina was forced to admit she was going to have to make a decision.