What A Storm Leaves Behind

Chapter Three: Ederi

Something is not right here, the pirate thought, I have certainly never been this comfortable before. Ederi opened her eyes and was greeted with the face of a fox, "Why are you on my lap?" She asked the animal and looked around the room. Ederi assumed that if the beast were to kill her it would have happened by now so there was no need to panic. Maybe her malnourished body turned the fox away from digging into her flesh, or her stench.

"What is this place?" She asked no one but cautiously hoped she would get a response. Ederi slowly rose from the couch she was sitting on and alarm quickly took over her, "Where is my sword?" She exclaimed and tried to stand up but found her sore body protesting.

"It is in a safe place, don't worry," a soft voice responded. Ederi looked over to greet its owner and found a purple-eyed woman standing at the entrance of a corridor. The pirate studied the other woman for a very long time, eyes gazing upon her host, the waves of brown hair flowing down to her waist, the curves that defined her. Most importantly she looked at the other's eyes, "You're a witch," she accused quietly.

"I appear to be yes. If you have a problem with that I can leave you upon the beach I found you in," the other remarked. Such harsh words for such a sweet timbre, it was hard to believe something so sharp could look so angelic, yet, here the stranger was.

"I don't have a problem with it at all," Ederi responded, attempting to rationalize the situation. She tried to hold back her accusatory tone but the absurdity of what was happening flushed away her thinking, "It is just very disorienting to wake up in a strange location with strange clothes. Even stranger when it is a fox that wakes you."

At the mention of the creature, the small fox found itself nestled into the side of Ederi, "At least it is a very nice fox. What is its name?" She asked.

"His name is Kit," the witch hesitated. Perhaps she feared revealing too much too soon, "He is my familiar," she finally decided to say.

So, this witch was the real deal, Ederi thought to herself, powerful enough to summon a spirit guide and it seems that she's quite adept at magic. One small glance around the room told Ederi that much, "I see, you said you found me on a beach. Do you know how I got here?" She asked.

The witch stilled. What did she do that for? Ederi didn't think her questions were that insensitive. She simply wanted to know where the hell she was and how the hell she got there. She also wanted to inquire about the fresh clothes but decided to take things one at a time. Besides, at least they are warm.

"You mean you don't remember?" The other asked which made Ederi shake her head in disagreement, "I-I am not sure how you got here," the witch responded.

"What's with the hesitation?" Ederi asked and found the will to stand up properly. Her left side hurt greatly and her joints were hard to move, a symptom of being on a cold beach for so long. She pushed away the pain in spite of herself and moved closer to the witch, causing the fox to leap from the couch in the process. Kit wounded himself through her legs seemingly to try and stop her movement, "I won't hurt you," Ederi called out, mostly to the fox beneath her, "I just need to know what the situation is. I wake up in a strange house, owned by a witch, without my weapons, in different clothes, and without any idea of how I came upon this place. It is quite concerning and I need you to not hesitate when you respond. I have to be able to trust you after all."

"You need to trust me? I pulled you up a cliff and you can't find trust?" The witch asked, offended. Ederi was tall, taller than anyone she knew, and the stranger only came up to her chest. Even still, at this moment it seemed like the woman had grown a few feet in her demeanor. When their eyes locked it was like Ederi was staring straight ahead and not a few inches below, "I'm unaware of how you got here. I gave you new clothes because the others were damaged and wet. I treated your wounds and made you comfortable. I apologize for any inconvenience I have given you in saving your life."