For an estranged witch like Lyra DeClaire, Malliana White is an angel in disguise of a beautiful healer. Left alone for so long, she finds herself gravitating to her kindness and selflessness, only to meet her partner, Imre Catrelius.
Imre Catreliu...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Malliana's POV
The levitation spell I learnt from Minerva really did help, lest I might not be able to carry the unconscious stranger to one of the empty guest room in the mansion. Carefully, I set her down on the warm sheets, rushing over to the kitchen to heat the soup I've made this morning.
In the mid of stirring the soup, Minerva came back from the town, carrying bags of groceries and some stuff from the Alchemy shop. "Malli! What are you doing there?" Minerva started as she put away the groceries, suddenly noting the urgency in my actions. I smiled to her, asking for a bowl for the soup.
"Someone stumbled upon our abode, Minerva. She's dehydrated and exhausted, I can't just let her be..." I trailed off, imagining her vivid amber eyes dimming. I shuddered. "Oh! Poor girl... Do you need any help?" Minerva offered, putting away the last of the groceries. I nodded, instructing her to make a warm tea with chamomile flowers and honey. Hopefully, she can wake up soon.
"I sensed a new presence in this house. Anyone's relative visiting over?" A new voice snaps me out of my worried reverie, the familiarity makes happiness blooms inside of me. Imre Catrelius was leaning against the door, watching us flitting around intently. I grinned as I approach him, tiptoeing to give him a kiss on the cheek. He smirked at this, wrapping an arm around my waist and pulled me closer.
"Welcome back, Imre~" "Malli, love. What are you up to?"
I stepped away, noting Minerva who placed a cup of lukewarm tea into the tray I've prepared just now. "Someone... came into our backyard and passed out... She's very weak, Imre. I can't let her be..." Imre nodded in understanding, a fond smile adorning his boyish look.
"Hey, i don't mind at all. Though... can I meet her soon? I need to see whether she poses a threat or not for us"
At this, Imre grew uncharacteristically serious, his eyes never strayed away from me. I gently clasped his hand in mine, offering him an assuring smile.
"You're going to have to wait until she's well enough, Imre. Let's give her some time"
That is enough to placate him for time being, the tenseness gradually losing from his posture. As Minerva carried the tray out of the room, I let go of his hand, our eyes still lingering into each other.
Imre Catrelius, my fated soulmate.
---
When Minerva and I entered the room, she was still unconscious, the steady rise of her chest calming my worries. Minerva placed the tray on the bedside table, muttering to herself about a change of cloth and running a warm bath. As she flitted around the room, I approach the sleeping witch slowly, my magic reaching out to assess her conditions.
Other than exhaustion and dehydration, she seems to be fine. The slight darkening under her eyes signaling lack of sleep, and judging by how deep her sleep is, it seems that she gone through at least two days without sleep. I slipped in a deep sleep spell just in case, to ensure that she's at least well rested by the time she woke up.
"Malli! The bath's ready!" Minerva announced from the bathroom, the smell of lavender wafting out of the opened door. Using the levitation spell, I carried the stranger into the bathroom, removing her robe before gently lowering her down into the bathtub. Both of us immediately went to work, gently scrubbing the dirt off her body and face. I carefully washed her hair, which is surprisingly silky to the touch after a single wash. After approximately 20 minutes of cleaning her up,I can't help but to marvel at the stranger's form; and I can say that Minerva's doing the same as well.
Underneath the dull brown robe, she wore a burgundy colored set of undergarment, setting of the paleness of her skin. She was lean, yet curvy, with no imperfections marring her complexion. For some reason, the swell of her breasts made me blushed and turned away instantly, a weird fluttering feeling on the bottom of my stomach. Ignoring the weird feeling, I quickly dried her off, Minerva following my action in silence.
Minerva had procured a long, flowing maroon dress made from satin with straps. "My brother gave me this dress, but it's a little loose for me so..." She trailed off, assessing the stranger's form after we dressed her in it. Both of us went silent. "She's quite... the looker, Malli. Are you sure she's not some sort of a demon?" Minerva spoke, her question mirroring my thoughts at the moment.
The witch was... bewitching in her beauty, the kind that made guys bow down to her in submission. Even asleep, she excludes sensuality, long dark lashes brushing against her cheeks and lips the color of crushed plum. Long, sleek dark brown hair splayed on the white sheets, the satin dress clung to every curve of her body.
Just to be safe, I used one of my spells to examine her once more, cementing my assumption of her identity. Other than the dormant power in her core, the stranger didn't show any signs of demonic identity. I exhaled in relief.
"Nope. She's just a witch. A powerful one at that"
---
Minerva's POV
After many years living together with Malliana, I grew to love and knew her very well. Malliana's impossible not to like, her soft personality made even the stony Levynn to like her. I grew to care for the blonde healer, trying my best to assist her if she asked me to.
But now, I'm worried for her.
She lowkey refused to leave the stranger's side, her eyes always trained at her. She quietly frets over the gorgeous specimen of female (no homo), checking her pulse and sometimes brushing away strands of her hair off her face. Malliana's somehow grew attached to her, a small smile ever present as she sat by her side on the bed.
Don't get me wrong, I'm glad she's making more friends, but there's something about this stranger that is... wrong.
I can sense the underlying power that lies dormant as she slept, dark and powerful enough to rival demons. In Istrecia, only few can actually achieve this feat, most of these people are either part of the Royal Family or the High Covens. None of these people ever venture to our small town before.
"Erva! She's waking up!" Malliana exclaimed, once again caressing the stranger's face. I hesitantly walked closer, observing her as her eyes slowly opened.
"The Witch of the West. Have you heard of her?" "You mean the one who murdered the High Coven of the West? Who wouldn't know her?!" "Rumour has it that she's venturing into our town soon! Can you believe that?!" "What?!! Why would she-" "Don't hesitate to kill her if you ever saw her, Minerva. She's bad news" "... How did she look like?" "They said like, an old, ugly lady that cuss you out if they ever saw you. Or... "
My attention draws back to the alchemy shop keeper, one eyebrow raised.
"Or?" "Or like a sin. That's what they say. I'm not sure"
He placed the last item I needed on the counter, eyes trained on me. He was being serious.
"One thing for sure. Her eyes is the shade of amber that you will never forget"
And this stranger was staring at us hazily. With the brightest amber eyes I have ever seen.
