It was dark and hard to see, but Lily didn't mind. If she absolutely had to, she could find different ways to see.
The girl paused at the gaping mouth of a cave, where a much older woman stood. She had long, pale hair and eyes that seemed to be a shade of gold. Lily shivered as a cold breeze whistled through the air.
"You said...you said that you could teach me." Lily mumbled. "H-How to be a better mage."
"Of course." The woman hummed softly.
"I'm Lily." She shuffled her weight from foot to foot. "Who're you?"
The woman smiled. "I'm Belladonna."
++++
Crow, a sheep herder in the village of Deep Run, was tending to his flock one day, late at night, and getting ready to tuck in for bed. He fed his sheep and then jumped as he heard a blood-curdling scream fill the night, coming from further up the mountain. Crow frowned and reached for the axe he had tucked in his shed. He must've been there for at least an hour before he relaxed and continued along his night. Crow took a deep breath before closing his door and going to bed.
Crow woke up early the next day, feeling refreshed and ready to continue along with his life. He was more than willing to forget the sounds he'd heard the previous night.
Well, that was until he left his house and found his entire flock dead. Blood splattered over the ground and each and every sheep was accounted for...or what was left of them.
Crow wanted to scream, throw up, or do both. He stared in shock and horror at the massacre that lay before him. Each of the sheep's heads had been torn off.
And their blood spelled the word 'belle' in the grass.