The witch wasn’t wearing a gas mask, unlike her daughter and the sisters. The more she breathed in the Fog, the brighter red her eyes became. The air was so cold that one could see condensation with Cytrus’ every breath. But she didn’t care. Quite the contrary, she seemed to enjoy the whiff of Fog.

-Not that many beasts today, mother. Might be a good day.-

Rayna said.

-Unlikely.-

Cytrus replied and looked at her surroundings, to then whistle once again. This time a shadowy eagle approached.

-Little one, be my eyes in the depths of the Fog. Guide me to where the beasts are held.-

The eagle took off, flying through the place. It was able to perceive that the beasts appeared to be asleep or hidden. Except by one that was chasing its prey. Cytrus was able to see and smell through the eagle.

-Danger. And… a treat.-

Her eyes shined with hunting intention.

-Sorry girls! We’ll have to take a small detour before going into my home!

She grabbed the horse’s mane, and made it U-turn. Thorn protested.

-Sorry, what? How much time can we spend inside the Fog before we go crazy again?-

Rayna laughed because of Thorn’s comment and spoke.

-You won’t go crazy as long as you’re not breathing in the Fog… Everyone knows that.-

Leaf looked at her in shock

-WHAT DO YOU MEAN EVERYONE KNOWS THAT?! EVERYONE WHO?! WE DID NOT KNOW THAT!-

-Hold on tight!-

Cytrus said, and as soon as she said this, the horses started going much quicker. The sisters grabbed on with force, holding on with all their strength.

-OKAY, THIS ISN’T AS FUN ANYMOOOREEEE!-

Berry said, while grabbing onto Leaf, who herself was holding onto the horse.

They finally got close enough to witness the chase. It was a beast versus a little cat. The beast was horribly and unimaginably deformed. It had no visible eyes, but two sharp horns came out of the back of its head. Its nose was sharp and triangular and its two big nostrils breathed condensation. When it opened its mouth to bite, one could see two lines of sharp fangs. The ones on the bottom were so sharp and longer than the ones on the top, that they were piercing through the chin and the neck. A dozen or more long and big tongues were coming out of its mouth, they looked more like tentacles than tongues. It had five legs supporting the upper half of its body that connected with its head, but only one weak and crooked leg supporting the back half. It had a twisted tail, and three wings that covered its back. Despite its deformed nature, the beast managed to run pretty fast to catch its prey. It let out many screeches of anger and adrenaline. The screeches almost sounded like many different voices combined into one. The cat was all black, and it ran with desperation to not be caught. It jumped and quickly climbed to the top of a tree, entering it through a hole.

Cytrus jumped from her horse, letting out a war scream. She pointed her cane, which now had a pointy and sharp metal end; directly at the beast’s head, stabbing right into its cranium.

The beast screeched once again, in three different voices. It opened its wings, revealing 2 eyes located on its back, looking directly at Cytrus. They were threatening, and with killing intent. She however, didn’t flinch. She smiled with glee, showing the beast her canine teeth. Branches and vines came down her arms, while her eyes turned completely red. She put all her weight on top of her cane-spear, stabbing through the beasts’ skull. More and more vines grabbed onto the beast’s paws, bringing it down with force. The spear finally pierced its skull. But this wasn’t enough for Cytrus. She flicked her hand and created a makeshift axe with the vines, branches and metal from her cane, to then cleanly cut the beasts’ head off. Many beastly crows flew away right as this happened. Cytrus was victorious, and even other beasts ran away in fear of her.

Thorn was completely speechless and afraid from what she just witnessed. Leaf was shocked as well. Berry was the less affected one by the whole ordeal. She looked at the beast with some sadness, leaning her head to the side.

-Why did you kill the doggy…?-

Cytrus laughed from the killing adrenaline. Her eyes were wide open, and her breath was agitated. She cleaned the black blood of the beast from her face, while the vines and branches from her arms started retracting and returning to her robe.

-This baby… Was a human once.-

She looked at the beast’s cadaver, with a serious but despicable look.

-I just ended its misery and suffering. It’s a good thing!-

She turned and faced the sisters, smiling. Like nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

-Ending its misery… I see…-

Berry said, almost as if she wanted to remember those words and write them down when they return home.

-Can we go on? I’m hungry…-

Rayna said, looking away.

Thorn shook her head, trying to forget the mental image.

-Wait…! What about the cat it was chasing?!-

-Ah, yes… the kitten.-

Cytrus approached the tree, to then grab her axe and cut it off from the bottom.

-Come, kitty, kitty!

The cat jumped out of its hiding spot. It approached the dead beast. Apparently, it was full of resentment, since his bright teal eyes looked in anger as he scratched the dead body while hissing.

-Oh. I like you.-

Cytrus said while grabbing the back of the cat and picking it up.

-Want to come with us?-

The cat meowed in affirmation.

-Fair enough!-

Cytrus put the cat on her shoulders, to then mount her horse.

-Alright… we can go on now.-

The horses started riding them back towards Cytrus’ home.

Berry looked at the cat, her eyes shined of adoration.

-OOOHHHHH! LOOOK AT HIIIIM! HE’S SO CUTE! CAN WE-

But Leaf interrupted her.

-No.-

Berry pouted. Thorn replied, apparently weak to the cat’s cuteness

-It doesn’t look like a beast so we could…-

But Leaf interceded once again.

-We already have Grumpy! And Berry always forgets to feed him!-

Berry laughed.

-That’s because dad does it!-

Leaf shook her head.

-I think lady Cytrus is keeping him so we can’t keep it either way.-

Just as Leaf said this, Cytrus loudly sneezed.

-Achoo!- Pheew… No… I can’t keep furry animals. I’m allergic.-

Thorn and Berry looked at each other and smiled, conspiring with each other.

-See? We can’t let it be homeless!-

-Well… Maybeee… we could…-

Leaf said, interrupted by Berry, who pointed at the cat and spoke.

-His name is Nyx!-

The cat meowed slowly, in disapproval.

-Awh, what’s wrong with Nyx?-

Berry said and pouted. Leaf pensively put her finger in her chin, thinking of it for a moment.

-What about…Nero?-

The cat meowed in the same way, almost as if it was trying to communicate with them.

-For the love of Magic, damn it! It’s just a cat! Just name it whatever you want!-

Cytrus said, impatient. Leaf laughed nervously.

-L-Let’s name it at home!-

They finally arrived at Cytrus’ home. A little makeshift boat was floating in the pond that surrounded the house. They had to ride it to get there if they didn’t want to wet their feet. Cytrus’ made them get into the boat while she saddled the shadowy horses back into some closeby trees. Once she did this, the horses de-materialized, going back to the shadows. Once everyone was in the boat, she got on it too, and rowed across the pond.

The cat jumped from Cytrus’ shoulders, as if it was anxious from getting close to that house.

-Are you okay, little buddy?-

Leaf said, while putting her hand on the top of its head, gently petting it.

It meowed more, again as if it was trying to structure sentences.

Cytrus started looking at it, squinting her eyes in suspicion. The cat meowed some more, and she smiled, shaking her head.

The cat suddenly jumped to the top of Leaf’s hat. She displayed a very big smile at this.

-I think he likes me!-

She now moved very carefully, trying not to move the cat too much. They finally arrived at the other side of the pond, where Cytrus and Rayna escorted them inside.

The inside of the house was very comfortable, opposite to the outside. Some trees grew across the stairs, filling it with color and nice air. It was very harmonious, almost symbiotic, as if without that small vegetation the house would tear apart. One little chandelier hung in the ceiling, dimly lighting the place. The walls were filled with bookshelves, which themselves were filled with countless texts.She even had sofas and tables decorating the living room. Almost no one in Suspiria had such accommodations.

The sisters all thought it was nice. Too nice, even.

-You may take off your masks. This is a Fog free space. I’ve made sure the runes keep it out, mostly.-

If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Rayna had already taken off her gas mask, and was sitting in one of the beast-skin couches.

Thorn and Berry didn’t know where to look. Everything was better than what they had imagined.

Leaf’s sight however was locked right at one thing and one thing only.

-Are those… books?-

Cytrus nodded.

-They are. Unorganized. very messy, but they’re books. You’re free to take whatever you like.-

Leaf continued looking. She was almost shaking with excitement, but stood her ground and didn’t approach the bookshelves.

-If I even try to search for something right now… I’ll probably go crazy… A-And we’re here to learn magic…! So… I’ll save that for later.-

Cytrus laughed, and then clapped to grab her daughter’s attention.

-Rayna! Take the shark into the kitchen! I’ll have Goliath take care of it. Thanks again, daughter.-

Rayna nodded and got up, to do just that. As she did this, Cytrus grabbed one couch and moved it to put it in front of the sisters. She sat down, putting her hands against her hips.

-Alright then. So… What exactly do you want to learn? Magic is so broad that… Well… One can’t really just randomly start.-

Berry and Thorn looked at Leaf, nodding. She’s the one who wanted this the most, so she had to choose.

-Well… Today we learnt about magic circles… But… I… did poorly… very poorly…-

-Ah! Magic circles it is!-

She suddenly got up, approaching the bookshelves, flicking her hand and materializing some very tiny glasses, but very thick glasses. She put them on, and started looking for one specific book.

-Magic circles… Magic circles… Mmmh… Oh! Here it is!-

She took off her glasses and grabbed a book, blowing on the dusty cover. The sisters coughed a little because of this, while she gave it to Leaf.

-You look like you learn better when you read something in a paper. So this will help you out.-

Cytrus said while closing her eyes and smiling. Leaf’s eyes glowed with excitement.

-Really? I can just take this… like that?-

Cytrus nodded. As soon as she did this Leaf smiled greatly and opened the book, immediately starting to go through its contents.

-That’s over and done… Now, you two. What aid do you require of me?-

Cytrus now looked directly at Berry and Thorn. Thorn nodded at Berry, indicating her to go first. Berry thought of it for a moment.

-Well… I did good! But maybe… I could learn more…?-

Thorn nodded, adding to Berry’s statement.

-Lady Carmine did say you were very… Explosive… So maybe you should practice controlling that more?-

Cytrus opened her eyes, in surprise, looking at them with awe and curiosity.

-Did you just say… Lady Carmine…?-

Berry replied.

-Yeah! She’s a teacher at our school! And she’s a butterfly lady!-

Thorn shook her head, smiling at Berry’s silliness. Cytrus on the other hand smiled maliciously, sitting back down on the couch.

-She teaches you… Alright… Tell me more about this… school of yours, yeah…?-

Rayna came back with a plate of shark bites. She sat down besides her mother, as Leaf continued reading in a trance, and Berry started telling their tale.

She told everything in detail. The way their father worked hard to get them into the school, the first day, the teachers, the forest spirit, their classes. She gave out all this information, completely trusting Cytrus. As Berry finished telling her story, Cytrus greatly smiled.

-Interesting… Very, very interesting, indeed… Say, Rayna… Sweet daughter of mine…-

Rayna looked at her.

-Would you… care… to enter this school?-

Cytrus stared right at her daughter’s eyes. As if she was trying to tell her something without speaking. Rayna sighed.

-If I have to.-

Cytrus nodded.

-Of course! And you wouldn’t be alone at all. The girls can become your friends, and you can teach them when I can’t. What do you say, girls?-

She smiled, excitedly.

Thorn thought about it for a moment.

-That’s a good idea, I’d say.-

Berry immediately got up from the sofa and approached Rayna, hugging her!

-YAAAY! NEW FRIEND! And that means we’ll be seeing each other a lot from now on!-

Rayna looked at her, not knowing how to react.

-Huh… Yeah… I guess it does…-

Thorn smiled a bit. She wasn’t fully convinced, but she only shrugged in approval.

Berry got up, and pointed in Cytrus' direction.

-BUT! You also have to teach us magic! We have to get ahead, remember?-

Cytrus smiled, she enjoyed Berry’s confidence and lack of fear.

-Yes, of course. Let’s get to it, shall we?-

She got up from the sofa, and started walking towards the stairs.

-We can head upstairs if you want to keep practicing magic circles.-

-Yes, yes, yes, yesss!-

Berry said, while excitedly looking at Thorn.

-Let’s go!-

-Go on without me… I’m fine here…-

Leaf said. She had already taken out her notebook and started practicing some magic circles from the book Cytrus gave her.

Thorn nodded and followed Berry, going upstairs.

Once they were there, they saw that some vines and branches were hanging at the ceiling, forming a magic circle. The star had many edges, and the circle was crooked. Thorn saw it, and commented on it.

-Wow.. That’s a… really tangled circle.-

Cytrus laughed.

-Circles are really just the base of everything. You can be a perfectionist or really barely try. What’s important is the intention and willpower you create it with. That is what’ll make the real difference.-

-Oooohhhh… So that means that the circle can be all crooked and the lines all twisted but if you really put your soul into it it’s bound to work?-

Cytrus laughed again.

-Kind of. You can try. And don’t worry about the form. Worry about the result.-

She gave them pencils and papers to try. Berry started immediately, sticking out her tongue and really trying to give it her own twist. Thorn also started drawing, although not as focused as Berry, but she really gave it her all.

-Now, don’t think only about the circle itself. Think about and focus on what you want to come out of the circle.-

Berry thought of the flare that she produced in Lady Carmine’s class, closing her eyes and focusing on the intent rather than the form.

Thorn continued thinking of what she wanted from that spell, maybe too much. She didn’t really come up with anything, and she frowned as she drew the circle. She felt the gaze of Cytrus’ malicious and red eyes behind her.

-Don’t think about what’s already done…-

She smiled and walked away. Thorn thought about her words, and continued drawing her circle, this time closing her eyes, taking a deep breath, and following her traces with her fingertips.

Pink smoke started coming out of her circle. Apparently she focused on that reaction after she saw the smoke coming out of Cytrus’ chimney. Berry opened her eyes after smelling it.

-Ohhh… So you can conjure smoke with the same circle? That’s so cool! I wanna try too!-

She put her hand on top of her paper, and a violent flare would come out of it, hitting the ceiling and scorching it, just as when she made the same spell back in class. Fortunately, it would extinguish quickly.

-OOOHHHH! DID I JUST DO THAT?!-

Berry said excitedly.

-Yes, you did.-

Cytrus said while slowly clapping.

-I advise you to practice this in a safer place. Stick to paper for now. On future occasions, we’ll try it with our fingers only.-

Thorn looked at Berry and smiled. Berry looked right back at her and smiled too. This was going very well.

-Oh, oh! I have a question!-

Berry said, and lifted her hand in the air.

-What other things can we do with magic circles…?-

Cytrus smiled, happy to teach them.

-Well… It really depends on what material you’re channeling the circle into. Let me show you…-

She took a piece of metal from a chestplate of old armor. Probably one that was worn by someone other than her, since it had a slimmer frame. She closed her eyes and started drawing a very complex magic circle on top of this chestplate. After touching the circle, she raised her hand, pulling something out of the armor. and A fencing sword materialized as she did this, made of the same material.

-Like this…-

Berry clapped in awe.

-OHHHH! So you drew the circle on metal… and made more metal…! But in the form of a sword! That’s amazing!-

She turned to face her sister.

-I wonder when we will be at the level to do something like that!-

Thorn was pensive about the spell they just saw. She was trying to understand it to its fullest.

-So… You’re basically creating things out of thin air… Magic is truly amazing.-

Cytrus laughed.

-Indeed it is. But that was a harder and more complex spell. For now, let’s focus on mastering those basic circles.-

Berry nodded.

-Alright then! How about you teach us another spell?-

Leaf was still downstairs, sitting in the same place and reading the same book with a lot of attention. Drawing and redrawing her magic circles. Several pieces of paper were scattered across the floor. In all of them there were traces and copies from the circles in the book. But it wasn't enough. She wanted to perfectly reproduce every corner of them exactly as they were. The cat laid inside of Leaf’s shirt. It was looking right at the book and her attempts, although he looked quite displeased with Leaf’s perfectionism. Everytime she acted paranoid and pushed too hard, it reacted by meowing or moving around inside her shirt. She sighed and replied to her cat. As if they really were speaking with each other.

-I know… But these ones really are no good at all! Look at them!-

She put her hand on those imperfect circles. Either nothing or very slight smoke would come out of them.

The cat looked up to see her, and then shook his head, caressing Leaf’s chin with his forehead. Afterwards, he took his paw out and started doing circles with it, trying to cheer her up.

Rayna was standing against the wall, looking at her. Apparently she was there all the time. She sighed and spoke.

-You know… It’s not about how perfect the drawing is. It’s about the intention behind it.-

Leaf punched the sofa with frustration.

-That doesn’t make any sense!-

Rayne shook her head, approaching her.

-Well that’s just the way it is. Try and do another one. This time make it really crappy. And focus only on your energy, on your willpower…-

-Huh…-

The cat came out of her shirt, standing on the floor beside her. It seemed intrigued on how she would do this next circle, but apparently sensed her nervousness and anxiety. As such, he walked between her legs, meowing as words of encouragement.

-Okay, okay! I will try it…-

She drew a circle again, this time not paying as much attention to detail. She closed her eyes and put her hand against it. A very small flame came out of the paper, and it would almost immediately extinguish. She would sigh, frustrated.

-It’s still bad.-

The cat would meow with emotion. It was the best result yet.

-You’re so focused on what’s “good” or “bad” that you don’t see your improvement. That was definitely your best attempt yet.-

Leaf looked at the paper, for a moment. Realizing her mistake.

-R-Really…?!-

The cat meowed in excitement again, walking in circles around that paper. Almost as if he was saying that one was good.

-Huh.. I guess… Maybe…-

Leaf’s confused face would slowly turn into a smile.

-I guess you are right! That… was definitely an improvement! I DID IMPROVE!-

She threw herself to the floor, and hugged the cat, incredibly happy.

The cat continued meowing and touching her with his paws. Rayna smiled for a second, before returning to her neutral facial expression.

As this happened, they were able to hear the other two girls and woman walking down the stairs. They all were smiling, even Cytrus.

-Time to wrap everything up! It’s late.-

-Oh!-

Leaf said while putting the cat back into the ground, grabbing her papers and storing them in her backpack as quickly as she could. Everything was so scattered around that it definitely would take her more time to finish.

-S-Sorry! I was so focused that I didn’t watch the time… I made such a mess…-

Cytrus shook her head, still smiling.

-It’s alright, don’t sweat it. You can keep the book, by the way.-

Leaf’s eyes would flare up with happiness, excitement and joy. The cat was lifting some papers from the ground, and storing them in her backpack.

-I CAN???!!! OH MY…! THANK YOU! I’M SO SO SO THANKFUL!-

She was very quiet for the most part, but this made her too excited to not scream. She continued picking up the papers, lifting the cat in her arms.

Berry’s eyes were closing, the extra lessons had really drained her energy.

-I’m… eepyy…-

Cytrus put her hand against her mouth, to then cough. After looking at her hand, she put it against her back, almost as she was hiding something.

-Alright, girls… Go… Rayna will take you home.-

Rayna nodded and approached the door.

-Let’s go.-

Leaf looked at Cytrus, identifying some pain in that cough. She then looked at Rayna, a little worried.

-Is your mom okay…?-

Rayna didn’t answer. She just stood silent and went out to prepare the boat. Thorn looked at Leaf and shook her head. It wasn’t wise to push further.

The three sisters and Rayna went into the small boat and crossed the Pond. Afterward, they rode two of the shadowy horses and put on their gas masks. They returned to that same empty spot where they invoked Cytrus. Rayna didn’t say or wave goodbye. After they came off the horses, she just started riding away. Thorn and Leaf both grabbed Berry’s hand, who was almost asleep by now, and started walking back home.