Chapter 49: Who.. Are You?

Esme stared, dumbstruck by this girl approaching her. She wasn't a werewolf or vampire. Their scent wasn't the same; in fact, she was a human, or was she? Her scent was not quite right, almost like her hair had been burned, but it was perfectly fine. She tilted her head to the side, scrutinising this girl, her grip on the knife loosening, deeming her not a threat. Yet. 

Fake human or not, Esme could not let her guard down. 

"Seriously, at least the vampires clean up after themselves, but rogues.. ugh, you're all the same. But YOU, how have you killed five people in one night?!" The girl continued, her demeanour still casual at the bloody sight before her and the she-wolf crouched over the bodies. 

Esme's gaze followed the girl's back to the bodies by her feet. Was this girl bad at counting or.. She shook her head; now was not the time for jokes, plus who was she to scold her? 

"Who.. are you?" Esme drawled quietly, her weight shifting on one foot to the other in her crouched position as her attention flickered between this 'human' and the lavender smelling phantom in the woods. But that lavender smell was decreasing, and the she-wolf gritted her teeth in annoyance at this disruption. She could follow them into the abyss and be jumped on, or she could work out who Blondie was.

"Who am I.. Who are you, rogue?" The girl asked, rummaging through her leather satchel and bringing out a small navy velvet pouch. 

Esme watched almost in a trance as this 'human' sprinkled some powder across the dead she-wolf's body. Esme's eyes widened slightly as a sizzling sound filled the air and within seconds, the body shrunk to the size of her hand. The she-wolf shuffled back, her mouth agape as the blonde-haired girl repeated the process, and in between, there were three doll-sized dead bodies.

The fu... What did she just see? Was that real?

"Jeese, you don't look well.." The girl muttered, eying her warily. "If it weren't for Grannie, I would remove this meeting from your memories." 

Esme narrowed her eyes, her grip tightening on her knife as she straightened up, regaining her composure. "You're.. a-"

"Witch, yes, yes.." She flapped her hand impatiently like she had had this conversation many times. "Now help me bury these. It's the least you can do." Then upon seeing the small bodies on the ground, she sighed. "I didn't bring the right powder it seems. They were meant to disintegrate, not shrink," She pouted with a frown. 

Esme opened her mouth and closed it again, words lost on her; even though she was a werewolf, it was weird standing before a witch. She knew there was a possibility of witches, but none had seen any in centuries and, in turn, became more like legends. Yet, here before her was a witch. 

A witch looking very.. ordinary. She wore sneakers, jeans and a jumper with a jacket, nothing magical looking, no wand or broom. Just a very ordinary girl around the same age as her. Esme had been staring at her while she started digging a hole with her hands in the mud.

"Is it really that hard to clear up after yourself? They're not exactly their usual size now," Blondie girl snapped, annoyance apparent on her tanned features. 

"Why don't you just get that other powder to get rid of them?" Esme suggested, unconcerned with the girl's glare.

"I am NOT putting dead bodies in my bag, thank you!" By now, she had already placed the small werewolves into the hole and covered it up with dirt again. 

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Esme shrugged then and decided it was her time to leave. Even if her curiosity was piqued at the idea of witches being a real thing in the world, she needed to move on now and find a place to stay. Sheathing her knife, Esme turned around she started to walk away.

"Hey! Hold on there you!" 

Esme sighed and looked at Blondie, stepping back warily as she continued to approach her, determination set on the girl's face. She reached forwards, her hand wrapping around Esme's wrist, but before the she-wolf could swat her away, the whole world spun and became distorted. Her stomach flipped, and Esme felt queasy, her body shook, and her knees weakened. 

She didn't know which way was up and thought she was floating. A sharp pain went behind her eyes, and her hearing became muffled. Then when she felt her vision about to go, the world stopped, and she slumped forwards, dropping to her knees and clasping at her head from the pounding of a headache and shut her eyes for a moment.

Opening them again, Esme realised she was on the floor of a shop she had recognised. The small space filled with the café's tables; the chairs lifted atop the table surface with the floors smelling of a lemon bleach smell from where it was recently cleaned. The sign on the door was flipped over, the lights off except for a dim one shining in from an open door that read staff only. 

Only a few crumbs were left in the clear counter where pies and cakes were usually kept. 

"Oh dear, Kasia. Did you not tell the poor she-wolf to close her eyes during transportation?" An older, kind woman's voice made Esme look away from the café she'd only been to twice and into the brown eyes of Grannie. She was in a knitted pink jumper and trousers with dark pink glasses on her head.

"There wasn't much time.. She was going to run off, so.."

"So, Kasia here decided to kidnap me.." Esme finished off for Blondie, or well, Kasia.

"It's not kidnapping.. we just want to have a few words." Kasia crossed her arms and looked at Esme sternly. 

Esme pushed herself off from the ground, holding onto a nearby table before her legs could buckle beneath her again, and she felt like everything was normal again. "A few words, huh.." She stumbled forwards and away from Grannie's outstretched hands to help her. 

"You gonna tie me to a chair and throw magic potions on me until I speak?" She smirked, gaining her balance once more as she made it to the front door.

"It is nothing like that, dear. I asked Kasia to bring you here.. I hoped it was on better terms, but you keep leaving bodies out in the open," Grannie spoke up, halting Esme any further to opening the door. She looked back at the dim light shining on their faces from the open door behind them and almost licked her lips when the sudden appearance of a pie on a plate showed up on Grannie's hand.

Esme took a step forward then stopped, eying her hand suspiciously. "It is not poisoned or has any potions in. It should help you back on your feet and remove the tension in your muscles from all that fighting," Grannie explained, and Esme couldn't help but feel more intrigued by these women. 

By now, she would have already made an escape or attacked them; they were very suspicious, but there was something comforting about Grannie, the warmth in her eyes made her surrender. Her instincts told her that Grannie and somehow Kasia would not hurt her. 

It couldn't hurt to listen to them, right?

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